CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/702,649, filed Jul. 24, 2018, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The invention relates generally to railcars, and more particularly to railcars for shipping automotive vehicles.

For many years, autorack railcars have been used for shipment of automotive vehicles. Shipping by rail can significantly reduce costs as compared with shipping by tractor-trailer.

Prior art autorack railcars as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 typically have side walls that comprise a row of vertical posts extending along each side of the railcar, with vertical columns of rectangular side screens supported between adjacent posts. The side screens typically provide security for the vehicles being transported, while also having vent openings to avoid undesirably high concentrations of automobile exhaust in the railcar interiors.

A roof extends across the width of the car between the side walls. Some prior art roof structures comprise a series of roof structure segments, including end segments made of corrugated 14 gauge (0.0785 in. thick) galvanized steel or non-corrugated ¼ in. plate, and intermediate segments made of corrugated 16 gauge (0.0635 in. thick) galvanized steel, with each roof sheet having a longitudinal dimension of about 4 ft., 3 in., i.e., about 51 in., with 22 roof structure segments arranged in series on a railcar having a total length of about 90 ft. The longitudinal dimension of some prior art segments is about 4 ft., 3⅜ in., i.e., about 51⅜ in., with overlaps providing an effective length of about 4 ft. for each segment. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, some prior art roofs include a horizontal top central portion, with inner sloped portions extending downward and outward therefrom, and outer sloped portions extending downward and outward more steeply from the inner sloped portions. Roof rails extend along the sides of the roof. The vertical dimension of some prior art roof structures including the roof rails is about 2 ft., 8¾ in.

One factor that limits the number of vehicles that can be shipped on an individual autorack railcar is that height limits are imposed on railcars due to the presence of bridges, tunnels and other obstructions over the railways. Railroad regulations specifying a maximum height at the center of the railcar, and lower maximum heights at certain distances from the center. The prior art includes 19′-0″ ATR auto racks meeting AAR Plate J specifications, and 20′2″ auto racks meeting AAR Plate K specifications.

Another factor that can limit the number of vehicles is the need to maintain the center of gravity (Cg) of the loaded railcar at or below a certain height above the top of the rail (ATR) for stability. The center of gravity is affected by the weight of the vehicles being transported, and the height of the centers of gravity of the vehicles being transported, which can vary significantly between, e.g., relatively tall vehicles such as conventional gasoline-powered SUV's as compared with, e.g., certain electric vehicles that have a relatively low profile, with weight concentrated in batteries near the bottom of the vehicle.

Bi-level autorack railcars are often used to ship automotive vehicles that have relatively high vertical dimensions, such as pick-up trucks, mini-vans and sport utility vehicles. Tri-level railcars are typically preferred for shipping lower height passenger cars. Tri-level cars can accommodate a larger number of shorter vehicles than bi-level cars, thus increasing load factor and lowering the cost of transportation of such vehicles.

The demand for bi-level and tri-level autorack cars in North America at any time depends on the mix between shorter and taller vehicles being transported in North America, which in turn depends on multiple ever-changing factors, e.g., (1) customer demand in various regions, (2) percentages of vehicle types being built in various regions, and (3) percentages of vehicle types arriving at various ports. There is a need for railcars that can easily be modified between bi-level and tri-level configurations to accommodate changes in demand.

Many tri-level railcars have been constructed by building racks on flat cars. In some cases, the racks may be built on new flat cars that are custom built for autorack use. In other cases, the racks may be built on flat cars that have been built and used previously for other commercial rail service. In the latter case, the flat cars may exhibit configurational variation as a result of strain incurred while in service. This may impose challenges relating to construction of the racks, but nevertheless may be more desirable than using new flat cars, for economic and/or environmental reasons. In either case, the deck of the flat car typically functions as the first deck of the tri-level car, and the second and third decks are supported by the rack. The first, second, and third decks are commonly referred to as the A, B, and C decks respectively.

End doors to provide enhanced security in autorack cars are described, e.g., in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,995,563, 4,936,227, 5,829,360 and 5,765,486, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. End doors typically include locking pins that engage the A deck, a fixed upper deck, and in some cases, the roof. In some cases, the locking pin enters the fixed upper deck from above, as shown in FIG. 1 of the '360 patent. The prior art also includes arrangements in which the locking pin enters a fixed upper deck of a bi-level car from below the deck.

One of the challenges in adapting flat cars for tri-level autorack use is that a low flat car deck height may be desirable for Cg purposes and overhead clearance purposes, but a low deck height can create bottom clearance issues relative to draft gear housing. The bottom clearance issues have typically been addressed through the use of ramps near the ends of the flat car, which raise the deck height near the ends of the flat car. Such ramps enable the flat car deck to have a central low portion along most of its length, providing a sufficiently low Cg for the loaded railcar, while providing adequate bottom clearance for most automotive vehicles to clear the draft gear housing near the ends.

Tri-level cars typically have hinged end sections on their B decks that can be raised to provide clearance for automobiles being loaded on the A deck. The hinged end sections are manually raised and lowered during loading and unloading operations. The hinged end sections are placed in their lowered positions to support automobiles.

In conventional tri-level cars heretofore used in commercial rail service, adequate clearance is generally not maintained if the same number of vehicles is loaded on the A deck as on the B and C decks, requiring a reduced number of vehicles to be transported on the A deck. While the B and C decks can generally accommodate five typical passenger cars each in a conventional tri-level railcar, the A deck can typically carry only four. Thus, the load factor for conventional tri-level railcars is 14 for most passenger cars. Where four vehicles are carried on the A deck, the automobiles in the end positions typically are inclined due to their location on the ramps.

With conventional tri-level cars, shippers must spend significant amounts of time determining the load makeup of a shipment. Load makeup refers to the specific types of vehicles loaded at specific positions in a railcar. Because conventional tri-level cars have different clearances on different decks and at different positions within individual decks, only specific types of automobiles can be loaded at specific positions. Thus, loading a conventional tri-level car entails locating vehicles that can fit within each position and arranging all of the vehicles on the car to use the available capacity efficiently. In some cases, if no automobiles are being shipped that fit within a particular position, the position remains empty, which can increase the number of railcars required to ship a particular number of automobiles.

As consumers' preferences among different types of automobiles fluctuate due to economic factors such as changes in fuel prices as well as non-economic factors, the mix of automobiles being shipped by rail changes and the demand for various types of vehicle-carrying railcars fluctuates, as do the load makeup decisions. Increased demand for tri-level autorack railcars has been met in part by construction of new tri-level autorack railcars. Many older tri-level cars have a height of about 19 ft., 0 in ATR. Many cars constructed in recent years have a height of about 20 ft., 2 in. ATR, taking advantage of increased clearances that have become available in certain areas in recent years. The increased height can enable taller automotive vehicles to be carried on the tri-level cars, thereby help to alleviate some of the constraints on load makeup with shorter autorack railcars.

When demand for tri-level autorack railcars increases simultaneously with a decrease in demand for bi-level autorack railcars, conversion of bi-level autorack railcars to tri-level autorack railcars may be particularly desirable. In the past, autorack railcars having a height of about 19 ft., 0 in. ATR have been converted to autorack railcars having a height of about 20 ft., 2 in. by adding post extensions and adding a row of side screens above the existing side screens. U.S. Pat. No. 8,302,538, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, describes another method of converting a bi-level railcar to a tri-level railcar that comprises severing each of the posts between the flat car and the roof structure, thereby dividing the posts into upper and lower portions, possibly without disconnecting the upper portions of the posts from the roof structure; removing upper portions of the posts with the roof structure; removing the upper deck from the portions of the posts to which it was affixed; adjusting the height of the upper deck and affixing the upper deck to portions of the posts; affixing a second upper deck to portions of the posts; adding extensions to portions of the posts; and assembling the portions of the posts and the extensions. While prior art conversion methods such as those described above may be useful, these methods can be expensive, and can increase the height of the railcar's center of gravity significantly. There is a continuing need for improved methods that reduce the time and cost of conversions, while also reducing increases in the height of the railcar's center of gravity.

SUMMARY

There is provided a method of increasing the height of a railcar comprising removing the roof of the railcar, and replacing the roof with an increased height roof structure comprising a horizontal top center portion, sloping intermediate portions extending downward and outward from the top center portion, and side wall extension portions extending downward from the intermediate portions, wherein the side wall extension portions eliminate the need to extend side wall post height or add side screens. In some embodiments, the side wall extension portions are vertical. In some embodiments, the side wall extension portions are substantially vertical, within 10° of vertical, within 5° of vertical, within 2° of vertical, or within 1° of vertical.

In some embodiments, the roof structure comprises a series of roof segments that are arranged along the length of the railcar with edges overlapping sufficiently to permit adjacent segments to be attached by fasteners such as HuckBolts, by welding, and/or by other suitable means. In some embodiments, each segment is an integral, one-piece, unitary structure that includes a horizontal top center portion, sloping intermediate portions, and vertical side wall extension portions.

In some embodiments, each segment of the roof structure may consist of a single sheet of material such as corrugated metal. In some embodiments, the corrugated metal may comprise galvanized steel, another steel material that has a protective coating to prevent or delay oxidation, aluminum, stainless steel, or other materials. The roof structure material preferably is light in weight to facilitate provision of an acceptably low center of gravity while also being strong enough to be self-supporting and to provide protection for vehicles transported within the railcar. The roof structure may also contribute strength and stiffness to the railcar structure. In some embodiments, the roof structure may comprise a series of roof structure segments, including end segments made of 14 gauge (0.0785 in. thick) galvanized steel, and intermediate segments made of 16 gauge (0.0635 in. thick) galvanized steel, with each roof sheet having a longitudinal dimension of about 4 ft., with the roof sheets at the ends of the car being of 14 gauge galvanized steel, with 22 roof structure segments arranged in series on a railcar having a total length of about 90 ft. In some embodiments, each roof sheet may have a longitudinal dimension of between 51 in. and 52 in., or about 4 ft., 3⅜ in. It is believed that the methods described herein can provide advantages with respect to efficiency and cost of conversion, as well as with respect to maintaining an acceptably low center of gravity for the autorack car during transport of automotive vehicles.

In some embodiments, the methods may be used in converting autorack railcars from bi-level to tri-level configuration in conjunction with steps such as augmenting internal deck configuration by adjusting the height of or replacing the existing bi-level upper deck, and adding a second upper deck. The bi-level autorack car may have a height of, e.g., about 19 ft., 0 in. ATR, and may be converted into a tri-level autorack car having a height of about 20 ft., 2 in., with substantially vertical side wall extension portions having a vertical dimension of at least 12 in.

In some embodiments, the new roof structure has a vertical dimension of about 3 ft., 10¾ in., and replaces a roof structure having a vertical dimension of about 2 ft., 8¾ in. In other embodiments, the method may be used with railcars and roof structures of other dimensions. The method may also be used to increase the height of an autorack railcar without increasing the number of decks.

In some embodiments, the side wall extension portions cooperate with side screens to effectively increase side wall height without requiring additional side wall structure such as side screens or post extensions, with the side wall extension portions being lighter in average weight per unit area than the combined average weight per unit area of the side posts and side screens.

In some embodiments, ladders may be provided on each side near both ends of the railcars as is conventional, with spacing between the ladders and the side wall to permit a radial door to open with part of the door being between the ladder and the side wall. To facilitate worker access to a higher upper deck after conversion, convenience grabs or hand-holds may be provided on the side wall extension portions of the roof to facilitate use of the ladders. . . . In some embodiments, one or more convenience grabs or hand-holds may be provided near the top of each end door above the elevation of the top rung of each ladder, so that when the door is open, the convenience grab or hand-hold is positioned directly above the top rung of the ladder.

The method may include providing end door extensions to increase end door height, or replacing existing end doors with taller end doors. The end doors may be radial end doors such as Seal Safe end doors that have portions extending over the top of the roof and that are pivotally supported on the roof by such portions, or may be other types of end doors.

In some embodiments, the method can be used to increase overall height of a railcar in conjunction with conversion between a unilevel configuration, a bi-level configuration and a tri-level configuration by adding or removing one or more decks.

In some embodiments, when the railcar is in a bi-level configuration, a third deck may be added by first removing the roof of the bi-level car, then using an overhead crane and/or other apparatus to lower the upper deck or B deck of the bi-level car, then using an overhead crane and/or other apparatus to lower an additional deck into position as the C deck, and thereafter replacing the roof.

In some embodiments, a bi-level autorack car may be built to the maximum allowed height with an upper deck bolted in place. The upper deck may have hinged end sections locked in the “level” position. That is, the B deck of the bi-level railcar may have pivotable end sections of the type normally used on the B deck of tri-level railcars, with the pivotable end sections being secured in place and not pivoted during normal operation of the bi-level railcar. The car may have a bolt-on roof structure. The car may be converted to a tri-level configuration by removing the bolt-on roof structure, repositioning the intermediate deck downward to the “tri-level” position with the end sections able to pivot up and down, installing from the top a second fixed end deck at its “tri-level” position, and reattaching the roof structure. The car could be converted back to a bi-level configuration by reversing these steps.

In some embodiments, a bi-level autorack car may be built with a lower deck that has ends at a first elevation and a region of reduced elevation between the ends, similar to the lower deck configuration of conventional tri-level autorack cars, and with hinged end sections on the upper deck. The hinged end sections may be similar to those used in conventional tri-level railcars, and may be raised and lowered during loading and unloading of the bi-level railcar. In some embodiments, the hinged end sections are about 18 ft. long, and their ends are capable of being raised by about 9 in. to facilitate loading of the A deck with light trucks, e.g., pick-up trucks, as well as SUV's and vans. After loading or unloading, the hinged end sections may be lowered to generally horizontal transport positions, creating a flat B deck.

Where hinged B deck end sections are provided, a B deck may provide less structural support for the autorack railcar than a B deck with fixed end sections. To avoid excessive distortion of the autorack structure such as racking or “match boxing” in which the upper deck moves transversely relative to the lower deck in response to certain dynamic loads, braces or other structural enhancements may be employed to compensate for reduced structural support associated with hinged end sections.

In some embodiments, locking pins are provided to enable end doors to be locked in open positions during loading and unloading, and in closed positions at other times. In these embodiments, each end door may have an upper locking pin and a lower locking pin. Each of the locking pins may be supported for longitudinal vertical displacement in a bracket mounted on an inside surface of the door. To lock the door in closed position, the upper locking pin may engage an opening near the center of an upper deck, and the lower locking pin may engage an opening in the A deck. To lock the door in open position, the upper and lower locking pins may engage respective openings near outer edges of the upper deck and A deck respectively. In some such embodiments, the upper locking pin may be positioned to engage the upper deck from beneath the upper deck, with the upper locking pin bracket positioned beneath the upper deck, and optionally with the opening(s) in the upper deck for receiving the locking pins when the doors are closed being in hinged end sections of the upper deck.

In some embodiments, a conventional bi-level (which does not have hinged end sections on its B deck) may be converted to a tri-level of increased height having hinged end sections on its B deck by the following method: removing the roof; removing the “B” deck; inserting a new “B” deck with hinged ends; re-installing the “B” deck as a “C” deck; and installing a new increased height roof structure with side wall extension portions as described above.

Other embodiments comprise building a mixed use bi-level railcar with a roof structure having vertical side wall extension portions as described herein, in which the B deck is mounted much higher than in conventional bi-level railcars, e.g., at the height of the C deck in a tri-level railcar. A bi-level car with this configuration may be used to transport tall vans such as Ram ProMaster vans, Ford Transit vans, Mercedes Sprinter vans or other tall vehicles on its A deck while transporting conventional vehicles on its B deck.

Another embodiment comprises building a mixed use bi-level railcar with a roof structure having vertical side wall extension portions as described herein, in which the B deck is mounted lower than in conventional bi-level railcars, e.g., at the height of the B deck in a conventional tri-level car. A bi-level car with this configuration may be used to transport tall vans such as Sprinter vans or other tall vehicles on its B deck while transporting conventional vehicles on its A deck. This type of bi-level car can be built by removing the C deck from a tri-level railcar by any of the methods described in this application, and providing an increased height roof structure as described herein.

In some embodiments in which greater clearance is provide on one deck than the other, the deck with greater clearance may have a clearance of, e.g., over 99 in., over 100 in., or over 110 in., or over 111 in. More specifically, in some embodiments, the deck with greater clearance may have a clearance of, e.g., 99 in. to 111 in., 99 in. to 102 in., 109 to 111 in., about 110 in., or other clearances suitable for the vehicles intended to be transported. In one particular configuration.

In any of the above embodiments, the railcar may have a height of about 20 ft., 2 in. ATR. In some embodiments, a series of connected bi-level railcars may have varying B-deck heights, with a first railcar having a B-deck height of 10 ft., 10 ¾ in. ATR, a second car adjacent thereto having a B deck height about 3 in. less, i.e., about 10 ft. 7¾ in.; and with a third car adjacent the second one having a B deck height of 3 in. less than that of the second car, i.e., about 10 ft. 4¾ in. A string of five auto rack railcars is often circus loaded in a single operation. Providing varying B deck heights in which adjacent railcars' B deck heights are within 3 in. of each other as described above would enable railcars with varying deck heights and varying clearances to be loaded in a single cascade circus loading operation. Alternatively, or additionally, a small ramp having a length of, e.g., 24 in. or less, may be provided at the ends of each B deck, with the ramp being capable of adjusting up 3 in. on each of the two running surfaces to facilitate circus loading among railcars with B decks at different heights. Where B decks with hinged end sections are employed, the above dimensions and descriptions are applicable to B decks in their transport positions.

A method of installing a removable roof structure on an autorack railcar having at least one deck for supporting automotive vehicles, side walls extending upward from the deck, and end doors which are movable between open positions in which access to the railcar interior is permitted, and closed positions in which the interior of the railcar will be fully enclosed to prevent unauthorized access after installation of the roof, may comprise installing removable longitudinal roof supports on upper portions of the side walls, and welding or otherwise attaching the roof structure to the longitudinal roof supports. Installing removable longitudinal roof supports on upper portions of the side walls may comprise bolting longitudinal members such as angle members or channel members to upper ends of side wall posts.

The railcars built or converted by the methods described herein may comprise, for example, a tri-level railcar capable of transporting in commercial rail service increased percentages of passenger cars having certain predetermined characteristics with a load factor of at least 15, comprising: a pair of side walls; end doors at each end of the railcar; and first, second and third decks. The railcar may have substantially equal top and bottom clearances above each of said decks to enable automobiles having the predetermined characteristics to be loaded onto, transported to a destination on, and unloaded from all decks of the railcar using circus loading and unloading techniques, without the need to raise end portions of the second deck to provide increased vertical clearance for loading on the A deck, and without any clearance-related restrictions as to which individual automobiles are in which positions on the decks during transport of automobiles on the railcar. Each of the decks may provide sufficient clearance to permit any automobile having the predetermined characteristics to be driven from a first end to a second end of the deck at a speed up to about 5 mph without any portion of the passenger car, other than the tires, contacting the deck. Each of the decks may be substantially horizontal along substantially the entire length of each deck. The railcar may in some embodiments have an empty weight of no more than about 116,000 lbs. In some embodiments, the railcar, when fully loaded at up to about 24,000 lbs. per deck with vehicles having the predetermined characteristics, may have a center of gravity or Cg no greater than 98 in. ATR. The railcar may have a removable roof structure and a fully enclosed interior. The removable roof structure may be secured to the side walls by fasteners that are readily accessible from the interior but not from outside the railcar.

In some embodiments, the center of gravity of the railcar may be maintained at an acceptably low elevation while substantially eliminating the conventional height variations and ramps on the A deck. Elimination of the above-described variations in A deck height in prior art tri-levels may not only alleviate ground clearance concerns associated with certain high performance automobiles that have lower spoilers, but may also eliminate or reduce the need to provide extra clearance for vertical movement or bouncing associated with the ramps near the ends of the A deck.

The railcar may comprise a unit car, i.e., a railcar having a monocoque body, or may comprise a rack built on a conventional flat car, a low-level flat car, an upsill flat car, or a flat car having a 39½ ATR running surface. In one approach where a flat car having a 39½ ATR running surface is employed, the railcar has an overall height of approximately 20′-2″. The B and C decks may be permanently fixed, i.e. bolted or welded in place along their entire length, rather than having hinged end sections as in the prior art cars discussed above. In some embodiments, the A deck does not include ramps of the type described above which automobiles must travel up or down during loading and unloading, or rest on in an inclined orientation during transportation, but instead the A deck is substantially horizontal with only minor variations in elevation.

In some embodiments, there is provided a tri-level autorack railcar in which the clearances above each of the three decks are approximately equal. A minimum clearance of about 64 to 66 in., measured near the deck end 30″ off center may be provided for each of the decks. For the C deck, the minimum clearance may need to be measured from the deck to roof-mounted door hardware such as hardware associated with a roof-mounted radial door pivot, which may be as much as 1 to 2 in. below the roof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an end view of a prior art tri-level autorack railcar.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a tri-level autorack railcar made from the railcar of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a prior art bi-level autorack railcar.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of an increased height bi-level autorack railcar made from the railcar of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of an increased height tri-level autorack railcar made from the railcar of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments described herein comprise a method of shipping automobiles, a railcar for shipping automobiles, and methods of manufacturing and converting railcars for shipping automobiles.

FIG. 1 illustrates a prior art tri-level autorack railcar that may be converted into the increased height tri-level railcar of FIG. 2. The railcar of FIG. 2 comprises a flat car 12 having a rack structure constructed thereon. The flat car has a deck 14 that functions as the A deck of the railcar. The A deck may be at substantially at the same elevation along its entire length. The rack structure comprises a plurality of vertical posts 16, and B and C decks 18 and 20 respectively supported by the posts. Side screens 44 are supported between adjacent pairs of posts on each side of the railcar.

Each of the decks is connected directly to the posts to be supported thereby. Knee braces 24 add strength and stiffness. Tire guides 26 and a chock track 28 are provided on each deck. Longitudinal members 36 such as roof rails and/or top chords tie the vertical posts together at their upper ends.

A corrugated increased height roof structure 32 encloses the top of the car. The increased height roof structure comprises a horizontal top center portion 40, inner intermediate portions 42 extending downward and outward on each side of the top center portion, outer/lower intermediate portions 43 extending downward and outward from the inner intermediate portions 42 on each side of the roof structure, and vertical side wall extension portions 30 extending downward from the outer/lower intermediate portions 43 on each side of the roof structure.

A pair of radial end doors enclose each end of the car. One end door is shown at 34 in FIG. 2. Minimum clearances of h_a, h_band h_c, measured 30″ off center, are maintained above the A, B and C decks respectively. The minimum clearances may be equal or approximately equal, and may be, e.g., between 64 and 66 in.

The railcar may be based on a low-level flat car, a conventional flat car, an upsill flat car, or a flat car having a 39½″ ATR (above top of rail) running surface. To facilitate maintenance of appropriate clearances, high cambered decks may be employed at both the B and C level. The overall height of the railcar is preferably equal to the maximum height permissible in North America under applicable AAR regulations, i.e., about 20′ 2″.

In some embodiments, when the railcar is in a bi-level configuration, a third deck may be added by first removing the roof of the bi-level car, then lowering the upper deck or B deck of the bi-level car, then lowering an additional deck into position as the C deck using an overhead crane or other suitable equipment, and thereafter replacing the original roof with an increased height roof structure as shown at 32 in FIG. 2.

In some embodiments, a bi-level autorack car may be built to the maximum allowed height with an upper deck bolted in place. The upper deck of the bi-level car may have hinged end sections locked in the “level” position. That is, the B deck of the bi-level railcar may have pivotable end sections of the type normally used on the B deck of tri-level railcars, with the pivotable end sections being secured in place and not pivoted during normal operation of the bi-level railcar. The car may have a bolt-on roof. The car may be converted to a tri-level configuration by removing the bolt-on roof, repositioning the B deck downward from the bi-level B deck position to the tri-level B deck position and enabling the end sections of the B deck to pivot up and down, adding a third deck by lowering it through the open top into the “tri-level” C deck position, fixing it in place, e.g., by bolting or welding, and replacing the original roof with an increased height roof structure having vertical side wall extensions 30 as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3 illustrates a prior art bi-level railcar that may be converted to an increased height autorack car such as that of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 by replacing its roof with an increased height roof structure 116. The increased height roof structure comprises a horizontal top center portion 40, inner intermediate portions 42 extending downward and outward on each side of the top center portion, outer/lower intermediate portions 43 extending downward and outward from the inner intermediate portions 42 on each side of the roof structure, and vertical side wall extension portions 30 extending downward from the outer/lower intermediate portions 43 on each side of the roof structure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an increased height bi-level autorack car 108 having a first deck 110, a plurality of posts 114 extending upward on opposite sides thereof, a second deck 112 supported on the posts 114 above the first deck, and a roof 116. Braces 118 extend upward and inward from the posts to the second deck 112. The lower/outer ends of the braces are joined to plates 120 which extend upward from the braces to the sides of the deck. The plates 120 are preferably removably attached to posts 114 by bolts or other means to facilitate adjustment of deck position.

The bi-level car of FIG. 3 may be converted to the increased height tri-level car of FIG. 5 by removing the roof, disconnecting the upper deck 112 from the posts, lowering it and securing it in the position shown in FIG. 5, securing a new “C” deck 122 above it, and replacing the original roof with an increased height roof structure 116.

The new C deck 122 may have braces 118 and connecting plates 120, attached thereto prior to installation. The braces and connecting plates may be bolted or otherwise fastened to the posts or other structure to secure the deck 122.

The bi-level car of FIG. 20 may alternatively be converted to the tri-level car of FIG. 22 by other methods described herein. The tri-level car of FIG. 22 may be converted to the bi-level car of FIG. 20 by reversing the steps of any of the methods described herein for converting bi-level cars to tri-level cars.

One additional method of converting railcars comprises converting a bi-level or tri-level auto-rack railcar to a unilevel railcar by removing the roof structure to facilitate crane access to the railcar interior; removing one or more decks from the railcar using a crane; and replacing the original roof with an increased height roof structure as described herein to provide an interior space that is capable of accommodating and enclosing vehicles of a height greater than the spacing between the decks of the bi-level or tri-level car.

Another additional method comprises building a mixed use bi-level railcar in which the B deck is mounted much higher than in conventional bi-level railcars, e.g., at the height of the C deck in a tri-level railcar. A bi-level car with this configuration may be used to transport tall vans such as Sprinter vans or other tall vehicles on its A deck while transporting conventional vehicles on its B deck. This type of bi-level car can be built by removing the B deck from a tri-level railcar by any of the methods described in this application without other major structural changes.

Another additional method comprises building a mixed use bi-level railcar in which the B deck is mounted lower than in conventional bi-level railcars, e.g., at the height of the B deck in a conventional tri-level car. A bi-level car with this configuration may be used to transport tall vans such as Sprinter vans or other tall vehicles on its B deck while transporting conventional vehicles on its A deck. This type of bi-level car can be built by removing the C deck from a tri-level railcar by any of the methods described in this application without other major structural changes.

A method of installing a removable roof on an autorack railcar may comprise installing removable longitudinal roof supports 140 on upper portions of the side walls, and thereafter attaching the increased height roof structure 116 to the removable longitudinal roof supports. Installing removable longitudinal roof supports on upper portions of the side walls may comprise bolting them to upper ends of side wall posts. The increased height roof structure 116 may comprise a plurality of sections, or may be one piece, end to end, with no transitions. The roof structure 116 may have offsets at its ends for radial end doors.

The roof supports 140 may comprise generally L-shaped angle members extending the entire length of the railcar along each side. Each roof support may comprise a horizontal bottom portion and a vertical portion. The roof structure 116 may be welded to the vertical portion of the roof support 140 with an inner bead and/or an outer bead along the entire length of the roof or along portions thereof. The roof supports 140 may be attached to the side wall posts by fasteners. The fasteners are preferably easily removable from the inside of the railcar only. Each fastener may comprise, e.g., a bolt that engages a nut which may be welded to the roof support 140. In other embodiments, cap screws may be employed with their heads on the outside of the car, and nuts secured to them on the inside of the railcar. In some embodiments, other fasteners may be used. When replacing the roof, new fasteners may be used to secure it in place, with the fasteners, such as cap screws, bolts or the like, being loosely secured first, then torqued as required.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above. The invention is further described in the following claims.