Freight-transportation system with road/rail transshipment
First Claim
1. A freight-transportation system serving a given territory, comprising:
- a rail network having a multiplicity of transfer stations each forming a junction between at least one railroad track and a local road;
loading and unloading bays at said stations accommodating road vehicles adapted to carry modular loads of predetermined dimensions;
conveyor means at each of said stations for transferring loads between said bays and respective spaces on flatcars of trains halting at said stations; and
a computer at each of said stations controlling the operation of said conveyor means thereof in response to destination and available-space information fed in, the computers of adjacent stations being interconnected for exchanging said information;
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Accused Products
Abstract
A rail network serving a given territory has a multiplicity of transfer stations for the transshipment of freight containers between local truck routes and scheduled freight trains, as well as between trains traveling to different destinations, each train comprising a number of flatcars with transverse roller conveyors which are aligned with similar conveyors on adjoining platforms when the train halts at a station. The platforms are separated by one or more railroad tracks and by several longitudinal conveyors in the form of articulated chains whose links are also provided with transverse roller conveyors alignable with those of the platforms and the flatcars. Transversely shiftable platform sections, each of a length equaling that of the flatcars, can be advanced into contact with a standing train to complete a driving circuit for the flatcar-mounted conveyors whereby containers resting on the rollers of a platform section can be moved onto the flatcar or vice versa. The platform sections can also be shifted completely across the well of a track, in the absence of a train, to enable the movement of a container to the opposite side. The conveyors and platform shifters are all controlled by a local computer, communicating with computers of nearby stations, on the basis of available-space information from preceding computers and of destination data fed in by local shippers or by the computers of originating stations.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A freight-transportation system serving a given territory, comprising:
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a rail network having a multiplicity of transfer stations each forming a junction between at least one railroad track and a local road; loading and unloading bays at said stations accommodating road vehicles adapted to carry modular loads of predetermined dimensions; conveyor means at each of said stations for transferring loads between said bays and respective spaces on flatcars of trains halting at said stations; and a computer at each of said stations controlling the operation of said conveyor means thereof in response to destination and available-space information fed in, the computers of adjacent stations being interconnected for exchanging said information; - View Dependent Claims (3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 24)
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- 2. said conveyor means forming a multiplicity of straight-line transfer paths extending each between a respective bay and an assigned unit area on any of said trains halting in a predetermined position on said track, each of said transfer paths including a set of rollers arrayed in at least one row transverse to said track and drive means controlled by said computer for displacing said rollers to advance a load resting thereon, said track being disposed in a well flanked by at least two raised platforms in line with load-carrying surfaces of said flatcars, said platforms being each traversed by a multiplicity of said transfer paths, said flatcars being provided with rows of further rollers forming extensions of said transfer paths in said predetermined position, the platforms proximal to said track being longitudinally divided into sections each substantially coextensive in length with a flatcar of any of said trains, each of said sections being individually transversely shiftable toward an aligned stationary flatcar of any of said trains and being further shiftable across said well in the absence of a train on said track.
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13. A freight-transportation system serving a given territory, comprising:
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a rail network having a multiplicity of transfer stations each forming a junction between at least one railroad track and a local road; loading and unloading bays at said stations accommodating road vehicles adapted to carry modular loads of predetermined dimensions; conveyor means at each of said stations for transferring loads between said bays and respective spaces on flatcars of trains halting at said stations; and a computer at each of said stations controlling the operation of said conveyor means thereof in response to destination and available-space information fed in, the computers of adjacent stations being interconnected for exchanging said information; said conveyor means forming a multiplicity of straight-line transfer paths extending each between a respective bay and an assigned unit area on any of said trains halting in a predetermined position on said track, each of said transfer paths including a set of rollers arrayed in at least one row transverse to said track and drive means controlled by said computer for displacing said rollers to advance a load resting thereon, said track being disposed in a well flanked by at least two raised platforms in line with load-carrying surfaces of said flatcars, said platforms being each traversed by a multiplicity of said transfer paths, said flatcars being provided with rows of further rollers forming extensions of said transfer paths in said predetermined position, the platforms proximal to said track being longitudinally divided into sections each substantially coextensive in length with a flatcar of any of said trains, each of said sections being individually transversely shiftable toward an aligned stationary flatcar of any of said trains, said conveyor means further including at least one longitudinal conveyor parallel to said track and separated therefrom by one of said platforms. - View Dependent Claims (15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27)
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26. A freight-transportation system serving a given territory, comprising:
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a rail network having a multiplicity of transfer stations each forming a junction between at least one railroad track and a local road; loading and unloading bays at said stations accommodating road vehicles adapted to carry modular loads of predetermined dimensions; conveyor means at each of said stations for transferring loads between said bays and respective spaces on flatcars of trains halting at said stations; a computer at each of said stations controlling the operation of said conveyor means thereof in response to destination and available-space information fed in, the computers of adjacent stations being interconnected for exchanging said information; said conveyor means forming a multiplicity of straight-line transfer paths extending each between a respective bay and an assigned unit area on any of said trains halting in a predetermined position on said track, each of said transfer paths including a set of rollers arrayed in at least one row transverse to said track and drive means controlled by said computer for displacing said rollers to advance a load resting thereon, said track being disposed in a well flanked by at least two raised platforms in line with load-carrying surfaces of said flatcars, said platforms being each traversed by a multiplicity of said transfer paths, said flatcars being provided with rows of further rollers forming extensions of said transfer paths in said predetermined position, the platforms proximal to said track being longitudinally divided into sections each substantially coextensive in length with a flatcar of any of said trains, each of said sections being individually transversely shiftable toward an aligned stationary flatcar of any of said trains; and an array of supporting rollers disposed underneath each of said sections for facilitating the transverse shifting thereof.
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Specification