Thorvald Madland

US Patent:

41788575, Dec 18, 1979

Filed:

Nov 25, 1977

Appl. No.:

5/854890

Inventors:

Thorvald Madland - Arlington Heights IL

Assignee:

The Youngstown Steel Door Company - Cleveland OH

International Classification:

B61D 1900
E05D 1510

US Classification:

105378

Abstract:

A rail house car with side openings and doors for closing the openings by movement of the doors longitudinally along the car sides and laterally into and out of the openings. Cranks moveably support and retain the doors on longitudinal tracks below the doors and within longitudinal retainers above the doors. The cranks are selectively manually driven for lateral movement of the doors. The top cranks include combination skid and roller devices which permit the doors to move easily because of the rollers when they are longitudinally moved along the track and retainer but which permit the locating of the rollers within recesses in the surfaces of the retainers when the doors are located laterally substantially within their openings along the car sides. The skids provide minimal wear of the surfaces of the retainers when the doors are so located because of the relatively large areas of the skid surfaces in face to face engagement with the retainers' surface portions adjacent the recesses as compared to wear normally created by the rollers' tangential lines of contact with the retainers' surfaces. This wear is usually present in those situations where insufficient structural support for the roof causes vertical vibrations in the longitudinal retainers.

US Patent:

39384462, Feb 17, 1976

Filed:

Sep 6, 1974

Appl. No.:

5/503747

Inventors:

Robert F. Seitz - Hazelcrest IL
William E. Fritz - Hinsdale IL
Thorvald Madland - Arlington Heights IL

Assignee:

The Youngstown Steel Door Co. - Cleveland OH

International Classification:

B65J 122

US Classification:

105368R

Abstract:

A rail car having an interior cavity and an end opening for loading and unloading lading. A pair of door assemblies, each of which includes a plurality of panels, each pivotally movable with respect to the other for closing at least a portion of the end opening. Pivot means for mounting each of the door assemblies are provided to move the door assemblies between their respective open position and closed position. The pivot means are mounted for movement toward and away from the interior of the rail car to permit storage of the door assemblies within the rail car when their panels are folded back upon one another. The means for moving the pivot means include a guide means in the form of a pair of parallel racks and co-operating pinions drivingly mounted on a common manually driven shaft, one rack and co-operating pinion each at the top portion and the bottom portion of the door assembly. The rack and pinions function to keep the top and bottom portions in register as the folded door assemblies move along tracks extending normal the opening into the interior of the car for storage. The pinion driving shafts are manually driven and include pawl means which hold the doors in storage until the pawl is automatically removed from the teeth of its associated pinion upon manual pulling out of the door assembly.

US Patent:

43901964, Jun 28, 1983

Filed:

Oct 2, 1981

Appl. No.:

6/307880

Inventors:

Thorvald Madland - Arlington Heights IL

Assignee:

The Youngstown Steel Door Company - Cleveland OH

International Classification:

E05C 1100

US Classification:

292 66

Abstract:

A compact door driver is provided on a railway house car for moving a railway car door between a closed or locking position and an open or sliding position. The door driver includes a lever having a crank arm and is rotatably mounted on a structural member of the railway car for movement in excess of 45 degrees. A boss in the form of a roller is mounted on the crank arm. The door driver further includes a door mounted hasp having a cam surface defined end opening in the form of a transverse slot for receiving said boss selectively to drivingly interconnect the lever and the door. When connected to the crank, pivotal movement of the hasp is limited and the hasp, crank arm and boss act similar in manner to a Scotch yoke mechanism. The driver may provide theoretical mechanical advantages substantially within the range of from approximately 8 to 1, to approximately 46 to 1, ignoring friction, depending on the direction of the door and angular position of the crank arm. The railway car door accordingly may be urged between the sliding position and the locking position with a force that is appropriate for the particular position and direction of movement of the door.

US Patent:

41625919, Jul 31, 1979

Filed:

Jan 31, 1977

Appl. No.:

5/763853

Inventors:

Thorvald Madland - Arlington Heights IL
Thomas C. Soddy - Downers Grove IL

Assignee:

The Youngstown Steel Door Company - Cleveland OH

International Classification:

E05C 336
E05F 1154

US Classification:

49277

Abstract:

A door driver is provided on a railway house car for moving a railway car door between a locking position and a sliding position. The door driver includes a lever which is rotatably mounted on a structural member of the railway car. The door driver further includes a plurality of drivingly interconnected drive members, one of which is a driving member and another of which a driven member. The lever is drivingly connected to the driving member. The drive members have a plurality of gear teeth thereon and are rotatably mounted on the railway car with the gear teeth of at least one other drive member. When a force is exerted on the driving member, the driving member transmits that force to the driven member so the force capable of being exerted by the driven member is greater than the force exerted on the driving member. The door driver also includes means for connecting the railway car door to the driven member so that upon movement of the lever, the railway car door is urged between the sliding position and the locking position with a force that is greater than the force exerted on the lever.