DESC:A MODULAR LOAD APPLICATION SYSTEM
FIELD OF INVENTION
[001] The present subject matter described herein, relates to a modular system for raising and lowering loads. The present subject matter, in particularly, relates to a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing.
BACKGROUND
[002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[003] The mechanical engineering principles call for the testing of any machine/vehicles to verify the characteristics/behavior of the machines/vehicles under peak loading conditions. Even the rolling stock structures irrespective of its size undergo harsh testing. The main challenge is that, the complete fully equipped testing laboratory attracts a larger capital investment and maintenance. Other challenge is handling of heavy loads. Even though servo hydraulic actuators are available, there is a need for parallel mechanical systems at a lesser cost with least maintenance. The grade of automation of laboratory facility has direct impact on maintenance cost.
[004] Therefore, there is a need for such a system or such a load lifting mechanism which can overcome the above-described limitations and needs least maintenance and is easy to assemble and disassemble.
[005] The information disclosed in this background of the disclosure section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[006] It is therefore the object of the present subject matter to overcome the aforementioned and other drawbacks in prior method/product/apparatus.
[007] The principal objective of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing.
[008] Another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which attracts lower investment on testing equipment.
[009] Another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which can be customized according to different requirements of railway vehicle structural testing.
[0010] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing in which load cell with control unit can be added to read the values.
[0011] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which needs less maintenance than automatic systems.
[0012] Still yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which is easy to assemble and dismantle.
[0013] These and other objects and advantages of the present subject matter will be apparent to a person skilled in the art after consideration of the following detailed description taken into consideration with accompanying drawings in which preferred embodiments of the present subject matter are illustrated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] One or more drawbacks of conventional load application mechanism, and additional advantages are provided through a Modular Load Application Mechanism as disclosed in the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the technicalities of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered to be a part of the claimed disclosure.
[0015] In an embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a modular load application system, for rail vehicles structural testing comprising a set of tray holders, a set of plates, a set of lifting trays and a set of arms.
[0016] In an aspect of the invention, the set of plates is fastened to the tray holders.
[0017] In an aspect of the invention, the set of lifting trays is placed between adjacent the tray holders and fastened to the tray holders.
[0018] In an aspect of the invention, the set of arms are fastened to the tray holders.
[0019] In an aspect of the invention, a set of bottle jacks on bottle stands is placed below the arms.
[0020] In an aspect of the invention, the set of arms (4) comprises four arms.
[0021] In an aspect of the invention, the fastening is done using suitable hardware.
[0022] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present subject matter and are therefore not to be considered for limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system or methods or structure in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0024] Fig. 1 illustrates general arrangement of fixtures;
[0025] Fig. 2 illustrates assembly of a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing, according to present invention;
[0026] Fig. 3 illustrates exploded view of a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing, according to present invention.
[0027] The figures depict embodiments of the present subject matter for the purposes of illustration only. A person skilled in the art will easily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0028] While the embodiments of the disclosure are subject to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiment thereof have been shown by way of example in the figures and will be described below. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the scope of the disclosure.
[0029] The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof used in the disclosure, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a device, system, assembly that comprises a list of components does not include only those components but may include other components not expressly listed or inherent to such system, or assembly, or device. In other words, one or more elements in a system or device proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or device.
[0030] Referring to Figure 1 as illustrated therein, the present invention related to a modular system for the purpose of raising and lowering loads and the components of such a system can be fastened using suitable hardware with ease and efficiency.
[0031] Referring to Figure 2 & 3 as illustrated therein, a modular load application system, according to the present invention, for rail vehicles structural testing comprises mainly of a load lifting base assembly and plurality of bottle jacks.
[0032] As shown in Figure 3, the load lifting base assembly comprises a plurality or a set of tray holders 2, a plurality or a set of plates 1 fastened to the plurality of tray holders 2. Further, a plurality or a set of lifting trays 3 placed between adjacent tray holders 2 and fastened to tray holders 2. A plurality or set of arms 4 is fastened to lifting tray holders 2 and at least four bottle jacks are placed below the arms 4 at predetermined locations to lift the load lifting base assembly.
[0033] As illustrated in Figure 1 and 3, the load lifting assembly becomes a strong and robust lifting platform after connecting the members as described above, which is used to raise or lower heavy mass by placing bottle hydraulic jacks along the length of projected plurality or set of arms 4. This enables lifting of heavy masses easily from a point other than the center of gravity of a heavy mass being lifted or lowered in the load lifting assembly.
[0034] The present invention has certain advantageous features such as simplicity of the load lifting and testing mechanism, low maintenance cost, longer durability, modular system thus easy to assemble and disassemble, easy to operate due to uniformity in load distribution and no requirement of power for operating the load fixture.
[0035] Additionally, the present invention would reduce investments required on testing equipment as it is can be customized according to different requirements of railway vehicle structural testing. In an example, load cells with control unit can be added to read values.
[0036] The present invention can easily handle load as high as 50 tons. Heavy loads can be easily handled without any complexities. Load in the range of 50 tons can be raised with ease and lowered within five minutes.
[0037] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances, where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”
[0038] It will be further appreciated that functions or structures of a plurality of components or steps may be combined into a single component or step, or the functions or structures of one-step or component may be split among plural steps or components. The present invention contemplates all of these combinations. Unless stated otherwise, dimensions and geometries of the various structures depicted herein are not intended to be restrictive of the invention, and other dimensions or geometries are possible. In addition, while a feature of the present invention may have been described in the context of only one of the illustrated embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of other embodiments, for any given application. It will also be appreciated from the above that the fabrication of the unique structures herein and the operation thereof also constitute methods in accordance with the present invention. The present invention also encompasses intermediate and end products resulting from the practice of the methods herein. The use of “comprising” or “including” also contemplates embodiments that “consist essentially of” or “consist of” the recited feature.
[0039] Although embodiments for the present subject matter have been described in language specific to structural features, it is to be understood that the present subject matter is not necessarily limited to the specific features described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as embodiments for the present subject matter. Numerous modifications and adaptations of the system/component of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall within the scope of the present subject matter.
,CLAIMS:A MODULAR LOAD APPLICATION SYSTEM
FIELD OF INVENTION
[001] The present subject matter described herein, relates to a modular system for raising and lowering loads. The present subject matter, in particularly, relates to a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing.
BACKGROUND
[002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[003] The mechanical engineering principles call for the testing of any machine/vehicles to verify the characteristics/behavior of the machines/vehicles under peak loading conditions. Even the rolling stock structures irrespective of its size undergo harsh testing. The main challenge is that, the complete fully equipped testing laboratory attracts a larger capital investment and maintenance. Other challenge is handling of heavy loads. Even though servo hydraulic actuators are available, there is a need for parallel mechanical systems at a lesser cost with least maintenance. The grade of automation of laboratory facility has direct impact on maintenance cost.
[004] Therefore, there is a need for such a system or such a load lifting mechanism which can overcome the above-described limitations and needs least maintenance and is easy to assemble and disassemble.
[005] The information disclosed in this background of the disclosure section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[006] It is therefore the object of the present subject matter to overcome the aforementioned and other drawbacks in prior method/product/apparatus.
[007] The principal objective of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing.
[008] Another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which attracts lower investment on testing equipment.
[009] Another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which can be customized according to different requirements of railway vehicle structural testing.
[0010] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to develop a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing in which load cell with control unit can be added to read the values.
[0011] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which needs less maintenance than automatic systems.
[0012] Still yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a Modular Load Application Mechanism for Rail Vehicles Structural Testing which is easy to assemble and dismantle.
[0013] These and other objects and advantages of the present subject matter will be apparent to a person skilled in the art after consideration of the following detailed description taken into consideration with accompanying drawings in which preferred embodiments of the present subject matter are illustrated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] One or more drawbacks of conventional load application mechanism, and additional advantages are provided through a Modular Load Application Mechanism as disclosed in the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the technicalities of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered to be a part of the claimed disclosure.
[0015] In an embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a modular load application system, for rail vehicles structural testing comprising a set of tray holders, a set of plates, a set of lifting trays and a set of arms.
[0016] In an aspect of the invention, the set of plates is fastened to the tray holders.
[0017] In an aspect of the invention, the set of lifting trays is placed between adjacent the tray holders and fastened to the tray holders.
[0018] In an aspect of the invention, the set of arms are fastened to the tray holders.
[0019] In an aspect of the invention, a set of bottle jacks on bottle stands is placed below the arms.
[0020] In an aspect of the invention, the set of arms (4) comprises four arms.
[0021] In an aspect of the invention, the fastening is done using suitable hardware.
[0022] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present subject matter and are therefore not to be considered for limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system or methods or structure in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0024] Fig. 1 illustrates general arrangement of fixtures;
[0025] Fig. 2 illustrates assembly of a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing, according to present invention;
[0026] Fig. 3 illustrates exploded view of a modular load application mechanism for rail vehicles structural testing, according to present invention.
[0027] The figures depict embodiments of the present subject matter for the purposes of illustration only. A person skilled in the art will easily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0028] While the embodiments of the disclosure are subject to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiment thereof have been shown by way of example in the figures and will be described below. It should be understood, however, that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the scope of the disclosure.
[0029] The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof used in the disclosure, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a device, system, assembly that comprises a list of components does not include only those components but may include other components not expressly listed or inherent to such system, or assembly, or device. In other words, one or more elements in a system or device proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or device.
[0030] Referring to Figure 1 as illustrated therein, the present invention related to a modular system for the purpose of raising and lowering loads and the components of such a system can be fastened using suitable hardware with ease and efficiency.
[0031] Referring to Figure 2 & 3 as illustrated therein, a modular load application system, according to the present invention, for rail vehicles structural testing comprises mainly of a load lifting base assembly and plurality of bottle jacks.
[0032] As shown in Figure 3, the load lifting base assembly comprises a plurality or a set of tray holders 2, a plurality or a set of plates 1 fastened to the plurality of tray holders 2. Further, a plurality or a set of lifting trays 3 placed between adjacent tray holders 2 and fastened to tray holders 2. A plurality or set of arms 4 is fastened to lifting tray holders 2 and at least four bottle jacks are placed below the arms 4 at predetermined locations to lift the load lifting base assembly.
[0033] As illustrated in Figure 1 and 3, the load lifting assembly becomes a strong and robust lifting platform after connecting the members as described above, which is used to raise or lower heavy mass by placing bottle hydraulic jacks along the length of projected plurality or set of arms 4. This enables lifting of heavy masses easily from a point other than the center of gravity of a heavy mass being lifted or lowered in the load lifting assembly.
[0034] The present invention has certain advantageous features such as simplicity of the load lifting and testing mechanism, low maintenance cost, longer durability, modular system thus easy to assemble and disassemble, easy to operate due to uniformity in load distribution and no requirement of power for operating the load fixture.
[0035] Additionally, the present invention would reduce investments required on testing equipment as it is can be customized according to different requirements of railway vehicle structural testing. In an example, load cells with control unit can be added to read values.
[0036] The present invention can easily handle load as high as 50 tons. Heavy loads can be easily handled without any complexities. Load in the range of 50 tons can be raised with ease and lowered within five minutes.
[0037] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to inventions containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances, where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”
[0038] It will be further appreciated that functions or structures of a plurality of components or steps may be combined into a single component or step, or the functions or structures of one-step or component may be split among plural steps or components. The present invention contemplates all of these combinations. Unless stated otherwise, dimensions and geometries of the various structures depicted herein are not intended to be restrictive of the invention, and other dimensions or geometries are possible. In addition, while a feature of the present invention may have been described in the context of only one of the illustrated embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of other embodiments, for any given application. It will also be appreciated from the above that the fabrication of the unique structures herein and the operation thereof also constitute methods in accordance with the present invention. The present invention also encompasses intermediate and end products resulting from the practice of the methods herein. The use of “comprising” or “including” also contemplates embodiments that “consist essentially of” or “consist of” the recited feature.
[0039] Although embodiments for the present subject matter have been described in language specific to structural features, it is to be understood that the present subject matter is not necessarily limited to the specific features described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as embodiments for the present subject matter. Numerous modifications and adaptations of the system/component of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall within the scope of the present subject matter.

We Claim:
1. A modular load application system, for rail vehicles structural testing comprising:
a set of tray holders (2);
a set of plates (1);
a set of lifting trays (3); and
a set of arms (4)
2. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the set of plates (1) is fastened to the tray holders (2).
3. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the set of lifting trays (3) is placed between adjacent the tray holders (2) and fastened to the tray holders (2).
4. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the set of arms are fastened to the tray holders (2).
5. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a set of bottle jacks on bottle stands is placed below the arms (4).
6. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the set of arms (4) comprises four arms (4).
7. The modular load application system as claimed in claim 1, wherein fastening is done using suitable hardware.