Railway truck bolster center bowl liner
A wear liner installs into a bolster center bowl without the need for welding. The wear liner includes an annular wall forming an open-ring shape that defines a gap between two edges of the wall. The wear liner has one or more protrusions that extend outwardly from the annular wall. The protrusions are sized to engage with a corresponding recess in the center bowl. The wear liner is compressible by drawing the annular wall toward a closed-ring configuration so that the wear liner can be inserted into the center bowl while exerting an expansive, radially outward force. Upon expanding, and the protrusions engage with the recess or recesses in the peripheral wall of the center bowl. This engagement, along with the expansive pressure of the wear liner against the peripheral wall of the center bowl secures the wear liner in place.
1. A wear liner for installation in a center bowl of a bolster, the wear liner comprising:
a band having opposing first and second edges, the band being wound to form a vertical annular wall having upper and lower rims, and inward and outward surfaces; and
at least one protrusion extending outwardly from the vertical annular wall, the at least one protrusion configured to engage with a recess in the center bowl to secure the liner within the center bowl;
wherein the wear liner has a neutral configuration when no compressive forces are applied to the wear liner, the first and second edges of the band defining a separation in the vertical annular wall in the neutral configuration,
wherein the wear liner is compressible to a compact configuration,
wherein the separation in the vertical annular wall defined by the first and second edges of the band is smaller in the compact configuration than that of the neutral configuration, and
wherein the wear liner, upon being placed in the center bowl and released from the compact configuration, is configured to expand so that the at least one protrusion engages with the recess in the center bowl.
2. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the at least one protrusion extends from the lower rim of the vertical annular wall, away from the outward surface.
3. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the at least one protrusion comprises a plurality of protrusions spaced apart about the perimeter of the outward surface.
4. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the vertical annular wall is configured, upon installation into the center bowl, to exert a radially outward force against a peripheral wall of the center bowl.
5. The wear liner of claim 4 , wherein an outer diameter of the wear ring in the neutral configuration is greater than an inner diameter of the center bowl.
6. The wear liner of claim 5 , wherein the center bowl comprises a vertical notch in a peripheral wall of the center bowl, the notch groove configured to receive the anti-rotation tabs to inhibit rotation of the wear liner upon installation.
7. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the center bowl comprises a plurality of recesses, wherein individual protrusions of the wear liner are configured to engage with individual recesses among the plurality of recesses.
8. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the vertical annular wall in the neutral configuration forms an open ring shape, wherein the separation between the first and second edges forms a separation in the split ring.
9. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the recess in the center bowl includes a peripheral groove circumscribing a lower surface of a peripheral wall of the center bowl, the peripheral groove configured to engage with the at least one protrusion to inhibit vertical displacement of the wear liner upon installation.
10. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the first and second edges of the band include anti-rotation tabs that extend away from the outer surface of the vertical annular wall.
11. The wear liner of claim 1 , wherein the wear liner is configured to be installed and secured in the center bowl without welding.
12. The wear liner of claim 11 , wherein the wear liner configured to be removed from the center bowl by compressing the wear vertical annular wall so that the outer diameter of the wear liner in the compressed state is less than the inner diameter of the center bowl.
13. A railway vehicle bolster comprising:
a center bowl configured to engage with a corresponding mating component of a car body, the center bowl having a peripheral wall encircling a lower bowl surface, the peripheral wall including at least one recess; and
a wear liner configured to be installed in the center bowl, the wear liner including:
a band having opposing first and second edges, the band being wound to form a vertical annular wall; and
at least one protrusion extending outwardly from the vertical annular wall, the at least one protrusion configured to engage with the recess in the center bowl;
wherein the wear liner has a neutral configuration with no external forces are applied to the wear liner, the first and second edges of the band defining a separation in the vertical annular wall in the neutral configuration,
wherein the wear liner is compressible to a compact configuration, such that the separation in the vertical annular wall defined by the first and second edges of the band in the compact configuration is smaller than that of the neutral configuration, and
wherein the wear liner, upon being placed in the center bowl and released from the compact configuration, is configured to expand so that the at least one protrusion extends into the recess in the center bowl.
14. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 13 , wherein the at least one recess in the center bowl is positioned at a junction between the peripheral wall and the lower bowl surface, and wherein the at least one protrusion extends from the lower rim of the vertical annular wall, away from the outward surface.
15. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 14 , wherein the at least one protrusion comprises a plurality of protrusions spaced apart about the perimeter of the outward surface.
16. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 15 , wherein the center bowl comprises a plurality of recesses, wherein individual protrusions of the wear liner are configured to engage with individual recesses among the plurality of recesses.
17. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 15 , wherein the recess in the center bowl includes a peripheral groove circumscribing a lower surface of a peripheral wall of the center bowl, the peripheral groove configured to engage with the at least one protrusion to inhibit vertical displacement of the wear liner upon installation.
18. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 13 , wherein the vertical annular wall, upon installation into the center bowl, exerts a radially outward force against the peripheral wall of the center bowl.
19. The railway vehicle bolster of claim 13 , wherein the first and second edges of the band include anti-rotation tabs that extend away from the outer surface of the vertical annular wall, and wherein the center bowl comprises a vertical notch in the peripheral wall, the notch groove configured to receive the anti-rotation tabs to inhibit rotation of the wear liner upon installation.
20. A method of installing a wear liner in a center bowl that is configured to engage with a corresponding mating component of a car body, the center bowl having a peripheral wall with at least one recess, and the wear liner having a vertical annular wall with a gap defined between two wall ends and at least one protrusion extending outwardly from the vertical annular wall, the method comprising:
compressing the wear liner by pressing the two wall ends toward one another to reduce the size of the gap and the outer diameter of the vertical annular wall;
inserting the wear liner into the center bowl;
release the wear liner to effect expansion of the wear liner; and
guiding the at least one protrusion extending outwardly from the vertical annular wall to engage with the at least one recess of the peripheral wall of the center bowl,
wherein the expansion of the wear liner causes the vertical annular wall to exert a pressure on the peripheral wall of the center bowl.