Patent 7559284 was granted and assigned to National Steel Car on July, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A railroad freight car may have a body for carrying lading. The body may be a gondola car body. The car body may include a decking or floor structure, and may include longitudinally extending side beams bordering the floor structure. The connection of the side beams to the floor structure may be may without the use of a dedicated side sill. The car body structure may include cross-bearers and side beam stiffeners that are joined together by structural knees. The car body may also include clean out ports to facilitate cleaning of the lading receptacle.