CA1055821A - Wheel quenching - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract of the Disclosure A railway car wheel is placed in a hori-zontal position in a quenching station. A circular spray ring having a plurality of nozzles fed thereby is disposed concentric with the wheel rim and rotated so that all portions of the rim are uniformly cooled.

Description

AMSTED Case 5488 RMF:av ~SS82~
WHEEL QUENCHING
. . .
There are numerous methods of heat treating railway car wheels and several of these methods include a water quench. In one such method, the wheel is heated to a temperature in the range of 840C. to 870C. and then placed on a turntable assembly. The wheel is rotated on a vertical axis and water is sprayed against the rim portion through a plurality of no~zles carried by a stat-lonary spray ring positioned concentric with the wheel rim The water spray is continued until the wheel is at a temperature between 205 and 370C. The water spray on only the rim portion of the wheel results in the rim tread having increased hardness and ductility as compared to the air cooled web portion The foregoing quenching arrangement, however, has not been completely satisfactory. Because ,~ ,.
railway car wheels weigh over 270 Kg., the bearings on which they are mounted for rotation tend to wear rapidly, thereby resulting in costly repairs and extensive down-time.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a wheel rim quenching system which is inexpensive to install and operate as compared to prior art systems, and which will simultane3usly provide more uniform spraying.
Other objects will be apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, o~ the quenching arrangement of the present invention; and -1- ~, -58Zl Figure 2 is a sectional view taken substantially along line 2-2 of Figure 1, Referring now to the drawings, a support structure 10 is provided to support a wheel 12 at a quenching station~
the wheel being positioned with its axis vertical. The support structure carries at one side thereof an upright frame 14, Pivoted as at 16 to the frame is a mounting bracket 18 welded or otherwise secured to a spray cover 20. The above-described structure is supported by a lift cylinder 22 having one end secured to the splash cover and the other end secured to the frame 14.
The mownting bracket 18 is provided with a vertical:Ly disposed member 24 to which are secured in vertically spaced relationship a pair of bearings 26 which preferably are con-ventional pillow block bearings. A hollow rotatable shaft 28 , is carried by the spaced ~earings and is arranged to be rotated by a gearmotor 30. A water supply hose 34 is con-nected to 'che shaft 28 by a rotary union 32 and water is supplied by a reservoir and pump (not shown).
The shaft extends through the cover 20 and carries at its lower end a plurality, preferably four, of water feed pipes 36 which extend outwardly and downwardly to a position generally in the plane of the wheel to be quenched, The feed pipes 36 carry and communicate with a circular spray ring 38 which in its operative position is concentric with the periphery of the wheel. A plurality of spray nozæles 40 are attached to spray ring 38, It is seen therefore that the entire spray assembly may be pivoted downwardly into operative position by cylinder 22, or pivoted upwardly so that a quenched wheel may be removed from the quenching station and another wheel moved into the station.
In operation, a wheel which is at a temperature in the range of approximately 840 to 870C. is placed on the sup-port 10 and the cylinder 22 is e~tended to lower the spxay ring assembly into the position shown in Figure 1. The gearmotor is then energized to rotate shaft 28 and the spray ring assembly while simultaneously water is pumped through the sha~t, the spray ring, and thence through the nozzles so that a quenching water spray is distributed over the wheel rim, The spraying is continued untll the wheel has reached a temperature in the range of about 205 to 370C, The spraying is then terminated 3 the gearmotor stopped, and the cylinder 22 is energized to pivot the entire assembly upwardly so that the quenched wheel may be removed from the quenching station.
The above-described arrangement provides uniform distribution of water on the wheel rim by an arrangement which is more trouble-~ree and there~ore less costly than prior art methods of wheel quenching.

Claims (4)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A method of cooling a railway car wheel comprising the steps of: positioning the heated wheel, with its axis extending vertically, in a spraying station; moving a circular spray ring to a position concentric with the wheel and horizontally aligned with the wheel rim; forcing water through said spray ring and against said rim to quench the rim, while simultaneously rotating said spray ring so as to distribute the sprayed water uniformly over all portions of the wheel rim; and continuing such rotation until the wheel has been cooled to the desired temperature.

2. A method according to Claim 1, wherein the wheel is first heated to a temperature approximately in the range of 840° to 870°C.; and the quenching step is continued until the wheel is between approximately 205° and 370°C.

3. A wheel quenching arrangement comprising: means for supporting a railway car wheel with its axis vertical;
a circular spray ring concentric with said wheel and spaced from the wheel rim; a plurality of spray nozzles secured to the spray ring; a hollow rotatable shaft located on the axis of the wheel; feed pipes interconnecting the hollow shaft and the spray ring; means for supplying water under pressure to the nozzles; a gearmotor for rotating said shaft and said spray ring.

4. A wheel quenching arrangement according to Claim 3 and including a frame; a mounting bracket pivoted to the frame; spaced bearings secured to said mounting bracket, said bearings being arranged to support said shaft for rotation therein; and means for pivoting said mounting bracket to move said spray ring into and out of position relative to said wheel.