GB2075900A - Guide means for a rotatable cropping cutter - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a guide means for a rotating cropping cutter, wherein a horizontally and vertically pivotable guide pipe (5) is arranged at the feed side of the cutter heads (2, 3,) a wire directing guide 7 is located in the region of the cutter heads (2, 3) and a discharge guide (8) is located at the discharge side of the cutter heads (2, 3,) said guide pipe (5) being arranged in a cooling jacket 6 with its guiding tip 38 extending into the wedge shaped mouth of the cutter heads 2, 3. The directing guide 7 forming an extension of the guide pipe 5, and extending as far as the plane containing the centre axes of the cutter heads 2, 3. The guide 7 adjoins a base plate 24 of the discharge guide 8 and the guide (8) is provided with a guide wall 25 which overlaps the directing guide 7 and guide pipe (5). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Guide means for a rotatable topping cutter The invention relates to guide means for a rotatable topping cutter.

The rolled wire which is finished on rolling cogs and quick cooled in water cooling sections has parts at the beginning and end which reduce quality.

These end parts have to be removed in the area between the water cooling section and the bundle tying machine. Appropriate pieces of equipment provide for the wire to be inserted in the helical grooves of the cutting heads of a topping cutter.

In a guide means known from DD-PS 129 127 a deflecting unit is provided at the feed side of the rotating cutter, with positive deflection and nonpositive returning of the rolled material to the blade region of overhung, conical cutter heads with grooves extending as coiled spirals. The deflecting unit is a stationary casing with an opening extending through it in a straight line, in the direction of movement of the rolled material. In the horizontal plane it has an extension pointing past the cutter heads, and this extension is bounded laterally by a bar guide, rotatable about its longitudinal axis, with a guiding groove tapering in the direction of the extension.

The disadvantage is that when guiding a broad wire, the wire 5.5-6.5 mm in diameter makes uncontrolled movements at rolling spees of over 50 metres per second, causing trouble in the technological work cycle.

In WP B 23 D/215 596 a positively guided swing pipe is provided at the feed side of the cutter heads, and a discharge portion, pivotable in a horizontal plane, is provided at the outlet side. The discharge portion comprises three collecting funnels, juxtaposed in one plane, with adjoining guide pipes. The discharge portion is made pivotable by mounting it in the region of the guide pipe by means of a peg guided in the base plate, while in the region of the receiving funnels support is provided on a slide fixed to the base plate. The discharge portion is moved by means of a working cylinder joined to it and located on the casing of the cutter. As a means of guiding the rolled wire into the cutter heads, a swing pipe is arranged before the heads and mounted for pivoting movement in two planes, in a support arranged at the end of the table.To enable the swing pipe to carry out the swinging movement, it is connected by a guide member to the piston rod of a working cylinder arranged movably on the casing of the cutter. The swing pipe is positively guided by a slide which can be moved over the table transversely to the direction of rolling, and which is connected to the piston rod of a working cylinder arranged on the cutter casing. Since the drive does not operate synchronously, the transverse speed of the swing pipe is not the same as that of the jig groove. This causes the rolled wire to bend between the outlet aperture of the swing pipe and the groove of the cutter heads leading to trouble in the production process.Furthermore the unguided space, between the outlet aperture of the swing pipe and the cutter heads before cutting is initiated and after the cutter heads in the region of the discharge portion, is so large that the rolled material moves in an uncontrollable fashion and causes trouble in the production process.

According to the present invention there is provided a guide means for a rotatable topping cutter, comprising a horizontally and vertically pivotable guide pipe arranged at the feed side of the cutter head, a wire directing guide in the region of the cutter head and a discharge guide at the discharge side of the cutter head, said guide pipe extending through a protective jacket provided with holes for the inflow and outflow of a coolant, the guiding tip of the guide pipe extending into the wedge shaped mouth of the cutting head, said wire directing guide forming an extension of the guide pipe and extending as far as the centre plane containing the axes of the cutter heads and being adjoined and extended by a base plate of the discharge guide, and said discharge guide being provided with a guide wall which overlaps the directing guide and guide pipe.

A further feature is that at the wire feed side a plurality of holes, inclined to the line of the wire preferably within the range from 15-45 , are provided at the periphery of the protective jacket, and that these are adjoined by horizontal holes at right angles to the wall of the jacket and provided over the whole length thereof.

Further according to the invention an eiectromagnet is arranged in the protective jacket horizontally and at right angles to the line of the wire.

An additional feature of the invention is that bushes are arranged on the guide pipe and are interchangeable according to the external diameter of the pipe.

Further according to the invention a working cylinder engages a wedge shaped member, which is connected to a rod system provided with a shifting plate, by means of an opposed wedge shaped member fixed to a rocker arm.

A final feature of the invention is that the angle a1 between the direction of movement of the wire within the guide pipe and the horizontal, the angle a2 between the direction movement of the wire within the discharge diverter and the horizontal, and the angle ss between the direction of movement of the wire within the guide pipe and the direction in which the topped wires move straight on are within the range from 0 to 2 while the angle y of the groove is within the range from 2 to 15 .

Two embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings; in which: Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a first embodiment of apparatus according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a section taken along line A-A indicated in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a section taken along line B-B indicated in Figure 1; Figure 4 is a section similar to that of Figure 3 showing a modified embodiment; Figure 5 is a view of the working cylinders with the directing guide; Figure 6 is a longitudinal section of a second embodiment of apparatus according to the present invention; Figure 7 is a section taken along line C-C indicated in Figure 6; Figure 8 is a front elevation of Figure 6; Figure 9 is a diagrammatic representation of the side elevation of Figure 1; and Figure 10 is a diagrammatic representation of the side elevation of Figure 2.

The rotating topping cutter 1 has an upper cutter head 2 and a lower cutter head 3, each having a helical groove in which cutters 29 are located and a guiding and deflecting unit 4 which has a guide pipe 5 which is located in the basic position before the cut, and which is pivotable in two planes about the point of rotation at the feed side. A feed pipe 44 is associated with the guiding and deflecting unit 4.

The readily pivotable guide pipe 5 has at one end a guiding tip 38 and is housed in a protective jacket 6 provided with holes 19,20,21, the jacket 6 allowing the pipe 5 to be pivoted and cooled. The tip 38 extends into the wedge shaped mouth of the cutter heads 2 and 3. Below the upper cutter head 2 a pivotable directing guide 7 for inserting the rolled strand in the groove and for raising the pipe 5, the guide 7 being pivotableabouta point of rotation 16.

The guide 7 extends to the centre axis of the cutter heads 2,.3, forming an extension of the pipe 5. At the discharge side, behind the heads 2, 3 in the direction of rolling, there is a permanently set discharging diverter 8 for guiding the separated parts of the rolled strand in two different paths. A base plate 24 adjoins the diverter 8, forming an extension of the guide 7. The diverter 8 has a guiding wall 25 which overlaps the guide 7 and pipe 5.

The apparatus operates as follows: The first embodiment is shown in Figures 1 to 5, 9 and 10. The tip of a rolled wire runs in the direction of the arrow 9, shown in Figure 1, through the pipe 44 and a feed funnel 10 into the guide pipe 5 and passes via the pivotable directing guide 7 through the discharge diverter 8 into conduit 27 of the rolling line. The guide pipe 5 is held in this basic position (Figure 2) e.g. by the force of a working cylinder 11, acting by means of push rods 12, on the resilient intermediate member 13 and thus on a lever 14.

When a pulse has been transmitted by a rolled material indicator, the piston of the working cylinder 11 is retracted, thus terminating the fixing of the guide pipe 5. By actuation of a mechanism, e.g. a working cylinder 15, the wire is lifted into the helical groove of the upper cutter head 2, by means of the directing guide 7 which is pivotable about the point of rotation 16. The positive guiding of the rolled wire in the groove results in a lateral movement of the wire, which can be followed without compulsion by the guide pipe 5, which is freely movable in two planes and mounted e.g. with a cardan joint. The guide pipe 5 may also be mounted in two planes by bolts 17 fixed in the feed funnel 10 and sliding in slotted cover plates 18. When the guide pipe 5 reaches the end position it is arrested there by a holding means such as an electromagnet 35.The electromagnet 35 is arranged horizontally in the protective jacket 6, at right angles to the line of the wire. Adequate cooling of the guide pipe 5, e.g. by water or air, is provided by a supply of such coolant passing through the holes 19,20 and 21. A plurality of holes 19 are distributed around the periphery of the protective jacket 6 at the wire feed side and inclined to the wire line at an angle of preferably 150 450 These holes are adjoined by the holes 20,21, distributed over the whole length of the jacket 6 and arranged horizontally, at right angles to the wall of the jacket 6. By varying the impingement of coolant on the guide pipe 5 through the holes 20 and 21, the movement of the pipe 5 in an internal chamber 22 of the jacket 6 can be assisted.Return holes 23 atthe underside of the jacket 6 aid in the removal of coolant and, in the case of water, prevent dirt deposits resulting from impurities in the water.

Before cutting is initiated the wire is guided at the bottom and laterally by the directing guide 7, the base plate 24 and the guide wall 25 in the vicinity of the cutter heads 2, 3. The tip of the wire runs through a guide passage 26 into the pipe 27 for waste removal. In the course of the lateral movement of the wire in the cutter heads 2, 3 the rolled material necessarily comes between an upper blade 28 and a lower blade 29 and is severed. The following piece of wire is deflected into a guide passage 31 by the wedge shaped member 30 of the discharging diverter 8. The upper limits of the guide passages are provided by an easily dismantled cover plate 32. The internal chamber 22 of the jacket 6 may be constructed in different ways as shown in Figures 3 and 4. By providing the working cylinder 11 on the lever 4, the guide pipe 5 is held in the basic position illustrated.For the purpose of rapid exchange of the guide pipe the jacket 6 is divided into a cover 33 and a lower portion 34. Coolant, e.g. water, is supplied separately by means of holes 20 and 21, and the water may be removed through the return holes 23 and through the end of the jacket 6, which may also be constructed as a guiding gate.

The second embodiment is shown in Figures 6 to 8. Here there is only one actuating member which initiates the lifting and pivoting movement of the guide pipe 5 with the wire and which carries out the return stroke of the pipe 5 to the basic position. The tip 9 of the wire runs through a guide pipe 5 which is mounted with a cardan joint at pivot point 36. The discharge end of the pipe 5 has a tip 38 which guides the wires exactly into the close vicinity of the cutter heads 2,3. When the pulse has been transmitted to initiate the topping cut, a wedge shaped member 40 is moved by a working cylinder 39. The member 40 lifts the wire and pipe 5 by means of an opposed wedge member 42 fixed to arnckeer arm 41. The rocker arm 41 is mounted at a point of rotation 16.

The rolled wire is engaged by the groove of the cutter heads 2, 3 and taken to the cutting station.

When the whole wire has passed through, the pipe 5 is returned to the basic position. The guide pipe 5 is withdrawn by the working cylinder 39, by means of the wedge shaped member 40, which moves in a lateral guide 45 as far as a stop 46, on which there is a rod system 47 with a shifting plate 48. The guide pipe 5 is in the protective jacket 6, with water entering through lateral openings 50 and leaving through the pipe 51. There is a guiding gate 49 in the end wall of the jacket 6 at the discharge side, the height of the gate 49 being designed for the guide pipe 5 of the maximum wire diameter. When the guide pipes 5 are used for smaller wire diameters they are adapted to the guiding gate 52 by fitting bushes 37 on them.With wire diameters in the region of 5.5 to 6.5 mm and rolling speeds of over 50 metres per second relatively high centrifugal and frictional forces appear at the rolled material when it is deflected, and these cause trouble in the movement of the wire. The smallest possible deflecting angles a1, a2, ss and y are necessary in order to minimise these distubing influences. The angle at between the direction of movement of the wire in the guide pipe and the horizontal, the angle a2 between the direction of movement of the wire in the diverter 8 and the horizontal and the angle ss between the direction of movement of the wire in the guide pipe 5 and the direction of the topped wire straight ahead are therefore in a range from 0 to 20. Angle y of the wedge shaped member 30 on the other hand is within the range from 2 to 150.

The invention provides for reliable guidance of the wire as it approaches the cutter heads, while it is in their vicinity and as it leaves them. There is therefore no trouble in the work cycle in these regions.

Claims (7)

1. A guide means for a rotatable topping cutter, comprising a horizontally and vertically pivotable guide pipe arranged at the feed side of the cutter head, a wire directing guide in the region of the cutter head and a discharge guide at the discharge side of the cutter head, said guide pipe extending through a protective jacket provided with holes for the inflow and outflow of a coolant, the guiding tip of the guide pipe extending into the wedge shaped mouth of the cutting head, said wire directing guide forming an extension of the guide pipe and extending as far as the centre plane containing the axes of the cutter heads and being adjoined and extended by a base plate of the discharge guide, and said discharge guide being provided with a guide wall which overlaps the directing guide and guide pipe.

2. A guide means as claimed in claim 1, in which the jacket at the wire feed inlet end is provided with a plurality of holes which are inclined to the line of the wire prefereably within the range from 15 -45 , and with a plurality of horizontal holes extending ar right angles to the wall of the jacket and disposed along the whole length thereof.

3. A guide means as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, in which an electromagnet is arranged in the protective jacket horizontally and at right angles to the line of the wire.

4. A guide means as claimed in any preceding claim, in which bushes are provided on the guide pipe and are interchangeable according to the external diameter of the pipe.

5. A guide means as claimed in claim 1, in which a working cylinder engages a wedge shaped member which is connected to a rod system provided with a shifting plate by means of an opposed wedge shaped member fixed to a rocker arm.

6. A guide means as claimed in claim 2, in which the angle a1 between the direction of movement of the wire within the guide pipe and the horizontal, the angle a2 between the direction of movement of the wire within the discharge diverter and the horizontal, and the angle p between the direction of movement of the wire within the guide pipe and the direction in which the topped wires move straight on are within the range from 0 to 20 while the angle y of the wedge shaped member is within the range from 2 to 150.

7. Guide means for a rotatable topping cutter substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 1 to 5 and 9 and 10, or Figures 6 to 8 of the accompanying drawings.