US2000273A

US2000273A - Sheet piling mechanism

Info

Publication number: US2000273A
Application number: US339617A
Authority: US
Inventors: Homer S Hopkins; John M Hover; Savings Tarentum; Company Trust; Cox Catherine Conklin
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1929-02-13
Filing date: 1929-02-13
Publication date: 1935-05-07
Anticipated expiration: 1952-05-07

Description

May 7, 1935.,

w. F. CONKLIN Er AL SHEET FILING MECHANISM Filed Feb. 13, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 7, 1935. w. F. CONKLIN ET AL SHEET FILING MECHANISM Filed Feb. 13, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS iii? Patented May 7, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE I SHEET PILING MECHANISM ceased Application February 13,1929, S erlal No. 339,617

I 15 Claims. Our invention relates to sheet piling mechanism. While it has been designed for piling hot metal sheets as they are discharged from a furnace, it may be employed for piling sheets com- 5 posed of material other than metal.

We have illustrated our invention in connection with a continuous sheet annealing furnace, which employs waster sheets placed directly on the sheet conveying means in the furnace, the waster sheets supporting and carrying the sheets to be annealed through the furnace. The waster sheets are used to protect the sheets being annealed from the destructive or harmful action of the furnace heat and to allow the sheets to be treated to receive an even annealing heat. After the waster sheets have passed through the furnace they are preferably automatically returned to the feeding end of the furnace for reuse while the annealed sheets pass on to the piling mechanism.

It is one object of our invention to provide automatic means for returning waster sheets to the feeding-in end of the furnace. Another object is to provide piling mechanism by which the sheets are automatically formedinto piles with substantially even ends and sides. Another object is to provide two piling devices preferably in tandem, so that, when onepile has been built up to the desired height by one piling mechanism the piling is continued by the other piling mechanism. This duplication'of the piling mechanisms prevents the stopping of the feeding of the sheets through the furnace. When the feeding of the sheets is stopped while a truck bearing a pile of sheets is being moved away and another truck is being moved into position to receive another pile. some of the sheets are damaged in the furnace and the production of the furnace is cut down. Other objects appear hereinafter.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a side elevation of our piling mechanism in its preferred form, in connection with a vertical section of a portion of an annealing furnace and the sheet conveying parts between the furnace and the piling mechanism. Some of the parts are broken away, and some are in section.'

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of Fig. 1, without the trucks and sheets. I

Fig. 3 is a section in the line 3-3 on Fig. 1.

Figs. 4, and 6 are diagrammatic side elevations showing the feeding of the sheets at different stages preparatory to their being entirely placed on the pile beneath.

Fig. 'I is an elevation of the right-hand end of Fig. '1, with parts broken away.

-. On the drawings, I designates an annealing furnace having at its delivery end the roller table 2, the" furnace chamber and the table being provided with feeding nieansfas the rollers 3, driven by suitable means, not shown, for conveying the waster sheets l with the sheets -5 undergoing annealing treatment riding directly thereon. The superposed

sheets

4 and 5 are fed between the feed rolls 6 and l, the latter being fluted so that it will have improved feeding action on the waster sheets. The sheets 5 are sufficiently long to be fed into thepass between the feed rolls 8 before or when they leave the pass between the

rolls

6 and 1, but the waster sheets 4 are short enough to have their rear ends out of the pass of the

rolls

6 and 1 before their forward ends reach the rolls 8, so that the waster sheets will fall between the two pairs of feed rolls and upon the inclined bed or guide 9. The flutes of the roll I engage the rear ends of the waster sheets and force them onward after they leave the pass of the rolls 6 and l, in order to'move the rear ends of the waster sheets below the roller 1 and allow them to fall clear thereof. The waster sheets fall upon the feed roller I 8 projecting above the guide 9. The roller "l and the lower roller 8 are connected by the belt or drive chain ll whose lower leg drives the roller Ill. The waster sheets are fed down the guide 9 and into the pass of the rollers l and I2 which feed them to the endless conveyor l3 for returning the waster sheets to the front end of the furnace, the conveyor running preferably in a tunnel H beneath the hearth l5 of the furnace.

The sheets 5 are fed from the rolls 8 onto the endless conveyor l6, which is composed of two side sprocket chains l'l, connected in parallel relation by the cross-bars or rods l8, each carrying a number of loose rollers IS. The side chains run over the sprocket wheels 20, 2| and 22 on the upper part of the frame 23 of the piling mechanism, and under the

sprocket wheels

24 and 25 on the upper partof the frame.

. The shaft 28 which carries the sprocket wheels 22 is driven by the sprocket chain '29 connected to be driven by any suitable prime mover. The shaft 30 which carries the sprocket wheels 20 drives the lower roller 8 by means of the sprocket chain 3|.

The stub-shafts 32 carrying the sprocket wheels 24 are above the shaft 30, but the lower sides of the sprocket wheels 24 are below the top of the spocket wheels 28, so that the conveyor I8 descends in passing from the sprocket wheels 20 to the sprocket wheels 24. Likewise the stub-shafts 33 carrying the sprocket wheels 25 are above the shaft 34 which carries the sprocket wheels 2|, but the lower sides of the sprocket wheels 25 are below the tops of the sprocket wheels 2|, so that the conveyor descends in passing from the sprocket wheels 2| to the sprocket wheels 25.

The sheets 5 pass from the rolls 8 to the upper side of the upper leg of the conveyor l6, as shown in Figs. land 6. After the sheets leave-the rolls 8, they are conveyed by the rollers I9 of the conveyor l6 until the forward ends thereof engage the pendent adjustable stops 35 pivoted on the cross-bar 36. The sheets 5 as they issue from the rolls 8 first ride upon that part of the conveyor which is passing over the sprocket wheels 20, thisrpart being at a higher level than the parts traveling from the sprocket wheels 24 to the sprocket wheels 2|. The length of, each sheet 5 must be such that its rear end will descend below the level of those rollers IS on the rod I8 which immediately follow the sheet. The length and level of each sheet 5 must also be such that, while it is held by the adjustable stops 35, the rollers IS on the said rod I8 will come upon the upper face of the sheet, as shown in Fig. 4, and depress the rear end of the sheet, as shown in Fig. 6, preferably until it engages the rear end of the top sheet on the pile 31 below. As the conveyor l6 continues to travel, the sets of rollers 19 supporting the sheet pass in succession from beneath the sheet. One of the three sets of rollers i9 shown in Fig. 1 has passed beyond the sheet 5, as shown in Fig. 4. Another of the sets of rollers I9 is just passing from under the sheet 5 in Fig. 6, and the final set of rollers l9 which supported the sheet is about to pass from beneath the forward end of the sheet, as shown in Fig. 5. As soon as this set of rollers passes this end of the sheet, it will fall upon the pile 31 beneath. It will be noted that the rear end of the sheet 5 was in contact with the top sheet of the pile for a considerable portion of its length before the forward end of the sheet was dropped. This is of great importance as it ensures accurate matching of the top sheets of the pile with those below. The rear portions of the flexible hot sheets sag into close contact with the pile andprevent any floating of the sheets, which occurs when sheets are bodily dropped upon a pile. In our device the rear ends of the sheets are frictionally anchored to the rear end of the pile and the parts of the sheet in front are successively laid down on the pile; the air between the pile and the sheet is gradually expelled without any danger of the air floating the sheet so it will not register as desired with the top of the pile.

It will be noted from Figs. 1, 4, 5 and 6 that a sheet 5 following a sheet 5 will go over the top of sets of rollers 19 succeeding the rollers H! which supported the front sheet.

The pile 31 is. supported on a truck 38 on rails 39 which are supported on hydraulic jacks by which the truck may be lowered to keep the top of the pile at a constant or desired level.

When the pile 31 has been completed, the stops 35 are thrown up out of the path of the sheets 5 which then pass to the second piling mechanism which is like that already described. The sheets are then piled on the truck 38' running on the rails 39' which are supported by the hydraulic jacks 40. The sheetstravel on the con- .veyor [6 until their forward ends engage the stops 35' carried by the cross-bar 36. As the second piling mechanism is constructed and operated like the one already described, the second one will not be further described.

While the second piler is being used, the truck 38 with the pile 31 may be removed and an empty truck may be run in on the rails 39 to the proper piling position. The second piler allows the annealing to proceed continuously. With only one piler, the feed of the sheets through the furnace must stop for a time with more or less damage to the sheets and with a loss of output.

The piling mechanism may be used with sheets wide enough to span both of the stops 35, or they may be so narrow that they will engage only one of the stops, or two lines of sheets may be fed, each line engaging only one of the stops. In Fig. '7' we show two piles of sheets on the truck 38', and in Fig. 3 we show two sheets 5a lying side by side on separate pairs of rollers I9, each sheet being in engagement witlra stop 35'.

The rollers [9 as shown in Figs. 3 and 7 have at their side hubs M, and pins 42 in the shafts I8 and at the outer ends of the hub for holding the rollers from longitudinal. travel on the shafts I8. The rollers are freely rotatable on the shafts so that the conveyor will travel without undue friction on the lower faces of the sheets 5 while they are held by the stops.

To accommodate sheets 5 of various lengths, the bars 36 and 36' are adjustable longitudinally of the conveyor [6 by the bar-securing bolts 43 and 53 in selected holes 44 and 44' in the top of the frame 23.

In case it is desired to anneal and pile two lines of sheets of different lengths, an additional bar 36a would be provided in front of or behind the bar 36 and positioned so as to,stop the sheets with their rear ends located as described hereinbefore. The adjustable stop 35a which is in line with the travel of the longer sheets would be thrown up out of sheet-stopping position while the stop 35 which is in line with the travel of the shorter sheets would be thrown down into sheet-stopping position.

45 designate pipes to conduct operating fluid to and from the hydraulic jacks. We have shown jacks as an example of a means for operating the trucks vertically, but other suitable means may be used.

The conveyor I3 may be omitted or removed and a truck 46 placed to receive the waster sheets as they drop from the pass of the rolls 1 and I2.

We have shown cross-bars 36, 36 and 36a secured to the frame 23 by bolts 43 as an example of a means for adjusting the position of the cross-bars longitudinally of the frame, but other suitable means may be used for securing these bars to the frame.

This invention is not to be limited to the specific construction disclosed as changes may be made .therein without altering its scope as defined in the appended claims.

We claim- 1. In a sheet piling mechanism, an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing a portion of the top leg of the conveyor to travel at a lower level than at a preceding portion thereof, and means for stopping the travel of the sheets on the said leg of the conveyor at such a position that a support following the rear end of each sheet engages the upper surface thereof and depresses it into contact with a sheet -receiving surface before the front end of the sheet is released from the conveyor.

2. In a sheet piling mechanism, an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing a portion of the top leg of the conveyor to travel at a lower level than at a preceding portion thereof, and means for stopping the travel of the sheets on the said leg of the conveyor at such a position that a support following the rear end of each sheet engages the upper surface thereof and depresses it into contact with a sheet-receiving surface before the front end of the sheet is released from the conveyor, the supports on which the sheet rests progressively traveling toward the front end thereof, whereby the .sheet progressively contacts with the said surface and the air between the sheet and the surface is gradually and progressively expelled from the rear end of the sheet to its front end.

3. In a sheet piling mechanism, an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing the upper leg of the conveyor to travel at each of two positions at a, lower level than at a precedingportion thereof, and means at the forward portion of each level for stopping a sheet at such a position that a support following the rear end of the sheet engages the upper surface thereof and depresses the same into contact with a sheet-receiving surface before the front end thereof is released from the conveyor, the first stopping means being displaceable so that sheets on the said leg will travel from the first level to the second level.

4. In a sheet piling mechanism, an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing a portion of the top leg of the conveyor to travel at a lower level than at a preceding portion thereof, means for stopping the travel of the sheets on the said leg of the conveyor at such a, position that a support fol-' lowing the rear end of each sheet engages the upper surface thereof and depresses it into contact with a sheet-receiving surface before the front end of the sheet is released from the conveyor, and means for adjusting the stopping means so that sheets of varying lengths may be positioned with, respect to their rear ends as herefront end thereof is released from the conveyor,

the rear first stopping means being displaceable so that sheets on the said leg will travel from the first levelto the second level, and means for adjusting the stopping means so that sheets of,

varying lengths may be positioned with respect to their rear ends as herein described.

the travel of the sheets on the said leg of the conveyor at such a position that a support following the rear end of each sheet engages the upper surface thereof and depresses it into contact with a sheet-receiving surface before the front end of the sheet is released from the conveyor, and means" for adjusting the stopping means so that sheets of varying lengths may be positioned with respect" to their rear ends as herein described, in combination with means for adjusting the level of the sheet-receiving surface. a v

'7. Means for feeding a sheet. means for stopping the feed of the sheet over a support for the same, and means including a part of the feeding means for depressing the rear end of the sheet from the normal plane of the sheet down into contact with the support and progressively lowering the remaining portions of the sheet into contact with the support.

8. An apparatusfor piling metal sheets consisting of a supporting means for the piled sheets, a conveyor for bringing a sheet into position above the supporting means, a stop for maintaining the sheet in the said position and means inneath the sheet to lay it on the supporting means with an action characterized by a gradual increase of. surface contact between the sheet and the supporting means.

9. An endless conveyer having substantially uniformly-spacedcross supports for supporting and feeding asheet, a downwardly moving means including a part of .the conveyor for positively causing the rear end of the sheet to be disposed so that the supports next following the said end of the sheet pass above the sheet, permitting the sheet to be gradually lowered from its rear end to its advanced end.

'10. In a. sheet feeding and -piling apparatus,

an endless conveyer having a portion of one leg abruptly at a lower level thananother portion of that leg, a sheet piling support beneath the leg and a stop to position a sheet on the conveyer over the support with the rear end of the sheet near the foot of the said abrupt portion of the said leg, whereby the portion of the con.- veyer at the rear of the sheet passes above the sheet.

11. In a sheet feeding and piling apparatus, an endless conveyer having substantially uniformly-spaced transverse means to support and feed a sheet, means whereby the feed of the sheet is stopped and downwardly moving means including a part of the conveyor whereby the rear end of the sheet is forced downwardly between two of saidtransverse means while the conveyer is traveling.

12. In a sheet piling mechanism. an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing a portion of the top leg of the conveyor to travel at a loweij level than at a preceding portion thereof, andf=means for stopping the travel of the sheets on'the said leg of the conveyor at such a position that the supports following the rear end of the sheet pass above the same while the supports beneath the sheet are gradually withdrawn.

13. In a sheet piling mechanism,- an endless conveyor carrying horizontal sheet supports, means causing a portion of the top leg of the precedingportion thereof, means for stopping the travel 'of the sheets on the said leg of the conveyor at such a position that the supports folconveyor 'toftravel at a lower level than at a lowing the rear end of the sheet pass above the same whilg the supports beneath the sheet are;

gradually withdrawn, and means for brgradnal thestoppingmeanssothatsheetsoivsrying lengthsmaybepositionedwithrespecttotheir rear ends as herein described.

14. A metallic sheet conveyor and piling mechanismincluding means for cross supporting and conveying metallic sheets in their normal horisontal planes. means for stoppin the sheets, and downwardly moving means including a part oi the cross supporting and conveying means for forcing the rear ends of the said sheets downwardly to a plane below the normal stopped positions, thereby causing the said sheets to be gradually piled from theirreer to their front ends drawal or the supporting eonveyor.

15. A sheet conveyor and piling mechanism including means for stopping the sheets in their travel on the conveyor, and means for supporting and conveying the sheets in their normal planes and for forcing the rear ends of said sheets downwardly to a plane below the normal stopped positions while the conveyor continues its travel, thereby causing the said sheets to be gradually piled irom their rear to their front ends by gradual withdrawal of the supporting conveyor.

WILLIAM F. CONKLIN. HOMER 8. HOPKINS. JOHN M. ROVER.