US2034794A

US2034794A - Wire coating machine

Info

Publication number: US2034794A
Application number: US707368A
Authority: US
Inventors: Paul E Brunberg
Original assignee: GEORGE E GRAFF
Current assignee: GEORGE E GRAFF; Ableco Finance LLC
Priority date: 1934-01-19
Filing date: 1934-01-19
Publication date: 1936-03-24
Anticipated expiration: 1953-03-24

Description

March 24, 1936. P. E. BRUNBERG 2,034,794

WIRE COATING MACHINE Fild Jan. 19 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Razz 55 m Kim Aw JTTO P VEVS.

March 24, 1936. p. E, BRUNBERG 2,034,794

WIRE COATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 19. 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 w. w. w. w. w. w w. w. I

,4/70/P/V5 ms.

March 24, 1936. P BRUNBERG Q 2,034,794

WIRE COATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 19, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Mar. 24,

UNITED, STATES- .PATENT. 'orrics 2,034,194 4 jwmn con-mo momma: rim is. Brunberg, Williamsport, Pa.-, assignor, by

esnassignments, m e

to George EAGrifl', Wilapplication was, 19, 1934, Serial No. 707,368 9 Claims. (oi. 91-.12.5)

necessary in the commercial execution of the process. o

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the machine. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the machine with parts omitted for clearness; Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of part of the machine. Figs. 4 and 5 are enlarged sec-' tionsonlinesl-l and 5-5 ofFig. 3. Fig. 6isa front view, partly broken away, of the machine. Fig. 7 is a section on the'line 1-1 of Fig. l. -Flg. 8 is an end view, partly in section, of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a section on the line 9-9 of Fig. "I.

The machine herein shown and described is especially designed to effect the coating of, copper 26 wire with 'lead, although it will be understood that elongated metal'articles other thanwire may be coated and that the elongated articles may be of metal other than copper and that the coating may be of metal other than lead..

,The copper. wire a to be coatedis fed continu ously froma pulley b into, through and out of a metal bath in a container 0. The bath is composed of a mixture of lead and tin of permissively variable proportions but preferably about 35 70% lead and tin'.. Beyond the container'c the wire extends over a pulley d in an'enclosure 'e' and thence through a chamber I containing the molten coating metal in this example lead.

for the openings hereinafter described. Itis provided with an inlet communicating with a channel g through which the coating metal is supplied. The chamber is closed at the top by means ofza removable plugh havinganorifice of a diameter barely exceeding the diameter of the.

uncoated wire. The chamber is closed at'the bottom by a removable plug i having an orifice whose diameter exceeds that of the uncoated wire by an amount that predetermines the thick- 50 ness of the coating. The chamber is provided with a small vent or air bleeder a through which the airi's expelled by the coating metal as it enters and fills the chamber. The vent may be providedwith a check valve or a hand operated Beneath the chamber 1? and spaced from it a slight distance is 'aplate m, which may be of "metal, but is preferablyoi. refractory material, having an orifice of a'diameter at least equal to that ofthe orifice inplug i, the centers ofthe '5 two orifices being in vertical alignment. One or more. burnersk direct their flame against plug 1 to maintain it at the desired temperature. Below plate 11:. is a cup n into and from which water, oil, orvother coolingand solidifying liquid continu- 10 y flows. Some of the outfiowing water escapes at the bottom of the cup' around the coated wire and the remainder overflows. Beneath the cup thecoated wire travels through the lower end of a pipe 0, which is slotted at 0' l5 to allow thewire to enter it. Oil, water or other cooling and solidifying liquid is continuously dis-- charged from the'pipe. Below the pipe 0 are two wheels r ands bev tween which the coated wire travels. Below these 20 wheels is a larger wheel t about which the coated wire travels to a. reel (not shown).- The reel should beef that known type which will pull the wire through the machine at a uniform rate.-

The wheels 1" and s are carefully adjusted be- 26 cause their adjustment is or may be exclusively relied upon to maintain the copper wire in the exact center of the wire outlet orifice in chamber f. The wheels are positioned so that their peripheries are on opposite sides of and equidistant 3 from a vertical line coincident with the exact center of said wire outletand they are spaced apart so that their peripheries are separated by a distance equal outlet. l

.-At that end of container 0 into which the wire is fed-is a track 11., which projects beyond the conto the diameter of said wire tainer at the said end. A wheeled .shuttle v is The chamber j is completely enclosed except adapted to run on this track. The shuttle is pro- 'vided with a. law to into which is adapted to be inserted the end of the wireto be coated. By

moving the shuttle longitudinally the end of the wire maybe pulled through the container into the enclosure e. The enclosure has ahinged wall x, which maybe v chamber 1, plate m, cup 11., pipe 0, between pulleys r and s, and aroundpulley t-to the reel.'- Extending longitudinally through the contents or c is a rod 11 whichis manipulable by hand to move bell cranklevers z into position to cause their'feet to engage the wire and press it down --below ;the. level of the lead-fin bath in the cone melt the same.

50 the endsv of chamber 40 into which'm'elted chamber 20, through an ried on tainer. I 0 are wipers, of asbestos or other suitable material, betweenwhich the wire travels on its way out of the lead-tin bath. These wipers rembveall molten metal from the wire except '5' a very'tthigillm.

Mounted on chambcr f is a chamber Ii, which is so packed with-asbestos or other suitable packing material l2 asto allow the wire to travel therethrough on its way to chamber I."

a multiplicity of wires. The drawings show a machine'adapted to handle seven separate wires. So far, however, as the. machine has been described, the mechaianismffor handling a plurality of wires involves erelya-multiplication of most of the described structural elements.

The molten lead is supplied from a vessel 20. wherein, if desired, pig lead may be melteg, as hereinafter described. The molten lead ows from vessel 20 into a ch u r 2| either directly or by way of adrossing u; b r 40 hereinafter de scribed. Within chamber 2| is a pump 22, which lifts the lead and discharges it into the upper end of a conduit 23 at a rate exceeding its 25 rate of outflow from the conduit, the excess overflowing and dropping down into the pool of molten lead in chamber 2|. Conduit 23 extends downward into a horizontally extending manifold 24, which, through channels 9, communicates 0 with the several lead coating chambers f. In

each channel is a valve 25, which controls the rate of how of molten lead into the corresponding chambers f. The height of the column of liquid in.,conduit,.23 determines the pressure of 85 the lead in chamber 1.

u Above essel 20 is a cylindrical chamber 3| within w ch turns a conveyor 32 comprising a hub and rfial partitions. Lead pigs '30 are I adapted to placed in the compartments, be- 40 tween the partitions, and the conveyer is adapt ed to be given quarter turns to allow the pigs to be successively discharged therefrom into the vessel 20, whichis subjected 'to sufilcient heat to 4 by means of a worm 33 operating a'worm wheelon the shaft of the .conveyer. The chamber 2| is normally closed by a sliding door which maybe opened at intervals to allow afresh pig to be inserted. The door may be supported on v parallel pivoted levers 30, one of which, by means of a connecting rod", may be operated, to open the door, from a foot treadle l8. Adjacent-the .melting vessel 20 is a drossinglead flows from opening 2! (Fig 1). From. the drossing chamber-lithe melted lead ilows thro sli the opening 20 into the covered channel 21, through the opening 20, into the chambeifill (Figs. 1 and 9).. A float ll is 'care end of a lever 42, which is connected,

bya link 43, with a lever 44 cooperating .with a scale 4.6. 'I'herebythe' level of liquid in chamber and vessel 20 is indicated, so that the operator may know when it'is necessary to supply; fresh pig of lead. a F

Within vessel 20 and all enclosures communicating'therewith is maintained a non-oxidizing atmosphere; and such anatmosphere, as faras 51 ossi l sim intainea 1 container 2: and enclosure e -By of-the described machine, wire of 1 many diameters may 'be uniformly covered with a coating of many different 75 For wire having adiameter of I have found it feasible to simultaneously coat ferent diameters of uncoated wires.

ace-1,794

.025 inch may be-coated with a preliminary leadtin film of about .0005 or .001 inch and then given a final lead coating of a thickness of about .012 inch; the final product having a thickness of about .05 inch. Each .wire may be run through 5 the machine at the rated about 35000 feet per hour. Ina multiple machine adapted to simultaneously coat eight wires, it is thus possible to commercially coat such wires at the rate of about 6 V miles per hour.

' With a given size of annular outlet orifice in chamber j, the higher the speed of the who the greater must be the pressure upon the molten lead, or the greater the pressure the greater is the permissive speed. The greater the'size of the 15 orifice; the greater the necessary pressure with a given speed, or the slower the necessary speed with a given pressure. Since it is desired to provide for coatings of variable thickness, the size of the outlet prlflce is a necessarily variable factor, 2 and therefore speed of travel and/or the pressure must be adjusted accordingly. Itis most con- Qnient, as described, to provide a. head of lead which is constant and to vary the speed in accordance with the size of the orifice. The size 25 of the orifice is most conveniently varied by providing plugs i containing orifices of the desired diiferent diameters. -I also provide plugs h; containingoriflces of diameters corresponding to dif- 30 What I claim and desire to protect'by' Letters Patent is:

' 1. In a machine for coating wire, the combination of acbntainer for molten metal having "a die in the body thereof through the center of 35 which the wire to be coated is adapted to travel, of wire-positioning guide wheels so positioned as to. maintain the wire in the center of the die.

-2. In a. machine for coating wire, the combi-' nation with an enclosed chamber provided with .40 an inlet for molten coating metal, a wire-enteringorifice at the top and an orifice. containing a (heat the bottom the die having an orifice The conveyer may'be'turned therethrough larger than-the wire to be coatedby an amount equal to the thickness of the 45 ;positioning guide wheels below said chamber to maintain the wine central in the die, a containerfor'cooling fluid below the chamber and above the guide .wheels and through which the coated wire is adapted to travel, said chamber having, openings through which the wire enters and leavesthe chamber, and a pipe positioned to dischargewooling fluid upon below said container. 3. In a-maehine for coating wire, thejcombi nation with an enclosed chamber providedwijh an inlet formolten coating metal; a wire-entering orifice at the top and an orifice at the bottom through which thewire and its coa g metal is. adapted to leave the chamber, of I -positiening guide wheels below said chamber, a burner "directed toward said bottom orifice, a sheet of refractory material- "provided with an orificethrough which the heated coated wire is adapted the coated wire 7? sages through which the molten'metal is conveyed from said vessel to said chamber, said passages including an upright conduit the upper 'and inlet end of which extends above the level of the molten metal in said vessel and the lower end of which is in constant open communication with the chamber, and a pump adapted to elevate said molten metal and discharge it into the inlet end of said conduit at a rate suflicient to maintain a definite head of moltenmetal in said passages and said chamber.

5. In a machine for coating wire, the combiwith the chamber, a pump adapted to elevate said molten metal and discharge it into the inlet end of said conduit at a rate suflicient to maintain a definite head of molten metal in said passages and said chamber, and a valve in one of said passages toregulate the rate of flow of molten metal into said chamber.

6. In a machine for coating wire, the combination with a container" adapted to hold a bath of preliminary filming metal, a chamber adapted .to contain molten coating metal, the wire to be coated being adapted to travel successively through said container and chamber, and guide pulleys at the wire inlet end of said container, between said container and chamber, and beyond said chamber; a track in said container, and'a shuttle movable longitudinally of said {track and provided with wire-holding means, whereby the end of the wire to be covered may be secured to the shuttle -and the shuttle moved through the container to allow the .wire to be drawn through and-beyond the chamber preparatory I to the coating operation.

7. In a machine for coating wire, the combia,os4,794

'nation of a chamber having an inlet for the coating metal and an outlet for the coating metal; a die in the outlet through which the wire to be coated may pass, the die having its orifice larger than the wire by an amount equal to the thickness of the desired coating, guide wheels arranged to direct the wire centrally through the die, and means for cooling the coating metal, whereby the wire is coated with a covering ofuniform thickness.

7 8. In a machine for coating wire with a protective alloying coating, the combination of a container for the alloying metal having an inlet and an outlet forthe coating metal, a die in the outlet having an opening therein of a sizelarger than the wire to be coated by an amount equal to the thickness of the alloying coating, means for maintaining in the container a head of the coating metal which will be insufiicient to force the coating metal through the die when the wire is relatively motionless but suificient to enable the wire when moving at the proper speed to draw the molten metal through the die, means for continuously propelling the wire through the alloying metal in the container and out through the center of the die, and means for solidifying the coating metal as it passes through the die.

9. In a machine for coating wire with a protective alloying coating, the combination of a container for the alloying metal having an inlet and an outlet for the coating metal, a die in the outlet having an opening therein of a size larger than the ire to be coated by an amount equal to the thi kness of the alloying coating, means for maintaining in the container 2. head of the alloying coating, which will be insufficient to force the coating metal through the die when the wire is relatively motionless but sufficient to enable the wire when moving at the proper speed to draw the molten metal through the die, means for regulating the flow of the molten falloying metal to the container, means for continuously propelling wire through the alloying metal in the container and out through the center of the die, and means for solidifying the coating metal as it passes through the die.

PAUL- E. BRUNBERG.