US2075574A - Alignment maintenance for the rolls of rolling mills - Google Patents

Description

March so, 1937. F, R .5AHL TROM 2,075,574

AL IGNMENT MAINTENANCE FOR THE ROLLS OF ROLLING MILLS Filed Jan. 11, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet .1

i i Irurencor Fi g. Frank 7 Dafilsirom as w.

March 30, 1937.

F. P. DAHLSTROM 2,075,574 ALIGNMENT MAINTENANCE FOR THE ROLLS OF ROLLING MILLS Filed Jan. 11, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Inu'encor Frank P Dahlsirom Afiorney March 30, 1937. F, p DAHLSTROM 2,075,574

ALIGNMENT MAINTENANCE FOR THE ROLLS OF ROLLING MILLS Filed Jan. 11, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inventor T'rank P Bah lsir om Patented Mar. 30, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ALIGNMENT MAINTENANCE FOR THE ROLLS F ROLLING MILLS Frank P. Dahlstrom, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Morgan Construction Company,

Worcester,

41 Claims.

The present application is a continuation, in part, of my copending application Serial No. 437,536, filed March 20, 1930, and the invention hereof relates in general to roll bearings as used,

for example, in the journalling of rolling mill rolls. In particular, the invention resides in a novel combination and arrangement of parts 1 product and on the rolling apparatus, are pro duced when the axes of a pair of cooperating reducing rolls become crossed, in consequence of any lateral displacement of either or both of said rolls from its normal operating position. In other words, it is of prime importance that the s axis of each roll be maintained at right angles to the direction of travel of the stock passing between said rolls; otherwise the stock may emerge from said rolls in a deformed condition, or with a tendency to twist, and furthermore, there will be stresses and strains of abnormal proportions set up in the rolling apparatus.

An immediate result of any disturbance of this desired normal right angle relation between roll axis and direction of stock travel is a strong tendency of the roll to move endwise, due, in the case of a stand of two-high rolls, to screwing action between roll surface and stock surface, and in the case of a stand of four-high or backedup rolls, to screwing action between the surfaces 5 of working and backing-up rolls. According to the present invention, such endwise tendency of a roll is made use of, in a highly advantageous manner, to-correct at once the lateral displacement of the roll axis which gave rise to said endwise tendency, thus to restore automatically the desired right angle relation between roll axis and direction of stock travel. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description thereof, reference being bad in this connection to the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a. view in end elevation of a two-high stand of rolls, to which my invention is applied.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a large scale fragmentary horizontal sectional view, illustrating the action of my invention in automatically restoring the alignment of a roll which has become crossed or laterally displaced.

Fig. 4 is a view in end elevation, showing the application of my invention to a stand of fourhigh or backed-up rolls.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary large scale horizontal sectional view, similar to Fig. 3, illustrating the action of my invention in automatically restoring the alignment of one of the working rolls of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a schematic view of the rolls of Fig. 4, showing the reactions thereon when the working rolls become crossed.

Fig. '7 is a view similar to Fig. 4, illustrating a. different embodiment of the invention from that specifically shown by Figs. 4, 5 and 6. l

Fig. 8 is a wiring diagram applicable to the embodiment of the invention shown by Fig. '7.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the different figures.

Referring first to Figs. 1, 2 and 3, the numerals I, l designate the two sides of a conventional two-high roll housing, each side having the usual window or opening 2 for the reception of hearing devices wherein are journalled the necks 3 and 4 of cooperating upper and lower reducing rolls 3a and 4a. The proper operation of said rolls is largely dependent upon maintenance of their axes in "parallel and uncrossed relation; and my invention, as hereinafter described, enables either or both of said rolls, in the event of such crossing, to restore itself or themselves automatically to the desired uncrossed relation where both roll axes stand at right angles to the direction of travel of the stock undergoing reduction. In the form of my invention shown by Figs. 1, 2 and 3, this automatic restoration is accom-' plished bya special construction of the bearing in which the necks '3 and 4 of said rolls are journalled.

The bearing devices for the two rolls 3a, and 4a are identical in construction, so that a description of one set of these bearing devices will suflice for both rolls. Any suitable means for supporting said bearing devices may be provided; for example, those for the upper roll may take the form of lugs 5, 5 projecting inwardly of the housing windows 2, 2, while the lower roll bearings may be supported for vertical adjustment by the usual wedge blocks 6,it being understood that, in the operation of the rolls, the upper roll 3a is held to its work by the usual holding-down screws 1 carried by the housing cap 8 and effective against the bearings of said roll.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, it is to be noted that each roll neck 3 or 4, as the case may be, is surrounded by a bearing member 9, here shown as made in two parts or halves, so as to allow the provision on the roll neck of a collar ill; the latter serving to prevent endwise displacement of said bearing member 9 and take up for wear on said neck. Any other means for preventing such endwise displacement may be employed without departing from my invention, and it is obvious that the latter is not in any way confined to the making of the bearing member 9 in two parts or halves. Said member 9, as shown,

has convex outer surfaces or sides H, H, the

axis of curvature of the latter intersecting the roll axis at right angles. For cooperation with each such convex surface II, I provide a shoe l 2, which has a corresponding inner concave surface in opposition to said convex surface; as shown inFig. 1, the plane bottom edges or surfaces of these shoes l2, I2, like the corresponding bottom surfaces of the bearing members 9, are slidably supported on the bearing supports 5a or 6a, as thecase may be.

Each pair of shoes i2, I2 provides outside surfaces l3, I3 in parallel vertical planes disposed at an inclination to the vertical plane containing the axis of the associated roll 3a or M, thus to cooperate with the pair of oppositely acting wedges l4, [4 whose inner surfacescorrespond with said parallel vertical planes, and whose outer surfaces bear against the opposite sides of the housing window 2. Each of said wedges l4, I4 is adjustably held in position by means of a. screw l5 carried by a bracket or lug l6, attached in any suitable way to the housing I. It will be understood, of course, that by means of said screws l5, IS, the wedges l4, M will be moved in or out, as the case may be, to establish initially a substantially exact parallelism of the axes of the two cooperating rolls 3a and 4a, so as to secure the desired right angle relation between said roll axes and the direction of travel of the stock between said rolls.

Let it be assumed, in the operation of reducing rolls journalled in the manner above described, that, from one cause or another, there occurs a disturbance of'this desired right angle relation between the axis of either roll and the direction of travel of the stock. Such a condition is represented, in an exaggerated manner, by the broken axial line 11-11 in Figs. 2 and 3, and under these conditions, with the stock travelling in the direction of arrow A, at right angles to the normal line :c-x of the roll axis, the reaction between said stock and the displaced roll will produce a screwing action of said roll toward the left, as represented by the arrow B. This left hand endwise movement of the roll, carrying with it the shoes l2, l2, produces, by a relatively short traverse of said shoes long the wedges \ll, I4, a

pronounced and immediate shifting of the roll axis from its displaced position yy to a corrected position :ra:, where it again stands at right angles to the directionfifo stock travel. As soon as this endwise shifting ac ion has reestablished the desired right angled relation between rgl axis and direction of stock travel, the screwing tendency is wholly eliminated; thus either roll in operation is capable of effecting by itself a restoration of its alignment, whenever its axis gets out of normal position.- In other words,

the bearing construction is such that the roll in action is self-aligning; there can never occur any substantial skewing of a roll axis, or any substantial crossing of the axes of cooperating rolls, because the corrective action above described comes into play immediately upon the slightest disturbance of the normal right angle relation between roll axis and the direction of stock travel.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show the invention in an environment which emphasizes its usefulness, namely, in connection with cooperating working rolls l1 and I 8, of relatively small diameter, which, in a manner well known in the art, are backed-up by larger rolls l 9 and 20, respectively, the latter being relied upon to provide the 10 necessary resistance to the heavy pressures and strains incident to the passage of the stock between the rolls I1 and I8. Said working rolls l1 and I8, being of relatively small diameter, are susceptible, even more than ordinary-size rolls, 15 of becoming crossed in operation. Referring to Fig. 4, the roll housing 2i, whose windows at opposite sides receive the necks or gudgeons of both the working and the backing-up rolls, provides at 'each side a suitable supporting means, as shown 20 at 22, for bearing 23 of the upper backing-up roll l9. From said supporting means 22 may be suspended, as shown at 24, another supporting means 25 on which the bearing devices of the upper working roll I! are carried. Any suitable 25 supporting means, as for instance, a member 26 supported on the lugs 21, 21 of the housing 2|, may be provided for the bearing devices of the lower working roll l8. These bearing devices for the upper and; lower working rolls l1 and I8 are 30 substantially identical in construction with the bearing devices shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 for the stand of two-high rolls 3a, 4a, and are here indicated by the same reference numerals with the addition of prime marks, viz., by the reference 35 numerals 9 to IE inclusive.

Although the bearing devices of working rolls I1 and I8 are substantially identical in construction with those of rolls 3a and 4a, their arrangement must be somewhat different in order to give 0 effect to the influence on said rolls If! and I8 of the backing-up rolls l9 and 20. The diagram of Fig. 6 illustrates the situation that arises when, from one cause or another, the axis of the upper working roll I! becomes crossed with rela- 45 tion to the axis of the lower working roll I8, or skewed, as shown in exaggerated form at my, with relation to the direction of stock travel (arrow A). When the upper working roll I! is skewed as shown in Fig. 6, the stock has a tend- 5 ency to shift laterally toward the right hand end of said roll. This tendency produces a certain reaction of the roll I 'l to the left, but this reaction will always be considerably less than the reaction toward the right that is effective on said roll l1, due to thefact that said roll I1 is ro tating in frictional contact with and in skewed relation to the upper backing-up roll IS. The latter, having a substantially rigid and immovable mounting in the housing and being made of 60 hard material, exercises on the working roll ll an effect that predominates over the effect exercised by the stock, since/ said stock is plastic or semi-plastic and is subject to deformation; in consequence, the major reaction of the upper working roll l1, under the conditions assumed, is toward the right, and for this reason, the wedges l4, ll of the bearing devicesrequire an opposite hand arrangement from that shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 in order to obtainsautomatic 70 ing roll or rolls.

A modification of my invention, shown in Figs. 7 and 8, utilizes in a somewhat different manner the endwise tendency of a crossed or displaced 75 correction of the axial displacement of the workright sides of said housing.

ill

roll to produce the corrective action by which the normal position of the roll axis is restored. Referring to Fig. '7, the working rolls l1, l8 and the backing-up rolls I9, 28' are arranged in the usual manner in a housing- 2l', with their necks received in the windows or openings of the up- The necks of the working rolls l1 and I8 are encircled and supported as shown in Fig. 7, by bearing shoes 28, 28,-and it is apparent that only by constant adjustment of these bearing shoes can the rolls I1 and I8 be kept from being crossed, or laterally displaced in action.

As shown in Fig. 7, each bearing shoe 28 (there being two for each working roll, one at either end) is movable in or out by a screw 29, which is turnable in the side of the housing 2| to produce lateral movement of the shoe. Each screw 29 is connected by suitable gearing 30 to a reversible driving motor 3| the latter being operable, as hereinafter described, to move its associated bearing shoe 28 inwardly or outwardly, as the case may be. for the positioning and maintenance of the rolls l1 and I8 in non-crossed relation.

Thewiring diagram of Fig. 8 illustrates the electrical connections by which the motors 3|, 3| are operated for the adjustment of the bearing shoes 28, 28, to produce automatically a correction of the positions of the working rolls I1, l8 as soon as any lateral displacement of either of said working rolls occurs. As shown in said diagram, each roll l1, l8, at the end thereof, carries a suitable conductor 32, .the latter being disposed normally in an intermediate non-contacting position between two sets ofgcontacts 33, 33 and 34, 34. When a roll H or l8 gets out of alignment, the endwise movement of the same in one direction or the other, produced, as above described, by reaction between said roll and the associated backing-up roll, carries the conductor 32 into bridging relation either with the pair of contacts 33, 33 or with the pair of contacts 34, 34, and this action is availed of to inaugurate the operation of the corresponding motor 3 l in such a direction as to screw the bearing shoe 28 either inwardly or outwardly, as the case may be, until the correct position of the roll is restored. With such restoration of position, which eliminates any endwise tendency of either roll, the conductors 32, 32 resume their normal non-contacting positions, intermediate the sets of contacts 33, 33 and 34, 34, thereby to discontinue the motor operation until the parallelism is again disturbed; in effect, the conductors 32, 32 have more or less a floating action between the opposite sets of contacts while the working rolls are in operation, the motors 3|, 3| thereby being brought intermittently into operation in whichever direction is necessary to substantially maintain the axial parallelism of the rolls I1 and I8 at all times.

The electrical connections to accomplish these results are shown in Fig. 8, and inasmuch as they are identical for the two rolls l1 and I8, it will be suflicient to describe the same with reference to one of said rolls I1 and its adjusting motor 3|.

When the roll 11', by reason of the screwing action produced by skewingof its axis, shifts to the left and causes the conductor 32 to bridge the contacts 33, 33, the current from a suitable source of electrical supply, made available by the closure of a switch 35, flows in a closed circuit containing the operating coil 36 of a contactor or relay device E, said circuit being closed by the bridging of said contacts 33, 33. The energization of coil 36 produces, in the well known manner, a right hand movement of the movable member of relay E, thereby to close the normally-open pairs of cooperating contacts 31, 31' and 38, 38'; this establishes, in parallel with the circuit containing the coil 36, a closed circuit containing the motor 3|, the latter thereupon operating in such direction as, for example, to screw the bearing shoe 28 inwardly, so as to shift the roll I1 far enough to restore its position, and thereby overcome the endwise tendency that originally carried the conductor 32 into engagement with the contacts 33, 33. As a result of this action, the endwise tendency of said roll is reversed, and the efiect of this is to draw the conductor 32 away from the contacts 33, 33, whereupon the circuit containing the relay coil 36 is broken; with the coil 36 thus deenergized, the movable member of the relay returns to its normal position, breaking the circuit of motor 3| that had previously been completed through the contacts 31, 31' and 38, 38', and thereby discontinuing the action of said motor in shifting the bearing shoe 28.

Should the adjusting action above described cause the roll to move too far to the right, or should a screwing action on said roll produced by crossed axes set up a right hand, instead of a left hand endwise tendency, then the conductor 32 will bridge the contacts 34, 34; under these circumstances, a circuit containing the operating coil 39 of a contactor or relay device F will be established: The energization of coil 39 procures, in the well known manner, the movement of the movable member of said relay device F, to bring together the normally-open pairs of contacts 40, 40 and 4|, 4|, as a result of which a parallel circuit containing the motor 3| is established, in which the current flows to the motor in the opposite direction from that which prevails when the relay E is made operative. This causes the motor 3| to operate in the reverse direction from that above described, whereby the bearing shoe 28 is screwed outwardly far enough to allow the roll axis to have its position restored. In this way, the endwise movement of a roll in either direction, as produced by a screwing action when the normal right angle relation between roll axis and direction of stock travel is disturbed, is made use of to set in operation immediately the necessary corrective forces,with the result that the ample, in the rolling of strip and like material.v

In such rolling, the wear occasioned by the passage of the stock produces after atime a shallow groove of the width of the stock in the surface of the roll, and because of this, mill schedules are usually arranged so that the widest strip is rolled first, and thereafter successively narrower strips are rolled;-the final procedure, before any wider strip is rolled, being to regrind the roll, so as to avoid any marking of the product from its overlap of either edge of the shallow groove.

Such overlap and consequent marking of the product, which comes from permitting a roll in til operation to shift endwise, does not take place to any appreciable degree with the arrangement disclosed in Figs. 7 and 8, because the electrical contacts tend always to maintain each roll in an endwise position that is substantially fixed. Any deflection from parallelism that produces momentarily an endwise movement is automatically responded to immediately by a motor action that, in laterally adjusting the roll bearings, also sets up, as above described, an opposite endwise movement of the roll, so that the latter at once resumes its correct position, both laterally and endwise. Thus in rolling strip or the like with the arrangements shown in Figs. '7 and 8, the product will not be marked by the edge of the shallow groove that is worn in either working From the foregoing, it is apparent that by the present invention there is provided an extremely effective arrangement for maintaining the alignment of the rolls of rolling mills. Upon theoccurrence of any condition resulting in a disturbance of the normal right angle relation of a roll axis to the direction of stock travel, the arrangement of the present invention automatically functions in response to endwise movement of the roll, due to screwing action of the stock thereon, to forcibly restore the roll axis to its normal position. In thus utilizing endwise movement of a roll, the present invention distinguishes from the roll aligning means disclosed in the copending application of Jerome R. George, Serial No. 432,797, filed March 3, 1930, wherein lateral displacement of a roll is depended upon to set in operation the means for restoring a roll axis to its normal condition.

I claim,

1. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll, said bearing permitting endwise movement of said roll in response to a screwing action thereon when the roll axis undergoesidisplacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means responsive to such endwise roll movement for forcibly restoring the roll axis to its normal position by pressure exerted on the roll bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement.

2. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll, said bearing being adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll in response to screwing action of the stock thereon when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means responsive to movement of said bearing by such endwise Fill movement for forcibly restoring the roll axis to its normal position by pressure exerted on the bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement.

3. In a rolling mill, a working roll, a backingup roll therefor. a bearing for said working roll, said bearing being adapted to follow endwise movement of the working roll when the latter on account of being inskewed relation to the backing-up roll tends to screw endwise, and means responsive to movement of said bearing by such endwise working roll movement for forcibly restoring the working roll axis to its normal unskewed relation with respect to the axis of the backing-up roll.

4. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll, said bearing being adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll in response to a screwing action thereon when the roll axis underright angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel is restored.

5. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll, said bearing being adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll in response to screwing action of the stock thereon when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and a mounting for said bearing providing parallel guide surfaces extending at an angle to the normal position of the roll axis, said guide surfaces cooperating with said bearing when the latter accompanies the roll in such endwise movement to forcibly shift the roll, laterally, until the normal 'right angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel is restored.

6. In a rolling mill, a working roll and a backing-up roll adapted to normally operate with their axes in parallelism, a bearing for said working roll adapted to move endwise with said roll when the latter, by crossing of its axis with the backing-up roll axis is subjected to a screwing action, and means responsive to such endwise roll movement for exerting a lateral force on said working parallelism, bearings for said rolls adapted to move endwise with said-rolls when the latter, by crossing of their axes, are subjected to screwing action from the stock passing between them, and means responsive to endwise movement of one of said bearings with its roll for exerting a force on said bearing to shift the same laterally just enough to restore said roll axes to their normal condition of parallelism.

8. In a rolling mill, a pair of reducing rolls adapted to normally operate with their axes in parallelism, bearings for said rolls adapted to move endwise with said rolls when the latter, by crossing of their axes, are subjected to screwing action from the stock passing between them, and mountings for said bearings providing guide surfaces cooperating with corresponding guide surfaces on said bearings to convert endwise movement of a bearing with its roll into a force tending to shift said bearing laterally just enough to restore said roll axes to a condition of parallelism.

9. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a normally inoperative contact device associated with said roll and made operative when said roll undergoes endwise movement in response to screwing action of the stock thereon resulting from displacement of said roll from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means responsive to the operative condition of said contact device, as a result of such endwise roll movement, for restoring the normal right angle relation of the roll to the direction of stock travel.

10. In a rolling mill; a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll, a normally inoperative contact device adjacent one end of said roll and made operative by end": se roll movement when the roll axis is displace from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means tact device, as a result of such endwise roll movement, to exert a force for shifting said bearing,

laterally, just enough to restore the normal right angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel.

11. In a rolling mill, a pair of cooperating rolls normally working with their axes in parallelism, normally inoperative contact devices associated with said rolls and made operative by endwise movements of said rolls resulting from crossing of the roll axes, and means brought into action by the operative condition of said contact devices, as a result of such endwise roll movements, for

restoring said rolls to a condition of axial parallelism.

12. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll adapted to operate normally with its axis at right angles to the direction of stock travel, a motor normally maintained inoperative, motor operating means set in action by endwise movement of said roll in response to screwing action of the stock thereon when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right anglerelation to the direction of stock travel, and means for shifting the roll by said motor under the control of said motor operating means until the roll axis resumes its normal position.

13. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll adapted to operate normally with its axis at right angles to the direction of stock travel, a reversible motor normally maintained inoperative, motor operating means set in action by endwise movement of said roll, in one direction or the other, in response to screwing action of the stock thereon when the axis of said roll undergoes displacement, in one direction or the other, from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means for restoring by said motor operation the normal position of said roll.

14. In a. rolling mill, a pair of reducing rolls adapted to operate with their axes in parallelism, bearings for said rolls, a normally inactive motor,

- contact making and breaking devices responsive to endwise movement of either roll in response to 45 screwing action of the stock thereon when the axes of said rolls become crossed for initiating action of said motor, and means for transmitting to a bearing of one of said rolls the action of said motor, to restore the roll axes to a condition of 50 parallelism.

15. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, bearings for said roll permitting endwise movement of said roll in response to a screwing action thereon, when the roll axis undergoes displacement from 55 its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means for utilizing such endwise roll movement to develop a corrective force applied to a roll bearing to restore the roll axis to its normal right angle relation to the direction 60 of stock travel.

16. In a rolling mill, a working roll, a backingup-roll therefor, bearings for said working roll permitting endwise movement of said roll, when the latter on account of being in skewed relation 65 to the backing-up roll tends to screw endwise, and means for utilizing such endwise working roll movement to develop a corrective'force applied to a worln'ng roll bearing to restore the working roll axis to its normal unskewed relation with re- 70 spect to the axis of the backing-up roll.

1'7. In a rolling mill, 9. reducing-roll, bearings for said roll permitting endwise movement thereof, and means for utilizing endwise roll movement, in either direction along the roll axis, to develop 75 a lateral pressure on a roll bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement, asv a result of screwing action on the roll, whenever its axis shifts from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel.

18. In a rolling mill, a working roll, a backingv up roll therefor, bearings for said working roll permitting endwise movement of said roll, when the latter on account of being in skewed relation to the backing-up roll tends to screw endwise, and means for utilizing endwise working roll movement, in either direction along the roll axis to develop a lateral pressure on a roll bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement, said lateral pressure continuing until the working roll axis is restored to its normal unskewed rel'ation with respect to the axis of the backing-up roll.

19. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll adapted to follow endwise movement thereof, and means cooperating with said bearing for converting any endwise roll movement into lateral movement of the bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement, whenever the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel.

20. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, bearings for said roll adapted to follow endwise movement thereof, and means cooperating with said bearings for converting any endwise roll movement, in eitherdirection along the roll axis, into lateral movement of each bearing opposite to the direction of roll displacement initially responsible for such endwise roll movement, whenever the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to direction of stock travel.

21. In a rolling mill, a working roll, a backingup roll therefor, the axes of said 'rolls being normally in parallel relation, a bearing for said working roll'adapted to follow endwise movement of said roll, and means cooperating with said bearing, when the working roll on account of being in skewed relation with the backing-up roll tends to screw endwise, for converting such endwise roll movement into a pressure acting laterally on the roll bearing to restore the working roll axis to its normal unskewed relation with respect to the axis of the backing-up roll.

22. In a rolling mill, a working, roll, a backingup roll therefor, the axes of said rolls being normally in parallel relation, bearings for said working roll adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll, in either direction along its axis, and means cooperating with said bearings, when the working roll on account of being in skewed relation to the backing-up roll tends to screw endwise, for converting such endwise roll movement into pressures acting laterally on the working roll bearings to restore the working roll axis to its normal unskewed relation with respect to the axis of the backing-up roll.

23. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a bearing for said roll adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll and providing parallelguide surfaces inclined with respect to the roll axis, and a mounting for said roll bearing providing guide surfaces in engagement with the guide surfaces on said bearing, for converting endwise movement of theroll in response to a screwing action thereon, when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle to the direction of stock travel, into a reaction between said guide surfaces which shifts the roll, laterally, until the normal right angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel is restored.

24. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, bearings for said roll adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll and providing guide surfaces oppositely inclined with respect to the roll axis, and mountings for said bearings providing guide surfaces in engagement with the guide surfaces of said bear- 10 ing, for converting endwise movement of the roll in response to screwing action of the stock thereon, when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, into reactions between the engaged guide surfaces which shift the roll, laterally, until the normal right angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel is restored.

25. In a rolling mill, a working roll and a back ing-up roll adapted to normally operate with their axes in parallelism, a bearing for said working roll adapted to move endwise with said roll and providing parallel guide surfaces inclined with respect to the roll axis, and a mounting for said roll bearing providing guide surfaces in engagement with the guide surfaces on said bearing, for converting endwise movement of said roll, when the latter by crossing of its axis with the backing-up roll axis is subjected to a screwing action, into a reaction between said engaged guide surfaces which exerts a lateral force on said working roll bearing to shift the same just enough to restore said roll axes to their normal condition of parallelism.

'26. In a rolling mill, a pair of reducing rolls adapted normally to operate with their axes in parallelism, bearings for each of said rolls adapted to move endwise therewith and each providing parallel guide surfaces inclined with respect to the 40 roll axes, and mountings for said bearings providing guide surfaces in engagement with said guide surfaces on said bearings, for converting endwise movement of either roll, when the latter by crossing of the roll axes is subjected to screw- 5 ing action from the stock passing between them,

into a reaction between said engaged guide surfaces which shifts the corresponding roll bearings laterally, just enough'to restore said roll axes to a condition of parallelism.

27 In rolling mills, the provision of means for automatically rendering effective the axially acting forces that are produced when the axes of contacting rollers cross one another to adjust the said axes into the same plane, comprising a bear- 55 ing for one end of one of said rollers constrained from axial movement in relation to said roller,

a supporting means for said bearing constrained from axial movement in relation to said bearing,

and a frame part in which said means is movably 60 mounted, the contacting surfaces of the supporting means and the frame part lying on the 0ppo.. site sides of the said plane being inclined to the said plane and parallel to each other.

28. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, end

65 bearings for said roll adapted to follow endwise movement of the roll and each providing parallel and diametrically opposite guide surfaces inclined with respect to the roll axis, and a mounting for each of said roll bearings providing guide surfaces in engagement with the guide surfaces on said bearings, for converting endwise movement of the a roll in response to a screwing action thereon, when the roll axis undergoes displacement from its normal right angle to the direction of stock 75 travel, into a reaction between said guide surfaces which shifts the roll, laterally, until the normal right angle relation of the roll axis to the direction of stock travel is restored.

'29. In rolling mills and the like, the provision of means for automatically rendering effective the axially acting forces that are produced when the axes of cooperating rolls become crossed, in order to adjust said axes into a common plane, comprising supporting means for one of said rolls that permits said roll to move endwise under the influence of such forces, and means responsive to such endwise roll movement for laterally adjusting said supporting means to a position in which the axis of said roll is cut by said common plane.

30. In a rolling mill or the like, a plurality of cooperating rolls, at least one of which, in response to operation of same in crossed relationship to an adjacent roll, is free to move endwise, and means for converting such endwise roll movement into a lateral adjusting movement of said roll, thereby to shift said roll into uncrossed relationship to said adjacent roll.

31. In a rolling mill or the like, a plurality of cooperating rolls, at least one of which, in response to operation of same in crossed relationship to an adjacent roll, is free to move endwise, a bearing for said roll, adapted to partake of the latters endwise movement, and a mounting for said bearing wherein the latter, by such movement is laterally adjusted, to shift said roll into uncrossed relationship to said adjacent roll. 32. In a rolling mill or the like, a plurality of cooperating rolls, at least one of which, in

response to operation of same in crossed relationship to an adjacent roll, is free to move endwise, a bearing for said roll, adapted to partake of the latters endwise movement, and a mounting for said bearing wherein the latter is slidable, said mounting providing guide surfaces for said hearing at an angle to the line of such endwise movement, whereby to shift said bearing laterally until said roll comes into uncrossed relationship to said adjacent roll.

33. In a rolling mill or the like, a pair of cooperating rolls, bearings for said rolls, one of said rolls, in response to screwing action set up by the crossing of the axes of said rolls, being permitted to move endwise, and means associated with a bearing of one of said rolls for converting such endwise roll movement into a lateral adjustment of said bearing, thereby to move the roll associated with said bearing into substantially uncrossed axial relationship to the other roll.

34. The combination with a rolling mill roll, of means permitting endwise movement of saidroll in response to screwing action set up by operation of said roll in crossed relationship to an adjacent roll, and means responsive to such endwise motion for laterally shifting one of said rolls to restore automatically the normal uncrossed relationship of said rolls.

35. The combination with a. rolling mill roll, of means permitting endwise movement of said roll in response to screwing action set up by operation of said roll in crossed relationship to an adjacent roll, and means for utilizing such endwise motion to produce a lateral adiustment of one. of said rolls, which restores the uncrossed relationship of said roll.

36. Apparatus for causing the axial forces set up in rolling mill operation by crossing of the axes of adjacent cooperating rolls, to restore said axes to a common vertical plane, comprising a roll bearing adapted to move in response to such forces, and a support for said bearing that permits such movement but imposes thereon a lateral component, thereby, through lateral movement of said bearing, to shift laterally the associated roll until its axis reoccupies said common vertical plane. I

37. The combination with a pair-of cooperating rolls, of means permitting endwise movement of one of said rolls in response to axial forces set up by the crossing of the axes of said rolls, and means responsive to such endwise movement for laterally moving one of said rolls to restore the normal uncrossed relationship of said pair of rolls.

38. In a rolling mill, 2. pair of cooperating rolls, one of said rolls being subject to axial forces set up by operation of same in crossed relation to the other of said rolls, and means brought into operation by said axialforces for laterally shifting one of said rolls to restore automatically the normal uncrossed relationship of said pair of rolls.

39. In a rolling mill, a pair of rolls, a mounting for one of said rolls permitting the latter to yield to axial forces set up by its operation in crossed relationship to the other roll, and

means for procuring, in response to such yield, a lateral adjustment of one of said rolls to restore the normal uncrossed relationship of said pair of rolls.

40. In a rolling mill, the combination with a pair of adjacent cooperating rolls, one arranged to respond to axial forces set up by operation of said rolls in crossed relationship, of means set in operation by such response of said roll to said axial forces for laterally adjusting one of said rolls to restore the normal uncrossed relationship of said pair of rolls.

41. Apparatus for causing the axial forces set up in rolling mill operation by crossing of the axes of adjacent cooperating rolls to restore said axes to a common vertical plane, comprising a support for one of said rolls, said support being constrained to partake of axial movement produced by such forces on its associated roll, and guiding means for said support making lateral contact therewith on parallel surfaces that are inclined to said common vertical plane, thereby to obtain a lateral adjustment of said support in a direction to restore the axis of said roll to said common vertical plane.

FRANK P. DAHLSTROM.

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