US2164535A - Steel mill conveyer for heated material - Google Patents

Description

July 4, 1939. J. E. M BRIDE STEEL HILL CONVEYER FOR HEATED MATERIAL H e 1 ..d x m H W 2 m a n m L L W\ k\ m 0 .r A M. n N x E H 5 .YA m I I I I J 2 1. m l s I k m 8 Q Q 9 MW 1 8 l h C r a M d e 1 i F .1. E. McBRIDE 2,164,535

MILL CONVEYER FOR HEATED MATERIAL July 4, 1939.

STEEL Filed March 18, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /Z 3/ n a INVENTOR. Jesse E. Me firm e ATTORNEY Patented July 4, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE- STEEL MILL CONVEYER FOR HEATED MATERIAL Jesse B. McBride, Highland Park, Mich., assignor to Palmer-Bee Company, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan This invention relates to a hot slab transfer conveyer particularly adapted, by relative arrangement and design of its several parts, for use in steel mills for transferring heavy heated material such ashot slabs of steel from heating furnaces as well as to and from other operations. v

In modern steel mills heavy slabs of the material, which vary considerably in size, are heated in a furnace in preparation for forming into desired shapes in a rolling mill. It is a necessary part of the several stages in the process that the slabs be transferred while in a heated condition. Previous to the last few years the distance which the hot slabs were required to be transferred was not greater than thirty to fifty feet and at no time were the slabs intended to be cooled on the conveyer. In this case it was practical, because of the short length of the conveyer, to use socalled track chains with pusher dogs projecting therefrom which pushed the slabs over steel or castiron grids. However, in the present day rolling mills the distance over which the slabs are transferred has been greatly increased and the length often reaches 100 or 200 feet. This increase in length is necessary because of the enlargement of the mills and because it has become important that the slabs be cooled during transfer on the conveyer, thereby resulting in a continuous operation eliminating unnecessary transfer on and off the conveyer. Since the 30 to 50 foot length conveyer was about the maximum practical length over which a great number of slabs could be pushed by track chains it is necessary to use some new method to eliminate friction if the length of the transfer is to be increased to 100 or 200 feet. Although a conveyer of such length is easily constructed in an ordinary installation, much more difficult problems arise when attempt is made to construct a unit capable of carrying large slabs of heated steel. In the type of conveyer previously used the support problem was solved by the use of grids which could of course be designed for adequate support, but with the increased length now required it would be impractical to slide or push the slabs on grids because of the greatly.

increased frictional load which would be thrown on any pusher unit called upon to slide the plurality of slabs extending over the full length of the conveyer. Furthermore, since the conveyer is now generally made use of as a cooling bed, the problems arising from the considerable transfer of heat to adjacent parts of whatever conveyer unit is used must be seriously considered,

the most important problem in this connection being elimination of friction and the protection of the anti-friction bearings from injury by heat.

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a conveyer construction particularly adapted for transfer of hot slabs of steel over long distances, the several parts of said conveyer installation being so positioned relative to each other as to effect transfer of the heated material with a minimum of frictional resistance in the conveyor system while providing a position for anti-friction bearings or other rotating units such that they will be adequately protected from excessive transfer of heat.

It is a further object to provide a conveyer for transporting hot slabs of material with a plurality of chains positioned in parallel relationship and spaced in such manner as to allow various lengths of slabs to be carried crosswise of said chains.

It is another object to provide adequate support for a chain conveyer by supporting said chain on a plurality of large diameter rotating parts so that the chain which supports the heated material to be carried is displaced a sufficient distance from anti-friction bearings for supporting said large diameter rotating parts so that heat insulating members may be placed between the outer circumference of said parts and said bearings.

The above and other objects of the invention will appear more fully from thefollowing more detailed description and by reference to the following drawings forming a part hereof and wherein:

Fig. 1 shows a side view of one end of the conveyer indicating the position of the conveyer chain, a driving sprocket, supporting rolls and bearings therefor and heat insulating means therefor.

Fig. 2 shows a cross section through the con-' veyer unit taken substantially on the line 22 of Fig. 1, showing the arrangement of the large diameter carrying rolls and the smaller return rolls and also the arrangement for carrying long or short slabs of the material.

Fig. 3 is a detailed view of one of the large diameter carrying rolls and the return rolls indicating the method of support for the bearings and the insulating means employed.

Fig. 4 is a top view of the same portion of the conveyer as is shown in the side view of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 shows one end of a conveyer run with a section of the conveyer which carries the slabs of material, and a heavy block type chain I0, preferably made of alloy steel and heat treated, smooth on both top and bottom. The chain I is made of extra heavy section to withstand the shock of steel slabs which are pushed onto the chain at the receiving end. this heavy construction being also necessary to properly withstand the excessive temperatures to which the chain is necessarily subjected. As shown in Fig. 1, the chain is driven around the sprocket II and a similar sprocket at the other end of the line which is not shown. Adequate support for the heavy loads to be carried is assured by the use-of a plurality of closely spaced relatively large diameter rolls I2 which are mounted on shafts I3 and provided with bearing blocks I4 at their ends. These bearing blocks are supported on longitudinally extending structural members I5 here shown as I-beam sections, the bearing blocks I4 being mounted on the top of the I-beam, as shown best in Fig. 2. The rolls I2 with suitable supporting bearings are distributed along the path of the chain and are relatively close together, as shown in Fig. 1, in order to adequately support the chain and its load of heated material. The rolls I2 are also provided with flanges I6 to properly guide the chain II! in its path.

As shown in Fig. 2, several parallel strands of chain are used, each with the previously described distribution of supporting rolls so that various lengths of slab material may be carried crosswise of the chain strands. There are six chain strands shown in Fig. 2 indicated as I0, Ina, IIlb, I00, Illd and IIle. It is noted that the strands II'I, Illa, lb and- H are relatively close together while the spacing of the 'units I00, "id and We are at a greater distance apart. This lateral distribution and number of supporting chain strands can be arranged as desired so that short lengths can,

for instance, be supported across the chains I0, Illa and Iilb, while much longer lengths can be carried to extend to the right over the chains IIlc, IM and Iile. The use of common shafts I3, each supporting two rolls for a pair of chain strands, is considered advisable for heavy load as it places a bearing closely adjacent the roll which supports the chain, although it might be permissible in some installations to use one shaft to support more than two rolls.

Each of the chains I0 is supported on return rolls H which are mounted on shafts I8 below the rolls I2. These rolls II are of smaller diameter than the rolls I2 and serve to support the chain in its return run. The shafts I8 are supported by bearing blocks I 9 which are mounted on the bottom side of the I-beam section I5. The lower return run of the chain is allowed to sag between the supporting rolls I'I, this excess length of chain being made use of to take care of expansion and contraction of the chain due to variation in temperature. This feature is of great importance in a conveyer which is used to carry heated material.

Referring to Figs. 2 and 3 it is noted that the diameter of the rolls I2 is such as to place the chain I0 in a position considerably above the center of the shafts I3 on which the rolls are mounted. This serves to position the chain and the hot slabs of steel a considerable distance from the bearings and thereby helps to minimize the heat transfer from the slabs to the bearings. However, to further protect the bearings from excessive heat an insulating means is used in the form of two longitudinal channels 20 and 2I mounted as shown in Fig. 3 in an inverted position with spacers 22 secured therebetween. This assembly of spaced channel members is supported a distance above the bearing blocks I4 and below the chain III by vertical members mounted between each shaft I3 on the top of the I-beam section I 5. It is apparent that the provision of two channels with an air space between provides an effective insulation of the bearings from the hot slabs carried on the top of the chain I0. It is noted that the position of the channels 20 and 2| is between the top of the rolls I2 and the center of the shaft I3 and that these channels are of such width as to extend over the bearing blocks I4 on each side.

As shown at 24 in Fig. 3 the bearings used in each of the bearing blocks I4 are self-aligning roller bearings and are used both to cut down the friction load and to permit the shafts to turn freely in their supports even if they should be warped by heat or misaligned by other means.

When the several parts of the conveyer are positioned as above described with several strands of conveyer chain placed in a parallel relationship over the entire length of the proposed travel of the conveyer, the supported top strands of the chain form a transporting base for large articles such as heated slabs of steel, the parallel strands of chain being so spaced as to make a supporting platform for various lengths of material which may be placed crosswise on top of these moving chain strands. Such a plurality of strands is shown in Fig. 2. The use of a plurality of large diameter rolls I2 spaced relatively close together provides in effect a rolling support on which each chain travels, the flanged construction of the rolls providing an adequate guide for each chain. Furthermore, the use of the large diameter rolls with the bearings at the center and to one side of the chain strands affords all the advantages of an anti-friction bearing supported unit without placing the bearings in close proximity to the load to be carried which in this case is intended to be of material which will give off a considerable amount of heat.

Another important feature is the particular construction and arrangement of the parts which makes possible the use of a longitudinal insulating member which covers the several bearings and is positioned between the heated load and the bearings, thus further deflecting the heat. This unit is preferably constructed of at least two sections of structural steel or other suitable material spaced apart as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of, the drawings.

It is apparent that the construction of the conveyer unit is particularly adapted for the carrying of heavy heated loads with the use of parts which are of sufiicient size to withstand the loads to which they are necessarily subjected and still afford a construction which is exceptionally free from friction, so that the longer length of conveyer travel which is now required in steel mills may be accomplished without the use of a plurality of units or the use of excessive power.

In addition to the special features of construction which protect the anti-friction bearings from excessive heat the conveyer is further adapted for carrying heated loads by a novel arrangement of the supports for the chain. As shown in Figs, 1, 2 and 3, the lower return run of each chain has a plurality of supporting rolls H, the spacing of the rolls I! being materially greater than that of the load supporting rolls I2 so that the chain is allowed to sag between the several rolls and by this means compensates for changes in length of the chain produced by variations in temperature. This result is accomplished by such a construction since the load supporting upper rolls l2 are spaced close together and the chain is therefore not allowed to sag between supports. However, on the lower run the wide spacing of rolls H allows the chain to sag and the variation in length is therefore compensated in this section, the chain quickly adjusting itself in all sections because of its continuous movement.

10 Although I have described my invention as applied to a particular construction selected for the purposes of illustration, it is understood that various modifications may be resorted to and I therefore do not desire to limit myself to the 15 particular construction herein disclosed but rather to the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a conveyer for transporting heavy heated material, parallel chain strands for supporting said material, a plurality of relatively large diameter rolls distributed to support said chain,

strands, bearings for supporting said rolls positioned at the side of said chain strands, and heat insulating members mounted longitudinally and above said bearings but below the outer circumference of said rolls.

2. In a conveyer for transporting relatively heavy heated loads, parallel chain strands adapted for supporting said load, an anti-friction support for said chain strands and load comprising a plurality of spaced rolls, bearings supporting said rolls for rotation beneath said chain for support thereof, said bearings positioned a distance below and to each side of said chain allowed by a relatively large diameter of said rolls whereby transfer of heat to said bearings is minimized, longitudinal members covering said bearings and positioned below said chain and above said bearings whereby said bearings are further insulated from transfer of heat from said lead.

3. In a conveyer for conveying and cooling hot slabs of heated material, parallel strands of chain for supporting said slabs, rolls for supporting the heavy load of said chain and said slabs spaced beneath said chain, shafts for mounting said rolls for rotation having ends projecting outport for said chain strands and load comprising a plurality of spaced rolls, bearings supporting said rolls for rotation under said chain, said bearings positioned at a distance below said chain allowed by a relatively large diameter of said rolls whereby transfer of heat to said bearings is minimized, a plurality of spaced superimposed longitudinal members covering said bearings and positioned below said chain and above said bearings whereby said bearings are further insulated from transfer of heat from said load.

5 In a conveyer for transporting heavy slabs of heated material, parallel strands of chains for supporting said slabs, rolls for supporting the heavy load of said chains and said slabs spaced beneath said parallel chain strands, shafts for mounting said rolls for rotation, having ends DI'O'.

jecting outwardly from said parallel chain.

strands, self-aligning bearings for said shafts positioned on said projecting portions, supports for said bearings, heat deflecting and insulating members covering said bearings and positioned below said chain strands and above said bearings, said rolls being of such diameter as to provide sufllcient distance between said chain and said bearings as to allow for the mounting of said heat insulating members whereby upon co: operative action of said self-aligning bearings and heat deflecting members said chain is mounted for operation with aminimum of friction while carrying a heavy load of heated material regardless of the heat transmitted from said heated material.

* JESSE E. McBRIDE.

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