US2573737A - Method of making sheet metal hollow ware - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 6, 1951 c, sc vu o 2,573,737

METHOD OF MAKING SHEET METAL HOLLOW WARE Original Filed Dec. 17, 1945 15 Angdo- Scav U w, r L fl His WWW i atentecl Nov.

UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE ME HOD or SHEET E AL oney WARE pentinuatipn of application Serial No. 635,603, December 17, 1945. This application October 12, 1950, Serial No. 189,813

My invention relates to sheet metal hollow,- Ware articles, such as stainless steel hollow-ware articles and more particularly concerns ,amethod of fabricating ornamented stainless steel and other sheet metal holloweware articles adapted for office, store, home, kitchen and for sundry generally allied applications; the present application for patent representing a continuation .of my application Serial No. 635,603 .of December 17, 1945, now abandoned.

Among the objects of my invention is the .fabrication of ornamental .sheet metal articles, .particularly stainless steel articles of .the general type described, and to impart to preformed hollow-ware articles an effective ornamentaltrimin a simple, ready, rapid, efficient and certain manner, which involves minimum investment of plant and equipment and labor, which can be effectively employed with metalsheets of widely divergent thicknesses and configuration, and which avoids all necessity of 'appliededging or molding.

Other objects and advantagesin partwill -be obvious and inpartpointed out hereinafter, during the course of theifollowing moredetaileddescription.

"My invention accordingly-.resideszin the features of construction and arrangement of parts, and in vtheseveral operational steps, and. therelation of each of thesamewith one or more. of.-the others, .the scope .iof vthe application [of all of which will be more fully set forthin the claims at the end of. this specification.

-;In the drawings, wherein I. disclose oneembodiment of the apparatus which -I nowprefer for carrying my new method .into operation, Figure .1 comprises a perspective view, and Figure 2a front elevation of my new construction.

These views, wherein like. reference .numerals indicate like parts, effectively-disclose the mode of application of my invention.

As conducive to a more ready understanding of the exact nature of my invention, it maybe noted at this point that more and more stainless steel, as well as Monelmetal, nickel, copper, brass, aluminum and like sheet metal, isused-lathe form of what ;may be termed ornamentalhollow-ware. Particularly is this thecase of stainless steelwhen advantage is to be taken of one or more of the many outstanding, advantageous featuresof this alloysteel, including but without being limited to its oorrosion -resistance, its i h.- ea in lust i s s r a e hardnessrme high degr o I.PQH. ;W ip S ,wi ltake. and

2 ,Claims. (Cl. 29 148. 2)

the like. Among these articles, there maybe cited as illustrative, desk ornamentsfand ornamental bric-a-brac for the ofiice and gravy boats, bowls, coasters, dishes, ladles, pitchers, pets,

. trays and the like for the home Thus, for the foregoing as well as for many other highly compelling reasons substantial effort has been directed in recent years by many manufacturers in this highly competitive field towards productionof marketable stainless steel hollow-ware, as well as other sheet metal hellow-ware as having high sales appeal and substantial aesthetic value. While at first impres sion this appears to he a comparatively simple ma er. pe c p ov thi n t the t e case. It was ,not enough simply to produce a utilit ia ,pmdr bssrv n h de i d ct pna li u smen o com t w t g ne all similar articles of other metals alreadyon the market, although they be semi-precious or even precious metals, substantial eye appeal was iound to be an essential requirement. The stain s ee a e qomea i tivel nex nsiye sheet metal products, over and above their superior qualities measured from" a functional aedn eten ih i lo o a q dio ereeieu me al mi ie o ae e a i esili i i sh r rnem t t pn mat h imparted placing thoseproducts on, a comparable plane with'simila r products formed of the precious metals, as measured from an aesthetic standpoint.

,It was right .here, in imparting ornamentation tothejstainless steel articles particularly, that uneirpecteddifiiculties were encountered It was considered for various reasons that ornarnentation, "such .,as ornamental border "strips and ,the

had-to be applied tothe' metall .Welding was found entirely unsatisfactory for. this general purpose Burning and" distortion" of t e .design on the strip 'mad'e'lthis "entirely", impractical. Hard solder had to b'e resorted togemplo'yedfin uant H th .ams lsq e ha f0 3 ground oif and a 'ij'nal finish polishirnpartedfto tae cmatiaed article. Distortion in soldering frequently occurring, required further engraving, grinding and polishing. In the few instances whereatt'ractive results were achieved": 'substan tial labor costs were found to binvolved iii assuring thatlfthe strip'was maintained in proper position throughout the processing, aswell as in the. manufacturing technique 'itself. .In short, the stainless steel border ,was by no, means available. or feasible from apractical standpoin-tl .The product, could notrbe applied, by soldering or 3 welding at a reasonable price. The differential in price which contributed to the sales appeal of these articles as compared to those of precious metals diminished to the point where it was impractical to produce ornamental stainless steel hardware.

This, in short, was the problem which con-' fronted me at the very outset-.how to impart ornamentation to the stainless steel product which would be pleasing and effective in appearance, and at the same time would be sufficiently sure, certain and rapid as to involve low operational costs. An important object of my invention, therefore, may be conceived as the elimination and avoidance in substantial measure of the difiiculties, deficiencies and drawbacks heretofore existing in the art, and at the same time to achieve the several objectives noted.

My invention may be envisaged as comprising the fabrication of stainless steel and various nickel, copper, brass, aluminum and like alloy sheet metal articles such as hollow-ware for table use by deep-drawing or stamping sheet or strip metal and then imparting a raised or repousse design to roughly formed articles at desired regions thereon. For this purpose I employ cooperating dies, preferably roller dies, one constituting a raised die, and the other a die having the corresponding depressed pattern thereon. In accordance with my invention the roughly formed vessel is passed between the dies, more especially the rim or edge is continuously fed between the dies, and the latter are applied thereagainst at a pressure which is determined nicely relative to the thickness of the metal, so that the latter will be caused to flow just sufiiciently to take a sharp impression from the dies, without undue flow sufiicient to occasion distortion or regions of physical weakness in the shaped article.

I find it entirely feasible to process all shapes of articles, oval, oblong, rectangular, circular, and the like, of three to thirty-six inches or more in greatest dimension, having thickness of 20 to 14 gauge. The precaution must be observed, however, that the edges of the pattern stamped or embossed in the metal must be at least one thirtysecond of an inch from the nearest edge, corner or rim. If the pattern approaches more closely, a ragged design is imparted, with run off displayed, along with other indicia of inferiority. The dies, under such conditions, display a tendency to run off the surface of the metal.

Having more particular reference to the disclosure of Figures 1 and 2, sheet metal is deepdrawn into the rough form of a particular article, here typically illustrated as a vegetable dish Ill. The pre-formed article is provided with a flat, outturned marginal rim IDA. While the article may be formed of any suitable stainless steel, copper, nickel, aluminum, silver, brass, Monel or like alloy sheet metal, I find the conventional 18-8 chromium-nickel steel (18% chromium, 8% nickel, with the remainder iron) to serve admirably for this purpose. since it i produced in quantity, this grade i entirely satisfactory for such manufacture.

It is desired to provide a raised ornamental beading or design on the upper surface of rim WA. This design I provide through the use of paired, cooperating dies, substantially rigidly mounted in parallel axes, that die with raised surface contours being placed lowermost and that with depressed configuration being disposed uppermost, the metal to be shaped and contoured in accordance with the pattern of the die being placed therebetween.

I find it satisfactory to provide rotary dies, with a continuous die pattern imparted to the outer periphery thereof, and to feed the article l0 continuously and at uniform linear speed past or through the dies, by rotating the same about an axis which is at an angle to the axes of rotation of the dies. This I find to be far more rapid, simple, and easy of manipulation than stamping with reciprocating dies. Pattern overlap is en countered only at the end of the process. Development of skill on the part of the worker quickly suppresses and substantially eliminates this difficulty.

Accordingly, I provide an overlying circular rotary die element H fast on drive shaft 12 through its hub 13. On face Ila the female die pattern llb is provided. Cooperating with the underlying roller H is a second, circular and rotary die element l5 fast on its drive shaft Hi through its hub 56 which drive shaft is substantially parallel to shaft l2. On face 511 of die IS the male die pattern [51) is provided, which is complemental to and nicely fitted with respect to the female die pattern Mb. The linear rate of feed of rim lfia in rotating the work or article ID, the pressure between die elements H and I2, as well as the thickness of the sheet metal stock of which article It! is formed, are all nicely correlated in empirical manner so that the metal is caused to flow sufficiently, and to take a good, sharp impression of required high definition.

While various thicknesses of sheet metal can be handled, I find my new method most suitable for thicknesses ranging between 14 and 20 gauges. Metal of a heavier gauge does not take the pattern satisfactorily and metal of a lighter gauge is inclined to distortion.

My new technique makes it possible for the first time to provide a pleasing, clear and undistorted ornamental beading, gadrooning or edging on stainless steel and other inexpensive sheet metal hollow-ware, and the like, and this in rapid, certain manner. As has been suggested, stainless steel hollow-ware, and generally similar articles thus ornamented, have pleasing appearance and substantial sales appeal, the price differential as compared with the cost of articles formed or precious or semi-precious metals such as silver adding appreciably to its marketability and attractiveness to the discriminating purchaser. The rapid continuous technique, requiring labor of only moderate skill, ensures that production costs are maintained low, without sacrifice, however, in quality of product. Stainless steels of conventional and commercial grades, and in commercial sizes, shapes and thicknesses, are admirably suited for this final processing step. All necessity of difiicult finishing operations is eliminated in marked contrast to the necessitudes when applied beading is employed.

For the first time, really satisfactory ornamented metal products are made possible at reasonable price. Heretofore, competing products from the standpoint of initial cost such as steel plated with silver or other similar surfacing metals are found to rust and discolor in use. Corrosion is rapid, especially in moist as well as salty atmospheres. Articles such as table ware for marine and beach duty soon corrode. Articles of such nature as to be subjected to frequent handling as in the hotel and restaurant trade, likewise soon discolor with a scratching or wearing away of the plated surface. All of these conditions of use are withstood by the ornamental articles of my invention.

It is apparent from the foregoing that once the broad aspects of my invention are disclosed, many embodiments thereof and many modes of application, all falling within the scope thereof, will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Moreover, many modifications of the embodiment and mode of execution herein disclosed will likewise suggest themselves. Accordingly, I intend to be limited only by the scope of the following claims, and I make the foregoing disclosure solely by way of illustration.

I claim:

1. In the fabrication of ornamented stainless steel hollow-ware, the art which comprises, shaping stainless steel sheet of 20-14 gauge to desired hollow-ware configuration with a free out-turned circumferential rim, and then continuously feeding said free out-turned rim by rotating said Ware between male and female rotary dies operating in axes at an angle to the axis of rotation of said ware and cooperating at sufficient pressure and at suificient distance from the-edge of the rim to impart ornamentation thereto.

2. In the fabrication of ornamented sheet metal hollow-ware, the art which comprises, shaping sheet metal of 20-14 gauge to desired hollow-ware configuration with a free out-turned rim, and then continuously feeding said free out-turned rim by rotating said. ware between a pair of power driven roller dies operating in axes at an angle to the axis of the rotation of said ware and cooperating at sufiicient pressure and at a distance up to about inch from the edge of the rim to impart ornamentation to the rim.

ANGELO C. SCAVULLO.

6 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record inthe file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 147,767 Gould Feb. 24, 1874 367,087 Briggs July 26, 1887 407,637 Browning July 23, 1889 426,407 Browning Apr. 22,1890 699,795 Eynon May 13, 1902 761,792 Such et a1 June 7, 1904 1,098,567 Grandmot June 2, 1914 1,150,805 Beran Aug. 17, 1915 1,374,225 Peacock Apr. 12, 1921 1,469,555 Cumfer Oct. 2, 1923 1,559,658 Underwood Nov. 3, 1925 1,637,242 Reilly July 26, 1927 1,717,482 Weidlich et al. June 18, 1929 1,728,033 Blake et a1 Sept. 10, 1929 1,785,905 Kerruish Dec. 23, 1930 1,807,141 Wood May 26, 1931 1,910,278 Browning May 23, 1933 1,951,470 Cole Mar. 20, 1934 1,981,915 Hormel Nov. 27, 1934 2,040,102 Peron May 12, 1936 2,057,254 Sommer Oct. 13, 1936 2,125,793 Linderman Aug. 2, 1938 2,132,796 Money Oct. 11, 1938 2 234,491 Hayden Mar. 11, 1941 2,277,725 Smith Mar. 31, 1942 2,362,206 Kronquest Nov. 7, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 444,565 Great Britain Mar. 23, 1936

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