US2945605A

US2945605A - Carrier for articles being heat treated

Info

Publication number: US2945605A
Application number: US811750A
Authority: US
Inventors: Paul S Menough
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1959-05-07
Filing date: 1959-05-07
Publication date: 1960-07-19
Anticipated expiration: 1977-07-19

Description

July 19, 1960 Filed May 7, 1959 P. S. MENOUGH CARRIER FOR ARTICLES BEING HEAT TREATED 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 i? J ma l f ao J 7' j INVENTOR,

5. MEA/006% BY M477: f osare/v July 19, 1960 P. s. MENOUGH 2,945,605

CARRIER RoR ARTICLES BRING HEAT TREATED Filed May 7, 1.959 2 sheets-sheet 2 j?? 4 INVENTOR.

rraen/fys United States Pattini 0 Mv 2,945,605 CARRIER FoR ARTICLES BEING HEAT TREATED Paul S. Menough, 1 9770 Roslyn Drive,

Rocky River, Ohio Filed May 7, 1959, Ser. No. 811,750

Claims. (Cl. 214-18) This invention relates generally to the heat treating art and is particularly concerned with new apparatus for transporting small articles through a heat treating furnace.

There are many small, various shaped, light weight articles which require'heat treatment, as by being heated to high temperatures while traveling through a furnace, and various types of means have been proposed for carrying such articles through a furnace. Y Examples of such articles are metal pieces which are being enamel coated. However, no fully satisfactory means for such purpose has been devised prior to this invention, so far as I am informed.`

The prior carriers for such articles were castings of metal which was quite resistant to high temperatures, for example, high nickel high chromium alloys and the like. These castings were much heavier ythan was required to alord the necessary small strength due primarily to the fact that the molten metal would not flow through .the passages in sand molds which were small enough to make cast section having that small strength. The vmetal which was in excess of that required tofafford the necessary strength was expensive in metal cost .and in the loss of heat carried out of the furnace on each cycle as well as slowing down the cycle -to allow .time for the castings to reach furnace temperature. Moreover, the cast metal required a high carbon content to give it suicient fluidity to ow through the .passages 'in 'the mold and this high carbon content made the castings so brittle that when they warped, sagged or bent, .they could not be straightened and had to be discarded.

A real need has persisted for a longtime for carriers for such articles and purposes which carrier would be light in weight, which could vbe made `from rolled metal .as contrasted with castings, which could be heat treated :to increase the initial strength before being put into use, :and which could be made of several separate parts that -could be readily assembled, disassembled, reversed 'and replaced. Y

The present invention aimed to solve that long-stand- .'ing problem by providing carriers having the character- Aistics and advantages just stated. It attains that aim by Lthe invention which is disclosed in the following specifi- .cation and in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a heat treating :furnace with a carrier embodying the present invention suspended therein from a heat conveyor; o

Figure 2 is an enlarged side elevational view-of a sad- .dle and parts of the blades of the carrier of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the apparatus lof Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the blade of yFiglEures 1 to 3;

Figure 5 is a side elevational view of a modied form -of a saddle embodying the present invention;

Figure 6 .is an end elevational view of the saddle of Figure 5; and

Patented `.Fully 19, 1960 Figure 7 is a perspective view of a modified form of a blade. Y

treating small articles.

Walls 3 and a top wall 4 having a longitudinally extendf ing opening 5 therethrough. These walls 2, 3 and 4 dene a heating chamber 6 and are made of refractory material capable of withstanding high temperatures to be created in chamber 6 by heating means, such as r'esistance elements (not shown) which may be carried by wall supports 7. A super-structure comprising metal uprights 10, cross bars 11 connecting the vupper ends of uprights together and support means including horizontal and vertical members 12 and 13 support angles 15 constituting a track `for trolleys 16. 'Ihese trolleys are spaced apart several feet along the conveyor and have wheels 17 to run on angles 15 and depending rods 20 which extend down through opening 5 in the roof of the furnace and into chamber 6. Flexible seals 21 are secured to the top of the furnace along opening 5 and normally bear against one another but are moved apart by rods 2 0, these seals impeding the flow of hot gases out of the furnace and preventing ingress of dirt into the furnace chamber 6. A i

Figures 2 to 4 show one form of the present invention. An elongated T-bar 25 is connected to the lower end of two rods 20 and has a web 26 and flanges 27. Each `T-bar supports a plurality of saddles 30, A at bar may be used instead of the illustrated T-bar. Each saddle 30 is made from sheet metal and'includes a lower part consisting of parallel side wallsY 31'and an upper part consisting of parallel side walls connected by curved portion 31a. The lower .part of the saddle 30 is' provided with vertical slots 32 extending upwardly from the lower edges of side walls 31 and intersecting with horizontal slots'33, located approximately midway be'- tween the vertical end'edges of Walls 31. A transverse ly elongatedV Stirrup 34 Vextends through openings 33 and is connected todsides 31 of the saddle in any suitable manner, for-example, as by weld metal 35. When asaddle islassembled with T-bar 25, the web 26 extends up in slots 3 2' in sides 31` and may engagebar 34, or flanges 27 may engage the lower edges of saddle sides 31, lor both web and flanges may engage the saddle. Near their lower ends, the vertical remote edges of sides 31 of saddle 30 are provided 'with notches in which short transverse stirrups 36 are located and connected thereto in any suitable manner, for example by weld metal 37. Stirrup 34 is spaced out of vertical alignment with stirrups 36. Sides 31 of saddle 30 are' provided with aligned openings 39.

Blades 40 are made of rolled metal and have notches 41, 41a and 41b formed in the upper and lower edges thereof in which hangers connected to articlesto be heat treated may be placed for transportation. At one end blade 40 has an opening 43 and at the other end the blade has a block 44 secured thereto in any suitable manner, for example by weld metal 45.

VThe manner of assembling the saddle and blades of Figures 2 to 4 is indicated in Figure 2 where each of the portthe blades Vand their loads of articles. The saddle is maintained in an upright position by the web 26 in slots, 312H and .byfi engagement of ythe upper edge of the web with stirrup '34;

It will be understood from the foregoing description that the T-bar 25, saddles 30,

stirrups

34 and 36 and blades 4t) may all be made of rolled, high temperature resisting metals and alloys, such as high nickel high chromium ferrous alloys, and that they may be readily assembled and disassembled. These alloys may have low carbon contents since they are not to be cast in thin sections and hence are not as brittle as the castings and are more susceptible to being straightened. Also they may be heat treated so as to have their strength increased. Since the parts may be made by rolling, they may be made with adequate strength to meet the needs but without being unnecessarily heavy. It will further be understood that, in the event that any of these parts, particularly the blades 40, sag, bend or warp in use, they may be readily removed by removing keys 46 and reversed or replaced as may be desired.

While the upper part of saddle has considerable strength against bending under the weight of loads on the blades due to the parallel, vertically long sides and the curved connection at the top, added strength may be had by reinforcing the upper end of the saddle. One means of reinforcing it is by placing a rod or tube 47 of high heat resistant metal in the curved part 31a of the saddle and attaching it to the saddle as by weld metal 48.

It will be noted that the notches 41, `41a and 41b progressively increase in depth from the inner or key-bearing ends to the outer or free ends and that, accordingly, the blades progressively increase in strength from their free ends toward their support ends.

In the embodiment of the present invention which is shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7, an elongated T-bar 25, like that shown in Figures l to 3, is employed. One of the saddles supported on this T-bar is shown in Figures 5 and 6. This saddle includes an upper part which may be a casting and which has short oppositely projecting flanges 52 at lits top edge which afford strength to resist bending. At its lower edge this upper part 50 is provided with an elongated laterally extending stirrup 53 and with downwardly projecting lugs 54. The saddle includes a lower part 55 which is connected along the lower edge of the upper part 51 in any suitable manner as, for example, by weld metal 56. This lower part 55 is preferably composed of two similar parts with a vertical space 57 between their adjacent edges. Each part 55 is U-shaped, as better seen in Figure 5, and is provided in its top curved part with notches 60 to receive lugs 54.

At its ends, upper part 51 is provided with upstanding portions 64 and upwardly and inwardly bent rods 65 connected thereto in any suitable manner, for example, by weld metal 66. Recesses are provided between the lower sides of rods 65 and the upper edge of part 51 in which links are movably retained.

In Figure 7 is shown one of the blades 75 which may be assembled with the saddles of Figures 5 and 6. Blade has notches 76 near one end, a post 77 at the other end and Ia plurality of holes 78 between the ends preferably positioned on the longitudinal medial line or neutral axis of the blade to receive article hangers.

Each blade 75 may be assembled with the stirrup of Figure 5 by swinging the lower end of a link 70 outwardly, passing the blade 75 far enough through the link so that the notch 76 will receive lug 54 of the saddle and then swinging the link back into a substantially vertical position with co-incident lowering of the free end of the blade to bring the `blade into a substantially horizontal position. The other yblade may be assembled in the same manner.

As has been described above in connection with Figures 1 to 4, the parts of the apparatus shown in Figures 5 to 7 should be made of high temperature heat resistant metal or alloy and the lower part 5S of the saddle and the blades should be `made of such metal containing a low carbon content so that they can be formed by rolling. Preferably, the upper part 51 of the saddle is a casting since, due to its peculiar shape, it would be more economical to cast it than to roll it.

Also, as in the case of the modification of Figures l to 4, the T-bar, which s disposed in the space 57 in the saddle, prevents lateral tilting of the saddle on the T-bar and the upper edge of the web of the T-bar which engages the underside of stirrup 53 Iprevents tilting of the saddle in a direction lengthwise of the T-bar.

It will be understood that the blade shown in Figure 4 may be employed with the saddle of Figure 5 with minor structural changes, such, for example, as providing notches near the left hand end of the blade of Figure 4 to accommodate lugs 54 of Figure 5. Similarly, the blade of Figure 7 may be substituted for the blade of Figure 4 in the saddles of Figure 2, with or without omission of notches 76.

It will be understood from the foregoing disclosure that the illustrated apparatus is considerably lighter in weight than it would be if the parts were castings, as has previously been common practice, that some of, or all, the parts may be made of low carbon high temperature resistant metal or alloy which can be rolled and which is less brittle and more susceptible to strengthening by heat treatment than castings would be, which consists of a plurality of parts which can be readily assembled or disas sembled and which includes blades which can be reversed in the saddle in the event that they sag in use. Further more, the saddle cooperates with the T-bar so that the saddle is maintained in a substantially vertical position at al1 times with the blades being disposed substantially horizontally.

An important advantage realized by the use of this invention is that production is increased due to the shorter time required to bring the light weight carrier parts up to temperature as contrasted with the longer times required by the heavier parts.

Having thus described this invention in such full, clear, concise and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, and having set forth the best mode contemplated of carrying out this invention, I state that the subject matter which I regard as being my invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in what is claimed, it being understood that equivalents or modifications of, or substitutions for, parts of the above specifically described embodiment of the invention may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in what is' claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for carrying articles through a heat treating furnace comprising a saddle having an upper part, a lower part having parallel, spaced apart sides provided with a vertical slot and an elongated transverse stirrup at the upper end of said slot, blades extending into the space between said sides, means for engaging said blades and holding them in substantially horizontal position. and means for supporting said saddle and maintaining it in substantially vertical position.

2. Apparatus for carrying articles through a heat treating furnace comprising a saddle having an upper part, a lower part having parallel, spaced apart sides provided with a vertical slot and an elongated transverse stirrup extending through said saddle at the upper end of said vertical slot, blades extending into the space between said sides, means for engaging said blades and holding them in substantially horizontal position, and means for supporting said saddle and maintaining it in substantially vertical position, said means including a bar having a web disposed in said vertical slot and engageable with the lower side of said stirrup.

3. Apparatus for carrying articles through a heat treating furnace comprising a saddle having an upper part. a lower part having parallel, spaced apart sides provided with a vertical slot and an elongated transverse slot stirrup at the upper end of said slot, blades extending into the space between said sides, means for engaging said blades and holding them in substantially horizontal position, said means including said stirrup and stirrups in the lower outer edges of said side to engage the lower sides of said blades, and means for supporting said saddle and maintaining it in substantially vertical position, said means including a T-bar having a web disposed in said vertical slot and engageable with said elongated stir.- rup.

4. The combination of elements set forth in claim l in which keys extend through said sides and blades therebetween to lock the blades in the saddle.

5. Apparatus for carrying articles through a heat treating furnace comprising a saddle having an upper part having an elongated transverse stirrup and lugs extending down from its lower edge adjacent to said stirrup, and a lower part connected to the lower edge of said upper part and having parallel, spaced apart sides having holes to receive said Vlugs and dening a vertical slot, links depending from the upper part, blades projecting through said links and into the space between said sides, means for holding the blades in substantially horizontal position including said links and notches in the blades to receive said lugs, and means for supporting said saddle and maintining it in substantially vertical position, including a bar disposed in said vertical slot and engageable with said stirrup.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,843,275 Enk et al. July 15, 1958