US3733876A - Mill roll changing arrangement - Google Patents

Abstract

A quick-replaceable roll assembly for a rolling mill stand, said assembly comprising an inner carriage, rail engaging wheels rotatably mounted on said carriage, means for mounting a lower roll and a pair of bearing structures therefor on said carriage, said means comprising a number of balancing plungers reciprocatably mounted on said carriage and engaging said bearing structures, and means for mounting an upper roll and bearing structures therefor on said assembly in faced engagement with said lower roll.

Description

United States Patent Hlaicsak MILL ROLL CHANGING ARRANGEMENT [75] Inventor: Joseph L. Hlafcsak, Whitehall, Pa.

[73] Assignee: Mesta Machine sburgh, Pa.

[22] Filed: July 7, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 269,753

Company, Pitt- Related US. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 112,336, Feb. 3, 1971, Pat. No.

[52] US. Cl ..72/239 [51] Int. Cl. ..B2lb 31/08 [58] Field of Search ..72/238, 239

11 mamas 1 May 22,1973

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,638,468 2/1972 Fukui et al ..72/239 X 3,665,746 5/1972 Elbe ..72/239 Primary ExaminerMilton S. Mehr AttorneyDonn J. Smith [57] ABSTRACT A quick-replaceable roll assembly for a rolling mill stand, said assembly comprising an inner carriage, rail engaging wheels rotatably mounted on said carriage, means for mounting a lower roll and a pair of bearing structures therefor on said carriage, said means comprising a number of balancing plungers reciprocatably mounted on said carriage and engaging said bearing structures, and means for mounting an upper roll and bearing structures therefor on said assembly in faced engagement with said lower roll.

12 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTEL MAY 2 2 973 SHEET 2 OF 4 PATENIEDMAY22 ms SHEET H []F 4 MILL ROLL CHANGING ARRANGEMENT This application is a division of my copending coassigned application of the same title filed Feb. 3, 1971, Ser. No. 112,336, now US. Pat. No. 3,691,809.

The present invention relates to a rolling mill and more particularly to a roll changing rig or similar means to facilitate replacing the work rolls of the one or more mill stands ofthe mill. The invention is especially useful in conjunction with wide flange and other structural mills wherein product changes are frequently made, which of course necessitate corresponding work roll changes in addition to replacement of worn out work rolls.

Although the invention is described primarily in conjunction with structural mills and more particularly a wide flange beam mill, it will be observed that the principles of the invention can be applied to advantage to other types of mills such as plate, strip, or slabbing mills.

As intimated above, the'operation of most beam and other structural mills requires frequent product changes and attendant replacement of the work rolls to accommodate the several products of a typical structural mill. In many cases it is necessary to change the mill rolls as frequently as eighty to ninety times per month. Of course the number of changes will vary from one installation to the next and the numbers of these changes, moreover, are dictated primarily by product changes rather than by replacement of worn work rolls. In most structural mills, the work rolls exhibit a long wearing characteristic, as the rolling forces are usually about half of those encountered in a typical cold mill. However, the tolerances of the work rolls in most structural mills are more critical, e.g., to ensure orthogonality of flanges in the case of a beam mill and in general the straightness of the structural members. These considerations contribute to the frequency of and necessity of roll changes in a typical structural mill, including but not limited to a wide flange beam mill of either the dual or single purpose variety. It is impossible to minimize the importance of shortening the mill down time by decreasing the time and labor involved in the aforementioned relatively large number of roll changes.

Known forms of mill roll changing procedures for this purpose have consumed inordinant amounts of time and labor for withdrawing the mill rolls from each mill stand and replacing them with a new set of rolls either for product changes or for wear consideration. In consequence, production programs have been unduly lengthened and unit production time has been unavoidedly increased, particularly for short-run products. Known procedures also have resulted in the use of additional operating personnel, who are not otherwise necessary to the actual operation of the mill.

In addition to the physical difficulties involved in handling and transporting the replacement mill roll, known roll changing procedures have dictated a rather extensive adjustment or zeroing" program after the installation of the replacement rolls and in preparation for a change in products or in product dimensions. Conventionally, after installation of the replacement rolls it is necessary to establish a predetermined reference point with respect to the mill stand and the newly replaced rolls. In the case of a beam mill both the horizontal and vertical roll assemblies must then be ad justed after the replacement procedure with respect to the reference point. After the material to be rolled has entered the work roll area subsequent adjustment is required owing to plastic deformation of the work rolls and associated components under load. This timeconsuming procedure considerably and undesirably extends the total time involved in replacing the work roll assembly and further increases mill down time and attendant loss of production.

These disadvantages of the prior art are overcome in an unexpected and inobvious manner, in accordance with my present invention, by providing a roll change rig or means or arrangement characterized by an ability to remove and replace the mill rolls quickly and with a minimum of labor. The use of roll handling equipment, such as overhead cranes and the like, is likewise minimized or eliminated altogether at the rolling mill site. In particular the roll change rig is arranged such that assembly and disassembly of the work rolls can take place in the roll shop or other location remote from the mill stand. Insofar as operation of the rolling mill itself is concerned, the mill rolls can be withdrawn and quickly replaced as a unit or complete assembly all of which contribute to a pronounced and unexpected minimization of the mill down time, in contrast to known roll changing procedures. Naturally, the productional losses intended upon known procedures of roll change are likewise minimized or largely eliminated.

Of prime importance, and potentially of even greater importance is another unexpected feature of my invention. This is the capability of the replacement roll assembly to be zero-positioned as a unit outside of the mill stand. Both the horizontal and vertical rolls (in case of a beam mill) can be adjusted to a definite or predetermined reference point, as required. The significant and unobvious character of this feature of the invention is readily apparent from the fact that the replacement roll assembly can be zero-positioned in the roll shop either during or before withdrawal of the previous roll assembly from the mill stand. With the capability of zero-positioning the replacement roll assembly externally of the mill stand, the mill obviously can be readied for production within a much shorter interval of down time.

Inside the mill stand, the replacement roll assembly can be lowered quickly onto a number of stops permanently mounted in the mill housing in further reduction of replacement time. When the replacement assembly is thus inserted and seated in the mill housing, the bottom mill screw-ups can be actuated to raise the bottom roll of the assembly into operating position, and the top roll screw-downs as well as the vertical roll screws can be quickly and efficiently actuated to their new operating positions.

I accomplish these desirable results by providing a quick-replaceable roll assembly for a rolling mill stand, said assembly comprising an inner carriage, rail engaging wheels rotatably mounted on said carriage, means for mounting a lower roll and a pair of bearing structures therefor on said carriage, said means comprising a number of balancing plungers reciprocatably mounted on said carriage and engaging said bearing structures, and means for mounting an upper roll and bearing structures therefor on said assembly in faceable engagement with said lower-roll.

I also desirably provide a similar roll assembly wherein said carriage includes a pair of shelf structures for mounting a pair of vertical roll structures respectively.

I also desirably provide a similar roll assembly including said mill stand having a stationary housing and a movable housing, and means for mounting said movable housing for movement longitudinally of said elevatable rails to accommodate differing lengths of roll assemblied within said mill stand.

I also desirably provide a similar roll assembly wherein a side shifting car is mounted for movement transversely of an external track section at an interruption therein, said car having a platform substantially bridging said interruption, a pair of auxiliary tract sections spacedly mounted on said platform, said car being shiftable transversely of said external track section such that each of said auxiliary tract sections can be selectively inserted into said external track section at said interruption to bridge said interruption, said platform and either of said auxiliary track sections being capable of supporting said roll assembly at a position such that another of said roll assemblies can be transversed along said external track section and the other of said auxiliary track sections without interrference from the firstmentioned roll assembly.

I am aware of a number of rolling mill arrangements in the general technical area to which my invention pertains, as typified for example by the U. S. Pats. to Thompson, No. 3,330,142, Kazebee et al., No. 3,367,l62 and Kalberkamp, No. 3,256,728. None of these prior arrangements, however, disclose the features of my invention, either within the context of my novel roll assembly or the handling means therefor. While the Thompson arrangement provides zeroing of control circuitry, there is no known arrangement, insofar as I am aware, which is capable of zeroing a mill roll assembly outside of the mill stand.

During the foregoing discussion, various objects, features and advantages of the invention have been set forth. These and other objects, features and advantages of the invention together with structural details thereof will be elaborated upon during the forthcoming description of certain presently preferred embodiments of the invention and presently preferred methods of practicing the same.

In the accompanying drawings, I have shown certain presently preferred embodiments of the invention and have illustrated certain presently preferred methods of practicing the same, wherein:

FIGS. 1 and 1A constitute a composite top plan view, partially in section, of one form of rolling mill stand together with a roll changing arrangement therefor.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view, partially in section, of the equipment shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the mill stand shown in FIG. 1, partially sectioned, and taken generally along reference line 33 thereof and FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the roll change rig shown in FIG. 1 and taken along reference line 44 thereof.

FIG. 5 is a partial top plan view, partly in section, similar to FIG. 1 and further illustrating a movable housing feature of the invention and,

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of the apparatus as shown in FIG. 5, with parts in section and other parts broken away to illustrate the invention more clearly.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 1-4 of the drawings, the exemplary form of the invention shown therein comprises a mill stand 10 and a roll changing rig denoted generally by the reference character 12. The mill stand 10 in this example includes a pair of housings 14, 16 with the housing 16 being mounted for movement along a pair of rails 18. The movable housing 16 thus can be moved to a position relative to the stationary housing 14 as to accommodate a particular length of roll assembly 20 therein. The two housings 14, 16 are stabilized by pairs of rods 17, 19 which are rigidly secured to one of the housings for example the stationary housing 14 and are engaged with the other of the housings by slideable insertion through aperture means 21. Generally the housings 14, 16 are aligned with upper and lower bearing chocks of the roll assembly 20 when in their operating positions. In the particular example shown the roll assembly 20 is of minimum length, with the result that the upper and lower sections of the housings 14, 16 can be placed in abutting relation as evident from FIG. 2. As also shown in the latter figure the roll assembly 20 is mounted on an inner carriage 26 provided with a set of rail engaging wheels 28. The wheels 28 are so spaced and are otherwise shaped to engage elevatable rail sections 30 of the mill stand 10, intermediate section 3611, auxiliary rail sections 32 of the side shifting car 34, and the external section 3612.

In the disclosed arrangement of the invention, the roll assembly 20 is shaped for closely fitted insertion through a window 38 of each of the mill stand housings 14, 16, as better shown in FIG. 3. The roll assembly 20 in this case is configured for rolling wide flange beams and the like and includes upper and lower horizontal rolls 4t}, 42 and vertical rolls 44, 46, all of which are mounted, as presently described on the inner carriage 26 to form with the carriage 26 the unitary roll assembly 20. In furtherance of this purpose, the upper horizontal roll bearing chocks 48, are nested onto the vertical roll housings 52, 54 respectively, each of which are troughed at 56 for this purpose. Each of the vertical roll housings S2, 54 is provided with spacers 58 to aid in aligning the upper horizontal roll chocks 48, 50. Each of the vertical roll housings 52, 54 in turn is slidably mounted respectively on shelf structure 53 or of the inner carriage 26 in contrast to previous practices of mounting the vertical rolls directly on the mill housings. Each lower horizontal roll bearing chock 60 or 62 is provided with means such as the spacers 64 for aligning the vertical rolls 44, 46. In furtherance of this purpose each vertical roll housing 52, 54 is provided with a pair of downward extensions 66 each of which is notched at 68 for engagement with positioning plungers 70 which are mounted in theinner carriage 26 as shown. The plungers 70 and extensions 66 therefor stabilize and position the vertical roll housings 52, 54 on the roll assembly 20 and particularly with respect to the upper and lower rolls 40, 42.

Similarily the inner carriage 26 is provided with pairs of plungers 72 for similarily elevating and balancing the lower horizontal roll 42. The plungers 72 can be hydraulically actuated if desired, and the plungers can be fitted into suitable bores or cylinders for that purpose.

Roll necks 74, 76 of the upper and lower horizontal rolls 40, 42 respectively protrude through the associated bearing chocks for engagement by suitable drive spindle couplings (not shown). The vertical rolls 44, 46 are not necessarily driven in this application.

The inner side of the inner carriage 26 is provided with a number of stop surfaces 78 at which the inner carriage is brought to rest on pairs of stops 80 permanently secured to the sill structure 82 of each housing window 38 as better shown in FIG. 3. The stop surfaces 78 and stops 80 are engaged when the mill stand rail sections 30 are lowered, for example by actuation of cylinder arrangements 84. At this time the roll assembly including the inner carriage 26 is stationarily and rigidly supported on the pairs of housings stops 80. However, before operation of the mill stand is commenced, it is in accord with another unexpected feature of my invention that the inner carriage 26 is completely unloaded as far as the roll assembly 20 is concerned, and the lower roll 42 of the latter is supported directly by the mill housings 14, 16. This is accomplished by supporting the roll assembly, in particular the lower horizontal roll 42 thereof, directly by the mill stand screw-ups 86.

In furtherance of this purpose each screw-up 86 is threaded through the bottom of each mill housing 14 or 16 and extends into bearing engagement with the associated lower horizontal roll chock 60 or 62 through an aperture 88 therefor in the adjacent end of the inner carriage 26 (FIGS. 2 and 3). Thus, when the roll assembly 20 has been properly installed within the mill housings 14, 16 by convenient use of the inner carriage 26, the roll assembly 20 then can be engaged directly by the mill stand in the usual manner. For this purpose each vertical roll housing 52 or 54 is provided with a pair of inclined stop surfaces 90 for engagement respectively by a pair of clamping plungers 92 carried in the associated mill housings 14 or 16.

The position of inner carriage 26 within the mill stand is secured by a pair of lower clamp plates 94 mounted on the movable housing 16 adjacent the window 38 thereof to properly contain the roll assembly 20 in the mill stand 10. Similar and cooperating upper clamp plates 96 can be mounted in like manner on the movable housing 16 adjacent the window 38 for the same purpose.

The upper horizontal roll 40 can be positioned for adjusting the horizontal roll gap by means of screwdowns 100 mounted in the upper sections of the mill housings 14, 16. Likewise, hold-down forces also are applied to the work roll chocks 38, 50 of the upper horizontal roll 40 by means of the same screwdowns 100.

As noted previously the elevatable housing rails 30 are aligned with the intermediate track section 36a which is interrupted at 37, and with the juxtaposed pair of the auxiliary track segments 32a or 32b of the side shifting car 34 depending on the position thereof, and with the external track section 36b. The external track section 36b can extend to a roll shop (not shown) or to suitable warehousing facilities for the roll assemblies located remotely or the rolling mill.

The use of the side shifting car 34 affords a temporary holding area for a replacement roll assembly 20a to permit withdrawal of the used roll assembly 20 (FIG. 1) without interference between the withdrawn and replacement roll assemblies.

The side shifting car 34 provided in accordance with this feature of the invention, includes a platform 102 supported on axles 104 and railway trucks 106. The car 34 is movable along a relatively short length of track including rails 108. Mounted on the platform 102 are the pairs of rails 32a, 32b mentioned previously. These rails are spaced sufficiently to permit passage of the roll assemblies 20, 20a or other forms of roll assemblies,

the widths of which are limited by the housing windows 38. The width of the car platform 102 provides rail segments 32a, 32b of sufficient length to accommodate the longest roll assembly that can be incorporated into the side shifting mill housing structure 14, 16. An example of such roll structure is denoted at 20b in FIGS. 5 and 6 of the drawings. FIGS. 5 and 6 also show the rods 17, 19 in the expanded position and the increased separation of the mill stand housings 14, 16 to incorporate the longer roll assemblies 20b.

The platform 102, including the rails 32a, 32b which can be recessed therein as shown in FIG. 4, is mounted on a base structure 103 for added strength, which in turn is mobilized by the axles 104 and railway trucks 106.

As better shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, slideable metal plates 110, 112 can be joined respectively to the end portions of the car platform 102 to cover the well 114 or recess in which the side shifting car 34 is reciprocated. The sliding plates 110, 112 thus provide coverage for the car well 114 irrespective of the position of the side shifting car 34. A personnel hazard is thereby eliminated.

The carrying out of the roll-changing procedure will now be described. Prior to withdrawal of the used roll assembly 20 (FIG. 1), the replacement roll assembly 20a is brought from the roll shop or from a suitable storage area along the external track section 36b. Suitable traction means (not shown) can be employed to propel the replacement roll assembly 20a along the external track section 36b. Before the replacement roll assembly 20a reaches the side shifting car 34, the latter is reciprocated to the left of its position as shown in FIG. 1, such that its auxiliary track section rail segments 32b are aligned with the external track section 36b. The replacement roll assembly 20a is then pushed onto the side shifting car 34 and the latter is moved to the right to the position thereof as shown in FIG. 1. This places the replacement roll assembly 20a in the position as shown in FIG. 1 so that the used roll assembly 20 when withdrawn, can be wheeled directly to the roll shop or other location by means of the elevatable mill rails 30, the intermediate track section 36a, the side shifting car rail segments 32a, the external track section 36b, all of which are then aligned therewith as illustrated in FIG. 1. One of the unexpected results of the invention, in addition to the use of the side shifting car 34, is that separate carriage means do not have to be supplied for each of the roll assemblies 20, 20a, as this function is provided by the inner carriage 26 which forms part of each roll assembly 20 or 20a in accordance with the invention.

Owing to the unitary character of the roll assembly 20 or 20a or equivalent assembly made in accordance with the invention, the roll assembly can be leveled and zeroed externally of the mill stand 10. This can be accomplished either in the roll shop or on the side shifting .car 34 when the replacement roll 20a is located thereon as shown (FIG. 1). The obvious advantage of this feature of this invention is the accomplishment of such leveling and/or zeroing or other adjustment of the replacement roll assembly 20a prior to shutting down the rolling mill including the mill stand 10, with the admirable result that mill down time is drastically reduced.

In the case of the wide flange beam roll assembly 20a a typical roll leveling and zeroing procedure in accordance with the invention will now be described, as it falls into the general category of mill roll replacement procedure. Initially suitable hydraulic lines (not shown) or other source of motive power are coupled to the replacement roll assembly 20a in order to actuate the various hydraulic plungers described previously. The lower horizontal roll 42 is then raised by means of plungers 72 to the normal pass line (not shown) of the mill stand 10, with the assumption that the replacement roll assembly 200 is supported externally at its elevation in the mill stand 10, irrespective of whether the assembly is supported on the side shifting car 34 or on the external track section 36b at the roll shop. At this position the lower roll 42 is faced against the upper horizontal roll 40. The vertical roll housings 52, 54 are now moved toward the horizontal rolls 40, 42 by means of plungers 70 until the center-line surfaces of the vertical rolls 44, 46 just touch the sides of both horizontal rolls, which vertically aligns the sides or end surfaces of the horizontal rolls. The verticalroll housings are consequently aligned by means of spacers 64 positioned in the lower horizontal roll chocks 60, 62 such that the center lines of the vertical rolls 44, 46 are aligned with the interface 41 of the engaged upper and lower horizontal rolls 40, 42 at a predetermined material pass line 116. The upper horizontal roll 40 likewise can be aligned as necessary by means of spacers 58 positioned in the vertical roll housings.

The horizontal and vertical rolls 40-46 are now zeroed with one another and the replacement roll assembly 20a is ready for traversing into the mill stand 10. The aforedescribed zeroing is preserved owing to the unitary character of the mill roll assemblies, as described previously.

After the replacement roll assembly 20a is thus readied for insertion into the mill stand 10, the mill is then shut down preparatory to withdrawing the used roll assembly 20. The upper horizontal roll balance (bracket 98) is deactivated to permit the upper horizontal roll 40 again to face and rest on the lower horizontal roll 42. The vertical roll screws 24 are then retracted to their outward limits. The carriage assembly clamp plates 94 and the upper horizontal roll clamp plates 96 are opened in order to permit the roll assembly 20 to be raised to its roll change position by raising the mill stand rails 30 by cylinders 84 to a position of alignment with the intermediate tract section 36a. The bottom screw-ups 86 are then retracted to clear the inner roll assembly carriage 26.

After raising the spindle carriers (not shown) to support the drive spindles (not shown) which are withdrawn from the horizontal roll necks 74, 76 on the drive side, the used roll assembly 20 is withdrawn through the mill stand windows 38 by suitable traction means (not shown) across the mill rails 30, the intermediate tract section 360 and onto the side shifting car 34.

The side shifting car 34 is then actuated by suitable traction means (not shown) to the position thereof as shown in FIG. 1 to remove the used roll assembly 20 from its position in front of the mill stand to the position denoted by replacement roll assembly a of FIG. 1. The used roll assembly 20 is now removed from in front of the mill stand 10 preparatory to insertion of the replacement roll assembly 20a into the mill along the intermediate track section 36a.

As an initial step in the re-insertion precedure, the drive spindles (not shown) are adjusted radially, if required, to receive the replacement roll assembly 2642. At the same time the drive spindles are raised to receive the roll necks 74, 76 of the replacement roll assembly 20a. The replacement roll assembly 20a including its inner carriage 26 is then traversed into the mill stand 10 where it is positioned within housing windows 38. The clamp plates 94 and 96 are closed, thus properly containing the replacement roll assembly 20a within the mill stand. The spindle carriers are then re tracted, whereupon the elevatable mill stand rails are lowered to permit the replacement roll assembly 20a to rest on the mill housing stops 80. The housing screw-downs 100 are then lowered to engage the upper horizontal roll chocks 48, 50, after which the screw downs 100 are leveled for proper alignment of the replacement roll assembly 20a. The bottom screw-ups 86 at this time are raised for insertion through the inner carriage 26 into engagement with the lower horizontal roll chocks 60, 62 respectively. After leveling the screw-ups 86, the bottom lift cylinders or plungers 72 of the inner carriage 26 are retracted from the lower roll chocks 60, 62. The vertical roll screws 24 of each mill housing 14 or 16 are run in to touch the vertical roll housings 52, 54 and then leveled. The vertical roll positioning cylinders or plungers are deactivated followed by energization of the vertical roll balance cylinders. The upper horizontal roll balance bracket 98 is then engaged to complete the installation procedure.

Prior to insertion into the mill stand, the replacement roll assembly 20a can be prepared in the roll shop. The inner carriage 26 is placed on the external track section 36b. The thickness of the spacers 64 is established in proportion to the roll radius of the lower horizontal roll 42 in order to face the roll on a pass line of the roll assembly 20a which can thereafter be aligned to coincide with the material pass line 116 of the mill stand. The vertical roll assemblies including their housings-52, 54 are then added to the roll assembly 20a as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, with the vertical roll housings engaging the spacers 64 and the vertical roll adjusting cylinders 70. The upper horizontal roll spacers 58 are likewise adjusted in proportion to the roll radius of the upper horizontal roll 40 such that the roll is faced approximately against the lower horizontal roll 42 at the vertical roll pass line 116. The roll assembly is then transferred to the side shifting car 34 as outlined above.

After the replacement roll assembly 2611 is zeroes as described above externally of the mill stands 14, 16 the assembly is inserted into the mill stand through the housing windows 38. With all the rolls at the zero position and with the roll assembly aligned such that its pass line coincides with a predetermined material pass line 116 of the mill stand, the entire roll assembly 26a is preloaded or prestressed within the mill stand by means of the horizontal and vertical screws to establish a positive reference at the zero position. This is made possible by applying sufficient preloading forces to subject the roll assembly to the anticipated elastic deformations encountered during the rolling operation. The preload force therefore should be at least equal to the maximum anticipated rolling force. The preload forces are then relieved and the mill controls are operated to back off the vertical and horizontal rolls to openings therebetween which are less than the rolling dimensions by predetermined values. The roll openings then are expanded to the precise rolling dimensions by insertion of a work piece.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that novel and efficient forms of a Mill Roll Changing Arrangement have been described herein. While I have shown and described certain presently preferred embodiments of the invention and have illustrated presently preferred methods of practicing the same it is to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A quick-replaceable roll assembly for a rolling mill stand, said assembly comprising an inner carriage, rail engaging wheels rotatably mounted on said carriage, means for mounting a lower roll and a pair of bearing structures therefor on said carriage, said means comprising a number of balancing plungers reciprocatably mounted on said carriage and engaging said bearing structures, and means for mounting an upper roll and bearing structures therefor on said assembly in faceable engagement with said lower roll.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said assembly includes a pair of vertical roll structures and said upper and lower rolls are horizontal rolls, means are provided for mounting said vertical roll structures on said carriage, and the bearing structures of said upper roll are mounted on said vertical roll structures respectively.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said carriage includes a pair of shelf structures for mounting said vertical roll structures respectively.

4. The combination according to claim 2 wherein balancing means are provided on each of said vertical roll structures for engagement with said upper roll bearing structures respectively.

5. The combination according to claim 2 wherein adjustment and balancing plungers are mounted on said carriage structure for engagement with each of said vertical roll structures.

6. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said inner carriage is provided with a number of apertures shaped for passage of screw-ups normally provided in said mill stand, said apertures being positioned for alignment with said screw-ups respectively when said assembly is properly located within said mill stand.

7. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said mill stand includes a number of rigid stop members engageable with said carriage for supporting said assembly including said carriage, said mill stand also including a pair of elevatable rails engageable by said carriage, and means for aligning said rails with an external track section and for lowering said rails to a position out of engagement with said carriage so that said assembly including said carriage rests entirely upon said stop members.

8. The combination according to claim 7 wherein a side shifting car is mounted for movement transversely of said external track section at an interruption therein, said car having a platform substantially bridging said interruption, a pair of auxiliary tract sections spacedly mounted on said platform, said car being shiftable transversely of said external track section such that each of said auxiliary track sections can be selectively inserted into said external track section at said interruption to bridge said interruption, said platform and either of said auxiliary track sections being capable of supporting said roll assembly at a position such that another of said roll assemblies can be traversed along said external track section and the other of said auxiliary track sections without interference from the firstmentioned roll assembly.

9. The combination according to claim 8 wherein said side shifting car is wheel-mounted on a pair of rail members extending transversely of said external track section.

10. The combination according to claim 1 including said mill stand having a stationary housing and a movable housing, and means for mounting said movable housing for movement longidutinally of said elevatable rails to accommodate differing lengths of roll assemblies within said mill stand.

11. The combination according to claim 2 wherein means are provided for slidably mounting said vertical roll structures for movement into bearing contact or engagement with horizontal rolls for alignment of horizontal rolls.

12. The combination according to claim 2 wherein means are provided for elevating each of said vertical roll structures relative to a predetermined faced engagement between horizontal rolls for alignment of said vertical roll structures therewith.

Claims (12)

1. A quick-replaceable roll assembly for a rolling mill stand, said assembly comprising an inner carriage, rail engaging wheels rotatably mounted on said carriage, means for mounting a lower roll and a pair of bearing structures therefor on said carriage, said means comprising a number of balancing plungers reciprocatably mounted on said carriage and engaging said bearing structures, and means for mounting an upper roll and bearing structures therefor on said assembly in faceable engagement with said lower roll.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said assembly includes a pair of vertical roll structures and said upper and lower rolls are horizontal rolls, means are provided for mounting said vertical roll structures on said carriage, and the bearing structures of said upper roll are mounted on said vertical roll structures respectively.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said carriage includes a pair of shelf structures for mounting said vertical roll structures respectively.

4. The combination according to claim 2 wherein balancing means are provided on each of said vertical roll structures for engagement with said upper roll bearing structures respectively.

5. The combination according to claim 2 wherein adjustment and balancing plungers are mounted on said carriage structure for engagement with each of said vertical roll structures.

6. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said inner carriage is provided with a number of apertures shaped for passage of screw-ups normally provided in said mill stand, said apertures being positioned for alignment with said screw-ups respectively when said assembly is properly located within said mill stand.

7. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said mill stand includes a number of rigid stop members engageable with said carriage for supporting said assembly including said carriage, said mill stand also including a pair of elevatable rails engageable by said carriage, and means for aligning said rails with an external track section and for lowering said rails to a pOsition out of engagement with said carriage so that said assembly including said carriage rests entirely upon said stop members.

8. The combination according to claim 7 wherein a side shifting car is mounted for movement transversely of said external track section at an interruption therein, said car having a platform substantially bridging said interruption, a pair of auxiliary tract sections spacedly mounted on said platform, said car being shiftable transversely of said external track section such that each of said auxiliary track sections can be selectively inserted into said external track section at said interruption to bridge said interruption, said platform and either of said auxiliary track sections being capable of supporting said roll assembly at a position such that another of said roll assemblies can be traversed along said external track section and the other of said auxiliary track sections without interference from the first-mentioned roll assembly.

9. The combination according to claim 8 wherein said side shifting car is wheel-mounted on a pair of rail members extending transversely of said external track section.

10. The combination according to claim 1 including said mill stand having a stationary housing and a movable housing, and means for mounting said movable housing for movement longidutinally of said elevatable rails to accommodate differing lengths of roll assemblies within said mill stand.

11. The combination according to claim 2 wherein means are provided for slidably mounting said vertical roll structures for movement into bearing contact or engagement with horizontal rolls for alignment of horizontal rolls.

12. The combination according to claim 2 wherein means are provided for elevating each of said vertical roll structures relative to a predetermined faced engagement between horizontal rolls for alignment of said vertical roll structures therewith.

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