US439780A

US439780A - Method of and apparatus for casting ingots

Info

Publication number: US439780A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1890-11-04
Anticipated expiration: 1907-11-04

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. Y

J. ILLINGWORTH. METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING INGOTS.

No. 439,780. Patented Nov. 4, 1890.-

WITNE E: INVENTDH M- John lbI/zLn/qw'or bh, 7% BY W 'ATTY'S.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

Y J. ILLINGWOBTH. METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR OAS'I'ING INGOTS.

No. 439,780. Patented Nov. 4, 1890.

WITNESSES: INVEN UR 2 7% I Q SIWOHbIV,

BY m ATTY'S.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN ILLINGWORTH, OF NEWARK, NE\V JERSEY.

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING INGOTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 439,780, dated November 4, 1890.

Application filed June 10, 1887. Serial No. 240,875. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, JOHN ILLINGWORTH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Method of and Means for Casting Ingots; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The general object of this invention is to reduce the cost of manufacturing steel ingots by facilitating the process thereof and to prevent the ingots from piping, and to thus avoid the wastage resulting therefrom.

The invention consists in the process of manufacturing ingots and in the apparatus for carrying out said process, having the arrangement and combination of parts, substantially as will be hereinafter set forth, and finally embodied in the clauses of the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like letters of reference indicate corresponding partsin each of the several figures, Figure 1, Sheet 1, is an elevation of the improved mold and mechanism for lowering the ingot. Fig. 2, Sheet 2, is a sectional view of the mold taken through line X. Fig. 3 is a face view of an arm for operating a clamp of said operating mechanism. Fig. 4 is a plan view of said clamp for lowering the ingot. Fig. 5 is an inside elevation or edge View of one of the sections of said clamp. Fig. 6 is a sectional view of said clamp through line Y, and Fig. 7 illustrates a grip or tongs, whereby the chain may be attachedto the bottom of the ingot.

In said drawings, a indicates a bottomless ingot-mold suspended by a suitable bed or arm I) over a perforated plate or othersuitable fulcrum or holding c and pit or chamber (1, an opening or space ebeing preferably provided between the lower end of the mold and the plate 0 to allow play forthe grasping arms or clamps, hereinafter described, and the chamber (1, providing space whereby the DIO- cess of severing the ingots from the hardened metal lowered from the mold maybe conveniently carried on.

The opposite walls of the mold a are preferably slightly larger at the lower end of the mold, though they may be vertically parallel; or, at least, the mold-chamber is preferably no larger at or toward the upper end than at or toward the lower end, so that the said walls will not present to the lowered ingot any resistance such as would be presented by walls contracting toward the lower end. By this construction comparatively little,if any, extraneous weight or power is required to lower the hardening or hardened ingot. The perforation or opening f in the fulcrum or holding-plate 0 lies vertically in line with the moldchamber, so that as the ingot passes downward from said chamber it may pass through said perforation into the said chamber d. Said plate holds the ingot steady when the lower portion of the ingot is being broken or severed from the upper portion orprevents the strain from coming on the mold or other portion of the device, thus protecting the same from wear and breakage.

The mold is so arranged as that the moldchamber will lie vertically, or approximately so, and thus allow theingot or casting to gravitate naturally therethrough, only obstructed by the friction of the walls. By this means but little power, comparatively, need be exerted by the clutch, hereinafter described, in lowering the said ingot or casting. Below said mold, preferably working in the space 6 above the perforated plate, is arranged a dog, clutch, or clamp 0, adapted to grasp, bite, or clamp the ingot and draw or force it down through said perforation. Said clamp or dog has preferably a limited movement in a straight course or path axially in line with the mold, so that the casting is drawn a uniform length at each movement or pulsation of the clamp. lcons'ider any device adapted to grasp the device, to draw or force the ingot down, and then to release itself orbe released from the ingot in its upward or return movement an equivalent for the part 0.

One construction and mode of operating the dog, clutch, or clamp is indicated in the drawings, in which 0 c are the clutching, clamping, or biting sections of the dog having an aperture to receive the ingot, and supported onsprings g g, which serve to hold the sections up into a position to engage the ingot prior to clutching the same and drawing it downward. The sections of the dog, clamp, or clutch are caused to bite, clamp, or clutch the ingot prior to their downward action by a suitable mechanism, but preferably by forked arms h h, provided with inclines it,

which embrace or engage the ends of the sections 0 preferably provided with corresponding inclinesjj, and automatically cause them to come together or move toward one another, as indicated in Fig. 6, and then grasp the ingot lying between them. But one forked arm may be employed to secure the desired result, the sections being otherwise connected at the opposite side of the ingot. The sections of said dog or clamp c are preferably held together by the guide-bolts t, and when the arms h h are raised the sections are automatically separated by springs s, as will be understood upon reference to Fig. 4. The arms h h are connected to a hydraulic crane m of any ordinary or peculiar construction, the mere Weight of the movable parts of which applied at the desired moment causes the arms h h to descend and the sections 0 0 to clutch the ingot and draw the same downward until it is stopped by the floor or other suitable stop at or the clutch otherwise arrives at the end of its course. The said floor or stop or may be so constructed as to be readily raised or lowered, thus stopping the ingot at a shorter or longer distance from the fulcrumal bearing or plate 0, or the course of the clamp may be limited by other means. The said plate 0 is preferably separable from the plate 0 and secured to it by bolts or in any other suitable manner, and is made preferably of chilled iron or hardened steel to successfully withstand or resist the wear occasioned in the process of breaking off the ingot, hereinafter described.

An ordinary ingot or block or plug, preferably one with a dovetailed formation at the top, is inserted in the bottom of the mold a to prevent the liquid metal from flowing or falling entirely therethrough, after which a casting is poured, partly filling the mold. This casting is allowed to cool slightly and form a crust or shell at the sides of the mold. Then another casting is poured on top of the first, and after that has cooled sufficiently the crane is allowed to drop by its own weight, or, if desirable, by the power exerted by the water therein, carrying with itthe arms h h, which engage with the dog or clamp sections 0 and clamp it fast to said ingot or the block first inserted. The ingot is carried down until stopped by the plate it. A chain 19 or other equivalent mechanism adapted to break the ingot from the body of the casting is then attached to the lower end of the ingot by means of a clamp or tongs or other suitable clutch or tie. The chain, when the same is used, passes over the sheave or pulley r, and is attached to the hydraulic crane, preferably the one before referred to, which is then raised, and by the power thus exerted breaks ofi the ingot at the fulcrumal or holding plate 0. The crane may be actuated by other power than that exerted by the pressure of water.

Then the metal last cast comes in contact with the partially-cool metal immediately thereunder, a slight joint or fault is made caused by the interruption in the process of pouring or flowing the metal into the mold, which is apparent chiefly at the surface of the ingot, at which point the casting when solid is more easily broken. After lowering the ingot the chamber formed in the mold because of such lowering is filled with liquid metal, which becomes integrally joined to the metal still liquid or viscid in the body of the ingot previously cast. This last casting is allowed to stand a moment until the outer portion is chilled, when the lowering and breaking off and refilling processes are repeated, and as often as may be desired.

The mold is preferably more than double the length of the desired ingots, so that should the metal be lowered a second time before refilling the mold through inadvertence or other cause the lowered metal will not be entirely disconnected from the mold, and the latter will not be opened at its lower end so as to allow the liquid metal to pass therefrom to the mechanism below.

The intermittent flow of the liquid or fluid metal into the mold produces a series of joints or places of union such as has been referred to, at which the solidified casting may be more readily or easily broken into ingots of the desired length, although the joint is not of such nature as to render the ingot defective if it is found desirable to allow the metal above and below said union to remain integral.

By the operation thus described any subsequent casting is given sufficient time to set where it engages the inner walls of the mold and the previously-cast ingot, so that when lowered the interior metal, still in aviscid or fluid condition in the interior of the casting, is protected by what may be termed a coating of harder metal, and will not be drawn through or allowed to lower independent of the said hardened coating when the ignot is lowered in the mold, and thus increase the proportions of the pipe in the mold instead of curing the defect.

When the metal in the intermittent movements thereof arrives at a point below the mold where it is to be severed, it is of sufficient solidity throughout to sustain its own weight. It is preferably broken while yet at high temperature, technically termed red short, where it may be broken at'a reduced exertion of power.

In operatingin accordance with the process described it will be observed, first, that in lowering the ingot or casting in the mold a chamberis formed in the upper part thereof of considerable depth; second, that after IIO lowering process.

having been lowered the said ingot or casting is still in a contracting condition or in a state in which under ordinary conditions the pipe would be forming, and, third, that the pipe is still forming or the metal contracting when the subsequent flow or pouring of the metal is effected. As the process of contracting continues, the molten metal of the subsequent' casting is drawn into that of the first or previously cast ingot or casting, filling what would otherwise have been the pipe; but the molten metal not only enters the lower ingot or casting by being drawn, but is forced into the pipe by the weight of overlying liquid metal in the deep chamber formed by the This feature of the inventionto wit, forming a chamber on the upper part of the mold by stopping the supply of liquid metal and lowering the ingot to form a chamber after the said metal has become partly solid-l deem to be of particular value.

Each break or interruption in the flow of metal to the mold-chamber, caused by stopping the supply of liquid metal and subsequently, after lowering the casting, continuing the flow, produces a flow or joint or place of union, which, while apparent to the eye on the outside of the body-casting or doubled ingot, does not extend so far into the said body-casting as to impair its value should the said body-casting be required for use as a whole.

The intermitting fiow is so timed that the body-casting will have the flaws or places of union only where it is desirable to break the ingot, and, as it is generally desirable to secure a number of ingots of a given length, the amount of metal poured continuously before cutting off the flow is the same for each succeeding ingot of the series.

The process of producingin a casting at uniform distances apart a series of flaws or places of union where the body-casting may be broken into portions or ingots is an important feature of this invention. It may be here observed that the element of time is a factor in producing the flaw or joint, and experience proves that a delay or interruption.

of about a minute in the flow secures the best results. A'shorter delay serves to render the flaw less perceptible and even imperceptible in appearance or effect.

While I consider the formation of the flaw in connection with the process of breaking off the body-casting into ingots of value and importance, yet I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to this feature of the process. Again, while I do not limit myself to the process of breaking, (as distinguished from cutting, as by a blade or saw,) I wish to be understood as considering this afeature of importance in connection with the lowering process. metal casting into parts is not new, I believe it to be new when one portion of the casting remains in the mold and the other (lower) While I am aware that breaking a portion is broken by power exerted upon the said lower portion and resistance exerted at or above the point of separation, the resistance being such as is exerted by a fulcrum.

The advantage of the process of breaking consists in the fact that I am enabled to apply the power of ordinary hydraulic mechanism directly to the. ingot or casting while it is in a proper condition without the intervention of complicated mechanism and can secure the desired result with greater facility.

The crane is actuated by water-pressure, preferably, in any of the ordinary ways, though other actuating force may be employed. \Vhen the crane is operated to draw on the chain or other connection, lateral stress is brought upon the downwardly-projecting portion of the casting with considerable suddenness, so that the ingot is broken from the upper portion of the casting.

The advantage of breaking as distinguished from sawing or otherwise cutting the casting into ingots is that by that method the result can be secured by the simple and effective mechanism described and in the limlted time necessitated by the cooling metal above.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new is- 1. The process of casting ingots, which consists in casting a portion of the ingot, allowing the outer parts engaging the mold to chill' or harden, drawing the ingot downward to secure a receptacle for a second portion, and finally casting said second portion whilethe core of the first portion is still liquid or viscid or in a condition to unite with said second portion, substantially as set forth.

2. The process herein described of casting ingots successively in an upright mold, which consists in casting an ingot or casting, allowing the same to partially cool while in a state of rest, lowering said ingot in said mold and repeating the casting process, substantially as set forth.

3. The process of producing pipeless ingots, which consists in casting a portion of an ingot by partially filling a mold with metal, suffering this portion to set 'exterio'rly, casting a second portion after by pouring its metal into the mold and onto the first cast portion, after the second portion has in like manner set pouring thereon a third portion, drawing the ingot from the mold, breaking off the lowest portion at the joint, and pouring onto the third portion a fourth portion,'

substantially as set forth.

4. The process of casting pipeless ingots, which consists in casting a portion and suffering the same to set exteriorly while the metal is at rest, lowering the ingot or portion in the mold to form a chamber above said portion, and casting a second portion above said lowered portion, substantially as set forth.

5. In combination, a bottomless mold, a fulcrumal bearing arranged thereunder, mechanism, substantially as described, for lowering the ingot, and means, substantially as described, for breaking off the lowered ingot, substantially as described.

6. In combination, a bottomless mold, a

- bearing 0, stop n, a crane, and means co-operating with said crane for lowering and breaking off the ingot, substantially as described. 7. In combination, a bottomless mold, arms h h, having inclines i 2', and grasping-sections having corresponding inclines 7' j, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

0 8. In combination, a bottomless mold, a reciprocating grasping and releasing device for lowering the ingot intermittingly, and means for severing the lowered ingot from the bodycasting, substantially as described.

9. In combination with a bottomless mold, a grasping and releasing device arranged beneath said mold having vertically-moving sections 0 c and means, substantially as de scribed, to cause said sections to engage the ingot in their downward courses and separate from holding relation to said ingot in their upward courses, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

10. In combination with a bottomless mold,

reciprocating sections 0 0 adapted to grasp or hold the ingot in their downward courses and release from the ingot in their upward courses, and means for actuating said sections, substantially as set forth.

11. In combination with a bottomless mold, a reciprocating clamp having sections 0 c and springs for separating said sections, and means for causing said sections to hold to the ingot when drawing the same from the mold, substantially as set forth.

12. In combination with a bottomless mold, a reciprocating clamp having automaticallyseparable clamping-sections adapted to release from holding relation with the ingot in the movement of said clamp toward the mold, substantially as set forth.

13. In combination a bottomless mold, a reciprocating grasping and releasing device for lowering the ingot intermittingly and a hydraulic device m, connecting with and for the purpose of actuating said grasping and releasing device in lowering the ingot, substantially as set forth.

1-1. In combination with a bottomless mold, a reciprocating clamp supported on springs and separable automatically and means to cause said clamp to enter into holding engagement with said ingot, substantially as set forth.

15. In combination, a bottomless mold, a clamp, a chain, and a crane, said clamp and chain being connected with said crane, where by the ingot may be lowered by the downward motion of the crane and the lower end of the ingot be broken oif by the upward movement of. the same, substantially as set forth.

16. In combination, a bottomless mold, reciprocating clamping-sections having inclines, a device adapted to engage said inclines and cause said sections to enter into holding relation to the ingot, and a hydraulic motor to operate the device, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 31st day of May, 1887.

JOHN ILLINGVVORTI-I.

Witnesses:

OLIVER DRAKE, J. O. CLAYTON.