WO2003051547A1

WO2003051547A1 - Continuing rolling apparatus for wire

Info

Publication number: WO2003051547A1
Application number: PCT/KR2002/002401
Authority: WO
Inventors: Byong Seop Yoo
Original assignee: Byong Seop Yoo
Priority date: 2001-12-19
Filing date: 2002-12-20
Publication date: 2003-06-26
Also published as: CN1492786A

Abstract

Disclosed is a wire rolling machine. The machine comprises a first bobbin for paying off a wire wound thereon; a leveler unit for adjusting a height of the wire paid off from the first bobbin to ensure that the wire can be properly guided to a next position; a rolling stand unit having rolling rolls for continuously rolling the wire guided through the leveler unit; a feeder unit having a driving pulley and an idle pulley on which the wire rolled by the rolling stand unit is wound and pulled so that tensional feeding force is applied to the wire; and a winding unit for uniformly rewinding on a second bobbin the wire fed by the feeder unit.

Description

CONTINUING ROLLING APPARATUS FOR WIRE

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a wire rolling machine which pulls and thereby unwinds, as in the case of implementing a drawing process, a wire wound on a first bobbin and made of a metallic material such as stainless steel, etc., continuously rolls the wire to form a ribbon or band-shaped product of various sectional shapes, and rewinds the product on a second bobbin.

Description of the Related Art Generally, a wire rolling process is regarded as a kind of cold process applied to an article made of a metallic material such as stainless steel, etc. In the rolling process, a wire having a circular sectional shape is rolled to form a product of various sectional shapes. FIG. 1 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating a conventional metal wire rolling line. As shown in FIG. 1, the rolling line has at a left end thereof a first bobbin 2 for paying off a metal wire and at a right end thereof a second bobbin 4 for rewinding the rolled metal wire. First and second rolling stands 12 and 14 are arranged between the first and second bobbins 2 and 4. The respective stands 12 and 14 each have a pair of rolling rolls 6 and 8 that are closely positioned in a vertical direction to define a nip between them to press a wire 10 and thereby perform a rolling function. When rolling the wire 10 in each of the first and second stands 12 and 14, oil is injected from a nozzle lβ.

The metal wire 10 wound on the first bobbin 2 and having a constant diameter is paid off and fed from the left toward the right. The metal wire 10 is primarily rolled at the first rolling stand 12, and is successively rolled at the second rolling stand 14 to be then rewound on the second bobbin 4.

In the conventional metal wire rolling line, the rolling rolls 6 and 8 of the first and second rolling stands 12 and 14 serve as driving rolls which perform functions of both rolling and feeding the wire 10. Regarding this, in the case that a thickness of the wire 10 is large, it is possible to reliably feed the wire 10 by virtue of frictional force generated between the rolling rolls 6 and 8 and the wire 10. However, in the case that a thickness of the wire 10 is small, the frictional force for feeding the- wire 10 between the rolling rolls 6 and 8 and the wire 10 is necessarily limited. Therefore, in this case, in order to obtain precise rolling dimensions, at least two rolling stands must be arranged between the first and second bobbins 2 and 4 in a manner such that a thickness of the wire 10 can be sequentially reduced at the respective rolling stands. In this regard, to ensure that rolling and feeding of the wire 10 are simultaneously effected in each rolling stand, a driving motor must be provided for each rolling stand. As a result, the structure of the wire rolling line cannot but be complicated, and it is necessary for there to be a difference in feeding speeds between the rolling stands.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in an effort to solve the problems occurring in the related art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a wire rolling machine in which a rolling stand does not simultaneously perform rolling and feeding functions, and instead, a separate driving device is provided to ensure that even a wire of a small thickness can be rolled. Another object of the present invention is to provide a wire rolling machine in which at least two rolling stands are installed to sequentially roll and change a sectional shape of a wire little by little, and feeding of the wire is effected by a separate feeder unit, so that even a wire of a complicated sectional shape can be easily rolled.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a wire rolling machine in which single or multiple stages of feeder units are continuously installed so that the number of stage (s) can be selected as 1, 2, 3 and so on when occasion demands, so that wires made of various materials having various tensile strengths can be effectively rolled.

In order to achieve the above objects, according to the present invention, there is provided a wire rolling machine comprising: a first bobbin for paying off a wire wound thereon; a leveler unit for adjusting a height of the wire paid off from the first bobbin to ensure that the wire can be properly guided to a next position; a rolling stand unit having rolling rolls for continuously rolling the wire guided through the leveler unit; a feeder unit having a driving pulley and an idle pulley on which the wire rolled by the rolling stand unit is wound and pulled so that tensional feeding force is applied to the wire; and a winding unit for uniformly rewinding on a second bobbin the wire fed by the feeder unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects, and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent after a reading of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating a conventional metal wire rolling line;

FIG. 2 is a front view illustrating a wire rolling machine in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating the wire rolling machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a rolling stand adopted in the present invention; FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a uniform winding unit adopted in the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a front view illustrating a wire rolling machine in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 7 is a plan view illustrating the wire rolling machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in greater detail to a preferred embodiment of the invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings . Wherever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.

FIG. 2 is a front view illustrating a wire rolling machine in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating the wire rolling machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a rolling stand adopted in the present invention; and FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a uniform winding unit adopted in the present invention.

As can be readily seen from FIGs . 2 and 4, a wire 10 wound on a first bobbin 100 is paid off to a leveler unit 20 to be properly guided to a next process with a height or a center of the wire 10 adjusted. The wire 10 fed from the leveler unit 20 is continuously rolled by rolling rolls 34 at a rolling stand unit 30 in which rolling stands 32 are continuously disposed. As the wire 10 fed after being rolled at the rolling stand unit 30 is wound and rotated on a driving pulley 42 and an idle pulley 44 of a feeder unit 40, tensional feeding force for continuously feeding the wire 10 is applied to the wire 10. The wire 10 fed by the feeder unit 40 is uniformly wound on a second bobbin 4 at a winding unit 60.

In the leveler unit 20, first guide rollers 22 for adjusting a height of the wire 10 and second guide rollers 24 for adjusting a horizontal position of the wire 10 are sequentially arranged. As the first guide rollers 22, several pairs of first rollers are arranged in a wire feeding direction, with each pair of first rollers arranged in a vertical direction, so that the wire 10 is adjusted in its height while passing through the pairs of first rollers. Also, as the second guide rollers 24, several pairs of second rollers are arranged in the wire feeding direction, with each pair of second rollers arranged in a horizontal direction, so that the wire 10 can be adjusted in its horizontal position while passing through the pairs of second rollers .

At the rolling stand unit 30, as shown in FIG. 4, the rolling stands 32 having arranged therein rolling rolls 34 are continuously installed.

As the rolling stand 32, a two-face rolling stand in which two rolling rolls are embedded, three-face rolling stand in which three rolling rolls are embedded, four-face rolling stand in which four rolling rolls are embedded, and so forth, can be used in conformity with a shape of a wire to be rolled. Therefore, the number of rolling rolls can be appropriately determined as occasion demands . The rolling stand 32 has the same configuration as a chuck of a machine tool. Inside the rolling stand 32, at least one pair of rolling rolls 34 which idly rotate are installed to face each other. While being passed between the pair of rolling rolls 34, the wire 10 is pressed and thereby rolled. By screwing or unscrewing four adjustment bolts 36 which are separated one from another by 90°, dimensions of the wire 10 can be precisely adjusted. The number of rolling stands 32 can also be determined in consideration of a shape of an end product to be obtained by performing a rolling process . In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, 2 to 5 rolling stands are employed.

Meanwhile, a pair of vertical rolling rolls 300 can be further installed upstream of, downstream of, or between rolling stands 32 of the rolling stand unit 30, to roll the wire 10 only in the vertical direction. Thus, in the case that the wire 10 has a simple shape, it is possible to roll the wire 10 by employing the vertical rolling rolls 300.

In the feeder unit 40, a driving pulley 42 is installed at an upstream end to receive via a first reducer 48 rotation force generated by a first motor 46, and an idle pulley 44 is installed at a downstream end to be idly rotated as the driving pulley 42 rotates. Grooves are defined on circumferential outer surfaces of the driving pulley 42 and the idle pulley 44 so that the wire 10 wound thereon is engaged in the grooves. A free end of the wire 10 is engaged in the grooves defined in the driving pulley 42 and the idle pulley 44, and thereafter, the wire 10 is wound on the pulleys 42 and 44 along a spiral path. Consequently, as frictional force is generated between the wire 10 and the pulleys 42 and 44 in the grooves, the wire 10 can be properly fed by tensional feeding force.

In the winding unit 60, the second bobbin 200 which receives via a second reducer 64 rotation force generated by a second motor 62, is installed, and the wire 10 having passed through the feeder unit 40 is wound on the second bobbin 200.

A release prevention roll 52 is installed above the feeder unit 40 in such a way as to be moved in the vertical direction by a cylinder 50. In the case that the wire 10 snaps while implementing a rolling process, the wire 10 wound on the driving pulley 42 and the idle pulley 44 can rapidly whip around to injure a worker, or the wire 10 wound a multitude of times on the driving pulley 42 and the idle pulley 44 can be fully unwound to seriously affect a restarting operation of a rolling machine. In the present invention, if the wire 10 snaps while implementing a rolling process, the situation where a load is not transferred to the first motor 46 is sensed, and .the cylinder 50 is quickly actuated to place the release prevention roll 52 on an upper end of the driving pulley 42. At this time, due to the fact that the release prevention roll 52 is brought into contact with the driving pulley 42 while the driving pulley 42 is rotated, the release prevention roll 52 is idly rotated. Referring^' to FIGs. 6 and 7, there is shown a wire rolling machine in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention. This second embodiment of . the present invention is the same as the first embodiment except that the feeder unit 40 has a pair of driving pulleys 42 and 42' . The first reducer 48 for receiving rotation force from the first motor 46 is installed in the feeder unit 40. The driving pulleys 42 and 42' which are driven by the rotation force distributed through a gear train are installed in a side-by-side relationship with the first reducer 48. Grooves are defined on circumferential outer surfaces of the driving pulleys 42 and 42' so that the wire 10 wound thereon can be engaged in the grooves .

In this second embodiment of the present invention, since the wire 10 is fed by the driving pulleys 42 and 42' which are driven by the rotation force of the first motor 46, force for feeding the wire 10 is increased and a rolling efficiency can be improved. In particular, in the case that the number of the rolling rolls 32 of the rolling stand 30 is increased, it is preferred that driving type pulleys are used as in the case of the pulleys 42 and 42' of this second embodiment. Also, a release prevention roll 52' is installed above the feeder unit 40' in such a way as to be moved in the vertical direction by a cylinder 50' and thereby prevent the wire 10 from being released.

It is preferred that a ceramic coating layer is formed on a surface of each of the first and second driving pulleys 42 and 42' to decrease a frictional coefficient while feeding the wire 10 and prevent flaws from being created on a surface of the wire 10.

It can be envisaged that a bending moment is applied to the driving pulleys 42 and 42' by tension of the wire 10. To cope with this problem, in the present invention, a shaft support bar 310 is installed on shafts of the first and second driving pulleys 42 and 42' to rotatably support the shafts .

Since the wire 10 wound on the second bobbin 200 of the winding unit 60 has a small diameter, it is necessary to ensure that the wire 10 is uniformly wound on the second bobbin 200. Therefore, in order to allow the wire 10 to be uniformly wound over the entire surface of the second bobbin 200 as in the case of a spool, a uniform winding unit 70 is installed upstream of the second bobbin 200.

In the uniform winding unit 70, a rotation shaft 72 is rotatably supported by a pair of support members 76 which are fastened to an upper end of a frame 74. The rotation shaft 72 receives power from a shaft of the second bobbin 200 via a belt, to be rotated thereby. A carriage 78 is fitted around the rotation shaft 72 so that the carriage 78 can be reciprocated on the rotation shaft 72 in a direction perpendicular to a wire feeding direction. A pair of idle rollers 80 for guiding the wire 10 are installed on an upper surface of the carriage 78, and slider elements 82 are fixed to a lower surface of the carriage 78. The slider elements 82 are commercially available and serve as a mechanism for converting rotational motion of a rotation shaft into linear movement .

If the rotation shaft 72 is rotated, as the carriage 78 is reciprocated in leftward and rightward directions depending upon a rotating direction of the rotation shaft 72, feeding of the wire 10 is guided by the idle rollers 80. In this way, the wire 10 can be uniformly wound over the entire surface of the second bobbin 200. At this time, if the carriage 78 is fully moved in one direction, the rotation shaft 72 is rotated in the opposite direction to allow the wire 10 to be uniformly wound on the second bobbin 200.

While, as described above, the uniform winding unit 70 can be installed to allow the wire 10 to be uniformly wound on the second bobbin 200, it may be contemplated that, instead of the uniform winding unit 70, the winding unit 60 is formed as a traverse type in which a base 66 of the winding unit 60 is moved leftward and rightward. That is to say, by further installing a motor and a reducer for moving leftward and rightward the base 66 of the winding unit 60, coupling a ball screw to a shaft of the reducer and operatively connecting the ball screw to a lower end of the base 66, if a motor shaft is rotated at a fixed position, the base can be moved leftward and rightward on the ball screw. In the meantime, while not shown in the drawings, at least two sections each composed of the leveler unit 20, the rolling stand unit 30 and the feeder unit 40 can be sequentially arranged to roll and feed the wire 10 in a stepwise manner. The sections can be installed up to a maximum number of 12.

In the case that a height and a horizontal position of the wire 10 are adjusted to some extent by the leveler 20 of a first section, the leveler unit 20 may not be installed in subsequent sections, and only the rolling stand unit 30 and the feeder unit 40 can be sequentially arranged, by which a length of a rolling line can be decreased. Considering, for example, that a titanium wire generally has a tensile strength of no greater than 50 kg/mm² and a stainless steel wire generally has a tensile strength of no less than 80 kg/ mm², in the case of rolling the titanium wire in a state wherein feeding force of the feeder unit 40 is set for the stainless steel wire, a problem may be caused in that the titanium wire may easily snap and therefore, wires formed of various materials cannot be commonly rolled by one rolling machine. Hence, in the state wherein the first section is installed to have feeding force set for a material of the lowest tensile strength, if it is desired to roll a wire formed of a material having a high tensile strength, at least one section composed of the leveler unit 20, the rolling stand unit 30 and the feeder unit 40 is sequentially arranged so that the wire outputted from the first section can be introduced into the second section. At this time, it is to be readily understood that 3 to 12 sections .can be installed as occasion demands . As a consequence, wires having various tensile strengths can be commonly rolled by one rolling machine according to the present invention. In addition, since it is possible to attain in one rolling stand a finely controlled reduction ratio of a wire, seizure of rolling rolls is prevented and a rolling speed can be increased.

As apparent from the above description, the wire rolling machine according to the present invention provides advantages in that, since a rolling stand does not simultaneously perform rolling and feeding functions and instead, a separate driving device is provided to pull and thereby unwind a wire, even a wire of a small thickness can be reliably rolled with weak frictional force generated between rolling rolls and the wire.

Also, even in the case that a wire can be completely rolled after passing through a multitude of rolling stands, due to shaped features of an end product, because the wire can be pulled after passing through a final rolling stand, it is not necessary to provide a feeding device for each rolling stand, whereby the wire rolling machine according to the present invention can be simplified in its construction and it is not necessary to adjust a feeding speed at each rolling stand.

Further, even when a wire snaps, release of the wire from a driving pulley^' and an idle pulley is- prevented, whereby occurrence of an accident can be avoided and a rolling process can be restarted within a short period of time.

Moreover, due to the fact that a uniform winding unit is disposed upstream of a rewinding bobbin, it is possible to uniformly rewind a wire over the entire surface of the rewinding bobbin.

Furthermore, in the present invention, by the fact that a plurality of rolling sections each composed of a leveler unit, a rolling stand unit and a feeder unit can be provided, wires having various tensile strengths can be commonly rolled by one rolling machine. In addition, since it is possible to attain in one rolling stand a finely controlled reduction ratio of a wire, seizure of rolling rolls is prevented and a rolling speed can be increased.

In the drawings and specification, there have been disclosed typical preferred embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the following claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A wire rolling machine comprising: a first bobbin for paying off a wire wound thereon; a leveler unit for adjusting a height of the wire paid off from the first bobbin to ensure that the wire can be properly guided to a next position; a rolling stand unit having rolling rolls for continuously rolling the wire guided through the leveler unit; a feeder unit having a driving pulley and an idle pulley on which the wire rolled by the rolling stand unit is wound and pulled so that tensional feeding force is applied to the wire; and a winding unit for uniformly rewinding on a second bobbin the wire fed by the feeder unit.

2. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a rolling stand of the rolling stand unit serves as a multi-face rolling stand for rolling at least two faces of the wire.

3. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 2, wherein a pair of vertical rolling rolls are installed upstream of, downstream of or between rolling stands of the rolling stand unit, to roll the wire in a vertical direction.

4. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim, 1, wherein a uniform winding unit is further installed upstream of the winding unit to allow the wire to be uniformly wound over the entire surface of the second bobbin.

5. The wire rolling machine as ^' set forth in claim 4, wherein the uniform winding unit comprises a rotation shaft rotatably supported by a pair of support members fastened to a frame; and a carriage fitted around the rotation shaft so that the carriage can be reciprocated on the rotation shaft in a direction perpendicular to a wire feeding direction, the carriage having, installed on an upper surface thereof, a pair of idle rollers for guiding the wire and, fixed to a lower surface thereof, slider elements .

6. A wire rolling machine comprising: a first bobbin for paying off a wire wound thereon; a leveler unit for adjusting a height of the wire paid off from the first bobbin to ensure that the wire can be properly guided to a next position; a rolling stand unit having rolling rolls for continuously rolling the wire guided through the leveler unit; a feeder unit having a first driving pulley and a second driving pulley which are driven separately from each other and on which the wire rolled by the rolling stand unit is continuously wound and pulled so that tensional feeding force is applied to the wire; and a winding unit for uniformly rewinding on a second bobbin the wire fed by the feeder unit.

7. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 1 or 6, wherein a pair of release prevention rolls are installed above the first and second driving pulleys in such a way as to be moved in the vertical direction by a pair of cylinders, respectively.

8. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 6, wherein a ceramic coating layer is formed on a surface of each of the first and second driving pulleys^" to decrease a frictional coefficient while feeding the wire and prevent flaws from being created on a surface of the wire.

9. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 6, wherein a shaft support bar is installed on shafts of the first and second driving pulleys to rotatably support the shafts .

10. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claims 1 or 6, wherein 2 to 12 sections each composed of the rolling stand unit and the feeder unit are sequentially arranged to roll and feed the wire in a stepwise manner.

11. The wire rolling machine as set forth in claim 10, wherein leveler units are respectively placed upstream of the rolling stand units.