US2454429A - Machine for bending and shaping rolled irons and the like - Google Patents

Description

MACHINE FOR BENDING AND SHAPING ROLLED IRONS AND THE LIKE Nov.- 23, 1948. E. BUGATTI I ,4

Filed Sept. 11, 1945 4'Sheets-Sheet 1 4 smug-sheet 2 Z M u N W ks Q m 4 QR 7 E W @N m: R V

Filed Sept. 11', 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 fi M7////% Nov. 23, 1948. E. BUGATTl MACHINE'FOR BENDING AND SHAPING ROLLED IRONS AND THE LIKE Filed Sept. 11, 1945 F R a a a 2 n E 3. $1,. a Q Q b mu M 7 w x N. N \N R E m 7 \NN NV m .[I N a aw E N a l N Q NV an N v %N Q v R 5 as u m a 2v 4 Shets-Sheet 4 ik L E. BUGATTI BENDING AND SHQPING RONS AND THE LIKE- Nov. 23, 1948.

I MACHINE FOR 7 ROLLED 1 Filed Sept. 11, 1945 Patented Nov. 23, 1948 MACHINE FOR BENDING AND SHAPING ROLLED IRONS AND THE LIKE Ettore Bugatti, Paris, France Application September 11, 1945, Serial No. 615,635 In France May 31, 1944 Section 1, Public Law 690, August s, 1946 Patent expires May 31, 1964 1 When making metal constructions, for instance in shipbuilding, rolled irons (angle irons,

T-shapes and so on) bent according to intricate and quite various curves are required.

Specifically, ribs for ship hulls generally consist of rolled irons having an uneven angle sec tion, which are bent to follow the various crosssections of said hulls. The flange which is assembled with the metal sheets forming the hull wall should obviously correspond in shape to the sheets, so that the angle between the iron flanges varies from an end of each rib to the other end thereof, and from a rib to another one.

Hence, the angle irons and, as the case may be, the T-shaped irons employed in constructing hulls require two separate transformations to wit hot bending and hot shaping.

At the present time both operations are usually carried out simultaneously so as to avoid numerous heatings. A method which is almost generally resorted to consists in hammering the irons on a table or surfaceplate with a plurality of holes. Pins or pegs are suitably set into the table, and for this purpose one selects those holes which correspond to the outline of the rib to be produced, and thus guide the irons as the operation proceeds. Shaping takes place simultaneously, according to cross-section templates or patterns applied at various points along the irons.

It is superfluous to go into details as to the drawbacks of such a method, which are common to all manual forging operations and are mainly to require numerous and very skilled manpower and to give a poorly accurate work as well as an output restricted by low elficiency ofthe means In use.

It is an object of my invention to substitute for manual hammering as above roughly set forth, a process which may be carried out with machines adapted for a speedy work and a great accuracy, without skilled manpower.

According to a preferred embodiment of this invention, the machine comprises a table or surface plate as usually employed, the angle iron (or T-shaped iron) being laid on said table into which pegs or pins are inserted according to the outline to be produced.

The iron is held on the table wherever this is possible, i. e. where it is in contact with pegs, by means of dogs analogous to those employed by joiners to fix a plank on a bench.

A lengthwise and cross-wise movable carriage is adapted to'travel above the table; the carriage is provided with three conical rollers one of which 11 Claims. (Cl. 153-28) rolls along the wing or flange of the iron lying flat on the table. The second and third rollers which nip the upstanding wing or flange, the slant of which must be altered according to the cross-section templates or patterns, are carried on a support adapted to turn in a plane perpendicular to the table. The turning support is a member of said movable carriage, and takes part in any and all longitudinal and traverse displacements thereof. The longitudinal displacements are controlled from pulling or pushing means which tend to apply the iron against the pegs. The longitudinal displacements are independent of the transverse displacements, and are effected by a suitable control which performs one stroke for each iron to be bent. The combined movements which start from an end of the iron, enable of deforming the latter according to the outline delineated by pegs. Simultaneously, the second and third rollers which revolve in a plane perpendicular to the table, cause a variation of the iron section by more or less inclining the wing or flange nipped between them.

Lastly, the combination of said three rollers is adapted to swing about an axis at right angles to the table, in order that said rollers are always normal to the various curves to be produced.

To sum up, the carriage and its three rollers automatically travel along the iron, permanently urging it against the pegs and thus compelling it to correspond in shape to the outline delineated by said pegs. Moreover a first manual control causes the slant of the shaping rollers to vary while a second manual control steers the three rollers about a vertical axis, along the sinuosities of the curve.

Therefore, in driving the machine, care should be taken in order that both hand controlled movements (shaping and bending of iron) are correctly performed as the automatic movements of the carriage (longitudinal and transverse movements) cooperate in shaping the iron as required.

The size of the machine will be selected to suit thevarious kinds of irons to be shaped; it is possiblewith one machine to treat irons having a big section in hot condition and to treat irons having a small section or even a middle section where the latter are to be given only small curvatures, without previously heating them.

The following description with reference to the appended drawings given solely by way of nonlimitative examples will show how this invention may be carried out.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the movements of a carriage in a machine according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is an elevation view illustrating the movements of the iron shaping rollers in a transverse plane.

Fig. 3 is a cross-section of a machine constructed in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of the machine.

Fig. 5 shows an embodiment of means for controlling movements of shaping rollers.

Fig. 6 shows a modification wherein the carriage is moved transversely by means of a hydraulic cylinder. v b

Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the device shown on Fig. 6.

The table or surface plate I has a very great number of holes such as 2, into a number of which pegs 3 are inserted, according to a predetermined pattern. The pegs 3 are preferably each provided with a head which is offset with respect to the stem 4 so that by a suitable rotation, the outer surface of head 5 is brought in tangential relationship with the pattern or template. A suitable device to be hereinafter described enables of locking pegs 3 after adjustment of the position of heads 5.

The iron 6 to be bent and previously heated is secured on the table by means of dogs which will be placed in proximity to points of contact of iron with some pegs 5 for instance heads 5a, 5b pegs 3. The points of contact Will of course be those where sliding of iron 6 on table I will be restricted to a minimum during bending.

Conical rollers I and 8 supported on a carriage to be described later on and not shown on Fig. I perform together with said carriage two motions, the directions of which are indicated by arrow 9 for the crosswise motion and arrow II! for the lengthwise motion.

Iron 6, the original shape of which is illustrated by full lines on the left of arrow 9 has already been bent tothe required outline as concerns the portion on the right of arrow 9. At the end of the operation, after rollers I and 8 have travelled along the whole length of iron 6 the latter will assume the outline indicated by chain and dot lines (reference character 6 bis) and its upstanding flange II will be inclined according to the angle to which rollers I and 8 will be set in their swinging motion in a transverse plane.

The latter motion (Fig. 2) which does not affect conical roller I2, permanently bearing on the horizontal flange l3 of iron 6, takes place about a center I4 according to arrow I5 or arrow I6 so as more or less to incline flange II.

Fig. 3 shows with more details the construction of a machine according to this invention. The carriage which supports rollers I, 8 and I2 is moved lengthwise over table I, being guided by vertical rollers I! and horizontal rollers l8 which roll above, below and side wise with respect to table I.

Rollers I! and I8 are idly supported on pins fast with posts or uprights I9 and 2!! which together with cylindrical cross beams 2i and 22 constitute the longitudinally movable part of the carriage. Said cross beams are held 'in bosses 23 and 24 on uprights l9 and 2B, the bosses being split to enable jamming by means of bolts 25. The crosswise movement is accomplished along cross beams 2|, 22 on which a support 26 is slidably mounted.

Pivotally held about a vertical axis in said support 26 is a shell 21 provided with a trunnion 28 borne through a sleeve 29 in support 26. To gether with side cheeks 30, 3| (Figs. 3 and 4), the shell 21 provides a slide way for a sector 32 the movements of which ensure the shaping of iron 6. M

For this purpose, a bearing 33 fast with sector 32 is adapted to hold the left roller 1 through a trunnion 34 and the right roller 8 through a sleeve 35 accommodated in the bore 36 of said bearing. Roller I is axially retained b the side face 31 of bearing 33 and a big screw 38 locked in a screw threaded bore of trunnion 34, leaving sufiicient clearance to allow of rotation of roller 1. The position of said roller I is not adjustable, and when it is desired to bend an iron the flange of which has a thickness very different from that of iron 3, a roller of different diameter should be substituted for roller I.

Roller 8 is coupled with a spindle 39 revolving in sleeve 35, by a feather 40 and a, big screw 4| similar to screw 38 above mentioned. S aid roller 8 transfers to an abutmen't 42 through spindle 39, the force resulting from the pressure exerted on the flange I I of iron 6 in operation, which pressure is steadily directed tothe -left of Fig. 3 (direction of arrow 9 on Fig. l). Abutment 42 engages the face 43 of bearing 33; the axial position of roller 8 and its spindle 39 is adjusted by means of a split nut 44 which is locked by a bolt 45 after adjustment and is, spaced apart from abutment 42 by a washer 46 provided for the purpose of preventing unscrewing of nut 44 by friction on abutment 42. The latter is preferably a ball bearing. Roller I2 is permanently pressed on the horizontal flange I3 of iron 6 by the stress imposed on a Belleville washer 4'! held in the upper part of support 26 which stands at an invariable height. Washer 41 is connected with the upper end of trunnion 28 on shell 21; to this end, the centerpart of said Washer is pushed on a-shoulder 48 oftrunnion 28 by a sleeve 49 riveted at 50 on the upper part of trunnion 28. v

The adjustment of the position of roller I2 with respect to thetop of table I (said adjustnent being dependent on the thickness of the flange I3 of iron 6 and the pressure to be imposed on said iron) isperformed by means of a nut 52. For thispurpose, nut 52 is provided with a series of holes 53; washer 4'! is nipped in a housing 54 of nut 52 by a screw threaded ring 55. The upper part 56 of support 26 in which nut 52 is screwed or unscrewed so as to adjust the elevation of roller I2 is split at 51, and squeezing collar 58 operated by a bolt 59 prevents any disadjustment.

The vertical motion in which, as a matter of fact, shell 21, sector '32-, bearing 33 and rollers! and 8 participate, is transmitted to roller t2 by a spindle 60 bolted at 6| on shell 21.

Roller I 2 revolves on a pin 62 fast with spindle 60, between a shoulder 63 fat the base of pin 62 and the head of a screw Msimilar to screws 38 and 4| mentioned with reference to rollers I and 8. r

The spindle 60 is movable vertically owing to elongated holes 65 through which :pass screws 61 to enable of making 'a rough adjustment of the tension of washer 47 and position of roller I2. During the vertical movement, the rollers :1 and 8 move towards or away from the surface of table I and the flange I3 of iron 6 with which they-never come into contact, as sufficient clearance has been. provided.

With a view to removing axial and radial play of roller I2 on its spindle, -a, second conical roller '66 accommodated in an aperture '6! in spindle 60 permanently presses roller I 2 on which it rolls in operation. An offset spindle 88 axially held by a groove 69 and a screw 10 witha cylindrical tip screwed in spindle 60 is used to vary the pressure transmitted to roller I2. The spindle 68 has a head of big diameter provided with a series of holes H for operation purpose, and a cylindrical part 12 on which a ball 14 is pushed by means of a screw 13, to hold spindle 68 in the desired angular position. The roller66 provided for this purpose with a sleeve 16 revolves on the offset part 15 of spindle 66; a friction ring 11 is interposed between the upper face of roller 66 and the corresponding face of aperture 61, and conveys pressure to iron 6 through rollers 66 and I2.

The combination of support 26, shell 21, sector 32, hearing 33, spindle 60,rollers 66, I2, 1 and 8 is drawn or pushed permanently towards the left of the figure. For this purpose, a stirrup 18 the legs of which may swing about a pin 19 passing through bearing 33, girdles the combination. A cable 80 passing through a hole I9a in post I9 and actuated by a winch or any similar device is attached to a fork 8| in which a cylindrical roller 82 held bya pin 83 revolves. The roller 82 is adapted to roll on the cylindrical vertical face of stirrup 18 so as to allow swinging motion of the apparatus about the axis of trunnion 28 whereas the pivot materialized as pin 19 provides for rotation of sector 32 and rollers 1 and 8, which rotation is necessary for shaping iron 6.

Iron 6 is held at any place where this is possible by dogs such as 84 bearing on the horizontal flange I3. Said flange I3 abuts against the oiTset head 5 of pegs 3 one of which is shown on Fig. 3; a screw 85 passing through peg 3 locks the latter which is split at its lower part 86 together with a male cone 81.

Idle rollers 1, 8, I2 and 66 are mounted with a smooth fit on their spindles. However, any other kind of bearing (ball-bearing, roller-bearing, needle-bearing and so on) may be used.

For controlling the swinging movement about the axis of trunnion 28, which, as hereinbefore set forth, is. necessary in order that rollers 1, 8 and I2 lie in a plane normal to the curves along which the iron should be bent, there is provided a double lever 88 the hub of which is splined at Y 89 to engage the upper end 90 of trunnion 28. The operation is made by hand while the rollers travel along iron 6.

A second manual control, as mentioned in the opening part of this specification, is constructed as illustrated by Fig. 5. A toothed sector 9| is integral with sector 32 and meshes With a pinion 92, the sections 93 and 94 of which revolve respectively in a bore 95 of shell 21 and in a support 96 attached to the side cheek 3| by a series of screws 91. The outer end 98 of section 94 is provided with a head 99 riveted at I and having holes 99a so as to enable actuation by means of a bar IOI (Fig. 3). The actuation is also made by hand in the direction of arrow I02 so as to open the angle of iron 6 as required by shaping patterns.

Fig. further shows that side cheek 30 is secured by a series of screws 30a. The other cheek is secured similarly.

In this example, the carriage is moved on table I in lengthwise direction (Fig. 4) by a pair of roller chains I03 attached to the lower part of posts I9 and 20, one of which I9 is shownon the figure. Located at the four corners of the table I are sprocket wheels I04 and I 05 keyed on shafts I06 and I01. The latter revolve in brackets I08 bolted at the ends of table I. The drivemay be imparted from an electric or other motor which is located for instance under table I and controls shaft I06 or I01 through a chain or a train of suitable reducing gears. The crosswise movement of the carriage may be obtained in various ways, otherwise than by means of a cable and a winchas described with reference to Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 shows an embodiment of a modification. A cylinder I09 containing oil or another liquid guides a piston IIO provided with a plastic ring I I I. Pressure liquid admitted into right chamber II2 of said cylinder through a port II3 permanently pushes piston IIO towards the left. Through its stem II4, piston I I0 drives support 26 and consequently the whole transverse carriage including rollers I, 8 and I2. Rod I I4 is connected with support26 through a fork H5 integral with rod 4, a pin H6 and a boss II1 on support 26. Rod II4 passes through the end wall II8 of left chamber H9 in cylinder I09 and said wall II8 has a series of holes I 20 to allow egress of air. Cylinder I09 is combined with the right post 20 andis located between cross bars 2I and 22. Plastic ring III is held against the wall of piston |I0 by a plate I2I and the extension I22 of rod I I4, which abuts through a shoulder I22a thereon against the hub I23 of piston I I0, retains the whole either by its having a flared outer end or by a nut.

The operation of the device is-illustrated by thediagram of Fig '1. A tank I24 communicating with atmosphere through its plug I25 is connected with the section side of a pump I26 which forces liquid into the right chamber H2 in cylinder I09 through port II3.

So long as the iron 8 must have an acute angle section, piston H0 is moved to the left, driving the carriage therewith. Tank I24 has a sufficient content to fill the volume of chamber II2 as piston I I0 moves. When the angle of iron section must be obtuse, the carriage moves piston IIO to the right thus building up in the right chamber H2 2. higher pressure than that which prevailed in the leftward stroke. A valve I21 urged by a spring I28 opens when the pressure exceeds a predetermined limit and from now on pump I26 delivers liquid directly into tank I24 through pipe I29 fromvalve I21 to tank I24.

When'the pressure past pump I26 decreases by reason of piston IIO slowing down in the vicinity of the end of its stroke, valve I21 is gradually shut, and eventually pump I26 again delivers liquid into chamber H2 in cylinder I09. Thus the liquid pressure in said chamber H2 varies between two limits which may be rendered fairly proximate in order that the force imparted to the carriage is almost constant.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine of the type described, the combination of a bed having a flat top service; a primary carriage adapted to travel on said bed; means on the bed cooperating with said carriage, for guiding the same along a predetermined rectilinear path; a secondary carriage adapted to travel on the primary carriage in overhanging position with respect to said .bed surface; means on the primary carriage cooperating with the secondary carriage for guiding the same along a path located crosswise with respect to the firstnamed path; and an iron distorting head supported from the secondary carriage for pivotal movement about an axis perpendicular to said bed surface.

2. The combination of claim .1, wherein the first named means include laterally projecting rails on two parallel sides of the bed, and the primary carriage has at least three wheels on each corresponding side, arranged to roll on the top, bottom and outer edge of the corresponding rail respectively.

3. The combination of claim 1, which further comprises at least one chain attached to the primary carriage; a sprocket wheel rotatably borne on said bed, cooperating with said chain; and means on said bed for moving said chain to drive said primary carriage.

4. The combination of claim 1, which further comprises means on the primary carriage fbi moving the secondary carriage thereon along the second-named path.

5. The combination of claim 1, which further comprises a winch on the primary carriage; and a cable operatively interposed between said winch and said secondary carriage.

6. The combination of claim 1, which further comprises a hydraulic cylinder and a plunger movable therein, one of which is fast with the primary carriage and the other one is fast with the secondary carriage, for moving the latter on the primary carriage.

7. An iron shaping head for a machine of the type described, which comprises a rigid support having a concave cylindrical sli-dew-ay; a slide movably carried by said support, having a cylindrical bearing surface operatively engaging said slideway; an arcuate rack fast with said slide; a control pinion meshing with said rack, revolubly borne in said support; and a pair of bevel rollers pivotably supported on said slide with their axes substantially at right angles to one another, said rollers being arranged to provide between their operative surfaces a gap which lies substantially radially with respect to said cylindrical slideway.

8. An iron distorting head for a machine of the type described, which comprises a rigid member; a tool supported from said member; an adjustment pin rotatably set in said member, having an excentered surface; a conical roller arranged to provide a rolling support for said member, revolubly :borne on the same; and a thrust supporting roller, revolubly borne on said excentered member of the adjustment pin, adapted and arranged to contact said conical roller on its operative surface.

9. In a machine of the type described, the combination of a bed having a flat top surface; a carriage adapted to travel on said bed, including a rigid member above said surface; means on the bed cooperating with the carriage, for guiding said'carriage along a predetermined path; an iron distorting head including .a top trunnion; means on the carriage rigid member, providingfor said trunnion abearing having its axis perpendicular to said he'd surface; a rotatable control member having a screw=thread engagement with said carriage rigid member; and resilient means rotatably coupled with said trunnion, for connecting said control member with said trunnion.

10. In a machine of the type described, the combination of a bed having a flat top surface; a carriage adapted. to travel 'on said bed, including 'a rigid member above said surface; means on the bed cooperating with the carriage, for guiding said carriage along a predetermined path; an iron distorting head including a top trunnion; means 'on the carriage rigid member, providing for said trunnion a bearing having its axis perpendicular to said bed surface; a rotatable control member having a screw-thread engagement withsaid carriage rigid member; resilient means rotatably coupled with said trunnion, for connecting said control member with said trunnion; and means fast with said trunnion for turning the same about said bearing axis.

11. In a machine of the type prescribed, the combination of a bed having a flat top surface; a primary carriage adapted to travel on said bed; means on the bed cooperating with said carriage, for guiding the same along a predetermined rectilinear path; a secondary carriage adapted to travel on the primary carriage in overhanging position with respect to said bed surface; means on the primary carriage cooperating with the secondary carriage for guiding the same along a path located crosswise with respect to the firstnamed path; an iron distorting head; and means forsupporting said iron distorting head from said secondary carriage, providing a pivotalaxls for said head perpendicular to said bed surface and a further pivotal axis for the same parallel to said bed surface. I

ETTORE BUGATTI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,773,812 Fry Aug. 26, 1939 1,990,255 Sonntag Feb. 5, 1935 2,348,185 Bartee May 9, 1944 FoREiGN PATENTS Number Country Date 536,935 Great Britain May 30, 1941

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