US3007587A - Charging box - Google Patents

Description

NOV. 7, 1961 GATHMANN ET AL 3,007,587

CHARGING BOX Filed June 17, 1959 M 0 Ju mw A H/ N R AB .3 E m R v Mw v m .l lfi v M an w n mam Attorney United tates Patent CHARGING BOX Mark H. Gathmann, Chicago, and John F. OBrien, Midlothian, Ill., assignors to United States Steel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Filed June 17, 1959, Ser. No. 820,893 2 Claims. (Cl. 214-26) This invention relates to a charging box and is particularly directed to boxes for introducing raw or scrap material into an open hearth furnace. Such boxes are in common use and are generally either cast or fabricated from steel plates. Regardless of how the boxes are made it is found that they will vary in weight. Boxes of the same design may vary as much as eighty pounds. In introducing scrape or cold metal into the open hearth the boxes are loaded onto a wheeled car and the full boxes are weighed as they pass over a scale platform. In calculating the weight of the charge, the amount subtracted for the weight of the boxes is an arbitrary amount which may vary considerably from the actual weight of the box. Thus the actual weight of the charge may be much different than the calculated weight. This has many adverse results since the efficiency of the metal refining operation cannot be accurately calculated and the relationship between the cold charge and the hot pig iron is difierent than that desired.

It is therefore an object of our invention toprovide open hearth charging boxes having substantially uniform weights.

This and other objects will be more apparent after referring to the following specification and attached drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a bottom plan view of the charging box of our invention;

FIGURE 2 is a view taken on the line II-II of FIG- URE l; and

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the charging box.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, reference numeral 2 indicates the charging box of our invention. The box is open at its top and has side walls 4 and 6, end walls 8 and 10 and base 12. The end wall 10 is provided with an attachment 14 for receiving the usual peel head 16. The construction so far described is that ordinarily provided in open hearth charging boxes and the attachment 14 and peel head 16 may be of any suitable type such as shown in Allison Patent No. 1,771,761, Mursch Patent No. 2,314,729 and Forsythe Patent No. 2,347,899. According to our invention the base 12 is provided with a groove 18 of substantial height extending upwardly from the bottom side thereof. The groove 18 is preferably on the longitudinal center line of the box as shown.

In the design and manufacture of the charging box, the maximum weight of the box is calculated. The boxes after casting or fabrication are individually weighed and an insert 20, such as a steel bar, of suflicient weight to bring the total weight of each box to the maximum calculated weight is welded to the base 12 in the groove 18. The insert 20 is shown as having a half round shape, but the shape may vary as long as the thickness of the insert is such that it can be received entirely within the groove 18. The groove or corrugation 18, in addition to serving as the receptacle for the insert 20, acts to increase the rigidity of the base and the addition of the weight of insert 20 at the longitudinal center of the box increases the stability of the box.

While one embodiment of our invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent that other adaptations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A cast elongated open hearth charging box comprising side walls, end walls, a base, and means on one of said end walls adapted to receive a peel head, said base having a longitudinal central groove of substantial height extending upwardly from the bottom thereof, said groove being adapted to receive an insert therein.

2. A cast elongated open hearth charging box comprising side walls, end walls, a base, means on one of said end walls adapted to receive a peel head, said base having a longitudinal central groove of substantial height extending upwardly from the bottom thereof, and an insert fastened in said groove above the bottom of the base adjacent thereto.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,265,076 Larsen Dec. 2, 1941 2,347,899 Forsythe May 2, 1944 2,441,619 Dailey May 18, 1949

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