Oiling Device For Metal Sheet

Abstract

An oiling device for oiling metal sheet which comprises a pair of oiling rollers covered with elastic porous pads. The metal sheet passes through the gap between the rollers so that it can be oiled on both sides. Guide means are provided for moving the rollers towards or away from each other. The guide means are comprised of air cylinders for causing at least one of the rollers to move towards the other and spring means to cause the rollers to separate from each other.

Parent Case Text

This application is a Division of my co-pending application Ser. No. 86,740 filed Nov. 4, 1970 now U.S. Pat. No. 3,710,469.

Description

This invention is concerned with an oiling device for use with metal sheets. More particularly, the invention is concerned with an oiling device for use with metal sheets after the sheets are pickled or while the sheets are on the shearing line, etc. in the rolling process.

Known means for oiling both sides of steel sheet in the rolling process are spraying means and coating means involving the employment of rubber rollers. However, the former has the disadvantage that oil is wasted in large quantitites and satisfactory oiling on the reverse side of the steel sheet is difficult. The latter has the disadvantage that oil is scattered by centrifugal force when the roller rotates at high speed.

This invention has overcome the disadvantages of the heretofore known oiling means for metal sheet. The present invention provides a new and improved oiling roller and oiling device.

One of the features of the present invention is to provide an oiling device including a hollow arbor having a plurality of small holes penetrating the arbor wall on the circumference thereof, an elastic porous pad in a cylindrical form placed over the circumference of said hollow arbor, and means for pressing the circumferential portion of said cylindrical pad in the axial direction of the same cylinder.

Thus, if said oiling roller is brought into contact with the surface of the metal sheet being fed and oil is introduced under pressure into the internal space of said hollow arbor, the oil introduced permeates through said small holes into the pad. Since the circumferential portion of the pad is pressed by said pressing means, the external exudation of said oil permeated is adequately controlled. Accordingly, when the oiling roller is caused to rotate, the oil is prevented from scattering by centrifugal force. An adequate amount of oil is applied to the surface of the metal sheet.

The said elastic porous pad may preferably be non-woven fiber and spongy material, such as sponge rubber, non-cellular type synthetic resin foam, and the like, having oil and thermal resistance.

Another feature of the present invention is to provide a device for oiling the surface of metal sheet. Such device comprises a pair of said oiling rollers for oiling both sides of the metal sheet and a means for movably supporting said pair of oiling rollers in such a manner as to relatively contact and separate each other.

Thus, said pair of oiling rollers are forced away from each other by the spring means while at the same time they are forced toward each other by means of the air cushion of the air cylinder.

Even if the cross-section of the metal sheet passing between the oiling rollers is uneven or wave-like, both oiling rollers can make appropriate movements according to such wave-like cross-section of the sheet, and both sides of the sheet are oiled evenly.

One object of the present invention is to provide an oiling device capable of oiling metal sheet economically. Another object of the invention is to provide an oiling device capable of oiling evenly both sides of the metal sheet, even if such sheet is uneven.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention will be hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a view partially shown in cross-section of the oiling roller;

FIG. 2 is a view in perspective of the porous tip;

FIG. 3 is a view in side elevation of the hollow arbor;

FIG. 4 is a view shown in cross-section of another embodiment of the oiling roller partially omitting some components;

FIG. 5 is a view shown in cross-section of the oiling device partially omitting some components thereof;

FIG. 6 is a view in section taken as indicated along the line VI--VI of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a view shown in cross-section of another embodiment of the oiling device partially omitting some components; and

FIG. 8 is an oil pressure circuit diagram.

The preferred embodiment of the present invention is hereinafter described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

The cylindrical pad 2 placed over the circumference of the hollow arbor 1 consists of a plurality of disk shaped non-woven fiber or porous rings having holes 4 in the center thereof, as shown in FIG. 2, said rings being piled one upon the other.

The said non-woven fiber ring 3 can be made from such synthetic fibers as nylon, orlon, dacron, etc., such natural fibers as cotton, wool, hemp, etc., and/or such mineral fibers as asbestos, glass, etc. These fibers are mixed with each other at random and bound to each other by resinous adhesives having oil and heat resistance in such a manner as to have spaces among the fibers.

The following is a representative example of the non-woven fiber:

Fiber: Nylon filament (0.2-0.6mm in diameter)

Adhesive:

1. Primary resinous liquid mixture

Polyester resin -- 50 g

Toluendiisocyanate -- 50 g

Naphtha -- 30 g

Butyl Acetate -- 70 g

2. Secondary resinous liquid mixture

Phenol resin -- 70 g

Epoxide resin -- 10 g

Silicone Resin -- 10 g

Cellosolve acetate -- 10 g

Methyl ethyl ketone -- 40 g

Ethyl acetate -- 10 g

Acid anhydride -- 0.5 g

The primary liquid mixture is sprayed to the fibers which are at random mixed with each other. After the mixture is dried, the secondary liquid mixture is sprayed thereto.

On the circumference of the said hollow arbor 1 are provided spiral grooves 6 running in opposite directions to each other with the central part of the arbor as the border. Further, within the said grooves 6 is provided a plurality of small holes 7 penetrating the arbor wall into the internal space of the hollow arbor.

The said hollow arbor 1 is further provided with stepped journals 8 extended at both ends thereof. Each journal is provided with a passage 9 running into the internal space of the said hollow arbor. Further, a male thread 10 is provided on the circumference of the largest part of each journal contiguous to the end of the said hollow arbor. Press disks 11 for pressing the said pad 2 are formed in such a manner that the inner surface thereof has inclined surface 12 inclined toward the pad, as shown in FIG. 1. These two press disks are positioned at both ends of the hollow arbor 1 contiguous to both sides of said pad 2. They are pressed toward the center by washers 13 and two push nuts 14 and 15 screwed on said male thread 10.

Since the said pad is pressed by the inclined surface 12 of said two disks 11, the circumferential area of the pad is pressed more tightly than the other portions thereof. Accordingly, the spaces among the fibers on the circumferential area of the pad become smaller and the exudation of oil is controlled.

Another example of the oiling roller will now be described with reference to FIG. 4.

Into the hollow arbor is inserted the core arbor 116, the diameter of which is smaller than the inner diameter of the hollow arbor 101 and which has flanges 117 at both ends thereof. The screws 118 extended at both ends of said core arbor are screwed in the base of said journal 108. Thus, there is provided the cylindrical inner space between the inner wall of the hollow arbor and the core arbor.

The screws 118 of said core arbor are provided with passages 119 connecting the passages 109 of said journals. The flanges 117 are provided with a plurality of conduits 120 which branch off from said passage 119 and connect with said cylindrical inner space 105. In addition, the pad 102 comprises a plurality of porous rings piled upon each other, said rings being made of sequential type urethane foam. The numbers 106, 107, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114 and 115 in FIG. 4 refer to the parts which are substantially the same as illustrated in FIG. 1.

When the oiling roller of this example is brought into contact with the surface of the metal sheet being fed, and when oil is introduced under pressure into the cylindrical inner space 105, the amount of oil contained in the hollow arbor is small. Therefore, the permeation of oil into the pad is hardly affected by the centrifugal force when the said oiling roller is rotated. A nearly fixed amount of oil is thus fed into the pad. Further, since no air is contained within the said cylindrical inner space, or if air is contained therein the amount would be small, the oiling roller hardly vibrates. Accordingly, oil is almost evenly applied to the metal sheet.

An oiling device provided with either one of the aforementioned oiling rollers is hereinafter described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

The frame consists of two supporting towers 221 and beams 222 connecting said towers.

In FIG. 5, only one of the towers is shown, but the other tower is of the same construction. On both walls 223 of the tower are vertically placed channel-type guide plates 224 in such a manner as to face each other. Two bearing boxes 225 and 226 are supported between the guide plates so that they may be free to travel vertically.

The upper bearing box 225 is connected by means of pin 230 with the lower end of the ram 229 of air cylinder 228 supported on the upper plate 227 of the tower. The bearing box 225 is caused to move up and down by the operation of the air cylinder. When it is not in motion, it is subjected to the air cushion of the air cylinder.

The lower bearing box 226 is provided with sleeve 231 having therein a female thread at the lower end thereof. In this sleeve is screwed screw shaft 233 of the fine adjustment 232 fixed on the tower bed. On the bearings 234 within the bearing boxes 225 and 226 is rotatively supported each journal 208 of a pair of oiling rollers A and A'. There are also provided dents 235 and 236, respectively, on the lower side of the bearing box 225 and the upper side of the bearing box 226. Spring shoe 237 is inserted in one dent 235 and spring 238 is inserted between this spring shoe and the other dent 236 for elastically supporting the upper oiling roller and the bearing box 225. Rotary joints 244 are respectively connected with the ends of said journal. To these rotary joints are connected oil pipes.

The said fine adjustment 232 is provided with a worm wheel 239 fixed on the lower end of said screw shaft 233 and a worm 240 which gears therewith. The handle 242 is fixed on one end of worm shaft 241 and connecting rod 243 is connected by means of a pin with the other end of the said shaft.

The other supporting tower is provided with the same guide plates, bearing boxes, air cylinder, spring and fine adjustment, as mentioned above. On the two bearing boxes of the other tower are respectively supported the other journals of a pair of said oiling rollers. To the worm shaft of the other fine adjustment is connected the other end of said connecting rod 243.

The rotation of said handle 242 is conveyed to the screw shaft 233 by way of worms 240 and worm wheels 239 of both fine adjustments. The rotation of said screw shaft causes the sleeve 231 to move up and down. In accordance therewith, the lower oiling roller A' moves up and down.

In operation, after properly adjusting the position of the lower oiling roller A' relative to the pass line of the metal sheet, the bearing box 225 is caused by the operation of the air cylinder to move either up or down in order to properly position the upper oiling roller A. The desired position is that which causes the pad 202 of the upper roller to slightly touch that of the lower roller. If, in such position, the metal sheet is caused to pass between the oiling rollers A and A', both rollers rotate by means of friction and the oil contained in the pads is applied to both sides of the metal sheet.

An oil pressure circuit for the aforementioned oiling device will now be described with reference to FIG. 8.

Pipes 246 and 246' respectively connected with two oil tanks 245 and 245' are connected with the input pipe of the oil pump 248 by way of magnetic valves 247 and 247'. The pipes 251 and 252 and the pipes 251' and 252', respectively, connected with the output pipe of said oil pump are connected with each of a pair of oiling rollers by way of magnetic valves 253 and 254 and magnetic valves 251' and 252'.

Further, pipes 255 and 255' connected with said oil tanks 245 and 245' are respectively connected with the input pipe 258 of the vacuum pump 257 by way of magnetic valves 256 and 256'. The output pipe 259 of said vacuum pump is connected with the output pipe 250 of said oil pump by way of magnetic valve 260. Further, the input pipe 249 and output pipe 250 of said oil pump are connected with each other by means of pipe 262 having therein stop valve 261. Said output pipe 250 has magnetic valve 263 between oil pump 248 and the junction of said pipe 250 and pipes 259 and 262.

Further, a pressure adjustment circuit is added to said circuit. The pipes 264 and 264' connected with said oil tanks 245 and 245' are respectively connected with pipes 266 and 267 and pipes 266' and 267' by way of magnetic valves 265 and 265'. Pipes 266 and 267 and pipes 266' and 267' are respectively connected with each journal of a pair of said oiling rollers by way of pressure relief valves 268, 269, 268' and 269'.

Oil tanks 245 and 245' are filled with oils which may vary according to the intended purpose, such as, for example, oils which are different in viscosity, oils which are different in drying speed, etc.

When the oil in the oil tank 245 is used in said oil pressure circuit, magnetic valves 247, 263, 253, 253', 254, 254' and 265 are caused to open to operate the oil pump 248. The oil of oil tank 245 is fed under pressure into the internal space of the hollow arbor. When the oil pressure within said internal space becomes higher than the fixed pressure, pressure relief valves 268, 268', 269 and 269' automatically open, and the oil within said internal space returns to the oil tank 245.

When the oil in oil tank 245' is used, the oil pump is first stopped and magnetic valves 263, 253, 253', 254, 254' and 265 are caused to open to operate the oil pump 248. The oil of the oil tank 245 is fed under pressure into the internal space of the hollow arbor. When the oil pressure within said internal space becomes higher than the fixed pressure, pressure relief valves 268, 268', 269 and 269' automatically open, and the oil within said internal space returns to the oil tank 245.

When the oil tank 245' is used, the oil pump is first stopped and magnetic valves 263, 253, 253', 254, 254', 256 and 260 and stop valve 261 are caused to open to operate the vacuum pump 256. The oil in oiling rollers A and A', oil pump 248 and pipes connected therewith return to the oil tank 245. Then, magnetic valves 247', 263, 253, 253', 254 and 254' are caused to open to operate the oil pump 248. The oil of the oil tank 245' is then fed under pressure to the oiling rollers.

Another embodiment of the oiling device support structure is illustrated in FIG. 7. The lower bearing box is connected by means of pin 372 with ram 371 of the air cylinder 370 vertically supported on the bed of the supporting tower 321 in place of the fine adjustment. The numbers 305, 314, 315, 322, 323, 324, 325, 327, 328, 329, 330, 337, and 338 refer to the parts which are substantially the same as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.

In this example of the embodiment, a pair of oiling rollers A and A' are subjected to the air cushions of air cylinders 328 and 370.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A device for oiling metal sheet comprising a pair of oiling rollers, each roller including a hollow arbor having a spiral groove on the circumference thereof and a plurality of small holes penetrating the circumferential wall of said arbor and opening into said groove, a cylindrically shaped elastic porous pad placed over the circumference of said hollow arbor and means for pressing the circumferential portion of said cylindrical pad in the axial direction towards the center of the cylinder; guide means for moving said pair of oiling rollers toward and away from each other, said guide means comprising air cylinder means for moving at least one roller towards or away from the other and for imparting an air cushion to said one roller and spring means for forcing said oiling rollers away from each other.

2. The device according to claim 1 further comprising journals extended from both ends of each oiling roller and having a passage communicating with the internal space of said hollow arbor, and wherein said guide means further comprises bearing boxes for rotatively supporting said journals and channel-type guide plates for movably supporting said bearing boxes, said cylinders being connected with said bearing boxes of at least one of the oiling rollers, and said spring means being positioned between the bearing boxes of said pair of oiling rollers.

3. The device according to claim 1 further comprising fine adjustment means for adjusting the position of the said other oiling roller relative to the pass line of the metal sheet.

4. The device according to claim 3 further comprising journals extended from both ends of each oiling roller and having a passage communicating with the internal space of said hollow arbor, and wherein said guide means further comprises bearing boxes for rotatively supporting said journals and channel-type guide plates for movably supporting said bearing boxes, said fine adjustment means comprises screw shafts screwed in the bearing boxes of said other oiling roller, worm wheels fixed on said screw shafts, and driving worms to gear with said worm wheels.

5. The device according to claim 1 further comrpising air cylinder means for moving the other oiling roller and imparting an air cushion to the other oiling roller.

6. The device according to claim 1 further comprising an oil pressure circuit for feeding oil into the hollow arbors of said oiling rollers, said oil pressure circuit comprising at least one oil tank, an oil pump for feeding the oil of said oil tank into said hollow arbors and conduit means for guiding said oil being fed.

7. The device according to claim 6 in which said oil pressure circuit further comprises a plurality of oil tanks containing different oils, valve means for selectively feeding the oil in either one of said oil tanks under pressure into said hollow arbors, vacuum pump means for returning the oil in said hollow arbors and oil pump to the same oil tank from which it came, and conduit means for guiding the returning oil.

8. The device according to claim 1 wherein the hollow arbor of each of said rollers has a pair of spiral grooves on the circumference thereof, said spiral grooves running in opposite directions with the axial center of said arbor as the border between said grooves.

9. The device according to claim 8 further comprising journals extended from both ends of each oiling roller and having a passage communicating with the internal space of said hollow arbor, and wherein said guide means further comprises bearing boxes for rotatively supporting said journals and channel-type guide plates for movably supporting said bearing boxes, said cylinders being connected with said bearing boxes of at least one of the oiling rollers, and said spring means being positioned between the bearing boxes of said pair of oiling rollers.

10. The device according to claim 8 further comprising fine adjustment means for adjusting the position of the said other oiling roller relative to the pass line of the metal sheet.

11. The device according to claim 10 further comprising journals extending from both ends of each oiling roller and having a passage communicating with the internal space of said hollow arbor, and wherein said guide means further comprises bearing boxes for rotatively supporting said journals and channel type guide plates for movably supporting said bearing boxes, said fine adjustment means comprises screw shafts screwed in the bearing boxes of said other oiling roller, worm wheels fixed on said screw shafts, and driving worms to gear with said worm wheels.

12. The device according to claim 8 further comprising air cylinder means for moving the other oiling roller and imparting an air cushion to the other oiling roller.

13. The device according to claim 8 further comprising an oil pressure circuit for feeding oil into the hollow arbors of said oiling rollers, said oil pressure circuit comprising at least one oil tank, an oil pump for feeding the oil of said oil tank into said hollow arbors and conduit means for guiding said oil being fed.

14. The device according to claim 13 in which said oil pressure circuit further comprises a plurality of oil tanks containing different oils, valve means for selectively feeding the oil in either one of said oil tanks under pressure into said hollow arbors, vacuum pump means for returning the oil in said hollow arbors and oil pump to the same oil tank from which it came, and conduit means for guiding the returning oil.