Patent GB-568834-A (GB)
Title: Shaft straightening press
IPC: B21D3/10
Filed: 1943-10-26
Abstract: 568,834. Straightening. ERNST, W. Oct. 26, 1943, No. 17611. Convention date, Oct. 28, 1942. [Class 83 (iv)] A shaft-straightening press 11 has blocks 141, 142 for supporting the shaft while straightening and auxiliary supports 101, 102 for the shaft before straightening, one pair of supports being movable by fluid pressure for transferring the shaft at will from either pair to the other. Assuming that the parts of the machine are in the position shown, the operator first moves slides 139, 140 towards or away from one another so that the distance between them is somewhat shorter than the length of the shaft to be straightened and then moves slides 105, 1051 adjacent the slides 139, 140 by a rack 109 and pinions. The said shaft is then placed on the blocks 141, 142 of the slides 139, 140. Hand wheels 145, 150 are then rotated to move wedges 143, Fig. 5, and thus move the blocks 141, 142 vertically as required to support the shaft with its axis horizontal. The operator then closes a switch 83, Fig. 6, to energize a solenoid 85 and move a valve 88 to admit pressure fluid, from a pump 135, through fixed pistons 97, 98 and thus raise cylinders 99, 100, slides 103, Fig. 4, and rollers 101, 102 to lift the shaft from the blocks. 141, 142. This movement is limited by adjustable nuts 111, 112. The operator then closes a switch 128, Fig. 6, to energize a solenoid 126 and move a valve 123 to admit pressure fluid to a motor 120 and thus rotate the rollers 101 at a speed determined by an adjustable valve 134. While the shaft is being rotated, gauges are used to detect and mark parts that require straightening and the switch 128 is opened to arrest the shaft in position to be straightened. The operator then opens the switch 83 to allow the slides 103 with their rollers 101, 102 to fall and deposit the shaft on the blocks 141, 142. The operator then closes one of two switches 59, 63 to drive an electric motor 57, a pinion 69 engaging a fixed rack 70, and a carriage 72 on which is mounted the press 11, in one or the other direction to bring a bending die 40 in line with the part to be straightened. The operator then opens the switch 59 or 63 and moves a lever 27 of a valve 19 to admit pressure fluid, from a pump 17, to the top of the cylinder 14 and connect the bottom, through an adjustable choke 24, and the middle, by a pipe 47 and a one-way outlet valve 45, to exhaust 15, thus causing the die 40 to move down, rapidly during the first part of its stroke. When the operator considers that the die 40 has sufficiently acted on the shaft, he reverses the valve 19 to exhaust the top of the cylinder and admit pressure to the bottom through a non-return inlet valve 22 as well as the choke 24. The shaft is then lifted again and rotated by the rollers 101, 102 so its straightness can be again tested and the straightening operation repeated if required at the same or another point. While the lower end of the cylinder 14 is connected to exhaust the reduced pressure in a bellows 49 causes it to open a switch 52 in the common electrical return lead 54 so that none of the electrical devices can be operated. The upward movement of the die 40 may be stopped by the piston 36 striking a boss 37 or by an arm 34 of the head 35 engaging an adjustable stop 32 on a rod 31 connected to the valve 19 to move this into a neutral position. In a modification, the blocks 141, 142 are movable vertically by fluid pressure and the slides 103 mechanically. The press 11 can be moved horizontally by a hand wheel 75 and a pinion engaging the rack 70 instead of by the motor 57. The slides 105, 105<1> can be moved by handles and pinions 108 engaging the rack 109. The pressure fluid is supplied by pumps 17, 135, controlled by servomotors 39 adapted to move them to no-delivery position when no pressure fluid is being used.