Improved Method and Apparatus for Manufacturing Hollow-ware.
Year: 1896

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Method and Apparatus for Manufacturing Hollow-ware.
A communication from abroad from LA SOCIETÀ ITALIANA PER
LA
FABBRICAZIONE DI BOSSOLI E SCATOLE METALLICHE, G. Franchi
& Co., of Bologna, Italy.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE, of 46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, in the County of
London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the
nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to the manufacture of capsules, closed-ended cylindrical
articles, and boxes from sheets of metal or other suitable material and produced
by means of female dies, and consists in a method and suitable apparatus for
manufacturing such articles from a single piece in each case and of the desired
depth and at the same time either keeping the thickness of the metal sheet the
same throughout or effecting a reduction of the said thickness.
With apparatus heretofore known, it has been impossible to produce by cold-
working hollow articles having a depth greater than their cross sectional
diameter.
Now, this invention enables any desired depth to be produced by subjecting
hollow articles made by the usual means to a series of operations hereinafter
described.
In order to enable this invention to be properly understood, it will now be
described with the aid of the accompanying drawings.
Fig. I thereof is a vertical section of a female die and two plungers with a
capsule in position for undergoing the first operation;
Fig. 11 is a similar view of a female die and corresponding plungers with a
capsule that has been already treated in the first female die and is in position for
being subjected to the next succeeding operation;
Fig. III is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of the hollow
plunger shown in Fig. I; and
Figs. IV and V are similar views of the corresponding solid plunger and female
die respectively;
Fig. VI is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of the hollow
plunger shown in Fig. II, and
Figs. VII and VIII are similar views of the corresponding solid plunger and
female die respectively;
Fig. IX consists of a plan and a section of the sheet-metal disc from which the
capsule is produced in its first form i.e., the form it has before being subjected to
the operations now to be described;
Fig. X is a sectional view of the capsule produced from the aforesaid metal
sheet by means of processes heretofore known;
Fig. XI represents the said capsule after having been subjected to treatment in
the apparatus shown in Fig. 1;
Fig. XII is a view similar to the above;
Fig. XIII shows the same capsule after it has been treated also in the apparatus
illustrated in Fig. II; and
Fig. XIV represents, one within another, the three successive forms assumed by
the capsule.
In these drawings, 3 indicates the female die, which consists of a hollow piece

page_text: having at its upper part and for a certain depth, the shape and dimensions corre-
sponding to the external shape of the article that has been produced by means of
previous operations and is intended to be subjected to subsequent treatment, but
having in its lower part and for the remainder of its depth, the shape and
dimensions corresponding to the outer shape which it is desired to impart to the
article.
The two parts of the female die are connected together by means of a zone of
the form of an arc of a circle which may be horizontal or inclined according to the
nature of the metal sheet subjected to treatment. In continuation of this con-
necting zone there is arranged a drawing or straightening edge S which is a
very important feature of this invention, and constitutes one of its essential
characteristics, because by this means it is possible to prevent the metal sheets
from buckling or creasing without reducing the thickness of the sheet notwith-
standing the considerable modification effected in the dimensions of the article
undergoing treatment. The form of this edge should be designed for each
particular case, but, generally, its radius varies between 4 and 6 times the
thickness of the metal sheet, the smallest radius corresponding to the sheets of
greatest thickness; but it is to be understood that this ratio and the shape
of the edge may be modified according to requirements and the results of
experience.
1 and 2 are the two plungers, of which the former is hollow, and the latter is
solid and is adapted to work inside the former. The hollow plunger fills the
vacant space in the upper part of the female die, from which it differs merely by
an extent equal or corresponding to the thickuess of the metal sheet subjected to
treatment that is to say, the external form and the dimensions of the hollow
plunger correspond to the internal form and dimensions of the article upon which
it is desired to operate. The solid plunger fits exactly inside the hollow plunger;
it is solid with the exception of one or more channels for the passage of air, and
its form and dimensions correspond to the internal form and dimensions of the
article that it is desired to produce: its diameter therefore corresponds to that of
the more contracted lower part of the female die, from which it differs only by the
thickness of the metal sheet. From the preceding it is clear that when the
article undergoing treatment is in position in the female die, it fits externally
against the wall of the latter and is in perfect contact therewith, whilst
internally it is in contact with the external surface of the hollow plunger,
. and at its bottom it is in contact with the lower part of the solid plunger, so
that the whole of the internal surface of the capsule is in intimate contact with
the two plungers.
4 indicates the capsule produced by the known means, and intended to be made
deeper by the means hereinbefore described in one or more successive operations
according to the depth it is desired to produce.
5 indicates the said capsule after the first operation, and 6 indicates the same
after the second operation.
cos in Figs. 111 and X; h of in Figs. IV and XI; c' of in Figs. VI
and XII
in Figs. VII and XIII; ds, ye, oe in Fig. V; and d¹ s',
ye, o el in Fig. VIII, are constructional lines for the curvilinear connecting
zone between the upper wider part and the lower narrower part of the
female die, and for the drawing or straightening edge. 2b are channels
formed in the solid plungers for the passage of the air. 7 is the disc from which
the first capsule 4 shown in Fig. X is produced. A (Fig. V) represents
the diameter of the upper part of the female die, and B the diameter
of the lower part. A' (Fig. VIII) represents the diameter of the upper part,
and B¹ the diameter of the lower part of the female die intended for the next
succeeding operation.
The shapes of the articles produced may have a curvilinear section or a section
formed of straight lines connected together by curves, which may be of minimum
radius.

page_text: The method of working is as follows:-
The capsule 4 having been produced by known means, it is placed in the female
die 3 and the plungers are arranged as shown in Fig. I; then, whilst the hollow
plunger suitably compresses the metal sheet against the walls of the female die
and upon the lower edge, the solid plunger 2 moves forward, forcing the
capsule 4 to pass out through the opening of the female die and to thereby
assume the shape 5.
In this operation the hollow plunger absolutely prevents the buckling or creasing
that has hitherto been produced in the processes employed for subjecting thin metal
sheets to great deformations, for it compels the metal sheet to undergo upon the
edge S a progressive drawing or straightening that facilitates the expansion or
elongation; as, on the other hand, the pressure between the female dies and the
hollow plunger is kept constant, it follows that the operation takes place without
thinning the metal sheet.
By two or three similar successive operations performed with apparatus such as
described, the walls of the capsule are elongated (without diminution of the
thickness of the metal sheet) in consequence of the successive reduction of the
diameter of the capsule.
If, on the contrary, the solid plunger be made of a suitable diameter, the reduction
of the thickness of the material employed can be effected simultaneously with the
elongation of the capsule.
The principal advantages of this invention are the following:-
(1) It is possible to treat the metal sheets without reducing their thickness;
(2) It is possible to reduce the diameter and increase the length of hollow
articles to a greater extent than hitherto ;
(3) By means of drawing or straightening edges, rapid, easy, and perfect
production is effected without wrinkling the metal sheet, one result of this being
that in the case of tinned sheets there is no loss of tinning; and
(4) The method and apparatus are not only applicable to metallic sheets and
especially to tin-plate and iron and steel sheets, whether covered with other metals
or not, but it is also applicable to sheets made of other substances-e.g., cardboard
or leather.
It should be clearly understood that this invention is not confined to the details
of construction illustrated in the drawings annexed hereto, which can be modified
without departing thereby from the nature of the invention.
Dated this 18th day of March 1896.
W. LLOYD WISE,
46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Method and Apparatus for Manufacturing Hollow-ware.
A communication from abroad from LA SOCIETÀ ITALIANA PER LA
FABBRICAZIONE DI BOSSOLI E SCATOLE METALLICHE, 'G. Franchi
& Co., of Bologna, Italy.
I, WILLIAM LLOYD WISE of 46 Lincoln's Inn Fields in the County of
London, Consulting Engineer and Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to the manufacture of capsules, closed-ended cylindrical
articles, and boxes from sheets of metal or other suitable material and it consists
in a method of and apparatus for manufacturing such articles each from a single

page_text: piece of suitable material of the desired depth and at the same time either keeping
the thickness of the material the same throughout or effecting a reduction of the
said thickness.
With apparatus heretofore known, it has been impossible to produce by cold-
working hollow articles having a depth greater than their cross-sectional diameter
without reducing the thickness of the sheet.
Now, this invention enables any desired depth to be produced by subjecting
hollow articles made by the usual means to a series of operations as hereinafter
described.
In order to enable this invention to be properly understood, I shall now proceed
to describe the same with the aid of the drawings filed with my Provisional
Specification wherein
Fig. I is a vertical section of a matrix or female die and two plungers with a
capsule in position for undergoing the first operation;
Fig. II is a similar view of a female die and corresponding plungers with a capsule
that has been already treated in the first female die and is in position for being
subjected to the next succeeding operation;
Fig. III is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of the hollow plunger
shown in Fig. I, and
Figs. IV and V are similar views of the corresponding solid plunger and female
die respectively;
Fig. VI is a view, partly in elevation and partly in section, of the hollow plunger
shown in Fig. II, and
Figs. VII and VIII are similar views of the corresponding solid plunger and
female die respectively;
Fig. IX consists of a plan and a section of the sheet-metal disc from which the
capsule is produced in its first form i.e. the form it has before being subjected to
the operations now to be described;
Fig. X is a sectional view of the capsule produced from the aforesaid metal sheet
by means of processes heretofore known.
Fig. XI represents the said capsule after being subjected to treatment in the
apparatus shown in Fig. I ;
Fig. XII is a view similar to Fig. XI;
Fig. XIII shows the same capsule after it has been treated also in the apparatus
illustrated in Fig. II; and
Fig. XIV represents, one within another, the three successive forms assumed by
the capsule.
In the drawings, 3 represents the female die, which consists of a hollow body
having at its upper part and for a certain depth the shape and dimensions corre
sponding to the external shape of the article that has been produced by means of
previous operations and is intended to be subjected to subsequent treatment, but
having in its lower part and for the remainder of its depth, the shape and dimensions
corresponding to the outer shape which it is desired to impart to the article by
forcing it therethrough. These upper and lower parts of the female die are joined
together by means of a zone having in cross section the form of an are of a circle
and an inwardly directed tangent, which may be horizontal or inclined according to
the nature of the metal sheet subjected to treatment. In continuation of this
connecting zone there is arranged a drawing or straightening edge S which is a very
important feature of this invention, and constitutes one of its essential characteristics,
because by this means it is possible to prevent the metal sheets from buckling or
creasing without reducing the thickness of the sheet notwithstanding the consider-
able modification effected in the dimensions of the article undergoing treatment. The
form of this edge should be designed for each particular case, but, generally, its
radius varies between 4 and 6 times the thickness of the metal sheet, the smallest
radius corresponding to the sheets of greatest thickness; but it is to be understood
that this ratio and the shape of the edge may be modified according to requirements
and the results of experience.

page_text: 1 and 2 are the two plungers, of which the former is hollow, and the latter is.
solid and is adapted to work inside the former. The hollow plunger nearly fills the
vacant space in the upper part of the female die, from which it differs in diameter
merely by an extent equal or corresponding to twice the thickness of the metal
sheet subjected to treatment that is to say, the external form and the dimensions of
the hollow plunger correspond to the internal form and dimensions of the article
upon which it is desired to operate. The solid plunger fits exactly inside the
hollow plunger; it is solid with the exception of one or more channels for the
passage of air, and its form and dimensions correspond to the internal form
and dimensions of the article that it is desired to produce by the operation in
which it is used; its diameter therefore corresponds nearly to that of the more
contracted lower part of the female die, from which it differs only by twice the
thickness of the metal sheet. From the preceding it is clear that when the hollow
article undergoing treatment is in position in the female dic, it fits externally
against the wall of the latter and is in perfect contact therewith, whilst
internally it is in contact with the external surface of the hollow plunger, and
at its bottom it is in contact with the lower part of the solid plunger, so that the
whole of the internal surface of the article is in intimate contact with the two.
plungers.
4 indicates a capsule produced by the known means, and intended to be made
deeper by the means hereinbefore described in one or more successive operations
according to the depth of article it is desired to produce.
5 indicates the said capsule after the first operation that is, the operation produced
in the die 3 shown in Fig. I and 6 indicates the same after the second operation,.
that is in the die shown in Fig. II.
cos in Figs. III and X, h of in Figs. IV and XI, co fin Figs. VI
and XII, of in Figs. VII and XIII, ds, ye, oe in Fig V, and d¹ s¹, y e¹, o¹ e¹
in Fig. VIII, are constructional lines for the curvilinear connecting zone between
the upper wider part and the lower narrower part of the female die, and for the
drawing or straightening edge, 2° are channels formed in the solid plungers for the
escape of air when the plungers are inserted in the articles to be pressed.
7 (Fig. IX) is the disc from which the first capsule 4 shown in Fig. X is produced..
A (Fig. V) represents the diameter of the upper part of the female die, and B the
diameter of the lower part. A' (Fig. VIII) represents the diameter of the upper
part, and B' the diameter of the lower part of the female die intended for the next.
succeeding operation.
The shapes of the articles produced may have a curvilinear section or a section
formed of straight lines connected together by curves, which may be of minimum
radius.
The method of working is as follows:-
The capsule 4 having been produced by known means, it is placed in the female
die 3 and the plungers are arranged as shown in Fig. 1; then whilst the hollow
plunger suitably compresses the metal sheet against the walls of the female die
and upon the lower edge, the solid plunger 2 is moved forward, forcing the
capsule 4 to pass out through the opening of the female die and to thereby assume
the shape 5.
In this operation the hollow plunger absolutely prevents the buckling or creasing
that has hitherto been produced in processes employed for subjecting thin metal
sheets to great deformations, for it compels the metal sheet to undergo upon the
edge sa progressive drawing or straightening that facilitates the expansion or
elongation; as, on the other hand, the pressure between the female dies and the
hollow plunger is kept constant, it follows that the operation takes place without
thinning the metal sheet.
By two or three similar successive operations performed with apparatus such as.
described the walls of the capsule are elongated (without diminution of the thickness
of the metal sheet), in consequence of the successive reduction of the diameter of.
the capsule.

page_text: If, on the contrary, the solid plunger be made of a suitable larger diameter, the
reduction of the thickness of the material employed can be effected simultaneously
with the elongation of the capsule.
The principal advantages of this invention are the following:-
1. It is possible to treat the metal sheets without reducing their thickness;
2. It is possible to reduce the diameter and increase the length of hollow articles
to a greater extent than hitherto ;
3. By means of drawing or straightening edges, rapid, easy and perfect production
is effected without wrinkling the metal sheet one result of this being that in the case
of tinned sheets there is no loss of tinning; and
4. The method and apparatus are not only applicable to metallic sheets and
especially to tin-plate and iron and steel sheets whether covered with other metals
or not, but it is also applicable to sheets made of other substances e.g. cardboard, or
leather.
It should be clearly understood that this invention is not confined to the details
of construction illustrated in the drawings annexed hereto, which can be modified
without departing thereby from the nature of the invention.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
1 claim is :-
1. The herein described method of increasing the depth whilst reducing the
diameter of a capsule or like hollow body having a closed end and formed of metal
or other suitable material by causing the body to pass through a female die by means
of two plungers oue of which works within the other, or through a series of female
dies each provided with two such plungers one of which works within the other, the
said operations being effected either with the preservation of the initial thickness of
the material unaltered, or with its reduction by means of drawing, substantially as
herein before described with reference to the drawings.
2. In apparatus for increasing the depth of a capsule or other hollow body having
a closed lower end a female die and two plungers one of which is hollow and the
other solid, the solid one being arranged to work within the hollow one, substantially
as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the drawings.
3. Apparatus of the kind referred to in the preceding claim in which the female
die is formed with a drawing edge, such as S, that co-operates with the two
plungers, hollow and solid, in the progressive extension of the material subjected
to treatment, substantially as hereinbefore described and illustrated in the
drawings.
Dated this 11th day of July 1890.
For the Applicant,
W. LLOYD WISE,
46 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, W.C., Chartered Patent Agent.