Improvements in or relating to Electric Metal Working or Welding.
Year: 1892

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Electric Metal Working or
Welding.
A communication by CHARLES L. COFFIN, of' Detroit, in the County of "Wayne
and State of Michigan, United States of America, Chemist.
I,. WILLIAM. PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S.,. M.I.M.E.,. of the Agency for
Foreign Patent Solicitors, 6 Lord Street,. Liverpool and 6 Bank Street,
Manchester both in the County of Lancaster and 323. High Holborn, .in..the
County of Middlesex, Civil. Engineer, do. hereby declare the nature. of this
invention and..in. whati manner the: same: is..to be performed, to, be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement.:—
This invention, consists in, an--improved method of electric metal working or
welding, hereinafter fully described and claimed.
The drawings are diagrams illustrating modes of practising the invention, in
which :-
Figure 1 is a-side elevation;
Figure 2, a perspective view; and
Figure 3, a side elevation, with the supporting mechanism in section.
In all the figures, M M represent either one article which has a seam or opening
which is to be filled with metal, or two articles partly welded, in which an open
seam or joint is left to be filled with metal, and L represents a metal plate from
which metal is to be supplied to the seam or joint, which is marked J.
In Figure 3, a support and dash-pot for supporting and feeding the plate L are
shown in section.
Assuming that the seam or joint, marked J, is a seam in the metal plate M which
is to be filled with metal, the
is as follows:
process
-
The plate M is connected with one pole of a generator of electricity by the con-
ductor y. Plate L, being a plate of the metal with which the seam is to be filled,
is connected with the other pole of the generator by conductor x, and is supported
over said seam.on an angle therewith, as clearly shown in Figures 2 and 3, so that
the distance between plates L and M is greater at one end of plate L than at the
other. By passing a current through conductors and y and momentarily con-
necting plate L with plate M and then breaking contact, a voltaic arc is formed
between said plates, which melts the edge of plate L, which is preferably the positive
electrode, and causes the molten metal to drop into the seam below. As the edge
of plate L melts away, the distance between the plate at the point of the arc
increases, until finally the arc finds a shorter path by moving along plate L, and
this will continue, thesare moving along plate L from one end to the other and back,
until the distance between said plates becomes too great for the arc, when the
current will break. By using a dash-pot such as is shown in Figure 3, where P is
a support carried on a suitable table and insulated as shown at I, G is the cylinder
of the dash-pot fastened to the support P in any suitable way, as by bolt T, D is a
loosely fitting piston provided with a piston rod E, passing through a stuffing box S,
the lower end of the piston rod E being secured to plate L, (the dash-pot being a
well known and common device) a gradual and regular feed of plate L toward
plate M may be obtained. An arm B may be fastened to piston rod E and
provided with a set-screw F, by which the inclination of plate L may be

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The herein described mode of electrically filling a seam in a plate with
molten metal consisting in connecting said plate with one pole of a source of 5
electricity, supporting over said seam a plate of metal with which said seam is to be
filled at an angle with said first named plate, connecting said last named plate with
the other pole of the electric generator, and forming a voltaic arc between said
plates.
2. The herein described method of electrically welding sheets or plates of metal, 1
consisting in connecting said plate with one pole of a source of electricity, supporting
over said plate in line with the joint a plate of metal at an angle with said first
named plate, connecting said last named plate with the other pole of the generator,
and forming a voltaic arc between said plates, whereby the joint is progressively
heated and supplied with molten metal from the last named electrode plate.
Dated this 26th day of September 1892.
I
WM. P. THOMPSON,
Agent for the Applicant.