Improvements in Rolling Mills.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 16th Sept., 1892-Accepted, 22nd Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by HENRY AIKEN, of Pittsburg, in the State of
Pennsylvania, United States of America, Mechanical Engineer.]
Improvements in Rolling Mills.
I, JAMES JOHNSON of 4 Clayton Square Liverpool in the County of Lancaster,
Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention applies in practice particularly to vertical rolls, such as are used
in universal rolling-mills. Such rolls are usually driven by bevel-gearing, con-
necting them with a horizontal power-shaft, the gear-wheels on the shaft being
set thereon with a feather-and-spline, thus affording a travelling power connection,
which enables the rolls to be adjusted laterally towards and from each other.
Such construction is disadvantageous for several reasons. The connection of the
pinion with the shaft by feather and spline is expensive in construction, and the
vertical vibration of the shaft which occurs in use is apt to cause the gear-teeth to
cut and destroy themselves very rapidly, especially when the mill is driven to its
full capacity.
The advantage of my invention, as hereinafter described, is that it obviates the
faults above recited, and that it provides a mill simple and cheap in construction,
and durable and efficient in respect of the driving gear.
To this end the invention consists in the combination with laterally adjustable
vertical rolls of a transverse driving shaft having worms preferably formed integral
thereon or attached thereto in combination with worm-wheels on the rolls in gear
therewith. The teeth of the worms are of sufficient length to permit of adjustment
of the rolls and worm wheels.
Dated the 15th day of December 1901
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Rolling Mills.
I JAMES JOHNSON of 4 Clayton Square Liverpool in the County of Lancaster,
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 :-
My invention applies in practice particularly to vertical rolls, such as are used
in universal rolling-mills. Such rolls are usually driven by bevel-gearing, con-
necting them with a horizontal power shaft, the gear-wheels on the shaft being set
thereon with a feather and spline, thus affording a travelling power connection,
which enables the rolls to be adjusted laterally towards and from each other. Such
construction is disadvantageous for several reasons. The connection of the pinion
with the shaft by feather and spline is expensive in construction, and the vertical
vibration of the shaft which occurs in use is apt to cause the gear-teeth to cut and
destroy themselves very rapidly especially when the mill is driven to its full
capacity.
The advantage of my invention as hereinafter described, is that it obviates the
faults above recited, and that it provides a mill simple and cheap in construction
and durable and efficient in respect of the driving gear.
To this end the invention consists in the combination with laterally adjustable
vertical rolls of a transverse driving shaft having worms preferably formed
integral thereon or attached thereto in combination with worm wheels on the rolls
73

page_text: in gear therewith. The teeth of the worms arc of sufficient length to permit of
adjustment of the rolls and worm wheels.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Fig. 1 is a front elevation, Fig. 2 a plan, and Fig. 3 au end view of my improved
rolling mill.
2 represents the housings of the vertical rolls of an universal mill, 3, 3. are the
vertical rolls, whose bearings are confined by trausverse guide bars 4, between
which they are movable so as to permit of the lateral approach and separation of
the rolls. 5. 5. are the usual adjusting screws, connected by gearing 6, and 7 are
the retracting cylinders having plungers 8 fixed to the carriers 9 which connect the
roll bearings. In Figure 1 of the drawing I show by full lines the rolls separated
to their widest extent, and by dotted lines the limit of their inward adjustment.
Above the upper guide bars 4, the necks of the rolls are provided with worm
wheels 10. 11 is the driving shaft which extends horizontally and is journalled in
suitable bearings 12 in the housings. Formed on this shaft, preferably cast integral
therewith, are two worms 13 so situate relatively to each other as to be adapted to
mesh with the respective worm wheels 10 and of sufficient length to permit the
rolls to be adjusted laterally to the desired extent without disengaging the teeth of
the wheels therefrom. In practice I prefer to make the shaft 11 a cylindrically
hollow casting having the worms integral with it, and to provide it at its end
outside the housing with a coupling or clutch 14, by which it is connected with a
main power shaft. This construction may be varied, e.g., the worms may be made
separate and keyed to the shaft, and instead of placing the shaft and wheels at the
upper necks of the rolls they may be at the lower necks, though the constructions
I have shown, are best, and the forming of the shaft and worms in a single casting
is claimed specifically herein. The pairs of worms and wheels are of respectively
opposite pitch, i.e. one pair is of right hand and the other pair is of left hand pitch
so as to drive the rolls in respectively opposite directions.
When the shaft 11 is driven, the worms acting on the wheels 10 will rotate the
rolls and when the rolls are adjusted inwardly or outwardly by the mechanism
above described, the power connection will still be maintained, owing to the
length of the worms, which is greater than that required to drive the rolls in a
single position.
The following is a statement of some of the advantages of my improvement.
The use of the worm gearing by enabling the driving shaft to be set at the same
level with the gearing on the rolls, diminishes the distance between the shaft and
roll-bearing, and thus materially increases the compactness and strength of the
mill. The durability of the gearing is greater than that of any other form of
gearing heretofore used for such purposes; and as the gearing on the shaft is fixed
thereto, it is cheap to construct. Furthermore, as the worm-shaft transmits a
relatively slower motion to the worm, I am enabled, if desired, to connect the main
driving shaft directly with the engine, and to dispense with the inconvenient and
expensive intermediate gearing heretofore commonly employed outside the housings
for reducing the speed of the motion transmitted by the engine to the shaft.
There are also other advantages resulting from the counteraction of the two sets
of gearing in taking up the strain and preventing its transmission to the bearings,
which are important in practice and will be appreciated by those skilled in
the art.
As an equivalent of worm gearing 1 desire to include within the scope of my
invention and claims,-what is known in the art as,-skewgearing.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
First. In a rolling mill, the combination with adjustable rolls, of a driving shaft

page_text: provided with worm teeth of sufficient length to permit adjustment of the rolls,
and worm wheels on the rolls in gear therewith; substantially as and for the
purposes described.
Second. In a rolling-mill, the combination with adjustable rolls, of a driving
shaft having integrally formed worm-teeth, and worm wheels on the rolls in gear
therewith substantially as and for the purposes described.
Third. In a rolling mill, the combination with adjustable rolls, of a driving
shaft provided with worm teeth, and worm wheels on the rolls in gear therewith;
substantially as and for the purposes described.
Dated the 15th day of September 1892.
J. JOHNSON.