Improvements in Steam Hammers and Presses for Forging Wheels for Railway and other Vehicles.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 29th Oct., 1889-Accepted, 4th Jan., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Steam Hammers and Presses for Forging Wheels
for Railway and other Vehicles.
I, JAMES AUBREY FACER, Hammerman of Wayne Street below Manheim Street,
Germantown, Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, United States of America, do
hereby declare the nature of my 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 has reference to steam hammers for the purpose of forming wheels
for cars, and consists of certain improvements which are fully set forth in the
following specification and shown in the accompanying drawings which form a part
thereof.
More particularly my invention relates to certain improvements in the hammer
and anvil dies of the steam hammer for forging the blank into the finished-car
wheel.
Heretofore it has been customary to manufacture car wheels by two processes, one
of which consists in first casting the wheel of approximately the shape of the finished
article, and then subjecting the casting to a rolling action in a machine especially
adapted to the purpose, and the other of which consists in casting the center of iron
or steel and fitting thereto a steel tire which is forged into shape from a solid bloom
by proper manipulation under a steam hammer and rolls.
These processes have many objections, principally in the matter of expense or cost
of manufacturing, and in the case of the first mentioned process, a lack of homogeneity
and solidity in the cast metal of the finished wheel.
The object of my invention is to make a finished wheel from a solid bloom or ingot
of steel by forging the ingot under heavy steam hammers having suitably shaped dies.
The car wheel made in this manner is compact and homogeneous as to metal and
possesses a hardened surface due to the forging process.
In carrying out my invention I employ suitable hammer and anvil dies to forge
the surfaces of the flattened, rounded and flanged blank into the finished shape. If
desired the rounding up and flanging of the blank may be performed upon the same
hammer with the final forging.
In the drawings:-
Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a steam hammer embodying the principles of my
invention.
Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation of the same through the line - of Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the hammer die detached from the hammer.
Fig. 4 is a similar view of the anvil die, and
Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the blank illustrating its form at the different stages of
construction.
A is the hammer. B is the anvil die and Cthe hammer die, the faces of which,
and c respectively, are formed with recesses and die shapes I and J, so shaped
that when the faces b and c are brought together, the space enclosed has the exact
form that is to be given to the finished wheel as shown at 3 Fig. 5.
The anvil die B has its recessed portion I provided with a removable central pin i,
which fits into the axle hole of the blank and retains the shape of the hole when the
blank is being acted upon by the dies B and C.
In the drawings the anvil die B is shown with a laterally projecting part E and a'
lateral supporting part F, provided with grooves e and respectively and the hammer
die with a projection D' having a curved under surface D provided with a groove d.
These parts are for the purpose of tapping or gently striking the blank placed in an
upright position for the purpose of knocking off all scales and pieces of dirt &c. before

page_text: the blank is placed between the forging dies B and C. It may also be used for the
. purpose of rounding up and flanging the flattened bloom before it is operated upon
by the recessed dies A and B. But these parts are not essential to the present
invention. They may be formed upon the dies of that hammer which is employed to
flatten and punch the bloom. The advantage of forming these parts upon the dies B
and C is that the cleaning of the blank may be accomplished on the hammer before
placing the blank in the forging dies, as the presence of scales, ashes or dirt upon the
blank might interfere with the perfectness of the forging, it might also be used for
rounding up and flanging the blank so that this operation and the final forging might
be accomplished upon one hammer and at the same heating. Owing to the large
diameter of the wheels and the consequent area of the die surfaces, the parts D and E
cannot be brought close enough to the center or line of action of the dies to prevent a
strain upon the hammer when it is in use for the heavy hammering necessary to forging,
and for that reason, I prefer to have the flattening, rounding up, flanging and
punching of the blooms performed by one hammer and the final forging process by
another. The operation of cleaning the blank requires comparatively slight hammering,
so that there is no objection to performing it upon the same hammer with the forging,
though it is apparent that that is not necessary.
While I prefer the particular details of construction bere shown it is apparent that
they may be modified in many ways without departing from the principles of my
invention, and are not, therefore, to be taken as limitations of it. It is apparent also
that the dies B and C may be operated if desired by hydraulic pressure for the
purpose of forging the finished wheel. The operation is as follows, employing the
complete dies with the parts D' F and E as shown.
The flattened blank I, Fig. 5, which has been formed from the ingot upon a hammer
is placed in an upright position against the face of the anvil die B supported by the
parts E and F and the removable pin G. By the operation of the hammer and the
turning of the blank the rounded and flanged blank shown in 2, Fig. 5, is formed.
The flanging is accomplished by the forcing up of the metal into the grooves d e and f.
This blank 2, is then placed upon the anvil die Band forged by the recesses and
dies I, J into the finished shape shown in 3, Fig. 5. The blank 2 will be slightly
smaller in diameter than the space between the dies B and C formed by the recesses 1
and J and will be forged or pressed into the exact and finished shape. When the
blank is rounded up, flanged and punched upon another hammer and reheated before
the finishing forging, it is placed in an upright position against the face L of the anvil
die and tapped or struck gently a few times by the projection D¹ to remove the scales,
and clean it before it is placed in the recess I and forged or pressed into the finished
shape.
:
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 :-
1st. In a steam hammer for forging wheels the combination of the hammer die and
anvil die baving recessed surfaces corresponding to the shape of the sides of the
finished wheel, a projection upon one side of said hammer die and supporting devices
to support the blank in an upright position against the vertical face of the anvil'
die and under the projection on the hammer die, substantially as and for the purpose
specified.
2nd. In a steam hammer for forging wheels the combination of a hammer and an
anvil die having their surfaces formed to correspond to the shape of the finished
wheel when the dies are in contact, a projection carried by said hammer die and
supporting devices to support the blank in an upright position under said
projection.
3rd. Dies for forging steel wheels consisting of the combination of an anvil die
having a large depression or recessed portion upon its face adapted to receive the
entire wheel blank including the flange, in combination with a hammer die formed.
with a small depression upon its face corresponding only to the side of the wheel

page_text: and corresponding with the recessed portion in the anvil die to shape the blank
into a finished wheel, and provided on its front part with a projecting hammer
part arranged above the support on the anvil die and shaped to correspond to the
tread and Hange of the wheel.
4th. Dies for forging steel wheels consisting of the combination of an anvil die
having a large depression or recessed portion upon its face adaped to receive the
entire wheel blank including the flange, and a support in front and at a lower level
than its face and formed to correspond to the tread of the wheel including a groove
for the Hange, and also with a lateral support for the wheel when resting upon the
front supports, and removable pin or part detachably connected with the anvil die
opposite to the lateral support to hold the wheel blank in position while being turned,
in combination with a hammer die formed with a small depression upon its face
corresponding only to the side of the wheel and corresponding with the recessed
portion in the anvil die to shape the blank into a finished wheel.
Dated this 10th
1 1000
JAMES AUBREY FACER.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.