Apparatus for Corrugating Sheet Metal Pipes.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 28th Apr., 1892-Accepted, 25th June, 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
[Communicated from abroad by WILLIAM J. PLECKER, Manufacturer, a Citizen
of the United States, residing at Peoria, in the County of Peoria, and
State of Illinois, United States of America.]
Apparatus for Corrugating Sheet Metal Pipes.
I, OLIVER IMRAY of No. 28 Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane in the
County of London, 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:—
The object of my invention is to provide a machine for corrugating sheet metal
pipes; a machine which is durable and easily constructed; which may be used for
different sizes of pipe, and which can be so adjusted as to be used for pipes differing
as to the number of corrugations.
Machines of several sorts have heretofore been constructed for corrugating pipe,
and they may be divided into three classes.
1st. Those in which the mandrel and the pressing devices are both relatively
stationary while the skelp is drawn between them.
2nd. Those in which the mandrel and the skelp thereon are stationary, the
pressing devices being movable relatively thereto; and
3rd. Those having a movable mandrel and a stationary set of pressing devices;
and to this third class my invention belongs.
In the 1st class the skelp must be seamed and folded before it can pass through
the machine; and it can be readily seen that this has many drawbacks, for the seam
will tend to unfold and thereby undo the work of the locking devices, or if the
edges remain tightly locked, the metal will be cracked from the strain.
With the machines of the second class are used also those for binding down the
folds or seams of stove-pipes, cans, buckets, etc., and it is obvious that comparatively
very little power can be applied with the machine of this class.
With the machines of the third class may be classed the machines for rolling and
corrugating seamless metal pipes, as for girders etc., and also those for rolling light-
ning rods, and corrugated wire, in which machines the pressing rolls are so situated
as to balance the pressure.
Referring to the drawings: :-
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of the frame, showing the arrangement
of the pressing rolls.
Fig. 2 is an end view of the mandrel with the skelp thereon, showing the method
of corrugating, and of securing the seam.
Fig. 3 is a plan view of the whole machine.
Fig. 4 is a side view of the same.
A is a frame mounted upon suitable supports and having a rearwardly extending
portion also suitably supported. Mounted in bearings in the rear end of the frame
is a shaft carrying pinion B, and rotated by a belt pulley, or, as shown in the
drawings, by a pair of cranks. Sliding upon the frame is a carriage E, provided
with a rack, with which the pinion engages, and from which it receives its
motion.
Detachably secured to the carriage by any suitable coupling device and pro-
jecting forward therefrom is a mandrel F, conforming in shape and size to the
inside measurement of the pipe to be formed. The mandrel is reciprocated through
a set of pressing disks or rollers G, G, G. These rollers are mounted in a way to
be hereinafter described.
K is a plate of the form of a ring, having two or more grooves or recesses M, M,
concentric thomish
TL
L
TT น

page_text: bolted thereto by. bolts L passed through the grooves M, M. These arms are
adjusted towards and from the mandrel, and also laterally, so that it will be seer
that any number of rolls may be used to correspond with the corrugations in the
mandrel. (By "laterally " I mean adjustable in planes transverse to the faces o
the pressing rolls.) Mounted in the ends of these bifurcated arms are the rolls or
pressing wheels G, G, the wheels being so formed on the circumference as to fit ir
the corrugations of the mandrel.
On the side of the plate opposite to that on which the pressing rolls are mounted
is a roll N, having a grooved edge O, (Figs. 2 and 3) which is designed to close
the locked edges of the skelp after the other wheels have pressed the metal into the
corrugations of the mandrel.
Pivoted to the front face of the plate K is a detent lever P, having a plate R
adapted to engage the end of the finished pipe to draw it off of the mandrel.
It will be readily understood how the machine is operated.
The metal blank is cut to the desired size and has the locking edges bent over
in a cornice brake, or in any other suitable way, and is then bent over until the
edges are locked together.
The mandrel being fed into the machine, the end of the skelp or unfinished pipe
is rested against a stop post T, and the carriage is retracted by the rack and pinion,
the mandrel entering the skelp until its limit is reached, thus sleeving the pipe on
the mandrel. Then, the mandrel being fed forward into the machine, the pipe is
firmly gripped between the rolls G, and the mandrel, and is carried by the mandrel
through the said rolls, the metal being pressed into the corrugations. Then the
carriage is fed back, and on being again reversed, the detent lever is held down, and
engaging with the end of the finished pipe holds it stationary while the mandrel is
fed forward, thus removing the pipe from the mandrel. It will be noted that the
disk N is placed on the rear side of the plate K, and for the following reason.
have found that if the edges of the pipe are firmly locked before corrugating, the
operation tends to unlock the seam or crack the metal on account of the strain.
I, however, place the skelp with loosely locked edges on the mandrel, and the
metal is firmly pressed into the corrugations before the seam is finally closed. This
is a very important feature of my machine, as I thereby make a much more
durable pipe, than one made as before described.
I
It will of course be understood that while I have described my method of
sleeving the skelp on the mandrel and removing it therefrom, yet I do not limit
myself to these particulars, for there are many other ways that can be followed.
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 :
1. The herein described improvement in the art of manufacturing corrugated
sheet metal pipes, it consisting in first forming a tube with loosely engaged jointed
edges, then compressing the metal into corrugations on longitudinal lines of the
pipe while it is held under tension transversely, and finally tightening the seam
or joint by bending the overlapping edges down upon the pipe, substantially as set
forth.
2. In a machine for forming closed corrugated tubes, the combination of the
stationary frame, the corrugation-forming rolls mounted on the stationary frame,
the seam-locking roll in a transverse plane behind that of the corrugation rolls
but in close proximity thereto, and situated substantially as set forth, whereby
while one part of the tube is having the seam locked the other part is being
simultaneously corrugated.
3. The combination with the stationary frame, a carriage sliding on said frame,
means for actuating said carriage, and a mandrel detachably secured to the end of.
said carriage, of pressing rolls mounted on said stationary frame, and adapted to
have the mandrel pass between them, substantially as set forth.
4. The combination with the longitudinally movable mandrel, of the ring like

page_text: plate, pressing rolls secured to said plate, and adjustable toward and from the
mandrel, and laterally adjustable, substantially as set forth.
5. The combination with the longitudinally movable mandrel, of the plate,
and pressing rolls secured to the plate and adjustable laterally, substantially as
set forth.
7. The combination of the frame, the plate secured to said frame, the curvilinear
guides in said plate, the arms carrying rolls, and clamps for fastening said arms in
said guides, substantially as set forth.
8. The combination with the frames and the longitudinally movable mandrel,
of the ring like plate secured to the frame, and having concentric guides, bifur-
cated arms secured to said plate and laterally adjustable and pressing rolls mounted
in said bifurcated arms, substantially as set forth.
9. The combination with the frame comprising the rearwardly extending portion
and the upright portion, the ring like plate mounted ou said upright portion, and
having concentric guides, the arms clamped in said guides and pressing rolls
mounted in said arms, of a carriage sliding on said rearwardly extending portion,
and a mandrel secured to said carriage and passing between said pressing rolls,
substantially as set forth.
10. The combination of the frame, the longitudinally movable corrugated mandrel,
the pressing rolls mounted on the frame, and a vertically swinging detent lever
mounted on the frame, and adapted to engage with the pipe on the mandrel, sub-
stantially as and for the purpose set forth.
11. In a machine for corrugating sheet metal pipe, the combination of the
pinion and rack, the bar or carriage secured to the rack, the longitudinally
reciprocating mandrel projecting beyond the traverse planes of the rack and adapted
to be entirely surrounded by a sheet metal tube, the frame supporting the said
parts, the corrugating rolls mounted on said frame in a transverse plane other than
those of the rack and placed substantially as set forth around the path of the
mandrel, whereby they mutually act to relieve the mandrel of side pressure, when
the mandrel is caused by the rack and pinion to pass between them, substantially as
set forth.
Dated this 16th day of April 1892.
ABEL & IMRAY.