Improvements in the Manufacture of Iron or Steel Wheels, and Apparatus for that purpose.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd May, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 21st Mar., 1896-Accepted, 23rd May, 1896
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Iron or Steel Wheels, and
Apparatus for that purpose.
I, JOHN FIELDING, of Atlas Works, in the City and County of Gloucester,.
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows :-
My invention relates to the manufacture of forged iron or steel wheels in such a,
manner as to reduce their cost and to obtain greater solidity, and to apparatus for
that purpose.
Such wheels are now made by welding together separate pieces forming the
nave, the spokes, and the rim, the process involving a multiplicity of welds and
operations, and requiring the employment of much skilled labour and a heavy
expenditure for fuel.
According to my invention, I make such wheels from two pieces only, thus
effecting considerable economy in labour and fuel.
I make the nave and spokes without weld from one piece of iron or steel, which,
at a plastic heat, is placed in the centre of a closed mould, made in halves, of
shape to suit that of the nave and spokes. The metal is pressed by suitable rams
or plungers so that it is caused to flow from the centre into and along the parts of
the mould which form the spokes.
The metal may be forced until the ends of the spokes protrude beyond the
periphery of the mould and these ends may then be pressed back by dies so as to
upset or thicken them, and so provide the extra metal required for rounding the
angles where the spokes meet the rim.
The rim, which may be made in any known way, is placed around the spokes,
and, the whole being brought to a welding heat, is held between dies whilst the
outer periphery of the rim is pressed by suitable segmental dies and is thus welded
to the ends of the spokes and brought to circular form.
The wheel, thus made, may have a tyre put on it in the usual way, or the rim
and tyre may be in one piece welded to the spokes as above described.
Dated this 23rd day of May 1895.
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Manufacture of Iron or Steel Wheels, and' -
Apparatus for that purpose,
I, JOHN FIELDING, of Atlas Works, in the City and County of Gloucester,
Engineer, 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 relates to the manufacture of, forged iron or steel wheels in such a
manner as to reduce their cost and to obtain greater solidity, and to apparatus for.
that purpose.
:

page_text: Such wheels are now made by welding together separate pieces forming the
nave, the spokes, and the rim, the process involving a multiplicity of welds and
operations and requiring the employment of much skilled labour and a heavy
expenditure for fuel.
According to my invention, I make such wheels from two pieces only, thus
effecting considerable economy in labour and fuel.
I make the nave and spokes without weld from one piece of iron or steel, which
at a plastic heat, is placed in the centre of a closed mould, made in halves, of
shape to suit that of the nave and spokes.
The metal is pressed by suitable rams or plungers so that it is caused to flow
from the centre into and along the parts of the mould which form the spokes.
The metal may be forced until the ends of the spokes protrude beyond the
periphery of the mould and these ends may then be pressed back by dies so as to
upset or thicken them, and so provide the extra metal required for rounding the
angles where the spokes meet the rim. The rim, which may be made in any
known way, is placed around the spokes and, the whole being brought to a welding
heat, is held between dies whilst the outer periphery of the rim is pressed by
suitable segmental dies and is thus welded to the ends of the spokes and brought
to circular form.
The wheel, thus made, may have a tyre put on it in the usual way, or the rim
and tyre may be in one piece welded to the spokes as above described.
Fig. of the accompanying drawing is a vertical section of a press arranged
for making the nave and spokes of a wheel according to my invention, the
dies A A¹ being shewn open and a billet being shewn on the lower die A³.
Fig. 2 is a section shewing the dies just closed on the billet and the pro-
jections CC¹ of the top and bottom punches B B' in contact with the ends of
the boss.
Fig. 3 shews the dies in position when the pressing operation is completed, the
nave and spokes having been fully formed and the central hole partly made.
D is the table which carries the lower die A¹, E the lower hydraulic ram, working
in the cylinder E' carried in base frame F.
G is the follower or moving table carrying the upper die A. This table is
forced down by the side rams H H, and is raised by other rams, which are not
shewn in Fig. 1.
The central ram J works the top punch B, the lower punch B¹ being worked by
the ram E.
In order to provide for handling the boss and spokes along with the rim as one
piece for heating and welding the spokes to the rim, I place the ring R which is to
form the rim on the lower die, the ring having a hole through it in line with each
spoke, so that when the spokes are pressed outwards along the channels of the
mould, part of the metal at the end of each is forced into the holes of the ring R
thus holding the ring in position to be welded to the spokes for which purpose a
press may be employed such as is shewn in elevation and plan in Figs. 4 and 5
respectively.
The wheel W with rim on it being brought to a welding heat is placed in the
lower die 1, and the upper die 2 is then brought down upon it; pressure is then
admitted to the small horizontal cylinders below, and their plungers 5 acting
through levers 4 force the segmental dies 3 against the rim and weld it to the ends
of spokes.
T
A punch 6 may be used for pressing out the pin of metal left in the middle of
the boss in the first moulding operation.
+
.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The herein described method of manufacturing an iron or steel wheel
by heating a suitable billet to a plastic condition and pressing it in a mould

page_text: to form the nave and spokes in one piece, and then welding a rim to the
spokes.
2. For moulding the nave and spokes in the manner above referred to a press-
and dies constructed and operating substantially as described with reference to-
the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 21st day of March 1896
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant..