Galvanizing (Coating with Spelter) Sheet Metal.
Year: 1886

page_text: Date of Application, 20th May, 1886.
Complete Left, 19th Feb., 1887.
Complete Accepted, 22nd Mar., 1887.
Galvanizing (Coating with Spelter) Sheet Metal.
We, JOHN THOMAS, of 17 Cross Street, Bradley near Bilston in the County of
Stafford, gentleman, HENRY LEWIS, of Kingshurst, Handsworth (near Birmingham)
in the said County, iron manufacturer, EDWARD WHITEHOUSE LEWIS, of Edenfield,
Compton, near Wolverhampton in the said County, iron manufacturer, and THOMAS
LESTER THOMAS, of Albert Street, Prince's End, near Tipton in the said County,
washer manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
In the usual process of galvanizing, the sheets are coated with metal by passing them
through a pair of rollers carried one above the other and both revolving below the
surface of the molten metal, the sheets being passed endways beneath the surface of
the metal and through the rollers. The sheets are delivered by this method in a
somewhat curled or bent up form, owing to the curved direction in which they pass
through the bath, and they have consequently to he afterwards passed whilst cold
through a pair of rollers to straighten or flatten them. The coating material also is
unevenly distributed on the two sides of the sheet, owing to the horizontal position of
the sheet as it passes through the rollers.
Now, the object of this invention to galvanize the sheets in such a manner that
they shall be delivered from the bath without bend or curvature, and thus the cold
rolling process be dispensed with, if desired, and also so that the coating metal shall be
evenly distributed on both sides of the sheet and economy of galvanizing metal be
effected without deteriorating the quality of the coated sheet, and so that a larger
number of sheets can be galvanized in a given time, and labor economised.
According to this invention, two rollers are carried side by side at a short distance
below the surface of the molten metal in the bath, and three corresponding rollers are
carried side by side at a lower level in the bath, with two of such rollers vertically
below the upper pair. All the rollers are geared to revolve at the same speed, the
upper pair revolving from one another as seen from the top side, and the pair
vertically below then revolving in the same manner, the third roller of the set of three

page_text: revolving towards its adjacent roller as seen from the top. The bottom of the flux box
rests upon the two last-mentioned rollers.
The bath and rollers therein are made sufficiently long to permit of the insertion of
a sheet shortwise, instead of lengthwise as usual, and the sheet to be coated is passed
shortwise down into the bath through the flux box and between the pair of rollers
revolving at the bottom thereof, and is thus drawn down into a cradle by which it is
afterwards raised into the pair of rollers vertically below the upper pair. The sheet is
carried up between this pair of rollers, and the upper pair of rollers, and is thus
delivered in a vertical position at the top of the bath.
The cradle by which the sheets are raised into the lower rollers has a number of
vertical arms along its back side, and a number of curved arms along its front side.
The curved arms guide the lower side of the sheet, whilst passing downwards, into
the bottom of the cradle. A longitudinal shaft is carried within the bath and is
provided with a number of arms or fingers, and also with a handle-lever carried out
at the top of the bath. When a sheet has fallen upon the bottom of the cradle, the
handle-lever is pulled forwards and causes the arms or fingers upon the shaft to press
against the upper side of the sheet and raise it into a vertical position in the cradle.
The cradle is then raised in suitable guides, by means of a pair of handle-levers from
which it is supported by hanging bars or links, and thus the sheet is raised up into
the lower pair of rollers which are vertically below the upper pair. The sheets may be
fed into the bath in quick succession, as the cradle has only to be raised a short
distance to pass the upper edge of a sheet into the lower pair of rollers, aforesaid, and,
while this operation is being performed, a fresh sheet may be passing down through
the rollers at the bottom of the flux box.
By the employment of the above-described method and apparatus the sheets are
delivered straight or flat from the bath, and the ordinary cold rolling process may be
dispensed with, and owing to the equal action of the rollers and metal on both sides
of the sheets and to the combined action of the rollers (the sheets being passed three
times between rollers) the metal is evenly and thinly distributed on both sides and
thus is economised without deteriorating the quality of the coated sheets. As the
sheets are passed shortwise through the rollers a larger number can be galvanized in a
given time than when passed endwise in the usual manner, and this without the
employment of extra labor.
The bath, though longer than those usually employed for galvanizing sheets can be
made much narrower than the ordinary bathi..
Dated the Ninoisanth day of Alas- 188
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton,
Agent for the Applicants.

page_text: Improvements in the Method of and Apparatus Employed in
Galvanizing (Coating with Spelter) Sheet Metal.
We, JOHN THOMAS, of 17 Cross Street, Bradley, near Bilston in the County of
Stafford, gentleman, HENRY LEWIS, of Kingshurst, Handsworth (near Birmingham) in
the said County, iron manufacturer, EDWARD WHITEHOUSE LEWIS, of Edenfield,
Compton near Wolverhampton in the said County, iron manufacturer, and THOMAS
LESTER THOMAS, of Albert Street, Princes End, near Tipton in the said County,
washer manufacturer, 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 reference being had to the accompanying drawings and
the letters of reference marked thereon (that is to say):-
In the usual process of galvanizing, the sheets are coated with metal by passing
them through a pair of rollers carried one above the other and both revolving below
the surface of the molten metal, the sheets being passed endways beneath the surface
of the metal and through the rollers. The sheets are delivered by this method in a
somewhat curled or bent up form, owing to the curved direction in which they pass
through the bath, and they have consequently to be afterwards passed whilst cold
through a pair of rollers to straighten or flattend them. The coating material, also,
is unevenly distributed on the two sides of the sheet, owing to the horizontal position
of the sheet as it passes through the rollers.
Now, the object of this invention is to galvanize the sheets in such a manner that
they shall be delivered from the bath without bend or curvature, and thus the cold
rolling process be dispensed with, if desired, and also so that the coating metal shall
be evenly distributed on both sides of the sheet and economy of galvanizing metal be
effected without deteriorating the quality of the coated sheet, and so that a larger
number of sheets can be galvanized in a given time, and labour economised.
In order that the invention may be clearly understood we will at once proceed to
describe it with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which figure 1 is a front
elevation of a galvanizing bath fitted with apparatus constructed according to this.
invention, the front of the bath being shewn as if cut away so as to clearly shew the
interior and figure 2 is an end elevation of figure 1, with the end shewn as if cut
away so as to shew the interior. The same letters of reference occurring upon both
the views indicate corresponding parts. A pair of rollers A A are carried side by
side longitudinally within the bath at a short distance (say from two to three
inches) below the surface of the molten metal therein, and a pair of rollers B B are
similarly carried at a lower level in the bath, and in position vertically below the
rollers A. A. A roller C is carried immediately in front of the roller B' so as to make
with the rollers B and B a set of three rollers in one horizontal plane. The rollers A A
and B B are geared to revolve at the same speed by means of spur wheels, as will be
readily understood, and the roller C is not geared but is driven by the rotation of the
roller B. The pair A A is geared to revolve from one another, as indicated by the

page_text: arrows, and the rollers B B are geared to revolve in the same manner, and the roller
(of course revolves towards the roller B. The rollers are carried at each end in a
frame D D etc. suspended from a bearer E supported on the top of the bath, in the
usual manner in which galvanizing rollers are carried, except that the frames have to
be constructed to suit the special arrangement of the rollers, as will be obvious. The
rollers are set towards one another under a slightly yielding pressure by means of
wedge-shaped blocks F F in each frame which are drawn up by means of springs GG
operating through the medium of shanks aa fixed to the ends of the springs by nuts
on screwed upper ends, as shown. The bath H and the rollers therein are made
sufficiently long to permit of the insertion of a sheet shortwise, instead of lengthwise
as usual, and the sheet to be coated is passed shortwise down into the bath through
the flux box J (shown by broken lines figure 2) in the usual manner, and between the
rollers B and C, and is thus drawn down into a cradle (hereinafter described) and is
afterwards raised by such cradle into position to be caught by the rollers B B. The
sheet is carried up between the rollers B B', and also between the rollers A. A, and
is thus delivered in a vertical position at the top of the bath.
The driving gear by which motion is conveyed to the spur wheels on the axes of
the rollers is omitted, being simply of the usual character.
The flux box is of the ordinary construction, and is carried in the usual manner,
except that it is nearly vertical. This box is omitted in figure 1. for the sake of
avoiding unnecessary complication in the drawing.
The cradle is formed of a number of longer arms bb etc. on its forward side, and
a number of shorter arms e c etc. on its backward side.
The arms are fixed
to a longitudinal bar K capable of being raised and lowered in guides L L by means
of a pair of levers M M supported on standards N N and connected together by means
of a longitudinal handle-bar O. The levers M M are connected with the bar K by
means of rods having slotted upper ends engaging with studs on the levers.
A number of fingers d d etc. are carried upon a longitudinal shaft P supported in
bearings formed in the bearers EE, or otherwise carried in fixed bearings, and a pair
of levers QQ, fulcrumed at the bottom of the guides L L, are carried up above the top
of the bath, and are connected together by means of a longitudinal bar e which passes
immediately at the front or outer faces of the fingers d d etc. On the upper end of
each lever is carried a block of such a shape, as shewn, on its upper and outer
edge as that when the outer ends of the levers M M are depressed, by the pressure of
the hand on the bar O, rollers SS, carried to revolve on a bar fixed to both the
levers M M, engage with the blocks R R and force the levers QQ inwards to the
necessary point, as hereinafter indicated, after which the further downward movement
of the outer ends of the levers M M merely retains the levers Q Q in their inward
position without pushing them further inwards.
The operation of the mechanism for carrying the sheets from the downwardly
drawing rollers B' C, and delivering them between the upwardly drawing rollers B B³,
from whence they are delivered to the upwardly drawing rollers A A. as follows
As a sheet passes from the rollers B' C it falls down and rests upon the bar K. and
leans against the lower ends of the fingers d d etc. which are, preferably, formed to a
curved shape, as shown, to afford a convenient bearing surface both when at rest and
when being moved inwards against the sheet as presently described. The sheets are
safely guided on to the bottom of the cradle by the arms etc. and ee etc. When
the sheet has been delivered from the rollers B C the bar is depressed, and the
levers QQconsequently pushed inwards with the effect of also pushing inwards the
lower ends of the fingers d d etc. through the medium of the bar e, and bringing the
sheetinto a vertical position against a number of stops or guides kk. etc., fixed to a bar m,
between which guides and the fingers d d etc. it may be guided upwards into the
rollers B B. During this downward movement of the bar O the inner or backward
ends of the levers M M, in rising, bring the studs to the upper ends of the
slots, and as the bar O is depressed beyond the point already indicated, that is
beyond the point necessary to move the lingers d d etc. into their forward position, the
studs ii raise the rods hh, and consequently also the cradle with the sheet therein,

page_text: and deliver the sheet to the rollers B B. The levers M M are then allowed to return
to their former position, being balanced back thereto by weights T on their ends, when
the levers QQ, and the fingers d d etc., and also the cradle formed of the bar K and
arms bb etc. c c etc., return also by their own gravity to their former positions, and
the mechanism is then in position ready for the reception of a fresh sheet from
the rollers BC and for delivering it to the rollers B B. The upper ends of the
levers QQ may, of course, be formed to correspond with the blocks R R, in lieu of
fixing separate blocks thereto. The rods are each formed in two parts joined together
at by means of bolts through slotied holes, or otherwise, so as to make the rods
adjustable as to length to vary the height of the cradle to suit different widths of sheets.
By the employment of the above-described method and apparatus the sheets are
delivered straight or flat from the bath, and the ordinary cold rolling process may be
dispensed with, and owing to the equal action of the rollers and metal on both sides of
the sheets, and to the combined action of the rollers (the sheets being passed three
times between rollers) the metal is evenly and thinly distributed on both sides and
thus is economised without deteriorating the quality of the coated sheets. As the
sheets are passed shortwise through the rollers a larger number can be galvanized in a
given time than when passed endwise in the usual manner, and this without the
employment of extra labour.
The bath, though longer than those usually employed for galvanizing sheets, can be
made much narrower than the ordinary bath.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is -
1. The method by which, in the process of galvanizing metal sheets, such sheets
are fed shortwise to and delivered shortwise from the galvanizing bath, substantially
as described for the purposes set forth.
2. In apparatus for galvanizing metal sheets, the arrangement of rollers within the
molten metal in the bath, substantially as described for the purposes set forth.
3. In apparatus for galvanizing metal sheets, the employment of five rollers within
the molten metal in the bath, arranged and operating substantially as described
for the purposes set forth.
4. The means by which the rollers of each set within the galvanizing bath are set
towards one another under slightly yielding pressure, that is by the aid of wedge-shaped
blocks pressed in by means of springs, substantially as described and shewn.
5. The combination of the wedge-shaped blocks lettered F with the shanks lettered a
and springs lettered G, substantially as described and shewn for the purpose set forth.
6. The combination of the levers M M with the levers Q Q and the means by which
the former levers operate the latter, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.
7. The combination of the rods having slotted upper ends, the cradle
within the galvanizing bath, the levers M. M. and QQ and means by which the former
levers operate the latter, and the fingers d d etc. carried upon the shaft P,
substantially as described and shewn for the purpose set forth.
8. The combination of rollers S S carried by the levers MM, with the cam-shaped
blocks R R on the rods QQ (or with correspondingly shaped ends on the levers QQ),
substantially as described and shewn for the purpose set forth.
9. The arrangement or combination of parts constituting galvanizing apparatus for
metal sheets, substantially as described and shewn, for the purposes set forth.
T
T L
11 1
1007
STEPHEN WATKINS,
Wolverhampton and Walsall,
Agent for the Applicants.