Improvements in the Rolling of Seamless Metallic Tubes, and Apparatus for that Purpose.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 18th July, 1895
Complete Specification Left, 20th Apr., 1896-Accepted, 6th June, 1896
[Communicated from abroad by REINHARD MANNESMANN and MAX
MANNESMANN, both of Remscheid, Bliedinghausen, in the Empire of
Germany, Engineers.]
Improvements in the Rolling of Seamless Metallic Tubes, and
Apparatus for that Purpose.
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 to be as follows:-
This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for progressively reducing
successive sections of a relatively thick shelled hollow ingot into integrally united
lengths of relatively thin shelled tubing, and the production thereby, when desired,
of the new article of manufacture hereinafter described.
The method consists in rolling down the hollow ingot step by step upon a
mandrel into integrally united lengths of tubing, the internal cross area of which
is greater than the cross area of the mandrel.
The apparatus by which the result is accomplished consists of intermittently
acting rolls, the reducing faces of which are provided with longitudinally tapering
and laterally flaring grooves which are approximately semi-elliptical in cross
section, whereby during the rolling actions, the roll pass while gradually
diminishing in width and more extensively diminishing in height, affords room for
some outward lateral movement of the compressed metal at the opposite sides of
the mandrel, and hence during each action of the rolls there is produced a short
length of tubing of elliptical shape in cross section.
The rolls are made to act intermittently during prescribed portions only of their
revolutions, either by the provision of cavities or flat places in their peripheries, or
by the positive bodily removal of one roll from the other when the working faces
have concluded their action. During the remaining portion of each revolution
the ingot is turned ninety degrees (90°) more or less upon its longitudinal axis,
and is fed forward end wise to the extent requisite for appropriately presenting to
the rolls the section of the unacted upon part of the ingot which is next to be
attacked.
The working face of each of the rolls embraces a reducing segment consisting of
the flaring and longitudinally tapering groove, previously mentioned, and a finishing
segment, the groove of which is not tapered.
If it be desired to produce a cylindrical tube, the groove in the finishing segment
is deepened and transformed into semi-circular shape in cross section. When the
groove in the finishing segment is not transformed, but is a mere continuation,
without material change in shape, of the narrow end of the groove in the reducing
segment, the resulting product will consist of integrally united short lengths of
tubing each of elliptical shape in cross section, but with its longitudinal plane of
greatest diameter intersecting a prolongation of the longitudinal plane of greater
diameter of each adjoining length, the angle of such intersection being determined
by the extent to which the ingot is turned upon its longitudinal axis while
being fed.
The resulting product, which may for present convenience be called a tube

page_text: composed of integrally united, staggered, elliptical lengths, constitutes in itself a
new and useful article of manufacture, because it possesses the advantage of an
elliptical tube in respect of capacity of yielding slightly to internal pressure
without bursting, while also, in a large degree, possessing the capacity of resisting
compression, in which an ordinary elliptical tube is deficient as respects pressure
applied to its flatter sides.
The mandrel is. loosely contained within the ingot. The difference between
the cross area of the mandrel and the internal cross area of the ingot is
greater or less according to the size of the ingot and of the tube sought to be
produced.
In all cases, the cross area of the mandrel is made sufficiently less than the
internal cross area of the ingot, to provide for the formation of elliptical lengths
of tubing which are of such greater internal cross area than the cross area of the
mandrel that they can cool down without shrinking fast to the mandrel, so that,
as the lengths of tubing are successively formed, they can slide forward on the
mandrel and be slipped off its forward end when the ingot receives its longitudinal
feeding motion.
Dated this 18th doy of Ľuly 1905
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.
CUM MID
DI MUIFICATION.
Improvements in the Rolling of Seamless Metallic Tubes, and
Apparatus for that Purpose.
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 :-
This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for progressively reducing
successive sections of a relatively thick shelled hollow ingot into integrally united
lengths of relatively thin shelled tubing and the production thereby, when desired,
of the new article of manufacture hereinafter described.
The method consists in rolling down the hollow ingot step by step upon a
mandrel into integrally united lengths of tubing, the internal cross area of which
is greater than the cross area of the mandrel.
The apparatus by which the result is accomplished consists of intermittently
acting rolls, the reducing faces of which are provided with longitudinally tapering
and laterally flaring grooves which are approximately semi-elliptical in cross
section, whereby during the rolling actions, the rolls pass while gradually.
diminishing in width and still more diminishing in height, affords room for some
outward lateral movement of the compressed metal at the opposite sides of the
mandrel, and hence during each action of the rolls there is produced a short
length of tubing of elliptical shape in cross section.
The rolls are made to act intermittently during only certain portions of their
revolution, either by the provision of cavities or flat places in their peripheries,
or by the positive removal of the one roll from the other when the working parts.|
have completed their action.
During the remaining portion of each revolution the ingot is turned about one
quarter round and is fed forward lengthwise to the extent required for presenting
to the rolls the part of the ingot which is next to be acted on.
The working face of each of the rolls embraces a reducing segment consisting of
the flaring and longitudinally tapering groove, previously mentioned, and a
finishing segment, the groove of which is not tapered.
!

page_text: If it be desired to produce a cylindrical tube, the groove in the finishing
segment is deepened and transformed into semi-circular shape in cross section.
When the groove in the finishing segment is not thus transformed, but is a mere
continuation, without material change in shape of the narrow end of the groove
in the reducing segment, the resulting product consists of integrally united short
lengths of tubing each of elliptical shape in cross section, but with its longi-
tudinal plane of greatest diameter intersecting a prolongation of the longitudinal
plane of greatest diameter of each adjoining length, the angle of such intersection
being determined by the extent to which the ingot is turned while being fed.
The resulting product being a tube, composed of integrally united, staggered
elliptical lengths, constitutes a new and useful article of manufacture, because it
possesses the advantage of an elliptical tube in its capability of yielding slightly
to internal pressure without bursting, while it also possesses in a large degree,
capability of resisting compression in which respect an ordinary elliptical tube is
deficient when pressure is applied to its flatter sides.
The mandrel is loosely contained within the ingot, the difference between the
cross area of the mandrel and the internal cross area of the ingot being greater or
less according to the size of the ingot and of the tube to be produced.
In all cases the cross area of the mandrel is made sufficiently less than the
internal cross area of the ingot to provide for the formation of elliptical
lengths of tubing which are of such greater internal cross area than the cross area
of the mandrel that they can cool down without shrinking fast on the mandrel, so
that as the lengths of tubing are successively formed they can slide forwards on
the mandrel and be slipped off its forward end when the ingot receives its
longitudinal feeding motion.
The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.
Fig. 1 is a transverse section of the rolls and a central longitudinal section of
the ingot taken on the line X X of Fig. 2.
Fig. 2 is a plan of one of the rolls made with 3 grooves.
Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of a tube composed of integrally united staggered
oval sections.
Figs. 4 and 5 are transverse sections respectively on y-y and 2-2 of Fig. 3.
The ingot is so presented to the rolls that the parts a¹ of the reducing grooves
deeply impress its opposite sides, then, as the rolls move in the directions of the
arrows the ingot is forced backward while the wave of metal in front of the
reducing grooves is squeezed toward the mandrel.
The
When the working faces of the rolls have cleared the ingot, the ingot is turned
about one quarter round so that the reducing grooves of the rolls squeeze the
ingot in a direction at right angles to that in which they previously acted.
result is that successive lengths of tube are produced of elliptical shape in cross
section with the major axes of its successive portions at right angles to each
other.
The tube produced being finished in the form of staggered short lengths of
elliptical tubing as shewn in Figs. 3, 4 and 5.
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 rolling seamless metallic tubes into integrally
united links of tubing of oval cross section, by placing a mandrel loosely within a
hollow ingot and subjecting both to the intermittent action of special rolls so as to
give an approximately elliptical section to a portion of the tube then turning the
ingot about one quarter round and repeating the action, the rolls thus acting step
by step to produce a tube consisting of integrally united staggered elliptical
lengths.
2. For operating as above set forth segmental rolls each provided with a
reducing groove which is laterally flaring and gradually diminishes in width and

page_text: depth and merges into a finishing groove, in combination with a suitable mandrel,
substantially as described.
3. A seamless rolled metal tube composed of integrally united staggered oval
sections, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 20th day of Anril 1896
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the Applicant.