Improvements in Machines for Rolling Balls for Ball Bearings.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Oct., 1896
Complete Specification Left, 23rd July, 1897-Accepted, 18th Sept., 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for Rolling Balls for Ball Bearings.
I, JOHN JAMES GRANT, of 451 Bolton Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
of America, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
My invention has for its object, the economical production of balls for ball
bearings and relates to that part of the process of producing such balls which
pertains to the machines for making the rough balls into which the metal is
formed before grinding into the final spherical shape.
It consists, briefly, in a machine for rolling a heated steel rod between rolls
whose faces are indented by semispherical depressions, one of the depressions on
the one roll registering exactly with a corresponding depression on the other roll.
The roll carrying spindles are mounted in two sets of journal boxes which slide
in the jaws or guide ways. The rolls are mounted and keyed upon the pro-
jecting ends of the spindles and held in place by nuts. The lower spindle is
formed with a shoulder at its roller end, the said shoulder bearing against the
outer end of the lower box. That part of the spindle located immediately on
the opposite side of the box is threaded to receive the nut; said nut and the
shoulder prevent any lateral displacement of the spindle.
The upper spindle is threaded at the roller end on each side of the box, to
receive nuts which permit of the lateral adjustment of said spindle.
The inner surfaces of the boxes are formed with an inclination, the, suiface of
the upper being inclined in the opposite direction from that in the lower. Wedges
are interposed between said surfaces and their lateral position regulated by means
of screws. Screws prevent upward displacement of the boxes. By these means
the distance between the centre of the rolls may be regulated and adjusted.
The rolls are indented in their faces with the semispherical depressions, each
roll containing an equal number of such depressions. These depressions, in one
form of roll, are entirely surrounded by cutting edges, so that a heated rod fed
between said rolls when tangent to each other, will be formed into balls. The
two rolls may be adjusted so as not to touch each other in which case the balls
will be connected with each other by a web. Small channels may be made to
connect each adjoining pair of depressions; if the rolls be then adjusted tangent
to each other the balls will emerge from said rolls connected by a wire.
On the upper and lower spindles in the space intervening between the two
sets of boxes, are mounted and keyed gears. Mounted beside the upper gear is
the auxiliary gear. The said gear is formed with a plane portion upon which is
shrunk a collar. Screws with conical ends, pierce the said collar radially and
engage conical recesses in the upper spindle. The angular distance between the
two radii traversing the centre of the screws is less than that between radii
traversing the centres of the depressions. By this means the auxiliary gear may
be circumferentially moved by slacking down one screw and tightening up the
other. The same object may be accomplished by making the angular distance

page_text: between the centres of the screws the greater. The width of the teeth in the
lower gear is equal to the combined width of the teeth in upper and auxiliary
gears, so that the said lower gear engages both said gears simultaneously. This
mechanism permits of the compensation of the detrimental increase of backlash
due to wear in the gears and prevents chattering of the said gears. Such increase
of backlash and consequent chattering of the gears would prevent the exact
registering of the depressions in the roller.
When the gears wear and evince a tendency to chatter, the anxiliary gear is
moved in the manner described, in the direction opposite to that of the operative
rotation of the upper gear. This has the effect of widening the teeth of the said
upper gear and nullifies the effect of the wear on said teeth.
The spindles are provided with central longitudinal bores; a water supply pipe
communicates with one end of the bore in the upper spindle and is connected
therewith by means of a suitable coupling. The opposite end of the said bore
is connected with the corresponding end of the bore of the lower spindle by
means of suitable couplings and a pipe. Water is permitted to circulate through
the water way thus formed and serves to cool the spindles and bearings thereof.
A suitable guide is bolted to the side of the machine and guides the rods into
the rolls.
Suitable driving gear is provided to drive the lower spindle.
1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
Improvements in Machines for Rolling Balls for Ball Bearings.
I, JOHN JAMES GRANT, of 451 Bolton Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio, United States
of America, 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:-
This invention relates to the production of balls for ball bearings and has for
its object, the economical production of balls for ball bearings and relates to that
part of the process of producing such balls which pertains to the machines for
making the rough balls into which the metal is formed before grinding into the
final spherical shape.
It consists, briefly, in a machine for rolling a heated steel rod between rolls
whose faces are indented by semispherical depressions, one of the depressions on
the one roll registering exactly with a corresponding depression on the other roll.
Referring to the accompanying drawings:-
Figure I represents an end elevation of my machine. Figure II a central
vertical longitudinal cross-sectional view of the same, including the whole of the
base;
Figure III a partial vertical transverse cross-sectional view on the line 3-3
of Figure II on an enlarged scale.
Figure IV represents a perspective of one form of one of the rolls;
Figure V showing a similar view of another form of roll;
Figure VI represents a perspective view of the metal strip upon emerging from
the form of roll shown in Figure IV and;
Figure VII represents a similar view of the metal strip upon emerging from
the form shown in Figure V;

page_text: Figure VIII represents a transverse cross-sectional view of the gear adjusting
mechanism of which
Figure IX represents a longitudinal cross-sectional view, and
Figure X a partial end elevation.
The roll carrying spindles A and A' are mounted in two sets of journal boxes B
and B₁ which slide in jaws of guideways C. The rolls 1) are mounted and keyed
upon the projecting ends of the spindles and held in place by nuts E, Figure 2.
The lower spindle A¹ is formed with a shoulder a at its roller end, the said
shoulder bearing against the outer, end of the lower box B'. That part of the
spindle located immediately on the opposite side of the box is threaded to receive
the nut F; said nut and the shoulder a prevent any lateral displacement of the
spindle A¹.
The upper spindle A is threaded at the roller end on each side of the box,
to receive nuts H which permit of the lateral adjustment of said spindle.
The inner surfaces b of the boxes B and B are formed with an inclination
Figure 3 the surface of the upper being inclined in the opposite direction from
that in the lower. Wedges Jare interposed between said surfaces and their
lateral position regulated by means of screws K. Screws L prevent upward dis-
placement of the boxes. By these means the distance between the centre of the
rolls may be regulated and adjusted.
The rolls D are indented in their faces by the semispherical depressions d,
each roll containing an equal number of such depressions. These depressions,
in the form of roll shown in Figure IV, are entirely surrounded by cutting edges,
so that a heated rod fed between said rolls when tangent to each other, will be
formed into balls. The two rolls may be adjusted so as not to touch each other
in which case the balls will be connected with each other by a web d Figure 6.
Small channels Figure 5 may be made to connect each adjoining pair of
depressions; if the rolls be then adjusted tangent to each other the balls will
emerge from said rolls connected by a wire as shewn in Figure VII.
On the spindles A and A¹ in the space intervening between the two sets of
boxes B and B', are mounted and keyed the gears. M and N, Figure 2. Mounted
beside the gear M is the auxiliary gear M. The said gear is formed with a plane
portion m upon which is shrunk a collar m¹ Figure 8. Screws m³ with conical
ends, pierce the said collar radially and engage conical recesses a¹ in the spindle A.
The angular distance between the two radii traversing the centres of the screws m²
is less than that between radii traversing the centres of the depressions a. By
this means the auxiliary gear may be circumferentially moved by slackening
down one screw and tightening up the other. The same object may be accom-
plished by making the angular distance between the centres of the screws the
greater. The width of the teeth in the gear N is equal to the combined width
of the teeth in gears M and M', so that the gear N engages both said gears
simultaneously. This mechanism permits of the compensation of the detrimental
increase of backlash due to wear in the gears and prevents chattering of the said
gears. Such increase of backlash and consequent chattering of the gears would
prevent the exact registering of the depressions d in the roller D.
When the gears wear and evince a tendency to chatter, the auxiliary gear is
moved in the manner described; in the direction opposite to that of the operative
rotation of the gears M. This has the effect of widening the teeth of the said
gear M and nullifies the effect of the wear on said teeth. The relation of the
gears M and M' after such an adjustment is shown in Figures X.
The spindles A and B are provided with central longitudinal bores a² and a³;
a water supply pipe O communicates with one end of the bore a² and is connected
therewith by means of a suitable coupling. The opposite end of the said bore
is connected with the corresponding end of the bore a³ by means of suitable
couplings and a pipe 01. Water is permitted to circulate through the water
way thus formed and serves to cool the spindle and bearings thereof.

page_text: A suitable guide Q Figure 1, is bolted to the side of the machine and guides
the rods R into the rolls.
Suitable driving gear is provided to drive the lower spindle A¹.
Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed for
the mode herein explained. Change may therefore be made as regards the
mechanism thus disclosed, provided the principles of construction set forth
respectively in the following claims are employed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In a metal rolling machine, rolls having substantially independent indenta-
tions in their peripheries, said indentations being bounded by cutting edges,
substantially as set forth.
2. In a metal rolling machine, rolls having, in their peripheries, indentations
of curved form bound by cutting edges, substantially as set forth.
3. In a metal rolling machine, rolls having, in their peripheries, indentations
of substantially semispherical form, substantially as set forth.
4. In a metal rolling machine, rolls having, in their peripheries, indentations
bounded by cutting edges and having peripheral channels connecting adjoining
indentations, substantially as set forth.
5. In a rolling machine, the combination of a roller and a gear mounted upon
a spindle, a second roller and gear upon a second spindle, said gears being adapted
to mesh and cooperate, means whereby the perpendicular distance between the
centre of the said spindles may be varied, and means whereby backlash in said
gears may be compensated for, substantially as set forth.
6. In a rolling machine, the combination of parallel spindles mounted in
adjustable boxes, the said boxes being oppositely disposed and having their
opposing surfaces oppositely inclined, wedges between said opposing surfaces
having surfaces of the same inclination as the said box surfaces and means
whereby the longitudinal position of said wedges may be varied, substantially as
set forth.
7. In a rolling machine, the combination of two superimposed spindles mounted
in adjustable oppositely disposed boxes, the lower surface of the upper and the
upper surface of the lower boxes being oppositely inclined, wedges between said
opposing surfaces having surfaces of the same inclination as the said box surfaces,
and rigidly mounted screws abutting the ends of said wedges, whereby their
longitudinal position may be varied and the perpendicular distance between the
centres of the spindles adjusted, substantially as set forth.
8. In a rolling machine, the combination of two gears upon the same shaft,
one of said gears being provided with means whereby it may be circumferentially
moved upon said shaft independently of the other gear and rendered adjustable
upon said shaft, and a gear engaging both said gears, substantially as set forth.
9. In a rolling machine the combination of two gears upon shaft, the one
gear being fixed upon said shaft and the other being provided with radial screws
having inclined ends engaging depressions in the shaft, the angular distance
between the central radii traversing the screws, differing from the angular
distance between the central radii traversing the depressions, whereby the said
gear is rendered adjustable upon said shaft, and a third gear engaging both said
gears, substantially as set forth.
10. In gears, means for compensating for the wear upon the teeth, consisting
of the combination of a principal gear fixed upon a shaft, an auxiliary gear
mounted upon the same shaft and of equal size with said principal gear, of a
third gear mounted upon a second shaft and simultaneously engaging said
principal and auxiliary gears, said auxiliary gear being provided with radial
screws adapted to engage the shaft and circumferentially move said auxiliary
gear upon said shaft, substantially as set forth.

page_text: 11. In a rolling machine, the combination of two rolls mounted upon separate
spindles, the one spindle being longitudinally adjustable, means whereby the per-
pendicular distance from the centres of said spindles may be adjusted, and means
for driving said rolls in opposite directions, substantially as set forth.
12. In a rolling machine, roll spindles provided with longitudinal bores adapted
to form a passage way for water, means for connecting the ends of said spindles
whereby a continuous water way is formed of which the spindles constitute a
part, substantially as set forth.
Dated this 23rd day of July 1897.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.