AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC
Year: 1857

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Lowell Ralph, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, Metal Roller, and Thomas Lowell Ralph, the
younger, of Birmingham aforesaid, Metal Roller, for the Invention of
LETTERS PATENT to Thomas Lowell Ralph, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, Metal Roller, and Thomas Lowell Ralph, the
younger, of Birmingham aforesaid, Metal Roller, for the Invention of
"AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC
Sealed the 11th December 1857, and dated the 18th June 1857.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Thomas Lowell Ralph and
Thomas Lowell Ralph at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents,
with their Petition, on the 18th June 1857.
We, THOMAS LOWELL RALPH, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick,
Metal Roller, and THOMAS LOWELL RALPHI, the younger, of Birmingham
aforesaid, Metal Roller, do hereby declare the nature of the Invention for
"AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC TUBES,"
to be as follows:-
Our Invention consists in manufacturing metallic tubes by the method
herein-after described. We place the billet or hollow metallic cylinder which
is to be made into a tube upon a mandril having a prismatic figure, the said
mandril being in transverse section of a lozenge shape, the said lozenge being
square or very nearly square. The four angles of the lozenge are replaced by
planes equally inclined to the adjacent sides of the lozenge. The hollow
cylinder or billet placed upon the said mandril is passed between a pair of
rolls having grooves, which, when opposed to each other, have in section nearly

page_text: the figure of the before-mentioned mandril; the said grooves are so formed
that the longer diagonal of the lozenge-shaped space enclosed by them is
situated horizontally. The rolls are each provided with a series of the said
grooves, of progressively diminishing size, through which the partially formed
tube is passed in succession. We prefer to employ a series of three rolls, the
axes of which are parallel and situated in a-vertical-plane, the middle roll
forming a pair, both with the upper and lower roll. The partially formed
tube can, by the use of three rolls, be passed in one direction between one pair
and back again through the other. By the method described the tube can be
reduced in diameter and elongated, and readily removed from its mandril.
The tube may be made cylindrical by the use of rolls with cylindrical grooves,
and finished at the draw bench, as is well understood.
SPECIFICATION-in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Thomas Lowell Ralph and Thomas Lowell Ralph in the
Great Seal Patent Office on the 15th December 1857:
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, THOMAS
LOWELL RALPH, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Metal Roller,
and THOMAS LOWELL RALPH, the younger, of Birmingham aforesaid, Metal
Roller, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Eighteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven, in the twentieth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said Thomás Lowell Ralph and Thomas Lowell Ralph, Her special licence
that we, the said Thomas Lowell Ralph and Thomas Lowell Ralph, our
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said Thomas
Lowell Ralph and Thomas Lowell Ralph, our executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
'Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for
"AN IMPROVEMENT OR IMPROVEMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC TUBES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said Thomas Lowell Ralph
and Thomas' Lowell Ralph, our executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand and seal
of one of us or them, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of,

page_text: the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed,
and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six
calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
.
:
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Thomas Lowell Ralph, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is
'to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement thereof; that is to say.
די
Our Invention "consists in manufacturing metallic tubes by the method
or by the use of the machinery herein-after described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing..
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}
We place the billet or thick hollow metallic cylinder; which is to be made,
into a tube upon a mandril or internal support having a prismatic figure, the
said mandril being in transverse section of a lozenge shape, the said lozenge
being very nearly square.
Figure 1 of the accompanying Drawing represents in transverse section
the figure of the mandril which we prefer to employ....The four angles, formed
by the junction of the four-planes of which the prismatic mandril. is made up,
are replaced by the small planes a, the said planes a being. equally inclined to
the adjacent planes," as" represented in the said Figure 1. The 'hollow
cylinder or billet;' placed upon the mandril, Figure 1, is passed between rolls
represented in side elevation in Figure 2, and in end elevation: in Figure 3.
We prefer to employ three rolls marked respectively b, c, and d; the said rolls
have grooves which, when opposed to each other, have in section nearly the
figure of the mandril, Figure 1. The spaces e; Figure 2, show the form of
the openings between the opposed rolls, and through, which the hollow
cylinder or billet supported upon the mandril, Figure 1, is passed. The said
spaces e however, do not exactly, resemble the figure, of the mandril, Figure 1,
only. two of the four angles of the. lozenge-shaped figure being replaced
small planes; while in the mandril, Figure 1, each of the four angles is
replaced by a plane a. The longer diagonal of the lozenge-shaped spaces e is
situated horizontally.
The rolls b, c, d, are severally provided with a series of grooves of pro-
gressively diminishing size, as represented, through which the partially formed
tube is passed in succession. During the rolling process the mandril is
turned from time to time, so that that portion of the tube, which at one time
occupies the angles f, is at another time brought under the operation of the
planes g. Although a pair of rolls may be employed, yet we prefer to employ
a series of three rolls, as represented in the Drawing, the middle roll forming

page_text: a pair both with the upper and lower roll. The partially formed tube can, by
the use of three rolls, be passed in one direction between the upper pair of
rolls and back again between the lower pair. The cylinder or billet may
either be heated before being passed between the rolls, or may be used in a
cold state...
Our Invention is particularly applicable to the manufacture of tubes of
brass, and alloys of copper. When tubes are reduced in diameter and
elongated according to our Invention, the tube can be readily removed from
its mandril, thereby saving the time and trouble which are usually lost in
removing the tube from mandrils of the ordinary construction. After the
tube has been sufficiently operated upon by the rolls, Figures 2 and 3, it is.
removed from its mandril and made cylindrical by the use of rolls having
semicylindrical grooves, and finished at the draw bench by the ordinary
drawing process.
Having now described the nature of our Invention and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, we wish it to be understood that we do not
limit ourselves to the precise details, herein described and represented, as the
same may be varied without departing from the nature of our Invention; but
we claim as our Invention the improvement or improvements in the manu-
facture of metallic tubes, herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing, that is to say, manufacturing metallic tubes by
rolling a billet or hollow cylinder with rolls, whose opposed grooves present a
nearly lozenge-shaped figure, the said billet being supported upon a mandril,
having in transverse section a figure nearly resembling that of the figure
formed by the opposed grooves of the said rolls, as described and represented,
the said tubes being made cylindrical and finished by rolling and drawing, or
in any other convenient manner.
In witness whereof, I, the said Thomas Lowell Ralph, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, this Twelfth day of December, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-seven.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
Clerk to George Shaw.
THOMAS LOWELL RALPH. (L.S.)