Improvements in the Production of Armor and like Compound Plates and in Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Mar., 1899-Accepted, 17th June, 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION,
Improvements in the Production of Armor and like Compound
Plates and in Apparatus therefor.
I, OWEN FRANKLIN LEIBERT, of 128, Market Street, in the City of Bethlehem,
County of Northampton, and State of Pennsylvania, United States of America,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performel, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement:-
My invention relates to the manufacture of armor-plates and has for its object
to improve and simplify such manufacture, and to these ends my invention con-
sists in the method of and apparatus for manufacturing armor-plates.. While
my, process is designed more especially for manufacturing armor-plate such as is
used in ships of war, coast defences, etc., it is also applicable for other purposes,
such as the manufacture of burglar-proof constructions and other constructions
where it is desired to provide hard-faced metallic bodies, and while herein I shall
describe my invention more particularly as applied to the manufacture of armor-
plates, it will be understood that the principles of my invention can be utilized
for other and various purposes by those skilled in the art, and be modified to
adapt them to the particular purposes for which they are intended.
It is well known that in the manufacture of armor-plates and the like, it is
desirable to produce, a plate the outer surface of which shall be relatively hard,
while the inner portion or backing shall be relatively soft and tough, and many
and various means have been suggested for accomplishing this result, which need
not be recited herein. By my invention broadly stated I accomplish this result
by burning hard steel onto the surface of the softer steel. This is accomplished,
generally stated, by first cleaning the surface of the softer steel by the use of
molten cast iron, and then applying the molten steel to the surface and depositing
thereon a sufficient quantity to produce a hard surface.
Thus, in carrying out my invention, I take the soft steel ingots, slabs or plates
to be treated and heat them in suitable furnaces or otherwise, and then pour over
the surface of the heated ingot, slab or plate molten cast iron and allow it to
run over the whole surface and off preferably into a suitable trough, so that it
can be used again, and in this way I carry away all slags as fast as they are
formed on the heated surface of the article being treated. When the article is
clean enough, molten steel is applied to the surface in the same manner and
allowed to run thereover, further cleaning the surface of the steel if necessary.
and then by the use of suitable dams or otherwise a deposit of the molten steel
is made upon the face of the article and allowed to cool.
The reason for using the molten cast iron for cleansing the surface is that it
is cheaper than the steel used for making the plate and does not chill as rapidly,
and it is for this reason advantageous to use molten cast iron as a cleanser beforo
the molten steel is applied to the surface of the heated ingot or plate; but when
the molten steel is applied to the heated plate in the first instance it requires

page_text: more steel to do the cleansing, washing and burning than when the molten cast
iron is used.
In this process some of the molten cast or pig iron will be absorbed by the
article being treated, as well as the slags removed therefrom and the article
being treated will be kept at the proper temperature, and the oxidation of its
surface will practically be prevented, and then when the molten hard steel is
run on, the excess of the cast or pig iron will be washed off, making a clean
surface, so that it will be in a condition to receive the desired quantity of hard
steel and burn or unite it with the surface of the article, forming a practical and
substantial union between the two.
The ingots, slabs or plates may be either of forged, rolled or cast steel, accord-
ing to the purposes for which they are to be used, and the layer or face of hard
steel burned thereon may be of the thickness desired, and I have found that in
this way a most effective armor-plate may be made, having exceedingly high
ballistic qualities, and at the same time the plates can be cheaply and quickly
produced, with relatively little labor and expense compared with the usual pro-
cesses of producing such articles. The article itself proves to be an improved
plate, practically homogeneous and having the desired resistance qualities to
penetration by shells and the like to a high degree, combining the advantages
of the hard surface plate with the toughness of the softer steel backing.
My improved method may be carried out in many and various ways, and by
many and various means, and I will now proceed to describe what I have found
to be a convenient and practical means, it being understood that my invention
is not limited to the details of construction or arrangement of parts hereinafter
set forth, they being typical and sufficient to indicate to those skilled in the art
how the invention may be practically worked.
In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional plan view of a building,
together with a general plant preferably employed in the practice of my inven-
tion, said plant comprising melting and heating furnaces properly disposed within
the building, as well as casting pits, an operating platform, an operating chamber,
and other accessories; Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional elevation, taken on the line.
Fig. 1, and showing more clearly the general disposition and arrangement of the
operating platform, the several furnaces, and the lifting or elevating devices for
the molten metals; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional elevation taken about cen-
trally through Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view in detail of the opera-
ting chamber, and some of the accessories thereto; Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail
view, in plan, of the preferred form of movable trough for supplying or delivering
the molten metals to the faces or surfaces of the metal plates or slabs being
treated and Fig. 6 is a detail view in vertical section of a modification in the
construction of the tilting platform by which to enable plates or slabs of different
sizes or dimensions to be more conveniently handled or treated.
In the manufacture of hard-faced armor-plates, the plates may be first shaped
into the desired form, whether by forging, rolling or casting, and are brought to a
proper temperature for the subsequent operations by heating them in a furnace,
and I have shown a number of heating furnaces arranged in a convenient relation
to an operating platform and melting furnaces, with apparatus so arranged that
the process may be practically continuous, and the molten cast or pig iron, as
well as the molten hard steel, be used over and over except so much of the latter
as is applied or burned onto the surface of the plate.
In the drawing, 1, represents a building of any suitable size or dimensions,
and 2, designates casting pits, such as are usually employed in plants of this
kind. At suitable parts of the building. I locate heating furnaces 3, of which
any suitable number may be employed, and which furnaces may be of any suitable
or preferred construction, each being shown as provided with a stack 4, located
on the outside of and extending above the top of the building. The metal plates
or slalis are placed in these heating furnaces and brought to the required tem-
perature by which to better adapt them to the reception of the hardening material

page_text: This
which is subsequently applied. 5, represents any suitable melting furnace in
which the pig or cast iron is brought to a molten condition, and 6, represents also
a melting furnace which in the present instance is employed for the molten hard
steel, each of the said furnaces having a spout 7, and each of them also communi-
cating with a stack S, on the outer side of the building. These said furnaces
are preferably located at the edge of the casting pits 2, and the ladles 9, which
receive the molten metals are arranged in the pit beneath said spouts, so as to
receive the metals flowing therefrom. Above the said melting furnaces 5 and 6,
is arranged an operating platform 10, centrally of which is arranged the operating
chamber in which the plate to be treated is placed and operated upon.
operating chamber 11, comprises any general form of chamber in which is located
a tilting platform 12, centrally pivoted at 13, and capable of being tilted to one
side or the other by any suitable means, but preferably by a hydraulic ram 14,
having a rod 15, connecting at 16, with the underside of the said tilting platform.
Mounted upon this platform 12 are a number of suitable pillars or posts 17,
preferably of brick or masonry, and upon which the plate 20, is laid, substantially
as shown in Fig. 4. At each side of the said tilting platform the supports 22,
are preferably constructed to receive the edges of the plate, and they are provided
with an opening 23, at a suitable height, and it is through these openings that
the molten metal flows (when the platform is tilted to one side or the other) into
the trough 25, whence the metal is delivered to the open ends 26, of passages or
conduits 27, leading from the floor of the operating platform to the upper part
of the melting furnaces 5 and 6, respectively. As shown in Fig. 4, the upper
part of the said operating chamber 11 is removable, and the same is taken off at
such time as the metal is being poured over the surface of the plate being treated,
and as shown in Fig. 2, suitable rails are extended across and over the said
chamber in such manner as to enable the delivery truck for the molten metals
to be moved back and forth longitudinally, so as to properly distribute such
metals upon the surface of the plate. The rails are designated as 30, and the
delivery trough as 31, the said trough being preferably of an L-shape, and of
proper depth, one leg thereof being provided at its bottom with a series of
openings 32, for the passage of the molten metals, while the other leg thereof is
for the reception of the molten metals from the ladle employed for conveying
the same from the melting furnaces. This said delivery trough 31 is provided
with suitable wheels 34, which travel on the rails 30, and in addition to the
trough being movable lengthwise of the rails, the same is also capable of a limited
sidewise reciprocating motion, which is desirable for the purposes of deriving an
equal distribution of the molten metals upon the surface of the plate. To obtain
this sidewise reciprocating motion, I preferably extend the shafts or axles 38 and
39, of the trough, and on the inner faces of the wheels at one side of the trough
1 provide suitable cams 40, which abut or come in contact with cams 41, on the
adjacent side of the trough; and at the opposite ends of the said shafts or axles,
I interpose or arrange suitable springs 42, and in this way it will be seen that
the trough will be moved in one direction by the cams, and in the other direction
by the springs, I am not limited to this particular form of delivery trough, nor
to any particular means for applying the molten metals to the surface of the
plate being treated, but as I have found the construction explained to be very
convenient, I prefer to use the same as a rule:
Some means are required for elevating the ladles 9, to a proper height to
enable their contents to be emptied into the movable trough, and while any
means could be employed for this purpose, I prefer the use of the movable
crane 50, shown in Fig. 2 as mounted at the ends upon rails 51, through the
medium of suitable wheels 52. the said crane carrying any suitable form of
olevating device, such as is indicated at 53. A winding drum 54, carries an
elevating chain or rope 55, the end of which is provided with suitable hooks 56,
for engaging the trunnions on the sides of the ladles, and it is evident that all
that is required to be done is to simply attach the ladle to the end of the rope
or chain, and then rotate the drum, whereupon the ladle will be elevated to the

page_text: .
proper height. The operator then empties the molten metal into the movable
trough, and by moving the trough back and forth, the metal will be evenly dis-
tributed upon the surface of the plate upon the tilting platform within the
operating chamber. As shown in Fig. 6, the tilting platform 12, is comprised
of a number of different plates each having depending flanges 12, by which
they are united together in any suitable way, as for instance by bolts and nuts,
as shown. This construction enables the said tilting platform to be made of
larger or smaller dimensions, by which to conform to plates or slabs of different
sizes, since to reduce the size of the platform it is simply necessary to remove ono
or more of the flanged plates, while to increase the size thereof additional plates
are put in.
The operation is as follows: The plate or slab to be treated is placed into one or
the other of the heating furnaces 3, and then when it has been brought to the
desired temperature, the plate is placed upon the tilting platform in the operating
chamber, and this platform is tilted so that its lower end will be carried in the
direction of the melting furnace 5, for the cast or pig iron. The molten cast
or pig iron is allowed to run off at the spout of the furnace, into the ladle 9
below, and the elevating rope or chain is attached to the ladle, and the latter is
brought high enough to enable the contents thereof to be emptied into the
delivery trough 31. As soon as this is done, the said trough is moved back and
forth upon its supporting rails 30, in such a way that the molten metal flows out
through the openings 32, in the transverse leg of the trough, onto the upper
surface of the plate, and from this latter the metal flows through the opening 23,
into the trough 25, beneath, whence by means of the conduit 27, the said molten
metal is carried back to the melting furnace from which it was first taken, and
in this way the same cast or pig iron can be used over and over again repeatedly,
and each time it is used, the scales or slag washed from the surface of the plate
are carried into the melting furnace also, and which may be removed from the
furnace from time to time in the ordinary way.
are
After thus subjecting the surface of the plate to molten cast or pig iron, the
platform 12 is tilted to the other side so as to bring the opposite edge thereof in
the direction of the melting furnace 6, for the molten steel, and then the ladle
containing the molten steel is elevated and the contents thereof
in like manner emptied into the movable trough, and this molten
steel is distributed over the surface of the plate, and it is allowed
to flow off and back to the melting furnace therefor in the manner and
by the means substantially as I have already described. The molten steel is
thus brought back to the furnace from which it was originally taken, and this
steel is thus kept hot and permitted to be used over and over again, excepting.
however, that percentage thereof which is deposited on the plate or slab. When
the surface of the plate is clean enough, the tilting platform 12, is laid horizon-
tally, and as much of the steel is deposited on the surface thereof as is desired,
and for this latter purpose the side supports 22, on the tilting platform, together
with additional end supports, or other materials are utilized as a dam by which to
hold the molten steel upon the plate until it is of the required thickness. The
molten hard steel will then burn onto or unite with the softer steel, forming a
homogeneous plate of the desired quality, and I have found it most satisfactory
for the purpose intended. The process is simple and relatively inexpensive both
in time and labor, and with apparatus arranged substantially as described may
be practically continuous.
While I have herein set forth a process of burning hard steel onto the surface
of softer steel, it is obvious that by substantially the same steps of operation I
can in like manner apply a soft backing onto the surface of a hard plate or slab.
Thus, I would take say, a comparatively thin rolled, forged, or cast plate of hard
steel, and manipulate the same in practically a like manner as already explained
with reference to the softer plate, with the slight difference that in finishing the

page_text: work a larger percentage of molten steel would be used than in the case of the
hard facing of softer metals.
In describing my invention above, I have referred to heating furnaces in
which the metal plates or slabs are placed and brought to the required temperatura
by which to better adapt them for the reception of the hardening
material, which is subsequently applied. These heating furnaces, it
will be understood, are only employed in those instances, in which the slab or
ingot has been previously cast, and it will be understood that my invention com-
prehends the casting of the slab or ingot, say for instance, in the operating
chamber referred to, and then immediately subjecting the slab or ingot to the
process of hard-facing such as has already been described. By this means, it
will be at once understood that 1 utilize the initial heat for hard-facing purposes,
instead of being obliged to heat the ingot or slab as is necessary in the instance
first above described with reference to the heating furnaces.
It will be seen that in carrying out the process of burning the two metals
together the surface of the heated foundation plate or slab is cleansed while
exposed to the action of the atmosphere by pouring or running over the surface of
the same the molten metal, either in the form of cast iron or the steel which is
subsequently to be united therewith to form the armour-plate. Of course, the
foundation plate while heated is not heated to a degree sufficient to render it
molten, but the metal to be applied or united thereto, whether the harder or the
softer steel, is molten and is poured or run over the face or surface of the foun-
dation plate, and this surface is heated to a temperaturq sufficient to insure the
burning or intimate union of the molten metal with the foundation plate, so that
the resulting article is an integral armor-plate made up of two metals of different
degrees of hardness united or burned together while exposed to the action of the
atmosphere.
It will be understood that as a subsequent treatment and apart from my inven
tion the plates formed as above described may be forged, rolled, or otherwise
treated to consolidate same.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, 1 declare that what
I claim is;-
-
i
1. The method of producing a compound armor plate having a faco of hard
metal and a back of soft metal, which consists in providing a foundation plate
of one of said metals, heating and cleaning the surface of said foundation plate
by passing over it a molten metal, and then applying to the surface thus heated
and cleansed a layer of the other metal, suitable for the face or back of the com-
pound plate and allowing it to unite with said foundation plate, substantially as
described.
2. The apparatus substantially as described for the manufacture of armor-plates
characterized by a heating furnace, a melting furnace, an operating chamber, and
the various adjunctive devices co-operating therewith for the purposes specified.
Dated the 14th day of March 1899
PHILIP M. JUSTICE,
Agent for the Applicant, 55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.