A NEW OR IMPROVED PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL WIRE, AND APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN AND THEREFOR
Year: 1879

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Walter Alfred Barlow, Patent Agent and Engineer, of
6, St. Paul's Churchyard, London, for the Invention of "A NEW OR IMPROVED
PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL WIRE, AND APPARATUS
TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN AND THEREFOR." A communication from abroad by
Wilhelm Boecker, of Schalke, in- Westphalia, in the Empire of Germany.
Sealed the 27th January 1880, and dated the 29th July 1879.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Walter Alfred Barlow at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 29th July 1879.
WALTER ALFRED BARLOW, Patent Agent and Engineer, of 6, St. Paul's Church-
yard, London. "A NEW OR IMPROVED PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON
AND STEEL WIRE, AND APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN AND THEREFOR."
A communication from abroad by Wilhelm Boecker, of Schalke, in Westphalia, in
the Empire of Germany.
The objects of this Invention are:-
Firstly. To roll down from iron and steel blanks, square and round wire of such
small section that the work of further drawing or rolling down is entirely or to the
greatest part saved.
Secondly. To obtain a considerable reduction in manufacturing price and economy
of moving power. Thirdly. To realise or effect the production on a large scale, and,
Fourthly. To obtain a manufactured product of good quality.
It is known that the process hitherto used for rolling wire tends to roll out a
single coil wire from each iron or steel blank or skelp; and further that it is
impossible in employing that process to manufacture the rolled wire thinner than
of an inch, without a considerable loss of the producing quantity and without
injury to quality. The latter disadvantage has its cause in the fact that the wire,
when it has passed the last roller grooves, is already much cooled down and in this
cooled state it is bound to sustain still further and quite anomalous changes in its
section and becoming thus very easily flawy and provided with ribs.
On the other hand the improved process which is the subject of this Invention
affords the following advantages, and is performed in the manner to be hereinafter
described.

page_text: The iron or steel blanks are rolled in advance, by means of very swiftly revolving
rolls, into a flat rectangular section of such size and form as required by the number
and thickness of the various wires to be manufactured from it.
The blank rolled to a flat section at a high temperature and in the greatest
practicable lengths is then, while in a still heated state, directly passed by the last
pair of rollers through slitting rollers in a self acting manner by means of a guide
socket.
These slitting rollers split the flat rolled blank in different bands having a square
section and advance the latter separately by means of suitable guides upon a
revolving self acting winding reel, but in such manner that each split wire is
brought upon its special reel which winds it up in a self acting way. These wire
bands may well be conducted upon a single reel through a common guide and
afterwards separated from each other by reeling off.
Intermediate of the slitting rollers and the reel there is interposed a pair of rollers
through which the wires pass; said rollers revolving at a corresponding circum-
ferential speed, are provided with round and square grooves and have for purpose
to transform the square section into a round one, or otherwise only to take off
or remove the sharp edges or burr of the cut faces.
It is in this manner that two, three, or more coils of thin wire are produced from
a single blank of iron-wire or steel wire at a small expenditure of power and cost
and without injury to the quality of the wire produced.
For instance in using this improved process, a blank weighing about 110 pounds
and rolled down to a form of by of an inch, that is to say, to a section
of about square inch, is transformed in a few minutes into three wire coils,
each of which will have, an approximate weight of 36 pounds and
section.
inch
The number and thickness of wires to be manufactured are arbitrary to a certain
extent and accomodate themselves to the thickness of the rolled blank and cutters
as well as to the number of guides, reels, and cutters that may however be readily
changed. In this process of manufacturing wire it will be understood that blanks
or pieces of greatest possible weight are most advantageously employed.
This mode of manufacturing rolled wire is the most suitable employed in direct
combination of the apparatus with a succession of rollers placed in the same line by
means of which the iron or steel blank is rolled down to the corresponding flat
section, thus rendering it possible to produce wire at one heat and to introduce it
self actingly between the circular cutters or slitting rollers; nevertheless this
process also presents great advantages when there is no succession of rollers which
have to roll down the blank to the required size.
In such cases the material or blank rolled into the rectangular shape, and wound
upon a reel in order to have it in form of a coil, is then heated in a furnace and
withdrawn from it directly into the circular slitting cutters; therefore this Invention
is to be understood to comprise these two cases.
It may be remarked that the known method for manufacturing "slit-iron" which
is by preference employed by nail and lock smiths consists in cutting broad rolled
blanks of iron while hot into a great number of short straight rods by means of
slitting rollers, such rods when bound in straight bundles being brought directly
into commerce under the name "slit-iron," but never has there been produced in
this manner an object from a long coiled blank by the simultaneous use of reels,
which might come under the category "wire."
Those said slitting rollers were generally speaking not capable of being employed
in this process, as for this is required a thoroughly exact guiding of the material
in order to prevent the same from going aside.
In constructing the slitting rollers or circular cutters, which are to be employed
in carrying this Invention into practical effect, special care has been taken for this
exact guiding by applying side bands and slide pieces as well as calibre sockets
which are very exactly cut out; therefore this Invention cannot be confounded with

page_text: the known method of manufacturing "slit-iron;" on the contrary this method is
specially intended for manufacturing wire and is completely new and particular.
The disposition and construction of the apparatus for this method is also new
and substantial in its composition, more specially in the principal constituting parts,
such as the self acting reels, the slitting roller for splitting the blank in wire bands
in combination with the guides.
In the framing of the apparatus are placed the wire slitting rollers for splitting
in several square shaped strips of regular thickness the blank previously rolled
down in advance to the requisite transverse section and being of the greatest
possible length which may be directed between the slitting rollers by coming in a
self acting manner directly from a series of rollers, or when coiled from a heating
furnace in passing before through guide sockets. The wire strips thus obtained are
pushed further on in suitable guides.
The steel slide pieces which are placed between the slitting rollers and in
combination with the various guides are, for the purpose of prevention of any
deviation, each separate wire. It has also been taken into consideration that the
blank previously rolled down to a flat section shall be unable to go aside whilst
passing through the slitting rollers or circular cutters. For this purpose rims are
adapted tightly to both sides the sides of the cutters, and cramping each other, and
also bands which are both connected together by strong screw bolts.
These dispositions being absolutely necessary for guiding the wires exactly are
either requisite or applied in ordinary slitting rollers, as their office is only to split
blanks in "slit-iron" in form of rods, and they could not at all be employed for the
purpose of this Invention, as it is here intended to split in a very exact and regular
manner not only the central wire strips but also two lateral ones which can only
be effected by means of this arrangement of apparatus.
The rollers are provided with round and square grooves which may easily be
changed by shifting the roller frame a little aside upon the sole plate without
being thereby obliged to alter the positions of the guides. These grooves are so
designed as to press during the passage of the wires only upon their sharp edges
either to make them entirely round, that is to say, to give them a completely round
section, or only to blunt the edges.
After having passed through these rollers each wire is separately conducted
through suitably bent tubes in such manner that each wire is led to its separate
self acting reel in order to become wound round thereupon, and when stopping the
reel to be easily taken off therefrom as a coil.
The reel plate rests upon a round friction disc which is faced off in a lathe and
fixed on a spindle which is driven by bevil wheels. The wheel plate is capable of
running loosely; this spindle and rotatory motion is imparted to it when it rests
upon the friction disc.
The wire fed through a tube is laid in form of a ring upon said rods of the
revolving reel plate.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Deer
H
the said Walter Alfred Barlow in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 29th
January 1880.
A
WALTER ALFRED BARLOW, Patent Agent and Engineer, of 6, St. Paul's Church-
yard, London. "A NEW OR IMPROVED PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF IRON
AND STEEL WIRE, AND APPARATUS TO BE EMPLOYED THEREIN AND THEREFOR."
communication from abroad by Wilhelm Boecker, of Schalke, in Westphalia, in the
Empire of Germany.
The objects of this Invention are:---
Firstly. To roll down from iron and steel blanks square and round wire of such
small section that the work of further drawing or rolling down is entirely or for the
most part saved.
Secondly. To obtain a considerable reduction in manufacturing price and economy
of moving power.
Thirdly. To realize or effect the production on a large scale; and
Fourthly. To obtain a manufactured product of good quality.
It is known that the process hitherto used for rolling wire tends to roll out a
single coil wire from each iron or steel blank or skelp; and, further, that is impos-
sible in employing that process to manufacture the rolled wire thinner than of
an inch without a considerable loss of the producing quantity, and without injury
to quality. The latter disadvantage has its cause in the fact that the wire when
it has passed the last roller grooves is already much cooled down, and in this cooled
state it is bound to sustain still further and quite anomalous changes in its section,
and becoming thus very easily flawy and provided with ribs.
On the other hand the improved process, which is the subject of this Invention
affords the following advantages, and is performed in the manner to be hereinafter
described.
The iron or steel blanks are rolled in advance by means of very swiftly revolving
rolls into a flat rectangular section of such size and form as required by the number
and thickness of the various wires to be manufactured from it.
The blank rolled to a flat oblong section at a high temperature and in the
greatest practicable lengths is then, while in a still heated state, directly passed by
the last pair of rollers through slitting rollers, in a self acting manner, by means of
a guide Bocket.
These slitting rollers split the flat rolled blank in different bands, having a square
section, and advance the latter separately by means of suitable guides b, b, b, upon
a revolving selfacting winding reel, Fig. 4, but in such manner that each split wire
is brought upon its special reel, which winds it up in a selfacting way. These wire
bands may be conducted upon a single reel through a common guide, and after-
wards separated from each other by reeling off.
Intermediate of the slitting rollers and the reel there is interposed a pair of
rollers, Fig. 3, through which the wires pass; said rollers revolving at a corresponding
circumferential speed, are provided with round and square grooves, and has for its
purpose to transform the square section into a round one, or otherwise only to
take off or remove the sharp edges or burrs of the cut faces.
It is in this manner that two, three, or more coils of thin wire will be produced
from a single blank of iron wire or steel wire at a small expenditure of power and
cost, and without injury to the quality of the wire produced.
For instance, in using this improved process a blank weighing about 110 pounds
and rolled down to a form of by 7 of an inch, that is to say, to a section of
about square inch, is transformed in a few minutes into three wire coils, each of
which will have an approximate weight of 36 pounds and 7 inch section.
The number and thickness of wires to be manufactured are arbitrary, to a certain
extent, and accomodate themselves to the thickness of the rolled blank and

page_text: cutters, as well as to the number of guides, reels, and cutters; that may, however, be
readily changed. In this process of manufacturing wire it will be understood
that blanks or pieces of greatest possible, weight are most advantageously
employed.
This mode of manufacturing the rolled wire is the most suitably employed in.
direct combination of the apparatus with a succession of rollers placed in the same
line, by means of which the iron or steel blank is rolled down to the corresponding
flat section, thus rendering it possible to produce wire at one heat and to introduce
it selfactingly between the circular cutters or slitting rollers; nevertheless, this
process also presents great advantages when there is no succession of rollers which
have to roll down the blank to the required size.
In such cases, the material or blank rolled into the rectangular shape, and wound
upon a reel in order to have it in form of a coil, is then heated in a furnace and
withdrawn from it directly into the circular slitting cutters; therefore this Invention
is to be understood to comprise these two cases.
It is not absolutely necessary to use the slitting rollers, Fig. 3, as the square-
shaped wire possessing great softness and suppleness may be directly drawn thinner
by the use of dies, or when cooled brought into a thinner round or square form by
means of separate rollers.
It may be remarked that the known method for manufacturing "slit-iron,"
which is by preference employed by nail and locksmiths, consists in cutting broad
rolled blanks of iron whilst hot into a great number of short straight rods by
means of slitting rollers, such rods, when bound in straight bundles, being brought
directly into commerce under the name of "slit-iron;" but never has there been
produced in this manner an object from a long coiled blank by the simultaneous
use of reels which might come under the category "wire."
Those said slitting rollers were generally not capable of being employed in this
process, as for this is required a thoroughly exact guiding of the material in order
to prevent the same from going aside.
In constructing the slitting rollers or circular cutters which are to be employed
in carrying this Invention into practical effect, special care has been taken for this
exact guiding by applying side bands and slide pieces, as well as calibre sockets,
which are very exactly cut out; therefore this Invention cannot be confounded with
the known method of manufacturing "slit iron;" on the contrary, this method is
specially intended for manufacturing wire, and is completely new and particular.
The disposition and construction of the apparatus for this method is also new
and substantial in its composition, more specially in the principal constituting parts,
such as the self acting reels, the slitting roller for splitting the blank in wire hands,
in combination with the guides.
Figures 1 to 4 show in plan and side elevation. the apparatus in its full con-
struction. It may be put into action by means of belts or by any suitable
transmission.
In the framing of the apparatus, Fig. 2, are placed the wire slitting rollers for
splitting in several square shaped strips the blank previously rolled down in
advance to the requisite transverse section, and being of the greatest possible length,
which may be directed between the slitting rollers by coming in a self acting
manner directly from a series of rollers, as indicated, or when coiled from a heating
furnace it is passed before reaching the slitting rollers through guide sockets. The
wire strips thus obtained are pushed further on in suitable guides..
The construction of the wire slitting rollers and guides are clearly indicated by
Figures 5 to 7. It is only the circular cutters that these rollers have in common
with the ordinary ones. In all other respects the wire slitting rollers are altogether
new and particular.
Fig. 5 is a front elevation, Fig. 6 a plan, and Fig. 7 a side elevation of these wire
slitting rollers; Fig. 8 is a transverse section of the guide in the line x, x, of Fig. 6,
through, which the blank is introduced between the slitting rollers; Figs. 9 and 10
represent two successive sections of the guide in the lines y, y, and z, 2, of Fig. 6,

page_text: •
showing the mode of separating gradually the split wire bands from each other
after having passed the slitting rollers; Fig. 11 shows the construction of the reel.
The steel slide pieces a, a, Fig. 7, placed between the slitting rollers in com-
bination with the various guides are for the purpose of conducting in a sure manner
and under absolute prevention of any deviation each separate wire.
It has also been taken into consideration that the blank previously rolled down
to a flat section shall be unable to go aside whilst passing through the slitting
rollers or circular cutters.
For this purpose the rims a, a, Fig. 5, are adapted tightly to both the sides of
the cutters and cramping each other, and also the bands b', 6', which are both con-
nected together by strong screw bolts as shown.
These dispositions being absolutely necessary for guiding the wires exactly are
neither requisite nor applied in ordinary slitting rollers, as it is only necessary to
split blanks for "slit-iron" in form of rods; but for this Invention it is intended
to split in a very exact and regular manner not only the central wire strips but
also the two lateral ones, which can only be effected by means of this arrangement
of apparatus.
The rollers, Fig. 3, are provided with round and square grooves, which may
easily be changed by shifting the roller framing a little aside upon the sole plate
without being thereby obliged to alter the positions of the guides. These grooves
are so designed as to press during the passage of the wires only upon their sharp
edges, either to make them entirely round, that is to say, to give them a completely
round section, or only to blunt the edges.
After having passed through these rollers each wire is separately conducted
through suitably bent tubes b, b, b, in such manner that each wire is led to its
separate self acting reel in order to become wound thereupon, and when stopping
the reel to be easily taken off therefrom as a coil.
Although the disposition of the apparatus for the manufacture of three wires
seems to be the most suitable yet it may be on the same principle arranged for more,
or also only for two wires; therefore this Specification is not to be construed as
depending upon the number of wires to be manufactured thereby.
The reel represented on a larger scale by Fig. 11 serves to receive in a selfacting
manner the wire, and to wind it up in a coil.
The reel plate c rests upon a round friction disc d, which is faced off in a lathe
and fixed on the spindle e, which is driven by bevil wheels. The reel plate c is
capable of running loosely upon this spindle, and rotating motion is imparted to it
when it rests upon the friction disc d. On the under side it has two circular
inclined faced off surfaces, which correspond exactly with the faced off surfaces of
the friction and friction ring f
The wire fed through a tube is laid in form of a ring upon the inclined rods g
arranged in a circle upon the revolving reel plate c, but said rods may equally
well be substituted by an envelope of sheet iron.
The vertical rim h serves to limit the space destined for winding up the wire on
the reel, and is provided with indents allowing of the entering in of the hook by
means of which the wire-coil is taken off.
The friction ring f being operated by the foot lever i raises the reel and thereby
stops the rotation thereof by putting it out of frictional contact with friction disc d
when the wire coil is to be taken off.
The wire reel is entirely new and particular, and notwithstanding it forms part
of the wire-rolling apparatus herein described in may also be employed with advan-
tage in combination with ordinary wire rollers.
Having now described the nature and particulars of the said Invention I
claim-
Firstly. The mode of manufacturing iron or steel wire by rolling a blank of a
certain weight to a form the transverse section of which corresponds to the number
of wires to be obtained; this blank may be transformed in wires at one heat or
wound up, to a coil, and then heated and let through the slitting rollers; and the

page_text: thus obtained wires on their way from the grooved rollers, Fig. 3, to the respective
selfacting reel are separated from each other by conducting them through the guides,
substantially as and for the purpose herein described and represented in the
Drawings.
Secondly. The arrangement of the rollers and reels for realizing this mode of
manufacturing wire, as herein set forth.
'Thirdly. The construction of the slitting rollers having their circular cutters
arranged and operating upon the introduced blank in the manner as herein
described and shown in the Drawings.
Fourthly. The arrangement and construction of the various guides serving to
introduce the blank between the slitting rollers and guiding the wires thus obtained
to separate them gradually from each other (the whole operating in such sure and
regular manner that this mode of manufacturing wire is thus rendered practicable),
all substantially as and for the purpose herein described and represented.
Fifthly. The construction of the reel receiving the wire self actingly and winding
it up in a coil, as set forth.
Sixthly. The application of the intermediate rollers, Fig. 3, the same being pro-
vided with round and square grooves for the purpose of rounding the wire off
either entirely or but partially before it is wound upon the reel, as hereinbefore
described and represented in the Drawings hereunto annexed.
In witness whereof, I, the, said Walter Alfred Barlow, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty sixth day of January, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and eighty.
In the presence of
ALFRED E. WELSH,
his Clerk,
6, St. Paul's Chyd.,
London, E.C.
WALTER A. BARLOW. (L.S.)