Improvements in Charging Devices for Heating Furnaces.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 13th Sept., 1899-Accepted, 21st Oct., 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Charging Devices for Heating Furnaces.
We, JAMES HUNDLEY, Rolling Mill Employee, and WILLIAM E. PEEPLES,
Builder & Contractor, both of Pomeroy, Meigs County, State of Ohio, United
States of America, 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 an adjunct for heating furnaces, such as are used in
connection with rolling-mills for the purpose of heating metals preparatory to
being acted upon by the rolls.
This metal is in form of piles, billets or ingots and the object of our inven-
tion is to provide a device whereby these former may be conveniently charged into
the heating furnace and removed therefrom with equal facility. A further object is
to lessen the exposure to heat of those working about the furnace, to shorten the
time required to heat the iron, to avoid the loss of heat and waste of fuel, to reduce
the wear on the furnace and to increase the output of the latter by a more efficient
and economic operation. The invention consists of the construction of such a
charging device as shown and hereinafter set forth. In the following specifica-
tion, and particularly pointed out in the claims at the end thereof, is found a full
description of our invention, together with its operation, parts and construction,
which latter is also illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which:
Figure 1. Shows a cross section of a furnace used in connection with a rolling
mill for the purpose of heating piles and provided with our charging device,
which is shown in a position prior to charging the furnace.
Figure 2. Shows in a similar view the heating furnace charged. The charging-
device is slightly modified as to the manner of supporting it.
Figure 3. Is a part of a front view of a furnace 5, indicates a customary style
of furnace for heating purposes as here in consideration. 6, is the hearth or bed
thereof, which is usually made of sand, 7, are the charging doors, of which there
may be any number and of sizes to suit requirements. These doors are usually
operated from a distance by means of a lever 8, and pull-rod 9. The heat pro-
duced in any suitable way, as by coal, coke or gas, proceeds from the fire-box 11,
of which 12, is the ashpit, and passes through the heating chamber 13, to a suit-
able outlet in form of a stack.
Our improved charging-device does away with the direct charging upon the
floor of the heating-chamber and contemplates the use of a movable structure,
to be loaded while outside of the heating chamber, after which it is moved into
the latter. It consists of two runners 14, formed of rails of iron disposed across
the floor of the heating-chamber and immediately above the same. They are
also adapted to be moved across this floor and in and out of the furnace, for which
purpose they are supported on rollers located outside of this latter. These run-
ners are of a length sufficient to cause them to project outside and beyond the fur-
nace, so that during their movement they never need to leave their supports.
Openings 15, are provided in the furnace doors to clear the runners and where
a furnace has doors on one side only, such openings are provided in the opposite
furnace wall. The rails constituting the runners are hollow, to permit the pass-

page_text: age of water, of which a constant circulation is kept up to protect them against
the intense heat.
This requires flexible connections at their ends to permit and compensate for
the movement of the runners, which connection is obtained by means of hose sec-
tions 16, suitably supported; as for instance, on rollers 17. Upright pipes 18,
may be interposed which in conjunction with rollers 17, hold up the hose when
slack and thereby keep it out of the way of those working in the immediate
vicinity of the furnace.
The charging becomes, now, quite a simple operation. The runners are moved
out of the furnace, which may be done either by hand or machinery, and loaded
in the most convenient manner. The piles 10, may be placed accurate and close,
without waste of space, since the work is under complete control and readily seen,
being not obscured by flame, gases or smoke; the loss of heat and exposure there-
to is also greatly lessened since the furnace doors may be closed while the loading
of the charging-device takes place.
After this is done the doors are opened for a moment and the charge is run in.
The removal of the heated piles is accomplished in the same manner and also
while the doors are closed. Should turning of the piles be required such may
be quickly done while the charging-device is outside. It is, however, hardly
needed except for very large piles, since our charging-device supports them in a
manner which gives complete access of heat. Neither the piles nor the runners
come in contact with the furnace floor, whereby the wear on this latter is greatly
lessened.
Since direct contact of the piles with the water-cooled runners would be objec-
tionable, we interpose a pillow 19, of suitable material, preferably fire-bricks.
They are shaped to correspond to the runners which they straddle. The piles are
thereby raised still higher above the bed of the furnace and rendered more access-
ible to the heat, thus shortening still more the time it is required to heat them.
As has been stated, the runners are supported on rollers which may be either
stationary, as shown at 21, Figure 1, or in form of a truck as shown at 22, in
Figures 2 & 3. In this latter case the truck carries a bolster 23, to which it is
secured by a king-bolt 24, on which it may be turned in a manner to permit a set
of runners to be moved in a direction at right angles to their usual movement so
as to change their position with reference to the furnace bed. This applies to
furnaces where the charging-doors closely adjoin each other in front of a con-
tinuous charging-opening which is not interrupted by intermediate pillars and
which permits the entire front to be opened at once in case such is required for
special work. The runners rest on this bolster in a manner to be adjustable to or
from each other to suit the size of the piles.
They may be held in their adjusted positions between pins 25 to be inserted in
holes, of which a suitable number is provided in bolster 23. The number of the
runners may be increased; that is, more than two may be used in a set to suit
special, particularly larger sizes of work.
The profile of the runners may be of any shape suitable to support the piles.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:-
1. The combination with a furnace as described, of a carrier for moving the
charge into and out of the heating-chamber thereof and consisting substantially
of hollow runners adapted to support the charge, arranged parallel side by side
and disposed to extend across the floor of the heating-chamber, supporting-means
for these runners located outside of the heating-chamber and which permit them
to be moved horizontally across the floor of the heating-chamber to bring that
portion thereof upon which the charge rests, either within or outside of the
heating-chamber and means to produce an uninterrupted water circulation through
these runners in all their positions.

page_text: 2. The combination of a heating-furnace having a heating-chamber adapted
to receive piles, charging-openings through which these latter are admitted, doors
for these openings and runners supported within these charging-openings and dis-
posed across the furnace-floor and projecting beyond the confines of the furnace
on opposite sides of the latter, there being openings in such confines to clear
the runners which latter are adapted to support piles and are capable of being
moved in and out of the charging-doors.
3. The combination with the heating-chamber of a heating furnace, of runners
adapted to support piles and disposed across the floor of the heating-chamber of
the furnace beyond the confines of which latter these runners project on opposite
sides of the furnace and rollers under these projecting parts of the runners whereby
these latter are supported in a manner to permit them to be moved across the
furnace floor for the purpose of moving the piles into and out of the furnace.
4. The combination with the heating chamber of a heating-furnace intended
for heating piles, of hollow bars adapted to carry water and serving as a carrier
upon which these piles rest and whereby they are charged into the heating
chamber and also removed from the latter, said bars disposed across the floor
of the heating chamber of the furnace beyond the confines of which latter they
project on opposite sides thereof, means to support these runners in a manner to
permit them to be moved across the furnace-floor and water conduits of flexible
material connected to the ends of the runners whereby the water is supplied to
these latter and carried off therefrom.
5. The combination with the heating chamber of a heating-furnace intended for
heating piles, of hollow runners adapted to carry water and serving as a carrier
upon which these piles rest and whereby they are charged into the heating-
chamber and also removed from the latter, said runners disposed across the floor
of the latter and projecting beyond the confines of the furnace on opposite sides
thereof, pillows 19, interposed between these runners and the piles, to be sup-
ported by them and means to support the runners in a manner to permit them
to be moved across the furnace-floor.
Dated this First day of Sontember 1899
JAMES HUNDLEY,
WILLIAM E. PEEPLES.
By Herbert Haddan & Co.,
Agents to Applicant, 18, Buckingham Street, Strand, W.C.