United State Patent to Biernot et al. 4 WIRE ROD ROLLING MILL 76) Inventor: Okar Biermot, Enheimer Str. 48; Albert Bier, Am Kloterhang 1, both of St. Ingbert, Germany, 6670 22 Filed: Sept. 22, 197 (21) Appl. No.: 61,609 30 Foreign Application Priority Data Oct. 1, 1974 Germany... 244,690 2 U.S. Cl.... 72/249 (1) int. Cl'... B21B3/02 8) Field of Search... 72/249, 234, 23, 226, 72/238 6) Reference Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,77,6 3,9,0 8/196 7/1971 Uebing... 72/249 X Rohde... 72/226 Primary Examiner-Milton S. Mehr Attorney, Agent, or Firm-John J. Dennemeyer (11) 4,019,360 (4) Apr. 26, 1977 7 ABSTRACT A wire rod rolling mill ha a plurality of rolling tand with individual drive haft connected to at leat one main drive haft through repective coupling which are electively diengagable to interrupt the drive of the correponding roll tand. The coupling mean conit of mehing bevel gear on the main drive haft and the repective roll tand drive haft, and a lidable member rotationally fat with one of thee haft and lidable into and out of driving engagement with the corre ponding bevel gear which i rotatable relative to the haft. Alternatively, a imilar coupling arrangement may be provided between two ection of the roll tand drive haft, thee ection being interconnected by pur gear. The et of bevel gear between the main drive haft and the rolling tand drive haft are equal in their tranmiion ratio and the peed variation in the re pective roll tand i achieved by pur gearing in the rolling tand drive haft. 4 Claim, 2 Drawing Figure t 17 17 \ fore, O N 2. N N N 4. Mr V GS ES
U.S. Patent April 26, 1977 Sheet 1 of 2 4,019,360
U.S. Patent April 26, 1977 Sheet 2 of 2 4,019,360 S. 2 S
1 WRE ROD ROLLING MLL The invention relate to a wire rod rolling mill in block form, referred to below a a wire block, having at leat one longitudinal haft which i driven by at leat one controllable direct current motor, tranvere haft for driving the tand being connected to the longitudi nal haft by way of bevel gear wheel, wherein the rotational peed of the longitudinal haft can be in creaed, if it i deired to roll larger intermediate cro ection upplied from a tand preceding the lat rolling tand, by mean of the controllable direct current drive for the purpoe of adjuting the rolling peed to an increaed entry peed of the rolled material into the firt tand of the wire block. In a wire block according to German Offenlegung chrift 1,427,974 the flying rolling dic can be eaily removed if intead of a mallet poible wire rod cro ection a larger intermediate cro ection from a roll ing tand preceding the lat tand i to be rolled. By mean of the controllable direct current drive the rota tional peed of the longitudinal haft can be increaed in order to raie the lat intermediate tand in operation ue to uit a higher exit peed of the intermediate cro ection conequent upon an increaed entry peed of the material into the firt tand of the wire block. Thi increaed entry peed reult from the raiing of the rolling peed in the rolling train preceding the wire block when a final cro ection i to be rolled which i not the final wire rod cro ection. Thi increae of the rotational peed of the longitudi nal haft, however, very quickly reache a limit, be caue the lat rolling tand, although the rolling dic thereof have been dimantled, are alo driven. The higher the elected exit peed of the wire rod iuing from the lat tand, the le latitude exit for a further increae of the rotational peed of the longitudinal haft. Thi limitation i quickly reached at the high final wire rod peed nowaday required, if one doe not wih to diregard the bearing and vibration problem at the high rotational peed of the lat rolling tand and to tolerate an increaed liability to diturbance. According to the preent invention there i provided a wire rod rolling mill compriing a plurality of roll tand, repective drive haft of aid roll tand, a variable peed drive motor, at leat one main drive haft connected to aid motor and repective coupling mean for tranmitting the drive from aid at leat one main drive haft to the roll tand, the coupling mean being electively diengageable to interrupt the drive to the correponding roll tand. Preferably the coupling mean comprie mehing bevel gear on the main drive haft and the repective roll tand drive haft, and a lidable member rotation ally fat with one of aid haft and lidable into and out of driving engagement with the correponding bevel gear which i rotatable relative to the haft. Advantageouly, the tranmiion ratio of all the bevel gear are equal and variation in the peed of ucceive roll tand are achieved by pur gearing interconnecting two ection of each roll tand drive haft. The coupling mean may comprie mehing pur gear interconnecting two ection of each roll tand drive haft, and a lidable member rotationally fat with one of aid haft ection and lidable into and out of driving engagement with the correponding pur gear which i rotatable relative to the haft. 4,019,360 10 20 2 30 3 40 4 0 60 6 2 An intermediate rolling tand i preferably capable of operating at an exit peed of 2 m/ when ued a the final rolling tand for rolling 12 mm diameter rod cou pling mean aociated with the ubequent rolling tand diengaged. The drive motor i preferably a d.c. electric motor. The invention enable the exit peed of an intermedi ate roll tand, when ued a the lat operative roll tand, to be increaed to a value which i limited only by the operational reliability of thi tand, without regard to the bearing and vibration problem in the ubequent rolling tand not then being required. The effect of the meaure according to the invention reide in a udden increae of the production of the wire rod rolling mill which production increae dependently upon the in creae in cro ection of an intermediate cro ection iuing from a tand preceding the lat rolling tand. If, for example, the fourth tand from the end i adjuted for approximately 12 mm round rod and ha a through travel peed of 16 m/ for a final wire rod peed of 60 m/, an exit peed of 2 m/ i attainable in thi tandby an increae of the rotational peed when an intermedi ate cro ection of 12 mm round rod i to be rolled a final product. Thi correpond to an increae factor of approximately 1.6. If the aumed final wire end peed of 60 m/ i multiplied by thi increae factor, the lat tand would have to run at a rotational peed corre ponding to an exit peed of approximately 93.6 m/ if it were not poible to diconnect it a provided for by the invention. Such an increae of the rotational peed during rolling of, for example, 12 mm round rod would not be jutifiable from the point of operational reliabil ity even if it were poible from the point of view of deign of the direct current drive. The poibility of diconnecting rolling tand and the poible manner of operation reulting therefrom of the wire block at an optimum exit peed of intermedi ate cro ection render it poible to afford all bevel gear drive the ame tranmiion ratio and to adjut the fixed gradation of the rotational peed of the tand by mean of pur wheel pair having tranmiion ratio which differ from tand to tand a i known per e (French patent pecification No. 1,46,499). In the wire block according to the invention, however, the pair of pur wheel are to divide each tranvere haft into two haft portion of which the haft on the takeoff ide drive one of two pinion. Thi deign of the drive ha the advantage that the expenive bevel gear for all rolling tand may have the ame ize, a deign which wa not uitable in modern wire block with high final wire end peed a long a the lat tand had alway to be driven even when they were not ued for rolling. The pair of pur wheel which then alo rotated would have additionally increaed the bearing problem and would have further limited downwardly the increae, poible pere, of the rotational peed of the longitudinal haft for rolling of intermediate cro ection. One contructional example of a wire block accord ing to the invention i illutrated in the drawing, in which: FIG. 1 illutrate the wire block in front view with a preceding 2-high tand, and FIG. 2 illutrate a ection through the longitudinal haft of the wire block with coupling device dipoed on the longitudinal haft. The wire block 1 illutrated in FIG. 1, conit of eight rolling tand 6 to 13 which are dipoed in H-V (horizontal-vertical) contruction and which are driven
3 by mean of two longitudinal haft 4 by a controllable direct current motor by way of an interpoed gear box. The wire block 1 i preceded by a 2-high tand 3. The rod iuing from the tand 3 in the direction of travel 2 i upplied to the wire block 1 and rolled in the tand 6 to 13 to the uual wire rod thickne of. mm diam. When rolling wire rod of larger cro ection, e.g. 12 mm diam., the final pa occur in a rolling tand which precede the rolling tand 13, for example, in rolling tand 10. In order that the rolling tand can be operated at a higher final peed than allocated thereto for rolling. mm diam., the rolling tand 11 to 13 are brought to tandtill. FIG. 2 illutrate the rolling tand 12 in operation and the rolling tand 13 at tandtill. The longitudinal haft 4 ha mounted thereon bevel wheel 1 integral with a toothed bo 1a. By moving a pivotally mounted con 4,019,360 trol lever 17 into the poition 17a internal teeth 16a of 20 a coupling leeve 16 plined on the haft 4 are dien gaged from the bevel wheel 1 which i thu rotation ally diengaged from the haft 4 whereby the rolling tand i topped. The bevel wheel tage 14, 1 illutrated have the ame tranmiion ratio, and the gradation of the rota tional peed of the rolling tand 6 to 13 i effected by pur gear pair 18, 19 which are dipoed on the tran vere haft 20, 21 and which have tranmiion ratio which differ from tand to tand. In a modification the coupling leeve for topping the rolling tand are dipoed on the tranvere haft 20 in order that either the bevel wheel 14 or the pur wheel 18 may be diengaged. What i claimed i: 1. A wire rod mill, compriing: a plurality of erially arranged roll tand; at leat one lontitudinal main drive haft, aid main drive haft erving a a common drive haft for all of aid roll tand; 10 1 2 30 3 40 4 a variable peed drive motor connected to aid main drive haft; a plurality of tranvere haft, one for each of aid roll tand; firt coupling mean connecting each tranvere haft with it aociated roll tand for driving aid roll tand at a elected peed from aid tranvere haft; and plurality of econd coupling mean, one for each tranvere haft, for connecting aid tranvere haft with aid common main drive haft in a fixed, predetermined tranmiion ratio, the econd cou pling mean aociated with the final one of aid roll tand in aid erie, and the econd coupling mean aociated with at leat a plurality of roll tand next preceeding aid final roll tand, each including mean for electively and individually diconnecting their aociated tranvere haft from aid common main drive haft. 2. A wire rod mill a recited in claim 1, wherein aid econd coupling mean comprie: a firt bevel gear fixed on one of aid tranvere haft and aid main drive haft; a econd bevel gear rotatably mounted on the other of aid tranvere haft and aid main drive haft, and engaged with aid firt bevel gear; and coupling leeve mean lidably mounted on aid other of aid tranvere haft and aid main drive haft and rotatable therewith, aid coupling leeve mean being lidable into and out of engagement with aid econd bevel gear to repectively connect and diconnect aid common main drive haft with the aociated tranvere haft. 3. A wire rod mill a recited in claim 2, wherein the tranmiion ratio of all the et of firt and econd bevel gear are equal, and each of aid firt coupling mean comprie pur gear that can be changed to achieve different tranmiion ratio. 4. A wire rod rolling mill a recited in claim 1, wherein aid variable peed drive motor i a d.c. elec tric motor. ck k ck k 4 0 60 6