System for making thin metal strip

Abstract

A thin metal strip is made by hot-rolling a strip workpiece, stretch-bend leveling the hot-rolled strip workpiece immediately after hot-rolling it, tensioning the strip workpiece with a predetermined tension while stretch-bend leveling it, and thereafter coiling up the workpiece. In addition the workpiece is rapidly cooled immediately after stretch-bend leveling it and before coiling it up. Thus the workpiece is stretch-bend leveled before it cools so it can be treated while still about 1100.degree. C., at which temperature it is still very plastic. The workpiece can therefore be deformed greatly while under modest tension, so as to produce a very thin product that is very uniform. The tension in the strip merely serves to keep the workpiece looped over as much an arc as possible around the stretch-bending rolls.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.