US 5,346,116 AGranted

Machine for forming a metal strip into a tubular form having a stop-restart displacement mechanism

OwnerBertie F. Hall, Jr.inventor

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Abstract

A machine for continuously producing metal tubing from a flat metal strip in which the welder, weld closing rolls, and seam guide are attached to a base plate slidably attached to a support structure. The base plate is displaceable relative to the support structure between an operating position and a start position. The base plate may be displaced by a manually operated actuator or by an electromechanical mechanism. The base plate is placed in the start position when the machine is stopped and is slowly displaced to the operating position when the machine is restarted. During displacement of the base plate to the operation position, the welder overwelds a portion of the seam previously welded. The seam weld during a restart transition of the base plate from the start to the operating position produces a defect-free seam weld.

Claims31

Dependent claims

A machine for making welded tubing from a flat metal strip comprising:

a support structure;
a base plate slidably attached to said support structure, said base plate displaceable in a first direction between a normal operating position and a start position;
at least one pair of forming rolls rotatably attached to said base plate for partially forming a received flat metal strip into a tubular form;
a pair of weld closing rolls rotatably attached to said base plate at a location downstream from said at least one pair of forming rolls, said weld closing rolls completing the forming of the received metal strip into said tubular form, the longitudinal edges of said metal strip forming a longitudinal seam;
welding means attached to said base plate downstream of said pair of weld closing rolls for welding said longitudinal edges of said metal strip to each other to seal said seam;
and
means for displacing said base plate from said operating position to said start position and for displacing said base plate from said start position to said operating position, said base plate in said start position locating said welding means over a previously welded portion of said longitudinal seam.

4 more elements

A method for operating a machine for forming a tube from a metal strip, said machine having at least one pair of forming rolls, a pair of weld closing rolls, and a welder for welding a seam formed by the longitudinal edges of the metal strip after being formed by the weld closing rolls, said method comprising the steps of:

longitudinally displacing from a normal operation location at least said welder and said weld closing rolls to a start position selected to place said welder over a previously welded portion of said seam in response to said machine being stopped;
and
longitudinally displacing at least said welder and said weld closing rolls to said normal operating location in response to said machine being started, said welder overwelding said previously welded portion of said seam during said longitudinal displacement and continuing to weld the seam formed by said pair of weld closing rolls thereafter.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 08/081,641Filed 24 Jun 1993
Granted: 13 Sep 1994
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

B21C 37/08
Of tubes or metal hoses; Combined procedures for making tubes, e.g. for making multi-wall tubes: making tubes with welded or soldered seams
B23K 9/0253
For rectilinear seams: for the longitudinal seam of tubes
B21C
Manufacture of metal sheets, wire, rods, tubes, profiles or like semi-manufactured products
B23K
Soldering or unsoldering

Family

No related US applications are recorded in the indexed filing history.

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