Flexibly rolling metal strip material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12036593-B2
Application number	US-202017780120-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 27, 2020
Priority date	Nov 27, 2019
Publication date	Jul 16, 2024
Grant date	Jul 16, 2024

Abstract

An apparatus for processing metallic strip material comprises a feeder for feeding strip material; a strip drive with at least one controllable traction drive with a carrier and a motor, a drivable traction loop and a press assembly, wherein the power of the motor and the pressing force of the press assembly are variably controllable; a roller assembly for flexible rolling; a measuring device for measuring a physical parameter of a component acting on the strip material; wherein the driving power of the motor is controllable on the basis of the physical parameter measured by the measuring device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for processing metal strip material, comprising:
a feeder;
a strip driver which has at least one controllable traction drive with at least one motor and a traction loop rotatably drivable by the motor, and a press assembly arranged to press the traction loop against the strip material, wherein a driving force is transmittable from the traction loop, under frictional contact with the strip material, to the strip material;
a plurality of rollers arranged to produce a variable sheet thickness in the strip material over the length of the strip material by varying a roll gap;
a measuring device arranged to measure a physical variable acting on the strip material;
wherein the at least one traction drive is fixed in longitudinal direction of the strip material; and
a control unit configured to control a drive torque of the motor based on the physical variable measured by the measuring device, wherein, by changing the drive torque of the motor, the driving force from the traction drive acting on the strip material is variably adjustable.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the measuring device is a tension measuring device which is arranged between the strip drive and the rollers in order to measure, as a physical variable, an infeed tensile force acting on the strip material.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the measuring device is a force measuring device which is arranged on one of the rollers in order to measure, as a physical variable, a rolling force of the rollers acting on the strip material.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the measuring device is a position measuring device which is arranged on a setting unit of the rollers in order to measure as a physical variable a setting position of a roller acting on the strip material.

5. The apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein a second strip driver is arranged downstream of the rollers in the direction of movement of the strip material, with the second strip driver having at least one second controllable traction drive with a motor, a second traction loop that is rotatably drivable by the motor, and a second press assembly for pressing the second traction loop against the strip material;
wherein a second tension measuring device is arranged between the rollers and the second strip driver to measure the outfeed tensile force acting on the strip material on the outfeed side,
wherein the drive power of the motor of the second strip driver is variably controlled on the basis of the outfeed tensile force measured by the second tension measuring device.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein, for at least one of the first and second strip drives, the pressure of the respective press assembly is variably controlled on the basis of the tensile force measured by respective first or second tension measuring device.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein a strip buffer is provided in which the strip material is storable as it passes between a buffer inlet and a buffer outlet.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7 ,
wherein the strip buffer includes a vertical buffer, a horizontal buffer, or a loop buffer.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the motor is a hydraulic motor or an electric motor.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the strip drive is configured to generate tensile forces of at least 1 N/mm 2 and of less than 120 N/mm 2 with respect to the cross-sectional area of the strip material;
wherein, when a strip material made of steel is used, the strip drive is configured to generate tensile forces of at least 50 N/mm 2 with respect to the cross-sectional area of the strip material.

11. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the strip drive is configured to accelerate and decelerate the strip material at a rate of at least 3 m/sec 2 .

12. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the strip drive comprises two traction drives, with the two traction drives each having a drivable first axle which is rotatably drivable by the motor to transmit a drive torque to the respective traction loop and a second axle which is rotatably driven by the respective traction loop.

13. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein two controllable traction drives are provided, between which the strip material is passed through with frictional contact, so that the strip material during operation of the traction drives is moved in a direction of movement of traction loop sections in contact with the strip material, wherein the respective press assembly exerts pressure on the respective traction loop towards the strip material.

14. The apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein a strip cleaner is arranged between the feeder and the strip drive.

15. The apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein the second strip drive is supported against a stationary component at least by a spring, wherein the power of the motor of the second strip drive can be kept constant.

16. A method of processing metal strip material comprising:
driving the strip material by a strip drive, wherein the strip material is uncoiled from a feeder and fed to downstream rollers for flexible rolling, wherein the strip drive includes at least one controllable traction loop which is rotatably drivable by a motor, and a press assembly arranged to press the traction loop against the strip material;
sensing a physical value acting on the strip material by a measuring device arranged on the rollers for flexible rolling or its periphery;
wherein the at least one traction loop is fixed stationarily in the longitudinal direction of the strip material to a stationary part, and
wherein the drive torque of the motor is controlled as a function of the physical value measured by the measuring device, with the drive force acting on the strip material by the traction loop being varied by changing the drive torque of the motor.

17. The method according to claim 16 ,
wherein a tension measuring device is used as the measuring device in order to measure an infeed tensile force acting on the strip material as a physical value.

18. The method according to claim 16 ,
wherein a force measuring device is used to measure, as a physical value, a rolling force of the rollers acting on the strip material, or
that a position measuring device is used to measure as a physical value a setting position of a roll acting on the strip material.

19. The method according to claim 16 ,
wherein a pressing force of the press assembly is controlled in dependence on the physical value determined by the measuring device, wherein the drive power of the motor and the pressing force of the press assembly are controlled in such a way that the driving force acting on the strip material by the strip drive is controlled dynamically between 1 and 120 N/mm 2 with respect to the cross-section of the strip material.

20. The method according to claim 16 , further comprising:
driving the strip material by a second strip drive which is arranged downstream of the rollers in the direction of movement of the strip material, with the second strip drive comprising at least one second controllable traction drive with a motor, a traction loop drivable by the motor, and a press assembly for pressing the traction loop against the strip material;
sensing a run-out tensile force acting on the strip material by a second tension measuring device arranged between the rollers and the second strip drive; and
setting

Assignees

• Muhr & Bender Kg

Inventors

• Pritz Stephan
• Hörth Stefan

Classifications

• B21B1/24

  in a continuous {or semi-continuous} process {(B21B1/224 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B21C47/003

  Regulation of tension or speed; Braking · CPC title

• B21C47/3458

  Endlessly revolving chain systems · CPC title

• B21B2015/0028

  Drawing the rolled product · CPC title

• B21B37/26

  for obtaining one strip having successive lengths of different constant thickness · CPC title