Metal heating furnace apparatus

Claim 1

A FURNACE FOR REMOVING SKID MARKS FROM METAL WORKPIECES BEING HEATED, COMPRISING, A HEATING ZONE IN SAID FURNACE HAVING LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING FLUID-COOLED SUPPORTING RAILS THEREIN FOR SAID WORKPIECES, SAID RAILS CAUSING LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY SPACED SKID MARKS ON THE UNDERSIDE OF SAID WORKPIECES, A HORIZONTAL SOAKING ZONE SUCCEEDING SAID HEATING ZONE, A HEARTH IN SAID SOAKING ZONE ONTO AND OVER WHICH SAID WORKPIECES MOVE AFTER LEAVING SAID HEATING ZONE AND RAILS, SAID HEARTH HAVING LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY SPACED HEATING CHANNELS IN INDIVIDUAL CORRESPONDENCE TO AND LONGITUDINAL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID RAILS IN SAID HEATING ZONE, SAID CHANNELS BEING IMMEDIATELY BELOW THE SURFACE OF SAID HEARTH AND OPEN ALONG SUBSTANTIALLY THE WHOLE LENGTH OF THE TOPS THEREOF DIRECTLY AGAINST SKID MARKS ON WORKPIECES PASSING OVER AND ON SAID HEARTH, SAID CHANNELS FURTHER BEING SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF CROSS CONNECTION TO ONE ANOTHER AT LEAST AT THE LEVEL OF SAID HEARTH, WHEREBY HEATING GASES SUPPLIED TO THE ENDS OF SAID CHANNELS RESPECTIVELY FLOW THERETHROUGH AND DIRECTLY HEAT AND REMOVE SKID MARKS OVERLYING SAID CHANNELS, AND INDEPENDENT DIRECT-FIRING REGULATABLE BURNER MEANS POSITIONED IN SAID SOAKING ZONE TO REGULATE THE FLOW OF HEATING GASES SUPPLIED TO SAID CHANNELS THEREBY RESPECTIVELY.