Apparatus for shearing, welding and planishing metal strips

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR JOINING THE ENDS OF METAL STRIPS TRAVELING LONGITUDINALLY IN A LINE AFTER BRINGING TO REST THE TRAILING END PORTION OF A LEADING STRIP AND THE LEADING END PORTION OF A TRAILING STRIP AT A COMBINED SHEARING AND WELDING STATION, COMPRISING POWER OPERATED MEANS FOR MOVING SAID END PORTIONS TOGETHER TO THE SHEARING POSITION, TWO PAIRS OF CLAMPING MEANS, EACH PAIR COMPRISING OF AN UPPER AND LOWER POWER OPERATED PLATEN FOR CLAMPING SAID END PORTIONS IN THE SHEARING POSITION, TWO PAIRS OF SHEARING MEANS, EACH PAIR COMPRISED OF AN UPPER AND LOWER ROTARY SHEAR BLADE, THE PLANES OF EACH OF SAID BLADE BEING PARALLEL TO THE PLANES OF THE OTHER OF SAID BLADES, THE UPPER BLADE OF EACH PAIR BEING POSITIONED ABOVE THE PLANE OF THE STRIPS AND THE LOWER BLADE OF EACH PAIR BELOW THE PLANE OF THE STRIPS, ALL OF SAID BLADES BEING SUPPORTED BY A CARRIAGE MOVABLE TRANSVERSELY OF SAID LINE FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY SHEARING BOTH STRIP ENDS IN ONE PASS OF SAID BLADES, MEANS INCLUDING CONTROL MEANS FOR MOVING SAID SHEARED ENDS TOGETHER TO A PRESELECTED WELDING POSITION WHILE STILL CLAMPED, SAID PRESELECTED WELDING POSITION BEING SUBSTANTIALLY COINCIDENT WITH SAID SHEARING POSITION, MEANS FOR MOVING A CHILL BAR DIRECTLY UNDERNEATH SAID ENDS, AND A WELDER MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT TRANSVERSELY OF THE STRIP PATH INDEPENDENTLY OF THE TRANSVERSE MOVEMENT OF THE SHEARING MEANS TO WELD SAID SHEARED ENDS WHILE STILL CLAMPED FROM SAID PREVIOUS SHEARING OPERATION, WHEREBY THE SHEARING AND WELDING OPERATIONS ARE SEQUENTIALLY PERFORMED WITHOUT UNCLAMPING THE STRIP ENDS FROM SAID PLATENS SO AS TO OBTAIN A MORE ACCURATE JOINT.