Rotatable hot metal discharging vessel car

Claim 2

In a hot metal carrier apparatus having an elongated horizontally extending substantially symmetrical vessel body defined by an outer metal shell wall and an inner refractory lining and having a metal introducing and pouring mouth portion that is open through the metal shell wall and the refractory lining and that normally extends vertically upwardly, a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart substantially circular supporting and driving rings secured on and about the shell wall adjacent to and spaced inwardly from opposite ends of the body, a group of wheeled truck assemblies having trucks adjacent opposite ends of the body and providing undersupports therefor moving it along a plant floor, carriage means for supporting the body on each of said truck assemblies, drive shaft means mounted on said carriage means, roller means mounted on said carriage means and being in body-supporting and frictional driving engagement with an associated one of said rings, said roller means having a driven connection with said drive shaft means for rotating said rings to directly turn the body about a longitudinal axis between positions at which the open mouth portion thereof extends substantially vertically and horizontally, and actuating motor means on said carriage means connected to said drive shaft means.

Claim 3

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, said actuating motor means comprising motor means mounted on each said carriage and having a driving gear connected to an associated said drive shaft means, and said rollers being mounted on an associated said drive shaft means.

Claim 4

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, said drive shaft means comprising drive shafts on which each of said roller means is mounted, and said actuating motor means being mounted on and carried by said drive shafts.

Claim 5

In a hot metal carrier as defined in claim 1, said roller means of each of said carriages comprising transversely spaced-apart flanged rollers frictionally engaging an associated one of said circular rings.

Claim 6

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, means pivotally mounting each of said carriage means on its associated wheeled truck assembly, each of said carriage means extending transversely of the body, a pair of swing frames pivotally mounted on each of said carriage means adjacent opposite transverse ends thereof, and said roller means comprising a pair of rollers operatively mounted in a balanced relation on each of said swing frames and in driving engagement with the associated ring.

Claim 7

In a hot metal furnace carrier apparatus as defined in claim 5, said drive shaft means having a drive shaft for each roller of said pair, and said actuating motor means comprising electric motor means operatively carried by said swing frames and said drive shafts for actuating said roller means.

Claim 8

In a hot metal furnace carrier apparatus as defined in claim 5, the rollers of each of said pairs being flanged rollers, each of said circular rings comprising an inner banding flange and an outer centrally disposed rim flange, a central body portion of each of said rollers being adapted to engage an associated rim flange, and flanges of each of said rollers being adapted to engage an associated banding flange adjacent side edges of the associated rim flange.

Claim 9

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, said rings having a varying radius with respect to a central longitudinal axis of the vessel body to provide a frictional-engagement with associated said roller means that increases with one direction of rotation of the body and that decreases with an opposite direction of rotation thereof.

Claim 10

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, swing frames pivotally mounted on each of said carriage means, said drive shaft means having drive shafts operatively carried by said swing frames, said roller means comprising rollers operatively mounted on said drive shafts, and said actuating means comprising electric motor and gear reduction units operatively mounted on said drive shafts for actuating said rollers to rotate the body.

Claim 11

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, each group of truck assemblies having an endwise spaced-apart pair of wheeled trucks, a bridging frame connected at its opposite ends in a spanning relation between the trucks of each pair of said group of assemblies, and each said carriage means having a support carriage centrally mounted on an associated one of said bridging frames.

Claim 12

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 10, substantially horizontally positioned bearing means pivotally mounting each of said carriages on an associated one of said bridging frames.

Claim 13

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 11, each of said carriages extending transversely of the associated one of said bridging frames on which it is mounted, a pair of swing frames mounted on each of said carriages in a balanced relation adjacent opposite transverse ends thereof, and said roller means being operatively mounted in and carried by said swing frames.

Claim 14

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 12, each of said swing frames having a cross-extending pivot and bearing means swingably mounting it on the associated one of said carriages.

Claim 15

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, latching means operatively carried by at least one of said carriage means and latching slot means carried by the shell wall and adapted to be latch-engaged by said latching means for locking the body in positions to which it is rotated.

Claim 16

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, the shell and refractory walls defining a substantially cylindrical container enclosure of uniform diameter fully along its length, each of said rings comprising a rim flange assembly extending about the shell wall of the body in a longitudinally spaced relation from an adjacent end portion thereof that substantially corresponds to its longitudinally spaced relation with respect to the open mouth portion.

Claim 17

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, a pair of swing frames carried on each of said carriage means in a circumferentially spaced under position with respect to the body, said roller means comprising a cooperating pair of flanged rollers operatively mounted in a balanced relation in each of said swing frames and in operative driving engagement with an associated one of said circular rings, and spacer means positioned between each of said rings and the metal shell wall adapted to mount each of said rings in an eccentric relation with respect to a longitudinal axis of the body and in such a manner as to progressively increase the force of engagement between each of said rings and the associated roller means when the body is turned to move the open mouth portion thereof from a veRtically upright position to a horizontal pouring position.

Claim 18

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 1, a pair of swing frames for each of said carriage means, pivot means positioned centrally of each of said swing frames and swingably mounting it on an associated one of said carriage means, and said roller means for each said carriage means comprising a pair of rollers operatively carried by each of said swing frames in a balanced relation with respect to said pivot means.

Claim 19

In a hot metal carrier apparatus as defined in claim 17, said drive shaft means having individual drive shafts mounting each roller of each said pair, and said actuating motor means comprising an individual motor drive unit for each of said drive shafts.

Claim 20

In a hot metal furnace and carrier apparatus having an elongated vessel body defined by an outer metal shell wall and an inner refractory wall and having a mouth portion open through the shell wall and the refractory walls that normally extends vertically upwardly, a pair of endwise spaced-apart wheeled trucks adjacent each longitudinal end of the vessel body, a bridging member operatively connecting the spaced-apart trucks of each pair and having a centrally downwardly offset portion, a cross-extending carriage mounted on said downwardly offset portion, a pair of swing frames mounted on each said carriage adjacent opposite transverse ends thereof, a set of flanged rollers operatively carried by each of said swing frames, a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart substantially circular rim flange assemblies about the shell wall of the container body, means securing each of said rim flange assemblies on and about the shell wall, said flanged rollers of each of said swing frames being in functional driving engagement with an associated one of said rim flange assemblies and supporting said body thereon, motor means carried by each of said swing frames and having a driving connection with said flanged rollers of the associated swing frame for rotating the vessel body to move its open mouth portion between substantially vertical and horizontal positions, and means cooperating with the shell wall and each of said rim flange assemblies for increasing the radius of each assembly from the top portion of the body downwardly along a side portion thereof for applying an increased frictional-engagement of associated sets of flanged rollers therewith when the body is being rotated by said flanged rollers.

Claim 21

In a hot metal furnace and carrier apparatus having an elongated vessel body defined by an outer metal shell wall and an inner refractory wall and having a mouth portion open through the shell wall and the refractory walls that normally extends vertically upwardly, a pair of endwise spaced-apart wheeled trucks adjacent each longitudinal end of the vessel body, a bridging member operatively connecting the spaced-apart trucks of each pair and having a centrally downwardly offset portion, a cross-extending carriage mounted on said downwardly offset portion, a pair of swing frames mounted on each said carriage adjacent opposite transverse ends thereof, a set of flanged rollers operatively carried by each of said swing frames, a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart substantially circular rim flange assemblies about the shell wall of the container body, means securing each of said rim flange assemblies on and about the shell wall, said flanged rollers of each of said swing frames being in functional driving engagement with an associated one of said rim flange assemblies and supporting said body thereon, motor means carried by each of said swing frames and having a driving connection with said flanged rollers of the associated swing frame for rotating the vessel body to move its open mouth portion between substantially vertical and horizontal positions, and means cooperating with the shell wall and each of said rim flange assemblies for increasing the radius of each assembly from the top portion of the body downwardly along a side portion thereof for applying an increased frictional-engagement of associated sets of flanged rollers therewith when the body is being rotated by said flanged rollers.