Continuous heating furnace for elongated metal ingots

Claim 1

Continuous heating furnace having a plurality of walls defining an enclosure formed with a heating chamber for elongated metal ingots, such as slab ingots, through which the ingots are transportable transversely in at least one row along at least one conveying route, each of the ingots having two ends and being heatable predominantly by heat radiated from the walls of the furnace, comprising a plurality of screening shields arranged adjacent the conveying route at the ends of the ingots, said screening shields being mounted in said furnace and arranged in front of at least one of said walls for shielding the ends of the ingots against the heat radiated from the walls of the furnace, said shields including horizontal and vertical portions confronting said ends of the ingots and defining at least one niche accommodating one end of the ingot and reducing the size of the heating chamber of the furnace adjacent the end of the ingot, said shields facing the upper and side surfaces of said end of the ingot at said niche, and means adjustably positioning the shields relative to the furnace wall to adjust the spacing with the ingot and thereby define the size of the niches.