John L Washington

US Patent:

6490900, Dec 10, 2002

Filed:

Oct 11, 2000

Appl. No.:

09/685887

Inventors:

Gene L. Oliver - Hoover AL
John R. Washington - Warrior AL

Assignee:

American Cast Iron Pipe Company - Birmingham AL

International Classification:

B21B 300

US Classification:

72224, 723662

Abstract:

Apparatus and method for gauging and rounding, at room temperature, a section of fully formed seamless ductile iron pipe that has an out-of-round initial cross-section profile and/or a larger than desired initial gauge. The apparatus includes a set of hour-glass shaped gauging/rounding rolls arranged so that the combined profiles of adjacent rolls forms a substantially continuous circular of precise diameter. In operation, the ductile iron pipe is passed though the opening in the set of gauging/rounding rolls, thereby causing the pipe to be gauged and rounded. The pipe is conveyed through one or two sets of rolls to accommodate multiple pipe diameters by a transport mechanism consisting of a rail mounted push car which is moved by one or more fluid actuated cylinders anchored to a base in common with the rail.