Patents Assigned to Siemens VAI Metals Technologies
  • Patent number: 8020417
    Abstract: A method and device for controlling the final thickness of a rolled product at a tandem rolling mill exit which make it possible to remove the cyclic defects of the product thickness variation. The method includes using at least one rolling stand provided with hydraulic adjustment devices located on the tandem rolling mill exit and in compensating the cyclic defects of the product thickness variation generated upstream through the entire rolling mill on the stand with the aid of an adjuster (R) coordinated with the frequency of defects. The method and device are suitable for tandem cold rolling mills producing metal strips. The thickness defects are detectable by a thickness sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2006
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens VAI Metals Technologies SAS
    Inventors: Michel Abi Karam, Stéphane Gouttebroze
  • Publication number: 20110222057
    Abstract: A method and a device measure a chemical composition of a liquid metal suitable for coating a steel strip. The method measures a chemical composition of a liquid metal suitable for coating a steel strip for which the liquid metal is formed continuously in a first cavity, and the composition of the liquid metal is measured on a direct measurement surface thereof, for which a specimen of the liquid metal reaching the measurement surface is heated to a chosen temperature so as to isolate principally iron-based impurities from the measurement surface. Several embodiments of devices suitable for implementing the method are also presented.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 14, 2008
    Publication date: September 15, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventors: Benjamin Grenier, Marc Michaut
  • Patent number: 8016910
    Abstract: A method for producing liquid pig iron or liquid steel intermediate products from fine-particled material containing iron oxide. The fine-particled material is prereduced in at least one prereduction stage and reduced in a final reduction stage to sponge iron. The sponge iron is melted in a melt-down gasification zone, with carbon carriers and oxygen-containing gas supplied. A CO- and H2-containing reduction gas is generated and introduced into the final reduction stage, is converted there, is drawn off and introduced into at least one prereduction stage, converted there and drawn off. A first quantity fraction of the fine-particled material containing iron oxide is introduced into a melt-down gasification zone via at least one prereduction stage and one final reduction stage, and a further quantity fraction of the fine-particled material containing iron oxide is introduced into the melt-down gasification zone directly or together with the carbon carriers and the oxygen-containing gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2007
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens Vai Metals Technologies GmbH
    Inventor: Bogdan Vuletic
  • Publication number: 20110186282
    Abstract: A method and a device adjust the cooling of a steel strip in an annealing or galvanization phase. The device is suitable for the forced cooling of a steel strip continuously running in a plant adapted for the continuous annealing or the continuous tempering galvanization. The device has at least one exchange member for transferring the heat of the steel strip to cooling water and includes an outlet for the cooling water thus heated up. At least one cooling unit is provided and has a sealed enclosure connected to the outlet of the exchange member and includes at least one outlet to a Venturi effect device such as a vapor outlet ejector and in which the cooling water itself is subjected to a vacuum-vaporization cooling. An auxiliary outlet of the sealed enclosure is connected to an inlet of the exchange member.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2008
    Publication date: August 4, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES S.A.S.
    Inventor: Pierre-Jérôme Borrel
  • Publication number: 20110186141
    Abstract: A device and a method for positioning two baffles in the vicinity of each of two edges of a moving steel strip exiting a continuous line for dip-galvanizing a strip in a liquid galvanizing product such as liquid zinc. The baffles control turbulence to the side of the two strip edges. Each of the wipers is supported by a beam that is also longer than the strip width. The baffles are arranged on an arm having a width greater than the strip width, the arm having two movable ends, wherein each movable end adjacent to a strip edge is coupled, via two synchronization devices, to each of the respective adjacent ends of the two beams so that the movable end is instantly centered between the two adjacent ends.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Publication date: August 4, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventors: Pierre Bourgier, Jean-Jacques Hardy
  • Publication number: 20110177258
    Abstract: A method and device disclose how to drain a liquid coating metal from the two sides of a running steel strip. The method transfers a strip coated with a liquid coating metal, as it runs at the tank outlet, from a region not subjected to a magnetic field to another region subjected to a static magnetic field generated between the poles of magnetic members arranged opposite each other on either side of the strip and having field lines, or at least a main shell of the field lines, intersecting with the strip over at least one minimum longitudinal extent so that the liquid coating metal is correlatively subjected to a magnetic field variation generating on the liquid metal a force opposite to the running direction. Due to the low field variation, this magnetic braking effect generates little Foucault current in the strip.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 23, 2008
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicants: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS, L'INSTITUT POLYTECHNIQUE DE GRENOBLE
    Inventors: Roland Ernst, Yves Fautrelle, Benjamin Grenier, Jean-Jacques Hardy
  • Patent number: 7980109
    Abstract: A method for inspecting a strip in a reversible rolling plant comprising at least one cage arranged between two winding/unwinding devices each having a mandrel. The rolling is performed in several passes until the requested thickness is obtained over the whole length of a useful part ranging between two service lengths maintained wound on each of the mandrels. According to the invention, at the end of the last pass between a winder/unwinder placed upstream of the cage in the rolling direction and acting as an uncoiler, and a downstream winder/unwinder acting as a coiler, the upstream service length is unwound completely from the uncoiler, then subjected to a roll pass; the strip is then cut in the vicinity of the end of its useful part to release, at its rear end in the direction of the last pass, an inspection length whereof at least one part corresponds to said upstream service length rolled once.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens VAI Metals Technologies
    Inventor: Jean Perret
  • Publication number: 20110168215
    Abstract: A device for cleaning a roll of a steel strip conversion plant is configured to move parallel to an axis of the roll. At least an even number N>0 of parallel spray nozzles are oriented perpendicular to the axis of the roll. A first number N/2 of the nozzles are fixed to a first arm of a supporting member and a second number N/2 of nozzles are fixed to a second arm of the supporting member. The supporting member is coupled to an actuator, and the actuator has a travel of at least 1/N of a length of the roll.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2008
    Publication date: July 14, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventor: Pierre Anglade
  • Patent number: 7970202
    Abstract: A method for detecting defects of a material moving in a rolling mill generally comprises illuminating product, obtaining (ACQ) image thereof in at least one spectral band, in pre-processing the formed image, in detecting and extracting (DTEXTR) eventually suspected areas of the pre-processed image, and in classifying (CLASS) the suspected areas into one or several defect or defect-free categories. For hot-rolled materials, the product is inspected in three disjointed spectral bands, including infrared, red and, for instance, green band in such a way that the suspected areas are classified into one or several defect-free or defect categories including the surface and structural defects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2006
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens VAI Metals Technologies SAS
    Inventors: Pierre-Jean Janin, Mathieu Peyssard
  • Patent number: 7963136
    Abstract: Processes for continuous production of a thin metal strip, in particular a steel hot strip, directly from a metal melt and with a strip cast thickness of <10 mm by the roll-casting process. The cast metal strip is fed for in-line thickness reduction, and then to a storage device. To achieve a high-quality, hot-rolled metal strip with flatness tolerances comparable to those which can currently be achieved in the production of hot-rolled metal strip from continuous-cast thin slabs or slabs, at cast thicknesses of between 40 and 300 mm, in a continuous production process starting directly from metal melt. With the low strip cast thickness, a flatness measurement is performed on the moving metal strip, and the measurement results of this flatness measurement are used to influence the flatness of the metal strip in a targeted way.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens Vai Metals Technologies GmbH & Co
    Inventors: Andreas Flick, Andreas Schweighofer, Markus Brummayer, Gerald Hohenbichler, Gerald Eckerstorfer
  • Publication number: 20110119905
    Abstract: A device for installing at least one roller in a liquid zinc bath in a galvanizing line used for the galvanization of a continuously-moving steel strip has a beam to which a first pair of arms is attached. The first pair of arms bears a bottom roller. The bottom roller is intended to be submerged in the liquid zinc bath towards a bottom roller operation position, relative to the naturally submerged position of the bottom roller, by way of a movement provided together with a first cylindrical bearing attached to each of the two ends of the beam and supporting the first pair of arms. A second cylindrical bearing is attached to each of the two ends of the beam and separate from the first cylindrical bearing on the same beam end section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2008
    Publication date: May 26, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventors: Pierre Bourgier, Jean-Jacques Hardy
  • Publication number: 20110099783
    Abstract: A method for changing rollers in a roll stand adapted for bearing at least one working roller for a continuously-running steel-strip roll mill, includes providing the stand as part of a plurality of roll stands disposed in series along the roll mill in a continuous running direction. A rolling standby function in a free clamping position of the roller(s) is allocated to at least one dedicated stand among the plurality of stands. Original setpoint values controlling an adjustment of the roller clamping are individually allocated to the other stands in an active rolling position. In the case of a roller change when passing into the free clamping position of the stand, the original setpoint value of the stand and the original setpoint values of the stands remaining in an active rolling position are redistributed individually among each of the stands, including the dedicated stand.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 19, 2008
    Publication date: May 5, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventors: Vincent Cronier, Bernard Rossigneux
  • Publication number: 20110101577
    Abstract: A conveying system comprising elements for conveying lumpy, particularly hot, conveying stock and a cover for shielding the conveying stock. Disclosed are measures for inerting the conveying stock. A combined system encompasses a reduction plant for reducing oxides in a continuous process and processing unit for producing liquid metal in a discontinuous process. The reduction product is deliverable from the reduction plant to the processing unit. A method for coupling a reduction method used for reducing oxides in a continuous process and a method used for producing liquid metal in a discontinuous process. A reduction product from the reduction method is fed to the liquid metal production method for processing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 16, 2010
    Publication date: May 5, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES GMBH & CO.
    Inventors: Harald Fischer, Ernst Oberndorfer, Hanspeter Ofner, Wilhelm Schiffer
  • Patent number: 7926547
    Abstract: In the case of a strand guiding roller with at least one roller shell and with at least two supporting shafts, two supporting shafts being respectively connected in a rotationally fixed manner to a roller shell and each supporting shaft being rotatably supported in a supporting bearing, to achieve a type of construction that is simple and can withstand the high thermal and mechanical loading that occurs, it is proposed that the roller shell is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the supporting shafts carrying it on both sides by shrink-fit connections or by press-fit connections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens Vai Metals Technologies GmbH & Co.
    Inventors: Johann Poeppl, Guoxin Shan, Heinrich Thoene, Josef Watzinger, Franz Wimmer
  • Patent number: 7914731
    Abstract: A process for sintering metal-containing materials, such as iron ores or manganese ores, on a sintering machine including a sintering belt for transporting the sinter mix during sintering thereof. The sintering belt has first, second and third portions. Sintering waste gas from the third portion is transported to and unified with sintering waste gas from the first portion in a mixing region to form a mixed gas, wherein the transporting distance of the sintering waste gas from the third portion to the mixing region is greater than the transporting distance of the sintering waste gas from the first portion to the mixing region. An apparatus for carrying out the process is disclosed, including the sintering belt, suction boxes operative at the portions of the belt, and lines for conveying the gas produced and the gases used in the process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens Vai Metals Technology GmbH & Co.
    Inventors: Karl Laaber, Oskar Pammer, Hans-Herbert Stiasny, Anton Sebanz, Karl Zehetbauer
  • Publication number: 20110067595
    Abstract: A system for guiding a mobile carriage in a frame. The frame has three parallel linear-guiding tracks including a first track extending centrally on the frame and second and third tracks arranged laterally of the first track. The carriage has at least two axes of rotation. A first axis drives at least a first wheel in the first guiding track and a second axis drives at least a second wheel and at least a third wheel, respectively, in the second and third guiding tracks. The two axes of rotation are perpendicular. The description also relates to an associated method. A primary object is to enable the end of a mobile beam, such as a beam carrying a device for wiping a galvanizing product off a steel strip, to perform a guided movement with a high degree of freedom while minimizing mechanical stresses.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2008
    Publication date: March 24, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventors: Pierre Bourgier, Jean-Jacques HARDY
  • Publication number: 20110061435
    Abstract: A rolling plant has a reversible rolling mill with two stands. Each upright of the stands rests on a support structure via a bearing surface and is fastened thereto by a bolt or shank integral with the structure and cooperating with the upright via a removable fastening device. The bearing surface of each upright is provided on the lower face of the upright, without extending beyond the lateral faces directed along the rolling direction of the uprights, and is formed with a hole opening into a hollow housing provided in the upright and having an orifice opening onto a lateral face of the upright. The bolt or shank extends through the hole and projects into the housing, and the removable fastening device is placed inside the housing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2008
    Publication date: March 17, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventor: Bernard Rossigneux
  • Publication number: 20110059266
    Abstract: A method of drying and/or curing an organic coating on a continuously running metal strip, includes heating the strip by electromagnetic induction in a tunnel furnace having an enclosure with hot internal walls and heating the enclosure. The heating of the strip by electromagnetic induction is coupled with heating by infrared radiation and heating by convection with a combustion gas. The heating of the enclosure of the furnace is performed by convection using the same combustion gas used for heating the strip by convection. A device for implementing the method is also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 8, 2008
    Publication date: March 10, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventor: Pierre-Jérôme Borrel
  • Publication number: 20110053107
    Abstract: A method for operating a continuous annealing or galvanizing line for a metal strip, uses a direct flame heating section with an upstream zone and a downstream zone. The direct flame heating section is followed by a radiant tube heating section. The metal strip is indirectly heated in the direct flame heating section. The heating of the metal strip is achieved in the upstream zone by combustion of a mixture of atmospheric air and fuel such that the temperature of the combustion gas is between 1250° C. and 1500° C., preferably close to 1350° C. and in the downstream zone, the heating of the metal strip is achieved by combustion of a superoxygenated substoichiometric mixture of air and fuel such that the temperature of the combustion gas achieved at the end of the upstream zone is maintained until the end of the downstream zone of the direct flame heating section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 4, 2008
    Publication date: March 3, 2011
    Applicant: SIEMENS VAI METALS TECHNOLOGIES SAS
    Inventor: Pierre-Jérôme Borrel
  • Patent number: 7891224
    Abstract: The invention relates to the design of multiple piece rolls, in particular backup rolls, for the use in metal rolling. The roll comprises a main part with a center bore for the removal of center defects or flaws arising from the manufacturing process, e.g., from casing or forging and at least an end part, whereas the end part has no center bore or a center bore with a diameter smaller than the bore diameter of the main part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2011
    Assignee: Siemens Vai Metals Technologies Ltd.
    Inventors: Brian Cooper, Shaun Tyas