Patents by Inventor Akio Tosaka

Akio Tosaka has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20030041932
    Abstract: The present invention provides a high tensile strength hot-rolled steel sheet having superior strain aging hardenability, which has high formability and stable quality characteristics, and in which satisfactory strength is obtained when the steel sheet is formed into automotive components, thus enabling the reduction in weight of automobile bodies. Specifically, a method for producing a high tensile strength hot-rolled steel sheet having superior strain aging hardenability with a BH of 80 MPa or more, a &Dgr;TS of 40 MPa or more, and a tensile strength of 440 MPa or more includes the steps of heating a steel slab to 1,000° C. or more, the steel slab containing, in percent by mass, 0.15% or less of C, 2.0% or less of Si, 3.0% or less of Mn, 0.08% or less of P, 0.02% or less of S, 0.02% or less of Al, 0.0050% to 0.0250% of N, and optionally 0.1% or less in total of at least one of more than 0.02% to 0.1% of Nb and more than 0.02% to 0.1% of V, the ratio N (mass %)/Al (mass %) being 0.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 2, 2001
    Publication date: March 6, 2003
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Sinjiro Kaneko, Yoichi Tominaga, Noriyuki Katayama, Nobutaka Kurosawa, Kei Sakata, Osamu Furukimi
  • Publication number: 20030015263
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a cold-rolled steel sheet and an alloyed hot-dip galvanized steel sheet in which tensile strength is effectively increased by press forming and heat treatment while maintaining excellent deep drawability in press forming. Specifically, a steel composition contains less than 0.01% of C, 0.005 to 1.0% of Si, 0.01 to 1.0% of Mn, 0.005 to 0.050% of Nb, 0.005 to 0.030% of Al, 0.005 to 0.040% of N, 0.0005 to 0.0015% of B, 0.05% or less of P, and 0.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 18, 2002
    Publication date: January 23, 2003
    Inventors: Chikara Kami, Akio Tosaka, Takuya Yamazaki
  • Patent number: 6398884
    Abstract: This invention can form a sufficiently internal oxide layer in a surface layer portion of an iron matrix of a steel sheet by hot rolling a base steel and subjecting to a heat treatment at a temperature range of 650-950° C. in an atmosphere substantially not causing reduction while being adhered with a black skin scale irrespectively of a chemical steel composition or production history, or even when a radiation type heating of a radial tube or the like is used in a recrystallization annealing before a hot dipping treatment, and hence excellent hot-dipping property and conversion treating property can be given to a steel sheet for hot dipping.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2002
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuaki Kyono, Shigeru Umino, Akio Tosaka, Keiji Nishimura, Hiromasa Hayashi
  • Patent number: 6364968
    Abstract: The invention provides a thin high-strength hot-rolled steel sheet with a thickness of not more than 3.5 mm which has excellent stretch flangeability and high uniformity in both shape and mechanical properties of the steel sheet, as well as a method of producing the hot-rolled steel sheet. A slab containing C: 0.05-0.30 wt %, Si: 0.03-1.0 wt %, Mn: 1.5-3.5 wt %, P: not more than 0.02 wt %, S: not more than 0.005 wt %, Al: not more than 0.150 wt %, N: not more than 0.0200 wt %, and one or two of Nb: 0.003-0.20 wt % and Ti: 0.005-0.20 wt % is heated at a temperature of not higher than 1200° C. The slab is hot-rolled at a finish rolling end temperature of not lower than 800° C., preferably at a finish rolling start temperature of 950-1050° C. A hot-rolled sheet is started to be cooled within two seconds after the end of the rolling, and then continuously cooled down to a coiling temperature at a cooling rate of 20-150° C./sec. The hot-rolled sheet is coiled at a temperature of 300-550° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 2, 2002
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Eiko Yasuhara, Akio Tosaka, Osamu Furukimi, Takao Uchiyama, Nobuo Yamada
  • Patent number: 6290784
    Abstract: A hot rolled steel sheet comprises ultrafine ferrite grains as a main phase and fine second phase particles. The ferrite grains have an average grain size of not less than 2 &mgr;m but less than 4 &mgr;m. The second phase has an average particle size of not more than 8 &mgr;m and in not less than 80% of the second phase, the spacing of the second phase particle with the closest second phase particle is not less than the second phase particle size. The steel sheet has an ultrafine grain structure, superior mechanical characteristics, reduced anisotropy in its mechanical characteristics and high formability. A process for producing the steel sheet is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 18, 2001
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Eiko Yasuhara, Akio Tosaka, Osamu Furukimi
  • Publication number: 20010004910
    Abstract: A hot rolled steel sheet comprises ultrafine ferrite grains as a main phase and fine second phase particles. The ferrite grains have an average grain size of not less than 2 &mgr;m but less than 4 &mgr;m. The second phase has an average particle size of not more than 8 &mgr;m and in not less than 80% of the second phase, the spacing of the second phase particle with the closest second phase particle is not less than the second phase particle size. The steel sheet has an ultrafine grain structure, superior mechanical characteristics, reduced anisotropy in its mechanical characteristics and high formability. A process for producing the steel sheet is also disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 22, 2001
    Publication date: June 28, 2001
    Applicant: Kawasaki Steel Corp.
    Inventors: Eiko Yasuhara, Akio Tosaka, Osamu Furukimi
  • Patent number: 6221180
    Abstract: The invention provides a can steel sheet having satisfactory surface appearance and having workability, appearance property after working and high yield that can meet demands on complicated can forming, and a manufacturing process thereof. To be more specific, according to the invention, a slab having a composition containing, in weight %, C: more than 0.005% and equal to or less than 0.1%, Mn: 0.05-1.0% is subjected to hot-rolling at a finishing temperature of 800 to 1000° C., to coiling at 500 to 750° C., to cold-rolling, followed by continuous annealing at a recrystallization temperature or higher and 800° C. or lower, and then to box annealing at a temperature higher than 500° C. and equal to or lower than 600° C. for 1 hr or longer. The steel sheet has preferably a structure containing ferrite as a principle phase and having a mean grain diameter of 10 &mgr;m or less and further containing 0.1-1% by weight of pearlite grains each having a grain diameter of 0.5-3 &mgr;m.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 1999
    Date of Patent: April 24, 2001
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Masatoshi Aratani, Osamu Furukimi, Hideo Kuguminato, Makoto Aratani, Yuji Miki
  • Patent number: 6171416
    Abstract: At least both ends of a sheet bar in the length direction, which is obtained by roughly rolling a steel slab including 0.1 wt % or less of C, 0.5 wt % or less of Si, 1.0 wt % or less of Mn, 0.1 wt % or less of P, 0.05 wt % or less of S, 0.20 wt % or less of Al, and 0.015 wt % or less of N, are heated so that the temperature at both ends of the sheet bar in the length direction is 15° C. or more higher than the temperature of the remainder of the sheet bar. The rolling finish temperature is Ar3+20° C. to Ar3+100° C. in both end portions of the sheet bar in the length direction, and Ar3+10° C. to Ar3+60° C. in the remainder, and the rolling finish temperature in the both end portions in the length direction is 10° C. or more higher than that of the remainder, so that a steel strip after cold rolling and annealing has r values within ±0.3 of the average r value, and &Dgr;r within ±0.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2001
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Makoto Aratani, Yukio Kobata, Hideo Kuguminato, Akio Tosaka, Masatoshi Aratani, Susumu Okada
  • Patent number: 6110299
    Abstract: A steel sheet for double-rolled tubes has excellent formability, and excellent strength and toughness after forming and heat treatment of a tube because of suppressed coarsening of the ferrite grain size and a method for making the same comprises: hot finish-rolling of a steel material containing C: 0.0005-0.020 wt %, and one or two of Nb: 0.003-0.040 wt %, and Ti: 0.005-0.060 wt % at a final temperature of 1,000-850.degree. C., coiling at 750.degree. C. or less, cold rolling, continuous annealing at 650.degree. C.-850.degree. C. for 20 seconds or less, and second cold-rolling at a rolling reduction rate of 20% or less, so that at least one of Nb and Ti is present in a solid solution state in an amount of 0.005 wt % or more, and the crystal grain size in the ferrite structure is in the range of 5 to 10 .mu.m.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 1998
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2000
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Kaneharu Okuda, Masatoshi Aratani
  • Patent number: 6063214
    Abstract: A method of producing a steel sheet useful for making cans. The method steps include hot-rolling a slab consisting of about 0.0005 to 0.01 wt % C, about 0.001 to 0.04 wt % N (the total of C and N is at least about 0.008 wt %), about 0.05 to 2.0 wt % Mn, about 0.005 wt % or less Al, about 0.01 wt % or less O at a finish rolling temperature within a temperature range of about the Ar.sub.3 point to about 950.degree. C., coiling the rolled material at a temperature range of about 400 to 600.degree. C., cold rolling the material, continuously annealing the material at a temperature higher than the recrystallization temperature, and then temper-rolling the material. The steel sheet exhibits good workability during can making and which can be formed into a can having high strength.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 1994
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2000
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Chikako Fujinaga, Akio Tosaka, Toshiyuki Kato, Kaku Sato, Hideo Kuguminato, Yoshihiro Okawa
  • Patent number: 6042952
    Abstract: A steel slab is rough-rolled into a sheet bar and butt-joined onto a preceding sheet bar and a widthwise end portion of the sheet bar is heated by means of an edge heater and then subjected to a continuous finish rolling through pair-cross rolls rolling on at least 3 stands to provide a hot rolled steel strip having a width of not less than 950 mm, a thickness of 0.5-2 mm and a crown within .+-.40 .mu.m, and the hot rolled steel strip is subjected to cold rolling, continuous annealing, temper rolling and, if necessary, plating treatment on the surface of the cold rolled steel strip, whereby there is obtained a steel sheet having an average thickness of not more than 0.20 mm and a width of not less than 950 mm, a thickness variation quantity in a widthwise direction is within .+-.4% of the average thickness in a region corresponding to not less than 95% of the width of the steel sheet as cold rolled and a hardness (HR30T) variation in the widthwise direction is within .+-.3 of an average hardness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2000
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Makoto Aratani, Naotoshi Ryu, Hideo Kuguminato, Akio Tosaka, Kaneharu Okuda, Masatoshi Aratani, Susumu Okada
  • Patent number: 5759306
    Abstract: A method is provided for making a steel sheet suitable as a can material. The method includesa step for hot rolling a steel slab to a strip having a thickness of less than about 1.2 mm,a step for coiling the strip into a coil at a temperature range between about 600.degree. and 750.degree. C.,a step for pickling the coil with an acid, anda step for cold rolling the coil at a rolling reduction rate of about 50 to 90 percent, wherein the steel slab containsabout 0.0020 weight percent or less of carbon,about 0.020 weight percent or less of silicon,about 0.50 weight percent or less of manganese,about 0.020 weight percent or less of phosphorus,about 0.010 weight percent or less of sulfur,about 0.150 weight percent or less of aluminum,about 0.0050 weight percent or less of nitrogen, andthe balance iron and incidental impurities.A steel sheet suitable as a can material is also provided by this method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 2, 1998
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Kaneharu Okuda, Toshiyuki Kato, Hideo Kuguminato
  • Patent number: 5725697
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a cold-rolled can steel sheet having less planar anisotropy and achieving good workability. Rough-rolling is first performed on a continuously-cast slab. The slab has a composition essentially consisting of: C: 0.004 wt % or lower; Mn: 0.05-0.5 wt %; P: 0.02 wt % or lower; Al: 0.005-0.07 wt %; N: 0.004 wt % or lower; and Nb: 0.001-0.018 wt %, the rest being Fe and unavoidable impurities. A resultant sheet bar is then subjected to hot rolling which is completed at a finishing rolling temperature at an Ar.sub.3 transformation point or higher. The resultant sheet bar is coiled at a temperature range from 450.degree.-700.degree. C. Subsequently, the resultant sheet bar undergoes primary cold rolling before continuous annealing, which is performed at a recrystallization temperature or higher, and secondary cold rolling. The primary and secondary cold rolling are respectively performed at reduction ratios satisfying the following conditions of:88%.gtoreq.CR.sub.1 %+0.36.times.CR.sub.2 .
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1994
    Date of Patent: March 10, 1998
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Chikako Fujinaga, Akio Tosaka, Toshiyuki Kato, Kaku Sato, Hideo Kuguminato
  • Patent number: 5587027
    Abstract: A method for manufacturing a canning steel sheet with non-aging property and superior workability uses, as a starting material, an ultra-low-carbon steel slab composed of from 0.0015% to 0.0100% by weight C, up to 0.20% by weight Si, from 0.10% to 1.20% by weight Mn, from 0.02% to 0.10% by weight Al, from 0.005% to 0.040% by weight P, up to 0.015% by weight S, up to 0.005% by weight N, and balance iron and unavoidable impurities. The manufacturing method includes hot rolling the steel, cold rolling the steel at a reduction ratio not less than 70% after pickling, and recrystallization annealing the steel by using a continuous annealing furnace in an atmosphere having a hydrogen content not less than 3% and a dew point not lower than -20.degree. C. at a temperature not lower than 730.degree. C. so that the content of remained C in the steel is kept less than 0.0015% by weight. At least one element selected from Nb, Ti and B may be added in predetermined amounts to the above composition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 24, 1996
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Chikako Fujinaga, Toshiyuki Kato, Kaku Sato, Hideo Kuguminato
  • Patent number: 5534089
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing a small planar anisotropic high-strength can steel plate. Hot-rolling is first performed on a steel slab at an Ar.sub.3 transformation point or higher to obtain hot rolled steel strip. The slab has a composition which essentially consists of and which satisfies the conditions of: C.ltoreq.0.004%, Si.ltoreq.0.02%, Mn=0.5%-3%, P.ltoreq.0.02%, Al=0.02%-0.05%, 0.008%.ltoreq.N.ltoreq.0.024%, and the rest being Fe and unavoidable impurities, wherein the conditions have the relationship of:Al%/N%>2. Then, the resultant strip is cooled at a cooling rate of 10.degree. C./s or higher so as to reach a temperature of 650.degree. C. or lower. The resultant strip is further coiled at a temperature in a range of from 550.degree. C. to 400.degree. C. Cold-rolling is performed on the resultant strip at a reduction ratio of 82% or higher preceded by removing a scale to obtain cold rolled steel strip.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 1994
    Date of Patent: July 9, 1996
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Chikako Fujinaga, Akio Tosaka, Toshiyuki Kato, Kaku Sato
  • Patent number: 5074926
    Abstract: A high tensile cold rolled steel sheet improved in stretch flanging property, containing 0.03% to 0.15% by weight of C, 0.05% or less by weight of Si, 0.5% to 1.2% by weight of Mn, 0.005% to 0.045% by weight of Nb, and 0.10% or less by weight of Al, the remainder being iron and unavoidable impurities, and the steel sheet having a uniform and fine recrystallized ferrite structure having a mean grain diameter of 20 .mu.m or less and an area fraction of 95% or more having improving ductility and a process for its preparation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 1990
    Date of Patent: December 24, 1991
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corp.
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Fusao Togashi, Hiroshi Hashimoto
  • Patent number: 4974424
    Abstract: A laminar flow cooling system employs a laminar flow nozzle comprising a pair of plate members defining slit through which cooling water flows to form a cooling water screen. One of the plate members of the laminar nozzle is deformable at least in a direction perpendicular to the cooling water flow direction to adjust the path area in the nozzle. At least one of the plate member is preferably responsive to the cooling water pressure to cause variation of the path area for adjusting the cooling water path area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 1988
    Date of Patent: December 4, 1990
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corp.
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Koichi Hashiguchi, Masahiko Morita, Shinobu Okano
  • Patent number: 4931106
    Abstract: A hot rolled steel sheet having a specific composition and having a specific small grain size of ferrite constituting the steel sheet has high resistances against secondary-work embrittlement and brazing embrittlement and is adapted for ultra-deep drawing. The specific small grain size of the ferrite can be obtained by limiting the hot rolling condition of a slab having the specific composition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 1988
    Date of Patent: June 5, 1990
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Akio Tosaka, Kei Sakata, Koichi Hashiguchi, Tateo Higashino, Toshio Ichida
  • Patent number: 4830686
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a high-strength steel sheet by annealing the steel sheet after cold rolling. In order to obtain the low-yield ratio, high-strength steel sheet having high strength and good ductility, resistance to secondary cold-work embrittlement and spot weldability at low cost, the steel sheet containing 0.03-0.15% of P and specified amounts of C, Mn and Al as basic components and optionally containing, as a selective component, at least one element selected from a group of Si, Cr, Mo and B and a group of Nb, Ti, and V in such amounts as to meet the relation formula restricting the total content of Mn, Si, P, Cr and Mo is subjected to annealing under the conditions that the sheet is heated at a temperature of from Ac.sub.1 transformation point to 950.degree. C. for from 10 seconds to 10 minutes and cooled in such a control manner that an average cooling rate between 600.degree. C. and 300.degree. C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 22, 1987
    Date of Patent: May 16, 1989
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Koichi Hashiguchi, Akio Tosaka, Toshio Irie, Isao Takahashi
  • Patent number: 4770719
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a high-strength steel sheet by annealing the steel sheet after cold rolling. In order to obtain the low-yield ratio, high-strength steel sheet having high strength and good ductility, resistance to secondary cold-work embrittlement and spot weldability at low cost, the steel sheet containing 0.03-0.15% of P and specified amounts of C, Mn and Al as basic components and optionally containing, as a selective component, at least one element selected from a group of Si, Cr, Mo and B and a group of Nb, Ti, and V in such amounts as to meet the relation formula restricting the total content of Mn, Si, P, Cr and Mo is subjected to annealing under the conditions that the sheet is heated at a temperature of from Ac.sub.1 transformation point to 950.degree. C. for from 10 seconds to 10 minutes and cooled in such a control manner that an average cooling rate between 600.degree. C. and 300.degree. C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 1987
    Date of Patent: September 13, 1988
    Assignee: Kawasaki Steel Corporation
    Inventors: Koichi Hashiguchi, Akio Tosaka, Toshio Irie, Isao Takahashi