Patents by Inventor Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt

Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt 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).

  • Patent number: 10323307
    Abstract: A steel alloy and process for producing a hot formed component. The process includes providing a steel alloy sheet having a chemical composition (wt %) within a range of 0.3-0.85 C, 1.0-6.0 Mn, 1.0-4.0 Si+Al and the remainder being tramp elements and impurities. The steel alloy sheet is heated to within a temperature range between 700-900° C. for a time between 1-180 seconds and hot formed. Thereafter, the hot formed sheet is cooled to ambient temperature. Then, cooled hot formed sheet is tempered at a temperature between 200-600° C. for a time between 20-3000 seconds and cooled again to ambient temperature. The tempered and cooled sheet has a tensile strength between 1400-2400 MPa and at least 10% elongation to failure, and/or a product of tensile strength times percent elongation to failure of at least 16000 MPa·%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2019
    Assignee: AM/NS Calvert LLC
    Inventors: Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Ranbir Singh Jamwal
  • Patent number: 9790567
    Abstract: A coated dual-phase steel and process for producing the coated dual-phase steel is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab with a desired chemistry, soaking the slab at an elevated temperature and then hot rolling the slab to produce hot-rolled strip. The hot-rolled strip is coiled and has a ferrite-pearlite microstructure. The coiled hot-rolled strip is cold-rolled into cold-rolled sheet with at least a 60% reduction in thickness compared to the thickness of the coiled hot-rolled strip. The cold-rolled sheet is subjected to an intercritical anneal followed by rapid cooling with the absence of an isothermal heat treatment or hold after rapid cooling near the molten metal pot temperature—during which, before or after which the steel is coated. The coated steel sheet has a dual-phase ferrite-martensite microstructure, a yield strength of at least 310 MPa, a tensile strength of at least 580 MPa and a total elongation to failure of at least 18%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: Thyssenkrupp Steel USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Patent number: 9593399
    Abstract: A process for manufacturing a cold rolled high strength dual phase steel. The process includes soaking a steel slab within a temperature range of 1200-1300° C., hot rolling the soaked steel slab in a roughing treatment and producing a transfer bar, and hot rolling the transfer bar in a finishing treatment and producing hot rolled strip. The hot rolled strip is cold rolled with at least a 55% reduction in thickness. The cold rolled sheet is intercritically annealed at a temperature between 790-840° C. and rapidly cooled to a temperature between 450-500° C. The rapidly cooled sheet has a ferrite plus martensite microstructure, a 0.2% yield strength of at least 550 MPa, a tensile strength of at least 980 MPa and a total elongation to failure of at least 10%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: Thyssenkrupp Steel USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Patent number: 9580781
    Abstract: Dual-phase steels and a process for producing a family of dual-phase steels that have a low YS/TS ratio and tensile strength above 590 MPa. The process includes employing low annealing temperatures combined with specific cooling strategies using gas jet rapid cooling equipped with “Ultra Rapid Cooling” (URC) capacity in the cooling tower. The process can also include the production of dual-phase steels with tensile strengths of at least 690 MPa by processing steels with specific cooling strategies using the URC having a refined Mo content towards the higher end of the chemical composition range mentioned in the current stated invention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: Thyssenkrupp Steel USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Patent number: 9493864
    Abstract: A process for producing high strength steel is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab having a chemical composition in weight percent within a range of 0.025-0.07 C, 1.20-1.70 Mn, 0.050-0.085 Nb, 0.022 max Ti, 0.065 max N, 0.0040 max S, 0.10-0.45 Si, 0.070 max P, with the balance being Fe and incidental impurities. The steel slab is soaked within a temperature range of 1150-1230° C., hot rolled using a roughing treatment in order to produce a transfer bar and further hot rolled using a finishing treatment in order to produce hot rolled strip. The hot rolled strip is cooled using a cooling rate between 10-100° C./second (sec) and coiled within a temperature range of 580-400° C. Finally, the coiled hot rolled strip has a yield strength of at least 80 ksi and a DWTT transition temperature equal or less than ?20° C.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2016
    Assignee: AM/NS Calvert LLC
    Inventors: Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Chris John Paul Samuel, Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Gerald McGloin, Stanley Wayne Bevans, Markus Wilhelm Forsch, Rudolf Schonenberg
  • Publication number: 20160017469
    Abstract: A steel alloy and process for producing a hot formed component. The process includes providing a steel alloy sheet having a chemical composition (wt %) within a range of 0.3-0.85 C, 1.0-6.0 Mn, 1.0-4.0 Si+Al and the remainder being tramp elements and impurities. The steel alloy sheet is heated to within a temperature range between 700-900° C. for a time between 1-180 seconds and hot formed. Thereafter, the hot formed sheet is cooled to ambient temperature. Then, cooled hot formed sheet is tempered at a temperature between 200-600° C. for a time between 20-3000 seconds and cooled again to ambient temperature. The tempered and cooled sheet has a tensile strength between 1400-2400 MPa and at least 10% elongation to failure, and/or a product of tensile strength times percent elongation to failure of at least 16000 MPa·%.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2015
    Publication date: January 21, 2016
    Inventors: Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Ranbir Singh Jamwal
  • Publication number: 20150267284
    Abstract: A new alloy and process for making highly formable enamel steel substrates. The new alloy is manufactured from a vacuum degassed steel on a Continuous Annealing Line (CAL) with in-line temper equipment and possesses the ductility and enameling properties that make the steel suitable for the manufacture of deep draw and extra deep draw enameling parts. Target applications for the new alloy and process include but are not limited to deep draw and extra deep draw parts such as bathtubs, kitchen sinks, kitchen oven liners and general parts which are press-formed from flat sheets into complicated shapes, which are subsequently vitreously enameled.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2015
    Publication date: September 24, 2015
    Inventors: Nicole Latrice Harris Odum, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Chris John Paul Samuel, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20150240324
    Abstract: A silicon alloyed steel for hot rolling and a process of hot rolling the silicon alloyed steel is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab having a chemical composition in weight percent within a range of 0.06-0.30 C, 0.3-2.0 Mn, 0.6-3.5 Si, and Fe plus incidental melting impurities. The steel slab is hot rolled and hot rolled steel strip is produced. The hot rolled steel strip is coiled at temperatures between 100-600° C. and has a microstructure containing at least 90 vol % ferrite plus pearlite, a yield strength of at least 400 megapascals (MPa), a tensile strength of at least 600 MPa, and a tensile elongation of at least 20%.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 24, 2014
    Publication date: August 27, 2015
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Chris John Paul Samuel, Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Thomas Michael Poplawski, Timo Faath
  • Publication number: 20140261903
    Abstract: A bake hardenable steel and a process for manufacture of a bake hardenable steel. Steel alloy slabs with a predefined chemical composition are hot rolled into hot rolled strip. The hot rolled strip is cold rolled and continuously annealed on a continuous annealing line and then rapidly cooled to at least 600° C. using a cooling rate of between 20-100 K/sec, and optionally cooled to at least 140° C. using a cooling rate of between 3-20 K/sec. As such, the cold rolled and annealed sheet is not subjected to an overageing treatment and yet still exhibits excellent and well defined bake hardening values. For example BH2 values between 25 and 45 MPa are exhibited by the low alloy steel grades. In addition, the bake hardeneable steel sheet has a minimum yield strength of 220 MPa and in some instances has a minimum yield strength as high as 380 MPa.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: AM/NS CALVERT LLC
    Inventors: Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Stanley Wayne Bevans, Harald Van Bracht
  • Publication number: 20140261919
    Abstract: A low carbon-high manganese steel sheet and process for manufacturing the sheet is provided. The process includes soaking a steel slab with a desired chemical composition within a temperature range of 1200-1350° C., followed by hot rolling of the slab into hot strip. The cold rolled sheet is continuously annealed within a temperature range of 730-850° C. and temper rolled between 1.0-2.0%. The temper rolled sheet has a yield strength greater than 280 megapascals (MPa), a tensile strength greater than 400 MPa, an elongation to fracture greater than 30%, an n-value greater than 0.15, and a bakehard index between 15-35 MPa.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Chris John Paul Samuel, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Joseph Frimpong, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140261916
    Abstract: A high strength-high ductility cold rolled steel sheet is provided. The steel sheet has a recovery annealed microstructure, a yield strength greater than 820 megapascals (MPa) and a percent elongation to failure greater than 3.5%. In some instances, the steel alloy sheet has a Rockwell B hardness greater than 100 and may or may not exhibit a yield strength-to-tensile strength ratio between 0.25 and 1.00.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2013
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Inventors: Chris John Paul Samuel, Marisa Vann, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140261915
    Abstract: A process for producing high strength steel is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab having a chemical composition in weight percent within a range of 0.025-0.07 C, 1.20-1.70 Mn, 0.050-0.085 Nb, 0.022 max Ti, 0.065 max N, 0.0040 max S, 0.10-0.45 Si, 0.070 max P, with the balance being Fe and incidental impurities. The steel slab is soaked within a temperature range of 1150-1230° C., hot rolled using a roughing treatment in order to produce a transfer bar and further hot rolled using a finishing treatment in order to produce hot rolled strip. The hot rolled strip is cooled using a cooling rate between 10-100° C./second (sec) and coiled within a temperature range of 580-400° C. Finally, the coiled hot rolled strip has a yield strength of at least 80 ksi and a DWTT transition temperature equal or less than ?20° C.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: AM/NS CALVERT LLC
    Inventors: Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Chris John Paul Samuel, Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Gerald McGloin, Stanley Wayne Bevans, Markus Wilhelm Forsch, Rudolf Schonenberg
  • Publication number: 20140261914
    Abstract: A process for manufacturing hot rolled high strength dual phase steels. In some instances, hot rolled strip is continuously cooled to less than 100° C. prior to coiling using a cooling rate between 40-70° C./second. In other instances, hot rolled strip is cooled to less than 100° C. prior to coiling using a step cooling treatment. In yet other instances, hot rolled strip is continuously cooled to less than 100° C. prior to coiling using a cooling rate between 70-100° C./second. For hot rolled strip subjected to a cooling rate between 40-70° C./second, or subjected to the step cooling treatment, hot rolled steel sheet with a tensile strength greater than 590 MPa is produced. For hot rolled strip subjected to a cooling rate between 70-100° C./second, hot rolled steel sheet with a tensile strength greater than 690 MPa is produced. Also, the hot rolled steel sheet has a ferrite plus martensite microstructure free of pearlite and bainite.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2014
    Publication date: September 18, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Stanley Wayne Bevans, Bernd Trilling, Harald Van Bracht
  • Publication number: 20140166163
    Abstract: A process for manufacturing a cold rolled high strength dual phase steel. The process includes soaking a steel slab within a temperature range of 1200-1300° C., hot rolling the soaked steel slab in a roughing treatment and producing a transfer bar, and hot rolling the transfer bar in a finishing treatment and producing hot rolled strip. The hot rolled strip is cold rolled with at least a 55% reduction in thickness. The cold rolled sheet is intercritically annealed at a temperature between 790-840 ° C. and rapidly cooled to a temperature between 450-500 ° C. The rapidly cooled sheet has a ferrite plus martensite microstructure, a 0.2% yield strength of at least 550 MPa, a tensile strength of at least 980 MPa and a total elongation to failure of at least 10%.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2013
    Publication date: June 19, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Singh Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140141279
    Abstract: A coated dual-phase steel and process for producing the coated dual-phase steel is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab with a desired chemistry, soaking the slab at an elevated temperature and then hot rolling the slab to produce hot-rolled strip. The hot-rolled strip is coiled and has a ferrite-pearlite microstructure. The coiled hot-rolled strip is cold-rolled into cold-rolled sheet with at least a 60% reduction in thickness compared to the thickness of the coiled hot-rolled strip. The cold-rolled sheet is subjected to an intercritical anneal followed by rapid cooling with the absence of an isothermal heat treatment or hold after rapid cooling near the molten metal pot temperature—during which, before or after which the steel is coated. The coated steel sheet has a dual-phase ferrite-martensite microstructure, a yield strength of at least 310 MPa, a tensile strength of at least 580 MPa and a total elongation to failure of at least 18%.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 20, 2013
    Publication date: May 22, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140137993
    Abstract: Dual-phase steels and a process for producing a family of dual-phase steels that have a low YS/TS ratio and tensile strength above 590 MPa. The process includes employing low annealing temperatures combined with specific cooling strategies using gas jet rapid cooling equipped with “Ultra Rapid Cooling” (URC) capacity in the cooling tower. The process can also include the production of dual-phase steels with tensile strengths of at least 690 MPa by processing steels with specific cooling strategies using the URC having a refined Mo content towards the higher end of the chemical composition range mentioned in the current stated invention.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 20, 2013
    Publication date: May 22, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Ranbir Jamwal, Joseph Frimpong, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Harald Van Bracht, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140137990
    Abstract: A process for manufacturing a ferritic hot rolled steel strip is provided. The process includes providing a steel slab, hot rolling the slab to produce a transfer bar and ferritic hot rolling the transfer bar to produce hot rolled strip. The ferritic hot rolled strip is coiled at temperatures between 580-780° C. and has a yield strength between 130-210 MPa, a tensile strength greater than 260 MPa, a uniform elongation greater than 15%, a total elongation to failure greater than 30%, and an n-value greater than 0.2.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 20, 2013
    Publication date: May 22, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Chris John Paul Samuel, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Markus Wilhelm Forsch, Roger Dale Boggs, Stanley Wayne Bevans
  • Publication number: 20140102604
    Abstract: A high strength mild steel alloy is provided. In addition, a process for making the high strength steel alloy is also provided. The process includes providing a mild steel alloy with a chemical composition in weight percent within a range of 0.12-0.25 carbon, 0.30-1.70 manganese, 0.50 max silicon, 0.10 max chromium, 0.01 max niobium, 0.035 max titanium, 0.01 vanadium, 0.10 max molybdenum, 0.10 max nickel, 0.015 max sulfur, 0.025 max phosphorus, 0.012 max nitrogen, 0.003 max boron, and 0.015-0.065 aluminum. Hot rolled steel strip with a thickness of less than 10 millimeters is cold rolled to produce a cold rolled steel sheet that has a thickness that is less than 50% of the hot rolled steel strip thickness which is subsequently recovery annealed to provide sheet material having a yield strength greater than 550 megapascals (MPa) and a percent elongation to failure greater than 3.5%.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2013
    Publication date: April 17, 2014
    Applicant: THYSSENKRUPP STEEL USA, LLC
    Inventors: Chris John Paul Samuel, Stanley Wayne Bevans, Bertram Wilhelm Ehrhardt, Roger Dale Boggs