This patent describes a machine which is in principle identical to the Elrod as it is more familiarly known today through later models such as the Model E, although it differs in many details of implementation. Because of this it is interesting that Elrod is at pains to describe his machine as one in which "the movement of the [cast] bar [= strip] being effected by pulling upon the portion thereof protruding from the die, and the molten metal being subjected merely to a sufficient pressure to cause it to follow through the die-channel, as distinguished from a presure great enough to directly expel or sxtrude the metal through the die-channel." (p. 1) This is indeed continuous casting, not extrusion.
It has crucible and throat heaters, but no separate mold heater. The plunger lever is a "second class' lever here (pivoted on one end, pushing in the middle), while it is a "first class" lever in later machines (pivoted in the middle). While there is a shut-off cock for metal within the throat, this arrangement differs from that of the Sealing Valve in later Elrods.
There is a lubrication system. It is a pressure system, but driven by a mechanical ratchet and screw. It has a ball check valve to prevent backflow, just in case. There is no Diffusion Tube (that is, no packing to limit flow). (In later but still early machines, the oiler was changed to a suction system, retaining the check valve. In still later machines, and standard modern (model E and later) pratice the oiler is again a pressure system, weight-driven, with no check valve and with a Diffusion Tube.)
The mold as described here is not a separately insertable unit as it was in later Elrods, but a "nozzle" bolted to the crucible. The orientation of the strip through the mold is horizontal, whereas in later Elrods it is vertical. This of course influences the design of the puller and cutter. The water cooling layout differs.
The implementation of the cutting device differs, as well. Huss ( The Development of Printers' Mechanical Typesetting Methods) suggests that there were issues here with infringement of Monotype patents.
This is a single-file PDF version of this patent created from full-resolution but lossy JPEG conversions of the original USPTO page scans. (27 Megabytes)
These are full resolution lossless PNG conversions of the original USPTO TIFF page scans.
US patent documents are in the public domain. The PDF and PNG versions of them here are similarly in the public domain; I assert no additional rights on these versions.
All portions of this document not noted otherwise are Copyright © 2009 by David M. MacMillan and Rollande Krandall.
Circuitous Root is a Registered Trademark of David M. MacMillan and Rollande Krandall.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons "Attribution - ShareAlike" license. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ for its terms.
Presented originally by Circuitous Root®
Select Resolution: 0 [other resolutions temporarily disabled due to lack of disk space]
