SHAPE CORRECTION LEVELER DRIVE SYSTEMS

摘要

Drive systems for multi-roll shape-correction levelers used to flatten metal strip material, wherein the drive systems are adapted to account for the effects of differential roll speed such that the work rolls of entry side roll clusters and the work rolls of exit side roll clusters of the leveler can be made to equally share the load associated with a leveling operation.

主权项

1. A shape-correction leveler drive system, comprising:
a lower work roll drive system, the lower work roll drive system further comprising:
a lower work roll drive motor associated with a set of lower work rolls of the leveler,distribution gearing interposed between the drive motor and the lower work rolls, the distribution gearing having an entry side output shaft and an exit side output shaft,a pinion gear box interposed between the distribution gearing and the set of lower work rolls, the pinion gearbox adapted to engage the output shafts of the distribution gearing and to drive the work rolls of the entry work roll cluster separately from the work rolls of the exit work roll cluster, anda variable clutch installed on the entry side output shaft; an upper lower work roll drive system, the upper work roll drive system further comprising:
an upper work roll drive motor associated with a set of upper work rolls of the leveler,distribution gearing interposed between the drive motor and the upper work rolls, the distribution gearing having an entry side output shaft and an exit side output shaft,a pinion gear box interposed between the distribution gearing and the set of upper work rolls, the pinion gearbox adapted to engage the output shafts of the distribution gearing and drive the work rolls of the entry work roll cluster separately from the work rolls of the exit work roll cluster, anda variable clutch installed on the entry side output shaft; and a controller in communication with the variable clutch associated with each of the lower work roll drive system and the upper work roll drive system, the controller programmed to monitor the total input torque provided by each of the respective drive motors and to adjust the amount of slippage of the associated variable clutches, so as to control the torque load applied to the lower and upper entry work roll clusters and thereby produce an equal sharing of load between the entry work roll cluster and exit work roll cluster of the sets of lower and upper work rolls.