| 摘要 |
<p>The ball end for a ball-and-socket joint, comprising a spherical head, solid or hollow, is produced by a cold forging process covered by the principal patent. A low carbon, low alloy steel bar blank is vibration quenched to be uniformly hard from core to centre, and tempered to a hardness of approx. 60 kg., producing a fine martensitic structure with good deformation. It is then cold forged and heavily worked to produce a component with properties straight from the die similar to a heat treated ball end. Parts produced by this process are suitable for a variety of automobile applications, e.g. steering and suspension joints. The process allows the use of a steel which is easy to work, but would normally require case hardening followed by heat treatment. High carbon and higher alloy steels have the required properties, but are difficult to forge and require extra heat treatment.</p> |
