EP0537536B1 - Device for automatic coupling a metallurgical ladle to conduits - Google Patents

Abstract

Device for automatic coupling between conduits on a metallurgical treatment station (2) and conduits on a metallurgical ladle (1). The half-coupling (4) associated with the treatment station is supported by a movable element and is kept in a protected stand-by position on the station (2) in order to be automatically positioned by first means in a coupling position with the half-coupling (5) associated with the ladle (1) just before deposition of the ladle (1) on its seat (3) provided on the station (2). Second means bring the movable element supporting the half-coupling (4) back into the protected stand-by position at the moment when the ladle (1) is withdrawn from its seat. <IMAGE>

Description

The present invention relates to a device for automatically coupling a metallurgical ladle to pipes in a structure capable of receiving the ladle. Said device comprising a first coupling half associated with the pipes of said structure and a second coupling half associated with the pocket, these coupling half being designed to automatically couple in a predefined coupling position on said structure by simple introduction of the pocket in this structure.

It is well known to treat steel for metallurgical needs by injecting one or more gases through porous stones from the bottom of a ladle. For this purpose the bag is generally deposited in a treatment station equipped with the necessary gas supplies.

For obvious safety and time-saving reasons, manual intervention in the connection of the bag to the gas distribution system should be avoided.

In the review "STAHL- und EISEN", vol.107, No 25-26 of December 14, 1987, page 1213, we present in an article entitled "Automatisches Ankuppeln der Spülgasleitung an Giesspfannen" a coupling station allowing to avoid a manual connection of the bag to the gas distribution network. Said coupling station comprises a first pneumatic translation cylinder, from which a second pneumatic coupling cylinder is suspended in a pendulum. The latter axially supports a female connection element which is connected to said gas distribution network. This female element can be engaged under the action of the two pneumatic cylinders on a male connection element which is arranged on the metallurgical ladle and connected to a gas pipe installed thereon.

Those skilled in the art will readily understand that this coupling station is a fairly complex and bulky mechanism, for which it is often impossible in practice to find on the structure receiving the pocket the space necessary for its installation. In addition, the coupling and decoupling actions must still be initiated manually. If you forget the decoupling operation before releasing the bag, it can result in severe damage to the coupling station.

In the Luxembourg patent specification LU-87 082 (= EP-A-0 320 841) and LU-87 868, automatic connection devices for a metallurgical ladle are presented to one or two gas distribution networks, respectively, when the bag is placed on its seat in the treatment station.

In the two aforementioned patent specifications, the coupling device comprises a half-coupling with a female connector, fixed on the pocket and a half-coupling with a male connector, fixed on the chassis of the treatment station, at the location even where mating is to take place. The devices proposed in the two Luxembourg patent specifications therefore allow automatic coupling of the bag to the gas network (s), without manual intervention and without any other operation than the simple introduction of the bag into the receiving structure. the pocket. In other words, the proposed devices use the movement of the pocket to achieve the junction of the male and female connection elements. As a result, there is no need for a bulky coupling station to make the connection of the bag to the gas network.

In a harsh and polluted metallurgical environment the devices described in the Luxembourg patent specifications LU-87 082 and LU-87 868, and in general all the automatic connection devices of a pocket metallurgical to any pipes operating on a similar principle, however have the disadvantage that the first fixed coupling half on the structure receiving the pocket at the very place of the coupling is, in the decoupled position, exposed to splashes and projections of molten products, dust and mechanical shock. However, it is obvious that any fouling or damage to the various elements of the first coupling half jeopardizes the proper functioning of the automatic coupling and significantly reduces the service life. It is obvious that in the coupled position, when the pocket is placed on its seat, the risk of damage and fouling of the sensitive parts is however far lower, if not negligible.

The objective of the present invention is to provide a coupling device of the kind described in the preamble, in which said first coupling half is automatically protected against splashes and projections of molten products, the deposition of dust and especially impacts mechanical as soon as the pocket has left said structure, without hampering the automatic coupling of the two half-couplings by the simple introduction of the pocket into said structure.

According to the present invention this objective is achieved by a coupling device of the kind described in the preamble which is characterized by a movable element supporting said first coupling half and movable on said structure between a protected standby position and said position of predefined coupling, by first means designed to move said movable element from said protected waiting position to said coupling position, said first means being actuable by the moving pocket when the latter is introduced into said structure, and by second means designed to move said movable element from said coupling position into said protected waiting position, said second means being actuable by the moving pocket when the latter is released from said structure.

The proposed device automatically moves said first coupling half into a protected standby position when the metallurgical ladle is released from said structure. In this way said first half coupling is completely removed from the pocket penetration path in said structure, which naturally allows it to be given excellent protection against splashes and especially against mechanical shock. As said first and said second means for moving said mobile element are actuable by the moving pocket when the latter is introduced into said structure, resp. when the latter is released from said structure, the application of the protection is perfectly synchronized with the coupling operation, resp. the decoupling operation, and requires no human intervention. In this way it is not possible that the application of the protection of said first half-coupling is forgotten when releasing the pocket, just as it is not possible that the protection can hinder the operation of automatic coupling of the two half-couplings by simple introduction of the pocket into said structure.

Said first and second means do not in principle require any auxiliary energy. They indeed receive the energy necessary for their operation of the movement of the pocket, during its introduction into said structure resp. during its release from said structure. It will therefore be appreciated that no complex coupling station is required, provided with hydraulic and / or electric motors, to carry out the coupling operation.

It will be noted that said half couplings can, for example, form an automatic connection of a pocket. metallurgical to gas lines on a processing station. In this case, it is possible, for example, to integrate into the proposed device the automatic connection devices proposed in the Luxembourg patent specification LU-87 082 and LU-87 868.

It is however obvious that the invention can also be applied to automatic fittings for pipes of other fluids, or even electrical pipes.

Said first means advantageously comprise a lever that can be pivoted by the pocket when the latter is received in said structure. This lever can then be connected to the movable element by a control cable. In the case where the two half-couplings interpenetrate each other during the coupling operation, this cable advantageously includes a spring damper. Said second means advantageously comprise an element capable of storing energy, eg a counterweight connected to the movable element by a control cable. It will be noted that said first and second means can therefore be produced with simple and robust mechanical elements which guarantee reliable operation with a minimum of maintenance in a harsh and polluted metallurgical environment. The choice of these elements and their arrangement on the treatment station is naturally a function of the space constraints on the latter.

The movable element supporting said first coupling half is preferably a roller trolley sliding on a solid rail of the treatment station. This rail is then advantageously protected by a canopy. Said first coupling half is preferably cantilevered on the carriage by means of an easily removable articulation whose axis is parallel to the coupling axis. In this way said first coupling half has a first degree of freedom in a plane perpendicular to the coupling axis.

The coupling position of the movable element can be advantageously defined by an end of travel stop provided with a spring. In this way one can achieve with simple means a second degree of freedom of said first coupling half.

In an alternative embodiment the element supporting said first coupling half is a pivotable arm. This arm is then mounted using a cylindrical articulation on the structure receiving the metallurgical ladle. In this alternative embodiment, the translational movement on rail is consequently replaced by a pivoting movement ended and outside a protected standby position. This pivoting is always controlled by said first and second means.

It will be noted that said first means, said second means and the movable element supporting said first coupling are advantageously arranged in existing voids in the structure receiving the pocket and that they are interconnected by control cables guided using deflection pulleys. There is therefore a great deal of freedom with regard to the arrangement of the various elements in said structure receiving the pocket.

• la Figure 1 représente une vue en élévation d'une station de traitement métallurgique avec poche, dans laquelle est dessinée une coupe par un plan oblique AA qui est ramenée dans le plan d'élévation par rotation;
• la Figure 2 représente une vue en plan du même ensemble que la Figure 1;
• la Figure 3 représente un détail de la coupe oblique AA montrant le chariot avec le demi-accouplement solidaire de la station de traitement en position d'accouplement (le demi-accouplement solidaire de la poche n'est pas représenté);
• la Figure 4 représente une coupe par un plan perpendiculaire au plan AA;
• la Figure 5 représente en détail une vue en élévation d'un système de commande par levier.

Other features and characteristics of the invention will emerge from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment adopted for a given geometry of the structure receiving the pocket. This embodiment is presented below, by way of illustration, with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

• Figure 1 shows an elevational view of a metallurgical processing station with a pocket, in which a section is drawn by an oblique plane AA which is brought back into the elevation plane by rotation;
• Figure 2 shows a plan view of the same assembly as Figure 1;
• Figure 3 shows a detail of the oblique section AA showing the carriage with the half-coupling integral with the processing station in the coupling position (the half-coupling integral with the pocket is not shown);
• Figure 4 shows a section through a plane perpendicular to the plane AA;
• Figure 5 shows in detail an elevational view of a lever control system.

In FIG. 1, a metallurgical ladle 1 is completely engaged in a treatment station 2 and rests on a seat 3 of this treatment station. Elements 4 and 5 are half-couplings of a double-flow quick coupling, for the automatic and simultaneous connection of the metallurgical ladle 1 to two different gas networks, as described in patent specification LU-87 868. The However, the proposed device may also include other types of quick couplings which automatically couple, in a predefined position on the treatment station 2, when the pocket 1 enters its seat.

In Figure 1 we see that the coupling half 5 is fixed on the outer envelope of the pocket 1. In Figure 3 we see that the coupling half 4, which comprises a body 10 on which is mounted a male connector 8 connected to one or more fluid supply pipes 11, is cantilevered on a mobile carriage 6. The mounting of the coupling half 4 on the carriage 6 is preferably carried out in a removable manner by means of 'A vertical clevis joint 7 allowing slight angular displacement. The male connector 8 thus has a first degree of freedom in a horizontal plane to balance misalignments during coupling. A second degree of freedom in the same plane, but perpendicular to the first, is for example obtained, in a manner known per se, by a sliding assembly of said male connector 8 on the body 10 of the lower coupling half 4. This second degree of freedom could however also be obtained by determining for the carriage 6 a coupling position using a limit stop provided with a spring (not shown). This spring then has its axis of compression parallel to the movement of the carriage 6 and thus makes it possible to compensate for misalignments in the direction of movement of the carriage 6 during the coupling operation.

The fluid supply pipe (s) 11 of the coupling half 4 are connected by flexible pipes (not shown) to the fluid distribution network (s) on the treatment station 2.

The carriage 6 is, in a preferred embodiment, a welded assembly composed of two parts 12 which are symmetrical relative to the vertical plane containing the axis of a rail 15 (see Figure 4). At their lower end, these parts 12 support a tenon 13 in which the vertical articulation 7 is housed.

At its upper end, the carriage 6 has on each side a pair of rollers 14. With the help of these rollers 14 the carriage 6 is suspended from the rail 15. The latter has for example an I-section, which is advantageously made by welding two U-shaped profiles on each side of a flat iron 16 fixed on a support structure 17. The axis of the rail 15 intersects the vertical coupling axis, defined by the position of the upper coupling half 5 on the pocket 1 when the latter is seated on its seat 3. The structure 17 which supports the rail 15 is housed in a void between the chassis of the treatment station 2 and the pocket 1. It is covered by an inclined sheet 18 and has laterally, on the side of the pocket 1, a protection by a vertical sheet 19. This assembly forms a canopy 20 which protects the rail 15 over its entire length.

When the carriage is in the coupling position (A) (see Figure 3), only the lower connector 9, mounted in overhang on the carriage 6, out of the awning. The carriage 6 itself remains protected by the awning (see Figures 2 and 3).

The first means which must bring the coupling half 4 from its standby position (B) to the coupling position (A) when the bag 1 will be deposited on its seat 3 fitted on the treatment station 2 are described below with reference to Figures 2 and 5.

In Figure 5 we see an inter-support lever with two arms 24, 26 which is provided with a fork joint 22 with a horizontal axis. The clevis of the joint is mounted on the chassis of the treatment station 2 so that the lever 21 can pivot in a vertical plane, preferably passing through the vertical axis of the pocket 1 installed in its seat 3. The lever 21 is advantageously installed under a canopy 23 which protects it in particular against projections of molten materials. The end of the arm 24 of the inter-support lever 21 is located in the path of penetration of the pocket 1 in the treatment station 2. The contact surface between the lever 21 and the pocket 1 advantageously consists of a roller 25 with horizontal axis, fixed at the end of the lever arm 24. The arm 26 of the inter-support lever 21 comprises at its end a spring damper 27 to which a control cable is fixed 28. The spring damper 27 is of preferably articulated around a horizontal axis to ensure alignment with the cable 28 for the different positions of the lever 21. The other end of the cable 28 is fixed to the carriage 6. The cable 28 is guided by different deflection pulleys and dismissal. Its path is determined so as to be able to exert, during a positive rotation of the lever 21 around its axis 22, on the carriage 6 a traction parallel to the rail 15 (see Figure 5).

The operation of the first means is as follows: when descending into the treatment station 2 the bag 1, suspended from an overhead crane, takes up at a determined location from its descent trajectory, pressing on the roller 25 of the lever arm 24. The latter is then in an almost horizontal position, because the carriage 6 is in its extreme standby position (B) (see Figure 3) and the counterweight 31 is lowered to the maximum. Continuing its vertical descent trajectory, the pocket 1 pivots the lever 21 around its articulation axis 22 in the positive direction defined in FIG. 5. The other lever arm 26 then exerts traction via the cable 28 on the carriage 6 for gradually moving it and in synchronism with the downward movement of the pocket from the extreme standby position (B) to the coupling position (A). In position (A) the carriage is immobilized by an end of travel stop. The dimensions of the lever and its fixing point are chosen so that the pocket 1 must still travel, at this moment, when the carriage 6 is already stopped, a residual vertical distance slightly greater than the interpenetration rating of the two coupling half-fittings. This final descent of the pocket 1 causes an additional rotation of the lever 21 in the positive direction. The carriage 6 being locked in the coupling position (A), it is essentially the spring damper 27 which takes up the traction of the lever 21 on the cable 28 and thus prevents the latter from breaking.

The second means which ensure the automatic return to the protected standby position of the coupling half 4, when the pocket 1 is removed from its seat 3, will be described with the aid of FIGS. 1 and 3. A return cable 29 is fixed to the carriage 6 using an appropriate fixing device and is held parallel to the axis of the rail 15 by a deflection pulley 30 which is mounted in a recess in the chassis of the treatment station 2. At l the other end of the cable 29 is attached a counterweight 31 which moves in a counterweight box 32 whose vertical axis is advantageously tangent to the deflection pulley 30.

In Figure 1 the carriage 6 is shown in its coupling position (A) and the counterweight 31 is raised to the maximum. Indeed, during its travel from its extreme standby position (B) to its coupling position (A), the carriage 6 exerted a traction by the cable 29 on the counterweight 31 and reassembled it in its high position. When the bag 1 is raised by means of the traveling crane outside the treatment station 2, the carriage 6 is blocked during the initial movement of the bag due to the interpenetration of the two half-couplings. During this initial phase of the ascent of the pocket, it is essentially the spring damper 27 which, by partially restoring the energy stored during the last phase of the downward movement, causes the arm 26 of the lever 21 to follow the upward movement from the pocket. As soon as the upper coupling half 5 is completely removed from the lower coupling half 4, the carriage 6 is pulled by the counterweight 31 from its coupling position (A) to its extreme standby position (B) in which the carriage 6 is stopped by an end of travel stop. The translational movement of the carriage 6 from (A) to (B) is almost synchronous with the upward movement of the pocket 1. The roller 25 of the lever arm 21 in fact constantly presses on the pocket 1 until the moment when the carriage 6 is stopped by the travel find stop in its extreme waiting position (B). The lever arm 24 is then again almost horizontal.

In the preferred embodiment shown in the figures a number of deflection pulleys and control cables have been provided. It is obvious that the location and the number of these pulleys depends on the geometry of the chassis of the treatment station 2, which conditions inter alia the location of the lever 21, the counterweight 31 and the rail 15, as well as the preferred path chosen for cable routing.

It is therefore important to note that the solution shown and described is only a preferred embodiment for this type of workstation. Other geometries of the chassis of the workstation may thus require a higher or lower number of deflection pulleys which will be fixed to the chassis depending on the routing retained for the cables. The latter is notably a function of space constraints and the optimal transmission of forces.

Claims (11)

1. Device for the automatic coupling of a metallurgical ladle (1) to conduits (11) in a structure (2) capable of receiving the ladle (1), the said device comprising a first half-coupling (4) associated with the conduits (11) of the said structure (2) and a second half-coupling (5) associated with the ladle (1), these half-couplings (4, 5) being designed to be automatically coupled in a predefined coupled position (A) on the said structure (2) by the simple introduction of the ladle (1) into this structure (2), the said device being characterised by a mobile element (6) supporting the said first half-coupling (4) and capable of movement on the said structure (2) between a protected stand-by position (B) and the said predefined coupled position (A) by first means designed to move the said mobile element (6) from the said protected stand-by position (B) into the said coupled position (A), the said first means being actuated by the moving ladle (1) when the latter is introduced into the said structure (2), and by second means designed to move the said mobile element (6) from the said coupled position (A) into the said protected stand-by position (B), the said second means being actuated by the moving ladle (1) when the latter is withdrawn from the said structure (2).
2. Automatic coupling device according to Claim 1, characterised in that the said half-couplings (4, 5) produce an automatic connection of a metallurgical ladle to gas conduits (11) on a treatment station (2).
3. Automatic coupling device according to Claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the first means comprises a lever (21) pivotable by the ladle (1) when the latter is received into the said structure (2), and connected to the mobile element by a control cable (28).
4. Coupling device according to Claim 3, characterised in that the control cable (28) connecting the lever (21) to the mobile element (6) incorporates a spring shock absorber (27).
5. Automatic coupling device according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the said second means incorporates a counterweight (31).
6. Coupling device according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the mobile element supporting the first half-coupling (4) is a carriage (6) with rollers (14) capable of sliding on a rail (15) attached to the structure (2) receiving the ladle (1).
7. Automatic coupling device according to Claim 6, characterised in that the rail (15) is protected by a canopy (20).
8. Automatic coupling device according to Claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the first half-coupling (4) is mounted in cantilever fashion on the carriage (6) through the intermediary of an easily removable cylindrical hinge (7) whose axis is parallel to the coupling axis.
9. Automatic coupling device according to any one of Claims 1 to 8, characterised in that the coupled position (A) of the mobile element (6) is defined by a limit stop mounted on a spring with its axis perpendicular to the coupling axis.
10. Automatic coupling device according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the mobile element (6) supporting the first half-coupling (4) is a pivotable arm.
11. Automatic coupling device according to any one of Claims 1 to 9, characterised in that the first means, the second means and the mobile element (6) supporting the said first coupling (4) are positioned in the existing empty spaces of a treatment station (2) and are connected to each other by control cables (28 and 29) guided using deflection pulleys.

Images