STEAM-HAMMER

Steam Hammer prevailed in engineering for 90 years and was one of the most important cars of its time. His creation and introduction into production of its significance to the industrial revolution can be compared only with the introduction of mechanized carriage lathe implemented Henry Mawdsley at the turn of the XIX century. The important place occupied by the hammer in the chain of production, due to great importance in forging a general process of obtaining products of iron. As already mentioned, the emergence of forged syrodutnym way connected with the recovery of iron. Kritsa soft iron extracted from domnitsy had loose porous structure. Its pores were filled with slag. To obtain high-quality iron and steel for the manufacture of tools, should remove the slag, and then welded. This is precisely achieved by forging. Forge metal could just heating it up to welding heat: strikes, strikes the hammer was to be the most powerful to welding in bundles actually occurred, and no cavities were formed. In addition, the hot metal slog squeeze the remains of slag, which also improves the quality of iron. Only well prokovanny metal godilsya then for the production of tools and weapons, and for many centuries, they also produced exclusively by forging. Later, in the XVIII-XIX centuries - and hammer out the details of machines.

In ancient times, all of the black-smith is fully served. In the future, was the division of labor - the most skilled of the work has continued to carry out a blacksmith, a heavy, low - molotoboytsy who worked under his leadership. Smith worked as a hammer in the 1-2 kg and molotoboytsy - sledgehammer, weight reaches 12 kg. Kuvalda nasazhivalis long handle made of hard, elastic, neschepyaschihsya wood. Long handle allows both hands to hold sledgehammer and beat circular motion "in scope". The division of labor between the smith and molotoboytsem opened up the possibility to mechanize heavy monotonous strokes, made the last one, and send its work mechanism. In the Middle Ages was invented cam hammer driven by water wheels. The first such hammers have appeared already in the XIII century, and their wide dissemination refers to the XVI century. At the end of XVIII century were using hammers driven by a steam engine. The patent for the invention of the hammer was in 1784, James Watt.

Connecting the hammer with the machine initially, nothing has changed in his own design. This was the same tail, cam hammer that over four hundred years before the opening of Watt cited a water wheel. Moreover, it could easily see his hand an ancient prototype. Century pair not changed any of its forms, nor the principle of action, only increased the size and weight.

Photo — «Steam-hammer»

But this situation could not persist long. In subsequent decades, the development of mechanical engineering, railway construction, and, primarily, the construction of huge ocean steamers require processing before unseen dimensions. Valy paddle, cranks and other parts of steam engines often reach huge sizes. For their manufacture have been set up giant machines, including large steam hammers. However, the design click the hammer, had many shortcomings, is not allowed to hammer out the high quality of especially large blanks. The force of impact hammer directly dependent on the height of his fall. Meanwhile, the increase in the size of the workpiece decreased free space between Boyko and anvil, and, consequently, weakened the force of impact. This was a great inconvenience, since the processing of large and massive parts of strikes were the weakest, and vice versa - in the processing of parts of thickness small hammer to act with maximum force, which was completely back to the needs of production. As a result, a massive piece cool finish before the end forging. It was heated again and again to transfer under the hammer. It takes a lot of time and effort, but the quality of forged still left much to be desired. Moreover, since the movement of the hammer is not in a straight line, and through the arc, can never be achieved strict parallelism between the surface of the hammer and the anvil (except where the hammer was for forging parts of the same thickness).

That was the situation by early 40-ies of the XIX century, when steam-hammer Nesmita built on entirely different principles. He immediately received wide distribution as well as meet the most urgent needs of production. Reason for this remarkable invention was filed the following circumstances. The "Great Western Company, for which the plant Nesmita continuously delivered metal-cutting machines, has received an order to build a giant ship" United Kingdom ". Steamship would be a huge crankshaft with a diameter of about 750 mm. As it turned out, otkovat a shaft with the help of the then hammers it was absolutely impossible. Learning difficulties firm Nesma ponder how such a huge forgings. First, he suggested to improve the old hammer, but then realize that we should opt out of old patterns and create a new device, in which the steam engine and the striker will be joined into a single mechanism.

One of the main disadvantages of all previous hammers was that the movement of the steam engine to the shock of the hammer transferred very poorly. Reciprocating piston in the cylinder of the machine first converted into rotational movement click shaft. Then had to re-convert the rotary motion of the shaft in the back and forth motion of the hammer.

Photo — «Steam-hammer»

"And was there any benefit in this complex transformation of the movement? It is no - he wrote later Nesma. - On the contrary, from this arose only many significant disadvantages - first of all, lost power. " Well aware of the shortcomings of old structures, Nesma a new car with the free working of the incident, which was denied them. The main parts of the hammer steel cylinder, piston and maintenance of their bed.

Steam cylinder C was positioned so that the piston rod out to the anvil K. The cylinder C was supported by two pillars O, formed the center stand. "Baba" B moved between the uprights in the slots and bore head, which was removable, and depended on the nature of the work. Steam from the boiler through the pipe P acted in a cell in which the moving valve. When the valve is in the bottom of steam under the piston member and raised him, as well as rod, "woman" and the head. When turning the handle to the other side, the valve stopped the flow of steam under the piston and open it out into the atmosphere through the main pipe. Then the falling part under its own weight strikes the workpiece with a force absolutely inaccessible to the tail click the hammer. Vapor pressure regulated by reducing the opening through which it is issued. Thus it was possible to get the hammer to fall more slowly or quickly, and consequently cause more or less severe strokes. Completely blocking the way out of steam, could instantly stop the hammer at any point. It is a new hammer was obedient in the administration, said such an episode. In 1843 Lord of the Admiralty came to the factory Nesmita, willing to look at his invention. Nesma himself to drive, took the weight of falling parts 2, 5 v. To surprise of Lords, he had prepared a sort of focus. At stake was crystal glass with a raw egg. Using the machine, Nesma crushed shell eggs without damaging stemware.

Commercial success of new cars has surpassed all expectations. Hammer became a sensation among the machine builders. In order to get acquainted with its device, engineers and mechanics came from all over the country. Received a lot of orders, and the steam hammer began his victorious first to England and then across the globe. (One of the first orders came from Russia. ) Nesmitu This invention has brought worldwide fame and glory of one of the leading machine builders. Even during his lifetime, in the second half of the XIX century, steam hammers reached colossal proportions. For example, in 1861 the plant was built by Krupp hammer "Fritz". His "baba" weighed 50 tons