GB2283310A

GB2283310A - Pressed metal spacer members for radiators

Info

Publication number: GB2283310A
Application number: GB9319304A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Geoffrey Harold Price
Original assignee: Martin & Field Ltd
Current assignee: Martin & Field Ltd
Priority date: 1993-09-17
Filing date: 1993-09-17
Publication date: 1995-05-03
Anticipated expiration: 2013-09-17
Also published as: GB9319304D0; GB2283310B

Abstract

A pressed metal spacer member of generally cylindrical configuration has opposed end walls 12, 18 and one or more stiffening elements 26. At least one of the end walls has an aperture 20, 22 therein and at least one aperture is provided in the side wall of the spacer member whereby fluid may flow through the apertures of the member. The spacer may be used between opposed inner surfaces of the front and rear walls of a radiator at a position at which a water pipe is to be attached. The spacer is formed by pressing and piercing a sheet metal blank (see figures 1 - 5), for example 1mm thick sheet steel. <IMAGE>

Description

TITLE: Spacer Members This invention relates to a spacer member of a type which is typically usable in a central heating radiator.

In a pressed steel central heating radiator it is conventional practice to include a spacer between opposed inner surfaces of the front and rear walls of the radiator at a position at which a water supply pipe is to be attached.

Typically such a pipe is connected to the exterior surface of the radiator by resistance welding. The water supply to the interior of the radiator is via an aperture around which the supply pipe is welded the water flowing through said aperture and through a spacer which is located internally of the radiator about the said aperture.

Such a spacer is subject to compressive loads during the welding operation and hence has to be of sufficient strength to resist crushing. Known spacers have been formed of a relatively heavy gauge of pressed metal or have been formed as a sintered product or machined from bar or rod. When formed of pressed steel for example a spacer may typically be in the form of a cylindrical bushing having radially extending planar annular end surfaces for abutting respective opposed inner surfaces of a radiator, and having holes pierced in the cylindrical side wall of the bushing to provide water flow passages. A sintered spacer is typically of a similar configuration.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved form of spacer member, and a method for its production, which will offer various advantages over known spacers such as those of the type referred to above.

In accordance with the broadest aspect of the invention there is provided a pressed metal spacer member of generally cylindrical configuration having opposed end walls and one or more stiffening elements, at least one of said end walls having an aperture therein and at least one aperture being provided in the side wall of the spacer member whereby fluid may flow through said apertures of said member.

Conveniently each end wall of the spacer member is of annular form providing a central aperture at each end of the member.

Preferably a plurality of stiffening elements are provided, each of said elements being formed from a part of the side wall of the spacer member and extending radially inwardly thereof, a said side wall aperture being provided adjacent each said stiffening element. Such a spacer member may thus be of generally cylindrical configuration having two opposed annular end walls and a plurality of stiffening elements extending axially between said annular end walls.

The stiffening elements may be symmetrically spaced apart circumferentially of the spacer member, or may not be symmetrically so spaced apart.

Also in accordance with the invention there is provided a method of manufacturing a spacer member comprising performing a number of pressing operations on a sheet metal blank to provide a part finished blank of generally cylindrical configuration having opposed end walls and a cylindrical side wall, performing a piercing operation or operations on said side wall to form a plurality of apertures therein, and forming a plurality of stiffening elements in said side wall. The stiffening elements so formed conveniently extend axially between said opposed end walls and radially inwardly of the side wall.

Preferably the sheet metal blank is a circular blank and the method includes a pressing operation or operations to form the blank into a generally cup-shaped form having an end wall and a cylindrical peripheral side wall. The method conveniently includes the further steps of pressing the free end of the side wall radially inwardly to form another end wall substantially parallel to and axially spaced from said one end wall. The method may then include the step of piercing both end walls to provide a central aperture therein, each said wall thus being formed into an annular configuration. The method may then include piercing a plurality of apertures in the side wall and forming a plurality of radially inwardly extending stiffening elements each comprising a part of said side wall.

Each of the said apertures formed in the side wall conveniently extends axially thereof between the said end walls, and each said stiffening element is conveniently co-extensive axially with said apertures.

In use such a spacer member formed in accordance with the invention is locatable within a central heating radiator between two opposed inner surfaces of the radiator. Each of the annular end walls of the spacer member abuts a respective inner surface of the radiator, one of said inner surfaces being formed with an aperture therethrough about which one annular end wall of the spacer member is locatable. During production of the radiator a water supply pipe is conveniently resistance welded to the exterior of the radiator so as to have a part of the pipe coaxial with said aperture. Thus, in use, water may flow through said supply pipe, through said aperture and through the spacer member entering it axially through one annular end wall thereof and then flowing into the interior of the radiator through the said apertures formed in the side wall of the spacer member.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the following description given herein solely by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein: Figures 1 to 6 comprise a series of diagrammatic views illustrating steps in the forming of a spacer member in accordance with the invention.

Referring firstly to Figure 1 of the drawings there is illustrated a sheet metal, preferably steel, blank 10 from which the spacer member in accordance with the invention is produced. The first operation on the blank is to press or draw it to a substantially cup-shaped form as illustrated in Figure 2, such a form comprising a substantially planar circular end wall 12 and a cylindrical side wall 14. A further pressing operation is then carried out on the part formed blank of Figure 2 to deform the free end of the cylindrical side wall 14 radially inwardly as shown at 16 in Figure 3. A further pressing operation is then carried out to complete the radially inward deformation and form a second end wall 18 parallel to and spaced axially from said first end wall 12. This so formed second end wall 18 will have a small central aperture after the pressing operation has been completed. Subsequently both end walls 12 and 18 are pierced to provide a respective larger diameter aperture 20 and 22 therein as shown in Figure 4 whereby each of the end walls is then of planar annular form.

Next a piercing operation is carried out on the cylindrical side wall 14 to form one or more apertures 24 therein. As illustrated by way of example in Figure 5 of the drawings, four such apertures 24 are formed in the side wall 14, each aperture being of substantially rectangular slot-like form extending axially between the opposed end walls 12 and 18. The four slots 24 are conveniently equi-distantly spaced apart circumferentially around the side wall 14.

Finally, a further pressing operation deforms each part of the side wall 14 between adjacent edges of two adjacent slots 24 radially inwardly. The metal of the part formed blank is thus effectively "peeled" away from the opposed axially inner surfaces of the annular end walls 12 and 18 in a radially inwardly direction to the configuration shown in the plan view of Figure 6. Thus parts of the side wall are formed into eight elongate stiffening members 26 which extend axially between the annular end walls 12 and 18 of the spacer member and radially inwardly of the side wall 14 thereof.

A spacer member as described above may be formed from a relatively light gauge steel e.g. of lmm thickness. The overall diameter of the finished spacer member of the illustrative example of Figure 6 may be 23mm; the diameter of the apertures 20 and 22 may be 14mm; the overall axial dimension may be 11mm and the width of each slot 24 after the stiffening members 26 have been formed may be approximately 7mm. It will of course be appreciated that these dimensions are given only by way of example and that other dimensions may be selected depending upon the size of radiator in which the spacer member is to be utilised. Also more or less than four slots 24 and eight stiffening members 26 may be formed in the spacer member.

Such a spacer member is conveniently used in the construction of a central heating radiator to assist in the distribution of water as it flows into the radiator and to prevent opposed walls of the radiator from being deformed towards one another when they are subjected to compressive loading. A spacer member as produced in accordance with the foregoing description with reference to the drawings may thus be located about an aperture in one of the said opposed walls of a central heating radiator so that one of the annular end walls of the spacer member is located about and adjacent said aperture. A water supply pipe is connected such as by welding to the exterior of the radiator so that a part of the pipe is coaxial with the said aperture. After final assembly and fabrication of the radiator water may flow therein through said pipe, through said aperture and through the body of the spacer member to emerge therefrom through the side wall slots.

The spacer member constructed in accordance with the invention may be formed of a much lighter gauge steel than has hitherto been the practice. For example, the spacer member may be formed from a blank 10 which is only of lmm thickness whereas conventional pressed steel spacer members have been formed from 2.5mm thickness metal. The provision of the stiffening elements which extend axially between the opposed annular end walls and radially inwardly of the side wall of the spacer member enable such a lighter gauge of metal to be utilised while still providing the stiffness against axial crushing forces which is desirable in use of the spacer member during the fabrication of a central heating radiator as hereinbefore described.

The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following claims, or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means for performing the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately or in any combination of such features, be utilised for realising the invention in diverse forms thereof.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A pressed metal spacer member of generally cylindrical configuration having opposed end walls and one or more stiffening elements, at least one of said end walls having an aperture therein and at least one aperture being provided in the side wall of the spacer member whereby fluid may flow through said apertures of said member.

2. A spacer member according to claim 1 wherein each end wall of the spacer member is of annular form providing a central aperture at each end of the member.

3. A spacer member according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein a plurality of stiffening elements are provided, each of said elements being formed from a part of the side wall of the spacer member and extending radially inwardly thereof, a said side wall aperture being provided adjacent each said stiffening element.

4. A spacer member according to claim 3 wherein the spacer member is of generally cylindrical configuration having two opposed annular end walls and a plurality of stiffening elements extending axially between said annular end walls.

5. A spacer member according to claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the stiffening elements are symmetrically spaced apart circumferentially of the spacer member.

6. A spacer member according to claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the stiffening elements are not symmetrically spaced apart circumferentially of the spacer member.

7. A spacer member substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

8. A method of manufacturing a spacer member comprising performing a number of pressing operations on a sheet metal blank to provide a part finished blank of generally cylindrical configuration having opposed end walls and a cylindrical side wall, performing a piercing operation or operations on said side wall to form a plurality of apertures therein, and forming a plurality of stiffening elements in said side wall.

9. A method according to claim 8 wherein the stiffening elements so formed extend axially between said opposed end walls and radially inwardly of the side wall.

10. A method according to claim 8 or claim 9 wherein the sheet metal blank is a circular blank and the method includes a pressing operation or operations to form the blank into a generally cup-shaped form having an end wall and a cylindrical peripheral side wall.

11. A method according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the method includes the further steps of pressing the free end of the side wall radially inwardly to form another end wall substantially parallel to and axially spaced from said one end wall.

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein the method includes the step of piercing both end walls to provide a central aperture therein, each said wall thus being formed into an annular configuration.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein the method includes piercing a plurality of apertures in the side wall and forming a plurality of radially inwardly extending stiffening elements each comprising a part of said side wall.

14. A method according to claim 13 wherein each of the said apertures formed in the side wall extends axially thereof between the said end walls and each said stiffening element is conveniently co-extensive axially with said apertures.

15. A method substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

16. A spacer member according to any one of claims 1 to 7 or when made by a method according to any one of claims 8 to 15 located within a central heating radiator between two opposed inner surfaces of the radiator.

17. A spacer member according to claim 16 wherein each of the annular end walls of the spacer member abuts a respective inner surface of the radiator, one of said inner surfaces being formed with an aperture therethrough about which one annular end wall of the spacer member is locatable.

18. A spacer member according to claim 16 wherein a water supply pipe is connected to the exterior of the radiator so as to have a part of the pipe coaxial with said aperture.

19. Any novel feature or novel combination of features desribed herein and/or in the accompanying drawings.