In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a drive chain system (22, 24) for a spiral conveyor belt (34) includes inner (52) and outer (62) drive chains driving the spiral conveyor belt, the inner and outer drive chains each including a plurality of links (70) defined by a plurality of first (72) and second (74) pitches connected by linking pins (84, 86) extending through holes (80, 82) in the pitches, wherein at least a portion of the linking pins of at least one of the inner and outer drive chains are hardened and/or dissimilar linking pins which are harder on an outer surface than other components in the inner and outer drive chains.

The present invention relates to an arrangement for heat treating component parts. The arrangement has a first temperature control station for heat treating component parts and a second temperature control station for heat treating component parts, wherein the first temperature control station and the second temperature control station each have a temperature control device, on each of which a functional device is placeable. The functional device is a charging device for carrying component parts to be temperature-controlled or a device of the temperature control device. The arrangement further has a charging station, on which the functional device is placeable, and a handling system for handling the functional device, wherein the handling system is configured to convey the functional device between the charging station, the first temperature control station and the second temperature control station.

A conveyance roller for a heating furnace includes: a roller body constituted by a metal tube made of a heat-resistant alloy; at least one holding protrusion provided on an outer circumferential surface of the roller body for holding an object to be heated in the heating furnace, and protruding from the outer circumferential surface of the roller body in a plurality of positions at a given interval in a longitudinal direction of the roller body; and at least one shielding member provided to be adjacent to the at least one the holding protrusion in the longitudinal direction, and covering the outer circumferential surface of the roller body. The at least one shielding member has a thickness not larger than a height of the holding protrusion from the outer circumferential surface of the roller body.

A conveyance roller for a heating furnace includes: a roller body constituted by a metal tube made of a heat-resistant alloy; at least one holding protrusion provided on an outer circumferential surface of the roller body for holding an object to be heated in the heating furnace, and protruding from the outer circumferential surface of the roller body in a plurality of positions at a given interval in a longitudinal direction of the roller body; and at least one shielding member provided to be adjacent to the at least one the holding protrusion in the longitudinal direction, and covering the outer circumferential surface of the roller body. The at least one shielding member has a thickness not larger than a height of the holding protrusion from the outer circumferential surface of the roller body.

A furnace roller assembly having a fluid-cooled shaft that is covered by an interface performance material comprising both ceramic millboard and a wire brush bristled-material is disclosed. The roller assembly can be used as part of a conveyance system in a finishing mill to support and transport steel sheet through an annealing furnace. The fluid-cooled shaft and the ceramic millboard plus wire brush interface performance material arrangement provide the means to provide effective insulation for the shaft while preventing degradation of the covering on the shaft.

An endless conveyor belt for a conveyor baking oven has a conveyor run with a plurality of belt links configured in one piece, the belt links extending transversely to a conveying direction and being mounted between lateral guides. Seen in projection in a plane perpendicular to a conveying plane, each of the belt links has gas passage openings. These gas passage openings have a total opening surface area, which amounts to at least 30% of a total surface area of the projection of the belt link. The result is an endless conveyor belt, which allows a baking space of a conveyor baking oven equipped with an endless conveyor belt of this type to be heated more efficiently and flexibly.

A railless billet electric induction heating apparatus and method is provided where billets are continuously or statically heated by induction by moving the billets without billet support rails through an induction coil supplied with alternating current power when the billets are in direct sliding contact with the interior surface of a clay graphite billet slider disposed within the induction coil. The clay graphite billet slider can also provide thermal insulation between the induction coil and the clay graphite billet slider to eliminate the requirement for a separate induction coil refractory.

A device for aligning a metal blank for a temperature control system which has at least one temperature control unit for heating or cooling the metal blank includes at least two support rollers on which the metal blank can be placed and conveyed through the temperature control system by rotation of the support rollers in the throughput direction and within a conveying plane. The support rollers are arranged spaced apart in the throughput direction. The device further includes a first centering unit having at least one centering finger which is movably arranged within the conveying plane such that the centering finger is movable transversely to the throughput direction in order to align the metal blank in a predetermined orientation.

A method and plant for the thermal treatment of friction elements including a convective heating step which is performed within a convective tunnel oven. The friction elements are arranged laid, in an orderly manner, upon a plurality of trays each tray having a perforated resting plate upon which the friction elements are laid in a position next to one another only, but not overlapped. The trays are piled on top of each other whilst being kept distanced from one another in a stacking direction by an amount that is greater than the thickness of the friction elements. Groups of piled up trays containing the friction elements are arranged side by side on belt conveyor means that pass through the tunnel oven in order to transport the friction elements therethrough.

A roller transport assembly includes a cart assembly and a roller carriage assembly. The roller carriage assembly is slidably mounted to the cart assembly and has at least one chamber for housing a roller. Each of the chambers includes a linear rail extending along a first axis and a roller coupling device attached to and slidable along the linear rail. The roller coupling device is operable to couple to the roller and move the roller along the first axis adjacent and parallel with the linear rail.