Rolling apparatus for annular workpiece

Abstract

A rolling apparatus for an annular workpiece includes roller, a rolling wheel device, a base, and a stand. The roller has two circular frames that holds the annular workpiece therein using removable fixing members. After an outer circumferential surface of the annular workpiece is tightly wrapped by an investment material, the fixing members are removed to leave a through hole at the center of the investment material and the annular workpiece has its inner circumferential surface exposed at the through hole. The cylindrical rolling wheel of the rolling wheel device passes through the through hole of the investment material and rolls on the inner circumferential surface of the annular workpiece against a rolling platform of the base to increase the density of the annular workpiece. During the rolling operation, the investment material positions the annular workpiece and protects textures and patterns preformed on the outer circumferential surface.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A rolling apparatus for an annular workpiece, wherein the rolling apparatus is configured to perform a rolling operation on an inner side of the annular workpiece and the rolling apparatus comprises:
 a roller, comprising two circular frames butt-jointed with each other, a removable bottom mount, a removable bottom stem, and a removable central sleeve configured to be butt-jointed with the removable bottom stem, the removable bottom mount being configured to receive the two circular frames and centrally formed with a hole, the removable bottom stem being placed over the hole of the removable bottom mount and located at a center of the butt-jointed two circular frames, the removable bottom stem being atop provided with a cylindrical head with a reduced diameter as compared to the removable bottom stem, the cylindrical head being configured to receive the annular workpiece, the removable central sleeve having an inner hole that is configured to receive the cylindrical head of the removable bottom stem, the two circular frames being filled with an investment material, wherein when the removable bottom mount, the removable bottom stem, and the removable central sleeve are removed, a through hole is formed at a center of the investment material, with an outer circumferential surface of the annular workpiece tightly wrapped by the investment material and an inner circumferential surface of the annular workpiece exposed at the through hole;   a rolling wheel device, comprising a cylindrical rolling wheel and being configured to perform the rolling operation on the inner circumferential surface of the annular workpiece in the roller; and   a base, comprising a rolling platform, wherein in the rolling operation, the roller rolls on the rolling platform.   
     
     
         2 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the cylindrical head of the removable bottom stem is configured to receive the annular workpiece, so that one side of the inner circumferential surface of the annular workpiece rests on a shoulder of the removable bottom stem, and when the removable central sleeve is butt-jointed with the removable bottom stem, the removable central sleeve abuts against an opposite side of the inner circumferential surface of the annular workpiece. 
     
     
         3 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein an upper circular frame of the two circular frames of the roller is provided with at least one plug, and a lower circular frame of the two circular frames is provided with at least one single-ended socket that is located to correspond to the at least one plug of the upper circular frame, so that when the two circular frames are butt-jointed, the at least one plug is inserted to the at least one single-ended socket. 
     
     
         4 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein an upper circular frame of the two circular frames of the roller is provided with at least one first double-ended socket, and a lower circular frame of the two circular frames is provided with at least one second double-ended socket that is located to correspond to the at least one first double-ended socket of the upper circular frame, so that when the two circular frames are butt-jointed, at least one screw is inserted into the at least one first double-ended socket and the at least one second double-ended socket, and at least one nut is screwed to the at least one screw. 
     
     
         5 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the rolling wheel device further comprises two bearings, two bearing bushing adapters, and two bearing sleeves, the two bearing bushing adapters each being centrally provided with a polygonal receiving hole, the two bearing bushing adapters being received by inner circumferential surfaces of the two bearings, respectively, the two bearings being received in the two bearing sleeves, respectively, and the two bearing sleeves each further being laterally provided with at least one lug, in which two ends of the cylindrical rolling wheel are polygonal shape that matches the two polygonal receiving holes of the two bearing bushing adapters, and are configured to be inserted to the receiving holes of the two bearing bushing adapters, while the cylindrical rolling wheel passes through the through hole of the investment material in the roller and the annular workpiece. 
     
     
         6 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the base is further provided with two rails that are located at the two opposite sides of a lower part of the rolling platform, respectively, in which the rolling platform is further provide with two lengthwise retainers for retaining the rolling roller. 
     
     
         7 . The rolling apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the rolling wheel device is further provided with a stand that comprises two lateral plates and two positioning arms, the two positioning arms passing through through holes of the two lateral plates, the two positioning arms each being provided with at least one notch for receiving the at least two lugs of the two bearing sleeves of the rolling wheel device, the two lateral plates and the two positioning arms being opposite at two sides of the rolling platform and substantially perpendicular to an extending direction of the rolling platform, the base being further provided with two rails that are located at the two opposite sides of a lower part of the rolling platform, and the stand being configured to move along the two rails of the base.