US1432770A - Stock-feeding mechanism - Google Patents

Description

F. L- MACKENZIE. STOCK FEEDING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED MAYI'. 1-919.

1,432,770. D Patented Oct. 24,1922.

Patented Oct. 24, 1922.

FRED L. MACKENZIE, OF BEIIERLY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

STOCK-FEEDING MECHATLIISMI.

Application filed May 7,

To (ZZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED L. MACKENZIE, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Beverly, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Stock-Feeding Mechanisms, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characterson the drawings indicating like parts in the several. figures. V Y I This invention relates to stock feeding mechanisms and more particularly to means for gripping the stock to prevent movement thereof relatively to the saidmeans at certain predetermined periods in the stock feeding operations.

It is an object of the invention to provide simple and effective means for gripping the stock and more particularly means of the kind described which is readily controllable at the will of the operator to release the stock.

Ina well-known type of stock gripping mechanism, a circular or cylindrical member is mounted in a slot in the stock guiding member and is arrangedto grip the stock upon attempted movement of the, latter in one direction and to permit the stock to pass freely upon movement inthe opposite direction. This device hasbeen employed especially in connection with wire working machines and as heretofore constructed has not infrequently given trouble because of the collection of dirt therein necessitating the disassembling of the parts of the device. A

. more serious objection, however, arises from the lack of means for enabling the operator to control the gripping member so that the wire may be withdrawn in the event it becomes damaged in such a way as to affect adversely the operation of the machine or when it is desired to introduce another reel of wire or substitute wire-of a different size or quality. It is a further object of the invention to improve this specific type of mechanism in such manner as to provide a stock gripping device which will notv clog J and which is manually operable to effect the release of the wire at the will of the operator.

. Other objects and features of theinvention will be apparent from the following detailed description and will be pointed out in the claims. 4

1919. Serial No. 295,413.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a front view of a wire working machine showing one'application of the invention, and i Fig. 2 is a perspective view, partly in section, of the illustrative embodimentof the invention.

In the illustrative machine, the wire stock 4- is fed from the reel 6 and through a guideway 7 by feeding mechanism of a wellknown type comprising an upper feed roll 8 and a lower co-operating feed roll 10. The first-mentioned roll is secured to a shaft 12 which is oscillated positively, first in one direction and then in the other direction through operative connections with lever 14 i which is operated by an arm 16 fixedly attached to a shaft 18 driven from the main shaft of the machine- Pivoted at 20 is a supporting arm 22 for the lower feed roll 10 and the gear wheel 24 which latter is held constantly in mesh with the driven gear wheel 26 on the shaft 12 through the operation of a spring 28. In the operation of the machine the feed rolls 8 and 10 are rotated positively to feed the wire stock to the right in Fig. 1 for a definite period of time and then the feed roll is moved back- .wardly preparatory to the next feeding operation, and during the backward movement of said roll the lower roll 10 is separated from the upper roll to release the wire, this being effected by a plunger 30 which moves into contact at the proper time with an adjustible stop 32 in the supporting arm 22 so as to rock the said arm on its pivot to carry the lower roll out of engagement with the upper roll. For a more detailed disclosure of the parts thus far described reference should be had to the patent to Borden No. 1,016,930, granted February 13, 1912.

As the feed roll '8 turns backwardly at certain regularly recurring periods there is a tendency to displace the wire 4 through engagement with the moving roll. Hence means are provided for preventing movement of the wire in a direction reverse of the direction of feed. This means in the construction shown comprises wire stock gripping means of which the guideway 7 forms a part, since the lower portion of the guideway provides a surface 34: over which the wire passes and against which it is clamped by a cooperating gripper member preferably in the'form of acylinder 36. For economy in manufacture,- the guideway 7 is made of two pieces of which the lower presents-the wire supporting and clamping surface asdescribed, :and the upper a guiding vided with a bifurcated portion which partly embraces and rotatably receives the cylinder 86. The other arm 44 of'thelever 42 is acted upon by spring means which operates to cause the arm 46 of the lever to hold the cylinder yieldingly in contact with the wire. In the construction shown'the spring means for operating-"the lever is found in a spring locatedunder and'acting upwardly on the outer'end o'f 'the 'arm '44: of the lever. Preferably a casing 54 is provided on'fthe' upper member 138 ofthe guideway for housing said spring! Th'econstruction and arrangement are such that the cylinder or roller 36,1nay he moved to. clamp and to uncle-mp orrelease the wire. "Normally'the cylinder or'roller is held yi'eldingly against the wire throughthe operation of the spring 52. ,Yet'this pressure is not sufi'cient to interfere with thefmovement' of the 'wire inthe direction of feed, that is, to'the right in Figs. 1 and 2. It willbe clear upon inspection o'f th'e's'e figures that movement of the wire in the direction indicated tends to' move'the cylinder away from the cooperating clamping surface 34,

the cylinder being bothfrotatab'ly and slidably mounted in the forked end of the memher 432, and thusYn'o wire clamping orgripping action takes place during thefeedjof' the wire. But upon attempting to move the wire in the reverse direction the friction between the wire and the cylinder tends to carry the cylinderto the left -(inFig.'2) and thus the wire itself assisted. by the spring 52 causing a clamping otthe wire between the cylinder 'and'the surface '34:

whichfprevents any reverse movement ofthe wire. 'In order to obtain a fine adjustment of the lever 42 and especially of its bifur- ,cated end 50 with respect to thecylinder 36and the clamping surface 34;, the pivot 56 of the lever is provided with aneocentric portion 58 which the barrel or bearmg of the lever surrounds, the arrangement fbeing such that rotation of the pivot will raise or lower the end 50 of the lever: as

desired. i I

It is thought that the manner of operation I of the device has been setf to'rth with suifi Tcieni; detail in connection withthe foregoing description ofthe structural elements of the. device. It 'may be' pointed out in addition,

pro-

' Letters Patent of *the "United States is:

however, that the wire may be released from the gripping device, so-that it may be withdrawn toward the left, simply by pressing downwardly on the arm 44 of the lever. Thus a twisted ordamaged end of wire stock may be readily removed. It is necessary,- moreover, to remove in this way the remnant end of one reel before introducing theleadingend of wire from another reel,

so that the occasions when the manual control of the gripping device will proveuseful are not infrequent. It is clear also that dirt or foreign substances oi any kind are not l kely to clog the gripper dev1cework1ng in an open slot andt'hat dirt ma' be readily 1'emoved"t'ro1n the slot 48. IV oreov'er,'the substitution-oi 'new partsfor old maybe easily'eflecte'd simply by removing the pivot 56 which is in the'fo'rin of abolt. While the stock gripping device" just described is 5 very efiectlve for the purposes described it has the additional"advantage over 'many "forinsof gripping devices of not-marrin'g the surface oi 'soft stock. "While'the invention is disclosed iii-connection with astationary "guideway so that the function of the device is that of preventing displacement of j the wire stock with respectto a stock feeding'mechanism, itis clear that-the gripping" device maybe mounte'd'o'n or'be made '9 apart of a reciprocatorymemberwhichmay then beemp'loyed as a wirefeeding device. Having thus described my inventionfwhat I claim as new anddesire-to secure by 1.111 a machine'of the cla ssklescribed, wire gripping means comprising a support for the wire,a member mounted at one side of-the support and having a bifurcated end, and a' cylinder". freely fslidable and rotatable withiifthe' bifurcated end of the member and ar anged to beheld by said member in contactw'ith' the wire to" press thesame against thesupp'ort, t V v p 2."In a machine of'the'class described, wire gripping means comprising a support for the wire, a cylinder arranged in engagement w th thewire for pressing the same against the support, a member "having a forlired end "arranged'to"engage the cylin-" drical' surface of the cylinder toco'ntrolthe cylinder, and means for causing themember to press the cylinder against the wire.

3. In a machine of the" class Ydesc ribed,

'wire' gripping means "comprising asupport '120 for the wire, a member mounted at one side of the support, 1a cylinder" controlled by said memberand arranged to contact with the wireon the side opposite the support, means' for aeting yieldingly on the member'-125 to cause the cylinder to be yieldingly pressed against the 1 wire; and" means for 'ti'djusting the member towardand" from the wire support.

i. In a machine of the class 'described} 1$0 wire grippingmeans comprising aguided the support, an eccentric for adjusting way for the wlre having a slot therein ex-i posing the wire, a lever having one end projecting intosaid slot, means mounted for free bodily movement in the end of the lever and controlled by said end of the lever for gripping the wire, and means for yieldingly pressing the end of the lever into said slot; 5. In a machine of the class described, wire gripping means comprising a support for the wire, a lever mounted at one side of the support, means controlled by the lever for gripping the wire against the support, means for adjusting the lever toward and from the support for the wire, and

' means for yieldingly pressing the secondmentioned means agalnst the wire.

6. In a machine of the class described, wire gripping means comprising a support for the Wire, a lever mounted at one side aid lever toward and from said support, a ylinder for clamping the wire on the support and arranged to be controlled by said lever, and a spring operative to press the cylinder yieldingly against the wire on the support.

' 7. Mechanism for gripping wire stock comprising a support for the wire, a cylinder of metal or other suitable substance, amember having a forked end arranged to engage the cylindrical surface of the cylinder to press the same against the Wire, and a spring for moving the member in the direction to cause the cylinder to grip the W1re.

In testimony whereof I have signed my I name to this specification.

FRED L. MACKENZIE.

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