US3744536A

US3744536A - Toilet seat lid cover stretcher,process and apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3744536A
Application number: US00203538A
Authority: US
Inventors: G Plemons; F Stahl; J Eidson
Original assignee: HAMPTON MILLS Inc
Current assignee: HAMPTON MILLS Inc
Priority date: 1971-12-01
Filing date: 1971-12-01
Publication date: 1973-07-10
Anticipated expiration: 1990-07-10

Abstract

A stretcher for the cover of a toilet seat lid is formed by bending a length of wire about the peripheral approximately eggshaped upper and side edges of a flat forming plate and folding the ends of the wire length inwardly toward each other across a flat lower edge of the forming plate. The ends of the wire length are trimmed and connected together to form the closed loop stretcher. The stretcher is then placed in the cover of a toilet seat lid so as to hold the cover in a generally flat, stretched configuration for packing, shipment and display in the retail store.

Description

United States Patent [191 [111 3,744,536 Stahl, Jr. et al. 1 1 July 10, 1973 [54] TOILET SEAT LII) COVER STRETCHER, 2,994,887 8/1961 Thornton 4/242 PRQCESS AND APPARATUS 2,659,091 11/1953 Boone 4/242 3,675,305 7/1972 Heisler 140/75 Inventors: Fred F. Stahl, Jr., Ellijay; J. Marvin Eidson, Atlanta; G. Dale Plemons, Crandall, all of Ga.

Assignee: Hampton Mills, 1nc., Ellijay, Ga.

lil'cd: Dec. 1, 1971 Appl. No.: 203,538

US. Cl. 140/88, 140/102 Int'. Cl 1321f 37/00 Field of Search 140/73, 75, 77, 88, 140/90, 102; 38/102, 102.1; 160/378; 4/242;

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 12/1940 Stitt et al. 140/88 5/1949 Silver 160/378 Primary Examiner-Lowell A. Larson Attorney- Harold D. Jones, Jr, George M. Thomas [57] ABSTRACT A stretcher for the cover of a toilet seat lid is formed by bending a length of wire about the peripheral approximately egg-shaped upper and side edges of a flat forming plate and folding the ends of the wire length inwardly toward each other across a flat lower edge of the forming plate. The ends of the wire length are trimmed and connected together to form the closed loop stretcher. The stretcher is then placed in the cover of a toilet seat lid so as to hold the cover in a generally flat, stretched configuration for packing, shipment and display in the retail store.

13 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures 23 28 9 l8 30 27 Z6 Z2 22 PATENTED JUL I 3. 744. 536

m o g m L u.- N a Q g m N N 1.5

Q 1 q 03 M 0 0 2 y :1 E INVENTORS E m e. DALE PLEA/IONS m w J. MARVIN EIDSON m 0 F2 FRED F STAHLNJR.

ATTORNEYS PATENTEDJUL 1 0191s saw ear 3 PATENIEMMA I own SHEET 3 0F 3 HG. IO

CAM MOTOR OPERATION-COMPLETE CYCLE WIRE CUTTER RAM SLOT OPENER RAM FoRMER ARMS RA REVERSE WIRE FEEDING RAM REVERSING MERCURY SWITCHES WIRE ENDS FOLDING RAM (2) FRAME SHIFTING RAM WIRE ENDS CUTTING RAM FRAME RELEASE SOLENOID FORMING PLATE SHRINKING RAM WELDING PLATES GLAMPING RAMS WIRE ENDS CONTACT RAM WELDING WIRE LOOP EJECTOR RAM TOILET SEAT LID COVER STRETCHER, PROCESS AND APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Covers for toilet seat lids usually are formed from tufted material and generally conform in size and shape to the toilet seat lid to which they are to be connected. The covers usually are connected to the toilet seat lids by the inwardly folded peripheral edge of the cover being tightly drawn around the peripheral edge of the lid by a drawstring or an elastic band. When the covers are first manufactured, it is desirable to take the steps necessary to keep the covers in a stretched or generally flat configuration so that they do not become wrinkled or folded during packing, shipment and ultimate display in the retail store. Various packing techniques have been developed in an attemptto keep-the covers from becoming wrinkled or folded in the packing cases,

. including placing inside the folded peripheraledge of each cover a corregated cardboard insert=which is approximately the same size and shape as a toilet seat lid.

While the use of cardboard inserts has kept the covers from becoming folded, the cardboard inserts are expensive to manufacture and store, and the cardboard inserts occupy a large amount of space in the shipping container and add weight to the shipping container;

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly described, the present'invention comprises a stretcher for toilet seat lid covers, and the process and apparatus for forming the stretchers. The stretchers are formed from lengths of wire with their ends joined together to form a continuous wire loop, and the wire loop conforms in size and coil tension springs and shape to the edge of a toilet seat lid. The stretcher is inserted inside the cover and functions to maintain the cover in its flat or outwardly stretched configuration.

The process for manufacturing the. stretchers comprises moving wire along its length from a source of wire across the upper edge of a wire forming plate which generally corresponds to the shape of a toilet seat lid, and then bending the wire about the curved portions of the wire forming plate, and then folding the ends of the wire length toward each other. The end portions of the wire length are joined together, to form the closed loop stretcher.

Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide a stretcher for toilet seat lid covers which is lightweight, inexpensive to manufacture, which. requires a small amount of storage space, and which functions to hold toilet seat lid covers in a flat, stretched-out configuration while occupying only a small space in a shipping container.

Another object of this invention is to provide a process for forming stretchers for toilet seat lid covers I wherein the stretchers are automatically, rapidly and inexpensively formed.

Another object of this invention is to provide appara-' lowing specification, when taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. I is a schematic illustration of the toilet seat lid cover stretcher forming apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a side schematic illustration of the wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus.

FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 are progressive schematic illustrations which show the manner in which the wire lengths are bent, folded, connected and stacked.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of the pneumatic control system.

FIG. 10 is a time sequence chart and illustrates the portions of each cycle that the various rams and switches are energized.

FIG. 11 is a bottom view of a toilet seat lid cover with a stretcher inserted therein.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Upon referring the figures of the drawing, it should be understood that the illustrations therein are presented without the various frame support elements and other conventional devices, and only the elements necessary for a full and complete understanding of the inventive concepts have been illustrated.

Referring now in more detail to the drawing, wherein like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 schematically illustrates the toilet seat lid cover stretcher forming apparatus 10 which generally includes wire feeding and cutting mechanism 11 and wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus 12. Wire feeding and cutting mechanism 11 includes a rotatable bin 14 for containing a source or supply 15 of wire 16, a wire straightener 18, wire feeder 19, wire cutter 20 and wire holder 21. A plurality of wire guides 22 are positioned at spaced intervals along wire feeding and cutting mechanism 11 and function to guide the wire 16'through a rectilinear path from the area of bin 14 toward wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus 12. Wire straightener 18 comprises a plurality of pairs of rollers 24 which are alternately oriented at 90 intervals about the path of the wire and arranged to engage the wire as itmoves along the path to take the curve out of the wire and straighten the wire. One or more of the guides 22 are constructed to permit the wire to move in one direction only, the direction indicated by arrows 23.

Wire feeder 19 comprises pneumatic wire feeding ram 25 which includes cylinder 26 and ramrod 27, and wire feeding bracket 28 is connected to the outer end of ramrod 27. Wire feeding ram 25 is a conventional double-acting ram, and wire feeding bracket 28 is arranged to grip the wire when moving toward wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus and release the wire when moving back toward bin 14, thus "functioning to intermittently move the wire along its path. While the operation of wire feeder 19 is controlled through the cam system of FIG. 9, as will be explained more fully hereinafter, wire feeder 19 makes two complete cycles during each cycle of the entire apparatus, and the length of the stroke of ramrod 27 as well the double-cycle function are controlled by

mercury switches

30 and 31 which are engaged and actuated by the bracket 28 of the wire feeder at the end of its strokes.

tover wire yolding slot 36, 8s3ot 6pener 9am 39 rs con- Sected to moveable plate 38 and arranged to move the plate back and forth so as to uncover and recover wire holding slot 36. A plurality of magnets 40 are located in recesses within support plate 35 and face downwardly into wire holding slot 36. When the wire 16 is fed into wire holding slot 36 of wire holder 21, moveable plate 38 will be closed and the wire will be held freely in alignment with its rectilinear path. When moveable plate 38 is opened by slot opener ram 39, the wire, which is fabricated from a ferrous metal, will remain in wire holding slot 36 because of the magnetism from magnets 40; however, when the wire is urged in a downward direction, as will be explained later, the wire can break free from magnets 40 and move down out of wire holding slot 36.

Wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus 12 comprises wire forming plate 41 which is approximately flat and positioned in an upright plane parallel to the path of wire 16 with its upper edge located just beneath the extended path of the wire. The periphery of wire forming plate 41 is generally egg-shaped with its longitudinal axis extending upright and with its smaller diameter positioned below its larger diameter, and its lower, smaller end is truncated soas to form a flat lower edge. The edges of wire forming plate 41 include convex upper and

side edges

42, 43 and 44 and flat lower edge 45. A slot 46 is defined in forming plate 41 and extends upwardly and inwardly from lower edge 45. Side edge 43 includes a moveable side section 48, and forming plate shrinking ram 49 controls the movement of side section 48.

A pair of wire

former arms

50 and 51 are positioned behind wire forming plate 41, and wire

engaging rollers

52 and 53 are rotatably mounted on the ends of

former arms

50 and 51 and maintained in the same plane as wire forming plate 41.

Former arms

50 and 51 are actuated by former arms ram 55 which is connected to and controls the movement of double rack 56 which engages

rack gears

58 and 59. Rack 56a is located on one side of

rack gears

58 and 59 while rack 56b is located on the other side. Thus, when double rack 56 is reciprocated by former arms ram 55,

rack gears

58 and 59 will be rotated in opposite directions. Rack gear 58 is connected to former arm 51 by means of its driving shaft 60, while rack gear 59 is connected to former arm 50 by means of tubular driving shaft 61. Driving shaft 60 extends through the opening of tubular driving shaft 61, so that

former arms

50 and 51 are rotatable about a mutual horizontal axis of rotation 63 which is normal to the plane of wire forming plate 41.

Former arms

50 and 51 are each fabricated from telescoping arm sections so that the distance between the axis of rotation 63 of the former arms and

rollers

52 and 53 can vary. The outer ends of the former arms are biased toward axis 63 by means of coil tension springs (not shown) internally mounted in each arm. Thus, since

rollers

52 and 53 are located at the outer ends of

former arms

50 and 51, they are always biased toward the peripheral edges of wire forming plate 41. Roller elevating cam 64 is positioned at the upper portion of wire forming plate 41 between the plane of the wire forming plate and

former arms

50 and 51, and is arranged to engage the bushing 65 of each

former arm

50 and 51 so as to raise or elevate

rollers

52 and 53 away from the upper edge 42 of wire forming plate 41 when the rollers are in their up position. When

former arms

50 and 51 are rotated about their mutual axis 63 by ram 55, they move down into engagement with the convex edge of wire forming plate 41. If a length of wire 66 has been cut from wire 16 and released by wire holder 21,

rollers

52 and 53,

former arms

50 and 51, and their related elements function as bending means and bend the wire length 66 about the convex periphery of wire forming plate 41, in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4.

As is illustrated in FIG. '1, a pair of wire folding blocks 68 and 69 are located at the intersections of the convex side edges 43 and 44 with the flat lower edge 45 of wire forming plate 41. Wire folding blocks 68 and 69 normally are positioned behind the plane of wire forming plate 41, and pivot on axles 70 and 71. Wire ends folding rams 72 and 73 are connected to wire folding blocks 68 and Y69 and function to pivot the folding blocks about their axles. Each axle 70 and 71 includes a helical cam arrangement (not shown) which causes its wire folding block to move out into the plane of wire forming plate 41 as it rotates in the directions indicated by

arrows

74 and 75, and after the folding blocks are in the plane of forming plate 41, further movement of the blocks from the influence of

rams

72 and 73 causes the blocks to move into abutment with the flat lower edge 45 of forming plate 41 (FIG. 5). Wire end folding rams 72 and 73 are single-acting rams, and col tension springs 76 and 77 function to retract the ramrods back into the cylinders of the rams, to pivot the wire folding blocks 68 and 69 back to their original retracted positions.

As is best illustrated in FIG. 2, a pair of parallel slide bars 80 (only one shown) are positioned in a horizontal plane approximately normal to the plane of wire forming plate 41 at the lower portion of wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus 12, and a frame 81 is slidably mounted on slide bars 80. Frame shifting ram 82 is arranged to reciprocate frame 81 on slide bars 80 toward and away from wire forming plate 41, and frame restraining hook 83 is positioned below frame 81 and is arranged to restrain the movement of frame 81 toward wire forming plate 41. Frame shifting ram 82 is a double-acting ram and a stroke of its ramrod has sufficient amplitude to move the portion of frame 81 that is restrained by hook 83 to both sides of the restrained I postion of the hook.

Wire ends cutter 85 is mounted on the forward portion of frame 81 and includes a stationary element 86, a moveable severing element 87, cam 88, and wire ends cutting ram 89. Ram 89 is a double-acting ram, and when its ramrod 90 is distended, cam 88 causes moveable severing element 87 to move in a downward direction with a scissors action against element 86. Wire ends cutter 85 is moveable with frame 81, and when frame shifting ram 82 is actuated to move the frame toward wire forming plate 41, frame restraining hook 83 will limit the outward movement of frame 81 so that wire ends cutter 85 will be located in the plane of wire forming plate 41. The sequence of operation of frame shifting ram 82 is such that the

end portions

91 and 92 of a wire length 66 will be folded across slot 46 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 5 as frame 81 is moved forwardly to the limit gauged by frame restraining hook 83, whereupon moveable severing element 87 and stationary element 86 will be positioned on opposite sides of the overlapping end portions of the wire length 66. Wire ends cutting ram 89 is then actuated and the cutting

elements

86 and 87 function to cut across the overlapping portions of the wire length 66 (FIG. 6).

After the end portions of the wire length 66 have been cut, frame restraining hook 83 is pivoted about its axle 94 by means of solenoid 95 and withdrawn from frame 81. This allows ram 82 to move frame 81 further toward wire forming plate 41, whereupon wire ends cutter 85 is moved beyond the plane or wire forming plate 41 and welding means 96 is positioned in the plane of wire forming plate 41.

Welding means 96 comprises two pairs of clamping

blocks

98 and 99, and the clamping blocks of each pair are moveable toward and away from each other by the action of welding

plates clamping rams

100 and 101. In addition, one pair of welding plates 99 is moveable toward the other pair of welding plates 98 as illustrated by arrow 102 (FIG. 7) under the influence of wire ends contact ram 104. When welding means 96 are placed in the plane of wire forming plate 41 by the withdrawal of frame restraining hook 83 from frame 81, the pairs of clamping

blocks

98 and 99 will straddle the

end portions

91 and 92 of the wire length 66, and clamping

rams

100 and 101 cause one clamping block of each pair of clamping blocks to move and grip the end portions of the wire against the other clamping block. Wire ends contact ram 104 is subsequently activated to move the pair of clamping blocks 99 toward the opposite pair of clamping blocks 98, thus moving the ends of the wire length 66 into abutment with each other. Forming plate shrinking ram 49 is actuated in order to cause the moveable side section 48 of the wire forming plate 41 to move inwardly with respect to the forming plate, so that a forming plate effectively shrinks in this area where the wire is being drawn inwardly. When the ends of the wire length are in abutment with each other, a voltage is applied to the pairs of clamping

blocks

98 and 99 to weld the ends of the wire length together.

As is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 8, wire loop ejector 105 is located at the upper portion of wire forming plate 41 and comprises wire loop ejector ram 106, ramrod 108 and an enlargement or foot 109 on the outer end of the ramrod. Ramrod 108 and its foot 109 are normally retracted and located behind the plane of wire forming plate 41 (FIG. 2). When ram 106 is energized to distend its ramrod 108, foot 109 engages the wire length 66 at the upper portion of wire forming plate 41 and ejects that portion of the wire length from forming plate 41 (FIG. 8). The upper portion of the wire length which is now a wire loop 110 falls away from the upper portion of wire forming plate 41; however, the lower rectilinear span of the wire loop 110 will remain in the grip of clamping

blocks

98 and 99. Slide rod 1 11 extends in a downwardly sloped direction away from the upper edge of wire forming plate 41. As the wire loop 1 l0 pivots about its lower rectilinear section which is gripped by clamping

blocks

98 and 99, it eventually is caught by slide bar 111 and assumes the position illustrated in FIG. 8 until the pair of clamping blocks 98 and 99 release the wire loop, whereupon the wire loop is free to continue to slide off the end of slide bar 111 and fall in a container or onto a stack 112 of previously formed wire loops.

As is illustrated in FIG. 9, the control system for the ram, solenoids and other elements of the apparatus comprises electric motor 115 which rotates a camshaft 116, and a plurality of cams 118 are rigidly mounted on camshaft 116. Microswitches 119 respond to the highs and lows of the cams 118 to make and break electrical contact. Solenoids 120 are electrically connected to some of the microswitches 119 and function to open and close air valves 121. Each valve 121 communicates with air pressure header 122 and controls the flow of air from header 122 through the air conduits 123 to the various rams of the system. Cams 118 are oriented about camshaft 116 so that switches 119 are opened and closed in the proper sequence and cause the various rams, solenoids and other functioning elements to operate in the proper time sequence as illustrated by the time sequence chart of FIG. 10.

OPERATION When the toilet seat lid cover stretcher forming apparatus 10 is to be placed in operation, wire 16 from the source of wire 15 is threaded through the guides 22 of the wire feeding and cutting mechanism 1 1, and a compressor (not shown) is energized to supply compressed air to header 122. When motor 115 is cut on, camshaft 116 rotates, causing cams 118 to rotate, and the switches 119 are moved between their opened and closed positions, thereby actuating air valve solenoids 120 and opening and closing communication between header 122 and the air flow lines 123. As is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 10, wire cutter ram 32 and slide ram 39 are activated so as to trim the leading end of the wire 16, and former arms ram 55 begins its cycle. This functions to remove the leading end of the newly threaded wire from the wire feeding and cutting mechanism 11.

Wire feeding ram 25 of wire feeder 19 reciprocates in the directions indicated by arrow 29 to move wire 16 through its rectilinear path. The amplitude of the stroke of ramrod 27 of wire feeding ram 25 is approximately one half the desired length of a wire loop 110. Thus, two complete cycles of wire feeding ram 25 are required in a single cycle of the entire apparatus. As wire feeding bracket 28 reciprocates with ramrod 27,

it engages

mercury switches

30 and 31 at the ends of its strokes and switches 30 and 31 cause a reversalof the solenoid 120 (FIG. 9) which controls the flow of air to wire feeding ram 25. During the first outward movement of wire feeding ram 25 the leading .end of the wire passes beyond wire cutter 20, through wire holder 21 and approaches the upper edge of wire forming plate 41. The leading end of the wire 16 stops beforeit reaches wire forming plate 41 and as wire feeding ram 25 moves back through its reverse stroke, the space between the leading end of the wire and the wire forming plate 41 is sufficient for the passage of roller 52 around the edges of wire forming plate 41. When wire feeding ram 25 begins its second cycle, the leading end of the wire 16 moves across and beyond the upper edge of the wire forming plate 41 a distance sufficient for equal lengths of wire 16 to extend on opposite sides of the upper portion of wire forming plate 41. Wire feeding ram 25 then again reverses 12 and-finishes its second cycle/This completes one cycle of the wire feeding and cutting apparatus 11.

Now that a wire length 66 extends across the upper end of wire forming plate 41, a cycle of the wire length bending, folding and connecting apparatus 12 causes the wire length 66 to be formed into a wire hoop or stretcher 110. Upon the beginning of the cycle, wire cutter ram 32 severs the wire length 66 from the wire 16, and slot opener ram 39 opens slot 36 of wire holder 21. Former arms ram 55 moves its double rack 56 in a downward direction, causing

former arms

50 and 51 to move in opposite directions about forming plate 41. When the

rollers

52 and 53 of

former arms

50 and 51 begin their movement, they move into engagement with forming plate 41 as they leave roller elevating cam 64 and engage the wire length 66. As is illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4,

rollers

52 and 53 progressively and simultaneously move from the center portion of the wire length 66 toward its

end portions

91 and 92 and progressively bend or form the wire length about forming plate 41. By the

time rollers

52 and 53 reach the lower end of forming plate 41, the wire length will be in a generally C-shaped configuration with its ends facing in a downward direction.

After wire length 66 has been conformed to the convex edge of wire forming plate 41, former arms ram 55 will begin its reverse stroke to bring the rollers back up to their start positions. Also, wire ends folding rams 72 and 73 will be energized to rotate

wire folding block

68 and 69 in the directions indicated by

arrows

74 and 75 against the bias of their tension springs 76 and 77 until the folding blocks engage the flat lower edge 45 of forming plate 41. The folding blocks 68 and 69 are normally maintained behind the plane of wire forming plate 41 until they begin their rotation toward the flat lower edge thereof, whereupon the helical cams (not shown) cause the folding blocks to move out into the plane of the wire folding plate and engage the

end portions

91 and 92 of the wire length 66 and fold the end portions toward each other (FIG. 5).

Frame shifting ram 82 is then energized to move the frame 81 forwardly with respect to wire forming plate 41 until the frame 81 engages frame restraining hook 83. This places wire ends cutter 85 in slot 46 in its cut ting position. Wire ends cutting ram 89 is then actuated, and its cam 88 urges moveable severing element 87 in a downward direction and with a scissors action with respect to stationary element 86 to cut across the overlapped ends of the wire length 66.

As soon as the ends of the wire length have been cut, frame release solenoid 95 is energized to withdraw frame restraining hook 83 from frame 81, and frame shifting ram 82 functions to move frame 81 further out through the slot 46 of wire forming plate 41, so that welding means 96 moves into the plane of wire forming plate 41 (FIG. 7). Forming plate shrinking ram 49 (FIGS. 1 and 7) is then actuated against the bias of its coil compression spring to retract the moveable side section 48 of wire forming plate 41, and welding

plates clamping rams

100 and 101 are actuated to move the pairs of clamping blocks toward each other and grasp the

end portions

91 and 92 of the wire length 66. Wire ends contact ram 104 is subsequently actuated to cause the pair of clamping blocks 99 to move toward the pair of clamping blocks 98 to urge the ends of the wire length 66 toward each other. The current passing from one pair of clamping blocks to the opposite pair of clamping blocks is sufficient to weld the ends of the wire length together.

As the ends of the wire length are being welded, wire loop ejector ram 106 is actuated to eject the upper portion of the wire length, or now wire hoop 110, from the upper portion of wire forming plate 41, and the wire hoop 110 assumes the position illustrated in FIG. 8 where its upper portion is supported by the slide bar 111. When clamping blocks 98 and 99 release the lower ends of the wire hoop, the wire hoop will slide down the inclined slide bar 111 and fall into a carton or into a stack 112 of stretchers 110.

The wire hoops or stretchers 110 are then inserted into the folded portion of a toilet seat lid cover. As is illustrated in FIG. 11, the toilet seat lid cover includes a span of material 121 that is to extend over the top surface of a toilet seat lid, and an inwardly folded peripheral border 122 which is an extension of the span 121 and which is arranged to fold around the edge of the toilet seat lid and be drawn tightly thereabout by means of draw string 124. The stretcher 110 is inserted in the groove between the span of material 121 and the fold 122 and functions to keep the cover from becoming wrinkled or folded. Moreover, if the cover 120 is not perfectly formed, the resiliency of the stretcher 110 allows the stretcher to bend or expand and contract in various portions thereof to accommodate any imperfections in the shape of the cover, or to accommodate some covers which are narrower and more elongated than other covers. Moreover, if any of the stretchers 110 should become bent or otherwise deformed prior to being inserted inside the fold of a cover 120, the stretchers can be bent back into their approximate desired positions, and the cover will tend to reform the stretcher so that the stretcher tends to conform to the shape of the groove of the cover.

While this invention has been described in detail with particular reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the invention as described hereinbefore and as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A process of forming toilet seat lid cover stretchers or the like comprising moving wire along its length through an approximately rectilinear path from a wire supply source over the upper peripheral edge of a wire forming plate having convex approximately egg-shaped side and upper edges, cutting the wire to leave a length of wire extending approximately equal distances in opposite directions on opposite sides of the upper portion of the wire forming plate, simultaneously and progressively bending the wire length from its center portion toward its ends against the upper and side edges of the wire forming plate to form the wire length into a downwardly facing C-shaped form, folding the end portions of the wire length toward each other sothe end portions overlap each other, cutting across the overlapping end portions of the wire length, urging the cut ends of the wire length into abutment with each other, connecting together the ends of the wire length, and ejecting the wire length from the wire forming plate.

2. The process of claim 1 and wherein the steps of moving the wire along its length through an approximately rectilinear path and cutting the wire comprises intermittantly moving the wire in approximately equal lengths, and cutting the wire after alternate ones of the intermittent movements.

3. The process of claim 1 and wherein the step of connecting together the ends of the wire length comprises welding the ends of the wire length.

4. The process of claim 1 and wherein the step of urging the cut ends of the wire length together comprises moving an edge portion of the wire forming plate inwardly to provide space for the curved wire length to contract.

5. The process of claim 1 and wherein the step of bending the wire length comprises engaging the wire length with a pair of rollers at the center of the wire length against the edge of the forming plate and moving the rollers in opposite directions around the edge of the forming plate while urging the rollers toward the edge of the forming plate and engaging the wire length.

6. The process of claim 1 and further including the step of holding the length of wire on the upper portion of the forming plate as the wire is cut.

7. The process of claim 1 and wherein the step of ejecting the wire length from the wire forming plate comprises urging the length of wire at the upper portion of the wire forming plate laterally off the upper edge of the forming plate and onto a downwardly inclined guide connected at its upper end to the forming plate and allowing the length of wire to slide off the lower end of the guide.

8. Apparatus for forming toilet seat lid cover stretchers or the like comprising a wire forming plate including convex upper and side edges, a flat lower edge, and a slot extending inwardly of the forming plate from said flat lower edge, wire feeding means arranged to move wire along its length from a source of wire over the upper portion of said wire forming plate, wire cutting means for cutting away a length of wire extending over said wire forming plate, wire bending means for bending a length of wire about the convex upper and side edges of said wire forming plate, wire folding means for folding the ends of a length of wire along the flat lower edge of said wire forming plate, end trimming means moveable through the slot of said wire forming plate for cutting across the overlapping ends of a length of wire, and wire ends connecting means moveable through the slot of said wire forming plate for connecting together the ends of a wire length.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 and wherein said wire feeding means comprises a pneumatic wire feeding ram mounted in alignment with the upper edge of said wire forming plate and arranged to intermittently feed wire over the upper portion of said wire forming plate.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 and wherein said wire bending means comprises a pair of rollers moveable into engagement with a length of wire extending over the upper portion of said wire forming plate and around the convex upper and side edges of said wire forming plate.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 and wherein said wire ends connecting means comprises welding means for welding together the ends of a wire length.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 and wherein said wire forming plate comprises a moveable section at one of its side edges.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 and wherein said wire folding means comprise a folding block normally positioned adjacent each intersection of the flat lower edge with the convex side edges of said wire forming plate out of the plane of the wire forming plate, each of said folding blocks being moveable into the plane of said wire forming plate and pivotable from outside the end portions of a length of wire extending about the convex upper and side edges of said wire forming plate toward engagement with the flat lower edge of said wire forming plate.

Claims

1. A process of forming toilet seat lid cover stretchers or the like comprising moving wire along its length through an approximately rectilinear path from a wire supply source over the upper peripheral edge of a wire forming plate having convex approximately egg-shaped side and upper edges, cutting the wire to leave a length of wire extending approximately equal distances in opposite directions on opposite sides of the upper portion of the wire forming plate, simultaneously and progressively bending the wire length from its center portion toward its ends against the upper and side edges of the wire forming plate to form the wire length into a downwardly facing C-shaped form, folding the end portions of the wire length toward each other so the end portions overlap each other, cutting across the overlapping end portions of the wire length, urging the cut ends of the wire length into abutment with each other, conneCting together the ends of the wire length, and ejecting the wire length from the wire forming plate.