EP0511811B1 - Machine for use in the manufacture of shoes - Google Patents
Machine for use in the manufacture of shoes Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP0511811B1 EP0511811B1 EP19920303776 EP92303776A EP0511811B1 EP 0511811 B1 EP0511811 B1 EP 0511811B1 EP 19920303776 EP19920303776 EP 19920303776 EP 92303776 A EP92303776 A EP 92303776A EP 0511811 B1 EP0511811 B1 EP 0511811B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- shoe
- heel
- support
- toe
- movement
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
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Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43D—MACHINES, TOOLS, EQUIPMENT OR METHODS FOR MANUFACTURING OR REPAIRING FOOTWEAR
- A43D21/00—Lasting machines
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43D—MACHINES, TOOLS, EQUIPMENT OR METHODS FOR MANUFACTURING OR REPAIRING FOOTWEAR
- A43D119/00—Driving or controlling mechanisms of shoe machines; Frames for shoe machines
Definitions
- This invention is concerned with a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, more particularly a machine for lasting side and heel seat portions of shoes comprising a shoe support for supporting, bottom up, a shoe comprising a shoe upper on a last and an insole on the last bottom, Said shoe support also having a heel seat height gauge devise whereby the height of the bottom of such shoe in the heel seat region thereof can be set, two side lasting assemblies arranged one at each side of the shoe support, a heel seat wiper mechanism comprising a pair of wiper plates, and a heel band mechanism for clamping the heel end of such shoe prior to the operation of the heel seat wiper mechanism, wherein the shoe support comprises a last pin for receiving the last pin hole of a shoe last, and a toe support for supporting the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin.
- shoe support of the aforementioned type is described in EP-A 0 379 774, being a shoe support particularly useful for a machine for roughing side wall portions of shoes.
- this shoe support the shoe is centralised with its heel-to-toe longitudinal axis coincident with a longitudinal centre line of the shoe support, so that the shoes are similarly oriented regardless of whether they are rights or lefts.
- Such a feature is wholly acceptable in the case of a roughing machine, but may not be so in the case of other machines, especially where only part of the shoe is being operated upon and a different parameter, e.g. the longitudinal centre line of a heel portion of the shoe, is to be aligned with the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support.
- the path is in fact determined in accordance with the shoe position - dictated by fixed heel end and toe end height datums - rather than the position being determined by the tool path.
- the tool path may be fixed, e.g. in the case of a lasting machine having wiper plates movable in a plane, and thus, it will be appreciated, the arrangement described above in respect of the roughing machine would not be suitable for use in a machine where the tool path is fixed.
- the arrangement for the roughing machine would not be suitable, from the point of view of ensuring the stability of the shoe, and thus maintaining the desired orientation of its bottom.
- the programmed path of the roughing tool is determined after the model shoe to be digitised has been positioned in the shoe support, effectively the various style features do not in any way affect the positioning of the shoe in the shoe support, but rather such features are readily accommodated in the programme.
- Such a relatively simple approach it will be appreciated, cannot readily be followed in the case of a machine where the positioning of the shoe is dictated at least partly by fixed features of the machine. Nevertheless in terms of machine efficiency and enhanced quality of performance (in that setting the machine according to the particular shoe being operated upon becomes merely a matter of selection on the part of the operator) the ability to programme the machine setting is desirable.
- the shoe support further comprises a shoe heel end positioning mechanism comprising a datum member engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin for positioning said heel end in a direction extending lengthwise of the shoe, and in that the shoe heel end positioning mechanism and the heel band mechanism are each movable between an operative and an out-of-the-way position, the arrangement being such that in the operation of the machine the shoe heel end positioning mechanism is first brought to its operative position, thus to set the lengthwise and heightwise positions of a shoe supported by the last pin as aforesaid, whereafter said mechanism is moved to its out-of-the-way position and the heel band mechanism is moved to its operative position, thus to clamp the heel end of said shoe in said positions.
- the toe support is movable heightwise whereby in cooperation with the shoe heel end positioning mechanism to enable the heel seat of the bottom of a shoe supported by the last pin to be accommodated in a desired plane.
- motor means is provided for effecting heightwise movement of the toe spport as aforesaid.
- the toe support is movable in a direction transversely of a shoe supported by the last pin to accommodate to both left and right shoes
- adjustable abutment means are provided for limiting such transverse movement in both directions
- means, including an n.c. motor, is provided for setting the position of the abutments according to the style of shoe to be operated upon.
- the datum member of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism comprises a plate member engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin and movable into and out of an operative position, means being provided for resiliently urging it out of such position, the datum member being effective, when moved into its operative position, to actuate a switch whereby a signal is generated in response to which the toe support is moved in a direction towards the datum member.
- the toe support preferably comprises two members having inwardly directed inclined faces and being movable equidistantly towards and away from one another, thus to provide a generally V-shaped support for the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin, and also a shoe toe-engaging member movable into and out of an operative position and being resiliently urged out of said position, said toe-engaging member, when in its operative position, actuating a switch by which a signal is generated in response to which the movement of the toe support is terminated.
- a toe height datum member is provided, formed integral with the toe-engaging member, against the under-side of which the bottom of the shoe inthe toe region thereof is urged by the movement towards one another of said members, the arrangement being such that the toe end of the shoe is thus positioned heightwise and also held between said datum member and the V-shaped support provided by the two members, the signal in response to which movement of the toe support is terminated as aforesaid also being effective to initiate the inward movement of the two members providing the V-shaped support and also to cause the setting of the heightwise position of the heel seat of the shoe to be initiated.
- auxiliary clamp means is provided co-operable with the toe support and last pin to maintain the shoe in its position set by the shoe heel end positioning mechanism when the latter is moved to its out-of-the-way position and prior to the heel band mechanism being moved into clamping engagement with the heel end of the shoe.
- the height gauge device is constituted by a photoelectric switch (“range finder”) arrangement and the heel seat of the shoe is positioned at the desired heightwise position by effecting heightwise movement of the last pin.
- the height gauge device comprises a holddown engageable with the heel seat of a shoe supported by the last pin, means being provided for effecting heightwise movement of the last pin towards and away from the holddown, the holddown being movable between an advanced position, in which it sets said datum position of the heel seat of such shoe, and a retracted position, and further, for effecting movement of the holddown between its advanced and retracted positions, a piston-and-cylinder arrangement is provided having a fixed stroke, said arrangement being itself mounted for bodily adjusting movement towards and away from the last pin, thus to vary said datum position.
- an n.c. motor is provided for effecting bodily adjusting movement of the holddown.
- the two side lasting assemblies preferably each comprise a rotating lasting roller having a helical rib arrangement, relative movement being effected, in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe supported as aforesaid, between the shoe support and the side lasting assemblies thus to cause the rollers to operate progressively along opposite side portions of the shoe upper, and each roller being caused to rotate in such a direction that the helical rib arrangement thereof effects an inwiping action the lasting marginal portion of the shoe upper engaged thereby.
- the lasting rollers are brought into operative engagement with a shoe supported by the last pin before the shoe heel end positioning mechanism is moved out of its operative position.
- the stability of the shoe supported by the shoe support is reliably maintained throughout an operating cycle of the machine. More particularly, by moving the heel band mechanism to clamp the heel end of the shoe prior to the initiation of the operation of the wiper mechanism, the shoe is held firmly in the same manner as in conventional heel seat and side lasting machines, while at the same time nevertheless by the provision of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism the shoe is more accurately positioned in the shoe support, so that e.g. adhesive can be accurately supplied to, or tacks be inserted into, side regions of the shoe in the side lasting operation.
- the shoe can be accurately positioned in relation to any desired datum, for example the longitudinal centre line of the machine, more particularly by the facility for moving the toe support laterally so that a desired dimensional feature of the shoe can be aligned with such machine feature (in the case of a heel seat and side lasting machine by aligning the longitudinal centre line of the heel end of the shoe with the longitudinal centre line of the machine), and moreover the orientation of the shoe bottom can be adjusted as desired, namely by the facility for effecting heightwise movement of the toe support, so that the shoe bottom can be properly oriented in relation to a further desired datum, e.g., in the case of a heel seat and side lasting machine, with the wiping plane of the wiper mechanism of such machine.
- a desired datum for example the longitudinal centre line of the machine, more particularly by the facility for moving the toe support laterally so that a desired dimensional feature of the shoe can be aligned with such machine feature (in the case of a heel seat and side lasting machine by aligning the longitudinal centre line of the heel end of
- n.c. motors are used for controlling various of the settings which can be made. It will further be appreciated that in this way the control of the settings can readily be effected by programmed control, so that it would be possible readily to input various style data into a machine control and thereafter to recall such data according to the style of shoe being operated upon, whereupon the various settings made for such style can be recalled and the machine re-set accordingly. It is of course envisaged that "teaching" of such style settings be made in the machine in a "teach" mode using model shoes.
- heel seat and side lasting machine in the operation of which heel seat and side portions of a shoe upper, which is carried on a last having an insole on the last bottom and which has already been lasted in the toe region thereof, are lasted; more particularly the lasting of the side portions is first initiated, from the region of the heel breast line toewardly, and thereafter the lasting of the seat portion is effected.
- This machine thus comprises a shoe support generally designated 20 ( Figure 3) for supporting, bottom up, a shoe, the toe end portion of which has already been lasted, for heel seat and side lasting operations to be performed thereon.
- the shoe support 20 comprises a jack post 22 ( Figures 3 and 6) including a last pin 24 which is capable of limited sliding movement, transversely of the longitudinal centre line of the shoe, in a slide 26 which itself is mounted for arcuate sliding movement, generally in the lengthwise direction of the shoe bottom, on a further slide 28 supported by the jack post 22.
- the shoe support 20 also comprises a toe support generally designated 30 ( Figures 3 and 4) which comprises two blocks 32 having inwardly facing inclined surfaces which together form a generally V-shaped support surface for the toe end of the shoe.
- the blocks 32 are supported on a linkage comprising two levers 34, for pivotal movement towards or away from each other, a link 33 extending between the levers 34 thus to cause them to move equidistantly.
- the levers 34 are mounted for pivotal movement, each on its own pivot 36, on a support block 38. Extending between lower, bifurcated, ends 34 a of the levers 34 is a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 40 by which the lower ends of the levers are drawn together or moved apart, thus effecting movement of the blocks 32 away from or towards one another.
- a shaft 42 is also mounted between the lower ends of the levers 34, being fixedly mounted to one of said ends and slidably accommodated in a block fixed to the bifurcated lower end 34 a of the other.
- This shaft 42 forms part of a pneumatically operated bar-lock arrangement generally designated 44, by which the blocks 32 may be locked in adjusted position.
- an abutment plate 54 is provided, pivotally mounted on an upstanding bracket 56 on the support block 38.
- the plate 54 is spring-urged into an operative position in which an inclined face of a lip 54 a can be engaged by the tip of the toe portion of a shoe placed on the jack post, said lip thus providing a toe height datum for such shoe.
- an inductance switch 58 which when the plate is pivoted by engagement with the shoe, provides a signal in response to which the blocks 32 are caused to move towards one another and thus to urge the shoe upwardly against said lip 54 a .
- the support block 38 is mounted for heightwise adjusting movement in the shoe support 20, and to this end is supported on a slide rod 46 which is mounted for vertical sliding movement in a further support block 48.
- the slide rod 46 threadedly receives at its lower end a ball screw 50 which in turn is connected to the output of a stepping motor 52 carried on the underside of the further support block 48.
- actuation of the stepping motor 52 is effective to cause heightwise movement of the support block, and thus of the blocks 32 and plate 54, to take place. In this way the heightwise position of the toe support can be determined according to the style of shoe being operated upon.
- the further support block 48 is mounted for sliding movement, transversely of the shoe bottom, on a shaft 60, a rectangular bar (not shown) being provided parallel to the shaft 60 and spaced therefrom, in order to "steady" the further support block 48 as it slides along the shaft 60.
- the shaft 60 and bar are mounted in a carriage 64 of the toe support 30, as will be referred to hereinafter.
- a further piston-and-cylinder arrangement 66 is provided for enabling the toe ends of left and right shoes to be supported in the machine with the longitudinal centre line of their heel seat correctly positioned in relation to a longitudinal centre line of the shoe support (and thus of an operating locality of the machine of which the shoe support may form part) - a further piston-and-cylinder arrangement 66 is provided.
- two abutments in the form of lugs 68 are mounted for sliding movement in a channel 70, by which the lugs are restrained from any rotational movement.
- the lugs are themselves mounted on a threaded rod (not shown), one half of the thread being a left-hand and the other a right-hand so that upon rotation of said rod the lugs 68 are moved towards or away from one another.
- the rod is itself supported in the carriage 64 and is driven by a stepping motor 74 itself also mounted on the carriage 64.
- the lugs 68 may be positioned in a desired relationship with one another according to the size (more particularly the width) of the toe end of the shoe to be supported by the blocks 32.
- Cooperating with the lugs 68, furthermore, is a pin 76 which is carried on the further support block 48. It will thus be appreciated that, by engagement of the pin 76 with one or other of the lugs 68, the position of the support block 48, and thus of the blocks 32, widthwise of the shoe, can be established.
- the carriage 64 is supported at one side by a slide rod 78 and at the other by a rectangular bar 80 which extend in a direction lengthwise of a shoe supported by the last pin 24.
- the carriage 64 can thus slide in said lengthwise direction relative to the jack post 22 for accommodating shoes of different length.
- a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82 is provided secured at one end to a frame portion 83 of the shoe support 20 and at its other to the carriage 64.
- a linear potentiometer 84 is also provided, secured at one end to the frame portion 83 and at its other to the carriage 64, thus to provide a signal corresponding to the position of the toe support in relation to the jack post 22, whereby the length of a shoe to be operated upon can be "measured".
- the shoe support 20 also comprises a shoe heel end positioning mechanism generally designated 86 ( Figures 3 and 5) comprising a casting 87 which is carried on a frame portion 88 mounted for pivotal movement about a pivot 90 carried on the frame of the shoe support 20.
- the shoe heel end positioning mechanism 86 is thus mounted for pivotal movement between an operative position (as shown in Figure 3) and an out-of-the-way position.
- two piston-and-cylinder arrangements 92 are provided, connected one to each side of the frame portion 88 and mounted on a stationary portion of the frame of the shoe support 20.
- a plate member 94 which can be engaged by the backseam region of a shoe placed on the jack post 22 to provide a lengthwise datum for such shoe in the shoe support 20.
- the plate 94 is spring-urged in a direction towards the jack post 22 about a pivot 96.
- the plate When engaged by a shoe, the plate is urged in a direction away from the jack post (clockwise, viewing Figure 3) and thus actuates an inductance switch 98 in response to actuation of which a control signal is supplied, as will be referred to hereinafter.
- a rearward end of one of the members 100 is connected to a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 104, and the clamp members 100 are interconnected by a connecting rod 106 whereby they are moved equidistantly towards or away from one another.
- the effect of moving the clamp members 100 equidistantly towards the heel end of the shoe is to centralize the heel seat of the shoe, that is to say to locate the longitudinal centre line of the heel seat of the shoe coincident with the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support.
- the clamp members 100 each support a clamp pad 108 which is shaped to conform to the region of the feather edge of the shoe in the vicinity of the heel breast line.
- a heel seat height gauge device 110 ( Figure 3).
- This device 110 is carried on a lever 112 pivotally mounted on the casting 87, a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 114 being carried on the underside of the casting 87 for effecting such pivotal movement.
- the device 110 is of the photoelectric switch ("range finder") type by which the distance of an object spaced from it can be detected. Such devices are conventional and readily commercially available.
- a holddown device 410 ( Figure 12) may be used comprising a pneumatic piston-and-cylinder arrangement 412 having a fixed stroke, and a piston rod 414 of said arrangement constitutes a holddown member for determining a datum position for the heel seat of a shoe supported by the last pin 24.
- the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 412 is mounted on a bracket 416 carried by a slide member 418 which is in turn mounted for heightwise sliding movement in guideways 420.
- the guideways 420 are in turn secured to a support plate 422 and spaced therefrom to allow passage of the slide member 418.
- the support plate 422 is in turn secured on a cross-member 424 forming part of the main frame of the shoe support.
- a lead screw 426 is threadedly received in a threaded bore formed in the upper end of the slide, and for effecting rotation of the lead screw 426 a stepping motor 428 is provided which is mounted on an upper end of the support plate 422.
- locking means in the form of a further piston-and-cylinder arrangement 430 is also provided, mounted on a rear face of the support plate 422 and a piston rod 432 thereof extending through an aperture in the support plate and making frictional contact with a rear face of the slide member 418, urging it into frictional engagement with the guideways 420.
- stepping motor 428 For setting the position of the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 412, and thus the datum position of the holddown, appropriate signals are supplied to the stepping motor 428. As in the case also of the stepping motor 74, such signals may be provided in accordance with data which is stored for particular styles of shoes, such data being recalled each time a particular style is selected.
- the jack post 22 comprises a post 116 ( Figures 3 and 6) on which the slide 28 is mounted for arcuate movement, as referred to above.
- the post 116 is slidable, in a direction heightwise of the bottom of a shoe supported by it, in a mounting thereof in the form of a casting 118 which is mounted for limited pivotal movement about an axis 120 ( Figure 6) extending widthwise of such shoe, as will be referred to hereinafter.
- a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 122 is mounted on the bottom end of the casting 188 and a piston rod thereof is operatively connected with the post 116.
- a linear potentiometer 124 by which the heightwise position of the post 116 in relation to the casting 118 can be monitored.
- a pneumatically operated bar lock arrangement generally designated 126 is operable to lock the post 116 in its adjusted heightwise position.
- a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 128 is mounted on the frame of the shoe support 20 and is connected to a rod 130 which is pivotally connected at 132 to the casting 118.
- the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 128 is double-acting.
- a further pneumatic bar lock arrangement generally designated 134 acts on the rod 130 to lock it, and thus also the casting 118 and jack post 22, in position in a direction extending lengthwise of the shoe bottom.
- the carriage 64 of the toe support 20 is also provided with a bar lock arrangement generally designated 138 ( Figure 3).
- This arrangement comprises a locking plate 140 having an aperture through which the slide rod 78 passes and which is pivotally mounted in a support plate 142, pivotal movement of the locking plate 140 under the influence of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 144 being effective to lock the plate 140 in relation to the slide rod 78.
- the support plate 142 is itself mounted in the carriage 64 for limited rocking movement about a pivot 143, the limit being determined by a stop rod (not shown).
- the operator When a shoe is to be lasted, the operator first places the shoe, which has already been toe-lasted, on the last pin 24 and then urges the shoe towards the plate member 94, the slide 28, and the last pin therewith thus being caused to slide in the shoe-lengthwise direction; in addition the jack post 22, which is at this stage under merely a balancing pressure applied through the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 128 to facilitate this, moves also towards the plate 94.
- the inductance switch 98 Upon contact between the backseam of the shoe and the plate 94, the inductance switch 98 is actuated and a signal is thus generated in response to which firstly the heel seat height gauge device 110 (or device 410) is moved from an out-of-the-way position into its operative position and in addition pressure fluid is supplied to the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82 to cause the carriage 64, and thus the toe support 30, to move towards the jack post 22.
- the arrangement is such that initially fluid under relatively high pressure is applied to the arrangement 82 in order to initiate such movement, whereafter the pressure is reduced, but nevertheless is sufficient to maintain the movement of the carriage.
- the blocks 32 are spaced apart.
- the upward movement of the jack post which can thus take place without the shoe being forced against the plate 94 and thus being dislodged on its last, is monitored by the device 110 which cooperates with the linear potentiometer 124 to bring the insole on the shoe bottom to the height datum of the shoe support; using the alternative heel seat height gauge device 410, such upward movement of the jack post continues until the heel seat of the shoe insole engages with the holddown 414, now in its advanced position, so that the heel seat of the insole on the shoe bottom is brought to the height datum of the shoe support. This height datum is determined in relation to the previously mentioned wiping plane of the machine.
- the inward movement of the blocks 32 serves, by reason of the inclined surfaces thereof, to force the shoe toe against the under-side of the lip 54 a thereby establishing the toe of the shoe at the desired toe height datum, and at the same time serves to centralise the toe end of the shoe.
- the machine will have been set up previously according to whether the shoe to be operated upon is a left or a right, and the support block 48 will have been positioned accordingly, as determined by the engagement of the pin 76 with one or other of the lugs 68. Moreover, the heightwise position of the lugs will have been determined according to the style of shoe being operated upon.
- the seat clamp members 100 are moved inwards so that their pads 108 engage and clamp the shoe at the level of the featherline in the region of the heel breast line thereof, and thus centralise it.
- the device 110 is then retracted. Thereafter the application of fluid pressure to the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82, to urge the toe support 30 away from the jack post 22, is discontinued and also the bar lock arrangement 44 is applied, locking the blocks 32 in position.
- the machine in accordance with the invention also comprises a heel band mechanism generally designated 150 ( Figure 7) by which a conventional heel band 152 can be brought into engagement with the heel end of a shoe supported by the shoe support 20; it will of course be appreciated that in order for this mechanism to engage the heel end of a shoe it will first be necessary to remove the shoe heel end positioning mechanism 86 from engagement with such heel end, for which purpose of course said mechanism is mounted on the frame portion 88 for pivotal movement about the pivot 90 into and out of an operative position as aforesaid.
- the heel band mechanism 150 comprises a casting 154 provided with two rearwardly extending lugs 156 by which the casting is mounted on a support rod 158 extending in a direction transversely of the shoe bottom.
- Supported between the rearward ends of the levers 160 is a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 162 actuation of which is thus effective to move the forward ends of the levers 160 towards or away from one another, thus to enable the heel end of a shoe to be clamped and subsequently released by the heel band 152.
- the support rod 158 is itself supported at its opposite ends by a frame 164 which is mounted for pivotal movement, about an axis 166 extending widthwise of the bottom of a shoe supported by the shoe support, whereby the heel band mechanism 150 can be moved between an operative position, in which it can engage the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin 24, and an out-of-the-way position.
- a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 168 is mounted on a stationary portion of the machine frame and is connected to the frame 164 to effect such pivotal movement.
- the machine also comprises a wiper mechanism generally designated 170 ( Figure 10) which is of generally conventional construction and comprises a wiper head 172 which is slidable towards and away from the jack post 22 under the action of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement (not shown).
- the wiper head supports a pair of wiper plates 174 which, under the action of a cam plate 176, effect a forward and inward wiping movement over the heel end of a shoe.
- the wiper head 172 is bodily movable into an operative position, this position being determined by a block 178 engaging a back surface of the heel band 152 and urging the heel band into engagement with the backseam region of the shoe; in this way the wiper head is always positioned in a desired relationship with the heel end of the shoe prior to initiation of the forward and inward wiping movement of the wiper plates.
- the block 178 is mounted on a spigot 180 which is accommodated within the wiper head and spring-urged in a direction away from the jack post, an adjustable stop pin 182 being provided in the block and engaging with a surface of the wiper head thus to determine the position of the block in relation to the wiper head.
- the block 178 is provided with two wings 178 a , at opposite ends thereof, by which it engages and presses on the back surface of the heel band 152 at opposite sides of the backseam region thereof. It will thus be appreciated that by varying the position of the stop pin 182, the relationship between the initial position of the wipers prior to the start of the forward and inward wiping movement thereof, and thus the amount by which the wiper plates over-wipe the shoe upper, can be pre-set.
- the heel band is, in its final stage of movement, urged into engagement with the heel end of the shoe by the advancing wiper head 172, it moves in a direction which is parallel, or substantially so, to the plane in which the heel seat of the shoe is located, thereby minimising the risk of dislodging the upper on its last, which could of course occur if the band followed an arcuate path into clamping engagement therewith.
- actuation of the piston-and-cylinder 162 is effective to close the wings of the heel band 152 under clamping pressure against the sides of the shoe.
- the shoe support 20 is provided, in addition to the seat clamp members 100, with two further, auxiliary, side clamp members 184 ( Figure 5), mounted, one at each side, on a frame portion of the shoe support and movable into engagement with a shoe supported by the shoe support under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 186.
- the side clamp members 184 cooperate with the toe support 30 to maintain the shoe firmly in the shoe support when the seat clamp members 100, which of course form part of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism 86, are retracted prior to the heel band 152 being brought into engagement with the heel end of the shoe.
- the machine in accordance with the invention also comprises adhesive-applying means generally designated 190 (Figure 10).
- Said means 190 comprises two nozzles 192 with each of which is associated a melt chamber 194 and a feed mechanism generally designated 196 (see Figure 1) by which adhesive in rod form can be fed to the melt chambers 194.
- the feed mechanism 196 in each case is generally as described in GB 2 088 195 and will not be further described here.
- the nozzles 192 follow independent paths along marginal portions of opposite sides of the insole, each path being under any suitable control, preferably however under programmed control.
- the two nozzles are similarly mounted (but on a mirror-opposite basis) and only one will now be described.
- a stepping motor 202 is effective through a gearbox 203 to drive a drive shaft 204 having drive pulleys 205 at opposite ends thereof.
- a timing belt 206 is entrained, which is connected to the carriage 200.
- Idler pulleys 207 are arranged at the opposite ends of the slide rods 198.
- a lever 210 mounted on a bracket 208 ( Figure 10) upstanding from the carriage 200, for movement about a pivot 209, is a lever 210 on which in turn a carrier block 212 is supported.
- the carrier block 212 supports a stepping motor 214 which drives a ball screw 216 captively supported on blocks 218 secured to the carrier block 212.
- Operatively connected to the ball screw 216 is a drive block 220 on which a plate 222 is carried for sliding movement along slide rods 224 supported by the carrier block 212.
- the melt chamber 194 is supported by a bracket 223 on an end portion of the plate 222 and thus is movable in a direction extending transversely of the shoe bottom under the action of the stepping motor 214. In this way, and by reason of the lengthwise movement of the carriage 200 for the nozzle under the action of the stepping motor 200, the nozzle 192 can be caused to track in X and Y directions along the shoe bottom.
- the lever 210 is urged about the pivot 209, so as to maintain contact between the nozzle and the shoe bottom, under the action of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 226 mounted on the carriage 200.
- the machine in accordance with the invention still further comprises two side lasting assemblies generally designated 230; these two assemblies are also mirror-opposites and only one will therefore now be described with reference to Figures 9 and 11.
- Each side lasting roller is mounted in a bearing 234 and is driven through a system of belts and pulleys generally designated 236 by a motor 238.
- the parts of the assembly 230 just described are all mounted on a support plate 240, itself mounted for pivotal movement, about an axis 242, on a casting 244.
- a gear segment 246, having a centre of curvature at the pivot 242 is mounted on the plate 240 and meshes with a drive pulley 248 which is driven, through a further system of timing belts and gears generally designated 250, from an output shaft of a stepping motor 252 mounted on the casting 244.
- the stepping motor 252 controls the angle of tilt of the lasting roller about the axis 242, whereby the roller can accommodate to the widthwise contour of the shoe bottom being operated upon.
- the casting 244 is itself mounted for pivotal movement on stub shafts 254 extending inwardly of lugs 256 formed on a carrier block 258 which is itself carried on a further shaft 260 supported at opposite ends by lugs 262 formed on the carriage 200. Also mounted on the shaft 260, between the lugs 262, is a mounting 263 for a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 264 by which the casting 244 is urged in such a direction that the lasting roller is held against the shoe bottom as it is caused to operate progressively therealong.
- the machine further comprises means for effecting pivotal movement of the carrier block 258 about the shaft 260, said means comprising two piston-and-cylinder arrangements 266, 268 which are mounted on the carriage 200 and are caused to act upon a plate 270 secured to an inwardly directed arm 272 integral with the carrier block 258.
- the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 266 is generally actuated so that its piston rod is fully extended and in this case the lasting roller is held with its tip at or adjacent the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support 20, as shown in full line in Figure 11. In this condition the piston rod of the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 268 is at an intermediate position such that it can be either further extended or fully retracted when the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 266 is de-actuated.
- the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 268 is effective to cause pivotal movement of the carrier block 258 which results in the lasting roller being either urged over, i.e. beyond, the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support 20 (in the case of extension of the piston rod of the arrangement 268), as shown in chain-dot line in Figure 11, or being withdrawn from adjacent said longitudinal centre line (in the case of retraction of said piston rod).
- the two lasting rollers must be actuated together so that as one is moved beyond the longitudinal centre line the other is withdrawn and vice versa, in order to avoid collision.
- the purpose of this so-called “shogging" movement is to enable the lasting rolls to track along opposite marginal portions of the shoe bottom which are not symmetrical along the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support, and indeed one of which may, especially toward the end, cross such longitudinal centre line.
- the casting 188 of the jack post 22 is mounted for limited pivotal movement about the axis 120.
- the axis 120 is in the form of a pivot pin which is itself mounted on a lever 300 ( Figure 6) which can rock about a pivot 302 secured to a stationary frame portion of the machine.
- the opposite end of the lever 300 provides an abutment surface against which a piston rod 304 of a diaphragm-type piston-and-cylinder arrangement 306 can act, the arrangement 306 also being mounted on a stationary frame portion of the machine.
- bedding pressure may be applied to the heel seat of a shoe supported on the last pin 24.
- the machine cycle is initiated whereby firstly the side clamp members 184 are moved inwardly against the shoe upon actuation of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 186.
- the nozzles 192 of the adhesive-applying means 190 move downwardly into engagement with the insole of the shoe toewardly of the backseam region thereof by the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 226, and thereafter they are moved heelwardly by the action of the stepping motor 202, acting on the carriages 200.
- the nozzles are closely adjacent one another so that they move to a position in the region of the backseam and adjacent the insole edge.
- the nozzles move beneath such in-flanged portion.
- the feed mechanisms 196 for the adhesive are initiated so that adhesive is then applied from the nozzles to the insole and, under the influence of stepping motors 214 and stepping motor 202, the nozzles are caused to move along a predetermined path which is preferably parallel to the insole edge thus to apply adhesive from the backseam region of the shoe bottom toewardly up to the previously lasted toe portion of the shoe.
- the path may be controlled by any conventional means.
- the path of the nozzles has previously been digitised, in terms of coordinate axis values which are directly then applicable to the stepping motors referred to; conveniently the paths are reversible for left and right shoes and in addition, according to the length of shoe as measured by the linear potentiometer 84, the paths are graded.
- rollers 232 which are still held out of engagement with the shoe bottom, are caused to begin rotation under the action of motors 238 and, when the nozzles have moved forwards from the heel breast line region of the shoe bottom by a distance more or less equal to the spacing between the nozzles and the rollers (approximately 75 mm in the machine described above), they are moved downwardly under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 264 and engage the lasting marginal portions of the shoe upper.
- the helical rib arrangement 294 of each effects an inwiping movement on such lasted marginal portion at the point of engagement and also presses said lasting marginal portion against a corresponding marginal portion of the insole, thus causing the two marginal portions to be bonded together by the previously applied adhesive.
- the nozzle and side lasting roller are mounted on a common carriage, namely the carriage 200, nevertheless they are capable of independent widthwise movement and indeed heightwise movement, so that both can track along the shoe bottom and indeed their operating path can be terminated independently.
- the boundary of the previously toe-lasted portions of the shoe bottom can be "taught” and thus it can be ensured that both the nozzles and thereafter the rollers are lifted off when such boundary region has been traversed.
- the cement feed mechanisms 196 are switched off some 20 to 30 mm from the taught position, so that there is no excess of adhesive at the termination of the nozzle path, and in addition, the feed mechanisms 196 are so arranged that following such switching off they can reverse the feed of the adhesive rod, thereby effectively causing adhesive to be sucked back from the end of the nozzle, thereby avoiding drooling or other detrimental deposition of cement when not required.
- the shoe heel end positioning mechanism 86 can be moved to its out-of-the-way position without the shoe becoming destabilised; the shoe is of course at this stage held by the side clamping members 184 and by the toe support 30, as well as benefiting from the stabilising effect of the downward pressure applied by the rollers themselves.
- the heel band mechanism 150 is moved about its axis 166 to a position closely adjacent the heel end of the shoe, but stopping short of engagement therewith. In this condition, the wiper head 172 of the wiper mechanism 170 is advanced, the block 178 engaging with its wings 178 a the back of the heel band 152 and urging it in that region against the shoe.
- the wiper head 172 is positioned correctly in accordance with the heel end of the shoe; moreover, the last part of the heel band movement is thus parallel with the shoe bottom, thereby avoiding any tendency (which could have arisen with a purely arcuate movement of the heel band) to dislodge the heel end of the shoe on its last.
- the wings of the heel band 152 are then urged into embracing engagement with the heel end of the shoe under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangement 162, whereupon the side clamping members 184 can be retracted.
- the bar lock arrangement 126 With the shoe thus clamped the bar lock arrangement 126, by which the post 116 of the jack post 22 is held in its heightwise position, is released and an upward yielding pressure is applied by the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 122, the wiper plates 174 then being moved inwardly to wipe the lasting marginal portions in the heel seat region of the shoe over and press them against corresponding marginal portions of the insole, while said upward yielding pressure remains applied.
- the bar lock arrangement 138 by which the toe support 30 is held is in its operative position remains applied.
- the bar lock 126 is re-applied thus to lock the post 116 in relation to the casting 118, and bedding pressure is then applied through the composite unit of post and casting 116, 118 from the diaphragm piston-and-cylinder arrangement 206 acting through the lever 200; this bedding pressure thus urges the shoe upwardly against the under-side of the wiper plates 174.
- Bedding pressure remains applied according to the time required for ensuring a consolidated bond between the in-wiped lasting marginal portions and the corresponding marginal portions of the insole.
- the bedding pressure is relieved and the wiper head 172 is retracted, the wiper plates 174 retracting within the wiper head 172, the heel band 152 is released, and at the same time the abutment plate/datum 54 and the blocks 32 are retracted to release the toe end of the shoe.
- the heel band mechanism 150 is then caused to pivot about the axis 166 to its out-of-the-way position and the shoe can then be removed from the operating locality of the machine. Thereafter the shoe heel end positioning mechanism 86 can be returned to such operating locality in readiness for the next shoe to be operated upon, and at this time also the post 116 of the jackpost 22 moves back to its loading position.
- the carriage 200 for the nozzles 192 and side lasting assemblies 230 can be retracted and returned to their initial positions in readiness for a next cycle of operation of the machine.
- the heel band mechanism 150 may instead be used for this function, in which case the plate 94 would be dispensed with and the heel seat height gauge device 110 would be mounted in an alternative manner, e.g. on the casting 154 of the heel band mechanism.
Description
- This invention is concerned with a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes, more particularly a machine for lasting side and heel seat portions of shoes comprising a shoe support for supporting, bottom up, a shoe comprising a shoe upper on a last and an insole on the last bottom, Said shoe support also having a heel seat height gauge devise whereby the height of the bottom of such shoe in the heel seat region thereof can be set, two side lasting assemblies arranged one at each side of the shoe support, a heel seat wiper mechanism comprising a pair of wiper plates, and a heel band mechanism for clamping the heel end of such shoe prior to the operation of the heel seat wiper mechanism, wherein the shoe support comprises a last pin for receiving the last pin hole of a shoe last, and a toe support for supporting the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin.
- One such machine is disclosed in US-A-4006504.
- In recent years there has been a move to control more accurately the operating paths of tools for operating upon shoes and to this end it has become progressively more necessary for the positioning of the shoe to be achieved accurately within the machine of which such operating tools forms part. At the same time, the shoe supports are also used to provide e.g. dimensional information concerning the shoe which is held thereby, which information in turn can then be used in the control of the operating path of the tools.
- One shoe support of the aforementioned type is described in EP-
A 0 379 774, being a shoe support particularly useful for a machine for roughing side wall portions of shoes. In this shoe support the shoe is centralised with its heel-to-toe longitudinal axis coincident with a longitudinal centre line of the shoe support, so that the shoes are similarly oriented regardless of whether they are rights or lefts. Such a feature is wholly acceptable in the case of a roughing machine, but may not be so in the case of other machines, especially where only part of the shoe is being operated upon and a different parameter, e.g. the longitudinal centre line of a heel portion of the shoe, is to be aligned with the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support. Moreover, while, in the case of the aforementioned roughing machine, it is necessary to ensure that the shoe bottom is held in a desired heightwise position in order to ensure that the shoe side wall portions are consistently maintained in the correct relationship with the pre-programmed path of the roughing tool, nevertheless the path is in fact determined in accordance with the shoe position - dictated by fixed heel end and toe end height datums - rather than the position being determined by the tool path. In other shoe-making machines, by contrast, the tool path may be fixed, e.g. in the case of a lasting machine having wiper plates movable in a plane, and thus, it will be appreciated, the arrangement described above in respect of the roughing machine would not be suitable for use in a machine where the tool path is fixed. - In the operation of the aforementioned roughing machine, furthermore, it is necessary, at one stage in the progressive operation of the roughing tool, to move the shoe heel end positioning mechanism, which also serves a clamping function, to an out-of-the-way position. In order to enhance the stability of the shoe after the shoe has been positioned. During such stage, therefore, the last pin is tilted about a transverse axis, this tilting of the last pin serving to "lock" the last against the toe support. In the roughing machine, of course, the pressure applied by the tool to the shoe is directed laterally and the support arrangement described above has been found adequate to maintain the stability of the shoe against such pressure. Where, however, greater and/or differently directed forces are to be applied to the shoe, as e.g. in a lasting machine, especially during the initial engagement of the shoe bottom by the lasting tools where firm clamping of the shoe heel end is generally considered to be essential, the arrangement for the roughing machine would not be suitable, from the point of view of ensuring the stability of the shoe, and thus maintaining the desired orientation of its bottom.
- Because, as already mentioned, the programmed path of the roughing tool is determined after the model shoe to be digitised has been positioned in the shoe support, effectively the various style features do not in any way affect the positioning of the shoe in the shoe support, but rather such features are readily accommodated in the programme. Such a relatively simple approach, it will be appreciated, cannot readily be followed in the case of a machine where the positioning of the shoe is dictated at least partly by fixed features of the machine. Nevertheless in terms of machine efficiency and enhanced quality of performance (in that setting the machine according to the particular shoe being operated upon becomes merely a matter of selection on the part of the operator) the ability to programme the machine setting is desirable.
- It is thus the object of the present invention to provide an improved machine for use in the manufacture of shoes in which the various shortcomings set out above are mitigated.
- This object is resolved, in accordance with the invention, in a machine as set out in the first paragraph above, in that the shoe support further comprises a shoe heel end positioning mechanism comprising a datum member engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin for positioning said heel end in a direction extending lengthwise of the shoe, and in that the shoe heel end positioning mechanism and the heel band mechanism are each movable between an operative and an out-of-the-way position, the arrangement being such that in the operation of the machine the shoe heel end positioning mechanism is first brought to its operative position, thus to set the lengthwise and heightwise positions of a shoe supported by the last pin as aforesaid, whereafter said mechanism is moved to its out-of-the-way position and the heel band mechanism is moved to its operative position, thus to clamp the heel end of said shoe in said positions.
- Preferably in such machine, furthermore, the toe support is movable heightwise whereby in cooperation with the shoe heel end positioning mechanism to enable the heel seat of the bottom of a shoe supported by the last pin to be accommodated in a desired plane. Moreover, preferably n.c. motor means is provided for effecting heightwise movement of the toe spport as aforesaid.
- In addition, preferably the toe support is movable in a direction transversely of a shoe supported by the last pin to accommodate to both left and right shoes, adjustable abutment means are provided for limiting such transverse movement in both directions, and means, including an n.c. motor, is provided for setting the position of the abutments according to the style of shoe to be operated upon.
- In one embodiment, the datum member of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism comprises a plate member engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin and movable into and out of an operative position, means being provided for resiliently urging it out of such position, the datum member being effective, when moved into its operative position, to actuate a switch whereby a signal is generated in response to which the toe support is moved in a direction towards the datum member. In such a machine, furthermore, the toe supportpreferably comprises two members having inwardly directed inclined faces and being movable equidistantly towards and away from one another, thus to provide a generally V-shaped support for the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin, and also a shoe toe-engaging member movable into and out of an operative position and being resiliently urged out of said position, said toe-engaging member, when in its operative position, actuating a switch by which a signal is generated in response to which the movement of the toe support is terminated. Preferably, furthermore, a toe height datum member is provided, formed integral with the toe-engaging member, against the under-side of which the bottom of the shoe inthe toe region thereof is urged by the movement towards one another of said members, the arrangement being such that the toe end of the shoe is thus positioned heightwise and also held between said datum member and the V-shaped support provided by the two members, the signal in response to which movement of the toe support is terminated as aforesaid also being effective to initiate the inward movement of the two members providing the V-shaped support and also to cause the setting of the heightwise position of the heel seat of the shoe to be initiated.
- In the machine in accordance with the invention, conveniently auxiliary clamp means is provided co-operable with the toe support and last pin to maintain the shoe in its position set by the shoe heel end positioning mechanism when the latter is moved to its out-of-the-way position and prior to the heel band mechanism being moved into clamping engagement with the heel end of the shoe.
- In one embodiment of the invention, the height gauge device is constituted by a photoelectric switch ("range finder") arrangement and the heel seat of the shoe is positioned at the desired heightwise position by effecting heightwise movement of the last pin. Alternatively, in another embodiment the height gauge device comprises a holddown engageable with the heel seat of a shoe supported by the last pin, means being provided for effecting heightwise movement of the last pin towards and away from the holddown, the holddown being movable between an advanced position, in which it sets said datum position of the heel seat of such shoe, and a retracted position, and further, for effecting movement of the holddown between its advanced and retracted positions, a piston-and-cylinder arrangement is provided having a fixed stroke, said arrangement being itself mounted for bodily adjusting movement towards and away from the last pin, thus to vary said datum position. Preferably, moreover, an n.c. motor is provided for effecting bodily adjusting movement of the holddown.
- In the machine in accordance with the invention, furthermore, the two side lasting assemblies preferably each comprise a rotating lasting roller having a helical rib arrangement, relative movement being effected, in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe supported as aforesaid, between the shoe support and the side lasting assemblies thus to cause the rollers to operate progressively along opposite side portions of the shoe upper, and each roller being caused to rotate in such a direction that the helical rib arrangement thereof effects an inwiping action the lasting marginal portion of the shoe upper engaged thereby. In such a machine, furthermore, the lasting rollers are brought into operative engagement with a shoe supported by the last pin before the shoe heel end positioning mechanism is moved out of its operative position.
- It will be appreciated that, using a machine as set out above, the stability of the shoe supported by the shoe support is reliably maintained throughout an operating cycle of the machine. More particularly, by moving the heel band mechanism to clamp the heel end of the shoe prior to the initiation of the operation of the wiper mechanism, the shoe is held firmly in the same manner as in conventional heel seat and side lasting machines, while at the same time nevertheless by the provision of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism the shoe is more accurately positioned in the shoe support, so that e.g. adhesive can be accurately supplied to, or tacks be inserted into, side regions of the shoe in the side lasting operation.
- Moreover, using the machine in accordance with the invention the shoe can be accurately positioned in relation to any desired datum, for example the longitudinal centre line of the machine, more particularly by the facility for moving the toe support laterally so that a desired dimensional feature of the shoe can be aligned with such machine feature (in the case of a heel seat and side lasting machine by aligning the longitudinal centre line of the heel end of the shoe with the longitudinal centre line of the machine), and moreover the orientation of the shoe bottom can be adjusted as desired, namely by the facility for effecting heightwise movement of the toe support, so that the shoe bottom can be properly oriented in relation to a further desired datum, e.g., in the case of a heel seat and side lasting machine, with the wiping plane of the wiper mechanism of such machine.
- It will also be observed that, in the preferred embodiment of the machine in accordance with the invention, n.c. motors are used for controlling various of the settings which can be made. It will further be appreciated that in this way the control of the settings can readily be effected by programmed control, so that it would be possible readily to input various style data into a machine control and thereafter to recall such data according to the style of shoe being operated upon, whereupon the various settings made for such style can be recalled and the machine re-set accordingly. It is of course envisaged that "teaching" of such style settings be made in the machine in a "teach" mode using model shoes.
- There now follows a detailed description, to be read with reference to the accompanying drawings, of one machine for lasting heel seat and side portions of shoe uppers, said machine having been selected for description merely by way of non-limiting exemplification of the present invention.
- In the accompanying drawings:-
- Figure 1 is a front perspective view, with parts broken away, of a machine for lasting heel seat and side portions of shoe uppers in accordance with the present invention;
- Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of the machine shown in Figure 1, showing in particular a shoe removal device of the machine;
- Figure 3 is a fragmentary side view of a shoe support forming part of the machine of Figures 1 and 2;
- Figure 4 is a view along the arrow IV in Figure 3, showing details of a toe support of said shoe support;
- Figure 5 is a fragmentary plan view showing details of a shoe heel end positioning mechanism of the shoe support;
- Figure 6 shows details of a jack post forming part of the shoe support;
- Figure 7 shows details of a heel band mechanism forming part of the shoe support;
- Figure 8 shows details of a wiper head of the machine in accordance with the invention;
- Figure 9 is a fragmentary side view illustrating a carriage for adhesive-applying means and a side lasting assembly of the machine in accordance with the invention;
- Figure 10 shows details of the adhesive-applying means of the machine;
- Figure 11 shows details of a side lasting assembly of the machine; and
- Figure 12 is a view, generally similar to Figure 3 but on a smaller scale, showing an alternative form of heel seat height gauge device.
- The machine now to be described is a so-called heel seat and side lasting machine in the operation of which heel seat and side portions of a shoe upper, which is carried on a last having an insole on the last bottom and which has already been lasted in the toe region thereof, are lasted; more particularly the lasting of the side portions is first initiated, from the region of the heel breast line toewardly, and thereafter the lasting of the seat portion is effected.
- This machine thus comprises a shoe support generally designated 20 (Figure 3) for supporting, bottom up, a shoe, the toe end portion of which has already been lasted, for heel seat and side lasting operations to be performed thereon. To this end, the
shoe support 20 comprises a jack post 22 (Figures 3 and 6) including alast pin 24 which is capable of limited sliding movement, transversely of the longitudinal centre line of the shoe, in aslide 26 which itself is mounted for arcuate sliding movement, generally in the lengthwise direction of the shoe bottom, on afurther slide 28 supported by thejack post 22. In this way it is possible for the heel seat region of the shoe bottom to be correctly levelled in relation to a wiping plane, to be referred to hereinafter, of the machine. - The
shoe support 20 also comprises a toe support generally designated 30 (Figures 3 and 4) which comprises twoblocks 32 having inwardly facing inclined surfaces which together form a generally V-shaped support surface for the toe end of the shoe. Theblocks 32 are supported on a linkage comprising twolevers 34, for pivotal movement towards or away from each other, alink 33 extending between thelevers 34 thus to cause them to move equidistantly. Thelevers 34 are mounted for pivotal movement, each on itsown pivot 36, on asupport block 38. Extending between lower, bifurcated,ends 34a of thelevers 34 is a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 40 by which the lower ends of the levers are drawn together or moved apart, thus effecting movement of theblocks 32 away from or towards one another. Ashaft 42 is also mounted between the lower ends of thelevers 34, being fixedly mounted to one of said ends and slidably accommodated in a block fixed to the bifurcatedlower end 34a of the other. Thisshaft 42 forms part of a pneumatically operated bar-lock arrangement generally designated 44, by which theblocks 32 may be locked in adjusted position. - For determining the heightwise position of the toe end of a shoe in relation to the
blocks 38 anabutment plate 54 is provided, pivotally mounted on anupstanding bracket 56 on thesupport block 38. Theplate 54 is spring-urged into an operative position in which an inclined face of alip 54a can be engaged by the tip of the toe portion of a shoe placed on the jack post, said lip thus providing a toe height datum for such shoe. As will be described hereinafter, there is associated with theplate 54 aninductance switch 58 which when the plate is pivoted by engagement with the shoe, provides a signal in response to which theblocks 32 are caused to move towards one another and thus to urge the shoe upwardly against saidlip 54a. - The
support block 38 is mounted for heightwise adjusting movement in theshoe support 20, and to this end is supported on aslide rod 46 which is mounted for vertical sliding movement in afurther support block 48. Theslide rod 46 threadedly receives at its lower end aball screw 50 which in turn is connected to the output of a steppingmotor 52 carried on the underside of thefurther support block 48. Thus, actuation of the steppingmotor 52 is effective to cause heightwise movement of the support block, and thus of theblocks 32 andplate 54, to take place. In this way the heightwise position of the toe support can be determined according to the style of shoe being operated upon. - The
further support block 48 is mounted for sliding movement, transversely of the shoe bottom, on ashaft 60, a rectangular bar (not shown) being provided parallel to theshaft 60 and spaced therefrom, in order to "steady" thefurther support block 48 as it slides along theshaft 60. Theshaft 60 and bar are mounted in acarriage 64 of thetoe support 30, as will be referred to hereinafter. For effecting sliding movement of thefurther support block 48 along theshaft 60, and thus effecting sliding movement of the toe support widthwise of the shoe to be supported thereby - this facility being provided for enabling the toe ends of left and right shoes to be supported in the machine with the longitudinal centre line of their heel seat correctly positioned in relation to a longitudinal centre line of the shoe support (and thus of an operating locality of the machine of which the shoe support may form part) - a further piston-and-cylinder arrangement 66 is provided. For limiting such transverse movement of thefurther support block 48, furthermore, two abutments in the form of lugs 68 (one only shown in Figure 3) are mounted for sliding movement in achannel 70, by which the lugs are restrained from any rotational movement. The lugs are themselves mounted on a threaded rod (not shown), one half of the thread being a left-hand and the other a right-hand so that upon rotation of said rod thelugs 68 are moved towards or away from one another. The rod is itself supported in thecarriage 64 and is driven by a steppingmotor 74 itself also mounted on thecarriage 64. By appropriate signals to the steppingmotor 74, therefore, it will be appreciated, thelugs 68 may be positioned in a desired relationship with one another according to the size (more particularly the width) of the toe end of the shoe to be supported by theblocks 32. Cooperating with thelugs 68, furthermore, is apin 76 which is carried on thefurther support block 48. It will thus be appreciated that, by engagement of thepin 76 with one or other of thelugs 68, the position of thesupport block 48, and thus of theblocks 32, widthwise of the shoe, can be established. - The
carriage 64 is supported at one side by aslide rod 78 and at the other by arectangular bar 80 which extend in a direction lengthwise of a shoe supported by thelast pin 24. Thecarriage 64 can thus slide in said lengthwise direction relative to thejack post 22 for accommodating shoes of different length. To effect such sliding movement a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82 is provided secured at one end to aframe portion 83 of theshoe support 20 and at its other to thecarriage 64. Alinear potentiometer 84 is also provided, secured at one end to theframe portion 83 and at its other to thecarriage 64, thus to provide a signal corresponding to the position of the toe support in relation to thejack post 22, whereby the length of a shoe to be operated upon can be "measured". - The
shoe support 20 also comprises a shoe heel end positioning mechanism generally designated 86 (Figures 3 and 5) comprising a casting 87 which is carried on aframe portion 88 mounted for pivotal movement about apivot 90 carried on the frame of theshoe support 20. The shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86 is thus mounted for pivotal movement between an operative position (as shown in Figure 3) and an out-of-the-way position. For effecting such pivotal movement, furthermore, two piston-and-cylinder arrangements 92 are provided, connected one to each side of theframe portion 88 and mounted on a stationary portion of the frame of theshoe support 20. - Supported by the casting 87 is a
plate member 94 which can be engaged by the backseam region of a shoe placed on thejack post 22 to provide a lengthwise datum for such shoe in theshoe support 20. Theplate 94 is spring-urged in a direction towards thejack post 22 about apivot 96. When engaged by a shoe, the plate is urged in a direction away from the jack post (clockwise, viewing Figure 3) and thus actuates aninductance switch 98 in response to actuation of which a control signal is supplied, as will be referred to hereinafter. - Also mounted on the casting 87 are two so-called
seat clamp members 100, each for pivotal movement about apivot 102 on the casting. A rearward end of one of themembers 100, furthermore, is connected to a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 104, and theclamp members 100 are interconnected by a connectingrod 106 whereby they are moved equidistantly towards or away from one another. The effect of moving theclamp members 100 equidistantly towards the heel end of the shoe is to centralize the heel seat of the shoe, that is to say to locate the longitudinal centre line of the heel seat of the shoe coincident with the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support. Theclamp members 100 each support aclamp pad 108 which is shaped to conform to the region of the feather edge of the shoe in the vicinity of the heel breast line. - Also mounted on the casting 87 is a heel seat height gauge device 110 (Figure 3). This
device 110 is carried on alever 112 pivotally mounted on the casting 87, a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 114 being carried on the underside of the casting 87 for effecting such pivotal movement. Thedevice 110 is of the photoelectric switch ("range finder") type by which the distance of an object spaced from it can be detected. Such devices are conventional and readily commercially available. - Instead of using a photoelectric switch as the heel seat height gauge device, alternatively a holddown device 410 (Figure 12) may be used comprising a pneumatic piston-and-
cylinder arrangement 412 having a fixed stroke, and apiston rod 414 of said arrangement constitutes a holddown member for determining a datum position for the heel seat of a shoe supported by thelast pin 24. The piston-and-cylinder arrangement 412 is mounted on abracket 416 carried by aslide member 418 which is in turn mounted for heightwise sliding movement inguideways 420. Theguideways 420 are in turn secured to asupport plate 422 and spaced therefrom to allow passage of theslide member 418. Thesupport plate 422 is in turn secured on a cross-member 424 forming part of the main frame of the shoe support. - For effecting heightwise movement of the slide 418 a
lead screw 426 is threadedly received in a threaded bore formed in the upper end of the slide, and for effecting rotation of the lead screw 426 a steppingmotor 428 is provided which is mounted on an upper end of thesupport plate 422. - For securing the
slide member 418, and thus the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 412, in adjusted heightwise position, locking means in the form of a further piston-and-cylinder arrangement 430 is also provided, mounted on a rear face of thesupport plate 422 and apiston rod 432 thereof extending through an aperture in the support plate and making frictional contact with a rear face of theslide member 418, urging it into frictional engagement with theguideways 420. - For setting the position of the piston-and-
cylinder arrangement 412, and thus the datum position of the holddown, appropriate signals are supplied to the steppingmotor 428. As in the case also of the steppingmotor 74, such signals may be provided in accordance with data which is stored for particular styles of shoes, such data being recalled each time a particular style is selected. - The
jack post 22 comprises a post 116 (Figures 3 and 6) on which theslide 28 is mounted for arcuate movement, as referred to above. Thepost 116 is slidable, in a direction heightwise of the bottom of a shoe supported by it, in a mounting thereof in the form of a casting 118 which is mounted for limited pivotal movement about an axis 120 (Figure 6) extending widthwise of such shoe, as will be referred to hereinafter. For effecting heightwise movement of the post 116 a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 122 is mounted on the bottom end of the casting 188 and a piston rod thereof is operatively connected with thepost 116. Also associated with the movement of thepost 116 is alinear potentiometer 124 by which the heightwise position of thepost 116 in relation to the casting 118 can be monitored. A pneumatically operated bar lock arrangement generally designated 126 is operable to lock thepost 116 in its adjusted heightwise position. - For effecting limited rocking or pivotal movement of the casting 118 on the pivot 120 a piston-and-
cylinder arrangement 128 is mounted on the frame of theshoe support 20 and is connected to arod 130 which is pivotally connected at 132 to thecasting 118. The piston-and-cylinder arrangement 128 is double-acting. A further pneumatic bar lock arrangement generally designated 134 acts on therod 130 to lock it, and thus also the casting 118 andjack post 22, in position in a direction extending lengthwise of the shoe bottom. - The
carriage 64 of thetoe support 20 is also provided with a bar lock arrangement generally designated 138 (Figure 3). This arrangement comprises alocking plate 140 having an aperture through which theslide rod 78 passes and which is pivotally mounted in asupport plate 142, pivotal movement of thelocking plate 140 under the influence of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 144 being effective to lock theplate 140 in relation to theslide rod 78. Thesupport plate 142 is itself mounted in thecarriage 64 for limited rocking movement about apivot 143, the limit being determined by a stop rod (not shown). The effect of this arrangement is that after thebar lock arrangement 138 has been applied and theplate 140 is in locking contact with theslide rod 78, nevertheless the carriage is capable of limited movement, as determined by the stop rod 146, in a direction away from thejack post 22, for a purpose to be described hereinafter. - When a shoe is to be lasted, the operator first places the shoe, which has already been toe-lasted, on the
last pin 24 and then urges the shoe towards theplate member 94, theslide 28, and the last pin therewith thus being caused to slide in the shoe-lengthwise direction; in addition thejack post 22, which is at this stage under merely a balancing pressure applied through the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 128 to facilitate this, moves also towards theplate 94. Upon contact between the backseam of the shoe and theplate 94, theinductance switch 98 is actuated and a signal is thus generated in response to which firstly the heel seat height gauge device 110 (or device 410) is moved from an out-of-the-way position into its operative position and in addition pressure fluid is supplied to the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82 to cause thecarriage 64, and thus thetoe support 30, to move towards thejack post 22. The arrangement is such that initially fluid under relatively high pressure is applied to thearrangement 82 in order to initiate such movement, whereafter the pressure is reduced, but nevertheless is sufficient to maintain the movement of the carriage. At the stage, furthermore, theblocks 32 are spaced apart. - As the
toe support 30 reaches the toe end of the shoe, sides of the toe end are engaged by theblocks 32 and the tip of the toe end of the shoe is engaged beneath thelip 54a of theabutment plate 54, whereupon the latter is rocked anti-clockwise (viewing Figure 3) and a signal is thus generated in response to the consequent actuation of theinductance switch 58. In response to this signal firstly thebar lock arrangement 138 is applied, thus to lock thecarriage 64 in position, whereafter fluid pressure is applied to the opposite side of piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82 thus to allow thecarriage 64 to retract slightly from theplate member 94, within the constraints of the pivotal movement of thesupport plate 142. In this way the shoe is maintained in position without its being at this stage forced against theplate 94. In this condition the signal generated in response to actuation of theinductance switch 58 is then effective to cause simultaneously theblocks 32 to move towards one another and also to cause thepost 116 of the jack post to rise in response to the application of pressure fluid to piston-and-cylinder arrangement 122. The upward movement of the jack post, which can thus take place without the shoe being forced against theplate 94 and thus being dislodged on its last, is monitored by thedevice 110 which cooperates with thelinear potentiometer 124 to bring the insole on the shoe bottom to the height datum of the shoe support; using the alternative heel seatheight gauge device 410, such upward movement of the jack post continues until the heel seat of the shoe insole engages with theholddown 414, now in its advanced position, so that the heel seat of the insole on the shoe bottom is brought to the height datum of the shoe support. This height datum is determined in relation to the previously mentioned wiping plane of the machine. The inward movement of theblocks 32 serves, by reason of the inclined surfaces thereof, to force the shoe toe against the under-side of thelip 54a thereby establishing the toe of the shoe at the desired toe height datum, and at the same time serves to centralise the toe end of the shoe. - In this regard, it should be noted that the machine will have been set up previously according to whether the shoe to be operated upon is a left or a right, and the
support block 48 will have been positioned accordingly, as determined by the engagement of thepin 76 with one or other of thelugs 68. Moreover, the heightwise position of the lugs will have been determined according to the style of shoe being operated upon. - At this stage the
seat clamp members 100 are moved inwards so that theirpads 108 engage and clamp the shoe at the level of the featherline in the region of the heel breast line thereof, and thus centralise it. Thedevice 110 is then retracted. Thereafter the application of fluid pressure to the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 82, to urge thetoe support 30 away from thejack post 22, is discontinued and also thebar lock arrangement 44 is applied, locking theblocks 32 in position. - With the shoe thus positioned its length can then be "measured" by the
linear potentiometer 84 in readiness for the subsequent lasting operation. - The machine in accordance with the invention also comprises a heel band mechanism generally designated 150 (Figure 7) by which a
conventional heel band 152 can be brought into engagement with the heel end of a shoe supported by theshoe support 20; it will of course be appreciated that in order for this mechanism to engage the heel end of a shoe it will first be necessary to remove the shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86 from engagement with such heel end, for which purpose of course said mechanism is mounted on theframe portion 88 for pivotal movement about thepivot 90 into and out of an operative position as aforesaid. - The
heel band mechanism 150 comprises a casting 154 provided with two rearwardly extendinglugs 156 by which the casting is mounted on asupport rod 158 extending in a direction transversely of the shoe bottom. Mounted on the casting, one at each side thereof, are two bell crank levers 160 forward (i.e. towards the jack post 22) ends of which support wing portions of theheel band 152. Supported between the rearward ends of thelevers 160 is a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 162 actuation of which is thus effective to move the forward ends of thelevers 160 towards or away from one another, thus to enable the heel end of a shoe to be clamped and subsequently released by theheel band 152. - The
support rod 158 is itself supported at its opposite ends by aframe 164 which is mounted for pivotal movement, about an axis 166 extending widthwise of the bottom of a shoe supported by the shoe support, whereby theheel band mechanism 150 can be moved between an operative position, in which it can engage the heel end of a shoe supported by thelast pin 24, and an out-of-the-way position. A piston-and-cylinder arrangement 168 is mounted on a stationary portion of the machine frame and is connected to theframe 164 to effect such pivotal movement. - The machine also comprises a wiper mechanism generally designated 170 (Figure 10) which is of generally conventional construction and comprises a
wiper head 172 which is slidable towards and away from thejack post 22 under the action of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement (not shown). The wiper head supports a pair ofwiper plates 174 which, under the action of acam plate 176, effect a forward and inward wiping movement over the heel end of a shoe. Thewiper head 172 is bodily movable into an operative position, this position being determined by ablock 178 engaging a back surface of theheel band 152 and urging the heel band into engagement with the backseam region of the shoe; in this way the wiper head is always positioned in a desired relationship with the heel end of the shoe prior to initiation of the forward and inward wiping movement of the wiper plates. More particularly, theblock 178 is mounted on aspigot 180 which is accommodated within the wiper head and spring-urged in a direction away from the jack post, anadjustable stop pin 182 being provided in the block and engaging with a surface of the wiper head thus to determine the position of the block in relation to the wiper head. Theblock 178 is provided with twowings 178a, at opposite ends thereof, by which it engages and presses on the back surface of theheel band 152 at opposite sides of the backseam region thereof. It will thus be appreciated that by varying the position of thestop pin 182, the relationship between the initial position of the wipers prior to the start of the forward and inward wiping movement thereof, and thus the amount by which the wiper plates over-wipe the shoe upper, can be pre-set. - It will be appreciated that, because the heel band is, in its final stage of movement, urged into engagement with the heel end of the shoe by the advancing
wiper head 172, it moves in a direction which is parallel, or substantially so, to the plane in which the heel seat of the shoe is located, thereby minimising the risk of dislodging the upper on its last, which could of course occur if the band followed an arcuate path into clamping engagement therewith. - After the heel end of the shoe has been engaged by the heel band in the aforementioned manner, actuation of the piston-and-
cylinder 162 is effective to close the wings of theheel band 152 under clamping pressure against the sides of the shoe. - The
shoe support 20 is provided, in addition to theseat clamp members 100, with two further, auxiliary, side clamp members 184 (Figure 5), mounted, one at each side, on a frame portion of the shoe support and movable into engagement with a shoe supported by the shoe support under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 186. Theside clamp members 184, as will be explained later, cooperate with thetoe support 30 to maintain the shoe firmly in the shoe support when theseat clamp members 100, which of course form part of the shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86, are retracted prior to theheel band 152 being brought into engagement with the heel end of the shoe. - The machine in accordance with the invention also comprises adhesive-applying means generally designated 190 (Figure 10). Said means 190 comprises two
nozzles 192 with each of which is associated amelt chamber 194 and a feed mechanism generally designated 196 (see Figure 1) by which adhesive in rod form can be fed to themelt chambers 194. Thefeed mechanism 196 in each case is generally as described in GB 2 088 195 and will not be further described here. - The
nozzles 192 follow independent paths along marginal portions of opposite sides of the insole, each path being under any suitable control, preferably however under programmed control. The two nozzles are similarly mounted (but on a mirror-opposite basis) and only one will now be described. - Extending along the outside of the main machine frame are two parallel slide rods 198 (Figures 9 and 10) on which a
carriage 200 is movable. To this end a steppingmotor 202 is effective through agearbox 203 to drive adrive shaft 204 having drive pulleys 205 at opposite ends thereof. Around each pulley atiming belt 206 is entrained, which is connected to thecarriage 200. Idler pulleys 207 are arranged at the opposite ends of theslide rods 198. - Mounted on a bracket 208 (Figure 10) upstanding from the
carriage 200, for movement about apivot 209, is alever 210 on which in turn acarrier block 212 is supported. Thecarrier block 212 supports a steppingmotor 214 which drives aball screw 216 captively supported onblocks 218 secured to thecarrier block 212. Operatively connected to theball screw 216 is adrive block 220 on which aplate 222 is carried for sliding movement alongslide rods 224 supported by thecarrier block 212. Themelt chamber 194 is supported by abracket 223 on an end portion of theplate 222 and thus is movable in a direction extending transversely of the shoe bottom under the action of the steppingmotor 214. In this way, and by reason of the lengthwise movement of thecarriage 200 for the nozzle under the action of the steppingmotor 200, thenozzle 192 can be caused to track in X and Y directions along the shoe bottom. - In order to accommodate heightwise variation in the shoe bottom contour, the
lever 210 is urged about thepivot 209, so as to maintain contact between the nozzle and the shoe bottom, under the action of a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 226 mounted on thecarriage 200. - The machine in accordance with the invention still further comprises two side lasting assemblies generally designated 230; these two assemblies are also mirror-opposites and only one will therefore now be described with reference to Figures 9 and 11. Each side lasting roller is mounted in a
bearing 234 and is driven through a system of belts and pulleys generally designated 236 by amotor 238. The parts of theassembly 230 just described are all mounted on asupport plate 240, itself mounted for pivotal movement, about anaxis 242, on acasting 244. For effecting such pivotal movement agear segment 246, having a centre of curvature at thepivot 242, is mounted on theplate 240 and meshes with adrive pulley 248 which is driven, through a further system of timing belts and gears generally designated 250, from an output shaft of a steppingmotor 252 mounted on thecasting 244. It will thus be appreciated that the steppingmotor 252 controls the angle of tilt of the lasting roller about theaxis 242, whereby the roller can accommodate to the widthwise contour of the shoe bottom being operated upon. - The casting 244 is itself mounted for pivotal movement on
stub shafts 254 extending inwardly oflugs 256 formed on acarrier block 258 which is itself carried on afurther shaft 260 supported at opposite ends bylugs 262 formed on thecarriage 200. Also mounted on theshaft 260, between thelugs 262, is a mounting 263 for a piston-and-cylinder arrangement 264 by which the casting 244 is urged in such a direction that the lasting roller is held against the shoe bottom as it is caused to operate progressively therealong. - The machine further comprises means for effecting pivotal movement of the
carrier block 258 about theshaft 260, said means comprising two piston-and-cylinder arrangements carriage 200 and are caused to act upon aplate 270 secured to an inwardly directedarm 272 integral with thecarrier block 258. The piston-and-cylinder arrangement 266 is generally actuated so that its piston rod is fully extended and in this case the lasting roller is held with its tip at or adjacent the longitudinal centre line of theshoe support 20, as shown in full line in Figure 11. In this condition the piston rod of the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 268 is at an intermediate position such that it can be either further extended or fully retracted when the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 266 is de-actuated. In this way, the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 268 is effective to cause pivotal movement of thecarrier block 258 which results in the lasting roller being either urged over, i.e. beyond, the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support 20 (in the case of extension of the piston rod of the arrangement 268), as shown in chain-dot line in Figure 11, or being withdrawn from adjacent said longitudinal centre line (in the case of retraction of said piston rod). It will of course be appreciated that the two lasting rollers must be actuated together so that as one is moved beyond the longitudinal centre line the other is withdrawn and vice versa, in order to avoid collision. The purpose of this so-called "shogging" movement is to enable the lasting rolls to track along opposite marginal portions of the shoe bottom which are not symmetrical along the longitudinal centre line of the shoe support, and indeed one of which may, especially toward the end, cross such longitudinal centre line. - It will be recalled that the casting 188 of the
jack post 22 is mounted for limited pivotal movement about theaxis 120. Theaxis 120 is in the form of a pivot pin which is itself mounted on a lever 300 (Figure 6) which can rock about apivot 302 secured to a stationary frame portion of the machine. The opposite end of thelever 300 provides an abutment surface against which apiston rod 304 of a diaphragm-type piston-and-cylinder arrangement 306 can act, thearrangement 306 also being mounted on a stationary frame portion of the machine. In this way, as will be referred to hereinafter, bedding pressure may be applied to the heel seat of a shoe supported on thelast pin 24. - In using the machine described above, with a shoe supported by the
shoe support 20 the machine cycle is initiated whereby firstly theside clamp members 184 are moved inwardly against the shoe upon actuation of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 186. At the same time, thenozzles 192 of the adhesive-applyingmeans 190 move downwardly into engagement with the insole of the shoe toewardly of the backseam region thereof by the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 226, and thereafter they are moved heelwardly by the action of the steppingmotor 202, acting on thecarriages 200. At this stage the nozzles are closely adjacent one another so that they move to a position in the region of the backseam and adjacent the insole edge. If the lasting margin has previously been in-flanged, then the nozzles move beneath such in-flanged portion. In this position thefeed mechanisms 196 for the adhesive are initiated so that adhesive is then applied from the nozzles to the insole and, under the influence of steppingmotors 214 and steppingmotor 202, the nozzles are caused to move along a predetermined path which is preferably parallel to the insole edge thus to apply adhesive from the backseam region of the shoe bottom toewardly up to the previously lasted toe portion of the shoe. - The path may be controlled by any conventional means. For example, and indeed preferably, the path of the nozzles has previously been digitised, in terms of coordinate axis values which are directly then applicable to the stepping motors referred to; conveniently the paths are reversible for left and right shoes and in addition, according to the length of shoe as measured by the
linear potentiometer 84, the paths are graded. - At this stage the
rollers 232, which are still held out of engagement with the shoe bottom, are caused to begin rotation under the action ofmotors 238 and, when the nozzles have moved forwards from the heel breast line region of the shoe bottom by a distance more or less equal to the spacing between the nozzles and the rollers (approximately 75 mm in the machine described above), they are moved downwardly under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangements 264 and engage the lasting marginal portions of the shoe upper. By reason of the rotation of thelasting rollers 232 as described above, furthermore, the helical rib arrangement 294 of each effects an inwiping movement on such lasted marginal portion at the point of engagement and also presses said lasting marginal portion against a corresponding marginal portion of the insole, thus causing the two marginal portions to be bonded together by the previously applied adhesive. - Although at each side of the machine the nozzle and side lasting roller are mounted on a common carriage, namely the
carriage 200, nevertheless they are capable of independent widthwise movement and indeed heightwise movement, so that both can track along the shoe bottom and indeed their operating path can be terminated independently. When a programmed control is provided, the boundary of the previously toe-lasted portions of the shoe bottom can be "taught" and thus it can be ensured that both the nozzles and thereafter the rollers are lifted off when such boundary region has been traversed. Moreover, thecement feed mechanisms 196 are switched off some 20 to 30 mm from the taught position, so that there is no excess of adhesive at the termination of the nozzle path, and in addition, thefeed mechanisms 196 are so arranged that following such switching off they can reverse the feed of the adhesive rod, thereby effectively causing adhesive to be sucked back from the end of the nozzle, thereby avoiding drooling or other detrimental deposition of cement when not required. - Once the
rollers 232 have engaged the shoe bottom, the shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86 can be moved to its out-of-the-way position without the shoe becoming destabilised; the shoe is of course at this stage held by theside clamping members 184 and by thetoe support 30, as well as benefiting from the stabilising effect of the downward pressure applied by the rollers themselves. Once the shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86 is removed, theheel band mechanism 150 is moved about its axis 166 to a position closely adjacent the heel end of the shoe, but stopping short of engagement therewith. In this condition, thewiper head 172 of thewiper mechanism 170 is advanced, theblock 178 engaging with itswings 178a the back of theheel band 152 and urging it in that region against the shoe. In this way thewiper head 172 is positioned correctly in accordance with the heel end of the shoe; moreover, the last part of the heel band movement is thus parallel with the shoe bottom, thereby avoiding any tendency (which could have arisen with a purely arcuate movement of the heel band) to dislodge the heel end of the shoe on its last. The wings of theheel band 152 are then urged into embracing engagement with the heel end of the shoe under the action of piston-and-cylinder arrangement 162, whereupon theside clamping members 184 can be retracted. - With the shoe thus clamped the
bar lock arrangement 126, by which thepost 116 of thejack post 22 is held in its heightwise position, is released and an upward yielding pressure is applied by the piston-and-cylinder arrangement 122, thewiper plates 174 then being moved inwardly to wipe the lasting marginal portions in the heel seat region of the shoe over and press them against corresponding marginal portions of the insole, while said upward yielding pressure remains applied. (It will of course be appreciated that at this stage thebar lock arrangement 138, by which thetoe support 30 is held is in its operative position remains applied). - With the
wiper plates 174 in their inwiped position, thebar lock 126 is re-applied thus to lock thepost 116 in relation to the casting 118, and bedding pressure is then applied through the composite unit of post and casting 116, 118 from the diaphragm piston-and-cylinder arrangement 206 acting through thelever 200; this bedding pressure thus urges the shoe upwardly against the under-side of thewiper plates 174. Bedding pressure remains applied according to the time required for ensuring a consolidated bond between the in-wiped lasting marginal portions and the corresponding marginal portions of the insole. - At the end of this dwell time the bedding pressure is relieved and the
wiper head 172 is retracted, thewiper plates 174 retracting within thewiper head 172, theheel band 152 is released, and at the same time the abutment plate/datum 54 and theblocks 32 are retracted to release the toe end of the shoe. Theheel band mechanism 150 is then caused to pivot about the axis 166 to its out-of-the-way position and the shoe can then be removed from the operating locality of the machine. Thereafter the shoe heelend positioning mechanism 86 can be returned to such operating locality in readiness for the next shoe to be operated upon, and at this time also thepost 116 of thejackpost 22 moves back to its loading position. - It should also be noted that after the
wiper head 172 has been retracted as described above, thecarriage 200 for thenozzles 192 and sidelasting assemblies 230 can be retracted and returned to their initial positions in readiness for a next cycle of operation of the machine. - Whereas in the machine just described the position of the heel end of the shoe is determined by the shoe heel
end positioning mechanism 86, in other machines in accordance with the invention theheel band mechanism 150 may instead be used for this function, in which case theplate 94 would be dispensed with and the heel seatheight gauge device 110 would be mounted in an alternative manner, e.g. on the casting 154 of the heel band mechanism.
Claims (10)
- Machine for lasting side and heel seat portions of shoes comprisinga shoe support (20) for supporting, bottom up, a shoe comprising a shoe upper on a last and an insole on the last bottom, said shoe support (20) also having a heel seat height gauge device (110;410') whereby the height of the bottom of such shoe in the heel seat region thereof can be set, ,two side lasting assemblies (230) arranged one at each side of the shoe support (20),a heel seat wiper mechanism (170) comprising a pair of wiper plates (174), anda heel band mechanism (150) for clamping the heel end of such shoe prior to the operation of the heel seat wiper mechanism (170),wherein the shoe support (20) comprisesa last pin (24) for receiving the last pin hole of a shoe last, anda toe support (30) for supporting the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin (24),characterised in that the shoe support further comprises a shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) comprisinga datum member (94) engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin (24) for positioning said heel end in a direction extending lengthwise of the shoe, said shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) and the heel band mechanism (150) are each movable between an operative and an out-of-the-way position, the arrangement being such that in the operation of the machine the shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) is first brought to its operative position, thus to set the lengthwise and heightwise positions of a shoe supported by the last pin (24) as aforesaid, whereafter said mechanism (86) is moved to its out-of-the-way position and the heel band mechanism (150) is moved to its operative position, thus to clamp the heel end of said shoe in said positions.
- Machine according to Claim 1 characterised in that the toe support (30) is movable heightwise whereby in cooperation with the shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) to enable the heel seat of the bottom of a shoe supported by the last pin (24) to be accommodated in a desired plane.
- Machine according to Claim 2 characterised in that n.c. motor means (52) is provided for effecting heightwise movement of the toe support (30) as aforesaid.
- Machine according to any one of the preceding Claims characterised in that the toe support (30) is movable in a direction transversely of a shoe supported by the last pin (24) to accommodate to both left and right shoes,
characterised in that adjustable abutments (68) are provided for limiting such transverse movement in both directions,
and in that means (74), including an n.c. motor (74), is provided for setting the position of the abutments (68) according to the style of shoe to be operated upon. - Machine according to any one of the preceding Claims characterised in that the datum member (94) of the shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) comprises a plate member (94) engageable by the heel end of a shoe supported by the last pin (24) and movable into and out of an operative position, means being provided for resiliently urging it out of such position,
characterised in that the datum member (94) is effective, when moved into its operative position, to actuate a switch (98) whereby a signal is generated in response to which the toe support (30) is moved in a direction towards the datum member (94),
and in that the toe support (30) comprises a shoe toe-engaging member (54) also movable into and out of an operative position and being resiliently urged out of said position, said toe-engaging member (54), when in its operative position, actuating a switch (58) by which a signal is generated in response to which the movement of the toe support (30) is terminated. - Machine according to Claim 5 characterised in that the toe support (30) comprises two members (32) having inwardly directed inclined faces and being movable equidistantly towards and away from one another thus to provide a generally V-shaped support for the toe end of a shoe supported by the last pin (24),
and wherein a toe height datum member (54a) is provided, formed integral with the toe-engaging member (54), against the under-side of which (54a) the bottom of such shoe in the toe region thereof is urged by the movement towards one another of said members (32), the arrangement being such that the toe end of the shoe is thus positioned heightwise and also held between said datum member (54a) and the V-shaped supported provided by the two members (32),
characterised in that the signal in response to which movement of the toe support (30) is terminated is also effective to initiate the inward movement of the two members (32) providing the V-shaped support and also to cause the setting of the heightwise position of the heel seat of the shoe to be initiated. - Machine according to any one of the preceding Claims characterised in that auxiliary clamp means (184) is provided co-operable with the toe support (30) and last pin (24) to maintain the shoe in its position set by the shoe heel end positioning mechanism (86) when the latter (86) is moved to its out-of-the-way position and prior to the heel band mechanism (150) being moved into clamping engagement with the heel end of the shoe.
- Machine according to any one of the preceding Claims characterised in that the height gauge device (110) is constituted by a photoelectric switch ("range finder") arrangement (110) and the heel seat of the shoe is positioned at the desired heightwise position by effecting heightwise movement of the last pin (24).
- Machine according to any one of Claims 1 to 7 characterised in that the height gauge device (410) comprises a holddown a heel seat height gauge device (110;410') whereby the height of the bottom of such shoe in the heel seat region thereof can be set, (414) engageable with the heel seat of a shoe supported by the last pin (24), means (122) being provided for effecting heightwise movement of the last pin (24) towards and away from the holddown (414),
and further wherein the holddown (414) is movable between an advanced position, in which it sets said datum position of the heel seat of such shoe heel seat, and a retracted position,
characterised in that, for effecting movement of the holddown (414) between its advanced and retracted positions, a piston-and-cylinder arrangement (412) is provided having a fixed stroke, said arrangement (412) being itself mounted for bodily adjusting movement towards and away from the last pin (24), thus to vary said datum position. - Machine according to Claim 9 characterised in that an n.c. motor (428) is provided for effecting bodily adjusting movement of said arrangement (412), and thus of the holddown (414).
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB9109271 | 1991-04-30 | ||
GB919109271A GB9109271D0 (en) | 1991-04-30 | 1991-04-30 | Shoe support and machine for use in the manufacture of shoes |
GB919120027A GB9120027D0 (en) | 1991-09-19 | 1991-09-19 | Shoe support |
GB9120027 | 1991-09-19 |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0511811A1 EP0511811A1 (en) | 1992-11-04 |
EP0511811B1 true EP0511811B1 (en) | 1997-03-12 |
Family
ID=26298803
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP19920303776 Expired - Lifetime EP0511811B1 (en) | 1991-04-30 | 1992-04-27 | Machine for use in the manufacture of shoes |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0511811B1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE69218026T2 (en) |
Families Citing this family (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
GB9225487D0 (en) * | 1992-12-05 | 1993-01-27 | British United Shoe Machinery | Machine for lasting end portions of shoes |
GB9308293D0 (en) * | 1993-04-22 | 1993-06-09 | British United Shoe Machinery | Feed device for headed fasteners |
GB2288312A (en) * | 1994-04-13 | 1995-10-18 | British United Shoe Machinery | Shoe lasting machine |
Family Cites Families (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE1182111B (en) * | 1962-03-14 | 1964-11-19 | United Shoe Machinery Corp | Shoe machine, in particular sole trimming machine with gauges for setting the shoes on a shoe carrier and for measuring the shoe length |
DE2403535A1 (en) * | 1974-01-25 | 1975-07-31 | Fortuna Werke Maschf Ag | DEVICE ON A SHOE PROCESSING MACHINE |
US4691398A (en) * | 1983-09-22 | 1987-09-08 | Leader Company Limited | Shoe making machine |
GB2154424B (en) * | 1984-02-24 | 1986-12-31 | British United Shoe Machinery | Shoe support for a machine for use in the manufacture of shoes |
-
1992
- 1992-04-27 EP EP19920303776 patent/EP0511811B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1992-04-27 DE DE1992618026 patent/DE69218026T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
DE69218026D1 (en) | 1997-04-17 |
DE69218026T2 (en) | 1997-10-09 |
EP0511811A1 (en) | 1992-11-04 |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
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