GB1026851A - Improvements in and relating to slicing machines - Google Patents

Abstract

1,026,851. Sawing. PELKMAN MORTON MANUFACTURING CO. Ltd. March 23, 1965 [March 26, 19641, No. 12929/64. Heading B5L. A machine for slicing blocks of expanded polystyrene into a plurality of sheets or slabs comprises a cutting unit B, Fig. 1, having a plurality of spaced vertically reciprocable parallel saw blades 36, 37, Fig. 2 (not shown), for cutting a block into sheets or slabs, and a conveying unit A for conveying the block through the unit, the conveyer unit having a horizontal slideway 3 and a pair of laterally spaced vertically disposed endless conveyer belts 4 located one on each side of the slideway. Each belt 4 is entrained about rollers 5, 6, rollers 6 being driven and mounted on shafts 7a connected by bevel gearing to a splined shaft 8 driven by a chain drive 21 from a motor 20b. The shafts 14 of the rollers 5 are adjustable by hand controls 17, 18 in bearing blocks 15, 16 whereby the tensions of the belts are adjusted. The distance apart of the belts is variable to accommodate different sizes of blocks by a hand wheel 9 on a screw-threaded shaft 10 rotatable in an internally threaded mounting 11 on a beam carrying the conveyer assembly, the shaft 10 being connected to a similar shaft 12 at the other end of the conveyer by a chain 13a. A plurality of rollers 7 are disposed between the rollers 5, 6 and are urged by springs against the inner runs of the belts to press said runs against a block to be cut disposed on the slideway 3. Rollers 22, 23 are disposed on the input and output sides of the cutting unit A to resiliently press the block against the slideway during sawing, the rollers being vertically adjustable by rack-and-pinion mechanisms 15, 26 and clampable in adjusted position by screw knobs 29 which can be clamped in position along slots 33 and are connected by resilient tie-rods 36 to the shafts of the rollers. The cutting unit has a pair of vertically reciprocable frames 34, 35 each carrying a plurality of blades 36a, 37. Each blade of one frame in between adjacent pairs of blades of the other frame and all the cutting edges are in the same vertical plane. The frames are reciprocated in opposite directions by crossheads connected by rods 38, 39 to a crank-shaft driven from a motor 41. The frames are guided by pairs of blocks 44, 45 slidable on rods 46, 47 mounted on the frame of the machine. The upper ends of the blades are connected to pins 52 having springs 53 held under compression between nuts 54 and a slotted plate 55 through which the blades pass. The blades have raker sawteeth preferably set to cut in opposite directions. The cut block is conveyed by a roller 56 or belt from the saw unit.