23,356. Gouldbourn, J., and British United Shoe Machinery Co. Oct. 29. Nailing. - Relates to apparatus for transferring nails from delivering - apparatus and distributing them to nail-receiving passages. The nails are delivered from a race-way 3, Fig. 1, arranged in connection with a nail-assorting device 2, to slots provided in the conical end of a nail receiver or inverter A fixed on an inclined shaft A'. The shaft is journalled at one end in a bearing 1<a>, and at the other end in a sleeve B adapted to rotate in a bearing 1<b>. A stepby-step motion is imparted to the inverter A by ratchet mechanism for the purpose of bringing the slots or pockets successively into position to receive a nail from the race-way. The receiver, which serves to reverse the nails, may be otherwise constructed ; thus it may be fitted with rotatable pockets, or it might receive the full number of nails and then be inverted. In order to prevent injury to the apparatus due to blocking of the inverter by a misplaced nail &c., each step comprises a yielding initial movement followed by a positive movement. A ratchet-wheel A<3>, Fig. 5, on the shaft A' is engaged by two pawls C', D'. The pawl D', which imparts the positive movement, is carried by an arm D, actuated, through links E, F, by a cam G, Fig. 2, on the driving-shaft 4 of the machine, the movement imparted being less than the distance between the teeth of the ratchet-wheel. The pawl C', which imparts the initial yielding movement, is mounted on an arm C and operated by a spring C<2> ; the arm C is moved in the opposite direction by a projection on the arm D, engaging a bell-crank lever I connected to the arm C by a link H. To bring the inverter to the correct position for receiving a nail, a pawl C<4> on the arm C engages a ratchet-wheel A<4> on the shaft A', the teeth on the wheels A<3>, A' being oppositely disposed. A. camprojection on the arm D engages a pin on the pawl C<4> to hold it out of engagement with the wheel A<4> when the inverter is rotated. The nails drop from the inverter into conical holes or passages K<2> in a carrier, which, preferably, consists of a turret K operated by a bevel-wheel B<2> on the sleeve B. By changing the bevel-wheels, the velocity ratio between the inverter and the carrier can be varied so as to cause a nail to be delivered into every second or third &c. hole in the carrier. The wheel B<2> is driven by a ratchet-wheel B', which is engaged by a pawl fixed on the pivot pin of the pawl D<1>, thereby ensuring that the inverter and turret are driven in unison. The nails are retained in the passages K<2> until a predetermined number are loaded, when they are simultaneously discharged by a nail-counting mechanism, which at the same time stops the machine. This mechanism is shown in Figs. 1, 10, 11, 12, and 13. A spiral wheel L, driven from a corresponding wheel on the sleeve B, is loosely mounted on a spindle M and is coupled to a ratchet-wheel N by a tongue and-groove device. Another sleeve M', loose on the spindle, carries a disc M' provided with pins, corresponding to the number of teeth on the wheel N, such teeth being kept in engagement with holes in an index disc, fixed to the spindle, by a spring M<5>. A spring box O on the spindle M has an arm O<1>, Fig. 11, in which is mounted a pawl O<2> adapted to engage the wheel N. The pivot pin of the pawl is frictionally controlled by a spring pin O<4> and carries an arm O<5> adapted to engage a stop M' projecting from the index disc so as to move the pawl into engagement with the wheel N. A projection M<8> on the disc M' is adapted to engage the arm O<1>. An arm M<9> on the sleeve M' is connected by a link to a lever P<1>, which engages the actuating-member of the controlling-ring 5 of a roller clutch of known construction to stop the machine. Another arm M<10> on the sleeve M' is connected by a link to a pawl S adapted to engage ratchet teeth on a nail-retaining plate S<2> arranged below the turret K. This plate is yieldingly connected so as to rotate with the turret, and has holes normally out of register with the passages in the turret ; when the plate is actuated by the ratchet gear, the holes in the plate and turret are brought into register for the purpose of discharging the nails. In operation, the machine is started by applying pressure to a prolongation of the pawl O<2> so as to disengage it from the wheel N ; the arm O<1> is thereupon rotated, under the action of the spring box 0, and the arms M<9>, M'‹ fly back under the action of a spring so as to allow the clutch to be engaged and the plate S' to be released. When the arm O<5> comes against the stop M<7>, the pawl O<2> is re-engaged with the wheel N, and the box O is carried round until the arm O<1> engages the projection M<5>; the arms M<9>, M<10> are now moved to disengage the clutch, thereby stopping the machine, and to bring the holes in the plate and turret into register so as to discharge the nails into a transferrer. The duration of the machine's action depends on the length of travel given to the box 0 before engagement of the arm O<5> with the stop M', and can be regulated by adjusting the index disc. This can be done by moving the spindle M endways to disengage the index disc from the disc M<2> and then turning the spindle to the desired position before re-engaging these parts. The pawl O<2> may be tripped to start the machine by a lever V<6>, Fig. 2, coupled by links &c. to an arm V, which is actuated by the nail transferrer. According to the Provisional Specification, a brake is arranged in connection with the clutch for stopping the machine.