359,780. Bookbinding- machines. SCHRAMM, C., 91, Sylvan Avenue, West Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.A. Dec. 3, 1930, No. 36505. [Class 16.] A machine for rounding and jointing the backs of books comprises a tamping-iron for rounding the book backs, mechanism for reciprocating the tamping- iron against the backs of the books, a jointing-iron, mechanism for oscillating the jointing- iron against the backs of the books, a press-clamp with jaws over which the backs of the books are rounded by the jointing-iron, mechanism for opening and closing the press-clamp, and mechanism for feeding books through the machine. Two tables 4, Fig. 4, having an opening between their inner edges, are supported in end walls 3 which are secured to the bed 1 of the machine. Walls 5, Fig. 8, between which the books pass are fastened to pairs of vertical arms 6, the lower ends of which are movably mounted in guideways 7 in brackets 8 which extend from the bed 1. The lower ends of the arms 6 are connected by spindles 9, Fig. 7, halving right, an d lefthand threads to enable the arms of each pair to be moved towards and from each other. The spindles are provided with gears 10 engaging gears 11 on a rod 12 which when turned will adjust the runway walls 5 the same distance apart at both ends. The track 13 on which the books move is fastened at the loading end to the top of a post 14, at the discharge end to a post 15, and at the tamping position to a post 16, which posts are movable vertically in unison by gearing. The top of the track 13 at the loading end is flat and the rest of the track has a convex upper surface. At the tamping position the track is provided with an anvilpiece 22 having a removable curved upper surface which can be substituted by others of varying widths. A shaft 24 has secured to it a toothed segment 26 which engages with a gear 27 on a parallel shaft 25 to which is secured an arm 28, Fig. 4, connected by a link 29 to a lever 30 which is actuated by a cam 31 on the shaft 32. The cam shaft 32 is driven by a motor through the medium of gears 33 .. 37 by a chain belt 38, Fig. 4. Turning with but movable along the shaft 24, are arms 39. 41 provided with feed fingers 40, 42 respectively. A box movable along the shafts 24, 25, having side-plates 43, Fig. 8, connected by sleeves, has attached to its underside a rack 45 engaged by a toothed segment which is attached to another toothed segment engaging with a rack 48. The rack 48 is connected by a link to a lever which is actuated bv a cam on the cam shaft 32. The feed fingers 39, 41 are adjustably connected to each other by a rod 52 which is connected with the box by an arm so that reciprocation of the box will carry the feed fingers backward and forward longitudinally of the track. Mounted in the box on axles 54, Fig. 4, are arms 55 having conveyer clamp-jaws 56 at their upper ends, the arms being provided with intermeshing toothed segments 57 and constrained towards each other by springs 58. One of the conveyer clamp-jaws is connected by a link to a rocker secured to the shaft 25. The feed fingers and conveyer clamp-jaws are simultaneously oscillated for swinging the fingers into and out of the runway and for closing and opening the conveyer jaws, and they are simultaneously reciprocated longitudinally of the track for feeding a book from loading to tamping position, conveying a book from tamping to jointing position, and from jointing position to the delivery end of the machine. The press clamp-jaws 61 are fastened to plates 62 which are movable horizontally towards and away from each other in guideways on the tops of the tables 4. The plates 62 are connected by togglelinks 63 to backing-blocks 64 which are adjustable horizontally by screws 65 actuated through gears by means of a rod 70 extending across the machine. The joints of the toggle-links are connected by links 71 and angle levers 72 to a link 720, Fig. 4. The link 720 is connected to a screwed link 74, which is oscillated by a cam 76 on the cam shaft 32, by means of a lug 73 which can be adjusted along the link 74. A spring 77 is arranged on the link 74 to act as a cushion during the closing movement of the toggles. The tamping-iron 80, Fig. 8, has a concaved undersurface and is detachably fastened to the lower end of a plunger 81 which is vertically movable in a bracket 82. A threaded extension 83 of the plunger is provided with a grooved collar 84 engaged by a lever which is rocked by a link connected to a rocker arm 87 secured to a shaft 88 oscillated by a cam on the cam shaft 32. The cam causes the tamping-iron to reciprocate several times during one cycle of the machine, and hammers the backs of the signatures which are supported by the anvil 22. A spring 91 is arranged between the plunger and its stem 83 for cushioning the blows of the tamping- iron. When a book is in the jointing position it is gripped firmly by the press clamp-jaws 61 and the back of the book is subjected to the ironing action of the jointing-iron 93, Figs. 4 and 8. The jointing-iron 93 has a concave undersurface and is detachably secured to a vertically adjustable block 94 which is connected by screws 95 to arms 96 which are attached to or form a part of toothed segments 97. The screws 95 have gears 98 engaged by gears 99 on a rod 100 which may be turned for raising and lowering the jointing-iron relative to the segments 97. The toothed segments 97 turn on journals 101 carried in bearings in the lower ends of arms 102 which are pivotally supported by bushes 103 mounted in blocks 104 which are vertically adjustable in the side-frames of the machine. The means for adjusting the blocks comprise screws 105 screwed into the blocks which then pass through a cap 106 and are provided at their ends with gears 107 which are engaged by gears 108 on a rod 109 which may be turned so as to raise or lower the blocks together. Plates 110 and clamp-screws 111 are provided for locking the blocks. The toothed segments 97 mesh with toothed segments 112 fastened to a shaft 113 which passes through the bushes 103. A crank pin 114 is adjustably connected by a screw 115 to one of the segments 112 and an adjustable link 116 connected to the crank pin is connected by a lever 117 to a cam 119. The edges of the arms 102 are engaged by rods 120, Fig. 4, which are pressed against the arms by cushioning-springs 121. The cam 119, by means of the above connections, swings the arms 102 so that they carry the jointing-iron 93 from side to side over the back of the book, and at the same time the segments cause the jointing-iron to turn and crush the edges of the book over the upper edges of the jaws of the press-clamps 61 and thus form the joints.