GB716407A - Improvements in feeding and assembling nuts and washers - Google Patents

Abstract

716,407. Hoppers. ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS. Oct. 20, 1952, [Oct. 20, 1951.] No. 26295/52. Class 78 (1). [Also in Group XXII] Apparatus for feeding and assembling together nuts and washers comprises a conveyer 96 for the washers, a nut supply shoot 28 adjacent to the conveyer and a nut release and propelling mechanism 30 driven in synchronism with the conveyer for propelling nuts 52 individually from the supply shoot into alignment with the washers and for imparting motion to each nut in the direction of movement of the conveyer. A hopper 32 containing a random mass of twistedtooth-type locking washers has an inclined continuously-rotating bottom plate 96 with a series of peripheral recesses 98 which collect the washers and convey them to the bottom of the shoot 28. The washers have annular flanges on one side thereof and deflectors 114, 118 are provided for ejecting from the recesses 98 those washers whose flanges face downwards. A hopper 22 containing a random mass of nuts has an inclined rotating disc 44 with a series of radial grooves 50 which collect the nuts and convey them to the top of the shoot 28. The nuts have annular flanges on one face thereof and a selector device 26 rejects those nuts whose flanges face upwards, the other nuts passing to the release and propelling mechanism 30. The latter Fig. 9, comprises a slider 164 disposed transversely of the shoot 28 and pressed to the right by a spring 166. The slider carries a propelling member 186, having an extending finger 190 forming a shoulder 192 for engaging the nuts 52, and a spring-loaded pawl 194 whose tip 200 is engaged by the teeth 90 of a ratchet wheel 84 disposed below and rotating with the bottom plate 96. When the slider 164 is in its extreme right hand position a nut 52 rests against the finger 190 and as the slider is moved to the left, by the pawl and ratchet, the shoulder 92 propels the nut to the left where it engages on top of a washer 64 within one of the recesses 98. The pawl 194 has meanwhile been released from the ratchet tooth by a cam plate 206 thereby allowing the slider to be returned by its spring 166. The nuts and washers then pass along a track 216 to a staking mechanism 34, Figs. 1, 2 (see Group XXII) where they are pressed together. The track 216 has a division plate for deflecting any nut which may be present in a recess 98 without an accompanying washer.