MXPA97006663A

MXPA97006663A - Method and interior assembly device of helicoi spring

Info

Publication number: MXPA97006663A
Application number: MXPA/A/1997/006663A
Authority: MX
Inventors: R Ramsey Henry; R Jordan Joseph
Original assignee: L&P Property Management Company
Priority date: 1995-03-03
Filing date: 1997-09-02
Publication date: 1998-10-30

Abstract

The present invention relates to an inner spring assembling apparatus for forming spring inner assemblies of parallel spring rows, comprising: an inner spring assembler, a spring row transfer station upstream of the assembler and operative for transferring a row of springs pre-installed from at least one row transfer position to the assembler, a movable conveyor for carrying a pre-installed row of springs formed to the transfer position, a spring former having an output side end, a feeder of spring located between the spring former and the conveyor and operative to feed springs individually formed from the spring former towards a predetermined position on the conveyor, a servo motor operably connected to a conveyor for moving springs formed in a position predetermined positions on it towards the transfer position, and a controller programmed to variablely control the relative operation of the servo motor and the feeder independently of the spring former.

Description

METHOD AND INTERIOR ASSEMBLY APPARATUS OF HELICOIDAL SPRING Field of the Invention The present invention relates to the formation and assembly of helical spring interiors, and particularly to a method and apparatus for feeding and placing turns in separate ratios for their assembly into such dock interiors. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] In the manufacture of dock interiors such as those used to provide the internal spring assemblies of mattresses and similar products, spring assembling machines are used to interlock windrow rows in installations that are normally rectangular. Such spring installations are normally assembled as a plurality of vertically oriented helical coil springs which often have hourglass shapes, installed horizontally in a grid lying in a plane. The most preferred installations of machines for inner manufacturing of the spring include a coil former, which produces individual springs from a continuous wire, which feeds coil springs as they are formed in the assembly apparatus. The efficient production of dock interiors depends greatly on the speed with which the springs can be fed to the assembler. When the spring installation is made of a plurality of identical springs uniformly spaced in each row, the devices are provided to automatically feed the rows of springs to a transfer device and move after the row with a multiple clamping mechanism incorporated in the assembler, in parallel to previously transferred rows. An earlier version of such a machine is disclosed in U.S. Patent no. 3,386,561 to Spühl and a later version is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,652 of Strum. Such machines avoid the extra handling associated with the loading of the springs by coupling the output conveyor of a spring forming machine directly to the feeder of the transfer mechanism. As a rule, the speed of such combination is limited by the spring winding machine, which produces individual springs slower than the assembler can assemble them. Attempts to accelerate the inner assembly operation of the spring have led to the use of two spiral-forming machines instead of one, installed with their output conveyors in parallel rows extending through a transfer station.

Such a combination is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,413,659 of Zángerle. In such a combination, the clamping mechanism in the transfer station operates to alternately transfer rows of springs from each of the output conveyors of the winders, allowing one of the winders to operate to produce a row of turns while The row of loops previously formed by the other coiler is transferred to the assembler. With such an installation, each coiler can use the time required for the two cycles of the sanding machine to produce a row of springs. However, such an apparatus still has rows of turns uniformly spaced towards the transfer mechanism. Many inner spring products are best formed when the coil springs do not separate evenly in the rows. However, combination machines of the type described above produce a uniform current or series of springs formed at the output of the winder and present the turns to the transfer mechanism evenly spaced in rows. When irregularly spaced turns are required, it has been necessary to feed the turns to the transfer mechanism evenly spaced into the desired average turn space and then independently employ the movable fasteners to transfer each of the springs towards the assembler, moving different springs transversely in amounts that differ in the transfer to achieve the desired irregular spring space. Assemblers with transfer mechanism having such capability are illustrated and described in US Pat. Nos. 4,625,349 and 4,705,079 to Higgins, both expressly incorporated by reference herein. Even with the use of a space-changing mechanism in the transfer station, many interior spring designs benefit not only from the springs that are separated in an irregular manner, but include combinations of springs of more than one type, size or stiffness in each row. The direct connection of the output conveyors of the spring coilers to the feeder of a transfer station does not in itself provide such capacity. According to the above, several manual steps are required in the handling of the springs fed to an inner dock assembler in order to produce many of the desired products. In addition, in systems where speed of operation is desired, flexibility in the separation and installation of springs is even more difficult to achieve.

The prior art machines do not provide the capacity, speed, flexibility of variable spring separation or of a mixture of types of springs that are presented in the conveyor to the transfer mechanism that feeds a spring assembly machine. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A basic object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for inner spring assembly that will provide flexibility in the separation and selection of springs that form the inner spring installation, particularly while the springs are on the conveyor that feed an assembly machine. A more particular object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for forming a spring interior in which the springs can be formed and sent directly to a pre-installed spring interior assembler in variable row spacings. Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus such as to accommodate rows of springs of more than one size, stiffness or type, and especially to accommodate a variety of taps, stiffnesses and types of springs in each of the single dock rows. Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for producing springs and feeding them directly to an inner spring assembly machine from more than one winding machine operating simultaneously, either in separate parallel rows or with the spirals united in a single row. A particular object of the present invention is to provide a multiple winding method and apparatus such as to provide flexibility in the separation of the turns along each row and the interleaving of turns of different types in the same row. Another object of the present invention is to provide a flexible method and apparatus such as to allow the various components or subsystems of the machine to function, and the method to be carried out at an optimum capacity and independently of the operations of the other components or subsystems during the larger portions of their cycles. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, there is provided an inner spring assembly method and apparatus with at least one in-line winder having an outlet side conveyor that feeds directly to a junction portion of the apparatus, the conveyor being output side of the controllable winder independent of the operation of the loop that is part of the system, but coordinated with it by means of a single controller or using interrelated controllers or control logic. Preferably, the conveyor on the output side of the winder is controlled by a motor that will respond to a control signal to move the springs a known distance downstream. Such a motor or drive is referred to herein generically as a servomotor, which employs feedback to the controller, or uses some internal feedback or other approach to produce an accurate measured response to a control signal. In the preferred embodiments of the invention, such an engine is a motor of the stepper motor type which operates to move the conveyor which drives an increasing, fixed and usually small distance in response to a pulse coming from a controller, whereby the The conveyor can be advanced by an accurate distance by sending a control signal of a predetermined, precise number of pulses. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is provided a winding machine having an output conveyor which serves as a feed conveyor for an inner spring assembler, which extends in a row through the input side of the assembler through a transfer station in which a transfer mechanism picks up a row of turns and feeds them into the assembler. The conveyor is driven by a stepper motor in response to signals from a controller that is programmed to maintain a series of different turn-to-turn separations along each row of turns produced by the winder. The controller synchronizes the operation of the winding or spiral feeder with the indexing of the conveyor so that the formed turns are placed on the conveyor at preprogrammed separations, correct, from the loop previously placed. The controller also coordinates the advance of the conveyor to drive a complete row of spiers separated in a variable manner towards the transfer station with the activation of the transfer mechanism to load the assembler with the row of turns and also with the activation of the assembler to start the interlacing of the turns of the row as a whole and of the row of turns with the row of turns before the assembly of the spring. In a further embodiment of the invention, two winders and conveyors are installed in a single machine, the two output conveyor winches having to extend in parallel through a transfer station, each conveyor carrying springs that are variablely spaced apart. the same.

Each of the windings operates independently in the manner of the above-stated embodiment, the transfer mechanism of the transfer station being capable of transferring rows of turns alternately alternately spaced from each row of the conveyors. This embodiment of the invention has the additional ability to present turns on a conveyor, which differ in size, type or rigidity from those presented on the other conveyor. Such different types of turns place on their respective conveyors at programmed separations under the control of a programmed controller. The transfer mechanism can be operated to alternately remove the turns from the conveyors or to remove the turns of both conveyors and combine them into a single row of variablely separated turns of multiple types. In yet a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a machine formed of two or more winders each having an output conveyor or feeder extending to a transfer station or to an intermediate crossover station at which the resulting loops of each of the output feeders of the winder or conveyors on the output side are launched or moved on a single conveyor of the transfer station in such a way that the rows of the turns on the transfer conveyor are formed by combinations of turns coming from each of the winders that separate in variable separations on the transfer conveyor. A controller is programmed to synchronize the operations of the winders, their conveyors on the output side, which may not need to be operated separately by servomotors, the crossover or displacement mechanism, and the transfer conveyor, which is operated separately by a servo motor that can be controlled independently. The controller also synchronizes the operation of the transfer mechanism and the assembler as in the other modalities described above. Still a further embodiment of the invention includes the plurality of winders and conveyors on the output side and the single transfer conveyor separately from the previously mentioned mode, with additional conveyor elements at the outputs of each of the winders that facilitate the accumulation of turns in the output conveyors of the winding machines so that the operation of the winding machines does not slow down, waiting for the formation of winding tails by means of the transfer conveyor. In this way, the winders can maintain the operation at a full capacity even when the demand of turns of the transfer conveyor from that winder is delayed, the turns formed on the individual branches of the conveyor, which extend from each winder, accumulate. . In addition, many types of springs can be fitted exactly onto the winder output conveyors, greatly improving the use of the winders, even when the assembler or transfer mechanism for the same is paused or otherwise inactivated, providing this a supply of turns that will allow the assembly to work at full speed when its operation is finished. With such ability to accumulate turns from the winders, the portions of the output conveyor that feed the crossover mechanism can immediately operate at the controller's call to charge a loop to the transfer conveyor, without coordinating such feeding with the formation of the turns. by the winder. According to the present invention, the rows of turns are presented to a assembler pre-installed and separated in programmed relation with the last design of the installation, and the turns of different types, sizes and rigidities can be combined in an automated, efficient, fast operation. Multiple coilers can be connected in line with the assembler. Ample flexibility is provided in the type of product. These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description of the drawings and preferred embodiments, in which: BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a spring coil assembly typical of the prior art. Figure 2 is a schematic representation similar to Figure 1 illustrating another prior art spring coil assembly machine. Figure 3 is a schematic representation of an embodiment of a spring coil assembly machine according to the principles of the present invention. Figure 4 is a schematic representation similar to Figure 3 illustrating an alternative embodiment of a spring coil assembly machine of the present invention. Figure 5 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a spring coil assembly machine according to the principles of the present invention. Figure 5A is a view taken on line 5A-5A of Figure 5. Figure 5B is a view taken on the line 5B-5B of figure 5A. Figure 6 is a schematic representation of yet another embodiment of a spring coil assembly machine according to the principles of the present invention. Figure 6B is a view as seen on the line 6B-6B of Figure 6. Figure 7 is a diagram of a control interface display screen of the embodiment of Figure 3. Figure 8 is a diagram of flow of a controller program for the operation of the embodiment of Figure 3. Figure 9 is a detailed flow chart of the flow diagram calculation routine of Figure 8. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITIES Referring to Figure 1 , a prior art apparatus 10 for manufacturing pier interiors is schematically illustrated. Such an apparatus, for example, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,386,561 from Spühl. Such an apparatus includes a winder 11, which produces a series of coil springs 12 and distributes them sequentially on a spring conveyor 13. The conveyor 13 is formed of a pair of opposite endless belts 14 and 15 which compress the springs 12 between yes and forward the springs 12, while maintaining them at uniformly spaced intervals, towards a transfer mechanism 20. The conveyor 13 operates gradually, in synchronism with the intermittent formation of turns 12 by the winder 11. Typically, the operation coordinate of the conveyor 13 and the winder 11 is maintained by the ratio of a winder driver 16 for the winder 11 which is linked directly through a mechanical transmission 17 to a conveyor driver 18 of the conveyor 13, both actuators 16 and 18 being actuated. through the transmission 17 by the same motor 19. In typical operation, the winder 11 operates at its maximum combined capacity until a row of full turns 12 is presented on the conveyor 13 to the transfer mechanism 20. When a full row is presented to the transfer mechanism 20 by the conveyor 13, a fastener assembly of the transfer mechanism (not shown) ) simultaneously engages each of the springs 12 of the row and transfers them to an assembler 24 where they intertwine as a whole and to the turns of adjacent spring rows in the formation of a spring interior. During the operation of the transfer mechanism 20, the conveyor 13 and the winder 11 momentarily stop while the springs 12 are being transferred from the conveyor 13 to the assembler 24. When the fastener assembly is sufficiently free from the conveyor 13 so as not to interfering with its operation, the operation of the winder 11 and the conveyor 13 is terminated. One of the first recognized disadvantages of the installation of figure 1 has been that the winder 11 produces springs 12 at a speed that is less than the speed at which the transfer mechanism 20 and the assembler 24 can remove and process springs from the conveyor 13. To overcome this disadvantage, the machine 10a of Figure 2 was proposed in the prior art. The machine 10a of FIG. 2 provides a pair of winders 11a and 11b respectively forming two rows of springs 12a and 12b which are respectively fed along two parallel paths by a pair of conveyors 13a and 13b. In this embodiment, a modified transfer mechanism 20a is provided with a fastener assembly (not shown) that collects rows of turns 12a and 12b alternately from the respective conveyors 13a and 13b and feeds them to the assembler 24. Such a machine 10a is exposed in the US patent no. 4,413,659 of Zángerle. The conveyors 13a and 13b operate in a gradual manner, in synchronism with the intermittent formation of turns 12a and 12b by the respective winders Ia and 11b. Typically, the coordinated operation of the conveyor 13a, 13b and the winders 11b, 11b is maintained by the ratio of the respective winder actuators 16a and 16b, respectively, which are directly linked through a respective mechanical transmission 17a and 17b to the actuators of conveyor 18a and 18b, respectively. Each of the actuator assemblies 16a and 18a, and 16b and 18b, are driven respectively through the transmissions 17a and 17b by the drive motors 19a and 19b. In typical operation, the apparatus 10a operates at its maximum capacity by operating each of the winders 11a and 11b and conveyors 13a and 13b to each or any one present a row full of turns 12a or 12b to the transfer mechanism 20a. When a full row is presented to the transfer mechanism 20a by one of the conveyors, 13a for example, a fastener assembly of the transfer mechanism (not shown) is placed to simultaneously engage the springs 12a of the row and transfer them to the assembler 24a where they are rows of adjacent springs, intertwined, in the formation of a quay interior. During the operation of the transfer mechanism 20, it may be required that the conveyor 13a be stopped momentarily and, in some cases up to the winder Ia, while the springs 12a are transferred from the conveyor 13a to the assembler 24a. In many applications, the stopping of the winder is undesirable and can affect the quality of the springs, and should be avoided. When the fastener assembly is sufficiently free from the conveyor 13a so as not to interfere with its operation, the operation of the winder Ia and the conveyor 13a ends. Then, when a full row is immediately present to the transfer mechanism 20a by any other of the conveyors 13b, the fastener assembly is repositioned to simultaneously engage the springs 12b to transfer them to the assembler 24a where they are also intertwined to the row of springs previously fed 12th in the formation of the quay interior. During the operation of the transfer mechanism 20a to pick up the springs 12b from the conveyor 13b, the conveyor 13b and the winder 11b momentarily stop in a similar manner. When the fastener assembly is sufficiently free from the conveyor 13b so as not to interfere with its operation, it can terminate the operation of the winder 11b and the conveyor 13b. With both of the above-described machines 10 and 10a of the prior art, the separation of the turns 12 on a conveyor 13 for presentation to the transfer mechanism 20a is dictated by the operation of a winder 11, which feeds turns at separate intervals in a manner uniform along the conveyor 13. However, with the present invention, machines are provided which have both the ability to separate springs on the conveyors at scheduled and different intervals as well as the ability to interpose springs of different shapes and types in scheduled installations. on the transporters. In Figures 3-6, described below, four modalities of such machines are schematically established. Referring now to FIG. 3, there is provided, according to one embodiment of the present invention, an interior spring making apparatus 30 that includes a winder 31 that is similar to the windings 11 referred to above, and operates to produce individual coil springs. 32. These coil springs 32 are produced, one for each cycle of operation of the winder 31, and are fed to a conveyor 33, which, similarly to the conveyors 13 described above, is an opposite belt conveyor which sequentially presents a row of springs 32 to a transfer mechanism 34 for simultaneous transfer from the conveyor 33 to an assembler 35 for assembly in a spring interior. Suitable coil windings 31 for use with the invention are known in the art, such a coiler being described in British Patent No. 1,327,795 to Willi Gerstorfer entitled "Improvements in or relating to Machines for the Manufacture of Compression Spring Strips from Wire, for example for Upholstery Grafts". A conveyor 33, a transfer mechanism 34 and an assembler 35 that are adaptable for use with the invention as set forth herein are described in US Pat. Nos. 3,386,561 from Spühl and 3,774,652 from Sturm, all expressly incorporated herein by reference. The concepts of the present invention may be used or adapted for use with machines of the types set forth in all these incorporated patents. Unlike the conveyors 13 described above, the conveyor 33 does not link directly to the winder driver 38 of the winder 31 but is capable of operating separately from the winder 31, preferably being driven separately by a servo motor 36. The servo motor 36 is preferably of the type of stepper motor which indexes the conveyor 33 in response to the signals, e.g. in the form of pulses, emitted by a programmable controller 37. The motor 36 indexes the conveyor 33 at a fixed increasing distance in response to each pulse from the controller 37. The fixed rising distance is small and may be, for example, l / 500th of the revolution of a drive wheel for each received pulse, thus providing precise control of the movement of the conveyor 33. The controller 37 also synchronizes the movement of the conveyor 33 with the sequential operation of the winder 31 that is driven by the action of a winder 38, so that a formed turn 32 can be placed precisely at the entrance end of the conveyor 33 in order to precisely establish a space between each turn 32 thus placed and the previously placed turn 32 on the conveyor 33. separated under control of the controller 37, the winder 31 forms and places a row of turns 32 on the conveyor 33 at intervals determined by the controller 37 as it coordinates the movement of the conveyor 33. The spaces between the adjacent turns 32 of the row they are determined according to a program of the controller 37. Preferably, less than the total number of turns required for the job to be executed has been made, the winder 31 will form a turn 32 and, if the controller 37 concludes that the conveyor 33 is positioned to receive the formed coil 32, the coiler 31 feeds the formed coil 32 to the conveyor 33 and the coiler 31 then continues to If the conveyor 33 is not in such a position to receive a turn 32e, the winder 31 stops to wait for the controller 37 to signal that the conveyor 33 is placed A) Yes. Once the turn 32 is fed by the winder 31 onto the conveyor 33, a sensor 39, which can be provided, can signal that the conveyor 33 can now be indexed. By this, the conveyor is never indexed without the presence of a turn, which could create a "hole" in the resulting spinneret. As the row of turns 32 is installed on the conveyor 33, the conveyor 33 advances the row towards a transfer station 40 which includes the transfer mechanism 34 which may take the form of the transfer mechanism 20 of the prior art of the Figure 1, or another suitable transfer mechanism. When a complete row of turns 32 is on the conveyor 33, the downstream end of the row will typically extend to the transfer station 40. The winder 31 can then continue to operate under the control of the controller 37 to form turns of the next row, which are placed on the conveyor 33 upstream of the completed row as the conveyor 33 continues to be indexed in response to the signals from the controller 37. When the completed row of turns has been indexed at the transfer station 40 and is ready to be transferred by the mechanism to the assembler 35, which may be similar to the assemblers 24 of the prior art machines 10 and 10a treated in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2 above, the controller 37 causes the conveyor 33 to stop momentarily while the transfer mechanism 34 in the transfer station 40 engages the turns 32 on the conveyor 33 for transfer to the assembler 35. In addition, in some applications it may also be necessary to cause the winder 31 to stop, although it is usually better to avoid doing so. The controller 37 can be programmed to track the pulses sent to the stepper motor 36, or to count the feedback pulses from the stepper motor 36 or from another resolver or decoder 46 connected to an actuator or intermediate wheel for the belts of the conveyor 33, and calculates by this when the row of turns formed is in position to be transferred by the transfer mechanism of the transfer station 40. In addition, the controller 37 could depend on a signal coming from a sensor 44. to detect when the row of turns formed in the transfer station 40 is properly positioned. If the indexing of the conveyor 33 is dependent on the controller 37, it is preferred that the conveyor belts 33 be reinforcement belts of the reinforced synchronization belt type, not adjustable, which can be actuated positively by drive wheels and ngranadas or measures by means of intermediate geared wheels, without sliding between the wheels and the belts. Similarly, the controller 37 can control the cycle of the winder 31 in response to track tracking of the indexing of the conveyor 33 while maintaining memory registers in which constantly updated information of the positions of turns 32 is stored throughout of the conveyor 33. In addition to or in the alternative, the controller 37 can keep track of the turns of the row that has been fed to the conveyor 33 and can completely depend on a feedback signal from the sensor 46 that detects the position of the conveyor. 33. Figure 4 illustrates one embodiment of a machine 30a of the invention that includes two winding assemblies 31a, 31b and conveyors 33a, 33b of the type illustrated in the embodiment of Figure 3 as the winder 31 and the conveyor 33, installed in two lines of formation and handling of turns A and B. The conveyors 33a and 33b differ from the conveyor 33 in a ma This is similar to the manner in which the conveyors 13a and 13b of Figure 2 differ from the conveyor 13 of Figure 1, as explained and described in detail in U.S. Patent 4,413,659, expressly incorporated herein by reference. In cooperation with the conveyors 33a and 33b, a transfer station 40a operates to alternately transfer springs from the conveyors 33a and 33b to an assembler 35a. In one embodiment, the machine 30a uses two winder drives 31a and 31b by winder actuators 38a, 38b to produce identical springs 32 so as to quickly supply the springs 32 to the transfer station 40a and for the assembler 35a to accelerate the operation of assembly, which was an objective of the design of figure 2 of the prior art. In such an embodiment, the transfer mechanism 34a of the transfer station 40a takes springs rows alternately from the conveyors 33a and 33b. Each of the winder and conveyor assemblies, ie, the winder 31a and the conveyor 33a and the winder 31b and the conveyor 33b, are controlled in the same manner as the winder 31 and conveyor assembly 33 of the embodiment of the FIG. 3, each conveyor 33a and 33b being provided with a stepper motor driver 36a and 36b, both controlled by a common controller 37a that provides control to both windings 31a, 31b and both stepper motors 36a, 36b, as described in connection with FIG. 3, to provide the programmed separation of the turns 32a, 32b along the respective two lines A and B. The controller 37a of the Figure 4 thus provides the function of two separate controllers 37 of Figure 3 and, in addition, coordinates the operation of the two lines A and B with the alternating operation of the transfer mechanism of the transfer station 40a. This coordination involves the separate taking of the arrival count of the rows of turns 32 coming from the two lines in position in the transfer station 40a, and the alternate pause of the two lines in synchronism with the alternate transfer of springs from the respective lines to the assembler 35a. In all other aspects, the two lines A and B may be identical to, and have the characteristics of, the only line of the embodiment of figure 3 described above, including respective sensors 39a, 39b, 44a, 44b and 46a, 46b corresponding in function and relative location on each line A or B with the sensors 39, 44 and 46 of Figure 3. In a preferred embodiment of the machine 30a of Figure 4, the two lines A and B are set to provide different types of coils 32a and 32b, such as, for example, turns of different sizes, resistances or rigidities. Such different turns 32a, 32b could be required by a design of a spring interior to, for example, place stiffer springs (e.g., springs 32b) around the periphery with softer springs (e.g., springs 32a) in the most central portion of the pier interior. In such a machine 30a, the transfer mechanism 34a in the transfer station 40a operates in conjunction with the assembler 35a to supply turns 32a and 32b to the assembler 35a in each cycle of the assembler 35a, so that the springs of both types can interlock in the same row inside the quay assembly. To facilitate this, the separations of the softer springs 32a and the stiffer springs 32b, when the rows thereof are in position in the transfer station 40a to be transferred to the assembler 35a, are interleaved according to the programmed pattern of the controller 37a, that is to say, they originate by a synchronization of the separation of the turns 32a and 32b on the respective conveyors 33a and 33b by the winders 31a and 31b. A further embodiment of the invention, which is illustrated in FIG. 5, is a machine 50 that produces an inner spring product having springs of more than one type, such as the second embodiment 30a of FIG. 4 did. machine 50 differs from the machine 30a in part in that the machine 50 is provided with a transfer conveyor 51 formed of a single pair of endless belts extending through the transfer station 52. The conveyor 51 is driven by a stepper motor 53. The transfer station 52 differs from the transfer station 40a of FIG. 4, providing the transfer of turns 54a and 54b of different assemblers 55 from the single conveyor 51, instead of from the two conveyors 33a and 33b of Figure 4. The machine 50 of Figure 5 further includes winders 56a and 56b that differ from the winders 31a and 31b of Figure 4, providing discharge conveyors 57a and 5b. 7b at its outlets to intermittently feed the turns formed by the winders 56a and 56b towards the upstream end of the transfer conveyor 50. The winders 56a and 56b produce each turn 54a, 54b which may differ in size or stiffness, as it is illustrated by the softer springs 32a and the stiffer springs 32b, as in the embodiment of Fig. 4. Each of the conveyors 57a and 57b are capable of being operated independently of the operation of the winders 56a and 56b also by the separate servo motors 58a and 58b, which may be the same as the servo motors or stepper motors 36a and 36b of FIG. 4. The servo motors 58a and 58b, the winders 56a and 56b, the transfer station 52 and the assembler 55 are driven by a controller 59. The embodiment of Figure 5 is also provided with a crossing station 65 to which the downstream ends of the conveyors 57a and 57b extend, one, for example the conveyor 57b, overlapping the other, 57a. Between these ends downstream of the conveyors 57a and 57b at the crossing station 65, the upstream end of the transfer conveyor 51 extends, as illustrated in Figures 5A and 5B. At the crossing station 65, any of a variety of mechanisms can be used to selectively move the turns 54a and 54b from the respective conveyors 57a and 57b on the conveyor 51. Such a mechanism can include a pair of pneumatically actuated drive elements or by solenoid 66 and 67, which, when actuated by a signal from the controller 59, move against a respective spring 54a, 54b on the conveyor 57a, 57b to slide the spring vertically, up or down, on the end upstream of the conveyor 51. Stainless steel guide plates 68 and 69 are provided, which extend from behind the front flights of the conveyor belts 57a and 57b, on the forward flight of the conveyor belts 51, to guide the springs 54a, 54b on the conveyor 51. The guide plates 68 and 69 have horizontal end sections 71 for trapping the ends of the sprue The springs are pushed on the transfer conveyor 51 by the impellers 66 and 67. A counterplate 63 holds the conveyor belts 51 firmly in position near the end sections 71 of the conveyor to prevent the springs from being caught between the conveyors. plates 68 and 69 and the conveyor belts 51. In operation, with the spring empty conveyors 51, 57a and 57b, the program of the controller 59 starts by initiating cycles of the winders 56a and 56b by sending drive pulses to the winders. After each cycle of the winders 56a and 56b, the respective winders feed a formed turn 54a, 54b on the upstream end of the respective conveyor 57a, 57b, which causes a feedback signal to be generated to the controller 59, for example to starting from a sensor 72 upstream of the conveyor 57a, 57b or from a sensor on the discharge feeder mechanism of the winder itself. The reception of such a feedback signal causes the controller 59 to first check to determine whether the respective conveyor 57a, 57b is full to its capacity or has a turn occupying a position at the downstream end of the conveyor 57a, 57b adjacent to the impeller 66 , 67 at crossing station 65. If it is determined that there is no condition and therefore that the act of indexing the conveyor will not cause a loop to be indexed beyond station 65, a series of pulses is sent to the servo motor of respective step speed 58a, 58b for indexing the respective conveyor 57a, 57b downstream the precise distance required to move the formed spring 54a, 54b, which makes a space at the upstream end of the conveyor 57a or 57b for the next turn by form. At half time, the controller 59 executes a pattern program routine that establishes the order and placement of the springs on the transfer conveyor 51. In the example illustrated in FIG. 5, a fixed number of stiffer springs are to be assembled at the ends of each of the rows while the sets of the softer springs 54a are separated between the stiffer springs 54b. The controller 59 sends control signals to the crossing station 65 and to the conveyors 51, 57a and 57b which cause the turns 54a, 54b coming from the winders 56a, 56b to be placed in the proper separation and order on the conveyor 51 to present the desired spring pattern in the transfer station 52. To do this, the controller 59 tracks the position of the conveyor 51, as well as the springs 54a and 54b that have been placed on it, then indexes the conveyors 51, 57a and 57b and activates the impellers 66, 67 at the transfer station 65 for sequentially adding springs 54a, 54b in the appropriate sequences and in the appropriate separations on the conveyor 51. When a job is started, the controller 59 will operate the conveyor 51 until it is clean. Then, the controller 59 establishes a counter in a memory inside the controller with a count representing an initial position of the conveyor. The counting that is stored is preferably a count of gradual-speed motor pulses or feedback pulses from a digital resolver on a geared wheel that moves with the ribbons of protrusions of the conveyor 51. The counter may be some distance representation. corresponding to a reference point on the conveyor 51 towards one or more points along the conveyor 51, such as a registration point 73 with the transfer station 52 and / or a spring loading point 74 at the junction 65 in which the springs are loaded on the conveyor 51. The points 73 and 74 can generally be seen as the intersections of the conveyor 51 with planes perpendicular to the conveyor 51. Preferably, once the initial values have been established in the controller 59, and a job is started, the controller 59 checks to see if a spring turn 54b is at the discharge point. at 75 at the downstream end of the conveyor 57b at the crossing station 65 which directly overlaps the loading point 74. Otherwise, the conveyor 57b is advanced by sending pulses via the controller 59 to the stepper motor 58b a turn 54b is led to such unloading position 75. When a turn is in this unloading position, the conveyor 57b stops and will remain stopped until the turn 54b in the position 75 has been removed and loaded on the conveyor 51. Although the conveyor 57b is stopped, operations that require movement of the conveyor 57b, such as the output side of the above-treated winder 56b, must also be stopped, and the controller 59 observes that such movements are stopped by signals appropriate to the winder 56b. When the conveyor 57b has been stopped with the spring 54b in the unloading position 75, the pusher 67 is activated by the controller 59 to translate the turn 54b downwardly from the conveyor 57b over its position 74 in the transfer conveyor 51. Then, when the impeller 67 has retracted and is free of the conveyor 51, the conveyor 51 advances by sending pulses from the controller 59 to the stepper motor 53 to advance the conveyor 51 the precise amount of the programmed separation required between the centers of the first two turns 54b of the pattern. This leads the position of the conveyor 51 in which the second of the turns 54b is to be received towards the loading position 74 in the crossing station 65. Then, taking into account that the impeller 67 is free of the conveyor 57b, the procedure described above conducts a turn 54b towards the discharge position 75 on the conveyor 57b, and the impeller 67 is reactivated, by a signal coming from the controller 59, to push the second of the turns 54b coming from the discharge point 75 on the conveyor 57b to the point 74 on the conveyor 51. When the two stiffer turns 54b have been fed on the conveyor 51, the controller 59 causes a series of spores 54a to then be fed in a similar fashion from the winder 56a onto the conveyor 51 in the separations ordered by the pattern programmed in the controller 59. To accomplish this, the controller 59 checks for see if a spring coil 54a is at a discharge point 76 at the downstream end of the conveyor 57a at the crossing station 65 which is directly under the loading point 74 of the conveyor 51. If not, the conveyor 57a is it advances by sending pulses via the controller 59 to the stepper motor 58a until a turn 54a is led to such discharge position 76. When a turn 54a is in this discharge position 76, the conveyor 57a stops and will remain stopped until the turn 54a in the position 76 has been removed and for its loading in the conveyor 51. While the conveyor 57a is stopped, it must also be stopped. stopping operations requiring the movement of the conveyor, such as the output side of the above-treated winder 56a, and the controller 59 observes that such movements are not stopped by the appropriate signals to the winder 56a. The sensors (not shown) are included in the crossing station 65 to ensure that a spring is present at the loading point 74 of the transfer conveyor 51 before it is advanced. This prevents creating a "hole" in the row of turns, as did the sensors 39 of the modes 30 and 30a of FIGS. 3 and 4. Similar sensors are also included in the discharge points 75, 76 to avoid that the turns are advanced beyond those points by the conveyors 57a, 57b. These sensors make unnecessary the sensors 72 for the prevention of holes in the rows of turns, since such spaces would be taken by the action of the conveyors 57a, 57b when advancing the turns towards the discharge points 75, 76 although the sensors 72 they would facilitate the operation of the winders 56a, 56b. When the conveyor 57a has stopped with the spring 54a in the unloading position 76, the driver 66 is activated by the controller 59 to move the turn 54a upwardly from the conveyor 57a to its position 74 on the transfer conveyor 51.

Then, when the driver 66 has contracted and is free of the conveyor 51, the conveyor 51 advances by sending pulses from the controller 59 to the stepper motor 53 to advance the conveyor 51 the precise amount of programmed separation required between the centers of the last charged loop 54a and the next loop requested by the pattern. This leads the position of the conveyor 51 in which the next one of the turns 54a is received towards the loading position 74 in the crossing station 65. Then, taking into account that the impeller 66 is free of the conveyor 57a, it is reactivated the above described method for driving a turn 54a towards the unloading position 76 on the conveyor 57a and the impeller 66 by means of a signal coming from the controller 59 to drive the second of the turns 54a coming from the point 76 on the conveyor 57a towards the point 94 on the conveyor 51. When the last of the turns 54a requested by the pattern has been placed on the conveyor 51, the next two turns 54b to be loaded are then loaded sequentially on the conveyor 51 by the controller 59 carrying out the same procedures above described. Then, when a complete row of turns has been fed onto the conveyor 51, the controller 59 sends the stepper motor 53 the appropriate number of pulses required to move the first of the turns 54b that was placed on the conveyor 51 towards the point register 73 in the transfer station 52, after which the conveyor 51 is stopped. When the conveyor 51 has been stopped, the controller 59 signals the transfer station to initiate a transfer cycle that moves the row of springs 54a, 54b from the conveyor 51 to the assembler 55. Simultaneously, the controller can initiate, by loading the first turn 54b of a pattern, the procedure that places a pattern of turns on the conveyor 51. An additional mode similar to that of the 5 but which provides a faster operation and a more efficient use of the winders 56a, 56b is the machine 80 illustrated in FIG. Figure 6. In the embodiment of Figure 6, the conveyors 57a and 57b are replaced with conveyors 81a and 81b, which are each formed of two parts, including crossover station conveyors 82, 83 and accumulator conveyors 85, 86 The crossing station conveyors 82 and 83, respectively, are in the form of shortened versions of the conveyors 57a, 57b of the embodiment of Figure 5. The conveyors 82, 83 extend from the turn-supply points 88. , 89 and each one operates, in response to a command signal from a controller 90, to advance a single turn coming from the respective turn supply point 88 or 89 towards the respective discharge point 75, 76. The command signal is generated only under the condition that a turn 54a, 54b is present at the respective turn-supply point 88, 89, a turn is not present at the respective discharge point 76, 75 and the corresponding impeller 66, 67 is free of the conveyor 82, 83. In this way, the conveyors 82, 83 will transport only one turn 54a, 54b at a time, and can be activated by such control signal as long as such conditions exist, in order to that a turn 54a, 54b is led towards the respective discharge point 76, 75 as soon as one is driven from such point on the transfer point 74 of the transfer conveyor 51. The accumulator conveyors 85, 86 are provided for allowing the winders 56a, 56b to operate at full capacity, at least until the accumulator conveyors 85, 86 have been filled with coils 54a, 54b. The accumulator conveyors 85, 86 are both opposed compression belt conveyors similar to the conveyors 57a and 57b of FIG. 5, but also each includes a space elimination mechanism 92 which functions, in response to a signal from the controller 90, to slide each turn 54a, 54b formed by the winder 56a, 56b forward between the belts of the accumulator conveyors 85, 86 until they are adjacent to the previously formed turn 54a, 54b. The mechanisms 77 include a blade 93 which is carried by an alternating carriage of variable stroke and preferably driven by electric motor 94, which travels in rails or rails channels (not shown) and moves by a pneumatic cylinder 95 upwards from of the carriage 94 behind each turn 54a, 54b which is fed on the upstream end of the conveyor 85, 86 by the winder 56a, 56b. The blade 93 engages the last fed loop and slides it along between the belts of the respective conveyor 85, 86, by the movement downstream of the carriage 94, until the space between it and the preceding turn is eliminated, as detected by a sensor 96 contained by the carriage 94. The belts of the conveyors 85, 86 are servo motors and preferably stepper speed motors by motors 97 and 98, respectively, in response to signals coming from the controller 90, as long as the conveyor respective discharge 82, 83 is stopped and no turn 54a, 54b is present at the respective turn supply point 88, 89. With such an installation, the total speed of the apparatus is maximized. The controllers 37, 37a, 59 and 90 of the embodiments of the invention illustrated respectively in FIGS. 3, 4, 5 and 6 can take any number of forms, one of which is described in FIG. 7, basically including a computer. digital based on a programmed general-purpose microprocessor 100, equipped with appropriate internal or external interfaces and actuators, generally illustrated in Figure 7 as interface 101, to communicate with the motors and sensors of machines 30, 30a, 50 or 80 of the respective illustrated embodiments. Such a computer 100 may be equipped with a conventional keyboard 102 and pointing device 103, such as a mouse or trackball, for inputting data and commands from the operator, and with a conventional display screen 105 for computer 100 to communicate information. of state of the machine and programs to the operator. Such a controller can be programmed in any of a number of languages, such as, for example, Microsoft Visual Basic (TM), in which an operating program and a machine operator interface program can be written. However, for the large scale production of these machines, an industrial programmable logic controller in a conventional scale logic or other language may be preferred in place of the general purpose microcomputer 100 described here, particularly to control the operating cycle of the machines. machines 30, 30a, 50 and 80. In addition, the use of a customized touch screen for the operator interface may be preferred. For purposes of describing the operation of the controller, a program is first described in connection with the simplest of the illustrated modes, which is that of FIG. 3. The data structure for use with the preferred control program 100 can be understood with reference to the display screen 105 in Figure 7, on which a graphic on the monitoring screen is illustrated, which includes a main title and menu bar 106, a start window 107 and an operation window 108. The menu 106 includes a Windows menu that is displayed downward and that provides access to the start and operation windows 107 and 108. In the start window 107, an operator can review, add or alter the contents of any of the four tables of operation. database, each in its own window or structure. These windows include a job definition window 111, a unit definition window 112, a row definition window 113 and a spiral definition window 114.

The job definition window 111 accesses a database table of jobs or orders made from a plurality of records, each identified by a unique job number in a Job Number field and displayed in a box of text Job No. 115 in the window 111. The job number is automatically written in its field as long as a New Job command button 116 is activated by the operator with the pointing device 103 or from the keyboard 102. When the New Job, a new blank record is added to the job database table with the Job Number field given the next available number and, in addition, the current data is loaded into a Data Entry field of the record and it is displayed in an Input Data text box 117 of window 111. The operator sets the new job or order by filling in a text box 118 with Job Description data, which is for information purposes for the user. The operator also enters a unique Unit Type in a Unit Type text box 119 that represents a Unit Type field of the record. When the operator enters a Unit Type, the corresponding information of the related databases appears in the windows of unit type, row type and loop definition 112-114. However, as long as the Unit Type field in the job definition window 111 is blank, the records for all unit types, rows and turns are listed in the corresponding definition windows 112, 113 and 114. The unit type window 112 can be moved by the operator until the desired Unit Type is found. When typing over the desired Unit Type in the unit definition window 112, the selected Unit Type is loaded into the Unit Type text box 119 of the job definition window 111. Similarly, the operator you can enter in a text box of the Units field 120, provided, the total number of such units of the Unit Type selected to be made after the execution of the work. The operator can instead select Units = 0, which sets the work to an undefined number of units, of the selected Unit Type that will be assembled until the job is manually stopped by the operator. In addition, one or more different data fields may be provided and displayed in the work window 11, such as Execution Data and / or Time of Execution time data and the data in which the work is executed. The operator can also pass through the incomplete jobs by using a data control 121 that is provided. The interface can be programmed so that as long as the contents of the No box change. of Work 115, through the use of data control 121 or when entering a new job, a command button Select 122 is enabled, which was previously disabled, in order to provide the operator the ability to select a job to be executed. In addition, as long as a work in progress is stopped, the record is rewritten to replace the Units with the actual number of units produced and the operator is provided with an option to automatically enter a new work number that represents the incomplete portion of the work. original work or to cancel the remaining portion of the work. The window 111 also provides the operator with a command button of Display 123, the selection of which opens a modal window (not shown) to observe the data of all the completed works in the database. The database table of the units displayed in the unit definition window 112 includes information that defines the configurations that can be made of the various units. For each Unit Type, this database table of the units includes a plurality of records that have the same Unit Type data in their Unit Type field, a record corresponding to each row of turns of the unit. The records in the database table of the units link the jobs in the database table through the Unit Type data field. When a Unit Type is displayed in the Unit Type text box of the job definition window 111, each record in the unit database table, which refers to the same Unit Type data, it is displayed in the unit table definition window 112. Each record in the database table of the units includes a field of Hil Number was uniquely numbered from 1 to the number of rows of turns in the unit. Each such record also includes an identification field of the Hil Type was from each such row. Each record may also include one or more fields to control, or copy to, the assembler, such as row separation or interleaving of option data, if the assembler is provided with the capability of automated selection of such variable characteristics. . Such information may also be provided to inform the operator of the appropriate manual establishments required to assemble the type of unit selected. Starting from the unit definition window 112, the operator can enter or edit the configuration data of the unit, including the insertion of rows in or the omission of rows from the unit, in which case the rows will be consecutively numbered again. Automatic way in the records of the database table of the units. As long as the operator changes the unit type configuration by altering the data in the unit type database table in the unit definition window 112, a dialog box (not shown) will give the operator the option of save the changes to the definition of the unit type either under the same or under a new Unit Type, or to cancel the changes and restore the data. The rows of the database table displayed in the row definition window 113 include information defining the configurations of the various rows from which each of the units can be assembled. For each Row Type, the row database table includes a plurality of records that have the same Row Type data in its Row Type data field, one record corresponding to each turn of the row. The records of the row database felling are linked to the database table of the units of the unit definition window 12 through the row type data field. Each record in the row database table includes a Single Number field uniquely numbered from 1 to the number of turns in the row. Each such record includes a field that identifies the Type of Spell. Each record also includes a Spell Position field that contains information indicating the distance, in linear measurement units such as inches, from a transverse reference point in the row, preferably representing the point at which the downstream end of the transfer conveyor is aligned with the edge, the furthest to the left in the figures, of an inner spring assembly in the assembler. The registers may also each include a data field for control of, or copy to, the assembler, such as the interleaving of the option data, if the assembler is provided with the capability of automated selection of such variables, or to assist the operator in structuring the assembler. From the row definition window 113, the operator may enter or edit row configuration data, including the insertion of coils in or the omission of turns from the rows of coils, in which case coils will be consecutively renumbered automatically in the row database table. Such editing is carried out in the same way as editing the unit configuration, described above. When no job is selected in the job definition window 111, all row records are displayed in the row definition window 113. When a job is selected, only the records defining rows of the Unit Type of the row are displayed. Selected work. If in addition, the operator clicks on any of the rows in the unit definition window 112, only the records are displayed relative to the row selected in the row definition window 113. The turn database table, displayed in the scroll definition window 114 includes the information defining the configurations of the various turns forming the rows from which each of the work units can be assembled. For each type of loop, the loop database table includes a record that has a loop type number or other identifier in a field provided for it. The logs of the loop database table are interleaved to the row database table through the Spell Type data field. Each record in the turn database table may include one or more data records used to select or operate a winder in order to form a loop of the designated loop type. Such data can be copied to a winder, where such a winder is software configurable, and can be used by the controller to operate the winder in order to form such a loop, or they can be used to display establishments to the operator in order to manually structure the winder to form the type of designated turn. Preferably, the winder is provided with feedback loops to inform the controller how it is structured so that the controller can verify the appropriate establishments against the information coming from the spin data base table, which are interlaced through the database table of the rows and the database table of the units to the table of database of the works, when the work is executed. In multiple winding machines such as those of the embodiments of Figs. 4, 5 and 6, the Spell Type information provides a capability for the winder to select which cycle activation commands are to be sent and from which conveyors on the other side. exit are to be controlled. From the coil type window 114, the operator can enter or edit loop configuration data, including the addition of new coil types and the change or omission of previously defined coil types. Such an edition is preferably controlled and carried out in the manner provided for the database tables of the units and rows, described above. When a job is selected, only the records that define the turns of the Unit Type of the selected job are displayed. If in addition, the operator types on any of the rows in the unit definition window 112, only the records relating to the Types of Exhale appearing in the selected row are displayed in the loop definition window 114. In addition, if the operator clicks on any of the turns in the row definition window 113, only the record in relation to the selected Spell Type is displayed in the scroll definition window 114. The start window 107 illustrated in Figure 7 shows a display of sample data for the start of a work on the machine modality of figure 3. A sequential or arbitrary number of 145 is assigned to the work, as it is displayed in the work type window 111, and consists of thirty and five units of an arbitrary sample type 38J1522. Units of type 38J1522 are defined in the unit type window 112 by a number of rows, each represented by a data record, of which the first three are illustrated. The table in window 112 lists, in order, only those records that have unit type 38J1522 in the Unit Type field. In the example, it is assumed that there are twenty records that represent the definitions of twenty rows of turns that form interior spring units of type 38J1522. Each of the records in the database table of the unit displayed in window 112 has a row type specified in a Row Type field. For example, the unit can include two rows of row type 186, sixteen rows of row type 220, and more than two rows of row type 186. The data records of the entire twenty rows can be observed by moving down the row. list with the scroll bar of the window 112. The two rows of the row type 186 could represent two rows of limit of more rigid turns, for example, of a type of loop 0012, some of which are contained in the rows of type 220, described below. When selecting one of the rows in the table 112, for example row 3, all records with reference to row type 22 are listed in the window 113. The rows of the type 220 are made, in the example, of thirteen turns, the first two of which can be, for example, turns of a type 0012, followed by nine turns of a type 0001, then two more turns of the type 0012 The records of the row type database table representing the first three turns of row type 220 are displayed in list in window 113. As indicated by the list, the first loop of the row is separated by 1,625 inches. of the limit of the unit, the second turn is separated 6.25 inches from the limit of the unit, the third turn is separated 11.118 inches from the limit of the unit, etc. The data in the turns can be observed by scrolling down the list with the scroll bar of window 113. In this way, what has been selected is a job that produces 35 indoor units of a type 38J1522, which includes 20 rows of 13 turns each. A stiffer turn limit of type 0012 that is two turns wide surrounds a central array of 9 x 16 softer turns of a type 0001. When an operator has initiated or selected a job on the interface described above, the operator starts a command button of Execute 128 or a command of the Execute menu of the menu bar 106. In response to the initiation of the Execute command, the microprocessor of the computer 100 executes the program in the illustrated in the flow diagram of the Figure 8. Before starting a run, the operator can first execute a Clean button 127 that executes a start routine 130 that causes the conveyors to stagger until all the loops 12, if any, that could remain in the machine have been transferred through and out of the transfer station and have been removed from the machine. In the embodiments of Figures 5 and 6, this cleaning of the machine includes a coordinated operation of the crossing station 65 or by providing discharge shots at the downstream ends of the conveyors, upper and lower, at the crossing station 65 Then, the starting data from the database tables associated with the work being executed are verified or copied, as required, for the execution of the work. The initial data is loaded into and displayed from the text boxes provided in the operation window 108. Afterwards, the operator confirms the data defining the work to be executed and after this the execution of the production starts when executing the Execute command button in the operation window 108. During the execution of No. Selected Work 145, the work progress data is displayed on the operation window 108. The sample data illustrated in Figure 7 show the work in progress in the stage illustrated in Figure 3, in which thirteen turns of a The row, for example, row 3 of the fifth work unit, is located on the transfer conveyor 33 and in position to be transferred in the transfer station 40 to the assembler 35. This is represented by the grid table or list 131 in FIG. the operation window 108, in which each of the turns of the row 3 are listed, with the types of turn and objective positions along the established conveyor 33. The distance that the conveyor 33 must advance to drive these turns to their objective positions is indicated in a text box 132, which shows a distance of 0.00 inches, indicating that the conveyor 33 has moved the turns to their objective positions, and that are ready to be transferred to the assembler, as illustrated in Figure 3. An additional set of text boxes 133 shows that the second row of unit 5 has already been transferred to assembler 34. An additional group of boxes 134 indicates that the Tenth turn of the fourth row of the unit 5 has been formed and fed on the upstream end of the conveyor 33. The details of the positions and types of ten of the turns of the row 4 on the upstream end of the conveyor 33 can be observed when moving a list or grid table 135 in the operation window 108. In addition, a column 136 of binary indicators is provided to inform the operator of the status of various motors and sensors. In the operation window 108, lists 131 and 135 are renewed when the operator executes a command button of Execute 138 or as long as a machine is stopped by the execution of the Pause button 139, thereby freezing the information in the lists so that it can be read by the operator. The other information displayed in the operation window 108 is renewed as often as the underlying data changes. As the work is executed, the microprocessor of the controller computer 100 repeatedly executes a main program cycle 140, also illustrated in the flow chart of FIG. 8. The main cycle 140 includes a set of steps 139 by which the inputs are checked, the calculations are made and the outputs are established. In the first such stage, the computer 100 verifies the inputs from the various sensors and feedback signals from the various motors and establishes the state of logical variables. In the next of the stages of set 139, the variables are then examined, and based on the states of these variables, for example ls or Os, calculations are made and decisions are made, and output variables are established, as set in the detailed flow chart (figure 9). Then, in the third stage of the assembly 139, the output or control signals, such as driving pulses to the winders, transfer mechanisms, assembler or cylinder actuators, or pulse currents or stepper motors, are generated in basis to calculations and decisions. The main cycle 140 also includes tests through which the program passes until each turn of each row of each work unit has been formed and fed to the conveyor 33, and until each formed turn has been moved by the conveyor 33 to the station transfer 40, has been transferred to assembler 34 and assembled in the last unit of work. In the process, the controller tracks the memory of the turns formed, the positions of the turns on the conveyor 33 and the positions DT of the first turns of each row on the conveyor 33 in relation to the objective position of the loop at the transfer station. In the calculation routine of Fig. 9, a variable calculation routine of the winder and the conveyor 141 and a variable calculation routine of the transfer station and assembler 142 are provided. In the calculation routine, binary variables are calculated and are set to control motors and other actuators of the machine 30. Variables calculated in the variable calculation routine of the winder and conveyor 141 include a Winder Actuator that is set to ON, or a value of 1, provided that no there are turns at the turn loading point 39 of the conveyor 33, and the conveyor 33 is not moving as determined by a lack of pulses in a counter controlling the feeding of stepping pulses to the stepper motor 36 of the conveyor 33, and the winder 31 and the transfer mechanism 40 are in the process of going through the cycle, and there is at least one turn more than training is required in the work and the conveyor 33 has been advanced to provide the correct separation of the next turn with respect to the last turn. When the Winder Actuator is already ON during the execution of the calculation routine and the winder 31 is going through a cycle as determined by a feedback sensor from the winder 31 which is activated as long as a pulse has been received activator by the winder 31, then the winder drive is turned OFF, or set to zero. further, in the variable calculation routine of the winder and the conveyor 141, if there is a turn in the loading point 39 and the conveyor 33 is not moving and has not been indicated to move, and the transfer mechanism in the transfer station 40 is not passing through a cycle, then a pulse count is made to be sent to the stepper motor of the conveyor 36 in order to properly advance the conveyor 33. First, the separation of the turn that is at the loading point 39 and the next turn to be formed is calculated from the data in the row database table. This calculation involves subtracting the position of the next loop to be formed from the position of the last loop formed. In the example, the position of the last loop, which is the turn 10 of row 4 of unit 5, has an objective position of 40.62 inches from the end of transfer station 40. The position of the next loop It is 44.62 inches, which is at a distance of 4.00 inches from the last turn. In this manner, a variable DC is calculated as 4.00 x P where P is the number of pulses required to be sent to the stepper motor 36 in order to move the conveyor 33 one inch. However, if the last turn formed is the last turn of the job, a count of pulses to be sent to the motor of gradual speed of the conveyor is set to DT, the distance, in pulses, from the first turn of the row plus water down in the conveyor 33 to the downstream end (in the sensor 44) of the conveyor 33 in the transfer station 40. Otherwise, DT and DC are compared.

If DC is greater than DT, then the Count is set to move the conveyor forward to the next turn, which is 4.00 inches in the example, and the Count is subtracted from the stored value of DT, following by this the trace of the position of the conveyor and the value in inches to be displayed in the next text box 132 in window 108. If DT is less than DC, which means that the first turn is closer to its objective position in the transfer station that 4.00 inches, the Count is set to DT, DT is set to zero, and the Count is subtracted from DC. This advances the entire row to the transfer station and remembers how much further the conveyor 33 must pass, after the transfer of the completed row, to achieve proper separation before the winder 31 can go through a cycle to feed another loop. in the conveyor 33. In the case that DC and DT are equal, an establishment of the Count will achieve the separation for the next turn and also place the completed row in the transfer station 40. In the variable calculation routine of the station transfer and assembler 142, when the conveyor does not move (Count = 0) and neither the transfer station 40 nor the assembler 34 are passing through a cycle, a value of zero of DT indicates that a full row is already ready of turns and in position for transfer to assembler 34, after which a Transfer Activator is ON, or is set to 1. If the Act Transfer ivador SE turns on and the transfer station 40 is passing through a cycle, the Transfer Activator goes OFF, a Assembler Activator turns on, and the value of DT is set to the position of the next Spiral 1, or the first loop of the next row, if any, on the conveyor. Provided that a Spiral 1 of any row is fed to a conveyor, its position is traced in the same manner as the value of DT discussed above, in order to replace the value of DT when a row of turns is transferred from the conveyor 33 The embodiment 30 of Figure 3, because it is provided with only one winder 31, is mainly suitable for forming turns of the same type or, if it is of different configurations, then the turns can be formed from the same wire. In the embodiment 30a of Figure 4, the ratio of two winders 31a and 31b facilitates the use of coils formed of two types of wire, or of more than two types of wire, by the proportion of a separate coiler for each type of wire . For the control of such machine 30a, the same parameters established in the previous example in connection with the discussion of the start window 107 of Figure 7 can be used to define a work execution on the machine 30a. During the execution of a job, for the machine 30a, the operation window 108 will take the form illustrated in FIG. 7, but different in that it provides for two position boxes of the conveyor 132, two sets of status boxes of the winder 134, two sets of turn lists 131 for each of the transfer ends of the conveyors 33a and 33b, and an expanded column 136 containing additional indicators in the additional winder and conveyor. The relevant data for the turns in lines A or B will be presented in the respective boxes and lists for that line. The program for the controller 37a may be generally the same as for the controller 37 illustrated in FIG. 8, but preferably differs by providing indexing variables separately for each of the two lines of training and loop management A and B which include the respective winders 31a, 31b and the respective conveyors 33a, 33b. Such separate variables include Counts A and B and position variables of the conveyor DT A and B for each of the conveyors 33a and 33b, and loop separation variables DC A and B that are calculated separately for the turns of the two types formed respectively on the winders 31a and 31b, excluding the turns of the other type. As such, the two lines A and B can operate asynchronously, without pausing to wait for the operation of the other, except to synchronize the transfer of full rows of the respective turn types in the transfer station 40a. In this way, the two lines can operate at their own optimal speeds. In addition, the separate indexing variables are maintained to track the formation and movement of type A B turns, types 0001 and 0012 in the illustrated example. These variables are Spiral A and B, Row A and B, and Unit A and B. With the variables thus duplicated, the controller program establishes the initial conditions of each of the variables in the start routine 130, then executes the main cycle 140 alternatively, once for each of lines A and B, the program being different from those of figures 8 and 9 in that both the variables of Count A as those of Count B and both variables of DT A and DT B must be null in step 142 for the Transfer Activator to turn ON, and that both DT A and DT B must be reset when the Transfer Activator goes OFF. Thus operated, the machine 30a of Figure 4 forms the same units and performs the same work as the machine 30 of Figure 3.

The mode control of the machine 50 of FIG. 5 is achieved by a program for the controller 59 which is a minor modification of the program of the controller 37 of FIG. 3. When replacing the Winder Activator with a Junction Station Activator , selectively directed towards the impeller 66 or impeller 67, depending, in the example, on whether the requested turn is of a type 0001 or 0012, respectively, the turns are supplied in order towards the loading point 74 of the conveyor 51 thereof They were fed to the loading point 39 of the conveyor 33. In addition, the activation of the selected impeller 66 or 67 when examining whether the respective conveyor 57a or 57b is moving and if a turn occurs in position 76 or 75, instead to examine the condition of Cicl or of the Winder, the program of FIGS. 8 and 9 will operate the mode of FIG. 5. The only necessary addition to such a program is a step of going through a cycle each. of the winders 56a and 56b to form and feed turns on the respective feed conveyors 57a and 57b as quickly as space is available at the ends upstream of the conveyors 57a and 57b, without requiring a particular turn separation. . In addition, the control pulse currents are sent to the stepper motors 58a and 58b to move the feed conveyors 57a and 57b as long as one turn is absent from the respective discharge points 76 and 75. The mode of the machine 80 of Figure 6 can be controlled by programming the controller 90 with a program similar to that of the controller 59 of Figure 5. The resulting operation can be represented by the information in the operation window 108. The program includes the additional steps of controlling the conveyors 81a and 81b, the vehicle 94 and the piston 95 and the conveyors 82 and 83 for supplying turns to the crossover station in the manner described in connection with Figure 6 above. From the above detailed description of the details of the illustrated embodiments of the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and additions may be made thereto without departing from the principles of the present invention. Accordingly, the following is claimed:

Claims

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as a novelty and therefore the property described in the following claims is claimed as property. An interior spring assembly apparatus for forming spring assemblies of parallel spring rows, comprising: an interior spring assembler; a spring row transfer station upstream of the assembler and operative to transfer a pre-installed row of springs from at least one row transfer position to the assembler; a movable conveyor for carrying a pre-installed row of springs formed towards the transfer position; a spring former having an output side end; a spring feeder located between the spring former and the conveyor and operative to feed springs individually formed from the spring former towards a predetermined position on the conveyor; a servo motor operably connected to a conveyor to move shaped springs held at predetermined positions thereon to the transfer position; and a controller programmed to variablely control the relative operation of the servo motor and the feeder independently of the respective spring former. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the controller is variable in order to variably control the operation of the servo motor and the feeder in order to affect and control the separation of the springs at the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the spring row transfer station is operative to transfer a plurality of pre-positioned springs from each of at least two row transfer positions towards the assembler; the spring former includes at least two spring formers each having an outlet side end; the conveyor includes at least two conveyors, each movable to carry a pre-positioned plurality of springs formed from a respective one of the spring formers to one of the row transfer positions; the spring feeder includes at least two feeders, each located between the output side end of a spring former and a respective one of the conveyors, and operative to feed springs individually from the respective spring former, each to a predetermined position on the respective conveyor; the servo motor includes at least two servo motors which are each operably connected to a respective one of the conveyors to move shaped springs held at predetermined positions on the respective conveyor to the transfer position of the respective row; and the controller is programmed to variablely control the relative operation of the servo motors and feeders in order to affect the separation of the springs at the predetermined positions on the respective conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: the controller is variable in order to variably control the operation of the servo motors and feeders in order to affect and control the separation of the springs in the predetermined positions on the conveyors. The apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: the spring row transfer station is operative to transfer pre-positioned pluralities of springs from each of at least two row transfer positions to a single row of springs having a predetermined installation of the preset pluralities; and the controller being programmed to variablely control the relative operation of the servo motors and feeders in order to affect the predetermined installation. The apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: the dock transfer station is operative to transfer pluralities of pre-positioned springs in pre-installed rows from each of the transfer positions to the assembler; and the controller being programmed to control the operation of the transfer station to transfer pre-installed springs rows alternately from each of the transfer positions. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the spring former includes at least two spring formers each having an outlet side end; the spring feeder is located between the output side ends, at least two of the spring formers and the conveyor, and is operative to individually and selectively feed springs from each of the spring formers to a position predetermined on the conveyor; and the controller is programmed to variably control the relative operation of the servo motor and feeder in order to affect the selective positioning of the springs coming from the spring formers in the predetermined positions on the conveyor. 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that: the spring formers are each operative to form springs of different configurations; and the controller is programmed to variably control the relative operation of the servo motor and feeder in order to affect the selective positioning of springs coming from the spring formers at the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that: the spring feeder includes at least two feed conveyor sections, each located between the output side end of one of the spring formers and the conveyor, each former being a cyclically operating spring, in response to an activating signal, to form a spring and deposit the formed spring on a corresponding conveyor section; and the controller is programmed to selectively generate activation signals to each of the turnbuilders to affect the formation of springs thereby and to variably control the relative operation of the conveyor sections in synchronization with the operation of the servo motor in order to affect the selective positioning of springs coming from the spring formers in the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that: the spring feeder includes at least two feed conveyor sections, each located between the output end of one of the spring formers and the conveyor, each spring former being cyclically operative, in response to an activation signal, to form a spring and deposit the formed spring on a corresponding conveyor section; each feed conveyor section includes a spring accumulator mechanism operable to receive shaped springs, deposited in arbitrary positions thereon by a spring former, the accumulator mechanism being controllable to release springs for selective positioning on the conveyor in the predetermined positions for the same; and the controller is programmed to coordinate the operation of the accumulator mechanism, the spring formers and the conveyor sections in order to facilitate the optimum use of the spring formers. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises: means, including the controller, to variably control the operation of the servo motor and the feeder and to affect and control the separation of the springs in the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the dock transfer station includes means for transferring a plurality of pre-positioned springs from each of at least two row transfer positions to the assembler; the spring former includes at least two spring formers each having an outlet side end; the conveyor includes means including at least two conveyors for transporting a pre-positioned plurality of springs formed from a respective one of the spring formers to one of the row transfer positions; the spring feeder includes at least two feeders, each located between the output side end of a spring former and a respective one of the conveyors and operative to feed springs individually from the respective spring former, each towards a predetermined position on the respective conveyor; the servo motor includes means for moving each of the respective conveyors and formed springs held at predetermined positions thereon to the respective row transfer position; and the controller includes means for variably controlling the relative operation of the movement means and feeders and for affecting the separation of the springs at the predetermined positions on the conveyors. 13. The apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that: the controller includes means for variably controlling the operation of the movement means and the feeders and for affecting and controlling the separation of the springs in the predetermined positions on the conveyors. The apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that: the dock transfer station includes means for transferring pre-positioned pluralities of springs from each of at least two row transfer positions to a single row of springs having a default installation of pre-arranged pluralities; and the controller includes means for controlling variably the relative operation of the movement means and feeders and to affect the predetermined installation. The apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that: the dock transfer station includes means for transferring pluralities of pre-positioned springs in pre-installed rows from each of the transfer positions towards the assembler; and the controller includes means for controlling the operation of the transfer station to transfer rows of pre-installed springs alternately from each of the transfer positions. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the spring former includes at least two spring formers each having an outlet side end; the spring feeder is located between the ends of the outlet side, at least two of the spring formers and the conveyor; the apparatus includes means including the feeder for feeding springs individually and selectively from each of the spring formers to a predetermined position on the conveyor; and the controller includes means for variably controlling the relative operation of the servo motor and the feeder in order to affect the selective positioning of the springs coming from the spring formers in the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 16, characterized in that: the spring formers are each operative to form springs of different configurations; and the controller includes means for variably controlling the relative operation of the servo motor and the feeder and for affecting the selective positioning of springs coming from the spring formers at the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 16, characterized in that it further comprises: means for variably controlling the relative operation of the components of the machine to affect the selective positioning of springs coming from the spring formers in the predetermined positions on the conveyor. The apparatus according to claim 16, characterized in that: the spring feeder includes means for accumulating formed springs and for releasing springs for selective positioning on the conveyor in the predetermined positions for the same. 20. A method for forming spring interiors, comprising the steps of: providing an interior spring assembler; providing a turnaround transfer station upstream of the assembler; providing at least one conveyor that extends through the transfer station; providing a coil former adjacent to the conveyor; operating the coil former through a plurality of cycles, each to form a spring; feeding each spring formed on the conveyor upstream of the transfer station; between each feed of a spring on the conveyor, advance the conveyor an independent distance in order to affect the independent separations between the adjacent springs on the conveyor; advance a row of docks to the transfer station; transfer the row of forward springs from the transfer station to the assembler; repeat the operation, feed advancement and transfer stages; and with the assembler, assemble a plurality of rows of springs transferred to a spring interior. SUMMARY A method and apparatus (30, 30a, 50, 80) for forming a spring interior provides an interior spring assembler (35, 35a, 55) and a spinneret transfer station (40, 40a, 52). above the assembler having at least one conveyor (35, 45a, 51) extending therethrough. A coil former (31, 31a, 31b, 56a, 56b) is provided at an upstream end of the conveyor and is operated through a plurality of cycles, each to feed a spring coil (32, 32a, 32b, 54a, 54b) on the conveyor. In one embodiment, a single former (31) is provided with a single conveyor (33) extending therefrom through the transfer station (40). In a second embodiment, two combinations of such a winder-conveyor (31a, 31b) are provided. In a third embodiment, a conveyor (51) through the transfer station (52) is provided with two winders (56a, 56b), each having a feeder preferably in the form of a conveyor (57a, 57b), which selectively feeds spring turns (54a, 54b), which may be different types, towards a crossing station (65) to feed on the conveyor of the transfer station (51). In a fourth mode (80), each winder (56a, 56b) accumulates springs (54a, 54b) at its output (85, 86) while waiting in a row for the crossing station (65). Between consecutive cycles of feeding a spring on the transfer conveyor (51), a stepper motor (53) or another servo motor advances the conveyor (51) a programmed distance, thereby providing the ability to obtain different programmed separations between the turns in the rows presented by the transfer conveyor (51) to the transfer station (52).