US1557162A - Can-end-curling machine - Google Patents

Description

o .1s,192s 1,557,162

, G. w. HEDSTROM CAN END CURLING MACHINE Filed D90. 19, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 G. W. BEDS TRON CAN END CURLING MACHINE A Filed Deb. 19, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ill,

Oct 13, 1925-' 1,557,162

G. W. HEDSTROM CAN END CURLING MACHINE Filed D00, 19, 1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Oct. 13, 1925.

UNITED STATES GUSTAV W. HEDSTROM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CAN-END-CUR-LING MACHINE.

Application filed December 19, 1924. Serial No. 756,871.

To all whom it may con-061%.

Be it known that I, GUSTAV IV. HEDSTROM, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Can-End-Curling Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked. thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in curling machines for curving in or curling the flanges of sheet metal can ends preparatory to delivering the curled ends. to a seaming machine.

Among the objects of the invention is to produce what may be termed a continuously operative curling machine wherein the head which travels therethrough is constantly advancing from the receiving end, through the curling mechanism, to and away from the discharge end.

Another object of the invention is to produce a machine of this character which is adjustable to can ends of different diameters by the ready manipulation of simple adjusting means. I

A further object of the invention is to produce a. machine of this character in which the can end flange is subjected to a long length of curling contact with the curling rolls, as compared -to the length of path through which the, can ends are moved.

Another object of the invent-ion is to produce a machine wherein the can ends are stabilized while passing through the curling operation so as to avoid danger of the can ends springing away from the curl-. ing rolls.

Other objects of the invention are to further improve, simplify, and render compact curling machines, and the invention consists in the combination and arrangement of the elements shown in the drawings and pointed out in the specification, and is set forth in the appended claims.

As shown in the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view, partially broken away, showing a can end curler embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a detail section onthe line 1 -4 v of Fig. 1.

Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate, respectively, the diametric sections of the can ends as they leave the forming press and as they leave the curling machine.

As shown in the drawings, 10 designates the bed plate of the machine which is inclined at a sharp angle to the horizontal section and is supported on or is formed part of a base casting of suitable forma tion. The machine usually is located at the discharge end of a press, and can ends C (Fig 5) are delivered from the press through the chute 11 to the curling machine. The can ends, after the flanges 0 have been turned inwardly to constitute curl 0 of the end C, shown in Fig. 1, are directed to a pair of lifting screws 12, 12 that are fixed to and rotate with shafts 13, 13, mounted ,in suitable brackets 14 at the delivery end of the machine, and are turned in suitable direction to raise the can ends as they are delivered to the lower ends of the lifting screws. Said shafts 13 are fixed to and driven by in-, termeshing spur gears 15, which are disposed on the lower end of the upper face of the bed plate 10, and are driven in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1, by a gear drive hereinafter to be described; the curled can ends being guided in upward movement by the upright guide bars 16.

The elements of the curling mechanism embrace, a rotative ring member 19, formed on its inner periphery with a curling groove 20, and an op-positely'rotative curling head 21 whose axis of rotation lies within said ring and is eccentric to the axis of rotation of the latter, and is provided with a like curling groove 22 to oppose the groove 20 of thering 19. In the embodiment of the invention here shown, the curling ring 19 is supported on a gear ring 23 which is seated and turns on the upper face of the bed plate 10. Said curling ring may be fas tened in any suitable manner to the. gear ring by which the latter is supported and with which it turns. The curling ring is made of hard steel, while the gear can be made of cast iron. As shown, the inner side i of the gear has an annular rebate to receive the outer, lower peripheral portion of the curling ring; and said curling ring can be sweated on or otherwise fixed rigidly to said gear ring. 2 1 designates a part oylin'dric hold down guide which is continuous from the receiving end of the machine to near the discharge end thereof. It is rigidly fastened, as by the screws 25, to the bed plate. Said guide has an inwardly directed flange 26 which lies over that part of the gear ring radially exterior to the curling ring and serves two purposes, to-wit: to hold down said gear ring on the bed plate, and to form an annular guide face 27 to engage and center the curling ring and gear ring in the rotational movements of the latter.

The curling head 21 is fixedly supported on the upper end of a shaft 28 that is rotatively mounted in a bearing sleeve 29 which extends upwardly through the bed plate and a bar the horizontal portion 30 of a can end guide which, with the downwardly inclined delivery end 31 and the upwardly inclined discharge end 32, constitutes the guide support for a can end as it passes through the machine. The curling groove 22 of the head 21 lies just above the horizontal portion 30 of the can end guide, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The curling groove 20 of the curling ring 19 is in the same plane with the curling groove 22 of the head 21. The driving shaft 28 for the curling head 21 is driven from a drive shaft 33 mounted in a suitable horizontal bearing in the base casting through a bevel gear 34 fixed to the drive shaft a bevel gear 35 fixed to an in termediate shaft 36, and a spur gear 37 which meshes with a pinion 38 on said shaft 28. The gear ring 23 which carries the curler ring 19 is likewise driven from the spur gear 37 through a pinion 39 that is fixed to the lower end of a vertical shaft 40, and the upper end of which carries a pinion 41 that meshes with theteeth of said gear ring 23. Thereby the curling head 21 and curling ring 19 are driven in unison in opposite directions, but with the curling head traveling at a considerably greater speed than that of the curling ring.

The feed chute 21 is flanged to hold the can ends properly in line, and the down- Wardly inclined part 31 of the can end guide support can be made an integral continuation of the chute 11, and the flanges of said downwardly inclined part of the can head guide are formed to provide inwardly turned flanges 42 so as to properly deliver the can ends to the curling zone of the machine or, where the flanges 0 of the can ends are turned inwardly, to form can end curls c. 4

It will be noted by inspection of Fig. '2 that the downwardly inclined delivery end 31 of the can end guide terminates below a plane which intersects the curling grooves 19 and 22 of the curling ring and curling head, respectively, so that the flanges 0 of the can ends interlock under the upper walls of said curling grooves when the can end reaches the narrowed width of the throat between the curling head and ring through which the can ends pass. By reason of the fact that the flanges of the can ends are engaged with the walls of the curling grooves of both the curling ring and curling head, and of the further fact that the curling head has a peripheral speed considerably greater than that of the curling ring, the movement of the can end through the curling zone will be slightly halted, but is never brought to rest in the advance dotted line position shown in Fig. 1. Thereby the can end flanges are caused to travel in engagement with the walls of the curling grooves, while the can ends are rapidly turning about forwardly shifting centers.

After the passage of a can end through the narrowest part of the throat, said can end passes into an enlarged width of the throat, due to the fact that the axis of rotation of the curling head is eccentric with respect to that of the curling ring, and by reason of the tendency of gravity to cause the heads to drop in a general direction towards the curling head and against a curved guide 13, the

completely curled can end is quickly delivered from the horizontal portion of the guide plate on to and over the upwardly inclined discharge portion. By reason of the release of the curled can end, due to its passage into t'he enlarged part of the throat or guide and, by reason ofthe general inclination of the path of the curled can end away from the curling zone, the curled can ends are delivered by gravity over the upwardly inclined guides 42 and above the edge of the curling ring into the space between the lifting screws 12. From thence the curled can ends are elevated away from the curling mechanism in the form of a stack which: is bounded by the upstanding guide bar 16 before referred to.

The machine is adapted to be adjusted to operate on can ends of different diameters by adjusting the axis of rotation of the. curler head 21 towards and from the center of the curler ring 19. This may be effected by providing the bed plate 10, with an arcuate slot 44 concentric to the axis'of the shaft 36, and carrying said curler head shaft 28, its bearing, and toothed pinion through the medium of an arm 45 that is pivoted on the shaft 36 and carries at its inner end the curler head and its bearing and supporting appurtenances, as best shown in Fig. 1. The said arm 45 is locked in adjusted positions by a screw bolt 46 which is adapted to extend through an arcuate slot in a lug 47 integral with the arm 45, said screw bolt to be threaded into a suitable projection on the bed plate 10. The slot in said lug 47 is concentric to the axis of the: shaft 36 sothat thereby in all positions of the arm 45, and corresponding adjustments of the curler head, the curler head driving pinion 38 will be in driving mesh with the spur gear 37.

When adjusting the machine to can ends of different diameters, thesupports for the guide bar 16 can be adjusted to shift said bars radially towards and from the center of the stack. Two of the guide bars 16 are supported on the inner short arms 48 of the brackets 14, which latter have slotted adj usting lugs 49 through whiclr extend screw bolts 50. The other guide bar is supported on a slotted foot lug 51, which is held in place by a screw bolt 52. It will be noted from an inspection of Fig. 1 that the spur 'gears 15 for driving the lifting screws 12 mesh with the teeth of the ring 23, and that the adjustment provided for the brackets of the lifting screws is such as to maintain the spur gears 15 always in mesh with the gear 23.

'From what has been said, it will be observed that when the machine is properly set to the delivery end of a can end stamping machine, said ends are delivered directly into the trough or guide 11, and from. thence are directed by gravity to the receiving side of the throat of the machine, and by the engagement of the peripheries of the flanged ends with the oppositely rotative curling head and ring said can ends are caused to rapidly turn on their axes while said axes of rotation are being continually advanced, due to the differential, peripheral speeds of the Walls of the inner and outer curling grooves. It will also be noted that, by reason of the greater diameter of the curling ring, as compared to the curling head, the edge of the can end underlaps the upper wall of the ring curling groove for a considerably greater distance than it underlaps the upper wall of the cur ing head groove. This stabilizes the passage ofthe can head through the machine, inasmuch as it 'givesa substantial three point bearing against raisingof the can end when the greatest thrust is imposed on the metal of said end as it passes through the smallest width of the throat. It will also be observed that thediameter of the curling head groove is such as to cause the edge of a can end to be released from said'groove more rapidly than the ring curler groove, and by reason of this release the can end will be allowed to vibrate in its plane due to the combined action of gravity and its sudden release from the rapidly rotating curling head. This capability' of the can end to adjust itself, and

the inclination of the end to; gravitate toward the outlet between the lifting screws 12 effectively releases the can end periphery from the overhanging wallof the outer curling groove ring and permits itto pass readily out from under the overhanging curler ring over theupwardly inclined part 32 of the can end guide and across the upper face of the gear ring of said lifting screws.

In order to provide adjustment for large variations of can end diameters, two or more curling heads or elements 21 may be supplied with a machine, and such adjustment may be eflected by the removal of one head and the substitution of another head. The final or delicate adjustment may be effected by varying the eccentricity of the axis of the head to that of the curling ring.

It will be furthermore observed that the inclosing curling ring or element 19 is a full circle and is a permanent part of the machine. Therefore, the curling face'of the ring is nonvarying, except as tousual wear.

The circle establishes a fixed outer curling abutment for the can ends, and alladjustments for different diameters can be effected by the simple expedientof substituting the inner curling head or adjusting it to' greater or less eccentricity to the outer curlin'g ring.

I claim as my invention: i

1. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotating curling elements, one enclosed by and eccentric to'the other, the shortest distance between said elements being approximately equal to the diameter of a can end to be curled, and there being curling grooves locatedrespectively on the inner side of th outer element and on the periphery of the inner element.

2. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotatable curling elements, one enclosed by and eccentric to the other, said curling elements having curling grooves in their opposed faces, the shortest distance between said elements being approximately equal to the diameter of a can end to be curled, and the parts being so proportioned and arranged that a can end in moving between said elements is equally released therefrom after passing the line of nearest ap preach between said elements. 3. A can end curling machine comprising a rotatable ring, a rotatable circular head much smaller in diameter than the ring arranged within the latter and rotatable about an axis eccentric to the a'xis ofrotation of the ring, the shortest distance between said head and said ring being approximately equal to the diameter of a can end to be rolled, the opposing faces of the'he'ad and the ring being shaped to curl the edge "of a can end passing between thesame.

i. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotatable curling elements, one enclosed by and eccentric to the other, and means driving said elements in opposite directions. I 1

5. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curlingelements, one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of the other and being very small in diameter relatively to the other, and gear means for rotating said elements to drive the enclosed element at a higher speed than the enclosing element.

6. A can end curling machine comprising two rotativecurling elements, one enclosed by and with itsaxis of rotation eccentric to that of the other, and means to vary the eccentricity of the axes of rotation of said elements to thereby adjust, the machine to can ends of different diameters.

7. A can end curling machinecomprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of the other, means to detachably fix the inner curling element to its rotative support, and meansto vary the eccentricity of the axes of rotation of said elements to thereby adjust the machine to can ends of different diameters.

8. A can' end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of the other, and means to adjust the machine to can ends of different diameters by eccentric adjustment of one of the curling elements relatively to the other.

9. .A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling grooves respectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elements being arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitute the curling zone of th machine.

10. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other with opposing curling grooves respectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elements be ing arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitute the curling zone of the machine, and a guide to support a can end at said throat and having oblique entering and discharge portions to respectively direct a can end to said throat and to raise it away from the curling zone.

11. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling grooves respectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elements being arranged to form between them arestricted throat to constitute the curling zone of the machine, and means whereby the can ends when released from the inner element is caused to be directed by gravity to a centrally disposed discharge.

12. A can end curling machinecomprising two rotative curling elements, one a head and the other a solid ring enclosing and cocentric to said head, with opposing curling grooves to engage the flange of a can end and'also arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitute the curling zone of the machine, said ring and head be-v ing disposed at an outward and downward inclination to permit can ends to be fed by gravity to and released from said curling zone, a

13. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling grooves, and arranged to form therebetween a restricted throat to constitute the.

curling zone of the machine, said ring and head being .disposed at an outward and downward inclination to permit can heads to be fed to and released from said zone by gravity, and means for driving said elements in opposite directions with the inner elements rotative at the higher speed.

14. A can end curling machine comprising a forwardly and downwardly inclined base, curling elements comprising a solid ring and an enclosed, eccentrically disposed head rota-tively supported above said base, and having opposing curling grooves to engage and operate on the peripheral can end flange.

15. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, curling elements comprising an outer ring and an inner head, provided with opposing curling grooves in the same plane, with the head disposed eccentric to the ring, and acan end guide having a central portion parallel to said plane to support the can end at the nearest approach of the curling elements.

.16. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, curling elements comprising an outer ring and an inner head, provided with opposing curling grooves in thesame plane, with the head disposed eccentric to the ring, and a can end guide having a central portion parallel to said plane to support the can end at the nearest approach of the curling elements, said guide being formed with receiving and discharging port-ions, the latter leading to the discharge end of'the machine.

17 A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, curlingelements comprising an outer ringand an inner head, provided with opposing curling groo-vesin the same plane, with the head disposed eccentric to the ring, a can end guide having a central portion parallel to said plane to support the can end at the nearest approach of the curling elements, said guide being formed with receiving and discharging portions, the latter leading to the discharge end of the machine, and an automatic can end stacking mechanism to receive curled can ends from the machine.

18. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other, and a can end guide to guide can ends to and from the curling zone located at the side of the inner curling element at which the curling elements most nearly approach each other and to support said can ends at said curling zone.

19. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other and'having opposing curling grooves in a common plane, and a can end guide to guide can ends to and from the curling zone located at the side of the inner curling element at which the curling elements most nearly approach each other, said guide comprising oblique feeding and discharge portions and an intermediate portion in the plane of said curling grooves, the outlet end of said guide being diverted towards the vertical axes of the curling elements to produce quick release of the can ends from the curling elements.

20. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other, and a can end guide to guide a can end to and from the curling zone located at the side of the inner curling element at which the curling elements most nearly approach each other, said guide comprising delivery and discharge end portions and an intermediate offset central portion, the latter located to support can ends at the curling zone.

21. A. can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other and having opposing curling grooves in a plane parallel to the plane of the said groove, and a gear ring to support the outer curling element and having acircular guide to hold the outer curling element in a. fixed axis of rotation.

22. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other and having opposing curling grooves in a plane parallel to the plane of the said groove, a gear ring to support the outer curling element and a do-wnholding circular element for said outer curling element and said gear ring fixed to and furnishing a centering bearing for said outer element.

23. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardly inclined base, curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to the other and having opposing curling grooves, a gear ring fixed to and supporting the outer curling element, and a grooved guide fixed to said base and having an inwardly extending flange to overlap said gear ring and curling element and furnishing a centering bearing for said outer curling element.

24. A. can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements, having their diameters transverse to the direction of travel of the can ends through the machine arranged horizontally, one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of the other, a guide support for the can ends to direct said ends to and from the curling zone between said elements, and screw threaded can end lifter means at the discharge end of the guide to receive and lift the curled can ends in a stack.

In witness whereof I claim the foregoing as my invention, I hereunto append my signature this 3rd day of December, 1924.

GUSTAV W. HEDSTROM.

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