US1562645A

US1562645A - Helix-winding machine

Info

Publication number: US1562645A
Application number: US31264A
Authority: US
Inventors: Allan H Jones
Original assignee: Roller Bearing Company of America Inc
Current assignee: Roller Bearing Company of America Inc
Priority date: 1925-05-19
Filing date: 1925-05-19
Publication date: 1925-11-24
Anticipated expiration: 1942-11-24

Description

NOV. 4 A. H. JONES HELIX WINDING MACHINE Filed May 19. 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Allan HJones.

@0197101 KQEZI Q QWWW ATTORNEYS Nov. 24, 1925. 1,562,645

A. H. JONES HELIX WINDING MACHINE Filed May 19, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Ill Hi III EI III I g E I H O 33 km *3 v; *3

INVENTOR fl/bnfidbnes,

I 1/1/7/ WW ATTORNEYS Nov. 24, 1925 A. H. JONES HELIX WINDING MACHINE Filed May 19, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR Allan H. Jones.-

ATTORNEYS Patented Nov. 24, 1925 UNITED ST ES PATENT OFFICE.

ALLAN H. JONES, F TBELLEVILLE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR '10 ROLLER BEARING COMPANY OF AMERICA, 0]? NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

HELIX-WINDING Macrame.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, .ALLAN H. Jones, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Belleville, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented cer tain new and useful Improvements in HelixlVinding Machines, of which the followmg is a full, clear, and exact description.-

In making rollers" or the helical or socalled spiral type for roller bear ngs a method commonly employed involves winding a flat strip of metal to helical form on a mandrel of the proper diameter, after which the helix thus produced is out up into lengths suitable for the individual rollers.

The present invention relates to the wind' ing or coiling of, the strip, and its chief object is to provide a machine for that purpose by which a helix of practically unlimited length can be wound, especially when the helix is of small diameter, say'a quarter of an inch or less, a sizewhich heretofore has been difficult to wind. .Another object is to provide a machine which is largely automatic in character, so that it may be successfully operated by a person with limited skill or experience. A further object is to provide a machine of simple construction which can be made much shorter than the helix turned out, thereby economizing floor space.

To these and other ends the invention comprises the novel features and combinations hereinafter described.

In carrying out the invention in the preferred manner the metal strip is guided and wound on a rotatable but axially stationary mandrel by a non-rotating but axially movable winding headwhich is advanced auto matically as the winding proceeds. The winding is effected by rotating the helix, for which purpose a revolving chuck is provided, in which the helix is securely held. The chuck is rotated by a hollow shaft. As the helix is formed and the winding head advanced thereby, the latter, at the forward end of its path, actuates a suitable device, as

for example an electric switch, to stop the winding operation. The attendant then reverses the winding chuck for a revolution or two, so as to loosen the helix on the mandrel, then stops the machine, releases the chuck entirely, and starts the motor again, whereupon a traveling carriage at the rear of the chuck pulls the helix rearwardly same scale as Fig. 2.

through the hollow chuck-shaft and off the mandrel. This rearward movement of the helix serves also to retract the winding head, and provlslon is made whereby the arrival of the winding head at the rear end of its path will stop the machine. The attendant now closes the winding chuck down upon the helix and starts the machine again in'the forward direction. The winding is thusre'sumed and the operations described above are repeated. As the winding head advances the carriage which retracts the helix through the hollow chuck-shaft is brought up to a position near the chuck, where it can engage the helix for the next retraction thereof. 7

The embodiment outlinedabove is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich Fig. l is a side view of the machine. Fig. 2 is a detail side view on a larger scale. I

Fig. 3 is a detail plan view, on about the Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are detail cross sections on lines 44, 5-.-5 and 66 of Fig. 2. Y

Figs. 7 and 8 are detail front views of the controlling switch, showing the same in different operative positions. In these figuresthe switch housing or box is in cross section.

Fig." 9 is a cross section .on line 99 of Fig. 7.-

Fig. 10 is a sectional plan view on line 1010 of Fig. 8.

The winding chuck 12, mounted on or integral with the tubular shaft 13, is of any suitable construction, as for example such as commonly employed in drill presses, having jaws 14 which can be adjusted to grip or release the helix (shownat 15) by turning the square stud 16, using for the purpose a'suitable key, not shown. The mandrel 17, on which the helix is wound, extends forwardly from the chuck and at its front end rests loosely in an upwardly open 100 recess 18 in a Y-shaped support 19. The mandrel has a certain amount of fiexiblity, which makes it unnecessary to have the forward end of the mandrel accurately cen-- tered. The supporting recess is therefore. made large enough to permit the mandrel to flex slightly, as'may be necessary to accommodate itself to any slight inaccurac of centering of itself or the winding hea or both. In front of the recess 18 the H0 helix .is rotated by the chuck 12 the StI lp diameter this opening is slightly larger than the diameter of the mandrel plus twice the thickness of the metal strip, indicated at 24, which is to be.wound, so that as the will be wound to helical form of corresponding dlameter, produc ng a helix of which the maximum outer diameter s determined by the size of the die opening 23 and of which the minimum inner diameter is determined by the size of the mandrel, as will be readily understood. Extending through the side of the head, to the die opening 23,

is a feed aperture 25 through which the strip is drawn as the winding proceeds, this feed opening'being inclined, to the mandrel and to the axis of the die opening, accord-- ing to thepitch desired for the helix; Theopening 23 is also preferably but slightly larger, in cross section, than the strip itself, so that the latter will be fed accuratelyin place. From the foregoing it will be seen that as the helix is formed the winding head is advanced (from left to right in Fig. 3) justas ainonrotatable nut is advanced by the rotation of an axially stationary screw.- I

The winding chuck 12 is rotated, in either direction at will, by a motor 26, Fig. 1, through the agency of reducing gearing 27, chain 28, and sprockets 29, '30. The start ing and stopping, and the direction of rota- 'tion of the, motor, are controlled by a switch 31, which may be of the snap type shown in Figs. 7. 8, 9 and 10. The supply leads 32, 33, are connected to the pivots of the

switch arms

34, 35, while the

motor terminals

36, 37 are connected to

contacts

36, 37. Contact is electrically connected tocontact 36. The switch arms are connected for simul aneous actuation by a link 39, which is itself actuated, as described below, by a rodttl'extending forwardly (see Figs'rl and 2) and provided with adjust-- able actuating f ngers 41,42, in the path of lugs 43, 44, on the axially movable winding head 21. One of the switch arms has a handle 45, for manual operation of both.

Assuming the switch arms to be in the position shown in Fig. ,7 the motor circuit is closedand the motor drives the chick in the clockwise direction as viewed from the right of Fig. 2. As the head 21 approaches the forward end of its path the lug 44 meets finger- 42 and advances the: switch rod 40, thereby rocking the

switch arms

34, 35, Fig. 7, counterclockwise. During this movement the switch actuating spring 46 is cammed upwardly by the tooth 47 on the end of arm-34 until the point of the tooth passes the V-shaped bend of the spring, whereupon the latter by its cam action on.

the other side of the tooth. snaps the arm 34, and with it arm 35, to the OE position indicated in dotted lines.- Thi'sbreaks the motor circuit and the motor therefore stops. The attendant then backs off the chuck jaws 14 enough to relieve the pressure of the helix upon the mandrel, after which he swings the switch arms to the position shown in Fig. 8., in which, as will be seen, the polarity of the current impressed on the motor terminals isreversed, thereby starting the motor 'in the opposite direction and rotatlng the helix counterclockwise as seen from the right of Fig. 2. This has an unwinding effect -cnthe helix, and two-or three revolutions are usually enough to loosen 1t from the mandrel, whereuponthe attendant rocks the switch back to the ofi' position. He then releases theehuck jaws entirely from the helix and rocks the switch agaln to the reverseposition, Fig. 8. By the means now to be described the reverse rotation of the chuck 12, after it is freed from the helix, causes the latter to be drawn rearwardly through the chuck and off of the mandrel 17. i

Back'of the. chuck 12 and on the shaft 13 is a clutch member 50, Fig. 2, cooperating with a clutch member 51 splined inside of the hollow hub 52 of the bevel gear 53 and urged into frictional contact with the i first clutch member. by a spring 54. The bevel gear 53 drives a bevel .pinion 54, Figs. 2 and 3, on transverse stub shaft 55 having a sprocket 56 for thechain 58,passing over a similar sprocket 60, at the rear or left end, of the machine. The motion of sprocket .56 is transmitted by

gears

54, 54", -trans-" verse shaft 54, and gears 54 54,to a similar sprocket 57 on the other side, having a chain 59 parallel to chain 58 and passing. over a sprocket 61 at the rear, coaxial with sprocket- 60; these sprockets 6O- and 61 being mounted on stub shafts, as indicated in Fig. 3, so as to leave clear the space between the ,sprockets. Between the chains and secured to the upper reaches thereof is a retracting carriage 62, suspended from and Y traveling on a rail 63 and provided with an opening 64 for the helix 15. The carriage is also equipped with one or more cam-pawls 65, arranged to pass idly over the helix as the carriage moves forward (to the right in Fig. 2) but to grip the helix firmly as the carriage moves rearwardly. Assuming that the retracting carriage 62 is at the forward end of its path, against the stop 66, Fig. 2, it will'be seenthat when the attendant reverses clutch 12 to effect a partial unwinding of the helix to .loosen it from the mandrel 17 the helix, beinggripped by the clutch and also by the cam-pawls 65, does not permit the carriage 62 to be carried back and hence the clutch membersQ and 51 slip on each other. When, however, the clutch is released from the helix, after the latter is loosened from the mandrel, the resistance of the helix to backward movement is not suflicient to cause the clutch to slip the reverse direction,

when the chuck shaft 13 is again started in clutch member 51 is rotated, thereby driving

sprockets

56, 57 in the counterclockwise direction (Fig. 2) and shifting the retracting carriage 62 leftwardly. As the helix is retracted by the leftward movement of the carriage the winding head is retracted at the same time. by the metal strip 24 extending through the guide aperture 25, Fig. 3. As soon as the driving motor is stopped by the finger 43 actuating the controlling switch. the attendant re-engages the chuck 12- upon the helix and starts the motor in the forward direction, thereby resuming the helixforming operation. At the same time the carriage-actuating

sprockets

56, 57 are rotated in the clockwise direction, therebyadvancing the carriage toward the chuck. Upon'reaching the stop 66, Fig. 2, the carriage is arrested, afterywliich the clutch 50-51 slips, as already described, until the motor is stopped.

It will be observed thatthe forward travel of the winding, head 21 per revolution of the clutch 12 depends entirely upon the pitch of the helix, and that the forward and rearward travel of the retracting carriage '62 per clutch-revolution depends'solely upon the ratio of the gears 53-54 and sprockets 56-57 whereas the retracting speed of the Winding head is always exactly thersame as that of the carriage. Hence by suitable design of the'parts involved the retraction of the helix can be made rapid, so that only a small portion of the'complete cycle is con sumed by the retracting operation.

As the helix issues from the rear of the machine it may be allowed to fall on the floor or it may be coiled into a shallow receptacle, not shown, of suitable size.

latter disposition is permitted by the flexi The bilityof the helix, which allows it to rotate on its own axis even though flexed, in the manner of a flexibleshaft. In fact helixes wound by the method described make excellent flexible shafts. In winding helixes for the latter purpose the operator will keep in mind the fact that, in general, the narrower the strip from which the helix is produced, the more sharply can the helix be bent without injury.

For making helixes of different outside or inside diameters, or both, winding heads and mandrels of proper sizescan be provided, the necessary substitution being easily and quickly made.

and accordingly It is to be understood that the invention isnot limited to the constructionv herein specifically illustrated and described but can be embodied in other forms without departure from its spirit. I

1. I11 a helix-winding machine, in con1- bination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helix through it, an axially movable non-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, said head having a lateral guide aperture to receive and guide a metal strip and having axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, and a mandrel extending through the die opening and coaxial therewith.

2. In a helix-winding machine, in combination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward lon gitudinal movement of the helix through it, an axially movable non-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, said head having a lateral guide aperture to receive and guide a metal strip and having axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, a flexible mandrel extending through the die opening and coaxial there- 90 with, and means for-loosely supporting the forward end of the mandrel to permit the latter to accommodate itself to inaccurate centering of the winding. head and chuck.

.3. In a helix-winding machine, in com- 100 bination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helix through it, means for rotating the chuck in either direction' at will, an axially movable non-rotatable I winding head in front of the chuck'and substantially coaxial therewith, said head" having a lateral guide aperture. to receive and guide a metal strip and having axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, the coiling of the strip serving to advance the head in unison thereivith, and means in rear Of the chuck to retract the helix through the chuck and simultaneously retract said winding head.

4. In a helix-winding machine, in combination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix'and adapted to permit rearward lon gitudinal movement of the helix through it,

means for rotating the chuck in either direcretract the helix through the chuck and simultaneously retract said winding head when the chuck is rotated in. the reverse direction, and actuating meansfor said carri'age adapted also to advance the same towardthe chuck when the latter is rotated lI1 the forward direction.

chuck and substantially coaxial therewith,

said head having a lateral guide aperture to receive and guide a metal strip and having an axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form,the coiling of the strip serving to advance the head in unison therewith, means in rear of the chuck to retract the helix through the chuck and simultaneously retract said winding head,

and controlling means actuated by the winding head to stop the chuck rotating means when the said winding head reaches a predetermined pointin'its travel in either direction.

6. In a helix-winding machine, in combination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helix through it, means for rotating the chuck, an axially movable non-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, (said head having a lateral guide aper ture to receive and guide a metal strip and having an axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, the coiling of the strip by rotation of the chuck in onedirection serving to advancethe'head in unison therewith, means in rear of the chuck to retract the helix'through the chuck and simultaneously retract said winding head when the chuck is rotated in the re-' verse direction, and manual controlling 'means for the chuck rotating means "to determine the-direction of rotation of the chuck.

7 In a helix-winding machine, -in combi ;v

nation, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward long1- tudinal movement of the, helix through it,

means for rotating the chuck in either direction, an axially movablenon-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewifilnsa-id head having a (ill a metal strip and having an axial die'opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, the coiling of the strip by rotation of the chuck in one direction serving to advance the head in unison therewith, means in rear of the chuck 'to retract the helix through the chuck and simultaneously retract. said winding head when the chuck is rotated in the reverse direction, manual controlling means to determine the direction of rotation ofthe chuck, and automatic means to stop the chuck-rotating means when the winding head reaches a predetermined point in its travel in either direction.

- S. In a helix-winding machine,'in combination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helix through .it, means for'rotating the chuck, an axially movable non-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, said head-having a lateralguide aperture to receive and guide a metal'strip and hav'ing'an axial die opening to receive the strip and coil the same to helical form, the coiling of the strip by rotation of the chuck serving to advance the head in unison therewith, and automatic means to stop the chuck-rotating means when the winding .head reaches a predetermined point in its travel.

9. In a helix-winding machine, in combination, a chuck to engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helix through it,

an axially movable non-rotatable winding head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, .said head having a lateral guide aperture to receive and guide a metal strip and having an axial die-opening to receive the stripand. coil the same to helical form, the coilingof the strip by rotation of the chuck serving to advance the' head in unison therewith, and a rotatable axially stationary mandrel extending forwardly through said die-opening and coaxial therewith. y p g I 10. In a helix-winding machine, in combination, a chuck to. engage and rotate the helix and adapted to permit rearward longitudinal movement of the helfi: through it, an axially-movable non-rotatable winding 1 head in front of the chuck and substantially coaxial therewith, said head having alateral guide aperture to receive and guide a metal strip and having an axial die-opening to receive the strip and .coil the same to helical" form, the coiling of the strip by rotation of the chuck serving to-advance the head in unison therewith, a flexible mandrel extending forwardly through the die-opening. in

- said head and coaxial therewith, and means lateral guide aperture to receive and guide for loosely supporting the forward end of the mandrel and preventing longitudinal.

movement thereof.

In testimony whereof I hereto aflix iny signature. i ALLAN H. JONES.