US1641631A - Process of making spring clips - Google Patents

Description

pt. 6, 1927. 4 ,631v

J. A. HOFFMAN PROCESS OF MAKTNG SPRING CLIPS Filed May 4, 1923 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sebt', 6,1927. 1,641,631

'J. A. HOFFMAN PROCESS OF MAKING SPRING CLIPS Filed May 4, 1923. 3 sheets sheet Se t. 1 Q 1 A p 927 J. A. HOFFMAN PROCESS OF MAKING SPRING CLIPS Filed May 4;, 1923 I 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 the .wire.

tending wing adapted to form a slide in the block 1. Overthis member the wire is bent to form the looped portions L and O, aswill presently appear. A suitable wire guide leads the Wire W across'this rail member 2,

substantially as shown in Fig. 1, thereupon" by transverse movement a pairofforming dies 10, having the end portions thereof adapted to allow them to embrace the winged cylindrical rail member 2, as shown, are brought inwardly into engagement with This movement occurs by action upon a suitable slide 12 to which these forming members are pivoted as indicated at 11.

i A spring, such for example, as shown at 13 may cause these members 10 to normally stand apart, and upon the inward movement cam portions formed rigid on the anvil block 1 engage the coacting surfaces 14 on the forming members 10 and cause them to for the clip. This action is shown in Fig. 2,

' ment so that the die 22 moves toward its where the cutting takes place just as the formers engage the wire. Grooves 7 on the forward faces of the formers hold the wire in position against the rail 2 andv the further movement of these formers wraps the wire around the rail, forming the loop L of r the clip, but leaving the ends thereof projecting laterally in the same plane along grooves 6 in the anvil 5.

The next step is the inward movement of formers indicated at 22 as carried upon a suitable lateral slide 20, moving in the 'direction parallel'with and in substantially the same plane as the slide and formers 10 and 12. These are shown as pivoted to the slides and have suitable springs as indicated,

for example, at 21, to hold them normally outwardly and they are guided across an extension 24 of the block or anvil 1,.while projections 25 engage cam surfaces 26, with the result that as these are brought inwardly they also close together, and the inner ends are notched to fit around the ends of the former 10, thus turning. the ends of the wirev back upon itself forming the wire to the shape shown in Fig. 10. It is necessary to withdraw the die members 22 a sufiicient distance to free the now vL-shaped ends of the wire and to clear the path of slide members about to be described. This is done by drawing the slide 21 rearwardly, allowing the die'22 to be forced outwardly by the springs 21, the cam 26 sliding past the abutoriginal starting position. Now the clip is still all in one plane and the next step is to swlng the ends of the substantially double U-shaped member upwardly, that is, move the outer ends upwardly to form the laterally extending loops M. This is done by the upward movement ofthe' slide members 30 extending through the block 1, and causing the wire to turn upwardly from the grooves 6 on the anvil member 5, rigid with the block 1. This up ward movement is indicated in Fig. 5. The clip then has the form shown in Fig. 11.

Now to complete the loop M, still leaving the'ends of the loop as before, side die members lO are brought inwardly still acting against the forming member5, rigid with the block 1, while holding the wire in the grooves 6, 7 and 8 of the formers 10 and 5. These dies 40 may come inwardly from directions at right angles to the directions of movement of the slides and formers just described. Such dies are indicated as bifurcated members having the notched ends adapted to engage the wire as shown in Fig. 7, and carried on suitable slides, one of which is indicated at 42. 7

During the inward movements ofthese die members 40, the members 80 are in their uppermost position and the members 10 have not yet been released, so that the wire is firmly held in all directions except that of permitting the ends 'which are to become the spring clamping portion 0 of the clip, to be swung inwardly as indicated in Figs. 6 and 7. I

Now while so held, and without a loss of time, it is one of the purposes of the present invention to bend these end clips 0 clownwardly intermediately of their length to facilitate sliding the terminal member thereunder, as previously described, simultaneously with the completion of the inward movement of the slide members 10. To accomplish this, I form a'bifurcated member above the anvil and cause it to move up wardly anddownwardly, and as it is brought downwardly, it straddles the rail 2 and its rounded lower ends engage the ends of the wire which are now lying across the clamping and forming members 10 and against the rail 2 bending the-wire downwardly into grooves or. notches, shown at 53, in the members 10, just asfthe members 10 complete their inward movement, thus forming the ends ofthe wire into lateral curves about the rail. This operation is indicated in Fig. 8, the parts clamping the clip being. there illustrated in theclosed position before releasing.

These parts are then all withdrawn, the slide 51 moving upwardly, the slide 12 moving backwardly with'its member 10, and the two forming members 10 moving outwardly at the opposite sides, and to remove the clip, the rail 2 is slid downwardly through the block 1, permitting it to spring outwardly, whereupon the wire is again fed to the dies and the rail 2 returns and the operation is repeated' It has been found that these steps may be accomplished in very rapid succession, the entire clip with its curved ends being finished in one group of forming dies of this character, and while forming in two, three or even four directions, has been frequently done before, it is believed to be novel to use dies and to accomplishforming steps by moving forming members in four directions in one plane and in directions at right angles thereto upwardly and downwardly with relation to that plane to form such combinations of curved portions as those of the member 0 of the clip described. I

Having thus described my invention, I

- claim 1. The process of forming a wire clip including the steps of bending the mid portion of a wire by the inward movement of dies into an open loop in a horizontal plane, turning the ends at right angles in the same plane and in the same direction with the loop, bending the portions between the loop and the ends into two oppositely facing loops in a vertical plane, bending the ends into two semi-circular bends, each facing the other in a horizontal plane, and lying coincident with the first named loop and spaced above it, crimping the central portions of said last named'horizontal bends in a direction toward the first named loop, and

releasing the wire so formed by a simultaneous outward movement of the dies then engaging the wire. I

2. The process of forming a terminal retaining clip, having loops in three planes, two of which are parallel and at right angles to the plane of the connecting portion, consisting of bending the original loop about a stationary form and holding the bend thus made, bending the free ends of the wire while so held backward in the direction of the loop in the same plane, bending the wire in a second plane intermediate the outer bends and the loop, thus bringing the free ends into the third plane, andthereafter simultaneously forming the free ends into circular bends in that plane, each facing the other and crimping part of the circular bends out of said last named plane.

3. The process of forming a wire clip including the steps of bending the mid-portion of a wire into an open loop in a given plane, turning back the ends of the wire in the same plane and in the same dir ection of the loop, bending the wire in a second plane intermediate the outer bends and the loop to bring the free ends into a third plane parallel to'the plane of the loop, and thereafter crimping the said free ends.

4. The process of forming a wire clip including the steps of bending the mid-portion of a wire into an open loop. in a give-n plane, turning back the ends of thewire inv the same plane and in the same direction of the loop, bending the wire in a second plane intermediate the outer bends and the loop to bring the free ends into a third plane parallel to the plane of the loop, and thereafter curving the free ends to approximate a loop lying in the said third plane.

5. The process of forming a wire clip including the steps of bending the mid-pop tion of a wire into an open loop in a given plane, turning back the ends of the wire in the same plane and in the same direction of the loop, bending the wire in a second plane intermediate the outer bends and'the loop to bring the free ends into a third plane parallel to the plane of the loop, and

thereafter curving the free ends to approximate a loop substantially coinciding with and lying parallel to said first named loop, and finally crimping one of said loops toward the other.

I signature.

JOHN A. HOFFMAN.

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