US1863828A - Golf ball marking machine - Google Patents

Description

June 2,1, 1932. C. E BROMAN ETA'L 1,863,828V

GOLF BALL MARKING MACHINE Filed July 29, 1929 4 Sheets-@heet l I I m 12 Z A0 D E F 151 J K L M N if I Z INVENTOR A TI'ORNEYS June 21, 1932- c, E. BROMAN ET AL l 1,853,828

GOLF BALL MARKING MACHINE Filed July 29, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 v INVENTOR Y War/e5 E .Emma/1 June 21, 1932. c. E. BROMAN E1' AL 1,863,828

GOLF BALL MARKING MACHINE Filed July 29, 1929 4 Sheng-sheet 3 Q/a/f ORNE YS ZZ 54 2b' June 2l, 1932. c. E. BROMAN E'r AL GOLF BALL MARKING MACHINE Filed July 29, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR (/70/7/55- ,f5/00mm? Patented June 21, 1932 narran Asfr-ares ea raar Prive cHAnLnsn BROMAN, or sPAnTmA-nn WALTER tru-Nowak, or GRAND RAPIDS, Y

MICHIGAN GOLF BALL MAR-KING MACHINE Application -led'July 29, 1929. Serial No. 331,898.v

VThe main objects of this invention are:

`F1rst, togprovide a machine for marking golf balls Which may be quickly set up for the desired name or mark and quickly and easily operated to'mark the balls.

Second, to; provide a machine having these advantages which is oit' large capacity, that is,\it is capable of rapid operation to mark a series of balls.

Third, to provide a machine for marking golf balls producing clear marks having sharply deiined outlines and without likelihood of smudging thesurface of the ball as is likely to be the case Where ink is manually applied by typeor by means of an inking pad.

lFourth, to provide a marking machine for golf balls in which all of the seri-es of characters or letters are uniformly printed.

Fifth, to provide a machine having these advantages which may be readily manipulated by an inexperienced person or operator,- thereby renderingit practical for use as a coin operated machine.

` Sixth, to provide a structure having there advantages Which is comparatively simple and economical toproduce and at the same time not likely to get out of repair. i

l Objectspertaining to details and economies of ourinventionwill definitely appear from n the description to follow. The invention is defined in the claims.

A structure which embodies the features ofour inventionris clearly illustrated in the accompanying drawings in Whichf:

Fig. l is a 'fragmentary frontvieiv of our Y improved marking machine partially in vertical section on line 1-1 of Figs. 2 and 3.

YF ig. 2 is a fragmentary view partially -in vertical section on line 2 2 of Figs. 1 andv 3. Fig. 3 a detail vieiv Ipartially in hori- Zontal section on line 3&3 of Figs. 1, 2 and 4l. Fig. is an enlarged detail sectional View showing a golf ball in operative relation AtoV the marking device byt'ull lines and in dis'- charging positionby dotted lines, the ejector being shown in normal `position by full Vlines and in ejectingposition by dotted lines.

F ig. lis an enlargeddetail'fragnientary view partially in vertical section yshowing disksare brought into proper printing posifurther details of the indicianumbers and the marking ribbon. i f

F ig. 6 is a 'fragment-ary plan view showing details of the character disks.

Fig. Tis a fragmentary perspectivefview 55 showing details of the coin controlled .locking means. Y F ig. 8 is affragmentary sectional View on a line corresponding to line 8-8 of Fig. v7.

The embodiment; illustrated Vin the. accompanying drawings comprises a base lhaving a housing 2 in Which the operating mechanism is enclosed. This housing isprovided With an `opening 3 to receive the balls to be marked and Va discharge opening l. 5 Mounted in spaced relation Within .the housing is ai pair of plate-like brackets'or frame members 5 constituting supports for various-parts of the mechanism. vThese supporting members 5 carry Vthe spindle 6 ofV the character disks 7. V,The character disks are: disposed sideby side for independent Y rotative adjustment, each disk carrying a character segment 8 and the embodiment illustrated containinglall ,the letters of the alphabet. The disks are alsoprovided with adjustment indicating character segments 9 containing the same characters as the seg-` ments 8. The housing is provided With an opening l0 inthe front thereof through which the lingenpieces 11 of the character disks project. Thesefinger pieces are bent or conformed so that their outer ends lie in. a uniformly spaced relation for convenience in manipulation.`

The housing is .provided lWith a Window 12 through which the indiciaV characters vare visible so that the operator may determine by inspection through this'vvindow When the tionV for the desired name and the set-up inspected before the printing operation.

To further facilitate the adjustment of the character disks We arrange a setof characters 13 along one edge of the opening 10, asshown in Fig. 1, so that the-positions Yofthe disks may he determined alining VtheV finger pieces vviththis series of characters. This arrangement enablesveryrapid adjustment of the character disks andchecking to deter- -100 mine whether or not the disks have been properly adjusted for the particular mark desired.

To clear the machine or return the character disks to their normal or initial position, we provide a yoke-like member 14, the arms of which are pivotally mounted on thespindle 6 at the outside of the outer disks with 10' its cross piece lying adjacent the peripheries thereof so that, when this clearingniember is swung upwardly, it engages-the finger pieces on the character members, returning them to their initial position. The clearing member is provided with a finger piece 15. l

To yieldingly hold the disks in their adjusted position, we providea series of holding pawls 16 which are mounted on a rod 17 extending between the supporting brackets or plates 5, each of these pawls-being vprovided with a roller 18 coacting `with the serrations 19 on the character disks. The pawls are actuated by the springs 20.

The balls are carried into operative relation to .the character disks with a rolling movement by means of a carriage designated generally by the numeral 21 which reciprocates or travels in a plane parallel to the axis of the rollers. V-This carriage comprises a pair of side members 22 having inwardly projecting arms 23 connected by the bar 24, these side members,the arms and bar in elect constituting the frame for the carriage.

The carriage is provided'with a pair of rollers 25 journaled in the side members of the carriage frame, the journals engaging longi tudinal slots 26 in the spaced way members 27. The rollers are spool-shaped, that is, they are formed with a longitudinal concave curvature and spaced so as to form rolling supports for a golt` ball shown at 28. vThe journals of the rollers being in bearing engagement with the slots in the way members 27, the rollers are rotated as the carriage isreciprocated. thereby rolling' the ball and supporting it inrolling VAengagement with the character members.

lln the embodiment illustrated the way members 27, are formed integrally of a channel-shaped member 29 which is mounted upon the basel by .means ori-screws 30 engaging theI web 'of the member, 29.

The carriage is reciprocated by means ofl the lever 31 which. ,is pivoted-at 32, andvconnected to the cross V`member of thecarriage by means of the link 33. The lever projects through theslot of the adjacent .Way member.

When the carriage is in its initialpositionity is adapted to receive Va ballV introduced through Vthe opening 3 as.v shown in Fig-.1. lVlien the carriage reaches the end of its forward'stioketheball is automatically ejected througlithe opening 4 bymeans of the ejector 34 which ispivoted-at 35 on the carriage and .provided lwith an arm 36 projecting transversely Iof the carriage above the way and at the vrear of the ball. j As the carriage' position.

approaches the end of its stroke the ejector engages the stop pin 37 so that continued forward movement swings the ejector to the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 4, thereby ej ecting the ball through the opening 4.

A second pin 38 is provided which is adaptcd to engage the nose of the ejector `on the ret-urn movement of thel carriage, thereby throwing or returning the ejector toits initial This stop pin 38 also serves to limit the forward throw of the ejector.

The lever 31 is actuated from the hand lever 39 projecting through a slot 40 in the housing 2. This lever 39 is pivoted at 41 and lconnected to the actuating lever 31 by means of the link 42. This connection is a The carriage is returnedvto its initial posi-V tion by means of the spring 45. l

'To 'hold the actuating lever in its initial position we provide a stop 46 mounted onv the rockshaft 47 and projecting at both sides of the rockshaft. Oneend coacts withthe arm l48 of the actuating lever and the' other end coacts witii an arm`49 on the actuating lever, see Fig. 2. so that the-lever is locked against movement in either direction when in its initial. position. V i The rockshatt is provided with an arin 5() operatively associatedvwith a tripping dog 5]. pivoted at 52 to cooperate with a coin actuated member 53. This member-53 is pivoted at54to lie vertically within the coin chute 55, it being held slight-ly off the perpendicular by its engagement with the dog 51. Then a coin drops into the chute, the weight of the coin is sutiicient to swing the member Y53 on its pivot, thereby ractuating the dog 51 and through it releasing the stop.

At the upper end of the chute is a coiny flector normally lies below the slot 59 through l which the coin is introduced. It anickelbe introduced, which is the coin'for which the particular machine is designed, it drops upon the head 60 of the coin-deilector,.the weight being sufficient to swing the delector on its pivot and delivery the `coininto the chute. In the event a slug such as 61 is introduced (slugs commonly employed having holes therein), the slug will engage this head and is held thereby until lthe head swin gs past the mouth of" the chute so that..the slug is'. discharged outside of the chute. Y To insure a. complete stroke of the carriage and prevent reciprocating it back andforth,

balls might Abe marked with one freeing of the mechanism, we mount 'a rack 62 on'yan arm 63 connected to the actuating lever.v

This rack coacts witha stop pawl 64 pivoted at 65 and supportedyieldingly by means of tliespring 66. As the lever is actuated to move the carriage forwardly, this pawl engages the i'ack,'lying thereon until it passes ofi' the end of the rack .at the complete actuation or" the carriage, which peimits .the lever being returned to its initial position.

The coiled'spring -67 connected to this arm, 63 acts to return the actuating lever to its initial position.

The marking material is preferably an indelible carbon ribbon 68 which is supported in a trough-like holder 69at the front of the machine. This ribbon is carried over the guide roller 70 to the supporting plate 7l, see

,F ig. 5, the roller and plate being arranged to support the ribbon iii operative-relation to thev character disks. f Y p A driving roller 72 is mounted at the rear ot the plate Plpand above this is the Winding roller 73 ioatingly supported in the vertical slot 74 inthe brackets 5. The driving rolle-r is adapted to feed the ribbon and, owing to the fact that the winding roller rests on the driving roller, the frictional engagement thereofrotatesthe winding roller.

The driving roller .is provided with .a ratchet wheelV 75 with which'the pawl 7 6 .coacts. This pawl is mounted on a pivot 77 on the arm 63. The pinr78 serves tovliinit the downward movement ofthis pawl.

VOwing to the pin and slot orrlost motion connection for the actuating lever to the link 42, the initial movement of the actuating lever will adjust the ribbon prior to actuation of the carriage. Continued movement of the actuating lever moves the carriage vforwardly and, as stated. carries Ythe ball into rolling engagement with the characters with the result that the name, initials or `other identifying idicia is uniformly printed upon the surface ot the hall.

Our improved markingmachine .may be quickly set up by unskilledpersonsasitis l only necessaryto adjust the characterdisks,

introduce the. ball, drop the coin (where the machine is coin controlled), and actuate the lever. Once set up' the machine may be manipulated rapidly and may be quickly cleared Jfor resetting. The marking medium is such that-the charactermembers donot become fouled or require cleaning. The result is that. the machine requires very'little attention to keep it in operative` condition. Further, the

parts are arrangedso that they are not easilyV disarranged or broke-n.`

le have illustrated and described our improvements in an embodiment whicliwe have Jfound highly practical. It .isbelieved Ythat this disclosure wfll enable those skilled in the art to embody or adapt our improvements as may be desired. Y

`Havingthus described our Vinvention `what we claim as new and Vdesire to secure by Let-v ters Patent is: i

l. vIn a machine of the class described, the combination with a casing provided with opposed receiving and discharge openings, a marking means disposed within said casing and comprising a pluralityof indicia members 1 capable of independent adjustment tromthe exteriorrof the casing vwhereby selectedvindic-ia. may be brought into alinement, a way disposed in spaced relation to said indie-ia members, a carriage reciprocatingly` mounted on said way and adapted to rotatably support a ball and c-airyit intorotative engagement With'the alined characters, means tor manually reciprocating said carriage,an ejector member pivotally mounted. on said carriage, and a stop on said way with whichsaid ejector member engages as the carriage approaches the endet its stroke whereby the ball is automatically ejected from the carriage through said discharge opening, the carriage Vin its initial position being adapted Jc-o-receive a'ball introduced throughsaid receiving opening.

2. In 'a machine of the class desc-ribechthe combination with a casing, a marking means disposed within said casing and comprising a plurality of indiciamembers capable of -independent adjustment from the exterior ofthe casing whereby selected indicia may vbe brought into alinement, away disposed in spaced relation to and transversely of saidv indicia members, a. carriage reciprocatingly `mounted on said way and adapted'torotate the work and car it into rotative enOaUement with the alined characters, and means for manually reciprocating said carriage.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination` of a way comprising spaced longitudinally slotted members, a carriage comprising sidemembers connected by a cross piece disposed through said slots and apair of spaced conca-ved rollers having journals traveling in said slots and engaging said side members whereby the -ro'llersare rotated -on the actuation of the carriage vand constituteA means for supporting and rotating aball as the carriage travels along the way, a plurality of character units eachprovided with a plur, ality 'of characters mounted for independent adjustment whereby selected characters may be brought into parallel relation tosaid way transversely of-saidcliaracterjunits and centrally yof saidroll-ers, and means for reciprocating said carriage. 1

t. In a machine of the class described, the combination of away, a4 carriage provided witha pair of spaced concaved dri-ven rollers constituting means :tor rotatably supporting and rotating a ball as the carriage travels along the way, a plurality of character units? each provided `with a plurality of characters mountedVV for indepei'ident adj ustment Whereby selected `characters may be brought linto parallel relation to said way, and meansfor reciprocating said carriage. Y

5. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality of character disks having peripherally disposed characters mounted on a common axis for independent rotativev adjustment, a'carriage mounted to travel in a plane parallel to theaxis of the character disks and transversely of the faces thereof, work supporting rollers on said carriage, and means whereby lsaid 'rollers are rotated to roll the work transversely acros the face of the character disks as the carriage is actuated. 4

6. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a way, a carriage provided with means for rotating the Work as the carriage travels along the way, a plurality of character vunitseachv provided with a plurality of characters mounted for independent adjustment whereby selected characters may be brought into parallel relation to said way, and means for actuating said carriage.

7."In a machineot` thel class described, the combination ot' a reciprocatingly mounted work carriage, indicia members adjustably mounted side by side and cach provided with' a plurality of characters whereby selected characters may be alined transversely of said indicia members, a way disposed transversely klili of saidindicia members,and a carriage re-V ciprocatingly mounted on said way and' provided with work supporting and rotating means actuated by the movement of the carriage on the way to roll the Work across the alined lcharacters on the actuation Y'of' the carriage. e

V8. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality ot character units, each provided with a plurality of characters whereby they maybe adjusted to aline the desired characters transversely of said character members, acarriage way disposed transversely of said character units, and a' car-` riage traveling on said way and provided with work supporting and rotating means whereby'the work is rotated on the actuation of the carriage. t

9, In a machine of the class described for marking golf balls, the combination ot a reciprocatingly mounted work carriage, and' marking characters disposed with their faces inV a. plane -parallel to the' path :of the-car'- riage, Vsaid, carriage being provided Vwith means actuated by the movement of the carriage for rotating the work asit is carried across the marking characters. Y f i 10.v In a machine of theclassde'scribedfor marking golf balls, the combination with a marking means, ot a carriage travelinginA a plane parallel to the planeof the face of the marking means, work'supporting rollers on said carriage, and meansy whereby said rollers are rotated to roll the work across themarking characters upon the actuationof the carrlage.`

Y our hands n. In a machineefthe dass derseabeafori Leashes marking golf balls, the combination of a reciprocatmgly mounted carriage, means for rotatably supporting the work on said carriage actuated to rotateI the work by the actuation of the carriage, and marking characters disposed in aplane parallel ,to the path of thecarriage so that the work isrotatably engaged with said marking characters upon the actuation of the carriage. e Y

12.v In a machine of the class described, the Combination 'of a reciprocatingly mounted Work carriage, character members mounted in opposed relation .to said carriage, amarking ribbon, guiding and supporting means for said ribbon whereby it is supported in operative relation to said characters, an actuating lever having a lost motion operating connection to said carriage, a feed roller for said ribbon, and `operating connections for said leverto vsaid feed roller whereby the ribbon is advanced during the initial stroke of the lever and prior to the actuation of the carriage. I y c 13. In a machine of the class described, the combination of marking characters, a marking ribbon operatively.associated with said characters andprovided withfeed means, a

.work carriage for traversing the work across whereby the markingribbon isshifted in advance of the actuation of the carriage.

14. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality of characterunits each provided with a plurality of characters and supported so that they may be adjusted to Valigl'i the desired character transversely of the character units, means for rotatingand simultaneously ytraversing the work across said character units, the work Lrotating means being independent ofthe rotation that results fro1n the engagement of thel work with the character units, and a markingelement operatively connected to said work traversing means whereby the'marking element is actuated by thecarriage actuating means prior to the work'stroke of the carriage. Y

15. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a plurality of character units each provided with a plurality of characters and supported so that they may be adjusted that results'from the engagement of the work with the character units." l v f .Y 'Y In witnessnwhereof we have hereunto set CHARLES E. ,BRoMANyQ WALTER H. NowAK.

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