US1950555A - Polishing machine - Google Patents

Description

March 13, HUNTER POLISHING MACHINE Filed Sept. 30 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR fiszzwwzcr ATTORNEYS March 13, 1934. H, HUNTER POLISHING MACHINE Filed Sept. 30, 1929 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fist 6 77 ATTORNEYS March 1934- J. H. HUNTER 1,950,555

POLISHING MACHINE Filed Sept. 30, 1929 3 SheetsSheet 3 INVENTOR BY m M ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 13, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFECE 4 Claims.

The invention relates to polishing machines and has more particular reference to machines designed to polish the outer surface of insulated Wire. In the present state of the art insulated wire is provided with a covering of braided fabric for retaining the insulation and which is impregnated with wax or other material which is capable of receiving a polish. This polishing may be accomplished by drawing the wire through a die but it has been found that to secure satisfactory results the speed of movement must be restricted. In other words, the best polish is obtained by a predetermined speed of relative movement of the burnishing surface and the surface of the wire, and any increase in speed will be detrimental to the resulting polish. Consequently the output of a. polishing machine is limited to the amount of wire that can be fed in a given time interval at this predetermined speed.

It is the object of the present invention to increase the output of the polishing machine by a construction which permits of feeding of the wire at any desired speed. At the same time it is an object to secure the highest and most satisfactory polish. These objects have been attained by the substitution of traveling polishing or burnishing surfaces for the stationary surface of the usual polishing die and the invention consists in the novel means employed for this purpose as hereinafter set forth.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved polishing machine;

Figure 2 is a plan view thereof;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the polishing rolls;

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross section substantially on line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a. longitudinal section on line 55 of Figure 2.

As previously stated, my improved machine consists essentially in a construction where traveling polishing surfaces are substituted for a stationary polishing member, thereby permitting an increase in the rate of feed of the wire through the machine. Such traveling polishers may be formed by rolls rotating in contact with the surface of the wire but at a differential surface speed, this differential being so calculated as to secure the best polishing effect.

In detail, A is a suitable frame for the mounting of the mechanism, B is a reel from which the wire to be polished is fed over an idler guiding roll C to a propelling feed roll D and finally to a receiving reel E. Intermediate the rolls C and D is arranged the polishing mechanism which as shown is of the following construction:

The polishing members are in the form of grooved rolls F arranged in pairs on opposite sides of the wire and provided with means for yieldably pressing against the surface at a suitable pressure. Preferably there are two pairs of rolls F and F having their axes arranged in transverse planes so that the center of the polishing surfaces of one pair will be ninety degrees from the center of the polishing surfaces of the other pair. This will insure polishing completely around the circumference of the wire. The polishing rolls are driven in timed relation to the driving wheel D which feeds the wire by '7. mechanism of the following construction: G is a motor or other source of power from which motion is transmitted through the belt H and pulley I on the shaft I and thence through a. pulley I and belt J to a pulley K which is on the shaft L for one of the rolls F of the pair F. The companion roll in the pair F is driven from the shaft L through intermeshing gears M and M. There is also a driving connection between the shaft L and a shaft N extending longitudinally of the frame, this being through the medium of spiral gears O, 0. On the shaft N is mounted a spiral gear wheel N which through an intermeshing spiral gear (not shown) drives the shaft N of one of the rolls F of the pair F while the other roll of the pair is driven therefrom by intermeshing gears similar to the gears M and M. Thus all of the rolls F are driven at the same peripheral speed.

The shaft N also forms the driving means for the feed roller D, which latter is on a shaft D having also mounted thereon a. gear wheel D preferably arranged within the peripheral flange of the pulley D. Intermediate the shaft N and the gear wheel D is a change gear mechanism comprising the exchangeable pinion P journaled on a swinging link Q and driven by the intermeshing gears R, R. The gear R is driven by beveled gears S from the shaft N and thus peripheral speeds of the drum D may be made with any desired differential in relation to the peripheral speed of the rolls F. The periphery of the drum or pulley D is grooved and the wire is Wound there-around with one or more convolutions before passing to the reel E. This reel is non-positively driven by any suitable means (not shown) at a rate sulficiently higher than that of the pulley D so as to always take up any slack in the wire. Consequently the friction of the wire on the drum D will be sufficient to positively drive the wire at the same peripheral speed as that of the drum. To place the desired pressure on the wire by the burnishing surfaces of the rolls F, one roll of each pair is journaled in a swinging arm S and a spring T yieldably presses this arm in a direction to force the roll towards its companion roll.

With the construction as described in operation after the wire is engaged with the machine and passes around the feed drum D the rotary motion of said drum will advance the wire at a rate determined by the selected change gear. This change gear also determines the relative rates of travel of the drum D and the burnishing rolls F so that without regard to how fast the drum D is rotating and the wire is fed, the burnisher acting on its surface will always have the desired differential speed. This will produce the best polishing effect while permitting the machine to feed the wire at a very high rate.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. An apparatus for polishing wire comprising means for feeding the wire, a pair of grooved burnishing rolls for embracing the-wire and driving means for feeding the wire and rotating said rolls at a predetermined differential surface speed.

2. An apparatus for polishing wire comprising means for feeding the wire, a plurality of pairs of grooved burnishing rolls embracing said wire and rotating in different planes and means for driving said wire feeding means and said rolls at a predetermined diiferential surface speed.

3. A machine for polishing wire comprising a reel from which the wire is fed, a feeding roll or drum around which the wire is wrapped, a receiving reel for the wire delivered by said feeding roll, a plurality of pairs of grooved burnishing rolls embracing the wire and arranged in different radial planes with respect thereto, and means for driving said feeding roll and polishing rolls at a predetermined differential surface speed.

4. A machine for polishing wire comprising a reel from which the wire is fed, a feeding roll around which the Wire is wrapped, a receiving roll for the wire delivered from said feed roll, a plurality of pairs of grooved burnishing rolls embracing the wire intermediate said delivery reel and feeding roll and arranged in different radial planes, a driving mechanism for rotating all of said rolls at a predetermined peripheral speed, a transmission between said roll driving mechanism and said feed roll and a change gear in said transmission mechanism for determining the differential surface speed of said polishing rolls and said feed roll.

JOSEPH H. HUNTER.

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