US2260572A - Rhinestone attaching machine - Google Patents

Description

Filed Jan. 15, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Az/ /i fifi A. A. LA RUSSA EI'AL RHINESTONE ATTACHING MACHINE INVENTORS 1 M nd THEI R ATTORNEYS 4775022 A 1 620705542 George J hwell h f/fiam 156/162? BY PM,

Oct. 28, 1941;

Oct. 28, 1941. LA uss ETAL 2,260,572

RHINESTONE ATTACHING MACHINE Filed Jan. 13, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 M44," 26 Anzon/llafiuisa 4/ ,4; M 4/ Geagqe l final! hZZZzbmf fleZ/eri INVENTORS BY :OMJY/MMZQMA.

THEIR ATTORNEYS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Jan. 13, 1959 1 r 2 j E A Q a:

Y 3 1212}, 3%,WM;

- THE l R ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 28, 1941 RHINESTONE. ATTAOHING MACHINE Anton A. La Itus sa jand George J. Knell, Bronx,

and William J. Dellert, Mount Yer-non, N. Y.

Application January 13, 1939, Serial bio. 250,770 7 25 Claims.

This invention relates to machines for attaching decorative articles, such as gems or stones, and more particularly artificial stones such, for example, as rhinestones, to sheet material for the purpose of ornamentation orembroidery. It will be understood that the machine of the'invention may also be employed for attaching other decorative material or articles capable of attachment in a similar manner'to gems or stones, as, for instance, articles'made of wood, plastics, metal, etc., which may be in various colors, shapes and styles. The machine of the invention is an improvement over that described in U. S. Patent 1,994,250, granted March 12, 1935, to Frederick J. Meyers and Anton A. La" Russa.

In general, our improved machine applies each rhinestone or other brilliant or other decorative article to the sheet material or fabric by means of a mounting punched from a sheet, preferably of metal, and formed with a back portion having prongs which are forced through the fabricfrom the reverse side. The stone is then automatically placed within the prongs and they are -sub;s e-.

quently crimped or bent over the front'surface or facets" of the stone securing it tightly to the fabric. I i

It will be understood that in decorating dress fabrics, for example, with rhinestones applied in this manner, the stones are usually arranged in the form of some figure or design and that for a single gown it is necessary to apply a very large number of stories. In order to keep the cost of the gown within reason, it is necessary that these stones be quickly, neatly and uniformly mounted upon the fabric, and it is, of course, important that they be firmly secured so that they will 'remain in place during the ordinary wear'of the garment. Y

The several advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification, but briefly they include more rapid and reliable operation resulting from improvements in the mechanism for handling the individual stones to place them in proper position for the crimping operation, to improvements in selecting the individual stones from the supply heap, and also improvementsin the mechanism for forming the .mountings and for performing the crimping, the stones being .secured firmly and tightly, regardless of the nature and thickness of the sheet material or fabric to which the stones are attached. I

A preferred embodiment of this invention is illustrated in the drawings, but it is tobe under- (ores-510) stood hat the disclosure'in these drawings and in the following description is illustrative only, and that the scope of the invention is limited only by the appended claims.

' Referring .to the drawings:

Fig. 1" is a side" elevationalview of the machine taken part1y.;inl section along broken line.I-l. of Fig-2; .1 I

"Fig 2 isa bottom view of-the machine;

. Fig. 3 is a sectionaliview taken along line 3-3 of Figyl; a

- Fig; 4 showsin detailjthe head portion of the machineillustrated generally in Fig. ,1;-

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken alongline 5-5 of Fig. 4;.

' Fig. 6 is a view looking. into the empty stone hopper; I

Fig. '7 is a sectional view of the foot portion taken'along line 1+1 of Fig. 1; 1

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 88 of Fig. 10, showing cam mechanism of the foot portion-i ii a Figj'9 is a sectional view of the foot portion taken'along line 9-9 of Fig. 8;

l I Fig. 10 is asectional view taken along the broken lines I 0-10 of Figs. 8 and 9;

Figs. 11, 12,14 and 16 are sectionalviews or the foot portion'showing four successive steps in the operation offastening a stoneto fabric,

Fig. 14 showing the stone mounting in a section taken alongth'e line I l-l4 of Fig. 1 5; v

Fig. '13 is a pl 'n View of a fragment of the metal strip from which stone mountings are punched,

showing one mounting partially severed from the Fig. 15 isa planview of themetal stripof Fig.

13 with the stone in place onthe fabric previous tothe crimping operation; I

Fig. 17 isa sectional view of the stone in position over the anvil previous to the locking operation: p

r Fig. 18 is a sectional view ,of the locking operation;..

. Fig. 19 is a plan view of our improved mount- Figs. ZO-and 21 are front-and rear views, respectively, of a fragment of fabric on which a stonehas been mountedby the machine of our invention;- I -Fig. 22- is an enlargedsectional side view of a stonemounted onfabricya Fig. 23 shows one form :of stone-holding and crimping tool; a

Fig. 24 shows an alternative-form of. stonev the instant the hammer is released;

holding and crimping tool incorporating an in place in holes 64 while the false bottom ro-- tates. A vacuum duct 33, part of which may be flexible, interconnects stone-carrying tip I9 and suction pump 34. The suction pump is actuated by cam or eccentric 9.

The foot portion of the machine is below the head portion and includes mechanism which cooperates with that included in the head. The

mechanism in the foot portion is illustrated in various detail in Figs. 8-18, inclusive. I

Referring first to Figs. 7-10, there is illustrated v a cover-plate 35 screwed to frame I. Th upper surface of this cover-plate is smooth and suitably right-hand corner. These three..portionsare secured to a horizontal U-shaped frame I Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, ..-theinachine is 1 the center part of the cover-plate is a punch 31 driven through a power sourcewhich is here illustrated as a pulley 2 driven -by,belt=3,,operating a one-revolution clutch 5 through a reduction This type of clutch, which is'a well drive 4. I known'device, drives the machine through one complete cycle at each operation. of clutch control 6. 'It is'usually convenient to'couple this control with a floor pedal allowing the machine to be controlled by the operators foot, leaving 3 the hands free to manipulate the' fabric upon which th' stones are being mounted.

Theoutput side of clutch 5 drives a rota'ting shaft I and on this shaft are mounted'a, cylindrical cam'B and-"a radial cam or eccentric 9.

.The follower ID of the cylindrical cam is con-, nected'thr'ough a pivoted driving link H to reciprocating r'o'd l Zwto which it imparts areciprocating motion controlled by the shape of cam 8. 'At

35 pinion-l4 to drive the mechanism in the/head the end of rod l2'is a rack l3 which meshes with portion of the machine.

. The mechanism in the .head portion includes a stone-carrying andicrimping'tool l5 comprising a shaft I6 mounted'near one endtoslide or reciprocate in'a sleeve I1 pivoted to the frame at l8.

Shaft I6 preferably should be formed with a key- 1 way or at least one fiat surfaceto prevent it from 1 rotating about its. own. axis. -The1shaft'in the w 145 At the'other end of; shaft 5 isa stone-carrying 1 tip I 9 which also performs-the functionof a illustrated example is of square cross-section.

crimping tool later to be described: a a

. The stone-carrying and crimping tool is actui ated by a link Zllsecuredat one end to pinion l4 and bifurcated at the'other end to spanwa roller- 1 22 which is the follower of .a face cam.23 secured to the frame I. -Pin 2| servesas an axlefor -f roller.22. The axis ofpinion l4 isat thecenter i of part, of the curve of cam'23. It Will be. seen that as pinion l4 revolves, the stone-carrying tip l6Hfollows a path of which 3 in Fig. I is about mid-way.v

.Fastened to the head portion of frame II is a 1 stone hopper 24 havingjan j inclined bottom '25 curved to allow the fabric to which the stones are being, fastened. to slide easily upon it. Beneath aperture therethrough is an anvil 38, the func- 1 tion ofwhich will be described later- Punch-j31 I is reciprocated vertically through the die'b'ysa face caml39, which when rotated by shaft. 1;

coacts with roller. 40. on the post 43 which supports punch 31. Post 43, which is of circular cross-section, slides vertically within the cylindrical bore of a square column 44. Thisvcolumn supports on its upper end ,die 36 and fits} into a bed-piece 45 to whichrollers42 are pinned. Bed-piece 45 is. supported in casing 46 which is secured to frame I. Between one side of bedplate 45 and square'column 44 isa fillerblock 68 (Fig. '9) of athickness slightly greater than the length of roller40. This filler block may be withdrawn by means of a notch. out near the top thereof, allowing the square "column tomove back; releasing'roller 40 from thegroovepf cam 3.9'and thereby permitting the removal of post punch 31 are arranged to be reciprocatedhorizontally as a unit, in casing 46, by the rotation of cam 4l' which cjoacts with rollers '42.. The

exterior surface of'cam 4| :is inefiect the periph ery of-face cam 39. The horizontal distance over whichlthe die and punch are reciprocated-is represented at D in Fig. 10 as the distance between the centers of the die 36 and anvil 38.

Referring to Fig. '7, there is shown a guidepiece 69 secured to frame I, the upper surface of the guide-piece conforming to the surface of the cover-plate. Through guide-piece 69 a. slot extends approximately parallel with the upper surface, and a corresponding slot-extends horitheposition shown 1 and a false bottom 26 pivoted at the center.; The

a ratchet 28 and side 21 of the hopper is, inthe illustrated'examj ple, cylindrical. The false bottom 26 of the hop 3 per,haying a circular row of equally spaced holes 1 64 near its-periphery, is slowly" rotated in inter; 5 mittent motion by'means of pawl 29 are shown in Fig; 5;, The pawl is moved byprank 30 coupled by a ball andsocket joint '3! to conncting'link 32 1 link is, in turn, pivoted to reciprocating rod: l2

] whichjactuates it. A nae brush 6 5 (Figs. 1,4 and 1 6) -is secured around part of the inside wall 2! 1 of the hopper andarranged sothat the ends of its lbristles normallytouch the surface offalse botv iItOm 26. This brush serves to retain th stones 75 This connecting l9 enters at a position where a zontally through die 3B and communicates'with a suitable space; on the-opposite side of the die beneath the cover-plate and thence beneath and away from the frame.v Through this slot and spacea strip or ribbon 43', preferably of metal, is caused to travel in a direction from'left to right, as Fig. 7 is viewed, by virtue of the reciprocation' of the die above mentioned. It is under;- stood that the ribbon isfed from a-spool or. reel (not? shown) suitablysupported in or near the machine. From this ribbon are punched the mountings 49'.(Figs.:13 and 19-21) by which the stones are: secured to the fabric. Ribbon 48 is constrained by clutch 50' to move through slot 41; as Fig. 7.is viewed, only in the directioniindicated by the arrows. a

The 'operation'of our machine is as follows: f Starting at the position shown in Fig. 1 the stone-carrying and crimping tool l5 first swings toward hopper 24 into which stone-carrying tip single stone is deliveredright side up (see Fig. 4.). By means of suitable suction through vacuum duct 33 the stone is held in tip I9 while tool I swings back to a position in alignment with die 36. 1 Y

Meanwhile, punch 31 passes upwardly through die 36 punching out of ribbon 48 a metal mounting 49, as shown successively in Figs. 11 and 12. At this stage stone-holding tip I9 approaches the moving punch vertically, as shown in Fig, 12. Punch 31 continues its upward movement forcing the prongs 53 of the mounting 49 through fabric 5I from the reverse side, as shown in Fig. 14; As stone-holding tip l9 and punch 31 continue to approach each other somewhat closer, as shown in Fig. 16, the tips of the prongs 53 are bent slightly over the surface or facets of the stone at the girdle by reason of the shape and angle of the inner surface of tip I9. The slots, or guideways I9a (Fig. 17) in the crimping surface of tip 19, which though preferred are not absolutely necessary, serve to guide the tips of the prongs in the direction of the center of the table of the stone, so that when the final crimping, or looking, operation is completed, as about to be described, the prongs of the setting will be straight and true. As a result-of this preliminary crimping or setting operation, the tips of prongs 53 are bent inward sufficiently to cause the stone, settingand fabric to be held compactly together and also to prevent the stripping of the setting from the fabric upon the removal of the support from beneath the setting by the withdrawal of punch 31.

The preliminary crimping is accomplished by the partial descent of crimping tool I5 carrying the tip I 9 which is controlled by the shape of cam 8 (Figs. 1, 2 and 26). As will be described later, this cam is so shaped that the crimping tool descends further during the final crimping, or looking, operation than it does during the pre liminary crimping operation.

The final crimping, or looking, operation contemplated by our invention to complete the attachment of the stone and mounting to the fabric is as follows: After the completion of the preliminary crimping operation illustrated in Fig. 16, crimping tool I5, including tip I9, is reciprocated upwardly a short distance, as indicated in Fig. 17, and punch 31. is reciprocated downwardly below the top of the die. "Then the unit comprising die 36, punch 31 and anvil 3B is reciprocated horizontally in the direction of the horizontal arrow in Fig. 17, bringing anvil 38 into alignment with tip l9 of the crimping tool. The crimping tool then again descends, forcing mounting 49 against the upper surfaceof anvil 38 and crimping the prongs 53 of the mounting firmly against the stone, as shown in Fig. 18.

During both the preliminary crimping operation and the final crimping, or locking, operation, the pressure of tip I9 against prongs 53 and the stone is limited and cushioned to a predetermined extent by the inclusion of a cushioning spring 54 within the shaft of the crimping tool I5, as shown in-Fig. 23. The construction is believed to be plain from the drawings, inwhich it is seen that spring ,54 is compressed as the plunger 55 slides inside the hollow end of tool I5.

Crimping tip I9, which preferably screws onto the end of the plunger 55 for ready replacement, contains a bore communicating with the conical inner surface of the tip, which forms a seat for the stone, and with a central bore in plunger 55 which, in turn, communicates with vacuum duct 33, so that the required stone-holding suction may be applied at tip I9.

The preliminary crimping operation may be sufiicient to effect a firm fastening'of the stone in the'mounting, especially if the fabric to which the stone is secured is of thin and soft material. However, if the fabric is thick or resilient, or if the metalof which the mountings are made is stiff, the two step crimping operation, which includes the locking operation above described immediately following thepreliminary crimping operation, results in securely mounting the stone upon the fabric.

Under some conditions, a modified form of crimping tool'- may be employed, as shown in Fig. 24. This crimping tool 'is similar to that illustrated in Fig-23, but includes theadded feature of a' spring hammer 'which, for example, may utilize .the principle-employed in the well-known automaticbenter punch. Tothis end, the upper portion I6. of; the shaft of the tool is bored out to .receivea hammer-spring 56 which is adjustably retainedbya screw plug 51. Below spring 56. isa hammer 58. Secured to plunger is a stem 59 having a "shoulder 60 near the upper end thereof. Between this shoulder and the face of hammer 58'is a'releasing pin 6|, normally pressed to one side byleaf spring 62 (see also Fig. 25) in a locked position. p-

When tip I9 is pressed-upwardly plunger 55 slides withinzthe tool [5 compressing spring 54, as previously describedin connection with Fig. 23, and simultaneously compresses spring 56 by virtue of the pressure of shou1der60 against pin M which in' turn presses upwardly on theface ofhammer, 58. When plunger .55 is moved upwardly a sufficientdistance the rounded end of pin 6I- wilt-have reached position'63 where the diameter 10f; the bore decreases. The pressure of the inside of the bore against the 'end of pin 6| will then move the pin horizontally against leaf spring 62 releasing shoulder .60 and allowing hammer 58 to fall under the pressure of the compressed; spring v56. vThe hammer then strikes a blow againstthe' end of stem. 59 which blow is transmittedvto tipl9 of the crimping/tool then in contact with the prongs of the mounting supported, in turn, on the anvil 38. A sharp blow of,-.this natureresults in a very tight fastening ofthe stone-to the fabric Fig. -25 is an enlargeddrawing of a part of the spring-hammer mechanism shown in Fig.2! and illustrates the positions occupied by the several parts at the. instant the hammer is released and before it has delivered its blow to the .end of stem 59. 1

-The operation of the stone hopper is as follows:

Referringto Figs. 1, 4, 5 and 6, as rod I2 re.- ciprocates,-its motion is transmitted through ball-and-socket joint'3l to crank 30, rotating ratchet 28 through the medium of pawl 29 (Fig. 5). The ratchet and pawl are mounted above bottom 25 of the" hopper and beneath the false bottom-26. 'Link 32, lever. 30 and the teeth of ratchet 28 are so designed and adjusted that a complete-excursion of reciprocating rod I2 rotates false bottom 26 an angular distance equal tothat between the-centers of holes 64 and 649., as shown in Fig. 6. As the disc rotates in the direction of the arrow shownin Fig, 6, some of the individual stones in the pile or mass 66 (Fig. 4) are tumbled about and by gravity a stone will fall right-side up in eachof holes 64., These holes are ofsuch size and shape that the stone win be retained only if t is right-side u C'onsequently, ifthe size'or shape of the sto nes to be true, of course, of tip 19 of the carrying and crimping tool. l5 and of the punch 31 and die 36,

all of which are removable for ready replace-- ment.) As disc 2,6 rotates in aclockwise 'direction (looking into the top of the hopper), the holes in which the "stones are conveyed are moved upwardly above the surface of the mass until they come beneath retaining means 65, which, for example, may comprises. fiat brush-secured around the side of the hopper so that the free ends? of its bristles presslightly againstthe stones in place in theholes. To accomplish this the bristles must usually belong enough to .brush againstthe face of the disc. The brush 65 is also useful to remove from a hole any stone which by'accident has been retained wrong side up. As a given stone continues to move around on the periphery of the disc it approaches position 61 of Fig. 6' which: is the point at which stone-carrying tip IQ of tool I 5 descends to pick up a stone. It will be observed that at position 61 theside 21 of the hopper has been cut out to form a recess allowing tip: I9 hopper and seize a stone.

Fig. 26 is a layout or development ofthe cylindrical cam 8 shown .in Figs. 1 and-2. Point Z pass into the represents approximately the. position shown in Fig. 2 of the follower I0 in the cam. The exact shape of this cam, and the'shapes of the other cams. above described, can readily be predetermined by one skilled inthe art, in View of the required operations hereinaboveexplained. It

may be noted, however; that the positions indi-" cated by the arrows at X and at Y in 26 are respectively thepositions of the follower to eifect' the crimping operation and the locking operation. In the drawing, the distance between the arrowheads at Y and the arrowheads at X appear to be almost the same,- but actually the cam is cut so that during the locking operation the tip of the crimping tool descends further than it does for the preliminary crimping operation i a v As mentioned at the beginning of this specification, the machine ofour inventionmay be employed for attaching decorative articles other than'gems, 01' stones, and the; term "st'0ns as used in the appended claims is therefore intended to include other decorative articles capa ble of attachment in asimilar manner to gems, or stones. 7

"It will be understood that the above consti tutes an exemplifying disclosure of our improvements in stone setting machines, and that changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claim We claim:

1. Infia machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination-cf a die, a" punch coacting with said die to form a stone mounting and to push said mounting through said die to the surface thereof, and a stone-holder having a tip conforming to the surface of the stone with which it comes in contact, said tip comprising a crimping too], said tool being movable to and from said surface of the die and coacting with said punch-and die to force portions of said mounting through said material and crimp them over a stone.

2. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet materiaL'the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate'upwardly through said die and adapted to. cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carrysaid mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die; a crimping tool mounted for downward approach to said die, means including said crimping tool to pick up and deposit a stone, means causing the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in coaction with said die to set a stone in said mounting, and means forcing said crimping t-ool'against said mountingto crimp the prong portions thereof over the surface of said stone.

3. In a machine for attaching ornamental stonesto sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate vertically through said die and adapted to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting uponthe punch to the upper surface of the die, a crimping tool mounted for vertical approach to said die, suction means including said crimping tool to pick up and deposit a stone, means causing the approach of said punchand said crimping tool in :3 coaction'with said die to'set a stone in said mounting, and means forcing said crimping tool against said mounting to crimp the prong portions thereof overthe surface of said stone.

4. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to'sheet material, a'sto'ne-carrying tool having a tip shaped to fit a stone and mounted for downward approach to said sheet material, means for retaining a stone in said tip, means causing the prongs of 'a mounting to pierce said sheet material from the reverse side and'force said tip and stone into coaction with said mounting, and means combined with said tip to crimp said prongs against the surface of said stone,

5. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, a stone-carrying tool provided with atip adapted to fit astone, said tip' having guideways'shaped to guide and crimp the prongs of a mounting over the surface of said stone. I

6. In a machine for attaching, ornamental stones to sheet mater'ial, the combination of means for supporting a stone mounting in attachable relation to the sheet material, a crimping tool, mechanically actuated means .for causing the crimping tool to approach the mounting support to 'force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and crimp them upon a stone, means associated with the crimping'tool for picking up and carrying a stone, and ,means mechanism while the mounting is held therein to force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and crimp them upon a stone, and means for moving the crimping tool out of the line of approach to the mounting to pick up a stone prior to the coaction of the tool with the punch and die mechanism. v

8. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of means for supporting a stone mounting in attachable relation to the sheet material, a crimping tool, means for reciprocating the crimping tool into coaction with the mounting support to force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and crimp them upon a stone, means associated with the crimping tool for picking up and carrying a stone, and means for swinging the crimping tool out of its line of reciprocation to pick up a stone prior to its approach to the mounting support.

9. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of means for supporting a stone mounting in attachable relation to the sheet material, a crimping tool, mechanically actuated means for causing the crimping tool to approach the mounting support to force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and crimp them upon a stone, means associated with the crimping tool for picking up and carrying a stone, a stoneselecting mechanism for removing individual stones from a mass thereof, and means for moving the crimping tool into coaction with said stone-selecting mechanism to pick up a stone therefrom prior to the approach of the crimping tool to the mounting support.

10. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a support for the sheet material, a movable support for a stone mounting arranged to reciprocate with respect to the material support, a crimping tool arranged to reciprocate with respect to'the material support, means associated with the crimping tool for causing the same to pick up and carry a stone, means for actuating the tool to pick up a stone, and means for bringing said mounting support and crimping tool into coaction in cooperation with the material support to force the prongs of the stone mounting through the material and crimp them upon the stone.

11. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate upwardly through said die and adapted to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die, a crimping tool mounted for downward approach to said die, means including said crimping tool to pick up and deposit a stone, means causing the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in coaction with said die to place a stone in said mounting and forcing said crimping tool against said mounting to crimp the prong portions thereof over the surface of said stone, an anvil adjacent said die, means moving said die, punch and anvil as a unit horizontally beneath said sheet material to align said crimping tool and said anvil with the mounted stone therebetween, and hammer mechanism causing said crimping tool to strike a blow on said mounting against said anvil.

12. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate upwardly through said die and adapted to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die, a crimping tool mounted for downward approach to said die, means including said crimping tool to pick up and deposit a stone, means causing the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in coaction with said die to place a stone in said mounting and force said crimping tool against said mounting to crimp the prong portions thereof over the surface of said stone, an anvil adjacent said die,,means aligning said anvil and crimping tool with the mounted stone therebetween, and hammer mechanism causing said crimping tool to strike a blow on said mounting against said anvil, whereby said stone is locked in said mounting. I

13. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate upwardly through said die and adapted to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die, a crimping tool mounted for downward approach to'said die, means including said crimping tool to pick up and deposit a stone, means causing the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in coaction with said die to place a stone in said mounting and force said crimping tool against said mounting to bend the prong portions thereof over the surface of said stone, an anvil adjacent saiddie, means aligning said anvil and crimping tool with the, mounted stone therebetween, and means causing said crimping tool to force said mounting againstsaid anvil, whereby saidistone is lockedin said mounting.

14. In a machine for, attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, a crimping tool, and hammer-blow mechanism combined with said crimping tool. i

15. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die and punch mechanism for forming a stone mounting, means including said mechanism for supporting the mounting in attachable relation to the sheet material, a crimping tool, mechanically actuated means for causing the crimping tool to approach the supporting means while the mounting is held therein to force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and effeet a preliminary crimping of the prongs upon a stone, said die and punch mechanism including an anvil, means for shifting said mechanism to align the anvil and crimping tool, and means for causing the crimping tool and anvil to effect a final crimping of the mounting.

16. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die and punch mechanism for forming a stone mounting from sheet metal, means including said mechanism for supporting the mounting in attachable relation to the sheet material, a stonecarrying crimping tool, mechanically actuated means for causing the crimping tool to approach the supporting means while the mounting is held therein to force the prongs of the mounting through the sheet material and effect a preliminary crimping of the prongs upon a stone carried thereby, said die and punch mechanism including an anvil, means for shifting said mechanism to align the anvil and crimping tool, and means for causing the crimping tool and anvil to effect a final crimping of the mounting.

17. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate vertically through said die to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die, a crimping tool, mechanically actuated means for causing the crimping tool to approach the punch and die mechanism while the mounting is supported upon the punch to force the prongs thereof through the sheetmaterial and effect a preliminary crimping of the prongs over a stone, said punch and die mechanism including an anvil, means for shifting said mechanism laterally to bring the. anvil beneaththe crimping tool, and means for causing the crimping tool and anvil to effect a final crimping of the mounting. 1

18'. In a device for selecting and deliveringornamental stones or similar articles, a hopper having a delivery point-and an inclined'bottom and adapted to hold in itslower portion a mass of stones, said bottom comprising arotatabledisc having a circular row of equally spaced stonee carrying holes near its periphery, driving means rotating said disc intermittently a distance equal to the spacing between the centers of adjacent holes, and means attached to said hopper and extending over said row 'ofh01es for retaining the stones in said holes as said disc rotates conveying said stones to said delivery point.

19. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones or similar articles to sheet material, a hopper having an inclined bottom and adapted to hold a mass of stones'in its lower portion bounded by'a wall and said bottom, said bottom comprising a rotatable disc having a circular row of equally spaced stone-carrying holes near its periphery, driving means rotating said disc intermittently a distance equalto the spacing between the centers of adjacent holes, retaining means attached to said hopper and extending over said rowof holes for retaining the stones in said holes as said disc rotates conveying said stones to a" delivery position above the surface of said mass of stones, and astone holder movable in timedrelation to'said disc to carry a stone from said delivery position to its place of attachment to said material. 1

20. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate upwardly through said die and adapted to cut and form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and to carry said mounting upon the punch to the upper surface of the die, acrimping tool mounted for downward approach to said die, means including said crimping tool to pick up anddeposit a stone, and means causing the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in coacting' with said die to set a stone in said mounting. 1

.21. In a machine for attaching, ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of a die, a punch arranged to reciprocate upwardly through said die and adaptedto cut and, form from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong the approach of said punch and said crimping tool in'coaction with said die to set a stone in said mounting, and means forcing said crimping tool against said mounting to crimp the prong portions thereof over the surface of said stone.

22. In a device for selecting and. delivering ornamental stones or similar articles, a hopper having a delivery point and an inclined bottom and adapted to hold in its lower portion a mass of stones, said bottom comprising a rotatable disc having "a circular row of stone-carrying holes near its periphery, driving means rotating said disc, and means within said hopper and extending over said row of holes for retaining the-stones in said holes as said disc rotates conveying said stones to said delivery point. 5

-23..A combination according to claim 22 in which said retaining means comprises a brush extending along a portion of the inside Wall of said hopper with the free ends of its bristles touching said rotatable disc and stones conveyed in the holes therein.

24. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of mechanism for forming from sheet metal a stone mounting having prong portions and supporting the same with the prong portions in position to pierce the sheet material, a crimping tool mounted to approach said prong portions, means including said crimping tool to carry and apply a stone to said sheet material opposite said prong portions, and means causing the approach of said crimping tool toward the mounting so as to cause the prong portions to pierce the sheet materialaround the stone and to bend them over the surface thereof.

25. In a machine for attaching ornamental stones to sheet material, the combination of means for supporting a stone mounting with the prong portions thereof in position to pierce the

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