US2332445A - Machine for cutting and placing sheet material - Google Patents

Description

oct. 19,l 1943. F. 116mm y 2,332,445

MACHINE Non CUTTING AND PLACING lSHEET MATERIAL Filed Feb; 19, 1942 2 snets-sheet 1 F. D. GRIM- Oct. 19, 1943.

MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND ILCING SHEET MATERIAL Filed Feb. 19, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR. 017251Z 12 (zum BY Patented Oct. 19, 1943 momma 2.332.445 Foa CUTTING AND PLAING SHEET MATERIAL` n Y Forrest D.` Grim;y llentownQmPas assigner tort' l TroJan Powder Company, acorporationof New c claims. clim- 39), j@

' This invention relates to -a machine for cutting and placing sheet Amaterialy vand Ypartit'sul'arlyY 'to amachine for cutting thin paper andplacig the cutout pieces over a holerin a receiving'member.`

The machine is particularlyusefulfin-forming and *placing*v discs of thin paperoverthe opening inthe base of the detonatonmagazine-of'Oerlikon antiaircraft shell. Forfthis; reason* the inven- `described in connection with. suchusel f tion will iirst be The detona'tormagazine` is a part of the nose `vpieceoi the shell. That magazinecarries a booster charge thattransmits, to the -main explosive charge in the shell the-explosion initiated `by a contact-sensitive cap disposed in-the forward end of the nose and justin advance'bi the det- Aonator ymagazine. `The detonator magazine 'is cup shaped and is provided Witha centralhole through Vits base. i'

It'has been found desirable to place a double thickness of thin paper suitably about-0.003 inch thick, inside the base of the detonatorV magazine so that the paper extends in double thickness across the'said hole. f Y v In cuttingand introducing these double thick- ,nesses .of thin paper into themagazines at the rate of` many thousands a day, a number of problems have been encountered. In the first place,

.there is an objectionable tendency forthe one of the resulting discs that'is adjacent tothe' cuttingpunch, to cling .to the punch, instead of falling awayv asthe. cutting punch is iinally raised.

Furthermore, there is the diiculty duev to the *tendency .ofthe discs, as they are cut and allowed .to fall away, to settle in an inclined position and not level `inthe. detonator. magazine, this tendency beingn aggravated byu-any incompleteness of shearing vof the discs .f rorntheoriginal sheet material. at any point... y

The present invention provides a machine Which cuts the discs. cleanly, eliminates objectionable adherence of any disc to the cutting punch as the latter is raised,y andplaces the rdiscs .Yiiatwis'e and regularly in the base of the d et- .y yonator magazine or upon *otherv receiving mem- A. Brieflystat'ed, the invention comprisesI the herein described machine comprising thecombilnation of means for cuttingpieces of thin streets of paper or the like, including. a cutting punch,

and means for holding the "cut outpieces of paper n flat-Wise and'genera'llyl'in 'a planee'xtending the preferred embodiment; themeans for accoma `plishing' this latter purpose comprise a `movable support or plunger disposed-below the cutting 'dieand extending through 'the hele in the' lbase of the detonator magazine and `a;meclfianisiri `for I raising the said'plunger almostor approximately to the lovverievel of the paper being out and then rholdingthe cut out pieces of paper between the plunger and the punchy as the piecesare-low'- ered `toV the position -ofresting on the receiving member.'` the machine including other meansto raisenthecutting punch and lower the plunger, sothat each of these parts may then be moved away from the .receiving member, and .other means for then dischargingr the receivingmeme ber to .make room for anotherone that is to be supplied with the-paper. discs.' The invention comprisesvalso acutting punch for thin paper or- 'thelike having a concave cutting end and provided Witha vent for admitting airbetween the Vforward end of rthepunch and the sheet material ycut by the punch.

' In general the machine comprises the combination oiA `parts for feeding one or more thicknesses of paper through a die, a cutting punch co-acting with thel die for cutting 'discs or pieces `of other shape fromfthe said paper, a support for holdingthe detonator magazine or other receiving member below'the position. of cutting' of the paper, and means forlengaging-the cut pieces of paper between the said punch and a movable plunger sothat the cut pieces Vof paper may be maintained level between the said punch and lplunger and, while in this position, depositedv upon the saidreceiving member.V The machine includes also means for then moving the punch and plunger in different directions and away from the-level of the* said receiving member, so that the cut pieces of paper are left in horizontal relationship on thesaid receiving member.

The inventionwiu be illustrated in detail? by "description in connection with the drawingsmto which 'reference i's made. n

Fig. 1 is a horizontal-cross section on line'i-'I f cf Fig. 2.

transversely..with respect' to the direction of movement of the cutting punch until the pieces are laid in position onthe receiving member. In

lin cutting position. y l

Fig. 5 is a similar view showing thepunchin `13"sit0n at thel `end `of itsdown stroke Where it v Fig. 2A i's a vertical' 'cross section on line 2-2 of Fig.1.'j

' Fig. 3 is a vertical view partly in sec'tionjonr line 3 3 offrig. 2. Fig.4is an enlarged detailed vertical section df .the punch andl die assembly showing the punch places the cut out paper over the hole in the base of the detonator magazine.

In these figures there are shown a rigid base member I constituting a support for the machine and a stand I2 secured in any suitable manner to the base and extending' upwardly for supporting the main shaft I4.

This main shaft in turn carries cams I6, I8, 23, and 22.

Punch 24 has a face that is continuous from edge to edge, that is, solid except that it is y which moves a bar 64 carrying dog E8.

later.

Cam I6 operates the punch 24 for cutting pieces from the sheet material, that suitably isin the form of two tapes 28 and 2B of thin paper which are fed from rolls 30 and 32 respectively and pass over guide 34 and throughsuitable openings, to and through the die. upper part 36 and lower part 38 Vdefining therebetween a space for the passage of the paper. y

Cam I8 actuates a ratchet mechanism 4Q yof a conventional type with rubber rolls for drawing the vsheets of paper through the die, the paper as it passes through the ratchet being in the form of strips 42 from which the desired cut out discs have been removed, as will be described later.`

Cam actuates mechanism 44 for raising upwardly a plunger 46 so that, at the end of the movement of the plunger upwardly, the plunger comes approximately to the lower level` of the paper in the die. As the cam 20 rotates, the spring 48 maintains contact of the wheel 50 with the cam; the arm l52 and mechanism 44 are thus so moved that themechanism 44 after completing the upward movement of the plunger 45 lowers the plunger until it is in position shown in Fig. 5. In this cycle, the plunger has first moved upwardly into the die and the hole in the base of the detonator magazine and then returned to its original position below the paper receiving space in the die. i

At the time the plunger 45 is being lowered, the cam arrangement shown also forces the punch 24 downwardly through the die and into receiving member 54, in this case the detonator magazine, in which the cut out pieces of sheet material are deposited. The punch brings the out out pieces down approximately to the wall 55 of the hole in the receiving member. The punch is then raised and the receiving member moved out of position by angular movement of the wheel 58.

As shown, the cam 2D is `mounted near the center of the main shaft. It is fastened Atothe shaft by conventional means such as set screws (not shown). This cam through the roller 50 operates a push rod, the roller being held constantly against the face of the cam by the spring 48 disposed as shown and resting upon a part held at a fixed level with respect to the base I Il. At its lower end the push ro-d is connected to the cross beam 44 supported on a pivot pointl near the middle of the cross beam and at the other end `connected to the plunger 46. y

The cam I6 which actuates the punchr and the cam 20 at certain stages of rotation are out'of phase with each other, as shown in Figs. Zand 3, so that the plunger comes up from below against the sheets 26 and 28 that are to be cut and the punch 24 comes down upon the sheet and through the die from above. Then the plungerand'punch move downward more or less in unison and hold between them the cut out discs of the sheet material. When these discs have been deposited in the The die consists of an` `detail are conventional.

bottom of the receptacle 56 (see Fig. 4) then the mechanism causes the plunger to continue to move downward and the punch to move upward. This latter movement is caused by the springs 48 and 24 which move upwardly the rods 52 and the punch 24 as the main shaft I4 rotates and the pressure of the cams upon the rod 52 and punch 24'is released.

The feeding wheel 58 is rotated by cam 22 acting through arm 60 upon a bell crank arrangement 62 This doe.r engages a sprocket wheel 68 carried on the same shaft as the star wheel 58 and secured in fixed .relation to wheel 58. For each downward movement of the arm 6D, the ratchet Wheel is rotated counterclockwise through an angle corresponding to the width of one recess in the outer part of the starwheel.

The receiving members (detonator magazines) 54 which are to be provided with the out out pieces vof sheet'material are supplied one each to recesses in the star wheel 58, through feeding chute 1B. The receiving members slide down this inclined chute onto the base member I8 and are then fed into the recesses of the star wheel by means of a slowly rotated feeding brush 72 which at the position of contact with the receiving members is moving in the direction of the star wheel, so as to give a positive but mild pushing action upon the receiving members and force them one at a time into any recess available at the time. The brush is rotated by any Asuitable means such as shaft I4 with pulley 'I6 driven by the belt I8 engaging the pulley on the main shaft I4. The brush operates continuously and pushes a detonator magazine forwardly into the feeding wheel whenever a recess in that wheel is in position and empty, for receiving a magazine.

The base Iltis suitably provided with a recess 82 for the passage of rthe said receiving members 54 to the feeding brush 12. Also the base plate is suitably recessed, as at 84, to receive the star wheel as shown particularly in Fig. 2.

l In order to center the members 54 which'are to receive the out out pieces of sheet material, there is provided a wire spring 86 acting towards the center of the star wheel 58 so as to push each receiving member, as movement of the star wheel brings the member into contact with the spring, tightly against the inner portion of the recess in the star wheel, at the stage of rotation of the wheel atl which the receiving member is to be provided with the cut out pieces of sheet material. In this manner, the receiving members are centered and lined up with the punch and plunger, the mechanism being sov constructed that the plunger is adapted to be moved upwardly through the hole in member 54 and the punch down approximately to the upper level of the wall of the hole.

Another duct 88 vis provided in the base member I0 for discharge of the receiving members after they have been provided with the cut out pieces of sheet material. 'A guide member 90 on 'the said base directs the receiving members, from the position at which they were supplied with the cut out pieces of sheet material, into the discharge collecting Vmeans (not shown) Y Features that are not shown or described in Thus there are used a motor of usual type and belt acting upon the main drive pulley 94 and the shaft I4.

- member.

After thediscs of paper are laid over the aper, ture', in the base of the detonator magazine and the magazine-so provided with the paper discs'is discharged from the machine, then the Adetonator magazine is iilled Withexplosive in usual manner.

IThe machine makes possible the placing of the .paperdscs quickly, regularly, and smoothly over the openings in the base of the detonator magazine, vso that the explosivecharge onits side adjacent to the base is protected somewhat Aby rthe paper, all in accordance with speciiications for y this type Aof shell.

vIn place of` the detonator` magazine for the receiving members upon which thezpieces of thin out out material are to be placed." Thus, there These alternative members for receiving the cut 'pieces ofrpaper arenot shown as they are conventional.

In place of the paper there may be used` other thin sheet material, as for example, cheesecloth,

silk, thin Cellophane, and the like, although paper is used in the detonator magazine because of the v desiredrlceliavior4 of paper when the detonator charge is red. Convenience and operating advantages of importance are .obtained with the present machine whenever the material to be cut `out and placed is thin and vflexible, as distinguished from' cardboard or the like stiff material.

Materials of construction of the machine of the present invention are those that are usual for.

constructing parts for cutting machines. Thus, the machine may be made of brass, bronze, steel,

n or stainless steel,"except that the cutting punch kand die should be of "a material adapted to'retain a cutting edge under the conditions of use and the brush, belts, motor, and other parts zfor which allv metal construction'is notsatisfactory are of corl-y 40 ventional materialsy and construction. Feedingrolls maybe rubber or plastic faced. Using a machine of the kind described it has beenU found possible to place the desired discs-of thin paper in the detonator magazines of Oerlikon shells at the rate of approximately 2,000for more Oerlikon shell there may be used other apertured f i 4 may be used` a washer or a `cup shaped member'l provided with a hole through-the base of the said of the invention, and that variations within-the Spirit of the invention are intended to be included f l within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is: y Y

l. A machine for cutting pieces of thinsheet materialand placing the said piecesupon .aporf' y tion of a ,receiving member provided vwith ankv aperture extending through the saidportiomthe machine comprisingthe combination o a die, a

additional means iorraising the plunger until its uppermost'part extends through the said aperture and approximatelyto the undersideofthe sheet material in the die, for actuating the cutting punch causing thepunch to move downwardly A, i

' through the die `andapproximately to the upper two'rigid members operated by the cams and conthe two cams being out of phase soI as to cause the l an hour, the machine requiring only one orftwo operators. `Furthermore, the machine makes possible the control of the operation so that .twoY thicknesses, and onlytwo thicknesses of paper,

are introduced and arranged regularly sofi-.hatl

they lie .smoothly on the base of the detonator magazine.k Because of Hthe air vent 31 in thel i punch and the concaveface of the punch, there is .h

practically no difculty from adherence of even the thinnest paper discs to the face of the punch placingthe discsin the magazine. Because the vent 9'! is in direct communication with the atmosphere, the air within the vent is maintained at alltimesat approximately normal pressure.

Thewhole machine is motorfdriven with a belt adapted'to slip in case of overloading.

' All vparts of the `machine are 'so synchronized "that the' operations are performed automatically in the desired sequence.

It will be understoodvthat certain details given are for the purpose of illustration, not restriction` vas the punchis withdrawn from the position of `level of the part of the receiving member that'is to receive the cut out sheet material, meanwhile cutting the said material, for causing the said plunger te move downward just in advance of the punch and in proximity thereto, so that the cut out pieces of sheet material are'maintain'ed between the punch and plunger -in generallyhoril zontal position, and for then .moving theeaid plunger downwardly and the punch upwardly and both away from the level of the receiving member,

- after the sheet material is brought approximately to thefupper surface ofthe said part of the receiv- I ing member, so that the cut out pieces are deposited flatwise in desired yposition upon the receiving member and over the aperture therein, the said additional means including two cams and nectedl to said punch and plunger,. respectively,

mcvementsstated.'

2. A machine as described in claim 1, the icuttin-g punch being providedV with a vent admitting air at atmospheric pressure between the face of the punch'and the cut out piece of sheetmaterial, sofas to promote separation of the cut outpiece lfrom the punch as the punch is raised in the last i step of thecycle of operations described.

" "3. A machine for cutting thin sheet material i' comprising a cutting punch and means for moving the punch to the cutting. positionv and withdrawing the punch from said position, the punch having a forward cutting end that is continuous fromv edge to edge and isprovided with a small air vent v, extending from an inner part of the cutting end,

throughthe punch, and to the outside ofthe punch at a position behind the cutting end thereof and the vent being in direct communication with the atmosphere, `so that air within the'said ventisu maintained at a normal pressureI and so that there is eliminatedsuctionby the punch'upon the thin y, i sheet material as the punch is withdrawn from the "L vposition of cutting of the said material.

FoRREsT D. GRn/L f

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