US2356133A - Method and apparatus for performing gauging and reproducing operations - Google Patents

Description

A g- 1944- L. E. M. VAN DEN Kl EBOOM 2,355,133

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING GAUGING AND. REPRODUCING OPERATIONS Filed April 21, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet l A TTOR/VZ' x Z 60/? EM Valrde/z X/bhu/li,

22, 1944- L. E. M. VAN DEN KIEBOOM 2,356,133

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING GAUGING AND REPRODUCING OPERATIONS Filed April 21, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 mm H N NK R wd r Patented Aug. 22, 1944 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORM- ING GAUGING AND REPRODUCING OPERA- TIONS Leon E. M. Van den Kieboom, Semeac, near Tarbes, France; vested in the Alien Property Custodian Application April 21, 1942, Serial No. 439,950 In- France April 15,1941

9 Claims.

The present invention relates to methods and apparatus of the kind used: for performing gauging and reproducing operations, that is to say for checking the shapes or at least the dimensions of existing-pieces or for reproducing these pieces inaccordance witha standard piece of a predetermined shape and. size.

The chief object of the present-invention is to provide a method and apparatus of the kind above mentioned Which is better adapted to meet the requirements of practice than those used for the same purpose up to the present time, espeoiallyv concerning the simplicity and-ease ofoperation and the accuracy to-obtain.

According to a :featureof the present invention, I make use of a plurality of elements carried "by a. common support and adjustable with respect thereto under accurately determined geometrical. conditions, preferably in suchmanner that all of these elements are displaced by the same amount every time an adjustment operation. is performed, the whole being devised in such manner as to constitute gauging or reproducing devices in: which the above mentioned elements, which can easily be changed, constitute touchsurfacesadapted to come into contact with the surfaces to be tested, thatis to say to be gauged or tobereproduced.

According to another feature of the present invention, in a method of thekind above referred to,.making use of a. plurality of elements adapted to come into. contact with the surfaces to be tested, I dispose these elements in suchmanner that they .can be distributed, at least at three points, over the inner or outer periphery of said surfaces.

According. to another feature of the present invention, concerning also a method of the kind above referredto in which -a plurality of elements, or touch parts, are used, in particular for testing. outer surfaces, such as screw threads, in order to perform the preliminary machining of the active surfaces of said elements, I fix them upon .a supportinangular positions corresponding exactly to the positions they are to occupy for the testing operation, but I turn them in such a manner as to. facilitate the machining, that is to say, in particular, in such manner that said surfaces to be machined are turned outwardly with respect to their support.

According to another feature of the present invention, concerning methods of the type-above mentioned making use of several elements or touch surfaces-at: least one of-which-is adjustable, in order .to transmit the movement tosaid element I have recourse to asliding displacement of plane surfaces inclined with respectto i the direction of the effort that istransmitt'ed.

According to still another'feature of the invention, concerning methods making use of touch surfaces, I arrange these surfaces in such manner that their body is located, in working. position, obliquely with respect to the longitudinal axis of the piece (such for instance as a screw) to be tested.

Other features of the present invention will result from the following detailed description of some specific embodiments thereof.

Preferred embodiments of thepresent invention will be hereinafter described'with reference to the accompanying drawings, given merely by way of example, and inwhich: I

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of 'adevice for carrying out the method according to the present invention for the testing of anexternal screwthread, this device itself being made according to the present invention;

Fig. 2is an axial sectionalvi'ew corresponding to Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view onthe line III-III of Fig. 2; e

Fig. 4. is a view, similar to Fig. 1, of a device according to the present invention and adapted to be used for the testing of internal screwthreads;

Fig. 5 is an elevational view showing an arrangement according to the invention to be'used for the machining of elements such as those used as touch parts in the devicesof Figs; 1- to4 Fig. 6 isa side view corresponding toFi'g; 5;

Fig. 7 isa view, partly in el'evation' and partly in axial section, of adevice of the kind of that of Figs; 1 to 3 made according toanother embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 8 is a partial view'showing, in axial section, a deviceof'the same kind-as that of Fi 7, for the gauging of internal surfaces, such as bores;

Fig. 9 isa diagrammatic elevationalview'of a device according to-theinvention for thegauging of pieces of irregular section.

In the following description, it will besupposed that it is-desiredto proceed tothe gauging of the inner or outer surfaces of pieces of regular or irregular shape.

First it should be reminded-that the problem of gauging. pieces leads to'certain difficulties which, up-to the'present time, have not been solved inasatisfactor-y manner, especially inthe case of outer surfaces, such as screw threads, to be ed.

For instance, considering first this application of the invention taken by way of example, it is known to make use of ring-shaped gauges which are constituted, as a rule, by tempered steel nuts the screw threads of which should be as close as possible to the theoretical screw-thread. Now,

especially in the case of small diameters, it has 7 been found impossible efficiently to check the finish of this internal screw thread, because the latter cannot be brought into a position in which it can adequately be seen by the observers eye.

On the other hand, it has been proposed, especially to replace said rings, to have recourse to touch parts carried by a support, one of said parts being adjustable. But such apparatus do not permit of obtaining a sufficient accuracy. Furthermore, the touch parts are not easily interchangeable.

In' order to obviate these various drawbacks, according to the present invention, I have recourse, in order to test a1 kinds of surfaces, to a plurality of elements carried by a common support in an adjustable and interchangeable manner, under geometrical conditions which are defined in a very accurate manner, the whole being preferably devised in such manner that said elements can, in testing position, come into contact with the surfaces to be tested at a certain number of points (at least three) regularly distributed along a section of said surfaces.

For instance, if it is supposed that the surfaces to be gauged are externalcylindrical surfaces, that is to say, for example, either smooth surfaces,- such as those of shafts or spindles, or threaded surfaces such as that of a screw, I have found that it is advantageous, for carrying out the method according to the invention, to have recourse to a device such as will be hereinafter described with reference tov the drawings.

This device essentially comprises a ring I (Figs. 1 to 4), or any other support of the same kind, made of a metal sufficiently hard and provided with at least three housing 2, for instance identical. These housings are made with the highest desirable accuracy both concerning their respective dimensions and their relative positions on the metal ring.

For instance, as shown by the drawings, these housings are radially disposed and equidistant from one another, that is to say at 120 from one another.

Elements or touch parts are then mounted in said housings, consisting for instance of steel cylindrical blocks 3 fitting closely in said housings. These part 3 might also be made of prismatic shape, but the cylindrical shape has been found to be more advantageous because itpermits eventually of adjusting the angular position of parts 3 about theirrespective axes. Parts3 have been previously provided by machining with testing or gauging surfaces I3, which will be, for instance, in the form of screw threads if it is desired togauge a screw, or of smooth shape if it is desired to check smooth surfaces such as shaftsor spindles, or other parts having smooth surfaces,

The device according to the invention further includes means for performing the adjustment of said parts 3 according to the dimensions of the parts to be checked. 7

Concerning the last mentioned means, I may, according to a first embodiment of the invention which corresponds to the simplest method, make them in such manner that the touch parts are individually adjustable.

According to one of the many possible oonstructions which may be used for this purpose, said means are made as follows:

Each element 3 is subjected to the action of a screw 4 adapted to be more or less screwed in ring I or in a part carried by said ring, for instance an outer ring 9.

Furthermore means are provided for the look-- ing of elements 3 in their position of adjustment. In the example illustrated by the drawings, these means consist of pins 5 adapted tobe laterally applied against elements 3 by means of screws 6, said pins being introduced into the mass of ring I through housings 1 when the parts are assembled and being provided with grooves 8 adapted to fit on the outer surface of elements 3, which are supposed to be cylindrical.

In this way, I obtain, according to the construction illustrated by Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive, a device which works as follows:

' Supposing for instance that it is desired to gauge threaded rods which are to have a given diameter and pitch, I make use of a ring I of the type above described and of touch parts provided with threads of said pitch. I first loosen the locking means 5 above described. Then I engage the whole on a threaded piece constituting the model. The touch parts are then pressed against the threads of this model piece. Said touch parts take by themselves the proper inclination, especially when their body is of cylindrical shape. Then the whole is locked in the position thus occupied. The ring is then ready to be utilized for gauging purposes in the same manner as the usual threaded rings used for gauging purposes.

If it is desired, as it isthe case in practice, to have a certain tolerance, corresponding to two different diameters, to with the maximum and the minimum, it'is of course easy to make use of two rin s previously adjusted on two model pieces having these respective diameters.

It will be readily understood that such rings have considerable advantages among which the following may be cited:

a. They are easy to adjust, and therefore the same ring can be utilized at will for all the diameters of a given range of diameters;

b. It is possible to extend their application to the gauging of pieces of any shape whatever, such for instance as cams as shown at [0 in Fig. 9;

c. The touch parts such as 3 can be interchanged;

d. It is possible to machine the testing surfaces as accurately as it may be desired.

Concerning this last mentioned characteristic, it has been explained above that, in existing threaded rings, it was very dificult very accurately to machine the inner testing surfaces of these rings. On the contrary, with the method according to the present invention, this difficulty is avoided since these surfaces are carried by removable parts;

It is then advantageous to have recourse, for this machining operation, to another feature of the invention according to which the touch parts are fitted, during this operation,,upon a suitable support in angular positions corresponding exact- 1y to the positions they are to occupy during the gauging operation, but by turning them in such manner as to facilitate the machining, that is to say in particular in such manner that the surfaces to be maChined are, turned outwardly.

For instance, supposing that it is desired to make rings for the checking of external threads,

the support for the machining operation is constituted by a mandrel such as II (Figs. and 6) provided at the periphery thereof with a plurality of housings I2 which are perfectly alined and equidistant, in which the elements 3 intended to constitute the touch parts are fitted with the maximum accuracy.

After these parts 3 have been fitted in position, the system is ready for the machining of the portions I3 of said parts so as to form screw threads thereon, after which the threads thus obtained are duly checked. The touch parts are then detached from the support and they are then mounted, in inverse position, on a ring such as shown at I.

Of course it is advantageous, for large scale production, to fit on mandrel H the greatest possible number of elements to be machined, this number being a multiple of that of the touch parts to be mounted on ring I. It sufiices suitably to number these elements so as to be able, after their machining, to distinguish those to be fitted on the same ring.

If the mandrel is, for instance, capable of supporting six touch parts, said parts will serve to fit two rings, each set corresponding to a ring including parts mounted at 120 from one another. For instance, the parts of the first set will be rziumbered I, 3, 5, and those of the second set When the numbering order is the same as that in which the threading has been performed, the threads reproduced after the mounting of the parts on ring I (in the direction opposed to their direction on the mandrel I I) are in the same direction, while they are in the opposed direction if the numbering order has been modified (right pitch and left pitch).

Of course, the same method of machining can also be utilized for the preparation of touch parts with external testing surfaces, for the gauging of inner threaded parts, bores, etc.

The gauging device according to the invention may further include, in this case (Fig. 4) with a ring such as I (or any equivalent part), a suitable support for said ring adapted tobe easily held in the :hand, for instance a handle I4 (Fig. 8) such as provided in plug gauges.

In the various. examples of devices according to the invention which have been above described, with reference to Figs. 1 to 4, the touch parts are individually adjustable on their support such as I.

But it is very advantageous to have recourse to another feature of the invention according to which the adjustment means are made in such manner that they permit, for each adjustment operation, of giving the touch parts displacements which are exactly identical and preferably simultaneous.

Such a construction permits not only of accelerating the adjustment operations but also of increasing the accuracy thereof. In particular, it will be understood that the various surfaces limited by the testing surfaces of the gauging device in their various adjustment positions will be geometrically and accurately similar. This will be the case, in particular, of surfaces such as a and b (Figs. 1 and 4) corresponding to the maximum and minimum dimensions admissible for the piece to be tested.

In order to carry out this construction, I may make use of any suitable kinematic means, in-

'cluding for instance levers, cams, etc., but it should be well understood that it is advantageousto proceed in such manner that the adjustment and then the locking in the desired position can be automatically obtained as a result of the displacement of the supporting piece such as I, or of any other part annexed thereto and which is readily accessible.

Figs. '7 and 8 disclose embodiments of such kinematic means, according to which I make use of parts adapted to slide on one another along plane surfaces, which ensures a high accuracy in the guiding of said parts.

Furthermore, in the embodiments illustrated by these views, according to another feature of the present invention, the test surfaces are formed on pieces 3 which are disposed obliquely with respect to the axis of the surface to be tested. Owing to such an arrangement, it is possible to render it particularly easy to have access to the surfaces to be tested when the latter are provided with shoulders (for instance, in the caseof bolts, access to the threaded portion adjoining the head of said nuts.

According to these embodiments, and supposing that it is desired for instance to obtain a device of the kind of gauging rings, this device is made as follows:

a. As in the precedingly described embodiments I make use of a body I of annular shape, in which housings 2 are formed obliquely, in order to receive the test pieces 3, the active surfaces of which are machined in a suitable manner;

I). Also as in the above described embodiments, these test pieces are combined With means for imparting thereto the desired displacements, but in'the construction that is being considered these means are adapted to act simultaneously on all the test pieces by exerting efforts (for instance parallel to'the axis of body I) permitting, owing to the reactions due to the obliquity of the axes of housings 2, to move the test pieces either outwardly or'inwardly with respect to their support so as to adjust their positions.

The means in question include for instance the following elements:

On the one hand, two annular elements, I5 and I6, adapted to fit in annular grooves I1 and I'l of body I and, for atleast one of them, in a suitable notch I9 provided in the corresponding side of test pieces 3; these annular elements I5 and I 6 are in contact with the test pieces 3 along perfectly rectified surfaces located in planes at right angles to the axis of symmetry of body 1; and

On the other hand, two outer rings or boxes 20 and 2| respectively adapted to screw on screw threads carried by body I and thus to permit, according to the direction in which the screwing is effected, to move both of the annular elements I5 and I6 either in one direction or in the other, the screwing in one direction causing the test pieces 3 to move outwardly from the support while the screwing in the opposed direction causes said pieces to move inwardly.

The whole-may advantageously be completed by indicating means adapted to mark any position of adjustment. These last mentioned means are for instance constituted, as shown by Fig. 7, by a ring 23 adapted to be secured to body I (for instance in an adjustable position, by means of a fixation screw 23).. This ring 23 is provided with a graduation 24 adapted to cooperate with at least one index 25 carried for instance by one of the housings 20, 2I. Of course, the

whole may be completed by any suitable Vernier system.

The operation of such a system is easy to understand and takes place in the following man- In order to gauge screw threads of a certain diameter, it suflices to bring the whole into the corresponding adjustment position. This result can be obtained either by making use of a threaded model piece against which the test pieces are brought into contact by suitable displacements of annular boxes 20, 2|, after which the position obtained is read on scale 24, or by directly bringing index 25 opposite a given number of said graduated scale 24 if the number corresponding to the desired diameter is known in advance. or course, two devices of this kind are prepared, corresponding to the maximum and minimum values of the diameter. These devices are then utilized in the same manner as the usual gauging rings.

In this way, I obtain a particularly accurate gauging, owing in particular to the fact that the test contacts are adjusted through the cooperation of plane surfaces with one another. Of course, it should be well understood that these last mentioned surfaces might be made of any other arrangement.

On the other hand, each of the composite devices above described might be made for a predetermined range of diameters, the importance of this range being proportional to the displacement of the adjustment parts such as 20, 2|. This total possible displacement is represented in Fig. 7 by the sum of distances at and y.

All that has been above explained concerning devices of the kind illustrated by Fig. 7 applies to devices for testing inner surfaces (inner screwthreads, bores, etc.) and Fig. 8 shows a plug gauge based upon the same principle and including the same essential elements as the gauging device of Fig. 7.

In the embodiment of Fig. 8, the boxes and 2| of Fig. 7 are replaced by the body 20 of the plug and an external ring H The graduated scale is for instance provided on ring I at 24 and the index or other marking means on disc 2 I at 25 Whatever be the particular embodiment of the invention that is chosen, I obtain a device for testing any surface the operation and advantages of which result sufficiently clearly from the preceding explanations for making it unnecessaryto enter into a further description thereof.

However, some of these advantages are partic ularly important and it is believed necessary specifically to cite them:

The device according to the invention makes it possible, for the various reasons above set forth to obtain the maximum, accuracy while reducing the time necessary for performing a given operation;

It is possible, with the device according to the invention and especially with the embodiments permitting an identical and simultaneous adjustment of the test, elements, to produce, by means of said elements, a Whole range of similar geometrical figures,; even when these elements are to cooperate with surfaces of highly irregular shape;

With devices according to the invention it is possible to constitute, with two rings or two plugs, a maximum and a minimum apparatus which can be neutralized as long as necessary for other .dimensions .within the range of the apparatus;

The device according to the invention makes it possible to measure a circular body not by its diameter but by a plurality of points distributed over its periphery, whereby it is possible to ascertain whether this body is truly round or not;

It is possible, with devices according to the invention, especially in the case of oblique test pieces such as shown by Figs. 7 and 8, to reach points which are difiicult to have access to through the prior methods;

It is possible to produce in quantity the gauging devices according to the invention, with the maximum of accuracy in the machining of the test surfaces;

It is also possible, according to the invention, to reconstitute into new state worn devices, owing to the fact that the pieces are interchangeable;

In a general manner, while Ihave, in the above description, disclosed what I deem to be practical and eiiicient embodiments of the present invention, it should be well understood that I do not wish to be limited thereto as there might be changes made in the arrangement, disposition and form of the parts without departing from the principle 'of the present invention as comprehended Within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. A device which comprises in combination a cylindrical support provided with a plurality of housings oblique with respect to the axis of said su ort, blocks slidably fitted in said housings, the end faces of said blocks being adapted to constitute active surfaces, means carried by said support for determining th position of said blocks with respect to said support, and means for locking said blocks in any desired positions in said housings.

2. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a cylindrical support provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes, annular grooves formed in said support on either side of said holes respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said support, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements, the cylindrical surface of said support being screwthreaded and, two annular parts engaging on the threads of said support and adapted to bear against said annular elements for displacing them in their grooves, respectively.

3. A device of the type described which comprises in combination, a central ring provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes, annular grooves formed in the side faces of said ring respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said ring, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements the outer surface of said ring being screw-threaded, and two annular parts engaging on the threads of said ring and adapted to bear against said annular elements respectively for displacing them in their grooves.

4. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a central ring provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes,- the inner ends of said blocks forming active surfaces, annular grooves formed in the side faces of said ring, respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said ring, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements, the outer surface of said ring being screw-threaded, and two annular parts engaging on the threads of said ring and adapted to bear against said annular elements respectively for displacing them in their grooves.

5. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a central ring provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes the outer ends of said blocks forming active surfaces, annular grooves formed in the side faces of said ring respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said ring, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements, the outer surface of said ring being screw-threaded and two annular parts engaging on the threads of said ring and adapted to bear against said annular elements respectively for displacing them in their grooves.

6. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a cylindrical support provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes, annular grooves formed in said support on eit er side of said holes respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said support, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements, the cylindrical surface of said support being screw-threaded, two annular parts engaging on the threads of said support and adapted to bear against said annular elements for displacing them in their grooves, respectively and means for marking different relative positions of said annular parts with respect to said support.

7. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a cylindrical support provided with oblique holes, in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes, annular grooves formed in said support on either side of said holes respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said support, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements,

the cylindrical surface of said support being screw-threaded, to annular parts engaging on the threads of said support and adapted to bear against said annular elements for displacing them in their grooves, respectively and adjustable means for marking different relative positions of said annular parts with respect to said support.

8. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a central ring provided with oblique holes in the peripheral portion thereof, blocks slidable in said holes, annular grooves formed in the side faces of said ring respectively, annular elements adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said ring, said blocks being provided each with at least one notch adapted to accommodate one of said annular elements, the outer surface of said ring being screw-threaded, two annular parts engaging on the threads of said ring and adapted to bear against said annular elements respectively for displacing them in their grooves, a scale carried by said ring and an index carried by one of said annular parts, so as to permit of marking any relative position of said elements with respect to each other.

9. A device of the type described which comprises, in combination, a central ring of rectangular cross section and having holes therein extending from the outer to the inner peripheries, the axes of said holes being disposed in radial planes and extending diagonally therethrough Y at 45 to the side faces of said ring, blocks slidable in said holes, the outer ends of said blocks constituting surface engaging means, the side faces of said ring respectively having annular grooves of rectangular cross section formed therein, annular elements of rectangular cross section adapted to fit in said grooves and slidable therein in the axial direction of said ring, said blocks being provided each with at least one right angle notch adapted to be engaged by one of said annular elements, one side of said notch being parallel to the side surfaces of said ring, the outer surface of said ring being screw threaded, and two annular parts engaging on the threads of said ring and adapted to bear against said annular elements respectively for displacin them in their grooves and for locking them in any selected displaced position.

LEON E. M. VAN DEN KIEBOOM.

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