US240311A - Hat-pouncing machine - Google Patents

Description

(No' Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 1..

R. EIGKEMEYEK Hat Pouncing Machine. No. 240,311. Patented April 19,1881

-PETFJS. PHQ'IO-LITHOGRAPMER, wAsmNaTON, D C

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2. R. EIOKEM.EYER.-

Hat Pounoing Ma.0h.i.ne.

No. 240,311. Patented April 19,1881.

W 7 Q I Y III'IVE'I'AVIDIH N. PETERS. PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D Q

(No Model.) .4 She ets-Sheet 3.

3.. EIOK'EMEYER.. 'Hat Pouncing Machine. No. 240,311. Patented April 19,1881.

' Witne N.PE|'ERS. PHOTOJJTHOGRAPNER, WASHINGTON. D c.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

R. EIGKBMEYER.

Hat Pounoing Mac-hin eL Patented April 19,1881.

Fi JB.

Witnesseslnventun UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE.

RUDOLF EIGKEMEYER, OF YONKERS, NEW YORK.

HAT-POUNCING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, 240,311, dated April 19, 1881. Application filed January 18, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, RUnoLF EICKEMEYER,

of Yonkers, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hat- Pouncing Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following specification, takenin connection with the drawings furnished and forming a part of thesame, is a clear, true, and complete description of my invention.

My said improvements are founded upon certain prior inventions in pouncing-machines disclosed by me in Letters Patent No. 97,178, dated November 23, 1869; and the objects of my improvements are to attain greater efficiency in the matter of rapidity in operation, coupled with a capacity to be operated properly with somewhat less skill ,in the manipulation of the hat on the part of the operator.

As in the machine shown in my Letters Patent No. 97,178, I employ, in combination with a pouncing-cylinder, a rest or sup iaorting-bed for the hat, which is mounted on a vertical horn in such a manner that a hat placed thereon can be properly supported at its tip in working relation to the tmuncing-cylinder, thus enabling the hat crown or tip to be thoroughly pounced, as well as its side crown and brim. As an improvement in such a rest or pouncing-bed, I have provided therefor a yielding face-plate, between which and the cutting-surface of the pouncing-cylinder the hat is interposed; and in order that said yielding faceplate shall only be defiected by the compression of the hat by reason of its contact with the pouncing-cylinder, it is relieved from supporting the hat or resisting the draft of the feed by rigid and unyielding surfaces of the bed adjacent to and oneach side of said face-plate. Such a yielding face-plate obviates liability of unduly cutting a hat, and enables the latter to be more readily and rapidly moved over the bed during the pouncing operation.

In machines heretofore devised by me I have provided for raising and lowering the pouncing-bed to and from the pouncing-cylinder, and in some of them a treadle-lever has been employed, but in such a manner that a direct and heavy pressure of the foot was required throughoutthe pouncingoperation, and

' of foot-pressure.

therefore as the workman would change the position of his body the pressure so exerted would be more or less varied and unsteady, resultin g in an irregular pressure as between the hat and pouncing-cylinder.

In my present machine I have provided for my treadle a bell-crank lever and suitable connections, by which the bed, when in proper position, is steadily maintained with a minimum In my said prior machines the supporting-bed has been so mounted that it could be removed and replaced, but in such a manner as involved considerable labor, and it was therefore impracticable to provide a series of beds of various sizes to be used interchangeably, according to the sizes of hats to be pounced, as has subsequently proved to be desirable, and therefore in my present machine I have mounted the bed directly upon an auxiliary bed-lever and rigidly secured it thereto, preferably by means of a screw, to admit of ready attachment and removal.

In the machine shown in my Letters Patent N 0. 97,178, the vertical supporting bed or horn is integral with a vertical arm or lever, which, in turn, is mounted upon a horizontal lever; and adjacent to said horn there are narrowfaced feed-rollers,which are rendered adj ustable in their position with relation to the supporting-horn by means of a hand-lever connected with a vertical spindle, on which the feed-rolls are mounted; and in later Letters Patent, issued to me March 1' 1874, No. 148,680, I show a pouncing-bed mounted upon an inclined lever for moving it toward and from a pouncing-cylinder, and adjacent thereto is a set of conical feed-rolls, which are so mounted in a frame as to enable them to be adjusted with relation to the pouncing-bed. In both of these prior machines the adjustability of the feed-rolls enabled them to be so set from time to time as to adapt them to operate under certain varying conditions; but the character of the adjustment in the two types of machines differed, in that the first method of adjustment was attained by a swii elingmovement of the rolls, and in the second by a similar swiveling movement coupled with a, longitudinal movement in or near the plane of the bearing-surface of the supporting-bed. In

both of said prior types of machine one hand of the operator was required to effect a change in the adjustment of the feed-rolls.

In my present machine, in order that the workman may be free at all times to use both hands in guiding the hat, and also to render this guiding of the hat more easy and simple, the feed-rolls are mounted in a sliding frame, and are controllable by the foot of the operator, so as to be moved longitudinally and parallel with the plane of the supporting-bed, and thus variably adjusted during the pouncing of each hat, so as to cause said rolls to draw upon thehat in various ways, according to whether the brim, the side crown, or the tip of the hat is for the time being in contact with the pouncing-cylinder.

As compared with my 1869 machine, the present machine has the same capacity so far as relates to pouncing a blocked hat all over, but is an improvement thereon in various ways, and especially in connection with the mode of adjusting the feed-rolls and in enabling both hands of the operator to be free in handling the hat.

My 1874 machine, as shown in my Letters Patent No. 148,680, could pounce unblocked or conical hat-bodies nearly all over, and the adjustment of its rolls referred to was what might be properly termed a fixed or set adjustment, as distinguished from that variable adjustment, readily made by the workman while pouncing a hat, as in my present machine.

In my 1869 machine the feed-rolls had narrow faces, and in my 1874 machine the rolls were long and conical, but in practice had their outer ends slightly rounded, so as to facilitate the guiding of the hat by limiting their area of biting-contact therewith; and when my 1874 machines have been so far modified as to pounce blocked hats the biting-surface of the feed-rolls has always, in practice, been reduced to about the area of biting-surface indicated in my patent of 1869. I have therefore, in my present machine, embodied similar narrow-faced rollers with inclined faces-i 6., conical frusta and in order that the full advantage of the elevated horn-bed may be attained, I have arranged the feed-rolls so that their axes or shafts do not unduly occupy spacebelow or adjacent to the horn, so as to interfere with the placing of a blocked hat in the variofis positions required for pouncing it all over.

The several features of my invention, after being fully described, will be specified in detail at the close of this specification and while I prefer to embody all of said features in one machine, I do not limit myself thereto, because some of them may be profitably employed in other organizations, as hereinafter shown, and as will be further obvious to persons skilled in the art.

Referring to the drawings, of which there are four sheets, Figure 1, Sheet 1, is a side ele- .moved and others in horizontal section.

vation of a machine embodying all of my present improvements. Fig. 2, Sheet 2, is a plan view of the same with a few of its parts re- Fig. 3, Sheet 3, is a viewin vertical transverse section of a part of Fig. 2 on line a. Fig. 4, Sheet 3, is a similar view on line c, Fig. 2. Fig. 5, Sheet 3, is a similar view on line w, Fig. 2. Fig. 6, Sheet 3, is a front view of jointed arms on which the'feed-roller boxes are mounted. Figs. 7 to 15, inclusive, Sheet 3, are various views of my improved supporting-bed and its parts detached. Fig. 16, Sheet 3, is a diagram illustrating in solid lines the position of a hat during the pouncing of its brim or its side crown, and in dotted lines its position during the pouncing of its tip. Fig. 17, Sheet 4, is a partial plan and partial sectional view of a machine embodying certain features of my invention. Figs. 18 and 19 are detached views of brackets, which are portions of the sliding frame in which the feed-rolls are mounted. Figs. 20 and 21 are respectively side and sectional views-of an upper feed-roll and its driver. Fig. 22 is a partial end view of the modified machine. Fig. 23 is adiagram illustrating the relative positions of the pouncing-cylinder, horn-supporting bed, and feedrolls, with a hat in contact with the pouncingcylinder.

The machine shown on Sheets 1, 2, and 3 has a strong rigid frame, A, in such form as to best accommodate the various moving parts. At its rear side, near the bottom, is the driving-shaft (1, provided with loose and fast pulleys, and a shipper controlled by a lever, a, which projects forward and upward, so as to be conveniently accessible to the operative while at work.

The pouncing-cylinder B is firmly mounted, its shaft b being provided with long boxes and belted, as at I), to a large pulley on the main shaft.

As shown in my prior Letters Patent No. 97,178, I now employ a supporting-bed which is about the length of one-half the diameter of the hats to be pounced. I prefer that said bed be a trifle longer than one-half of said diameter, and substantially such proportion is of so much consequence that I prefer several sizes of beds, and to change them from time to time to correspond in a general way with the sizes of the hats to be pounced.

The supporting-bed Ois located beneath the pouncing-cylinder, and is shown detached in Figs. 7 to 15, inclusive, on Sheet 3. It has a downwardly-projecting stem, 0, through which a screw or bolt passes for rigidly securing it to an auxiliary bed-lever, d, hereinafter more fully described. The upper end of said lever and the lower adjacent surface of said bed are squared off to afford good bearing-contact, as seen in Fig. 8.

Instead of employing the stem 0 and screwbolt as means for readily connecting the bed with the auxiliary bed-lever, the-latter may be 2o permitting it to rise and fall.

provided with a vertical mortise or socket and the bed with a tenon slightly tapered and well fitted to the mortise; but in such case the main bed-lever should have a downward movement 5 suflicient to admit of the vertical displacement of the bed-tenon from its socket.

In my Letters Patent No. 97,178 I show a roller-bed, which is, of course, not integral with the auxiliary leveron Whichit is mounted,

to and, being a roller, it is not rigidly secured to and readily detachable from said lever, as in my present machine.

The bed is recessed longitudinally and laterally on its upper surface to receive the i novel yielding face-plate c, which has at one side a tongue, 0 which extends laterally, with its end beneath a portion of the bed. It also has at each end rigid studs 0r screws 0 which secure the yielding face-plate to the bed while Beneath the yielding face-plate, in a recess provided therefor, is a curved or bow spring, 0 which, at each end, bears against the under side of the face-plate, and is tensionallyadjusted bya-setscrew, 0 tapped into a bridge afforded by a portion of the bed. These several parts are clearly illustrated in the detail figures referred to. The yielding face-plate cushions that portion of a hat which is in contact with the pouncing-cylinder, and the surface of the bed,

on each side of said face-plate, supports the hat independently of said plate, so that the downward pressure due to the draft on the hat by the feed-rolls is borne by the two sides of the bed and not by the yielding face-plate.

Yielding supporting-beds in pouncing-machines are not new, broadly considered, because heretofore felt or other elastic material has been employed; but my bed, as improved by the yielding face-plate, not only affords the yielding or cushioning effect, but it permits 'the hat to pass smoothly over the bed without that undue straining friction incident to drawing a hat over a felt-covered bed. Moreover,

the draft of the feed-rolls upon a hat passing over the yielding bed, as heretofore employed, has a tendency to compress the yielding covering on the bed, and thus to draw the hat more or less away from proper pressure-contact with the pouncing-cylinder.

\Vhile I prefer myimproved bed, my present machine will perform satisfactory work if the bed be covered with yielding material, or if it be a plain solid bed, as shown in my Letters Patent No. 97,178.

Although I prefer that solid unyieldin g surfaces be provided on both sides of the yielding face-plate, it is obvious that if such a surface be provided at one side only of said plate the latter will be substantially relieved from the weight ofthe hat, and also from the downward draft of the feed-rolls, especially if said solid surface be at the side of the yielding plate nearest the feed-rolls.

The bed 0, instead of being a part integral with a lever, as heretofore, is, as before herein d which is tapped through the lower side of v the hollow main lever D, and has its end bearing against one side of the long arm of lever d, opposite its cushion (P. This housing of this supplemental lever and cushion within the main lever is a novel feature of importance, as it is thereby located wholly out of the way of a hat during the operation of pouncing.

The main bed-lever l) is mounted angularly at the front of the machine and pivoted at its lower end to the frame at e, and it is adjustably limited in its range of movement toward the pouncing-cylinder, as heretofore, by the adjusting set-screw e, tapped in a lug projecting from the frame, and serving with its lower end as a stop when engaged by a coincident lug, c projecting from the lever. In its downward movement the lever D is limited by the bolt 6 which is tapped to the frame and occupies a transverse slot in said lever. This supporting-bed lever is lifted and lowered by a treadle, which, broadly considered, is not new; but I have so combined a treadle therewith that the pressure of the bed against a hat interposed between it and the pouncing-cylinder is maintained mainly mechanically and with a minimum of pressure by the foot, so as to attain a more steady and uniform pressure than heretofore. This is accomplished by means of a treadle-lever, E, of the bell-crank order, and a rigid link, f, which connects the nearly-vertical arinf ofthe treadle-lever with the bed-lever D, the parts being so proportioned that when thetreadlc-leveris depressed by thefootand the bed fully elevated the short arm ofthe tread le-lcver and the rigid link will occupy a line nearly vertical, thus not only augmenting the power of the treadle-lever to respond to pressure of the foot by reason of whatis in substance a togglejoint, but also practically self-maintaining the pressure at the fulcrum of the treadle-lever, because the link-connection therewith occupies a position nearly in a line with the treadle-lever fulcrum and the link-connection with the lever D. The weight of the main lever and the parts attached thereto is usually 'ainplo to cause it to fall when the foot is removed from the treadle. I

The feed-rolls F are two in number, the lower being somewhat larger than the upper in this machine, and both are tapered. They have narrow working-faces, so that they will bite upon a much narrower portion of the hat than is supported on the bed, as shown in my Letters Patent No. 97,178.

The feed-roll spindles g and h have their bearings g and h connected to a sliding frame composed, in part, oftwo sliding rods, G, which extend from side to side of the machine, and have guide-bearings in the upper part of the frame. As seen in Fig. 2, these spindles are set angularly to the pouncing-cylinder shaft, so as to locate the feed-rolls closely adjacent to the supporting-bed below the cylinder. As seen in Fig. 5, the boxes 9 and h of the two spindles g and h have solid arms or ears, which are hinged together at their ends at 9 and constitute ajoiuted pendent frame, as seen in Figs. 5 and 6, so as to permit the rolls to be separated or controlled as to pressure. The roll-spindles are rotativ-ely connected by means of gears g and 7L2 and intermediate pinions, g and If, respectively mounted on studs projecting from the hinged ears or lugs on the spindle boxes. These spindleboxes and their gearing are adj ustably suspended from a rectangular bracket, t, Fig. 3, which is rigidly secured to both of the sliding rods G. The guidebearings of the rods G are parallel with the axis of the pouncing cylinder, and therefore, although the rolls move back and forth, their axes always occupy the same angle with relation to the axis of the pouncing-cylinder while moving in a line parallel with said axis. The strap -connections at 'i and the concave seat in the bracket 'i, Fig. 8, permit the tubular bearing of the upper roll to be axially adjusted, thereby providing for such a movement of the lower end of the pendent frame as will admit of the adjustment of the lower feed-roll nearer to or farther from the supporting bed or horn, as may be required.

Power is communicated to the feed-rolls by the shaft It, having at its inner end the gear which meshes with a gear coupled to gear 9 on spindle g of the upper feed-roll. At the outer end of said shaft is a pulley, belted, as at 70 to a wider-faced pulley on main shaft a. The shaft It is rigidly suspended from the sliding rods G by means of the two rectangular brackets or hangers 6 as seen in Figs. 2 and 4.

It will be obvious that the sliding rods G and the brackets or hangers i and i constitute a sliding frame, which supports the feed-rolls and their driving-sh aft. Formoving this frame to and fro for variably locating the feed-rolls with relation to the pouncing-bed while pouncing a hat, a treadle and weight are employed. As seen in Figs. 1, 2, and 5, the treadle H, by rigid link 1, is connected to the lever m, which, at its outer end, supports weights m, and at its inner end is secured to a rock-shaft, n, having at its opposite end, inside the frame of the machine, a vertical arm, n, which is pin-jointed to the bracket 41 of the sliding frame, so that pressure of the foot on treadle H moves the feed-rolls forward, and arelease of said pressure permits the weights to move them backward to their normal position.

Although I prefer to rely upon the weights or a spring to effect the backward movement of the rolls, they may obviously be so arranged as to eifect the forward movement, in which case pressure upon the treadle would effect the backward movement, the treadle-lever and link being correspondingly modified in their arrangement; or the weights may be omitted and a lifting movement of the foot be relied upon for moving the rolls backward.

The lower feed-roll is moved up or down, so as to cause it to press or bite with more or less force upon a hat in feeding, by means of a yoke, I, which is pivoted at its lower end to the box or bearing h, Fig. 1, and extends from thence upward to and over the bracket i, to which the upper feed-roll bearing is secured. The upper end of said yoke is tapped vertically to receive the adjusting thumb-screw 0, which takes hearing at its lower end upon a cushioned plate mounted upon top of the bracket 1', and is provided with a set-nut, 0, as seen in Fig. 1. I have thus provided for a yielding pressure between the two feed-rolls, substantially as shown in my prior Letters Patent No. 148,680.

The operation of the machine thus described is as follows: The machine being in motion, the treadle H is depressed to place the feedrolls fully forward. The edge of a hat-brim is then inserted above the bed and between v the rolls, and when the rolls have full control over the hat .the treadle E is depressed to raise the supporting-bed and force the hat into contact with the pouncing-cyliuder. As the pouncing operation progresses the treadle H is gradually permitted to rise for carrying the feedrolls rearward, which causes the hat to run in successively smaller circles until the tip of the hat rests upon the bed and is fully pounced, after which the treadle H is again depressed, which causes the hat to move over the supporting-bed until its edge or brim is again beneath the pouncing-cylinder, whereupon the bed is lowered and the hat removed.

It has long been known that to pounce hats rapidly the cylinder should be highly speeded and the hat independently fed or moved in a direction opposite to that in which the pouncing-surface moves, and that said feed should be as rapid as is consistent with the proper operation of the pouncing-cylinder. The strain due to the grinding action of the pouncingcylinder can readily be borne by the hats with little liability of injury; but it is important that they be subjected to but little additional strain, and therefore, with my smooth bed, provided with a smooth yielding face-plate, and feed-rolls which properly co-operate therewith, a hat can only be injured by the grossest carelessness on the part of the operator, even when the machine is being operated at its highest speed.

With the feed-rolls organized as already described it is difficult to locate the bite of the rolls in the plane occupied by the surface of the bed, because of lack of space for the upper roll beneath the pouncing-eylinder and adjacent to the bed, and therefore the hat in the line of the feed (wherever the rolls may be in the line of their longitudinal movement) is drawn downward over the edge of the bed, as fully illustrated in Fig. 16, Sheet 3. Although the friction between hat and bed due to this downward draft on the hat does not prevent good and rapid work, it can be wholly avoided by a different. organization of the feed-rolls, as illustrated on Sheet 4 but, because of the complication therein involved, I prefer the simpler arrangement already described.

Referring now to Figs. 17 to 23, inclusive, it is to be understood that the pouncing-cylinder B, elevated horn bed 0, and its treadle are or may be as heretofore described. The 'slidin g frame, on which the feed-rolls are mounted, has thesame slidingrods G; but its brackets i and t are of slightly different form, as shown in Figs. l7, 18, and 19, and said frame is controlled by a treadle and weight, as already described. Instead of having tapered rolls of different size with axes in the same vertical plane, as in the machine described, I have in this machine two tapered rolls of the same size and placed side by side, with their axes in the same horizontal plane. The roll 10 is nearest to the bed and to the pouncing-cylinder, and in order that its axis shall not be in the way of the hat, as when pouncing the tip, said roll is mounted upon a stud, p, and has gearteeth at its small end, which mesh with other teeth on the end of its driving-shaft 19 as seen in Figs. 20 and 21. The outer roll, q, is setalongside of but angularly to roll 19, as shown in Fig. 17. The gearing for driving the rolls consists of a driving-shaft, k, as in the other machine, which, by its gear It, drives the pinions W, (on a stud,) one of which meshes with the large gear k which, in turn, meshes with the gear p on the end of driving-shaft 19 for driving the inner feed-roll, p. Said large gear k which is mounted on a stud projecting from arm It, also oppositely meshes with the gear g on the end of shaft (1 on which the outer roll, q, is mounted, thus securing the requisite opposite rotation of said-roll. With the feedrolls thus organized and arranged, the downward draft of the hat upon the supporting-bed is wholly obviated, for the upper surface of the inner roll, 10, can thereby be located in the plane of the supporting-surface of the bed, or even a little above it, as clearly shown in the diagram Fig. 23.

. The rolls and gearing illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 17 are not intended to indicate that said rolls have any other than the longitudinal movement due to the sliding of the frame but said dotted lines are employed to illustrate the method of gearing the inner roll, in connection with the illustration thereof contained in Fig. 22. Both methods of arranging the feed-rolls which I have described permit a hat to-rest with its tip flatly upon the surface of the bed, and in both the roll which occupies the interior of a hat is so arranged that its axis in no manner interferes with the placing of the hat in any desired position durin g the operation of pouncing it all over.

In operating with machines constructed as shown the position of the feed-rolls need never be varied if brims only are to be pounced, and the same is true with relation to verysmall hats; but in pouncing large well-blocked hats the capacity for variable positions of the feedrolls is of great practical value.

Although I prefer that the rolls be moved in a line exactly parallel with the axis of the pouncing-cylinder, as shown, I do not limit myself thereto, because, if their movement be slightly oblique to said line, the results would be nearly as satisfactory.

The special arrangement of the supportingbed treadle herein described may obviously be applied to the machines shown in my Letters Patent Nos. 97,178 and 148,680, and so, also, can a treadle and weight, or its equivalent, be applied, in accordance with my present invention, to either of said machines, to enable the operative to make changes in the position of the feed-rolls from time to time bya motion of the foot and leave both hands free for the guiding manipulation of the hat.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new- 1. In a hat-pouncing machine, the combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of feed-rolls variably adjustable with relation to the pouncing-bed and a treadle for moving said rolls. 1

2. The combination, with a pouncing-roll and a supporting-bed, of feed-rolls mounted upon a sliding frame and a treadle for moving said feed-rolls, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a pouncing-roll and a supporting-bed, of feed-rolls mounted in a sliding frame, a treadle for moving said rolls in one direction, and weights or springs for returning said rolls to their normal position, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with the elevated sup porting born or bed and main bed-lever l), of the auxiliary bed-lever d and its cushion housed within the main lever, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the auxiliary bedlever 61, of an elevated flat-surfaced supportingbed, rigidly secured to but readily detachable from said lever, substantially as described, whereby said bed may be conveniently removed and another substituted for use in pouncing larger or smaller hats.

6.'The supporting-bed provided with the yielding face-plate and the solid supportingsurface adjacent thereto, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with the bed, face-plate, and spring beneath the face-plate, of an adjusting-screw for varying the tension of the spring, substantially as described.

8. The combination, with the pouncing-cylinder and elevated supporting bed or horn, of

feed-rolls an gularly set with relation to the pounoing-cylinder shaft, and a sliding frame for supporting the feed-rolls, which is mounted in guides parallel with the pouncing-cylinder 5 shaft, substantially as described.

9. The combination, with the pouncing-cylinder and the supporting-bed mounted upon a lever, of a bell-crank treadle-lever and a rigid link connecting the short arm of the treadlelever with the supporting-bed lever, substan- 1o tially as described, whereby the pressure of the bed toward the pounein g-eylinder is mainly borne by the fulcrum of the treadle-lever, and not by the foot of the operator, as set forth.

RUDOLF EIGKEMEYER. Witnesses:

RUD. EICKEMEYER, J n, TH. OSTERHELD.

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