US2499492A - Oscillatable and removable raceway - Google Patents

Description

March 7, 1950 s. L. GOOKIN OSCILLATABLE AND REMOVABLE RACEWAY Original Filed Dec.

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[nu enlor Sylvester" L Goo/an B is A Patented Mar. 7, 1950 OSCILLATABLE AND REMOVABLE RACEWAY Sylvester L. Gookin, Quincy,

United Shoe Machinery Corporation,

Mass, assignor to Flemington, N. J a corporation of New'Jersey Original application December 22, 19 Serial No. 569,333. Divided and this application June 30,1949, Serial No. 102,295

The purpose of the present invention is to provide improvements in hoppers and raceways for supplying small articles in orderly "sequence from a mass of such articles. The improved features hereinafter described are illustrated as embodied in a hopper and a raceway designed to supply eyelets in an eyeleting machine of the type set forth in United States Letters Patent No. 2,443,682, granted June 22, 1948 on an application filed in the name of Clyde L. Knott. This application is a division of application Serial No. 569.333, filed December 22, 1944.

In shoe factories, eyelets of many different sizes and styles are required for shoes of various styles, and this circumstance involves the removal of every residual unused eyelet from the raceway and hopper of an eyeleting machine whenever the latter is to be loaded with eyelets of a different size, color or style.

The raceway and hopper hereinafter described are designed to expedite the removal of residual unused eyelets and to insure their total removal despite a, tendency of some of them to remain concealed or caught by the brush located in the hopper to stir the eyelets and feed them toward an emission port.

For that purpose the hopper is provided with a large opening in the bottom for discharging residual unused eyelets away from the emission port, and with a gate mounted on a hinge-pin in the manner of a downwardly openingtrap-door which, when closed, contains the eyelets in the hopper. A rotary brush carried by the gate is arranged to stir the eyelets and feed some of them toward the emission port when the gate is closed, but, if rotated when the gate is open, it casts oil? the few residual eyelets that mightotherwise remain on the gate or in the tuftsof the brush. For that reason the hinge-pin is arranged tobe rotated individually and the gate is provided with means for transmitting rotation frornthe pin to the brush not only when the gategis closed but in all positions thereof without interrupting the driving relations of the transmission elements.

Removal of unused eyelets from the raceway may be accomplished by detaching, the latter and inverting it end for end. When the elements are assembled in their cooperative relation the receiving end of the raceway projectseinto an opening in the hopper and is movable relatively thereto, while the delivery end is supported by a movable member arranged to move it to and fro sidewise without moving the hopper. The delivery end and the movable supporting member are provided with coupling means by which 2 Claims. (Cl. 218--15.1)

the receiving end of the raceway is maintained in its opening in the hopper.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a hopper, a raceway and portions of an eyeleting machine in assembled relation;

Fig. 2 is an inclined sectional plan indicated by line IIII in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view indicated by line III-III in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the lower portion of the raceway.

The hopper H) is mounted on and afiixed to a supporting structure which may be the frame I i of an eyelet-inserting machine of the type shown and described in the aforesaid Knott patent. The hopper has an inclined bottom wall l2 and chamber-forming walls I3 extending upwardly therefrom. A large opening I4 is provided in the bottom wall to discharge unused eyelets when it is desired to clear thehopper, but this opening is normally closed by a gate 15 mounted on a horizontal hinge-pin [6, the gate having a pair of spaced ears (Fig. 3) through which the pin extends. A torsion spring I'I normally closes the gate and thereby maintains its eyelet-supporting surface l8 in an inclined plane and in contact with the under surface of the wall I2 with enough force to sustain any load of eyelets within the capacity of the hopper. A handle l9 formed on or aflixed to one of the ears of the gate provides for opening the latter against the closing force of the spring ll. When the handle is swung upwardly the lower margin of the gate swings downwardly, and the contents of the hopper will then be discharged through the opening M. The frame H is provided with a b-aflie 20 arranged to deflect the discharged eyelets into a box, can or other receptacle (not shown). The upper margin of the gate has a cylindrical surface 2| in concentric relation to the pin l6 and in tangential relation to the under surface of the wall 12 to prevent eyelets from being caught in that region when the gate is open.

The hinge-pin I6 is journaled in the frame II and may be rotated without moving the gate. A pulley 22 affixed to the pin is arranged to transmit rotation from a belt 23. The gate carries a rotary assemblage comprising a brush 24, a worm-gear 25 and a shaft 26 connecting them, the brush beinginside the gate and arranged to lie in the opening l4 when the gate is closed. The gear 25 is outside the gate, and the shaft extends through the gate and is journaled in it. The gear 25 cooperates with a worm 2'! to transmit rotation from the pin IE to the brush, the worm being afiixed to the pin.

When the gate is closed the brush stirs the eyelets lying on the surface l8 and feeds some of them toward the upper end of a raceway 30, but when the gate is open the brush will cast ofi any eyelets lodged on or between its tufts, since its rotation is not interrupted by opening the gate. The upper end of the raceway projects into the wall l3 of the hopper that has contact with the lower margin of the gate. The opening for its reception is formed in part in the baffle portion 20 and in part in the lower surface of ablock 3| mortised into the contiguous wall ,J 3,of the. hopper and constituting a movable section thereof. The baffle portion 20 provides support for the raceway without constraining it against lengthwise movement or sidewise angular movement.

The block 3| and the contiguous wall l3 have mated cylindrical bearing surfaces 32 that enable maintains-itschannel in register. with the normalv plane of the eyelet-supportingsurface l8 of the gate- The lower end of the raceway is. supportedand oscillated sidewise by. an arm 33 to present eyelets to an eyelet-inserting tool, .(not shown). The

- .arm 33 hasashankor stemportion 34 journaled in the frame 1 l and is oscillated bya power-open ated mechanism including an operating arm the hub 35 of which is .afiixedio the stem .portion 34.

To provide an operating connection between the raceway .and the arm 33,.a. steel ball 36 is interposed between them, the arm having a hemispherical socket 3'! and the raceway having a similar socketin which the ball is seated. A

semicircular spring clip 38 is provided to-..maintain assembled relation ofthese parts.

39 and the other end is provided with a small teat to engage a depression in the raceway. When the clip-is disengaged, the raceway may be re- One end of the clip is attached to the arm by a hinge-pin 4 moved from the ball and then its upper end may be withdrawn from the hopper, but when the ball-and-socket elements are assembled and clipped, the ball maintains the assembled rel-ation of the raceway and the hopper. When a loaded raceway is detached, it may be emptied by inverting it end for end, the eyelets therein will run out through the entering end of its channel which is straight and uninterrupted,

Having described my invention, what I claim as newand desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In an eyeleting machine, an eyelet-hopper I having an inclined eyelet-supporting surface ating member arranged to support the lower end of the raceway and reciprocate it sidewise, and coupling means by Which said movable member and the lower end of the racew-ay are connected and by which the upper end of the raceway is maintained in said opening. M a

2. A hopper-and-raceway assemblage for cooperating with an eyeleting machine having a reciprocatory operating member, the hopper.having an inclined eyelet-supporting surface and chamber-forming walls extending upwardly therefrom, one of said walls having an opening through which eyelets lying on said surface may gravitate therefrom, ,an inclined. raceway the upper end of which is located in said opening, means for supporting said upper end' in register with said inclined surface,'and coupling means by which the lower end of the raceway .is operatively connected to said operating member and by which the upper end of the raceway is maintained in said opening.

SYLVESTER L. GOOKIN.

No references cited.

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