US2499804A

US2499804A - Drum-type feed control

Info

Publication number: US2499804A
Application number: US70160A
Authority: US
Inventors: Wegner Julius
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1949-01-11
Filing date: 1949-01-11
Publication date: 1950-03-07
Anticipated expiration: 1967-03-07

Description

2 Sheets-She et 1 0 mu MM J. WEGNER DRUM-TYPE FEED CONTROL Filed Jan. 11, 1949 March 7, 1950 March 7, 1950 J. WEGNER DRUM-TYPE FEED CONTROL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 11. 1949 INVENTOR.

reea comrb box mountetl on Patented Mar. 7, 1950 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,499,804 Diana-TYPE FEiiDboN'rReL Julius Wegner, Flushing, N Y. Application January 11, 1949, Serial No. 70,16'0

sioiaims. (CL-125546) 1 This invention relates broadly to "etone" sawing or cutting machines and more particularly to feeding mechanisms for intermittently lowering or feeding the s'aw bla'de's into the stone to be cut. Thestructure of these sawing machines, called gang saws in the trade, usually consists of a 5 frame, which carries a sash -in=-which' any'nuiriber of -saw blades 5 from a few" to a few hundred may bemounted. U The sash' fr'ame may he operated "in a numberof'difier'entways; suchas, for instance, bymeans of a crank shaft and 'acoiinecting 'rod.

For the purpose of cutting through a stoneslab, the sash frame, carrying the saw blades, is suc- "cessively lowered. Heretofore, the lowering of 2 ?and includes" a pair of slidable bevel gears adap to"heselectively meshed byhand with another bevel gear for changing the eccentric 'throw ol' a slide associated with thefeed edntrol mechanism.

" A connecting-rod is provided rortransmitmig the the sash frame orthe feedingof the sawblades into the stone has been accomplished either'Iiy-a separate drive, which operated thefeedingscrews ofthe sash frame, or the feeding niechanismha's been interconnected with the maind'rive -of {the machine, such as the crank shaft, thus operating the feeding screws intermittently by means of gear trains, ratchets, or similar arrangements.

The drawback of thelatter' arrangenienthas fbeen that the adjustment of the rate of 'reewhas been very cumbersome and necessitated"either shutting down these gang saws altogether, which, besides an inevitableloss of time, "was likely to result in an uneven cut "through the stone-slab, or'the operator had to climb up to'thetop of the "gang saw in order 'to'readjust the feed, whichfis 0 "an inconvenientas well*as a dangerous task.

Actuating the sash feed hy means of gearing, ratchets, and the like, of 'courseflimits theTa'te of feed to certain'multiples of a given feed. Cons'equently, the operator "would never *a'djust 'the 'most'efiicient feeding rateg'and to prevent n "mi'ng the saw blades and doing other-damage withtoorapid a feeding rate, the operator hasa natural tendency to setthe'feed ofthe'sash frame "at a slow enoughrate to obviate these calamities under any and all circumstances.

"The need has been felt in the trade-for many years for a sash frame feed which could 1) be ad-justedby the operatorwith convenience-and .5145

without danger while the sawisin operationgand which 2) would allow 'a -stepless adjustment-of the feed to'obtain maximum-output regardless-0f the relative hardness of the stoneto-be cut.

In my 'co-pending application Serial No.

949, there is --'i-llusg "saws" which ever: ov'el hemes thes" anaemia "'ecc'entrie motion of-saidslide'to a system ofcr aiik arm's, which act by means ofconnecting -ba'-rs'-"6n 'apair of ratchet devices.

Thepr'esent invention represents a further iin- "proveinent in such feed controls 'for gang saws'. "While the aforementioned feed control has teen found efficient and practical, itsapplication *to "the multitude "of difierent designs of old g'an sa'ws'necessitatesthe use of a considerable number of parts which mustlbe made and fitted especially' for each'such machine.

"The present invention overcomes thisa'ii'd other objections 'in that the feed controlunitds contained within a rotatable drum or "pulley, which may-be located near the ratchet devices and may be drive'n by a chain or belt from "any rotating member 'of the gang saw. There ore, differences in center distance, for instance, between the driving "member-and the driven "ed control drum, asfound'in gang saws of diffe nt designs, present no difliculties, because "in The present invention it is only necessary to the lengths of standard chains or belts. Thenew gang saw feed is, therefore, adapted to be made in standardized units'and is preferably mounted on the *gangsaw structure in close proximitylto the sash frame feeding mechanism, usually placed near thetop of-the gang saw. I

It is another feature of the present invention to provide a feed co'ntrol device of the character described --inc1uding adjusting means which may be'inexpensively adapted to be actuated fromfthe operators' natural working 'position, regardless of the height at which the feed control device is mounted.

Another object --is to prov-idea 'feed control mechanismwhich is foolproof becausetheop era-tor need not' -be near any moving or -=-ro-tatin'g member when adjusting the rateof feed,: -a1id wherein operating gears are employed which are in constant mesh, combination with braking means for actuating said operating-gears selectively to increase or decrease the rate of feed.

The" foregoing and other features of novel constructionin the 'improved "gang saw "feeding f-dfawin saw in which the novel sash feeding mechanism is incorporated;

Fig. 2 is a plan view, showing the sash feeding mechanism depicted in Fig. 1 and part of the gang saw proper;

Fig. 3 illustrates the spring-lifted brakes in greater detail, which serve for selectively adjusting the feed control mechanism;

Fig. 4 shows a view along line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the novel feed control device mounted in the drumlike housing;

Fig. 6 shows a right-hand front view of the feed control device in the direction of arrows 6--6 in Fig. 5 with the cover partly broken away.

Gcmg saw proper Referrin to the general assembly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the gang saw proper is illustrated more or less diagrammatically because it will be understood that the improved sash feeding mechanism may be used and adapted to any type of gang saw. The main frame of the gang saw is formed by vertical beams or columns ll, interconnected by cross beams l2. A sash frame or sash |3 of any conventional design is mounted in said main frame or main structure and may be horizontally guided by slides l4. Sash |3 may be reciprocated by any suitable means, such as connecting rod l5, pivotally secured to sash frame l3 and actuated by means of crankshaft l6, as shown. Crankshaft l6 carries flywheels l1 and I8, which latter is usually driven by flat belt or similar means by a prime mover, such as an electric motor (not shown).

As the sash frame l3, which may carry any required number of saws, is reciprocated, it is intermittently and progressively lowered to feed the saws into the stone to be cut. The means shown as an example comprise vertical threaded spindles l9, which are journalled in bearings 20, supported by the uprights II and guide plates 2|, threaded on said spindles l9, which carry at their upper ends bevel gears 22 in mesh with bevel gears 23 on shafts 24. All spindles l9 are driven in synchronism by means of said

bevel gears

22, 23, and additional bevel gears 25, when shafts 24 are rotated.

The gang saw, as briefly described above, is identical to the one shown in my co-pending application Serial No. 756,124, filed June 21, 1947, now Patent No. 2,478,957, issued August 16, 1949 and is of altogether conventional design. It does not form part of the present invention.

Sash frame feed Feed control drum 26 houses an instantaneously adjustable crank and is carried by stationary outside sleeve 21, which may be fastened by bolts or the like to the structural frame of the gang saw or some auxiliary structure 28, formed by timbers or the like (Figs. 1 and 2). The feed control drum 26 is driven by any suitable means, such as a chain or a belt 29 and pulley 36, fast to crankshaft l6. Connecting rods 3| and 32 are provided to transmit the eccentric motion created by crank or slide 33 of the feed control drum 26 to ratchet devices or one-

way clutches

34 and 35, respectively, in the manner shown. These one-way clutches are mounted on clutch shaft 36, which is journalled in

bearings

31 and 38, respectively, supported by the machine proper or by the auxiliary structure 28. Clutch shaft 36 also carries pinion 39 in mesh with gear 40 on main :feed shaft 4|. The latter is journalled in. bearings 42 and-'43.

Gear 46, whose hub 44 may form one-half of a jaw clutch, is freely rotatable on shaft 4|, to which complementary clutch half 45 is slidably keyed, so that member 45 may be brought into and out of engagement with clutch half 44 by means of a hand lever or other suitable arrangements (not shown). Shaft 4| also carries fast and

loose pulleys

46 and 41. These pulleys are arranged for rapid adjustment of the sash frame l3 in a vertical direction. A separate drive is generally used for this purpose, such as an electric motor with belt driving said

pulleys

46 and 41. When employing this rapid feed, jaw clutch 44-45 is in disengaged position (as shown in Fig. 2), thereby rendering the work feed from feed control drum '26 inoperative. The rotation of shaft 4 whether caused by feed control drum 26 or by said rapid height adjustment, is transmitted to the several shafts 24 of the machine proper by means of gear 48, fast to shaft 4|, and pinion 49, fast to one of the feed shafts 24, as shown. As previously described, the sash frame I3 is thereby evenly lifted or lowered by means of vertical spindles 9. When the rapid height adjustment is not to be used, the belt is shifted to the loose pulley, thereby rendering this auxiliary rapid feed means inoperative.

It is pointed out that the previously mentioned one-

way clutches

34 and 35 are of conventional design and can only impart clockwise rotation to shaft 36. Referring especially to Fig. 1, it will be seen that connecting rod 32, actuated by crank 33, is connected to an extension or arm of oneway clutch 35, which arm protrudes substantially above the center line of shaft 36. Hence, assuming crank 33 to be revolving in clockwise direction and to be at top dead center position at the instant depicted in Fig. 1, it will be evident that clutch 35 is also rotated clockwise around shaft 36. As one-way clutch 35 is designed so that it will impart only clockwise rotation to shaft 36, the latter will be rotated in clockwise direction at this instance. In fact, this clockwise actuation of shaft 36 by clutch 35 will prevail substantially during the complete upper half of the crank throw of slide 33, namely, starting at a point about 90 degrees before the crank position shown in Fig. 1 and ending at a point about 90 degrees after said top dead center position of crank 33 shown in Fig. 1. It will also be noted in Fig. 1, that the other connecting rod 3|, also actuated from common crank 33, is connected to an extension or arm of one-way clutch 34 which protrudes substantially below the center line of shaft 36. Hence, at the top dead center position and clockwise rotation as viewed in Fig. 1 and about described, said crank 33 will rotate one-way clutch 34 in counter-clockwise direction. Clutch 34, however, is of identical design as clutch 35 and can only impart clockwise rotation to shaft 36. Consequently, the clockwise rotation of crank 33 will at this particular instant rotate clutch 34 in counter-clockwise direction and, therefore, clutch 34 will be freewheeling during the whole upper half of the crank throw previously defined. During the lower half of the crank throw of slide 33, conditions will obviously be reversed. Clutch 34 will be rotated in clockwise direction and hence impart a second feeding impulse to shaft 36; clutch 35 will be rotated in counter-clockwise direction and, hence, will be free-wheeling. Thus, when the adjustable slide or crank 33 of feed control drum 26 rotates, the one-

way clutches

34 and 35 will alternately rotate shaft 36 in clockwise direction. It will be understoodthat, by using two -ratchet 'devlces, "-34 of the gang saware vactuatedttwice for eachrevo- 'Jlu'tion of said control "drum 26. This doublefee'cl has'proven'veryadvantagerms in cutting certain grades of stones and has increased the cutting brake to prevent any torsional springback of-ishaft "36 :which mightotherwise be causedbyitheelasving the double feed "cycle; Inotherwords'this double'feed cycle.

"therefore, done away'zwith.

"iently adjusted tojproduce any desired eccentriccannons-4 and "35,' the screw 19 rate verywappreciably.

If it is desired-to :impart to the sash :frame ll 3 'onlyon'e'feeding movement for eachrevolution of said drum 26, either :ofthe bars 3| or 32- may be disconnected at the drum end and fastened to some stationary part "of the structure. If her i3 l is disconnected from drum zfi, forinstance, oneway 1 clutch- 34 is rendered inoperative as regards imparting rotation toshaft 36 but 'willa'ct asa tic deformation inJthe various links offsaidIfeeding mechanism. It should also be observed that the freewheelingclutches will actsimilarly durdesign positively eliminates any undesirable torsionalspringback for the single as well 'iasthe Feeding inaccuracies, such as found in conventional feed mechanisms, are,

.Feed control drum Referring 'to Figs. and 6, the feed. control device '23 is so arrangedthat it may be convenity from zero to'maximum, while thegang'saw' is in operation. The feed control mechanism is mounted within a drum or housing-50, from which a suitable hub 5 9 extends for fasteningto a sleeve "52 by means of-setscrews 53 or'thelike. Whenever pulley or 'drum'5ll is rotating,sleeve 52 will. participate in this rotation. Bushings 54 and 55 are provided in outside sleeve21torotatably support sleeve'-52. Outside sleeve 2'! is providedwith pads 56, through'whichsuitable bolts may extend into the structure of-the-gang sawproper in order to support thefeed control device-26 with its'associated mechanisms. An adjusting spindle 51*is rotatably mounted in thrust bearing 58 and journalled in bearings "59"and'60. it has keyed toit at its one end bevel-gear 6|, in mesh with bevel gear-62, fast to shaft 63;which is concentric to and rotatably carried by a sleeve 84. A brake drum 65'is keyed to the endof shaft-63 and =located by threaded nutBE. -Anotherbevel ge'ar' fi'l is also in mesh with bevel gear filpn spindleli'l and. is keyed 'to one end of the aforementioned sleeve -64, which carries'at its 'other'end a brake drum 53; keyed "or otherwise"fastened thereto.

Bushings 69 and'lt'rotatably support sleeve-B4. "The adjustable slide 331s in threaded-engagement with spindle 5?.

A stub shaftl-l is threaded into slide 33 and carries th hubs of the previously mentioned'conne'cting bars 3| and3'2. 'A'washer 12 and threaded nut 13 are provided-to position the aforementioned hubs.

It will be seen that, when spindle '51 is rotated,

slide 33 with its stub shaft ll may be eccentrically adjusted from the zero 'position'sh'own in'Tigs. 5

and 6. A suitable-opening M may be 'provid'edin cover '15, fastened to housing 50 by" means :of screws, as indicated at 76, to allow this radial adjustment of slide 33. The latter'comprises four arms Tl, 18,79, and 80. Circularrods 8! and 82 are mounted-in bosses 83 and-84, respectively, of housing 50. Saidrods 8i and 82 extend through suitable bores at th'e ends of arms 18,"-1 9and1'l,

Bil, respectively; for guidingthe 'slide 33am! for providing braking 'or 'frictional clampingrsurfaces "for maintaining slide 33' in its zadjusted-xposition,

1:6 if n'otzactediuponibyispin'dle 51. 1T0 varyltheztrictionalres'istancebetween rods-8:! and azzandethelr associated .clamping aarm's :18, :19, and 11,180,1resp ectively, "the rends of :said .arms arezslotteda'and Allen head isetlscrews 85rareprovided to varylthe 'cl'amping'actionof thesetarmsaontrods fi l :and 82.

' able -slottedop'enin'gs 86 toifacilitate'tighteningrbf screwsi85 in any position offslidei'33 without removing'thec'over.

The feed control drum azfi'is -.usua'lly mounted at -a considerable height.v Thereforaifan :indicator rod'il'l is shownto b'effas'ten'edto onerofzthe hubs or the connectin'grods, such as torodc32, as shown in"Fi'g.5;by means ofsfork88land' pin 89. At its loweraend'rod '81is .freely-guidedin.element '90.."By "graduating the lowervend'of rod 81,:as indicated at 9|, the operatorrhas'aconvenient 'checlr' at all times on the eccentricity-"of 'sli'de 33. Referring :now to Figs. 3 and 4,1it-will be :seen that the brake bands '92 'Iandu93 :are "ordinarily lifted off "brake drums and :68 by the-action of springs Stand 95, which may beissupported by fa rod-96, :fast to structure .28. Chains 9'! and-98 'are fastened atone end to brake'ba'n'ds :921and 93, respectively, and at the oth'errencls'to a'double "crank hand lever 99, suitably pivoted on the'main structure of the machine. Fi'gs. 3.:a'nd '4'=show "this hand lever win n'eutral position,thus exerting'no pull on eitherof'thechains 9'if'or 98. However, by turning .lever 99 to 'the right from the position'illustrated' in Fig, :3, -chain 98 will be t1ghtened, a'nd brakeband 93 will'be brought in contact with its associated brake drum -38 against the 'tensionedispring 95, thus tending: to ret-ard 'or stop the motion 3:01 this rbrake drum. When swinging 'hand lever 99 from-its neutral "position -to the left, :chain 9'! willbe tightened, thus pressing brake band 92 in engagement with :brake' drum against the action of "spring 94. This'results in' retarding orstopping brake drum 65. It will thus beseen that, when tightening :brake band v92 by means of chain- 91, the other chain-2&8 Wi1l-become loose, and viceversa. .This double crank hand :lever .99, therefore, serves :the rtwofold purpose of conveni'entlyuapplying a brakingaction to eitherof the :brake drums -65 and 68 and, at the same time, preventing the operator .from actuating both brakes simultaneously.

. Feed adjustment remain stationary; hence, the :feed to :the'g'an'g saw -is zerogdespite the ."fact that pulley 50 'is'rotating. fThebrake bands :92 andx-93 are assumed to be intheir normal, inoperative position, namely, lifted offtheabrakedrums 65 and -68, as clearly indicatedrinifiigs. 3. and-.4. Thus r-shaft :63 with itsf'br'ake idrum z'tfi. and hevel geanBZ;randg'sl'eeve .34 *witnabeveh-gear E'haild associatedfbrakez'drum 68, will be free to rotate together atither-s'ame .spe'edszandimthe.isamezidirec ioni'as pulley-fill,be-

cause bevel gear Si is in mesh with

bevel gears

61 and 62. It should be noted that bevel gear BI, being fast to spindle 51, partakes of any rotary movement of housing 50 but does ordinarily not rotate around its own axis. However, by retarding or stopping one of the

brake drums

65 or 68, the eccentricity of slide 33 may be increased or decreased, as desired. As mentioned before, shaft 63 and sleeve 64 rotate normally at the same speed and in the same direction as pulley 50 due to the meshing bevel gears GI, 62, and 61.

Bevel gears 62 and 6'! will, therefore, be caused to turn around their own axes at the speed of pulley 58. Bevel gear 6|, on the other hand, has normally no rotation around its own axis and is furthermore prevented from unintended rotation by the clamping surfaces TI, 18, I9, and 80 of the slide 33, as previously described. However, as soon as, let us say, bevel gear 62 is prevented from rotating or retarded in its rotation around its own axis by applying a braking action to brake drum 65, bevel gear Bl will respond by a compensating rotation in one direction and thus accomplish the desired eccentric displacement of slide 33. Similarly, when bevel gear 61 is stopped or retarded by a braking action on brake drum 68, bevel gear 6| will be forced to rotate in the respective opposite direction and cause the slide 33 to be displaced accordingly.

Th length of the chain or belt driving the drum 26 may obviously be altered with negligible expense. The lengths of the chains, ropes, or other means for applying the brakes may also be changed with ease. The application of standardized feed control units to the most varied equipment is, therefore, rendered practical.

In addition, the mutually exclusive action of the double crank lever safeguards the feed control device by preventing the operator from accidentally applying both brakes simultaneously.

The eccentricity of the adjustable slide may be varied in infinite steps from zero to a maximum, and the feed control device may be adapted to impart one or two feeding impulses to the sash of the gang saw or any other equipment requiring a similar feed which must be adjusted while in operation.

While I have shown and described, by way of example, mechanism for attaining the stated objects, I wish to have it understood that various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the claims hereto attached without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. In an adjustable feed control device, a drum adapted to serve as a housing, driving means contacting the peripheral surface of said drum for rotating said drum in synchronism with the operation of a machine, a slide associated with said drum for producing a crank motion; adjustable means for changing the eccentric throw of said slide while said drum is rotating including normally inoperative braking means and manually operable means for applying said braking means to actuate said throw adjusting means to selectively increase or decrease the eccentric throw of said slide; said slide having adjustable frictional clamping surfaces for subjecting said slide to a predetermined frictional resistance to maintain said slide in position when said throw adjusting means are inoperative, and an indicator rod operably connected wth said slide for indicating the magnitude of the eccentric throw of the latter.

' 2. A feed control device according to claim 1,

in combination with two ratchet mechanisms operatively connected with said slide and adapted to impart two feeding impulses to the feeding mechanism of a machine for each revolution of said drum.

3. In a mechanism for intermittently actuating the feed of a machine, feed control means comprising a housing adapted to serve as a pulley, driving means for rotating said housing in synchronism with the operation of the machine, a slide radially adjustable in said housing for producing a crank motion and having frictional clamping surfaces including adjustable means for subjecting said slide to a predetermined degree of frictional resistance at all times, adjustable stroke control means for displacing said slide while said feed control means is rotating, two one-way clutch devices operatively connected with said slide and adapted to impart two feeding impulses to the feed of the machine during each revolution of said feed control means, said one-way clutch devices being adapted to alternately lock the feed against torsional spring-back during part of their operating cycle.

4. In mechanisms for progressively feeding the reciprocating sash frame of stone cutting saws towards the work material, a feed control device comprising, a rotatable pulley adapted to serve as a housing, means for rotating said pulley in synchronism with the reciprocating sash frame, a slide associated with said pulley for producing a crank motion, a spindle in threaded engagement with said slide for displacing said slide eccentrically, a pair of drive shafts rotatably mounted substantially at right angles to said spindle, meshing bevel gears carried by said spindle and by said pair of drive shafts, normally inoperative braking means associated with said pair of drive shafts including means for selectively applying a braking action to retard the rotation of either one of said drive shafts, thereby causing a compensating rotation of said spindle in either one of two directions with a consequent increase or decrease in the eccentricity of said slide while said pulley is rotating, adjustable friction surfaces for maintaining said slide in its adjusted position, and two ratchet devices operatively connected with said slide for imparting two consecutive feeding impulses during each revolution of said pulley for feeding the sash frame towards the work material.

5. In a mechanism for imparting intermittently two feeding impulses during each cycle of a machine, a housing adapted to serve as a pulley, a sleeve secured to said housing, means for rotatably supporting said sleeve, means for rotating said housing with its associated sleeve in synchronism with the operation of the machine, a slide associated with said housing for producing a crank motion, a spindle located within said housing and in threaded engagement with said slide for displacing said slide eccentrically when said spindle is rotated with respect to said slide, adjustable friction surfaces on said slide adapted to permit displacement of said slide when acted upon by said spindle but normally maintaining said slide ina fixed position with respect to said housing, a second sleeve rotatably mounted inside said first sleeve, a shaft rotatably disposed within said second sleeve, driving means secured to said second sleeve and to said shaft, other driving means secured to said spindle and cooperating with said first-mentioned driving means to normally rotate said shaft and said second sleeve at the same speed as said housing, selectively op- 0 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Foerster Apr. 20, 1886 Jenkinson July 19, 1887 Williams June 10, 1890 Grimm June 2, 1896 Meishke-Smith et a1. July 28, 1903