US2676623A - Wire tying mechanism - Google Patents

Description

April 27, 1954 H. w.v BLoss 2,676,623

WIRE TYING MECHANISM Original Filed July 2, 1945 INVENTORi AROLD w. BLOSS A TTORNE YS.

Patented Apr. 27, 1954 WIRE TYING MECHANISM Harold W. Bloss, Ottumwa, Iowa, assignor to Deere Manufacturing 00., a corporation of Iowa Continuation of application Serial No. 602,810, July 2, 1945. This application September 16, 1949, Serial No. 116,038

6 Claims.

The present invention relates generally to wiretying mechanism, with particular reference to mechanism used in connection with hay pick-up baling presses and is in the nature of an improvement over the mechanism disclosed in an application Serial No. 594,684, filed May 19, 1945, by Miles H. Tuft, now Patent No. 2,512,754.

The instant application is a continuation of my co-pending application, Serial No. 602,810, filed July 2, 1945, now abandoned.

In mechanism of this type, two strands of wire are received within a radially extending slot in a twisting gear and the gear is rotated to twist the strands together to form an elongated doublestranded twist that projects at both sides of the gear. Kinking members at opposite sides of the twisting gear have slots for loosely receiving the twisted strands. These kinking members are rotated about axes perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the twisting gear and thus bend or kink the twisted portions of the wire strands, conditioning them against untwisting and pulling' apart. Simultaneously, the twisted portion is severed at the center thereof, by a shearing action between an edge of the slot the twisting gear and an edge of the slot in one of the kinking members, thereby providing two separate knots or ties. The knot in the kinking member which does the severing thus has but one bend or kink therein, .but the knot on the other side of the twisting gear has two spaced bends or kinks, because the end of the twist that lays in the twisting gear slot is pulled through and bent around the inner end of the slot in the proximate kinking member.

It has been found under test that the knot having two spaced bends is more resistant to untwisting and pulling apart than is the knot having only one bend therein. Hence, the principal object of thisinvention resides in the provision of novel and improved wire-tying mechanism that produces two knots or ties, each of which is bent or kinked at two spaced points in the twisted portion of the strands.

More specifically, an object of my invention relates to the provision of wire-tying mechanism which twists two strands of wire together, bends the twisted portion in four spaced points thereon, and severs the twisted portion adjacent the center thereof to provide two knots, each of which has a pair of spaced bends in the twisted portion thereof.

These and other objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent as :a-complete disclosure ofa preferred embodiment-fi th? invention is made in the following description and drawings appended thereto, in which Figure 1 is an end elevational view of a wiretying device embodying the principles of the present invention and having a portion of the casing broken away to expose the twisting gear and one of the kinking members;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along the line -22 in Figure 1, showing the strands of balin wire and also showing the upper portion of the needle in tying position;

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view of the twisting gear and the two kinking members, showing the relative positions thereof, the casing being omitted;

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of the tying mechanism on one side of the casing, showing the associated portion of the casing and also showing the strands of baling wire in place in the mechanism, the needle being omitted and the kinking members being shown in a partially rotated position;

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but showing the kinking members in their extreme position wherein the twisted portions of the wire strands are kinked after having been severed;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of one of the completed knots; and

Figure 7 is an enlarged elevational view of the lower end of one of the kinking members.

Referring now to the drawings, the wire-tying mechanism includes a support or casing l0 comprising two complementary casing section I I and [2 connected rigidly together bya plurality of bolts [3. The central portion of the casing ill houses a drive gear M, of comparatively large diameter, keyed to a drive shaft [5 journaled in abearing l6.

A pair of twisting elements in the form of gears I! are disposed von opposite sides of the drive gear M, respectively, and have teeth meshing with the latter. Each of the twisting gears I1 is rotatably carried within a circular chamber l8 within the casing I0 and is supported on the ends of its teeth, which slidably engage the peripheral wall of the chamber I8. Each gear i1 is provided with wire-receiving means comprising a radially extending slot l9, which extends radially outwardly from the axis of rotation of the gear and between a pair of teeth of the gear, which teeth define an outwardly flaring opening to the slot 19 through which the wires can'be shifted. The slot 19 at the center of the gear I! is sufiiciently wide to receive a strand of baling wire but not wide enough for two strands of wire 3 to pass each other in the slot; therefore, when two wires are placed within the slot [5 and the gear is rotated about its axis, the two strands of wire will be twisted together.

Normally, the slot i 5 opens downwardly in register with a corresponding slot in the bottom of the casing Ill. The slot 20 communicates with the gear chamber l8 and extends upwardly on each side of the latter, where it is flared into an enlarged opening 2 I.

Disposed within the enlarged openings 2| on opposite sides of each of the twisting gears ll is a pair of bending elements or kinking members and 25, each of which comprises a shaft rotatable on an axis perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the associated twisting gear I! and jouroaled in a corresponding passage 21 and 28 in the housing sections I I, I2, respectively. The kinking member shafts 25 and 26 extend upwardly at laterally opposite sides of the twisting gear ll, respectively, through gear chambers 29 and in the casing 10, these chambers being in communication with each other to receive a pair of intermeshing drive gears 31- and 32, respectively, which are fixed. to the kinker shafts 25 and 25. One of the shafts 26 extends through the top of the casing i-B and is keyed to a drive gear 33. Thus, rotation of the gear 33 efiects rotation of the kinking member 25 which in turn drives the other kinking member 25 through the gears 3| and 32, the two kinking members rotating in opposite directions.

Each of the kinking members 25 and 26 is provided at its lower end with wire-receiving means in the form of a slot 35, extending diametrically '1 across the end thereof and normally disposed in alignment with the slot l9 in the twisting gear l? associated therewith; but the slots 35 are ap preciably wider than the slot [9 and may receive the two strands of wire as they are moved into the twisting gear slot 19. The slots 5 provide suflicient clearance so that, when the twisting gear rotates, the wire strands within the slots 35 can twist freely without interference from the kinking members.

Each of the twisting gears I! is provided with a central recessed portion 36 in each side thereof, so that, with the slots 35 in the kinking members 25 and 25 normally in alignment with the slot i9 in the gear ll, there is a space between the inner end of each slot 35 and the adjacent end of the slot IS. The kinking member .25 is provided with an axially extending, radially outwardly projecting cutting means 40 that has an axially extending cutting edge H (see Figure 3), which is moved by rotation of the kinking member 25 into cooperative shearing relation with the edge of the slot is in the twisting gear i1. Hence, when the kinking member 25 rotates in a clockwise direction (as viewed in Figure 3) the cutting edge 41 approaches the indented side 36 of the gear I! and cuts or severs the wire strands at the adjacent end of the slot 19. The cutting means or element 45 is spaced peripherally around the side of the kinking member 25 to position the cutting edge 4| in angularly spaced relation to the slot 35, for the purpose of postponing or delaying the severing action until the kinking member has rotated through a sufficient angle to at least partially bend or kink the twisted strands of wire.

After the strands have been severed, the kinking members 25 and 26 continue to rotate until each has rotated through an angle of approximately 180 degrees to complete the kinking of the twisted strands. The kinkers then reverse their direction of movement and return to their original positions.

The kinkers are oscillated in this manner by a horizontal drive gear 45 having a hub 46 which is journaled on a vertical spindle 41 fixed to the gear casing ID. The gear 45 has teeth 48 which mesh with the pinions 33 on the kinking members 26, and therefore an oscillation of the gear 45 rotates the kinking members 26 first in one direction and then in the other. The kinking members 25 are rotated simultaneously by means of the meshing gears 34 and 52. This oscillatory movement of the gear '45 is imparted by means of a link comprising a pair of strap members 55 disposed above and below the gear 45 and pivotally connected. thereto by means of a pivot bolt 5!. The means for actuating the link members 55 does not form an essential part of the present invention and therefore is not described herein in detail. It is sufficient to say that the link members 50 are reciprocated after the twisting gear ll has been rotated to twist the wire strands together, and a pair of stops 52 and 53 on the bottom of the gear 4:5 and the top of the casing [0, respectively, prevent the gear 45 from being rotated through a greater extent than is necessary to move the kinking members through degrees each.

In order that the twisted wire strands will be retained within the slots 35 in the kinking members 25 and 25 during angular movement of these members, the walls of the slots 35 are undercut, as indicated at 55, on the sides of the slots that engage the twisted strands during that part of th angular movement of the kinking members in which the twisted portions are being bent. Each undercut portion .55 is formed preferably by the drilling of a hole transversely through the kinking member at an angle to the slot 35. An angle of 15 degrees between the axis of the hole 55 and the axis of the slot 35 will give satisfactory results. 7

When the kinking members reverse their direction of rotation, the twisted strands, which are now bent at two spaced points at each side of the twisting gear ll, engage the sides of the slots 35 which are not undercut, During this return movement, the twisted and kinked wires are ejected downwardly from the slots 35, this ejecting action being effected by beveled portions 56 and 51 along the edges of the slots 35, which portions bear against the wires during the return movement and provide inclined camming surfaces which, while the kinkers are being returned to their normal position, act to force the twisted portions of the wires downwardly out of the slots.

The wire for each bale tieis fed from a pair of coils of wire (not shown), disposed respectively above and below the bale case. The wire from the upper coil is shown at 60 and passes downwardly over a sheave 6| mounted on a shaft 52 journaled in a bracket 63. The bracket 63 is attached by a bolt 64 to a supporting lug 55 on the casing portion l 2. The wire 60 passes downwardly under a second sheave 66 mounted on a shaft 61 journaled on the bracket 63. From the sheave 66, the wire 60 extends through the slot 20 in the housing and lies in the aligned slots l9 and 35 in the twisting gear I! and the kinking members 25 and 26, respectively, whence the wire 60 extends laterally toward the left, as viewed in Figure 2, over the top of a bale being formed (not shown).

A wire strand 10 from a lower coil '(not shown extends outwardly along a needle 1|, only the upper end of which is shown in Figure 2, and passes over a pair of spaced sheaves 13 and 14 mounted on stub shafts l5 and I6 journaled in a pair of spaced fingers l1 and 18, respectively, at the end of the needle. From the sheave T4, the wire strand I passes along the bottom of the bale and up the outer end thereof, at which point it is tied to the upper wire 60 by a knot that was formed in the preceding tying operation, as will be made clear presently.

While the bale is being formed, the needle is retracted below the bale case and the bale is formed between the upper and lower wire strands 60 and 10; and when the bale attains a predetermined length, the needle H is moved upwardly tobring the lower strand Hi up along the end of the bale. As the needle moves into the position shown in Figure 2, the strand 10 is shifted upwardly through the slot I 9 in the twister gear 17 and into the two aligned slots 35 in the kinking members 25 and 26. It is to be noted that there are two such needles H which move simultaneously and bring two parallel wires 10 upwardly into the opposite sides of the tying mechanism case Ill.

The drive shaft I is then rotated through one revolution, turning the twister gears I! through three revolutions; and, since the slot ill in each of the twister gears I1 is but slightly wider than the diameter of one of the wires, the two doublestranded wires lie in close proximity and are twisted by the rotation of the gear I! into a relatively elongated double-stranded helix :or twist which has contiguous twisted portions 80 extending in :both directions from the gear H. The slots 35 in the kinkin members are, as stated above, large enough to permit the wires to twist therein without interference.

As soon as the twister gears ll cease rotating, the horizontal gear 45 is oscillated by reciprocation of the link 50 through a sufiicient range to turn the pinions 33 through 180 degrees each and then to return them to their original positions. As shown in Figure 4, as soon as the kinking members begin to turn while the twister gear I! is held stationary, the twisted portion 80 at each side of the twister gear is bent at two spaced points 8|, 82 at opposite ends of the slot 35 in which such twisted portion is lying. Thus, the elongated double-stranded twist is engaged and bent at four points spaced lengthwise thereof to provide two pairs of bends, one pair at each side of the twisting gear I1. It will be noted that each of the short lengths of Wire strands 83 which spanthe space between the kinking member 25 and the twister gear I! is bent substantially at right angles to the twisted portion 80, which lies in the slot 35 of the kinking member 25, before the wires are severed by the cutting edge M on the cutting element 4!]. This result follows because the cutting edge 4| is spaced peripherally around the side of the kinking member 25 from the end of the slot 35 and the undercut portion 55.

Further rotation of the kinking members causes the cutting edge 4| to act in cooperation with one edge of the slot IS in the twisting gear I! to sever the double-stranded twist intermediate the second and third bends, after which the kin-king members continue tomove angularly, as indicated in Figure 5, until each slot 35 is turned through an angle of 180 degrees, thereby wrapping the wires 63, around the kinking members to form the inner bend 8| of substantially 90 degrees. The kinking members are then moved angularly back to their original positions, during which movement the beveled portions 56, 51 engage the twisted portions and force them out of the slots 35.

It will now be observed that two knots. or

twisted portions 80 have been tied and cut apart. One-knot joins the two ends 60, 10' of the wire strand which encircles the bale, leaving the upper and lower strands 60, F0 from the wire coils tied together by the other knot, and each of the knots has been bent or kinked at two spaced points 8|, 82. When the needle H is retracted downwardly out of the bale case, the bale encircling strands 60', 10' slip ofi the end of the needle, and the two strands of wire 69, 10 from th wire coils extend vertically through the bale case, ready to receive the new charge of crop material to form a new bale. The wire strand (0 is retained in engagement with the sheave 73 by means of a retaining loop in the end of the finger ll of the needle I I.

What is claimed is:

1. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of a rotatable twisting member for receiving a.

plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them together, a rotatable kinking member disposed adjacent said twisting member and having means providing thereon a portion transverse to its axis of rotation for receiving said strands and rotatable after the latter have been twisted to bend the twisted portion at two spaced points, and a cutting element mounted on said kinking member and rotatable therewith into cooperative cutting relation with a portion of said twisting member for severing the twisted portion therebetween, and means for effecting rotation of the kinking member, said cutting element being so positioned peripherally on said kinking member that the latter must rotate through a portion of a revolution before said cutting element and said twisting member are brought into severing relation, to thereby delay the severing of said strands until the latter are at least partially bent.

2. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of a rotatable twisting member having a radially extending slot therein for receiving a plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them together by rotation of said member, a kinking member disposed adjacent said twisting, member and rotatable about an axis generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said twisting member, said kinking member having a recess normally disposed in alignment with said slot and adapted to receive said strands loosely, permitting the latter to be twisted therein, means for eifecting rotation of said kinking member to bend or kink the twisted portion of said strands, and a cutting element mounted on said kinking member and having an edge cooperable with anedge of said slot in said twisting member to sever said strands, said cutting edge being spaced peripherally on said kinking member from said receiving recess to delay the severing of said strands until the twisted portion has been bent.

3. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of a rotatable twisting member having a radially extending slot therein for receiving a plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them together by rotation of said member, a kinking member disposed adjacent said twisting member and rotatable about an axis generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said twisting member, said kinking member having a slot in one end thereof normally disposed in alignment with said slot in said twisting member and adapted to receive said strands loosely, permitting the latter to be twisted therein, means for effecting rotation of said kinking member to bend or the twisted portion of said strands at each end of said slot therein, said kinking member being spaced from said twisting member to provide a short length of said twisted strands therebetween, and a cutting element mounted on said kinking member and projecting radially beyond the end of said slot therein to a cutting edge cooper-able with an edge of said slot in said twisting member to sever said strands, said cutting edge on said kinking member being spaced peripherally on the latter from said slot therein to delay the severing of said strands until the member has been rotated through a sufficient angle to bend the twisted portion.

4. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of a rotatable twisting member having a radially extending slot therein for receiving a plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them together by rotation of said member, a pair of kinking members disposed on laterally opposite sides of said twisting member, respectively, and rotatable about axes generally perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said twisting member, said kinking members each having a slot in one end thereof normally disposed in alignment with said slot in said twisting member and adapted to receive said strands loosely, permitting the latter to be twisted therein, means for eiiecting rotation of said kinking members to bend or kink the twisted portions of said strands on both sides of said twisting member, each of said portions being thus bent at both ends of the slot in the respective kinking members, and a cutting element mounted on one of said kinking members and having a cutting edge cooperable with an edge of said slot in said twisting member to sever said strands between the twisted portions, said cutting edge on said kinking member being spaced peripherally on the latter from said slot therein to delay the severing of said strands until said kinking members have been rotated through a sufircient angle to bend the twisted portions.

'5. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of a rotatable twisting member in the form of a gear having a slot therein extending to the center thereof for receiving a plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them together by rotation of said gear, a pair of kinking members disposed on laterally opposite sides of said twisting gear, respectively, each of said kinking members comprising a generally cylindrical stub shaft rotatably disposed on an axis substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said twisting gear and having a slot in one end thereof normally aligned with the inner end of said gear slot for receiving said strands and enlarged to permit the latter to be twisted therein, means for effecting rotation of the kinking members to bend or kink the twisted portions of said strands on both sides of said twisting gear, each of said portions being thus bent at both ends of the slot in the respective kinking member, said kinking members being spaced from the sides of said twisting gear to permit said strands to bend around said stub shafts between the latter and said slot in the gear, and an axially extending cutting element mounted on one of said stub shafts and projecting radially outwardly therefrom to provide a cutting edge cooperable with one edge of said slot in said twisting gear to sever said strands therebetween, said cutting edge on said kinking member being spaced peripherally on the latter from said slot therein to delay the severing of said strands until said kinking members have been rotated through a sufrlcient angle to bend the twisted portions.

6. In wire-tying mechanism, the combination of twisting means for receiving a plurality of strands of wire or the like and twisting them to gether to form an elongated double-stranded twist, a pair of kinking members disposed on laterally opposite sides of said twisting member, respectively, and rotatable about generally parallel axes substantially normal to the length of the double-stranded twist, said kinking members each having a slot in one end thereof to receive said twist, means for effecting rotation of said kinking members to bend or kink the twist on both sides of said twisting member, each of said portions being thus bent at both ends of the slot in the respective kinking member, and a cutting element mounted on one of said kinking members and having a cutting edge cooperable with an edge of said slot in said twisting member to sever said strands between the twisted portions, said cutting edge on said kinking member being spaced peripherally on the latter from said slot therein to delay the severing of said strands until said kinking members have been rotated through a sufiicient angle to bend the twisted portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 661,015 Kennedy Oct. 30, 1900 994,661 Schubert June 6, 1911 1,990,526 Claar Feb. 12, 1935 2,512,754 Tuft June 27, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 458,687 Belgium June, 1945 595,649 Great Britain Dec. 11, 1947

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