US2682808A - Arrangement for supporting movable machine members on horizontal slideways - Google Patents

Description

y 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ ,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 w nnuunun l w in INVENTOR Chir/CS MAN/aw Ba l tz A710 rway July 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 82,808 ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Ch rles Will/am Barf/ ew.

B MwM/y A TTO RA/E Y y 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ ,808 ARRANGEMENT F SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 m i. X .l I! I. J \Mwhhfll/ v aw 1 l 1 I I mvaurar? h rles Wil/Yam BeW/"luez M MM;

ATTO R/vEY July 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 2, ,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 1 l I I l lNVENTOR Charles William Berfkkez ATTORNEY y 6,1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 2,682,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVE-NTOR C h arles VIII/ham BerHuL BY M4 ATTORNEY Patented July 6, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOV- ABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORI- ZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Charles William Berthiez, Bizy Vernon, France, assignor to Socit Nouvelle de Construction de Machins-Outils et dOutillage, Procds C.

W. B., Paris, France Application May 21, 1952, Serial No. 289,169

Claims priority, application France February 20, 1952 12 Claims.

ways, the movable machine member being partly a and resiliently supported by a roller device adapted to roll on the said rollway and substantially arranged on the vertical line passing through the centre of gravity of the movable machine member.

Thus, the slideways are subjected only to a slight specific pressure intended merely to accurately guide the movable member on its supporting element. This results in a great smoothness of operation and eliminates the wear of the slideways, which enables the machine to retain its accuracy.

It can be said that in the device which is the subject of the above mentioned application, the provision of two functions, that is to say, the supporting function of the resilient suspension roller device and the guiding function of the slideways, allows the slideways to be completely relieved of any strain liable to lead to excessive wear and impair their guiding precision. Moreover, it obviates the risk of the oil film being crushed.

However, this can be achieved only if the centre of gravity of the movable member is not displaced when the machine is working. Now,

if an attachment, or tooling, is mounted on the headstock of a milling and boring machine such as the machine shown as an example in the above mentioned copending application, for instance a turret head the weight of which is considerable relative to that of the headstock, the centre of gravity of the assembly headstock turret would not be located on the same vertical line as the centre of gravity of the headstock considered separately. Therefore, if, in accordance with my copending application, the resilient roller device is arranged on the vertical line of the centre of gravity of the milling and boring headstock, this device will not be located on the vertical line of the centre of gravity of the new assembly consisting of the headstock and of the turret head secured thereon. As a result, the slideways will be subjected to a stress the amount of which will vary in proportion to the amount of displacement 2 of the centre of gravity and to the weight of the turret head. Under such conditions, the result which is aimed at is not exactly what it should be. In fact, the pressure on the slideways will not be even and will vary considerably according to the position of the headstock along the slideways; the oil film may be more or less crushed and may even be destroyed at the points where the pressure is excessive. The consequence thereof will be a lack of precision in the guiding of the movable member and the parts supported thereby and a risk of jamming.

The object of the present invention is to overcome this drawback by making it possible to adjust the position of the resilient roller'device on the movable member in such a way that the said roller device can be at any time brought on the vertical line of the centre of gravity of the assembly formed by the said movable member and the various attachments to be mounted thereon.

The roller of the roller suspension device is preferably carried by a lever hinged on a horizontal spindle carried by the movable member,

the axis of this spindle being arranged parallelly to the direction of the slideways, so that the lever can be moved along this horizontal spindle and is subjected to the action of a spring which causes the roller to bear upon the rollway.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the following description and from the accompanying drawings given merely by way of examples and in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of an embodiment applied to a milling and boring machine the headstock of which is movable along horizontal slideways carried by a vertically movable slide;

Figure 2 is a corresponding side view;

Figure 3 is a sectional view, on a larger scale along line III-III of Figure l, of the headstock supporting device;

Figure 4 is a section, on the same scale as Figure 3, of the headstock supporting device taken along line IV-IV of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a section, on the same scale as the aforementioned figures, taken along line V-V of Figure 1; and

Figure 6 is a section, again on the same scale, along line VIVI of Figure 4.

I shall, first of all, refer to Figures 1 and 2 showing the main parts of a heavy duty milling and boring machine, namely: a bed I on which a column 2 can be shifted, which is provided with vertical slideways 3 along which can move a slide 4 supporting a headstock 5 which, in its turn, can move horizontally along slideways 6 carried by I the slide 4.

Apart from the fact that the headstock is guided in the slideways 6 of the slide 4, this headstock is, as in my copending application, resiliently supported on the slide 4 by means of a device comprising rollers which roll on a rail carried by the slide 4.

By referring more particularly to Figures 3 and 4, it can be seen that the headstock 5 is held in the slideways 6 of the slide l by a flange '5! secured on the slide by means of screws which are not shown, the said flange being positioned on the said slide by means of a bar "i2 which is accurately machined and located on the slide through taper dowel pins l3 driven into suitable holes bored in the slide. The taper dowel pins l3 are provided with shoulders 14 to prevent the bar '72 from getting away from the slide face against which it bears.

The top surface of flange H is machined perfectly true and runs parallel to the direction of the slideways 5 of the slide 4. It serves as a rollway for a roller device intended to support the greater part of the headstock weight. This device comprises two identical rollers i5, Figs. 3 and 4, each mounted on the outer race 16 of a self-aligning spherical roller bearing the inner race ii of which is driven on a shaft 18 and immobilized thereon by means of an elastic ring E9 engaged in a groove 82 of the shaft 18. A cover 83 fitted on the roller by means of countersunk screws 84 closes the recess provided in the supporting roller for housing the bearing it-J1.

The shaft 18 is provided with a shoulder 35 which rests against one face of a block 86 having a bore Si in which the extension of the shaft i8 is fitted, this extension being provided with a threaded end portion on which is screwed a nut 88 which bears against the opposite face of the block 5 in order to immobilize the shaft 78 in this block. A lock-washer 89 prevents the nut flit from loosening when the device is in operation. The two rollers l5 are mounted in exactly the same way and the two blocks 86 are welded on a lever as at opposite sides thereof so that the lever and the rollers carried thereby can swing about a bar or spindle 93, this lever being adapted to slide on the bar parallel to its axis. The bar is intended to support the weight of the headstock 5, as will be seen further on. Two hubs 94 the inner diameter of which is equal to that of the bar 93 are welded on the opposite side faces of the lever Q2 and they are intended to ensure a better guiding of the lever ea in sliding along the bar 93.

The bar s3 is carried at both ends by two blocks 95 and 96 which are secured by means of screws 98 together with a base plate 9? on the upper face of the headstock 5. Between the base plate and the upper face of headstock 5 are inserted several washers lit), the thickness of which is selected at the time of mounting.

One end of the bar 93 is provided with a shoulder til resting against the face of a recess 9i cut into the block 95, whereas the other end is threaded and fitted with a nut I08 which bears on the outer face of the block 9% through a washer llil, a lock washer 19 being provided in order to prevent the nut from loosening. The bar 93 is therefore held fast in the two blocks 95 and 9E.

The lever 92 carries, at its left-hand portion in Figure 3, an extension arm 39 welded at ill on this lever through which extension passes an adjusting sleeve Hi2 the outer surface of which is threaded. This sleeve carries a rim 163 provided with slots Hit by means of which the sleeve can be rotated for adjusting purposes. A scale 12% carried by the rim ms cooperates with a pointer 52: secured on the end of the arm 39 in a groove l38 by means of a screw I39. The rim m3 rests on a shouldered washer Hi5 itself resting on a group of spring washers 536. These, in their turn, rest on the base ii of a spindle m8 or shaft having its axis vertical and which passes through the assembly of the washers and of the sleeve it? in which it is freely mounted. This shaft Hi8 rests, through its base Hi7, on the upper face of the base plate 9?.

The assembly constituted by the lever 92 and the parts mounted thereon can move longitudinally in a direction parallel to the axis of the bar 93, and its motion is achieved by means of the device about to be described. In a hole H2, Fig. 4, drilled in the lever 82 is arranged, with a substantial clearance, the reduced end N3 of a rod Ht. This clearance is necessary to enable the lever 92 to slightly rock about the bar 93. The end N3 of the rod H t has a threaded portion with a somewhat smaller eter, on which portion a nut H5 is screwed, a washer i it being inserted therebetween. A slit pin Hi prevents the nut from loosening after mounting. The reduced portion N3 of the rod H 3 is somewhat longer than the thickness of the lever 92, so that the rod M4 is not made rigid with the lever 92, this for the same reason for which a clearance has been provided between the rod portion H3 and the inner wall of the hole I i2 of the lever 82. The rod lid can freely slide in a bore H8 provided in the upper portion of the block 96 in a direction parallel to that of the bar 93. This rod at its lower part and on a certain length thereof has a portion cut into a rack H9 which meshes with a toothed wheel 122 (see also Fig ure 5) secured by means of a tapered pin I23 on a shouldered end E24 of a driving shaft 125 pivoted in two flanges 126, i271 welded on the base plate 9's. The left or front end of the shaft E25 is provided with a six-sided recess 928 into which the end of a wrench can be engaged in order to rotate the shaft. The left end of the shaft I25 (see Figure 5) is formed with a collar ring i252 which bears against a recess l32 cut into the flange i2? so as to longitudinally locate the shaft 25.

The right end of the rod H 3 (Figure i) slides in a support E33 (see also Figure 6) which is secured on the outer face of the flange 25 by means of screws 434. The support i33 is accurately positioned with regard to the flange I25 by means of tapered dowel pins I35.

At the lower part of Figure 3 are to be seen the base plate 91 and, on the left hand side of this figure, the flange IN. The latter is provided with an opening l3t (see algo Figure 1) serving as a passage way for a pointer 13? shown as forming a whole with the pointer iZi which, as already seen, is secured on the end of the arm 99 in a groove I38 by means of the screw 39. In this manner and with the help of a scale hi2 (Figure l) engraved on the front face of the flange i2? and in front of which the pointer ldl is shifted, it is possible to position along the bar 93 the assembly consisting of the lever 92 and the several parts carried thereby. A cover M3 is welded on flanges I26 and I2? so as to form a rigid assembly and this cover has an elevated portion, as shown at Mt (see Figures 3 and 4), under which the group of two rollers can move when the lever 92 is slidably moved along the bar 93.

The device just described operates in the following manner:

The drawings show all the machine members in their normal service position, that is to say: the headstock 5 is suspended through the lever 92 and the two rollers I5 to the flange II which is rigid with the slide 4 and which serves as a rollway for the rollers 15. The axis of the roller device has been placed beforehand substantially on the vertical line of the centre of .gravity .of the head stock. As the rollers I5 rest upon the upper face of the flange 'II, the weight of the headstock tends to cause the lever 92 to rock about the axis of the bar 93 but the spring washers I06, previously compressed, bias the lever to rock in the opposite direction. It is, therefore, clear that if the degree of compression of the spring washers I06 is correctly adjusted by means of the threaded sleeve I02, it is possible to have the weight of the headstock supported, in the desired proportion, partly by the rollers I5 and partly by the slideways 6. If desired, the whole weight of the headstock can be made to bear on the rollers in order to limit the function of the slideways 6 to that of a guiding element only.

Assuming that it is desired to mount any kind of attachment on the front face I of the headstock (see Figure 1), it is obvious that the centre of gravity of the assembly consisting of the headstock 5 and the said attachment is not located at the same place as the centre of gravity of the headstock 5 alone. As a consequence thereof, the centre of gravity of the new assembly will not be located on the vertical line passing through the roller device axis. It has been explained in the introduction to this specification that this condition is, for various reasons, an unfavourable one and that it is the aim of the present invention to render it possible to bring the axis of the suspension roller device on the vertical line passing through the centre of gravity of the new assembly. To achieve this end,

the adjustment is effected in the following by means of a wrench inserted through the opening I36 to engage the slots I04 on rim I03 so as to rotate the sleeve and relieve the spring washers I00 which thus no longer press the rollers on the flange II. The roller device then may be shifted along the bar 93 by rotating the shaft I25 by means of a wrench inserted in the hexagonal recess I28. The rotational motion of this shaft causes the toothed wheel I22 to rotate, thus driving the rack H9 and rod II4 which is attached to the lever 92 of the roller device. The shifting of the roller device is stopped when the pointer I2I has reached the desired graduation on the scale I42. This scale can be, calibrated in various ways according to the various kinds of attachments to be mounted on the headstock 5, so that the graduation corresponding to the centre of gravity of any given assembly is determined in advance.

The suspension roller device now being located in the desired relation to the vertical line of the centre of gravity of the headstock-attachment assembly, it has to be stressed again so .that the rollers can be made to support their share of the weight of the said assembly and thus relieve the slideway surfaces of the slide .4. This is done by rotating the adjusting threaded sleeve I02 in the opposite direction in order to compress the spring washers I06. The dimensions of the device can be determined in such a way that the spring Washers reach their maximum compression when the lower end of the shouldered washer I05 comes to bear against the base I01 of the shaft I00. The sleeve I02 is then loosened a little, observing at the same time the graduation shown by the pointer I2I sliding along the scale I20 provided on the sleeve, such graduation having been established in terms of the stress exercised by the spring washers according to the extent of the compression they are subjected to. It is thus possible to know- Which is the graduation mark corresponding to any given attachment, so that the rollers I5 are made to support the proper amount of weight in accordance with the standard set up. This procedure makes it possible to keep account of the variations in the Weight of the assembly constituted by the headstock and the various attachments mounted thereon, in order to keep constant the desirable proportion between the amount of load to be supported by the rollers I5 and that to be carried by the slideways 6.

It should be noted that, even if it were desired to apply-the maximum compression stress on the spring washers, the lower end of shouldered washer I05 must not be blocked against the base I01, in order not to block the assembly formed by the roller-carrying lever 92 on the headstock. On the'contrary, a small amount of movement should be provided enabling it to cope with any possible slight errors in the machining 01' mounting of the flange 1! serving as a rollway for the rollers "I5. In such a case it is sufficient, in order to make sure that the device operates correctly, to loosen the threaded sleeve I02 by a small amount, for instance a quarter of a turn starting from the position occupied by the threaded sleeve I02 when the end of the shouldered washer I05 bears on the base I01.

Of course, the present invention is not restricted to the embodiment described and represented, which has been chosen merely as an example. The scope of the invention would not be departed from were embodiments designed in I a way different from that just described but embodying the same features, that is to say, the position of the suspension roller device for the headstock is adjusted in accordance with the location of the centre of gravity of the assembly formed by the headstock and the attachments mounted thereon, so that the roller device is always located on the vertical line of the said centre of gravity.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendin slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said surface, the combination with said element and said member of means providing an elongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the length of said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, a roller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rolling movement horizontally lengthwise thereof, means operatively connecting said member and said roller for supporting said member on said roller for rolling movement of said roller along said rollway surface concomitantly with sliding movement of said member along said slideway surface, said operative connection providing for movement of said roller and said member relative to each other parallel to said given direction to adjust the position of said roller with respect to the vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachments supported thereoni 2. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said surface, the combination as defined in claim 1 which comprises additional means operatively connecting said member and said roller and providing for movement of said member relative to each other to move said roller toward and away from said rollway surface, and resilient means connected to said additional means and adapted to bias said roller to move relative to said member in the direction to urge said roller against said rollway surface.

3. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said surface, the combination as defined in claim 2 in which said additional operative connection comprises means connected to said resilient means for adjusting the degree of resilience of said resilient means to adjust the amount of pressure of said roller on said rollway surface relative to the pressure of said movable member on said slideway surface.

4. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member beinig supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface, the combination with said element and said member of means providing an elongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the length of said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, a roller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rolling movement horizontally lengthwise thereof, a part connected to said roller for movement therewith along said rollway surface, a part connected to said member for movement therewith along said slideway surface, means operatively connecting said parts for supporting said member and the part connected on said part connected to said roller and on said roller for rolling movement of said roller along said rollway surface concomitantly with sliding movement of said member along said slideway surface, said operative connection between said parts providing for movement of said parts relative to each other parallel to said given direction to adjust the position of said roller with respect to the vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachments mounted thereon, and means operatively connected to said parts and operable for effecting said relative movement of said parts to adjust the position of said roller relative to said vertical line.

5. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providin a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 4 in which said part connected to said member comprises a cylindrical bar supported by said movable member with the length of the bar horizontal and parallel to said direction of movement alon said slideway surface, said part connected to said roller comprising a lever supported on said bar for pivotal movement of said lever on the axis of said bar and slidable along said bar parallel to said length thereof, said roller being supported by said lever for lOlllilg engagement with said rollway surface.

6. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 5 which comprises means operatively connecting said lever and said member and providing for adjustment with respect to said member of the angular position of said lever about said pivotal axis.

7. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendin slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding en gagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 6 in which said means operatively connecting said lever and said member comprises resilient means adapted to bias said lever to pivot about said pivotal axis in the direction to urge said roller against said rollway surface.

8. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given'direction horizontally alongsaid slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 1, which comprises an elongated element providing thereon a rack lengthwise thereof and supported by said member for movement of said rack element relative to said member lengthwise of said rack parallel to said given direction of movement of said member along said slideway surface, said rack element being operatively connected to said roller for electing said relative movement of said roller with respect to said member upon lengthwise movement of said rack element, a toothed wheel supported by said movable member in mesh with said rack for cfiecting lengthwise movement of said rack element upon rotation of said toothed Wheel, and means operatively connected to said toothed wheel and operable for effecting rotation thereof to adjust the relative positions of said roller and said member to adjust the position of' said roller with respect to said vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachments supported thereby.

9. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providin a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said memher being supported for movement of said memher in a given direction horizontally alon said slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 1 which comprises means providing a scale carried by said movable member, and index means operatively connected to said roller and cooperating with said scale for indicating the different positions of said roller relative to said movable member.

10. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface, the combination as defined in claim 1 in which said means providing said rollway surface comprises an elongated flange supported by said element of said machine, said flange providinga horizontal upper surface extending lengthwise of the flange and parallel to said given direction for rolling engagement by said roller to support said roller and said member supported thereby.

11. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said surface, the combination with said element and said member of means providing an elongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the 10 face, said operative connection providing for movement of said roller and said member relative to each other in a horizontal direction to adjust the position of said roller with respect to the 7 vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachments supported thereon.

12. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments or the like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported for movement of said member in a given direction horizontally along said surface, the combination with said element and said member of means providing an elongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the length of said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, a roller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rolling movement horizontally lengthwise thereof, means operatively connecting said member and said roller for supporting said member on said roller for rolling movement of said roller along said rollway surface concomitantly with sliding movement of said member along said surface, said operative connection providing for movement of said roller and said member relative to each other parallel to said given direction to adjust the position of said roller with respect to said member so that the center of support of the supporting force of said roller is brought on the vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachments supported thereon.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Great Britain Dec. 17, 1925

Images