US2771912A - Device for longitudinally reshaping corrugated wire springs - Google Patents

Description

2,771,912 DEVICE FOR LONGITUDINALLY RESHAPING CORRUGATED WIRE SPRINGS Filed Sept. 18, 1951 1956 s. G. BLUMENSAADT 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. SVEND G BLUHEN RHDT Nov. 27, 1956 BLUMENSAADT 2,771,912

DEVICE FOR LONGITUDINALLY RESHAPING CORRUGATED WIRE SPRINGS Filed Sept 18, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2? a9 5 a 0 0 l 40 IN V EN TOR. svs vu E'BLUNENSHRDT United States Patent DEVICE FOR LONGITUDINALLY RESHAPING CORRUGATED WIRE SPRINGS Svend G. Blumensaadt, Beachwood Village, Ohio, assignor to The Universal Wire Spring Company, Bedford, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio 1 Application September 18, 1951, Serial No. 247,109

1 Claim. (Cl.140-89) This invention relates to a device usable in the manucfacture of wire springs shaped of zigzag bent or s-inuously corrugated wire bent to zigzag shape in wire bending or corrugating machines designed to give the corrugated wire the desired number of corrugations per foot. Sinuously corrugated Wire springs shaped from corrugated wire of the type referred to above develop in their resting surfaces under load either too stitf or too yielding areas caused by excessive or insufficient load counteracting torsional stresses in the loop connecting cross wires of the springs, a condition which can readily be avoided by spacing in these area the loop-connecting cross wires diiferently from the general equal spacing of such cross wires in the resting surfaces for either locally increasing or decreasing the load counteracting torsional stresses in loop connecting cross wires of these areas.

The primary object of this invention is the provision of a practical, eflicient device for changing in predetermined areas of corrugated wire springs the spacing of their loopconnecting cross wi-res for the purpose of varying the load counteracting torsional stresses in the loop-connecting cross wires of said areas.

Such a general object of the invention is attained by subjecting wire spring loops in certain predetermined areas of corrugated Wire springs, by means of correlated shifting elements, to stresses adapted to change such loops and the spacing of the cross member connecting the loops to provide corrugated wire springs with areas difierentiating in their number of corrugations per foot.

Another object of the invention, therefore, is the provision of a device of the type referred to above constructed to include correlated shifting elements adapted to engage in a predetermined area of a corrugated wire spring loops thereof, the elements arranged to be shifted with respect to each other for reshaping the said loops and the spacing of the cross members connecting these loops.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a device of the type described above in which the correlated shifting elements are mounted on and coupled with each other by a lazy tongs structure having its direction of movement controlled by guide means.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a device of the type described above in which the correlated shifting elements are mounted on a lazy tongs structure having its central area rigidly supported and its opposite ends actuated upon 'by power-operated shifting means to symmetrically shift the shifting elements supported by the lazy tongs structure.

Still further objects and novel features of construction, combination and relation of parts by which the objects in view have been attained, will appear and are set forth in detail in the course of the following specification.

The drawings accompanying and 'forming part of the specification illustrate certain practical embodiments of the invention, but it will be apparent as the specification proceeds that the structure may be modified and changed ice in various ways without departure from the true spirit and broad scope of the invention.

In the drawings:

'Fig. 1 is a plan view of an apparatus constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary, longitudinal sectional view through the apparatus shown in Fig. l, the section being taken on line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig; 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on line -4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is -a diagrammatic view of the hydraulic system actuating the apparatus; and

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary plan view of a sinuously corrugated wire spring embodying areas differentiating in the spacing of their loop-connecting cross members.

Referring now more particularly to the exemplified form'of the invention shown in the drawings, reference numeral '2 denotes a wire spring squeezing fixture embodying an elongated base plate 3 mounted on ribs 4, which base plate ha secured to its opposite ends symmetrically constructed cylinder hanger members 5, 5', each of which embodies a perforated vertical plate 6, 6', respectively, secured by screws 7 to the respective end face of base plate '3 and a horizontal plate 8', 8, secured to plate -6, 6', respectively, adjacent to its top edge.

Horizontal plates '8, 8 are connected to the top edges of vertically arranged, perforated stops 9, 9', respectively, which are seated on and attached to base plate 3. These stop plates formthe stops for aligned left and right handed ways '10, -10"which 'slidably support push blocks 11, 11' arranged to actuate a lazy tongs squeezing arrangement '12 arranged between said blocks as will be later described.

The ways 10, 10 are of similar construction and include elongated rear way members 14, 14' and shorter front way member 15, '15 arranged in parallel relation to members 14, '15. Each rear way member is seated on and secured to base plate =3 and abuts with its one end stop plates 9, 9, respectively, and with its other end a guiding saddle member 16 secured by screws 16 to base plate '3 crosswise thereof. The shorter front way members are also seated on and secured to base plate 3, abut with their one ends stop plate 9, '9, respectively, and have their other opposed ends axially spaced from each other. Rear way members 14, 14' are slotted at their inner ends and mount in their slotted portions guide blocks '17, 17 respectively, which include elongated slots 18, 1 8 for a purpose later to be described.

Lazy tongs squeezing arrangement 12 embodies a system of two aligned pairs 20, 2 1 of crossed bars 22, '2-2' and 23, 23, respectively, and two end bars 24, 24', each latter of which is arranged adjacent to one of said aligned pairs of crossed bars. The pairs of crossed bars 20, 21 have the central areas of their bars 22, 22' and 23, 23', respectively, pivotally connected with each other by headed pins 25, 25 which extend above the bars to engage loops and cross wires of sinuously corrugated wire springs placed on the squeezing arrangement. The opposed inner ends of bars 22 and 23 and bars 22' and 23 are pivoted to each other by headed pins 26, 26' which also extend above the bars. The outer end of bars 22 and 23 are pivoted to end bars 24, 24 by headed pins 27, 27' and these end bars are coupled with the outer ends of bars 22, 23 by short link bars 28, -28 pivoted to bars 22, 23 by headed pins 29, 29' and to the central areas of bars 24, 24' by headed pins 30, 30.

As lazy tongs squeezing arrangement 12 is pivotally secured to stationary saddle member 16 by pin 26, such squeezing arrangement is subdivided in two symmetrically arranged squeezing portions 31, 31' which when actuated upon will be shifted jointly but in opposite directions with respect. to each other. Squeezing portions 31, 31' are jointly guided lay the pins 26 and 29, 29' which extend through elongated slot 32 in saddle member -14 and elongated slots 18, 18' in guide blocks 17, 17, slot 32 being rectangularly related to the axially aligned slots 18, 18'.

Actua-ting of the squeezing portions 31, 31' of the thus constructed lazy tongs arrangement is effected in one direction by a coil spring 33 connecting the lower ends of pin 30 with pin 34 mounted in base plate 3 and, in opposite direction 'by the push block's ll, 11 guided in ways 10, 10 as previously described. Push blocks are coupled by longitudinally adjustable piston rod 35, G with hydr-aulic cylinders 36 supported by the cylinder hanger members 5, 5. These piston rods include threaded portions 37 rota-tably mounting adjusting nuts 38 and extend through circular openings 39 in stop plate 9, 9', respectively, which openings are smaller in diameter than nuts 38 to positively limit shifting movements of push blocks 11, 11', respectively.

In operation the device is first adjusted to elfect in predetermined areas of a sinuously corrugated wire "spring 40 the desired changes in the spacing of loop-connecting cross wires 41 by adjusting nuts 38 on piston rod 35, 35' and then spring 40 is placed on the device to align the respective loops of the predetermined area of the wire spring with the respective pins of the lazy tongs squeezing arrangement.

Thereafter hydraulic cylinders 36 are actuated by valve arrangement 42 to shift push blocks 11, 11' and actuate squeezing portion 31, 31 to effect reshaping of the loops of the wire springs for proper spacing of cross wires 41. Release of the valve arrangement inactivates the hydraulic cylinders 36 and permits removal of the wire spring from the device and thereafter lay coil spring 33 return of the squeezing portions 31, 31 to their initial position.

Having thu described my invent-ion, what I claim is:

In a device for changing the longitudinal spacing of successively connected left and right handed loops of sinuously corrugated wires, a frame, a lazy tongs lever arrangement including a plurality of elongated pins pivotally coupling the cross bars of each pair of bars to each other and pivotally coupling at one side edge of said arrangement the cross bars of adjoining pairs of ham to each other, one of said pins, the pin which couples two of the symmetrically opposed bars of the two adjacent pairs or" the cross bars in 'the center portion of the lazy tongs lever arrangement, Jbeing non-'shiftably supported in said frame, a pin coupling the other two of the symmetrically opposed bars of said two adjacent pairs of cross bars in the center portion of the lever arrangement, said last pin slidably engaged with said frame to effect by actuation of the lazy tongs lever arrangement straight movements of the pins at said one side edge and arcuate movements of the pins pivotally connecting the, cross bars of each of said pairs of cross bars with each other, .wire engaging head portions on said pins adapted to engage loop-s and loop connecting wire portions of sinuously corrugated wires placed on the device, and power operated push block means. engaged with the free ends of the lazy tongs lever arrangement for actuating same.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 533,178 Mandel et al. Jan. 29, 1895 804,029 Nilson et al. Nov. 7, 1905 1,327,467 Griner Jan. 6, 1920 2,086,736 Palmer July 13, 1937 2,378,058 Blumsensaadt June 12, 1945 2,454,290 Payne Nov. 23, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS 463,670 France Dec. 23, 1913 867,035 France Sept. 23, 1941

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