US2854861A

US2854861A - Advancing and locking mechanism

Info

Publication number: US2854861A
Application number: US360459A
Authority: US
Inventors: Milford G Loder
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1941-10-31
Filing date: 1953-06-09
Publication date: 1958-10-07
Anticipated expiration: 1975-10-07

Description

(mt. & 19W M. G. LODER ADVANCING AND LOCKING MECHANISM Filed. June 9,, 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

ATTOP/VEV United States Patent F ADVANCING AND LOCKING MECHANISM Milford G. Loder, Van Dyke, Mich. ApplicationJun'e 9; 1953, Serial No. 360,459

Claims. (Cl. 14-'--817) This invention relateslt'o mechanism which increment ally advances one member relative to another and locks and unlocks the members relativeto each other such as inlmacliine-tool' turrets and locks therefor and more par ticularlyto mechanisrnincorporating novel, inventive,,and useful mechanical means for advancinga member to the next station and to noVeLinventive, and. useful mechani call means to. accurately locate and" lock andunlock the members relative to each. other.

As an illustration of the application ofthe invention, the instant advancing, and lockingrnechanism may, be. inr corporat'ed in members such as tool-holding turrets. employed on turret lathes andthe like which holdla multiplicit'y of tools and' rotate. incrementally to present the tools in. series relative to a workpiece. Tool holdiiig turrets are well known in the art and. they usually empla a ratchet mechanism to advance the turret to the next tool station by movement ofa lever in one direction and'a lbc kingmechanism to secure the turret in the advanced position operated by movement of'tlie lever in the opposite direction. Some tool holdi ng, turrets also employ spring, pressed" detents to pre-locate the turret.

The devices of the prior. art, however-, hav'e not proven entirely satisfactory inasmuch as they are complicated in. design and construction, expensive to manufacture, difficult to use, and inaccurate as to tool location in locked condition. Prior art devices. also are unsatisfacfory' because of the susceptibility of jamming or even actual Breakage of theadvancing and locking. mechanism in the hands of an inexperienced operator.

With the foregoing in view it is a primary object of this invention to provide incrementally advancing, looking, and unlocking. mechanism which is simple in design and construction, inexpensive to manufacture easy to use, fool-proof inoperation, accurately self-aligning, posi .tive iii-locking, and positive in unlocking.

An. object of. the invention is to. provide a relatively large. diameter. stationary, neck or post about which. the head. or sleeve. turns so that the'head is'accurately supported thereby eliminating wobbling and deformation under forces developed. inuse.-

An. objectof. the invention is to provide grooves in the head for cooperating. with the lockingv meansand the advancing means.-

An object of the invention is to provide aradialchannel in: the post to'receive a lock-bolt adapted to cooperate withthe head grooves.

Ari-object of the invention: is to provide an axialbore in the neck for receiving: an operating shaft having, a cam"- thereon for advancing. thelock-bolt'into the head grooves- When-the shaft: is rotated in one direction:

An' object of the invention. is to provide a two-part bo'ltelock. which self-unlocks: when not subject to advancingiforce by the shaft cam or other means.

An. object of. the invention is to provide a radial. collar on" the shaft having a depressablespring. pressed dog adapted to engage: the head grooves to turn the head H 2,854,861 Patented Oct. 7, 1958 2. tothe next station when the'shaft is rotated in onev di rection.

An object'of the invention is to provide" a flange'on the neck occupying sufiicient' circumferential area to'precliide the dog operation except to advance the-head one station only was to thereby afford all but one station area fo'rcam operation to effect locking.

An object of: the invention is to' provide a springpres'sed detent' in the neck to' pre-locate the head after station advancement and to-hold the head prior-to: lock it'tg:

An" object of the" invention is to provide a two-part lock-bolt adapted to forcefully engage'not only the head but also the neckthereby'uniting' the head and neck" in the locked condition asif they wereintegral, thereby ac curat'ely'" holding the head: in fixed relation to the neck.

An object of the invention is to provide mutually' engaging wedgeorcani'faces'on the parts of the lock bolt whicli'transfer'radially directed force to the head thereby drivingtli'ebit'portfdnof thelock into engagement with therheadi An o b ject'of th'e invention is to provide mutually'eng'aging'we'dge or cam": face-son the parts of the lock bolt which transfer radially directed force tangentially so as to drivethe' side portions into engagement with the neck.

An objectof" the" invention is to provide a lock: bolt Wh'icli'ilocks in two directions and whicliiunlock's'in' two directions.

These" and other" objects of the invention will become apparent by're'f'eren'ce' to the following description of in+ crement'ally" advancing; locking, and unlocking mecha ni s'rn such as a tool turret and tWOrP'aTt lock-bolt em- Bodyin'g'the invention taken in connection with the" ac= companying: drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal" cross-sectional view ofttie in. ventive device taken on the line 1"1 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is an end elevational view taken on the" line of'Fig. 1" with. the" cap removed showingthe shaft in cross se'ction:

Fig. 3" is a cross-sectional view, similar to Fig: 2, taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1 showing the neck hold down bolts" in plan" and the lock parts. in dottedlines;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 taken on the line 44 of Fig. l showing the lock parts in plan in locked condition;

Fig: 5' is, a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the shaft and collar partially rotated so as to engage the dog with thel'lea'd groove;

Fig: dis a view similar to Fig: 5 with a collar and headmtated QO' degreesto Fig; 51

Fig; 7" is a view similar to Fig: 4 showing the Head rotated 45' dc'grees to-Figa 4 and showing the lockp'artsin unlocked condition;

Fig; 8E'is a" view similar to Figs. 4 and'7 showingtl'le head' rotated 9tl degrees toFig. 4 and 45 degrees tO Flg'L 7' with: the detent in locating relationship and the look parts" in unlocked condition.

Fig: 9 is an exploded facc'elevational view ofthe' twopart b'o'lt lockg and Fig. 10 is an: exploded side elevational view of the 15, a radial chamber which receives and houses the spring-pressed detent 16, a radial slot which receives and houses the cam-forced bolt 18, and the shaft 15 is equipped with a cam portion 19 for driving the bolt 18 radially outwardly of the neck 14.

The sleeve or head 20 is rotatably mounted around the neck 14 and is equipped with top and bottom plates or

flanges

21 and 22, respectively, or similar items, for mounting and securing tools, not shown, therebetween as is well known in the art. A four-sided or stationed head is illustrated but it is obvious that as many sides or stations as desired can be used and the station moving and locking mechanism adapted thereto as hereinafter described. The head 29 has grooves 23 formed therein parallel to the shaft 15 for receiving and cooperating with the detent 16 and the bolt 18.

Rotation of the shaft 15 via the lever 24 and coupling 25 in a clockwise direction as seen in the drawings rotates the cam 19 so as to drive the bolt 18 into a groove 23 thereby locking the head 20 relative to the neck 14. The shaft 15 carries the collar 26 keyed for rotation therewith by key 30, and the collar, in turn, carries the spring-pressed dog 27 which is adapted to engage the head 20 at the side wall of the grooves 23 so thatcounterclockwise rotation of the shaft 15 rotates the head 20. The neck 14 has a shroud flange 31 of approximately 270 degrees extent disposed between the dog and the head and against which the top of the dog bears so as to preclude the dog's engagement with the head except in the 90 degrees area where there is no flange so that the shaft and dog impart only a quarter turn of 90 degrees to the head 20. As previously mentioned, this movement is adapted to a four-sided or four-stationed turret but this may be adapted to any number of stations in a turret such as in a six station turret by enlarging the shroud flange 31 circumferentially to approximately 300 degrees thereby leaving only 60 degrees unobstructed movement area for the dog 27 to move the head 20. The cap 28 surmounts the head 20 and may be welded thereto as at 29 or floatingly positioned thereon, as desired, and the shaft 15 is properly positioned in the neck 14 via the coupling 25 and the spring washer 37 seated in the counter bore 38 as secured by the Allen screw 39.

The bolt 18 is two-part in construction and comprises a head-engaging bit-portion 40 and a cam-engaging driveportion 41;'both

portions

40 and 41 are housed in a chamber in the neck 14 or similar body.

The bit portion 40 has a tang portion 42 for engaging a groove 23 in the head 20, a side bearing portion 44 for engaging the side wall of the neck 14 housing chamber, two Wedge portions 46 and 48 and an adjacent side portion 54). The drive portion 41 has a cam riding or force receiving portion 43, a side bearing portion 45 for engaging the side wall of the neck 14 housing chamber, two

wedge portions

49 and 51 for engaging and coacting with the wedge portions 46 and 48 respectively of the bit portion 40, and an adjacent side portion 53. The

wedge portions

46, 48, 49, and 51 preferably have approximately a 40 degrees cam angle thereon which makes such cam angle approximately 50 degrees to a radius of the neck 14 so that the cam faces readily disengage allowing the

bolt portions

40 and 41 to move toward one another upon the withdrawal of force on the portion 43 thereby freeing the bolt portions from frictional engagement with the neck 14 and leaving them loose in the neck chamber so that they can be easily moved therein out of engagement with the head 20.

Referring to Figs. 7 and 8 it is to be noted that when the shaft cam 19 or other forcing means is disengaged with the portion 43 of the drive portion 41, the respective cooperating wedge portions 4649 and 4851 are not activated so that the adjacent sides 50 and 53 are allowed to meet and the chamber wall engaging

side portions

44 and 45 allowed to retract reducing the sidewise dimension of the lock bolt 18 to substantially less than the width of its receiving chamber in the neck 14 so that it is easily movable therein without resistance. Conversely, referring to Figs. 1 and 4, it is to be noted that when the shaft cam 19 or other forcing means is drivingly engaged with the force receiving portion 43 of the drive portion 41, the respective cooperating wedge portions 46-49 and 4851 are activated so that the adjacent sides 50 and 53 are spread apart and the

side bearing portions

44 and 45 are urged into frictional engagement so as to move the

lock portions

40 and 41 sidewise apart enlarging or expanding the sidewise dimension of the lock bolt 18 so as to frictionally engage the side Walls of the neck 14 chamber thereby preventing any movement of the lock bolt relative to the neck 14. The respective cooperating wedges 46--49 and 4851 coact to spread the lock bolt 18 in parallel relationship when force is applied to the force receiving portion 43 in conjunction with resistance applied to the tang portion 42 so that when force is applied it is transmitted not only to the tang portion 42 engaging the head 20 groove 23 but also to the chamber side walls of the neck 14 thereby jamming and locking the bolt 18 relative to both the head 20 and the neck 14 thereby forcefully engaging both the head 20 and the neck 14 to completely prevent relative movement therebetween. It is to be noted that the lock bolt loosens by itself when cam force is removed as the parallel relationship between the parts prevents tipping or canting and the 40 degrees wedge portions tend to release rather than to engage.

Referring to the operation of the device, the neck post 14 is mounted directly on a machine via the bolts 12, or if the base 10 is also used, via the bolts 11 in the ears 13 as well, so as to provide an exceptionally stable mounting. Tools, not shown, are disposed between the top and

bottom flanges

21 and 22 respectively on the head 20 and clamped therein via set screws, not shown, threaded in the openings 63 of the top flange 21 as is well known in the art. When the device is so positioned and operating, the tool is used relative to the workpiece when the inventive device is locked up as indicated in Figs. 1 to 4. To advance the next tool carried by the head 20 for engagement with the workpiece the head 20 is advanced to the next station by first unlocking the head 20 relative to the neck 14 and then rotating the head 20 relative to the neck 14 a quarter turn as illustrated in conjunction with a four station turret. Obviously, if the turret had eight stations the head would be advanced Ms turn as is well known in the art.

To unlock the head, the operator moves the lever 24, coupling 25, and shaft 15 in a counterclockwise direction as seen in the drawings thereby turning the cam portion 19 on the shaft 15 from the position seen in Figs. 1 to 4 to the positions seen in Figs. 5 to 8 thereby retracting the cam 19 from the force receiving portion 43 of the lock bolt 18 deactivating the lock bolt cooperating wedge portions 4649 and 4851 thereby frictionally disengaging the lock bolt 18 from the neck chamber side walls as hereinbefore described and thereby leaving the tang portion 42 of the lock bolt 18 free to move out of engagement from the side walls of the groove 23 in the head 20.

Counterclockwise movement of the shaft 15 also rotates the collar 26 in a counterclockwise direction moving the dog 27 past the area of the flange shroud 31 where the spring pressed pin 36 rotates the dog 27 on its base disc 35 relative to its receiving socket in the collar 26 so that the dog 27 bears against the head 20 and enters a groove 23 so as to engage a side wall thereof. As seen in Fig.5, further counterclockwise movement of the shaft 15 rotates the head from the position seen in Fig. 5 to the position seen in Fig. 6 where rotational movement of the dog 27 is stopped by the flange shroud 31 leaving the head in a position degrees removed as seen in Fig. 6. As the head moves from the position seen in Fig. 5 to that seen in Fig. 6, the head moves relative to the lock parts through the intermediate position illustrated in Fig. 7 which movement causes the head to force the spring pressed detent 16 and the lock bolt tang 42 back into the area of the neck 14 so as to permit the head to rotate without interference from the lock parts, and, it is to be noted that the cam 19 low side is adjacent the lock bolt 18 thereby permitting its radially inward movement.

When the head 20 is thus moved to the next station, as seen in Fig. 8, the spring pressed detent 16 resets itself in a groove 23 of the head thereby pro-locating the head at the new station prior to locking. The shaft 15 is then rotated in a clockwise direction so that the high side of the cam 19 is brought into forceful engagement with the force receiving portion 43 of the lock bolt 18 initially moving the tang portion 42 into a groove 23 in the head 20 and then activating the respective cooperating lock bolt wedge portions 49-46 and 48--51 so that the lock bolt 48 frictionally engages both the head 20 and the neck 14. It is to be noted that the action between the cam 19 and the bolt portion 43 is located in the area of the flange shroud 31 so that this action can be effected over a large angular movement of the shaft 15 and it will be further noted that the dog 27 cannot engage any head groove 23 in the area of the flange shroud 31.

While the device has been illustrated as manually operable for simplicity of description, it is obvious that the lever 24 can be actuated automatically or that a gear can supplant the coupling 25 and the device operated automatically. It is also obvious that hydraulic, pneumatic, or electrical force can be applied against the lock bolt to activate same within the limits of the invention.

Although but a single embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in detail, it is obvious that many changes may be made in the size, shape, detail and arrangement of the various elements of the invention within the scope of the appended claims as the invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment but is applicable to many other mechanisms. Furthermore, the two-part lock bolt disclosed herein is not limited to the use illustrated, but may be used advantageously in any instance where it is desired to prevent relative movement between relatively movable elements.

I claim:

1. An incrementally advancing, locking, and unlocking mechanism comprising a stationary post having a lock bolt receiving radial chamber and an axial shaft receiving bore communicating with each other, a head rotatably surrounding said post having locking and advancing grooves therein, a bolt disposedin said post chamber adapted to entera groove of said head to secure said head relative to said post against relative rotational movement therebetween, an operating shaft rotatably disposed in the axial bore of said post, a cam on said shaft adapted to drive said bolt radially outwardly of said post into locking engagement with said head, a collar carried by said shaft so as to rotate therewith, a spring pressed dog carried by said collar adapted to unidirectionally engage said head to impart rotational movement to said head, and a flange shroud on said post in the area of said dog; said flange shroud in the area of said dog arcuately surrounding said dog relative to said head by an included angle preventing engagement between said dog and said head in the included angle area and permitting engagement between said dog and said head in the remaining excluded angle area in the direction of said dogs unidirectional engagement; said cam being adapted to move said bolt outwardly to lock said head on movement of said shaft in the direction opposite to said dogs engagement direction and to retract said bolt on movement of said shaft in the direction of said dogs engagement to unlock said head; said cam being adapted to unlock said bolt within the excluded area of said shroud to permit angular movement of said head by said dog.

2. An incrementally advancing, locking, and unlocking mechanism comprising a stationary post having a lock bolt receiving radial chamber and an axial shaft receiving bore communicating with each other, a head rotatably surrounding said post having locking and advancing grooves therein, a bolt disposed in said post chamber adapted to enter a groove of said head to secure said head relative to said post against relative rotational movement therebetween, an operating shaft rotatably disposed in the axial bore of said post, a cam on said shaft adapted to unidirectionally drive said bolt radially outwardly of said post into locking engagement with said head; said lock bolt comprising a bit portion for engaging said head and a drive portion for engaging said cam, a wedge portion on said bit portion, a wedge portion on said drive portion engaging said bit wedge portion a wedge portion on said drive portion engaging said bit wedge portion so that force applied to said drive portion is radially transmitted via said wedge portions to said bit portion so as to force said bit portion into engagement with said head and tangentially transmitted via said wedge portions to said drive and bit portions so as to force both said portions sidewise into engagement with said post, a collar carried by said shaft so as to rotate therewith, a spring pressed dog carried by said collar adapted to unidirectionally engage said head to impart rotational movement to said head, and a flange shroud on said post in the area of said dog; said flange shroud in the area of said dog arcuately surrounding said dog relative to said head by an included angle preventing engagement between said dog and said head in the included angle area and permitting engagement between said dog and said head in the remaining excluded angle area in the direction of said dogs unidirectional engagement; said cam being adapted to move said bolt outwardly to lock said head on movement of said shaft in the direction opposite to said dogs engagement direction and to retract said bolt on movement of said shaft in the direction of said dogs engagement to unlock said head; said cam being adapted to unlock said bolt within the excluded area of said shroud to permit angular movement of said head by said dog.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 496,001 Richards Apr. 25, 1893 517,168 Richards Mar. 27, 1894 1,083,193 Courtney Dec. 30, 1913 1,425,007 Granlund Aug. 8, 1922 2,086,850 Bullard July 13, 1937 2,413,900 Abbott Jan. 7, 1947 2,458,859 Kestell Jan. 11, 1949 2,485,738 Jeschke 0ct. 25, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 546,902 Great Britain Aug. 5, 1942