US2898615A - Method of drafting uppers on lasts - Google Patents

Description

Aug-11, 1959 E. l. LA CHAPELLE 2,898,615

METHOD OF DRFTING yUPPERS ON'LASTS Filed Oct. 8, 1954 L 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 2

INVENTOR.

Aug. 11, 1959 E. l. LA CHAPELLE 2,898,615

METHOD 0F DRAFTING UPPERS ON LASTS Filed Oct. 8, 1954 i5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

Aug. 11, 1959 E. l. LA CHAPELLE METHOD oF DRAFTING UPPERs oN LAsTs Filed oct. a, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheff.. 3

INVENTOR.

JJ i i nited States f' METHOD on DRAFIING UPPERS oN LAsTs Euclid I. La Chapelle, Brockton, Mass., assignor of onefourth to Albert L. La Chapelle, one-fourth to Beatrice H. La Chapelle, and one-fourth to Rachel E. La Chapelle; Beatrice H. La Chapelle executrix of said Euclid I. La Chapelle, deceased Application October 8, 1954, Serial No. 461,101

1 Claim. (Cl. 12-145) Vthe claim is to be interpreted to include the term boot The term fastening the upper on the innersole, occurring in the specification and in the appended claim is to be interpreted broadly to include' any kind of fastening means, such as formed of cementitious material or vulcanizing, and whenever the fastening means are in the form of lasting tacks, as herein shown, it is to be understood that there may be any number of them.

This invention is an improvement over the inventions shown in two patents of the United States issued in the name of the applicant January ll, 1916, No. 1,168,011 and No. l,l68,0l2, respectively, for machines for working an upper on a last, wherein no provision had been made to work the upper on a last by overstretching the upper from the heel-end to the toe-end of the last in working the toe-end of the upper on the toe-end of the last, as herein proposed.

The entire patentable subject matter of my invention and of the application resides only in the practice of the method herein shown, described and claimed, in coordination with upper pressing means, of any suitable form, as all the mechanical elements herein shown and described whether Vprovided with tip measuring means or not, are herein shown for convenience only. The appended claim is to be interpreted in that sense to give to my invention all the protection to which I am entitled under the statutes.

A shoe of the well known Goodyear welt type is herein shown for convenience only, as my invention is intended for use on any adaptable kind or type of shoe.

In a broader aspect of my invention, upper pressing means, of any suitable form, may be substituted for the automatic tip-measurer herein shown; and any suitable machine or apparatus may be substituted for the lasting machine herein shown.

The present pulling over machine operation may lead to defective shoes in that the drafting of the upper by the toe-end gripper of the machine is limited to stretching the upper from the heel-end to the toe-end of the last, leaving the upper bridging the last notably so at its forepart back of the toe portion and then with its throat of vamp portion bridging on the cone of the last, to be properly set down on the cone of the last at the side lasting machine operation, in which, disadvantageously, overstretching the upper and its lining, made necessary to set the upper with overtensioned pincers of the side lasting machine is necessary to set the upper but even then may not accomplish permanent results, as the back of toe portion of the upper gradually works away from the underlying surface of the last. Then the back of toe portion of the upper is said to drum and it is left to crowners (expert hand lasters employed .to inspect and to correct any defective conditions in lasting once the shoes have been completely lasted) to remove the lasting tacks and re-pull the back of toe portion of the upper which oftentimes is found to lbe upstanding from the last, and then lthe lining of the upper is often torn if not the upper proper. And this is not all, as the highly tensioned pincers of the side lasting machine may set the lining of the upper so tight on the last that the linings tear under the stress to which subjected at the last pulling operation. It is a notable fact that neither the side lasting machine nor the operator should be held responsible for the above stated serious defective conditions when the real culprit is the pulling over machine in failing to properly set the back of toe portion of the upper on the underlying surface of the last in `its performance of the drafting of the upper from the heel end to the toe end of the last.

After the performance of the side lasting machine operation the shoe, notably when the shoe is of the Goodyear welt type, is passed to the conventional bed type toe and heel lasting machine and once the operator has removed the temporary lasting tacks at the toe-end and at the sides of the toe of the last that had been driven through the upper and the toe box and part way into the wood of the last by the pulling over machine, he then sets the toepart of the shoe on a steaming apparatus adapted to vapor soften the boxtoe andthe upper while he performs the toe wiping operation upon a shoe that has already -been vapor treated, by first engaging the toeend of the upper and toe box with hand lasting pincers and he stretches the toe-end vof the upper and of the boxtoe heightwise of the last and then, While holding the toe-end of the upper and of the toe box in stretched condition on the toe-end of the last, he actuates the toe wipers, and he then overstretches the softened upper and the softened toe box at the corners of the toe of'the last with hand lasting pincers and by consecutive Wiper and hand lasting pincer movements upon the upper and the toe box, he attains a satisfactory toe wiping operation and then, while the wipers are in holding engagement with the wiped toe of the upper and of the softened toe box, he fastens the wiped toepart of the upper in wiped lcondition on the innersole assembled on the last.

It is important to state that I have, preferably, shown herein a toe and heel lasting machine in the practice of my novel method as then all the pulling over steps and all the subsequent lasting operations may be performed at a single setting of the shoe on the said machine, and although such a machine is greatly advantageous in that respect,.I am not one to resist progress` and to oppose the setting of an automatic toe wiping and/or of an automatic heel lasting machine in close relation to any machine or apparatus adapted to the practice of my novel method, whereby the toes, and the heels, of shoes may be automatically lasted after having been properly drafted and pulled over, as herein proposed.

In this connection, it is to be understood that the Well known hand operated tacker and the Iwell known motive power actuated tack loader therefor, which are old in the art and which are not integral. with the herein shown lasting machine and which are not herein shown, would be provided in .the event that a shoe manufacturer should elect to have the heel portion wiped and lasted on the herein shown -lasting machine in preference to having this operation performed by an automatic heel lasting machine.

The objective of my invention is to improve the drafting operation upon a shoe upper (such as of the conventhat will stand up far better than heretofore (which feature may Well be a sales appeal) and which will retain its original shape for a longer time than heretofore during the time of wear.

As shown in the accompanying drawings:

Figu-re 1 shows the top view of a conventional bed type toe and heel wiping machine, with the provision of an automatic tip-measurer serving also as an upper presser adapted to press the back of toe portion of the upper, and actuating mechanism therefor;

Figure 2 shows a side view of the machine shown in Fig. 1, with hand lasting pincers in engagement with the toe-end of the upper and a toe box after overstretching the upper from the heel-end to the toe-end of the last;

Figure 3 shows the hand pincers holding the edge face of the portion of the upper positioned beyond the tipmeasurer which is toward the end of its pressing movement upon the back of toe portion of the upper;

Figure 4 shows a detail View of the machine shown in Fig, 1, with the toe-end of the upper and the toe box engaged by the hand pincers, with the pincers handle in raised condition and the jaws of the pincers in downward condition past the toe-end of the last thereby allowing the toe-end of the upper and of the toe box to move rearwardly on the toe-end of the last in timed relation with the pressing movement of the upper pressing means I then in engagement with the bridged back toe portion of the upper, and then without releasing the over- Vstretching `already performed upon the upper from the heel-end to the toe-end of the last, in still holding the upper and the toe box on the toe-end of the last against the rearward strain then upon the toe-end of the upper under the inuence of the pressure exerted upon the back of toe portion of the upper by the upper pressing means, and thereby the toe-end of the overstretched upper and the toe box are solidly set on the toe-end of the last under the influence of the pressure exerted upon the back of toe portion of the upper by the upper pressing means;

Figure 5 shows the tip line in contact with the tip-measurer and with the toe-end of the upper and the toe box held from rearward movement on the toe-end of the last;

Figure 6 shows the hand pincers overstretching the upper and the toe box heightwise of the last at the sides of the toe of the last;

Figure 7 shows the overstretched upper and the tempered boxtoe in pulled over condition on the sides of the toe of the last;

Figure 8 shows the engagement of the upper and of the ends of the counter by the hand lasting pincers in stretching the upper and the ends of the counter heightwise of the last and, by a turn of the hand pincers, then in a diagonal toeward direction, thereby firmly setting the sides of the heel portion of the vamp of the upper and the counter on the heel of the last;

Figure 9 shows the overstretehed upper and the ends of the counter in fastened condition on the last;

Figure 10 shows the hand lasting pincers in engagement with the upper at the ball area of the last, in then stretching the upper by a compound movement, first height-wise of the last and, by a turn of the pincers, then in stretching the upper in a diagonal toeward direction, rrnly setting the upper on the ball area of the last; and

Figure l1 shows the upper fastened on the last after completion of all the drafting steps and all the pulling over steps preparatory to the performance of the side lasting machine operation and of the toe and heel wiping operations. Y

As further shown in the drawings:

The herein shown lasting machine is of the general type of toe and heel wiping machines and comprises the base 1, the last support 2, which is mounted in the guideways 3, which are arranged for slight rocking movement lengthwise of the machine, in which is mounted the slide 4, supporting the last supporting spindle 5, and having the adjusting means 6, in the form of a series of holes through both flanges of the guide-ways 3, and which are adapted to receive the locking pin 6', in locking the guide-ways in set position in accordance with the size of the shoe on the machine, thereby predetermining the extent of movement of the heel-band 7, relative to the heel-end of the shoe on the machine. Upon the said base 1, is mounted also the slidable support 8, to which is connected the automatic tip-measurer 9, and the actuating mechanism therefor, including its component heelband 7, of the machine and the heel wipers 10, with their actuating means 11, and the slidable support 12 upon which are mounted the toe wipers 13, actuating means 14, and the holddown 13a, which is mounted on the actuating lever 13b, and the said holddown being provided with a split collar 13C, which is secured on the said actuating lever, by the set screws 13d, for adjusting the holddown relative to the requirements of the wipers in relation to the shoe on the machine. After lan additional yielding holddown 15, has been set up to the ball line of the shoe on the machine preparatory to actuating the tip-measurer, best shown in Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings, the foot treadle 18 is then depressed, while lthe overstretched upper is being held with the hand lasting pinchers herein shown in overstretched condition on the toe-end of the last, and the slidable support 8 is moved toewardly of the shoe through the sprocket chains 16 and 17, which are connected to the slidable support 8 and the foot treadle 18. Rod 19 is supported by a swivel block 20, and the said foot treadle is held up in normal position by the pull spring 22; and the tipmeasurer 23 has a split collar mounted on its supporting rod for adjusting its shoe upper engaging portion toward or from the shoe for proper support relative to the toe wipers and is secured in proper set condition by a set screw 26. The said tip-measurer is connected to the rod which extends through a sleeve, which is connected to the swivel block 20, which is connected to the slidable support 8, and the said rod supports an adjustable block which is mounted on the screw threaded portion thereof for its adjustment toward or from the swivel block 20, in predetermining the length of tips in a given number of uppers, as the movement of the swivel block 20, toewardly of the shoe on the machine in the actuation of the tip-measurer brings it into contact with the said adjustable block on the screw threaded portion of the said rod and then moves the tip-measurer toewardly of the shoe until the heel-band of the machine comes into contact with the heel-end of the shoe on the machine. Hand operable levers 28 and 29 each have respectively a rack 99 and a rack 30, engaging the pinions 31 and 32, whereby the slidable supports respectively for the toe wipers and the heel wipers may be moved toward or from the shoe whenever the locking means 33 and 34 are disengaged from the pinions 31 and 32, by means of the thumb levers 35 and 36, which are connected respectively to the locking means 33 and 34, by the operator pressing down the said thumb levers, when the toe wipers or the heel wipers are to be set relative to the shoe on the machine preparatory to actuating the wipers, or when the shoe is to be removed from the machine.

To clarify the practice of my novel method certain facts should vbe noted, such as to the need of a tip measurer as none need be provided, as no tip measurer is used in pulling over by machine or in pulling over by hand even though the last then is being supported bottom up on a spindle, and the shoe is never removed from the spindle to investigate as to the straightness of the tip on the last.

In pulling over, in the practice of my novel method, uppers of the Blicher type, the drafting movement upon the upper from the heel end to the toe end of the upper is weaker than in the case of uppers of the Balmoral type and then the pressure exerted upon the back of toe portion of the upper incidentally is supplemental to the drafting operation lengthwise of the last, having the effect of forcing the upper, as a whole, to expand lengthwise from the heel end to the toe end of the last.

It is well recognized that unless a shoe is well pulled over (such as herein proposed) all the subsequent major shoe making operations in the [completing of the shoe will not be as well performed as when the pulling over operation has been Well performed.

My novel method makes possible the use of shoe upper material of a grade consistent with the grade of shoe for which intended in contradistinction to compelling the shoe manufacturers to provide shoe upper material of a higher grade than consistent with the grade of the shoe for which intended only to withstand the excessive pulling movement upon the upper by the side lasting machine.

It is recognized that the occurrence of many cripples (torn uppers and/or linings) is quite remote in the practice of my novel method as the bridging back of the toe portion of the upper with its lining is set on the last by pressure, while the upper is being held in overstrctched condition from the heel end to the toe end of the last, in contradistinction to engaging and pulling the marginal portion of the vamp of the upper heightwise of and over the sides of lthe bottom of the last until that part of the vamp and its lining bridging over the back of toe portion of the last have been set on the last by excessive stretching of the vamp of the upper and its lining at the sides of the forepart and of the shank part of the last which oftentimes causes the upper and/ or its lining to tear and, in any event then setting the lining with such tightness on the last as to subject it to tearing at the vlast pulling operation.

Moreover, the standard length of tips in completed shoes is 21/2 inches from the extreme toe end of the last extending rearwardly thereof; and 1/2 inch of the toe end of the vamp of the upper or tip of the upper in extending over the innersole assembled on the last gives that standard length of tips in completed shoes. Thus in pulling over, one is able to judge when to fasten the toe end of the tip or of the vamp of the upper on the innersole assembled on the last, and variance in length of tips in a given number of shoes up to z of an inch is considered insignificant in the general run of shoe factories.

Having thus shown and Idescribed my invention in the best form to me known and pointed out the patentable subject matter of my invention in the appended claim, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

That method of Working an upper on a last in the performance of the pulling over operation upon the forepart of the upper, by a novel cooperative combination of steps, each cooperating with the other and by such cooperation giving new beneficial results, which consists in providing a conventional last and lan innersole assembled thereon and a conventional shoe upper having a vamp portion and a throat of vamp portion, a toe tip portion, and including its conventional components, such as a counter and a toe box, assembled on the said last, in engaging the toe end of the upper with pulling means and pulling the upper toewardly of the last to overstretch the upper from its heel end to its toe end to firmly set the counter on the heel end of the last and the toe box on the toe end of the last and to carry the toe tip line of the upper toewardly beyond the toe tip line of the shoe when completed and cause the back of the toe vamp portion of the upper, including its throat of vamp portion, to bridge over the runderlying surface of the last, thereafter engaging and urging the bridged over back of toe portion of the upper, including its throat of vamp portion, toward the underlying surface of the last to press and set the bridged over back of toe portion of the upper to the underlying surface of the last and, under the influence of such pressure, moving the throat of vamp of the upper down and in proper set condition on the cone of the last, while simultaneously releasing partially the pull at the toe end of the upper in timed coordination with the engagement and urging of the bridged over back of toe portion of the upper toward the underlying surface of the last, causing the toe tip portion of the upper, situated forwardly of the tip line, to move rearwardly until the tip line reaches its position on the last for the proper length of the tip in the completed shoe, without appreciably releasing the already imparted overstretching between the heel end and the toe end of the upper, thereafter, while the toe end of the drafted upper is being held from rearward movement on the toe end of the last, pulling over the sides of the toe part of the upper and of the toe box with an extra strong pulling over movement to stretch the upper and the toe box, height- Wise and then over the innersole assembled on the last to thereby solidly set the upper and the toe box on the sides of the toe part of the last, and then in fastening the pulled over upper and the toe box on the innersole assembled on the last to hold the upper and the toe box at the sides of the toe of the last solidly set on the last, and thereafter in performing the last step of the pulling over operation ofthe forepart of the upper, in engaging and pulling over the marginal portion of the already set back of toe portion of the upper on the underlying surface of the last, heightwise of the last and over the innersole assembled on the last and in then fastening the pulled over upper on the innersole assembled on the last and thus the fastened upper incidentally serving in holding the back of toe portion of the upper as set on the underlying surface of the last.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,123,663 Bennion Jan. 5, 1915 1,168,011 La Chapelle Jan. 11, 1916 1,289,633 Brothers Dec. 31, 1918 1,863,752 La Chappelle June 21, 1932 1,977,132l La Chappelle Oct. 16, 1934

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