US3004675A - Bulb assembly transfer device - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 17, 1961 H. w. ROEBER BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 Sheets-Shet 1 analsnsleieuenaisuane gi 191 a a 1 1 a INVENTOR HENRY W. ROEBER ATTORNEY Oct. 17, 1961 H. w. ROEBER 3,004,675

BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q ll-lm 2 F 2m Q 12.: p

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INVENTOR v HENRY w. ROEBER ATTORNEY Oct. 17, 1961 H- W. ROEBER BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 sheets sheet 3 IN V EN TOR.

HENRY w. ROEBER' ATTORNEY Oct. 17,1961 H. w. ROEBER BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 w s? n w INVENTOR HENRY W. ROEBER m ATTORNEY i Oct. 17, 1961 H. w. ROEBER BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

HENRY w. ROEBER BY ATTORNEY 1 [\ill'llll-lllli Oct. 17, 1961 H. w. ROEBER BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Original Filed Dec. 16, 1955 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 FIG- 12 INVENTOR H NRY W. ROEBER BY ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,004,675 BULB ASSEMBLY TRANSFER DEVICE Henry W. Roeber, Emporium, Pa., assignor, by nlesne assignments, to Sylvania Electric Products Inc., Wilmington, 'Del., a corporation of Delaware Original application Dec. 16, 1955, Ser. No. 553,569, now Patent No. 2,940,220, dated June 14, 1960. Divided and this application Apr. 4, 1960, Ser. No. 19,673

, 7 Claims. (Cl. 214-1) This invention relates to transfer apparatus for handling an assembly of a tubulated glass bulb and glass stem with its associated mount, the assembly comprising portions of an electron tube to be united into a unitary structure. g 1

The assembly is transferred from a conveyor whereon the tubulated bulb had been preliminarily telescoped over the mount on the stem of the electron tube onto a peg on an indexible turret, the turret being part of a machine for effecting further telescoping of the bulb opposite the stem and for sealing the bulb to the stem.

It is an object of the invention to provide a means to efficiently grasp the parts of the electron tube assembly while they, are on the conveyor and transfer themonto a peg of the turret.

Other objects will become apparent after reading the following specification and claims and by reference to the accompanying drawings in which j FIGS. 1a and 1b together constitute a plan view of the machine, with parts broken away and in section to illustrate otherwise hidden parts, the sectional parts being generally along the line la-la of FIG. 4 and lb1bof FIG. 10.

FIG. 2 is a sectional View with parts broken away to show intermittent drive mechanism for the conveyors of the machine.

FIG. 3 is a fragmental elevational view of the machine taken a little to the left of a loading station and about centrally, longitudinally, of FIG. 1a.

FIG. 4 is a section through the loading station taken on the line 44 of FIG. la.

FIG. 5 is a section on the line 55 of FIG. 4 showing how the exhaust tubulation of a bulb may be held in a carrier on a top conveyor.

FIG. 6 is a view, partly in section; of a peg for holding V 2 orbit, the upper conveyor being adapted to convey bulbs 14,. open and down, with their exhaust tubulations 16 extending upwardly from the domes of the bulbs and with their stem afiixed mounts 20 and which mounts include insulating spacers 19 such as mica.

conveyors.

a stem mount assembly, the peg being mounted on a 7 FIG. 8 is a sectional vertical elevation of the drive mechanism shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 9 is a section on the line 9-9 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is an elevational view, partly in section, of the bulb and stem assembly machine unloading mechanism as viewed from the left in FIG. 1b.

- FIG. 11 is a view of the unloading mechanism as viewed from the right in FIG. 1b.

FIG. 12 is an enlargement of the jaw mechanism employed to grasp the assembly during its transfer from the preheater and assembly apparatus to the sealing machine, and

FIG. 13 is a view, partly in section, showing a portion of the mechanism operative to open and close the jaws and move the jaws back and forth between the conveyors and the bulb-to-stem sealer.

A loading station indicated as such and also as 21 is provided whereat the runs of the conveyors are vertically offset to facilitate conveyor loading. To the left of the loading station, as seen in FIG. '1a, means are provided, generally indicated as 22, to align the bulb over the stem-mount and push the bulb down in telescoped relation over the mount so that the bottom of the bulb is close to but spaced from the stem, this occurring in proper timed relationship with index movement of the The conveyors, in travelling clockwise as viewed in FIGS. la and lb, carry the assembled bulb and stem, see FIG. 4, between heaters 23 provided with heat insulating enclosures 24 and 25 to an unloading station, indicated generally as 26 whereat the bulb assembly is transferred from the conveyors to a sealer 28 for sealing of the bulb to stem, the sealing being efiected after the bulb has been automatically thrust down over the stem by mechanism on the sealer. The sealer is not shown in detail since it is not part of the invention. The conveyors are arranged so that as they pass around end sprockets at the unloading station where the conveyors are close to the sealer, the sealer having an indexible turret provided with circumferentially arranged pegs.

Now referring to the drawings in greater detail:

The machine comprises a long narrow base or table 30 on which are mounted spaced and aligned webbed beams 32 provided with arms 34 supporting the heat insulating enclosures 25. This enclosure is a box-like body filled with heat insulating material 36. A similar enclosure 24 is mounted on brackets 38 extending from side walls of the base, the opposed enclosures being spaced from one another as seen in FIGS. 4 and 7 and providing space therebetween for the longitudinal travel of bulb and stem-mount assemblies. Each of the enclosures has a longitudinal recess in the wall adjacent the path of travel of the tube assemblies to accodmodate the heaters 23 of conventional helical coil construction. 'L-The heaters may run from a location close to the loading station 21 to any desired extent around the machine, it desirably extending to a point close to the unloading station 26.

The conveyors are link chains running in grooved tracks 40 and 42 suitably supported by the beams 32 and by the table, these chains running around dual sprockets 44, 46 mounted at the longitudinal ends of the table. Each alternate link of the upper chain is provided with a holder 48, see FIGS. 4 and 5, for resiliently retaining an exhaust tubulationl16 and attached bulb, the holder comprising a pair of right angled plates 50 secured to a right angled arm 52 provided on the forward side, or the side facing the operator, with converging cheeks 54 to guide a tubulation into a seat formed in part as a semicylindrical recess on the angular arm 52- and by a pair of balls 56, spring pressed together by a pair of levers 58, pivoted on the arm and urged to press against the balls bya spring 60. Each alternate link of the lower chain is provided with a pair of angled plates 62 supporting a casting 64 on which is mounted a post 66 formed at its upper end, see FIG. 6, into a peg 68 with a circular groove 70 in its upper .face to accommodate the leads of a stem assembly, with the lower face of the stem 18 resting on the upper face of the peg. The upper and lower conveyor tracks run in endless horizontal orbits with generally straight run portions connected by loops and are in vertical registration except at the loading station 21. At this station, see FIG; la and FIG. 4, the orbits are offset. The lower track 42 and the pegs 68 are-set in closer to' the longitudinal center of the table than the upper track 40 and its bulb holders 48. As a result, an operator may load the pegs with stem assemblies at the loading station and then load the upper conveyor holders with tubulated bulbs without the hand of the operator inadvertently engaging and displacing the stem assemblies from their pegs. As can be seen, the operator may, with the vertically offset conveyor arrangement disclosed, during the process of clipping in a tubulation into the upper holder, have. the knuckles of the hand in the horizontal plane of the stem assembly and yet not engage the same.

- Reverting to FIGS. lb, 2 and 8, it will be seen that the conveyors 1t) and 12 are driven through the dual sprockets 46. .These sprockets are maintained spaced apart by. a sleeve 72. The sleeve and. sprockets =find bearing on a shouldered portion of a post 74 and are rotatably mounted on the post. To the lowersprocket is fixed an inverted cup 76 flanged at its lower open end, as at 78, the flange being provided with equally spaced circumferentially arranged driving studs 30 provided'with anti-friction rolls 81 engageable with a barrel cam 82 fixed to a cross shaft 84 driven from the drive coupled to the sealer 28, whereby the preheater and sealer are driven in synchronism. The cams in the barrel cam are shaped to impart intermittent drive to the sprockets 46.

The shaft 84 is geared to a main longitudinal cam shaft 86 mounted in brackets 88' supported by the table 35 Also mounted in these brackets is a second longitudinal shaft 9% the shaft 90 forming a bearing for the hubs of several angled levers, as will be described.

Now considering FIGS. la, 3 and 7, the vertically spaced conveyors, as they move to the left from the loading station 21 to the pusher station 22, come into vertical registerso that a glass bulb 14 is axially located with respect to the axis of a glass stem and mount supported on apeg 68. At the pusher station means are provided to insure correctaxialcentering of the bulb with respect to the stem and to thrust the centered bulb pantway down toward the. stem 18 and over the mount 20.

At this pusher station there is a vertically reciprocatable carriage 92' arranged transverse to the conveyors and slidable on two posts 94. fixedly mounted in a bracket 96 secured to the table 3:). The carriage comprises a webbed casting including a cross bar 98 and two vertical legs 10%, one on each side of the lower conveyor. Parallel with the legs areoscillatable shafts 102 each having gears 164 fixed on the upper ends and like gears 105 on their lower ends, the gears each lying in upper and lower gear boxes 106 and 107, respectively. The upper gears each mesh with a rack bar 108, one rack bar being behind a gear as viewed in FIG. 7 and the other rack bar being in front of a gear so that on simultaneous rotation of the shafts 102 in the same direction, the rack bars would be moved in opposite directions. Each of the rack bars is fastened at its end to a half conical guide jaw 116, each jaw having an arcuate tapering wall 117 terminating in a shoulder 118 against which the bulb will come to rest when thrust down into the. jaws. The jaws are resiliently urged toward each other through'the intermediary of a spring 119 fastened at one end to a. fixed horizontal pin 120 on the carriage 92 and at its other end to a depending pin 121 mounted at the end of a bar 122 slidably mounted in the lower boxes 107 and. provided with rack segments 110 held to the bar by screws 112, the segments 110engaging'both of the lower gears 105 on the same sides thereof. To enable indexing movement of the bulbs without interference from the jaws, the jaws are withdrawn from each other by left hand movement of the bar 122, this being effected by reason of a cam follower 124 on: the bar engaging a cam face on a cam lever 126 rotatably mounted on. a stub shaft. 127 supported in a bracket frame 128 depending from the-table. The lever, in: turn, is provid'ed with a cam follower engaging a cam.

and orientated on'the shaft that the jaws will be permitted to be spring pressed toward each other after indexing movement of the conveyors and will remain so spring pressed together during downward movement of the carriage 92, as will be described, and be again opened on upward movement of the carriage, the conveyors indexing during said upward movement of the carriage.

The carriageL92 is slid on the posts 94- by reason of rotation of cam- 13!], also fixed to shaft 86. This cam has a recessed path on its right hand side face, as seen in FIG. la, in which rides a cam follower 132 on a lever 134, pivoted on the shaft 90, and the forward end of which is connected by a link 136: to the lower portion of carriage 92. As the cam I29 rotates, the carriage 92 will perform quick vertical reciprocatory movements. Movable with the carriage is a thrust rod 138. This rod is freely sli'dablein hearings in the carriage 9 2 and is resiliently held down against a long lever arm of a bell crank lever 14!), rotatably mounted on the carriage, by a coil spring 142 encircling the rod. This spring reacts at the top against a carriage portion and at the bottom against a block 144 pinned to the rod, the block being guided in its vertical movement by a guide 146 fastened by screws or the like to the carriage 92. As a result, the rod is held against rotation while it may have a limited vertical reciprocatable movement with respect to the carriage 92. At the upper end of the rod is a vertically adjustable pusher finger 14-8 which normally lies in a plane above the level of the tubulation 16 but is in vertical register therewith. After the jaws 1.16 have closed on the bulb, as seen in PEG. '7, the long lever arm is permitted to lower, and the spring 142 operates to thrust the bulb down in between the jaws and onto the shoulder 118, the jaws spreading, as necessary, to accommodate the bulb as it forces its way down the conical walls. The forcing of the bulb down onto the seat 118 assures subsequent accurate spacing of the bulb above the stem. The tubulatio'n 16- being only frictionally held by the holder 48, is permitted to be forced down in the holder. The jaws are permitted to spread because of the resiliency provided by the spring 119. After the bulb 14 has been thrust down onto its seat, the carriage and pusher rod move down together slipping the bulb over the mount 20 until the bulb bottom closely approaches the stem 18, as seen, for example, on the right in FIG. 7'. The bulb is retained in this position because the inner surface of the bulb is in frictional engagement with the mica spacers 19 of the mount. Then after the jaws open, the carriage starts to move upwardly under influence of the cam 130. During the upward motion of the carriage, the thrust rod 138 is forced upwardly against the action. of spring 142 by the action of a cam 150 fixedly mounted on the cam shaft 86, said cam reacting against. a follower on a lever arm 152 also mounted on stub shaft 127.. The lever arm 152 thrusts against thefollower on the depending second arm of the bell crank lever 140, rotating the lever clockwise, as viewed in 7, and forcing the rod 138 upwardly. The cam 150 is so contoured that just prior to the initial downward movement of the carriage, the spring 142 can react to rotate the bell crank 140 counterclockwise, as seen in FIG. 7. V

The bulb after assembly with the stem-mount, is then indexed through the long preheater chamber wherein the tube parts are preheated to initially process parts within the bulb and bring the glass envelope up in temperature to inhibit glass cracking during subsequent processing of the tube.

The heater, in the preferred embodiment, runs substantially to the unloading. station at '26, as seen in FIG. 1b. At this station, transfer means are provided to remove a tube. assembly from the conveyor chains and translate it to the sealer 28. Since the turret of. the sealer operates in synchronism with the movement of parts in the preheater, orderly loading of the sealer is attained.

At the unloading station, see FIGS. to 13, a pair of unloader jaws generally indicated as 160 and 162 functions to lift a bulb assembly off the pegs of the lower conveyor, and remove the exhaust tubulation from its chuck, move the assembly over an indexed peg on a bulbto-stem sealer, move the assembly down onto the peg of the sealer and return to the conveyors for repeating the process. These jaws are-supported for movement on a frame 164 provided with a'collar 166 pinned to a hollow post 168 vertically reciprocatable in a sleeve 170 mounted on the table 30. The hollow post is moved upwardly against the action of gravity by engagement of slotted portions 172 thereof with a forked end of a lever 174 pivoted on an extension from the sleeve 170. The lever is operated by a cam 176 fixed on cam shaft 86. The vertical movement of the frame serves to lift an assembled bulb and stem-mount from off a peg on the preheater and, after the unloader jaws are over a peg on the sealer, to move the assembly down onto the sealer peg. To open and close the jaws, there is provided a second unloader cam 178 fixed on the shaft 86. This second cam operates on a double armed lever 180. The hub of this lever is mounted on the long shaft 90 and a long arm of the lever has a forked end straddling an antifriction roller 182 mounted on the lower end of a rod 8 184 passing through the hollow post 168 and to the upper end of which is afiixed a rack bar186 engaged with a rack driven gear 188. The rack driven gear, see FIG. 1l,'is mounted on the end of a shaft gear 190 with gear teeth running longitudinally of the length of the shaft gear in the space between side cheeks of the frame 164. The frame also fixedly mounts a pair of guide rods arranged parallel to the shaft gear, one rod 192being supported between two arms on the frame and the other rod 194 being directly above the shaft 190 and back 'of rod 192 as viewed in FIG. 11. Slidable on the pair of rods is a carriage 196 within which is a way 198 guiding two oppositely reciprocatable superimposed bars, these being designated as a slidable top bar 200 and a slidable lower bar 202. To the top bar is attached a rack bar 201 which overlies and engages with theteeth on'elongated gear 190 and to the bottom 'bar is attached a rack bar. 293 which underlies and engages with the teeth of the same gear. Thus reciprocation of the rack bar 186'causes oscillatory movement of the elongated gear and opposite reciprocating movement of the bars 200 and 202, regardless of the position of the carriage 196 longitudinally of the frame 164. The upper bar mounts the jaw 160 and the lower bar mounts the jaw 162, via angled supports 204 and 206 respectively. The jaws comprise three vertically spaced pairs of bulb assembly holding means. The uppermost pair 208 is shaped and positioned to engage around the exhaust tublation 16 of the bulb assembly; the middle pair 210 is shaped to engage the glass bulb 14; and the lowermost pair 212 is recessed to embrace substantially the entire rim of the stem 18. When the carriage 1% moves from the extreme end of the frame 164 as seen in FIG. lb toward a bulb assembly on the chain conveyor, the jaws 160 and 162, if not already opened wide, are so opened by operation of the cam connected to the rack bar 186. The parts are so timed that when the jaws have travelled from in back of the front run of the conveyor forwardly to a position where they are in alignment with the conveyor runs and on opposite sides of the bulb, the jaws will close thereon as shown in FIG. 12. The position of the jaws back of the runs and betweenthe conveyors is necessary to allow the positioning of a bulb assembly before the jaws and to a position where the bulb and stem may be grasped by the jaws on preliminary advance of the carriage 196 toward the sealer. Next, see FIG. 10, the hollow post 168 will be elevated, lifting the carriage 164, jaws 160 and 162 and the tube assembly off the peg. The

post 'is prevented from rotating in the sleeve 170 by engagement of the rack 186 with the gear 188 and by engagement of an angled bar 214 mounted on the post within a slot 216 formed in an extension from the sleeve 170. The frame 164 when thus guided will lie at an angle to and between the conveyors at the unloaded portion thereof and directed toward the sealer. The unloading jaws, because of the configuration of the angled supports 204 and 206 will be in a line of short travel between the preheater and sealer. After the jaws have engaged a tube assembly, the carriage 196 is shifted to a position where the jaws are moved over an indexed peg 217 on the sealer.

The means for moving the clamp jaws toward and from the sealer comprises a third cam 218, see P16. 111, of the group of unloader cams, provided with a recessed cam track like that in cam 130 and operative on a bell crank lever 220 rotatably mounted on shaft 90. The lever 220 is universally jointed to a long link 222 which is pivoted to an arm 224 of a collar 226 fixed to a vertical shaft 228 oscillatable in a bearing 230 fixed to the table 30. The shaft at its upper end has an arm 232 fixed thereto connected by a link 234 provided with universal joints to a stud 236 mounted on the carriage 196. When the unloader jaws have reached a position over a sealer peg, the lever 180 will be operated to lower the carriage to position the bulb assembly on the peg. The parts are so timed that, after this has been effected, the rack bar 186 will open the unloader jaws 160 and 162, and the cam 218 will withdraw the jaws to a position behind the chain conveyors. When the jaws are in this position, the conveyors are indexed to bring a bulb assembly in front of the jaws.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed 1. In combination, a conveyor means having superposed vertically spaced conveyors running in horizontal orbits, the conveyors having support means to support articles vertically therebetween, means for jointly indexing the conveyors, indexible means adjacent the conveyors having supports for receiving articles removed from the conveyors, and transfer means having jaws movable in between the spaced conveyors and movable from a position behind the conveyors and an article supported by the conveyors to a position over a support on the indexible means, means for so moving the jaws, means for additionally moving the jaws together when in vertical alignment with the conveyors, means for moving the jaws upwardly when in said aligned position, means for additionally moving the jaws downwardly when over the support, means for opening the jaws after said downward movement and means for moving the jaws back to a position behind the conveyors.

2. A conveyor means preheater provided with a spaced pair of endless conveyors in parallel planes, means on one of said conveyors cooperating with companion means on the other of said conveyors to hold an article therebetween, transfer means having jaws, said jaws being movable between the planes of the conveyors and from a position behind a run of the conveyors to 'a position in alignment therewith, means for closing the jaws on an article at said position, means for lifting the jaws while at said position, means for additionally moving the jaws in advance of said runs, means for lowering and subsequently opening the jaws when in said advanced position and means for returning the jaws to the original position and electron tube assembly engagingiaws carried by the slidable bars at their other ends, the last mentioned rack bars engaging the long gear teeth on opposite sides of the shaft diameter, means for sliding the carriage to bring the jaws in a position to engage the tube assembly on the conveyor means, whereat the jaws engage the tube assembly, said means also being effective to move the carriage to a point of discharge whereat the jaws release the tube assembly.

4'. Means for transferring an electron tube assembly comprised of a tubulated bulb and a stem-mount from a conveyor means to a point of discharge comprising a rack and driving means therefor, a pinion driven by said rack, a shaft fixedly mounting said pinion, long gear teeth on said shaft, guides parallel to said shaft, a carriage slidable on said guides, bars slidable in opposite directions in said carriage and movable in directions transverse to the direction of movement of the carriage, rack bars carried by the slidable bars at their one ends and electron tube assembly engaging jaws carried by the slidable bars at their other ends, said jaws comprising three pairs of complementary portions with the pairs ar ranged in linear fashion, a first pair being provided with complementary recessed portions to engage a tubulation attached to a bulb, a second pair comprising arcuate fingers to surround the bulb adjacent the bottom thereof and the third pair comprising arcuate members to engage the stem of the assembly, the arcuate members being recessed to surround the edge of the stem, the last mentioned rack bars engaging the long gear teeth on opposite sides of the shaft diameter, means for sliding the carriage to bring the jaws in a position to engage the tube assembly on the conveyor means, whereat the jaws engage the tube assembly, said means 'also being effective to move the carriage to a point of discharge whereat the jaws release the tube assembly.

5. A transfer means comprising a frame, means for raising an dlo-wering said frame, a shaft gear carried by said frame with gear teeth running from end to end of the frame, a pinion fixed to said shaft gear exteriorly of the frame, a rack bar engaging the pinion to move the same, means to drive the rack bar, a pair of guide rods carried by said frame-and running parallel to said shaft gear, a carriage slidable on said rods, a way in said carriage intersecting at right angles the axis of the shaft gear, a pair of superposed bars in said way, a rack bar on one of the bars of said pair engaging the shaft gear on one side of the shaft, a rack bar on the other bar of said pair engaging the shaft gear on the other side of the shaft, means for reciprocating the carriage with its rack bars along the gear shaft and opposed mating jaws carried by the pair of superposed bars.

6. In combination, superposed vertically spaced conveyors running in horizontal orbits, the conveyors having support means to support articles vertically therebetween, means'for jointly indexing the conveyors, indexible means adjacent the conveyors having supports for receiving articles removed from the conveyors, and transfer means having jaws movable in between the spaced conveyors and movable from a position behind the conveyors and an article supported by the conveyors to aposition over a support on the indexible means, means for so moving the jaws, means for additionally moving the jaws together when in vertical alignment with the conveyors, means for moving the jaws'upwardly when in said aligned position, means for additionally moving the jaws downwardly when over the support, means for opening the jaws after said downward movement and means for moving the jaws back to a position behind the conveyors.

7. A spaced pair of endless conveyors-in parallel planes, means on one of said conveyors cooperating with companion means on the other of said conveyors tohold an article therebetween, transfer means having jaws, said jaws being movable between the planes of the conveyors and from a position behind a run of the conveyors to a position in alignment therewith, means for closing the jaws on an article at said position, means for lifting the jaws while at said position, means for additionally moving the jaws in advance of said runs, means for lowering and subsequently opening the jaws when in said advanced position and means for returning the jaws to the original position behind a run of the conveyors.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,593,825 Higgins July 27, 1926 1,766,573 Westin June 24', 1930' 2,022,786 Schwab Dec. 3, 1935 2,691,246 Roeber Oct. 12, 1954

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