US3051077A - Escapement for automatic wiretying machine - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 28, 1962 P. w. FAWCETT ESCAPEMENT FOR AUTOMATIC WIRE-TYING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Nov. 20, 1956 Wk Q s LF o I e 1 I/VVE/VTOR PAUL W. FAWCETT {from ey Aug. 28, 1962 P. w. FAWCETT ESCAPEMENT FOR AUTOMATIC WIRE-DYING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Nov. 20, 1956 lNl/E/VTOR PAUL W FA WCE'TT A ffarney Aug. 28, 1962 P. w. FAWCETT ESQAPEMENT FOR AUTOMATIC WIRE-TYING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Original Filed Nov. 20, 1956 uwnvron PAUL w. FAWCETT y 9 A from ey United States PatentO 3,051,077 ESCAPEMENT FOR AUTOMATIC WIRE- TYING MACHINE Paul W. Fawcett, Western Springs, 11]., assignor to United States Steel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Original application Nov. 20, 1956, Ser. No. 623,458, new

Patent No. 2,912,099, dated Nov. 10, 1959. Divided and this application Aug. 11, 1959, Ser. No. 832,961

4 Claims. (Cl. 10026) This application, which is a division of my copending application Serial No. 623,458, filed November 20, 1956, now Patent No. 2,912,099, relates to machines for applying and securing wire ties to bundles, boxes, bales or other packages, and especially to machines for automatically performing the several operations involved, in rapid sequence.

In the operation of the general type of wire-tying machine shown in Patent No. 2,912,099, the supply wire, from which a tie is to be made, is fed around a guide track in the form of a loop, with the ends of the tie overlapped in the slot of a knotter pinion. Then, when a tie is to be applied to a package, the package is placed within the track, the wire is pulled back to draw the tie tight around the package and is then finally tensioned. The overlapped ends of the tie are then twisted together by the knotter pinion and the tie is out free from the supply wire and ejected from the pinion.

More particularly, the improvements claimed herein relate to an escapement for receiving and holding the surplus length of wire initially fed into the guide track which exceeds the length actually needed to encircle the bundle when the tie is drawn tight around it. Other parts of the machine, such as the means for feeding the wire around the guide track and subsequently pulling it therefrom in initial engagement with a package, the means for finally tensioning the tie, the knotter-pinion actuating mechanism and the guide track may be of any suitable construction. These elements are not claimed herein and with the exception of the wire feeding means are shown only diagrammatically. The Wire feeding means, which is fully described in Patent No. 2,912,099, will be shown and described herein only to the extent necessary for a clear understanding of the escapment of the present invention.

A complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from the following detailed description and explanation which refer to the accompanying drawings illustrating the present preferred embodiment. In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation with portions broken away;

FIGURE 2 is a portion of FIGURE 1 to an enlarged scale;

FIGURE 3 is a partial section taken along the plane of line IIIIII of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a portion of FIGURE 2 showing parts in an alternate position;

FIGURE 5 is a partial section taken along the plane of line V-V of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 6 is a partial section taken along the plane of line VI-VI of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 7 is a portion of FIGURE 6 with a part in alternate position; and

FIGURE 8 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 showing parts in alternate position.

Referring now in detail to the drawings and, for the present to FIGURES l and 2, the principal working parts of the machine there shown are mounted on a plate 10 disposed vertically and secured to a supporting frame of structural members (not shown) at one side thereof. These parts include reversible means indicated generally at 11 for feeding in wire 12, which may be round or flat, from an external supply coil and pulling it back; the escapment of the invention, designated generally by reference numeral 13, for holding the surplus wire, when it is pulled back by the wire feeding means; a tie-tensioning means 14; a knotter mechanism 15; and a guide track 16. A left-hand guide chute 17 connects the tensioning means 14 to the knotter mechanism, and a right-hand guide chute 18 connects the knotter mechanism to the guide track 16. The usual table or supporting plate overlies the knotter mechanism to hold bundles or packages while the tie is being applied and secured therearound. As already pointed out, the novel features disclosed in detail and claimed herein are those forming parts of the escapement 13.

Wire 12, on entering the machine, passes first through a Wire-end detector indicated generally at 19 (see FIG- URES 1, 2, and 4). The wire is threaded through an entry guide 23 in the wire-end detector 19. When the trailing end of a coil of supply wire passes through the entry guide, or in case of a break in the wire, a switch (not shown) is operated to stop the wire-driving means. The length of wire remaining in the machine may then be easily pulled out by hand.

From the wire-end detector 19, the wire passes to a slidable guide-roll housing 25 and around a sheave 26 enclosed therein (see FIGURES l, 2 and 4). The housing comprises spaced plates 27 and 28 with suitable spacer means therebetween (see FIGURE 5). Sheave 25 is journaled in a slidable bar 30 reciprocable in a slot 31 milled in the inner face of the plate 10. Housing 25 is mounted on bar 30, reciprocable manually therewith, by means of a knob 32 on the shaft of sheave 26 which is exposed on the outer face of plate 27, from the working position shown in FIGURES 1 and 2 to the threading position shown in FIGURE 4, to facilitate threading of the wire 12.

Housing 25 is releasably held in the innermost or working position by a latch mechanism shown in FIGURE 5. This mechanism comprises a thumb lever 35 pivoted at 36 on plate 27, biased by a spring 35a to the illustrated position. Lever 35 has a fork-and-pin connection 37 to a locking pin 38 reciprocable in a bushing 39 extending through plates 27 and 28 and engaging the end of an adjustable stop plate 40 slidable in a slot in plate 10. Pin 38 is tapered at its inner end and will therefore be forced outwardly against the pressure of spring 35a, by an abnormal force on the housing 25 tending to retract it from the working position. Sheathing plates 41, 41a and a block 4112 (see FIGURES 1, 2 and 4) secured to plate 10 with spaces therebetween cooperate with the right-hand edge of plate 27 which is of S-shape structure, to define a passage confining the wire when it is pulled back to tighten around the package.

The wire-driving means includes a sheave 44 mounted on a shaft 44a journaled in a gear housing (not shown) secured to plate 10. The axis of sheave 26 is vertically aligned with that of sheave 44- when housing 25 is in working position. In such position, the edge of plate 27 overlaps a portion of the periphery of sheave 44 as shown in FIGURES l and 2. Shaft 44a is directly connected to a reversible hydraulic motor (not shown).

A driven pinch roll 51 is mounted above sheave 44 and is adapted to cooperate therewith. Sheave 44 and pinch roll 51 normally exert suflicient friction on wire 12 inserted therebetween to feed it forward or retract it on operation of the reversible hydraulic motor in one direction or the other. A guide tube directs the advancing wire driven by the wire feeding means through the tensioning means 14 whence it is guided into the left-hand guide chute 17.

With the exception of the escapement of the invention,

3 the structure thus far described is not claimed as part of the present invention but is included herein to facilitate understanding of the escapement of the invention.

The escapernent 13 functions to receive and temporarily store the loop of surplus wire formed When sheave 44 is driven to pull the wire out of the guide track 16. Sheathing plates 41 and 41a are secured to plate 10 with spacer strips 72 therebetween, defining a shallow pocket 73 of a width equal to the axial width of sheave 26, adapted to receive the wire loop indicated at 12a. The surplus wire is ejected from between sheaves 26 and 44 into the pocket 73 along the upper edge thereof. A strip 74 of spring steel overlies plate 41 and is slotted upwardly from its lower edge to form a plurality of spring fingers 75. Fingers 75 have their lower ends bent to form tongues 76 entering the space between the adjacent edges of plates 41 and 41a. The sides of the tongues 76 are beveled as at 78 whereby the tongues are successively displaced as the loop 12a lengthens (see FIGURE 8). The tongues prevent the upper run of the horizontally extending loop from sagging excessively yet permit the surplus to be freely pulled out of the pocket on the next tie-feeding operation before additional wire is drawn from the supply coil.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the invention provides an escapement for a wire-tying machine having important advantages. The pocket of escapement 13 for receiving the surplus length of wire is always open and the loop extends itself readily thereinto on reversal of the driving sheave. The upper run of the loop is always held suspended by the spring fingers 75 so as to prevent tangling or kinking when the loop is pulled out to form the next tie.

Although I have disclosed herein the preferred practice and embodiment of my invention, I intend to cover as well any change or modification therein which may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. In an automatic wire-tying machine designed and adapted to draw wire from a source of supply, feed the wire around a guide track in the form of a loop with the ends of the loop overlapped in a knotter pinion, draw the wire tight around a package disposed in the guide track by pulling back on the wire and retracting it from the guide track, twist the overlapped ends of the loop together by rotating the knotter pinion, and then cut the twisted knot free from the supply wire, the improvement therewith of a receptacle for receiving said Wire loop when it is retracted from the guide track to draw the wire tight around the package, said receptacle comprising a generally vertical supporting plate, a pair of horizontally elongated confining plates disposed side-by-side in spaced parallel relation to said plate by means adjacent their edges remote from each other, the adjacent edges of said confining plates being spaced apart defining a slot therebetween, and a series of yieldable fingers mounted on one of said confining plates and extending through said slot toward said supporting plate, said fingers being of such a configuration that they may be successively displaced by said loop pushed into the space between the supporting plate and confining plates and repositioned thereafter to support the upper run of said loop.

2. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 wherein said fingers are formed from a strip of spring metal overlying one of said confining plates and the edge of said strip of metal nearest the adjacent edges of said confining plates having spaced slots formed therein.

3. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 wherein said fingers are each formed of flat spring metal with their ends bent over and entering said slot.

4. Apparatus as defined by claim 3 in which the sides of said bent-over ends are beveled.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 623,701 Brisselet Apr. 25, 1899 2,532,162 Goss Nov. 28, 1950 2,864,303 Brown et al Dec. 16, 1958 new

Images