US3117890A - Casing-in machine - Google Patents

Description

Jall- 1954 J. H. ATKINS ETAL 3,117,890

CASING-IN MACHINE Filed May 16,- 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

INVENTORS JOHN H. ATKINS ARTHUR V. BEACH ATTORNEYS Jan. 14, 1964 J. H. ATKINS ETAL CASING-IN MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 16, 1961 INVENTORS JOHN H. ATKINS Y ARTHUR V.BEACH ATTORNEYS Jan. 14, 1964 J. H. ATKINS ETAL CASING-IN MACHINE Filei May 16, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS JOHN H. ATKINS ARTHUR V.BEACH ATTORNEYS llnited rates Patent Gfiice This invention relates in general to casing-in machines and more particularly concerns a new and improved a paratus for applying controlled amounts of adhesive to the end sheets of books or" various thicknesses.

In the art of bookbinding, a layer of adhesive is applied to the end sheets or" the sewn book before the outer cover is assembled. Typicall this operation is carried out by a casing-in machine which customarily is provided with a pair of spaced, parallel rollers adapted to transfer a quantity of a hesive to the end sheets as the unbound book is passed between the rollers. A rather wide, wedge-shaped is normally used to support the book during this operation and carries it into wiping contact with the rollers.

in practice, casing-in machines of this type are pre-set before each run to handle books in one thickness only and must be manually adjusted each time a change in book thickness occurs. ad "'nent will, of course, be somewhat time consuming and is pa ticularly bothersome when a great many books in a variety of thicknesses are being bound. Furthermore, in machines presently available, the book supporting wing frequently becomes smemed with the adhesive, particularly when relatively volumes are being pasted. Unless the wing is cleaned immediately, the adhesive is in danger of being picked up by the inner pages of any book subsequen" y placed on the wing, usually mutilating the book to such an extent that it rnust be discarded.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a casing-in mach ne that can accommodate books in a wide range of thicknesses without any adjustment whatsoever.

AHOLEI' object of this invention is to provide a casingin machine that can apply a controlled layer of adhesive cleanly neatly to the end sheets of a book without overspreading onto the book support or edges of the inner pages.

More particularly, this invention features a pair of glue pots adapted to move toward and away from one another in timed cooperative relation with the reciprocation of an arm which carries an unbound book into register between the pots. Special glue transfer rollers, mounted on the pots, are arranged to move into wiping contact with opposite sides of the unbound book to apply controlled amounts of adhesive to the end sheets. The book-supporting arm is in the form of an elongated, thin blade that is laterally movable and operatively connected for reciprocation with the sarne driving means that serves to move the glue pots.

As another feature of this invention the glue transfer rollers have been formed in such a fashion that a greater quantity of adhesive is applied along the joints of the book than over the remainder of the end sheets. This produces a more durable book in that a firmer bond is established between the cover and end sheets, particularly in the critical area along the joints.

But these and other features of the invention, along with further objects and advantages thereof, will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description with refe ence being made to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in side elevation of a preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIG. 2 is a partial end elevation showing the upper portion of the apparatus,

PEG. 3 is a top plan view of the glue pots and associated rollers, and,

H6. 4 is an end elevation of the pots and rollers shown in FIG. 3.

Construction Referring now to the drawings, the reference character ill indicates a fixed base support for an upright tubular standard 12 having a pneumatically or hydraulically actuatcd power cylinder l4 mounted coaxially thereon. A transverse bracket 16 is mounted in fixed position on the standard if. and functions both as a support for control components 18, located one side of the standard, and as a guide for a vertically disposed carriage 2%, located on the opposite side of the standard. The carriage 2t slidably en ages a grooved track 22 formed in the guide end of the bracket has its lower portion drivingly conne oil by a CIOSS-rll'lk to a piston rod (not shown) extending downwardly from the cylinder into the tubular standard. A flanged, longitudinal opening 2 1- is formed along the walls of the standard to accommodate age as carriage 2% is reciprocated by on of the cyli der 14.

Located near the top of the carriage 29 is a slide 26 mounted on the carriage arranged for a limited reciprocation relative thereto. it should be understood that slide reciprocates with carriage 2i) and also reciprocai'es relative to the carriage itself near the bottom of the carriage stroke. Movement of the slide relative to the carriage is controlled by a toggle linkage 28 which has an upper link pivotally connected to the slide and a lower link pivotally connected to a plate A cam follower in the r rm of a roller 32 is mounted on one or" the profiled face of a fixed cam plate The function of this mechanism will be set forth in detail along with a general description of the operation of the mac ine to follow.

Mounted for limited lateral movement on the slide 26 is a block 36 which is slidably secured to a set of pins carried by the block The block 36, in turn, carries a horizontally disposed wing in the form of an elongated, thin blade 4% over which the unbound book B is straddled for pasting as suggested in FIG. 1. Since the Wing is laterally movable it is in effect self-aligning so that no particular care need be taken when placing a book on the wing.

Reciprocation or" the carriage together with the wing 41' carries the unbound book down between a pair or" glue pots 42- which are arranged to move toward and away from each other in a slightly curved but generally horizontal path. Each of the glue pots 42 is mounted on the top of a rigid, boxed frame id which is pivoted at its lower end about a shaft The shaft 46 is, in turn, mounted by its ends between spaced ears 4-9 forming part i the base The two boxed frames 44 extend upwardly from their separate shafts 46 and diverge a slight angle from one another when in the open position of FIG. 2. These frames will come into general parallelism when the machine is in the closed position shown in FIG. 4.

The two boxed frames are operatively connected by a toggle linkage which includes a pair of links 48 pivotally connected at their outer ends to the frames 4 and at their inner ends to a block The block 59 slidably engages an upright guidepost 52 which is fixed to the base it A rod 54, slidably received in an upright position by the block dd depends from a crossbar which is fixed to the carriage The rod 54 is provided with a collar Bl, adjustable to different positions along the length of the rod, and pivotally supports a l T2 7-. r 7 L12 nniis and bears against slightly curved tripping lever 53 formed with a boss During the first part of a downward stroke of the carriage the boss on the tri ping lever will strike a projection (not shown) on the block, biasing the toggle down past its mid-point. Once past this mid-point a pneumatically actuated cylinder 53, er en ing between the boxed frames dd and under a constant pressure of perhaps 15 p.s.i., will take control to draw the frames and their glue pots toward one another. On an upward stroke of the carriage 2%) the rod 54 will engage with the block 59 to draw it up, thus spreading the pots and biasing the toggle into the open position of FIG. 2.

To prevent the tripping lever from becom ng jammed during the last part of the downward stroke it is drawn out of engagement with the block projection by means of a chain 57 attached at one end to the lever and at the other end to part of the frame 44.

Referring now more particularly to FIGS. 3 and 4 the glue pots 42 and the associated glue transfer mechanism have been illustrated in detail. As shown, each glue pot typically is in the form of an open rectangular box and adapted to contain a quantity of liquid adhesive 59 suitable for bookbinding purposes.

Mounted for rotation lengthwise within the pot 42 is a master roller 69 of relatively large diameter. The master roller is keyed to a shaft 62, one end of which passes through an end wall of the pot to drivingly engage with a gear 64. Both ends of the shaft 62- are eccentrically and rotatably mounted in bushings 65 which in turn are rotatable within their supporting end walls. A lever arm 66 is mounted fast at one end to the bushing 55 and at its opposite end engages a micrometer adjustment device 68 supported by a fixed bracket 7%. By adjustment of the micrometer device the master roller 69 may be moved to or away from a glue transfer roller 72 as desired. it will be understood that the master roller 69 will be partially submerged in the liquid adhesive in the pot and that rotation of this roller will carry a quantity of the adhesive to the transfer roller. it is therefore desirable that these two rollers be adjustable relative to one another in order to obtain a proper bight therebetween.

A longitudinal groove 7 4 is formed along the cylindrical surface of the master roller 69 and serves to deliver to the transfer roller 72 a fillet of adhesive of somewhat greater volume than the relatively thin film picked up and delivered by the remaining smooth surface of the roller. The transfer roller 72, it will be noted, is formed with a number of closely spaced peripheral grooves 75 which prevent the roller from grabbing the book and is mounted on a shaft 776 which carries a gear 78 in mesh with the gear The gears and rollers are arranged so that the fillet of adhesive will be delivered precisely to the joints of an unbound book as it is moved into contact with the transfer rollers 72.

Both the master and transfer rollers are rotated upon reciprocation of the carriage As best shown in FIG. 2 the driving mechanism for the rollers include a pair of elongated racks 8t} pivotally suspended from the arms of a T bar 82. The rack meshes with a pinion 84 I- tatably mounted on the side of the pot 42 and in turn meshes with a gear 86 carried by the transfer roller shaft 76. With this mechanism the reciprocating movement of the racks will be translated into rotary movement of the rollers. Considering the left hand glue pot of FIG. 4, on a downward stroke of the carriage 2t) and rack 85), the master roller 6%) will be rotated in a counterclockwise direction and the transfer roller 72 will be rotated in a clockwise direction. The corresponding rollers on the right hand will, of course, be rotated in correspondingly opposite directions. An upward return stroke of the carriage and racks will rotate the several rollers in reverse directions.

So that the longitudinal groove 74 may be readily set to deliver the fillet of adhesive precisely to the book joints,

4 a quick-release mechanism has been provided. This mechanism includes a push rod 68 which is slidably mounted through a pair of lugs 9i 2 extending from the end wall of the pot 4-2. The rod is urged inwardly by a coiled spring it mounted over the rod 88 and under a slight compression between the lug hi) and a collar 96 mounted fast to the rod. The inner end of the rod 83 may be seen in FlG. 3 to be bifurcated to engage opposite sides of the rack 8% thereby serving to guide the rack du ing reciprocation and to hold it in mesh with the pinion 52. A small roller bearing 93 may be mounted within the biiurcated end of the rod to ride frictionlessly against the rear face of the rack Sit. For convenience, a knob 1% may be formed on the outer end of the rod.

By pulling the rod outwardly the rack 88 may be unineshed from the pinion 32 and the master roller freely rotated by hand to any desired position. Once a position is selected, the rod may be released to return the rack into mesh. Normally, it is unnecessary to re-position the roller once it has been set, even though books of various thicknesses are delivered to the machine.

This quick-release mechanism also serves as a safety throw-out in the event of a malfunction of the machine. Should the rollers or gears for any reason jam during reciprocation of the carriage the racks will overcome the pressure of the springs 94 and will push out of mesh with the pinions, thereby avoiding serious damage to the machine or possibly to the operator.

In addition to those parts described above, the glue pots 42 also include a wiping roller 1%2, a guide roller 104 and a doctor blade 1%. The wiper roller 102, which has its shaft ends resting on inclined shoulders 108, rides against the cylindrical surface of the master roller 6% and serves to squeeze adhesive from the master roller during a clockwise (FIG. 4) rotation of that roller. During a counterclockwise rotation, when the adhesive is being applied to the joints and end sheets of the book, the thickness of the adhesive to be applied is controlled by the doctor blade 1%. The blade has its wiping edge located above the surface of the adhesive and may be in the form of angle stock with one side fastened to the bottom of the pot. Preferably the upright side, as seen in FIG. 4, is formed with a series of ports M9 and is equipped with a vane lit hinged along one side thereof. This, in effect constitutes a swing check valve to prevent the piling up of the viscous adhesive on one side of the blade during a counterclockwise (FIG. 4) rotation of the master roller 69.

The guide roller 164 is suitably mounted by brackets 112 and is provided with a pair of narrow annuli 114 spaced from one another and riding against the upper portion of the master roller of). The purpose of the guide roller is to prevent the pages of the book, particularly the bottom edges thereof, from contacting the master roller 69 after the book has been drawn between the two transfer rollers 72. Quite frequently it happens that as the book leaves the bight of these two rollers the pages fly out to a certain extent. Unless the guide rollers ill-l were provided the lower edges of the pages might flip against the master roller and become smeared.

Since it is contemplated that the casing-in machine may be shut down from time to time for various reasons, valved drains U16 have been provided for each of the pots so that the liquid adhesive may be drawn off and stored.

Operation In order that the operation of the machine may be fully understood, a complete cycle will be described. Assuming that the machine is in the open or start position of FIGS. 1 and 2 with the wing 40 raised over the glue pots, an unbound book will be placed over the wing by the operator. A suitable starting device (pedal, button, etc.) may then be tripped by the operator to start the machine through its cycle.

Admission of compressed air to the cylinder 14 will drive its piston down, thereby dropping the carriage and lowering the wing 40 with its book between the glue pots and transfer rollers. As the carriage approaches the bottom of its stroke the tripping lever 53 pushes the toggle links 48 down, thus permitting the cylinder 58 to draw the frames 44 and glue pots toward one another so that the transfer rollers 72. will come into wiping contact with the book to deliver a layer of adhesive over the end sheets. During the downward stroke of the carriage, the master rollers will be rotated through the operation of the racks 8i and will pick up a film of adhesive which will be transferred first to the roller '72 and then to the end sheets. The machine is so timed that the fillet of adhesive picked up by the groove 74 will be transferred to the joints of the book when the book reaches its lowest point of descent. The remaining end sheets will be coated with an even layer of adhesive as the wing is raised and the book drawn upward from between the rollers.

In FIG. 4 the book is shown just before it comes to rest between the transfer rollers 72. It will be understood that the downward movement of the book will stop when the joints of the book come down against these two rollers, whereas the wing and carriage will descend perhaps another inch or more depending upon the thickness of the book.

By transferrin the support of the book from the wing to the transfer rollers just before the downward stroke of the carriage is completed, the book will even itself up so that adhesive will be distributed evenly along the joints. This will occur no matter how thick the book might be and even it the book hangs somewhat lopsided on the wing with one side lower than the other. This desirable result is accomplished by reason of the fact that the carriage is still moving downwardly when the two transfer rollers come into contact with the book. Since the carriage is moving, the two rollers will be rotating, the one on the left clockwise and the one on the right counterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 4. The rotating rollers will have sufiicient friction engagment with the book to pull it down until the joints come evenly to rest along the rollers, but, because the rollers are peripherally grooved, this frictional engagement will be insufficient to pull the book entirely through the bight.

Where the book is lopsided one joint will butt against its supporting roller before the joint on the opposite side. In such a case the roller in contact with the joint will rotate freely in the joint while the other roller pulls down on the opposite side of the book until the two joints are even. As previously stated, it is important that the joints receive a proper coating of adhesive to insure a firm bond between the book and cover. To this end the apparatus has been designed to bring the transfer rollers squarely up into the joints despite variations in the thickness of books which are run through the machine.

On the upward stroke of the carriage 2d the toggle 28 and cam 34 come into use. As shown in FIG. 4 the follower 32 has moved down an inclined portion 118 of the cam 34, thereby biasing the toggle 28 and pulling the wing 4t? down. \V'nen the carriage 22 starts to move up, the follower 32 will move up the inclined portion lit: and bias the toggle in an opposite manner so that the wing is given a short, upward movement. This movemen; will be enough to move the wing all the way up into the back of the book, thus transferring the support of the book from the rollers 72 back to the wing. Unless this were done, the book would be carried up between the rollers with the wing perhaps an inch or more below the back. As soon as the book moved up out of the bight of the rollers, the compressive pressure on the book would be relieved and it would drop back down under its own weight until stopped either by the wing or by the lower edges of the book striking the rollers. Since the edges of the inner pages would become smeared with adhesive if this were allowed to happen, it is necessary to move the wing all of the way up into the back of the book before the book clears the rollers. At the end of the cycle, a cover is placed over the back by the operator while it is still on the wing and the assembled book transferred to a press.

From the foregoing description, it will be appreciated that the present invention offers several immediate advantages. For example, books from /s" up to 5" thickness may be accommodated without adjusting the machine. These books will be handled cleanly and neatly with no overspreading of the adhesive. The wing, being in the form of a long, thin blade, will remain clean since it does not come close to the rollers, and books need not be precisely centered over the wing since that member is self-centering.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to the illustrated embodiment, it will be understood that many modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of our invention.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to obtain by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A casing-in machine, comprising a fixed support, a carriage mounted for reciprocation on said support, an elongated narrow wing mounted on said carriage and reciprocated therewith, said wing being mounted for self adjusting free lateral movement relative to said carriage and adapted to support a book thereon, adhesive carrying elements movably mounted on said frame on either side of the path of travel of the book-carrying wing and yielding means for moving said elements into and out of wiping contact with said book when said book is reciprocated between said elements.

2. A casing-in machine, comprising a fixed support, a carriage mounted for linear movement on said support, an elongated thin blade mounted on said carriage and adapted to support an unbound book thereon, said blade being mounted for limited lateral and longitudinal movement relative to said carriage and linearly movable therewith, adhesive carrying elements movably mounted on said support on either side of the path of travel of said book-carrying blade, means for moving said elements into and out of wiping contact with the end sheets of said book and cam means connecting said blade to said support for moving said blade longitudinally of said carriage when said elements come into contact with said book.

3. A casing-in machine, comprising a pair of adhesive carrying elements mounted for movement toward and away from one another, an elongated wing adapted to support a book thereon, said wing being further adapted for linear movement between said elements whereby said book may be drawn in wiping contact between said elements and means for mounting said wing for free limited lateral movement whereby said book will center itself relative to said elements when in contact therewith.

4. A casing-in machine comprising a fixed support, a carriage mounted for vertical reciprocation on said support, a horizontally disposed wing mounted on said carriage and reciprocated therewith, said wing being adapted to support an unbound book straddled thereover, a pair of opposing rollers mounted parallel to one another on opposite sides of the path of travel of said book and adapted to apply a layer of adhesive to the end sheets of said book, means for moving said rollers into contact with opposite sides of said book as it is moved down between said rollers and before said wing reaches its lowermost position so that the support of said book is transferred from said wing to said rollers, means for simultaneously rotating said rollers counter to one another to position said book evenly between said rollers and to apply a layer of adhesive along the joints of said book and further means for moving said wing upwardly into said book on a return stroke of said carriage so that the support of said book is transferred back to said wing before said book leaves the bight of said rollers.

5. A casing-in machine according to claim 4 wherein said rollers are rotated counter to one another during a downward stroke of said carriage and rotated counter to one another in reverse directions during an upward stroke of said carriage.

6. A casing-in machine, comprising a fixed base, a pair of frame members pivotally mounted to said base, an adhesive carrying element mounted on each of said frame members, a toggle linkage connecting said members, fluid power means yieldingly connecting said members for normally urging said members towards one another, said linkage being adapted to lock said frames apart when biased in one direction and to permit said power means to pivot said members towards one another when biased in another direction and book supporting means adapted to reciprocate between said elements and said members, said book supporting means being further adapted to bias said linkage first in one direction and then in another direction whereby said elements move into Wiping contact with said book as said book passes therebetween.

7. A casing-in machine, comprising a fixed base, a pair of frame members plvotally mounted to said base, an adhesive carrying element mounted on each of said frame members, yielding fluid power means connecting said members for urging said member yieldingly towards one another, frame member spreading means connecting said frame members and normally holding them apart, and book supporting means adapted to reciprocate between said elements and said members, said book supporting means being further adapted upon reciprocation to first disable and then return said spreading means to a functioning condition causing said members to move first towards and then away from one another whereby said elements move into a wiping contact with said book as said book passes therebetween.

8. A casing-in machine, comprising a fixed support, a carriage mount d for vertical reciprocation on said support, a wing mounted on said carriage and adapted to support a book thereon, a pair of separate frame members each pivotally mounted on said support and adapted to move angularly towards and away from one another an opposite sides of the path of travel of said book, yielding fl id power means connecting said members for urging them yieldingly towards one another, a glue pot mounted on each of said members, said glue pots being adapted to contain a quantity of liquid adhesive, adhesive transfer rollers mounted on said pots and adapted to deliver a layer of adhesive to portions of said book when said wing is reciprocated between said pots, and locking means connecting said members and normally holding said members apart, said carriage being adapted to disable said g means during a limited portion of said carriage reciprocation to permit said power means to move said members towards one another.

9. A casing-in machine according to claim 8 wherein said transfer rollers are eperativeiy connected to said carriage whereby said roliers are rotated upon reciprocation of said carriage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

Claims (1)

1. 4. A CASING-IN MACHINE COMPRISING A FIXED SUPPORT, A CARRIAGE MOUNTED FOR VERTICAL RECIPROCATION ON SAID SUPPORT, A HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED WING MOUNTED ON SAID CARRIAGE AND RECIPROCATED THEREIWTH, SAID WING BEING ADAPTED TO SUPPORT AN UNBOUND BOOK STRADDLED THEREOVER, A PAIR OF OPPOSING ROLLERS MOUNTED PARALLEL TO ONE ANOTHER ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE PATH OF TRAVEL OF SAID BOOK AND ADAPTED TO APPLY A LAYER OF ADHESIVE TO THE END SHEETS OF SAID BOOK, MEANS FOR MOVING SAID ROLLERS INTO CONTACT WITH OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID BOOK AS IT IS MOVED DOWN BETWEEN SAID ROLLERS AND BEFORE SAID WING REACHES ITS

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