US3145590A

US3145590A - Profile rolling attachment

Info

Publication number: US3145590A
Application number: US803531A
Authority: US
Inventors: Nell Frederic
Original assignee: Landis Machine Co
Current assignee: Landis Machine Co
Priority date: 1959-04-01
Filing date: 1959-04-01
Publication date: 1964-08-25
Anticipated expiration: 1981-08-25

Description

Aug. 25, 1964 F. NELL 3,145,590

PROFILE ROLLING ATTACHMENT Filed April 1, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 24 l 46 2s Avg", 48

FIG. 4 INVENTQR FREDERIC NELL ATTORNEYS Aug. 25, 1964 F. NELL 3,145,590

PROFILE ROLLING ATTACHMENT Filed April 1, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR FREDERIC NELL.

BY M %m*%z&

ATTORNEYS \VIIIIIIIYI&

FIG. 3

United States Patent 3,145,596 PROFILE RQLLING ATTACHh ENT Frederic Neil, Waynesboro, Pa, assignor to Landis Machine Qompany, Waynesboro, Pin, a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Apr. 1, 1959, Ser. No. 863,531 9 Claims. (Cl. 80-6) This invention relates to profile rolling attachments of the type employing two rolling dies and moving upon a rotating work piece laterally to impress the profile of the die into the metal of the Work piece. Such tools are generally employed on turret lathes or the like machine tools. The invention particularly concerns such a tool for rolling splines or axially extending serrations.

Examples of prior attachments of the same general nature for rolling screw threads are disclosed in the United States Patent No. 2,694,322, issued November 16, 1954, and in copending application Serial No. 656,480, filed April 29, 1957, now Patent 2,919,612, issued January 5, 1960. The utilization of such devices for rolling splines presents unsuspected problems. Because the tool is designed to move upon the work piece from the side, it is evident that the initial angle of contact between dies and work piece will be something less than 180. This angle of contact is precisely dictated by the diameter of the blank work piece, the diameter of the die, the spacing between the die axes, and the depth of the serrations to be rolled. But this angle cannot be maintained when splines are to be rolled because it has been found necessary to make forming contact with the work piece with both dies simultaneously. This condition requires that the spacing between teeth on the dies match exactly with the required contact angle which is practically never the case.

The required initial contact angle could be achieved by changing the diameter of the die. It should be re alized that, unlike thread rolling, in spline rolling the die diameter does not have to be a multiple of the work blank diameter. The only criterion therefore is that the die diameter must be such as to enable its circumference to be divided into a whole number of teeth. It has been found in practice, however, that to make the necessary change in contact angle would require a die diameter far too small.

These difiiculties have proved so formidable that prior to the present invention it has not been considered poss"- ble to roll splines with apparatus of the general type shown in the aforesaid United States Patent 2,694,322 despite its widespread use in other types of rolling.

The invention solves the problem by providing apparatus for forcing the dies toward each other closer than normal prior to contact with the work piece and then allowing them to expand to normal rolling position after the spline teeth have been located by initial indentation of the work piece. To do this, the body of the attachment is made of two hinged die carriers, each carrying one die, as in the above-mentioned copending application. A toggle device, supported by a heavy spring is located at the rear of the body to force the rear ends of the die carrier apart which forces the dies closer together. A fine adjustment of the toggle action permits the dies to be moved closer together by exactly the amount required to bring the contact angle into registry with the toothspacing on the work piece.

Accordingly it is an object of the invention to provide an attachment for application to turret lathes and the like to roll splines and similar axially extending serrations on cylindrical work pieces, said attachment moving onto the work piece from the side.

Another object is to provide a rolling attachment as described above having a hinged two-part frame with the two parts of the frame connected by a toggle mechanism whereby the rolling dies may be forced closer together than normally for initial indentation of the workpiece.

It is a further object to provide a stop device to hold the two parts of the frame in normal rolling position after the initial indentation has been achieved.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a fine adjustment for the toggle mechanism to enable the rolling dies to be set for the correct contact angle with the work piece for properly indenting the same.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of an exemplary embodiment thereof and from the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the complete mechanism showing it in position to begin indenting a work piece with splines;

FIGURE 2 is a longitudinal section through the shank of the device and through the toggle mechanism;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical section taken substantially along line 3--3 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a vertical section taken along line 4-4 of FIGURE 3.

The attachment comprises upper and

lower frame portions

20 and 22 respectively, mounted in scissors-like relationship upon a bushing 24 (FIGURE 4) surrounding a hinge pin 26. Rolling dies 28 and 30 respectively are mounted in well known manner in the hinged frame members 24) and 22. The circumferences of dies 28 and 30 are provided with the reverse profile or mirror image of the serrations tobe rolled upon the work piece.

As in prior constructions the rolling dies 28 and 30 are connected by meshing gears 32 to maintain the dies in correct phase throughout the operation and to return them to correct relative angular position after each operation.

The

frame portions

20 and 22 are not only hinged relatively to each other upon pin 26 but are pivotally mounted thereby upon a shank 34 of a shape and size calculated to adapt the mechanism to the cross slide of a turret lathe for example. A pair of screws 36 (FIGURE 1) are inserted in one side of the shank 34 to attach thereto a stop member 38. The end of stop member 38 abuts a screw 40 threadedly engaged in one of the gear covers 42 in frame member 22, to maintain the relative positions of frame member and shank and thus present the rolling dies 28 and 30 at the proper position for engaging the work piece W. An elongated slot 44 is provided in the stop member 38 for adjusting the position of that member.

In conventional attachments the two hinged frame members are immovably attached to each other by a size adjusting link to prevent relative pivotal movement during the rolling operation. In contrast thereto, in this device the size adjusting link (FIGURES 3 and 4) is comprised of two parts 4-6 and 48. The part 46 is secured to frame portion 20 by a screw 50 While the part 48 is secured to frame portion 22 by a screw 52. The well known pins 54, abutted by screws 56 (FIGURE 1) are provided to adjust the precise location of the

parts

46 and 48. Thus the

parts

46 and 48 limit rotation of the frame portions 23 and 22 relative to each other in one direction only and limit the extent to which the rolling dies 28 and 30 can be spread apart during the rolling operation, thus determining the final size of the work piece.

The frame portion 29 has welded thereto at the rear thereof a bracket 53, generally iU-shaped in cross section. The bracket 53, in effect, forms a channel to receive a clevis bolt 6i) which is povtally attached to he bracket by a pin 62. The frame portion 22 has Welded thereto a bracket 64 in alignment with the bracket 58 and forming a housing for a link 66 which is pivotally attached to the bracket 64 by a pin 68. The upper end of the link 66 is bifurcated to receive a second clevis bolt 71) which is attached to the link 66 by a pin 72. The free ends of both

clevis bolts

60 and 70 are screwed into the opposite ends of a turnbuckle 74, also disposed in the bracket 58. The turnbuckle 74 thus constitutes a simple means of adjusting the distance between the centers of

pins

62 and 72.

The shank 34 is provided with a large cylindrical opening 76 (FIGURE 2) occupied by a compression spring 78. The rear end of the opening 76 is closed by a cap 80 threadedly engaged in the opening and hollowed to receive one end of spring 78. The opposite or forward end of spring 78 abuts against a shoulder 82 on a guide member 84. A headed screw 86 is threaded into the forward end of member 84 and a lock nut 88 surrounds the screw 86 to retain it in correct axial position.

As best shown in FIGURE 2, it will be seen that the screw 86 abuts the clevis bolt 7t) and that the force of the spring 78 is exerted through screw 86 to push the clevis 70 and the pin 72 as far forwardly as possible. The forward motion of clevis bolt 70 is arrested by surfaces of the

brackets

58 and 64.

Without the device of the invention the rolling dies 28 and 30 would make contact with the work piece at a random contact angle A (FIGURE 1). In such case it is extremely unlikely that the two contact points on the work piece are precisely far enough apart for the work to be evenly divided by the tooth spacing. Consequently no splines could be rolled. In the mechanism of the invention, on the contrary, the precise contact angle A is calculated and the turnbuckle 74 is adjusted accordingly. As the attachment is caused to approach the rotating work piece the spring 78 urges the guide member 84 forwardly and the force of the spring is brought to bear on the clevis '70 by the screw 86. The clevis 79 is pressed forwardly until its forward surface contacts the

brackets

58 and 64 as shown in FIGURE 2. In this position the

size adjusting members

46 and 48 are forced slightly apart (FIGURES 3 and 4) and the rolling dies are forced slightly closer together than normal.

After contact is made with the work piece about onehaif revolution thereof sufiices to indent the serration locations therein and further rotation thereof builds up the rolling pressure to overcome that of the spring 78. At this point the

size adjusting members

46 and 48 are forced together by the rolling pressure and the forward surface of cleivs 7% is forced rearwardly away from the

brackets

58 and 64, compressing spring 78. This is the normal rolling position of the mechanism in which it remains until the center line of the work piece lies on the line joining the rolling die centers and the rolling operation is completed.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing descriptionQand all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical Work piece by movement laterally onto said workpiece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said splines or like formations on said work piece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, adjustable abutment means carried by the frame sections for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, a toggle mechanism operatively connected to said frame sections and adapted when moved in one direction to move said frame sections together to decrease the spacing between said dies, spring means resiliently urging said toggle mechanism in said one direction, said toggle mechanism having a part engageable with said support to limit the extension of said spring, and means for adjusting the relative spacing of said dies when said spring is at its fully extended position and said part is engaged with said support.

2. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical work piece by movement laterally onto said work piece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said splines or like serrations on said work piece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, means forming adjustably positionable abutments on said frame sections adapted to limit the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, a toggle mechanism, means pivotally connecting the opposite ends of said toggle mechanism to the respective frame sections, said toggle mechanism being adapted when moved in one direction to move said frame sections in a direction to decrease the spacing between said dies, a positive stop for limiting the movement of said toggle mechanism in said one direction, and a spring compressed between an abutment on said support and said toggle mechanism for urging said toggle mechanism in said one direction against said stop.

3. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical workpiece by movement laterally onto said workpiece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appro priate surface configurations for forming said splines or like formations on said workpiece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, first adjustable means for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies at which said rolling operation is completed, second adjustable means independent of said first adjustable means for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in the opposite direction to thereby determine the minimum spacing between said dies at which said rolling operation is initiated, and means resiliently urging said frame sections in said opposite direction to their minimum space position.

4. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical workpiece by movement laterally onto said workpiece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said splines or like formations on said workpiece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, adjustable abutment means carried by the frame sections for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, a toggle mechanism adapted when moved in one direction to move said frame sections together to decrease the spacing between said dies, a positive stop engageable with said support for limiting the movement of said toggle mechanism in said one direction, means resilientiy urging said toggle mechanism in said one direction to engage said stop with said support, and means for adjusting the effective length of said toggle mechanism to thereby determine the relative spacing of said dies when said stop is engaged with said support.

5. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical workpiece by movement laterally onto said workpiece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said splines or like formations on said workpiece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, adjustably positionable abutments on said frame sections adapted to limit the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, a toggle mechanism, means pivotally connecting the opposite ends of said toggle mechanism to the respective frame sections, said toggle mechanism being adapted, when moved in one direction, to move said frame sections in a direction to decrease the spacing between said dies, a positive stop for limiting the movement of said toggle mechanism in said one direction, a spring compressed between an abutment on said support and said toggle mechanism for urging said toggle mechanism in said one direction, and means for adjusting the effective length of said toggle mechanism to thereby determine the spacing between said dies when said toggle mechanism is urged against said stop by said spring.

6. Apparatus for rolling splines or like formations on a cylindrical workpiece by movement laterally onto said workpiece comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said splines or like formations on said workpiece, means operatively connected to said dies for maintaining said dies in predetermined angular relation, positive stop means operatively connected to. each of said frame sections for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, means for adjusting said positive stop means, spring means resiliently urging said frame sections in the opposite direction to decrease said spacing between said dies, a positive stop interposed between said support and said spring means for limiting the extension of said spring means, and means for adjusting the relative spacing of said dies when said spring is at its fully extended position.

7. Apparatus for rolling lengthwise serrations having a predetermined circular pitch on a cylindrical workpiece, said apparatus moving laterally of said workpiece as said serrations are formed, comprising a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said serrations on said workpiece, means maintaining the dies in predetermined angular relation, adjustable abutment means carried by said frame sections for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, said maximum spacing being that required to complete the rolling operation, a spring urged mechanism operatively connected between said support and said frame sections to move said dies together to decrease the spacing between said dies, a positive stop independent of said abutment means for limiting the movement of said spring urged mechanism in said one direction to thereby determine the minimum spacing between said dies, said minimum spacing disposing the points of contact between the workpiece and the respective dies circumferentially spaced apart on said workpiece a distance exactly divisible by the said circular pitch of said serrations.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7 wherein said dies are carried by said frame sections for rotation about axes substantially parallel to the pivotal axes of said frame sections.

9. Apparatus for rolling lengthwise serrations having a predetermined circular pitch on a cylindrical workpiece, said apparatus moving laterally of said workpiece as said serrations are formed, comprising, a support, a pair of frame sections pivotally carried by said support, a die rotatably carried by each of said frame sections, said dies having appropriate surface configurations for forming said serrations on said workpiece, means maintaining the dies in predetermined angular relation, adjustable abutment means carried by said frame sections for limiting the relative pivotal movement of said frame sections in one direction to thereby determine the maximum spacing between said dies, said maximum spacing being that required to complete the rolling operation, a toggle mechanism, means pivotally connecting the opposite ends of said toggle mechanism to the respective frame sections, said toggle mechanism being adapted when moved in one direction to move said frame sections in a direction to decrease the spacing between said dies, at positive stop for limiting the movement of said toggle mechanism in said one direction, a spring compressed between an abutment on said support and said toggle mechanism for urging said toggle mechanism in one direction, means for adjusting the effective length of said toggle mechanism to thereby determine the spacing between said dies when said toggle mechanism is urged against said stop by said spring, to thereby determine the minimum spacing between said dies, said minimum spacing being such that the points of contact between the workpiece and the respective dies are circumferentially spaced apart on said workpiece a distance exactly divisible by the said circular pitch of said serrations.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,854,021 Derby Apr. 12, 1932 2,291,751 Oestereicher Aug. 4, 1942 2,654,276 Jones Oct. 6, 1953 2,679,774 MacDonald June 1, 1954 2,771,799 Batchelder Nov. 27, 1956 2,849,904 7 Hill Sept. 2, 1958 2,919,612 Berkey Ian. 5, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 538,222 Canada Mar. 12, 1957