US3263251A

US3263251A - Apparatus for trimming heel top lifts

Info

Publication number: US3263251A
Application number: US436101A
Authority: US
Inventors: Roy E Smith; James M Chafin
Original assignee: AUTO SOLER CO
Current assignee: AUTO SOLER CO
Priority date: 1965-03-01
Filing date: 1965-03-01
Publication date: 1966-08-02
Anticipated expiration: 1983-08-02

Description

Aug. 2, 1966 R. E. SMITH ETAL APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING H EEL TOP LIFTS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 1, 1965 INVENTORS R0) 5. SMITH (5 TIMES M. CHAF/N Aug. 2, 1966 Filed March 1. 1965 R. E. SMITH ETAL APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING HEEL TOP LIFTS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS ROY 6'. SMITH 6 JAMES M C/l/VF/IV g- 1966 R. E. SMITH ETAL 3,263,251

APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING HEEL TOP LIFTS Filed March 1, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Z 7' INVENTORS 190) 6. SMITH a BY JAMES M C/l/lF/IY ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,263,251 APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING HEEL TOP LIFTS Roy E. Smith and James M. Chafin, Atlanta, Ga., assignors to The Auto-Solar Company, a corporation of Georgia Filed Mar. 1, 1965, Ser. No. 436,101 6 Claims. (Cl. 12-85) This invention relates generally to apparatus of the type disclosed by US. Patents No. 2,799,030 and No. 3,006,005 that allows heel top lifts and the like to be trimmed with unique facility, and more particularly to an improved work supporting arrangement for such apparatus that allows the trimming to be done, whenever desired, in better relation to heel blocks having flared shanks.

Briefly described, the improved work supporting arrangement is characterized by the provision of an auxiliary plate element disposed for selective superposition at the normal work supporting surface to present an alternative surface on which the work is supported at a tilt for trimming angularly or with a flare, rather than squarely as is normally the case. In addition, provision is made for selectively varying the disposition of a work guiding member at the trimming means in relation to the work supporting surface being used.

These and other features of the present invention are described in detail below in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section of a device embodying the trimming apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a right side elevation of a device such as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the guard and gage element operating arrangement;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged detail view illustrating one operation of the trimming apparatus of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a related enlarged detail view showing an other operation of the trimming apparatus.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, a housing, indicated generally by the numeral 10, has sides 12, a back member 14 and is covered by a work supporting plate member 16 which has a substantially square opening 20 located therein. Attached to back member 14 is a bracket 22 which extends to a point beneath opening 20 and serves as a support for a fixed blade element 24 which is located in the opening 20 and is flush with the outer face of front plate 16 so as to form therewith a normal work supporting surface 18. Bracket 22 also extends through the opening 20 and includes a journal 26 through which the smaller portion 28 of a pivot shaft 30 extends to support a movable cutter arm 32 so that the pivot point of the cutter arm 32 normally lies within the plane of a top lift supported by normal work supporting surface 18; an enlarged portion 34 of pivot shaft 30 abuts a spacing collar 35 disposed about the smaller portion 28 as shown in FIG. 2. The cutter arm 32 carries a removable cutting knife 36 which is positioned relative to a notched edge portion 38 in fixed blade 24 for cutting action therewith when the cutter arm 32 is pivoted.

The cutter arm 32 includes a stub portion 40 which is linked with a connecting arm 42 having a bearing sleevg 44 interposed therebetween and which, in turn, is qonnected to an eccentric stub 46 extending from an end portion of a drive shaft (not shown). A motor 52 carried by support bracket 54 attached to top wall 14 is connected to the drive shaft by drive belt 56 to cause the cutter arm 32 and cutting knife 36 to move pivotally with respect to fixed blade 24 for cutting action therewith as described in further detail in US. Patent No. 3,006,005.

The previously-mentioned pivot shaft 30 is bored at 58 to receive a shaft 60 which extends beyond the ends thereof and has

support blocks

62, 64 connected at the two ends thereof so as to be movable with respect to the cutter arm 32 and pivoted coaxially therewith. Each of the

support blocks

62, 64 has an angled slot 66 which receives the end of a guide element 68 made of a strip of moderately flexible material and fixed in place by bearing screws 70 to locate the guide element 68 in shrouding disposition with respect to the cutting knife 36 so as properly to position work for trimming by the cutting action of the cutting knife 36 at the fixed blade 24. The right-hand support block 62 includes a lower flat surface 72 which abuts against a camming element 74 in the form of a polyhedron having a plurality of sides 76 each of which has a different spacing from the center of rotation thereof. An integral adjusting shaft 78 is journaled in side wall 12 and bracket 22, and includes a collar 80 to position the sides 76 of polyhedron 74 below the fiat surface 72 of support block 62 whereby when the adjusting shaft 78 is turned selectively by a handle 82, the

support blocks

62 and 64 and shaft 60 will be caused to pivot in the bore 58 of pivot shaft 30 to move the guide element 68 to a series of preselected positions determined by the particular side 76 which is abutting the flat surface 72; the handle 82 includes an indicator scale 8-4 having sides 86 equal in number and parallel to the sides 76 of polyhedron 74 and having numerals located on at least some of sides 76 to indicate visually the particular preselected position of the guide element 68. A tension spring 88 is connected between the left-hand support block 64 and bracket 22 to insure a positive abutment of flat surface 72 and sides 76 of polyhedron 74.

An auxiliary plate element 90 composed of plane portions 91 and 92 joined in angular relation to one another at 93 is carried by the forward edge 94 of work supporting plate member 16 at a hinged connection 95 located in spaced parallel relation to juncture 93 which permits it to hang clear of plate member 16 when not in use as illustrated by the dotted lines in FIG. 1, and which can be pivoted for selective superposition concavely facing the work supporting surface 18 to provide an alternate work supporting surface 96 which is related angularly to the cutting action of the cutting knife 36 as illustrated by the full lines in FIGS. 1 and 5.

With this arrangement of elements, the operation of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 illustrates the trimming operation when the top lift T to be trimmed is attached to a ladies shoe S having a relatively straight heel H where the alternate support plate 90 is in its normal position clear of plate member 16 as shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 1. The handle 82 is turned to move the guide element 68 to the proper one of its preselected positions as shown by the indicating scale 84 so that when the straight heel H is pressed against the guide element 68 and the top lift T is laid flat against the normal work supporting surface 18, the pivotal movement of cutter arm 32 will establish cutting action be tween the cutter knife 36 and fixed blade 24 to trim the top lift T along a line 98 which is substantially square with relation to the normal work supporting surface 18 and substantially parallel to the adjacent edge of the straight heel H. Although the cut along line 98 actually will be slightly arcuate because of the pivotal movement of the cutter arm 32, the location of the cutter arm pivot shaft 30 within the plane of the top lift T and the fact that the cutter arm 32 is relatively long combine to result in a out which is substantially perpendicular to normal supporting surface 18 and the abutting top lift T. The preselected position of the guide element 68 for the operation is generally one of its lower positions (e.g., 2) although the particular trimming operation may dictate a higher setting. Also, it is to be understood that in other trimming operations, for example trimming the sole of a mans shoe, the setting is adjusted so as to position the giude element 68 slightly higher than the thickness of the sole so that the welt of the shoe may be pressed thereagainst and the sole to be trimmed will pass beneath the lower edge thereof in a manner similar to that of the top lift T shown in FIG. 4, and the sole will be cut substantially flush with the welt of the shoe (not shown).

The related operation shown in FIG. is performed when the top lift T to be trimmed is attached to a contoured heel H of a ladys shoe S. The alternate support element 92 is moved for selective superposition adjacent the fixed blade 24 and cutter arm 32, and the top lift T lies flush therewith so as to assume an angular disposition with respect to the normal supporting surface 18 and the cutting action of cutting knife 36. A tilt angle in the order of 18 degrees between the alternate work supporting surface 96 and plate member supporting surface 18 will provide optimum results for this operation. Because the tilting effect of the alternate support element 92 causes the lower portion of the heel H and the top lift T to move away from the cutter knife 36 as indicated by dotted line 102, the guide element 68- is adjusted selectively from its FIG. 4 position as shown in the dotted lines in FIG. 5 to a higher setting (e.g., 4) to vary the resulting disposition thereof in relation to normal work supporting surface 18 and alternate work supporting surface 96 and to permit the top lift T to move close enough to the cutting action to insure a trim substantially flush with heel H except for the slight margin edge E (FIGS. 4 and 5) which will be removed by a finishing operation. Because of the tilted disposition of the top lift T, the trimming cut will be made along a line 100 which is substantially a continuation of the lower rear surface portion of the contoured heel to form, when finished, a continuous surface with the contoured heel H rather than an abrupt departure therefrom as would be the case if a square cut were made along the dotted line 98.

The present invention has been described in detail above for purposes of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description or otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like comprising a work supporting plate member having an opening formed therein at which a fixed blade member is mounted to present a cutting edge flush with the supporting surface of said plate member and a cutting knife is pivotally disposed in relation to said fixed blade member for cutting action at the flush edge thereof in substantially square relation to said plate member supporting surface, the improvement which comprises an auxiliary plate element carried adjacent said work supporting plate member by means allowing selective superposition therewith to provide an alternative work supporting surface having a different angular relationship than said plate member supporting surface with the cutting action of said cutting knife.

2. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like, the improvement defined in claim 1 and further characterized in that said auxiliary plate element provides an alternative work supporting surface that is angularly related to said cutting action in the order of 18 degrees from the substantially square relation provided by said plate member supporting surface.

3. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like, the improvement defined in claim 2 and further characterized in that said auxiliary plate element is carried by said work supporting plate member at a hinged connection allowing said selective superposition, and in that said auxiliary plate element is formed with a face thereof facing said work supporting plate member concavely thereby to present said alternative work supporting surface at its opposite face.

4. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like, the improvement defined in claim 3 and further charac terized in that the hinged connection of said auxiliary plate element is located in relation to an edge of said work supporting plate member for allowing said auxiliary plate member to hang clear of said work supporting plate member when not superpositioned.

5. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like, the improvement defined in claim 3 and further characterized in that the concave formation of said auxiliary plate member is defined by plane portions thereof having a juncture extending in spaced parallel relation to the axis of said hinged connection.

6. In apparatus for trimming heel top lifts and the like, the improvement defined in claim 1 and further characterized in that a guide member is provided for shrouding said cutting knife and positioning work in relation thereto for trimming, in that said guide member is carried by means pivotally mounted coaxially with said cutting knife, and in that said carrying means is pivotally positioned by selectively operable means for varying the resulting disposition of said guide member in relation to said plate member and alternative work supporting surfaces.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,291,719 1/1919 Banks 143--132.3 3,006,005 10/ 1961 Wright 12-85 FOREIGN PATENTS 23 8,324 7/ 1945 Switzerland.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

P. D. LAWSON, Examiner.

Claims

1. IN APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING HEEL TOP LIFTS AND THE LIKE COMPRISING A WORK SUPPORTING PLATE MEMBER HAVING AN OPENING FROMED THEREIN AT WHICH A FIXED BLADE MEMBER IS MOUNTED TO PRESENT A CUTTING EDGE FLUSH WITH THE SUPPORTING SURFACE OF SAID PLATE MEMBER AND A CUTTING KNIFE IS PIVOTALLY DISPOSED IN RALATION TO SAID FIXED BLADE MEMBER FOR CUTTING ACTION AT THE FLUSH EDGE THEREOF IN SUBSTANTIALLY SQUARE RELATION TO SAID PLATE MEMBER SUPPORTING SURFACE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES AN AUXILIARY PLATE ELEMENT CARRIED ADJACENT SAID WORK SUPPORTING PLATE MEMBER BY MEANS ALLOWING SELECTIVE SUPERPOSITION THEREWITH TO PROVIDE AN ALTERNATIVE WORK SUPPORTING SURFACE HAVING A DIFFERENT ANGULAR RALATIONSHIP THAN SAID PLATE MEMBER SUPPORTING SURFACE WITH THE CUTTING ACTION OF SAID CUTTING KNIFE.