US3291412A

US3291412A - Multiple individual rewind machine

Info

Publication number: US3291412A
Application number: US401016A
Authority: US
Inventors: Rockstrom Leonard; Aaron Charles; Thomas J Crowe; Pundyk Joseph
Original assignee: Cameron Machine Co
Current assignee: Cameron Machine Co
Priority date: 1964-10-02
Filing date: 1964-10-02
Publication date: 1966-12-13
Anticipated expiration: 1983-12-13
Also published as: GB1114733A; DE1967509U; DE1499004A1

Description

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MULTIPLE INDIVIDUAL REWIND MACHINE Filed Oct. 2, 1964 x 8 Sheets-Sheet '7 INVENTORS LlFO/VAQD Rock-sworn CHAQLES AA eo v BY 7,7oMAs d. C/POWC i l dos s y Pu/voyK wmw a mv 3854 Dec. 13, 1966 RQCKSTROM ETAL 3,291,412

MULTIPLE INDIVIDUAL REWIND MACHINE 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 Filed Oct. 2, 1964 United States Patent OfiFice 3,29L4i2 Patented Dec. 13, 1966 MULTIPLE HNDIVIDUAL REWHND MACHINE Leonard Roekstrom, Madison, (Jharles Aaron, West Caldwell, and Thomas I. Crowe, Dover, Ni, and

Joseph Pnndyir, New York, N.Y., assignors to Cameron Machine Company, Dover, Ni, a corporation of New York Filed Oct. 2, 1964, Ser. No. 491,916 13 Claims. (Cl. 242-65) This invention relates to rewind machines and more particularly to apparatus for receiving a relatively wide mill supply roll, dividing the web into longitudinally extending sub-webs and rewinding each sub-web into a separate rewind roll. Various apparatus for rewinding webs of sheet material have been used and described in the literature. However, such prior art apparatus of this general type have not been completely successful in controlling all of the factors required for producing a high quality rewind roll, particularly with such sheet materials as are of a non-uniformed caliber or thickness throughout the length thereof or with certain material-s such as high slip paper or plastic films.

In view of the foregoing, this invention contemplates the provision of a rewind machine having a plurality of pairs of rewind arms, each section being pivotally mounted at their inner ends and provided with means at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll. Said means may include chucking means for holding a rewind roll core upon which the sheet material is to be rewound, or alternatively, a re wind shaft may be supported at the outer ends of the rewind arms for receiving the sheet material. Means are provided for individually driving the rewind cores with a preselected driving torque and, hence, each rewind roll determines its own rotational speed, whereby the surface speed thereof is equal to its web feed speed regardless of variations in diameter of one rewind roll with respect to other rewind rolls mounted adjacent thereto. In the embodiment of the invention illustrated, rotary motion is imparted to the rewind rolls by a motor which drives a main rewind roll drive shaft which in turn drives a plurality of individually mounted clutches, one being disposed on each pair of rewind arms. A like plurality of tracking or follower rolls are provided, each of which is adapted to resiliently engage the periphery of its corresponding rewind roll with a preselected nip pressure or contact force, And means are provided for successively pivoting the rewind arms in selected increments in response to the build-up of the rewind rolls.

A feature of this invention resides in the provision of a new and improved rewind machine which is capable of accurately rewinding films having high slip characteristics, which rewinds films having troublesome stretch characteristics, which provides positive control of the contact or nip pressure on each individual rewind roll and hence accurately controls same, which compensates for rewind roll diameter differences due to the variation in caliber of the material being rewound, which employs rewind stations that are adjustable for accommodating various width rewind rolls, with which the driving torque supplied to each rewind roll is not affected by the weight of such roll during buildup, which allows out of round roll inertia in contact with a low inertia tracking roll, which allows individual rolls to reach individual speeds without being trapped by the constant speed of a common contact drum, and which allows each rewind roll to determine its own rotational speed according to the requirements as determined by the characteristics of the film being rewound.

An aim of the present invention is to provide a new and improved rewind machine with which the rewind roll core may be of lower quality and have larger internal bore tolerances than heretofore though practical, which eliminate-s points of lubrication necessary with prior art machines, which substantially increases the percentage of running time during the operational cycle, and which reduces the percentage of rejected or scrap material found in ordinary production runs. Other objects, features and advantages will be apparent from the following description of one embodiment of the invention, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out hereinafter in connection with the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is an end elevation of a rewind machine constructed in accordance with the invention with parts broken away to more clearly show certain features;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation partially broken away to reveal the construction and operation of the means for supporting and driving the rewind rolls;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1 and showing a pair of rewind arms with associated means for holding and driving the rewind roll;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing in released position the means for holding the rewind roll core during the rewinding operation;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged end elevation partially in schematic showing means for controlling the angular position of the rewind arms;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged side elevation showing the means for controlling the angular position of the rewind arms of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged end elevation of the rewind drive and clutch controls;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged side elevation partially in schematic showing the rewind drive and clutch controls;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged end elevation of the mechanism for controlling the position of the tracking rolls;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged side elevation of the mechanism of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line ill-1i. of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 12 is an enlarged plan view of the tracking roll and support means therefor.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the rewind machine comprise a front section and a rear section designated generally at 10 and 12, respectively. At best seen in FIG. 1, the web of sheet material 14 is recevied from a mill or supply roll (not shown) and passes partially around guide rolls 16 and 17, from whence it pass-es to a tension roll 13 which is mounted in a guideway 2%. Linkage means 22 operatively interconnect the tension roll 18 with a pneumatic cylinder 24, to which air is supplied to or removed from, for purposes of controling the linear tension of the web 14. Thence, the web passes partially around. a driven pull or feed roll 26 to a spreader roll 28 which is provided for the purpose of transversely opening or spreading the web 14. The web then passes partially around two driven feed rolls 30 and 32 Suitable means are provided to cut the web 14 into a plurality of elongated longitudinal strips or sub-webs 34 and 36. In the present embodiment, this is accomplished, by way of example, by a plurality of slitters or cutters 38 positioned. adjacent a driven roll 40. It will be appreciated that the slitters or cutters 38 may produce a score cut, shear cut or razor cut, as desired. The cutters may be mounted upon a horizontal slideway 39 which allows the cutters to be adjusted for different subweb widths. The sub-webs 34 and 35 then pass partially around a driven main pull roll 44- from which adjacent strips of web pass alternately to tracking

rolls

46 and 48, and. thence to rewind rolls such as 50 and 52 which are formed on

cores

54 and 56 carried by the rewind arms in a manner which will be described more fully hereinafter.

It will be appreciated that the rewind machine comprises a front section and a rear section 12 which are of similar construction and operate in a similar manner and, therefore some portions of each section will be described in detail hereinafter, it being understood. that the corresponding portions in the other section are of similar construction and operate in a similar manner. As best seen in FIG. 2, the front section 10 is adapted to form a plurality of rewind roll-s 50, 58 and 60 which are each carried by a pair of

rewind arms

62, 64 and 66, 68 and 70, 72, respectively. Each pair of rewind arms are constructed and operate in a similar manner and therefore for purposes of illustration one of the pairs of rewind arms will be described in detail hereinafter. The inner ends of the rewind arms are removably secured to a rewind arm supporting shaft 74 and, as best seen in FIG. 1, rewind arm supporting shaft 74 is provided with a slideway 76 which mates with corresponding recesses in the rewind. arms so that the rewind arm may be longitudinally positioned, as desired, to accommodate rewind rolls of various widths. Clamp screws 78 are provided in order to retain the rewind arms in their preselected positions, respectively. The rewind arm supporting or pivot shaft 74 is pivotally mounted on the main frame 80 as by means of a pair of bearings 82 disposed at opposite ends of the shaft (FIG. 2). A pair of spaced brackets 84 are fixedly connected to the rewind arm supporting shaft 74 for purposes of carrying a main rewind roll drive shaft 86 which is rotatably mounted thereon as at 88. A gear 90 is fixed on one end of the main rewind roll drive shaft 86, which gear is driven by gear 91, which in turn, is driven by gear 92. It will be appreciated that gear 91 is freely mounted on shaft 74 as by means of bearing 94. Gear 92 is fixed on a shaft 96 rotatably mounted on a bearing housing 97 on frame 80 by means of bearings 98. A belt 106 drivingly connects a pair of pulleys 100 and 102 which are fixed on

shafts

96 and 104, respectively, shaft 104 extending from a motor 108.

In order to drive each individual rewind roll, main rewind roll drive shaft 86 is provided with a plurality of gears, a gear being disposed adjacent each of the

rewind arms

64, 68 and 72, only one gear being shown, which one being indicated by the reference numeral 110 in FIG. 1. The motor 108, through the aforementioned gear train, drives shaft 86 and gears 110 at a speed in excess of the web feed speed, and. clutch means designated generally at 111 (FIG. 2) are interposed between the main rewind roll drive shaft 86 and each of the rewind rolls so that each rewind roll determines its own rotational speed, whereby the surface speed thereof is equal to its web feed speed regardless of variations in diameter of one rewind roll with respect to other rewind rolls and regardless of the speed of individual strips. Gear 110 drives its corresponding mating gear 112 as shown in FIG. 1. As best seen in FIG. 3 gear 112 is provided with a hub portion 114 which is carried by drive shaft 116, clamp plate 118 being provided for axially positioning the gear and its hub. Drive shaft 116 rotates within a fixed member 120 as by means of bearings 122 and 124, bearing 124 being held in axial position by means of a lock ring 126, and member 120 being fixedly connected to the rewind arm 64 as by means of screws 128. One end of shaft 116 is provided with a flange-like projection which carries dowel pins 130 and 132, the other end of the dowel pins engaging and holding a clutch pressure plate 134 forming part of the clutch 111. This carries bearings 136 which support piston 138. Piston 138 is prevented from rotating by a pin 142 which engages a slot in diaphragm clamp plate 140. A cover 146 is held in position by means of screws 148 and carries the diaphragm clamp support plate by means of screws 141, a diaphragm member 144 being interposed between the plate 140 and the cover 146. The clutch pressure plate 134 bears against friction facing material 150 which is rigidly carried by a friction material plate 152 that is connected to the drive pulley 154, drive pulley 154 being rotatably mounted on bearings 156. It will be appreciated that cover 146 is provided with a chamber 158 having an inlet 160 through which fluid under pressure enters for purposes of actuating the clutch pressure plate 134 and, thereby controlling the torque transmission of the clutch mechanism and, hence, the torque output of the drive pulley 154. Clutch assemblies 111 may be collectively controlled or each individual clutch may be individually controlled.

Still referring to FIG. 3, drive pulley 154 is in driving engagement with a toothed belt 162, which is in driving engagement with a driven toothed pulley 164 fixedly mounted on a core drive shaft 166 which in turn is rotatably mounted on the outer end of rewind arm 64 as by means of bearings 168. The core 54 is carried at the outer end of the

rewind arms

62 and 64 during the rewinding operation by means of

chucks

171 and 172, chuck 171 being affixed to and driven by core drive shaft 166, and chuck 172 being mounted on the end of a shaft 174 which is carried in a bearing housing 176 by means of bearings 178. Chuck 172 is adapted for axial movement for purposes of loading and unloading the core 54, FIG. 3 showing the chuck 172 in engagement with the core 54 in the rewinding position and FIG. 4 showing the chuck 1'72 removed from and out of engagement with the core 54 for purposes of replacing the core. In order to axially move the chuck 172, a crank arm 180 is pivotally mounted on rewind arm 62 by pin 182, one end of such crank arm being adapted to engage bearing housing 176 as at 184 and the other end thereof being pivotally connected to a clevis 186 as by means of pin 188, clevis 186 being fixedly connected to a piston rod 190 extending from the end of a pneumatic cylinder 192. The other end of the pneumatic cylinder 192 is pivotally mounted on the rewind arm 62 by pin 194. The axial movement of the chuck 172 is controlled by means (not shown) of regulating the air pressure in the pneumatic cylinder 192 as required.

In order to provide positive control of the nip pressure for each rewind roll, a tracking roll assembly designated generally at 194 in FIG. 1 is provided. It will be appreciated that an individual tracking roll assembly a is provided for each individual rewind roll. And, hence, the nip force for each rewind roll may be individually controlled and maintained at the lowest possible value for maintaining just enough nip to remove the air from between adjacent layers of web being rewound and thus provide for accurate tracking of the slit strip onto the rewind roll. Further, it will be appreciated that the rewind torque is independent of the nip force since there is no shaft to transfer nip force to the core and thus increase drive torque. The nip force can be as heavy or light as desired without affecting the rewind torque. It is noted that since the tracking roll remains stationary in space, the geometry of the actuating cylinder is fixed, hence the nip force is constant for constant pressure.

As best seen in FIGS. 1 and 12, the tracking roll 48 is supported at its ends by a tracking arm 196 which allows the roll 48 to rotate freely. The arm 196 is centrally pivotally mounted on a frame 198 as at 200 (FIG. 12) by means of pin 201. The frame 198 is adjustably mounted on slideway 202 (FIG. 1) for purposes of aligning each individual tracking roll with respect to its corresponding rewind roll. It will be appreciated that the slideway 202 extends the entire width of the machine and a plurality of tracking roll assemblies are mounted thereon. The end of the arm 196 is pinned to connecting links 204 (FIG. 11) as by means of pin 206 and the connecting links are interconnected by a shaft 208. A

universal joint 210 connects shaft 208 to a piston 212 extending from a fluid cylinder 214 which is fixedly mounted with respect to the shaft 208 and the tracking arm 196. Control of the fluid in the cylinder 214 controls the nip pressure between the tracking roll and the rewind roll. Each nip pressure may be individually or collectively controlled and the nip pressure may be maintained constant or varied throughout the rewind cycle, as desired.

It will be noted that the arcuate travel of the tracking rolls is relatively short compared to the arcuate travel required by the rewind roll as it builds up from an initial relatively small diameter to a relatively large diameter towards the end of the rewinding operation, and, therefore, the rewind arms are adapted to advance outwardly away from the lay-on roll in successive steps or increments. This is effected by means of a fluid cylinder 216 (FIGS. 2, 5 and 6) which is pivotally connected at one end thereof to the right hand frame 218 by bracket 219. A piston rod 220 extends from the other end of the fluid cylinder 216 and is eccentrically connected to the rewind arm supporting shaft 74 as by yoke 222 provided for the purpose. As seen by the broken line in FIG. 9, the universal joint 210 is provided with a surface 224 which is adapted to contact finger 226 depending from tray 228, tray 228 being fixedly mounted on shaft 230. It will be appreciated that the shaft 230 extends the entire width of the machine and is mounted by means of

bearings

232 and 234 on the frame 218 and 80, respectively. A plurality of fingers 226 (FIG. 9) extend from the tray 228, one being provided for each rewind roll. The first finger to be contacted by its respective tracking roll assembly 194 actuates the finger 226 and thereby rotates the shaft 230. As seen in FIGS. 9 and 10, a hub 236 is mounted on shaft 230 and is provided with a projecting member 238 for actuating a switch mechanism 239 to prevent over-travel of the shaft 230. The projecting member 238 contacts the switch mechanism 239 which stops the entire rewind machine and thereby prevents hazardous breakage. A fluid valve 240 is mounted on the frame 218 by means of bracket 242 and interconnecting linkage 244 operatively connects the hub 236 to the fluid valve 240 so that in operation an angular movement of shaft 230 provides a corresponding angular movement of valve 240. As best seen in FIG. 5, valve 240 is part of a fluid system comprising a fluid pump 246, a gauge 248 and interconnecting piping 250 which extends to the fluid cylinder 216. As described hereinbefore, the amount of fluid in the cylinder 216 controls the angle of inclination of the rewind arms. It will be appreciated that arm 196 returns to its original or neutral position after the rewind arm has been rotated by hydraulic pressure from valve 240.

Turning again to FIGS. 5 and 6, a connecting rod 252 connects a coupling 223 to plate 254 so that arcuate movement of shaft 74 is transmitted to arcuate movement of plate 254, coupling 223 being connected to shaft 74. As best seen in FIG. 8, plate 254 is fixedly attached to gear 256 by bolts such as 258 and both members are rotatably mounted on shaft 260 which, in turn, is carried by the frame 218. Mounted on the plate 254 is a cam support 262 which carries a cam 264. The angular position of the cam is adjustable by means of an adjusting member 266 (FIG. 7), as desired. This permits an operator to adjust the rate at which torque can be increased to the rewind drive clutches and, therefore, permits the preselection of a wide variety of torque winding patterns. A valve member 268 (FIG. 8) is mounted on the frame 218 by means of bracket 270 and a cam follower bracket 272 (FIGS. 7 and 8) is also mounted on bracket 270. A cam follower wheel 274 is rotatably mounted on the bracket 272 and is adapted to engage and follow the surface of the cam 264 and thereby depress a pin 276 protruding from the valve 268 to thereby actuate the valve. Referring to FIG. 8, valve 268 is part of a fluid system comprising a fluid source such as a pump 278, a gauge 280 and a ratio control station 282. There are a plurality of outlets such as 284 from the ratio control station 282 and each one leads to a clutch 111. Actually each outlet 284 is connected to an inlet (FIG. 3) of a clutch 111. In operation movement of the rewind arm supporting shaft 74 (FIG. 5) arcuately moves earn 264 (FIG. 8) and thereby actuates valve 268 which operates the ratio control station 282 to control the clutches 111 (FIG. 2). It will be appreciated that the clutches 111 may be individually actuated in response to a preselected ratio of the movement of the valve 268 (FIG. 8) or they may be collectively operated in response to a preselected ratio of the movement of the valve 268, as desired. Hence, an operator may select a variable amount of rewind clutch torque to satisfy a variety of rewind roll widths in a given rewind section.

As best seen in FIG. 5, a bracket 286 carrying a contact 287 is fixedly attached to the connecting rod 252 and a switch 2% is fixedly mounted on the frame 218 in relative positions one with respect to the other so that in the event of over-travel of the connecting rod 252 the contact 287 will actuate the switch 288 and thereby close a circuit and stop the entire rewind machine.

Turning again to FIG. 8, a shaft 290 is rotatably mounted on frame 218 by means of bracket 292 and said shaft is driven by means of driven gear 294 fixedly connected thereto which in turn is driven by gear 256. It will be appreciated that gear 256 rotates a portion of a revolution in response to arcuate movement of the rewind arm supporting shaft 74 (FIG. 5) through connecting rod 252 as described hereinbefore. A coupling 296 (FIG. 8) connects shaft 290 with the stern 293 of a potentiometer 360. Thus, arcuate movement of the rewind arm supporting shaft correspondingly actuates the potentiometer 300. The potentiometer is part of an electrical circuit comprising a source of electrical energy, a meter 362 and the motor 108 (FIG. 2). Thus it is seen that the speed of the motor 103 is controlled throughout the rewind cycle by the angle of inclination of the rewind arms. This reduces the clutch slippage required toward the end of the cycle, a factor which reduces the power loss and reduces the amount of heat to be dissipated.

It will be understood that various changes in the details, materials and arrangements of parts which have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends respectively, means carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, motor means for driving said last named means, tracking means adapted to resiliently engage the peripheries of said rewind rolls, means for arcuately moving said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls respectively, means for sensing the angular position of each of said rewind arm supporting shafts, and control means for said motor means operable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts and including potentiometer means .actuatable in response to movement of said rewind arm supporting shafts and adapted to control the electrical potential supplied to said motor means and thereby reduce the output speed of said motor means as the rewind rolls build up in diameter.

2. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends respectively, means carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, clutch means having its power output drivingly connected to said means for driving engagement, motive means for said clutch means, tracking means adapted to resiliently engage the peripheries of said rewind rolls, means for arcuately moving said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls respectively, means for sensing the angular position of each of said rewind arm supporting shafts, and control means for said clutch means operable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts.

3. A rewind machine according to claim 2 wherein said clutch means are slip clutches and fluid means control the amount of torque, and wherein saidcontrol means for said clutch means comprises a pair of cams arcuately movable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts respectively, each of said cams being adjustable for providing a preselected surface pattern during the rewind cycle, a cam follower adapted to follow said surface pattern, valve means actuatable in response to said cam follower, a ratio control station for receiving signals from said valve means and adapted for controlling the fluid flow to each of the fluid means for controlling the amount of torque for each clutch means.

4. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends respectively, means supported by said rewind arms at their outer ends which means are adapted to receive a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, a first arm of each pair of arms carrying at its outer end means for driving engagement with said rewind rolls, respectively, clutch means supported at the inner end of each said first arm, each of said clutches having its power output drivingly connected to said means for driving engagement respectively, a pair of main rewind roll drive shafts for driving said clutches respectively, motive means for said main rewind roll drive shafts, control means for each of said clutch means for individually controlling the torque input to each rewind roll, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, means for pivoting said tracking rolls for maintaining peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, and means for pivoting said rewind arms in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls.

5. A rewind machine comprising a plurality of pairs of rewind arms each pair being pivotally mounted at their inner ends, a set of chucks carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends, each set of chucks being adapted to releasably carry a rewind roll core for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, one chuck of each pair of chucks being mounted for axial movement with respect to the other to release said cores respectively, means for controlling the movement of said chucks mounted for axial movement respectively, means for driving one chuck of each pair of chucks, clutch means having their power outputs drivingly connected to said means for driving said chucks respectively, motive means for said clutch means, control means for said clutch means for individually controlling the torque input to each rewind roll, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, means for pivoting said tracking rolls for maintaining peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, and means for pivoting said rewind arms in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls.

6. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being pivotally mounted on said shafts at their inner ends respectively, a set of chucks including a first chuck and a second chuck carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends, each set of chucks being adapted to releasably carry a rewind roll core for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, the first chucks being adapted for movement to release said cores respectively, fluid means o for controlling the movement of each of said first chucks, means for driving the second chucks respectively, clutch means having their power outputs drivingly connected to said means for driving said second chucks respectively, motive means for said clutch means, control means for said clutch means for individually controlling the torque input to each rewind roll, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, means for pivoting said tracking rolls for maintaining peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, and means for pivoting said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls respectively.

7. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, means including a clutch for driving said last named means, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, a pivotable tracking roll arm for supporting each tracking roll, means for controlling the pivotal movement of said tracking roll arms to obtain preselected nip pressures between each tracking roll and its corresponding rewind roll respectively, and means for arcuately moving each of said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls respectively.

8. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of said rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, means including a clutch for driving said last named means, a tracking roll for eachrewind roll, a plurality of tracking roll arms for supporting said tracking rolls respectively, means mounting said tracking roll arms for pivotal movement for maintaining peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, fluid force means for controlling the nip force between the tracking rolls and the rewind rolls respectively when the diameter of at least one rewind roll is greater than the diameter of other rewind rolls corresponding to the same rewind arm supporting shaft, means for rotating said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls.

9. In a rewind machine, a frame, a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts carried by said frame in spaced relationship one with respect to the other, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of said rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, clutch means mounted on one of each pair of said rewind arms for driving said last named means, means mounted on said frame for driving said last named means, support means mounted on said frame, a like plurality of tracking roll brackets mounted on said support means for longitudinal adjustment depending upon the positioning of said rewind rolls, a plurality of tracking rolls rotatably mounted on said tracking roll brackets respectively and being adapted for peripheral engagement with said rewind rolls respectively, fluid means for pivoting said tracking roll brackets for controlling the nip force between the tracking rolls and the rewind rolls respectively, and means for pivoting said rewind arm supporting shafts in response to the build-up of said rewind rolls.

10. A rewind machine comprising a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts, a plurality of pairs'of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of said rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, means for driving said last named means, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, supporting means for each of said tracking rolls, means for pivoting said supporting means to maintain peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, fluid piston means for successively rotating each of said rewind arm supporting shafts in increments of a revolution, fluid valve means operable by movement of at least one of said supporting means for actuating said fluid piston means.

11. In a rewind machine, a frame, a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts carried by said frame, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shaft at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of said rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, means mounted on said frame for driving said last named means, support means mounted on said frame, a like plurality of tracking roll brackets pivotally mounted on said support means, a plurality of pairs of tracking rolls rotatably mounted on said tracking roll brackets respectively and being adapted for peripheral engagement with said rewind rolls respectively, means operatively connected to each tracking roll bracket for controlling the nip force between the tracking rolls and the rewind rolls respectively, fluid piston means for successively rotating each of said rewind arm supporting shafts in increments of a revolution, a pair of cross shafts mounted on said frame, a plurality of fingers depending from said cross shafts, said fingers being engageable with said tracking roll brackets respectively, a valve operatively connected to each of said cross shafts, means for operatively connecting said fluid piston means with said valves respectively, whereby movement of one of said tracking roll brackets actuates its corresponding finger which actuates its corresponding cross shaft which actuates its corresponding valve which actuates its corresponding fluid piston to rotate its corresponding rewind arm supporting shaft an increment of a revolution.

12. A rewind machine comprising a frame, a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts carried by said frame, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, a pair of chucks carried by each pair of rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a rewind roll core on which a strip of sheet material is to be wound into a rewind roll, one of said arms carrying at its outer end means for driving engagement with one of said chucks, clutch means having its power output drivingly connected to said means for driving engagement, motive means for said clutch means, control means for said clutch means for individually controlling the torque input to each rewind roll, a slideway mounted on said frame, a like plurality of pairs of tracking roll brackets pivotally mounted on said slideway for longitudinal movement with respect to said slideway depending upon the positioning of said rewind rolls, a plurality of pairs of tracking rolls pivotally mounted on said tracking roll brackets respectively, said tracking rolls being adapted for rotary motion and being further adapted for peripheral engagement with said rewind rolls respectively, fluid pressure means pivotally connected to each tracking roll bracket for controlling the nip force between the tracking rolls and the rewind rolls respectively, means for successively rotating said rewind arm supporting shaft in increments of a revolution, means mounted on at least one of said tracking roll brackets operable in response to movement thereof for actuating said last named means.

13. A rewind machine comprising a frame, a pair of rewind arm supporting shafts carried by said frame, a plurality of pairs of rewind arms for each shaft, each pair being mounted on said shafts at their inner ends, means carried by each pair of said rewind arms at their outer ends for receiving a strip of sheet material to be wound into a rewind roll, one of said arms carrying at its outer end means for driving engagement with said last named means, slip clutch means having its power output drivingly connected to said means for driving engagement, fluid means for controlling the amount of slippage, motor means for said clutch means, a tracking roll for each rewind roll, a plurality of tracking roll arms for supporting said tracking rolls respectively, means mounting said tracking roll arms for pivotal movement for maintaining peripheral engagement between said tracking rolls and said rewind rolls respectively, fluid piston means for controlling the nip force between the tracking rolls and the rewind rolls respectively when the diameter of at least one rewind roll is greater than the diameter of other rewind rolls corresponding to the same rewind arm supporting shafts, fluid piston means for successively rotating each of said rewind arm supporting shafts in increments of a revolution, a pair of cross shafts mounted on said frame, a plurality of fingers depending from said cross shafts, said fingers being engageable with said tracking roll arms respectively, a valve operatively connected to each of said cross shafts, means for operatively connecting said fluid piston means with said valves respectively, means for sensing the angular position of each of said rewind arm supporting shafts, and control means for said motor means operable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts and including potentiometer means actu atable in response to movement of said rewind arm supporting shafts and adapted to control the electrical potential supplied to said motor means and thereby reduce the output speed of said motor means as the rewind rolls build up in diameter, and control means for said clutch means operable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts, said last named control means comprising a pair of cams arcuately movable in response to the angular position of said rewind arm supporting shafts respectively, each of said cams being adjustable for providing a preselected surface pattern during the rewind cycle, a cam follower adapted to follow said surface pattern, valve means actuatable in response to said cam follower, a ratio control station for receiving signals from said valve means and adapted for controlling the fluid flow to each of the fluid means for controlling the amount of clutch slippage for each clutch means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,086,726 4/1963 Aaron 242-56.5 X 3,179,349 4/1965 Aaron et al 242-- 3,207,452 9/1965 Haskin et a1 242-681 X FOREIGN PATENTS 940,661 10/ 1963 Great Britain.

FRANK I. COHEN, Primary Examiner.

W. S. BURDEN, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

10. A REWARD MACHINE COMPRISING A PAIR OF REWIND ARM SUPPORTING SHAFTS, A PLURALITY OF PAIRS OF REWIND ARMS FOR EACH SHAFT, EACH PAIR BEING MOUNMTED ON SAID SHAFTS AT THEIR INNER ENDS, MEANS CARRIED BY EACH PAIR OF SAID REWIND ARMS AT THEIR OUTER ENDS FOR RECEIVING A STRIP OF SHEET MATERIAL TO BE WOUND INTO A REWIND ROLL, MEANS FOR DRIVING SAID LAST NAMED MEANS, A TRACKING ROLL FOR EACH REWIND ROLL, SUPPORTING MEANS FOR EACH OF SAID TRACKING ROLLS, MEANS FOR PIVOTING SAID SUPPORTING MEANS TO MAINTAIN PERIPHERAL ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN SAID TRACKING ROLLS AND SIAD REWIND ROLLS RESPECTIVELY, FLUID PISTON MEANS FOR SUCCESSIVELY ROTATING EACH OF SAID REWIND ARM SUPPORTING SHAFTS IN INCREMENTS OF A REVOLUTION, FLUID VALVE MEANS OPERABLE BY MOVEMENT OF AT LEAST ONE OF SAID SUPPORTING MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID FLUID PISTON MEANS.