US3339390A

US3339390A - High speed bending means

Info

Publication number: US3339390A
Application number: US411826A
Authority: US
Inventors: Sommer Albert
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1964-11-17
Filing date: 1964-11-17
Publication date: 1967-09-05
Anticipated expiration: 1984-09-05

Description

Sept. 5, 1967- A. SOMMER HIGH SPEED BENDING MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 17, 1964 FIG3 F|G4 INVENTOR.

AL BERT SOMME R Sept. 5, 1967 A. SOMMER 3,339,390

HIGH SPEED BENDING MEANS Filed Nov. -,17, 1964 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 MOTOR Fl (5 2 INVENTOR ALBERT SOMMER 7 United States Patent M 3,339,390 HIGH SPEED BENDING MEANS Albert Summer, 124 N. 7th St, New Hyde Park, N.Y. 11040 Filed Nov. 17, 1964, Ser- No. 411,826 6 Claims. (Cl. 72133) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention is a high speed machine for bending rivets. The rivets are mounted in notches in a circular table which is driven past a roller. The rivets are forced over the roller and they are bent.

This invention relates to high speed precision bending means for elongated members such as rivets, screws, nails, or the like.

More particularly the invention relates to means for bending elongated blanks such as rivets, screws, nails and so forth with a die roller.

Prior apparatus to perform this operation generally comprised punch presses which due to their intermittent operation were not capable of high speed.

The present invention generally comprises a round table or dial which is rotatably mounted to rotate about a vertical axis. The table is notched to hold the work pieces around the periphery. Underneath the table on one side is mounted a die roller. The roller is positioned to perform the required bending of the work pieces by rolling contact, as the table rotates past the roller. Due to the rolling contact, the surface of the work pieces are not marked in any manner. The roller is mounted for axial movement in order to accommodate the circular travel ofthe work pieces. Adjustable shim means are provided A for locating the height of the roller below the table in order to vary the device for different size elements and.

different angles of bending.

Accordingly, a principal object of the invention is to provide new and improved high speed precision bending work pieces are not marked in any manner.

Another object of the invention is to provide new and improved bending means having a roller die cooperating with a rotatable work holder, the roller die being axially movable in order to accommodate the circular motion of the work piece.

Another object of the invention is to provide new and These and other objects of the invention will be appar- 3,339,390 Patented Sept. 5, 1967 ent from the following specification and drawings of which:

FIGURE 1 is a top view of an embodiment of the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along the lines of 2-2 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURES 3 and 4 show various work pieces bent to different angles by the apparatus.

Referring to the figures, the invention generally comprises a table or dial 1, which has notches equally spaced around the periphery for the purpose of holding the work pieces. Other equivalent work holding means may be used. The table is keyed to a vertical spindle 2, by means of the key 3. The spindle 2 has an integral collar 2', which is provided to mount the dial spacer 4. The spindle 2 is mounted in a solid frame 5 by means of double taper roller bearings 6 which are secured to the base 5 by means of the gland plate 7. A thrust bearing 8 and thrust bearing nut 9 secure the spindle to the bottom of the base 5. The spindle extends out of the bottom and is connected to a motor 10 through a gear reducing device or torque converter 11, which may be conventional. A gear reduction of 40:1 has been used in one embodiment. The upper end of the spindle 2 is secured to the solid frame by means of the needle bearing 12 which is secured by nut 12'. The purpose of the bearings is to secure the spindle very accurately in the vertical plane.

The bending roller 14 has a hemispherical notch and is mounted on a die plate 15 on a shaft 16 and the die plate 15 is cut out so the roller has clearance to move axially along the shaft 16. The reason for this is that the work piece engages the roller and the table is moving in a circular direction, the roller must move axially in order to accommodate the circular motion of the work pieces. As the work piece passes the roller generates on elliptical curve. The die plate 15 is secured to the frame 5 by means of the

bolts

20 and 21.

The

notches

22, 23, etc. on the table or dial 2, are formed to accommodate the particular work piece and shaped and sized to accommodate the rivet or nail 24, the notch being smaller than the rivet head. The rivets or nails are fed down the chute 25 by conventional feeding means. For instance, the chute 25 may be connected to a conventional hopper of the vibrating type and the chute is preferably inclined and preferably vibrated to smoothly feed a line of rivets down the chute. Therefore, as the table 2 rotates counter-clockwise, the

notches

22 and 23 each pick up one of the work pieces and moves it past the die block 15 into contact with the die roller 14. The notches are beveled on their leading edge to permit easy entry of the rivets.

As the work piece passes the die roller, it is bent with a rolling contact and the die roller moves in and out axially to accommodate the circular motion of the work piece. The work pieces are then carried around past the die block 15 where they may fall out into a receiving chute, not shown. If the members do not fall out of the notches by gravity, which is likely because they are pressed fairly securely into the notches, then they are removed by the ejector means which comprises an elongated member 27 mounted on the frame which bears against the top of rivet or other blank and forces them out of the notches into a discharge chute.

The present apparatus is designed for high speed operation and with a smooth motion. In other words, the table moves at substantially constant speed and the spindle is securely fastened by the bearings at the top and bottom so that the work pieces may be bent to a very close tolerance with smooth speed. Since the feed is smooth and there is no intermittent motion, a very high speed can be obtained for instance, of the order of several hundred pieces a minute which is considerably more than can be obtained with intermittent type motion such as used in punch presses.

FIGURES 3 and 4 show

various work pieces

30, 31 bent to different angles by the apparatus. The angle is determined by the length of the piece and the spacing between the table and roller. The spacing is set by shims on the table and roller.

In operation, the blanks are fed automatically from any vibrator or barrel type hoppers, into an inclined track 25 which is preferably adjustable for any diameter of blanks. Feeding is preferably actuated on the inclined track by any type of vibrator to induce a natural gravity flow.

The track extends through main housing 5 which is cylindrical in form and contains an elongated opening for the track. The track transports said blanks into dial or table 1 which is mounted on the main spindle 2 and rotated by a torque converter 11 of any standard type, underneath the thrust bearing 8 adjustment nut 9. The power transmission spindle 2 is connected to dial 1 with key 3.

The cycle begins with a trapped blank 24 in slot 24' in dial 1 driven by spindle 2. The blank after leaving the track 25 is then trapped between die 15 and dial slot 24'. As the blank is transported past the semi-circular die 15, it passes over bending roller 14 which is secured to rotate freely on shaft 16 and the bending operation takes place. After the blank is bent it continues to the ejection means 27.

The ejector 27 is mounted with screws in an elongated opening on the main housing 5. The constantly moving dial 1, rotates the blanks into contact with the ejector which strips the blanks from the slots.

The rigidity of the spindle is accomplished by the taper roller bearings 6, a thrust bearing 8 on the underside of the main housing 5 and the upper spindle is controlled with a needle bearing 12 to which is attached a spanning cap 5' connected to frame 5. These give the desired rigidity and allow a high speed rotary motion to transmit bending action while still maintaining the spindle perpendicular to a very close tolerance.

High production speeds are possible due to no loss of interruption of motion, through the use of said dial. The dial is a constant speed motion and the velocity never changes due to the torque converter. While one blank enters the dial, one blank is being bent and another blank is being ejected by the ejector all with smooth constant speed motion.

The dimensions and form of dial 1 and roller size and spacing are determined by blank diameter, length of blank and length of bend.

The circular die 15 is made with the center line of thrust shaft 16 at the necessary depth. The bending roller 5 is made of a good grade of tool steel with a semicircular groove on the periphery of the roller to correspond to the blank diameter. The dial 1 is bearing mounted solidly in the main housing 5 for a solid foundation which will maintain a constant locking system,

While the dial rotates and transports the blank through v the cycle. The shims for the table and roller can be determined for any length of bend or angle of bend.

The bending roller 14 is constructed and positioned to float laterally on the thrust shaft so that an elliptical curve is generated due to the length of the blank at the beginning and at the bending point. The semi-circular groove at the periphery of the bending roller is constructed to allow generation of an elliptical curve in conjunction with lateral movement of the bending roller. This combination allows a blank to be bent without surface imperfections or excessive stresses at the bending angles. This invention assures repeatability of tolerances whether or not the dial is fully loaded.

Many modifications may be made by those who desire to practice the invention without departing from the scope thereof which is defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. Means for bending rivets comprising a round table rotatably mounted for rotation about a vertical axis,

means to rotate said table,

rivet holding means spaced around the periphery of said table,

a notched roller rotatably mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis,

said roller being located and extending under the end of said table so that the ends of the said rivets extending below said table come in contact with said notched roller end and are bent as said rivet passes said roller.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said holding means comprises notches in the edge of said table.

3. Means for bending elongated members comprising a round table rotatably mounted for rotation about a vertical axis,

means to rotate said table,

member holding means spaced around the periphery of said table,

a notched roller rotatably mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis,

said roller being located and extending under the end of said table so that the ends of said members extending below said table come in contact with said notched roller end and are bent as said member passes said roller.

4. Means for bending elongated members comprising a round table rotatably mounted for rotation about a vertical axis,

means to rotate said table,

member holding means spaced around the periphery of said table,

a notched roller rotatably mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis,

said roller being located and extending under the end of said table so that the ends of the said members extending below said table come in contact with said notched roller end and are bent as said member passes said roller, said roller being spaced from said table to control the angle of bending of said members.

5. Means for bending elongated members comprising a round table rotatably mounted for rotation about a vertical axis,

means to rotate said table,

member holding means spaced around the periphery of said table,

a notched roller rotatably mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis,

and means to mount said roller for axial movement along its axis to accommodate the circular movement of said members held by said table,

said roller being located and extending under the end of said table so that the ends of the said members extending below said table come in contact with said notched roller end and are bent as said member passes said roller.

6. Means for bending elongated members comprising a round table rotatably mounted for rotation about a vertical axis,

means to rotate said table,

member holding means spaced around the periphery of said table,

a notched roller rotatably mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis,

said roller being located and extending under the end of said table so that the ends of the said members extending below said table come in contact with said notched roller end and are bent as said member passes said roller, and

means to control the angle of bending of said members comprising, means to adjust the position of said roller relative to said table.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,775,864 9/1930 Olson 72-311 1,833,657 11/1931 Nelson 72-207 2,424,917 7/ 1947 Brannock 72380 2,647,552 8/ 1953 Magnuson et a1. 72-213 RICHARD J. HERBST, Primary Examiner. 10 L. A. LARSON, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. MEANS FOR BENDING RIVETS COMPRISING A ROUND TABLE ROTATABLY MOUNTED FOR ROTATION ABOUT A VERTICAL AXIS, MEANS TO ROTATE SAID TABLE, RIVET HOLDING MEANS SPACED AROUND THE PERIPHERY OF SAID TABLE, A NOTCHED ROLLER ROTATABLY MOUNTED TO ROTATE ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS, SAID ROLLER BEING LOCATED AND EXTENDING UNDER THE END OF SAID TABLE SO THAT THE ENDS OF THE SAID RIVETS EXTENDING BELOW SAID TABLE COME IN CONTACT WITH SAID NOTCHED ROLLER END AND ARE BENT AS SAID RIVET PASSES SAID ROLLER.