US3464073A

US3464073A - Apparatus for use in shoe manufacture

Info

Publication number: US3464073A
Application number: US681481A
Authority: US
Inventors: Harold Albert Boddy
Original assignee: Ralphs Unified Ltd
Current assignee: Ralphs Unified Ltd
Priority date: 1966-11-12
Filing date: 1967-11-08
Publication date: 1969-09-02
Anticipated expiration: 1986-09-02
Also published as: GB1186875A

Description

Sept. 2, 1969 4 Shets-$heet 1 Filed Nov. 8, 1967 'S p 2. 1969 H. A. BOD-DY 3,4 4,013

APPARATUS 1 0R USE IN SHOE MANUFACTURE Filed Nov. 8, 1967 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. '2, 1969 H, A. DDY 3,464,073

APPARATUS FOR USE IN SHOE MANUFACTURE Filed Nov. 8, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Sept. 2, 1969 H. A. BODDY 3,464,073

APPARATUS FOR USE IN SHOE MANUFACTURE Filed Nov. 8, 19.67

4 Sheets-Sheet 4 United States Patent 3 464 073 APPARATUS FOR USE IN SHOE MANUFACTURE Harold Albert Boddy, Leicester, England, assignor to Ralphs Unified Limited, Leicester, England, a British US. or. 12 -543 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for pro-heating an end part of a shoe upper comprising a heatable solid male die, a band of flexible elastomeric material forming a cO-operating flexible female die and means for causing the flexible band to embrace the male die with the shoe upper on the latter by first gripping between the dies the end part of the shoe upper and then causing the flexible band to close in towards the sides of the male die. The flexible band is thereby caused to draw the side parts of the shoe upper into intimate contact with the male die after first gripping the material at the end part of the shoe upper.

This invention is for improvements in or relating to apparatus for use in shoe manufacture and is concerned more particularly with the provision of an apparatus for pro-heating shoe components prior to the performance of a moulding or shaping operation. The term shoe is used herein in a broad sense (wherever the context so permits) to include all forms of outer footwear.

Pre-heating apparatus with which the invention is concerned is employed in connection with a shoe end moulding or shaping machine to raise to a required elevated temperature the shoe components which are to be moulded immediately before their introduction to the moulding and shaping means of the machine. In known forms of pre-heaters of this kind difliculties have been experienced in securing the required uniform penetration of heat into the shoe components particularly requiring to be heated, reliance having been placed on heated rigid male and female moulds to grip the required parts of assembled shoe components between them. It is found that with such rigid moulds uniform all over contact with the shoe components cannot satisfactorily be secured so that the heating effect is very prone to be uneven and in some cases insuflicient. The heating effect is required mainly to activate adhesive on, and soften a stiffening component interposed between, upper and lining materials and it is therefore important that substantially uniform heating is effected throughout the end parts of the shoe assembly. The invention seeks to provide means whereby more uniform and adequate heating can be applied to the shoe upper components.

In accordance with the invention there is provided apparatus for pre-heating an end part of a shoe upper comprising a solid male die provided with heating means, a co-operating flexible female die formed by a band of flexible elastomeric material, and means for causing the flexible band to embrace the male die with shoe upper material between the dies, the interaction of the dies being such that the end part of the shoe upper interposed between the sides thereof is first gripped between said dies and then the flexible band is caused to close in towards the sides of the male die to draw the side parts of the shoe upper material into contact therewith. The band is arranged to be of a width at least as great as to cover the part of the shoe upper to be treated and by reason of its flexibility and resilience it is caused to "ice assume a form complementary to the male die and press the upper material at all parts embracing at least the end part of the male die into intimate all over contact therewith as well as into similar contact with the flexible band. The flexible band is conveniently formed of material capable of withstanding heat and passing heat through it and means may be provided for applying heat to the upper material through the flexible band. The application of heat both from the inner male die and the outer flexible band ensures a substantially uniform preheating of the end part of the upper material and may conveniently operate to effect some preliminary shaping thereof.

Conveniently the apparatus is organised to provide for relative movement between the male die and the flexible band for gripping and releasing upper material in the space between them, means being provided to effect relative movement between the die and band for this purpose. It is advantageous to arrange that the relative movement between the die and band is such that the end part of the shoe upper is gripped between them when the band first engages the shoe upper on the die and afterwards portions of the band are caused to close in towards the sides of the die and draw the lateral parts of the shoe upper material into intimate contact with the die.

In a convenient construction the band is mounted so as to be movable towards and away from the solid die and as viewed in plan is in the form of a loop having its ends anchored to movable carriers supported and guided on guide plates, such carriers being anchored at a position remote from the ends of the band to a cross bar which is moved by power means endwise of the loop shape of the band. The power means may take the form of a fluid pressure operated piston and cylinder device, for example a pneumatic operating cylinder. The cross bar may be guided in its movements by a slide engaging in a slideway on a supporting base plate.

The carriers positioned one at each si e may have guide pins or rollers engaging in slots in the guide plates which slots may be shaped so as to provide an inward movement of the ends of the flexible band towards the latter part of the clamping movement to close the band on to the solid male die, thereby providing for the closing in movement above referred to after the end part of the shoe upper has been engaged firmly against the end parts of the male die. Provision may be made for a dwell in the operation of moving the flexible band towards the die after the end parts have been engaged and before the side parts of the band are moved inwardly.

The foregoing and other provisions of the invention are incorporated in a convenient form of construction illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings and about to be described with reference to the drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation view of a pre-heater apparatus for a machine for moulding and lasting the heel end parts of shoes, with the parts shown in the open or loading position;

FIGURE 2 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 showing the parts in the fully operated or closed position;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevation view, partly in cross section, of the parts shown in the position of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 4 is a view corresponding to FIGURE 3 to illustrate a modification adapting the machine for preheating the toe end part of a shoe upper.

Referring firstly to FIGURES 1 to 3 the solid male die is indicated at 10 being removably mounted on a fixed post 11, FIGURE 3, mounted at an appropriate position on a machine for moulding and lasting the heel end parts of shoes. The die 10 is shaped approximately to the heel end form of the shoes and may contain a heating device contained within it and energized electrically. The flexible band forming the female die is indicated at 12, being attached at its ends to clamping plates 13 by means of clamping blocks 14, the parts 13 with 14 being mounted on carriers 15 in the form of swinging arms pivoted at their opposite ends at 16 to a curved cross member 17. Advantageously the parts may be adjustable endwise of the carriers 15. The cross member 17 is mounted in a slide 18 which can move up and down along a slideway 19 secured to a fixed support plate 30 bolted to a carrier bracket 21 which is secured to a fixed part of the machine. Spacers 22 are shown on the stems of the bolts securing the plate to the bracket 21. The plate 20 also forms a mounting for a bracket 23 carrying a forwardly projecting post 24 at its upper end providing a pivot mounting at 25 for the upper end of a fluid pressure operated cylinder 26, conveniently a pneumatic cylinder which may be of double acting type. The cylinder 26 may have a piston rod 27 which is anchored at 28 to lug 29 on the cross member 17. Thus the pneumatic cylinder 26 provides power means for moving the cross member together with the arms 15 and flexible band 12 up and down to move the band 12 away from and towards the fixed male die 10.

The plate 20 has a bifurcated lower part providing depending arms 30 on the lower parts of which there are supporting

cam plates

31 and 32 formed with oppositely arranged

cam slots

33 and 34 which are engaged respectively by rollers 35 on posts 36 fixed to the lower end parts of the arms 15. It will be seen that when the slide 18 is at the top of its travel the rollers 35 will as shown in FIGURE 1 engage the upper ends of

vertical portions

33a and 34a of the

cam tracks

33 and 34. In this position of the parts the flexible band 12 is in an open attitude as seen in FIGURE 1. As the slide 18 descends the curved rear part 12b of the flexible band 12 is brought into pres sure relationship with the back end of the male mould 10 whilst the side portions of the band are still splayed apart. Afterwards the cam rolls 35 run into inwardly turned

end parts

33b and 34b of the

cam tracks

33 and 34 bringing the lower ends of the arm towards one another and serving to close the flexible band 12 on to the sides of the male die 10.

The arms 15 are fitted with elecu'ical radient heating elements indicated at 37 and consisting of tubular sheaths containing insulated heaters energized through flexible leads 38, the tubular members being shaped to extend to and fro as seen most clearly in FIGURE 3 to cover substantially the Whole depth of the shoe upper to be heated, that is to say substantially the whole width of the band 12. The heater elements have loop portions 37a at the upper ends of the arms 15 with such loop portions curved inwardly as seen in FIGURES 1 and 2 to extend across the back part 12b of the band 12 in the general curved shape thereof.

In the operation of the apparatus so far described a shoe upper to be pre-heated in readiness for a moulding and lasting operation is placed with its heel end part around the mould 10 with the parts in the position of FIGURE 1. The heating element 37 is energized as well as the heating element contained in the male mould 10 so that heat is transmitted to the upper material partly from the inside and partly from the outside through the flexible band 12, and uniformly distributed to the upper material so that the latter becomes effectively heated all over. The pneumatic cylinder 26 is then energised to move the slide 18 downwardly to perform a complete stroke and in the first part of such stroke the flexible band 12 is pressed against the heel end of the upper on the die 10. The heel end part is thus the first part of the upper material to be gripped between the flexible band 12 and die 10 and afterwards the band 12 is caused to close in towards the sides of the die 10 by engagement of the rollers in the

intumed parts

33b and 34b of the

cam slots

33 and 34. The side parts of the flexible band 12 are then brought into intimate contact with the sides of the shoe upper to press them against the sides of the die 10.

The flexible band 12 is conveniently made of a high performance synthetic elastomeric material such as that known in the trade as Viton and is preferably of a material capable of withstanding temperatures of 200 C. and preferably up to 300 C. The solid male die 10 should be heated up to a temperature of 200 C. and preferably up to 300 C.

In the modified construction shown in FIGURE 4 the apparatus is adapted to the pre-heating of toe end portions of shoes. As will be seen from that figure substantially the same operating parts are provided but in place of the male heel end die 10 of the previous figures there is provided a male die 39 mounted on a fixed supporting post 40, the die 39 being shaped to adapt it for receiving the toe end part of the shoe upper. The shoe assembly is presented to the die 39 in a somewhat slanted position and threaded on to the die so that the latter is caused to enter through the top opening in the shoe assembly, the we end extremity being towards the left of the figure. The operation of pro-heating the toe end portion of a shoe by this modified apparatus is substantially the same as described with the first embodiment, it being observed that in this case the first part of the upper material to be held between the flexible band 12 and the fixed die 39 is the top portion towards the toe end and during the course of the pre-heating operation the side parts are later pressed down towards the sides of the male die 39. The die 39 is heated through electrical leads indicated at 41 corresponding to leads indicated at 42 in FIGURE 3 used for energising the heater in the male die 10. Both the die 39 and the die 10 are conveniently formed of metal to provide for good conduction of heat.

What we claim is:

1. Apparatus for pre-heating an end part of a shoe upper comprising in combination a solid male die, heating means provided on said die, a flexible female die cooperating with the male die and formed by a band of heat withstanding flexible elastomeric material, means mounting said male and female dies in positions to cooperate with one another, means for effecting relative movement between the dies to cause the flexible band to embrace the male die and grip upper material between the dies firstly at the end of the male die and then with a closing in movement at the sides of the male die whereby the side parts of the shoe upper material are drawn into intimate contact with the sides of the male die, and means for applying radient heat to the upper material through the flexible band.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said means for effecting relative movement between the male die and the flexible band lengthwise of the male die brings the dies into gripping co-operation endwise of the male die and afterwards causes lateral portions of the band to move in towards the sides of the male die.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 having the mounting means of the flexible band movable towards and away from the male die and having the flexible band in the form of a loop, movable carriers to which the ends of the flexible band are anchored and means constraining the carriers to move in predetermined paths.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 having a cross bar movable transversely of its length endwise of the loop shape of the band, and power means for moving the cross bar, and having the carriers in the form of arms each anchored at one end to the appropriate end of the flexible band and anchored at its other end to the cross bar, and fixed plates co-operating with the carriers to guide them for swinging movement about their anchorages on the cross bar to close the bands in towards the sides of the means constituted by a fluid pressure operated piston and cylinder device.

6. Apparatus according to claim 4 having interengaging follower and guide slot means provided between the carriers and the fixed plates for guidance of the carriers, with the guide slots shaped to cause inward movement of the ends of the flexible bands towards the latter part of the clamping movement.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6 having the guide slots formed in the fixed plates and the followers provided on the carriers and having a slide and slideway mounting for the cross bar to provide for movement thereof endwise of the loop shape of the flexible band and approximately centrally thereof.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7 having electric radient heating elements mounted on the carriers outside the flexible band for applying heat through the flexible band, said elements being curved to the approximate shape of the loop form of the band.

9. Apparatus for pre-heating an end part of a shoe upcomprising a solid male die, heating means on said die, per comprising a solid male die, heating means on said die,

a flexible band of elastomeric material forming a female die capable of being wrapped partly round the male die to press the shoe upper into intimate contact with the male die, means mounting said male and female dies to permit relative movement between them longitudinally of the male die to bring them into and out of operative relationship, means for causing relative movement to bring the dies together suchwise to cause a shoe upper between the dies first to be gripped at an end part against an end of the male die and afterwards pressed laterally against the sides of the male die by all over pressure exerted by lateral parts of the female die, and means for applying radient heat to the shoe upper through the flexible band.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,131,837 10/1938 Fenton 12-14.4 2,271,682 2/ 1942 Dodge 1254.3 2,406,738 9/1946 Brophy 12-64 X 3,105,250 10/1963 Kamborian et a1 12-543 3,372,414 3/1968 Arsenault 12-14.4 X

PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner