US3588991A

US3588991A - Forming and attaching top stops to fastener chains

Info

Publication number: US3588991A
Application number: US856112A
Authority: US
Inventors: Dieter Maisenbacher
Original assignee: NAEGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU
Current assignee: DR KARL F NAGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU; NAEGELE FEINMASCHINENBAU
Priority date: 1968-09-06
Filing date: 1969-09-08
Publication date: 1971-06-29
Anticipated expiration: 1988-06-29
Also published as: BE738233A; DE1777107B1

Abstract

IN TIMED SEQUENCE, A PAIR OF TOP STOP BLANKS ARE CUT FROM A METAL STRIP, THE BLANKS ARE BENT INTO U- OR V-SHAPE, THE BENT BLANKS ARE SUPPORTED ON A PAIR OF PIVOTAL CLAMPING JAWS, AND THE BLANKS ARE ATTACHED TO THE TWO TAPES OF A PARTLY ASSEMBLED FASTENER CHAIN. THE FASTENER CHAIN IS INTERMITTENTLY FED TO THE JAWS WITH THEIR TWO TAPES DISENGAGED AND GUIDED AT AN ACUTE ANGLE, AND THE BLANKS ARE CLAMPED TO THE DISENGAGED TAPES.

Description

June 29, 1971 MAlSENBACHER 3,588,991

FORMING AND ATTACHING TOP STOPS TO FASTENER CHAINS 2 Sheets5heet k Filed Sept. 8, 1969 l N VFN'H h 0/: far Mu: I'sen 6Q (:56 P- HY3 y 44% fierwc Ham/75 June 1971 v D. MAISENBACHER 3,58,?

FORMING AND ATTACHING TOP STOPS TO FASTENER CHAINS Filed Sept. 8, 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ,4 I 19 I' "I'll ,II II "I a Im I I "I": l u l ll INVILNIUR, D m Mel/sen bacficv BY: WM aha/ HGEn/T;

United States Patent Olice 3,588,991 Patented June 29, 1971 US. Cl. 29-408 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In timed sequence, a pair of top stop blanks are cut from a metal strip, the blanks are bent into U- or V-shape, the bent blanks are supported on a pair of pivotal clamping jaws, and the blanks are attached to the two tapes of a partly assembled fastener chain. The fastener chain is intermittently fed to the jaws with their two tapes disengaged and guided at an acute angle, and the blanks are clamped to the disengaged tapes.

The present invention relates to the forming of top stop blanks and attachment thereof to the tapes of a fastener chain in timed sequence.

Heretofore, top stop blanks were formed in one operation, and the blanks were individually attached to the beaded edges of the fastener chain tapes.

It is the primary object of this invention to provide a programmed operation in which a pair of top stop blanks are cut from a continuous length of a metal strip, are subsequently shaped, positioned on the tape edges and attached thereto in a timed sequence.

This and other objects and advantages are accomplished in accordance with the invention by intermittently feeding the metal strip to a cutting station in consecutively timed feeding cycles and cutting two longitud1- nally consecutive blanks of equal length from the strip at the cutting station between consecutive cycles. The cut blanks are pushed to an adjacent bending station by the metal strip advancing into the cutting station in a subsequent intermittent feeding cycle, and the cut blanks are simulaneously bent to assume a concave, such as a U- or V-shaped, cross section. The bent blanks are then moved into a pair of adjacent jaws supporting the bent blanks. A length of a partly assembled fastener chain is intermittently fed through a top stop attachment station at the jaws. The fastener chain includes two tapes adapted to be engaged by interlocking elements engageable and disengageable by a slider. The tapes are disengaged at the attachment station, and the fastener chain tapes are guided through the attachment station at an acute angle to each other. The jaws supporting the bent blanks are moved towards the fastener chain tapes to position the pair of blanks on the edges of the tapes facing the jaws, and the blanks are clamped onto the tapes.

The apparatus of the present invention includes cutting means at the cutting station, blank bending die means at the bending station, and jaw support means for the bent blanks. The jaw support means includes a center support and a pair of movable tongs pivotal towards the center support, a pair of adjacent jaws being defined between a respective one of the tongs and the center support. Slide means moves the bent blanks into the pair of jaws. The fastener chain is fed through a trough-shaped guide which supports the chain tapes at an acute angle and disengaged from each other. Reciprocable means pushes the disengaged fastener chain tapes towards the jaws. Drive means is provided for sequentially actuating the cutting means, the bending means, the slide means, and the reciprocable and jaw pivoting means simultaneously.

In the illustrated embodiment, the drive means is a rotatable cam shaft, and the center support of the jaw support means includes a cross bar. The movable tongs are two-armed levers pivoted on respective ends of the cross bar, one of the arms of the tongs defining the jaws with the center support and the other arm being in camming engagement with the cam shaft for pivoting the tongs.

It is advantageous to impart such a cross section to the top stop blanks during bending that they will securely engage the fastener chain tape edges, and also will be engaged securely by the slide means when moved from the bending station to the support jaws.

Other features, additional objects, and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will readily be apr preciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment when considered in connection with the appended drawing in which:

FIG. 1 shows the cutting and bending station of a top stop making and attaching machine of the invention in top plan view;

FIG. 2 shows the device of FIG. 1 in front elevation;

FIG. 3A and 3B illustrate the bending implements of the device of FIGS. 1 and 2 in two relative positions;

FIG. 4 shows the top stop making and attaching machine in fragmentary side elevation;

FIG. 5 illustrates the attaching station of the machine in front elevation;

FIG. 6 shows a portion of the attaching station of FIG. 5 in a different operating position;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary top plan view of the fastenerchain guiding trough of the machine; and

FIG. 8 shows cross sections of metal strips from which top stops can be made on the machine of FIGS. 1 to 7.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1, 2, 3A and 3B, there is seen the cutting and bending station of the partly illustrated top stop machine. The supporting frame and other stationary structure of the machine has been omitted from the drawing for the sake of clarity. The drive mechanism also has been largely omitted since it may be conventional and will be obvious to those skilled in this art.

A fiat metal strip 1 is being fed toward the cutting and bending station by a non-illustrated feed mechanism which may consist of two rollers between which the strip 1 is passed and which are driven intermittently by a motion transmitting train connected to the main drive shaft 9 of the machine.

The bending mechanism includes a cutting punch 2 which moves twice toward and away from a stationary die 14 to shear two longitudinally consecutive blanks of equal length from the strip 1 after two feeding movements of the latter. A spring loaded ejector 3 returns the cut blanks to the plane of strip feeding movement when the punch Z returns to its initial position.

During the next double feeding step, the advancing front end of the strip 1 pushes the previously cut blanks between two bending tools 4, which are spaced apart at this stage of the machine cycle. The male tool 5 is normally held in the position shown in FIG. 2 by a nonillustrated heavy spring, and prevented by non-illustrated abutments from moving into the path of the blanks cut from the strip 1. The female tool 4 is moved by a nonillustrated cam in the direction of the arrows in FIGS. 2 and 4, and in the opposite direction.

The male tool 5 has two projections, approximately U-shaped in the front-elevational view of FIG. 2, and the female tool 4 has corresponding recesses, the two blanks being aligned with respective projections and recesses by the feeding movement of the strip 1. When the female tool 4 is moved by its cam 24 (FIG. 4) toward the male tool 5, the initially fiat blanks 8 are bent into an approximate U- or V-shape as is best understood from joint consideration of FIGS. 3A and 3B.

When the bending tools 4, 5 return to their starting position shown in FIG. 2, and before the next feeding movement of the strip 1, the blanks 8 are discharged by slides 6 from the recesses in the tool 4 at right angles to the directions of strip feeding and bending tool movement, or backwardly relative to the machine.

A clamping mechanism 7 is guided on the non-illustrated machine frame for vertical movement behind the common plane of movement of the strip 1, the

cutting tools

2, 3, 14, and the bending tools 4, 5. The clamping mechanism has a central member having the shape of an inverted T. Two jaws 16 are pivoted on the free ends of the horizontal bar portion of the central member 15. The jaws 16' are two-armed levers and approximately upright in all operative positions. The upper arms approach each other and the upper end of the upright bar portion of the central member 15 so as to form therewith two receptacles for the bent blanks 8, as is best seen in FIGS. 5 and 6. The lower arms of the jaws 16 are connected by a helical tension spring 22.

The main drive shaft 9 of the top stop machine carries two

radial cams

12, 13. The cam 12 engages the lower arms of the jaws 16 under the tension of the spring 22 and forces the lower arms apart once during each revolution of the drive shaft 9 which corresponds to one operating cycle of the machine. The radial cam 13 engages the horizontal bar portion of the central member 15 and lifts and lowers the entire clamping mechanism once during each cycle.

Almost all the operating elements of the top stop machine described so far are mounted below the level of a sheet metal guide trough 11 which extends from the front toward the rear of the machine and has a transverse slot aligned with the clamping mechanism 7. The trough is approximately V-shaped in transverse section, but the apex angle of the trough decreases toward the transverse slot in the trough and increases away from the slot in a direc tion from the front toward the rear of the machine.

Pull rolls, conventional in themselves and not illustrated, are mounted in the rear of the machine and are connected with the shaft 9 by a transmission which imparts intermittent movement to a continuous, gapped fastener chain 17 in timed sequence with the motions of the top stop machine. The fastener chain, when fed toward the slot in the trough 11, is partly assembled to include the interlocking elements 18, bottom stops 19, and sliders 20 arranged so as to leave the elements 18 disengaged at the top end of the fastener. The beaded fastener tapes 21 travel along the oblique walls of the trough. The fastener stops in a position in which gaps in the rows of elements are located above the slot in the guide trough 11, and the beaded edges of the tapes 21 face downward toward the clamping mechanism 7. A pusher 10 mounted above the slot in the trough 11 and having a lower edge portion dimensioned for bending the beaded tape edges into precise alignment with the blanks 8 on the clamping mechanism 7 descends and holds the tape edges while the clamping mechanism 7 is lifted toward the tape edges and the jaws 16 are moved by the cam 12 to clamp the blanks on the tapes 21.

The timing drive which operates the several movable elements of the top stop machine is represented in the drawing only by the shaft 9 and the

cams

12, 13, but it will be understood that additional cams, and the necessary cam followers and other motion transmitting elements which operate the cutting and bending tools as well as the slides 6 derive their motion from the shaft 9 so as to be precisely synchronized at all times.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of forming top stop blanks and attaching the same to the tapes of a fastener chain in timed sequence, comprising the steps of (l) intermittently feeding a metal strip to a cutting station in consecutively timed feeding cycles,

(2) cutting two longitudinally consecutive blanks of equal length from the strip at the cutting station between consecutive ones of the feeding cycles,

(3) pushing the cut blanks to an adjacent bending station by the metal strip advancing into the cutting station in a subsequent intermittent feeding cycle,

(4) simultaneously bending the cut blanks at the bending station to assume a concave cross section,

(5) moving the pair of bent blanks into a pair of adjacent jaws supporting the bent blanks,

(6) intermittently feeding a length of a partly assembled fastener chain through a top stop attachment station,

(a) the fastener chain including two tapes adapted to be engaged by interlocking elements engageable and disengageable by a slider, and the tapes being disengaged at the attachment station,

(b) the fastener chain tapes being guided through the attachment station at an acute angle to each other,

(c) the attachment station being at said jaws,

(7) moving the jaws supporting the bent blanks towards the fastener chain tapes to position the pair of blanks on the edges of the tapes facing the jaws, and

(8) clamping the blanks onto the tapes.

2. An apparatus for forming top stop blanks and attaching the same to the tapes of a fastener chain in timed sequence, comprising (1) cutting means at a cutting station for cutting two longitudinally consecutive blanks of equal length from a metal strip being moved into the cutting station adjacent the cutting means in intermittent feeding cycles,

(2) blank bending die means at a bending station adjacent the cutting station for bending the blanks received from the cutting station,

(3) jaw support means for the bent blanks, the jaw support means including (a) a center support and a pair of movable tongs pivotal towards the center support, a pair of adjacent jaws being defined between a respective one of the tongs and the center support,

(4) slide means for moving the bent pair of blanks into the pair of jaws,

(5)* a trough-shaped guide for feeding a fastener chain to a top stop attachment station opposite said jaw support means,

(b) the guide supporting the fastener chain tapes at an acute angle and disengaged from each other,

(6) reciprocable means for pushing the disengaged fastener chain tapes at said acute angle towards the jaw support means,

(7) means for pivoting the tongs towards the center support of the jaw support means, and

(8) drive means sequentially actuating the cutting means, the bending means, the slide means, and the 6 reciprocable means simultaneously with the pivoting References Cited f 1 h h UNITED STATES PATENTS is g' j gf gfi lg W t e dnve means 2,701,877 2/1955 Morin 29207.5X e 2,989,751 6/1961 Schevermann 29207.5 4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the center sup- 5 3 415 293 12/1968 Penman 29 207 5X port of the jaw support means includes a cross bar and said movable tongs are two-armed levers pivoted on re- THERQN CONDON, p i Examiner spective ends of the cross bar, one of the arms of the tongs defining the jaws with the center support and the 10 DESMOND Asslstant Exammer other arm being in camming engagement with the cam {13 L X R shaft for pivoting the tongs. 29207.5ST