US537148A - Strap-finishing machine - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets -Sheet 1..

J. B. GATHRIGHT.

STRAP FINISHING MACHINE.

No. 537,148. Patented Apr. 9, 1895.

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JOSIAH B. GrATHRIGIIT, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

STRAP-FINISHING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 537,148, dated April 9,1895.-

Application filed August 17, 1894.

T at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OSIAH B. GATE RIGHT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county :of J efiferson and'State of Kentucky, have invented a new and useful Im-' provement in Strap-Finishing Machines and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the. accompanying drawings, in which I Figure I is a side elevation of a strap-finishin g machine according to my invention. Fig. II is an end view of the same certain parts being broken away. Figs. III, IV, V, and VI are detail views of portions of the machine on a larger scale; and Fig. VII shows in end view a modification of this machine.

The object of this invention is to perform at a single operation the various acts of finishing such leather straps as traces, back bands and otherportions of a harness. This finishing operation comprises trimming the edges, creasing, burnishing, and polishing, and sometimes blacking the edges of the straps.

Tothis end my invention consists in the construction and combination of parts forming a strap finishing machine, hereinafter described and claimed. i

represents the frame of the machine in which is journaled a wheel 11 upon a shaft 12 that is driven by means of a pulley 13 preferably connected with the shaft 12 by means of a friction clutch 14. By this means of connection if the wheel 11 meets any undue resistance the wheel 18 will slip against the friction driver 14, thus avoiding breakage. The pulley 13 is adapted to revolve continually in communication with a main line of shafting and the friction clutch 14: may be engaged with it many usual manner whenever it is desired to operate the wheel 11.

15 is a hook let into the perimeter of the wheel 11, flush, and pivoted to hang backward to engage the eye of a trace 17, so as to pull the trace forward and wind it around the wheel where it may continue to revolve with the wheel until work on it is completed.

16 is a trimmer fixed upon a portion of the frame 10 and provided with suitably shaped knives 18, 19 to trim the edges of the .strap into the required shape, either with square,

or rounded or hollow edges. I prefer to locate erial No. 520,579. (No model.)

two complete trimmers 18, 19 one above the other, the knives for one trim mer being shaped for trimming round corners, and the other for square corners in order that themachine may always stand ready for trimming straps of either style.

20 represents combined burnishers and creasers located at suitable distances apart around the perimeter of the wheel upon supports 21 which are fixed to the frame 10. These burnishers and creasers are shaped as usual for burnishing the edges and creasing the straps near the edges by rubbing against them while the straps are revolved around the wheel past the stationary burnishers and creasers. One end of each burnisher may be shapedto burnish a square edged strap, and the other end be shaped to burnish a round edged strap, and the burnisher may be made reversible to bring either end into action as may be required, a creaser in each case acting in conjunction with a burnisher.

In Fig. III 22 represents the end of a burnisher shaped for what is termed a square edged strap, the corners 23 being as usual a very little rounded for finish. The end 24 of the burnisher is shaped for a round edged strap. This burnisher is journaled upon a stud 25 around which it may be rotated to turn end for end, andv it is provided with a stop pin 26 passing through the burnisher into its support to hold it fixed either endto the work.

27 is a creaser journaled-upon the same stud 25 and held by the same stop pin 26, but shaped with a nib 28 to bear on or into the outer face of a strap and crease it in passing.

This nib 28 may be single or double pointed, and be shaped according to the cross profile of the crease or creases designed to be formed by it, and it is evident that the two ends of the creaser may be shaped differently to form different patterned creases, but as here shown the end 29 has been left blank and is made short for use on such straps as are to be burnished and not creased. Around the stud 25 is located a spring 30 to bear upon the creaser thus permitting the latter to yield in passing over inequalities in the thickness of the strap, and 31 is a thumb nut screw-threaded upon the stud 25 to adjust the tension of the said spring 30.'

In the modification shown in Fig. IV, the body 32 of the creaser is rigidly fixed to its support by means of two bolts 33, and the creaser 34 is cylindrical and journaled lengthwise in the burnisher to roll over in its bearings. By this means either its creasing nib 35 will be brought into action so that the strap will be both creased and burnished, or its upper corner 36 will be added to the curve of the burnisher and serve only to burnish without creasing.

37 is a pin projecting from one side of the creaser shank to strike on the bearing and limit its rocking motion to a half circle whereby the creaser may be set to operate either one side up or the other.

38 is a staple-shaped yoke provided with springs 39, to furnish yieldingpressure upon the creaser, and with screw nuts 40 to adjust the spring pressure. The mounting block 55 supporting each burnisher is fitted to slide on a cross bar 56 and is impelled by aspring 57 to push the burnisher constantly against the edge of the strap even though the leather of the strap recedes by compression from this burnishing.

In the modification shown in Fig. V, the burnisher 58 is mounted directly upon a crossbar 56 and isimpelled to work by the spring 57, but in this case the burnisher is reversible end for end'by revolving around the crossbar. The bar 56 is square at 59 in cross section, and round at and the hole in the burnisher is square so that when the burnisheris on duty it isheld upon the square portion 59 and is thereby prevented from being revolved, but when it is to be changed end for end it is pushed against the spring 57 onto the round portion 60 and there revolved around the cross bar. Each burnisher may have a setscrew 61 to hold it rigidly to work in some cases.

41 is a shield for wheel 11, serving also as a supporter for a series of brushes 42 which are so located as to brush the outer face of a strap revolved upon the wheel.

43 is a rotary polisher journaled in the frame and rotated by a belt 44, communicating with a pulley 45 which is fixed on the same shaft as the wheel 11. This polisher rotates in the direction opposite to wheel 11,

and gives a high finish to the strap.

It will be understood that brushes might be arranged to apply blacking to the edges of the strap while rotating, the repeated revolutions of the strap which is being finished on the wheel permitting the blacking to be applied at one revolution and the burnishin g to be done at succeeding revolutions.

The operation is as follows: A strap 17 to be finished is to be pushed through one of the trimmers 18 or 19. The burnishersand creasers should be set to correspond with the trimmer. The hook 15 is to be engaged with the eye in the strap. Then the wheel 11 being set to revolving will continue to draw the strap repeatedly past the burnishers, creasers, and

polishers until a high degree of finish is attained. In the modification shown in Fig. VII the shield 41 is left off and the bu rnishers shown at 46 are supported on two disks 47 which are located at the sides of the weel 11 not to revolve therewith but to slide endwisc upon the shaft to and from said wheel.

48, 48 are levers pivoted to a fixture 49 of the frame and engaging the grooved hubs 50 of disks 47.

51 represents knuckle-joint braces connecting the levers 48, and 52 is a treadle connected with the braces whereby they may be drawn down and the levers 48 and disks 47 be spread apart thus drawing the burnishers out of ac tion 53, 53 are springs acting between the frame 11, and the hubs 50 to press the burnishers to their work.

The books 15 may be held in the groove in wheel 11 when not at work by means of springs 54 which springs tend to hold the hooks in close engagement with the straps when at work. By this means a-number of short straps maybe carried at once on a wheel large enough to carry asingle long trace, and yet any hooks not in service will be closed into the groove out of the way.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I believe to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is the following:

1. In astrap finishing machine, awheeljour naled to revolve; a device on the perimeter of the wheel to engage and carry a strap; finishing devices located consecutively adjacent to the said perimeter of the wheel, and means for rotating and guiding the strap repeatedly in contact with the said finishing devices, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a wheel journaled in aframe; meansfor engaging one end ofastrap with the wheel; a polishing brush journaled in the frame and geared to revolve against the strap, and guides for the free portion of the strap located around the wheel substantially as described whereby the strap engaged by one end only may be repeatedly revolved in contact with the polisher.

3. The combination ofawheel grooved in its perimeter; a series of hooks hung in the said groove and each adapted to swing out a considerable distance and engage a strap, and a closing spring for each hook substantially as described whereby each hook is held in the groove flush with the face of the wheel when not in service.

4. A wheel journaled to revolve in aframe; means for attaching a strap by one end to the wheel; strap finishing devices located around the wheel, a shield around the wheel and guides attached thereto substantially as described whereby a strap attached to the wheel by one end only may be guided to rotate repeatedly in contact with the finishing devices.

5. The combination of a wheel for rotating a strap, and a combined burnisher and creaser hung each with yielding resistance means for guiding the forward end of the strap to enter be reversed one relative to the other, and repeatedly between the burnishers, and means shaped to coact in each position, substantially for keeping the free end of the strap upon the as described. I 5 wheel, substantially as described. In testimony whereof I have hereunto 5 6. The combination in a strap finishing masigned my name, in the presence of two attest-V chine, of a burnisher having two different pating witnesses, at Louisville, in the county of terns of burnishing faces, means for revers- Jefferson, in the State of Kentucky. ing the burnisher to bring either face into action,and meansforrevolvingastrap against JOSIAH GATHRIGH to the same, substantially as described. Witnesses:

7. The combination in a strap finishing ma- E. S. FOOTE.

' chine, of a burnisher and acreaser hung to CHAS. A. GRAHAM, Jr.

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