US766653A - Flexible joint. - Google Patents

Description

PATENTE!) AUG. 2, 1904.

H. AUSTIN.

FLEXIBLE JOINT.

APPLIoATIon rum) JULY a4. 190s.

N0 MODEL.

f@ veiaif ww Z7 f WZaZeJ/Mef( fg/Z? @A C UNTTED STATES Patented August 2, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.'

FLEXIBLE JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 766,658, dated August 2, 1904.

Application filed July 24, 1903. Serial No. 166,818. (No model.)

To all wir/0712, it may 0mm/77m Be it known that I, HERBERT AUSTIN, a subject of the King of Great Britain, now residing at St. Annes, Sutton Road, Erdington, in the county of Tarwicl England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flexible Joints, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to power-transmitting mechanism for driving on the lVolscley system machines for cutting' or shearing hair or wool. ln this system as usually heretofore practiced power is transmitted to a cutting or shearing machine from an overhead shaft through a vertical flexible shaft and from this latter shaft to a sidewayshaft which may be turned at any desired angle therewith, and the forward end of the sideway shaft is geared with the machine-spindle. The vertical flexible shaft is usually of catgut and passes down a case or sleeve which is itself flexible, beingl usually of canvas or rubber and canvas surroundingaspiral of wire. The vertical flexible shaft is connected at its upper end with a spindle which passes down from a bevel-pinion which is driven from a wheel on the overhead shaft, and the upper end of the flexible sleeve is connected with a downward projection from a bracket which carries the spindle and bevel-pinion aforesaid and which projection surrounds the spindle. On the lower end of the sleeve is fastened a length of metal case which carries a short spindle, to which the lower end of the flexible shaft is connected, and this spindle carries at its lower end a kind of crownwheel, which gears with a corresponding wheel on the sideway shaft. The lower end of the case is formed with one portion of a hinged joint, of which the other portion `is formed on the inner end of a case within which the sideway shaft is mounted.

The flexible shaft and sleeve above described allow `the cutting or shearing machine to be moved about by hand as required; but it is found in practice that owing to the swing' or momentum of the sleeve and flexible shaft the machine is liable to be carried beyond the position in which at some particular moment it is required, with the result that the animal which is being operated upon is injured or the staple of the hair or wool which is being cut or sheared becomes damaged.

Now this invention has for its object a novel or improved ljoint through the medium of which a rigid casing or sleeve instead of a flexible sleeve is connected with the bracket aforesaid, which will insure sufficient elastic resistance against an outward movement of the lower end of the vertical shaft to counteract, or largely so, the swing` or momentum of the casing and shaft, and thus obviate or minimize the inconvenience above referred to.

Broadly described, the joint aforesaid comprises an upper portion which is adapted to be securely lixed to the bracket aforesaid, a lower portion which is rigid with the casing and is capable of being moved to bring its axis anglewise with that of the upper portion, and a spring which is normally under a tension in excess of that due merely to the weight of the parts and which is stretched or opened out under still greater tension Vat one side when the lower portion of the joint is moved in relation to the upper portion, and a very important feature of the invention consists of means which insure that if the lower portion of the joint is turned anglewise to the upper in any direction it will turn against the upper portion as a fulcrum at a point some distance from the axis of the shaft, whereby there is always a very definite tendency for the case surrounding the flexible shaft to return to a vertical position and to be maintained in such position.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood, we will describe a convenient practical application of the same by reference to the drawings herewith, of which- Figure l is an elevation of a complete apparatus used in transmitting motion from an overhead shaft to the sideway shaft, at the outer end of which the shearing or cutting machine is connected, this sideway shaft being broken oflI for convenience of illustration. Fig. 2 is a vertical section, to an enlarged scale,of the flexible joint constructed according to this invention, showing it as connected 100 at its upper end with the downward projection from the bracket and as connected at its lower end with the upper end of the metal casing which surrounds the iexible shaft; and Fig. 3 is a view corresponding to Fig. 2, but showing the casing and the lower portion of the joint moved at an angle with the Vertical axis of the upper portion of the joint.

The general form of the apparatus shown by Fig. l is now well known, and a very short description thereof will therefore sufice.

A is the overhead shaft.

a is the usual bevel friction-wheel upon the shaftA.

7) is the usual bevel friction-pinion, having a spindle c, Fig. 2, which passes through a bearing (l and down a cylindrical projection e from the under side of the bracket. The flexible shaft f, Fig. 2, which is usually formed of catgut, has 'fastened' on the upper end thereof a cylindrical metallic ferrule g, Fig. 2, which makes a bayonet-joint with the lower end of the spindle c in the usual manner. The flexible shaft f is connected at its lower end with a short metallic spindle, which carries at its lower end a toothed wheel /L of the construction well known with this type of mechanism, and this wheel gears, as is usual, with a similar wheel L/ on the end of a sideway shaft carriedV within a case c', which is pivoted to the lower end of the case k, which surrounds the shaft j'. The bracket CZ is capable of sliding within a fixed bracket B to move the pinion b away from and against the bevel-wheel a, and the sliding is accomplished by means of a tumbler-arm C, operated from a handle D through the medium of the usual mechanism.

The joint is formed according to this invention with an upper part E, adapted to be fixed to the downward projection e from the bracket, and with a lower part F, which is adapted for rigid connection with the upper end of a rigid tube lc, which surrounds and forms a casing for the iexible shaft f in lieu of the flexible sleeve usually employed. The upper part E is formed with a tube p, which is of a diameter to allow it to be slid up over the part e of the bracket. The upper end of the tube p is split at one side, and the opposite sides of the split are formed with ears, of which one, m, is shown, and a pin a is passed through the pair of ears and used for clamping the tube around the part e. This tube p corresponds to the metallic tube by which .the ordinary flexible case has been connected with the part e of the bracket. On the lower end of the tube j? is formed or fixed a socket q, which is open at its lower end. is formed as a socket r, which is fixed on the upper end of the rigid metal casing 7c, which surrounds the flexible shaft f. The two sockets are connected together by means of a strong spiral spring G, which is inserted as to the upper half thereof within the socket g The lower part F of the joint and as to the lower half thereof within the socket fr and the ends secured to the inner ends of the sockets, respectively, the tightening up of the spring ends within the sockets causing the spring to be distended suiiiciently to put it in considerable tension. It is preferred kto iix the ends of the spring within the sockets by forming at the inner end of each socket aspiral groove t, which screws upon the spiral of the spring as a nut upon a bolt. The spiral groove of each socket may be carried therearound for about half the depth of the socket from the inner end thereof, as shown, and the length of the spring before it is distended is such that before the sockets have both been fully screwed up thereon the open ends of the sockets abut against one another, and the subsequent tightening up of the sockets upon the ends ofthe spring consequently causes the middle portion of the spring-that is to say, the portion Ythereof' which is between the spirally-grooved portions of the socketato stretch or open between the coils, and thus to be under tension. The tension of the spring insures that normally the upper edge of the lower socket will be pressed around its entire circuit with considerable force against the lower edge of the upper socket, and thus when the lower socket is turned anglewise to the upper socket it turns on its edge against the edge of the up? per socket as a fulcrum, which insures that when released the lower socket will return to a position in which its axis is again in line with that of the upper socket and will be maintained in such position.

It will be apparent that as the cutting or shearing machineis moved in a manner which carries the rigid case out of its vertical position the spring, being already in considerable tension, is put under further tension by the opening out of the coils on the side opposite to that from which the pull at the lower end of the casing is exerted, and thus tends to vcounteract the swing or momentum of the casing and flexible shaft.

The relative endwise movement between the fiexible shaft fand casing is provided for in the manner adapted with vthe shaft and sleeve heretofore employed.

It is preferred to form the upper end or mouth of the socket r with a cup-shaped rim s, which when the axes of the two sockets coincide completely surrounds the lower edge of the socket g, and it is also preferred to carry the tube p of the upper portion of the joint down through the socket thereofas shown, leaving, an annular space a therearound between itself andthe interior of the socket for the reception of the upper portion of the spring, and to form the lower socket with an interior tube the bore of which is flared or bell-mouthed at its upper end, as shown. The cup-shaped rim s of the lower socket insures thatl any oil running down the outside of the lOO upper portion of the joint will run down inside the lower portion, and any oil running' down inside the tube ot' the Lipper' portion of the joint will drop into the flared upper end of the tube and run down inside such tube. The main purpose ot' the cup-shaped rim .5' is to prevent the lower socket slipping' in relation to the upper socket and preventing' the sockets coming' properly into line when the lower socket is released after being' turned anglewise to the upper socket, and if the cupshaped rim were required for this purpose only it might of com'se be formed with either the lower or upper socket. As a further precaution against the lower socket slipping' in relation to the upper a projection fu is formed around the inner edg'e of the bottom or inner end of the cup-shaped rim, which when the axes of' the sockets are in line is completely surrounded by the edge ot' the plain-ended socket.

It will be noted that in the construction described the two parts or members E and F of the joint are not in any way coupled or connected directly together, but simply abut end to end, being' drawn together by the normal tension ot the spring', which must be, as stated above, considerablyv more than that due to the weig'ht ot' the suspended parts, also that the said mem bers have in them annular sockets to receive the spring', whereby the spring' has a tubular part of the member ineasing it and also a tubular part, as inside of it and interposed between the spring' and the flexible shaft j'.

Having thus described my invention, I claim-u 1. A tlexible joint, having two hollow members abutting' normally end to end, and a spring' within the hollows of' said members, said spring' connecting' them and drawing' them together, the spring being' normally Linder' considerable tension above that put upon it by the weig'ht of the parts.

2. A flexible joint, having' two hollow members abutting' normally end to end and provided with means which prevent the abutting ends from slipping' laterally the one on the other, and a spring' within the hollows of said members, said spring' connecting and drawing the members together by its normal tension.

3. A flexible joint, having' two members which abut normally end to end and have in each an axial bore and an annular socket exterior to said bore, and a coil-spring` occupying the annular sockets in the members and secured at its respective ends to the members, said spring being' under considerable tension when the members are alined and thereby connecting' and drawing' them tog'ether.

4. A flexible joint, having' two hollow members which abut normally end to end, one ot' said members having' an annular recess at its abutting' end to receive the end o't' the other member, and a spiral spring' within the hollows of the said members and secured to them at its respective ends, said spring' being' under tension when the members are abutting' and alined, and serving' to draw the members yielding'ly together.

5. A flexible joint, having' two hollow members which abut normally end to end, one of' said members having' at its abutting' end an annular recess to receive the abutting' end of the other member, said recess being' 'formed by a cup-shaped rim s and an annular projection o, and a spiral spring' in the hollows of the said members and connecting' them yielding'ly tog'ether, said spring' being' under tension when the two members are abutting' and alined.

6. A exible joint, having' two members, each with an axial bore and an annular socket exterior to said bore, the lower socket having' at its upper end a cupshaped rim in which bears normally the lower end of the upper member, and a spiral spring' occupying' the annular sockets ofl the members and secured at its respective ends thereto, said spring' being' under tension when the members are alined and abutting', and serving' to draw the latter yielding'ly tog'ether.

7. A flexible joint, having` two members which abut, normally, or when alined, end to end, said members being provided each with an annular spring-socket, an axial bore, and an interior tube between said bore and socket, said tube in the lower member being' flared, and a spiral spring occupying' said sockets and secured at its ends to the respective members and connecting' them together, said spring' being' under tension when the two members are abutting and alined, thus drawing' them yielding'ly tog'ether.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name, this th day ot' July, 1903, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HERBERT AUSTIN.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR V. BLAKuMoRE, ROBERT G. GRovEs.

IOO

Images