Mechanism for and method of producing surgical pads

Claim 1

A MACHINE FOR FORMING BEVELLED CORN, CALLOUS OR SIMILAR PADS CONTINUOUSLY OR AUTOMATICALLY COMPRISING A SUPPORT PLATFORM FOR SUPPORTING A MOVING STRIP OF MATERIAL, FEEDING MEANS ADJACENT THE ADVANCE END OF SAID PLATFORM FOR DRAWING THE STRIP MATERIAL ALONG SAID PLATFORM, MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY DRIVING SAID FEEDING MEANS, A BEVELLING STATION ABOVE SAID PLATFORM HAVING A PLURALITY OF ELONGATED FLEXIBLE BLADES HAVING SHARPENED BOTTOM ENDS, MEANS RETAINING SAID BLADES IN STAGGERED, ABUTTING, DEPENDING RELATIONSHIP IN A CROSS-SECTIONALLY CLOSED CONFIGURATION, MEANS OPERATED DURING A DWELL IN THE TRAVEL OF THE STRIP MATERIAL FOR INTERMETTENTLY MOVING THE BLADES DOWNWARDLY, AND CAM MEANS CAMMING THE LOWER ENDS OF THE BLADES OUTWARDLY TO FORM A CONTINUOUS BEVELED CUTTING EDGE, WHEN THE BLADES ARE MOVED DOWNWARDLY, SAID BEVELLING STATION FORMING A SUCCESSION OF BEVELLED CUTS IN THE STRIP MATERIAL FOR A PORTION OF THE DEPTH OF THE MATERIAL DURING DWELLS IN MOVEMENT OF THE MATERIAL, A PUNCHING STATION ABOVE SAID PLATFORM AND IN ADVANCE OF SAID BEVELLING STATION INCLUDING MEANS FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY CUTTING A VERTICAL PERIPHERAL EDGE AND A CENTER HOLE THROUGH THE THICKNESS OF SAID STRIP MATERIAL DURING DWELLS IN MOVEMENT OF THE MATERIAL SO THAT THE PERIPHERAL EDGE INTERSECTS THE BEVELLED EDGE FORMED BY SAID BEVELLING STATION, SAID PUNCHING STATION INCLUDING MEANS PERMITTING THE PAD THUS FORMED TO MOVE PERPENDICULARLY TO THE STRIP OF MATERIAL DURING SAID CUTTING OPERATION AND RETURNING THE PAD TO ALIGNMENT WITH THE STRIP OF MATERIAL AFTER COMPLETIGN OF THE CUTTING OPERATION, A VACUUM STATION IN ADVANCE OF SAID PUNCHING STATION ENCLOSING A PORTION OF SAID PLATFORM ALONG WHICH THE STRIP OF MATERIAL TRAVELS FOR REMOVING WASTE RINGS FORMED BY THE INTERSECTION OF SAID VERTICAL PERIPHERAL EDGE AND BEVELLED EDGE CUTS, A ROTATABLE EJECTOR SPACED IN ADVANCE OF SAID VACUUM STATION, BUT REARWARDLY OF SAID FEEDING MEANS AND INTERMITTENTLY DRIVEN UPON THE INTERMITTENT DRIVING OF SAID FEEDING MEANS, SAID EJECTOR HAVING ANGULARLY SPACED BOSSES PROJECTING INTO THE HOLES FORMED BY SAID BEVELLING AND PUNCHING OPERATIONS AND OPERABLE DURING ADVANCE OF THE STRIP MATERIAL TO EJECT THE COMPLETED PADS FROM THE STRIP MATERIAL.