Multi-station processing machine

Claim 1

AN AUTOMATIC PROCESSING DEVICE FOR MULTI-STATION PROCESSING OF WORKPIECES COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A FRAME HAVING A CENTRAL OPEN PORTION; AN ANNULAR STATIONARY RING SURROUNDING SAID CENTRAL OPEN PORTION AND SECURED TO SAID FRAME, A ROTATING RING SUPPORTED RADIALLY EXTERNAL TO SAID STATIONARY RING; BEARING MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID STATIONARY RING AND ROTATING RING; A PAIR OF PARALLEL CAM SHAFTS BENEATH SAID RINGS, EACH SAID CAM SHAFT LYING IN A PLANE PARALLEL TO SAID RINGS AND EXTERNAL TO THE PROJECTION OF THE FRAME CENTRAL OPEN PORTION; A MAIN DRIVE SHAFT PARALLEL WITH SAID RINGS AND PERPENDICULAR TO SAID CAM SHAFTS; FIRST GEAR MEANS CONNECTING SAID MAIN DRIVE SHAFT TO SAID PARALLEL CAM SHAFTS FOR ROTATING THE LATTER IN TIMED RELATION TO SAID MAIN DRIVE SHAFT, A ROTATING RING DRIVE SHAFT PERPENDICULAR TO THE PLANE OF SAID RINGS WITH ITS AXIS EXTERIOR TO SAID ROTATING RING AND BETWEEN SAID PARALLEL CAM SHAFTS; AN ARM AT THE END OF SAID ROTATING RING DRIVE SHAFT, A DRIVE PIN EXTENDING FROM SAID ARM IN AN AXIAL PARALLEL RELATIONSHIP WITH SAID ROTATING RING DRIVE SHAFT; MEANS DEFINING RADIAL SLOTS WITHIN SAID ROTATING RING AND ON ITS LOWER PORTION AND EXTENDING TO DEFINE A PERIPHERAL SLOT OPENING, THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF SAID SLOT MEANS PROPORTIONED TO ACCOMMODATE SAID DRIVE PIN; AND SECOND GEAR MEANS FOR CONNECTING THE ROTATING RING DRIVE SHAFT TO A CAM SHAFT; THE WHOLE IN SUCH PROPORTION THAT THE MAIN DRIVE SHAFT IS POSITIONED BENEATH THE CENTRAL OPEN PORTION AND THE GEAR MEANS ARE CENTRAL OF THE PARALLEL CAM SHAFTS THEREBY REDUCING TORSIONAL INACCURACIES AND MAXIMIZING THE CENTRAL OPEN AREA WHILE THE CAM SHAFTS DRIVE WORK STATIONS BOTH INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR TO SAID ROTATING RING AND FIXED RING IN THE CENTRAL OPEN AREA IN FIXED PREDETERMINED TIMED RELATION TO THE INDEXING OF THE ROTATING RING.