Stress peening machine

Claim 1

A MACHINE FOR STRESS-PEENING ELASTIC WORKPIECES, COMPRISING AN ENDLESS CONVEYOR DEFINING A WORKPIECE CARRIER, SAID CONVEYOR INCLUDING A SUCCESSION OF RELATIVELY SPACED WORKPIECE CARRYING FIXTURES DISPOSED TRANSVERSELY OF SAID MEANS AT OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID FIXTURE FOR RECEIVING CORRESPONDING ENDS OF A WORKPIECE WHEN DISPOSED THEREBETWEEN, CAM MEANS MOUNTED INDEPENDENTLY OF SAID CONVEYOR IN REGISTRY WITH THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID CLAMP MEANS AND OPERABLE TO CAM THE LATTER INTO WORKPIECE CLAMPING POSITIONS UPON ARRIVAL OF A WORKPIECE CARRYING FIXTURE AT THE POSITION OF SAID CAM MEANS, A VERTICALLY MOVABLE RAM MOUNTED INDEPENDENTLY OF SAID CONVEYOR AND MOVABLE INTO ABUTTING POSITION AGAINST THE WORKPIECE UPON ARRIVAL THEREOF AT A FURTHER POSITION OF TRAVEL OF SAID CONVEYOR AND OPERABLE TO ENGAGE THE WORKPIECE AND TO DEFORM IT ELASTICALLY WHILE BEING HELD AT ITS OPPOSITE ENDS BY SAID CLAMP MEANS, A HOLDING BLOCK CARRIED BY EACH OF SAID FIXTURES AND MOVABLE INTO POSITION BETWEEN THE FIXTURE AND THE ELASTICALLY DEFORMED PORTION OF THE WORKPIECE UPON ARRIVAL OF SAID WORKPIECE AT STILL ANOTHER POSITION OF TRAVEL, MEANS OPERABLE THEREUPON TO WITHDRAW SAID RAM FROM WORKPIECE CONTACTING POSITION, A SHOT-BLASTING DEVICE DISPOSED ADJACENT SAID CONVEYOR AT A FURTHER ADVANCED POSITION OF TRAVEL THEREOF FOR BLASTING THE WORKPIECES AS THEY TRAVEL THEREBY, A SECOND VERYICALLY MOVABLE RAM DEVICE MOUNTED INDEPENDENTLY OF SAID CONVEYOR AND MOVABLE INTO POSITION AGAINST EACH OF SAID WORKPIECES UPON ARRIVAL AT A POSITION BEYOND THE POSITION OF SAID SHOT-BLASTING DEVICE TO LIFT SAID WORKPIECE FREE OF ITS HOLDING BLOCK, MEANS THEREUPON OPERABLE TO WITHDRAW THE HOLDING BLOCKS FROM OPERATIVE POSITION, MEANS THEREUPON OPERABLE TO RETRACT SAID SECOND RAM FROM WORKPIECE CONTACTING POSITION, AND MEANS THEREUPON OPERABLE TO CAM SAID CLAMPING MEANS OUT OF WORKPIECE HOLDING POSITIONS WHEREBY THE FINISHED WORKPIECES ARE FREE FOR REMOVAL FROM SAID MACHINE.