Method of and apparatus for dispensing fasteners

Claim 1

IN A DEVICE FOR STORING AND SEQUENTIALLY ADVANCING NUTS TO A DIE ASSEMBLY DISPOSED IN A RECIPROCATING PRESS, THE DEVICE INCLUDING A FRAME, A PAIR OF SPACED SHAFTS CARRIED BY SAID FRAME, ONE OF SAID SHAFTS SUPPORTING THEREON A HELICAL COIL OF NUTS ADHERED IN SPACED ARRAY TO AN ELONGATED WEB AND THE SECOND OF SAID SHAFTS HAVING A WIND-UP REEL THEREON, MEANS FOR REMOVING NUTS FROM THE WEB AND ADVANCING THE NUTS TOWARD THE DIE ASSEMBLY, COMPRISING A NUT-DELIVERY CHUTE OF GENERALLY RECTANGULAR CONFIGURATION PERIPHERALLY CONFINING NUTS THEREIN FOR SEQUENTIAL ADVANCEMENT TO SAID DIE ASSEMBLY, AN INITIAL PORTION OF SAID CHUTE BEING OF U-SHAPED CONFIGURATION WITH ONE OPEN SIDE, A MOVABLE PLATE OVERLYING THE OPEN SIDE OF SAID INITIAL CHUTE PORTION TO SNUGLY CONFINE THEREIN A REACH OF THE NUT-WEB ASSEMBLY INTERMEDIATE SAID SHAFTS, MEANS COOPERABLE WITH SAID PLATE TO DEFINE THEREBETWEEN AN APERTURE THROUGH WHICH THE WEB ONLY PROJECTS TO SAID TAKE-UP REEL, MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID REEL IN RESPONSE TO RECIPROCATION OF SAID PRESS, THE ROTATION OF SAID REEL TENSIONING THE ASSEMBLY REACH TO MOVE THE ASSEMBLY THROUGH THE INITIAL PORTION OF SAID CHUTE AND BENEATH SAID PLATE TOWARD SAID DIE ASSEMBLY, THE TENSIONING OF SAID WEB ADVANCING INTO AND THROUGH THE CHUTE NUTS PREVIOUSLY STRIPPED FROM SAID WEB.