Automobile tube cutoff apparatus

Claim 1

IN A MACHINE FOR CUTTING OFF PREDETERMINED LENGHTS OF RELATIVELY RIGID MATERIAL FROM A MOVING STRIP, A KNIFE CARRIAGE AND FLUID ACTUATED MEANS FOR MOVING THE SAME IN THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF SAID STRIP, MEANS ENGAGEABLE BY THE LEADING END OF THE FORWARDLY TRAVELING STRIP TO ACTUATE SAID CARRIAGE MOVING MEANS, AN ABUTMENT FIXED FOR LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT WITH SAID CARRIAGE AND DISPOSED BEYOND SAID ENGAGEABLE MEANS WHEREBY THE LEADING END OF SAID STRIP ENGAGES THE ABUTMENT BEFORE THE CARRIAGE REACHES A SPEED APPROXIMATING THE SPEED OF THE MOVING STRIP, KNIFE MEANS RECIPROCABLY MOUNTED IN SAID CARRIAGE, FLUID OPERATED MEANS TO INDEPENDENTLY ACTUATE SAID KNIFE MEANS DURING CONTINUED FORWARD MOVEMENT OF THE CARRIAGE SELECTIVELY ADJUSTABLE MEANS TO ACTUATE SAID LATTER FLUID OPERATED MEANS AFTER PREDETERMINED FORWARD MOVEMENT OF THE CARRIAGE WHEREBY A FIXED LENGTH OF STOCK IS CUT OFF AS DETERMINED BY THE ADJUSTED LONGITUDINAL DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID ABUTMENT AND THE TRANSVERSE PLANE OF SAID CUTTING MEANS, AND MEANS CARRIED BY SAID ABUTMENT COACTING WITH DEFLECTING MEANS ADJACENT SAID ENGAGEABLE MEANS FOR MOVING SAID ABUTMENT LATERALLY FROM ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID STRIP AFTER THE LATTER HAS BEEN ENGAGED BY SAID KNIFE MEANS.