US3561691A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Tape unwinding means
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1968-09-06
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Granted: 1971-02-09
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Expires: 1988-09-06
Abstract
Abstract A device for automatically unwinding paper tape from a roll and feeding it, under gentle tension, to the output tape punch of a tape justifying computer. The device has a drive wheel, for tractively propelling the tape, and three rollers, one of which is mounted on a pivot arm and rides in a loop formed in the tape between the other two. Power is supplied to the drive wheel by a gear head motor which is automatically controlled by a mercury switch connected in series therewith and mounted on the abovementioned pivot arm. As the tape slackens, the pivot arm moves downwardly and causes the mercury switch to turn off the motor.
Inventors
- 👤 William A Nichols
- 👤 Ralph E Simpson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 20:00
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06K; G06K13/00; G06K13/18; G06K13/26
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
333 words
Unwinding means for automatically unwinding tape from a rotatably mounted roll and delivering the unwound tape to tape processing means under relatively low tension upon demand of the latter, comprising, in combination: a plurality of rotatable members including a drive wheel, a follower roller, a traveling roller and an end roller relatively mounted for threading thereabout a portion of unwound tape extending between the roll and the tape-processing means so that the tape passes around the drive wheel and up over the follower roller, then down and under the traveling roller and up over the end roller to provide a depending tape loop in which the traveling roller rides; said drive wheel having a tractive rim surface engageable with the tape and driven at a speed slightly faster than the speed at which the tape is demanded by the tape-processing means; said follower roller being mounted for swinging movement relative to the drive wheel and adapted to press the tape thereagainst so that when the drive wheel is rotating the tape is urged up and over the follower roller, thereby building up slack in the tape loop, which slack is reduced by the demand for tape by the tape-processing means; said traveling roller being mounted on a pivot arm for vertical movement for bearing down on the bottom of the tape loop to take up slack and hold the tape under relatively low tension; a motor mounted to drive the drive wheel; and motor control means responsive to the disposition of the pivot arm for turning the motor on and off, whereby during operation of the tape-processing means tape is delivered thereto upon demand under relatively low tension and when such demand ceases excess slack builds up in the tape loop, permitting the traveling roller to move down and dispose the pivot arm to turn the motor off, resumption of demand causing the excess slack to be taken up, lifting the traveling roller to dispose the pivot arm for turning on the motor.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
333 words
Unwinding means for automatically unwinding tape from a rotatably mounted roll and delivering the unwound tape to tape processing means under relatively low tension upon demand of the latter, comprising, in combination: a plurality of rotatable members including a drive wheel, a follower roller, a traveling roller and an end roller relatively mounted for threading thereabout a portion of unwound tape extending between the roll and the tape-processing means so that the tape passes around the drive wheel and up over the follower roller, then down and under the traveling roller and up over the end roller to provide a depending tape loop in which the traveling roller rides; said drive wheel having a tractive rim surface engageable with the tape and driven at a speed slightly faster than the speed at which the tape is demanded by the tape-processing means; said follower roller being mounted for swinging movement relative to the drive wheel and adapted to press the tape thereagainst so that when the drive wheel is rotating the tape is urged up and over the follower roller, thereby building up slack in the tape loop, which slack is reduced by the demand for tape by the tape-processing means; said traveling roller being mounted on a pivot arm for vertical movement for bearing down on the bottom of the tape loop to take up slack and hold the tape under relatively low tension; a motor mounted to drive the drive wheel; and motor control means responsive to the disposition of the pivot arm for turning the motor on and off, whereby during operation of the tape-processing means tape is delivered thereto upon demand under relatively low tension and when such demand ceases excess slack builds up in the tape loop, permitting the traveling roller to move down and dispose the pivot arm to turn the motor off, resumption of demand causing the excess slack to be taken up, lifting the traveling roller to dispose the pivot arm for turning on the motor.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
325 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 1, in which said follower roller is mounted on a relatively short pivot arm with a camlike lower edge and said end roller is mounted on a second pivot arm to permit its movement up and down through an arcuate path; a. said rotatable members are positioned in front of a panel and the pivot arms on which the follower, traveling and end rollers are mounted are positioned behind the panel; b. said rollers have axles which project rearwardly to connect with their cooperating pivot arms; said panel has appropriately sized and located openings to accommodate the rearwardly projecting axles of said rollers and permit movement of each through a limited range of travel; c. said pivot arm on which said traveling roller is mounted and said second pivot arm are connected by a spiral tension spring in such fashion that the spring urges said second pivot arm in the direction of upward movement of said end roller; d. said relatively short pivot arm and said second pivot arm are so relatively positioned that the latter urges the former to its position corresponding to the extreme position of said follower roller away from said drive wheel and said former moves the latter downwardly, through rocking contact between its camlike lower edge and the upper edge of said latter, when said follower roller is pulled adjacent said drive wheel by the tape under tension during operation of said unwinding means; and e. said end roller, when at its highest possible point with said follower roller as closely adjacent to said drive wheel as possible during operation of said unwinding means, is movable to a still lower position against the tension of said spiral tension spring acting on said second pivOt arm, whereby said end roller serves in a shock absorbing capacity to ease shock on said tape when it is subjected to undue stresses during operation of said unwinding means.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
45 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 2 in which said drive wheel has a tire made of a mediumly soft rubbery material characterized by a tread surface adapted to assure good tractive contact between said wheel and said tape during operation of said unwinding means.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
28 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 3 in which said mediumly soft rubbery material comprises a homogeneous mixture of about 65 percent neoprene and about 35 percent rubber.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
22 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 1 in which said motor control means includes a tilt-sensitive switch secured to said pivot arm.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
16 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 5 in which said tilt-sensitive switch is a mercury switch.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
29 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 2 having a back cover adapted to cooperate with said panel and substantially enclose those parts of said unwinding means behind said panel.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
57 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 7 adapted for mounting on the frame of the high-speed output punch of a justifying computer adapted to convert perforated tape containing no justification codes into tape suitable for the automatic operation of line casting machines, for purposes of feeding blank paper tape from a roll of same to said punch.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
39 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 8 in combination with a tape roll holder adapted to hold a 14-inch roll of said paper tape on top of said high-speed output punch and dispense said tape to said unwinding means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
31 words
Unwinding means in accordance with claim 1 in which said roll is mounted for rotation about an axis extending transversely of the axes of rotation of said rollers and drive wheel.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1974-02-08 | 1974-08-10 | 1975-02-09 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1978-02-08 | 1978-08-10 | 1979-02-09 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1982-02-08 | 1982-08-10 | 1983-02-09 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |