Patent US3689965A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US3689965A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Machine for high speed, extremely precise mass working of pieces having small dimensions and complex forms, in particular of metallic small articles
Assignee: Albe SA
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Filing: 1970-07-31
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Granted: 1972-09-12
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Expires: 1990-07-31
Abstract
Abstract Small metallic workpieces are subjected to a sequence of work operations at a surrounding series of work stations, by mounting them on a rotary carrier that rotates intermittently through predetermined equal angular increments successively to dispose each workpiece at each work station.
Inventors
- 👤 Guido Bertoglio
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 14:27
CPC Classifications
B; B23; B23Q; B23Q11/00; B23Q11/0078; B23Q11/0092; B23Q1/00; B23Q1/0009; B23Q16/00; B23Q16/02; B23Q16/022; B23Q16/025; B23Q16/04; B23Q16/06; B23Q39/00; B23Q39/04; B23Q39/042; G; G04; G04D; G04D1/00; G04D1/005; G04D1/0064; G04D3/00; G04D3/0002; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T29/00; Y10T29/51; Y10T29/5124; Y10T29/5127; Y10T29/513; Y10T408/00; Y10T408/36; Y10T408/375; Y10T408/378; Y10T408/3784; Y10T408/38; Y10T408/3806; Y10T408/3809; Y10T408/381; Y10T408/52; Y10T408/54; Y10T408/545
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
358 words
A machine for high speed, extremely precise mass production of pieces having small dimensions and complex forms, characterized: by a turntable (16) stepwise rotating about a central shaft (5) and provided with a plurality of discs (17) carrying the workpieces, said discs being distributed at equally spaced angular intervals along the periphery of said turntable, each interval corresponding to a station in which a certain work operation is carried out, the different work operations being effected simultaneously on different workpieces; coaxially and externally to said central shaft (5) there being disposed in succession from the inside to the outside; an inner stationary sleeve (194), an intermediate bush (18) rotating with said turntable (16) and an outer stationary frame (193); by main members to intermittently move said turntable to pass from one work station to the next one in the shortest possible time; by tool-holding chucks situated in each work station and disposed above, at the side and under the periphery of the turntable in correspondence to each workpiece, said chucks having their working movement imparted thereto by groups of peripheral cams (8) disposed at the periphery of the turntable between one station and the other as well as by a group of axial cams (95) disposed along the axis of the turntable, with possibility of simultaneously working the pieces with at least three chucks for each workpiece-carrying disc, saId chucks having their axes differently disposed and orientable as a whole through an angle of about 200* and fixable to the outer stationary frame (193) coaxial to the central shaft (5); by means to exactly fix with great rigidity the position reach by the turntable at each work station before starting the work operation, said fixing being obtained by engaging and firmly holding said stationary inner sleeve (194) as well as said external stationary frame by secondary members to displace angularly to itself the axis of each workpiece-carrying disc so as to bring the same into the right working position and means to fix the same in the exact position before starting the work operation; said discs being shaped for working with chucks placed below and above the same.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
358 words
A machine for high speed, extremely precise mass production of pieces having small dimensions and complex forms, characterized: by a turntable (16) stepwise rotating about a central shaft (5) and provided with a plurality of discs (17) carrying the workpieces, said discs being distributed at equally spaced angular intervals along the periphery of said turntable, each interval corresponding to a station in which a certain work operation is carried out, the different work operations being effected simultaneously on different workpieces; coaxially and externally to said central shaft (5) there being disposed in succession from the inside to the outside; an inner stationary sleeve (194), an intermediate bush (18) rotating with said turntable (16) and an outer stationary frame (193); by main members to intermittently move said turntable to pass from one work station to the next one in the shortest possible time; by tool-holding chucks situated in each work station and disposed above, at the side and under the periphery of the turntable in correspondence to each workpiece, said chucks having their working movement imparted thereto by groups of peripheral cams (8) disposed at the periphery of the turntable between one station and the other as well as by a group of axial cams (95) disposed along the axis of the turntable, with possibility of simultaneously working the pieces with at least three chucks for each workpiece-carrying disc, saId chucks having their axes differently disposed and orientable as a whole through an angle of about 200* and fixable to the outer stationary frame (193) coaxial to the central shaft (5); by means to exactly fix with great rigidity the position reach by the turntable at each work station before starting the work operation, said fixing being obtained by engaging and firmly holding said stationary inner sleeve (194) as well as said external stationary frame by secondary members to displace angularly to itself the axis of each workpiece-carrying disc so as to bring the same into the right working position and means to fix the same in the exact position before starting the work operation; said discs being shaped for working with chucks placed below and above the same.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
221 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said main members to intermittently move said turntable to pass from one station to the next one comprise a main motor (3) driving, by means of a speed varier, a worm wheel (4) and therewith the main shaft (5) coaxial and idle with respect to said turntable (16), said central shaft (5) carrying, fixed coaxially thereto, a secondary turntable (9) profiled as a cam (19) so as to operate, with intermittent accelerated and decelerated motion and through a lever system (21, 22, 23), a central oscillating lever (24) which is also coaxially and idly mounted on said central shaft (5), said central oscillating lever (24) carrying, in its turn, an engaging member (25) provided with complementary means (18'') situated at the base of the intermediate rotating bush (18) coaxially fixed to the above mentioned turntable (16); the engaging and disengaging of said members (18'', 25) being controlled by a double acting cam (26) fixed to the central shaft (5); said double acting cam being profiled so as to enable, during the angular displacement phase of the central oscillating lever (24), the engagement with the intermediate rotating bush (18) and therefore with the turntable (16) during rotation thereof and the disengagement therefrom during the return phase of said oscillating central lever (24).
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
196 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said system of levers (21, 22, 23) actuate said central oscillating lever (24) over a click-joint comprising a fork member (23'') situated at the end of the lever (23) directly connected to the central oscillating lever (24), said fork member 23'' having a slide member (191) sliding thereon, pivoted to the preceding lever (22) and fixed to a bush (193) having an annular groove (193'') containing balls (194'') situated in holes in a body (195) coaxially placed outside of said bush (193), said body being axially subjected to stresses by a spring (196); the whole being so designed and constructed that during the normal functioning of the machine the joint behaves as a rigid connection while, in case of excessive stresses required to angularly displace the rotating platform (16), the action of said spring is overcome, the balls come out of said annular groove (193'') thereby releasing the bush (193) from the body (195) preventing stress from being transmitted to the central oscillating lever (24) which, in its turn, is connected to the members driving the rotating turntable (16) by way of a damping device (198).
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
77 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said engagement member (25) is made to slide within a container (46) and is subjected to elastic stresses by springs (49); said engagement member (25) and said container comprising there-between the seat for a ball (48) adapted, under normal working conditions, to rigidly connect said two members and, under an axial stress higher than normal, to move radially so as to permit a reciprocal axial sliding motion.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
23 words
The machine as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that one or the other of said complementary engagement members (19'', 25'') are cushioned.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
131 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that to prevent the machine members from breaking in case of incorrect functioning of the machine, tappets acting on said peripheral cams (8) and on said axial cams (95) are provided with damping or cushioning devices, each constituted by two coaxial parts sliding one in the other (41, 42), one part (41) consisting of a hollow cylinder provided with a ball (40), the other part consisting of a coaxial stem (42) provided with a groove (42'') having entering therein said ball pushed by a sleeve (44) subjected to elastic stresses by a spring (43), the whole being so designed that under an excessive stress the ball enters into the recess thereby enabling the stem (42) to slide into the hollow cylinder (41).
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
157 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the secondary members to angularly displace the axis of each disc (17) so as to bring same into the right working position are constituted by a toothed wheel (32) fixed coaxially under each disc and by a toothed segment (33) coaxial with the central shaft (5) of the machine and fixed to the base frame; said toothed segment (33) having at regular intervals, between one work station and the next one, at least a tooth (33'') which is lower than the others so as to permit the angular displacement of the disc driven by the turntable (16) without any of its own rotation, whereby the angular displacement of the disc passing from one working station to the next one may be varied by varying the number of teeth of the toothed segment (33) with respect to the number of teeth of the above mentioned toothed wheel (32).
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
85 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the position of the turntable (16) and the one of the workpieces-carrying discs (17) is fixed in correspondence to each working station by means of blocking rods (14, 15) carried by a disc (13) actuated by a double acting cam (10) fixed to a secondary turntable (9) fixed to the central shaft (5); said blocking rods passing through holes in the stationary part of the machine and holes in the step wise rotating turntable (16).
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
75 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the groups of peripheral cams (8) and the group of axial cams (95) are operated by a pair of bevel gears (7), the pair fixed to the central shaft (5) having a number of teeth which is a multiple of the one driving the peripheral cams (8) according to the number of work stations so as to readily permit the phase setting of the machine.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
116 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by members to facilitate the acceleration and the deceleration of the rotating turntable (16) comprising: a first electromagnetic coupling (28) by way of which the central shaft (5) is actuated by the main motor (3) over a speed variator; a second electro-magnetic coupling (30) by way of which the central shaft (5) is driven by an auxiliary motor (31) having a speed (n2) which is different from that of the main motor (n1) while an additional coupling (29) serves to stop the central shaft (5) in case of an emergency; the connection of said electromagnetic coupling being controlled by a contactor through the group of peripherical cams (8).
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
124 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by members to control the rotating turntable (16) with two different speeds which are adjustable by means of a direct current motor the speed of which is electronically controlled a generator-tachometer (53) generating an electric potential which is directly proportional to the number of revolution of the motor, the rotary speeds of the rotating turntable being preselected by means of two potentiometers (54, 55) while a commutator (63) driven by one of the lateral cams (8) inserts one or the other of the preselected speeds; a braking circuit, in which the motor is used as a generator, for the rapid change from one speed to the other, while an electromagnetic brake is provided for emergency stopping.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
151 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by a meChanical device to facilitate the acceleration and deceleration of the rotating turntable (16) by increasing the displacement speed thereof from one work station to the next one, said device being characterized by an inner body (194) fixed to the central shaft (5) and having radial holes with pistons (101) sliding therein, said pistons being stressed outwards by springs (102), and having fixed thereto rollers (104) which slide along concave surfaces (105) provided in the cylinder (18) in a number equal to that of the work stations of the turntable (16), said concave surfaces being disposed in such a way that, when the turntable stands still during the work operation, the rollers (104) are in the highest region of said concave surfaces while, during the displacement phase of the turntable, they are in the lateral or central region of said concave surfaces.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
137 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by rocker arm devices to control the displacement of each tool-carrying chuck; each device comprising a lever (117) actuated by a tappet (116) receiving the motion from a control cam (8), said lever (117) acting on a pivot (118) to transmit the motion by way of a profiled pawl (70) to two coaxial and polygonal lateral bushes (71, 71'') one of said bushes actuating a lateral arm (94), the other actuating another lateral arm (94'') each placed at one side of a chuck-actuating motor (98); said pawl being so profiled as to have two grooves (70'', 70'''') defining a central protruding portion acted upon by the driving force whereby the same is distributed in balanced manner on each of said two arms, placed at one side of the motor.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
78 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by devices to displace the axis of each chuck parallel to itself within a given area for to work pieces with complicated forms, each device comprising two bushes with parallel axes (73, 74) eccentrically disposed one within the other and angularly displaceable by means of a gear control unit (75, 76); the inner bush being adapted to receive axially slidable therein on balls the motor (98) carrying the corresponding chuck.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
138 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by devices applicable to the various chucks to permit the displacement thereof along two axes, a vertical and a horizontal one, each device comprising a frame (130) having fixed thereto the preselected chuck (99), said frame being slidable along horizontal guides (131) with the control coming from one of the peripheral cams (8) by way of a roller (133) and a lever (132), the combination of members forming the frame (130) and the guide (131) being adapted to slide vertically along vertical guiding columns by means of a second cam of the peripheral group (8) and of a central lever (136); said frame (130) being adapted to be fixed to the vertical columns (135) by means of a gauge member when its displacement along the coordinate axes is not required.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
130 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by devices enabling the various tools to effect circular motions, each device comprising a bush (136) with an eccentric guiding hole (136'''') for the corresponding chuck (98); said bush (136) being provided at its periphery with a toothed wheel (136'') engaging a complementary toothing (137) of a wheel actuated by way of a shaft (141) by a second toothed wheel (138) which is driven by a rack (139) set into motion by a lever (140) driven by way of a tappet by one of the cams of the peripheral group (8) (FIG. 1); whereby said chuck (98) may also effect contemporaneously a vertical displacement by way of a second lever (142) actuated by one of the cams of the axial group (95).
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
148 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by a device feeding and straightening raw wire coming from a supply of wire, said device comprising a frame (145) set into rotation by the main shaft (5) of the machine; said frame carrying at least three bushes (148), the central one of which is eccentric with respect to the twO others and also with respect to the rotational axis, the eccentricity being variable according to the diameter of the wire and the type of material; said frame being adapted to perform simultaneously also an intermittent axial displacement controlled by a cam (149) by means of a rod (150) and a lever (151), the wire being fed axially with a speed which is larger than that of the axial displacement of the above mentioned frame so that the wire is straightened also during the axial return motion of said frame.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
99 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by a device for horizontally feeding wire comprising a slide (167) having two levers (168, 168'') pivoted thereon and pushed by two springs (169, 169''), said levers firmly holding the previously straightened wire during the forward travel of the slide and releasing said wire during the return travel of the same; said slide being driven by way of a lever (170) by a tappet-cam (171); a milling tool (173) also actuated by way of a tappet-cam (174) cutting the wire once the same has been introduced into the corresponding self-centering gripper.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
211 words
The machine as claimed in claim 1, characterized by a device to introduce in the chucks pressed, pre-turned, stamped or otherwise pre-profiled raw pieces or blanks, said device comprising a piston (176) axially driven by a lever (177) actuated by a cam of the axial group, a rotary motion about its axis being imparted to said piston by way of a toothed wheel (179) and a rack (178) actuated by a second cam of the axial group (95), said piston carrying at its lower end a square shaped member (180), the ends of which have pivoted thereto two pairs of jaws (181, 181'') held in closed position by springs (182, 182''), whereby said jaws may be opened by a rod (183) with a conical lower end portion (183'') coaxial to said piston (176) and driven by a mechanism (184) with a cam (200) and a tappet (185); a pair of said jaws serving to clamp the finished piece (187) and the other clamp a blank (186); the lifting and successive rotation through 90* of said square shape member (180), after the finished piece has been disengaged from the corresponding self-centering gripper (169), permitting the discharge of the finished piece and the introduction of a new blank in said self-centering gripper (179).
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US2803840A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-09-12 | 1976-03-13 | 1976-09-12 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-09-12 | 1980-03-13 | 1980-09-12 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-09-12 | 1984-03-13 | 1984-09-12 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |