Dual grip actuating unit with travel cylinder assembly

Claim 1

In combination, a fixedly mounted piston type pressurizable travel means (C) having a slidable mounted carrier rod (23) and a stop block (19); and also having an outwardly projecting piston rod; (17) said carrier rod (23) at one end having a bumper (25) for engaging said stop block (19), and having its other end outwardly projecting; a unitary self-contained actuating assembly (B) having a movable body (B) in which is a bore (26a) receiving the projected end of the carrier rod, whereby the carrier rod, carried by the fixedly mounted travel means, mounts and carries and guides the actuating means body; said body having at one end a mounting plate (28) and said body (B) also having in it a cylinder (30); said body cylinder (30) having in its other end a hole for receiving the projecting end of the piston rod (17) of the travel means; a piston (40) in the body cylinder (B) of the actuating means (B) at said hole coupled to the projecting piston rod end (17) of the travel means; the actuated piston (40) having a rod (31) projecting through the mounting plate (28), and a coiled compression spring (38) in the cylinder of the actuating means (B) surrounding its piston rod (31) and engaging said piston; whereby, on feed pressurizing of the travel means, its piston rod is moved to move the actuating assembly to slide as a whole slowly on the projecting end of the carrier rod, away from the travel means, until the bumper stop (29) of the carrier rod engages the stop block (19), after which the actuating means body comes to rest, but its piston continues to be moved by the travel piston to the end of its travel away from the travel means, meanwhile compressing the spring (38); and whereby upon retraction pressurizing of the travel means (P2), the compressed spring quickly moves the actuating piston towards the travel means while the piston rod of the travel means is retracted to move the actuating means body also towards the travel means, such latter movement stopping when the actuating body reaches the end of its travel towards the travel means; said combination also including a self-contained gripping assembly comprising a gripper body (A), gripper arms (1) pivotally mounted (3) in the gripper body and having means for detachably coupling the arms to that part of the actuated piston rod projecting through the mounting plate of the actuating assembly; said gripper body including a mounting plate (4) formed for detachable bolting (5) to the mounting plate (28) of the actuating assembly (B), whereby the gripper assembly as a whole may be detachably mounted on the actuating assembly body and its arms detachably coupled to the piston rod of the actuating assembly.