US3851552A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Slitting machine
Assignee: Armstrong World Industries Inc
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Filing: 1973-10-17
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Granted: 1974-12-03
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Expires: 1993-10-17
Abstract
Abstract The invention contemplates a tool for slitting a tubular work piece of substantially constant cross-section, particularly for work pieces of relatively large bore diameter. To this end, a forwardly cantilevered frame includes elongate shoes or rails for retaining and supporting the bore of the work piece, at angularly spaced locations. At one or more of these locations an elongate guide serves a cutter slide or shuttle, there being two such guides or shuttles for the situation in which a cylindrical tube is to be severed (or substantially severed) into semi-cylindrical halves. The coordinated reciprocating feed of the slides is so synchronized with actuation of the cutter elements carried thereby that the slitting cut is made only during one stroke, the return stroke, of the slide-actuating cycle. In one specifically described embodiment, two cutter elements, one on each of two diametrically opposed slides, are set to project for cut at different maximum radii, one being such as to cut at less than full work-piece thickness, the other being set for greater than work-piece thickness. For a flexibly sheathed work piece, the slitted work piece thus becomes two hingedly related, substantially alike, elongated halves of the original tubing.
Inventors
- 👤 R English
- 👤 R Benson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 06:14
CPC Classifications
B; B26; B26D; B26D3/00; B26D3/006; B26D1/00; B26D1/01; B26D1/04; B26D1/045; B26D3/001; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T83/00; Y10T83/02; Y10T83/0267; Y10T83/384; Y10T83/386; Y10T83/395; Y10T83/398; Y10T83/869; Y10T83/8748
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 25
Claim 1
Independent Claim
143 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including borecontacting means extending along and within the bore of an elongated tubular work piece for removably supporting the work piece with its axis fixedly oriented, said frame including an elongated guide within the bore of the supported work piece, a shuttle including means coacting with said guide within the bore of the work piece, reciprocable actuating means coacting between said frame means and said shuttle for imparting to said shuttle a two-stroke cycle of guided longitudinal traverse in the bore of the work piece, radially retractable and extensible cutting means carried by said shuttle, and means synchronizing the radial position of said cutting means with said cycle such that in one of said strokes said cutting means is in retracted position and in the other of said strokes said cutting means is in work-piece cutting position.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
143 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including borecontacting means extending along and within the bore of an elongated tubular work piece for removably supporting the work piece with its axis fixedly oriented, said frame including an elongated guide within the bore of the supported work piece, a shuttle including means coacting with said guide within the bore of the work piece, reciprocable actuating means coacting between said frame means and said shuttle for imparting to said shuttle a two-stroke cycle of guided longitudinal traverse in the bore of the work piece, radially retractable and extensible cutting means carried by said shuttle, and means synchronizing the radial position of said cutting means with said cycle such that in one of said strokes said cutting means is in retracted position and in the other of said strokes said cutting means is in work-piece cutting position.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
38 words
The machine of claim 1, in which said frame means includes elongated work-bore positioning elements at angularly placed locations about the axis of a workpiece supported thereby, said shuttle being guided between two of said work-bore supporting elements.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
43 words
The machine of claim 2, in which said frame includes a fixed central elongated member and in which at least two of said work-bore positioning elements are diametrically opposed on opposite sides of said member and are adjustably positionable in offseT relation thereto.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
62 words
The machine of claim 1, in which said guide is an elongate channel oriented with its mouth open in the radially outward direction, work-bore piloting means at the outer limits of said channel, said last-defined means retaining said shuttle in clearance relation with the work-bore supporting radius, and said cutting means being retractable and extensible via the open mouth of said channel.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
56 words
The machine of claim 4, in which said channel is one of two, at angularly spaced locations about the axis of a workpiece supported by said bore-contacting and piloting means, in which a second similar shuttle is guided in said second channel, and in which said synchronizing means is connected for coordinated operation of both shuttles.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
45 words
The machine of claim 1, in which said cutting means comprises a blade pivotally supported by said shuttle, stop means coacting between said shuttle and blade for limiting an outwardly projected blade position, and resilient means biasing said blade in the direction of stop-means coaction.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
26 words
The machine of claim 6, in which said stop means includes a selectively adjustable element, whereby the limited projected extent of said blade may be selected.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
120 words
The machine of claim 1, for operation on a tubular work piece of predetermined length, and wherein said guide is of effective length overlapping both limits of said predetermined length, said cutting means comprising a blade pivoted to said shuttle and resiliently outwardly urged to a fixed radially projected position, the main body of said blade trailing the point of pivotal support in a first stroke wherein the blade is retained by the work bore in a retracted position, said first stroke driving the shuttle sufficiently beyond the work bore as to have the blade clear the end of the work bore, whereby the blade is automatically outwardly projected before the blade encounters the work piece on the return stroke.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
23 words
The machine of claim 5, wherein said channels are at substantially diametrically opposed locations, and means for selectively determining the diametrical spacing thereof.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
70 words
The machine of claim 9, in which the cutting means of each shuttle is a pivoted blade, and stop means associated with the respective blades and shuttles and determining first and second different maximum projected limits for the respective blades, whereby for a work piece of outer radius intermediate said different limits, one blade will cut the full work-piece thickness while the other blade cuts short of full work-piece thickness.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
124 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including projecting cantilevered means for removably supporting an elongated tubular work piece with its elongation axis fixedly oriented, said frame including a fixed central stem member extending substantially the cantilevered extent, a first pair of diametrically opposed elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement, a second pair of diametrically opposed elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement at locations angularly offset from the shoes of said first pair, two of said shoes including elongated guide means, separate slides guided by each of said guide means, radially movable work cutting elements carried by said slides, and means synchronizing radial movement of said cutting elements with longitudinally guided movement of said slides.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
124 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including projecting cantilevered means for removably supporting an elongated tubular work piece with its elongation axis fixedly oriented, said frame including a fixed central stem member extending substantially the cantilevered extent, a first pair of diametrically opposed elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement, a second pair of diametrically opposed elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement at locations angularly offset from the shoes of said first pair, two of said shoes including elongated guide means, separate slides guided by each of said guide means, radially movable work cutting elements carried by said slides, and means synchronizing radial movement of said cutting elements with longitudinally guided movement of said slides.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
21 words
The machine of claim 11, in which all said shoes are selectively radially positionable, for accommodation of selected different work-bore diameters.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
33 words
The machine of claim 11, in which the shoes of one of said pairs are elongated members of like four-bar linkages in which said stem is a bar common to both four-bar linkages.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
32 words
The machine of claim 11, in which said frame includes forward and rear floor-based supports, said stem being secured to both forward and rear supports and projecting integrally for the cantilevered extent.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
31 words
The machine of claim 14, in Which said stem is hollow, and slide-actuating control means including a manually operable member at the forward end of the cantilevered part of said stem.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
75 words
The machine of claim 15, in which the slide-actuating control determines a cycle of reciprocation of said slides, from rearwardly retracted position to forwardly projected position, and return, the synchronizing being such that said cutting elements are retracted during the forward stroke of said cycle and are radially outwardly projected during the return stroke of said cycle, whereby work-piece loading over and removal from the cantilevered end may be accomplished remote from said cutting elements.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
103 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including projecting cantilevered means for removably supporting an elongated tubular work piece with its elongation axis fixedly oriented, said frame including a fixed central stem member extending substantially the cantilevered extent, a plurality of elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement at angularly spaced locations about said stem member, each of a plurality of said shoes including elongated guide means, separate slides guided by each of said guide means, radially movable work-cutting elements carried by said slides, and means synchronizing radial movement of said cutting elements with longitudinally guided movement of said slides.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
103 words
A slitting machine, comprising frame means including projecting cantilevered means for removably supporting an elongated tubular work piece with its elongation axis fixedly oriented, said frame including a fixed central stem member extending substantially the cantilevered extent, a plurality of elongate work-supporting shoes carried by said stem for work-bore supporting engagement at angularly spaced locations about said stem member, each of a plurality of said shoes including elongated guide means, separate slides guided by each of said guide means, radially movable work-cutting elements carried by said slides, and means synchronizing radial movement of said cutting elements with longitudinally guided movement of said slides.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
20 words
The machine of claim 17, in which two of the shoes having said guide means are at diametrically opposed locations.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
19 words
The machine of claim 17, in which the number of shoes having said guide means is greater than two.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
20 words
The machine of claim 19, in which the shoes having said guide means are at substantially equal angularly spaced locations.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
17 words
The machine of claim 17, in which the number of shoes having said guide means is three.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
19 words
The machine of claim 21, in which the shoes having said guide means are at substantially equally spaced locations.
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) | 1977-12-02 | 1978-06-03 | 1978-12-03 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-12-02 | 1982-06-03 | 1982-12-03 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-12-02 | 1986-06-03 | 1986-12-03 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |