Automatic cutter positioning device for a gang slitter

Claim 1

A gang slitter having automatically positioned cutters, said gang slitter comprising: a frame assembly consisting of an upper frame having rails attached to the underside of said upper frame, a base having rails attached to the upperside of said base, and side frames; fixed upper and lower cutter heads having cutter means and mounted on said upper frame and base, said cutter means adapted to operatively engage one another; upper movable cutter heads including cutter means suspendedly and slidably mounted on said rails attached to upper frame; lower movable cutter heads including cutter means and slidably mounted on said rails attached to said base, pairs of said upper and lower movable cutter means being adapted to be positioned adjacent one another to form a cutter pair; cutter means journalling cases vertically slidably mounted on each said cutter head; means for vertically driving all of said journal cases to adjust the vertical overlap of said cutter pairs; spline shafts adapted for driving said cutter means from outside said cases being provided in said frame assembly and fixedly journalled by said side frames; power transmitting means connected between said spline shafts and cutter means in said vertically slidable journalling cases, said power transmitting means being adapted to compensate for the vertical movement of said journalling cases relative to said spline shafts; means for simultaneously, independently, horizontally moving all of said movable cutter heads for adjusting the width of the cut strips, said means for horizontally moving including means for moving the forwardly located cutter means of each said cutter pair, in the direction of movement, faster than the other cutter means of said pair whereby said cutter means are not damaged.