Abstract:
A wire supply control assembly for creating a length of slack wire in readiness for use. The slack wire is stored by arching a length of wire upward along a feeder arm and downward to a baling machine. The wire feeder arm is biased in an upward position by a spring.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     None. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not Applicable. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates generally to wire feeders and, more particularly, wire feeders for bale binding machines. 
     2. Related Art 
     Bale forming and binding machines require a feed of a binding wire from a supply source. The means and mode of supply must be compatible with the binding machine as well as the constraints of the operational setting. One such arrangement of a combination wire feeder and bale binding machine is known as U.S. Wire-Tie™ Systems Model 340 Tier System. Specifically, a wire feeder is shown on page 3 of U.S. Wire-Tie™ Systems 340 Series Automatic Wire Tying Head Operating &amp; Maintenance Instructions and Repair Parts List. 
     There are several difficulties presented by conventional fixed action strapping supply equipment. One difficulty is that a wire feeder has considerable floor space requirements, both for the feeder itself as well as for clearance in its vicinity. Normally, at least some slack in the wire between the wire feeder and the bale binding machine is required for proper operation. Otherwise, if the wire in this section is kept too taut, an increased amount of force is necessary to draw additional wire. This increased force prevents the binding machine from operating properly. If there is too much slack in the wire between the feeder and the baling machine, the wire poses a safety hazard. As the slack wire is drawn into the baling machine, there is a fairly violent and fast acceleration of the wire. This moving wire has the potential to strike operators while the binding machine is operating, and has the potential to strike and damage nearby machinery. 
     Thus, in the prior art, as wire is drawn from a wire feeder, some slack wire surges horizontally and upwardly from between the wire feeder to the baling machine. Once the slack is gone, the baling machine supplies the requisite force necessary to draw an additional length of needed wire. This additional length is the amount of wire necessary to complete the draw length needed by the baling machine together with the amount necessary to provide a subsequent additional length of wire to the same slackness (making ready to repeat the cycle). Alternatively, when the wire feeder is set the appropriate floor distance away from the baling machine such that no additional amount of wire is necessary to complete the draw length, the additional length is the amount of wire necessary to complete provide a subsequent additional length of wire to the same slackness as before (making ready to complete the cycle). In both situations, the baling machine provides the force necessary to draw a length of wire to create a slack wire segment. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is in view of the above problems that the present invention was developed. The invention is a wire supply control assembly that supplies wire from a wire feeder to a baling machine. The wire supply control assembly of the present invention reduces the amount of required floor space by drawing the slack upwardly (instead of horizontally as in the prior art). It is the wire supply control assembly that draws the slack upwardly, not the baling machine. 
     The wire supply control assembly has a wire feeder arm that is pivotally coupled to a wire feeder arm assembly. The wire feeder arm is spring biased to an up position. This higher vertical position creates a length of slack wire equal to at least two times the vertical height of the wire feeder arm. 
     When the baling machine draws wire, the force of the draw from the baling machine pulls the wire feeder arm downward and makes available the slack created by the formerly vertical position of the wire feeder arm. Once the wire draw is complete, the baling machine ceases to exert drawing force on the wire. In the absence of drawing force, the wire feeder arm moves to its upward, biased position as urged by the spring. 
    
    
     Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of the specification, illustrate the embodiments of the present invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. In the drawings: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention illustrating a wire supply controller and a wire feeder wherein a movable wire guide element of the wire feeder disposed in a first position is shown in solid lines and disposed in a second position is shown in broken lines. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to the accompanying drawings in which like reference numbers indicate like elements, FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. A wire feeder apparatus  10  consists of a wire supply control assembly  12  and a wire feeder arm assembly  14 . A base stand  16  of the wire supply control assembly  12  supports upright legs  18  for maintaining the wire supply  20  in readiness for use. Atop the legs  18  is a wire control support member  22  which in turn bears a vertical wire-directing tube  24 . Attached to the tube  24  is a wire control extension arm  26  and a plurality of wire directing rings  28 . 
     In operation the wire is drawn (not depicted) from the supply wire spool  20  through the directing rings  28  into the tube  24  through a port (not depicted) in the side of the tube  24  and directed upward out of the top of tube  24 . The wire direction and control from the supply  20  is open to numerous variations in construction which do not impact on the inventive distinction of the present invention and the present invention is not limited to the means depicted. 
     A base plate  30  of the feeder arm assembly  14  is fixable to the flooring and supports the legs  32  to which are attached the horizontal props  34 . Positioned on the end of the props  34  is a vertical feeder arm inlet cylinder  36  from which extends a vertical hollow housing  38 . An aperture  39  in the side of the housing  38  is open in the same direction as a brace  40  extends from the housing  38 . Wire feeder arm  42  is pivotally coupled at axis  41  to the end of brace  40  and supports wire routing rings  44 . Spring  46  is attached at one end to the top of housing  38  and at the other end approximately midway along feeder am  42 . In operation the wire is drawn (not depicted) from out of the top of tube  24  into the open bottom (not depicted) of and through cylinder  36  into housing  38 , out the aperture  39  and onward through the routing rings  44 . The feeder arm  42  and spring  46  are shown in solid lines disposed in the arrangement occurring when wire is drawn into the bale binder (not depicted). The wire supply  20  supplies the wire that is routed through tube  24  and subsequently in the manner described above. The wire is not shown in the drawings to prevent obscuring wire feeder apparatus  10 . The movable position of the feeder arm  42  is shown in broken lines which illustrate the positions of the feeder arm  42   a  and the spring  46   a  disposed in the arrangement occurring when wire is not being drawn into the bale binding machine. The configuration of the feeder arm  42  and its support assembly  14 , and the wire routing rings  44  and the feeder arm&#39;s movement-executing parts ( 38 ,  40 ,  41 ,  42 ,  46 ) are open to numerous variations in construction which do not impact on the inventive distinction of the present invention nor alter the invention&#39;s true nature and the present invention is not limited to the means depicted. 
     In view of the foregoing, it will be seen that the several advantages of the invention are achieved and attained. 
     The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. 
     As various modifications could be made in the constructions and methods herein described and illustrated without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative rather than limiting. For example, wire routing rings  44  can be replaced with a tube element (not shown), the concept being that of an element for positioning the wire adjacent feeder arm  42  to permit a length of slack wire to be drawn upwardly. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims appended hereto and their equivalents.