Staple forming and driving machine

A staple forming and driving tool for forming staple wires fed from a staple belt into staples and driving such staples into a workpiece comprising a driver, a former positioned to be driven by the driver, a former block and a sheath, all of which parts are held to a stationary stapler head by means of a single spring. The driver blade, former, sheath and stapler head have generally planar portions positioned in parallel planes and are held in contact with one another by the spring. In the event of jamming, the spring may give permitting the sheath to move away from the fixed stapler head, thus providing space for ejection of one or more jammed staples or staple blanks. Upon correction of the jamming, the parts promptly reassume their proper position under the urging of the spring and the device is ready for operation once again.

DESCRIPTION 
1. Technical Field 
This invention relates to staple forming and driving machines of the type 
that form a staple from a wire staple blank and drive the same. More 
particularly, this invention relates to such a staple forming and driving 
machine or stapler and its method of operation, in which the staple is 
formed and driven in one stroke of the operating mechanism. 
2. Background Art 
Staple forming and driving mechanisms are known in which staples are formed 
and driven in one stroke. Examples of such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. 
Nos. 1,757,883, 2,659,885, 3,728,774 and 3,746,236, in all of which the 
staple is first cut from a coil of wire or a metal band, and then formed 
and driven. Furthermore, in all of these four patents separate linkages, 
levers, cams and the like connect the former and the driver to the source 
of power. That is, to say, except for the source of power, the former and 
driver have separate linkages due to the fact that the staple must be 
first formed and then driven. This leads to problems in that it requires a 
considerable number of moving parts and, further, the timing can be 
adversely effected with wear, such that the staple is not properly formed 
before driving. 
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,009,156 and 3,690,537 staple formers and drivers are 
disclosed which form and drive a staple from a belt of staple blanks and 
which, moreover, operate the former from the driver which, in turn, is 
driven by the main drive source. Accordingly, in each of these U.S. Pat. 
Nos. 3,009,156 and 3,690,537 there is no separate linkage provided for the 
former and the driver but, rather, means is provided between the former 
and the driver so that after the staple has been formed, the former is 
disconnected from the driver and the driver continues on to drive the 
formed staple. Stated otherwise, there is a lost motion arrangement 
between the former and the driver. While these latter two staple formers 
and drivers do reduce the number of moving parts and the various linkages, 
they still have a very considerable number of moving parts and, in 
particular, the releasable connection between the former and driver is 
relatively comples. 
Moreover, in all of such above mentioned staple former and driver devices, 
the number of parts with attendant pivots and the like require a 
relatively large housing even for driving the standard desk-type staple. 
Accordingly, up to the present time, most desk staplers have been of the 
type which merely drive pre-formed staples since the complications 
attendant upon forming as well as driving has heretofore involved a large 
number of parts, thus increasing costs both for raw materials and for 
assembly. Such costs have generally not been amenable to pricing such 
staple former and driving devices into the office market for use on desks 
by individuals. 
Still further, with the complication of forming as well as driving, it will 
be appreciated that there is a greater tendency to jam the stapler. In all 
of the above, unjamming of the stapler can sometimes be accomplished 
merely by repeated strikes upon the operating knob but, at other times, 
some disassembly of the mechanism will be required to alleviate a jammed 
staple or staple blank condition. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention is directed to the production of a relatively small 
desk-type stapler which both forms and drives the staple from a belt of 
staple blanks retained in a cartridge. One object of the invention is to 
produce such a stapler with as few moving parts as possible in order to 
reduce the cost and to greatly increase reliability despite possible wear 
of the parts. 
Still further, it is another purpose of the invention to provide a staple 
former and driving device in which any jammed condition of a staple blank 
or of a partially or fully formed staple may be alleviated simply by 
repeated operation of the stapler. 
To this end, the stapler of this invention includes a driver, a former 
positioned to be driven by the driver, a former block and a sheath, all of 
which parts are held to a stationary stapler head by means of a single 
spring. 
The driver blade, former, sheath and stapler head have generally planar 
portions positioned in parallel planes and held in contact with one 
another by the aforementioned spring means. In the event of jamming, the 
spring may give permitting the sheath to move away from the fixed stapler 
head, thus providing space for ejection of one or more jammed staples or 
staple blanks. Upon correction of the jamming, the parts promptly reassume 
their proper position under the urging of the spring and the device is 
ready for proper operation once again. 
A greatly simplified coupling means is provided between the driver and the 
former in order to provide the required lost motion. To this end, the 
driver blade is formed of spring steel or other flexible material and has 
two driver legs, one on each of the lateral sides thereof which engage 
laterally extending shoulders on the former in order to transmit to the 
former the motion of the driver caused by operation of the operating 
mechanism (manual knob or solenoid). Cam faces on the interior of the 
sheath are positioned to cam the legs thus springing them outwardly 
against their natural spring force to disengage the driver legs from the 
former shoulders after formation of the staple, so that further downward 
movement of the driver carries the former in frictional engagement with 
the driver until the former strikes the workpiece.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT INVENTION 
As shown in FIGS. 1-4, the staple former and driver 10 comprises a base 20 
to which is secured a staple head 30. As shown, the staple head 30 
comprises a base portion 32 and an upright front portion 34. The base 
portion 32 is welded or otherwise secured at its rearward end to an 
upright 22 extending upward from the base 20. This securement of the 
staple head 30 is shown merely by way of an example, other means of 
securing the staple head 30 in fixed relationship to the base 20 may be 
utilized. A front sheath 40 is secured to the stapler head 30 for vertical 
movement with respect thereto by means of a spring clamp 50 is bent 
inwardly to provide inwardly projecting legs 52 which pass through 
openings 54 on opposite sides of the front sheath 40. The legs 52 extend 
toward each other somewhat, a distance sufficient to engage behind the 
rearward edge 36 of the front portion 34 of the staple head 30. Laterally 
extending ears 38 on either side of the staple head are embraced by 
U-shaped slots 42 on either side of the front sheath 40. Forwardly 
extending spacer lugs 33 formed integrally with the front portion 34 of 
the staple head 30 bear against the inner surface 46 of the front sheath 
40 to hold the same in fixed spaced relationship to the front portion 34 
of the staple head 30. 
Centrally located in front sheath 40 is an elongated rectangular opening 44 
which receives the nose portion 62 of a former block 60. The spring clamp 
50 has a downwardly bent generally V-shaped portion 56 which bears against 
the outer surface of the former block to maintain the same resiliency in 
position as shown in FIG. 1. In the space between the staple head 30 and 
the front sheath 40 provided by the spacer lugs 33 are positioned a former 
member 70 for forming a staple from a short piece of wire and a driver 80. 
The former 70 lies against the inner surface 46 of the front sheath 40 and 
is positioned between two elongated vertical guideways 48 extending 
inwardly toward the staple head 30 from the front sheath 40. These 
guideways 48 may be punched or otherwise formed from the same material as 
the front sheath 40. The former 70 is of generally inverted U-shape having 
two downwardly extending legs 72 which are generally thicker than the 
upper portion 74 of the former. The outer surfaces 76 of the legs 72 bear 
against the adjacent facing surface 47 of the guideways 48. At its upper 
end, the former 70 is reduced in width in the area of the central member 
74, thus providing two lateral upwardly facing shoulders 78. The central 
portion 74 includes a tang 75 cut from the material of the former 70 and 
bent rearwardly to extend through a vertical slot 82 in the driver 80. 
Referring to FIG. 5, the driver includes two lateral pusher elements 84 
separated from the driver blade 86 by slots 88 The pusher elements 84 are 
bent slightly along the lines 89 to extend forward and bear against the 
inner surface 46 of the front sheath 40. The edges 85 of the pusher 
elements 84 are, therefore, normally in alignment with the upwardly facing 
shoulders 78 on the former member 70. The outer portions of the edges 85 
are in alignment with sloped cam surfaces 49 on guideways 48, which cam 
surfaces 49 face toward the outer portions of the edges 85. 
Each of the legs 72 of the former 70 in an area just below the upwardly 
facing shoulders 78 has a recess portion 79. Each of the legs 72 also has 
along its inwardly facing edge a groove 77, which grooves 77 together form 
a raceway to assist in forming and driving the staple. The outer lateral 
edges 87 of the driver blade 86 are convex to fit within the curved 
cross-section of the raceway forming grooves 77. 
In addition to the spacer lugs 33, the front portion 34 of the staple head 
has two forwardly projecting combination guide lugs 35 positioned on 
either side of the driver blade 80 to assist in guiding the same during 
its vertical movement. These are shown broken away from the front portion 
34 in FIGS. 5 and 6 in which figures the front piece 34 is not shown. It 
will be seen that the opposite side edges 83 of the driver blade 80 
slidingly engage the inner surfaces of these guide lugs 35. 
Extending rearwardly from the surface 46 of the sheath 40 are two stop lugs 
43 which engage the upper edge 81 of the former 70 on the return stroke to 
limit its upper movement. These stop lugs 43 also bear against the front 
face of the driver blade 80 lightly, in order to lend rigidity thereto 
during operation. 
The stapler is constructed to accept a cartridge 90 comprising a housing 
92, only portions of which are shown (see FIG. 9). The cartridge carries 
within it a roll 94 of short lengths of wire secured together in belt 
fashion and exiting through a chute 96 at the bottom of the housing. As 
shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the chute 96 has laterally projecting ears 98 
engaged beneath inwardly projecting lugs 37 on the bottom member 32 of the 
staple head. This engagement between the ears 98 and the lugs 37 insures 
proper alignment of the outlet 102 of the chute 96 with an opening 100 in 
the front portion 34 of the staple head 30. Suitable fastening means, not 
shown, secures the housing 92 to the staple head 30. 
Mounted inside front portion 34 is a feed finger plate 104 having laterally 
extending ears 106 fitting loosely in openings 108 in the front portion 34 
(see FIGS. 2 and 9). This feed finger plate 104 has two depending members 
110, one on either side thereof. A spring steel feed spring 112 is secured 
to the feed finger plate 104 by means of two rivets 116 passing through 
two openings 114 in the feed spring 112 and cooperating openings 118 near 
the bottom of each of the depending members 110 of the feed finger plate 
104. Between the depending members 110 is an actuating tongue 120 
extending downwardly and somewhat forwardly of the depending members 110. 
In the assembled condition of the parts shown in FIG. 9, the rearwardly 
extending tang 75 on the former 70 bears against the depending tongue 120 
to activate the feed finger plate and feed spring 112 to feed staple wires 
200 as hereinafter described. The feed spring 112 terminates in two 
fingers 121 which bear against the staple wires 200 in the belt 94 as 
shown in FIG. 9. Loosely mounted in the chute 96 (see FIG. 4) is an 
anti-retraction plate 122 held in place by lugs 124 and positioned largely 
by gravity and having two depending fingers 126 resting upon the staple 
wires 200 in the belt 94. The rearward edge 128 of the anti-retraction 
plate 122 bears against a portion of the housing 92 in order to prevent 
the staple wires 200 from moving backward toward the cartridge. 
The upper end 130 of the driver blade 80 is secured within the operating 
knob 132 and a retraction spring 134 extends between the knob 132 and a 
rearwardly extending flange 138 is integral with front portion 34. The 
retraction spring 134 urges the knob 132 and the upper blade end 130 in 
the upward direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow 140 in FIG. 
9. 
The base 20 has an anvil 21 secured thereto on its upper surface, which 
anvil 21 has a pair of clinching grooves 23 in alignment with the driver 
blade 80. 
At the beginning of a cycle of operation, the retraction spring 134 is at 
its most fully expanded condition, the operating knob 132 is at its upward 
position as shown in FIG. 9 as is the driver blade 80. The lead staple 
wire 200 is positioned in a groove 64 in the nose 62 of the former block 
60. The former 70 is in its most extreme upward position with its upper 
edge 81 engaged beneath the stops 43. Rearwardly extending tang 75 on the 
former 70 is close to or lightly bearing against the depending tongue 120 
of the feed finger plate 104 in an area thereof indicated at 131 in FIG. 
9. 
Upon one swift operation of the operating knob 132 downwardly, a staple 
wire 200 is formed and driven while the feed spring 112 and feed fingers 
121 are cocked to deliver the next staple wire 200 to the groove 64. Upon 
release of the knob 132, the parts rapidly reassume their position as just 
described and as shown in FIG. 9, and, in doing so, a new staple wire 200 
is deliverd to the groove 64. 
More specifically, the operation is as follows: 
1. Upon initial depression of the knob 132, the driver blade 80 is moved 
downwardly in the direction of the arrow 140. Almost immediately after 
travelling perhaps only 0.001" more or less, the lower edges 85 of the 
driver legs 84 on the driver blade 80 contact the upwardly facing 
shoulders 78 on the former 70. Continued movement of the blade 80 under 
the force applied by the knob 132 now carries the former blade 70 
downwardly as well. 
To the rear, promptly upon downward movement of the former 70, the tang 75 
begins to move along the sloped cam surface 142 on the depending tongue 
120 and begins to move the tongue 120 rearwardly about its pivot 108 
against the urging of the curved feed finger spring 112. 
2. Very shortly after the former 70 begins to move downward under the force 
applied thereto by the driver blade 80 through the driver legs 84, the 
lower edges of the legs 72 on the former come into contact with the 
lateral ends of the staple wire 200 being held in the groove 64 of the 
former block. 
3. Further downward movement of the former 70 as it is driven by the driver 
blade 80 begins to break the lateral ends of the staple wire 200 loose 
from the associated belt 94 of staple wires 200 secured together by an 
adhesive or other known means such as tape. Simultaneously, the legs 72 of 
the former begin to bend the lateral ends of the staple wire 200 
downwardly. 
4. The force applied through the former legs 72 to the lateral ends of the 
staple wire 200 is resisted by the inertia of block 60 and sheath 40 and 
by the pressure applied therto by spring 50. Accordingly, the lateral ends 
of the staple wire 200 are bent downwardly smoothly and continuously by 
the downward movement of the legs 72. During this movement, the legs 
become positioned in the raceways 77 in the legs 72. Shortly after the 
staple is formed to its U-shape, the bight or edge 73 of the former comes 
into contact with the top surface 63 of the nose 62 of the former block 
60. Continued movement of the former 70 downwardly under the force applied 
thereto by the driver blade 80 now pushes the block 60 downward as well. 
Since the block 60 is fitted within an opening 44 in the sheath 40, the 
sheath 40 will be moved downwardly with the block 60. During this 
movement, the ends 52 of the spring clamp 50 ride downward along the 
rearward edge 36 of the staple head 30. However, the resistance to 
downward movement applied by the spring 50 in this arrangement is not 
great and may or may not be sufficient to hold the block 60 and sheath 40 
in their up position during forming of the staple. To a considerable 
degree, this will depend on the strenght and stiffness of the staple wire 
200. It will also depend in part on how firmly the staple wire 200 is 
secured to the next succeeding staple wire 200 in the belt 94. 
Accordingly, very little, if any, bending of the ends of the staple wire 
200 under the force applied thereto by the legs 72 may take place before 
this force is transmitted to the block 60 and the front sheath 40 causing 
them to move downwardly until the front sheath 40 comes into contact with 
the workpiece 300 resting on the anvil 21. Depending upon the interplay of 
the various frictional forces, this movement downwardly of the block 60 
and front sheath 40 may occur even before there is actually any bending of 
the lateral ends of the staple wire 200; or it may take place during the 
bending since the frictional forces increase as the lateral ends are 
formed and come to rest within the raceways 77 formed in the depending 
legs 72; or (as is normally the case) it may not occur until the bight 73 
comes into contact with the surface 63 of block 60 after formation of the 
staple. 
To the rear, during downward movement of the former 70, the tang 75 passes 
along the cam surface 142 of the tongue 120 and over a bend 144 therein to 
a flat area 136. Once the tang 75 has reached the area 136, no further 
backward or cocking movement of the tongue 120 takes place but, rather, 
the cocked position is maintained. This cocking action of the tongue 120 
under the urging of the tang 75 must be completed before the driver legs 
84 on the driver 80 come into contact with the cams 49 on the upper ends 
of the guide ways 48 as hereinafter described. If this cocking action were 
not completed before the bottom edges 85 of the legs 84 reach the cams 49, 
there would not be enough pressure applied to the former 70 by the driver 
80 to insure cocking of the tongue 120 as described. This rearward 
movement of the tongue 120 carries with it to the rear the depending 
members 110 and the feed fingers 121 which rest upon the belt 94 of staple 
wires 200. This movement backward is very slight being only approximately 
the thickness of one staple wire and less than twice such thickness. This 
rearward position is maintained until release of the knob 132 as described 
hereinafter. During this rearward motion of the tongue 120, the 
anti-retraction plate 122 insures that the belt 94 does not retract, thus 
permitting the feed fingers 121 to get a grip on one additional staple 
wire 200 rearward of its previous position. 
5. Since the distance between the top surface 63 of the former block 60 and 
the bottom end of the sheath 40 is substantially the same as the distance 
between the bight 73 and the bottom ends of the legs 72 of the former 70, 
the sheath 40 and the bottom ends of the legs 72 normally come into 
contact with the workpiece 300 substantially simultaneously. If, however, 
the interplay of the frictional forces are such as described above, in 
which the sheath 40 comes into contact with the workpiece 300 before the 
former 70 has completed its downward motion, then, once the sheath 40 does 
contact the workpiece 300, the former 70 will continue to move downwardly 
forming the staple 200, and then sliding downwardly along the sides of the 
staple until the bottom ends of the legs 72 also strike the workpiece 300. 
Just before the ends of the legs 72 come into contact with the workpiece 
300, the bottom edges 85 of the driver legs 84 begin to ridge upwardly on 
the cams 49 causing legs 84 to move rearwardly against their natural 
spring pressure caused by the bend lines 89. This causes legs 84 to 
disengage from the upwardly facing shoulders 78 and to slide frictionally 
along the surface 79 of the legs 72. The thickness of the legs 72 in the 
area of the surfaces 79 is equal to the thickness of the guide ways 48 so 
that the driver legs 84 may slide downwardly along the guide ways 48 while 
maintaining contact with the surfaces 79 on the former legs 72, thus 
causing the former 70 to complete the last small increment of its movement 
downward into contact with the workpiece 300. 
6. Further movement downwardly of the driver 80 with the bottom edges 85 of 
the driver legs 84 is frictional engagement with the surface 79, maintains 
the former legs 72 in contact with the workpiece 300 while the driver legs 
84 move downwardly along the surfaces 79 and also along ways or ribs 48. 
Up until the point where the drive blade 80 begins to move downward 
relative to the stopped former 70, the tang 75 on the former 70 has been 
poostioned in the bottom or relatively close to the bottom of slot 82 in 
driver 80. Now as the blade 80 moves downwardly, the slot 82 moves 
downwardly relative to the stopped tang 75. During this movement, the 
bottom edge 180 of the driver blade 80 strikes the bevelled upper corner 
66 of the former block 60, thus forcing the former block outwardly with 
respect to the front sheath 40 and against the urging of the center 
portions 56 of the spring 50. This releases the now formed staple from the 
former block 60; however, the legs of the staple still reside in the 
raceways 77 formed by the former legs 72. 
7. Promptly upon the former block moving outwardly, the bottom edge 180 of 
the driver 80 passes thereby and strikes the crown of the now formed 
staple, driving the same downwardly through the workpiece whereupon the 
ends are crimped by the grooves 23 in the anvil 21 in known manner. During 
this final driving of the staple, the raceways 77 guide the staple and the 
driver 80. 
8. Upon completion of the downward stroke, the sheath 40 and former legs 72 
are in their extreme downward position bearing against the workpiece while 
the driver blade 80 is bearing against the crown of the now driver staple. 
Upon release of the operating knob 132, the spring 134 urges the knob 132 
upwardly in a direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow 140. This 
upward movement of the knob 132 carries with it the driver blade 80. 
During upward movement of the blade 80, the slot 82 therein also moves 
upwardly with respect to the tang 75 on the former 70. When the bottom 
edge of the slot 82 engages the tang 75, further upward movement of the 
blade 80 under the forces applied by the spring 134 will carry with it the 
former 70. At some point during the upward movement of the blade 80 and 
the former 70, the sheath 40 and the former block 60 will begin to move 
upwardly as well. The particular point at which the sheath 40 and the 
former block 60 move upwardly will depend upon the interplay of the 
various frictional forces. Also due to the frictional engagement of the 
driver legs 84 against the surfaces 79 of the former legs 72 together with 
the frictional engagement of the edges 87 of the driver blade 80 and 
raceways 77, the former 70 may begin its upward movement at the same time 
as the upward movement of the driver blade 80, even though the tang 75 is 
still positioned at the upper end of the slot 82. It is of no consequence 
in what sequence the driver 80, former 70, former block 60 and sheath 40 
commence their upward movement, or whether they do so simultaneously. 
Indeed, as the frictional forces vary, some parts, such as the sheath 40 
and block 60, may start to move upwardly and then stop for a time. It is 
only necessary that all of the parts resume their initial position and the 
parts are designed and interfitted, as shown, to accomplish this purpose. 
For example, if the former 70 continues to move upwardly with the driver 
blade 80, eventually it will either be stopped by the internal frictional 
forces or its upper edge 81 will come up against stops 43 on the interior 
of the sheath, in which case further upward movement carries with it the 
sheath 40 unless the sheath 40 has already been returned to its normal 
positon by the spring 50, in which latter case the stops 43 will arrest 
further upward movement of the former 70, and further upward movement of 
the driver blade 80 will cause relative movement of the slot 82 upwardly 
with respect to the tang 75 on the former 70. If, on the other hand, the 
frictional forces are such as to arrest the upward movement of the former 
70 before it reaches its upper limit, then, in that event, upward movement 
of the blade 80 moves the slot 82 upwardly relative to the tang 75 until 
the bottom edge of the slot 82 engages the tang 75, whereupon further 
upward movement of the blade 80 also carries the former 70 upwardly. 
9. At some point during the upward movement of the driver blade 80, the 
driver legs 84 will pass upwardly along cam surfaces 49 at the upper end 
of the guide ribs or ways 48, and as soon as the former blade 70 is 
arrested, either by the frictional forces or the stops 43, the blade 80 
will begin to move upwardly with respect to the former 70, causing the 
slot 82 to move relative to the tang 75 and also causing the driver legs 
84 to move upwardly along and relative to the surfaces 79 of the former 70 
until they pass upwardly beyond the shoulders 78 and resume their position 
bearing against the inner surface 46 of the sheath 40. It will be 
appreciated that because the driver blade 80 is of spring steel, the 
driver legs 84 spring back into their initial position as shown in FIG. 5, 
in which position they are very slightly spaced upwardly from the 
shoulders 78. 
10. Ultimately all upward movement of all of the parts is completely 
arrested when the driver 80 reaches the tab 75 of the former 70 and forces 
the edge 81 of the former 70 against lugs 43 of front sheath 40. Just 
prior to reaching this point, the tab 75 moves along the sloped portion 
142 of the depending tongue 120 and onto the flat area 131, whereupon the 
feed fingers 121 feed another staple blank into the notch 64 in the block 
60, the block 60 having shortly prior thereto returned to its normal 
inward position when the driver blade 80 has passed upwardly past the 
opening 44 in the sheath 40. 
When staple wires 200 are fed into block groove 64 the end of wires 300 
abut guideways 48 to limit their movement and properly position them in 
groove 64 (see FIG. 5). The feeding of staple wires 200 to block 60 is 
such that wires 200 are not urged toward block 60 during that portion of 
the downward stroke when the lead wire 200 is first contacted by former 
member 70 and broken away from the belt 94. This sequence prevents 
undesired movement of wires 200 at this point in the driving stroke. 
In FIGS. 14, 15 and 16 there is shown a modified embodiment of the staple 
former and driver of this invention. Most of the parts of the staple 
former and driver 400 shown in FIGS. 14, 15 and 16 are identical to those 
for the staple former and driver 10 shown in FIGS. 1 through 13 and, as 
such, similar parts carry the same reference numerals. The primary 
difference between the stapler 400 and the stapler 10 is that the stapler 
400 is operated by an electrical solenoid 402 positioned generally where 
the operating knob 132 is positioned in the stapler 10 of FIGS. 1 through 
13. The solenoid 402 is secured to the stationary frame or stapler head 30 
by means of a strap 404 or the like, in order to maintain the solenoid 402 
in fixed position. The driver blade 130 carries at its upper end an 
armature 406 passing through the solenoid 402. Accordingly, upon actuation 
of the solenoid 402 by the switch SW1, the armature 406 will be drawn 
downwardly driving the driver blade 130 downwardly to form and drive a 
staple. Spring 134 is mounted in a recess 401 in the armature 406 for 
compactness of design. 
The solenoid 402 is connected by leads 408 (in one of which there is 
located an actuator switch (SW1) to a suitable electric circuit C. The 
circuit C, in turn is connected by leads 409 (in one of which is located a 
main on-off switch SW2) to a source S of electrical power, such as an 
alternating current source. The circuit C is of known and conventional 
design and, accordingly, is not detailed here. One suitable circuit is 
disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,971,969, issued July 27, 1976. 
In addition to the changes mentioned above, i.e. the use of solenoid 402, 
the staple former and driver 400 also differ from the staple former and 
driver 10, in that the spring 50 has its ends 410 extending through an 
elongated slot 412 in the sheath 40 and then into a snugly fitting hole 
414 on either side of the vertical member 34 of the staple head or frame 
30. The elongated slot 412 in the sheath 40 of the stapler of FIGS. 14 
through 16 differs from the hole 54 in the sheath 40 for the stapler of 
FIGS. 1 through 13 only in being positioned closer to the front face of 
the sheath. In this position, the ends 410 of the spring 50 fit into the 
holes 414 in the vertical portion 34 of the staple head 30 rather than 
being engaged behind the edge 36 of the vertical member 34 of the staple 
head 30 as in the stapler 10. It will be appreciated that, due to this 
arrangement, the ends 410 of the spring 50 can no longer slide up and down 
the rearward edge 36 of the vertical member 34 as in the embodiment of 
FIGS. 1 through 13. Accordingly, unlike the embodiment of FIGS. 1 through 
13, the sheath 40 of the electrically operated stapler 400 does not move 
downwardly against the workpiece 300 during operation. Rather, the sheath 
40 remains stationary with respect to the staple head 30 during all phases 
of normal operation of the stapler 400. 
It will be recalled that in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 through 13 during 
operation, the legs 72 of the former 70 shape the staple from a staple 
blank 200 in cooperation with the former block 60. Further, it will be 
recalled that after having formed the staple, the bight or edge 73 of the 
former 70 which extends between the legs 72 comes down upon the former 
block 60, as shown in FIG. 10, and forces the former block 60 and the 
sheath 40 down until the sheath 40 bears against the workpiece 300. Since 
now in the staple 400, the sheath 40 is secured against downward movement, 
the former 70 must be modified. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 16, the 
former 470 is shown in which the only difference from the former 70 shown 
in FIGS. 2, 5 and 6, is that the bight or edge 473 of the former 470 in 
FIG. 16 is positioned higher than the edge 73 of the former 70. That is, 
to say, that the distance from the bottom edge of the legs 472 to the 
bight or edge 473 of the former 470 of FIG. 16 is greater than the 
distance between the bottom edge of the legs 72 to the bight or edge 73 of 
the former 70 shown in FIG. 6. Accordingly, during operation of the 
device, the legs 472 may form the staple from the staple wire 200 and 
continue on until the bottom ends of the legs 472 come into contact with 
the workpiece 300 without the edge 473 reaching or contacting the former 
block 60. 
Pusher elements 85 of driver 80 and recess 79 of former 70 are shaped and 
proportioned so that upon completion of the forming step the former 70 
including legs 72 continue downward due to frictional engagement of 
element 85 against recesses 79 to carry and guide the formed staple down 
to and against the workpiece 300. 
Except as noted in the immediately preceding paragraphs, the operation of 
the device of FIGS. 14 through 16 is in all essential respects the same as 
the operation of the modification of FIGS. 1 throught 13. 
In each of the above described embodiments, the ends 52, 410 of the spring 
50 fit within elongated holes 54, 412 in the sheath 40. Because of this 
fitting through the holes 54, 412, the sheath 40 may move outwardly away 
from the fixed stapler head 30 a short distance, which distance is 
determined by the elongated holes 54, 412 with respect to the diameter of 
the ends 52, 410 respectively. This elongation is chosen to be sufficient 
to permit adequate movement of the sheath 40 away from the stapler head 30 
for the ejection of a malformed staple or staple blank that may jam the 
machine. Accordingly, in order to relieve a jammed condition of the 
stapler, it is only necessary to operate it several times in quick 
succession until the jammed condition is alleviated. Thereupon, the spring 
50 will force the sheath 40 back into its proper position relative to the 
fixed head 30. 
Referring to the further embodiment of FIGS. 17-22, employing numerals 
similar to those earlier used for some parts and new numerals for others, 
feed spring 112 is connected to depending members 110 through rivets 116. 
Depending members 110 swing about bearing 501 which is pivotably mounted 
on axle 502. Tongue 120 as integrally formed with depending members 110 
permits spring 112 to actuate fingers 121. 
Cartridge 90 is mounted on cartridge base 503 which includes base plate 
504, base side walls 506, ears 98 mounted outboard on plate 504. Extending 
parallel to base 504 are guide pieces 507 including cartridge extensions 
508 and belt hold down lips 509 which are insertable in opening 100. The 
angled ends 511 of extensions 508 guide anti-retraction plate 122. 
Front sheath 40 carries eight (8) spacer tabs pairs 512, 513, 514 and 516. 
Cartridge 90 is held in its operative position by spring 517. 
In the operation of the modified stapler, cartridge 90 is placed in 
staplerhead 30 as shown in FIG. 18 in dashed lines with spring 517 also 
shown in dashed lines in its down position. Cartridge 90 is then pushed to 
the left against spring 112, as shown in FIG. 18, until extensions 508 
pass through opening 100 and against sheath 40. Opening 100 is 
substantially larger than staple wire 200. Extensions 508 are positioned 
between tabs 514 and 516 with portions of belt held down lips 509 also 
projecting through stapler head 30 into the space between head 30 and 
sheath 40. When the staple belt is advanced into the former 60 the lead 
staple wire 200 abuts tabs 514 to properly position staple wire 200 in 
former 60. 
Referring to FIG. 21 it is seen that lead staple wire 200 has its ends 
extending under lips 509 as it is fed into forming block 60. Lips 509 
functions to prevent the lead staple wire of belt 94 from being pushed 
upwardly on the upward stroke of the driver blade 86 and former 70 in the 
event the lead staple projects in part into the space between staple head 
30 and sheath 40. It is thus seen that extensions 508, lips 509 and 
openings 100 are shaped to cooperate among themselves to guide and hold 
the cartridge in position and to prevent a staple wire from being bent, 
deflected or removed from belt 94 during the upward return stroke of blade 
86 and former 70. 
Lips 509 as positioned in opening 100 from part of the border which defines 
an exit opening from which the lead staple 200 exits the cartridge and 
enters former block 60. 
With respect to FIGS. 23 through 25, a further powered staple former and 
driver unit 600 is shown in which the unit includes readily assembled 
hollow base section 601, lower upper housing dish section 602, anvil metal 
plate 603, block plastic head section 604, all secured together by 
threaded bolt 606. 
Turning to FIGS. 23 and 25, hollow base section 601 includes lower shell 
portion 607, having feet 608, and upper shell portion 609. The two shell 
portions 607, 609 fit together to form the enclosed hollow base section 
601. Within base section 601 there is housed the circuitry board array 
unit 611 connected through conduit 612 to power lead 613. Also mounted in 
section 601 is switch array 614 including pivot mount 616, rotatable arm 
617, and switch unit 618 responsive to the movement of arm 617. Upper arm 
portion 619 of arm 617 protrudes through section opening 620 into paper 
receiving slot 621. Lower arm portion 622 (which is fixed with upper arm 
arm portion 619 and rotates with it) is engageable with switch unit 618 to 
accomplish energization of the power unit of the driving and stapling unit 
600 when paper is inserted in slot 621 against upper arm portion 619. 
With reference in particular to FIGS. 24 and 25, solenoid 623 (shown in 
FIG. 23) includes an outer insulating cover unit 624 having a crown cover 
member 625 and attached depending extension cover wire 626. Crown cover 
member 625 and extension cover 626 are attached with a flexible hinge 627. 
Insulated female socket unit 628 extends down from hinge 627 into male 
elements 610 mounted on board array unit 611. The function of cover unit 
624 is to prevent voltage or current being transmitted to persons using 
unit 600 when the upper covering housing portion 631 (see FIG. 23) is 
removed for reloading of the unit. 
The forming and driving of unformed staple blanks from belt roll cartridge 
632 is accomplished by the feeding of a belt staple blank (such as that 
shown in FIG. 1-22) through action of spring body unit 633 pivotably 
mounted about an axle 634. Spring body unit 633 has finger plate 636 with 
fingers 637 which engage the unformed staple belt to feed the belt. Spring 
body 633 also includes cam nose 638 which moves the fingers 637 along the 
belt when stapler former and drive array 641 moves in its downward stroke. 
Spring body unit 633 also includes resilient spring section 642 which 
urges fingers 637 to move the belt until the lead staple blank is in 
former block 643 and further apply pressure thereafter to hold the lead 
staple in such position. 
Former block 643 is shaped to permit driver and former unit 641 to pick up 
and move downwardly the lead staple blank from block 643. Former block 643 
is mounted in an opening in front sheath 646 in turn is held against 
plastic head 604 by spring clamp 647. Front sheath 646 is also held 
against plastic block 604 by axis spring 648. Spring clamp 647 has legs 
650 which pass through the sheath holes 649 and into recesses in block 604 
(not shown). Axis spring 648 engages front sheath 646 and axle end grooves 
651. Oval holes 652 in front sheath 646 through which the axle 634 passes 
permits sheath 646 to move away from and toward block 604 to effect 
removal of jammed or partially formed staples. Sheath 646 is held tight 
against block 604 regardless of manufacturing tolerances of these parts. 
Cartridge 632 is held in position against sheath 646 by cartridge spring 
653 which is U-shaped with arms 654 having bent end portions 656 in holes 
657 of block 604 in front sheath 646. Holes 657 are enlarged in such a way 
as to give a selected amount of play while still preventing sheath 646 
from separating when spring clamp 647 is removed to clear a major staple 
jam. 
Spring 653 also includes a connector section 658 connecting the arms 654. 
The connector section 658 engages the cartridge 632 to urge it into its 
operative position. 
Turning again to FIG. 24, forming and driving array 641 include solenoid 
armature 351, driving blade 352 forming piece 353 and return spring 354. 
When forming piece 353 moves downwardly it picks up lead staple blank from 
former block 643. As the staple blank breaks off the belt it is formed 
into a staple having legs. The formed staple is then driven by driving 
blade 353 as motion of the array continues downwardly. Spring-held former 
block 643 is capable of movement to permit the lead staple blank pick up 
by the forming piece 353. 
Cam means 655 cause (which cam follower means not shown) forming piece 353 
to stop its downward movement while permitting the driving blade 352 to 
carry the formed staple downwardly till its feet pass through the 
workpiece shcets to be joined and against the anvil for bending into the 
desired clinched position. 
Cartridge 632 includes a guide chute in which the blank belt passes as it 
exits the cartridge. The end of the chute fits into an opening in plastic 
block 604 to form an aperture smaller then such opening. The end portion 
of the belt chute includes guide portions to prevent upward movement of 
the belt during the upward return stroke of former and driver array 641.