PROCESS FOR THE INSTALLATION OF BRISTLES IN BRUSH BODIES AND DEVICE APPLYING THIS PROCESS

Abstract: Process for the placing of bristles in brush bodies, so that fibre bundles (4) are placed one after the o­ ther together with a fastening element (7) in the brush body holes (8) by means of a filling tool (5), characterized by the fact that the fibre bundles (4) and the fastening elements (7) are submitted to an an­ gular rotation (R) after placement in the filling tool and prior to insertion in the brush body (9).

Description: This invention relates to a process for installing bristles in brush bodies. The invention relates more especially to a process by which the respective fibre bundles and their fastening means, which as is well known can be clamps or anchor plates, are inserted at an angle with regard to the brush body. The invention relates also to a device applying this process. EP-A-195.134 deals with the insertion of the aforementioned fastening means at an angle with regard to the brush body by turning the brush body holder at a given angle during its presentation under the filling tool. This invention provides for a process and a device for the insertion of fibre bundles in brush bodies at an angle, in which no use is made of turning brush body holders. According to a first possibility, the filling tool is positioned to this effect, at a certain angle with regard to the brush body to be processed. Such already existing construction displays however the drawback that simultaneously with the positioning at an angle of the filling tool, the fibre magazine and the bundle remover which brings the fibre bundles from the fibre magazine into the filling tool, have also to be positioned at an angle, as well as the drive mechanism thereof, which leads to a construction which is not very practical. This invention aims at providing a process and a device for the placing of fibre bundles in brush bodies at an angle without the above mentioned drawback. The invention relates hence to a process for the placing of bristles in brush bodies, in which the fibre bundles are placed one after the other together with a fastening element in the brush body hole by means of a filling tool, characterized by the fact that the fibre bundles and the fastening elements are subject to an angular rotation after the placing in the filling tool and prior to the insertion in the brush body. The device which can be used to this effect according to the invention consists mainly of a filling tool, of rotation means allowing for a rotation of the filling tool or of part thereof preferably along its longitudinal axis, and of drive means to provide for the angular rotation of the filling tool during the filling movement. This device is especially suitable for working at high insertion speeds. With a view to better illustrate the characteristics according to the invention, a preferred construction has been described as example without any limitative character, with reference to the attached sketches, where: figure 1 reproduces schematically the process according to the invention; figure 2 reproduces a device according to the invention; figure 3 reproduces a sectional view following line III-III in figure 2. The process according to this invention is presented schematically in figure 1 in four stages, respectively A up to and including D. The peculiarities displayed here are the fibre magazine 1 which is provided with loose fibres 2, the fibre remover 3 removing the fibre bundles 4 one after the other from magazine 1, a filling tool 5 of which for the sake of clarity, only the guide element 6 is represented, along which the fastening means _ in this case anchor plates 7 _ and the fibre bundles 4 are introduced, and a brush body 9 provided with holes 8, which is for example held in a brush body holder 10, which in turn can be mounted on a support 11 turning or not, so that as it is well- known the brush body 9 can be presented to various machine tools. What is special about the process according to the invention is that the fastening means, in this case the anchor plates 7, and thus also the fibre bundles 4, are submitted to a rotation R during their displacement to brush body 9, so that the anchor plates 7 are inserted at an angle. As illustrated in figure 1, in a first stage A, a fibre bundle 4 is here in a classical way formed out of the fibre magazine 1 by means of the bundle remover 3, while an anchor plate 7 is inserted between the guide elements 6. Afterwards a position B is reached, where the anchor plate 7, which might as well consist in a flange, joins together with the fibre bundle 4 placed in the filling tool in the meantime. The bundle remover is then preferably removed from the filling tool 5. Following this, as indicated by means of position C, the anchor plate 7 is not only moved to the brush body 9, but also submitted to a movement of rotation R, for instance by rotation of the filling tool 5 or of part thereof, so that finally, as indicated by position D, an insertion at an angle occurs. Figures 2 and 3 represent a preferred construction of a device for the implementation of the aforedescribed process. This device consists mainly of the filling tool 5, which is provided with rotation means 12 allowing for the rotation R of the filling tool slide 13 along its longitudinal axis and of drive means 15 to impose to the filling tool 5 an angular rotation R during the filling movement. The rotation means 12 consist mainly in a revolving body 16 which can be rotated over a certain angle by means of the aforementioned drive means 15, so that the filling tool slide 13 of the filling tool 5, axially displaceable but unable to rotate, is mounted with regard to the aforementioned revolving body 16. In the represented construction, this revolving body 16 consists in a cylindrical housing supported on bearings in a steady housing 17. The cylindrical housing which forms thus the above-mentioned revolving body 16, displays an opening 18 in which the filling tool slide 13 _ axially slidable but unable to rotate with regard to this housing _ is placed; through its displacement, it gives rise to the filling movement. The shapes of the opening 18 and of the filling tool slide 13 fitting into it are respectively so that they do not allow any rotation of the slide 13 with regard to the body 15, but only an axial translation with regard to each other. The drive means 15 to ensure the rotation of body 16 and thus of the filling tool slide 13 may for instance, consist in a radial arm 19 installed on this body 16 and controlled by a rod 20 or equivalent through a cam-operated mechanism. The arm 19 is for instance mounted on the revolving body 16 in such a way that it stretches out through a radial slot 22 in the surrounding housing 17. One achieves also the interlocking of the cylindrical housing of body 16 against axial displacements. Figure 2 represents schematically the fastening means feed unit 23. In case the aforementioned anchor plates 7 are used, they shall be cut as is commonly known in a strip 24, preferably of metal, and brought in the traject of a reciprocating needle 25 which provides for the separation of anchor plates from this strip 24, and this needle 25 pushes the anchor plates 7 together with the fibre bundles to the front end of filling tool 5 and places them then in the brush body 9. In order to provide for the axial translation movement of the filling tool slide 13, the latter shall be moved following a reciprocating movement by means of suitable drive means. As such drive means can be of different natures _ for instance, they may consist in a cam-operated mechanism and be sufficiently known by themselves, they are not represented in the figures. It is obvious that the drive means 15 which provide for the rotation of body 16 shall be connected suitably with, on the one hand, the drive means in order to provide for the reciprocating movement of the filling tool slide 13 and on the other hand, with the means controlling the needle 25, the bundle remover 23 and the fastening means supply mechanism. The above described device working may be simply deduced from the figures 2 and 3. It consists mainly therein that by means of the bundle remover 3, a fibre bundle 4 can be brought into the filling tool 5. Through the movement of the needle 25, an anchor plate 7 and the fibre bundle 4 are then pushed to the filling tool front end. In the meantime, the bundle remover 3 has reversed, and simultaneously with the displacement of anchor plate 7 and of the fibre bundle 4, on the one hand, the filling tool slide 13 is displaced axially so that it is placed against the brush body 9, and on the other hand, the drive means 15 are controlled through the cam-operated mechanism 21. It is obvious that these movements lead to the aforementioned angular rotation R, so that the anchor plates are inserted at an angle. Of course the invention relates also to processes in which the filling tool is not displaced axially, but is only rotated, and in which the brush body 9 is dropped against the filling tool through a displacement of the aforementioned holder 11. It goes without saying that the drive means 15 providing rotation of the body 16 can be of different natures. As an example, one could also use to this effect an electronically operated motor, for instance a stepping or servo motor, so that the size of the angle over which the rotation R takes place could be adjusted simply by means of a keyboard or computer controlled; so that for instance, an optimum insertion angle can be provided through hole 8 of the brush body 9. It is obvious that when speaking of the filling tool rotation, one does not always mean the complete filling tool. According to the invention, it can after all be sufficient to rotate part of the filling tool, in which case one means in particular the filling tool head or the guide element 6. According to the preferred construction described above, the filling tool slide 13 rotates around its own axis 14, with axis 14 remaining located at the same place. The rotation means 12 used to this end may be other than those represented in the figures. According to a possibility not represented in the figures, they consist, for instance, in a helicoidal threaded guide element, along which the filling tool slide can be displaced, so that the desired angular rotation is imposed to the filling tool slide via the threaded guide element, which displays of course the suitable pitch, during its axial translation. According to a further possibility, the aforementioned angular rotation R is obtained by hinging the whole drop tool around an axis along a rotation axis located at some distance of the drop tool longitudinal axis. This invention is not at all limited to the constructions described as examples and represented in the figures; such process and device can indeed be implemented in various variants without exceeding the scope of this invention.

Claims: 1. Process for the insertion of bristles into brush bodies, in which fibre bundles (4) are placed one after the other together with a fastening element (7) in the brush body holes (8) through a filling tool (5), characterized by the fact that the fibre bundles (4) and the fastening elements (7) are submitted to an angular rotation (R) after insertion in the filling tool and prior to insertion in the brush body (9). 2. Process according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the aforementioned angular rotation is obtained by means of a rotation movement of the filling tool slide (13) of the filling tool (5) around its longitudinal axis (14). 3. Device applying the process according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by the fact that it consists in a filling tool (5), rotation means (12) for rotating the filling tool (5), or part thereof, along the longitudinal axis; and drive means (15) providing for an angular rotation of the filling tool (5), or of the aforementioned part thereof, during the filling movement of the filling tool (5). 4. Device according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that the rotation means (12) consist mainly of a revolving body (16) with regard to which the filling tool slide (13) of the filling tool (5) is axially slidable, but unable to revolve, in which the revolving body (16) can be rotated by means of the aforementioned drive means (15). 5. Device according to claim 4, characterized by the fact that the revolving body (16) consists of a cylindrical housing supported on bearings in a steady housing (17), while the cylindrical housing (16) displays an opening (18), in which the filling tool slide (13) axially slidable but not revolving with regard to this housing, is inserted, which through its displacement provides for the filling movement of the filling tool (5). 6. Device according to claim 5, characterized by the fact that the opening (18) in the revolving body and the filling tool slide (13) fitting into it, display shapes which as said previously, do not allow for rotation but do allow for a translation with regard to one another. 7. Device according to one of the claims 4 to 6, characterized by the fact that the drive means (15) consist mainly in an arm (19), fastened on the revolving body (16), and a cam-operated mechanism (21) can interact, the cam-operated mechanism (21) and the drive for the filling movement of the filling tool (5) being connected together. 8. Device according to one of the claims 5 or 6, characterized by the fact that the aforementioned revolving body or cylindrical housing (16) and the aforementioned steady housing (17) are locked against their mutual axial displacement. 9. Device according to claim 8, characterized by the fact that an arm (19) fastened with the revolving body (16) stretches out through a radial slot (22) into the surrounding housing (16), so that the axial interlocking is provided. 10. Device applying the process according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that it provides a filling tool (5) and/or part thereof, which is hinged along an axis located at some distance of the longitudinal axis (14) of the filling tool (5) and/or the filling tool slide (13), so that the aforementioned angular rotation (R) is obtained through the hinge movement of the filling tool (5) and/or of the filling tool slide (13). 11. Device according to one of the claims 3 to 10, characterized by the fact that the drive means (15) providing for the angular rotation (R) via an electronically operated motor are driven, so that the magnitude of the angular rotation (R) can be optimally programmed for each hole of the hole pattern of the brush via a control unit _ by means of a keyboard or computer-controlled.

Inventors: BOUCHERIE, LEONEL
Applicants: G.B. BOUCHERIE, N.V.
Application year: 1988
Main classification: A46D3
IPC codes: A46D3