Patent GB-639791-A (GB)
Title: Machine for manufacturing armatures with bar windings
IPC: H02K13/04
Filed: 1947-07-25
Abstract: 639,791. Making electric motors &c. GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION. July 25, 1947, No. 19992. Convention date, July 29, 1940. [Classes 83 (ii) and 83 (iv)] Angular bending ; assembly force fits.-In a machine for the manufacture of bar-wound armatures for dynamo-electric machines such as series starting motors, a rotary conveyer moves intermittently workholders carrying an armature core with hairpin conductors mounted thereon to stations with mechanism for bending the conductor ends to a position radial of the commutator slots, applying an insulating strip between the conductors, bending circumferentially in opposite directions the pairs of wires in each commutator slot, press fitting a commutator on the armature shaft and then bending commutator tangs about the ends of the conductor wires. At Station I, Fig. 9, an armature core is loaded into a workholder 150 which is then rotated to Station II over mechanism for radially bending the conductor wires. At Station III, Fig. 8, the armature is positioned above a turn-table 234 carrying mechanisms for applying the insulation. The insulation is clamped to one of the holders 236 which is then rotated to align with the armature. At Station IV the conductors are bent circumferentially. Commutators held in holders 360 on a chain conveyer 328 rotated with the drum are aligned with an armature at Station V and the armature is lowered to press fit the commutator on the armature shaft S. The armature is then carried to Station VI for securing by bending the conductors to the commutator. Conveyer. A base 50, Fig. 10, positions a post 51 with hub 52 carrying radial arms 53 terminating in a boss 54 and arms 55, 56 anchored to the frame. Each boss 54 supports a fluid cylinder 60 with a headed rod 63 engageable with the workholders at the various stations. Pressure fluid is supplied to the cylinders from a pump 75 rotated by an electromotor 72. A frame 80 supported by the base 50 provides a track 81 for rollers 82 of a drum 84 on a hollow shaft 85 intermittently rotated by a Geneva stop mechanism 90 driven from a shaft 94 rotated from an electromotor 104. The drum 84 carries the workholders. The contact roller 125 of a rotary switch 110 driven by the shaft 94 controls electromagnetic means for operating upon armatures when the drum is stationary. A bevel gear 130 on the shaft 85 drives a shaft 137 connected to an insulation strip conveyer 234 and a shaft 324 operating a commutator conveyer. Armature workholder. The workholders 150 are slidably mounted on the drum 84 and are moved axially during rotation by cams 151. During the periods of rest the headed rods 93 engage the holders 150 and control their movement from the cylinders 60. Armatures are clamped in the holders by hinged members 172 operated by a spring-urged hand lever at Station I. Bending. At Station II the projecting wires B are bent towards the armature axis. The drum 84 is rotated to bring the armature shaft S in alignment with a block 202, Fig. 17, and pressure is admitted to cylinder 60 and workholder 150 is lowered and wires B are guided in slots 203. Pressure is then admitted to a cylinder 225, Fig. 9, which rotates a plate 221 to cam inwardly fingers 218 to clamp the wires. Pressure is then admitted to a fluid cylinder 191 to raise rods 195 and a cam ring 197 to engage rollers 206 which force bars 204 inwardly to bend the wires B into two concentric rings about the shaft S. Pressure is then admitted to cylinder 225 to rotate plate 221 to release bar 217 and to the cylinder 191 to withdraw the bars 204 and to the cylinder 60 to raise the workholder from the bending apparatus. Fig. 4. At Station III a strip of insulating material P is placed between the concentric rings of wires B. Four holders 236 for an insulating strip P are located at Station III and are rotated step-by-step with the drum 84. Each holder comprises resiliently mounted bars guided between a block and a resiliently mounted control block 245. The insulation P is clamped to the block 245 by a spring finger. During the descent of the armature the shaft S enters a bore 246 and the armature core moves downwards the block 245 and bars 242 and the wires B are positioned on each side of the insulating strip and the strip takes up a position normal to the armature axis. On the upward movement of the workholder the wires B strip the insulation from the block 245. At Station IV the concentric rings of wires are circumferentially displaced in opposite directions, Fig. 35 (not shown). When the drum 84 has located an armature baove the bending- device, Fig. 23, the armature is lowered to engage the concentric rings of wires in internal and external slots, Fig. 29 (not shown), in shafts 274, 277 which are rotated on opposite directions by operation of a fluid cylinder 290. To prevent abrupt bending damaging the wires former fingers 301 are projected radially by a fluid cylinder 309 actuating rotating cams. During bending the shafts 274, 277 are raised axially to prevent the wires leaving the slots due to shortening by a pin 281 engaging a helical slot in the shaft 277. Assembling commutator. The commutators are placed in holders 360 on a conveyer chain 328 intermittently rotated with the drum 84 and provided with adjusting means 330 and a tensioning screw. When a commutator is below an armature the workholder 150 by the cylinder 60 is lowered and the commutator pressed fitted to the shaft S. Bending commutator tangs around conductor bar ends. Fig. 41. The armature holder 150 is located in alignment with a mechanism 405, and the armature lowered to engage the shaft S in a hole 380 and the wires Bl, B2 in radial grooves 383 in a block 381. Bars 414 are moved radially to press the wires B<SP>1</SP>, B<SP>2</SP> against a commutator segment while a commutator riser tang is being bent about the wires B<SP>1</SP>, B<SP>2</SP> by rotation of a scroll plate 417 by a fluid cylinder 423, Fig. 9. Pressure is then admitted to a cylinder 404 to raise a cam ring 392 which moves bars 387 radially to bend the tangs about the wires B<SP>1</SP>, B<SP>2</SP>. Operation. Fig. 46. The electromotor locates the workholders at the proper stations. When contact roller 125 of switch 110 engages contact 111a coil 521 is energized and valve 506 pushed to the left to put pressure on pipes 533, 534, 536 leading to cylinders 60 at the various Stations II, III, V, VI to lower the workholders and to ejector cylinder 311 at Station IV. Valve 531 builds pressure up and opens to put a pipe 542 under pressure and actuates cylinder 309 moving fingers 301 at Station IV, actuates cylinder 423 operating clamping fingers at Station VI, actuates cylinder 225 operating fingers 215 and cylinder 191 operating the bending fingers at Station II. The pressure builds up in pipe 543 and valve 546 operates to connect pipes 555 and 543 and operating cylinder 309 performing the bending at Station IV. At Station VI pressure builds up in valve 550 and cylinder 404 is actuated to perform the bending. The operations at Stations II and V are performed by downward movement of the workholders by cylinders 60. When the roller 125 engages contact 111b coil 523 is energized to move the valve 506 to the right to connect ports 501, 504 to raise pistons in cylinders 60 and to raise workholders at Stations II, III, V, to actuate cylinder 423 at Station VI to withdraw the fingers. The cylinder 191 at Station II and the cylinder 404 at Station VI, are actuated to retract the work. When the roller 125 engages contact 112 a switch 527 is energized to stop the electromotor to allow the operator to remove completed work at Station I and to load new work and place insulating strips on the carriers at Station III.