Patent GB-807428-A (GB)
Title: A machine for winding lengths of mat about mandrels
Inventor: STEPHENS JOSEPH FRANCIS
IPC: B65H19/22
Filed: 1956-04-07
Abstract: 807,428. Mat winding machines. GUSTINBACON MANUFACTURING CO. Inc. April 7, 1956, No. 10678/56. Class 120(1) A machine for winding lengths of mat on to mandrels comprises a mandrel feed station, a mat winding station; a wrapped mandrel discharge station and means for moving a mat-winding unit, employing an endless belt, successively adjacent each of the stations. As shown, when one matwinding unit 34, Fig. 1, is receiving an empty mandrel at the feed station, a second winding unit 36 is being fed with a mat 226 at the winding station, and a third winding unit 38 is discharging a wrapped mandrel at the discharge station. The three units 34, 36, 38 are carried on a reel 16, rotatable with a hollow shaft 26. Each unit comprises an endless belt 40, supported on a fixed drive roller 42, a guide roller 84, a tensioning roller 90 and movable rollers 50, 52. The shaft 54 of roller 50 is slidable in slots 56 under the control of double-acting hydraulic cylinders 62 mounted on the sides of the reel. Roller 52 is similarly slidable in slots 74 under the control of cylinders 76. Rollers 44 are geared together by common chains 134 (not shown) and 136 and are driven continuously by chains 122 (not shown) and 124 from a shaft 114, which is coaxial with shaft 26 and is geared to an electric motor mounted on the machine frame. The motor is also geared to shaft 26 via a onerevolution clutch, a single revolution of which causes shaft 26 to make one-third of a revolution; reel 16 is stepped by successive actuations of the clutch to bring each winding unit successively into register with the mandrel feed, winding and discharge stations. Mandrel feed. Empty mandrels 156 are supported by their shafts 158 in guideways 160, Fig. 3, provided with feed release latches 166 comprising mandrel shaft retaining fingers 170, 182, Fig. 4, connected by a lever 186. Fingers 170 are normally spring-pressed into the mandrel-retaining position shown; when a solenoid 180 is energized, fingers 170 are retracted to release a mandrel and fingers 182 advanced to support the succeeding mandrel; when the solenoid is de-energized, the latter mandrel is dropped on to fingers 170. When a mandrel is released from guideways 160 it falls so that its shaft ends enter radial guide slots 192 in the side of reel 16 and is driven down the slots into the open belt 40 by arms 198 on mandrel feed racks 194 in mesh with drive gears 204 connected to a reversible electric motor. Racks 194 are then returned to their upper position, the mandrel being retained at the bottom of slots 192 by solenoid-operated catches 216. Cylinders 62, 76 are then operated to move rollers 50, 52 to the closed position in which belt 40 is wrapped around the mandrel. Mat winding. While a unit (as shown, 36) remains at the winding station, its retaining latches 216 remain engaged and rollers 50, 52 remain in the closed position. A length of mat 226 is fed by a conveyer 226 to be wound on to the mandrel. 'Discharge. When a winding unit arrives at the discharge station, latches 216 are released and cylinders 62, 76 are operated to retract rollers 50, 52 and force the wrapped mandrel on to delivery conveyer 232. Control. As a length of mat 226 is fed to unit 36 it interrupts a beam of light to a phototube 230 and thereby initiates (a) mandrel feed to unit 34 and (b) operation of a timer. At the end of a determined time, the timer causes the clutch to engage to step the reel through one-third of a revolution. The various movements of the mandrel feed mechanism, racks 194 and latches 216, and the valves regulating supply of pressure fluid to cylinders 62, 76 are controlled by electric circuits actuated by switches on the reel shaft 26. A push button is provided for stepping the reel in the absence of a mat 226, e.g. to move a unit from the mandrel feed station to the winding station when starting a sequence of operations. The machine may include, as shown, a single reel carrying is single mandrel at each station; alternatively it may comprise a number of reels, or asingle reel handling more than one mandrel at a time, with a common drive and control system.