Patent GB-735705-A (GB)
Title: Means for feeding shoe stiffener blanks into machines for moulding the same
Inventor: FORSTER HENRY ATKINSON RONALD
IPC: A43D8/00
Filed: 1952-05-23
Abstract: 735,705. Feeding articles. PEMBERTON & CO., Ltd., A. May 20, 1953 [May 23, 1952], No. 13145/52. Class 117. [Also in Group VII] A mechanism for automatically feeding shoe stiffener blanks into a moulding machine comprises a base 10 supported adjacent the machine and a feed head 11 on the base including a hopper H, a blank supporting rail 41 adjacent the hopper and extending forwardly of the latter toward the mould, and a feeder member 43 movable relatively to the rail from a position at the back of the hopper to a position at the leading end of the rail, and vice versa. As shown, the moulding machine comprises a mould M with a pair of jaws 1 which are at opposite sides of a leg 2 and are rocked relatively thereto by cylinders 3, and a wiper plate 4 operated by piston 6 to form the stiffener flange. The carrier 7 for the leg 2 is raised and lowered by a ram R, and the leg is pivoted about point 8 by a device 9 to eject the finished stiffener. The base 10 is adjustable laterally on support 12 by means of screw 14, support 12 is adjustable longitudinally on a carrier 13 by means of screw 17, carrier 13 is angularly adjustable about an axis extending between the links 19a of member 19, being then secured by nuts 22, and a fulcrum column 20 vertically adjustable in the boss 19b of member 19 may be turned within a bearing 21 on the carrier 7 and locked in the operative position. The whole unit may be swung clear of the mould about column 20. The main casting 23 of the feed head 11 slides in the base 10 which has side flanges 10a, 10b, and end lugs 10c, 10d. A rod 26 articulated at 25 (not shown) to the casting and passing through 10d has a piston 27 movable in the pneumatic cylinder 28 secured to 10d. A cross-shaft 30 on the casting bears arms 31 supporting the hopper parts 32 which are adjustably spaced, and bent arms 34 having fingers 35. The lowermost blank B in the hopper H rests on the fingers 35 which are adjustable heightwise by means of an adjusting screw 37 which passes through a rod 36 joining arms 34 and has a foot 38 bearing on a cylinder 47, a compression spring 39 being fitted between rod 36 and foot 38. The rail 41 extending through a bore 40 in casting 23 has a stop pin 42 at the outer end. A feeder member 43 slidable on rail 41 projects so as to engage the lowermost blank, and is maintained level by engagement with a second rail 44 parallel to 41. A rod 45 on feeder 43, between and parallel to rails 41, 44 is slidable through casting 23, and carries a piston 46 movable in a pneumatic cylinder 47 which may be in tandem with cylinder 28. A bar 49 angularly adjustable on arms 48 from shaft 30 carries a rubber &c. pad 50 which prevents more than one blank being pushed along rail 41, and two parallel spaced inclined rails 51. As the feeder pushes a blank towards the mould the central portion of the blank lies over rail 41 and the lateral portions beneath rails 51, so that the blank is bent to inverted U-shape. The feeder plate 43 has rearwardly curved or sloping extremities 43a which engage the downwardly extending portions B<SP>1</SP> of the bent blank. The forward movement of the head 11 is limited by engagement with an adjustable abutment screw 52, so that the amount of blank left projecting from the mould, i.e. to form the seat, may be adjusted. The forward movement of member 43 may follow that of the head 11, or the two movements may overlap or take place simultaneously.