Patent GB-749613-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in spindle driving gear for lathes and like machine tools
IPC: B23Q11/00
Filed: 1953-11-03
Abstract: 749,613. Change-speed gear; claw clutches. ROCKWELL MANUFACTURING CO. Nov. 3, 1953 [Nov. 7 1952], No. 30321/53. Class 80(2) [Also in Group XXII] A spindle driving gear for lathes and like machine tools comprises a driving element rotatably mounted on the spindle, a first gear on the spindle mounted for rotation with the driving element, a second gear non-rotatably mounted on the spindle for axial movement thereon, cooperating clutch means on said element and said second gear for establishing a driving connection, a back shaft eccentrically mounted parallel to the spindle, a gear train mounted on the back shaft and adapted to connect said first and second gears and manual means for effecting the connection and for selectively axially moving the second gear to control engagement of the clutch means to connect and disconnect the second gear and the driving element. The driving means for the spindle comprises an electric motor 330, Fig. 1, a belt 328 and a further belt 82. The co-axial belt pulleys 320, 322, are adjustable to vary their effective diameters by a hand-wheel 332 which gives a steplessly variable drive to the spindle pulley 68, Fig. 3. The shaft 324 carrying the pulleys may be rocked about a shaft 326 for adjusting the tension in the driving belt 82. The -latter engages a groove in a pulley 68 running loose on the hollow spindle 34 of the lathe. A pinion 74 is 'secured to one end of the pulley 68 and the other end is adapted to receive one half 88 of a clutch. The corresponding half 86 of the clutch is secured to a gear wheel 64 which is keyed to the lathe spindle but adapted to be moved axially thereon by a stirrup-arrangement 192, 212, Fig. 4. The front of the spindle is supported by tapered roller bearings 32 and the rear end by a bearing 48. A backshaft 112, Fig. 3, arranged below the main spindle has eccentric end portions so that it may be rotated to bring a gear set 138, 122, rotatable on the shaft, into mesh with gears 74, 64 respectively to give a "back gear" drive. The arrangement is such that from a single control handle at the front of the headstock the following spindle sequences may be obtained-(a) direct drive to spindle from pulley 68 (b) spindle free (c) spindle locked (d) "back gear" engaged. The control handle is secured to a transverse shaft 140, Figs. 3 and 4, upon which a cam 162 and a spiral gear 152 are secured. The latter meshes with another gear 136 secured to the lay shaft 112. The cam is adapted to move a bell crank lever 192 which controls the operation of the clutch. Thus as the control handle is moved around, the clutch and back-shaft are simultaneously moved to give the ,sequence above. The arrangement in the locked position of the spindle is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 7. The clutch assembly comprises a pair of identical plates 86, 88, Fig. 3, secured to the gear 64 and pulley 68 respectively by screws 90, stamped projections 92 are formed in the clutch plates to increase the "hold". Each clutch plate is formed from an annular stamping initially formed to the shape shown in Fig. 9. The teeth 93, 94 are alternately long and short and are bent up at right angles to the plate to form a clutch half.