Patent GB-776901-A (GB)
Title: Apparatus for the production of refills for ball point pens
IPC: B21D53/76
Filed: 1955-05-25
Abstract: 776,901. Making pans. ALBERTINI, S., and BERTOGLIO, G. May 25, 1955 [June 1, 1954], No. 15044/55. Classes 83 (2) and 83 (4). [Also in Group XV] In the manufacture of refill units for ball-point pens the ball housing, such as 35, is secured to the reservoir tube 34, ink is injected into the unit through the housing, a writing ball is then inserted into the housing and struck by a punch to form a bearing surface in the seating of the housing, the outer edge of the housing is peened over by a punching or spinning operation to retain the ball, and the ball is then freed from the peened-over edge so that it can rotate freely by either striking the ball with a punch, or by spinning balls or rollers under pressure around the outer surface of the housing. The ball seating is initially flat or conical. The above operations are performed in sequence in a machine comprising a table 10 surrounded by a fixed annular plate 20 on which the apparatus is mounted at stations indicated at 1-8 in Fig. 1. At station 3, the refill unit is filled with ink, and at station 8 the finished refill unit is ejected upwardly by a fluid-operated piston. The table 10 is rotated intermittently through equal angles about a shaft 11, against the action of braking means, by the engagement of a pawl 22 in one of eight notches 18 in the table, the pawl being mounted on a rod 21 having a fluid-operated piston 24 in a cylinder 25. The rod is returned by a spring 23. The free end of the rod controls a valve 31 in the circuit of a fluid-operated register stop 27 adapted to engage one of eight further notches 19 in the table 10. The table has eight spaced holes 33 which may be provided with holders to receive the refill units. These holders may be sleeves or collars, depending upon the type of refill unit. Jointing by stamping.-The housing 35, Fig. 2, is pushed by hand over the tube 34, the unit then inserted in the hole 33, Fig. 1, of the table 10 at station 1, and at station 2 a punch descends to secure the members 33, 35, Figs. 1 and 2, together by a squeezing action. At station 4 a writing ball 36 is dropped into the housing 35. At station 5 a drop hammer 38 drives the ball 36 into its seating to form a bearing surface. The hammer 38 is raised by a pivoted catch 42 on the rod of a fluid-operated piston 40 until the pawl is released by striking a stop screw 44. At station 6, the outer lip of the housing 35 is peened over by a drop hammer similar to that at station 5 but having a conical bore in the operative face. At station 7 the ball 36 is again struck by a drop hammer to drive it deeper into its seating to relieve the peened-over edge and thus allow free rotation of the ball. Spinning.-Instead of peening over the edge of the housing 35 by a drop hammer to retain the writing ball 36, the spinning apparatus shown in Fig. 3 may be used at station 6. Two studs, on the fixed annular plate 20 surrounding the turntable 10, support a block 46 in which a cylindrical casing 47 is vertically reciprocated by a pivoted lever 59 connected at one end to the rod of a fluid-operated piston 61. A hollow shaft 49<SP>1</SP> is mounted for rotation within the casing 47 and is driven through a pulley 50 and belt from a motor. A chuck head 53 on the shaft 49 is slotted to receive a cross pin 52 carrying a peening tool 53, the pin being urged downwardly by a spring-pressed rod 54. The tool 53 carries cylindrical rollers 57 which, when the casing 47 is depressed, engage the upper edge of the housing 35 and peen it over the writing ball. The above apparatus, provided with a rolling tool incorporating rollers may be used at station 7 to relieve the peenedover edge from the ball.