IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR MAKING WIRE BALE BANDS AND ATTACHING TO THEM THE FASTENING DEVICES WHEREBY THEIR ENDS ARE TO BE CONNECTED WHEN THEY ARE APPLIED " TO THE BALES
Year: 1882

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Arthur William Lovell Reddie at
the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 9th May 1882. A Com-
munication from abroad by Granville Nicholson of the City and State of
New York, United States of America
ARTHUR WILLIAM LOVELL REDDIE of the Office for Patents 66 Chancery Lane
in the County of Middlesex, Patent Agent "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR MAKING WIRE BALE BANDS AND ATTACHING TO THEM THE FASTENING
DEVICES WHEREBY THEIR ENDS ARE TO BE CONNECTED WHEN THEY ARE APPLIED
"
TO THE BALES A Communication from abroad by Granville Nicholson of the
City and State of New York, United States of America
In order that the nature of this invention may be more easily understood it may
be first explained that the bale bands which it is designed to produce consist each
of a piece of wire of the required length, and the fastening device consists of an
oblong link provided with two holes or eyes.
These links are attached to the bands by inserting one end of a band through
one of the holes or eyes in a link and then doubling and twisting the end portion
to form a loop which holds the link.
The principal parts of the machine and their mode of operation may be briefly
described as follows.
A feeding apparatus consisting of rollers or wheels delivers the wire from which
the bands are to be made, to a rotary carriage which consists of a shaft, and two
flanges which are provided with fixed and oscillating fingers or forks constituting
grippers for holding the wire; and mounted upon the same shaft or concentrically
with said carriage are two discs which are rotated in unison with the carriage.
The links which have been previously punched from plate metal with their holes
or eyes already formed are placed in a box or trough and are fed therefrom one by
one by a suitably arranged and operated pusher or plunger so as to bring one hole
or eye of the link in the path of the moving wire as it enters the machine.
The feeding rollers or wheels deliver the wire through a stationary die or block,
then through the link which has just been moved into position to receive it, and
onwards into a position to be grasped by the aforesaid grippers on the rotary
carriage, and when a sufficient length of wire has been moved forward one of the
feeding rollers or wheels is moved away from its fellow and the wire thereupon
stops. At this time the grippers on the rotary carriage approach the wire by the
rotation of said carriage, and just before they reach the wire they are opened by
suitably arranged cams to receive the wire and are then closed upon it and hold it
firmly.

page_text: Upon one of the aforesaid rotary discs is fixed a blade or cutter which
simultaneously with the closing of the grippers on the wire comes in contact with
the wire and acting in conjunction with the fixed die or block through which the
wire has been passed shears or cuts off from the wire a piece of a length sufficient
for a band which it leaves in the grasp of the grippers to be carried forward by
the movement of the rotary carriage. The feeding of the wire then again takes
place.
The disc which carries the aforesaid blade or cutter also carries a twister which
consists of an arm projecting from the face of the disc parallel with its axis, and
having a transversely projecting point or tip on which one end of the band now
rests; and at a proper future time the said twister is rotated by means of a
stationary cam acting through suitable gearing and devices carried by the disc
which carries the twister. The other dise above mentioned has fixed upon it a
projecting finger or arm on which the wire or band also rests, and the said disc
carries a rotary or oscillating bending dog which is fast upon a short shaft carried
by the disc and is operated at the proper time by a stationary cam.
After the rotary carriage has taken the wire or band and commenced the inove-
ment thereof the bending dog is first oscillated or turned and in its movement it
comes down upon the portion of the wire which projects beyond the point or tip
of the twister and bends the wire downwards and over the point or tip of the
twister and backwards upon itself and against the above mentioned fixed finger on
the disc which carries the bending dog and also against the main portion of the
wire which is already upon said finger. This bending or doubling operation forms
in the wire or band a loop on which the link is placed and the point or tip of the
twister projects through this loop.
The rotary carriage rotating continuously causes the wire or band to rotate
with it and immediately on the completion of the bending or doubling operation
the twister commences to rotate upon its own axis, and by such rotation turns the
loop in the wire or band and twists or intertwines the end portion of the wire
or band into and with the portion which lies with it upon the aforesaid fixed
finger. This operation of twisting completes the loop, and prevents the link from
becoming detached, and the bale band is thereby finished. Soon after the com-
pletion of the twisting operation the movable forks or fingers of the carriage are
opened by suitable stops or cams, and the band is thereby released and permitted
to drop from the carriage while the latter continues its rotation to take another
length of wire and make another band. The bands as they are delivered from the
rotary carriage may drop into a scale pan or frame which is counter balanced so as
to weigh the bands, and when a sufficient number of bands are in the pan or frame
the latter will tip and deposit the bands ready to be tied up for market.