IMPROVEMENTS IN FEEDING MECHANISM FOR CUT NAIL MACHINES
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Ryan Danks, of the Firm of Danks, Walker, and
Company, of Wolverhampton, in the County of Stafford, Nail Manufacturers,
for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN FEEDING MECHANISM FOR CUT NAIL
MACHINES"
Sealed the 23rd February 1877, and dated the 12th September 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Ryan Danks at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 12th September 1876.
JOHN RYAN DANKS, of the Firm of Danks, Walker, and Company, of Wolver-
hampton, in the County of Stafford, Nail Manufacturers. "IMPROVEMENTS IN
FEEDING MECHANISM FOR CUT NAIL MACHINES.'
My Invention consists of the improvements in feeding mechanism for cut nail
machines herein-after described, by which improvements the feeding of the nail
strips from which the nails are to be cut is effected automatically, and a great
saving of skilled labour thereby effected.
In feeding the nail strips to the cutters of the nail cutting machine the following
motions have to be effected :-After the cutting of a nail the strip has to be with-
drawn a short distance from the cutters, it has to be slightly raised and turned
over, then lowered and advanced the required distance on the stationary cutter.
In feeding mechanism constructed according to my Invention these motions are
effected in the following manner -On the rear end of the barrel or tube through
which the nail strip is fed, and to which an alternating semi-rotatory motion is
given, a collar is fixed, having at opposite points on its front face a V shaped cam
or projection. In front of the said collar is a ring attached to the frame of the
machine, through which ring the feeding barrel or tube works. The said ring has
V shaped depressions corresponding to the V shaped cams described. A coiled or
other spring presses the collar on the feeding tube against the stationary ring.
The required backward and forward semi-rotation is given to the feeding tubo by a
rack engaging in a pinion on the said tube. When the V shaped cams are opposite
the V shaped depressions in the stationary ring the spring urges the feeding tube
forward, the cams entering the depressions, but when the feeding tube commences
its rotatory motion it recedes, as it can only rotate by the cams travelling up the.
inclined sides of the depressions in the stationary ring, thus causing the retiring of

page_text: the collar and feeding tube. In this way the feeding tube is brought into its
advanced position at each end of its semi-rotation, while in moving from one of
these positions to the other it recedes.
The raising of the nail strip during the turning over motion is thus effected. On
the feeding tube, and near its front end, a cam or eccentric is fixed, and unme-
diately under the said cam and on the framing of the machine is a fixed stop on
which the cam bears. As the feeding tube performs its semi-rotations the cam
bearing on the fixed stop raises and lowers the feeding 'end of the tube. A spring
keeps the cam to its bearing on the stop
The advance motion of the nail strip in the feeding tube is thus effected :-Near
the extreme end or nose piece of the feeding tube, and carried by the said feeding
tube, are two rollers pressed together by a sping, their opposed faces meeting in
the middle of the feeding tube. The nail strip is gripped between these rollers, and
by their motion is advanced These rollers are geared together by toothed gearing,
and on the axis of one of them is a ratchet wheel in which a pawl engages. The
finger of this pawl comes against a fixed inclined stop just as the feeding tube
completes its semi-rotation, and the advance motion of the said tube, which then
takes place, advancing the rollers causes the finger of the pawl to travel up the
inclined stop, and thereby give the rollers a slight motion on their axes, and thus
advance the nail strip held between them. The nose piece of the feeding tube is
of such a size and figure internally that only one nail strip can pass down it at one
time. The extreme end of the nose piece is provided with two pairs of springs,
one pair gripping the strip on its flat sides, the other pair on its edges, so that the
said strip is held firmly by the said springs, even when it has become so short that
its rear end is no longer held by the rollers. By this arrangement a fresh nail strip
advanced into the feeding tube pushes before it the rear end of the strip last intro-
duced, and causes it to be cut up into nails, so long as there remains enough for the
spring end of the nose piece to have a hold upon. The waste is thus reduced to a
minimum, and much longer strips can be conveniently operated upon than by the
use of the ordinary feeder.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said John Ryan Danks in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 5th March
1877.
JOHN RYAN DANKS, of the Firm of Danks, Walker, and Company, of Wolver-
hampton, in the County of Stafford, Nail Manufacturers "IMPROVEMENTS IN
FEEDING MECHANISM FOR CUT NAIL MACHINES."
My Invention consists of the improvements in feeding mechanism for cut nail
machines herein-after described, by which improvements the feeding of the nail
strips from which the nails are to be cut is effected automatically, and a great
saving of skilled labour thereby effected
In feeding the nail strips to the cutters of the nail cutting machine the following
motions have to be effected -After the cutting of a nail the strip has to be with-
drawn a short distance from the cutters, it has to be slightly raised and turned
over, then lowered and advanced the required distance on the stationary cutter.
In feeding mechanism constructed according to my Invention these motions are
effected in the following' manner :-On the rear end of the barrel or tube through
which the nail strip is fed, and to which an alternating semi-rotatory motion is
given, a collar is fixed, having at opposite points on its front face a V shaped cam
or projection. In front of the said collar is a ring attached to the frame of the
machine, through which ring the feeding barrel or tube works. The said ring bas
V shaped depressions corresponding to the V shaped cams described. A coiled or
other spring or springs press the collar on the feeding, tube against the stationary

page_text: ring. The required backward and forward semi-rotation is given to the feeding
tube by a rack engaging in a pinion on the said tube. When the V shaped cams
are opposite the V shaped depressions in the stationary ring the spring urges the
feeding tube forward, the cams entering the depressions; but when the feeding
tube commences its rotatory motion it recedes, as it can only rotate by the cams
travelling up the inclined sides of the depressions in the stationary ring, thus
causing the retiring of the collar and feeding tube. In this way the feeding tube
is brought into its advanced position at each end of its semi-rotation, while in
moving from one of these positions to the other it recedes.
The raising of the nail strip during the turning over motion is thus effected :-
On the feeding tube and near its front end a cam or eccentric is fixed, and imme-
diately under the said cam and on the framing of the machine is a fixed stop on
which the cam bears. As the feeding tube performs its semi-rotations the cam
bearing on the fixed stop raises and lowers the feeding end of the tube; a spring
keeps the cam to its bearing on the stop
The advance motion of the nail strip in the feeding tube is thus effected':
Near the extreme end or nose piece of the feeding tube and carried by the said feed-
ing tube are two rollers pressed together by a spring or springs, their opposed faces
meeting in the middle of the feeding tube. The nail strip is gripped between these
rollers and by their motion is advanced. These rollers are geared together by toothed
gearing, and on the axis of one of them is a ratchet wheel in which a pawl engages.
The finger of this pawl comes against a fixed stop just as or before the feeding tube
completes its semi-rotation, and the advance motion of the said tube which then
takes place advancing the rollers causes the finger of the pawl to travel on the stop
and thereby give the rollers a slight motion on their axes, and thus advance the
nail strip held between them. The nose piece of the feeding tube is of such a size
and figure internally that only one nail strip can pass down it at a time, the
extreme end of the nose piece is provided with two pairs of springs, one pair grip-
ping the strip on its flat sides, the other pair on its edges, so that the said strip is
held firmly by the said springs even when it has become so short that its rear end
is no longer held by the rollers. By this arrangement a fresh nail strip advanced
into the feeding tube pushes before it the rear end of the strip last introduced and
causes it to be cut up into nails so long as there remains enough for the spring end
of the nose piece to have a hold upon. The waste is thus reduced to a minimum,
and much longer strips can be conveniently operated upon than by the use of the
ordinary feeder.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawing
the manner in which my Invention may be performed
Figure 1 represents in plan, and Figure 2 in side elevation the feeding mechanism
of a cut nail machine, the parts of which are constructed and arranged according to
my Invention.
Figure 3 represents in end elevation the mechanism for feeding forward or giving
the advance motion to the nail strip in the feeding tube or barrel.
Figure 4 represents in end elevation, and Figure 5 in plan the rear end of the
feeder, and exhibit the construction of the parts for giving the advancing and
retiring motions to the feeding tubo at the proper times for advancing the nail plate
to and withdrawing it from the cutters.
Figure 6 represents in end elevation the mechanism for giving the lifting motion
to the feeding tube for raising the nail strip from the lower cutter during the turn-
ing over movement; and Figure 7 represents in end elevation the mechanism for
giving the alternate semi-rotations to the feeding tube or barrel for turning over the
nail strip at the proper times.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in the several Figures of
the Drawing.
a, a, is the inclined feeding tube or barrel down which the nail strip is fed to the
cutters m, m². The mechanism for giving the alternate semi-rotation to the said
feeding tube a is constructed as follows:-On the rear end of the said feeding tube

page_text: is a pinion e with which a reciprocating rack 6 beneath it engages. The said rack
b works in a dovetail seat b2 carried by the fixed framing e of the machine (see
Figure 2). By the reciprocating motion of the rack b an alternate semi-rotation is
communicated through the pinion c to the feeding tubo a, and the nail plate or strip
carried by the said tube is turned over at the proper times The reciprocating
motion of the sliding rack b is effected from the nail machine by means of the side
connecting rod i and cranked lever j, the free end of which lever is pinned to the
sliding rack b in the manner best seen in Figure 2.
The retiring and advancing motions of the feeding tube a for the purpose of
withdrawing the end of the nail strip from and advancing it to the cutters at the 1
proper times is constructed as follows:-On the end of the feeding tube a is a collar
d² which partakes of the alternating semi-rotation of the said feeding tube. On
the front face of the said collar d and at opposite points shaped cams or pro-
jections are made.
In front of the said cam collar d³ is a ring or hollow collar d'fixed by the pivots 1
or centres f, f, to the carrier g fixed to the frame e of the machine. The front
of the ring d has V shaped depressions d' in it corresponding to the V shaped
cams d on the collar The collar is pressed towards the swivelling ring
by the coiled springs h, h, acting upon the cross sliding plato hª³ (sce Figure 5)
sliding upon the fixed rods h³, hs, around which the coiled springs hare situated. 2
The sliding plate 2 is thus made to bear upon the collar d. The ring or collar d'
swivels upon the pins or centres f, f, and the rear end of the feeding tube is sup-
ported in the said swivelling ring, in which ring it is capable of both sliding and of
rising and falling; and the upright carrier g supporting the ring d¹ and feeding
tube a permits the said feeding tube to be turned aside when the attendant wishes 2
to adjust the cutters and dies of the nail machine
When by the semi-rotation of the feeding tube a the V shaped cams d³ of the
collar d³ are brought opposite the V shaped depressions d' in the ring or swivelling
collar d', the springs h, h, urge the feeding tube forward in the direction of the
cutters, the cams entering the said depressions d', as illustrated in the Drawing, 3
the end of the nail plate or strip and the feeding tube a are thus advanced to the
cutters. After a nail has been cut from the end of the nail strip and the feeding
tube commences its semi-rotatory motion in the opposite direction, the inclined
sides of the V depressions d' on the stationary ring d¹ bearing against the inclined
sides of the V cams d³ on the collar attached to the feeding tube cause the said 3
collar and with it the feeding tube to retire, so as to effect the rotiring of tho
nail strip from the cutters. As soon as the feeding tube has made its semi-rotation
the canis d³ again drop into the V depressions d'in the ring d¹³, and the feeding
tube and nail plate are again advanced to the cutters.
The raising of the nail strip from the cutters during the turning over motion is 4
effected by the cam or eccentric ke fixed on the front end of the feeding tube. The
shape of the said raising cam is best seen in the separate view, Figure 6. Tho said
cam k works in the vertical guides k³, k³, and is pressed down by the holder 1, to the
ends of which holder coiled springs 1, 12, aro attached. During the semi-rotation of
the cam k in one direction the " rise on one side of it bears against the stop es on 4
the fixed frame of the machine, and thereby raises the said cam k, and with it the
front end of the feeding tube, and lifts the strip in the said feeding tube from the
bottom cutter to a height sufficiently to permit the strip to be turned over without
touching the bottom cutter m.
"
I will now describe the mechanism for giving the advance motion to the nail 5
strip in the feeding tube at the end of each semi-rotation of the said feeding tube
Working in slots or openings at the opposite sides of the nose piece n attached to
the front end of the feeding tube is a pair of rollers o, o¹, between which rollers the
nail strip is gripped I prefer to cover the cylindrical surface of one or both these
rollers with india-rubber, or leather, or other slightly yielding material. By the 5
motion of the said rollers o, o¹, the nail strip is advanced through the slot in the
nose piece n towards the cutters. The said feeding rollers o, o¹, are pressed together

page_text: so as to grip between them the nail strip by the springs o², o³, pressing upon the
brasses or bearings of the said rollers. The said feeding rollers o,.0³, are geared
together by the toothed wheels p, p, and on the axis of the roller o¹ is a ratchet
wheel q in which a pawl r engages. The said pawl is pressed upon by the spring
represented, the said pawl being carried by the pawl lever turning freely on the
axis of the roller o². The said pawl lever is provided with fingers marked
respectively and for the purpose herein-after described. On either side of
the feeding tube is a fixed stop; these stops are marked respectively 8 and 8³, and
are carried by the adjustable uprights 83, 83, as best seen in the end elevation
Figure 3. The pair of gripping rollers o, o¹, pinions p, p, ratchet wheel q, and pawl
lever r,,,, are carried by and rotate with the feeding tube a. When the
feeding tube a makes its semi-rotation in one direction, say from the stop s² towards
the stops on the opposite side of the feeding tube, the finger 75% of the pawl lever
just before the feeding tube completes its semi-rotation strikes the stop 8. The said
pawl lever is thereby turned slightly upon its centre in the direction of the arrow,
Figure 2, and the pawl r carried by the said lever is thereby made to give a partial
rotation to the ratchet wheel q and through the said ratchet wheel and pinions p, p,
to give a corresponding motion to the feeding rollers o, o¹, and the latter thus
advance the nail plate or strip in the feeding tube a distance equal to the length of
the nail blank to be cut from its end. On the feeding tube making its back or
semi-rotation in the opposite direction, the finger of the pawl lever strikes
against the stop s² on the opposite side of the feeder, and thereby again lifts the
pawl lever and causes the pawl on it to give motion to the ratchet wheel q in the
same direction as was given to it when the pawl lever struck the other stop 82. A
further feeding forward or advance of the nail strip in the feeding tube a is thus
effected The fingers 74, 75, of the pawl lever are operated by the striking of them
against the stops 8, 82, on the turning over of the feeding tube, as well as by the
forward motion of the said feeding tube, which motions are being performed simul-
taneously, as heroin-before described.
By an examination of Figure 2 it will be seen that the pawl lever is capable
only of a limited motion on its centre in consequence of the pin 7 on the feeding
tube working in a slot 7 in the pawl lever.
When by the motion of the feeding tube a the pawl lever. begins to rise from the
position represented in Figure 2 the spring 2 of the end 74 raises that end until the
pin has reached the upper end of the slot 77, the pawl slipping over the teeth of
the ratchet wheel. The pawl lever is thus brought into a position proper for the
action upon it of the stop 8. In making its back motion into the position repre-
sented in Figure 2 the pawl lever as it approaches the said position, Figure 2, turns
upon its centre in consequence of the action of the spring 2 until the upper end of
the slot comes against the pin 7. In its further inotion the end 25 of the pawl
lever strikes the stop 8, as herein-before described.
The stops &, s, are made adjustable by the screw pins 8, 8, so that by raising
more or less the said stops a corresponding lifting of the pawl lever is effected, and
the feeding rollers o, o², rotated through a greater or less angle, and a greater or less
length of nail strip fed through the nose piece n to the cutters. The nose piece nis
connected by the flange at ³ to the feeding tube a The said nose piece n has a
flat slot running along its axis of a size proper to receive a single strip or nail plate.
The extreme end of the nose piece n is provided with two pairs of springs marked
espectively t, t, and t, t. The pair of springs t, t, grip the strip on its flat sides,
and the other pair,,gmp it on its edges. By means of the said pairs of
springs t, t, t², t, the strip is held firmly thereby, even when it has become so short
that its rear end is no longer held by the feeding rollers o, o², the said short piece
being fed to the cutters by the succeeding strip or nail plate which has been intro-
duced and is being fed forward by the action of the feeding rollers o, o².
In introducing the nail strip into the nose piece n it is passed through the feeding
tube a until its inner end enters the slot at the rear end of the nose piece, and is
then passed between the rollers o, o, by which it is fed to the cutters, as herein-

page_text: before described. To facilitate the introduction of the nail strip into the nose piece n
the rear end of tho said nose piece is made conical or bell shaped, the said bell
shaped end guiding the strip from the feeding tube to the slot in the nose piece, as
indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2. A hole z, Figure 1, is left in the nose piece
at a short distance behind the rollers o, o¹³, so that the attendant may see the
position of the strip in the nose piece which is being fed to the cutters, and when
the rear end of the said strip has arrived nearly at the feeding rollers he immediately
introduces another strip into the nose piece. In this way a nearly continuous feed
is obtained, and one workman may feed several machines.
The scrap or waste made by the use of my improved feeder is much less than that
made by ordinary hand feeding or by the mechanical feeders where clamps or clams
are used, and in consequence a large saving of labour and scrap results.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which the
same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit myself to
the precise details herein described and illustrated as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of my Invention, but I claim as my Invention
of improvements in feeding mechanism for cut nail machines,
First. The construction and arrangement of the parts herein-before described and
illustrated in the accompanying Drawing for giving the retiring and advancing
motions to the feeding tube, so as to withdraw the end of the nail strip or plate
from and advance it to the cutters at the proper times, that is to say, by the use of
the double V shaped cams fixed on and turning with the feeding tube acting against
corresponding depressions in a fixed or swivelling ring, substantially as described
and illustrated.
Secondly. The construction and arrangement of the parts herein-before described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing for giving the advance motion to the
nail plate or strip in the feeding tube on or just before the completion of the turning
over of the said nail plate or strip, that is to say, the combination of the pair of
feeding rollers o, o¹, ratchet wheel q, gearing p, p, and pawl and pawl lever 7, 2³, 74, 75,
and the adjustable stops 8, 82, the said parts being constructed and arranged and
working substantially as described and illustrated.
Thirdly. The spring nose piece constructed as herein-before described and illus-
trated in the accompanying Drawing
Lastly. The general arrangement or combination of the parts of the feeding
mechanism of cut nail machines herein-before described and illustrated in the
accompanying Drawing.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Ryan Danks, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Twenty-eighth day of February, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
Witness,
JOHN RODEN,
Clerk,
Wolverhampton.
JOHN RYAN DANKS. (L.S.)
4