Year: 1886

page_text: I, CHARLES GIBBS, of Gothenburg, in the Kingdom of Sweden, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement, reference being had to the accompanying two sheets of Drawings, and to
the letters and figures marked thereon :-
This invention relates to improvements in machinery for finishing nail nail blanks
previously punched out of strips of plate rolled with ribs or flanges which form the
heads of the finished nails, or nail blanks produced by other means; that is to say,
in machinery in which the rolling out or drawing, pointing, and trimming of the
shanks of such blanks, are effected.
In the Drawings hereto annexed, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a horse-shoe
nail finishing machine with my improvements applied thereto; Figure 2 is a plan,
Figure 3 is a vertical section on line 1-2 of Figure 2, and Figures 4 and 5
sectional elevations on line 3-4 of Figure 2.
For the purpose of rolling out or drawing and pointing the shanks of the nail
blanks, I employ any desired number of pairs of the well known ordinary drawing
rollers with circumferential die grooves formed therein corresponding to the shape
and size of the finished nail to be produced. The machine shown in the Drawings
has two pairs of such rollers A, A, and B, B; they turn in bearings in the frame C
and are driven by gearing D from the driving shaft E in the usual way. This
shaft carries a flywheel E¹ and frictional driving gear with fast and loose strap
pulleys as usual. This frictional gear and fast and loose pulleys are not shown in
the Drawing as they are alredy well understood. The upper pair of rollers A, A,
partly roll out or draw the shanks of the blanks introduced between them through
the guide tube A¹, and the lower pair of rollers B, B, complete the rolling out and
pointing of the shanks of the blanks which are conducted from the upper pair of
rollers to the lower through the improved guide tube B¹ the construction of which
will be hereinafter more fully described.
Beneath the lowermost pair of rollers B, B, is placed the usual mechanism F for
straightening the rolled out blank sidewise if necessary and for imparting thereto
a certain definite amount of curvature, or set flatwise, if, and when required.
Beneath the straightening and setting mechanism F, is placed a pair of improved
nippers of construction to be hereafter described, the object of which nippers is to

page_text: receive the rolled out blank as it comes from the rollers and straightening and
setting mechanism, to grasp it and convey it to the part of the machine where the
trimming or removal of the superfluous metal from the rolled out blank is to be
effected.
The improved guide tube or conductor B¹ is of rectangular section with an
internal yielding side piece H (Figure 3) adapted to liberate an interceptor which
prevents the further supply of blanks to the machine in the event of the guide
tube or conductor becoming choked by an accumulation of blanks, as described in
the Specification of a Patent granted to W. Morgan-Brown dated 29th October
1878 No. 4365. But instead of employing, in combination with the yielding side
piece H, the pivoted cover plate described in the said Specification for closing the
front of the guide tube or conductor, and to enable an accumulation of nail blanks
to be removed therefrom when necessary, I employ the hinged door I, similar to
that described in the Specification of a Patent granted to W. Morgan-Brown dated
15th August 1872 No. 2432, opening outwards so as to expose the whole length of
the guide tube or conductor for the removal of the blanks. This hinged door I is
kept closed normally by the circular part of the head of a bolt J the stem of which
is screwed into the solid side of the guide tube B¹, so that as the said bolt is
screwed inwards, its head presses against the door, holding it firmly closed, but
when it is required to open the door to remove an accumulation of blanks, or to
inspect or repair the yielding side piece H of the tube or conductor, the person in
charge of the machine has only to turn the bolt J, so that the straight part of its
edge comes parallel to the edge of the door I so as to liberate the said door which
can then be swung open on its hinges. By the employment, in combination with a
guide tube or conductor having within it a yielding side piece, of the door I instead
of the pivoted cover plate described in the Specification of the aforesaid Patent, the
front upper part of the guide tube B₁ is covered so as to maintain a continuous
guide tube from the upper to the lower pair of rollers, whereas when the said
pivoted cover plate is used, the said upper front part of the guide tube is left open,
and the guiding effect of the tube is consequently reduced at that part.
I construct the transfer nippers as follows:-
Fixed to the framework of the machine is a plate K having a vertical guide
groove formed therein. In this guide groove slides a vertical bar L which may be
called the main slide bar, the upper end of which carries a cross piece L¹ on, or in
which, slide at right angles to the main bar L, two pieces M, M, which form the
two jaws of the grasping part of the nippers. These two jaws M, M, are connected
by bell crank levers N, N, (fulcrumed to the aforesaid cross piece L1, and acting
on pins N¹ N¹ fixed in the jaws M, M, and passing through slots in the said cross
piece) with a second vertical sliding bar O, which may be called the secondary
sliding bar, sliding in a groove or other guide in, or on, the main sliding bar L.
The secondary sliding bar O has only a limited movement in the guide groove of
the main sliding bar L, being limited as regards its upward movement therein by
the amount the jaws of the nippers can open, or by a special stop provided for
that purpose, and as regards its downward movement therein by an adjusting
screw P against which its lower end comes to bear as it slides downwards in the
main sliding bar L. This adjusting screw P thus enables the amount of closing of
the jaws to be regulated to compensate for wear and tear. The secondary sliding
bar O is connected by a link Q to one end of the lever R the other end of which
is acted on by the connecting rod S which receives an up and down motion from
the cam T on the shaft E. The main sliding bar L is prevented from moving too
freely in its guide groove in the plate K by the pressure of the spring U on a
friction piece V which bears against the back of the said main slide, the pressure
of the spring U, and consequently the friction exerted by the piece V, being
regulated by the screws U¹.
It will now be understood that, assuming the nippers to be closed and depressed
into their lowest position as shown at Figure 4, the first effect of moving the
secondary sliding bar O upwards by the action of the lever R and link Q, will be

page_text: to cause it to slide upwards in the main sliding bar L and to operate the bell
crank levers N, N, so as to cause the jaws M, M, of the nippers to slide away from
each other, that is to open; the main sliding bar L being, in the meantime,
prevented from rising with the secondary bar O by the friction in its guide groove,
but the upward movement of the secondary sliding bar O having opened the
jaws M, M, as widely as may be necessary, and having brought the upper end of
the secondary sliding bar O into contact with a stop, or with a part of the main
sliding bar L, as shown in Figure 5, the further movement of the secondary
sliding bar O will overcome the friction of the main sliding bar L and cause it,
with the entire nippers, to ascend to the highest position necessary for the grasping
of a nail blank by the nipper jaws M, M, as shown in Figure 5. Similarly, when
the secondary sliding bar O is moved downwards by the lever R and links Q, it
first slides downwards in the main sliding bar L, operates the bell crank levers N, N,
so as to cause the jaws M, M, of the nippers to slide towards each other, that is, to
close on and to grasp the nail blank, the main sliding bar being, in the meantime,
prévented from descending with the secondary bar Ŏ by the friction in its guide
groove; then continued downward movement of the secondary sliding bar brings
the lower end of the latter into contact with the end of the set screw P, and
overcomes the friction of the main sliding bar L, and causes it, with the entire
nipper, to descend to its lowest position, (Figure 4) so as to bring the nail blank W
opposite to the trimming matrix X, into, and through which, it is driven from the
nippers by the trimming die or punch Y, which is operated by the connecting
rod Z and cam Z¹ on the shaft E. Each set of upward and downward movements
of the secondary sliding bar O and main sliding bar L produces a similar series of
operations.
Instead of the connecting rod S being guided at the cam shaft end by the shaft
itself passing through the slot in the said connecting rod as heretofore, I connect
the upper end of the said connecting rod S by a pin joint to one end of a radius
bar S₁, the other end of which is pin-jointed to a stud S³, or other fixed point on
the frame of the machine. The upper end of the bar, or connecting rod S, is thus
constrained to follow the arc of a circle described by the radius bar S¹, and the
slot, in the connecting rod rod S being made wide enough to clear the cam shaft,
never comes in contact therewith, by which means wear and tear, and the
consequent unsteadiness of action, are materially reduced. A similar arrangement
may be employed to guide the outer end of the connecting rod Z for operating the
trimming punch Y.
The connecting rod S is preferably made in two parts connected together by a
right and left handed screw S³, by turning which in one direction, or other, the
connecting rod is lengthened, or shortened, and thereby the height to which the
nippers are raised, or the depth to which they are lowered, may be adjusted at
pleasure.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
First The combination of a guide tube or conductor located between the two
sets of die rollers, and having within it a yielding side piece which releases an
interceptor, with an externally hinged door opening outwards as herein before
described, and illustrated in Figures 1, 3, 4, and 5 of the Drawings hereto annexed.
Second-The improved construction of transfer nippers, consisting of a
vertically sliding main bar carrying the horizontally sliding nipper jaws, and
moving in its guide groove against adjustable frictional resistance, and a secondary
sliding bar acting in combination with the main sliding bar so as to operate the
nipper jaws horizontally, and the said main sliding bar with the nipper jaws
thereon vertically, all arranged, combined, and operating substantially as herein-
before described, and illustrated in Figures 1, 3, 4, and 5 of the Drawings hereto
annexed,

page_text: Third The employment of a radius bar pin-jointed at one end to a fixed part
of the frame of the machine, and at the other end to the upper or outer end of the
connecting rod operating the transfer nippers, or the trimming punch, in order to
guide the said upper or outer end of the connecting rod, as hereinbefore described,
and illustrated in Figures 1, 2, and 3 of the Drawings hereto annexed, and for the
purposes specified.
Fourth The improved horse-shoe nail finishing-machine, consisting of the
ordinary drawing and pointing die rollers, straightening, bending, and trimming
mechanisms combined with the improved guide tube or conductor and the
improved transfer nippers, as hereinbefore described, and illustrated in Figures 1, 2
and 3 of the Drawings hereto annexed.