Improvements in and relating to Mechanism for Arranging Nails Previous to Driving them.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 26th July, 1898-Accepted, 8th Oct., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and relating to Mechanism for Arranging Nails
Previous to Driving them.
A communication from abroad by JAMES WILLSON BROOKS, of Petersham, County
of Worcester, State of Massachusetts, one of the United States of America,
Gentleman.
I, ALFRED GEORGE BROOKES, of 55 and 56, Chancery Lane, in the County of
London, Chartered Patent Agent, 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:-
This invention has for its object the production of novel apparatus wherein
provision is made for delivering the nails in the desired directions as to their
heads and points.
The apparatus herein to be described contains a series of raceways on which
the nails are stopped uniformly, and at the sides of said raceways at or near their
lower ends there is located a series of pockets to receive the endmost nails on
the raceways, said nails being transferred therefrom bodily laterally by means of
a suitable transferrer having a series of fingers or projections, one for each race-
way, and made movable transversely with relation to the guiding grooves of said
raceways, the nails entering said pockets being let therefrom through suitable
tubes or guides to any usual nail block or receptacle from which they are to be
driven.
The invention herein contained is based on sustaining each nail preparatory
to being discharged from the series of grooves in the raceway substantially
throughout its length in said grooves, and then to discharge said nails bodily
laterally from said raceway grooves into a series of pockets located one at each
side of said grooves, the nails being led from said pockets in usual manner into
driving position.
Provision has been made herein to discharge all the nails pushed off out of
the grooves of the raceway laterally head-first into the pockets, and, as herein
provided for, the nails rest in the grooves of said raceways heads and points indis-
criminately leading, but all the nails coming down said grooves meet a stop at
the end thereof, and said stop is so located that it may be adjusted as may be
desired, so that it may arrest the nails at the ends of the grooves in the raceway,
so that the centre parts of said nails stand just above a balancing device, and when
the transferrer operates to push the nails from the raceway grooves, said nails
strike the said balancing device, it being located between the ends of the series
of raceway grooves, and the heavier end of the nail under gravity descends the
faster, so that the said nails all enter head-first the pockets referred to.
Fig. 1, in side elevation, represents a sufficient portion of a nail assorting
mechanism to enable this invention to be understrood :
Fig. 2, is a partial section chiefly to show the shape of the transferrer;
Fig. 2 shows said transferrer in a different position:

page_text: Fig. 3 is a top or plan view of the parts shewn in Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 shows one of the legs A and its guide;
Fig. 5 is a detail showing part of the side frame of the raceway and its cam f
and the pin f, the view being a section on the line, looking toward the side
frame;
Fig. 6 is a top or plan view of a sufficient portion of a modified form of nail
assorting apparatus to be herein described, wherein the balancing device has been
omitted, and yet the transferrer acts to deliver nails head-first from a series of
raceways into a series of pockets, all the nails so acted upon coming down the
main part of the raceway point-first, the nails coming head-first having been
eliminated by the use of preliminary starts;
:
Fig. 7 is a detail in side elevation showing one of the raceways or grooved
parts.
Fig. 8 is a like view showing the stop differently arranged to thereby enable
the transferrer to discharge all the nails point-first; and
Figs. 9 and 10 are details showing a plurality of raceways, and co-operating
pockets, and the transferrer, in different positions.
The framework A, of suitable shape to sustain the working parts, has mounted
on or above it suitable legs A¹, sliding on guides A* of the frame-work, said legs
supporting the hopper A2, the latter having communicating with or leading from
its lower end a plurality of raceways, each raceway being shown as a narrow
bar grooved at its upper edge to receive and guide the nails to be sorted, said
nails, as herein shown, passing down said raceways either end first.
At the sides of said raceways just above their lower ends and between the same,
there are a series of pockets a¹, said pockets being suitably connected with and
leading to any usual or suitable nail block or receptacle, from which the sorted
nails are to be taken for use.
These raceways have co-operating with them a transferrer b, a device preferably
relatively laterally movable with relation to the raceways, whereby a nail duly
arrested at a definite point on the race-way may by or through this lateral relative
movement be transferred or moved bodily laterally from said raceways, and be
dropped into said pockets.
The transferrer, herein illustrated as embodying one suitable form of this inven-
tion, is composed of a bar having a series of depending lugs or fingers b', said.
lugs or fingers in the movement of the transferrer transversely to the length of
the raceways, by or through a suitable crank pin 62 or other actuator, contacting
with the sides of the nails resting on the tops of the raceways, and pushing them
bodily laterally from said raceways, letting them fall into said pockets, and for
the best and most satisfactory results these lugs or fingers are made long enough
to enter transverse slots made in said raceways, but they might, but not so well,
terminate close to the tops of the raceways.
The transferrers herein shown serve also another function, viz. the function
of stops to arrest the nails next behind the nails being acted upon by the transferrer
to be removed from the raceways, said lugs or fingers stopping in their discharging
imovement immediately in line with the grooves of the raceways, to thereby permit
the next nail back, as described, to meet said lugs or fingers and be stopped until
said transferrer is returned into its normal position, at which time the nails so
stopped are released and permitted to further descend on the raceway to the main
stop c, the stop for the end-most nails of the raceways to be discharged.
This stop traverses the set of raceways at or near their lower ends, and is
made adjustable toward and from said raceways in the direction of their length,
to thereby so position the nails with relation to a selecting or balancing device d
that the upper edge of said balancing device will lie substantially equidistant
between the heads and points of the individual nails.
This balancing device occupies a position between the raceways referred to,
and crosses over and, in a measure, divides the pockets referred to, so that the
nails transferred laterally from said raceways to drop into said pockets, will strike

page_text: said balancing device, and, owing to the fact that the heads of the nails are the
heavier, said heavy ends will turn down quickly, and consequently all the nails
so discharged from said raceways, whether point or head-first, indiscriminately,
will enter said pockets head-first.
To better ensure the effective operation of the mechanism herein described,
I have given to the raceways a certain pitch or inclination down substantially to
one nail's length from the point where the transferrer stands, and from that end
of the part of greatest inclination, to substantially the end stop c, the raceway
is as nearly horizontal as it may be made and yet ensure the nails travelling
thereon by the force of gravity, the placing of part of the raceway more nearly
horizontal, as stated, requiring less motion on the part of a nail having its point
first and pushed onto the balancing device, to start it falling in the proper direction.
The travel of the nails downwardly on the said raceway, may, however, be aided
by any suitable or usual shaking or jarring motion common to this class of mechan-
ism there being herein shown for such purpose a crank shaft e carrying links el
attached to legs A¹, the motion of the crank shaft reciprocating to a slight extent
said legs and their attached parts.
This crank shaft e derives its motion from a suitable belt on a belt pulley D.
The shafte has a worm e³, which engages and rotates a worm toothed gear e³,
fast on a shaft et, provided with a toothed gear e, in mesh with a pinion e, fast
on a shaft e', said shaft, in suitable bearings es, having fast on it a clutch e³, it
being herein shown as toothed.
The end of shaft e', as herein represented, enters a hole in one end of a second
shaft f, substantially in line with it, this latter shaft having loosely splined on it
a clutch f, having an annular groove 2, which is engaged by a shipper lever f³,
pivoted at 3, said shipper lever being acted upon at suitable times by hand, as
whenever the shaft f is to be given one full rotation to actuate the transferrer
to discharge a series of nails from the raceways and then to return it to its normal
position.
Normally the clutch e, f, referred to, is out of engagement, and it is put into
engagement at the proper times manually, but it must be disconnected auto-
matically, and to do this in this present instance of this invention, the clutch f¹
has been provided with a lug f³, see Fig. 3, which acts at the end of each rotation
of said clutch against a suitable cam projection f*, represented as fixed on the
movable framework carrying the raceways, the shape of said cam projection being
shown separately in Fig. 5.
The stop may be adjusted to adapt it to any suitable length of nail, to thereby
position the stop, so that the balancing device will come to the centre of the
length of the nail.
}
This invention, as has been stated, is not limited to the exact construction
shown for the transferrer, nor to the means exhibited for actuating it, and instead,
any usual or suitable devices for reciprocating the same may be employed.
The transferrer is herein shown as a U-shaped or forked bar, each branch of
the bar having like lugs or fingers, these two series of lugs or fingers acting to
carry the nail bodily and evenly off of the raceways, but this invention will not
be departed from if the said transferrer was composed of but one bar, but in such
case the lugs or fingers would have to act centrally with relation to the length
of the nail.
The bottom of the hopper A² may be provided with suitable raised inclined lips
or projections m, which come opposite the spaces between the raceways a, the
bottoms of the hopper exposed between the said projections being substantially
in line with the upper guiding edge of the raceways, so that nails entering the
spaces between the ridges m are directed properly onto the grooved tops of the race-
wave.
The legs A, supporting the operating parts thus far described slide on suitable
guides A fixed to the bed A as the crank shaft e is rotated.
The stop e receives in it the threaded shank of two bolts or adjusting screws c¹0

page_text: having their head ends mounted loosely in or with relation to the framework A,
the threaded parts of said bolts having fixed upon them suitable thumb pieces c¹2
so that by engaging said thumb pieces the screws may be turned, the thread of
the screw moving the stop e back and forth with relation to the ends of the race-
ways. The thumb piece may be fixed as by a pin 3, shown in Fig. 1.
In the modification described, Figs. 6-10, the pockets a³ are somewhat differ-
ently shaped, and the balancing device, Fig. 1, is discarded, and the stop for the
end of the nail coming down the raceway is made as a bar b adjustably secured
by means of a set screw 6 to a cross bar, forming part of the apparatus, so that
said stop may be located either a little back from one edge of the pocket, as
in Fig. 7, or the said stop may be so moved as to place its acting face within
the pocket or the lines bounded by it, as in Fig. 8.
The transferrer marked E in the modification differs but slightly from the
transferrer shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the transferrer of the modification having
two series of depending fingers 10 which are adapted to enter cross grooves in
the series of raceways.
The modification shows a series of preliminary starts b; and the nails getting
on said starts head-first drop therefrom into the space b³, entering the box at the
lower side of said space, while those nails which get onto the starts point-first
travel across said space and slide down the raceways, meeting the stop br.
When the stop 6 is adjusted as in Fig. 7, the points of the nails meet the
face of the stop and cross the projection 3 at the top of each pocket, so that when
the transferrer is moved transversely, the fingers 10, acting on the sides of the
nails resting in the grooves of the raceways, push said nails laterally from the
raceways, and as their points are arrested, due to their contact with the shoulders
or projections 3. the heads get a start and go down through the pockets head-
first, but should the stop be put into the position Fig. 8, then the nails when
moved bodily laterally from the raceways by the transferrer, the points, not
being arrested, descend, and the heads strike the incline part of the pockets,
thus temporarily arresting the heads, so that the points get the lead into the
narrow lower ends of the pockets, the nails being then delivered point-first.
The raceway in the modification will be reciprocated or jarred back and forth
as provided for in Fig. 1.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
1. In a nail assorting apparatus, the use with a series of raceways, adapted to
receive upon them and sustain a series of nails, and co-operating pockets, of
a transferrer adapted to meet the sides of said nails and push them bodily
laterally from said raceways, said nails dropping into said pockets, substantially
as described.
2. The use in a nail assorting apparatus, of a series of raceways, and pockets
arranged at the sides of said raceways, of a stop for the ends of the nails lying
at the extremities of said raceways, and a transferrer adapted to meet the sides
of a series of nails on said raceways, to push them laterally from said raceways,
said nails falling upon a balancing device and entering said pockets head first,
substantially as described.
3. In a nail assorting apparatus, the use with a series of raceways, and pockets
at the sides thereof, one for each raceway, of a stop for the endmost nails lying
on said raceways, means to adjust said stop. and a transferrer to act upon and
push said nails bodily laterally from said raceways, said nails dropping into said
pockets, substantially as described.
4. In a nail assorting apparatus, the use with a series of raceways, an extension
of lesser inclination, and a series of pockets at the ends of said raceways, of a
transferrer adapted to meet the sides of the nails lying on said raceways, and move
them bodily laterally therefrom to drop into said pockets, substantially as described.

page_text: 5. In a nail assorting apparatus, the use with a series of raceways to receive
and guide a series of nails, and a series of pockets at the sides of said raceways,
of a two-armed transferrer having fingers to contact at two points with the sides
of each nail to be transferred, substantially as described.
6. In a nail assorting apparatus, the use with a series of raceways to receive
upon them and guide a series of nails, and a series of pockets, of an adjustable
end stop for the ends of the nails lying at the delivery ends of said raceways, to
receive against them the nails lying above said pockets, substantially as described.
Dated the 25th day of July 1898.
WM. BROOKES & SON
55 and 56, Chancery Lane, London,
Agents for the Applicant.