IMPROVEMENTS IN CUT NAIL MACHINERY
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Homan Price Fenby, of Leeds, in the County of York,
Mechanical Engineer, and Arthur Greenwood, of the same Place, Mechanical
Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN CUT NAIL MACHINERY."
Sealed the 18th July 1876, and dated the 16th February 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Homan Price Fenby and
Arthur Greenwood at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents on the 16th
February 1876.
HOMAN PRICE FENBY, of Leeds, in the County of York, Mechanical Engineer,
and ARTHUR GREENWOOD, of the same Place, Mechanical Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS
IN CUT NAIL MACHINERY,"
Our Invention consists in improvements in cut nail machines, whereby instead of
the ordinary hand feeding the machine receives a continuous supply of plates
automatically from a hopper or trough containing a number of plates to be converted
into nails, sprigs, or brads.
On a vertical axle we place an oscillating lever carrying the bottom cutter, and
hinged to this lever is a piece carrying the top cutter, the whole forming a pair of
strong nippers. By thus arranging the cutters an accurate shearing action is
insured. The cutters may be made of such a form as to produce any required size
of head. The cutters are caused to oscillate in order that they may cut the plate
presented to them in a line inclining alternately in opposite directions from a right
angle to the sides of the plate. The amount of oscillation of the cutters from side
to side can be readily adjusted to suit. the required taper of the nail by means
herein-after described.
The cutters or nippers are kept open by a spring acting upon the top or movable
jaw, the bottom jaw or lever having no vertical motion, but always resting upon a
bridge or girder placed underneath the cutters as a substantial support.
The closing of the hinged jaw carrying the top cutter of the before-mentioned
nippers is effected by the oscillation of a strong lever on a horizontal axle carried
by the main frame of the machine, such oscillation being imparted by a cam on the
main shaft of the machine having two projections diametrically opposite to each
other, and bearing on the tail of the lever. The head of this lever is of such a.
form as to allow the before-mentioned nippers to oscillate from side to side beneath
it, only closing the nippers at the completion of each oscillation of the said nippers
by reason of the action of the double cam. The whole of the arrangement of the
[Price Sd.]

page_text: nippers may be placed the reverse way up of that described, and also the closing of
the said nippers may be effected by a cam acting direct upon the movable jaw.
The variable oscillation of the nippers from side to side is effected in the following
manner :-
In the rear end of the lever, which forms the bottom jaw of the nippers, is a stud
on which is a secondary double-ended lever, one end engaging in a cam race on the
main shaft, and the other passing into and through a movable fulcrum. This
movable fulcrum can be set at any required distance within certain limits from the
before-mentioned stud at the will of the attendant, thereby obtaining the required
taper on the nail.
The strips of metal from which the nails are to be made are placed flatwise in a
hopper or trough having a slit in the end nearest the cutters, through which the
bottom strip may advance towards the said cutters. At the outer end of the hopper
or trough is a feeder, having a reciprocating motion communicated to it by an
elastic connecting rod worked from the main shaft of the machine, preferably by an
excentric. The top surface of 'the said feeder is inclined, and has a projection at its
outer end about equal in height to the thickness of the strips being used. The outer.
ends of the strips successively rest upon the inclined part of the feeder as the bottom
strip is drawn away by the feed rollers, but the feeder is not capable of pushing
any strip out of the hopper or trough towards the feed rollers until the passage of
the previous strip out through the before-mentioned slit allows another to take its
place; this is owing to the tentative action of the elastic connecting rod. On
emerging from the slit in the hopper or trough the strip is seized by the feed
rollers, which have an intermittent motion imparted to them from the main shaft of
the machine; directly after coming through the feed rollers the strip passes between
two plates or guides, which serve to hold up to the cutters the short ends of the
strips whilst being pushed forward by the fresh strips, and thus waste ends are
avoided.
J
The feed rollers are geared together by toothed wheels, and are pressed towards
one another by springs or weights. The motion is first communicated to the said
feed rollers through a pair of toothed wheels, whose proportions one to another can
be varied according to the amount of feed required to be given off by the said feed
rollers; a pawle and ratchet wheel worked by an eccentric or cam on the main
shaft of the machine give the required intermittent motion to the said feed rollers.
More than one pair of feed rollers may be used if necessary.
When the machine is required to make headed nails we apply thereto two heading
dies of the ordinary type, one on each side of a central pair of grippers, which hold
the nail firmly whilst being headed. The grippers are placed immediately beneath
the cutters.
Another plan of carrying out this object is to place an edge or pivot underneath
the cutters, so that the nails will fall upon and balance over the pivot, always falling
with their points uppermost into a pair of grippers below, which hold the nail
whilst being headed. In order to facilitate the balancing over of the nails, the pivot
may oscillate with the nippers, thus giving a great preponderance of weight at the
thick end of the nail.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Homan Price Fenby and Arthur Greenwood in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 16th August 1876.
HOMAN PRICE FENBY, of Leeds, in the County of York, Mechanical Engineer, and
ARTHUR GREENWOOD, of the same Place, Mechanical Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN
CUT NAIL MACHINERY."
Our Invention consists in improvements in machinery for cutting nails, sprigs,
or brads from iron plates, or strips of suitable dimensions. In our machinery

page_text: (instead of feeding the nail plates to the machine by hand in the ordinary manner)
a continuous supply of plates or strips of iron are fed forward automatically from a
hopper or: trough containing a number, of plates or strips of suitable width and
thickness, and which are to be converted into nails, sprigs, or brads of the desired
size. ::
In the accompanying Drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of our improved
machine for cutting nails or other analogous articles from plates or strips of iron
which are fed forward automatically to the shears or cutting tools. Fig. 2 is à
plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is, a transverse vertical section of the feeding end
of the machine..
In bearings in a bracket a, forming part of the framing of the machine, is
mounted a vertical stud, or, axle b¹, which forms the fulcrum or point of support
of an oscillating lever, b, which at its forward end carries the bottom cutter c.
Hinged to the upper part of this lever b is a piece d carrying the top cutter
d, the whole forming a pair of strong nippers, as shewn at Fig. 1. By thus arranging
the cutters c and d an accurate shearing action of the same on the plate e to be
operated upon is ensured.
i.
The cutters, c and d may be made of such a form as to produce any required
size of head, and the levers which carry them are caused to oscillate on the vertical
stud 61, in order that they may cut the plate e (when presented to them) in a line
inclining alternately in opposite directions from a right angle to the sides of the
plate. Fig. 4 is a plan view of a piece of iron plate shewing the taper form of the
nails or brads produced by this oscillating action of the cutter levers b and d¹.
The amount of oscillation of the cutters and their levers from side to side can be
readily adjusted (to suit the required taper of the nail) by the means herein-after
described.
The cutters or nippers c and d are kept open by a spring f acting upon the top
or moveable jaw d¹, to which a vertical or up and down motion is given in the
manner herein-after explained. The bottom jaw or lever b has no vertical motion,
but always rests upon a bridge or girder a placed underneath the cutters so as to
form a substantial support or bed for the lower cutter c.
The closing of the hinged jaw d¹, which carries the top cutter d, is effected by
the vibrating or up and down motion of a strong lever g, which is mounted on a
horizontal axle g¹, carried by the main frame of the machine. The vibrating or up
and down motion is imparted to the lever g by a cam h on the main shaft of the
machine. This cam h has projections diametrically opposite to each other, as shewn
in Fig. 1, and bears against the tail of the lever g. The head of this lever g is of
such a form as to allow the nippers c, d, and their levers b and c to oscillate from
side to side on the vertical pin or stud b¹ beneath it; but the action of the cam / is
so arranged as only to close the nippers c, d at the completion of each horizontal
oscillation of the nipper lever b and . The whole of the arrangement of the
nippers c and d may be placed the reverse way up of that described, and also the
closing of the said nippers may be effected by a cam acting directly upon the upper
or moveable jaw d¹ if preferred.
The horizontal oscillation of the nipper levers band from side to side is
effected in the following manner :-
In the rear end of the lever b, which forms the bottom jaw of the nippers, is a
stud i, on which is mounted a secondary double ended lever j one end of this
lever f, carries a pin which engages in a cam groove in a cam or roller k on the
main shaft h¹, and the other end of the lever j passes into and through a moveable
fulcrum, which can be set at any required distance (within certain limits) from
the vertical stud i. This adjustment can be effected at the will of the attendant
who can thereby obtain the required taper on the nail.
The strips or plates of metal e from which the nails are to be made are arranged
flatwise in a pile in a hopper or trough m, having a narrow slit at e¹, Fig. 1, in the
end nearest the cutters c, d. Through this. narrow slit e the bottom strip or plate
of metal e may advance towards the cutters c, d, as shewn in the Figure. At the

page_text: onter end of the hopper or trough (which with the mechanism connected therewith
is shewn detached at Figures 5 and 6) is a feeding device, having a reciprocating
motion communicated to it by a connecting rod worked from the main shaft of the
machine.
It will be seen on referring to Fig. 5 that the hopper or trough m containing the
plates to be operated upon is placed at a slight inclination, and that the plates e*
are piled one on another. The front end of the hopper or trough m is closed by a
vertical plate m¹ (seen best in the half size view, Fig. 1). This plate m¹ extends
down to nearly the bottom of the hopper or trough, leaving only the narrow slit e¹,
which is only sufficiently deep to allow one plate at a time to pass out at the bottom,
as shown at e¹, Fig. 1. The plates e are drawn forward one by one by the reci-
procating feeder n, Fig. 5, the top surface of which is inclined, and has a projection
at its outer end about equal in height to the thickness of one of the strips or
The outer ends of the strips or plates e*
plates e* that are to be cut up into nails.
successively rest upon the inclined part of the feeder n as the bottom or lowermost
strip or plate is drawn away from the pile by the feed rollers o, o, Fig. 1, but the
feeder n is not capable of pushing any strip out of the narrow slit or opening e in the
hopper or trough m towards the feed rollers o, o, until the previous strip or
plate e has passed completely out of the hopper or trough m through the narrow
slit or opening e', so as to allow the next strip or plate to drop down and take the
place of the former. The reciprocating feeder n is mounted on a guide rod n³, and
it is attached to an elastic rod 1, which is connected by a link to an excentric or
crank on the main shaft of the machine. The feeder n is kept continually reci-
procating to and fro, and acting against the outer end of the lowermost projecting
plate, but cannot move it forward until its inner end has dropped down, so as to be
opposite to the narrow slit or opening e¹, Fig. 1, at the front end of the hopper or
trough m. The action of the feeder n on the lowermost projecting plate c* is a
tentative one, until the inner end of the plate drops down into a position suitable
to be thrust out through the slit e', when the feeder will effect this object. In
order to allow the feeder to yield when the lowermost plate is not in a position to
be thrust out of the slit e¹ the connecting rod p is made elastic either by means of
an air spring or by a helical spring, as will be well understood. On emerging from
the slit in the hopper or trough m the strip or plate e, Fig. 1, is seized by the
feed rollers o, o, shewn by dots in Fig. 1, which have an intermittent motion
imparted to them from the main shaft of the machine. Directly after coming
through the feed rollers o, o, the strip or plate e passes between two plates or
guides 7, 1, Fig. 1, which serve to hold up to the cutters c, d, the short ends of the
strips or plates e whilst the latter are being pushed forward by the advance of a fresh
strip or plate. By this means waste ends are avoided, and the whole length of the
strip or plate e will be presented to the cutters c and d, and be cut up into nails.
The guide plates q are pressed towards each other by the coiled springs q¹, so as to
hold the short end of the plate e firmly while it is being operated upon by the
cutters. The feed rollers o, o, are geared together by toothed wheels, and are
pressed towards one another by springs o¹, or by means of weights. The motion is
first communicated to the feed rollers o, o, through a pair of toothed wheels o², o²,
whose proportions one to another can be varied according to the amount of feed
required to be given off by the feed rollers, and which amount of feed will of course
depend upon the size of the mail to be produced. A pawler takes into a ratchet
wheel on the axle of the toothed wheel o and is worked by an excentric or cam on
the main shaft of the machine, and gives the required intermittent motion to the
feed rollers, as will be understood by referring to Fig. 1. More than one pair of
feed rollers may be used if considered necessary.
-
Fig. 7 is a vertical section, Fig. 7a is a front view, and Fig. 8 a plan view of a
modification of the guide plates 9, 9, for nipping or holding the short ends of the
strips or plates of metal e. In this instance the spring q of Fig. 1 is dispensed
with, and in place thereof the lower guide plate is provided with a spring
plate which is mounted on a horizontal stud q², and is capable of being

page_text: tightened up by means of adjusting screws q³, q³. By this means the metal plate e
may be nipped as tightly as may be desired while it is being operated upon by the
cutters. The movable jaw d, which carries the upper cutter d, is provided with an
adjustable stop s, against which the nail plate e is brought by the feeding rollers o, o.
By this means the accurate operation of the cutters on the nail plate is insured, and
the nails or other articles must necessarily all be of the same size, provided the
thickness and width of the nail plates be always the same.
Although in our Provisional Specification we refer in general terms to a device
for producing headed nails, we have not yet been able to bring this modification of
our Invention into practical operation, we have not therefore deemed it advisable
to give any description of such modification, as it would necessarily become
somewhat crude and imperfect.
Having now described our Invention of "Improvements in Cut Nail Machinery,"
and having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, we claim as the
Invention secured to us by Letters Patent as aforesaid―
Adapting the cutters c and d to a pair of jaws or levers which are capable of
oscillating horizontally on a vertical pin, so that by bringing the cutters alternately
to positions inclined in opposite directions to a right angle from the sides or edges
of the nail plate to be operated upon, nails, sprigs, or brads of a taper form may be
produced therefrom, as shewn at Fig. 4 of the Drawings.
We also claim the mode herein set forth of constructing, combining, and operating
the two jaws of the cutters or nippers.
We further claim the mode herein set forth of constructing and adapting the
presser plate or guide plates for guiding and holding the strip or plate of metal
while being operated upon by the cutters or nippers.
Lastly, we claim the arrangement, construction, the mode of operating the parts
for feeding forward the nail plate e to the cutters, as herein set forth.
In witness whereof, I, the said Homan Price Fenby, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, the Fourteenth day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-six.
TT
T
TTYDY
דמזייזרד
H. P. FE
FENDI.
(LZ.S.)