A New or Improved Machine for Making Buttons.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 30th June, 1891
Complete Specification Left, 25th Mar., 1892-Accepted, 30th Apr., 1892.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New or Improved Machine for Making Buttons.
We, ADOLF STRAUSS and ROBERT RIPP, both of Lodz, Russian Poland,
Manufacturers, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to a new or improved machine for cutting, turning or
perforating button blanks whereby certain advantages over the ordinary button
lathe are obtained.
In carrying our invention into effect we insert the blanks to be turned or cut into
split tube holders arranged radially round a shaft hereinafter termed the holder-
shaft. On each split tube holder is a tightening ring kept from falling off the
holder by a short chain. As the holders rotate with their shaft the blanks are
inserted one into each holder when the holder is at a position remote from the
cutting tool. A holder having thus obtained its blank moves onwards and by
coming under a spring roller tightens its grip on the blank through the roller
pressing the ring further down the split tube. The holder then moves onwards till
it comes opposite the cutter or tool which is to operate upon the blank. The said
tool or cutter is held in a chuck or a poppet-head which latter is capable of
reciprocating towards and from the blank. This reciprocating movement is
The holder is maintained
produced by means of a cam and counter-springs.
stationary opposite the tool just long enough to perinit of the blank being operated
on and it will thus be seen that the rotary movement of the holders and their shaft
is therefore not continuous but step-by-step as it were. After the holder has moved
onwards past the tool the ring comes into contact with rollers which press it in the
opposite direction to that in which it was pressed by the rollers hereinbefore
mentioned so as to loosen the grip of the holder on the blanks and enable the latter
to drop out. The step-by-step rotation of the holder shaft is obtained by a spider-
wheel fixed thereon actuated by a rotating cam taking its motion in any convenient
way from the main shaft. To enable the holder to remain rigid when opposite the
tool a slotted or recessed wheel is mounted on the holder-shaft and having a number
of slots corresponding with the number of holders. As each holder comes opposite
the tool a pawl or click-drops into one of these slots or recesses and is maintained
therein by a spring. When the tool has acted on the blank and the holder is no
longer required to be steady a cam taking its movement as does the cam actuating
the spider-wheel moves the click from the recessed wheel and enables the holder
The cam and
shaft to be rotated through another step as before described.
counter-springs hereinbefore mentioned as actuating the poppet-head are preferably
arranged so that the cam by positive action withdraws the poppet-head from the
work whilst the counter springs serve to bring the poppet-head up to the work
as the pressure of the cam is removed.
Dated this 30th day of June 1891.
ADULT STRAUSS,
ROBERT RIPP,
Per J. G. L.

page_text: COBIT ILM
A New or Improved Machine for Making Buttons.
We ADOLF STRAUSS and ROBERT RIPP, both of Lodz, Russian Poland,.
Manufacturers, 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:—
Our invention relates to a new or improved machine for cutting turning or
perforating button blanks whereby certain advantages over the ordinary button
lathe are obtained.
The lathes at present in use in most button factories have fixed chucks or stock
heads holding the cutting tool. The raw material after having undergone a
previous rough fashioning is placed in a sliding holder which a workman then
pushes with his hand against the chuck or stock head, so that the tool held in the
latter comes into contact with the button blank and cuts out the button therefrom.
In contradistinction to the above mentioned form of lathe that which is the subject
of our present invention has a moveable poppet-head carried on a slide block which
is caused to reciprocate towards and away from the part of the machine wherein
the button blank is fixed. The reciprocating motion of the poppet-lead is effected
by means of a cam and counter springs as hereinafter described.
We shall now proceed to describe with the help of the two annexed sheets of
drawings a practical form of our invention. In the drawings similar letters of
reference indicate similar parts.
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine or lathe for making buttons.
Figure 2 is an end elevation of the same.
Figure 3 is a plan of the same.
Figures 4, 5 and 6 show to a larger scale some details of the tightening device to
be hereinafter described.
Figures 7, 8 and 9 are sections through the driving sbafts on the lines a «, yy,
and respectively, drawn to an enlarged scale.
A. is the moveable poppet-head carrying the cutting tool. Opposite the latter
and fixed on the same bed plate as A is the frame B. The shaft C hereinafter
termed the holder shaft is journalled in the frame B and carries six symmetrically
disposed radial button-blank holders D. These holders are of circular section
slightly tapered towards their outer ends and are slit crosswise from these ends.
The centre of the holder where the two slits cross is hollowed out so as to receive
the button blank. Each holder is encircled by a ring which when pushed in the
direction of the shaft C tightens the grip of the holder on the button blank which
is then held as in a double crossed vice. The rings are automatically pushed up
the holders D by means of the rollers e of which there is one on each side of the
holder. The rollers e are carried by arms or levers E pivoted to the top of the
sides of the frame B. The pressure required to be exerted by the rollers is derived
from a spiral spring attached to the free ends of the levers E and to the frame B.
The pressure of the rollers is transmitted to the rings by means of a link
or pull rod d which is bolted through the ring by nuts d'. The other end of
the rod d is jointed by means of the pin to the arm ³ as shown in
Figures 4, 5 and 6. The arm d³ is shaped with a curved rolling surface and
turns on the bolt pin screwed into the frame B. When the button holders D
come opposite the rollers e the latter roll up the inclined surfaces d'on to the arm d
and press the latter downwards thereby pulling the rods and the rings d
bolted to them so that the rings tighten the grip of the holders. A button
blank having been placed in the holder by the workman and automatically

page_text: gripped by the holder in the manner above described the shaft C turns by an
intermittent rotation until the holder containing the button-blank to be operated
upon is brought opposite to the cutting tool fixed in the poppet-head A. At
this instant the hammer shaped click or stop H shown in Figure 7 engages in
a notch on the circumference of the notched disc a which is keyed to the
shaft C and by this means the rotation of the latter is momentarily stopped..
The cam actuating the poppet head has now turned into such a position that
it does not hinder the action of the springs which draw the poppet-head up.
to the holder which is now stationary and horizontal and so as to allow the:
tool F contained in the poppet head to cut the button-blank into the required
shape. When the button has been shaped the projecting part of the cam i
begins to act again against the poppet-head and pushes the latter back away
from the holder while at the same time the click or stop H releases the disc a
and the holder shaft C turns until the next holder situated thereon, and which
has been provided with a button-blank as hereinbefore described, comes into the
requisite position and the same cutting operation again takes place. When the
third holder D reaches the cutting position the first holder containing a finished
button has come opposite the rollers e fixed on the sides of the frame B.
These rollers act directly on the tightening ring pressing it outwards and
causing the holder D to loosen its grip of the finished button which latter falls
out of the holder into a suitable receptacle. The rotation of the holder shaft
is produced by the action of a cam of the form shown in Figure 8 which
cam is keyed on an independent shaft g. At every rotation of the shaft the
projection of the cam strikes against a tappet of a tappet-wheel or star-
wheel fixed on the shaft C and turns this latter through an angular space
equal to that of one tappet of the wheel h. In the form of machine shown in
the accompanying figures the tappet-wheel or star-wheel has six tappets
corresponding to the number of button holders D. Every revolution of g will
therefore turn the shaft C through one sixth of a revolution. In order to
control the motion of the shaft C and to automatically stop its rotation during
the operation of cutting the button, a notched disc a, shown in Figure 7, is
keyed to the shaft C, and a hammer shaped stop is pressed by a spring into
the notches on the disc a, and prevents the disc a together with the shaft C
from turning while the cutting operation is taking place. When the latter is
completed the stop H is released from the notch by the action of a cam b of
the form shown in Figure 7 and keyed to the shaft 9. The positions of the
cams and are so arranged with respect to each other that the latter releases
the stop H from a notch in a a short time before the projection on strikes
against a tappet of h, so as to allow the shaft C to rotate freely under the
action of the cam. When the action of the cam ceases the stop HI slides
on the surface of the circumference of a until the rotation of the latter again
brings a notch opposite H, when the latter under the action of the spring
engages in the notch and stops the further rotation of the shaft C. The ends
of the cam shafts and are provided with worm wheels engaging in the
worm of a special driving shaft. This shaft, as is also the poppet-head, is
provided with the necessary driving pulleys, but on account of the greater*
number of revolutions that the tool in the poppet-head has to make it is driven
by a larger pulley.
The machine is shown in the annexed figures in a position in which a button
has just been cut and a further rotation of the shaft C is about to take place.
The cam has released the stop I from the notch in a the cam i is beginning
to push back the poppet head and the cam is just on the point of striking a
tappet of the star wheel h, so as to turn the shaft C and thereby bring the
next holder D into the position for cutting a button.
In this machine the amount of material spoilt is considerably less than in the
handworked machines hitherto in use.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is
1. The new or improved machine for making buttons substantially as set
forth.
2. The combination with the shaft C, fitted with holders D, of the sliding poppet-
head or tool holder A, the movements of the said poppet-head or tool holder A.
being produced by the action of springs J and cami and the movements of C
controlled by cam, tappet wheel operating in conjunction with notched disc a,
click or stop H and cam 6.
3. The device for causing the gripping of the blanks in the holders and thereafter
freeing the said blanks from the holders substantially as set forth.
Dated this 25th day of March 1892.
ADOLF STRAUSS,
ROBERT RIPP,
Per J. G. L.