IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF RIVETS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Wakefield, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Machinist, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY
FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF RIVETS."
Sealed the 27th February 1866, and dated the 14th September 1865.
-PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Wakefield at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 14th
September 1865.
I, John Wakefield, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Machinist,
do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF RIVETS," to be as follows:-
My Invention consists of the arrangements or combinations of the parts of
the machinery herein-after described for the manufacture of rivets, by which
said arrangements or combinations great simplicity in the parts of the machine
is secured, with efficiency of action.
My Invention is applicable to the manufacture of rivets of iron, copper, or
other metal, and either hot or cold. The essential parts of the machine are
thus constructed and worked. The rod to be made into rivets is fed into the
machine by hand or by a feeder of the ordinary construction, the said rod:
being fed through a guide plate into moveable dies, the length of rod being
regulated by a stop in front of the dies. The moveable dies described have à
rising and falling vertical motion, and have three functions, that is, they cut.

page_text: off the length of rod fed into the machine, carry the cut-off rod in front of a
horizontal punch or heading die, and finally serve as the die in which the
head of the rivet is formed. As soon as the rod has been fed to the stop, the
vertical dies descend, cutting off the length of rod against the face of the guide
plate, and carry the said cut-off length of rod in front of a hollow punch or
die having a horizontal motion, the interior of the said punch or die having a
figure corresponding to that to be given to the shank of the rivet, the back
end of the said hollow die being closed by a rod or stopper situated in the
axis of the bolt or plunger carrying the said hollow die. On the advance of
the said horizontal punch or die, that_part_of_the_length-of-rod-in-the-vertical-
dies which is situated beyond the said vertical dies is shaped by the said punch
or die into the shank of the rivet. The shank of the rivet having been thus
formed, the horizontal punch or die retires, carrying in its interior the partly
made rivet, the said retiring motion removing the end of the rod which had
been held in the vertical dies from the said dies, the said end or part being
sufficient to make a head. The vertical- dies now rise and bring a recess or
concavity in the bottom vertical die of the figure of the head of the rivet to be
made opposite the horizontal punch or die. The horizontal punch or die
again advances and shapes or upsets that part of the rod external to it in the
depression or concavity in the bottom vertical die and forms a head. The
shank held in the horizontal punch or die is thus headed and the rivet
completed. The horizontal punch or die again retires, and the headed rivet
is removed therefrom by a rod or tipper worked in the manner herein-after
explained. When the vertical dies are in the position last described, that is,
in position to have the head of the rivet shaped in the bottom die, the opening
in the said dies coincides, with that on the guide plate, and a fresh portion of
rod is fed through the said dies against the stop. On the retiring of the
horizontal punch or die after the formation of the head on the rivet, the
I vertical dies, descend and cut off a fresh length of rod and bring it in front of
the horizontal punch or die, and the operations already described are repeated.
The rod or tipper for removing the finished rivet from the horizontal punch or
die is constructed and worked as follows-The bolt or plunger carrying the
horizontal punch or die is hollow through the greater part of its length, and
in the hollow of the said, plunger the rod or tipper works, the front end of the
, said rod or tipper closing the back end of the punch or die in which the shank
of the rivet it.made. The back of the rod or tipper carries a cross bar, in
which a forked slide having a rising and falling, motion is capable of engaging.
The said cross bar works in longitudinal slots in the sides of the plunger.
When the horizontal punch or die first retires after having formed the shauk

page_text: of the, rivet, the. rod or tipper. moves with the plunger, but when the said
punch or die retires a second time after the formation of the head of the rivet;
the forked slidé described descends, and engaging with the cross bar of the
rod or tipper. fixes the said rod or tipper. The punch or die and plunger now;
move without the rod or tipper, and the rivet is ejected from the hollow punch
or die by coming against the end of the temporarily fixed rod or tipper. On
the advance of the horizontal punch or die to form a fresh rivet, the rod
or tipper is liberated; by the rising of the forked slide; and again moves with.
the said punch and the plunger in which it is situated. The motion of the
horizontal punch or die is effected by a crank on the principal shaft of the
machine, and the motions of the vertical dies, and also the forked slide for
working the tipper, are effected by a lever moved by a cam on a shaft
situated parallel to and worked from the principal shaft of the machine, the.
cam shaft making one rotation to two rotations of the crank or principal shaft..
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John Wakefield in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
13th March 1866.
TO ALL TO WHOM, THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
WAKEFIELD, of Birmingham, in the County of. Warwick, Machinist, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most. Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord,
One thousand-eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-ninth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said John Wakefield, Her special licence that 1, the said John Wakefield, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said John
Wakefield, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree
with, and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and
vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel
Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR
THE MANUFACTURE OF RIVETS," upon the condition (amongst others) that I,
the said John Wakefield, my executors or administrators, by an instrument
in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should parti-
cularly, describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in

page_text: the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Wakefield, do hereby declaré
the nature of the said Invention," and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the follow-
ing statement thereof, that is to say :-
.
My Invention consists of the arrangements or combinations of parts of the
machinery herein-after described for the manufacture of rivets, by which said
arrangements or combinations great simplicity in the parts of the machine is
secured with efficiency of action.
My Invention is applicable to the manufacture of rivets, of iron, copper, or
other metal, and either hot or cold. The essential parts of the machine are
thus constructed and worked The rod to be made into rivets is fed into the
machine by hand or by a feeder of the ordinary construction, the said rod
being fed through a guide plate into moveable dies, the length of rod being
regulated by a stop in front of the dies. The moveable dies described have
a rising and falling motion, and have three functions, that is, they cut off the
length of rod fed into the machine, carry the cut-off rod in front of a 'hori-
zontal punch or die, and finally serve as the die in which the head of the rivet
is formed. As soon as the rod has been-fed to the stop the vertical dies descend,
cutting off the length of rod against the face of the guide plate, and carry
the said cut-off length of rod in front of a hollow punch or die, having a
horizontal motion, the interior of the said punch or die having a figure cor-
responding to that to be given to the shauk of the rivet, the back end of the
said hollow die being closed by a rod or stopper situated in the axis of the
On the advance of
said die, and the bolt or plunger carrying the said die.
the said horizontal punch or die that part of the length of rod in the vertical
dies which is situated beyond the said vertical dies is shaped by the said punch
or die into the shank of the rivet. The shank of the rivet having been thus
formed, the horizontal punch or die retires, carrying in its interior the partly
made rivet, the said retiring motion removing the end of the rod which had
been held in the vertical dies from the said dies, the said end or part being
sufficient to make a head. The vertical dies now rise, and bring a recess or
concavity in the bottom vértical die of the figure of the bead to be made
opposite the horizontal punch or die. The horizontal punch or die again
advances and shapes or upsets that part of the rod external to it in the depres-
sion or concavity in the bottom vertical die, and forms a head. The shank
held in the horizontal punch or die is thus headed, and the rivet completed.
The horizontal punch or die again retires, and the headed rivet is removed

page_text: therefrom by a rod or tipper, worked in the manner herein-after explained.,
When the vertical dies are in the position last described, that is, in position to.
have the head of the rivet shaped in the bottom die, the opening, in the said
dies coincides with that in the guide plate, and a fresh portion of rod is fed
through the said dies against the stop. On the retiring of the horizontal
punch or die after the formation of the head on the rivet the vertical - dies.
descend and cut off a fresh length of rod and bring it in front of the hori
zontal punch or die, and the operations already described are repeated. The,
rod or tipper for removing the finished rivet from the horizontal punch or die.
is constructed and worked as follows:-The bolt or plunger carrying the.
horizontal punch or die is hollow through the greater part of its length, and--
in the hollow of the said plunger the rod or tipper works, the front end of the
said rod or tipper closing the back end of the punch or die, while the shank
of the rivet is made. The back of the rod or tipper carries a cross bar with,
which a forked.slide having a rising and falling motion is capable of engaging;.
the said cross bar works in a longitudinal slot in the plunger. When the.
horizontal punch or die first retires after having formed the shank of the rivet.
the rod or tipper moves with the plunger, but when the said punch. or die.
retires a second time after the formation of the head of the rivet, the forked!
slide described descends, and.engaging with the cross bar of the rod or tipper.
fixes the said rod or tipper: The punch or die and plunger now move without.
the rod or tipper, and the rivet is ejected from the hollow punch or die by
coming against the end of the temporarily fixed rod or tipper. On the advance,
of the horizontal punch or die to form a fresh rivet the rod or tipper, is libe-
rated by the rising of the forked slide, and again moves with the said punch,
and the plunger in which it is situated. The motion of the horizontal punch,or.
die is effected by a crank on the principal shaft of the machine, and the motions,
of the vertical dies, and also the forked slide for working the tipper, are effected
by a lever moved by a cam on a shaft situated parallel to and worked from
the principal shaft of the machine, the cam shaft making one rotation to two,
rotations of the crank or principal shaft.
Having explained the nature of my Invention, I will proceed to describe..
with reference to the accompanying Drawing, the manner in which the same,
is to be performed. :
Figure 1 represents a longitudinal section of a rivet machine constructed.
according to my Invention, and Figure 2 is a plan of the same; Figure 3 is.
a transverse section of the machine on the line A, A, Figure 1, looking.
towards the crank shaft, and Figure 4 is a transverse section on the line X,X,,
Figure 1, looking towards the feeding end of the machine. The same letters:

page_text: of reference indicate the same parts in each Figure of the Drawing. b, b, are'
the moveable dies for cutting off and carrying the cut-off rod and shaping the
head of the rivet. The said dies have a rising and falling motion against the
guide plate c, through which guide plate. the rod d to be made into rivets is'
fed. The dies 6, 6, slide in the frame e (see Figure 4), 'and are maintained
therein by the ends of the springs fif, bearing against the edges of the dies,
and the spring / bearing upon the front of the said dies.
h
The said dies b, b,'
are pressed upwards and kept to their work by the cranked lever i, the. short
arm of which lever is maintained against the rod or spindle connected with
the bottom die by the coiled spring k acting upon the longer arm of the 'said
lever i-as-represented in Figure 1. is an adjustable stop in front of the
dies, against which stop the rod d fed through the plate and dies b
bears; m is the horizontal punch or die for shaping the shank of the
rivet, and holding it while being headed. The said punch or die-m-is-hollow;
and is made of a figure corresponding to that to be given to the shank of the
rivet. The said hollow punch or die is carried by a bolt or plunger n sliding?
in guides on the bed of the machine. In the axis of the die 'm and bolt or
plunger n is a rod or stopper p, which stopper when the said die m'is shaping
the shank of the rivet closes the back end of the said die. The said rod or
stopper also constitutes the tipper for removing the finished rivet from the
punch or die m as herein-after explained; q is the main shaft of the
machine;"'r, r, are the fast-and-loose pulleys, and's the fly wheel on the said
shaft. Below the shaft and parallel. therewith is a second shaft t, the said
shafts q and t being geared together by the toothed wheels u, v, the 'main'
shaft making two revolutions to one revolution of the shaft t: The bolt or
plunger n carrying the punch or die m is worked from a crank on the
shaft q, the said crank being connected to the plunger by the connecting rod w.
The rising and falling motions of the vertical dies b, b, are effected by the'
cam x on the shaft tacting through the lever y'connecting rods y³, y², and
cross piece y³. The short arm of the lever i for pressing the dies upwards.
is connected by the link to the short arm of the lever y. The stopper or
tipper p' for removing the rivet from the punch or die m is capable of moving
with the die and the plunger carrying it. The back end of the tipper carries'
a cross bar p² working in a longitudinal slot made across the plunger (see
the plan, Figure 2). Behind the said cross bar på is a forked slide p³, p, the s
projecting parts p³ being situated on either side the plunger n.. A rising and
falling motion is given to the forked slide p, p, by the lever y, the ends
of the said slide resting upon projections on either side the said lever.
When the forked slide p³, pt, is in the, position 'represented in Figure :1
-
:

page_text: the cross bar på of the rod or tipper p moves with the die m and plunger n.
When, however, by the descent of the long arm of the lever y the said slide
falls, the projecting parts p³ engage behind the cross bar p³ and fix it and the
said tipper p on the punch or die m and plunger n, making their return
motion after the formation of the bead on the rivet; the said rivet comes
against the temporarily fixed rod or tipper p and is expelled from the punch or
die m.
b
The action of the machine is as follows: The rod d to be made into
rivets being fed by hand or by a self-acting feeder through the guide plate c
and vertical dies b against the stop 1, the said vertical dies 6 descend, cutting
off a length of rod against the face of the guide plate c, and carrying the said
cut-off rod in front of and in a line with the horizontal punch or die m. The
cut-off length of rod brought in front of the horizontal punch or dic mis
marked d in Figure 1. On the advance of the ram n the punch or die my
shapes, the length of rod de, held in the dies into the shank of the rivet, the
stopper p being pushed into the punch or diem by the advance of the said
punch or die upon the cut-off length of rod d. The shank of the. rivet
having been thus formed, the said punch or die retires, carrying in its interior
the partially made rivet, the end of the partially made rivet which had been
held in the vertical dies 6 being sufficient. to make a head. The vertical
dies b now
rise and bring a recess or concavity be in, the solid part of the
bottom die of the figure of the head to be made opposite the horizontal punch
or die m. The punch or die m advances a second time and shapes or upsets
that part of the partially made rivet external to it in the recess or concavity b²
in the bottom die band forms a head. The punch or die m. again retires, and
the finished rivet is expelled therefrom by the now temporarily fixed rod or
tipper p, the said rod or tipper being fixed by the engagement of the parts p
of the forked slide. behind. the cross bar p². in, the manner herein-beforc
explained. In order to ensure the expulsion of the finished rivet from the
punch or die m I use a kicker lever marked 2 in Figure 2, a rod 3 carried by
the lever terminating near the side of the punch or die m. On the retiring of
the die m, after the formation of the head, a pin or plug 4 on the ram or
plunger n strikes against the outer arm of the lever 2 and causes the rod s at
its opposite arm to kick or strike the rivet as it leaves the punch or die m.
During the formation of the head of the rivet by the second advance of the
punch ma fresh portion of the rod d is fed through the dies b to the stop l,
and on the retiring of the punch m with the headed rivet the said-rod is cut
off and carried down to the position represented in Figure 1 by the dies b, and
the operations already described are repeated.
L

page_text: When heated rods are being made into rivets by the machine, I prefer to keep
the dies b, b, and punch or die m cool by a stream of water passing through
'them.
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 in the
Drawing, as the same may be varied without departing from the nature of my
Invention. Thus the vertical dies b may have a lateral motion- to-and-fro
instead of an ascending and descending motion, and the punch m may be made.
to move vertically instead of horizontally.--
Other modifications may also be made. The machine may be made double-
ended or double-sided so as to produce more than one-rivet-at-a-time.
The Invention may also be employed for the manufacture of bolts or blank
screws or other similar articles with heads, and all or any of these modifications
may be carried out without departing from the nature of my Invention.
But I claim as my Invention,-.
Firstly, the arrangement or combination substantially as herein-before
described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing of the vertical dies b, b,
for cutting off and carrying the cut-off length of rod, and for shaping the head
of the rivet with the horizontal punch or die m, for shaping the shank of the
rivet, and upsetting the end of the rivet into a head in the vertical dies.
Secondly, the arrangement or combination of parts herein-before described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing for giving motion to the said
vertical dies b, b, and horizontal punch or die m.
Thirdly, the arrangement or combination of parts herein-before described
and illustrated in the accompanying Drawing for removing the finished rivet
from the horizontal punch or die.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Wakefield, have hereunto set my
hand, and seal, this Eighth day of March, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-six.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
JOHN WAKEFIELD. (L.S.)