IMPROVEMENTS IN HOLDING OR CLAMPING APPARATUS APPLICABLE FOR PAPER CUTTING MACHINES
Year: 1884

page_text: www.pine Ppap Appa
for Paper Cutting Machines.
I, GEORGE DANIELS of 13 Wellington Terrace, Reddish, in the county of
Lancaster, Draughtsman, do hereby declare the nature of my said invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN HOLDING OR CLAMPING APPARATUS APPLICABLE FOR PAPER
CUTTING MACHINES," to be as follows:-
This invention has for its object an automatic self-clamping or compressing device
to hold paper, cloth, millboard, etcetera in piles of any thickness while being cut
in an ordinary paper cutting machine. I use the ordinary table and clamping
press. This clamping press is counterbalanced and connected by two side rods to a
lower press, with resistance springs at the bottom acting between checknuts and
the lower press, which lower press is held by the springs against collars on said side
rods. The lower press has sliding thereon a pair of inclined planes or wedges
impelled by a spring so as to automatically bring the press down onto the pile of
paper or material to be cut, in the manner hereafter to be described by a quick
motion, leaving the actual clamping to be done by the slow motion, forming the
main part of my invention.
This bringing down the press onto the paper before clamping may be done by
hand, by treadle, or any other way now employed on such like machines, but
I prefer the automatic way and mechanism herein described.
The slow motion mechanism (slow only in contradistinction to the quick motion
caused by the springs and wedge when there is no pressure on the paper) consists
of a cam on a revolving shaft with circular groove indented, at one point heart-
shape. In this groove a bowl works, and this bowl runs on the stud of a cross
link joining two pairs of knuckle jointed levers. The upper levers of these pairs
are pivoted on stationary pins at their upper ends and to the links at their lower
ends so as to form a parallel motion; the lower levers of the pairs are preferably
of about the same length as the upper ones and jointed at their lower ends to short
levers jointed to the lower press.
In my apparatus I propose to join or link them to the lower press and pivot on
each of them a shoe working on one of the wedges already mentioned. These
wedges are linked together or form part of one bar, and to prevent them giving
way or sliding back when the pressure is applied I prefer to employ a self acting
locking and unlocking arrangement which I will now describe. The bar joining
the wedges is serrated and a similarly serrated shoe is suspended on an eccentric
bearing in the lower press, so as to just clear or lock with the serrations of the
wedge-þar as the eccentric is turned one way or the other. A crank arm from

page_text: this eccentric carries a pin working in a slot on an arm of the horizontal bar
connecting the pair of levers, so that whenever the said bar is moved by the cam,
it shall lock the wedge bar during that movement, but whenever the movement
ceases and the pressure is taken off, the wedges are free to be moved back and
adjust themselves by means of a lever centered in the middle and attached at one
end to the stopping motion of the machine, the other end of which always returns
the wedges back again and thereby releases the top press clear of the pile of paper.
The mode of action is as follows:
The upper press being raised, a pile of paper or other material is placed in
position on the table. The cutting machine being started, the upper press is
liberated and sinks onto the paper by the immediate action of the wedges and
spring. The cam then comes into action and straightens the knuckle joint levers,
and compresses the paper which is then cut, the serrated shoe preventing the
wedges from giving way, the cam continuing its motion, keeps the pressure upon
the paper until the knife has ascended and cleared the top of it, the cam then
releases the pressure, removes the lock on the wedges, which move back as the
machine is thrown out of gear, another pile of paper is put in position and the
action repeated.
The upper press can be brought down upon the top of the pile of paper by means
of a treadle to indicate where the knife will cut.
for Paper Cutting Machines.
I, GEORGE DANIELS of 13 Wellington Terrace Reddish in the county of
Lancaster, Draughtsman do hereby declare the nature of my said invention for 3
IMPROVEMENTS IN HOLDING OR CLAMPING APPARATUS APPLICABLE FOR PAPER
CUTTING MACHINES 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 an automatic self clamping or compressing
device to hold paper, cloth, mill-board et cetera in piles of any thickness while
being cut in an ordinary paper cutting machine.
Referring to the drawings:
Figure 1 is a side elevation and Figure 2 a back elevation of a guillotine or
paper cutting machine of the description now. well, known as "Furnivals," parts of

page_text: the machine not necessary for the illustration of my improvements not being
included in the drawings.
In the said drawings A is the framing of the machine, B the knife, C the clamping
bar or top press. The ends of the clamping bar C project through slots D formed
in the frame sides which guide the clamping bar in its upward and downward
movement. To each end of the bar C is jointed a side rod E, the lower end of
which is connected by spring U to one end of the bottom press N, the said bottom
press being free to move upwards and downwards in the slots Y also formed in the
framing. The clamping bar C side rods E springs U and bottom press N being
connected together move as one piece. of framing and are balanced by the foot
treadle balance weight S which is connected to the bottom press by the plate con-
necting rods T and the rocking levers N2 so that when the foot is pressed on the
treadle, the balance weight S rises and the clamping bar C is lowered at will or
upon the top of the table.
Attached to the bottom press N are two radial levers L free to swivel on their
pins A¹ with shoes M attached to each of them, the said shoes being free to move
on the pins a' so as to adjust themselves to the sliding wedge G. F are four
knuckle jointed levers forming one pair of knuckle or elbow joints, connected
together at their joints by the plate connecting rod H. and straightened by the
cain K (which is keyed on the spur wheel shaft X¹) working in contact with the
bowl B¹, the said bowl B¹ works freely on a stud fixed near one end of the con-
necting rod H. When the cam K revolves it moves the bowl and connecting rod H
in the direction of the arrow, the knuckle joint levers F are straightened, the
bottom press lowered, and consequently the press C lowered to give the required
pressure.
Secured to one end of the wedge G by a stud and die is a lever Q pivoted at Q³ the
upper end of which is attached to one end of a spring X, the other end of the said
spring being fastened to the framing A by the bolt a A bowl Q fastened to
lever Qwith a stud works in contact with a cam K¹. One part of the lever Q is.
a ratchet quadrant Qʻ having its pawl P' secured to a stud fixed in the framing A,
the pawl being free to move in and out of the ratchet teeth. The pawl is controlled
by the movement of a connecting rod P³ and a lever P, the latter is pivoted at one
end and works freely upon a stud p fixed in the framing, and at the other end
carries a bowl Q* which comes in contact with a cam piece K³ when the pawl P¹
is not engaged with the ratchet quadrant. The cam piece K³ is fixed to the cam K¹.
The striking crank B' is cast with the cams K and K and strikes the lever P which
is free to work on its axis on the shaft L' for the purpose of stopping the machine
by moving the bar R which is fixed to the lever P at one end and to a clutch
motion not shown at the other.
The action of the machine is as follows: The paper is placed on the table at any
height between the table and clamping bar C. The operator places his foot upon
the balance weight treadle, and brings the clamping bar C down upon the paper to
show where the knife will cut, immediately the operator takes his foot off the
treadle, the balance weight S causes the clamping bar C to rise, to its original
position. The machine is then started, the bar R moves in the direction of the
arrow and the lever P with it, the cams K, K1, K2, and the crank B' revolve with
the main spur wheel shaft X in the direction of the arrow on the cam. When the
point K of the cam K' has passed the bowl Q¹, the lever Q will be moved by the
spring X (which always keeps the bowl Q₁ in contact with the cam) towards
the centre of the machine the wedge G moves forward bringing the clamping bar C
on the top of the paper, immediately afterwards the bowl will be released by
the cam piece K and the pawl will drop into the ratchet quadrant, this prevents
the wedge from any tendency to slip. As soon as the pawl has dropped into the
ratchet teeth, the knuckle joint levers F are being straightened by the cam K
working against the bowl B¹, they continue to straighten until they are in or
almost in a straight line, the bowl then runs on the concentric part of the cam,
during which time the knife descends, makes the cut and ascends, thus no power

page_text: is being absorbed with the clamping except the friction of the bowl on the cam
during the time the "cut" is being made. The springs U regulate the amount of
pressure to be placed upon the paper.
As the knife ascends the knuckle joints F are released and resume their original
position, and when the knife has nearly reached the "top" the cam K coming in
contact with the bowl Q² lifts the pawl out of the ratchet and afterwards coming
in contact with the bowl Q¹ on the lever Q moves the sliding wedge G backwards.
The balance weight S then causes the clamping bar C to rise and the striking
crank B coming into contact with the lever P at its lower extremity at the same
time moves the bar R back again and stops the machine.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1st. The manufacture and use of holding or clamping apparatus applicable for
paper cutting machines, substantially as described in which one or more preferably
one pair of knuckle jointed levers are forced by a cam into or nearly into a straight
line irrespective of thickness of paper to be cut, for the purpose of obtaining the
required amount of pressure upon the paper, while it is being cut in combination
with devices for taking up the slack before the levers come into play.
2nd. In holding or clamping apparatus applicable for paper cutting machines the
combination of a spring or springs with a cam and knuckle jointed levers for the
purpose of regulating the amount of pressure to be put upon the paper.
3rd. The combination of the sliding wedges G with the radial link or lever L
carrying the compressing apparatus or forming one of the abutments or fulcra
thereof, and with or without a shoe M or its equivalent for conveying the action
of the wedge to the said lever, substantially as and for the purposes described.
WP. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and
323, High Holborn, London,
Patent Agents for the Applicant.