Improvements in Machines for Punching, Shearing, and otherwise Working Metals.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 26th Nov., 1889
Complete Specification Left, 15th Apr., 1890-Accepted, 24th May, 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for Punching, Shearing, and otherwise
Working Metals.
A communication from abroad by ALEXANDER BEAUDRY, of No. 70, Kilby Street,'
Boston, in the County of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, United States of
America, Mechanical Engineer.
I WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON F.C.S. M.I.M.E. of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors 6, Lord Street, Liverpool and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in
the County of Lancaster & 323 High Holborn in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to machines for working metals, and it belongs to that class
of such machines which employ a reciprocating tool-carrier or ram in which is
secured the die, punch or other tool. In machines of this kind there is a coupling-
slide caused to reciprocate uniformly through an eccentric or crank, and the tool-
carrier, which is counterbalanced by a weight or spring, is driven down by said
coupling-slide and partakes of the whole or a part of the movements thereof. The
extent to which the tool-carrier partakes of the movements of the coupling-slide is
controlled by the operator through the medium of mechanism interposed between the
slide and the carrier.
The present invention relates in part to improvements in this intermediate con-
trolling mechanism, and in part to a holder for the piece of metal to be operated upon
by the tool.
In general, the machine is constructed in the following described manner :-
In a heavy cast iron frame are formed a bed or base and an overhanging head, and
in this head is mounted the main crank-shaft, which will be driven in the usual way.
This shaft has one or more cranks or eccentrics which impart a reciprocating move-
ment to as many coupling slides. There may be a single slide or gang-slides. The
slide plays in a bore of the tool-carrier, which latter plays in a guide in the machine
head and is counterbalanced by a weight or spring. Suitable reciprocal provisions on
the coupling-slide and carrier enable the former to raise the latter.
The first part of the invention relates to means whereby the workman or operative
controls the movements of the tool-carrier and allows it to partake of the whole or
any part of the movement of the continuously reciprocating coupling-slide. This
mechanism consists of a bevelled transverse slide mounted in the tool-carrier and
adapted to be pushed in under the correspondingly bevelled extremity of the coupling-
slide so as to increase the stroke of the said carrier, or to be drawn back so as to
decrease the stroke of said carrier. To prevent the bevelled faces from slipping
one another, they are provided with matched serrations or corrugations. The
transverse slide is moved in and out through the medium of the racks and pinions, a
treadle, and a retracting spring.
on
As the transverse slide plays up and down within the tool-carrier, the rack that
draws it out and pushes it in is coupled to it by a sliding connection.
The second part of the invention relates to the holder for the piece of metal to be
operated upon, as a cylindrical bar for example, which is to be punched diametrically.
This holder comprises the following described instrumentalities, that is to say: On
the bed of the machine, under the tool, is mounted a shoe, having a recess formed in
its upper face to receive a slide plate, bearing wedges which are pivotally mounted
on said plate. Between these wedges are situated the two clamp jaws, the adjacent
or contiguous faces of which are made to fit the piece to be operated on,
the clamp
jaws are loosely connected to a cap plate on the shoe in which is formed an aperture
for the passage of the tool. The slide plate is moved in and out by means of a lever

page_text: and coupling links and the inclined faces of the pivoted wedges play over the inclined
faces of two wedges mounted adjustably on the fixed shoe. Thus when the slide plate
and the wedges borne thereby are drawn in, these wedges force together the jaws of
the clamp on the piece to be operated upon and the latter is firmly held while the tool
is acting thereon.
This machine may be employed in punching, shearing, shaping and otherwise
working iron and steel, and tools of various kinds may be arranged in a gang in one
machine. The main shaft of the machine will be or may be continuously rotated,
but the tools will remain inoperative and stationary until the operator sets his foot
on the controlling treadle and sets one or the other of them in motion.
The degree of pressure he exerts on the treadle will govern the extent of motion
downward of the tool.
Dated this 25th day of November 1889
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant."
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machines for Punching, Shearing, and otherwise
Working Metals.
15.0
A communication from abroad by ALEXANDER BEAUDRY, of No. 70, Kilby Street,
Boston, in the County of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, United States of
America, Mechanical Engineer.
1, WILLIAM PHILLIPS THOMPSON, F.C.S., M.I.M.F., of the Agency for Foreign
Patent Solicitors, 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, and 6, Bank Street, Manchester, both in
the County of Lancaster, and 323, High Holborn, in the County of Middlesex, Civil
Engineer, 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 relates to machines for working metals, such as that embodied in
United States Patent No. 362,566, dated May 10, 1887.
'
In this class of machines, the reciprocating plunger or coupling slide is driven by
an eccentric or crank in the main shaft, the extent of its travel being uniform, and
the reciprocating tool-carrier or ram, which is counterbalanced by a weight or spring,
partakes of the whole or a part only of the movement of said slide, the extent of its
movement being controlled by the workman through the medium of suitable
mechanism operating in connection with the coupling-slide and with said ram, 'or
tool-carrier. The present invention relates in part to improvements in this inter-
mediate controlling mechanism, and in part to the holder for the work' that is being
punched or otherwise operated on.
•
!..
.
In the accompanying drawings, serving to illustrate the invention, it is shown
embodied in a machine provided with two reciprocating rams, one of which is
arranged for shearing and the other for punching.
...
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the machine, a part of the head of the machine and
one of the rams being represented in sectional elevation.
.....
Figure 2 is a sectional front elevation of the machine, the plane of the section being
indicated by the line 2 2 in Figure 1.
1
.:
1
i
Figure 3 is a detached fragmentary view, on a larger scale, of a part of the
mechanism seen in Figure 2, but with the parts in different positions.
Figure 3 is a plan view of the transverse slide detached, on the same scale as
Figure 3.
Figures 4 and 5 are respectively a plan and front view, on a large scale, of the
holder for the work.
'
The heavy frame of the machine may be cast in one piece.
a represents the base or bed of the machine, and a" the overhanging head of the
same. In this head is rotatively mounted the main or crank shaft b. On this shaft
"t

page_text: On
is fixed a spur-wheel c, which gears with a pinion d on the driving shaft e.
this latter shaft are the driving pulleys fand the fly-wheel g. On shaft b are set
two driving eccentrics or cranks 6', Figure 3, which impart the proper reciproca-
ting motion to two coupling-slides, one of which actuates the punch and the other the
shears.
As the mechanism for operating the punch is the same as that for operating the
shears, and as the particular tool mounted in the ram is not material to the invention,
it will only be necessary to minutely describe the parts connected with the operation
of the punch.
The connecting yoke i, which embraces the eccentric or crank at its upper end, is
coupled at its lower end to the slide h through the medium of two ears j on the slide,
and a coupling-pink which passes through said ears and the pendent end of the
yoke i. The coupling-slide h is bevelled on its lower end and serrated on that end, as
clearly shown in Figure 3. This slide plays in a bore or slide-bearing in the ram 1,
and the upper ends of the ears j thereon form shoulders which take under lugs m
(seen in Figure 1) on the ram. The purpose of this construction is to enable the
slide in its upward movement to raise the ram in case the tool should stick or bind,
and withdraw the tool. The ram is mounted in guides in the head a¹ of the
machine, and is counterbalanced, preferably, by a weight. This counterbalancing device
consists of a chain or other flexible connector n, secured to the upper end of the
ram and to an arm o on a rock shaft o¹, mounted on the machine-head a'. On the
other end of the shaft o¹ is an arm o², from which another chain or connector n¹
extends down to a suitable weight within the hollow of the machine-frame. As such
counterbalancing mechanisms are not new of themselves and as weights are cominon
devices, it is not deemed necessary to show them in the drawings. In the ram / is
secured a tool-carrier p in which is a punch q.
The device, whereby the workman controls the movements of the ram and allows it
to partake of more or less of the movements of the coupling-slide, will now be
described.
Mounted in a cross mortise or aperture in the ram and arranged to play trans-
versely through said mortise is a transverse slide r, (seen detached in Figure 3ª,)
the upper face of which is bevelled to correspond with the bevel on the end of the
coupling-slide h, and serrated also like the bevelled end or face of said slide. The
transverse slider has ribs or flanges on its opposite sides, which engage corres-
ponding grooves in the faces of the mortise in which said slide plays. These ribs and
grooves serve as keepers or guides to prevent the slider from rising in its slide-way.
It will be obvious from what is described in the aforementioned patent that the extent
to which the ram is to partake of the downward movement of the coupling-slide h will
depend on the position of the transverse slide r. If this slide is pushed in to its
fullest extent, as represented in Figure 2, then the ram will partake of the full move-
ment of the coupling-slide; but if the transverse slide be partly withdrawn, as
represented in Figure 3, the ram will partake of only a part of the movement of the
coupling-slide. The serrations of the surfaces of the two slides that are in contact
prevent the slipping of one bevelled face on the other when the pressure is brought
to bear, and avoids the lateral or side strain on the coupling-slide which would ensue
if the surfaces were smooth.
In order that the workman may move the transverse slider in more or less, as
desired, by means of a treadle, mechanism is provided as follows:-
A racks is mounted horizontally in the head of the machine, its inner end
On this inner end of the
projecting into an opening in. the side of the ram l.
rack is a cross-head 3, which engages cross-head guides or keepers &³ on the end
of the transverse slide r. By moving this rack in or out in its slide-bearing in
the head of the machine, the transverse slide will be moved in or out with it;
but as the transverse slide moves up and down with the ram at right angles to
the movement of the rack, this cross-head and its guides are necessary to permit
of this independent. movement of the rack and slide. The racks is moved in and
out by means of the following described mechanism :-. '

page_text: .
7
On the side of the machine-head a¹ is rotatively mounted a shaft t, on which is
secured a pinion u (seen in Figure 2) which gears with the rack s. On the other
end of the shaft t is secured a pinion v, which gears with an upright rack w, the
lower end of which is coupled to an arm on a treadle-shaft y, mounted in
bearings on the bed a. On this shaft is a treadle z. By pressing on the treadle z
with his foot the workman drives up the rack w, rotates the shaft t, and thus
pushes in the racks and transverse slide r. When he removes his foot, a spring w*
on the rack wo. reverses the movement and automatically withdraws the transverse
slide, thus rendering the ram inoperative.
The corresponding parts of the shears (at the left in Figure 1) so far as they appear
on the drawings will now be briefly enumerated :-
"
opposite, so that one
position is seen in
coupling-slide like
is the ram of the
It is preferred to set the cranks or eccentrics 6' in shaft 6
ram will be elovated when the other is lowered, and this
Figure 1. The connecting-yoke of the shears is coupled to
slide h; but this slide does not appear in the drawings.
shears, and n the lugs thereon. p is the tool-holder in this ram, and q¹ the upper
or moving blade of the shears secured in said holder. 92 is the lower or fixed
blade of the shears and q is the stripper-bar. The counter-balance for the ram l'
· comprises a rock-shaft of having arms o* and o**, to which are attached, respec-
tively, the chain or connector n* and the chain leading to the weight. The
weights are represented in dotted lines in Figure 1. To operate the transverse
slide in the ram a horizontal rack s is employed like rack s, a sleeve t¹ on
shaft carrying a pinion u³, which gears with rack s*, and a pinion v¹, which
gears with an upright rack w¹. This rack is coupled at its lower end to an arm ¹
on a sleeve y¹ on shaft y, said sleeve having an operating-treadle z¹. On the rack w¹
is a retracting-spring w¹x.
The serrations on the bevelled faces of the slides h and r are not in the form of
steps that is, they do not have their respective faces arranged perpendicular to and
parallel with the axis of the slide h. On the contrary, the planes of these faces stand
at less than a right angle with the axis of the slide, and at right angles, or nearly
so, with each other. The object of this construction is to prevent any lateral slip of
one bevelled face on the other when the pressure is brought to bear.
The construction of the holder, for the article being punched or operated on, will
now be described more especially with reference to Figures 4 and 5 for a fuller under-
standing of this device.
A is the holder as a whole. This holder, as here represented, is designed for
gripping, steadying, and centering a cylindrical bar or shaft while a hole is being
punched diametrically through the same.
1 is the base or shoe of the holder, which will be secured to the bed a of the
machine in the position represented in Figures 1 and 2. In the upper face of
this shoe is a slideway or recess, in which rests a slide-plate 2, on which are mounted
two wedges 3 3, which are pivotally secured to the said slide-plate at their broader
ends by vertical pins or studs 4 4. In Figure 5 portions of the wedge and plate
are broken away to show the stud 4. By means of a lever 5, pivotally fulcrummed
on the fixed shoe 1 and coupled at 51 to an arm on the slide-plate 2, the workman
may slide said plate to and fro in the slideway in the shoe. The plate carries the
wedges 3 3 with it, by reason of the pivotal attachment of the latter to said plate,
but the wedges are free to play or swing laterally. At the back of the shoe is
secured a bar 6, through which pass adjusting-screws 7 7, which screw into the
ends, respectively, of two wedges 8 8, which stand in the slideway in the shoe,
between the lateral walls of the slideway and the inclined faces of the wedges 3 3.
The screws 7, which are provided with lock-nuts, enable the wedges 8 to be set
in or out, as required. These wedges 8 rest on the slide-plate 2. Between the
inner (and parallel) faces of the wedges 3 3 are placed two clamp-jaws 9 9, in the
juxtaposed faces of which are formed the grooves which fit the bar to be punched.
In the present case each jaw 9 has a half-round groove in its face, and the two jaws
are thus adapted to embrace a cylindrical bar. These jaws rest on the slide-

page_text: plate 2, and to prevent them from moving to and fro with said plate, a stripper 10 is
mounted on the shoe 1, which stripper extends over the slideway therein; and in this
plate are formed laterally-extended slots 11, through which pass pins or screws 12,
that are fixed in the jaws 9. The slots allow the jaws to open and close to a sufficient
extent, but do not allow them to move endwise. In the stripper-plate, the jaws, the
slide-plate, and the shoe, are formed the necessary coinciding apertures for the passage
of the punch. These are indicated in Figure 4 by the numeral 13.
The operation is as follows:-
Suppose a mortise or aperture is to be formed by punching in a cylindrical bar of
the proper size to fit the space between the jaws, the workman draws back the
slide-plate 2, carrying the wedges 3, by means of the lever 5, and this frees the
jaws 9, so that they can separate a little laterally. He now inserts the bar between
the jaws and forces the wedges 3 in again with the lever. This causes the wedges.to
drive the jaws inward equally, so that they will "centre" the bar and clamp it firmly
The punch now descends and punches a hole diametrically through the bar. After the
punch withdraws, the workman again draws back the slide-plate and wedges, to an extent
sufficient to free the jaws, when the bar may be drawn out. The construction of the
jaws is such as to preserve the normal cylindrical form of the bar at the point where
the punch passes through. The jaws may be made to fit and clamp a bar or piece of
metal of any form, size, or contour.
The wedges 8 are fixed while the punching is going on, and they might be fixed
permanently to the shoe 1. These wedges 8 are made adjustable in order to adapt
them for clamping jaws 9 of different widths. For simplicity, the parts s s*, w and w*
have been denominated "racks," although each has teeth for a portion of its length
only.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to me by my
foreign correspondent, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The combination, with the ram mounted in guides, of the coupling-slide
mounted in guides in said ram and provided with a bevelled and serrated face, means
for imparting a reciprocating motion to said slide, means for balancing said ram and
its attachments, the transverse slide mounted in and carried by said ram and having
a bevelled and serrated face, and means for imparting an in-and-out movement to
said transverse slide, as set forth.
:
2. The combination, with the ram and the transverse slider mounted therein, and
provided with keepers s', of the mechanism for actuating said slide, said mechanism
comprising a rack s, mounted in sliding bearings in the head of the machine and
provided with a heads, engaging the keepers on the slide, the upright rack w, the
shaft t, the pinions u and v thereon, gearing, respectively, with the racks s and w, the
treadle and its shaft, whereby the rack w is operated, and the retracting-spring
connected with said rack w, all operating substantially as set forth.
3. The combination, with the two rams arranged abreast and the transverse slides
arranged therein, of the mechanism for actuating said slides, comprising the two
racks s and sx, the shaft t, and the pinions u and thereon, the tubular shaft, the
former gearing with the rack sx, the upright racks w and w¹, gearing, respectively,
with the pinions v and vl, the treadle-shaft y, provided with a treadle z, and an arma,
to which the rack w is coupled, the tubular treadle-shaft y¹ on the shaft y, and
provided with a treadle z¹ and with an arm a³, to which the rack w is coupled, and
the retracting-springs on the said upright racks, as set forth.
4. A holder for the piece being operated on, comprising the shoe 1, having a
slideway, the slide-plate mounted therein, the operating-lever coupled to said slide-
plate, the wedges 3 3 pivotally attached to the slide-plate and embracing the clamping-
jaws, the said clamping-jaws furnished with stops to prevent their endwise movement,
and the wedges 8 8, arranged between the walls of the slideway and the movable
wedges, all combined and arranged substantially as described.
5. A holder for the piece being operated on, comprising the shoe 1, having a

page_text: slideway, the slide-plate in said slideway and its operating-lever, the movable wedges
pivotally connected at their broader ends to the slide-plate and resting thereon, the
jaws 9, embraced between said movable wedges, the wedges 8, arranged between the
movable wedges and the walls of the slideway, and the screws for adjusting said
wedges 8, all combined and arranged substantially as set forth.
6. A holder for the piece being operated on, consisting of the shoe 1, having a
recessed slideway, the stripper-plate 10, mounted on said shoe and bridging said
slideway, the clamping-jaws arranged in said slideway under the stripper-plate, the
studs 12, fixed in said jaws, respectively, and projecting through slots 11 in the
stripper-plate, the slide-plate and its operating-lever, the movable wedges carried by
the slide-plate and embracing the clamping-jaws, and the non-moving wedges
arranged, respectively, between the movable wedges and the walls of the recessed
slide-way, all combined and arranged substantially as set forth.
Dated this 14th day of April 1890.
WM. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Agents for the Applicant.