An Improved Manufacture of Weldless Chain.
Year: 1893

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Dec., 1893
Complete Specification Left, 12th Sept., 1894-Accepted, 13th Oct.,
1894
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Manufacture of Weldless Chain.
1, JOHN FORSTER, of Cowley Hill, Saint Helens, Lancashire, Engineer, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to an improved manufacture of weldless chain.
The object of my said invention is to improve the manufacture of weldless
chain by the construction of improved machinery of the kind described in the
Specification of prior Letters Patent No. 1063 of A.D. 1892 granted to Henry
Harris Lake.
Hitherto it has been found necessary in the manufacture of such chain, to exert
a very considerable force in certain of the operations forming part of the said manu-
facture, for the reason that the said force had to be exerted in a disadvantageous
manner, whereby parts of each link were liable to be deformed and the effective cross-
sectional area of the metal reduced, and the machinery was subject to considerable
risk of breakage.
According to my invention I obviate the said deformation and risk of
breakage, by improving the said machinery in three respects that is to say:
First, I construct improved apparatus to come into operation after a length of metal
wire or rod for a link has been bent in one plane so that its ends are approximately
at right angles to its central portion; the said improved apparatus acts to turn the
ends of the wire in such a direction that they extend across or past the central
portion, towards each other. It is an important feature of this part of my
invention that the active parts of this apparatus are caused to act in the direction
of. their length and to the best advantage, and are not employed to act in a
direction at right angles to their length. Consequently they are relatively lighter
and stronger. For instance the said apparatus may comprise two sets of appliances
one to act upon each end of the wire and each consisting of a bending-arm adapted
to be reciprocated by a suitable cam. The said bending arm is provided with a hinged
portion, one end of which is free to rise and fall. The said free end is provided
with a pair of rollers, one of which is suitably shaped to bear against the wire the
other being adapted to fit or bear against a stationary guide.
When each bending arm is reciprocated as aforesaid its free end is guided in the
desired path by the guide and guide-roller, and the other roller effects the bending
of the wire. The movement of the free end of the arm along the guide and along
the wire is effected with but very little frictional resistance owing to the employ-
ment of rollers, and the bending of the wire is effected without undesirable
distortion and without need for the exertion of excessive force. Preferably I
make each bending arm of such a shape that at the end of the movement
in which its work of bending is effected it will lie snugly against the bent end to
retain it in bent form.
Secondly, I fit to the vertical slide heretofore used, a pair of levers arranged to
oscillate about pivot-pins provided upon the slide. Springs are provided upon or
in proximity to the said levers to maintain them in a certain normal position when
out of action, from whence they can be deflected at intervals by cams for a purpose
hereinafter specified.
The said levers are so arranged that when the vertical slide rises after the
operation of the bending arms aforesaid, each lever will move into such a position
that the ends of the wire, in the position in which they are left by the bending
arms, will lie in-the path of oscillation of the ends of the levers. A cam, suitably

page_text: timed and geared to the motive mechanism of the apparatus will then operate to
move each lever which will thereupon complete the bending operation which was
initiated by the bending arms aforesaid.
The ends of the said levers are so shaped that the wire cannot slip upon them
out of the proper position, and further, when their movement by the cams is
completed they partake of a descending movement given to the vertical slide, and
press upon the bent eye or loop which they are formed to fit or receive, so as to
impart the desired finished form thereto while it rests upon a suitable support.
After being raised by the vertical slide these levers are forced by the spring out of
action again until required.
Thirdly, my improved apparatus comprises horizontal slides geared by
suitable cams and other gearing to the motive mechanism and employed instead
of the jaws described in the Specification of the aforesaid prior Letters
Patent to press against opposite parts of the link to impart the desired finished
dimension thereto by a pressing or bending operation which gives the final set
to the link.
Dated this 12th day of December 1893
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Manufacture of Weldless Chain.
I, JOHN FORSTER, of Cowley Hill, Saint Helens, Lancashire, 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 :-
My invention relates to an improved manufacture of weldless chain.
The object of my said invention is to improve the manufacture of weldless
chain by providing for such manufacture improved machinery of the kind described
in the Specification of prior Letters Patent No. 1063 of A.D. 1892 granted to
Henry Harris Lake.
Hitherto it has been found necessary in the manufacture of such chain, to exert a
very considerable force in certain of the operations forming part of the said
manufacture, for the reason that such force had to be exerted in a disadvantageous
manner, whereby parts of each link were liable to be deformed and the effective cross-
sectional area of the metal reduced, and the machinery was subject to considerable
risk of breakage.
According to my invention I obviate such deformation and risk of breakage,
by improving the said machinery in three respects, that is to say :-
First, I construct improved apparatus to come into operation after a length of meta 1
wire or rod for a link has been bent in one plane so that its ends are approximately
at right angles to its central portion; the said improved apparatus acts to turn the
ends of the wire in such a direction that they extend across or past the central
portion, towards each other. It is an important feature of this part of my invention
that the bending arms of this apparatus are caused to act in the direction of their
length and to the best advantage, and are not employed to act in a direction at
right angles to their length. Consequently they are relatively lighter and stronger
than the arms used for a similar purpose in the machine as heretofore made.
Secondly, I fit to the vertical slide heretofore used, a pair of levers or
arms arranged to oscillate about pivot-pins provided upon the slide. Springs
are provided upon or in proximity to the said arms to maintain them in a
certain normal position when out of action, whence they can be deflected
at intervals by cams for a purpose hereinafter specified. find it preferable,

page_text: however, more especially in the case of heavy work to arrange the arms to slide in
guides secured to the bed, instead of to oscillate on pivot pins on the vertical slide.
This form is hereinafter described and shown in the drawings.
The said levers are so arranged that when the vertical slide rises after the
operation of the bending arms aforesaid, each lever will move forward under the
influence of a suitable cam and engage with the ends of the wire, in the position in
which they are left by the bending arms. The said levers in their forward
movement complete the bending operation which was initiated by the bending arms
aforesaid. I provide that when the forward movement of said levers is completed,
the vertical slide shall descend again and a portion thereof press on the bent ends
of the wire so as to impart the finished form thereto while it rests on a suitable
support.
Thirdly, my improved apparatus comprises horizontal reciprocating slides geare.!
by suitable cams and other gearing to the motive mechanism and employed instead
of the jaws described in the Specification of the aforesaid prior Letters Patent
to press against opposite parts of the link to impart the desired finished dimension
thereto by a pressing or bending operation which gives the final set to the link.
In order that my invention may be clearly understood I will proceed to describe
the same with reference to the accompanying drawings in which,
Figure 1 is a plan of a chain-making machine fitted with improved mechanism
constructed according to my invention some portions of the machine being removed
for the sake of clearness.
Figure 2 is a vertical section taken on the line x, x Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a vertical section taken on the line y, y Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a side view, drawn to an enlarged scale, of mechanism for turning over
the ends of the wire.
Figure 5 is a view partly in section of the same mechanism looking in the direction
of the arrow in Figure 4.
Figures 6. to 10 shew a link at different stages in the manufacture.
Like letters denote corresponding parts in all the drawings.
A is the bed plate of the machine, B is the driving shaft, C is the portion of
wire which is being formed into a link of the chain.
It is now
Referring now to Figures 1 to 3, the portion of wire C is shewn with its ends bent
down over two pins D, D to a position approximately at right angles to the middle
part of the wire. This operation may be performed by apparatus similar to that
described for the purpose in the Specification hereinabove referred to.
required to bend the ends of the wire under the pins D, D in a direction towards
each other and then upwards. For this purpose I provide two sets of appliances
oue to act on each end of the wire. I will describe one set of appliances for
acting on one end of the wire, premising that the other set operate in the same
manner on the other end of the wire. E is a bending arm pivoted at E' to one
member F of a parallel link work F, F1, F2 pivoted to the bed A as shewn in
Figure 2, the uppermost member F' of said link work is extended and furnished
with a roller F which engages with a cam G secured to the shaft G. Said shaft
is rotated by the driving shaft B through bevel gearing B' or by other suitable
means. The bending arm E is provided with a groove E' adapted to engage with
the end of the wire C and with a smooth part E which engages with a groove H
in a stationary guide H¹. Said groove H is suitably formed so that when the
arm E is reciprocated by the cam G through the link work F, F', F³, the free end
thereof is guided rearwardly and upwardly as will be seen from Figures 1 and 2,
and the part Ebends the end of the wire upward into the position shewn in dotted
lines in Figure 2. The movement of the free end of the arm along the guide and
along the wire is effected with but very little frictional resistance, and the bending
of the wire is effected without undesirable distortion and without need for the
exertion of excessive force. Moreover the force exerted by the bending arm E on
he wire acts in the direction of the length of the arm, said arm need not there-
fore be made very strong. Preferably I make the bending arm E of such a shape

page_text: that at the end of the movement in which its work of bending is effected it will lie
snugly against the bent end to retain it in bent form.
Similar mechanism is arranged to act on the opposite end of the wire this
however is for the sake of clearness not shewn in the drawings.
By means of these appliances the wire is bent from the form shewn in Figure 6
to that shewn in Figure 7 and is in readiness for the next stage in the manufacture.
I will now describe the preferred mechanism for bending the ends of the wire
down over the straight part thereof that is to say from the shape shewn in Figure 7
to the shape shewn in Figure 8.
Referring now more particularly to Figures 4 and 5, I is a piece fixed to the
frame of the machine having a groove I formed therein, J is a slide which is
connected by a link J¹ see Figures 1 and 3 to a lever J2 pivoted at J³ on the frame
of the machine. The lever J is provided with a roller J which is in engagement
with a cam C on the shaft B. The slide J has secured to it a piece K formed at
the end with a suitable groove K¹ to engage the end of the wire. When the
operation of turning up the ends of the wire is finished as hereinbefore described
the cain C¹ through the medium of lever J* and link J¹ causes the slide J carrying
the part K to move forward and turn the end of the wire over the straight part
thereof to the position shewn in dotted lines in Figure 4. A similar device to that
above described acts simultaneously on the other end of the wire. The vertical
slide L now descends under the action of lever L² operated by the cam-piece L³
and a part L on the front thereof acts on the ends of the wire to turn the same
down in front of the straight part of the wire to the position shewn in Figure 8.
While the above operations are being proceeded with the wire is maintained in
position on the pins D, D by means of two slides M, M which are moved under the
influence of a lever M¹ and cam M² so that holes M³, M³ in the ends thereof engage
with the conical ends of the said pins and support the same at the same time prevent
the wire being pushed off.
The wire is now bent to a V-shape in the manner described in the Specification
herein before referred to and brought into the shape shewn in Figure 9. In order
to give the final set to the link and give it the shape shewn in Figure 10 I provide
according to the third part of my invention, improved mechanism which is clearly
shewn in Figure 2.
O is a slide adapted to move in a guide O₁ secured to the bed of the machine,
said slide is reciprocated by means of a cam P on the shaft G¹ operating through
a lever P pivoted to the bed of the machine at P2, said lever being connected by
a link O' to the slide O. Similar apparatus is also provided on the opposite side
of the machine. The link having been bent round the stop Q as described in the
prior Specification above referred to the two slides O, O are brought together by
means of the cams P, P which are suitably timed and press the ends of the link
against a thin part Q' of the stop Q, (see Figure 1) thus giving the link the final
set. The stop is withdrawn at the same time as the slides O, O and the link
moved backward into position for the wire to be passed through the ends to make
a fresh link.
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
1. In a machine for manufacturing weldless chain, apparatus for bending the ends
of the wire to transform the partially formed link from the shape shewn in Figure 6
to the shape shewn in Figure 7 such apparatus consisting of two bending arms
adapted to act on the wire in the direction of their length, and guides for controlling
the paths of the ends of said arms, for the purpose specified.
2. In a machine for manufacturing weldless chain, apparatus for transforming
the partially formed link from the shape shewn in Figure 7 to that shewn in
Figure 8, said apparatus being constructed substantially as herein described, and
operating as specified.

page_text: 3. In a machine for manufacturing weldless chain, apparatus for transforming the
partially formed link from the shape shewn in Figure 9 to that shewn in Figure 10,
said apparatus consisting of two reciprocating slides acting in the direction of their
length, for the purpose specified.
4. For manufacturing weldless chain, a machine provided with the appliances
herein before described with reference to Figures to 5 of the accompanying
drawings and operating successively as, and for the purposes, specified.
Dated this 12th day of September 1894.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.