Improvements in Woodworking Machines.
Year: 1891

page_text: ate of Application. 17th Aug., 1891-Accepted, 6th Aug., 1892
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Woodworking Machines.
I, HONESTUS MORTON ALBEE, of No. 3 Orange Place, in the City of Newark,
County of Essex, and State of New Jersey, United States of America, Manu-
facturer, my Post Office address being No. 3 Orange Place, Newark, N.J., 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 certain improvements in that class of machines for
cutting or carving spiral grooves in the peripheral surfaces of wooden sticks,
illustrated in my U.S. Patent No. 408,366, the object of the present improvements
being to facilitate the operation of cutting reverse spirals, to secure greater
perfection in the work, to provide against vibration when turning, spirals on sticks
of comparatively large size and to secure other advantages and results some of
which will be set forth in connection with the description of the working parts.
The invention consists in the improved woodworking machine and in the com-
binations of parts thereof substantially as will be hereinafter set forth and finally
embodied in the clauses of the claim.
Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like letters indicate corre-
sponding parts in each of the several figures,
Figure 1 is a plan of the machine.
Figure 2 is an end view and Figure 3 a rear view of certain reversing
mechanisms, and
Figure 4, a detail showing more clearly the construction and arrangement of a
certain carriage.
Figure 5 is a detail side view of a stick holder, rest or support.
Said
In said drawings, a, Figure 1, indicates a suitable fixture or support for a
bracket, b, carrying pivotal bearings, c, for a vibrating arm d. Said arm consists
of pivoted sections d', d², d³, and, at the outer end, the section, d³, a vertically
adjustable section, d, which last provides bearings for a rotary shaft, e.
shaft carries a rotary carving or routing tool e', at the joints in the sectional arm.
and on the rotary tool shaft, are pulleys f¹, 2, 3, and 4 and these are connected
by belts, g', o, g³, g, with any suitable motor or source of power, so that rotary
motion will be imparted to the shaft e, and tool carried thereby, all as will be
understood.
Below the plane of movement of the vibrating arm and its tool, on a suitable
table or support, h, is arranged a lathe, between the centres, i, and j, of which,
the wooden piece to be turned and ornamented with a spiral or other desirable
ornamentation, may be arranged and back of said centres is a screw shaft, k,
which is geared to the shaft, j', of the centre j, by a train of gearing ², k³, k, k³, k,
shown more clearly in Figure 2, by means of which the screw shaft and the
centre j and the wooden piece carried thereby are caused to turn simultaneously
at proportional rates of speed, the movement of the screw shaft governing the
movement of the wooden piece worked upon, as will be understood.
On the screw shaft is arranged a carriage, k', which slides longitudinally upon
the plate,, of the table, its movement being induced by the rotation of the screw
shaft.
To this carriage is attached the vibrating arm and rotary carving tool by means
of a bar, 13, the said tool being held in a position to engage the turning stick or
wooden piece.
By turning the hand wheel, m, on the screw shaft, (power being applied to the
rotary carving too!) the stick is caused to revolve slowly with the centre, ;, and the

page_text: carriage, ', is forced to move longitudinally, carrying the carving tool on the
jointed arm with it and, as a result, a spiral groove is cut in the stick.
It frequently happens, however, in ornamental work, that two sets of spirals
are desired, pitched in opposite directions, the oppositely pitched grooves being
in one and the same stick, giving a diaper effect to the ornamentation or the
said oppositely pitched grooves being in separate pieces.
To secure a reversely pitched cut quickly and accurately, is one of the important
features of the present improvement.
To this end, I provide means for reversing the direction of pivotal movement of
the stick in its relation to the shaft. This is accomplished by means of a vibrating
frame or plate ³, Figures 2 and 3 pivoted or centred on the shaft, k, and having at
suitable points thereon, gear wheels k³, k, adapted to engage with the wheel, k, of
the train of gearing and be disengaged therefrom alternately, as will be understood.
The wheel,³, receives its power directly from the gear wheel, 2, on the shaft, k,
while the wheel, k, receives its power from the said wheel, k, mediately or through
the intermediate gear wheel, k, so that its movement will be in a reverse direction
from the wheel, k³, and will thus communicate reverse movement to the wheel k*
and the wooden piece geared thereto.
The adjustable frame or plate, k³, is held in either of the two positions of
operation, by means of a set screw, 10, which works in a slotted extension k¹¹.
In connection with the lathe centre j, I have provided a gauge disc, p, which
turns with said centre as shown in Figure 1. The periphery of said disc is divided
off by equi-distant graduations, say six, eight or ten, dividing the periphery into
six-eights cr tenths, or the said periphery, may be, preferably is, divided circum-
ferentially as shown, one of the subdivisions having six graduations enabling the
workman to readily make six cuts or grooves at proper distances apart on the stick,
the second sub-division having eight and the third ten graduations, as will be
readily understood.
By means of the gauge arranged as described, the longitudinal or spiral grooves
may be quickly and accurately spaced on the stick. In operating this device,
the first groove may be started on the periphery, the index coinciding with an
initial graduation of either one of the series desired. As the stick revolves and
the spiral groove is being cut, the disc also revolves and when the next graduation
mark arrives at the index, the tool may be raised out of the first spiral groove
and brought again to the end of the stick and a second groove started at a proper
point regulated by the index and this may be continued until the stick has the
requisite number of properly spaced grooves.
In the prior device, above referred to, it may be observed that a stick holder
is provided, consisting of jaws adjustable in relation to one another by means
of adjusting screws and movable with the carriage. Such a device is desirable
more particularly and especially in connection with very small work of a certain
class requiring bearing close to the routing tool.
For larger work, I have provided a holder or rest, s, shown more clearly in
Figure 5, consisting of a V-shaped head t, so that the round parallel sided or
tapered stick will have two bearings in the holder at opposite sides of a longitudinal
and vertical central plane through the stick. The said head has a leg, u, which is
adjustably secured to an adjustable stud arranged on the bed or plate ¹ of the
table, being held thereon by set screws vl adapted to admit of a ready change of
position in accordance with the necessities of the work.
Thus the V-shaped head may be raised or lowered, adjusted longitudinally with
respect to the stick and changed in angle to correspond for example, with a taper
in a baluster.
To enable either large or small sticks to be operated upon and to regulate
the depth of the groove in the stick, without changing the gear wheels and
centres of the lathe, and to secure peculiar effects in carving in accordance with
a desired pattern, I have made the carving or routing tool vertically adjustable in
its bearings, the adjustment being controlled by a guide rod, w, and tracing tool, w¹,

page_text: adjustably arranged on said rod, and the latter being attached to a vertically sliding
plate 3 which controls the vertical movement of the tool shaft, as described in my
Specification of application No. 13857 dated Aug. 17th 1891 or in any other
suitable manner. By raising or lowering the pattern, 4, or by varying the upper
bearing surface of said pattern, giving the same a waved surface for example, the
depth of the spiral groove will be corresponding varied. If the work to be
operated upon be very large and beyond the limits of vertical adjustment of the
tool shaft, then I may lower the table to admit of the introduction of the said large
work to the centres. To do this and yet secure the proper connection and support
of the vibrating arm with the carriage, k¹, and bed plate ¹, I have made the
connectious vertically adjustable as shown in the drawing, where 2, indicates an
elevated track at the rear of the plate, , on which the said carriage slides
horizontally when forced by the screw shaft k.
12 indicates a vertically slotted arm of said carriage; 20 a clamp adapted to
receive a bar or extension, k¹³, of a plate, k14, which controls the movement of the
vibrating arm and furnishes a bearing for the vertically sliding plate 3. When the
table, h, is to be lowered, the clamp, 20, is first loosened to admit of the lowering
of the table and lathe and afterwards the parts k12, 20, k¹³ are again brought into
rigid connection by the nut 450. The means for raising and lowering the table
above referred to are not new and need not therefore be more fully described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The improved woodworking machine, combining therein the vibrating arm d
carrying at the end thereof a rotary routing or carving tool and means for operating
said tool, a screw shaft controlling the movement of said arm, and a lathe arranged
below the plane of movement of said vibrating arm, a train of gearing connecting
said lathe and screw shaft, and an adjustable plate or frame, k, carrying at one end
a wheel k³ of said train and at the other wheels. 7, and 8 and means for holding
said frame stationary substantially as set forth.
2. The improved woodworking machine, combining a jointed arm carrying a
routing or carving tool and means for operating said tool, a screw shaft con-
trolling the movement of said arm, a lathe, and a train of gearing embracing
adjustable wheels for reversing the movement of the lathe in its relation to the
screw shaft substantially as and for the purposes set forth.
3. The improved woodworking machine, combining a jointed arm carrying rotary
and vertically movable routing tool, a screw shaft, and its carriage connected with
said jointed arm, a pattern 4, a tracing tool and connections governing the vertical
movement of the vertically movable routing tool, a lathe and gearing whereby the
lathe and screw shaft are turned together, substantially as set forth.
4. The combination, in a woodworking machine with the jointed arm and its
routing tool, and means for operating the same, a lathe, screw shaft and a carriage
connected with and operating the said arm, gears transmitting movement from the
screw shaft to the lathe and a gauge p, q, all arranged and adapted to operate
substantially as set forth.
5. In combination, in a woodworking machine the jointed arm and its routing
tool and means for operating the same, a lathe and screw shaft and gearing
transmitting motion from one to the other, a graduated disc p, on the centre j and
a fixed index, q, all said parts being arranged and operating substantially as and
for the purposes set forth.
6. In combination with the screw shaft, lathe carriage k¹, jointed arm and its
tool and means for connecting and operating the same, of a rest, s, arranged on an
adjustable stud fixed upon the table or bed plate substantially as and for the
purposes set forth.
บ
7. In combination, in a woodworking machine a lathe, shaft, carriage, and jointed
arm and its tool, and means for connecting and operating the same substantially

page_text: .
as set forth, a V-shaped head serving as a rest for the stick and having a leg u
adjustably secured to a stud v, of a bed plate substantially as set forth.
8. In combination with the jointed arm and its rotary tool and means for
operating the same, a screw shaft, a carriage ¹ arranged on a track, h³, and
connected with said arm and provided with a slotted arm, k¹², clamp, k20, and
connections engaging and controlling the said jointed arm and its tool substantially
as set forth.
9. In combination with the jointed or sectional arm having a vibrating movement
and a rotary tool and means for operating said tool, a lathe and screw shaft
connected by gearing, the said screw shaft having a carriage, k¹, connected with
said arm, a pattern 4 a tracing tool w¹ connected with said arm and controlling the
movements of the same substantially as set forth.
Dated this 12th day of June 1891.
HONESTUS MORTON ALBEE.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.