AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFAC TURE OF SHOE TIPS
Year: 1878

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Paul Bedford Elwell, of Wolverhampton, in the County of
Stafford, Manager for the Patent Tip and Horse-shoe Company, of Wolver-
hampton aforesaid, for the Invention of "AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFAC
TURE OF SHOE TIPS."
Sealed the 6th December 1878, and dated the 17th October 1878.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION filed by the said Paul Bedford Elwell at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 17th October 1878.
" AN
PAUL BEDFORD ELWELL, of Wolverhampton, in the County of Stafford, Manager
for the Patent Tip and Horse-shoe Company, of Wolverhampton aforesaid.
IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF SHOE TIPS."
Shoe tips have hitherto been made by cutting off pieces of the required length
from rods or bars or strips of metal, by then bending the lengths or pieces of rod
or bar, or punching out the lengths of strip to the proper shape, accordingly as the
tips are for the heels or toes, and by finally brightening the tips on an emery
wheel.
Now, my Invention consists in manufacturing shoe tips by brightening the rods
or bars and strips by means of the machinery herein-after described, or by other
suitable machinery, before they are cut into lengths, after which I cut them into the
required lengths, and finally bend or punch them out to the proper shape. By this
method of procedure I much reduce the cost of manufacture.
I will now proceed to describe a machine which I have constructed specially for
grinding the said rods or bars and strips, and in doing so shall refer to the accom-
panying Drawings.
Figure 1 is a front elevation; Figure 2, an end elevation; and Figure 3, a plan
of the machine.
The said views are drawn to a scale of 3 inches to a foot.
A, A, etc. is the framing; B, B, emery wheels upon the spindle C. W is a pulley
upon the spindle C, and receives the belt by which motion is imparted to the
spindle C. The spindle C runs in steel bushes D, D, etc. E, E, are pressure rollers
supported by studs in the projection F, F, of the frame G. The said frame G is
Di

page_text: centred to the framing A, A, etc. by the centre points H, H. The pressure rollers
E, E, are pressed down on to the bar and strip K, K, by means of the lever J, and
a spiral spring similar to one presently to be referred to. It is preferred to prevent
the pressure rollers E, E, from bearing upon the emery wheels when the bar and
strip K, K, are drawn away from the emery wheels, by placing a stop in any con-
venient position, so as to prevent the lever J from being drawn down beyond the
proper point. L, L, and M, M, (the latter immediately below the former), are drawing
rollers to draw the rods and strips from the emery wheels during the process of
grinding. The rollers L, L, are fixed upon the shaft N, which is carried in bearings
in the framing A, A, etc., and is driven by a belt through the medium of the
pulley O. The rollers M,. M, are carried by a spindle Q, which is carried in bearings
in projections on the frame P. The spindle Qis revolved through the medium of
the equal spur wheels R, R. The frame P is centred to the framing A, A, etc., by
centre points S, S. The rollers M, M, are pressed up against the rod and strip by
means of the lever T and spring U, and the rod and strip are thus pressed between
the drawing rollers. The spindle Ċ revolves at about 1500 revolutions per minute,
and the spindles N and Q at about 30 revolutions per minute.
The pressing and drawing rollers to the left of the elevation are arranged for
grinding strips for toe plates, and are consequently plain. The corresponding rollers
to the right are arranged for grinding rods for heel tips, and are grooved to receive
the required section of the rod, and to cause the part to be ground to be flat against
the periphery of the emery wheel.
Figure 4 is a full sized section, showing the grooves in a pair of drawing rollers
as used when the side a of the section V of a rod is being ground. The groove
shown in the upper roller is the same as used for the pressure roller for the same
side and section of rod. The grooves in the rollers act to keep the rod in position
for grinding, and also guide the rod. The rod however requires to be guided by
hand until taken hold of by the drawing roller, and the strip requires to be guided
by hand throughout the process of grinding. The drawing rollers or one of them
for the strip, and also the pressure roller, may be slightly grooved, if desired, to act
as guides to the strip, in which case the strip needs grinding by hand only until
taken hold of by the drawing rollers.
If desired guages or guides b, b, may be used to render the operation of feeding
the rods and strips more easy to the operator.
The machine, as illustrated, is constructed to grind one side only of a rod or strip
at one operation, but may of course be adapted by means of emery wheels or other
suitable grinders set at angles, or as may be required, to grind two or more sides (or
edges) of a rod or strip at one operation; and the machine may also be adapted to
grind more than one rod or strip on each emery wheel, by making the emery
wheel sufficiently wide on face, and grooving the pressure and drawing rollers as
required.
Having thus stated the nature of my said Invention, and particularly set forth
the method I prefer to employ to carry out the same in practice, though any suitable
mechanism now in use for grinding rods and strips may be used, I declare that I do
not claim as novel the construction of the machine illustrated, but what I claim as
my Invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is, manufacturing shoe tips in
the manner herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Paul Bedford Elwell, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord Ono
thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.