Improvements in Nails and Machines for Forming the same.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 30th May, 1899-Accepted, 15th July, 1899
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Nails and Machines for Forming the same.
We, ELBRIDGE EASTMAN DUNCAN, Manufacturer, and REUBEN EMMANUEL
BRITTAIN, Merchant, both of South Pittsburg, in the County of Marion and
State of Tennessee, and SEXTUS LOUIS REED, Civil Engineer, of Gallatin, in the
County of Sumner and State of Tennessee, United States of America, 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 nail forming machines of that class in which the
nails are produced by rolling a continuous length of wire and cutting the wire
into lengths which are pointed and headed by the machine, the apparatus having
three dies rolling together to form a triangular nail, and the dies carrying a
series of radially movable punches that act in unison to sever the wire into
lengths and at the same time to head and point the lengths.
This specification is the disclosure of two forms of my invention, while the
claims define the actual scope of the invention.
Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this
specification, in which
Figure 1 is a partly sectional side elevation of the machine;
Figure 2 is an elevation of one of the dies, the shaft being in section on the
line 2-2 of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view, substantially on the line 3-3 of
Figure 1;
Figure 4 is a face view of the centre piece or body of one of the dies;
Figure 5 is an inner face view of one of the gear disks forming part of the
dies;
Figure 6 is a plan view of one of the punches;
Figure is an enlarged detail section of one of the guide rims which are
attached to the center piece or disk of each die ;
Figure 8 is a sectional view on the line 8-8 of Figure 4, showing the centre
piece and guide rim in place;
Figure is a perspective view of the improved nail; and
Figure 10 is a cross section thereof looking toward the head.
Figure 11 shows a modification of the machine.
The machine is carried on a frame 10 which preferably stands perpendicularly
and has two elongated bearing sleeves 11, wherein is mounted to turn loosely
a shaft 12. The shaft 12 is further supported by a pedestal 14 stepped on the
frame 10. The shaft 12 carries at an intermediate point one of the dies, the
details of construction of which will be hereinafter described. The frame 10
carries below the bearings 11, two additional pairs of bearings respectively de-
signated 15 and 16, the members of each pair of said bearings being arranged
in a diagonal line, two other dies being respectively keyed fast on shafts 18
and 19 mounted respectively in the bearings 15 and 16, so that the three dies
will be in planes radial to a common point, the peripheries of the three rotary

page_text: dies bearing against each other as shown. The shaft 12 is provided with a
band pulley 20 by which it is driven, and also with a balance wheel 21.
Each die consists in a central piece or disk 22, made fast to the corresponding
shaft and having a beveled gear wheel 23 bolted to each face, so that the
peripheries of the gear wheels run together as shown in Figure 1, and thus all
of the dies are made to turn in unison. The peripheries of the central disks 22
are square with the sides and these peripheries run edge to edge, so that the
material rolled between the peripheries will have triangular cross sectional form,
this being the form given the nail. Each central disk 22 has notches 24 formed
in its periphery. These notches are preferably four in number, but may of course
At
be varied according to the length that it is desired to give to the nails.
cach notch the disks 22 are formed with radial slots 25, in which are the punches
proper 26. The slots 25 are contracted at their outer portions but have their
inner portions enlarged to receive the bodies 27 of the punches, such bodies being
pressed inward by expansive springs 28 contained in the enlarged portions of
the slots 25. Each body portion 27 of the several punches, is provided with
oppositely disposed arms 29 projecting through radially elongate slots 30, in
the respective gear wheels 23. The outer end of each arm 29 carries a block 31,
such blocks sliding with the punches against the respective outer faces of the
gear wheels 23, and carrying anti-friction rollers 32 which bear on cam flanges 33
held rigid with the inner ends of the several sleeve bearings 11, 15 and 16.
Therefore, as the dies turn with their shafts, the rollers 32 run over the flanges 33
and the several punches are pushed outward against the springs 28, and when
the rollers 32 move past the rise of the cam, the springs 28 return the punches
to their inner positions.
Bolted to one side of each disk 22 and at the periphery thereof is a circular
guide rim 34, such rims being angular in cross section and being provided, as
shown in Figure 7, with notches 35 tallying with the notches 24 in the disk 22.
These guide rims run with the dies in the positions shown in Figure 1 so as to
brace the dies against each other and form a complete enclosure through which
the material must pass. The notches 35 register with the notches 24 and form
enlarged spaces in which the material forming the nail is pressed by the dies
to produce the head, while the punches 25 move outward and sever the wire into
lengths, and owing to the inclined ends of the punches, as shown in Figures 1,
3 and 6, one end of each length is given a triangular point. The nails there-
fore are rolled into triangular form, severed and pointed and headed by the
simultaneous action of the rolling dies.
The improved nail is clearly shown in Figures 9 and 10, where a designates
the triangular shank with the triangular point a¹, and the triangular head
having sharp corners located in line with the edges of the shank, so that the
edges of the head are parallel with the side surfaces of the shank.
In the modification shown in Figure 11 the cam gear for operating the punches
is contained within the rolls. The three main shafts 41 are arranged with respect
to each other so as to describe an equilateral triangle and each shaft has fast
thereon, two rolls having two oppositely coned rings of teeth 42 those of the
three rolls meshing together as in the previous arrangement. Each ring of
teeth is attached to, or in one with, a correspondingly coned roll 43, the faces of
adjacent rolls on different shafts running together. Bolted between the two
members of each roll is an annular die plate 44, the face of which is cylindrical
so that the opposing faces of the three die plates 44 enclose a space of equilateral
triangular form in which these die plates 44 roll the stock to form the nail. The
stock is cut into lengths and the heads and points of the nails are formed by
punches 45 fitted in radial slots and pressed inwards by springs 46 and caused
to protrude from the face of the die plate 44 by a cam 47 fast on a stationary
shaft 48 within each of the hollow shafts 41 as the punches 45 revolve with the
roll around the cam against which they bear through the intervention of friction
rollers 49.

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that
what we claim is:-
1. A nail-forming machine consisting of three die rolls in radial planes and
geared together and each fitted with radial punches in combination with stationary
cams, the punches co-acting to cut the wire into lengths and to form the points
and heads of the nails substantially as shewn and described.
2. The radial punches (26) actuated by the stationary cams (33) for cutting
the lengths of wire and forming the points and heads of the nails substantially
as shewn and described.
3. The punches (26) when constructed to cut the wire into lengths and to
simultaneously form a head on one nail and a point on the adjacent nail sub-
stantially as shewn and described.
4. The punch arms (29) carrying the rollers (32) engaging the stationary
cams (33) substantially as shewn and described.
5. The discs (22) for rolling the shank and provided with rims (34) for guiding
the stock substantially as shewn and described.
6. The stationary cam (47) and the radially-movable punches mounted between
the members of the respective pairs of gears (42) and riding around the cams
and moving in time with the gears substantially as shewn and described.
7. The combination of the hollow shaft (41) the stationary shaft (48) the
cam (47) the gears (42) the guide rollers (43) and the punch (45) substantially
as shewn and described.
8. The herein described nail comprising a triangular shank (a) with a triangular
point (a) and a sharp-cornered triangular head (2) the edges of which are
parallel with the side surfaces of the shank substantially as shewn and described.
Dated this 30th day of May 1899.
A. M. & WM. CLARK,
Chartered Patent Agents, 53, Chancery Lane, London.