Improvements in Machinery or Apparatus Employed in the Manufacture of Driving Belts, Straps, and Bands.
Year: 1896

page_text: Date of Application, 16th July, 1896-Accepted, 12th Sept., 1896
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery or Apparatus Employed in the
Manufacture of Driving Belts, Straps, and Bands.
I, CHARLES DAVIS LIGHTBAND, of 71 Cathedral Square, Christchurch, in the
Provincial District of Canterbury, in the Colony of New Zealand, Leather and
Grindery Merchant, 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, and accompanying drawing, that is to say :-
This invention relates to machines employed in the manufacture of leather
machinery belting and more particularly to an invention for "Improvements in
machinery or apparatus employed in the manufacture of driving belts, straps and
bands," patented by Joseph Appleyard of Bradford, England, dated March 18th,
A.D. 1882, and numbered 1330.
In the machine referred to and probably in some other machines in which the
stitching is done with copper wire each stitch is formed of a separate piece of wire
which is cut off and pointed by steel dies other portions of which turn the pointed
ends of the stitch into a C shape and force it into the leather of the belt operated
upon.
The dies are constructed in the required shape to bend the wire to form a stitch
and when new may perform their work satisfactory but they are liable to become
grooved through repeated contact with the pointed ends of the wire in which case
the point of a stitch sometimes catches in the groove so formed and is consequently
bent to an improper shape and clamped into the belt in an imperfect manner.
My invention provides a simple apparatus to be applied to such machines
whereby a bend or lead is given to the end of the stitch so that the proper
operation of the dies in bending and clamping the stitch is practically ensured.
Referring to the accompanying drawings.
•
Fig. 1 is a section of a piece of belting showing a stitch the lower end of which
has been bent by the bottom die of the machine while the upper end is ready to be
turned over and clamped.
Fig. 2 shows the stitch turned over by the top die and
Fig. 3 the stitch clamped and finished.
Fig. 4 shows a stitch improperly turned over by the top die, and
Fig. 5 the bad stitch consequently formed.
Fig. 6 shows a portion of my apparatus employed in bending the stitch so as to
insure its being turned over correctly.
Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating my invention attached to a machine.
A portion of the machine sufficient to indicate the relative position of the parts
being shown in dotted lines.
Fig. 8 is a detailed view of one of the parts.
Similar letters of reference indicate the same parts throughout the figures.
The lever (a) is fulcrumed at one end in the jaw (b) formed at right angles to and
upon the bracket (c) which is fixed to the standard or other stationary parts of the
machines.
The link (d) is pivoted at one end upon the spindle (d) which is also employed
to support the arm (e) which is connected by the rod (f) to the beam (g) of the
machine.
The spindle (d) is fixed to the vertically sliding headstock (o). The arm (e)
being the member of the machine employed for operating the roller (h) which
feeds the wire from which the stitches are formed.

page_text: The opposite end of the link (d) is pivoted by a pin (¹) to the lever (a).
The stitch bending trigger (i) adjustably secured by a set pin (k) in a bracket (1)
which is connected to the end of the lever (a) by a set pin (m) a slot (n)
being provided in the end of the lever (a) to permit of the adjustment of the
bracket (!).
In operation after the pointed wire stitch has been forced through the belting
the head-stock (o) carrying the dies is lifted by the usual parts of the machine and
in the usual manner the link (d) is thereby caused to vibrate inwardly and the
trigger (i). to pass under the dies and to bend the end of the rivet as shown in
Figure 6 so that when the dies come down upon the rivet in the ordinary way it
'will be in such form as to ensure the correct formation of the stitch.
It will be evident that as the headstock descends the lever (a) will be vibrated
in the opposite direction and the trigger moved outwardly so as to clear the dies.
Figs. 1 to 6 illustrate approximately the different forms which the wire assumes in
the production of good and bad stitches respectively.
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 combination with a wire belt stitching machine of the apparatus for
bending the ends of the stitches substantially as and for the purposes herein
described and illustrated in Figures 7 and 8 of the accompanying drawings.
2. In combination the stitch bending trigger (i) adjustably secured to one end
of the lever (a) which is pivoted at the other to the bracket (c) fixed to a stationary
portion of a belt stitching machine. A link (d) secured at one end to the lever (a)
and at the other to a spindle upon the sliding headstock (o) causing the lever (a)
to vibrate substantially as and for the purposes herein described and illustrated.
Dated this 18th day of May 1896.
EDWARDS & Co.,
65 and 66, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicant.