Patent ID: 7878382

Claim:
A drive assembly for a wire feeding station having a first feed wheel and a second feed wheel that form an adjustable feed nip to pull a wire through the wire feeding station, comprising: a single drive motor having a motor shaft extending along a drive axis; a first drive gear fixed to the motor shaft of the drive motor; a second drive gear positioned in engagement with the first drive gear such that rotation of the first drive gear rotates the second drive gear; a rigid first drive shaft operable to rotate the first feed wheel and having a first end coupled to the first drive gear by a first flexible coupling and a second end coupled to the first feed wheel by a second flexible coupling; and a rigid second drive shaft operable to rotate the second feed wheel and having a first end coupled to the second drive gear through a third flexible coupling and a second end rotatably coupled to the second feed wheel through a fourth flexible coupling, wherein the first feed wheel and the second feed wheel are each supported by a mounting block, wherein the mounting blocks are movable relative to each other to adjust the position of both the first feed wheel and the second feed wheel of the feed nip, wherein the flexible couplings provide a driven link between the drive motor and the first and second feed wheels and allow the first and second drive shafts to be separately angled relative to the drive axis as the first and second feed wheels move relative to each other.