Patent Document

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/732,661, filed Dec. 8, 2000 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,508,048. 
    
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not Applicable 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to an improved banding fixture for applying a band to a coil or bundle of material. 
     By way of background, a workpiece, such as coiled material or a bundle of material, require bands to retain them in assembled condition. It is also desirable that the ends of the band which cohere to each other be in as close overlapping alignment as possible so that any of the surfaces which should adhere to each other are not exposed. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a banding fixture for material which has to be banded which accepts a predetermined length of band and guides this band during a manually manipulatable operation about a coil or bundle and causes the ends of the band to be secured to each other in substantially exact overlying relationship. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a banding fixture which permits a simple interchange of coil-receiving carriages for receiving different sizes of coils or bundles. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a banding fixture which includes an adjustable band-receiving slot. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a banding fixture which includes a simplified band-receiving structural arrangement. Other objects and attendant advantages of the present invention will readily be perceived hereafter. 
     The present invention relates to a banding fixture comprising a body, a horizontal opening in said body, an overlying portion on said body overlying said horizontal opening, an undersurface on said overlying portion, a carriage movable into and out of said horizontal opening, a recess in said carriage, a carriage portion to the side of said recess, an upper surface on said carriage portion positionable in underlying near contiguous relationship with said undersurface, and a band-receiving slot in said body above said horizontal opening. 
     The present invention also relates to a banding fixture comprising a body, a horizontal opening in said body, a carriage movable in said horizontal opening, a recess in said carriage, and a window in said body in substantial alignment with said horizontal opening. 
     The present invention also relates to a banding fixture comprising a body, a horizontal opening in said body, a carriage movable in said horizontal opening, a recess in said carriage, and a band-receiving slot above said horizontal opening. 
     The various aspects of the present invention will be more fully understood when the following portions of the specification are read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a coil of tubing which is banded by bands which have been applied by the present banding fixture; 
     FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the banding fixture attached to a machine which supplies bands of a desired length; 
     FIG. 2A is a side elevational view of the body of the fixture; 
     FIG. 2B is a side elevational view of the carriage; 
     FIG. 2C is a plan view of the carriage; 
     FIG. 3 is an end elevational view taken substantially in the direction of arrows  3 — 3  of FIG.  2 : 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view of the fixture taken substantially in the direction of arrows  4 — 4  of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 5 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing a band in position on the fixture and a coil of tubing at an initial position for subsequent banding; 
     FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 but showing the coil moved into the carriage on the fixture; 
     FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 but showing the carriage moved to a position wherein the band has been installed about the coil; 
     FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view similar to FIG. 7 but showing the coil in cross section with the band installed thereon; 
     FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 7 but showing the carriage moved to a position which permits the banded coil to be removed from the fixture; 
     FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of another embodiment of a banding fixture which is attached to a machine which supplies bands of a desired length; 
     FIG. 10A is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken substantially along line  10 A— 10 A of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 10B is a fragmentary cross sectional view taken substantially along line  10 B— 10 B of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 11 is an end elevational view taken substantially in the direction of arrows  11 — 11  of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 12 is a plan view of the fixture taken substantially in the direction of arrows  12 — 12  of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 13 is a side elevational view of the lower body member of the fixture; 
     FIG. 14 is a side elevational view of one of two identical metal plates which are mounted on the sides of the lower body member of FIG. 13 for the purpose of mounting additional structure onto the lower body member and for providing side guides for a carriage; 
     FIG. 15 is a side elevational view of one form of carriage; 
     FIG. 16 is a side elevational view of another form of carriage; 
     FIG. 17 is a plan view of the carriage taken in the direction of arrows  17 — 17  of FIG. 15; 
     FIG. 18 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the upper portion of the fixture with the band-receiving slot in a very narrow orientation; 
     FIG. 19 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the upper portion of the fixture with the band-receiving slot slightly opened from its position in FIG. 18; 
     FIG. 20 is a front elevational view of a bracket which is used to place the slot in the open position of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 21 is a side elevational view of the bracket taken substantially in the direction of arrows  21 — 21  of FIG. 20; 
     FIG. 22 is a fragmentary side elevational view showing the fixture with the band-receiving slot in a position for receiving a band which tends to curl upwardly; 
     FIG. 23 is a fragmentary side elevational view similar to FIG. 22 with the band in its final position and a coil being placed in position to receive the band; 
     FIG. 24 is a fragmentary side elevational view similar to FIG.  23  and showing the coil in position in the recess of the carriage with the band therebetween; 
     FIG. 25 is a fragmentary side elevational view similar to FIG. 24 but showing the carriage in the position wherein the band has its ends secured to each other; and 
     FIG. 26 is a fragmentary side elevational view similar to FIG. 25 but showing the carriage returned to a position wherein the banded coil can be withdrawn from the carriage. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Summarizing briefly in advance, the banding fixture  10  is for applying bands  11  to a workpiece such as a coil  12  of tubing or any other type of coiled material or material to be banded. The bands  11  are received in a predetermined length from a band-dispensing machine of any type which can supply it. Each band, by the use of fixture  10 , can then be banded about the coiled material. 
     The banding fixture  10  includes a body  14  fabricated out of a suitable plastic material. Body  14  includes a lower plastic portion  15  (FIG. 2A) of substantially rectangular configuration. Formed integrally with lower portion  15  are two narrow members  17  and  19 . Member  17  merges into a horizontal member  20  and member  19  merges into a horizontal member  21 . A horizontal opening  22  (FIGS. 2 and 2A) is defined by edge  23  (FIG. 2A) of lower body member  15 , edge  24  of member  20 , edge  25  of member  17 , edge  26  of member  19  and edge  29 ′ of member  21 . 
     Metal plates  25  are screwed to body  14  by screws  27 . A substantially rectangular block  29  (FIG. 2) is secured between plates  25  by screws  30  and by a plastic pin  31 . A plastic pin  32  also extends through plates  25  and body portion  20 . A band-receiving slot  33  is thus formed between block  29  and body portion  20 . A second block  34  is secured between plates  25  by screws  35 . A slot  37  is located between body portion  21  and block  34 . 
     A carriage  39  is positioned in horizontal opening  22  for sliding movement between its position shown in FIG.  2  and the position shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. Carriage  39  (FIGS. 2B and 2C) is a plastic block of substantially solid rectangular configuration having a recess  40  therein. Also, a spring-biased ball  41  protrudes from the upper surface  42  of carriage  39 . The bottom surface  43  (FIGS. 2B and 8) of carriage  39  slides on surface  23  of body  14 , and the top surfaces  45  and  42  (FIG. 2B) travel in close relationship to surfaces  24  and  29  (FIG. 2A) of body  14 . As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 5, the edges  28  of plates  25  which are adjacent to and surround horizontal opening  22  confine carriage  39  for rectilinear movement within horizontal opening  22 . A plate  47  (FIG. 3) is secured to body  14  by screws  49  and plate  47  is for securing the fixture  14  to the band-dispensing machine  13  by screws  50  which pass through apertures  51  in plate  47 . A leg  52  extends downwardly from body  14  for supporting body  14  on a suitable surface. Also, a screw  53  is threaded into body  14  to support a plate  54  which is attached to the band-dispensing machine  13 . 
     In operation, a band  11  having a cohesive coating on its upper surface is dispensed from band-dispensing machine into band-receiving slots  37  and  33  and confined against lateral movement by plates  25  on opposite sides of slots  37  and  33 . The band  11  is dispensed to a position as shown in FIG. 5 wherein its central portion lies across workpiece-receiving slot  36  in body  14  above the recess  40  in carriage  39 . The band  11  is positioned so that after it has been banded about coil  12 , its ends will be in perfect overlying relationship as shown in FIG.  8 . The workpiece coil  12  is thereafter manually initially positioned in slot  38  between body members  29  and  34  over the central portion of band  11 , as shown in FIG. 5, and moved downwardly with the adjacent central band portion of band  11  through slot  36  and into recess  40  of carriage  39 , as shown in FIG.  6 . Slots  36  and  38 , which extend transversely to band-receiving slots  37  and  33 , can be considered separately and jointly as a coil-receiving slot, and more broadly as workpiece-receiving slots. When the coil is in the recess  40 , portions of the central portion of band  11  will lie along the sides of the coil which are adjacent the lower side of the coil in the lowermost part of recess  40  (FIG.  6 ). Thereafter, the carriage  39  is manually moved to the position shown in FIG. 7 wherein the ends of band  11  are pressed together between spring-biased ball  41  and the undersurface  24  of member  20  so that the band  11  assumes the condition shown in FIG.  8 . During the movement of the carriage  39  into horizontal opening  22  to the position of FIG. 7, a portion of the central portion of band  11  to the right of the coil  12  in FIG. 6 will be moved across the inner side of the coil, and the end portions of the band will be placed in overlapping pressed relationship. Thereafter, the carriage  39  is moved to the position of FIG. 9 whereupon the coil  12  can be withdrawn. 
     Because the band  11  which is used is of the cohesive type, the surfaces of the band which are pressed together will cohere to each other but the band itself will not adhere to anything else. Because the band  11  is confined against lateral movement in slots  37  and  33  by plates  25  during the banding process, the end portions of the band which cohere to each other will be in exact overlying relationship with all of their edges being perfectly aligned with each other. However, while the side edges of the band are in exact alignment because of the above-noted confinement against lateral movement in slots  37  and  33 , under certain circumstances the extreme outer edges on the ends may not be in alignment, depending on the initial placement of the band. 
     Slots  36  and  38  were designated above as workpiece-receiving slots. In this respect, while the workpiece which was illustrated is a coil  12 , it will be appreciated that the “workpiece-receiving slot” can receive a bundle of material which is not in coil form and a single object to which a band has to be applied. 
     In FIGS. 10-26 another banding fixture embodiment  60  is disclosed. Summarizing briefly in advance, the fixture  60  includes a plurality of features which do not exist in the embodiment  10  of FIGS. 1-9. These features include structure for easily replacing carriages to accommodate different coil sizes. Also, this embodiment includes an adjustable band-receiving slot to accommodate bands having different curl characteristics. In addition, the embodiment of FIGS. 10-26 is more simplified than the embodiment of FIGS. 1-9. 
     The banding fixture  60  includes a body portion  61  (FIGS. 10 and 13) which is fabricated out of a suitable plastic material. Body portion  61  includes a lower body portion  62  (FIG. 13) of substantially rectangular configuration. Formed integrally with lower body portion  62  is a narrow solid rectangular member  63  which merges into solid rectangular horizontal member  64 . The body also includes an upper body portion  65  (FIG. 10) in the form of a substantially solid rectangular plastic block. Two metal plates  67  (FIGS. 10,  11 ,  12  and  14 ) secure body portions  61  and  65  to each other. In this respect screws  69  extend through the apertures  68  in the lower portions of plates  67  and are received in bores  76  (FIG. 13) in body portion  61  to fasten these parts together. Screws  70  extend through bores  71  in plates  67  and are received in block  65  to fasten block  65  in position. Screws  72  extend through bores  73  (FIG. 13) in plates  67  to fasten the upper portions of plates  67  to portion  64  of body portion  61 . 
     A plate  85  (FIGS. 10,  11  and  12 ) is secured to body  61  by screws  87 , and screws  89  extend through apertures  90  in plate  85  to secure fixture  60  to band-dispensing machine  13  which will dispense measured lengths of cohesive tape to fixture  60 . A foot  91  is secured to the undersurface of lower body portion  62  to rest on a suitable surface. A bracket  92  is fastened to band-dispensing machine  13  by screw  93  and to body portion  61  by screw  94 . 
     A carriage  74  (FIGS. 10,  12 ,  15 ) is movable in horizontal opening  75 . Carriage  74  is fabricated from a block of plastic, and it has a recess  76  therein. Carriage  74  also includes sides  74 ′ and ends  78  and  76 ′ and a bottom surface  79 ′ and top surfaces  73 ′ and  75 ′ on opposite sides of recess  76 . The horizontal opening  75  is defined by edge  77  of lower body portion  62 , edge  79  of upper body portion  65 , edge  80  (FIG. 13) of lower body portion  61  and edge  81  of body portion  61 . The edge portions  82  of plates  67  extend above edge  77  of lower body portion  62 , and the edges  83  of plates  67  extend below the lower edge  79  of upper body portion  65  to thereby provide side portions of plates  67  which confine carriage  74  in horizontal opening  75 . Also, portions  84  of plates  67  confine the left end of carriage  74  therebetween when the carriage is in the position of FIGS. 10 and 22, and the portions  85 ′ of plates  67  confine the right end of carriage  64  therebetween when the carriage is in the position of FIG.  25 . Carriage  74  also includes a spring-biased ball  95  which biases the carriage upwardly so that its upper surfaces  73 ′ and  75 ′ (FIG. 15) will bear against undersurface  79  of body portion  65  and the undersurface  64 ′ of body portion  64  when the carriage is in the position of FIG.  10  and against the undersurface  79  when the carriage  74  is in the position of FIG.  25 . 
     In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the fixture  60  has an improved band-receiving arrangement. One aspect of this arrangement is shown in FIGS.  10  and  22 - 26 . In this respect, the substantially solid rectangular block  97  has its right end (FIGS. 10 and 11) secured to plates  67  by screws  99 . The screws  99  also pass through elongated slots  100  (FIG. 14) in plates  67 . Thus, the right end of block  97  can be adjusted in the vertical direction. The left end of block  97  is secured to plates  67  by brackets  101  (FIGS. 10,  20  and  21 ). The lower ends of brackets  101  have apertures  102  therein. Screws  70  pass through apertures  102  and are received in block  65 . The upper ends of brackets  101  have apertures  103  therein. Screws  104  pass through apertures  103  and into block  97 . As can be seen from FIGS.  10  and  22 - 26 , a slot  105  is provided between blocks  65  and  97  which is in the shape of a wedge with the wide part  107  being the entry portion for band  109 . Thus, in the event that band  109  has a relatively large upward curl, it will be received within slot  105  in the manner depicted in FIGS. 22 and 23. 
     In addition to the foregoing, it is to be noted from FIGS. 10,  10 A and  22 - 26  that the tape  109  passes across the top  110  of horizontal member  64  and is restricted only by the upper portions  111  of plates  67 . In other words, there is no block above horizontal member  64  and therefore the leading edge of band  109  does not have to pass through a slot. It is merely guided by the upper portions  11  of plates  67 . 
     The slot between blocks  65  and  97  is adjustable from the position shown in FIG. 10 to the positions such as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19. In this respect, in FIG. 18 the slot  105   a  is shown in a condition in which it has been placed by adjusting the screws  99  and  104  in slots  100  and  112 , respectively. In FIG. 19 the slot  105   b  is shown in an enlarged condition relative to slot  105   a  by adjusting the screws  99  and  104  to different positions in slots  100  and  112 , respectively. Thus, as can be seen from a comparison of FIGS. 10,  18  and  19 , the slots  105 ,  105   a  and  105   b  can be adjusted to different sizes depending on the curl of the particular banding material which is being used. 
     The sequence of banding a coil  113  is shown in FIGS. 22-26, and this sequence is similar to that described in detail above relative to FIGS. 5-9. Briefly, the band  109  is shown moving to the right and being inserted into slot  105  in FIGS. 22 and 23. Slot  105  is located between the lower wall (not numbered) of block  97  and the upper wall (not numbered) of block  65 . Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 23, coil  113  is inserted through slot  114  between the inner edges  115  and  117  of plates  67  and into engagement with the central portion of band  109 . Thereafter the coil  113  is moved downwardly through the slot portion  119  between the ends  120  and  121  of block  65  and member  64 , respectively. The coil  13  is then inserted into carriage recess  76 , as shown in FIG.  24 . The carriage  74  is then moved from the position of FIG. 24 to the position of FIG. 25 so as to cause the ends of band  109  to overlie each other and be pressed together because of the engagement between upper surface  73 ′ of carriage  74  and the undersurface  79  of block  65 , with the two surfaces being biased toward each other by the action of spring-biased detent  95  bearing on surface  77  of lower body portion  62 . Thereafter, the carriage is moved back to the position of FIG. 26, and the banded coil  113  is removed from the fixture. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, carriages having different recess configurations can be used in fixture  60 . In this respect, a carriage having a recess configuration  76  is shown in FIG. 15. A carriage  74   a  is shown in FIG. 16 having a recess  76   a  which differs dimensionally from recess  76 . All other dimensions may be the same except for the upper surfaces  73   a  and  75   a  which correspond to upper surfaces  73 ′ and  75 ′. In order to remove carriage  74  from fixture  60 , it is merely necessary to unscrew screw  123  (FIGS. 10 and 11) so as to pivot plate  124  from its obstructing orientation relative to window  125  (FIG. 11) to thereby permit carriage  74  to be slid out of the fixture through the window  125 . Thereafter, a carriage, such as  74   a  of FIG. 16, can be slid into horizontal opening  75  through window  125  and thereafter plate  124  can be returned to its obstructing position relative to window  125 . The window  125  is bounded by the inside surfaces of plate portions  85 ′ and by surface  79  of block  65  and surface  77  of body portion  61 . 
     While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it will be appreciated that the present invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

Technology Category: b