US3060841A - Mechanism for tying together the ends of a wire passed round a package - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 30, 1962 P. A. VAN DE BILT 3,0 ,84

MECHANISM FOR TYING TOGETHER THE ENDS OF A WIRE PASSED ROUND A PACKAGE Filed Sept. 6, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 I lllllllllllgl INVENTOR P/HM fle/vaww M/Vfii 5/4 7 ATTORNEY Oct. 30, 1962 P. A. VAN DE BILT 3,060,841 MECHANISM FOR TYING TOGETHER THE ENDS OF A WIRE PASSED ROUND A PACKAGE Filed Sept. 6, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ian \\\QJWE 26 5 27 ll i .a IE Illlllllllllllll .k V

ATTORNEY Oct. 30, 1962 P. A. VAN DE BILT MECHANISM FOR TYING TOGETHER THE ENDS OF A WIRE PASSED ROUND A PACKAGE 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 6, 1960 INVENTOR 1 /5721? ,4. VAN of 5/1.?

ATTORNEY Oct. 30, 1962 p .A. VAN DE BILT 3,060,841 MECHANISM FOR TYING TOGETHER THE ENDS OF A WIRE PASSED ROUND A PACKAGE Filed Sept. 6, 1960 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 mul w INVENTOR. IP/ETER A. 1 4 oz B/Lr United States atent fiice trash Patented Get. 30, 1962 3,960,841 NECM FOR TYING TOGETIER THE ENDS OF A WIRE PASSED RUUND A PAEKAGE Pieter A. van de Bilt, Maartensdijk, Netherlands, assignor to NSV. Metaverpa, Maar'i nsdijk, Netherlands, a corporation of the Netherlands Filed Sept. 6, 1966 Ser. No. 54,122 Claims priority, application Netherlands Sept. 9, 1959 5 Claims. (Cl. ltltl3l) The invention relates to a mechanism for tying together the ends of a wire passed around a package in a packaging machine, the juxtaposed wires being twisted together by a twisting pinion. Mechanisms of this kind are commonly known in a variety of forms, for which reference is made, for instance, to the US. patent specification No. 2,416,859. In this known packaging machine the complicated movement of a grab jaw is required to feed the ends of the wire into the twisting pinion. This naturally gives rise to many difficulties and disturbances, which is not desirable if the usually automatic packaging operations are to proceed smoothly.

Furthermore it is already known to pass the wire to be applied around the package twice through the twisting pinion during the feeding the wire, so that the wires do not have to be fed into the twisting pinion subsequently. This appears very attractive, but the process of feeding the wire, in particular of passing it twice through the twisting pinion, in practice often tends to cause difiiculties, since the free end of the wire is apt to be arrested, the more so as this end may develop a bend and/or burr in consequence of the preceding packaging operation. Moreover, it will then be almost impossible to pass the wires accurately parallel at a fixed distance through the twisting pinion and lock them, and such an accurately parallel relative travel at some distance from each other is desirable for flat wire if a satisfactory twisting joint is to be obtained which is not liable to get loose again.

The invention has for its object to obviate these drawbacks and to furnish a mechanism by means of which it is possible in a simple way to feed the Wires into the twisting pinion in such a way that they travel accurately parallel to each other under tension and are twisted.

This object is attained according to the invention by the feature that the twisting pinion is supported in a block or carriage which is adapted to travel to and fro in a direction at right angles to that of the wires and comprises a recess near the pinion, said recess being partially covered by a plate, which keeps the wires at some distance from the package at the level of the jaw of the pinion. The uncovered portion of the recess forms a passage for the wires. On either side of the plate are fitted fingers, which also rest on the wires and have a lost motion connection with the block, in such a manner that when the block is moved and pinion travels towards the wires, the passage is temporarily bridged over to prevent the wires moving through the passage and during the return movement it is temporarily cleared to allow upward movement of the wires therethrough. By means of this structural solution it is possible to arrange and tighten the wires accurately parallel via guides, ahead of the jaw of the twisting pinion, the plate and the fingers causing the wires to be kept at some distance from the package at the level of the jaw of the twisting pinion. When the sliding block is now moved, the jaw of the twisting pinion passes over the wires that are held by the wire guides, the plate, which is located between the wires and the package, moving relative to the wires, but the fingers, which lag owing to the lost motion connection, causing the wires still to be kept at the same distance from the package. It is not until the wires have passed into the twisting pinion that these fingers move away from the wires during the latter part of the stroke of the sliding block and the twisting of the wires by the rotation of the pinion can take place. In this way a perfectly uniform feeding of the wires from the guide into the pinion is ensured. During the return movement of the sliding I block, which movement takes place after the twisting of the ends of the wire, the fingers will again lag, owing to which the passage remains clear and the wires emerging from the pinion are now able to move freely upwards against the package.

The pinion is preferably driven by a rack that is adapted to travel relative to the block, with the interposition of two gear wheels mounted on the same shaft, one of which gear wheels meshes with the rack and the other with the pinion, while they are coupled together by a one-way clutch. Thus it becomes possible to move the twisting pinion only when this is necessary, so that the twisting pinion can be stationary during the return movement, in order that the ends twisted together may be able to pass out of the jaw of the twisting pinion. During the sliding movement of the block, destined to feed the ends of the wire into the jaw of the pinion, the stationary condition of the twisting pinion, which is then also required, may be obtained when the one-way clutch is caused to perform a small angular rotation in its coupling direction, without any tying being effected, i.e. when it is caused as it were to perform a dead stroke.

Furthermore according to the invention the plate of the block may have on the lower side a guiding member which is adapted to be swung away and comprises two channels for the wires, said member being kept in its operating position by a spring and having a pivot located at a lower level than the plane of the wire. This guiding member forms a connection between the guiding channels of the lower part of the guiding frame for the wire, so that near the sliding block too the guiding channels are continuous. When the block is set in motion, the wires are bound to get clear, and due to the fact that the pivot of the guiding member is located in a place beneath the wires, and preferably ahead of them in the direction of movement, the guiding member automatically swings away as the block begins to move, in consequence of which the wires are fully cleared, so that they can be seized by the jaw of the twisting pinion.

The invention will now be elucidated further with reference to the drawings.

FIGURE 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view approximately along the longitudinal median plane of a packaging machine and illustrates the twisting mechanism mounted immediately beneath the work table, which latter is not shown.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the part shown in FIG- URE 1, with some of the details omitted.

FIGURE 3 is an elevational view of a part of the twisting mechanism and illustrates the operation of a knife for cutting off an end of the wire.

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the twisting block and associated parts in their initial position with the cover plate omitted.

FIG. 5 is another view similar to FIG. 1 showing the twisting block and associated parts in an intermediate position after the twisting operation wherein the twisted wire ends are released from the twisting block with the cover plate omitted.

FIGURES 1-3 show the position into which the twisting block has already been moved and wherein the twist ing pinion has been moved to receive in its jaw the wires. Approximately in the middle of the machine two vertical longitudinal plates 1 and 2 are present, between which are located two horizontal plates 3 and 4, which jointly with the plates 1 and 2 serve as a guiding track for a sliding block or carriage 5.

At a lower level additional horizontal guiding plates corresponding to the plates 3 and 4 are present, of which only the plate 6 is visible and which serve to support a rack 7. The plates 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 are'mounted in the frame of the machine. This frame also carries the guiding track for the wire, sketchily indicated at 8, by means of which the wire is guided to form a loop. The block is moved to and fro with the aid of the link 9, which is connected with a driving mechanism, e.g. a pneumatic or a hydraulic cylinder 9a or some other driving member. Supported in the block 5 is the twisting pinion 10, the jaw of which is denoted by 11. The twisting pinion 10 meshes with a gear wheel 12, which is mounted on a laterally projecting hub of a gear wheel 13 of the same size, located beside it, which gear wheel 13 meshes with the rack 7. The connection between the gear wheel 12 and the hub of gear wheel 13 is brought about by means of a one-way or overrunning clutch, which is formed by a spring-loaded roller 14, 'which engages a recess 15 the depth of which decreases gradually towards the left in FIGURE 1, which recess ends towards the right in the form of an abutment for the roller.

The block 5 further comprises a plate 16, which during the feeding and tightening of the wire is in the position shown in FIG. 4 of the drawing and which keeps the ends of the wire at some distance from the bottom of the package. The guiding member 30, which is adapted to be swung away about the pivot 29, is provided with parallel grooves which serve to guide the ends of'the wire accurately until they have been tightened. On either side of the plate 16, fingers 17 and 18 are present, which, besides having the same function as the plate 16, have to ensure that as the block 5 is moved to the left in FIG- URE 1 to the position shown in this figure the wires are properly fed from beneath the plate 16 to the jaw 11 of the twisting pinion 10. This is possible because the fingers 17 and 18 have a lost motion connection with the block 5, shown at 19 in FIGURE 3, in consequence of which these fingers 17 and 18 lag a short distance whenever the block travels to and fro. If therefore the block is moved in such a way that the twisting pinion travels towards the wires, the plate 16 is moved relative to the wires, the guiding member 30 swings away, but the fingers 1-7 and 18 remain in their place and accordingly still keep the wires at some distance from the bottom of the package at the level of the jaw of the pinion, which is now able to travel forward between the fingers and to receive the wires. When the latter has taken place and the ends of the wire now travel towards the center of the twisting pinion, the fingers also move on. After the twisting, the block 5 travels to the right in FIGURE 1, while the fingers 17 and 18 lag, in consequence of which the passage 5a between the leading end of the plate 16 and the jaw of the pinion is cleared as shown in FIG. 5, so that the ends of the wire that have been tied together get clear of the twisting mechanism and come to rest against the bottom of the package.

In the initial position of the block 5, as shown in FIG. 4, the ball 14 is in its uppermost position; when the block is moved to the left, as indicated in FIGURE 1, this ball joint moves into the position shown in FIGURE 1 because it rolls jointly with the gear wheel 13 on the rack. The pinion 10 has remained in the same position, aided by a locking ball and a return pawl (not shown). The rack 7, which is supported by means of rollers 21 and 21 on the guiding tracks 6, is now driven, e.g. by means of the cylinder 22, and thus moves the gear wheel 13 clockwise, so that after a short dead stroke, which ends when the ball 14 has reached its uppermost position again, the gear wheel 12 is taken along and the pinion 10 is driven accordingly. The gear wheel 12 is then moved one full revolution by the rack, and preferably even slightly further, by which means a certain overtwist is given, which upon the reversal of the direction of travel results in the pinion 10 recoiling, owing to the elasticity of the wire,

until it has returned exactly to the position shown in FIGURE 1, so that the ends of the wire can pass out of it. During the return movement no drive takes place and the pinion 10 is stationary, so that at the end of the return movement all the driving parts have resumed their original position. The rack 7, which can be moved to and fro, at the end of its travel can operate switches 23 and 24 respectively, of which the switch 23 controls the reversal of the direction of movement of the rack and the switch 24, jointly with a switch operated by the twisting block, can record that all the operations to be performed by the machine have been carried out and a new wire can be fed.

The return movement of the rack 7 can be utilized for cutting off the ends of the wire, for which purpose on either side of the block 5 are mounted knives 26 adapted to pivot about shafts 25, which knives are operated by a lever 27. The ends of the levers 27 are located on either side of the rack 7, where a pawl 28 forced upwards by a spring 28' is present, which pawl has been fitted in such a way that as the rack travels to the left it is forced down, but as the rack travels to the right it abuts against the lever 27, in consequence of which the knife 26 is operated.

What I claim is: w

l. A mechanism for tying together the end portions of a wire extending around a package to be bound comprising a carriage mounted to be shifted in a direction transversely of the end portions of the wire, said carriage having a recess in its upper portion extending parallel to the end portions of the wires, a wire twisting pinion mounted in the carriage on one side of the recess and having a radial slot therein, cover means mounted on the other side of said recess and partially covering said recess leaving an upwardly opening passage between the cover means and the pinion, means for shifting the carriage from an initial position wherein the end portions of the wire extend through the recess beneath the cover means to a second position wherein the pinion receives the end portions of the wires and returning the carriage to its initial position, and means having a lost motion connection with the carriage and operable during shifting of the carriage from its initial to its second positions to cover the upwardly opening passage to prevent the end portions of the wire from leaving the recess and operable during the return shifting of the carriage to open the passage and allow the wire portions to pass upwardly therethrough.

2. A mechanism according to claim 1 further comprising means for rotating the pinion while the carriage is in its second position.

3. A mechanism according to claim 2. in which the pinion rotating means comprises a movable rack, a first gear wheel meshing with the rack, a second gear wheel meshing with the pinion, and one-way clutch means coupling the gear wheels together.

4. A mechanism according to claim 1 further comprising guide means having wire guiding channels in its upper surface cooperating with the under surface of the cover means, means mounting the guide means for swinging movement away from the cover means, and means urging the guide means into position against said cover means.

5. In a wire binding machine having a wire guide frame the lower portion of which has wire guiding channels and an intermediate gap, a mechanism for tying together the ends of a wire extending around an article to be bound, comprising a carriage, shiftable transversely of the channels in the lower portion of said frame within said gap, said carriage having an opening in its upper surface, cover means covering a portion of said opening at one side thereof, a guide member positioned to move between a position against the underside of the cover means and a position spaced beneath said cover means, said guide member having slots in the upper surface thereof cooperating with the underside of the cover means to form wire-guiding ducts which register with the channels in the lower portion of the guide frame in an initial position of the carriage, a wire-twisting pinion mounted in the carriage positioned on the other side or" said opening and having a radial wire-receiving slot facing said opening, means 0perable to shift the carriage to bring the pinion to embrace the wires, and means to prevent the Wires from passing upwardly through the opening While the carriage is moving from said initial position to a position wherein the Wires are received by the pinion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Walker June 14, 1927 Harvey Oct. 25, 1938 Vining et a1 Mar. 4, 1947 Cranston Aug. 24, 1954 Seltzer Oct. 30, 1956

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