US3154334A - Lacing machine - Google Patents

Description

L. ROSEN LACING MACHINE Oct. 27, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 19, 1962 FIG.

INVENTOR LEO ROSEN A ATTORNEY Oct. 27, 1964 L. ROSEN 3,154,334

LACING MACHINE Filed June 19, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR LE 0 ROSEN ATTORN'EY Oct. 27, 1964 L. ROSEN 3,154,334

LACING MACHINE Filed June 19, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet s FIG. 4b

INVENTOR FiG.5c FIG.5b LEO ROSEN ATTORNEY Oct. 27, 1964 L. ROSEN 3, 5 ,334

LACING MACHINE Filed June 19, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR LEO ROSEN ATTO NEY United States Patent 3,154,334 LACENG lviAC Leo Eosen, 9414 St. Andrews Way, Silver Spring, Md. Filed June 19, 1962, Ser. No. 203,651 7 Claims. (Cl. 2S9l8) This invention is in lacing machines, and more particularly is intended as an apparatus for lacing or securing together into a tight bundle or cable a number of electric wires by means of a continuous cord. This sort of cabling is common in electronic and electrical construction. customarily, it consists of tying a knot about a bundle of wires, extending one end of the cord a desired distance along the bundle, tying a second knot, and so on to approximately the ends of the wires; and ordinarily the procedure is accomplished by hand, and requires considerable dexterity and strength.

While my invention will be described particularly in connection with cabling, as mentioned, its applicability to other arts, as sail making, lawn furniture manufacture of certain kinds, etc., will become apparent.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a machine for lacing or tying together two or more objects.

It is also an object of the invention to provide means for tying together by means of a continuous cord two or more elongated objects into a single elongated package or bundle.

Additional objects of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a sectional view of a novel needle used in my machine.

FIGURES 2a and 2b, 3a and 3b, 4a and 4b, 5a and 5b, and 6a and 6b are side and front views (in pairs) of the principal elements of my lacing machine in successive stages of operation.

FIGURE 7 illustrates one form of knot which may be tied during operation of my machine.

In the description to follow, manual adjustment of the parts and manual operation thereof will be assumed. It is within the spirit of the invention, however, to provide suitable supports for the parts, and to supply power from a desired source, with levers, cams, and the like, to direct and control the necessary motions.

Considering now the drawings in detail, and especially FIGURE 1, it) is a gapped circular needle, hollow substantially throughout its length, except as hereinafter mentioned, the needle being shown in section. Drive rollers 11, 12, 13, and 14, supported in any convenient manner, hold and guide the needle, and, it should be understood, may be furnished with power (no source being shown) to rotate the needle as will be hereinafter explained.

One end of the needle, 16, preferably is pointed, and the shape of the other end, 17, is essentially immaterial.

Interiorly of the needle adjacent end 16 thereof is arranged a bobbin 2%) which serves as a source of supply for the cord or twine 21 which is employed in lacing and tying. lust counterclockwise of bobbin 2%, and arranged to slide within needle it), is a feed device 22 of known type embodying jaws for gripping cord 21 with a prearranged degree of tightness, that is, to provide a predetermined amount of drag; this action will be further explained.

Also within needle 19, extending from device 22 to a terminal closure 23, is a helical spring 26. This spring may be preloaded or not as circumstances indicate. Closure 23 is shown as threaded into the needle, at 27, and is provided with an opening 28 through which cord 21 may move freely.

3,154,334 Patented Oct. 27, 1964 The construction produces an action or mode of operation as follows: with the parts in approximately the relations as shown in FIGURE 1, cord 21 may be pulled from end 17 of needle 19, through orifice 23 in closure 23, and will, at first, pull feed device or clutch 22 along with it, thereby compressing spring 26 between the clutch and closure 23; a point will be reached, however, at which the pressure of spring 26 will counterbalance the drag inherent in clutch 22, and at this point clutch 22 will become stationary, and the cord, if pulled, will be pulled therethrough; at any point, after spring 2-6 has been compressed, release of cord 21 will permit the spring to force clutch 22 back to its initial position, with an amount of cord equal to the motion of device 22 being withdrawn into the neefle.

In FIGURES 2a through 612 may be seen a fragment of a base structure 5% with a hook 51 extending from the top thereof under which extends a bundle of wires 52 in the process of being laced or tied together. Just below the top of the base may be seen two further extending books 53 and 5d, and these are to be understood to be rotatable about their individual longitudinal axes.

Cord 21 may be seen to be extending from a knot 60 into needle it) through closure 23 (first passing beneath hook 51), and should be assumed to be threaded through the needle and attached to bobbin 26) as shown in FIG- URE 1.

If, under the conditions of FIGURES 2a and 2b, the needle is caused to make one clockwise rotation about its virtual axis A, cord 21 will be looped about books or fingers 53 and 54, and the various parts will be found to be in the conditions and relations shown in FIG- URES 3a and 3b.

Following this first rotation, needle it) is moved to the right in its own plane, so that its imaginary axis reaches point B, and its inclination is changed from that shown in FIGURES 2a and 3a to that shown in FIG- URE 4a, and caused to make a second clockwise rotation, passing beneath cord 21, between fingers 53 and 54, to the right of cable 52, and over the cord in the area between the cable and finger 54. Spring 26, inside the needle, has been compressed during the operations described.

When the needle returns to its initial angular position (see FIGURES 6a and 6b), fingers or hooks 53 and 54 are rotated toward each other (see especially FIGURE 6b), cord 21 slips from them, and, under the urging of spring 25, a knot 6b is pulled tight about cable 52, hooks 53 and 54 are returned to their inital positions, needle 16 is shifted back to axis A, and the operator moves the cable to the next desired knot position. Obviously, this last step, aso, may be mechanized.

The lacing or tying operation has been described as a sequence of separate steps, but it is possible for some of the steps to overlap each other, nor is it necessary to stop the needle after its first rotation.

Furthermore, certain variations are possible; for example, additional strength may be provided by repeating the wrapping operation (FIGURES 2 and 3) before proceeding to tie (FIGURES 4a through 6b).

The knot formed by the mechanism operated as described is shown in FIGURE 7. It will be seen to be self-locking in nature, that is, once drawn tight, it will not release if the cord is accidently severed.

The foregoing description is in specific terms, and many modifications will suggest themselves. For the true scope of the invention, therefore, reference should be had to the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described including a substantially circular needle, a cord feeding mechanism carried thereby, means for turning said needle through one rotational path to form a loop of said cord, said further means turning said needle through another rotational path for completing a knot of said cord.

2; Adevice according to claim 1, further characterized by spring means carried by said needle having a normal relatively untensioned condition, tensioned responsive to operation of said cord feeding mechanism and to the rotation of said needle and operative thereafter to cause said cord feeding mechanism to pull tight a completed knot.

3. A device of the character described comprising a substantially circular needle and means for turning the same in a plurality of rotational paths, a cord supply, a spring, means for feeding cord from said supply during rotation of said needle, means for tensioning said spring as said cord is fed, a support, means mounted adjacent said support for holding an article to be wrapped, means mounted adjacent said holding means for retaining a loop of cord during a wrapping operation and subsequently for releasing the same.

4. A device of the character described comprising a substantially circular hollow needle having an initial plane and an initial axis of rotation and including a cord supply, a spring, and a feeding device for holding cord from said supply, for releasing said cord responsive to predetermined tension thereon, and for compressing said spring as cord is pulled from said supply, a support, means mounted adjacent said support for holding an article to be wrapped, other means mounted adjacent said holding means for holding a cord and means for turning said needle through substantially one rotation thereby to wrap cord pulled from said supply in a loop about said other means and the article to be wrapped, said needle being tiltable from its initial plane for shifting its axis of rotation, said turning means turning the same through substantially another rotation to directly wrap the cord over one portion of said loop and under another portion thereof to form a knot, said other means being turnable to release said cord therefrom.

5. A device of the character described comprising a substantially circular needle, a cord supply, means for turning said needle through a first rotational path to cast a loop of cord from said supply about an article to be wrapped, said turning means turning said needle through a second rotational path to feed cord from said supply over one portion of said loop and under another portion thereof to form a knot, and spring means for pulling said knot tight.

6. A device of the character described comprising a substantially circular hollow needle having an initial plane and an initial axis of rotation and including a cord supply, a spring having an initial condition and a feeding device mounted for movement within said needle and operable to hold cord from said supply, to compress said spring as said cord is pulled from said needle, and to release said cord in response to predetermined tension thereon, a support, means for holding an article to be wrapped and tied adjacent said support, two fingers each having a cord holding position and a cord releasing position, means for turning said needle through substantially one revolution to wrap cord pulled from said supply about said fingers and an article to be wrapped, said fingers being in their said cord holding positions, said needle being tiltable from its initial plane and shifting its axis of rotation and said turning means turning the same through substantially a second revolution to feed cord from said supply under the cord stretched between said two fingers during the first revolution of said needle and over the cord stretched between the article and one of sa d fingers during the first revolution of said needle, said cord holder fingers being turnable to release said cord from said fingers.

7. A device of the character described comprising a substantially circular hollow needle having an initial plane and an initial axis of rotation and including a cord supply, a spring and a feeding device mounted for movement within said needle and operable to hold cord from said supply, to compress said spring as said cord is pulled from said supply, and to release said cord in response to predetermined tension thereon, a support, means for holding an article to be wrapped and tied adjacent said support, two fingers for holding said cord, means for turning said needle through substantially one revolution to wrap cord pulled from said supply about said fingers and an article to be wrapped, said needle being tiltable from its initial plane and shifting its axis of rotation and said turning means turning the same through substantially a second revolution to feed cord from said supply under the cord stretched between said two fingers during the ifirst revolution of saidneedle and over the cord stretched between the article and one of said fingers during the first revolution of said needle, said cord holder fingers being turnable to release said cord from said fingers thereby to release tension on said spring to permit the same to pull said cord tight about the article.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 443,639 12/90 Wilkin 28916 1,603,801 10/26 Potter 2424 2,653,771 9/53 Turner 2424 2,699,902 1/55 Wirth 2424 FOREIGN PATENTS 382,384 10/23 Germany.

MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

ALDRICH F. MEDBERY, DONALD W. PARKER, Examiners,

Claims (1)

1. A DEVICE OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED INCLUDING A SUBSTANTIALLY CIRCULAR NEEDLE, A CORD FEEDING MECHANISM CARRIED THEREBY, MEANS FOR TURNING SAID NEEDLE THROUGH ONE ROTATIONAL PATH TO FORM A LOOP OF SAID CORD, SAID FURTHER MEANS TURNING SAID NEEDLE THROUGH ANOTHER ROTATIONAL PATH FOR COMPLETING A KNOT OF SAID CORD.

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