[1]PatenW May 7, 1929. 1 7129241 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ,TOHN Ir. YOUNG AND WILBUR G. FP-INX, OF XIDDLETOWN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOP.S TO THE BORDEN COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF lqEW I-FRSEY. MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND STACX=G SHEET XETAL AND THE LIKE. APPI'@eation Illed August 4,1926. Serial No. 126,990. The invention relates to an improvement in macliines for cutting and stacking sheet, metal and the like, aiad niore particularly to an improvement in macliines for cutting @nd stacking for subsequent treatment the tin plate out of which are formed the body portions of cans and other containcfrs. One object of the invention is to provide a niachine of this type with improved means 10 for feeding to it larze sh@ets of metal which are to be slit or cu@'into blanks of the requisite shape and size. Another object of the invention is to provide a, sheet cutting or slitting machine with means for turning 15 or inverting certain of the cut blanks so that the burrs on the lateral edges of the blanks will all point in the same.direction, thereby facilitatina subsequent operations on the blanks. As these machines have been 'con20 structed heretoforel an operative has been requii,ed to turn over or invert certai of blanks so as to cause the burred latera e@ of all the blanlcs to point in the same direction. A further object of the invention is to 25 provide a, machine of this type with means for receivino, the blanl@s and st.ackin- them in a hop@per f@'oni which they are fedinto the can bo'dy forming machine. Since the cutting maebine operatos to discharge the blanks 3( therefrom so that the burrs on the lateral. edges of the blanks all point in the same direction, the conveying and stackinl), meaiis opera,te to keep the blanks in this saine position relatively to eacli otlier and stack them 35 lip ivith their btirred edgesill I)oiiating in one clirectioii, pi,eferably downw@ii-dly. These objects and other objects incidentdi to their accomplishment are carrled out in the improved ii-i,,tchine for cutting and staelzing slieet metal @O liereinuffer fully described and particularly pointecl otit in the appended claims. In the accompanying di@-,iwings illtisti@ating the pi-eferred form of the invention, FiLy. 1 is ,i top plan of the eiitire machine, slio-@vii@z the iniproved means for feeding the large sheets o@- tin plate or otlier metal to fhe slitting mech,Inism, the etitters for etitting the plate into the body blinks, the n-ieaiis for inverting each secon@l or alternate body blanic, the conveyor B -,qiid the devices for stacking the body biinIKs, F'ig. 2 is tnend elev@ition of the macliine sho@%i,n in Fig. 1, witli certain of the parts re,[i,ioved for.@lc@- is trness of.illitstration; Fig. 3 section on an enlai-ged sc,,tle tal@en @along thp, line 3-3 of Fi-. 1; @r@ig. 4,is an enltrge@i front elevation of one I of the body blank guides; Fig. 5 is a vertical, longitudinal section on an enlarged scale through the hopper in which the body blanks are stacked; Fig. 6 is a front elevation of the improved macliine, 60 looking from the riglit in Fio,. I witli the stacking mechanism removed; T, ig. 7 is a detail of part of the sheet feeding devices; Fig. 8 is a top plan ijf the movable bottom of the sheet carryin(r'trtiel@; Fig. 9 is a longitudinal 65 section through the sheet carrying truck; and Fig. 10 is a, pers.pective view of the upper end of the body bla.Dli: coiiveyor, and of the upper end of the hopper in wliieh the body blanks arestack ed. 70 The improved machine for cutting and stacking blanks, as illustratecl in the drawings, compnses a sheet feeding mechanism generall y indicated at 12, slitting devices 13, sheet or plate advancing means 14, a series of 7.5 rotary cutters 15, the devices 16 for inverting each alternate blank, the conveyors 17 and 18, and the blank stacking mechanism 19. The feeding mechanism 12 operates to supiply the machine with the large sheets of tin plate 80 or the like. The slitting devices 13 divide each sheei into two parts or plates 20 -,ind 21 which are advanced by the means 14 to the cutters 15 by which'the plates are slit into body blanks of the requisite shape and size. 85 These cutters 15 operate as usual in machines of this type and the plates Are slit in such fashion that the burrs on the loncritudinal, literal edges of eaeb alternat@e blank@roject in the same direction, the burrs on the first blank 90 projecti ng upwardly and the burrs on the next blank projecting downwardly, and in likeorderthroughouttheseries. Thedevices 16 operate to invert the first and stibsequent alternate blanks so that the burrs on their 9@5 lateral edges wiil point in the same direction as the burrs on the other blanli:s. The blanks ire can@ied by the conveyors 17 and 18 to the staelting me@hanism 19 where they are piled one on top of another in a hopper frorn wliieh lo( they are fed to the body makin- rnachine. The sheets 23 of tin plate or the lilce to be cut into the body blanks are carried to e,machine on a truck 24 wliieli fori-ns part of- t-lie slieet feeding niechanism. The truck com- 1(5 prises a body part 25 supported on the wlieels 26 adapted to run on the traelts 27 wliieh are iii alinenient witli the upper part of the mechanism ivhich transfers the sheets @-rom the truck into the inachine. ']Che truclr is manipu- I 10
[2]2 1,712,241 lated and guided by means of the handle 28. By !naking the truck wliich carries the load of tin plate to the machine a part of the sheet feeding mechanism the machine is enabled to run for a longer period of time without attendance than it is possible for similar machines provided with sheet feeding mechaiaism as heret6fore constructed. The sheets are transferred from t-lie truck 10 and fed into the machine by means of the transfer meebanisin comprising a plurality of inverted suction cups 30 mounted on the lower ends of the vei,tically arranged tubes 31 connected by the trahsverse pipes 32. A 15 flexible tube 33 connects the transverse pipes 32 with the lower end of a vertical cylinder 34 of a vacuum pump by which a, suction is created in the,cups 30 sufficient to lift ancl hold a sheet of tin plate. In the cylinder 20 34 works a piston 35 to the upper end of whicli is pivotally connected the lower end of a rod 36 the upper end of which is connected with a crank arm 37 mounted on one end of a shaft 38 journaled in the upper 25 ends of the uprights 39. The shaft 38 is driven by a chain 40 one end of which passes over a sprocket wbeel 41 fixed on the shaft 38 and the other end of which passes over a sprocket wheel 42 fixed on the end of a sbaft 30 43 mounted in bearings 44 supported on the .Iongitudinal,pieces 45 forming part of the frame work of this part of the machine. The ,longitudinal pieces 45 are supported by the uprights 46. The shaft 43 is driven by the 35 motor 48. The suction cups 30 are lowered into contact with the uppermost slieet of the pile of sheets 23 on the truck, at which time the vacuum device operates to withdraw the air 40 from the cups so that they will lift the sheet. The cups carrying the sheet are then raised and rnomentarily held stationary so that tile slieet inay be inject@d into the machine. The means foir l.owering and raisino, the suction 45 cups comprises a vertically arr-anged rod 50 connected at its lower eiid with the supporting means for the cups 30 and carrying on.its upper end a -cam roll 51 wbich rides on a cam 52 mounted on the sbaft 38. The rod 50 is r)o guided in its vertical movemen6 by bifurcating its upper end, as at 53, to straddle,the shaft 38. The means for feediner the raised sheet into the machine comprises a flnger 55 extending55 downwardly from a head 56 mounted to slide on a longitiidinally extending rod 57 supported at its e@ds in the upper ends of the upriglits 46. The lower end 58 of the finger 55 is oiTset and extends rearwardly toward the ma60 chine and is provided with a recess whicli lies in the pltine occupied by the sbeet whicb is 'held raised by the cups 30. When the head B6 is suddenly moved rearwardly toward the macbine the recessed lower eiid 58 of the fin05 ger 55 strikes the raised sheet (wbich is then released by the suction cups) and carrie's it. over the guides 59 supported from the machiiie frame and into en,-a(Tement with the feed rolls 60. The means for reciprocating the head 56 on the rod 57 coillprises an arm 62 70 the lower end of which is bif urcated to straddle the head 56 and the upper end of whicli is fixed on a shaft 63 journaled in one pair of the uprights 39. The shaft 63 is oscillated by a cam 64 mounted on the shaft 38 and pro- 75 vided witli a cam patli (not sli6wn) in wliich projects a pin carried by an arm 65 straddlidg at its upper end the shaf t 38 and pivotally connected at its lower end with an arm 66 fixed on the sliaf t 63. The parts for raising the 80 slieet of tin plate aii(i for advtiiein,r it ijito position to be enga-ed by the feed n rolls 60 are, constructed and operate substantially as the corresponding parts in Patent 1,171,011, dated February 8, 1916. 85 The improvements in this sheo-t feeding mechanism forming part of the present invention comprise means for raisiiig the pile of sheets f rom the truck so as to hold tlio upper eild of the pile substantially on the 90 same level until all the sbeets have I)cen fed into the macliine. For this purpose the truck 24 is provided with a movable bottom 68. Extending laterally from the. bottom 68'are ears 69 by which the plate is guided in the 1)5 vertical slots 70 formed in the side walls 71 of the truck. The means for lifting the bottom 68 of the truck cornprises two elevating mcinbers 73 each of whicli is arranged parallelly with its correspondiii(y side wall of the track 100 and is provided witli-two inwardly projecting fingers 74 wliieh extend under the ears 69 of the truck bottom. The elevating inembers 73 are raised and lowered by the jack screws 75 journaled at their lower ends in the 105 base pieces 76, and at their upper ends in the bearings 77 forming part of the fraii'le work of the slieet feedin- meelladism. On the iipper ends of the screws 75 are fixed the iiiiter ears 78 which mesli witli the miter gears 79 110 @xed on a sliaft 80 journaled in arms extending from the brackets 77. On the sli,,Ift 80 is a ratchet wlieel 81 adapted to be en(Yaged by a pawl 82 carried by a vei-tically ,irran-ed rod 83 the upper end of which is foriiied as a 11 strap and embraces an eccentric 84 inoiinted on the shaft 38. The eccentric 84: is arranged to work in tiini2d relation witli the cam 52 and the crank 37. Eacli Ictiiition of the pawl 82 raises the pile of sliec@ts 23 the 120 tliiekness of one slicet. Wlien the bottom 68 of the truck has been raised to present tlie, last slieet resting tlicreon to the clips 30, it niay be loivered onto the triiek again by ii-ieans of a crank 85 mounted on the project- 125 in- end of the sl-laft So. When a fresh load of slieets 23 of tin plateis brou(ylit to the iiiacliine the triiek 24 is 1-1 nioved along the rails 27 until tlic, openilig,'4 TO in the sides 71 of the truck are in alinciiient 130
[3]with the fingers, 74 of the elevating. members. The operative will then turn the 6rank 85 until the fingers 74 are n-ioved iipwardly into engagement witli the under surf@aces of the ears 69 of the truck bottom 68. When the feedinly mechanism is started in operition the fr@me carrying the suction ctips 30 is lowered to brin them into contact with the uppermost,sileget on-the pile. Beforle the cups 10 rise again the vacuuin device operates to create a suction in the cups so that as the cups rise they carry with them the topmost'@licet. Thereupon the finger 55 is actiiated to hick or sliove the sbect into position to be engaged 15 by the feed i,olls 60, the vacuum in the cups being broken as the finaer 55 strikes the sheet. Wlien all the slieets of tin plate halve been.delivered iiito the machine the operative turiis the crank 85 to lower the fingers 74 tb return 20 the truck bottoni to norin@l position, The sheets of tin plate delivered to the rolls 60 are fed by them to the rotary cutters 87 by which they are cut into the two plates 20 and 21 ax;d their latepal edges trimmed off. The 25 upper members of the.cutters 87 are mounted on the shaft 43 and the lower members are located on a shaft directly below the sliaft 43. On one e-nd of the sha 'it 43 is a gear 88 which drives through a gear (not shown) -the 90 ge@r 89 mounted on one end of the shaft carrying the upper member of the rolls 60 and also rives ifirougli a gear (not shown) the gear 90 mounted on the sh,,tft which carries the upper member of the pair of rolls 91 by 35 wliieh the divided sheet is delivered into the sheet advancing means 14. As the two part.3 or plates 20 and 21 of the sheet are delivered into the sheet advancing means 14 a member 92 angular in cross-sectiori sepai,ates the two 10 parts of the sheet so as to perniit them to be adv,tneed separately by the member 93 of the adv,,tneing meelianism the construction and inode of operation of which is fully described in said patent. It is sufficient for the present 45 description to understaiid that the plates ai,e advanced alonlr the runway constituted by tlio framewoi- (renerally indicated at 14 - tn (Fig. 1) uiitil they reach the feed rolls 94 by 'whien thpy are fed to the slitting cutters 15. 50 The etitters 15, is described in said patent, o . perate to slit or cut eacli plate into a nuniber of body blanks, in the present instaiiee, four. The cutters are iiiounted on shafts wbieli are driven by, the cliain 95 actuated from anv 55 convenient soui@6e of power. On one end of the sliaft 96 carryincr the upper members of the cutters is mount7ed a gear which serves., thro,Ligh the gears 97 ,ind cliains 98 to drive the rolls 94. and 99. The rolls 99 serve to withdi-aw the can bltinks frorr@ the ctitters 15 ,tnd deliver then-i to the blank inverting d evices. The body blanks iiito which each part or section of the sheet of, tin plate is out by the 05 cutters 15 are delivered by the rolls 99 onto the tbree iii3i)orts 100, 101 ,Ind 102, extending bey6nd the cutters and in line witli the patli of travel of the blinlis through the etitters. The first support 100 is in Iiiie with tl)e first pai@ of cutters 104, the second supp6rt 7() 101 is in line witli the tliird pail- of cutters 105 and the third supl)ort 102 is in Iiiie with the fifth pair of cutters 106. From this ari-angement i . t will b I e undei I -stoo(I that only one lateral edue of each body blank is siipported, 75 the otlier lateral edge being unsupported. By reference to Fig. 3 it will be seen tlitlt the right hand lateral edge of the fii,st body blank 108 rests on the support 100, that the left band lateral edge of the second bocly bl',Illl@ 109 o rests on the middle stipport lot, that the riglit hand.ed(- Ye of the tliii-d body bl,,tnk 110 rests on the @niddle support 101 adjaceiit to tlie, left hand edo-e of -tlie body blank 109, and, that the left han@d od(re of the fourth body blank 85 111 r6sts oii the third support 102. It will be seen further that the left and right hand lateral edges of blanks 108 and 109, alid of blanks 110 and 111, respectively, are unsupported. The supports 100, 101, @,ind 102 serve 9( to prevent the forward ends of the blanks from descending until the rear ends thereof have been delivered from the' rolls 99. It will be understood that th'e blanks are discharged or shot from @he rolls 99 with con- 95 siderable velocity, so that they are momentai-ily held up or suppol-ted on the supports in the relative position in which tlley pass throuoth the cutters. When the force w-ith @vhichk'the rolls 99 deliver the blanks oiito the 100 supports is. exhausted, t.hen the blanks fall by gravity through the ' openings bet-%v@en the supports. The devices of the present invention, as will be presently desci-ibed, operate to invert blanks 108 and 110 so that the biirrs 105 on their lateral ed(yes ivill poiiit'in, the -same direction as the builrs oii the lateral edges of blanks 109 and 111. In this connection it@ will be clearly seezi, by refel-ence to Fig. 3, that the burrs 112 oil the lat,@l-al edges of 110 blanks 108 and 110 extend upwardly and that the burrs 113 on the lateral cdo-es of the t, blanks 109 and 111 extend dowiiwardly wl)eii the blanks are' delivered from the cutters. The body blank stipports are secured @at 115 their ends to. th@ , er inside c(lo-es of the two trailsverse guiTC)epwalls or. rails 115 and 116 supported on the upper ends of the uprights 117 rising fi-om the floor. The upper ed'ge of the wall or rail 116 is h'igh enough to 120 act as a stop to prevent the blanks f roill passing beyond the wall 11 6. Extendina iriwardly from the lower edaes of tile guide walls 115 and 116 are shel@es or ledges 118 and 119 for supporting the upper sections of 125 the chains 120 and 121 of the conveyor 17. One e-nd of the conveyor chains pass over the sprocket wheels 122 mounted on the sliaft 123 journaled in brackets 124 extending fi-om the guide walls and the otlier end of t@ie coii. 130
[4]4 1,712,241 veyor cliains pass over sproelcet wheels 126 mounted on the shaft 127 journaled in brackets 128 extendin(y from the guide walls. The shaft 127 is driven through the miter gear 5-@ 129 by the n-iiter gear 130 mounted on one end of the shaft 96 carrying the upper mciiibers of the cutters 15. . The upper'surfaces of the upper sections of the conveyor chains 120 and 121 are spaced 10 fron-i the upper surfaces of the body blank supports less than the width of a body blank, so that when the blanks 108 and 110 liave been ftilly delivered onto the supports and their unsupported left hand ed(res fall by 1 5 g@avity toward and onto the conveyor cliains their riglit hand edges (nonv their . upper edges) will. be prevented by the supports 100 and 101 fr6m fallina in a clockwise direction, viewing Fig. 3. Consequently the lower 20 ed(res of the blanks 108 and 110 havin(y been zn zn en,aged and carried forward by the conveyor cliains, the now tipl)er edges of the blanks will fall in a counter-clockwise direction. Thus the blanks 108 and 110 are inverted or 25 turned over so that the burrs on their lateral edges I)oint in the same direction as the burrs on the lateral edges of the blanks 109 and ill. The body blanks 109 ancl 111 are caused to ,10 descend onto the conveyor chains in the same relative position in wliieh they tre deli@ered fi-om tlle cutters. For this purl)ose there 4re provided -L@nder the sul)ports 101 and 102 tNVo spaced downwardly and forwardly extending blank guides or chutes 132 pr ojecting inwardl,@ froi-ia the side walls 115 and 116. The guide@ 132 extend in the direction of tr,ftvel of the conveyor chains. Each guide is curve(I sli@lifl@ -,ind is provided on its inner 4o edae wth a'@aised flange-like part 133 to tl el' iida e friction and tliereby facilitate the travel of tli . c blanlcs down the guides and onto ,tlie conv,eyor chains. The lower end 134 of each tei-iiiinates sliort of the vertical 4,i planot'of tlle 16ft hand ed&ye of the supports 100 and 101 a distance gufficient to permit the left liand lateral ed@es of the blanks 108 and 110 to fall onto the conveyor chains. Wlicii the body blanks have been fully deliv50 ered onto their supports by the rolls 99, the unsupported rig7it hand edges of the blanks 109 aiid lil fall by @ravity.onto the guides 132, the left hand e ges being temporarily lielcl by the supports 101 and 102. Under .55 the aefion of gravity the blanks 109 and 111continue to fall, sliding down the guides 132 until tlieir ri-ht hand edge's are engaged by the conv@yor - chains by which the blanks are pulled..foi@ward off the lower ends of the cio (Yiiides'. Thus the blanks 109 and 111 are delivered onto the conveyor chains in the same relative position in which they are delivered from the cutters. The body blanks with the burrs on their 65 :lateral edges all pointing.in the same direc-' tion are stacked in the bopper 136 of the blank stacking mechanism 19. The liopper 136 is a vertically arranged receptacle the open upper end of which is on a Iii(Tiier level than the upper sections of the cliaiiis of the 7o conveyor 17. Th.e body blanks tre (lelivered into the stacliin(r iiieclianism 19 by the obliquely aranged7conveyor 18, the diseliarge end of whicii is on a Iiiglier level than tlle ppper end of the hopper 136 and the receiv- 73 ing end of wliieh is located under tlle discharge end of the conveyor 17. The ol)li(Iiiely arranged conveyor 18 coii-iprises the cliains 137 the upper ends of whicli piss over tlle sprockets 138 iiiotinted on tlic@ sliaft l')9 joiir- 50 naled in the bracl@ets 140 stipported f roiii the Liprights 141, and the lower cii(Is of wliieli pass over the sprockets 142 fixed oii the sliaft 14@ journaled in the brackets 144 stil)l)orted f rom the upriglits 145. The upper sections 85 of the chaiiis 137 rest on the rails 147 supported froiii the upriglits 141 and 145 ,ind the lateral walls or gui(les 148 ai-C I)rovided to prevent the displaceinent of the body blanks from the conveyor chains. In order 00 that -the blanks iiiay not slip backward during their clevation up to the hol)per the conveyor chains 137.are provided with the Iiigs 149. The. conveyor 18 is driven by a cliain 151 the lower end of wliieh passes over a 95 sprocket 152 fixed on the oliter end of the shaft 123 and the upper end of ivliieli passes ov@er a sprocket fixed on the sliaft 139. As the body blanks slide down off the diseliarge end of the conveyor chains 120 and 121 they 100 pass onto the lower or receiving end of the conveyor 18 and the lugs 149 serve to carry them, to the upper end of the conveyor 18, whence they are discharged into the opell u I er en(I of the hopper 136. 105 PTIO assure tl-ie proper delivery of the body blanks fr6m the discharge end of the, conveyor 18 into the upper end of the liopper 136 we provide the disks 154 loctted be-twepn the discharge, end of the conveyor 18 and the hopper 110 136 and rnoiinted an a sliaft 155 journaled in the ends of the brackets 140. The shaft 155 is driven at a, higher rate of speed tliair the sliaf t 139 by means of a, chain 156 whicli passes over a sprocket 157 fixed on the shaf t 139 and over 11 a sprocket.158 fixed on the shaft 155. The sprocket 158 is siiialler than the sprocket 157 from which it is driven. The action of the rotating disks 154 is to tlirow the body blatiks forward in'to the open upper end of the hop- 120 per 136 on an oblique plane. In order thftt the blanks delivered into.tlie upper end of the hopper 136 may descend, therein in siieh fa-shion as to pile iip iii an evenly and pi,opc@i-ly arran(yed st,,ick, the 125 blanks are cau--ht and temporarily ll('I(l at a point near the iipper end of the liopl)er lilitil they come to rest in a liorizontal position. They are then released and permitted to f,.tll in their horizontal position Oilto the s@Lack of 13o
