US2922162A - Machine for applying fastening devices to fabric articles - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 26, 1960 M. col-IN 2,922,162

MACHINE FCR- AEPLYING EASTENING DEVICES To FABRIC ARTICLES FiledJuIy 24. '1957 4 sheets-sheet 1 /NVENTOP MAURICE COH/V ATTORNEYS Jan. 26, 1960 M. 'coHN 2,922,162l

MACHINE FCR APPLYING FASIENING DEVICES To FABRIC ARTICLES V f ff M LM T k/ 4%* /NvENTo/a MAUR/c5 coH/v j er wm A r roam/EVS Jan'. 26, 1960 M. coHN 2,922,162

' MACHINE FOR APPLYING FASTENING DEvIcEs To FABRIC ARTICLES FiId July 24, 1957- 4 sheets-sheet s F/c. 7 f

v y l /N VENTO/:V

Filed` July 24., '1957 Jan. 26, 1960 M. coHN 2,922,162

MACHINE FOR APPLYING FASTENING DEVICES TO FABRIC ARTICLES v 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEYS United States atet MACHINE FOR APPLYIN G FASTENING DEVICES T FABRIC ARTICLES Maurice Cohn, South Coventry, Conn.

Application July 24, 1957, Serial No. 673,801

7 Claims. (Cl. 1 3) This invention relates to a machine for securing fastening devices to fabric articles and, more specically, to a machine which is particularly adapted to apply hook and eye type fastening devices to garments such as mens trousers. This application discloses a machine of the type shown in my co-pending application Serial No. 607,904, iiled September 4, 1956, on Machine for Applylying Fastening Devices to Fabric Articles, now Patent No. 2,852,777, dated September 23, 1958.

It is the general object of the invention to provide a machine of the aforementioned type which is capable of substantially foolproof automatic operation and which has provision for the feeding of the fastening devices so that the operator need handle only the garment or other article to which the fastening devices are to be applied, whereby the machine can be operated by persons of little or no mechanical skill or training.

The drawings show a preferred embodiment of the invention and such embodiment will be described, but it will be understood that various changes may be made from the construction disclosed, and that the drawings and description are not to be construed as defining or limiting the scope of the invention, the claims forming a part of this specification being relied upon for that purpose.

Of the drawings,

Fig. l is a front elevational view of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a garment fastening hook and its backing plate;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a garment fastening eye and its backing plate;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a section of tape which adhesively supports garment fastening hooks for feeding the same into the machine of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a section of tape which adhesively supports a plurality of backing plates for the hooks of Fig. 4 and which feeds the backing plates into the machine of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a right-hand end view of the machine with parts thereof shown in vertical section as indicated by the line 6-6 of Fig. l;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectional view through the machine taken as indicated by theline 7--7 of Fig. l;

Fig. 8 is a left-hand end View of the punch section of the machine;

Fig. 9 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of the punch and anvil employed in the machine;

Fig. 10 is a detail horizontal cross-sectional view taken as indicated by the line 10-10 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged elevational view of the mechanism for driving the feed tape reels oif the ram;

Fig. lla is a sectional view of the aforesaid drive mechanism taken as indicated by the line 11a- 11a of Fig. 6;

Fig. 12 is a vertical sectional view through the machine taken as indicated by the line 12-12 of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 13 is an enlarged detail view of the structure for operating the ram air cylinder.

As mentioned hereinabove, the machine provided in accordance with this invention is particularly adapted to apply hook and eye type fastening devices to garments or other fabric articles. rl"his type of fastening device has many applications, one of the most common applications being on mens trousers to secure the waist band thereof. In Figs. 2 and 3, there are shown the elements making up the fastening device, these comprising a hook 10, itsbacking plate 12, aneye 14 and itsbacking plate 16. The hook and eye elements are similar in that each has a pair of prongs 18, 18 and the backing plate elements are similar in that each has a pair of prong-receivingapertures 20, 20. In applying the hook 10, for eX- ample, to one end of the waist band of a pair of trousers, the Ivvaist band or at least one fabric layer thereof is placed between the hook and itsbacking plate 12 and then the hook and backing plate are engaged so that the prongs 18, 18 on the hook will extend through the fabric layer and the apertures 2t), 20 in the backing plate and be clinched toward each other on the backing plate. Theeye 14 is similarly secured to th-e other end of the waist band by projecting its prongs 1S, 18 through the fabric andapertures 20, 20 of itsbacking plate 16 so that the ends of the prongs may be clinched over the backing plate toward each other.

Various types of machines have heretofore been offered to the trade for applying the garment fastening hooks and eyes, but I am not aware that any of the known machines have been wholly successful and all have certain disadvantages. For example, machines have been provided for clinching or stapling the hooks and eyes to the fabric articles which operate satisfactorily, but which require time consuming manual feed. Other machines which are designed to be more fully automatic than the machine just mentioned provide complicated feeding mechanism or hoppers which have not been found to be reliable in operation and these machines have lbeen subject to frequent breakdown and time consuming periods of inoperation for adjustment and/ or repair.

In accordance with the present invention a machine is provided which will set a hook or eye in fabric by clinching the same on its backing plate, and it is a feature of this machine to provide reliable and foolproof means for automatically feeding the hooks and eyes and the backing plates and for properly positioning them for the setting operation of the machine. The machine includes driven reciprocable means adapted to receive a moving feed tape which adhesively supports a plurality of the hook or eye elements and the reciprocable means has a stop which will engage and position the said elements successively, and then the reciprocable means moves them into clinching engagement with the backing plates which are also supplied on a moving feed tape. It is a further and more specific feature of the machine to move the tape or tapes by means of motion transmitting means driven by the reciprocable means.

Figs. 4 and 5 show sections of the feed tapes, the tape 22 being shown as supporting a plurality of garment fastening hooks 10, 10 and the tape 24 being shown as supporting a plurality ofbacking plates 12, 12 for the said hooks. The hooks and their backing plates are shown supported on the tapes 22 and 24 for example only, and it should be understood that the same or similar tapes could be employed for supporting a plurality ofeyes 14, 14 and theirbacking plates 16, 16. While the machine to be described is shown as being employed to secure the garment fastening hooks 10, 10, the same or a similar machine can be employed for applying the garment fastening eyes, and it should also be understood that a machine of the character shown may be employed with feed tapes to effect engagement of elements other than the hook and eye and backingv plate elements shown.

spool) with the hook prongs projecting radially inwardly and with the non-adhesive side of the tape exposed on the roll. Thebacking plates 12, 12 are similarly secured to the adhesive side of the tape 24 and then the tape 24 is rolled (preferably on a spool) with the adhesive Vside of the tape and the backing plate facing outwardly. VWhen'the tapes 22 and 24 are rolled as described, they are then ready to be placed uponreel structures 26 and 28, respectively, which form a part of the machine shown'in Fig. 1` and whichA will now be described. Y i

The machine is preferably arranged upon a table such as the table 30 so, that it can be operated from a seated position. The machine frame includes a base 32 which is secured to the top of the table 30, the table 30 being open at the front to accommodate elementsof the machine as will be described. Apress frame 34 is rigidly secured to thertable 30 and it has a forwardly and upwardly projecting portion supporting anair cylinder 35 for a verticallymovable ram 36 which is guided in aportion 37 of theframe 34. A hook-setting punch indicated generally at 38 is secured to the bottom end of theram 36 for movement relative to ananvil 40 which is mounted on the base 32 below the ram and punch.

The operation of the press will be more fully described hereinafter.

A relativelylarge plate 44 is suitably secured to the press frame in a substantially vertical position and faces forwardly. Theplate 44 is the principal support plate of the frame structure and it is upon this plate that the pay-off reel 26 is mounted for the hook tape roll and thesaid plate also supports a take-up reel 46 for the hook tape 22. The frame structure for the machine also includes anangle iron bar 48 which is mounted on the base 32 and which extends across the opening in the table 30. The support for the pay-off reel 28 which receives the rolled backing plate tape 24 is suspended from thebar 48 as is the journal for a take-up reel 50 for the tape 24, thereels 28 and 50 being7 disposed below thebar 48 in the front opening of the ltable 30.

InV accordance with the present invention, the supply spool of tape 22 supporting the hooks 10, 10 is placed on thereel 26 and the tape 22 is then threaded through the machine, as will be described, onto a spool supported on the take-up reel 46. The supply spool of tape 24`supportingrthe backing plates 172, 12 is placed on the reel' 28 and the tape 24 is threaded through the machine, as will be described, onto a suitable spool supported on the `take-up reel 50. In operation of the machine, vertical movement of theram 36 is utilized to rotate the respective take-up reels 46 and 50 and the said take-up reels are utilized to draw the tapesV 22 and 24, respectively, through the machine. Y

The tape 22 is unwound fromthe pay-olf reel 26 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed from the front and passes over a driven pulley 52 in aclockwise direction and then Ypasses in a similar direction over a pulley 5.4 with the adhesive side of the tape and the hooks 10, facing outwardly with respect to the said pulleys. The tape then extends over arstroller 58 in a counterclockwise direction with the adhesive side Vof theV tape and vthe hooks 10, l() facing inwardly of the roller, and the tape 1s similarly passed over asecond roller 60. Then the tape extends under the hook-settingpunch 38 with the hooks facing downwardly and the stripped tape 22 passes through thepunch 38 and over a roller 62. "ljhe tape passes over the roller 62 in a clockwise direction w1th the adhesive side of the tape facing outwardly and then passes over asmall pulley 64 in a clockwiser direction and under a pivotally supportedpulley 66 in a counterclockwise direction. And, finally, the stripped tape extends upwardly and is wound upon the take-up or drivereel 46 in a counterclockwise direction with the adhesive side of the tape facing inwardly in the roll. Each of the aforementioned elements engaging and supporting the hook tape 22 will now be described.

As shown in Figs. l and 6, the pay-olf reel 26 is rotatably mounted on a shaft orpin 6 8 which is non-rotatably supported in ablock 70 to project forwardly from theplate 44 at the upper right-hand portion thereof. The spool or roll of tape is held on thereel 26 by means of a plurality of grippingribs 72, 72 provided on the periphery of the reel in suchV a manner that the spool can be placed on the -reel'from the front thereof. The forwardly projecting end of the pin or shaft 68 has attened sides 74, 74 and is threaded. The flattened sides are adapted to receive and non-rotatably support a pressure plate76 whichris' placed on the shaft so as to engage thefront face 77 of the reel. -The said front face has a friction pad, adhesively secured thereto and aspring 78 surrounds the extending end of the shaft and is pressed against the front face of the pressure plate 76V by means of anut 80 which is threaded on the projecting front end of the pin. Obviously, by turning thenut 80 to advance it toward the plate, the spring force thereon is increased to increase the frictional engagement between theplate 76 and thefriction face 77 of thereel 26 whereby to determine the force which must be applied to the tape 22 to rotate the reel on the shaft 68 when unwinding or pulling the tape from the reel.

v Some of the unwinding or feeding force is applied to the tape 22 by means of the driven pulley 52. The pulley 52 is secured to the projecting front end of ashaft 82 which is supported in ablock 83 and journalled in theframe plate 44. Agear 85 is secured on the projectingrear end of the said shaft and is engaged and driven by the drive structure as will be described hereinafter. The pulley 52 is provided with a friction surface, such as rubber, whereby to pull the tape from thereel 26.

Thepulley 54 which next receives the tape 22 is nondriven, being rotatably supported on apin 84. The pin 84- is supported in and projects forwardly from a second andsmaller`plate 86 which is disposed forwardly of and parallel to themain frame plate 44, theplate 86 being supported by theplate 44 onsuitable posts 88, 88 and on ascrew 90. Y

Theroller 58 is merely a freely rotatable guide roller supported forwardly of theplate 86 on a suitable pin. Thesecond guide roller 60 is generally similar to theroller 58 but it is rotatably supported on a plate 92 which is secured to theram 36 for vertical movement with theram and the hook-settingpunch 38. It will be observed that theguide roller 60 is mounted on the plate 92 above and to the right of the bottom end of the hook-settingpunch 38 and it will also be observed thatrthe roller 6) is slightly above theroller 58 on theplate 86. Accordingly, in movement of theram 36 and hook-setting punch from the position shown in Fig. l downwardly toward engagement with theanvil 40, no addedtension is applied to the tape 22 by reason of such movement.

As will be 'more fullydescribed, each time the punch is moved toward engagement with the anvil, a hook is connected with a backing plate, and each time the punch is elevated, the connected hook is stripped from the tape and the tape is advanced to position the next hook in the punch. Thus, the tape 22 is advancedthrough the feed means and under the end of thepunch 38 in stepby-step fashion, the Vtape serving to feed or advance the hooks in succession to the punch and the tape also vserves to hold the hooks in position on the punch for clinching engagement with the backing plates. The stripped tape passes clockwise around three rollerseach designated 94 in Fig. 9, supported in the punch and the tape then passes through a suitable opening 96 in the punch to the guide roller 62. The roller 62 is rotatably mounted on a pin which is supported in the plate 92 extends forwardly therefrom. Y

Having passed in a clockwise direction over the roller 62, the tape passes clockwise over the smallnon-driven pulley 64 on theplate 86 and then passes counterclockwise under the pivotally supportedpulley 66. In passing thepulley 66 counterclockwise, the adhesive side of the tape 22 engages the periphery of that pulley. Thepulley 66 is preferably made of Teilen or the like so that it will not retain adhesive material from the tape passing thereover while still providing sufficient adhesive contact for braking purposes as will be described. Thepulley 66 is rotatably mounted on apin 100 which is supported in the end of anarm 102, the other end of the arm being fixed to apin 104 which is rotatably supported in theplate 86. Asecond arm 106 is secured to thepin 104 rearwardly of theplate 86 and is biased in a counterclockwise direction by aspring 108. Thus, thepulley 66 is biased generally downwardly by thespring 108, the spring force on the pulley being opposed by the tension in the tape 22 as it passes from thepulley 64 to thepulley 66 and as it passes from thepulley 66 to the take-up reel 46. The spring force can be adjusted and selected by changing the rotated position of a spring `support arm 110 on one of the support pins 88 for theplate 86. That is, by rotating thearm 110 and its support 112 on thepin 88 and by fixing the support 112 to thepin 88 in selected rotated position, the tension on thespring 108 is adjusted and selected. When thepulley 66 is drawn upwardly by tension on the tape 22 in opposition to the force of thespring 102, a knurled rim or rims of thepulley 66 will engage apin 113 which projects from theplate 86 whereby to stop rotation of the said pulley. Thus, thepulley 66 when elevated to engagement with thepin 113 provides a brake preventing or retarding movement of the tape 22 under the tension applied thereto. Asecond pin 115 engages thearm 102 to limit spring biased downward movement of thepulley 66.

The take-up reel 46 is rotatably mounted on ashaft 114 which is driven as will be described in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. l. Theshaft 114 is supported in ablock 116 which is mounted on the front face of theframe plate 44. The projecting front end f theshaft 114 is provided with flat faces 118, 118 to secure apressure plate 120. 'I'he pressure plate 120 rotates with the shaft and bears against thefront face 121 of thereel 46, the sai-d front face having a friction pad adhesively secured thereto. A spring 122 surrounds the projecting end of theshaft 114 and anut 124 is threaded on the shaft to adjust the force of the spring on thepressure plate 120 whereby to adjust the force of the frictional engagement between thepressure plate 120 and the take-up reel 46. Obviously, the take-up reel 46 will be rotated with theshaft 114 and thepressure plate 120 due to the frictional engagement between the said pressure plate and the reel. This frictional engagement and drive for the take-up reel may be characterized as a slip clutch connection. That is, the take-up reel 46 will rotate with theshaft 114 provided that the force on the take-up reel opposing rotation thereof does not overcome the frictional force of thepressure plate 120.

From the foregoing description, it will be readily understood that the construction of the take-up reel 46 is quite similar to the construction of the pay-off reel 26. The pay-off reel is rotatably mounted on a non-rotating shaft, but tension must be applied to the tape 22 to withdraw it from the pay-off reel because thereel 26 is frictionally engaged with its associated pressure plate. The tape can be withdrawn only when suiiicient tension is applied thereto to cause thereel 26 to slip relative to the pressure plate. Accordingly, the pay-off reel 26 can b e said 6 to incorporate a slip clutch construction similar to that in the take-up reel 46.

As the take-upshaft 114 is rotated counterclockwise in step-by-step fashion, as will be described, and as the driven pulley 52 applies frictional force to the tape, the said tape will be pulled from thereel 26 in step-by-step fashion. In each step of advance of the tape 22, a hook 10 engages a stop in the hook-settingpunch 38 and is forced against the stop by the pulling force on the tape. Obviously, if the pulling force is too great, the hooks will be lstripped from the tape prematurely. While the pulling force can be controlled by adjustment of the friction clutches incorporated in thereels 26 and 46, such control is not so precise as to provide an absolute safeguard against the possibility of prematurely stripping the hooks from the tape. Such a safeguard is provided by the braking action of thepulley 66 when it is drawn upwarrdly into engagement with thepin 113.

More specically, the tension on thepulley spring 108 is adjusted to permit thepulley 66 to be drawn upwardly into engagement with thepin 113 when the pulling force applied by the take-up reel 46 on the tape 22 approaches that force which would prematurely strip the hooks from the tape at the hook-settingpunch 38. For example, if it is determined that the hooks can be stripped from the adhesive side of the tape by a pulling force of four pounds applied to the tape, the tension of thespring 108 is adjusted so that thepulley 66 will engage and brake against thepin 113 when the pulling force applied by the take-up reel 46 reaches three and one-half pounds. When the brakingpulley 66 engages thepin 113 it can no longer rotate, and the excess pulling force is applied between the take-up reel 46 and the braking pulley. This excess force will cause the take-up reel 46 to slip relative to its pressure plate and the excess force is not applied to the hook against the stop in thehooksetting punch 38.

As previously mentioned, the drive mechanism for rotating the take-upreels 46 and 50 so as to advance the tapes is operatively associated with thepress ram 36. The means for translating the reciprocable movement of the ram into rotation of the take-up reels comprises a drive device indicated generally by thereference 126 in Figs. l, ll and 11a. This structure includes a shaft 128 which is rotatably supported in theframe plate 44 and extends forwardly and rearwardly therefrom. Adrive gear 130 is secured to the rearwardly extending portion of the shaft 128 and engages a driven gear 132 (Fig. 12) on the take-upreel shaft 114. Thus, the take-up reel is rotated with rotation of the shaft 128.

A bearing sleeve 134 (Figs. 6 and lla) is press-fitted in theplate 44 to project forwardly therefrom and to rotatably support the shaft 128. Asecond sleeve 136 is secured to the shaft 128 for rotation therewith and abuts against the forwardly facing end of the first mentioned sleeve 134. Adrive disk 138 surrounds thesleeve 136 and is adapted to drive the same in ratchet-like fashion. That is, thedrive disk 138 has drive means which will engage and turn thesleeve 136 and thus the shaft 128 clockwise (Figs. l and 11) when the disk is rotated clockwise, but counterclockwise rotation of the disk will not cause rotation of the sleeve and shaft. The means effecting the driving engagement between the drive disk and the sleeve and shaft comprises a plurality ofballs 140, 140 which are respectively disposed in openings 142, 142 in thedisk 138 and which are directed generally tangentially to the periphery of thesleeve 136. The inner ends of the openings `or cavities 142, 142 open upon the periphery of thesleeve 136 and theballs 140, 140 are spring biased toward engagement with the sleeve. When thedisk 138 is rotated clockwise, theballs 140, 140 are wedged at the bottoms of the cavities against the surface of thesleeve 136 whereby the said sleeve and the shaft 128 are rotated with the disk. When the disk is rotated in a counterclockwise direction, the balls move up the cavities against the spring force and there is no wedging action against thesleeve and, therefore, thesleeve 136 and the shaft 128 are not rotated.

Asbest shown in Fig. 1l, thedrive disk 138 is biased toward rotation in the counterclockwise direction by aspring 144, the said spring being secured to thedrive disk 138 at one end and has its other end attached to apin 146 which extends between themain frame plate 44 and the forwardlydisposed plate 86. Thedrive disk 138 is moved in a clockwise direction to drive the shaft 128 when theram 36 is moved upwardly. That is, acam roller 148 carried at one end of a well crank 149 which in turn is supported on the ram plate 92 engages anarm 150 extending radially outwardly from thedrive disk 138 to effect such clockwise movement as theram 36 is elevated. Astop pin 155 projecting rearwardly of the plateV 92 engages the bell crank 149 to prevent clockwise pivoting movement thereof as the ram is elevated so that theroller 148 can engage thearm 150 firmly and move it and thedrive disk 138 clockwise. When theram 36 is lowered, thedrive disk 138 is rotated counterclockwise by thespring 144.

As previously mentioned, clockwise rotation of the drive disk effects rotation of the shaft 128 and thus rotation of the drive gear 131). Accordingly, the drivengear 132 and the take-upreel shaft 114 are rotated counterclockwise as viewed in Fig. 1. Since thegear 85 is engaged with the drivengear 132, it and the driven pulley 52 will be rotated clockwise. Thus, the tape 22 is pulled from the pay-off reel 26 by the counterclockwise rotation of the take-up reel 46 and the clockwise rotation of the driven pulley 52, this occurring as theram 36 moves upwardly. When thedrive disk 138 is rotated counterclockwise by thespring 144, thedrive gear 130 and the drivengears 132 and 85 are not rotated. The amount of spring biased counterclockwise rotation of thedrive disk 138 is limited by engagement of apin 152 carried thereby with apin 154 which isfixed to a stop collar. The stop collar 156 (Figs. 6 and 11a) is secured to the non-rotating sleeve 134 in adjusted rotated position thereon. In order to assure against inadvertent rotation of thedrive gear 130 counterclockwise and clockwise and counterclockwise rotation of the drivengears 132 and 85, respectively, as the drive disk is spring rotated counterclockwise, a pair ofstop pawls 157, 157 (Fig. 12) are engaged with thedrive gear 130 and drivengear 132 to prevent rotation thereof in directions mentioned. The pawl arrangement is believed to be necessary to avoid the possibility of reverse movement of the take-up reel 46 and the driven pulley 52 which might permit the feed tape 22 to slacken.

The take-up reel 50 for the backing plate tape 24.is also rotated in step-by-step fashion by thedrive structure 126. More specifically, adrive sprocket 166 secured to the extending rear end of the drive shaft 128 engages achain 168 to rotate a drivensprocket 170 which is secured to the extending rear end of theshaft 172 upon which the take-up reel 50 is mounted. Obviously, theshaft 172 is rotated in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. l. Theshaft 172 is rotatably supported in ajournal 174 which is suspended from thesuspension bar 48 in the front opening of the table 30 Thereel 50 is secured to the projecting front end of theshaft 172 similarly to the manner in which the take-up reel 46 is secured to its shaft. That is, apressure plate 176 is carried by theshaft 172 and biased into engagement with afriction face 178 on thereel 50, the biasing force being supplied by aspring 180 surrounding theshaft 172 and seated upon anut 182 in threaded engagement with the said shaft. Here again, thereel 50 incorporates a slip clutch construction.

The pay-olf reel for the backing plate tape 24'is also similar to the construction of the previously described reels and incorporates a slip clutch in its construction. The elements in the construction of the pay-off reel 28 include ashaft 184 which is non-rotatably supported in a 8 block secured to'and depending fromVthe suspension bar 48, apressure plate 186, a friction .pad facing 187, aspring 188 and aspring compressing nut 190.

The tension on the tape 24 is adjusted by adjusting the frictional engagement ofthe clutch structure incorporated in thereels 28 and 50, with the clutch in the takeup reel 5t) being adjusted to provide sufficient grip for pulling the tape from the pay-off reel 28. The tape 24 is pulled from thereel 28 to pass over aroller 192 which is rotatably supported on thesuspension bar 48. The tape then passes in a counterclockwise direction around a roller l194 (Fig. 9) which is rotatably supported within theanvil 40 at the free end of a pivotedbifurcated arm 195. Theroller 194 is pivotally supported so that it can be raised to facilitate the threading of the tape 24 through the anvil. Theroller support arm 195 normally rests upon a stop pin 196 which fixes the vertical location of theroller 194. After passing counterclockwise around theanvil roller 194, the tape extends to the take-up reel 50 and is wound clockwise thereon with the adhesive side of the tape facing radially inwardly thereof.

In Fig. 9, the details ofIthe punch 38 and theanvil 40 are shown in enlarged scale so that it can be understood how the hooks and backing plates are positioned for interconnection. As shown, the tape 22 carrying the hooks 10,10 passes beneath the central portion of thepunch 38 under two of therollers 94, 94 which are rotatably supported between downwardly projecting side walls 200, 200. The tape 22 then extends around thethird roller 94 in the slot 96 and on through the slot toward the guide roller 62. Aninclined shoulder 202 on each side wall 200 is arranged as a stop to receive an upper edge of each hook 10 while the portion of each hook from which the prongs depend is engaged with' 40. Ahook backing plate 12 is nested in theanvil 40 so that itsapertures 20, 20 are in registry with the downwardly projecting prongs 18, 18 on the hook. A plate is properly positioned within the anvil when its forward edge engages a stop shoulder 212 in the anvil. That is, the tape 24 in being advanced counterclockwise around theroller 194 will have itsbacking plates 12, 12 stripped therefrom. Abacking plate 12 is stripped from the tape 24 within theanvil 40 by the side edges of the backing plate being engaged by and riding onshoulders 214, 214 defined within the anvil. It is preferred thatl the trailing edge portion of a backing plate will be secured to the tape 24 when it is positioned in the anvil against the stop 212. However, fthe plate can be completely stripped from the tape so that the next adjacent backing plate will thrust the foremost backing plate into engagement at its forward edge with the stop shoulder 212.

A spring plate 216 is secured to the bottom surface of a working plate (230) which is disposed over the top of the anvil, as will be described, and the tape 24 and thebacking plates 12, 12 move thereunder. The said spring has a centrally disposedportion 218 over theroller 194 which presses downwardly on Ithe rear edge portion of theplate 12 engaging the stop 212 and on the front edge portion of the adjacent plate. This prevents the said two plates from overlapping in the anvil. The Vactual fastening together of the hook and backing plate elements is accomplished when the punch drives the hookV prongs 18, 18 through theapertures 20, 20 in the backing plate and into die inserts 220, 220 (Fig. 7) in the anvil, the said die inserts causing the prongs to be bent Itoward each other to clinch against the bottom of the backing plate.

When the punch and ram start to move upwardly, theinclined shoulders 202, 202 on thelpunch side Walls 260, 200 lift the hook 10 and thel fabric and attached backing plate 12 a slight amount, at least sufficient for the backing plate to be lifted clear of the anvil, before Vthe hook slides olf the said shoulders. A hold-down plate 236 (to be described in more detail) which is normally disposed in spaced relationship above the working'plate as shown in Fig. 9, is moved into engagement with the fabric on the working plate to prevent upward movement thereof more than the slightv amount mentioned. Thus, the hold-down plate retains the fabric and attached hook and backing plate to prevent upward` movement thereof with the ram and punch. In so doing, the clinched hook 10 is stripped from thertape 22 which moves upwardly with the punch and ram.

The remaining elements of the machine of this invention will now be described in connection with a general description of the machine operation. For this purpose, it can be assumed that a hook tape roll has been placed on the pay-off reel 26V and a backing plate tape roll has been placed on the pay-off reel 28, and it can also be assumed that the hook feed tape 22 and the backing plate feed tape 24 have been threaded through the machine as described above to place the leading end portions of said tapes on the take-upreels 46 and 50, respectively. Assuming further that theram 36 is elevated and that the first hook 10 on the tape 22 is properly positioned in thepunch 38 and thefirst backingplate 12 is properly positioned in theanvil 40, the machine is ready to be operated.

The first step in operation is to place the fabric which is to receive the hook on the workingplate 230 which is positioned between the punch 33 andanvil 40. The said plate has Va suitable Opening to accommodate movement of the punchA toward the anvil, and the fabric is placed on the plate so that the portion thereof which is to receive the hook Iis disposed over the plate opening. Theplate 230 ispivotally supported on avertical post 232 which is mounted at the left-hand end of thesuspension bar 48 so rthat the plate can be moved in a substantially horizontal plane away from the punch and anvil area when the tapes are being inserted in the machine. When theplate 230 is positioned for operation as shown in Figs. l, 6 and 8, the right-hand end portion of the plate is seated upon arest 234.

It is not necessary for the operator to hold the fabric in place onthe'plate 230 when the machine is operated. The fabric is held in place bythe pivotable generally rectangular hold-down plate 236. The said hold-down plate has a rearwardly projectingextension 238 which is pivotally connected to abracket 240 secured as shown in Fig. 6 to thepress frame 34. The hold-down plate 236 also has a suitable opening to "accommodate movement of thepunch 38 toward theanvil 40. A gage 242 is adjustably secured to the left-hand edge of theholddown plate 236 so that fabric articles can be located on theplate 230 with reference to the said gage whereby to assure that the fabric is positioned so as to receive the hook and backing plate at the desired location. The hold-down plate 236 is pivoted downwardly and upwardly by operation of the tripping mechanism for the ram air cylinder and also by operation of the ram. More specifically, a generallyU-shaped member 244 is secured to the top of the hold-down plate 236 and has twolegs 246 and 248 which extend upwardly. Theleg 246 has a sliding connection indicated at 250 (Fig. 8) with the forwardly projecting end portion of an arm 252 which is pivotally connected at its rear end with thepress frame 34. When the trip mechanism to be described is actuated to operate vthe press, the arm 252 is pivoted downwardly, this permitting the hold-down plate 236 to pivot downwardly due to the slidingconnection 250 with the bracket leg V246. However, before the tripping mechanism is actuated and when the pivoted arm 252V is in its upper posispaanse tion as shown in the drawings, the hold-down plate 236 is held upwardly or away from the working plate 230.Y

Theother bracket leg 248 is spring tempered and carries acam following roller 254 at its upper end 'which roller is engaged by acam 256 carried on abracket 258 which is secured tothe ram 36. As will best be understood with reference to Fig. 8, when the trip mechanism Vis actuated to lower the pivoted arrn 252 and to lower the holddown plate.236, thecam 256 engages thefollower 254 on thebracket leg 248 to force the hold-down plate 236 downwardly with considerable force as the ram and hook carryingpunch 38 are moved downwardly toward theanvil 40. It will be observed that the cam surface is recessed at 260 to relieve some of the hold-down force at the time the hook is being engaged and clinched with the backing plate. Since some of the hold-down force is relieved, the fabric will not be held under tension at the instant the hook is clinched to the backing plate, and thus none of the ram force is opposed by the fabric tension and all of the ram force is used in the clinching operation. It will also be observed that the contour of the cam surface is such that the vhold-down force-is re-applied fully immediately after Vthe hook and backing plate are connected and When the ram and punch are being elevtated. The re-applied hold-down force holds the fabric against theplate 236 so as to assist in stripping the applied hook lltl from the adhesive feed tape 22 as the punch moves upwardly.

The tripping mechanism which has been mentioned includes a treadle 262 which is pivotally supported on suitable frame mechanism below the table 30 for the convenience of the operator. The said treadle is pivoted between its front and rear ends and a connectingrod 264 is pivotally connected to the rear end of the treadle so that it can be moved upwardly and downwardly by the treadle. The connectingrod 264 extends upwardly through asuitable opening 266 in the table 30 and the upper end of said connecting rod is pivotally connected with the pivotally supported arm 252. Therefore, by pivoting theV treadle 262, the operator is able to pivot the -arm `252 and to effect pivoting movement. of theholddown plate 236 as described. Y

In addition to being connected with theU-shaped bracket 244 on the hold-down plate 236, the pivoted arm 252 is connected vat its forwardly projecting end to apivot link 268 which is also connected with the bottom end of one of la pair of verticallymovable trip rods 272, 272. The trip rods are suitably connected together for vertical movement throughguide brackets 274, 274 which are mounted on the front face of themain frame plate 44. Thetrip rods 272 extend in generally parallel relationship with thepress ram 36 and theram air cylinder 35 and the upper ends of said trip rods lare connected with valve Vstructure to control the air flow to theair cylinder 35 as will now be described.

y The air valve operating mechanism includes a horizontally disposed forwardly -and rearwardly extendingshaft 276 supported between its ends in abushing 278 which comprises a bracket extending laterally from theair cylinder 35. The rear end of theshaft 276 is additionally supported on a center-pointed screw 280 which is supported in and advanced through a bracket 282 mounted on the rear face of theframe plate 44. Theshaft 276 extends between the two trip rods V272 adjacent and above thelframe plate 44 and alever plate 284 is connected to the front end of theshaft 276 for rotation therewith. A pivotedlink 286 connects the moving end of thelever plate 284 with a plunger 288 forming a part of a conventional valve. The details of the valve structure are not necessary to an understanding of the present invention, but it should be explained that when the plunger is pressed inwardly or toward theair cylinder 35 as will be caused by countercloclcwise rotation of thelever plate 284 andshaft 276, compressed air from aninlet conduit 290 forces'the air piston and ram 36 downwardly,`the bottom of thecylinder 35 being vented. When the plunger 288 is moved outwardly, the compressed air is'admittedto the bottom of theair cylinder 35 while the top thereof is vented to move the air piston and ram upwardly. v

Rotation of theshaft 276 andlever plate 284 to elfect the aforedescribed valve operation is caused by vertical movementfof thetrip rods 272, 272, a cam and cam follower connection being provided between the trip rods and the shaft. More specifically, abracket 292 is secured to said trip rods adjacent their upper ends and the bracket carries a roller 294 which engages in the fork of a forkedcam 296. Thecam 296 is keyed or pinned to theshaft 276 and the cam roller 294 is disposed in laterally spaced relationship with the shaft so that vertical movement of the trip rods will rotate the cam and thus rotate or pivot the shaft. The arrangement is such that when thetrip rods 272, 272 are thrust downwardly by operation of the treadle, thecam 296 is pivoted counterclockwise and thus the shaft andlever plate 284 pivot counterclockwise to thrust the valve plunger 288 inwardly whereby the air cylinder thrusts the press ram and punch downwardly. When the trip rods are elevated by treadle operation, thecam 296, theshaft 276 and thelever plate 284 are pivoted clockwise to Withdraw the plunger 288 whereby to elevate the ram and punch.

Thus, in operation of the machine, the operator has only to place the fabric on the working-plate 230 and thento operate the treadle. In the initial part of the treadle movement, the hold-down plate 236 drops against the fabric until the ram and punch engage the hook with the backing plate. Then the operator releases the treadle or pivots it in the opposite direction to elevate the ram while tne hold-down plate secures the fabric to strip the clinched hook from the adhesive feed tape 22 in the punch. As the ram and punch continue to move upwardly, the hold-down plate is released so that the operator can remove the fabric from the working plate.

As previously described in considerable detail, the feed tapes 22 and 24 are advanced through thepunch 38 and `theanvil 40 respectively in step-by-step fashion, each step of advance occurring as the ram is elevated after each clinching operation. It is an important feature of the present machine that it is designed to utilize the feed tape as means for positioning the hooks and backing plates in the punch and anvil for engagement by operation of the ram.- In other words, the feed tapes have force applied thereto to assure proper positioning of the. hook and of the backing plate. The tension in the feed tape 22 to the vertically reciprocable punch is not materially changed by such reciprocation due to the location of theguide roller 60 with respect to theguide roller 58. That is, the vertical movement of the ram will not increase the tape tension because in the upper position of the ram theroller 60 is disposed slightly above theroller 58 and in the lower position of the ram'the roller'60 is disposed slightly below theroller 58 and because the roller 62 is disposed slightly over thepulley 64 in the upper position of the ram, and slightly under thepulley 64 in the lower position of the ram. f

It is a further important feature of the machine construction that means are provided to assure that sucient tension or pulling force is applied to the feed tape through the down stroke of the ram to position properly the hook and the backing plate in the punch and the anvil, respectively. The said means comprises acam plate 300 which is secured as by a bracket 302 to thetrip rods 272, 272 and which has aninclined face 304 engaged by acam following roller 306 on the bell crank 149. Theroller 306 is on the end of the bell crank 149 opposite thecam roller 148 which engages theradial arm 150 on thedrive disk 138 in the ratchet-like drive device 126. Thus, as the trip rods are' thrust downwardly by the treadle, thecam plate 300 causes the bellcrank 149 to pivot counterclockwise thereby to turn'the drivedisk backing plate 12 will be rmlypositioned against thestops 202 and 212 in the punch and anvil, respectively. Thus, if during the normal feeding step occurring durmg elevation of the ram the leading hook and leading backing plate are not engaged with the stops, the advance of the feed tape during the downstroke of the ram actuating trip rods will assure proper positioning thereof.

The invention claimed is:

l. A machine for applying a fastening element to fabric or the like in an operation which involves movement of the element from a spaced position into clinching engagement in the fabric, the said machine comprising an anvil over which the fabric is to befplaced, a ram reciprocable toward and away from the anvil, power driving means for reciprocating the ram, reciprocable trip means for actuating the said power driving means, a punch connected with the ram for reciprocation therewith and adapted to receive a feed tape supporting a plurality of the elements, the said punch being provided with stop means engageable with one such element supported by the tape to retain the same for movement with the punch and ram from the spaced position into engagement with the anvil whereby to be clinched in the fabric, and drive means for advancing the feed tape through thc punch for each reciprocation thereof to engage the said elements with the stop means in sequence, Vthe said drive means comprising a take-up reel associated with the feed tape, a one-way drive connected with the take-up reel, drive actuating means carried by said ram and engaging said one-Way drive to advance the same during movement of the ram in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation, and cam means carried by the trip means to engage and operate said drive actuating means during movement of the trip means in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation.

'2. A machine for securing fastening devices to fabric, the devices being of the type comprising a hook element and an eye-element both of which have clinching prongs adapted to extend through the fabric-for engagement with associated backing plates, the machine being adapted to receive a rst feed tape securing a plurality of the elements and a second feed tape securing a plurality of the backing plates, the said machine comprising a frame structure, -an anvil over which the fabric is to be placed Vand adapted to receive the second feed tape, a ram reciprocable toward and away from the anvil, power driving means for reciprocating the ram, reciprocable trip means for actuating the said power driving means, a punch connected with the ram and adapted to receive the first feed tape and to retain the elements successively for movement with the "ram and punch into engagement with the anvil, and drive means for advancing the said feed Vtapes through the punch and anvil, respectively, the said drive means comprising rst and second take-up reels respectively connected with the first and second feed tapes,

a one-way drive connected with the take-up reels, drive actuating means carried by said ram and engaging said one-way drive to advance the same during reciprocation of the'ram, and cam means carried by the trip means to engage and operate said drive actuating means during movement of the trip means in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation.

3. A machine for applying a fastening element to Vfabric and comprising a reciprocable ram having means ,to press the hold-down plate against the fabric while theram is moved toward thefabric, to release the pres- 13 sure of the hold-down plate on the fabric while the element engages the fabric, and to again press the holddown plate against the fabric while the ram is moved away from the fabric.

4. A machine for applying a fastening element to fabric and comprising a reciprocable ram having means for supporting the element for movement from a spaced position into engagement with the fabric, a working plate over which the fabric is to be placed to receive the element, a movable hold-down plate to engage the fabric and press it against the working plate, the said hold-down plate being normally spaced from the working plate, means operable with each reciprocation of the ram to move the hold-down plate into engagement with the fabric on the working plate before the ram moves toward the fabric, and cam means interengaging the ram and holddown plate and adapted to press the hold-down plate against the fabric while the ram is moved toward the fabric, to release the pressure of the hold-down plate on the fabric while the element engages the fabric, and to again press the hold-down plate against the fabric while the ram is moved away from the fabric.

5. A machine for applying a fastening element to fabric and comprising an anvil, a reciprocable ram having means for supporting the element for movement from a spaced position into engagement with the anvil, a working plate adjacent the anvil and over which the fabric is to be placed to receive the element as it is engaged with the anvil, power driving means for reciprocating the ram, trip means for actuating the power driving means, a pivoted hold-down plate to engage the fabric and press it against the working plate, the said hold-down plate being normally spaced from the working plate, connecting means between the hold-down plate and the trip means adapted to move the hold-down plate to engage the fabric when the trip means is operated to move the ram toward the fabric, and cam means interengaging the ram and hold-down plate and adapted to press the holddown plate against the fabric while the ram is moved toward the fabric, to release the pressure of the holddown plate on the fabric while the element engages the anvil, and to again press the hold-down plate against the fabric while the ram is moved away from the fabric.

6. A machine for applying a fastening element to fabric or the like in an operation which involves movement of the element from a spaced position into clinching engagement in the fabric, the said machine comprising an anvil over which the fabric is to be placed, a ram reciprocable toward and away from the anvil, power driving means for reciprocating the ram, reciprocable trip means for actuating said power driving means, a punch connected with the ram for reciprocation therewith and being adapted to clinch a fastening element in the fabric by engaging the same with the anvil, a feed tape securing a plurality of backing plates to advance them successively to the anvil for clinching engagement with a succession of fastening elements, and drive means for advancing the said feed tape through the anvil, the said drive means comprising a take-up reel ccnnected with the feed tape, a one-way drive connected with the take-up reel, drive actuating means carried by said ram and engaging said one-way drive to advance the same during movement of the ram in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation, and cam means carried by the trip means to engage and operate said drive actuating means during movement of the trip means in one direction in its cycle of reciprocanon.

7. A machine for applying a fastening element to fabric or the like in an operation which involves movement of the element into clinching engagement in the fabric, the said machine comprising an anvil over which the fabric is to be placed, a ram reciprocable toward and away from the anvil, power driving means for reciprocating the ram, reciprocable trip means for actuating the said power driving means, a punch connected with the ram for reciprocation therewith to engage a fastening element and to clinch it into engagement with the fabric at the anvil, a feed tape supporting a plurality of the elements for supply to the punch, and drive means for advancing the feed tape With each reciprocation of the ram whereby to clinch a succession of the elements by successive reciprocation of the ram, the said drive means comprising a take-up reel associated with the feed tape, a one-way drive connected with the take-up reel, drive actuating means carried by said ram and engaging said one-way drive to advance the same during movement of the ram in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation, and means carried by the trip means to engage and operate said drive actuating means during movement of the trip means in one direction in its cycle of reciprocation.

References Cited in the ile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,602,507 Adams July 8, 1952 2,718,004 Steinmetz Sept. 20, 1955 2,852,777 Cohn Sept. 23, 1958

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