US1262820A - Machine for inserting fastenings. - Google Patents

Description

APPLICATION FILED SEPT- 5,19l3.

Patented Apr. 16, 1918.

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F. L. MACKENZIE.

MACHINE FOR INSERTING FASTENINGS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT- 5. 19l3.

1,262,820. Patented Apr.16,1918.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

6Z6 ll/1111.531

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F. L. MACKENZE- MACHINEIFOR INSERTING FASTENINGS.

APPLJCATION FILED sans. 1913.

1,262,820. Patented Apr. 16, 1918.

4 SHE'ETS- -SHEET 4.

- //VVE/\ 72751 UNITED STATES PATENT onrron FRED L. MACKENZIE, OF BEVERLY, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO UNITED SI-IOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY,

.A. CORPORATION OF N JERSEY.

MACHINE FOR INSERTING FASTENINGS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED L. MACKENZIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Beverly, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Machines for Inserting Fastenings, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to machines for inserting fastenings and particularly to a machine for inserting fastenings which comprises mechanism for automatically controlling the selection of the fastenings to be inserted whereby the fastenings may be suited to some characteristic or characteristics of the work. Controlling mechanism of this type is usually adapted to provide or to select from a plurality of sources of supply a fastening of a length suited to the thickness of the work to be operated upon, and an object of the invention is to provide improved mechanism for this purpose which will insure a change from one length of fastening to another when the thickness of the work to be operated upon is so much greater or so much less than that previously operated upon that the length of fastening previously employed will not be suitable for insertion.

The invention is herein shown as embodied in a machine for inserting previously formed fastenings, of the type known to the trade as loose nailing machine, but it will be obvious that many of the novel features of the invention are applicable to other types of fastening inserting machines and that, therefore, the scope of the terms of the claims should be limited merely by the state of the prior art. In machines of the type herein shown a plurality of kinds of previously formed fastenings are maintained in a plurality of sources of supply and are conducted into proximity to the point at which the fastening inserting mechanism operates by a plurality of fastening guides which, for convenience in changing from one kind of fastening to another, may be moved together.

Ithas previously been attempted to provide mechanism for automatically controlling the relative movement of the fastening Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Apr, 16, 1918,

Application filed September 5, 1913.

Serial No. 788,194.

guides and that part of the fastening inserting mechanism which receives the fastenings to be inserted from the selected one of said guides, the earliest successful attempt to solve this problem being shown in United States Letters Patent to Arthur Bates and Henry P. Gamble, No. 922,447, granted May 25, 1909. In the said Letters Patent to Bates and Gamble is shown the first machine in which means hereinafter sometimes denominated an actuator governed by one of two relatively movable work calipering members acts to bring the proper fastening guide into fastening delivering position, but has no effect upon said guide except for a variation in the thickness of the Work of a predetermined amount; The patent to Bates and Gamble therefore discloses the first machine in which a plurality of race ways. are automatically shifted to bring the proper raceway into nail delivering position which is so constructed that there isno shifting movement of the raceways except at the desired time, that is, when the variation in the thickness of the work is of the desired amount. 1

Owing to the relative weights and therefore the relative inertia of the parts of the raceway shifting mechanism of the Bates and Gamble construction it was found that this construction was not either sensitive enough or quick enough to effect the automatic shifting of the raceways in a machine which operated at comparatively high speed.

There was therefore developed an improvement upon the Bates and Gamble construction, embodying the same broad principles of operation, which improvement is shown in United States Letters Patent to George Goddu, No. 1,030,775, dated June 25, 1912. It has been found that, although the construction shown in the said Letters Patent to Goddu answers better the requirements come the defects in the Goddu construction,

is shown in United States Letters Patent to Fred L. MacKenzie, No. 1,016,947, granted February 13, 1912, in. which his attempted to overcome the defects of the jarring of the machine by initiating the sh fting movement I! a short distance upon each side of the criti cal thickness for which the shifting is to be 'efiected and to have themeans which serves to transmit the variations in the relative positions of the two work thickness calipering members so confined between yieldingly held members that thejarring of the machine will have little effect upon its position. This construction, like the preceding constructions, was successful for the main purposes for which it was designed, but it was found in operation that, owing to the equal ity oithe pressures of the two yielding members upon the two sides of the member which transmitted to the shifting mechanism the variations registered by the calipering mechanism in the thickness of the work, a neutral position was developed in which there was a tendency of tl'ie'shifting mechanism either not to operate at all when the variations in thickness required a change in the length of the nail or to shift the raceways back and forth so that sometimes a long nail was delivered and sometimes a short nail where the thickness of the work required but the one kind of nail. A further reason for the fail ure of the mechanisms disclosed in the above cited Letters Patent to operate with the required nicety was the fact that it was somewhat difficult to determine the proper adjustment of these mechanisms for the kind of work to be operated upon.

Some of the objects of the present invention are to overcome the dithculties experienced in the use or" the mechanisms disclosed in the Letters Patent above identified and to provide mechanism which is so sensitive to variations in the thickness of the work that a nail of the required length will always be supplied, which is so positive in its operation that there is no tendency for it either to remain in neutral position or to he influenced by the vibrations of the machine, and which can be so easily and accurately adjusted that the operator may set the mechanism to furnish the short nail so long as the short nail can be properly clenched, may determine definitely the amount of clench or the amount of the nail to be clenched, and whenever a nail of a different length is provided in the raceway can quickly and definitely change the adjustment of the machine to adapt it for this length of nail.

Other objects and important i'eatures of the invention will be apparent when the following description and claims are considered in connection with the accompanying drawings.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying this invention, a part of the standard or" the machine being shown as broken away to disclose the structure of the connections between the work support and variousoperating' mechanisms;

inserting mechanism,

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the head of the machine, the raceway being shown as broken away to disclose the parts behind it;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the raceway shifting mechanism showing the parts in the positions which they assume when the raceway is set to deliver short nails;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the parts in the position which they assume when the raceway is set to deliver long nails;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the raceway shifting mechanism and or" some of the connections by which this mechanism is operated and controlled;

Fig. 6 is a perspective detail, partly in section, illustrating a portion of the connections between the horn and the pair of does by which the direction of shift of the race way is controlled;

Fig. 7 is a section through the pawl tipper on the line 7-7, Fig. 4E;

Fig. 8 is a detail view showing the connection between the raceway and its shifting mechanism Fig. 9 is a view showing the double pawl and its associated parts in disassembled relation;'and

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of pawl viewed from the rear.

The machine in which the invention is shown as embodied is of the type more fully described and illustrated in United States Letters Patent to George Goddu, No. 1,030,775, granted June 25, 1912; and the mechanism for shifting the double raceway from shortnail position to long nail position and vice versa. is an improvement both upon the raceway shifting mechanism shown in said Letters Patent to Goddu and upon a later form of raceway shitting mechanism shown in United States Letters Patent to Fred L. Maclienzie, No. 1,016,94i7, granted February 13, 1912.

In the machine herein illustrated, as in the machines of the said Letters Patent hereinabove referred to, a raceway having a plurality of nail guiding grooves, or a plurality of connected raceways, is so controlled by variations in thickness of the work presented to the machine in position to receive a nail that, when the work exceeds a thickness for which a short nail is suitable, the raceway or raceways will be moved into position to cause a long nail to be delivered to the and vice versa. To this end the machine herein illustrated, like the machines disclosed in the said Letters Patent, comprises means for gaging the thickness of the work which, for convenience, is the horn or other work support and the abutment against which the horn presses thework, and means by which variations in the position of the movable member of said gagin means will so sheet the angular position' or a double pawl arranged t e-reaperthe double ate with a slide connected to the raceway or raceways that, when the thickness of the work requires a short nail, the pawl will be tipped in one direction and will engage and force said slide and raceway into position to deliver short nails and when the thickness of the work requires a long nail the pawl will be tipped in another direction to cause the raceway to be moved into position to deliver a long nail.

For convenience in comparing the machine herein disclosed with those shown in the prior patents hereinabove referred to, similar reference numerals will be attached to similar parts where these parts have not been much changed or are not associated with parts which have undergone much change. The pawl carrying slide 280, upon which is mounted the actuator for shifting the raceway in the form of a double pawl 502, is reciprocated to bring said pawl into and out of engagement with one or the other of two shoulders 302, 306, upon a horizontal slide 304, by connections with a bell crank lever 182, comprising a rack 294 mounted upon said slide 280, which rack is engaged by a segment rack 296 upon an arm 298 of said bell crank 182. Another arm of said bell crank 182 carries a cam roll which enters the cam groove 184 in the cam wheel 48 upon the main shaft 20 of the machine. The connections between the slide 304 and the double raceway 264 comprise, as shown in the Letters Patent hereinbefore referred to, oppositely threaded rods 308, 310, connected by an adjusting nut 312, the rod 308 being pivotally connected to the lug 314 upon the side of the double raceway. The rod 310 receives in an opening at one end an eccentric pin carried on the lower end of the rock shaft 318 mounted in a bearing on the bracket 272, said rock shaft having formed upon its upper end a pinion 320 with which meshes a segment rack 322 (see Figs. 2 and 8) formed upon the end of the rock arm 324 which is clamped upon the upper end of the rock shaft 326 also mounted in a bearing in the bracket 27 2 and carrying at its lower end a segment gear 328 which meshes with rack teeth 330 formed upon the slide 304, the rack teeth 330 being formed at an inclination to the slide bar 304 and the bearings for the rock shafts 326, 318 being correspondingly inclined, this inclination serving'to prevent binding when the inclined raceway is moved. The shifting movement of the slide 304 is sufficient to turn the eccentric pin upon the shaft 318 around from one dead center to the other with respect to the rod 310 so that the raceways are'positively shifted and positively held in the positions into which they have been shifted.

The parts thus far described are substantially the s ame as the corresponding parts shown in the patent to Fred L. MacKenzie hereinabove referred to, with the exception that the slide 280 is now provided with an overhanging yoke member 600 which has formed in its split lower'end a bearingfor the pivot pin 602 of the double pawl 502, said pin being clamped in said yoke by a set screw 604. As in the machine shown in the said patent to MacKenzie, the double pawl 502 has attached to, or forming part of it, a semi-circular piece 534 which provides upon opposite sides of the axis of said pawl shoulders 535 which coiiperate with dogs 536 and 538 upon the pawl tipper 606, forming part of the actuator controlling means, which differs somewhat in its construction and in its connections to the work thickness gaging means from the corresponding part shown in the said Letters Patent to MacKenzie. The operation of said pawl tipper, so far as the tipping of the pawl is concerned, is substantially identical with the operation of the corresponding part of said Letters Patent to MacKenzie. The pawl tipper 606 herein shown comprises two arms, 608, 610,'which carry respectively the dogs 536, 538, and a circular body portion provided with a hub 612 mounted to turn freely upon a shaft 614. The body portion of the tipper 606 is cut away below the hub 612 to form a segmental opening 616 (Figs. 4, 6 and 7) through which projects a stop 618 carried by an arm 620 (Fig. 3) provided with a hub 621 (Fig. 7) sleeved upon the hub 612, said arm being given a tendency to turn in'a counter-clockwise direction (see Figs. 3 and 4) by a spring 622 coiled about the hub 621 and hearing at one end against a pin 624 upon said arm 620, and at its other end being attached to a clamp collar 626 clamped upon the hub 612. and itself having a hub 62'? which abuts against the hub 621 (Fig. 7). The movement of the arm 620 relative to the pawl tipper 606 is limited in the direction in which the spring tends to turn said arm by a stop 628 (Fig. 3) adjustable about the periphery of the circular body portion of said tipper, said stophaving a tongue 630 (Fig. 6) confined in a circular groove 631 upon the rear face of said pawl tipper. A spring pressed pin 632 carried bysaid stop 628 is adapted to enter any one of a series of holes 634 upon the periphery of the body portion of the pawl tipper 606 to lock said stop in adjusted position.

The pawl tipper is so arranged that it is normally in short nail position, being yieldingly maintained in this position by a spring 636 (Fig. 5) which is connected at one end to a screw or stud 638 upon the bracket 272 by which the raceway shifting mechanism is carried, and at its other end is bent down so that it enters a socket 640 in the outer face ofa bell crank lever 642 fulcrumed upon a stud 644 and having at its forward end a short rack 616 which'engages teeth 648 in the periphery of the Circular body portion of the pawl tipper 606. Between the stud 64 1 and the pawl tipper 606 the arm of the bell crank 6&2 is provided with an opening which receives a stud 650 serving as a stop for the vertical movements of said arm, the opening being larger in diameter than the stud 650, whereby movement of the arm sufficient to rock or permit the rocking of the pawl tipper between its two pawl tipping positions can take place. The pawl tipper may be moved into its long nail position either by manual means herein to be described, or automatically in accordance with the demands of the work. The means for effecting the movement of the pawl tipper automatically in accordance with changes in the thickness of the work which require a long nail, are operated through connections with the born 22 or other work support; said connections comprising a two-part lever 4:64, 468 (Fig. 1), adapted to be put into operative position by a treadle operated cam or eccentric 476, as more fully described in United States Letters Patent to George Goddu, No. 1,011,941, granted December 19, 1911, the toggle 168, 170, normally maintained in straightened position whereby the pressure of a spring 164 is transmitted to the born 22 to clamp the work against the work abutment 266, and a rod 160 connected at its lower end to a pawl carrying slide 162 and at its upper end to one end of the lever 652 (Fig. 6) fulcrumed upon the short shaft 654 in the machine frame, said lever having a second arm 656 extending outside the frame and provided at its end with a segment rack 658 (see Fig. 6). The segment rack 658 meshes with a small segment rack or part of a pinion 660 forming part of multiplying connections carried upon a shaft 662 journaled in the machine frame, the other part of said connections comprising a segment rack 661 formed upon the arc of a circle of a larger radius than the arc of curvature of the rack or pinion 660. The rack 66% meshes with a pinion 666 carried upon the inner end of the rock shaft 614 whereby said shaft is turned as the thickness of the work gaged between the horn 22 andthe work abutment 266 varies. Formed integral with the shaft 614- is an enlarged portion 668 carrying a tooth or stop 670 adapted to engage the stop 618 upon the arm 620.

It will be noted that the connections from the horn 22 to the pawl tipper operating means are of a nature such that the pawl tipper operating means does not partake of the movement of the born to permit the work to be fed but. isv moved only upon changein the thicknessof the work engaged by the horn. a

already indicated, theconnectionbe tween the pawl tipper or actuator controlling means and the horn is normally broken between the stop 670 on the shaft 614 and the stop 618 upon the arm 620. The broken connection between the pawl tipper and the horn permits the pawl tipper to be normally maintained in fixed position by the spring 686 regardless of changes in the thickness of the work being operated upon so long as the work does not exceed a predetermined thickness. As illustrated, the spring 636 tends to maintain the pawl tipper in its short nail position. When the work increases in thickness, the rock shaft 614 is turned through the connections with the horn hereinabove described in the direction to move the stop 670 (Fig. 6) into engagement with the stop 618 and thus make connection between the pawl tipper and the born. The stop 618 is free to move away from the stop 628 upon the circular body portion of the pawl tipper 606 but the hub 621 of the arm 620, which carries the stop 618, is connected to the hub 612 of'the pawl tipper 606 by the spring 622 which is put under increased tension as the stop 670 tends to move the stop 618 away from the step 628. The pawl tipper 606 is thus caused to follow the move- I ment of the stop 618 until it comes into its long nail position, or until its movement is limited by the engagement of one side of the opening in the arm 64-2 with the stud 650. If the increase in thickness of the stockis greater than that required to effect this movement of the pawl tipper, the arm 620 will move out of engagement with the stop 628, the increased tension of the spring tending to hold the pawl tipper steady in its long nail position.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the raceway shifting mechanism is so constructed that the pawl tipper which controls the actuator or pawl is normally stationary and is moved only when work of or exceeding a predetermined thickness is passed between the calipering members. By reason of occupying a definite fixed position until work of substantially such thickness as to require a change to nails of a different length is brought within the operation of the calipering members, the pawl tipper will always be engaged in a uniform manner by the stop 670 when a change is called for and operated positively and with certainty. By the operation of spring 686 on the pawl tipper, the raceway shifting mechanism is given a tendency to remain in the short nail position and it will be moved to long nail position only when the thickness of the work increases beyond a certain predetermined point. This arrangement of the shifting mechanism so thatthe pawl tipper is held yieldingly and under spring pressure in its short nail position is important since the spring tends to maintain. the tipper steady and prevent its being moved out of its short nail position by the jar of the machine. Furthermore, as already suggestedabove, when the thickness of the work gaged has passed a certain predetermined limit, the tipper is moved into its long nail position by the action of the second spring, which overcomes the resistance of the first spring, and which, furthermore, tends to maintain the tipper yieldingly in its long nail position and thus to cushion the shocks of the machine and prevent the tipper from accidentally returning to short nail position so long as the work requires a long nail.

In order that the machine may conveniently be adjusted so that the short nail will be delivered so long as it can be satisfactorily used (which is usually while the work is of such a thickness that the short nail can be properly clenched on the inside of the work) the circular body portion of the pawl tipper 606 has been provided with graduations 672 indicating nail lengths in the usual terms employed in the art of nail making; that is, in eighths of an inch. These graduations are arranged to be read from the upper edge of the stop 628, or from a pointer 674 formed upon said stop. lVhen the stop is located, as shown for example, in Figs. 8 and 4 of the drawings, so that its edge or pointer is upon the graduation marked 341-, the shifting mechanism is so set that the raceway will not be shifted until the stock through which the nail is to be driven is of a thickness greater than that in which a nail eighths of an inch could be properly clenched. The operator, knowing the lengths of the nailsin the two raceways, or at least knowing the length of the short nail, will accordingly set the stop upon the graduation corresponding to the length of the short nail and the machine will then automatically deliver a long nail when it is required. A suitable allowance for clenching is and in the illustrated machine such allowance is mane in graduating the scale upon the pawl ,tipper. If the operator desires more clench than that provided in graduating the scale to nail lengths he hasv only to turn the indicator back to a graduation indicating a shorter nail than that in the short nail raceway.

If it is desired to deliver a long nail when the work is not of such a thicknessthat the long nail would be automatically supplied, the raceway or raceways maybe shifted into position to deliver the long nail by manually controlled means now to be described but which is not a part of the-present invention, being the invention ofrGeorge Goddu and described and claimed in the co-pending application of said George Goddu, Serial No. 788,193 filed Sept. 5, 1913. The bell crank lever 642 hereinabove referred to has a second arm 676 (Figs. 8 and 4) having a stop face 678 over. which hooks a dog 680 pivotally connected to an arm 682 of another bell crank fulcrumed at 684 upon a rearward eX- tension. of the bracket 272; said dog being provided with a slot 686 guided upon a stud or screw 688 for limiting longitudinal movement. A second arm 690 of the dog operated bell crank is formed with a vertical bore through which slides a rod 692. The rod 692 also passes through a vertical bore in a. lug 694 projecting laterally from a socket link v697 forming a part of the connections between the starting treadle 3 and the clutch, said connections comprising a lever 380 and other parts more fully shown and described in the Letters Patent to George Goddu, No. 1,030,7 7 5 hereinabove referred to. A spring 696 surrounding the rod 692 and located between the lug 694 and the arm 690 tends to keep said lug and arm in separated relation. A clamp collar 698 clamped upon the rod 692 below the lug 694 is adapted to engage said lug and, through the connections hereinabove referred to, to trip the clutch and start the machine. During the first part of this movement of the rod 692 the bell crank lever 690, 682 will be rocked to draw back the dog 680 to throw the pawl tipper into its long nail position. The rod 692 is connected at its lower end by an adjustable clamp 700 to a second rod 702 pivotally connected at 704 to a secondtreadle 706 fulcrumed in the base of the machine, said rod 702 being guided through a sleeve 708 formed in the connections between the treadle 3 and thelink- 697. The front end of the treadle 706 is normally maintained in its elevated positionby the action of'the spring 710 sur-' rounding the rod 692 and confined between a clamp collar 712 upon said rod and the bracket 714 projecting from the back of the standard 4. The treadle 3 is normally maintained in its elevated position by a spring 262 confined between a collar 261 upon the rod 260 and the said bracket 714.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that, when it is desired to deliver a long nail and the position of the work thickness gaging mechanism is not such that a long nail will be automatically furnished,

the pawl tipper canbe thrown into'its long nail position by simply depressing the forward end of the treadle lever 706. Further more, if it is desired to start the machine without raising the horn, continued depres sion of the forward end of the treadle 7 06 will serve also to start the machine. Owing to the connections above described between this treadle lever and the means for manuually controlling the shifting of the raceway, the machine, when. started by this treadle lever, will deliver long nails. If it is desired to start the machine without raising the horn and have the machine deliver short nails, this may be done by simply pressing the pawl tipper back into its short nail position against the. tension of the spring 696. One of the advantages of being able to start the machine with the horn in its depressed position is that, when it is desired to empty the hoppers or raceways, the machine may be run to throw out the nails in the raceway without having this operation interfered with by the horn.

In this machine, as in the machine shown in the Letters Patent N 0. 1,016,947, to F. M'acKenzie (see particularly Fig. 6 of said Letters Patent) the pawl is given a tendency to remain in one or the, other of its operative positions by the action of a locking member 540 (Fig. 10) depending below the pivot of the pawl, the point of which locking member enters one orthe other of two notches 542 in a cooperating lock member 544 attached to the lower end of a rod 288 which passes down through the center of the slide 280 and is held normally in its uppermost position by a spring 290.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for caliperingthe thickness of the work, and mechanism controlled by connections with said calipering means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism being adjustable to adapt it for different lengths of short nails, and including two parts relatively movable and occupying a predetermined relation when the mechanism is ad-. justed for a short nail of given length and being provided with means for indicating the adjustment required for a nail of that leng h.

2.111 a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for calipering the thickness of the work, and mechanism controlled by connections with said calipering means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism being adjustable to adapt it for diflerent lengths of short nails, and including two parts relatively movable and occupying a predetermined relation when the mechanism is adjusted for each length of short nails which may be used and being provided with means for indicating the adjustment required for each length of short nail.

3. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for calipering thethickness of the work, mechanism operatively connected to said calipering means for automatically changing at a predeternaeasaa mined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism comprising two parts relatively movable, and means for maintaining said parts in a predetermined relation when the mechanism is adjusted for a short nail of given length, said parts being normally disengaged from said calipering means but constructed and arranged to be operated thereby.

4. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for calipering the thickness of the work, and mechanism controlled by connections with said calipering means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length. of nail supplied, said mechanism being adjustable to adapt it for difierent lengths of short nails, and including two parts relatively movable and occupying a predetermined relation when the mechanism is ad justed for a short nail of given length together with means, not associated with the work, operating to maintain said parts in said predetermined relation, said parts being normally disengaged from said calipering means but constructed and arranged to be operated thereby.

5. I11 a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, and mechanism including members for calipering the thickness of the work for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism comprising two parts relatively movable and occupying a predetermined relation when the mechanism is adjusted for a short nail of given length and being adjustable for diflerent lengths of short nails without regard to the relative positions of the work calipering members.

6.111 a machine for inserting fastenings, two raceways constructed respectively for short nails and lorg nails, means for automatically bringing the appropriate raceway into operative nail delivering position in accordance with the thickness of the work, means for imparting to said beforementioned means atendency to maintain one of said raceways in fastening delivering position, and means for manually bringing either of said raceways into operative nail delivering position when the work is not of such a thickness that the said raceway would be automatically moved into nail delivering position.

7. In a machine of the class described, two raceways adapted to supply nails of different lengths in accordance with the require-- ments of the work, and means for automatically bringing the appropriate raceway into nail delivering position as the work varies in thickness, said means comprising yielding means having a tendency to maintain one of said raoeways in operative position and other yielding means strong enough when operative to overcome the first-mentioned yielding means and while operative to maintain the other of said raceways yield-v ingly in operative position.

8. In a machine of the class described, fastening inserting mechanism, a plurality of sources of fastening supply, a fastening guide leading from each source, means for automatically bringing any one of said guides into operative fastening delivering relation to said mechanism in accordance with the demands of the work, and means acting to impart to said automatic means tendency to return said guides always to the same selective relation to said inserting mechanism.

9. In a machine for inserting fastenings, two raceways constructed respectively for short nails and long nails, means for auto matically bringing the appropriate raceway into operative nail delivering position in accordance with the demands of the work, said means comprising two stops arranged to turn about a common axis, one of said stops being controlled in its position by the thickness of the work and the other of said stops being located in the path of said first-mentioned stop to be engaged by said first-mentioned stop when the thickness of the work passes a predetermined limit, and means whereby the engagement of the second stop by the first stop effects the shifting of the raceways, said second stop being adjustable about the axis of movement of said stops to provide for its engagement by the first stop for different critical thicknesses.

10. In a machine of the class described, inserting mechanism, two raceways constructed respectively for short nails and long nails, and automatic means for supplying a short nail or a long nail in accordance with the demands of the work, said means comprising two stops arranged to turn about a common axis, one of said stops eing controlled in its position by the thickness of the work, and the other of said stops being located in the path of said first mentioned stop to be engaged by said first mentioned stop when the thickness of the work passes a predetermined limit, one of said stops being adjustable about the axis of movement of said stops to provide for the engagement of said stops for diiierent critical thicknesses.

11. In a machine of the class described, the combination with inserting mechanism, and two raceways constructed respectively for short nails and long nails, of automatic means for supplying to the inserting mechanism a nail of the length demanded by the work to be operated upon, said means comprising stops relatively movable about a common axis as the work varies in thickness, and arranged to engage and to control the nail selection when the thickness of the work passes a predetermined limit, one of said stops being adjustable about said axis to provide for engagement of the stops for different critical thicknesses, the path of adjustment of said stop being graduated in nail lengths.

12. In a machine of the class described, a plurality of fastening guides arranged to supply respectively fastenings of different lengths, and mechanism including relatively movable work thickness calipering members for automatically bringing the appropriate relative positions of the work calipering.

members.

13. In a machme of the class described, in-

serting means, two raceways constructed re-- spectively for nails having difierent characteristics, and means for automatically effecting a relative movement of said raceways and said inserting means to cause the appropriate raceway. to be brought into operative nail delivering relation to said inserting means in accordance with the demands of the work, said means comprising work thickness calipering means, means for effecting said relative movement, two stops, one of which is positively connected to said caliporing means and the other of which is yieldingly connected to said means for offecting the relative movement, and means tending to maintain said raceways and said inserting means in one of their operative relations.

14:. In a machine of the class described, two raceways constructed respectively for nails having different characteristics and means for automatically bringing the appropriate raceway into operative nail delivering position in accordance with the demands of the work, said means comprising a spring, not associated with the work, which tends at all times to return said raceways to, or to maintain them in, one of their nail delivering positions.

15. In a machine of the class described, two raceways constructed respectively for short nails and long nails and means for automatically bringing the appropriate raceway into operative nail delivering position in accordance with the demands of the work, said means comprising means, not associated with the work, which tends at all times to return said raceways to, or to maintain them in combination with two raceways movable into one or the other of two fastening delivering positions, work thickness calipering means, raceway shifting means, cooperating stops, one of which is positively connected to said calipering means and the other of which is yieldingly connected to said shifting means, and means tending to maintain said raceways in, or to return them to, one of their fastening delivering positions.

17. In a machine of the class described, in combination with two raceways movable into one or the other of two fastening delivering positions, work thickness calipering means, raceway shifting means, and actuating connections between said calipering means and said shifting means comprising two stops relatively movable in the same path, one of said stops being connected to said calipering means and the other being connected to said shifting means, and means for yieldingly maintaining one of said stops at a predetermined point in the path of movement of the other.

18. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for calipering the thickness of the work, and mechanism controlled by connections with said calipering means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism being adjustable to adapt it for different lengths of short nails and comprising two stops relatively movable in the same path and means for yielding maintaining one of said stops at a predetermined point in the path of movement of the other.

19. In a machine of the class described, in combination with two raceways and means yieldingly maintaining said raceways in one of two fastening delivering positions, work thickness calipering mechanism, raceway shifting mechanism, and actuating connections between said mechanisms comprising cooperating stops relatively movable in the same path, one of said stops being connected to said calipering mechanism and the other being connected to said shifting mechanism, and means for maintaining one of said stops yieldingly at a predetermined point in the path of movement of the other.

20. In a machine of the class described, in combination with two raceways, and means yieldingly maintaining said raceways in one of two fastening delivering positions, work thickness calipering mechanism, raceway shifting mechanism, actuating connections between said mechanisms comprising cooperating stops relatively movable in the same path, one of said stops being connected-to said calipering mechanism and the other being connected to said shifting mechanism, and adjustable means for maintaining one of said stops yieldingly at a predetermined point in the path of movement of the other, the pat i of adjustment of said means being graduated in characteristics of the nails in said raceways.

e 21. In a machine of the class described, two raceways constructed respectively for fastenings having different characteristics, inserting means, said raceways and said inserting means being relatively movable to cause nails to be delivered from one or the other of said raceways, a sp ing tending to maintain. said parts in, or to return them to, one of the nail delivering relations, and means for automatically efiecting the rela tive movement into the other nail delivering relation in accordance with the demands of the work, comprising a second spring arranged to maintain said parts yieldingly in said last mentioned nail delivering relation.

22. In a. machine of the class described, two raceways, inserting means, mechanism for efiecting automatically a relative shifting of said raceways and said inserting means whereby fastenings may be delivered from one or the other of said raceways, means, not associated with the work, tending at all times to cause said mechanism to maintain said parts in, or to return them to, one of their fastening delivering relations, and means controlled by a characteristic of the work for actuating said mechanism to cause it automatically to move said parts into the other of the fastening delivering relations.

23. In a machine of the class described,

in combination with inserting means, two raceways, and mechanism for effecting automatically relative fastening selecting movements of said inserting means and said raceways into different fastening delivering relations, means controlled by the work to'be operated upon for determining into which of said fastening delivering relations the inserting means and the raceways are relatively moved by said mechanism, said means having a limited range of movement, and yielding means tending to maintain said determining means in, or to return it to, one of its determining positions.

24. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, work calipering members, and means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of the work the length of nail supplied comprising an actuator, controlling means for the actuator, means for yieldingly retaining said controlling means in a position to cause one length I of nail to be supplied and mechanism controlled by said work-cahpering members constructed and arranged to move said c011- trolling means unyieldingly in opposition to said retaining means into a position to cause a difierent length of nail to be supplied.

25. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying nails of one length, means for supplying nails of a different length, work calipering members, and means for utomatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied comprising a continuously operated actuator, controlling means for the actuator constructed and arranged to occupy a fixed position regardless of change in the thickness of the work being operated upon so long as the work is not of a predetermined thickness, and means governed by said work calipering members for moving said controlling means when the work at the point engaged by said calipering members is of a predetermined thickness.

26. In a machine of the class described,

means for supplying nails of one length, means for supplying nails of a difierent length, work calipering members, and means for automatically changing at a predetermined thickness of work the length of nail supplied, comprising an actuator, movable controlling means for said actuator, means for limiting the movement of said controlling means in either direction, yielding means for moving sald controlling means to the limit of its movement in one direction for supplying nails of one length, and means governed by connections with ies or this patent may be obtained to: five cents each,

said Work calipering members for moving said controlling means to the limit o its movement in the opposite direction for supplying nails of a difierent length constructed and arranged to move said control ling means unyieldingly to the limit of its movement in opposition to said yielding means and to yield to a movement of said connections tending to move said controlling means beyond the limit of its movement.

27. In a machine of the class described, means for supplying short nails, means for supplying long nails, means for calipering the thickness of the work, and mechanism controlled by connections with said calipering means for automatically hanging at a predetermined thickness of Work the length of nail supplied, said mechanism comprising an actuator for the nail supplying means and controlling means for said actuator normally disengaged from the work calipering means and constructed and arranged for operative engagement therewith at such times only as work of a predetermined thickness is being operated upon by said ,Work calipering means.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specificatlon in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRED L. MACKENZIE.

Witnesses:

Gnonen GoDDU, I-I. DORSEY SPENCER.

by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents,

Wton, Do on

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