US49484A - Improved bolt-machine - Google Patents

Description

ABRAM ALEXANDER, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

IlVlPFtOVED BOLT-MACHINE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 49,484, dated August 15, 1865.

To all whom I may concern Be it known that I, ABeAM ALEXANDER, ofthe city of Pittsburg, in the county ot' Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Machinery for the Manufacture of Bolts; and I do hereby declare thc tillowing to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ot' this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a front view of the swagingmachine for rounding the shanks ofthe bolts. i Fig. 2 is a front View of the same machine, i with the front plate ofthe sliding frame and the coverings of the bearings being removed. Fig. 3 is a diagonal section through the swaging-machine at w w, Fig. l, showing the boltblank before it is operated upon by the swages. Fig. 4 is a similar diagonal section through a: zr, Fig. l, at'tcr the bolt-blank is operated upon by the swages. Fig. 5 is a sectional side View of the dies and lower parts of the machine when the dies are open and just before the finished bolt is ejected. Fig. is a side view of the lower parts of the machine when the i dies are open and the hammer is at half-stroke after the iinished bolt is ejected. Fig. 7 is a if side view ot' the steam chest and cylinder. Fig. 8 is a side view of the heading-tool and fork and end oi' the clamp. Fig. 9 is a top `View of the fork which upholds the headingtool. Fig. 10 is a sectional representation of the adjustable stop for the bottom of the dies. Fig. 11 is a front elevation ot' the headingmachine when the dies are closed, the clamp down, and just bei'ore the drop is lowered and the hammer falls. Fig. 12 is a rear View of the machine, with the parts in the same relative position as in Fig. l1.

To enable others skilled in the art to construct and use my improved machinery for 'making bolts, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation. t

`In the manufacture of bolts having a round shank and square head a difficulty is experience inmakingasolid head with well-shaped corners when the iron rod 'from which are made is round iron ofthe diameshank ofthe finished bolt. It is all .to have,not onlya well-shaped head solid. It is usual in making such e the iron which is to form the t, but also to have a head that shall,

cool.

shank of the bolt bet-.veen dies, and to form the head by the means of a header, which forces the iron by compression into a cavity in the die of the required shape for the head. The result of this process is that the bolts thus made are generally more or` less unsound lat the head and neck. i

To remedy these defects I make my `bolts out of square iron, theside of the square be: ing equal to the diameter of `the round shank of the finished bolt, andI make the head by a single quick stroke of" a drop-hammer, which has the advantage of making the head more rapidly, Vand thus giving the `iron less time to As the iron rod from which the bolts are to be made is diagonally of greater diameter than the shank, (the iron being the size and shape of a crcumscribed square to the round shank,) it is necessary to drawgout the shank in the process ot' rounding it, which makes a better shank than when the iron is `squeezed laterally from a square intoa round shape. This drawing and rounding otl the shank portion of the bolt (the part which is to form the head being left square) forms the first operation, and is performed byan auxiliary machine. (Represented in Figs. l to 4.) y

In the drawings, A is a strong iron frame, quadrilateral in shape, excepting that the four corners are cut oi' to receive the four set-screws c. 'lhis iron frame has a square cavity, in each of the corners of which is a recess to receive the boxes or bearings b of one of thefour swages c, by which the square iron rod is to be drawn and rounded. These swages are of the shape of a sectorof a circle, as seen in Fig. 3, having at the center of the arc a short shaft,

d, which has its bearing-in the box b. The i curved face of cach of these swages has a groove in it of the shape of a quarter-circle, so that where the peri pheries of the swages meet, as seen in Fig. 2, they form together a circular groove the diameter of which is equal to the diameter required to be given tothe shank of the bolt. On two opposite sides of the frame A, at the edge of the square cavity in which the swages c work, are the slides e e, inwhich work the flan ges f f, projecting from the sides of the face-plate, g, and back plate, g', `of the sliding frame, by which the swages are opel ated. The face and back plates, g g,are con-1V nected by two bolts, h h', and they are situate` one in front of the frame A, and the other be,-`

hind it and centrally thereto. Their distance apart is a little greater than the length of the chord ofthe arc of the face of the swages, so that as the sliding frame moves backward and forward into the frame A there is a little lost motion-that is to say, when the front plate. g, is in contact with the forward extremity of the face of the swages the back plate, g', is a little in the rear of the rear edges of the swages o o, asin Fig. 3. The operation of these swages on the square iron to form the bolt is seen from Figs. 3 and et. The blank or piece of iron to form the bolt, being cut off the right length, is inserted through the cavity t' in the center of the front plate, g, and enters the groove formed by the faces ofthe four swages c, and is pushed vas far back as the swages will allow, the bolt beingl'arger than the groove at the tangential point. The sliding frame g g' is then pushed backward, the front plate, g, causing the swages to turn on their axes, and as they turn the groove of the swages draws ont and shapes the blfank, that part which remains in the cavityi ofthe front plate, g, being out of the reach of the swages, is left square, while the residue is reduced in diameter and rounded. The sliding frame is then drawn forward, but in so doing the back plate, g', is brought in contact with the rear edge ot' the swages, as in Fig. 4, by the slide moving forward, and the front plate is also moved forward a like distance, and as` the blank B is held fast bythe swages, which have not yet begun to move forward, the head of the'blank is'relieved from the cavity z' of the front plate, g, and this lost motion otl the sliding frame causes the blank B to drop down clear ot' the sliding frame and swages so soon as the sliding frame has pushed forward the swages to their iirst position. (Shown in Fig. 3.) The blanks, when they leave the swaging-machine, have a round shank of the proper diameter and length for the finished bolt, and a square portion at the upper end, from which the head is to be formed in the machine, which is shown in Figs. 5 to l2, and which I will now proceed to describe.

In the machine by which the bolts are headed,

l C C are two uprights, set parallel to each other on the bed-plate D, united at top by the capplate E, and in front by a cross-piece F. VOn top of the cap-plate E is set the steam-cylinder G of the hammer in a vertical position, midway between the uprights() G of the frame. The steam-chest I is connected with the cylinder G, and the valve-rod k of the steam-chest is operated by the levers l Z l'. A bracket, m, projects from\the steam-chest, and the valverod k, which ischased, passes through without touching it. On the valve-rod are two screwnuts, n a, one on each side of the bracket m. By these nuts a ,a being screwed toward or from the bracket m the stroke of the valve-rod cis regulated, and thereby the amount of steam let into the cylinder can be adj usted with great precision. The hammer is raised by the piston of the steam-cylinder G and falls by its own weight, one motion of the lever L letting on the steam to raise the hammer, and the motion in the other direction shutting oft' the steam and allowing the hammer to fall by its own weight. The amount of steam admitted into the cylinder should not be greater than is sufficient to raise the hammer and work the machine; any excess only serves to strain and injure the machinery.

The hammer H is a heavy block of iron set between the uprights of the frame so as to work vertically between slides o o, and is attached to the lower extremity of the pistonrodp of the steam-cylinder.

q is a lever at side of the machine, which operates a stop, r, which passes through one of the hammer slides o, and may be projected by the lever q far enough to stop the upward motion of the hammer at mid-stroke, which is the proper position for the hammer when the machine is ready to receive the blanks to be headed.

Under the hammer H are the dies K L, the former being fixed to the machine in an upright position, with its face in the plane ofthe axis of the piston-rod p, and the latter being hinged at its lower end, so as to open and close against the fixed die. These dies, when closed, have a cavity between them of the shape of a bolt, the square cavity for the headat top, and the round cavity below, both f these cavities being longer than is the bolt to be made in them. A rest, t, is placed in front of the moving die, to prevent its being opened too wide. Fig. 5 is a vertical side view, in section, ot' these dies, and represents them open.

In the bottom of the moving die is placed an adjustable stop, a, shown detached in Fig. l0, and of the shape of a small cylinder, with a shaft passed through its axis. part of the shaft screws into the cylinder u, and the lower part of the shaft. is fixed to the cylinder. The upper shaft maybe removed and a longer or shorter one substituted to suit the length of bolt to be made. The stop u is placed in a suitable cavity near the bottom of the dies, the cavity for the cylindrical part u of the stop being longer than the cylinder, so as to allow it to move upward about an inch. The top of theupper shaft of u forms a false bottom to the cavity ofthe dies, against which lthe bolt rests, and the lower shaft of the stop u is held in place by a ring, x2, attached to the moving die L, and extends vto the bottom of the dies, where it rests on the wedge-shaped end of a bolt, c, which is inserted horizontally through the baseof the fixed die K and projects slightly from the rear of that die. 1t may be kept pressed backward a spring, s, in a cavity in the die, as shown in Fig. 5, or by other suitable device. A drop-hammer, M, hung in the rear of the machine so as to fall at the proper moment and strike the projecting end of the bolt e when the dies are open,

as in Fig. 5, will force the beveled end of the bolt e forward, and by suddenly raising-the The upper stop u will thro'w the finished bolt out over the top of the dies. y

`Near the top of' the stationary die K, just below the cavity for the head, is a pin, w, the point of which enters the round cavity of the stationary die K, when pushed forward, by the spring o pressing against its head. This pin w is to clear the bolt from the stationary die K and cause it to follow the opening-die L when the dies are opened. It is pushed back out of the way bythe bolt-blank when the dies arejclosed. The mode of operating the drophammer M will be hereinafter described. The moving die L will fall open by its own weight. when thrown a little back out of the perpendicular, and is closed by raising a rod, y, at-

tached to a bracket, w, at the bottom of the die L. The mode of opening and closing the die L will be better` seen by reference to Fig. 6. The dies being open, as shown in the tigure, and the hammer at half-stroke, the hammer is made to rise, and in so doing it draws up the rod y, a button on the end of the rod being engaged by a bracket, z, projecting from the face of the' hammer. The lower end of the rod is pivoied to the front end ot' the lever a', which is attached to the bracket a: of the moving die by a link, b', so that as the rod y is raised the moving die L is closed and assumes a vertical position. After the hammer has fallerl it rises immediately to midstrokethat is, to the stop T and as it rises a bracket, c', ou the back of the hammer comes in contact with the end of the rod d', which is attached to the lever a in the rear ot' its center ot' motion, (which is at and thus raises the lever up to the position shown in Fig. 6 and opens the moving die.

Pivoled to the lixed die K at its upper end, at e', is a clamp, which consists ot two side pieces.j, and a cross-piece,j, in front. The side pieces are attached to each side of the die k, and when the clampis pressed do'wn the cross-piece j passes over the front edge ot' the moving die L, when it is closed, thus holding the dies firmly together at the top. When the .dies are closed the clamp, having been held up the clamp-arms, pressing out the spring k i from its notch. In order to secure the dies from opening under the pressure of the opera- 1 tion ot' heading the bolt, the clamp is forced down over the diejust previously tothe fall of the hammer H by means of a drop, p', which is placed in front pf the hammer and works in staples, q', projecting from `the side of the hammer. When the hammer is at l1alf-stroke, as in Fig. 5, and until the hammer begins to fall, this drop is held up by a spring-pawl, r', entering a groove in the drop; but as soon as the lever l is pushed in to exhaustthe steam from the steam-cylinder G the spring-pawl r is pushed out of its groove by the lever s', and

(see Fig. 8,) is placed with its shank just entering the cavity ot' the stationarydie K and immediately under the hammer H. It is held up so as to allow the moving d ie L, with the bolt-blank in it, to close by means ot a fork, (see Fig. 5,) which is pivoted to the cross-piece F in front ot' the machine at one end, the other extremity resting on the free end of a leaf-` spring, c, which is fastened on top of the stationary die K, excepting when the fork and header are raised up bythe cross-piece j of the clampj, which is situated under the fork. The prongs ot' the fork embrace theheadingtool, and the ends of the prongs are turned up and enter a notch at w on the under side ot' the heading-tool t', which serve to keep it.,in a. vertical position over the cavity of the closed dies K L. As soon as the hammer H rsesafter the operation of beading the bolt, the clamp j is raised, which lit'ts the forksui ciently to raise the heading-tool nearly butnot 'quite out ot' the cavity `ot the dies.Y The fork When the hammer is raised to theheight ot' the stop r, or at half stroke, and the moving die Ais open, and those parts of the machine seen in Fig.5 are in Iherelative position shown in that figure. the machine is ready to receive the.boltblauk, which, having been previously shaped by the swagng-macbine, as alreadydescribed, :is placed in the cavity ot' theV moving die L, in the position occupied by the finished lolt in Fig. 5, the lower end of the bolt-blank touching the rest t, and with its square part resting in the angular cavity of the die L. The lever q is then operated to withdraw the stop 1', and the lever l is pulled outward, which operates the valve-rod lc to let steam under the piston'of the cylinder G. The hammer then rises up to full-stroke, (to tbe position shown in Fig. 11,) but as it rises the bracket z raises therod y, and thereby draws up the link b' and closes the moving die L. The hammerin risingto full-stroke also raises the drop-hammer M, the arm w', projecting from the rear side of the hammer H, lifting the rody, which is attached to the drop-hammer M. When the dropham merM is raised itpasses overaspringlatch, z', (see Fig. 12,) which holds it up.until after the heading-.hammer H has fallen and the dies are opened to dischargethe' nished bolt. As before stated, the rod y, which is raised to close the moving die, releases the detents ofthe arms m of the clamp and allows the clamp to fall as soon as the dies are closed. When the hammer H falls the pawl r', being attached-to it, slides down the face ofthe drop p and resumes its position in the. notch in the drop, so that when the hammer His raised again it carries the drop with it. Whenl the parts are in this position (seen in Fig. 11) the lever lis pushed in, which rst releases the drop p to press down the clamp over the dies,

and then reverses the valves ofthe steam-chest I and allows the steam to escape from underthe piston of the steam-cylinder G, when the hammer H immediately drops by its own weight on top of the heading-tool t', forcibly compressingthe iron in the square cavity of the closed dies, so as to form the head at one stroke. The lever Z is then reversed, so as to introduce steam into the cylinder G, When the hammer rises to the stop r, the stop -lever q naturally hanging in such position as to press the stop inward and project it into the path of the hammer H.

As the hammer is rising to half-stroke the clamp, which fastened the dies K and L together, is raised by means of twolugs, a2, projecting from the front side of the hammer H, which engage a projection at the end of each of the clamp-armsm m. So soon as the clamp is raised to the proper height the Wedge-shaped brackets b2 I)2 push the clamp-arms m outward sufliciently to release them from the lugs a2, which pass up (when the hammer is raised for full-stroke) above the extremities of the clamparms m', and at the same time oneot' the springs lc passes under a notch in one of the clamp-arms m' and retains the clamp in its position.- As soon as the hammer is raised the heading tool t rises in the dies, but not out of them, being lifted by the fork u. which is Vtilted up by the risingof the cross-piece j of the clamp, as before described. The moving die is also opened, as the hammer rises to haltstroke, by means of a lug or bracket, c', on rthe rear side otl the hammer, which, as the hammer H rises, engages the end of the rod d attached to the lever a', and throws the moving die outward, when it falls open as before stated. A wedge-shaped projection, a2, attached to the frame of the machine releases the rod d from the lugo as soon as the lever a is raised sufficiently to open the die L. WhenY the die L has fallen open the rear end of the lever a is power otherwise applied; but the method I have described is the most simple and convenient, and Works with less gearing and a smaller amount ot steam than if a separate steam-enginewere employed to drive the machinery.

Having thus described my improved ma.

chinery for making bolts, what I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is l 1.- The use of sector-dies, operated and arranged, substantially as described, for rounding the shank ofthe bolt previous to the heading.

2. The combination ot the sector-dies or swages c, sWage-frame A, and sliding frame g g', for the purpose of rounding the shank ot the bolt and leaving that part which is to form the head square, substantially as herenbefore described.

The combination ot' the drop-hammer,

griping-dies, and detached heading-tool, constructed and arranged, substantially as described, vfor the purpose of heading bolts while the iron is hot by a single stroke. 4. Delivering the nished bolti'rom the dies by means of the stroke of a hammer, acting in the manner substantially as hereinbefore described, on the end of the bolt.' v 5. The use ofthe adjustable stop u to support the end of the bolt-blank in the dies and regulate the depth ot' the round cavity of the dies to suit the required length of the shank of the bolt.

6e. The combination ot` dies K L, the clamp jj, the drop p', the heading-tool t', and hammer H, constructed, arranged, and operated substantially as described, i'or heading bolts.

ln testimony whereof I, the said AB RAM ALEXANDER, have hereunto set my hand.

ABRAM ALEXANDER. Witnesses:

ALLAN C. BAKEWELL, A. S. NICHOLSON.

Images