US1691211A - Manufacture of springs - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 13, 1928.

J. M. 'SGHOONMAKER, JR, ET AL MANUFACTURE OF SPRINGS Filed May 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 EOOO WITNESSES d ETAL Nov. 13, l928.

J. M. SCHOONMAKER, JR.

MANUFACTURE OF SPRINGS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May a, 1925 Fl 5. Z

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J. M. SCHOONMAKER, JR., ET AL MANUFACTURE OF SPRINGS Filed 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 w W/ nvsses W 771'.

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J. M. SCHOONMAKER, JR, ET AL MANUFACTURE OF SPRINGS Filed May 6, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented Nov. 13, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT'OFFICE.

JAMES'M. SCHOONMAKER, JR., OF SEWIGKLEY, AND DONALD T. GLEASON, OF CORA- OPOLIS, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNORS 'lO STANDARD STEEL SPRING COMPANY, A

CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

MANUFACTURE OF SPRINGS.

Application filed May 6,

This invention relates to the manufacture of springs and more particularly to a method and apparatus for bending the main plates of leaf springs.

Although a method of and apparatus for bending spring blanks by cold rolling are disclosed and claimed in Patents No. 1,375,038, of April 19, 1921, and No. 1,381,014, of June 7, 1921, both granted upon applications of Theodore dOrville, the bending of the eye plates of leaf springs by rolling has been diflicult to accomplish because of the presence of the spring eye at each end of'the blank. If plain surface bending rolls were to be used the spring eye at each end of the blank would be crushed out of shape.

An object of this invention is to provide a method of rolling the eye plates of leaf springs after the spring eyes have been formed thereon. I

A further object is to provide a machine for cheaply and effectively forming the eye plates of leaf springs by rolling.

A still further object is to provide a ma chine of the type setforth which is adapted to roll the eye plates of springs of any size without requiring any change in or adjustment of the machine, except adjustment of the top roll when it is desired to change the camber.

A still further object is to provide a bending. roll which is adapted to be substituted for an ordinary bending roll in a well-known type of spring leaf bending machine as to adapt such a machine to the rolling of eye plates. 7

These and other objects which will be apparent to those skilled in this particular art may be accomplished byv means of a machine such as is illustrated, for example. in the ac companying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine constructed in accordanc with one embodiment of this invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view of certain of the elements of Fig. 1, taken on an enlarged scale from the rear of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 and Figs. 1 to 8 are diagrammatic views illustrating various steps which constitute the improved method of rolling'the main plates of leaf springs;

In carrying out this inventon there is preferably provided a set of three triangularly arranged bending rolls. The two lower rolls 1925. Serial No. 23,396

are the driving rolls and preferably have their axes positioned in the same horizontal plane and parallel to each other. The third bending roll is of somewhat larger diameter and has its axis positioned above and in a vertlcal plane midway between theraxes of the two. lower rolls. The upper roll is driven by engagement with the work.

Prior to bending, the blank for the main plate of a leaf spring has its ends bent to form spring eyes. The upper roll is provided with a concavity for accommodating the enlarged end of rthe spring blank formed'by the eye. The blank is passed into the rolls and the eye'on' the forward end is received within the concavity'of the upper roll. If the blank were then passed directly through the rolls it would be necessary to have the upper roll of circumference equal to the distance between the spring eyes so that. the eye.

attherear of the blank would coincide with the eye accommodating concavity in the roll surface, as it passes through the rolls, to prevent the eye from being rolled out of shape. This would necessitate a: different sized roll for each length of spring. In order to overcome this difficulty and provide a method of rolling the eye plates of leaf springs regardless of their length and without changing or requiring different forms of rolls, other than adjustment of the upper roll to vary the camber of the finished plate, we proceed as. follows:

After the blank has been partially passed through the rolls and has had a part only of its length bent to form, it isreleased from the rolling pressure. This is due, in the present instance, to the fact that the cut away portion of the roll surface is moved to the point where the blank is subjected to the bite of the rolls. The upper roll being of reduced diameter at that point, the blank is released from the pressure of the roll. While free of this pressure the blank is drawn back through the A rolls until the spring eyeat the rear of the blank is positioned a distance from the bite of the upper roll exactly equal to the circumference thereof and the roll itself is po sitioned so that the edge of the eye accommodating cavity in theroll surface is at the point where the blank is first subjected to the rolling pressure. or, in other words, the cavity is positioned at the point where the blank is first subjected to the bite of the rolls. The Y blank is then passed on through the rolls and the spring eye at the rear of the blank passes through the rolls coincidently with the rotation of the eye accommodating cavity, because of the fact that it has been positioned a distance from the rolls equal to the circumference of the upper roll so that one complete rotation of this roll serves to complete the rolling of the blank and the cavity therein meets the eye at the rear of the blank so as to accommodate it as it asses throtwh the rolls b and prevent the distortion thereof.

The preferred form of appara bus for carrying out this method is illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, and'is constructed substantially in accordance with the machine disclosed and claimed in the above noted patents; together with certain modifications and improvements for adaptingthe machine to the rolling of eye plates for leaf springs in accordance with my improved method. i I

The machine provides with two horizontally aligned, parallel driven rolls 10 and 11 which are driven by the mechanism described in the said patent.

An upper bending roll 12 is mounted on a shaft 13 disposed above and midway between the axes of the two lower rolls. The shaft 13 runs in roller bearings 1d mounted in a vertically adiustable housing 15 as described in the said patent. i As illustrated,'the upper bending roll 12 is provided with a flat surface 16, and a curved shoulder 17. c v A handwheel 18 is secured to one end of the shaft 13 and is positioned outside of the housing 15. In order to prevent dirt'from entering the bearing 14: adjacent the hand wheel its inner face 19 is provided with a circular groove 20 adapted to receive a circular flange 21 formed on the housing, thus providing an interleaving seal, see Fig. 3. The hub 22 of the hand whe l is surrounded by a brake 23 having one end secured to a. post 24 eX- tending horizontally outward from thehousing 15'. The other end of the brake band is connected to a rod 25 passing through a perforation 26 formed in the post 24. A nut 27 is threaded to the upper end of the rod 25 and a helical spring 28 is compressed between the nut and a washer 29 which seats against the side of the post 24. A wing nut 30 may be provided for locking the spring adpisting nut 27 in position.

A gauge or marker 83 is mounted on the frame of the machine at distance from the center line of the back bottom 'roll exactly equal to the circumference of the upper bear ing roll.

In operation the upper roll is rotated by means of the hand wheel until the flat fate e16 thereof is opposite the lower cooperating bendingrolls 10 and 11. The spring eye at the forward end o the blank is then inserted between the rolls as shown in Fig.- 4. Rolling ing the rolling thereof.

is commenced and the upper roll is started by means of the hand wheel. As soon as the c of the shoulder 17 engages the nl; the roll itself is rotated by frici form by its pas- 1. More the blank has t r gh the rolls, however, t surface 16 again comes opposite the loner rolls so as to relieve the blank of the 11 'ngpressure and free the upper roll from oi remcnt with t is blank. The spring p Weed brake band 23 serves to stop the rotation of the upper bending roll before the shoulder 17 can a gain engage the blank. At this time the blank is, of course, free of the bite of the rolls and it moved back until its end is opposite the marker 33 as shown in Fig. (3. he latter is positioned a distance from the center line of the back bottom roll, or from the point of the first bite of the rolls, just equal to the 'circun'iference of the top roll. The latter is then rotated by the hand wheel until its circular surface again engages the ik when it will again be driven by friction and the rolling of the blank completed. Due to the fact that the spring eye at the rear of the blank has heel positioned a distance from thezbite o the r lls which is exactly equal to the circumference o the top roll the flattened surface 16 meets the spring eye at the rear of the blank as the latter enters the rolls so that it passcs throughwithout distortion as indicated in Fig. 8.

fv hat we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of bending which consists in passing a blank between rolls, releasing said blank from the pressure of said rolls, positioning the end of said blank a predetermined distance from said rolls and completing the rollingthereof.

2. The method of bending which consists in starting a blank through a setof rolls to impart a camber thereto, releasing said blank from the pressure of said rolls, drawing said blank back a predetermined distance and completing the rolling thereof.

8. The methodof bending which consists in passing a blank between rolls v rolling a section of said blank to'impart a camber thereto releasing said blank from the pressure of saidrolls, moving said blank longitudinallv apredetermined distance and completing the rolling thereof.

l. lhe method of bending which consists in passing a blank between rolls so as to bend a section of said blank, releasing said blank from the pressure of said rolls, positioning the unrolled end of said blank a predetermined distance from said rolls and complet- 5. The method o bending a leaf spring blank while cold which consists in passing a blank between rolls so as to bend a section of said blank, releasing said blank from the cavity for accommodating the spring eyes formed at each end of the blank and means permittin the adjustment of said blank dun ing rolling so that said concavity receives the eye at the rear of each blank as it passes through said rolls 7 7 A bending machine for the eye plates of leaf springs including in combination, a bending roll having an irregularity in the surface thereof for accommodating the spring eyes, said surface being formed so as to release theblank from contact With said roll after partial rolling thereof and means for gauging the position of said blank so thatits unfinished end is located. a distance from the bite of said roll equal to the circumference of said roll.

8. A bending machine for spring leaves including in combination, bending rolls, one of said rolls having a surface formed so as to release a blank from rolling pressure to permit a longitudinal movement thereof after partial rolling and a gauge for determining the extent of the longitudinal movement of the blank.

9. A bending machine for the eye plates of leaf springs including in combination, a

bending roll having an irregularity in the surface thereof for accommodating the spring eyes, said surface being formed so as to release the blank from contact With said roll after partial rolling and means for stopping said roll when said blank is so released.

10. A bending machine for the eye plates of leaf springs including in combination, a bending roll having an irregularity in the surface thereof for accommodating the spring eyes, said surface being formed so as to re lease the blank from contact with said roll to 1 ermit longitudinal movement of said blank after partial rolling, means for stop ping said roll when said blank is so released and means for starting said roll so as to com plete the bending of said blank.

11. A bending machine for the eye plates of leaf springs including in combination, a bending roll having an irregularity in the surface thereof for accommodating the spring eyes, said surface being formed soas to release the blank from contact with said roll after partial rolling, a brake for stopping said roll when said blank is so released, means for gauging the position of said blank so that its unfinished end is located a predetermined distance from the bite of said roll and a hand Wheel for starting said roll so as to complete the bending of said blank.

In testimony whereof, We have hereunto set our names this 28 day of April, 1925.

JAMES M. SGHOONMAKER, JR. DONALD T. GLEASON.

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