US2902281A - Bowling alley pin resetting machine - Google Patents

Description

P 1959 B. SCHERZlNGE R 2,902,281

- BOWLING ALLEY PIN RESETTING MACHINE Filed Oct. 4, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 /N VE N TOR ATTORNEYS Sept. 1, 1959 Filed 001;. 4, 1956 B. SCHERZINGER BOWLING ALLEY P'IN RESETTING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 I P 1959 B. SCHERZINGER 2,902,281

BOWLING ALLEY PIN RESETTING MACHINE- Filed Oct. 4, 1956 I 4 Sheets- Sheet 5 IN VENTOR A TTORNE Y6 Sept. 1, 1959 B. SCHERZINGER 2,902,281

BOWLING ALLEY PIN RESETTING MACHINE I Filed Oct. 4, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN VE N TOR in said prior application.

United States Patent BOWLING ALLEY PrN RESETTING momma Brun Scherz nge a ga mA e t rCa a a, .a i n h ;Mechanical Pin 'Resetter Co., Ltd., Calgary, Alberta, Canada This invention relates to improvements in machines for resetting pins in a bowling alley in between frames,

and sweeping .the alley clear of-fallen pins and balls .between the balls of a frame.

The present application is .a continuation-in-part of United'States patent application Serial No. 528,711 filed August 16, 1955, which latter contains a description and illustration of a complete machine for'this purpose. The present invention is directed towards certain improvements in parts of a machine of the general type described In particular, the present invention is concerned with apparatus for use in a pin setting unit, that is to say section (A) of the machine described in such prior application.

More specifically, the present invention is concerned with improvements in pin holding mechanisms-for mountingon a vertically movable carriage arranged over the pin supporting end of a bowling alley. As has already been explained in said prior application, such pin holding mechanisms perform the dual functions of (a) Setting a fresh arrayofpins on the alley, at the termination of a frame, and

game, it is necessary that this pin should remain in such displacedor off-spot position for the remainder of the frame, and it is thus necessary that the picking up and resetting mechanism should be capable of performing these functions in respect of pins in .oif-spot as well as on-spot positions.

A.further object of the present invention is to provide .an improvedpin holding mechanism having this latter facility.

One form of pin holding mechanism constructed in accordance vwith the present invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings.

The complexity of the mechanism has led to some of the detailsshown in a view concerned, for example, with the operation of a particular part, being omitted from other views in which the same part may appear, but

which are furnished'primarily to illustrate the operation of other parts. It follows that exact correspondence does not always exist between the various figures, but it is believed that such sacrifice has been made to the benefit of aplear appreciation of the important features of operation of the mechanism as a whole.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a front elevation of the pin holding 2 mechanism in position for performing a pin picking up operation;

Figure'2 is a view of the pin holding mechanism'of Figure 1 seen from the right hand side of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view similar-to Figure 1, demonstrating the manner of operation of vthe mechanism in picking up an on-spot pin;

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 1, demonstrating the manner of operation of the mechanism in picking up an off-spot pin;

Figure 5 is a further-front elevation of the pin holding mechanism, demonstrating its function of pin setting;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 5 showing the parts in a different position;

Figure 7 is a plan view of the mechanism in the position seen in Figure 5; and

Figure 8 is a plan view of the mechanism'in the position seen in Figure 6.

The pinholding mechanism that forms the subject of the present description (there will be a number of such mechanisms in a pin settingmachine, one for each pin to be set, i.e. fivein the case of the five-pin game and ten in the case of the ten-pin game) consistsof a funnel shaped pocket or cup 1 open at both ,ends and into which a pin will be deposited by suitable recharging mechanism while the vertically movable carriage that supports the pin holding mechanisms is in an upper position (the prior application will provideample illustration of this operation). The pin P will be held upright in the cup 1 by means of four fingers-2 which engage the neck of the pin (Figures 5 and 7). These clamping fingers 2 are each pivotally mounted at one end by a pin 32 to a fixed plate 33 secured to an upper edge of the cup 1 (see especially Figures 7 and 8). The center of each finger 2 is connected by a rod 34 to the upper end of the adjacent one of a pairof pin holding levers 3, each of which levers is pivotally supported at4 (see Figure 1, 5 or 6) about a pair of swinging brackets 5 that are pivotally mounted to the upper rim-of the cup 1 at-6. At their lower ends the pin holding levers 3 terminate in pads 3a adapted to engage a lower peripheral surface of the pin and provide the main support therefor. When the pin is of the five-pin type illustrated in the drawings, the pads 3a will normally engage beneath the peripheral rubber band surrounding the lower portion of the pin (se particularly Figure 5). When adapted for the tenpin type of pin the pads 3a will engage the lower part of the belly of the pin.

The brackets 5 which support the pin holding levers 3 are normally held inwardly by links 7 which connect the lower end of one of each pair of brackets '5 tothe centre of a further link 8 pivotally mounted on the cup 1 about a shaft 9. The two shafts 9 comprise drive shafts that extend beyond the pin holding mechanism (shown only in Figure 2), for suitable operation at the correct time by external power means (not shown). These shafts 9 which transmit the forces for opening and closing the pin holding levers 3, correspond to the pivoted arm 78 and driving rod 79 illustrated in Figure 8 of the said-prior application, so that the function of this part of the pin holding mechanism differs from that of the pin holding mechanism described in the earlier application, only in that no spring is used and the drive means which was previously centrally situated has now been moved to each side and been split into the two separate drive shafts 9 which are interconnected beyond the pin holding mechanism for simultaneous operation.

Passing now to the other part of the pin holdingmechanism, namely the pick-up mechanism, it will be noted from Figures 1 and 2 thata pair of pivotal supports 11 provided on each side of the cup 1 serve to mount a pair of press plates 12 by means of connecting brackets 13. Each press plate 12 has an upwardly extending arm 12a that bears against the lower rim of the cup 1 at points 14 with a firm pressure. The plates 12 which in this position serve to close the lower opening of the cup 1 are normally held closed by means of the links '7 and 8 already described, since the upper end of each arm 12a is pivotally connected to the lower end of a link 8 by means of an intermediate link 15. Resilient cushions 16 are attached to the undersides of the press plates 12.

Another drive shaft 17 extends into the pin holding mechanism from an external power source (see Figures 1 and 2). This shaft 17 is journalled in suitable bearings arranged adjacent the upper rim of the cup 1 and is mechanically linked to a similar parallel shaft I18 on the other side of the cup 1 by means of connecting rods 19 and pairs of intermediate links 2% and 200. These parts, best seen in Figure l, are duplicated at the rear of the cup 1, as demonstrated by Figure 2, and henceforth the description will concentrate on those at the front of the cup for simplicity. Further links 21 connect the links 20 and 20a each to the central point of a bent actuating lever 22. In the case of each link 206:, the link 21 connects the bent lever 22 with the point of connection between the link 20a and the connecting rod w, whereas in the case of each link 24), such link is extended downwardly beyond its shaft connection into engagement with the link 21.

Fixed pivotal points 23 determine the position of the lower end of the lower arm of each bent lever 22 in relation to the cup 1. The ends of the other arms of the bent lever 22 are individually connected through links 25 to respective ends of upper arms of a further pair of levers 24, which perform the function of pick-up levers. The lower ends of these pick-up levers 24- are joined together in pairs by means of clamping bars 28 that extend from front to rear on each side of the pin holding mechanism. These clamping bars 23 are circular in cross-section and are rods covered by a resilient material adapted yieldably but firmly to grip a pin between them. An intermediate point of each of the pickup levers 24 is pivotally mounted by means of a pin 29 on an end of one of a pair of differential beams 26 provided at the front and rear respectively of the mechanism, each differential beam 26 bein. itself pivotally mounted on the cup 1 at a centre point 27 so as to be able to tilt in the fashion of the beam of a scale. A brake disc 39 is secured to each differential beam 26, brake shoes 31 being provided on the bent levers 22 for engagement with the periphery of each disc 34 to lock the differential beam against movement while the clamping bars 28 are engaging a pin.

Figure 1 shows the position of the parts as the pin holding mechanism is lowered towards a pin standing on a bowling alley for the purpose of raising such pin while a sweeping operation takes place. The mechanism is lowered until the cushions 16 come to bear firmly against the head of the pin, thus clamping such pin against horizontal displacement. Simultaneously with this clamping action the shaft 17 is turned a small amount and the shaft 18 turns with it but in the opposite direction by reason of the connecting rods 19. This motion is transmitted through the links 21 to the bent levers 22 and thus through the links 25 to the pick-up levers 24 which thus swing downwardly and inwardly to bring the clamping bars 28 into engagement with the neck of the pin. Figure 3 shows the positions the parts then occupy, assuming the pin to be centrally positioned in its onspot position.

The timing mechanism of the machine will then cause the carriage on which the pin holding mechanisms are supported to be elevated while the sweeping operation takes place. The carriage will then again descend and the operation just carried out will be reversed so that the clamping bars 28 will again swing outwardly and upwardly into their rest position and the pin holding mechanism will again be elevated to free the pin for play.

Figure 4 illustrates the operation of the mechanism when it is called upon to raise and re-position an of?- spot pin. It is assumed that the displacement of the pin from its on-spot position is transverse to the direction of extent of the clamping bars 28 (the worst condition). The length of the clamping bars 28 caters for displacement in the other direction. Initially the same operation as already described takes place, except that one of the clamping bars 28 will come to bear against the pin before the other clamping bar 28, and this will prevent further inward movement of such first clamping bar 28. In turn this will check rotation of the pick-up levers 24 carrying such clamping bar 28 and the downward movement being imparted to the links 25 of such pick-up levers 24 will only be allowed to continue at the expense of a tilting of the differential beams 26 which will tilt downwardly at the ends carrying the pick-up levers 24 that support the clamping bar 28 first to engage the pin. Consequently the other ends of the beams 26 swing upwardly and provide additional eflective rotation to the lower ends of the other pick-up levers 24, and the two clamping bars 28 finally come to bear against the pin in the manner illustrated in Figure 4.

In this position of the parts, as in the previous operation when the pin was in the on-spot position, the links 21 will each form a toggle mechanism with a link 20 or 20a, such toggle mechanism travelling slightly over centre to lock the parts in this position until the motions are reversed by turning of the shaft 17 in the opposite direction. At the same time'the brake shoes 31 bear against the brake discs 30 thus precluding the possibility of the beams 26 changing position between the time when the pin is lifted from the alley and when it is reset thereon.

A valuable feature of the present construction is the fact that the adjustment motion consequent upon encountering an off-spot pin takes place principally about a single pivot point, namely the centre point 27 of the beam 26. This minimizes the friction involved in such movement.

The setting function of the pin holding mechanism is illustrated in Figures 5 to 8. When it is required to set an array of pins on the alley, the carriage supporting the pin holding mechanisms (each loaded with a pin-Figures 5 and 7) is lowered to bring these mechanisms almost to the alley fioor. The two shafts h are then rotated in opposite senses to an extent sufficient to force the pivot points 4 of the pin holding levers 3 outwardly through the agency of the links 7 and 8, until the parts occupy the positions shown in Figures 6 and 8. The outward swinging motion of the two links 8 acts through the links 15 to pull upwardly the projecting arms 12a of the press plates 12, thus rotating such press plates 12 about their pivot points 11 into positions withdrawn from the lower opening of the cup 1. The outward movement of the pin holding levers 3 serves to withdraw the pad 3a from the lower part of the pin. At the same time the outward movement of the upper ends of the levers 3 pulls on the rods 34 to retract the fingers 2 from the neck of the pin. The pin is thus completely released and slides through the cup onto the alley.

It will be appreciated that the fingers 2 cooperate to form a substantially complete annulus expansible and contractible between an outer position (Figure 8) where they define a passageway at least as great as the maximum diameter of a pin (for receiving a fresh pin from the recharging mechanism) and an inner position in which they closely embrace the neck of the pin (Figure 7), for holding the same erect. Although in the outer position there are gaps between the adjacent ends of the fingers 2 {Figure 8), these gaps are sufficiently small that, even if a pin entering the cup 1 does come to lie obliquely with its head inclined towards a gap between the fingers, these fingers will of necessity engage the neck of the pin in their inward movement towards the inner position, ensun'ng that the pin head is moved across to the central position it occupies in Figure 7.

A pin in readiness for setting in the manner described has also been shown in Figure 3 of the drawings to emphasize that the pick-up and resetting operation may be performed-and usually will be performed-with the cup loaded in readiness for a setting operation. The two pins do not interfere with each other, and the two lever systems operate independently.

I claim:

1. For a bowling alley pin resetting machine, a pin holding mechanism adapted to receive a pin falling from recharging apparatus, said mechanism comprising a framework, a pair of levers each pivoted at its upper end to said framework, means to hold the same together, a second pair of levers each pivotally mounted on a respective one of the first pair of levers, the lower ends of said second levers having inwardly projecting portions adapted to form supporting seats for the pin and the upper ends of said second levers having inwardly projecting fingers adapted to embrace the upper part of the pin and maintain the same erect, and means for moving apart the lower ends of the first levers whereby to move outwardly the pivotal points of the second levers and therewith the seats for the pin formed thereon to allow such pin to move downwardly onto the surface of the alley.

2. For a bowling alley pin resetting machine, a pin holding mechanism adapted to receive a pin falling from recharging apparatus, said mechanism comprising a generally tubular framework, laterally movable supports mounted on said framework, means to hold said supports together, a pair of levers each pivotally mounted on a respective one of said supports, and means for moving apart said supports whereby to move outwardly the pivotal points of said levers, the lower ends of said levers having inwardly projecting portions adapted to form seats for the pin and the upper ends of said levers controlling inwardly projecting fingers adapted to embrace an upper part of the pin and maintain the same erect, such fingers being movable on pivotal oscillation of said levers from an outer position in which the fingers define a passageway of diameter at least as great as the maximum diameter of the pin to an inner position in which they define a passageway equal to the diameter of the pin at an upper part thereof, the fingers being of such lengths and disposi tions that in no position do they afford a gap between one another through which the upper part of a pin lying obliquely in said tubular framework could pass.

3. For a bowling alley pin resetting machine, a pin holding mechanism adapted to receive a pin falling from recharging apparatus, said mechanism comprising a framework, laterally movable supports mounted on said framework, means to hold said supports together, a pair of levers each pivotally mounted on a respective one of said supports and means for urging apart said supports whereby to move outwardly the pivotal points of the levers, the lower ends of said levers having inwardly projecting portions adapted to form seats for the pin and the upper ends of said levers each controlling a pair of fingers pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axes to be movable between an outer position in which they form a substantially complete annulus contractible between an outer position defining a passageway at least as great as the maximum diameter of the pin, and an inner position in which they closely embrace an upper part of the pin.

4. A pin holding mechanism for a bowling alley pin resetting machine adapted to receive a pin falling from recharging apparatus, said mechanism comprising a framework, a pair of levers each pivoted at its upper end to said framework, means to urge said levers together, a second pair of levers each pivotally mounted on a respective one of said first pair of levers, the lower ends of said second levers having inwardly projecting portions adapted to form seats for the pin and the uppper ends of said second levers having inwardly projecting fingers adapted to embrace the upper part of the pin and maintain the same erect, a pair of plates pivotally mounted on said framework and movable between an operable position in which said plates form an uninterrupted horizontal undersurface to said mechanism and a withdrawn position in which said plates are moved outwardly and away from one another to the sides of said framework, and means for urging apart said first levers to move outwardly the pivotal points of the second levers and for simultaneously moving said plates to their withdrawn position whereby to allow a pin to move downwardly onto the surface of the alley.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,833,814 Backus Nov. 24, 1931 2,231,473 Kaufman Feb. 11, 1941 2,621,961 Whipple et a1. Dec. 16, 1952 2,676,016 Whipple et a1. Apr. 20, 1954 2,702,707 Frye Feb. 22, 1955 2,705,145 Fluke et a1. Mar. 29, 1955 2,775,454 Larkin Dec. 25, 1956

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