US2020491A - Shearing mechanism - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 12, 1935. G. 1.. WINTERS SHEARING MECHANISM Filed July 18, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 A ORNEY Nov 12, 1935. e WINTERS SHEARING MECHANISM Filed July 18, 1933 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ii w IN VENT OR 662/405/ 4. VW/i/d/J.

TTORNEY Nov, 12, 1935. G. L. WINTERS SHEARiNG MECHANISM Filed July 18, 1935 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 llllll/l/ 111111111,

r/Iflllllll/rlIl/d 7lll/fll m ANN ///u I D II H H I A TTORNEY Patented Nov. 12, 1935 I I I v v NITED STATES. TE T O FI Gardner L. Winters, Dormo'nt,YPa., assignor to Aluminum Company of Americallittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application July 1s, 1933', Serial No. 680,938 l siciaims. (or. 164-430).

T The invention relates to machines for .trimin central vertical cross section. Fig. 3 is a cross ming and slitting sheet material,.with particular sectionalview taken on the line III-III of Fig. 2.

reference to theperiormance of these operations Fig. 4 is a similar cross sectional view taken on sheet metal and metal foil. On the line -IV of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is anend v 5 An object of my invention is to provide a maelevational view of the same machine. n chine of the type indicated which is simple and Fig. 6 1s a fragmentary view showing to a some-.

compact in construction and yet which permits what enlarged scale the right-hand portion of of an. unusually wide range of adjustment. In h machine Shown in With 98861112191 D providing th sire j t e t '1 have ,1 tions of the mechanism broken away in central worked toward facility of adjustment and a rea vertical cross sectionis a cross 'io duction in the number or operations necessary to View taken through the center of one of the edge be performed in connection with a given adtlllhmmg 5 a d a V' IV:II1nFl g. 6. justm t, I Figs. 8 and 9 are fragmentary sectional views In trimming and slitting machines it is fretaken as indlcalied at VIII-VIII and n quently desirable that the machine be converted and showing to an enlarged Scale the fiexii from a trimmer and'shtter to a trimmer and ble driving connection between the two operating vice versa. It is accordingly an object of the Shafts of an edge tfimmhg h on which Shafts invention. to provide means for rendering the are mohhted 'F of rotary kmvesslitting mechanism inoperative or moving it out of 10 1S a h elevatmh'al i of the safne F the way-so that the edge trimming operation may of the machine Shown m and be accomplished without interference. Another g h shows the mechamsm for object is to provide a vertical adjustment between swlhgmg h? shttlhg Into and of ,the trimming and slitting knives so that erative position, l ig. 11 being an elevational view pehsatioh can he made for wear and the decreas of the slitting unit with its associated mechanism,

2 mg diameter of the knives as they are ground as viewed from the right end of Fig. 10, the frame down from time to time of the machine appearing in cross section.

A further and controlling object is to provide T machme m Its general oljgamzatmn a machine in which the foregoing objects as prises a mainbase framel, vertical end supports well as others, may be satisfied by an organization or pedestals'z honzon-t 31 Supporting beam of elemntsin which a single source of power 3, which is slidably mounted on the pedestals 30 for vertical adjustment with respect tothe base I z i g'fi g'gggg ggz :fifg g g zg of the machine. The mechanism for effecting edge trimming i with respect to other this adjustment will be subsequently described. to accommodate different widths of sheet and also Supported by and bet-ween the base frame l and 36 3 with respectto the slitting knives the horizontal beam 3 are the edge trimming medium of such flexible drive and which is laterarranged that it can be raised and lowered with j tm nt and thelower par units 4 and 5 and the slittin unit 6., Each A particular ob ect is to provide a flexible dl'lV- of these comprises a coipemting Set of mg gear of novel character to pemnt' adjustment rotary knives one of the knives of each set being of the edge trimming knives, and a slitting unit,

carried by a shaft which is supported in a memthe upper kmfe of whlch is dnveh through the her carried bythe base frame I, whereas the 40 supporting structure and a part of the operating mechanism for the upper knife of each set is carried by a member supported on and depending from the beamt3.

The slitting unit does not require lateral ad- 45 t of this mechanism is respect to the maih frame, thus Permlttmg, pivotally mounted on the frame 1 by means of form and simultaneous adjustment of the various the brackets 1, while the upper part is pivotally cooperating Sets Of rotary knivesother Object secured to the beam 3 by means of the brackets 8. and advantages will appear in connection with a The edge trimming units 4 and 5 likewise comdescription of the drawings in which: prise two parts in the form of telescoping hous- Fig. 1 is a plan view showing the general orings 9, l0 and H, l2, respectively. The lower ganization of a machine embodying the -inven housings 9 and H are carried by the frame I of tion. Fig.2 is a front elevational view of the the machine, and the'upper housings l0 and I2 ally adjustable with respect thereto.

v Another object is to provide a machine in which the uppertrimming and slitting knives or each set are'carried by a single member which is so 5 same machine, the main base frame being shown are carried by the cross beam 3. The edge trimming units 4 and 5 are laterally adjustable to accommodate varying widths of sheet, and this adjustment is effected by means of lead screws I3 and H which pass through the pedestals 2. This mechanism will be more fully described further on.

The manner of mounting the horizontal beam 3 upon the end supports or pedestals 2 is shown in .Fig. 6. The construction there shown is duplicated at .the other end of the machine. The upper portion of the end with a cylindrical guiding surface l5 conforming with a cylindrical aperture 5 in the beam casting Thesurfaces 5 and I6 are accurately machined to provide a guide for the vertical movelocated aperture threaded to receive a spindle |8 which is correspondingly threaded. The upper end of the cylindrical aperture IS in the beam casting 3 20, which is provided to enclose a portion of theactuating mechanism which is used to raise and lower the horizontal beam 3. The member I9 is secured to the beam casting 3 in any suitable manner, as by the studs 2|. The spindle I8 is provided with an ported on the shoulder 22 of the threaded spindle |8 so that vertical adjustment may be effected by rotation of the spindle;

It is a feature that the rotation of the ad usting spindles at each the two spindles |8 may be effected by turning the wheel 21 which is rigidly secured to a shaft 28 which enters the aforesaid housing 25 and is geared to the shaft 25 by means of pinions (not shown) The wheel 21 may be a handwheel or a sprocket wheel actuated by a chain which may in turn be driven either by hand or from any sui able source of power.

As the beam 3 is raised and lowered it carries with it the upper housings l8 and I2 of the edge unit and making it possible to simultaneously and the outer face of the housing H and extending support 2 is provided an aperture 29 through is moved to the right or to the left, according to 10 the direction of rotation of the lead screw, and by reason of the telescoping. connection between thelower housing II and the upper housing 2, lateral adjustment of the complete edge trimming unit 5 is thus effected. To permit this lateral 15 movement, the housings II and I2 are provided with a slidable connection to the base frame I and beam 3 respectively. These slidable connections are shown at 35, 38 (Figs. 4, 7, and 9) and at 31, 38, 89, 40 (Figs. 6 and 7). The beam casting go 3 isconveniently provided with the raised portions 4| and the upper housing |2 with raised portions 42, which may be accurately machined to provide a smooth sliding fit between the two. After the edge trimming unit has been adjusted :5 to the desired position it is secured in place by the locking wheels 43 and 44. The mechanism for adjusting the left-hand edge trimming unit 4 by means of the lead screw I3 is the same as the mechanism which has just been described. .0

An important feature of my invention resides in the flexible transmission of power through the adjustable telescoping housings of the edge trimming units 4 and 5 and from the edge trimming unit 5 to the upper part of the slitting unit 5. 35 Reference will first be had to the general arrangement for transmitting power to the three units 4, 5 and 5 to drive the rotary knives or shears. In Fig. 2 the main drive shaft is indicated at. 45. The shaft is connected through the 0 coupling 48 to a suitable source of power (not shown). Drive shaft 45 passes through the lower part of each of the lmits 4, 5 and 6, and by means of gearing now to be described drives both the upper and the lower rotary knives of a each of the three uni In Fig. 6, the drive shaft 45 is shown passing through the housings of the lower parts of the edge trimming unit 5 and slitting unit 5. Keyed, as by means of a key 48, to the shaft 45 within 5 the housing ||.'is'a pinion 41. The key 48 is equal in length to, or less than, the width of the hub of pinion 41 and is received within the elongated keyway 49, which construction permits the trimming unit 5 to be moved laterally without disturbing the driving connection between the drive shaft 45 and pinion 41. Pinion 41 mesheswith a pinion 58 which is secured to the shaft 58a on which the 10 .ver rotary trimming knife 5| is mounted. From the pinion 58 00 power is transmitted to the ,upper rotary knife 52 through two intermediate gears or pinions 53, 54. These pinions intermesh, as will be seen in Figs. 7 and 9, to form a gear train for driving the shaft 55 on which the pinion 56 and the upper knife 52 are mounted. Pinion 56 meshes with the upper intermediate gear 54 (Figs. 7 and 8), and also with a gear 51, which is slidably mounted on a rectangular shaft 58 which drives the upper part 59 of the slitting unit 8, 7 while allowing lateral adjustment of the edge trimming unit 5.without disturbing the driving connection between the gear 51 and the shaft 58. The manner in which the gear train which has just been described accommodates itself to u vertical movement of the upperhousing ll with respect to lower housing I I will now be described. The shafts of gears 41,501and' 53 are mounted in fixed bearings in the lower housing l l. 'The gears 56 and 51 are mounted in fixed bearings in the upper housing II. The upper intermediate gear 54 is mounted in bearings which are not fixed with respect to either of the housings, but which are formedin part by links 63 pivotally mounted with respect to they housing I! and in part by links 6! which are pivotally mounted with respect to the housing l2 (Fig. 7). g V f I The manner of constructing this flexible link connection is shown in its preferred embodiment in Figs. 8 and 9 of the-drawings, whichshould be considered in connection with Fig. 7; In Fig. 9 the lower intermediate gear 53 is shown in mesh' with the upper intermediate gear 54. The'links 60 are provided with laterally extending hubs 50a which are pivotally mounted in bearings formed by the annular extensions 52 of the housing H. j

bearings 63 Concentric with these hearings are in which are received the trunnions 54 of the intermediate gear 53; At their upper ends, the links 60 are apertured at 65 to receive the'annular extensions of the links 6| which are disposed at the sides of the upper intermediate gear 54. The links iii are recessed at 61 to provide bearings for the trunnions 68 of the upper intermediate gear 54. links 5| bear against the outer sides of the links 60, as will be seen in both Figs. 8 and 9. The links 6i at their other ends are provided with apertures '10 to receive annular trunnions it formed on the pinion 56, and concentricwith the shaft 55 on which the pinion 56 is mounted. Suitablebearings 12 may be provided in the housing H for the shaft 55. The upper rotary edge trimming knife 52 is secured by means of the studs 13 and the shaft is held in place in the housing H by a nuts, 14.

Itwill be seen that by the arrangement just described I have provided mechanism for transmitting power from one shaft-(64) to a parallel shaft (55) movable withrespectthereto com-- prising a gear wheel mounted on each shaft (gears 53 and 56) and an intermediate gear (54) l in mesh-with both of said gear wheels, the intermediate'gear being connected by links (60 and BI) to each of saidashafts so as tang'ency between mediate gear (54) of the gear wheels and the pitch circles of'each tween the shafts. Moreover, by the particular arrangement in ,hichthe gears (54) as an intermediate gear wheels and two intermediate gears"(53 and 54),- one ofwhich (53 is -mounted on 'a shaft stationary with respect'to the-gearwheel (50)"but' movable with respect to the-gearwheel (55) and the other of which-(50 1s mounted on a shaft (58) which is movable with respect-to of the gear wheels -(5ll"and 56); me mksrenconnecting-the mov-q tionary intermediate with reference to cept that the parts are I6, 11, which are secured together at their The flanges 59 vof the to the-shaft 55 as pair of lock provided to maintain, the pitch circle of the inter-.-

(53 and 55), while permitting F variation of the center-to-center distance be-;

and the U-stra ,t ether encirclin (5B. and 53) are p 0g g both-femployed, andtregarding the'gear (53) as so that w'e have two intermediate gears,-:I"have provided mechanism-for: imparting; rotation to one shaft (55) by'a parallel shaft (53a)':'movable 1 with respect thereto to-drive them-1m oppositedirections"of-rotation which comprises 'gear' 55) mounted -"on-each shaft and separately I 95, the two halves being separated'a suitable disgearf(53) cooperating to maintain t'angency between the pitch circles thereof while permitting variation of thecenter to-center distances'betweenthe shafts. The construction of the edge trimming unit is the same as that which has been the edge trimming unit 5, ex-

reversed. A detailed disclosure of the unit 4 is therefore unnecessary.

The housing H and the housing I2 are provided with cooperating flanges The lower housing ll is formed of two complementary parts meeting. edges by means of flanges 58 which are bolted together. The upper housing i2 is likewise described formed of two complementary parts 15, 80, which are bolted together at their meeting edges, which are provided with the flanges Bl (Fig. 10). half of the lower housing i i is provided with laterally extending flanges 82 (Fig. 8) which are turned outwardly at their extremities to provide bearing surfaces 83, 84, at right angles to each other'for engagement with the bearing surfaces of similar flanges 85 with which each halt of the upper housing i2 is provided.

The flanges 82 and 85 on the lower housing ii and upper housing l2, respectively, and the-bearing surface 15 in the upper portion of housing H maintain the proper'alignment between the two .hous'ings at all times, while permitting vertical adjustment of t e beam 3, the upper and lower gear housings l2 and'il cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit. As previously mentioned, the lower housing H rests on horizontal guiding surfaces 35, 36, formed on the base casting i. The central portion of the base casting l is cut away as indicated at 36 (Fig. 7) to allow the depending portion 81 ofthe'housing H to extend below the guides 35', 35 to receive the drive shaft 45. The housing H is further guided and positioned by means of the drive shaft 45 which is supported in bearings at each end of the machine. Vertical guiding surfaces 38, 89 are provided at the edges of the guides 35, 3t, cooperating with surfaces formed on the housing II. The two halves i9 and of the upper housing 12 are each formedwith upwardly extending arms 35, 9| embracing the lower portion of beam- 3 and v "with guiding surfaces 92, 93 (Fig. '7) cooperating with the previously mentioned guides M formed on the beam 3. The arms'9ll and ti are provided at their upper extremities with laterally projecting flanges 34, 95, which arebolted to flanges formed on the straps 96 which embrace the upper portion of the beam 3, the arms 90, 3!,

with the raised bearing surfaces 98 forrhedati upper housing I! and each side r the beam 3., The assembling of the been described. "The supporting tion which has beam 3 is mounted on the end supports?! and the two halves I9, 80 of the upper housing 12 are attached to their supporting straps tance Likewise the two halves lower housing the frame I and separated laterally. It will be understood that the various bushings or bearing inserts are in place in the members 16, 11, 19 and 80. The gear 41 is held in 15,1 1 of the' the beam 3' thereon. Replaceable Each units-'4 and-5 may be readily accomplished by virtue of the-construe II are placed on the guideways' of place against either 15 of the housing members 14 or shaft inserted. The shaft a which carries the lower rotary knife II is then inserted through the housing member 16 and the pinion 50 mounted thereon. The links sembled and slipped over the trunnions 64 and 68 of the pinions 53 and 54 and the annular trunnions .1I of the pinion 56. These pinions, together with the links, are then assembled with the lower housing member 16, inserting the annular bearing portion or hub a of the left-hand links, as viewed in Figs. 6 and 9, in the bearing 62 of the housing member 16. The pinion 56, with its associated linkage, is then held in alignment with the aperture in the upper housing member 19 which is to receive the shaft 55, and this shaft is .then inserted so that the pinions 41, St, 53, 54, 56, together with the two pairs of links 60 and 6|, are all supported by the left-hand housing members 16' and 18 of the unit 5. .The gear 51 may, now be inserted in its bearing in the housing member 19 and the complementary housing members 11 and slid over against the members '16 and 19 and bolted thereto to complete the assembly. It will, of course, be understood that the manner of assembling may be carried out otherwise than I have specifically indicated, but

I have described one mode of assembly in order that the ease with which the edge trimming units may be assembled will be understood. Facility of assembling is considered to be one of the advantages of the invention. This, together with ment and a greater degree of flexibility than any of the slitting machines previously known to the art.

After the vertical adjustment has been accomplished through the medium of the adjusting means previously described, the beam is' locked in position by means of the bolts 90, which pass through integral straps I00 formed on the beam 3 and surrounding the cylindrical guiding portion I5 of the end pedestals 2 (Figs. 6 and 10). The adjustment is further maintained with respect to the lower and upper housing members I I and 4 and 5 by means of the set screws IOI which are .provided with lock nuts I02 (Fig. 8). The set screws IIlI extend through the outwardly turned portion of the flanges and bear against the cooperating guide surface of the flanges 82.

The lower part of the slitting unit 6 is driven directly from the drive shaft 45, as will be seen in Fig. 6, by means of a pinion I03 on the drive shaft in mesh with a pinion I04 on the shaft I05 which carries the lower slitting knife I06. The pinions I03 and I04 are mounted in complementary housing members I01, I08, which are secured together at their meeting edges. The completed housing so formed is provided with trunnions I 09 which are seated in bearings formed in the supporting brackets 1 mounted on the base frame I. This construction allows the lower slitting unit to be rotated about the axis of the drive shaft 45 for a purpose which will shortly appear. part of the slitting unit I is of similar construction, with the exception that it is driven by means of the auxiliary shaft 48 gaged by the pinion 51 of the edge trimming unit of the beam 3 60 and BI are next as-.

slitting unit 4 I2 of the edge trimming units a the handwheel I21.

which is slidably en- 11 and the drive slitter attachment comprising upper and lower rotary knives each mounted on a separate shaft, each of these shafts being gear-connected to a shaft (45 and 58) about which they are rotatable to swing the knives toward and away from the plane of the sheet material passing through the machine.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 10 and 11 of the drawings, the mechanism for controlling the position of the upper and lower parts of the 10 will now be described. Fig. 3 shows the unit I in operative position and Figs. 10 and 11 show the unit in inoperative position with the slitting knives I", I II swung away from the plane of the sheet material passing through 1 the machine but with the edge trimming knives 5|, 52 in operative position. The lower part of the unit, which is indicated generally by the reference numeral H3 (Fig. 11), is provided with a lateral extension II4 to which are pivoted links :0 III, which in turn are pivoted to a crank II. rigidly secured to the shaft II1, the rotation of which is controlled by a handwheel I II. when this handwheel II 8 is rotated in counter-clockin Fig. 11, the lower as part II3 of the slitting unit is also rotated in a counter-clockwise direction until it occupies the position shown in Fig. 3 where the stop I I9 formed on the extension II4 of the lower part III of the slitting unit comes to rest against the guiding so surface It on the base casting I to positively position the lower part I I3 of the slitting unit in operative position. As will be seen in Fig. 3, the form of the links III is such as to allow the two pivotal points at their ends to be brought ap- 8| proximately into alignment with the center of the control shaft II1 so that they act as a toggle to maintain the operative position of the slitting knife I.

When the handwheel I I8 is turned in the op- 40 posite direction to withdraw the lower part II! of the slitting unit into inoperative position it comes to rest against a stop surface I20 formed on the base casting I (Fig. 11). The bearing for the inner end of the control shaft H1 is formed by a 6 bearing member III (Fig. 10) which is so mounted as to provide a slight vertical adjustment.

on the eye bolt at each side of the bracket.

A similar mechanism is provided to control the position of the upper part II (Fig. 11) of the slitting unit. This mechanism consists of links I24 pivoted to the housing I! and'to a crank I28 55 rigidly secured to a control shaft I24 operated by Aswill beseeninFig.3,the links I24, like the links III, are so formed as to provide a toggle connection in which the pivotal points at the two ends of the links are brought .0 into substantial alignment with the axis of the control shaft I28 As in the case of the bearing for the control shaft 1, the inner bearing for the control shaft I! is likewise formed so as to permit a slight vertical adjustment. ingis formed by the bracket III which is ad- 10 iusted by means of the nuts I" at each side of a fixed bracket I II through which passes the eye bolt II! which is in turn pivotally secured to the bracket I20. The operation of the control mechanism for the upper or beam-mated I.

- resentative' of a specific embodiment of the various features which characterize my invention is h which it appertains.

' by said horizontal beam the rotary knives knives.

. to the beam-mounted slitting knife 0, it will only arranged to be swung be'seen that it is not about the axis of its drive shaft 58, but. is also so arranged that the edge trimming unit from which it is driven may be moved laterally parallelto .the axis of shaft 58, while maintaining the driving connection between the edge trimming unit and the slitting unit.

The mechanism which I have described as repsusceptible of numerous variations-as will readily be understood by those schooled in the art to.

I claim:

1. 'A machine. for trimming .sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, a plurality of rotary knives carried by said base frame, rotary knives carried by said horizontal beam and cooperating with said first-mention rotary knives, means for driving said rotary knives in cooperating pairs, means for adjusting cooperating pairs of knives as a unit with respect to other cooperating pairs, and means for raisin and lowering the beam on said end supports to uniformly adjust the cooperating pairs of rotary knives.

2. A machine for trimming sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, -a plurality of rotary knives individually supported by said base frame, rotary knives individually suspended from said horizontal beam and cooperating with said first-mentioned rotary knives, unitary means for driving each pair of co.- operating knives from a common drive shaft, and means for raising and lowering thebeam on said end supports to uniformly adjust the cooperating sets of rotary knives.

3. A machine'for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carriedby said end supports, rotary edge trimming knives and a rotary slitting knife carried by said base frame, rotary edge trimming and slitting knives carried and cooperating with carried by the base frame. means for driving all of said knives from a common drive shaft including unitary means for driving each pair of cooperating edge trimming knives from said shaft, means for driving the beam-mounted slitting knife through one of said trimming knife drive means, and means for raising and lowering the beam on said end supports to uniformly adjust the cooperating sets of rotary for trimming and slitting sheet base frame and vertical beam carried by said 4. A machine material comprising a end supports, a horizontal end supports, an edge unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried .by said base frame and the other by said horizontal beam, a slitting unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which'is carried by said base frame and'the other by said horizontalbeam, means for driving the beam-mounted slitting knife from I the edge trimming unit, and means for laterally adjusting the edge trimming unit toward and away from the slitting vdriven from the upper with a rotary knife mounted on and driven from I beam and a lower gear 5. Amachine for trimming sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports and vertically adjustable with respect to said base frame, an ,upper. ear beam and a lower gear housing carried by said base frame, said upper and lower gear housings cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit and permit the aforesaid vertical adjustment ofv the beam, and arotary knife mounted on and to housing and cooperating the lower housing.

6. A machine for trimming sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, 15 a horizontal beam carried by said end supports and vertically adjustable with respect to said base frame, an upper gear housing carried by said housing carried by said base frame,said upper cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit a and permit the aforesaid vertical adjustment of the beam, a rotary knife mounted on the upper housing and cooperating with a rotary knife mounted on the lower housing, and gears mounted 25 in said telescoping unit arranged to drive bothsaid upper and lower knives from a drive shaft passing through said lower gear housing.

7. A machine for trimming sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports and vertically adjustable with respect to said base frame, an upper gear housing .carried by said beam and a lower gear housing carried by said base frame, said upper and lower gear housings cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit and permit the aforesaid vertical adjustment of the beam, a rotary knife mounted on the upper housing and cooperating with a' rotary knife mounted on the lower housing, and a flexible gear train contained in said unit arranged to drive both said upper and lower knives from a drive shaft in said lower gear housing while permitting the aforesaid vertical adjustment.

8. A machine for trimming sheet material com- 45 prising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports and vertically adjustable with respect to said base frame, an upper gear housing carried by said beam and a lower gear housing carried by Iii) said base frame, said upper and lower gear housings cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit.and permit the aforesaid vertical adjustment of the beam, a rotary knife mounted onthe upper housing and cooperating with a rotary 5 knife mounted on the lower housing, gear driven means for rotating both said upper and lower knives comprising a gear connected by links to a shaft fixed with respect to said upper gear housing and to a shaft fixed with respect to said 00 lower housing.

9. A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a base frame and end supports, a horizontal beam carried by saidand supports, rotary edge trimming knives and a 6 rotary slitting knife carried by said base frame,- rotary edge trimming and slitting knives carried by said horizontal beam and cooperating with the rotary knives carried by the base frame, means for independent, lateral adjustment of each cooperating pair of-rotary trimming knives as a unit, and means for moving the rotary slitting knives into and outwf operative position independently of said pairs of edge trimming 1 knives.

housing carried by'said 5 and lower gear housings 20 10. A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a; base frame and end sup ports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, rotary edge trimming knives and a rotary slitting knife carried by said base frame, rotary edge trimming and slitting knives carried by said horizontal beam and cooperating with the rotary knives carried by the base frame, means for independent lateral adjustment of each cooperating pair of rotary trimming knives as a unit, means for moving the rotary slitting knives into and out of operative position independently of said pairs of edge trimming knives and means for driving all of said knives from a common drive shaft. Y

11. .A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, an edge trimming unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried by said base frame and the other by said horizontal beam; a slitting unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried by said base frame-and the other by said horizontal beam, means for driving the beam-mounted slitting knife'from the edge trimming unit Y and for rotating said beam-mounted slitting knife into and out ofoperative position.

12. A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, 'a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, an edge trimming unit comprising two cooperating rotary kniveslone of which is carriedby said base frame and the other by said' horizontal beam, a slitting 'unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried by said base frame and the other by said horizontal beam, means for driving the beammounted'slitting knife from. the edge trimming unit,.said means comprising a slidable shaft geared to said slitting knife whereby'the slitting knife may be swung about the axis of said shaft and the edge trimming unit moved laterally parallel to said axis while maintaining the driving connection between the edge trimming unit and the slitting unit.

13. In a machine for slitting' sheet material, a

' swinging slitter attachment comprising upper and lower rotary knives, each of saidrotary knives mounted on a separate shaft and each of said shafts gear-connected to a shaft about which theyare rotatable to swing said knives toward 14. In a machine for slitting sheet material, a'

A swinging slitter attachment comprising cooperat ing upper and lower slitting devicesdisposed on opposite sides of the sheet material passing through .the machine and rotatably mounted on the frame of the machine for movement toward and away from said sheet material, links pivoted I to each'slitting device and connected to a shaft rotatable to control the adjustment of said slitting devlces in and out .of operative position.

15. In a rotary shearing machine, a vertically adjustable cutting unit comprising an upper and a lower gear housing cooperating to form avertically telescoping unit, cooperating knives carried by a shaft in each of said housings, and flexing.

ible means carried by said housings arranged to drive said knives through their shafts from a common drive shaft. 16. In a machine for trimming sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary edge trimming knives,' means for adjusting one knife of each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other pairs, means for driving each pair of cooperating knives as a unit, and means for laterally adjusting each pair ofcooperating knives as a unit.

17. In a machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for adjusting one knife in each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other pairs, means for driving each pair of cooperating knives as a unit, and means for laterally adjusting each pair of cooperating edge trimming knives as a unit.

18. In a machine for trimming sheet material, an-adjustable edge trimming unit comprising an upper and lower gear housing cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit, a shaft carried by each of said housings, a rotary knife mounted on each of said shafts, the knives being mounted to cooperate in cutting relationship, and a flex- 2 ible gear. train carried .by said telescoping unit arranged to drive one knife shaft from the other.

. 19. In a machine for trimmingsheet material, a vertically adjustable edge trimming unit comprising an upper and lower gear housing 00- operatingto form a vertically telescoping unit, a

,shaft carried by each of said housings, a rotary knife mounted on each of said shafts, the knives being mounted to cooperate in cutting relationship, and, gears mounted in said telescoping unit arranged to drive one 'of said knife shafts from the other, the driving shaft itself being gear driven from a drive shaft passing through said -lower gear housing.

20. In a machine for trimming sheetmaterial 40 wherein a base frame and vertical end frames support a horizontal beam that is vertically adjustable with respect to the base frame, the combination of an upper and lower gear housing carried by said horizontal beam and said base frame respectively, the housings cooperating to form a vertically telescopingunit, a rotary knife mounted on a shaft carried by the upper'housing, a second rotary knife mounted on a shaft carried by the lower housing, the knives being arranged to' cooperate in cutting relationship, and gear means for driving the upper knife shaft through the lower knife shaft from a drive shaftpassing through said lower housing, said means including a gear connected by a pair of links to said 55 upper" knife'shaft and by a second pair of links to a shaft driven by said lower knife shaft, said gear being fixed with respect to said lower hous- 21. A machine for, trimming sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a'horizontal beam carried by said endsupports and vertically adjustable with respect to said base frame, an upper gear housing and a lower gear housing carried by said beam and said base frame respectively, said upperand lower gear housings cooperating to form a vertically telescoping unit andpermit the aforesaid vertical adjustment of the beam, a rotary knife mountedon'a' shaft carried bythe upper housing, a rotary-knife mounted on a shaft carriedby said lower housing; the said knives being arranged to cooperate'in cutting relationship, and

means contained in said unit for'driving both said upper and lower knife shafts from a common 7.8

other by said horizontal beam,

shaft passing through said lower gear housin said means comprising a gear wheel mounted on each of said knife shafts, two intermediate-gears one of which is mounted on with respect to the lower gear wheel, and the other of which is supported on a shaft movable with respect to both of said gear wheels, the knife shaft gear wheels being in mesh with the intermediate gears and the intermediate gears being in mesh with each other to form a gear train, and links connecting the said intermediate gear movable shaft with the upper knife shaft and stationary intermediate gear shaft, whereby the gear train is maintained in mesh throughout the range of vertical adjustment.

,22. In a machine sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, an edge trimming unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried by said base frame and the a slitting unit comprising two cooperating rotary knives one of which is carried by said base frame and the other by said horizontal beam, erally adjusting the edge trimming unit toward and away from the slitting unit, and gear driven means for driving the beam-mounted slitting knife from the edge trimming unit, said gear driven means comprising a shaft carried by said edge trimming unit, said shaft having a central configured bore, and a second shaft geared at one end to drive said beam-mounted slitting knife, said second shaft having throughout the major portion of its length a cross section complementary to that of said bore, the configured shaft being slidably engaged within said hollow shaft to complete the driving connection throughout the range of lateral adjustment of said edge trimming unit.

23. A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, an horizontal beam carried by said end supports, rotary edge trimming knives and a rotary slitting knife carried by said base frame, rotary edge trimming knives and a rotary slitting knife carried by said horizontal beam and cooperating with the knives carried by said base frame, means for driving all of said knives from a common drive shaft in cooperating pairs, means for laterally adjusting each of said edge trimming pairs as a unit with respect to the other cooperating pairs of rotary knives, and means for raising and lowering the beam on said end supports to uniformly adjust the operative cutting relationship of said pairs of knives.

24. A machine for trimming sheet material, comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, rotary edge trimming knives carried by said base frame and by said beam to form cooperating pairs, each-of said pairs of cooperatingknives being laterally adjusted as a unit, and means for raising and lowering the beam to adjust the rotary knives.

25. A machine for trimming sheet material, comprising a base frame and vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, lower and upper rotary knives carried a shaft stationary for trimming and slitting means for let each coperating pair of by said base frame and said beam respectively to form cooperating pairs, individual means for driving each of said pairs of cooperating knives, each of said means being drive shaft, and means for vertically adjusting the horizontal beam to increase and decrease the center to center distance between cooperating knives.

26. A machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, comprising a base frame and'vertical end supports, a horizontal beam carried by said end supports, rotary edge trimming knives and a rotary slitting knife carried by said base frame, rotary edge trimming and slitting knives carried by said horizontal beam and cooperatin with the rotary knives carried by the base frame, means for driving each of said pairs of cooperating knives from a common drive shaft, including individual means for driving each pair of edge trimming knives from the said common shaft, and means for raising and lowering the beam on said end supports to uniformly adjust the cooperating sets of rotary knives.

27. In a machine for trimming sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for adjusting one knife of each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other pairs, and individual means for driving each of said pairs of cooperating knives, each of said means being driven from a common drive shaft.

28. In a machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for adjusting one knife of each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other pairs, and means for driving each of said pairs of cooperating knives from a power, including individual means for driving each pair of trimming knives.

29. In a machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for independent lateral adjustment of edge trimming knives for moving the rotary out of operative position pairs of edge trimming as a unit, and means slitting knives-into and independently of said knives.

30.-In a machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for adjusting one knife in each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other pairs, means for independent lateral adjustment of each cooperating pair of rotary edge trimming knives as a unit, and means for moving the rotary slitting knives into and out of operative position independently of said pairs of edge trimming knives.

31.. In a machine for trimming and slitting sheet material, cooperating pairs of rotary knives, means for adjusting one knife in each pair simultaneously with one knife of all other of each cooperating pair of rotary edge trimming knives as a unit, means for moving the rotary slitting knives into and out of operative position independently of said pairs of edge trimming knives, and means for driving each pair of said knives from a common source of power.

GARDNER L. WINTERS.

driven from a common common source of

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