US1394593A - Box and process of and apparatus for the manufacture thereof - Google Patents

Description

' A. G. WETMORE. BOX AND PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE THEREOF.

V APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1919. 1,394,593, Patented Oct. 25, 1921.

A. G. WETMORE. BOX AND PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE THEREOF.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1919.

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v A. e. WETMORE. BOX AND PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE THEREOF.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9 I919.

Patented Oct. 25, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3- gugg QM -rir.

A. G. WETMORE.

BOX AND PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE THEREOF.

PLICATION FILED APR. 9. 1919 1,394,593. Patented 001;. 25, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

ALBERT. G. WETMORE, OF PLYMOUTH, TNDIAN A.

BOX AND PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE PHEREOF.

Application filed April 9, 1919.

To all whom it may concern-.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT G. lVnTMoRn, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Plymouth, Indiana, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Boxes and Processes of and Apparatus for the Manufacture Thereof, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the manufacture of boxes in general, but more particularly to those which are reinforced with wire, and which are formed from side wall sections having cleats formed to engage each other at their ends, together with heads or end walls that are secured to the cleats to form the ends of the box.

Generally stated, the object of the invention is to provide an improved method or process whereby the blanks which are employed in making boxes of this character can be first formed in one stiff section composed of a sheet of veneer or other material having the cleats secured thereto, and whereby the blank, thus partially formed, can then be divided into sections, by cutting the cleats and severing the sheet transversely along a line opposite the cuts, leaving the sections of the blank connected together by wires or other flexible means, and with the severed edges of the sheet adapted to engage each other to provide tight corners for the box.

Another object of'the invention .is to provide a novel and eflicient machine for thus cutting the cleats, and for severing the sheet material transversely of the blank in the manner above stated, thereby to convert the partially formed or stiff blanks into flexible blanks which can be bent around the heads or' end Walls of the box.

Another. object is to obviate the necessity of using certain methods and features of construction heretofore considered necessary 'or desirable in the manufacture of wire bound or similar boxes.-

It is also an object to provide certain de tails and features of construction and combinations tending to increase the general efiiciency and the'desirability of a box of this particularconstruction,

and of a machine of this particular character.

To these and other useful ends the invention consists in matters hereinafter set forth and claimed.

Specification of Lettersfatent.

Patented Oct. 25, 1921.

Serial No. 288,825.

showing the saws and cutters and workcarrying belt in side elevation, and showing the structure for supporting the saws in vertical section.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail view showing the ,manner in which the two saws 'cooperate to successively cut 'first one side and then the other side of a V-shaped notch in the cleat, so that the notch is not complete until after the second saw passes through the cleat, and whereby a groove is cut in the sheet of veneer'or other sheet material, in line with the apex of the V-shaped notch, thus forming a line along which the sheet is subsequently severed.

Fig. 6 is a similar view, showing the man ner in which the cutter severs the sheet along the bottom of the groove previously formed by'the two-saws.

Fig. 7 'is a perspective of the partially formed or-stiif blank, showing the construction and appearance of the same before'it is passed through the machine.

Fig. 8 is a similar view showing the con struction and appearance of the blank after passing through-the machine.

Fig. 9 isa perspective of one end portion of the separate or loose section which, for the particular form of box shown and described, forms the cover or top wall thereof.

Fig. 10 is a perspective of the complete blank flexed into position to receive the heads or end walls of the box.

Fig. 11 is a perspective of one of said heads or end Walls, with one edge portion thereof shown broken away for convenience is not grooved bythe saws and when'the rotary cutter is required to perform the entire work of cutting a V-shaped groove in theveneer, with the apex of the groove extending through to the outer surface of the blank.

As thus illustrated, the machine comprises a-suitable body frame 1 adapted to support the various operative parts in suitably elevated position. An endless traveling work holderv 2, composed of sprocket chains suitably mounted on sprocket wheels 3 at the opposite ends of the bed or table 4 which forms the .top of the body frame,is employed for carrying or pro elling the blanks alon sidewise, the workolder being provide with suitable projections or pushers 5 for this purpose, so that the blanks are carried forward in a manner that will be readily understood, the endless sprocket chain work-holder thus formed being supported to slide on the said table, in any suitable or desired manner, so that it will not bevel gears 12 on the upper ends of said screws, said shaft being mounted in bearsag under the weight of the blanks, nor be ings 13 on the side frames 8, and having a crank handle 14 for the o eration thereof,

whereby the beams 6 and which are disposecl'asuitable distance apart, but preferably in the same horizontal plane, can be raised and lowered to suit the requirements. The beam 6 is formed to provide a guideway for the sliding supports15 and 16, at opposite sides thereof, and is formed w1th a rack 17 'ate'ach side thereof to engage the pinions 18 carried by the supports 15 and 16, and by means of handles 19 these pinions are rotated in engagement-with the racks to cause the supports 15' and 'l6 to slide along the beam 6, for a purpose which will hereinafter more fully appear. It will be understood that the rack and pinion arrangement shown in Fig.

2 is duplicated on the other side of the beam '6', and on both sides of the'beam 7, whereby there are four racks and four pinions. I An inclined shaft 20 is mounted on the support 15, and a similar shaft 21, disposed at the opposite an 1e, is mounted on thesupport 16, whereby t ese two shafts are arranged, one in front and one behind the transverse beam 6, and the-lower ends of these shafts are provided with rotary saws 22 and .23 to form the V-shaped notches in the cleats, it being observed that the two saws converge to a longitudinal line disposed immediately over one of the sprocket chains of the traveling work-holder.

It will be seen that the beam 7 is similarly equipped with a pair of saws 24 and 25, which are mounted and operated exactly like those previously described, whereby a V- shaped notch is cut in each cleat directly over another link belt or sprocket chain of the endless traveling work-holder, as shown more clearly in Fig. 2. With this arrangement, the said saws can be adjusted laterally for blanks of difl'erent lengths, and the sprocket chains of the work-holder are also adjustable laterally on the shafts 26, in any suitable or well known manner, whereby the entire machine is adjustable for the purpose of making blanks of difierent lengths. The said saws may, of course, be driven by belts applied to the pulleys 27 on their shafts, or in any other suita le or desired manner. Preferably, the saws are so adjusted or set relatively to each other, that they not-only form the V-shaped notches of the cleats, but also cut V-shaped grooves in the-sheet of veneer, or other sheet material, to which the lon cleats are secured. ,The arrangement of t e saws in pairs in this manner, and with one pair in advance of the other, is of advantage, it will be seen, as in this way the notches in the cleats can be qulte close together, if necessary, whereas with the saws all mounted on the same transverse beam, or all in line transversely of the machine, there would necessarily be a limit to the shortening of the distance between the-notches, so that the blanks of less than a certain length could not be made; but, with the construction and arrangement shown and described, blanksof any length, within limits, and with the notches quite close together'or farther apart, can be made on one and the same machine.

.After the notches are thus formed in the lon cleats A of the partially .formed or sti blank, so that V-shaped notches B are formed in the blank, as shown in Figs.

7 and 8, and after the grooves C are formed in the sheet of veneer, which grooves preferably extend parallel with the grain of thewood, of course, the partially separated sections 'of the sheet are then en-. tirely separated from each other by the rotary cutters 28 which are mounted on a shaft 29 behind the saw 25, each cutter consisting of a disk having asharp edge which will make athin. cut'entirely through the sheet without cuttin away any of the materialthereof, thus caving the two severededges oithe sheet beveled in the manner shown. These rotary cutters are raised and lowered by bevel gear mechanism 30, through the medium of vertically disposed screws 31 that support the boxes or bearings 32 of the shaft 29, so that by rotation of the shaft 33 of said mechanism the cutters can be adjusted up and down in unison, thereby to accurately position their cutting edges in order to cause them to cut through the sheet in the desired manner. It will be seen that these rotary cutters 28 are also directly in line with some of the link belts or sprocket chains of the endless traveling work-holder, so that the veneer or other sheet material is solidly supported below the edges of the rotary knives or cutters thus provided, and whereby a very thin and clean cut will be made through the portion of the sheet remaining after the cuttlng of'the groove therein by the saws. If desired, and with a view to avoiding any inju'r to the binding wires of the blank, the said wires can be depressed or slightly bent away from the blank, or formed at some stage of the process with kinks at the points where the box side sections meet, as shown at 34 in Fig. 12, and the work holder may be formed accordingly to receive these bent portions of the binding wires.

These kinks 34, of course, tend to drawithe sections more tightly together at the corners of the box at some stage of the process, as

the kinking or looping of the wire in thisway tends to shorten the connection between the sections. The cutters 28 have sharp edges, of course, but by this is simply meant that the edges are sharp enough to sever the sheet by the making of a thin and clean cut, without cutting away any of the material of the sheet, so that the two severe-d edges will not only be beveled, but will also remain in engagement with each other, or very nearly so, thereb to provide a tight joint between the two e ges at the corner of a box when the two sections of the sheet are folded relatively to each other in the manner shown. Thus the V-shaped notches and grooves are formed first, and then the rotary cutters 28 roll along in these grooves and complete the operation by totally severing the sheet along transverse lines, with the result that the partially formed or stifi' blank is thereby reduced to a flexible blank which can be folded around the heads or end walls D of the box.

Sprin guards 35, of any suitable character, can is employed for holding the blanks down while passing under the saws, and similar or any suitable spring guards 36 can be provided for doing the same thing while the blanksare passing under the rotary cutters 28, thus preventing the blanks from rising and falling while being operated upon by the saws and cutters. I If desired, the end of the shaft 29 can be provided with a belt pulley 37, so'that the rotary cutters can be positively driven, thereby to facilitate the cutting action.

As shown in Figs. 7 to 11 inclusive, the construction is of a knock-down character, the cleats being provided with grooves 38 to receive the tongues or ridges 39 formed on the cleats 40 which are secured to the outer sides of the heads or end walls D, in position to thus interlock-with the cleats of the blank, thereby holding the heads or end walls in place without the insertion of any fastening devices. -It will be understood, however, that ordinary heads or end walls, stapled to the cleats of the blank, in the ordinary or well known manner, can be employed, if such is desired or necessary. Also, as shown, the blank comprises only three sections, which are flexibly connected together by the binding wires 4:1, in the well known manner, and a separate section E is provided to form the cover or top wall of the box, this cover having bindin wires 42 which have their ends formed with portions 43 to engage the loops 44 on the ends of the wires 41, whereby the cover can be tightly secured in place, the end portions of the wires being twisted or tightened in any suitable or well known manner. It is obvious though, that the invention is not limited to any particular form of box or crate, or to the making of blanks having any particular number of sections. The machine may have as many saws as are necessary to form the desired number of notches in the box blank, depending upon the shape of the box-to be made and the number of sections required for the blank, and the rotary knives or cutters which sever the sheet can be arranged accordingly, and can be of any desired number.

By beveling the edges of the sheets, as shown, the two edges themselves are adapted to be brought together, to form a tight joint along the corner of the box when the blank is folded, and the overlapping of one sheet by the other is not necessary, inasmuch as the bevel forms a tight joint between the two adjacent edges themselves, so that a lap joint is not necessary. In this way, therefore, the edge of each sheet is held by'the other sheet against displacement inwardly, by pressure on the outside for each sheet opposes the inward flexing of the other. The saws, of course, can be set at any desired angles, so that the two sides of the V-shaped notch will be at right angles to each other, as shown, or at either an acute or an obtuse angle, if such is necessary or desirable, which is one advantage of the V-notch construction shown and described, as distinguished from other formations by which theends of the cleats have heretofore been brought together.

The cover section E can, of course, be constructed in any suitable or desired manner, by any suitable machinery, so that its cleats and edges will properly engage the cleats and edges of the front and back wall sections. It is also obvious that the cleats and wires canbe secured to the veneer or other sheet material by staples, in the ordinary manner, and by any suitable machinery, thereby to produce the partially formed or stiff blanks. Thereafter the blanks are passed through the machine shown and described, in the manner explained, thereby to divide the long cleats into as many short cleats as is necessary in order to produce blanks of the required length, or having the desired number of flexibly connected sections.

' The notches B, as previously described, extend, when finished, entirely through the cleats, and into the veneer. O viously, however, notches can be out which extend either entirely through the cleats, without extending into the veneer, if such is necessary or desirable. As shown in Fig. 13, the notch F extends entirely through the long cleat, but not into the veneer. The saws 22, 23,

24, and 25 can be set, of course, by adjustingthem in the manner described, so that notches or openings or V-shaped cuts w1ll be made in the cleats, either as shown in Fig. 8 and Fig. 12, oras shownin Fig. 13, depending somewhat upon the character of the veneer or wood or other sheet material employed and the quality and thickness thereof. If the notches or V-shaped cuts are made as shown in Fig. 13, then the V-shaped groove is cut in the veneer b a cutter G, as shown in Fig. 14, and its e ge is provided with a double bevel exactly in alinem ent with the two sides of the notch F, so that the V- shaped groove thus cut in the veneer will extend through to the outer surface of the blank, along a sharp line that will show on the under side of the veneer, which is the outer side when the blank is folded. In such case, these cutters G, which are the same as the cutters 28, but perhaps a little thicker, will be rapidly rotated to actually cut away some of the sheet material, thereby to form the V-shaped groove in the veneer. With this adjustment of the machine, the cleats are subdivided by one step, without scoring or cutting the veneer, and the separation of the veneer into sections is then accomplished by another step in the process or method, by the rapidly rotating'cutters G, so that the blank becomes flexible, as previously described. When the machine is set-or adjusted to operate as shown in Figs. 5," 6 and 12, the saws make a reliminary groove in the veneer, as explained, and the cutters 28 then merely slit the bottom of such groove, and in this case the cutters 28 of hardened tool steel, for example, can be adjusted to roll on the tops of the link belts, the latter having flat surfaces for this purpose, or even being provided with a slight groove for the edge of the cutter 28, so that the latter will just cut through the veneer, thereby to form the thin and clean and straight .line of division or separation on the outer side of the blank, and in such case the cutter 28 will not cut away .any of the sheet material, or is not required to do this. In Fig. 13, however, the operation will probably require an actual cutting away of some of the sheet material, depending somewhat upon the thickness and quality of the sheet material. In either case, however, the sheet material is preferably held down perfectly flat by the presser feet 35 and 36 at each side of the saws, and at each side of the rotary cutters, so that if the material is warped or uneven it will not be improperly cut-that is to say, such warping will not interfere with the cutting of a clean and straight groove of uniform depth and width in the veneer, and will not interfere with the cutting or notching of the long cleats to divide the latter into as many sections as there are sections for the blank.

Thus it is obvious that the invention is not limited to a box of any particular size or shape, or to a box having any particular number of sides, nor to the making of blanks having any particular number of sections, as the number of sections will vary according to the shape of the box, the square or rectangular box shown being merely illustrative of one form of the invention. As shown, the box blank has the cleats secured to its inner surface and the binding wires to the outer surface thereof. Also it will be seen that the invention is not limited to any particular adjustment of the saws, inasmuch as they can be adjusted to merely cut through the cleats, without cutting into the veneer, or may-be adjusted to cut through the cleats and into the veneer, thus forming a preliminary groove to receive the rotary cutter; and, while the saws are shown in staggered relation to each other, so that one side of the V-shaped cut is made first, and the other side afterward, it is obvious that both sides of the out can be made simultaneously by suitable arrangement of the saws, should this method be preferred to the other method or process which involves the formation of one side of the cut first and the other side afterward. By V-shaped notches, it willbe understood is meant a out which extends either entirely through the blank, or a out which extends only partially through the blank, or through the cleats, for the notching of the inner side ner shown and described, or by any suitable method or machinery.

What I claim as my invention is 1. A machine for cutting the cleats and sheet material of a partially formed box blank to divide the blank into flexibly connected sections, comprising instrumentalities for entirely severing the cleats on a line extending across the blank, thereby forming oppositely disposed notches therein, leaving the sections of the cleats still connected end to .end by the sheet material, a structure for supporting the blank during the operation, and cutting means disposed in position for severing the sheet material along said line, leaving the sections united merely by the flexible connection between them.

2. A structure as specified in claim 1, said cuttin means including a cutter having its edge ormed to make a thin straight out through the sheet without cutting away any of the material thereof.

3. A structure as specified in claim 1, said 1 cutting means including a cutting disk disposed in position to engage the inner surface of the blank and formed with a sharp edge adapted to make a thin straight out through the sheet without cutting away any of the material thereof. 7

4. A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities being adapted to cut a groove in the sheet to form the line for said cutting means.

5? A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities including a saw disposed at an an le to form one side of the notch, and anot er saw disposed at an angle to form the other side of the notch, the two saws being disposed one ahead of the other to operate successively on the cleat, so that V- shaped notches are successively cut in the cleats on said line.

6. A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities being disposed in position to successively cut opposite notches in the cleats nearer one end of the blank, and thereafter to successively cut opposite notches in the cleats nearer the other end of the blank.

7. A structure as specified in claim 1, said structure comprising a traveling workholder topropel the blanks along 'sidewise, so that the cleats extend transversely of the direction of travel, said instrumentalities being disposed in position to form a groove along said line and to form the notches in the cleats of the moving blank,

and said cutting means being disposed in position to pass through the groove and notches thus previously cut by said instrumentalities.

8. A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities including saws arranged to form V-shaped notches in the cleats, and to cut a V- groove in the sheet which the severing of the sheet involves a material, along said line on the inner surface of the blank, said structure comprising a traveling work-holder to carry the blanks along sidewise, so that the cleats extend transversely of the direction of travel, and said cutting means including a rotary disk having a sharp edge formed to traverse said groove and make a thin straight cut through the sheet without cutting away any of the material thereof. I

9. The process of making a box blank, comprislng the fastening of cleats and flexible binding members to the sheet material to form a stiff blankhaving said cleats on the inner surface of the blank and the binding members on the outer surface thereof, cutting notches in the cleats to completely sever and thereby divide each cleat into a plurality of sections, leaving the sections still connected by the sheet material and the flexible members, and completely severing the sheet material transversely in line with said notches, so that the sheet material is entirely divided after the cleats and binding members are. secured thereto, finally leaving the sections of the blank connected merely by said flexible members.

10. A process as specified in claim 9, comprising the grooving of the sheet when the notches are cut in the cleats, thereby partially to sever the sheet, and thus forming grooves along which the complete severing is thereafter efi'ected.

11. A process as specified in claim 9, comprising a V-formation of said notches, and a similar \l-fOrmation between the edges of the sheet, substantially as shown and described, prior to the complete separation of said edges.

12. A process as specified in claim 9, in

cutting operation which is accomplished without cutting away any of the material of the sheet. i

13. The'process 'of makin a box blank, comprising the securing o cleats to the sheet material to form a stiff blank, cutting notches in the cleats to completely sever and thereby divide each cleat into sections, leaving the sections still connected end to end by the sheet material and thereafter completely severing the sheet material transversely in line with said notches, so that the sheet material is entirely divided after the cleats are secured thereto.

14. A process as specified in claim 13, involving the grooving of the sheet to form a line for the final severing thereof. 15. A process as. specified in claim 13, in which the severing of the sheet involves a cutting operation which is accomplished without cutting away any of -the material of the sheet.

16. A process as specified in claim 13, in

which one side of the notch is made first, and the other side afterward so that a V- notch is formed, and in which the sheet is grooved while the notches are being made, so that a groove is formed in linewith the notches to partially sever the sheet, the final and complete severing being accomplished afterward along the bottom of the groove.

17. A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities being adjustable to cut through the cleats without cutting .into the sheet material, if desired, or to .cut through the cleats and partially through the sheet material, to form a groove along said. line if the latter method is necessary or desirable.

18. The process of making a wire-bound box blank, comprisingthe fastening of Wires to sheet material to form a stiff blank of the required length, and thereafter severin the sheet material entirel across the b ank, without cutting said wires, to provide a plurality of separate sections which are disposed edgewise together and flexibly con-' nected merely by said wires.

19. A process as specified in claim 18, including the fastening of cleats to the sheet material, and the severing of said cleats into sections before the sheet material is severed.

20. A process as specified in claim 18, including two successive cutting operations to accomplish the complete severing of the blank into sections, so that a notch is first cut in the bla and thereafter a cut is made entirely through the sheet material at the center of said notch. H

21. A process as specified in claim 18, in-

cluding the step of forming a. V-notch by cutting first one side thereof and then the other, thereby also at the same time and by this same step forming a V-groove in the sheet material, and thereafter cutting entirely through the sheet material along said groove. I

22. A process as specified in claim 18, including the flexing of the wires to prevent them from being injured by the cutting means. I y

'23. The process of making a wire bound box, comprising the stapling of wires to sheet material, using the same staples to also secure long cleats to the sheet material, thereby to form a long stifi' blank of the desired length, cutting notches in said cleats at predetermined points between said staples, to divide each cleat into short sections, and also completely severing the sheet material in line with said points, leaving the sections of the blank flexibly connected merely by the wires previously stapled thereto.

24. The process specifiedin claim 23, in which the severing of the sheet material is preceded by the cutting of grooves along the lines predetermined for the severance of said material.

25. The process specified in claim 23, in which the notches .are cut successively in each cleat, and the sheet material is grooved along the lines predetermined for the subsequent complete severing of said material.

26. The process specified in claim 23, in"

which-the cutting of said notches precedes the complete severing of the sheet material.

ALBERT G; WETMORE.

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