U.S. patent number 3,826,419 [Application Number 05/289,237] was granted by the patent office on 1974-07-30 for device for sequentially driving large headed gimp nails.
Invention is credited to Giordano Bruno Maestri.
United States Patent |
3,826,419 |
Maestri |
July 30, 1974 |
DEVICE FOR SEQUENTIALLY DRIVING LARGE HEADED GIMP NAILS
Abstract
A device for sequentially driving nails, especially gimp nails
connected in a row by a tape, into a workpiece, in which the nails
are fed seriatim by a pawl adapted to engage behind the leading
nail of the row into a cylindrical passage in which a driver rod is
movable along an active stroke for driving the nail in the passage
into a workpiece. Movement of the driver rod along its active
stroke is actuated by a trigger lever mounted at one end for
pivotal movement between a rest position and an actuating position.
The trigger lever has at its other end a transverse pin engaging in
a slot provided in a second lever pivotally mounted at one end and
carrying on at the other end the aforementioned pawl. The slot has
two slot portions including an angle with each other and arranged
so that when the trigger lever moves from the rest towards the
actuating position, the pin riding along one of the slot portions
will cause the pawl to move the leading nail into the
aforementioned passage, while during further movement of the pin
through the other slot portion the pawl will be slightly retracted
before the trigger lever reaches its actuating position.
Inventors: |
Maestri; Giordano Bruno (Milan,
IT) |
Family
ID: |
11224362 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/289,237 |
Filed: |
September 15, 1972 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
|
|
|
|
|
Sep 21, 1971 [IT] |
|
|
28872/71 |
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
227/136;
206/347 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B25C
1/003 (20130101); B25C 1/001 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B25C
1/00 (20060101); B25c 001/04 () |
Field of
Search: |
;227/136 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Custer, Jr.; Granville Y.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Striker; Michael S.
Claims
What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters
Patent is set forth in the appended claims.
1. A device for sequentially driving gimp nails, connected in a row
by a tape and having each a relatively large head and a coaxial
pointed stem, into a workpiece, the device comprising, in
combination, reciprocable driver means including a driver rod
movable along an active stroke for engaging the head of a nail and
driving the latter into a workpiece, and a return stroke; guide
means including a cylindrical passage for guiding said rod and the
nail driven thereby; passage means communicating at one end with
said cylindrical passage for guiding the tape connected nails
toward said cylindrical passage; actuating means for actuating said
reciprocatable driver means and including a trigger lever pivotally
mounted at one end so as to be tiltable from a rest position to an
actuating position causing said driver rod to move along its active
stroke; and feeding means for feeding the lead nail of said row in
said passage means into said cylindrical passage, said feeding
means comprising a pawl arranged to engage behind the leading nail,
a second lever carrying said pawl at one end and pivotally mounted
at the other end thereof, said second lever being formed with a
slot having two slot portions including an angle with each other,
and a pin fixed to the other end of said trigger lever slidingly
engaging said slot, said slot portions being arranged in such a
manner so that during movement of said pin in one of said slot
portions, said pawl is moved towards said cylindrical passage to
place the leading nail into the path of said driver rod, and so
that movement of said pin in the other slot portion causes partial
return movement of said pawl before said trigger lever reaches its
active position.
2. A device as defined in claim 1, and including spring-biased jaw
means in said passage means closely adjacent said cylindrical
passage for centralizing the stem of a nail relative to the axis of
said cylindrical passage before the nail enters such cylindrical
passage.
3. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said cylindrical passage
is formed with a pair of opposite openings, including a pair of
pivotally mounted wings respectively extending through said
openings, and having slanted faces converging toward the axis of
the cylindrical passage and spring means engaging said wings for
urging said slanted faces towards each other for guiding the
pointed end of a nail along said axis during driving of said nail
by said driver rod.
4. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said passage means for
guiding said tape connected nails toward said cylindrical passage
comrises a central groove for the passage of the stems of said
nails therethrough, and a pair of coplanar faces to opposite sides
of said groove for guiding the tape.
5. A device as defined in claim 1 including a hose magazine
connected to the other end of said passage means.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention is concerned with a device for sequentially
mechanically driving upholsterers' nails or gimp nails having a
large nearly hemispherical head and a relatively short pointed stem
secured coaxially with said head at its concave face. More
particularly, this invention is concerned with a new mode of
providing a plurality of such nails, adapted to be fed into a nail
driving device, in particular a hand-device generally similar to a
conventional stapler or nail-driver, and designed to be supplied
with a plurality of gimp nails and for driving such gimp nails in
quick succession, to expedite upholstery work, or the like.
2. The Prior Art
Nail and staple driving devices are well known in the art and
widely used. A number of such devices consist of a portable unit
having a pneumatically actuated reciprocating driving tool,
designed to perform, upon operator's command, a driving stroke by
which one staple or nail is driven off a plurality of aligned and
closely adjacent staples or nails positioned in a suitable
magazine, guide means wherein the driving tool operates and spring
means located in said magazine to bias the staples or nails towards
said guide means for sequentially positioning one staple or nail in
the path of said driving tool, as said tool has performed its
return stroke, preparatory for a subsequent driving stroke.
Such known devices satisfactorily operate only when staples or when
nails having a very small or a T-shaped head are to be driven-in.
In other words, such devices are adapted for driving nails or
similar fasteners which can be supplied in stock wherein the stems
of the nails are aligned in closely adjacent relationship. It is
evident that large headed nails, in particular gimp nails, cannot
be supplied to, and properly fed and driven-in by currently
manufactured devices.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a new and
improved device which is not subject to the above limitations, and
which provide the craftsman with certain advantageous means
enabling such craftsman to fastly, precisely and effortlessly
driving gimp nails as required in upholstery and similar work.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new
feeding arrangement controlled by a trigger lever used for
actuating the driving tool.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
With these and other objects in view, the device according to the
present invention for sequentially driving gimp nails connected in
a row by a tape into a workpiece, mainly comprises reciprocatable
driver means including a driver road, movable along an active
stroke for engaging a head of a nail and for driving the latter
into a workpiece, and a return stroke, guide means including a
cylindrical passage for guiding the aforementioned rod and the nail
driven thereby, passage means communicating at one end with the
cylindrical passage for guiding the tape connected nails toward the
cylindrical passage, actuating means for actuating the
reciprocatable driver means and including a trigger lever pivotably
mounted at one end so as to be tiltable from a rest position to an
actuating position causing the driver rod to move along its active
stroke, and feeding means for feeding the leading nail of the row
in the passage means into the cylindrical passage. These feeding
means comprise a pawl arranged to engage behind the leading nail of
the row of nail, a second lever carrying the pawl at one end and
pivotally mounted at the other end thereof, in which the second
lever is formed with a slot having two slot portions including an
angle with each other. A pin fixed to the other end of the trigger
lever is slidingly engaged in the aforementioned slot and the slot
portions are arranged in such a manner so that during movement of
the pin in one of the slot portions the pawl is moved toward the
cylindrical passage to place the leading nail into the path of the
driver rod, and so that movement of the pin in the other slot
portion causes partial return movement of the pawl before the
trigger lever reaches its actuating position.
These and other objects of this invention will be made apparent
from the following detailed description of a preferred mode of
carrying out same, such description being referred to the
accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a driving device designed according
to the invention;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of said device,
taken in the plane II--II indicated in FIG. 6;
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of a detail of the device,
taken in the plane indicated at III--III in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 illustrates same detail, with the elements positioned for
the passage of the head of a gimp nail being driven;
FIG. 5 illustrates another detail, associated to the feeder means,
in a fragmentary sectional view taken in the plane V--V of FIG.
6;
FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of same another detail,
taken in the plane indicated at VI--VI in FIG. 5;
FIG. 7 illustrates a further detail, shown in section the taken in
the plane indicated at VII--VII in FIG. 2;
FIGS. 8 and 9 are similar to FIG. 2, have parts illustrated in
elevation, and show the device in different steps of the driving of
a gimp nail;
FIG. 10 illustrates in enlarged scale, partly in side elevation and
partly in a longitudinal sectional view, a portion of the stock
material provided for supplying a device such as illustrated in
FIGS. 1 to 9 inclusive;
FIG. 11 is a fragmentary plan view of same stock material; and
Fig. 12 is a sectional view of one gimp nail, driven-off the stock
material of FIG. 10 and drive in a wooden structural element, for
example.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 illustrates an apparatus generally comparable with a
conventional well known pneumatically operated stapler, designed to
be connected to a source of pressurized air (not shown) by means of
a suitable hose, the outlet end portion of which is fragmentarily
indicated by dot-and-dash lines. Such apparatus comprises a
substantially cylindrical body 10 wherein a known driving tool
actuated by cylinder-piston means is located. Such body 10 is
fixedly secured to or integrally formed with a hand-grip forming
extension 12. Below the hand grip suitable trigger means are
located for actuation of the apparatus. Such trigger means
preferably consists of a trigger lever 14 pivoted at 16 to the hand
grip.
At the lower end of the body 10 an outlet piece 18 is located, such
outlet being bored for axial driving of individual gimp nails each
having a relatively short pointed stem 26 and a relatively large
essentially hemispherical head 28, the details of such gimp nails
being shown in larger scale in FIGS. 10 and 12. Such gimp nails,
per se, do not form part of the invention.
Within the body 10 a cylinder 20 (fragmentarily shown in FIG. 2) is
located. This cylinder forms a part of a well known pneumatically
operated driving tool actuator, which will not be described and
shown as appertaining to current art. By acting on the trigger
lever 14 in the direction indicated by arrow A in FIG. 1, a
push-button 22 connected to an also well known valve device (not
shown) is depressed by which the actuator is caused to promote the
stroke of the driving tool to drive a nail in direction B. Said
trigger lever 14 comprises a cross-part 24 positioned engage the
valve operating push-button 22 from below.
Apart from the features of the invention, described below, which
enables a known device (such as a pneumatically operated stapler or
nail driver) to drive-in large headed nails, such device operates
and can be used essentially as such known device. The operator,
gripping the device at its extension 12, positions and applies the
outlet piece 18 to the surface S into which one gimp nail is to be
driven. By acting on the trigger lever 14, a gimp nail 26, is
forcedly expelled through said outlet piece and driven-in.
One feature of the invention consists in the improved magazine
portion of the device. Such portion includes a guide passage 30
(FIGS. 2, 8 and 9) longitudinally joining another extension 32 of
the body 10. Such guide passage is longitudinally grooved for
guiding the stems 26 of the gimp nails, in aligned and parallel
relationship while the large heads thereof slide over planar
surfaces at both side of the groove.
Another important feature of the invention consists in the fact
that the gimp nails 26, 28 are fed into the magazine portion in
form of a stock material wherein a plurality of gimp nails are
secured to each other, in aligned, parallel and evenly spaced
relationship (the interval between the stems 26 of adjacent nails
being equal to or very slightly greater than the diameter of their
heads 28), by a strip or tape 34 of essentially flexible material
which can be readily severed or torn-off between subsequent
nails.
This latter feature can be seen in detail in FIGS. 10 to 12. Such
tape 34, preferably made of plastic material, such as polyvinyl
chloride, is few tenth of a millimeter thick and wide less than the
diameter of heads 28. The tape 34 has evenly spaced perforations
122 preferably beaded at 124, wherein the several stems 26 are
individually fitted until the heads 28 abut on the upper face of
the tape. This tape is further provided with evenly spaced and
symmetrical indentations 126, where the heads 28 are adjacent (see
in particular FIG. 11), to facilitate the severing or rupture of
the tape during driving of individual nails.
It is evident that, during driving-in of individual nails for
securing a material 116 (FIG. 12), such as leather or a texture, to
a bearing structure 118, such as a wooden component of a piece of
furniture, a piece 34a of the tape 34 will remain below the head 28
of the driven-in nail. This fact does not prejudice the drive-in
and the firm grip of the nail in the structure 118, and it is also
advantageous. The piece 34a will remain fully concealed below the
nail head 28 and protects the inside of same from moisture
penetration, for example, thus preventing rusting or oxidization of
the welded connection at 112 of the stem 26 to the head 28,
staining of the covering material 116, as sometimes occurs when
conventionally manually driven-in gimp nails are used.
Referring back to FIG. 1, the said stock material consisting of the
plurality of gimp nails 26, 28 and the tape 34, might evidentally
be very long, when including a relevant number of gimp nails spaced
according to the diameter of their heads 28. Such stock material
can be slidably set within a proper magazine consisting preferably
of a hose 36 (fragmentarily shown in dot-and-dash lines in FIG. 1)
connected to the inlet end portion of magazine portion 32, as above
indicated. Such hose 34 can be wound about a large diameter drum,
or otherwise sustained and arranged, or the stock material can be
suitably coiled into a suitable container having an outlet arranged
for having the stock material transferred into the magazine portion
of the device.
Referring now to FIGS. 2 to 5, 8 and 9, there is shown a
cylindrical passage 38 bored co-axially with the pneumatically
operated piston (not shown) reciprocatably located in cylinder 20,
the said grooved guide passage 30 having its outlet in passage 38,
whereby the foremost gimp nail in said grooved guide 30 can be
transferred into the cylindrical passage 38 (see FIG. 8). Such
cylindrical passage is of diameter slightly greater than that of
the heads 28 of the gimp nails. The pneumatically operated piston
has a cylindrical driver tool 40 secured thereto for reciprocation
in said bore 38. The lower end portion 42 of the driver tool is
concave and preferably tubular for abutment from above on the head
28 of the gimp nail positioned in said bore, for driving the nail
in direction B, through the outlet piece 18 and then driving it in
where desired, upon actuation of the known pneumatic mechanism,
triggered by a pressure exerted on said push-button 22.
The trigger lever 14 acts on said push-button 22, by means of its
part 24, and on a second lever 44 oscillatably pivoted at 46 to the
body 10 of the device. At its lower end, said second lever 44 is
pivoted at 48 to a small pawl lever 50 adapted to engage individual
heads 28 of the aligned nails and to step-by-step successively
positioning the foremost nail in the bore 38. An extension 52 of
the pawl 50 is provided for disengaging such pawl from the nails,
when the operator desires pulling back such nails from the magazine
portion of the device. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, other ratchet
pawl means 54 are provided for preventing unduly back motions of
the forwardly progressed nails. Such ratchet pawl means can be
raised for disengaging the nails upon acting on same extension 52.
The ratchet pawl 54 is pivoted at 56 to the structure 32 of the
magazine portion and it is spring biased by a small spring 58.
The connection between the trigger lever 14 and the second lever 44
is provide by a pin 60 secured to the end portion of lever 14
(opposite to its end pivoted at 16, FIG. 1) and slidably engaged in
a groove 62 in the second lever 44. Such groove has two differently
inclined parts along which the said pin 60 successively runs during
the motion of the trigger lever in direction A.
When the trigger lever 14 is moved by the operator from its rest
position, shown in FIG. 2, in the direction of the arrow A
indicated in FIG. 8, the pin 60 on the lever 14 will at first ride
upwardly in the lower portion of the slot 62 formed in the second
lever 44 carrying the pawl 50 so that the latter will be tilted in
clockwise direction about its pivot pin 64 to thereby move the
leading nail 28 into the path of the driver rod 40 when the pin 60
reaches the position as shown in FIG. 8. In this position of the
pin 60, the cross member 24 on the trigger lever 14 is still spaced
from the push button 22 as clearly shown in FIG. 8. During the
further upward movement of the pin 60 to the position as shown in
FIG. 9, in which this pin rides along the upper portion of the slot
62, the lever 44 will be tilted in counterclockwise position so
that the front end of the pawl 50 is withdrawn out of the
cylindrical passage 38 to avoid any possible interference of the
front end of the pawl with the downwardly moving driver rod 40.
Such rearward movement of the pawl 50 is shown slightly exaggerated
in FIG. 9. At the end position of the trigger lever 14, as shown in
FIG. 9, the pushbutton 22 is depressed, which actuates in a known
manner movement of the driver rod 40 along its driving or active
stroke. During return movement of the trigger lever 14 from the
position shown in FIG. 9, to the position shown in FIG. 2, which
may be caused by a spring, not shown in the drawing, the front end
of the pawl will first move slightly forwardly, whereafter the
lever 44 is turned in counterclockwise direction about its pivot
pin 46 so as to move the pawl 50 to the position shown in FIG. 2,
at which the front end of the pawl engages again behind the head of
the nail which is now in leading position.
It is evident that, owing to the fact that the considered gimp or
upholsterers' nail 26, 28 is provided with a head 28 of diameter
many times larger than that of its stem 26, such stem cannot
properly be guided through a guide passage (such as the bore 38)
dimensioned for guided movement of said head. While the proper
positioning of a nail in the bore 38 and the exact abutment of the
end 42 of the driver tool 40 of the head of the nail could
statistically ensure a relevant number of correct driving-in of
nails, some misdrivings might however occur also.
Therefore, according to an advantageous feature of the invention,
the outlet piece 18 is preferably provided with means adapted to
improve the driving and to correct misalignment, if any, during the
driving stroke. Such means are made, for example, as shown in FIGS.
3 an 4. Two (or possibly more) wing pieces 70 are symmetrically and
oscillatably located at the sides of the outlet piece 18, and
biased towards each other by relatively weak springs 72. The lower
portions of said wing pieces are converging towards each other and
jointly form a nearly conical guide, pointing downwardly and having
its downward pointing apex in the axis of bore 38 and driver tool
40, 42. Therefore, as the driver tool starts it downward driving
stroke, a sequence of steps nearly instantaneously occurs:
i. as the driver tool end 42 abuts on the nail head in the bore 38,
and starts drive same to downwardly, the edge of the head 28 severs
or tears the tape 34, the part 34a (FIG. 12) below said head being
carried with the nail;
ii. the inwardly converging lower portions of the wings 70 are
contacted first by the lower pointed end of the stem 26. If such
stem was not exactly co-axial with the bore 38, such pointed end
will be deviated in the axis of the bore by sliding on the inner
face of the contacted wing;
iii. as the drive of the nail progresses, the head 28 will at its
turn engage the wings 70, causing the same to diverge (overcoming
the springs 72) for passage and driving out of the head of the
nail.
It will be noted that the pointed end of the stem 26 will protrude
from the outlet piece 18 before the head 28 will start to diverge
the said wing pieces, and therefore such end of the stem will have
engaged the material into which it is being driven. Such engagement
will ensure the proper position of the stem and the correct
completion of the driving-in of the gimp nails.
FIG. 7 illustrates an ancillary implement which further improves
the correct positioning of any gimp nail in the bore 38,
preparatory to driving-in. Such implement has also swingable wing
pieces 74 biased by small springs 76 and symmetrically located in
the outlet portion 78 of the grooved guide passage 30 in the
magazine portion 32 of the device. Such wing pieces 74 form a
tapered passage therebetween, in which the stems of the gimp nails
are caused to improve their co-planarity with the axis of the bore
38 while being pushed thereinto by the pawl 50.
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or
two or more together, may also find a useful application in other
types of devices for sequentially driving nails into a workpiece,
differing from the types described above.
While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied
in a device for sequentially driving gimp nails connected in a row
by tape into a workpiece, it is not intended to be limited to the
details shown, since various modifications and structural changes
may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the
present invention.
Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the
gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current
knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without
omitting features that from the standpoint of prior art, fairly
constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific
aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should
and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of
equivalence of the following claims.
* * * * *