US2674308A - Machine for cutting and perforating photograph prints from a continuous strip thereof - Google Patents

Description

Apnl 6. 1954 M. KNOBEL 2,674,308

' MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF 'iled July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet l Apr 6, 1954 M. KNOBEL 2,674,308

, MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mania/ WM 760 g W5:

Aplll 6, 1954 KNQBEL 2,674,308

MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 zyw m% 5 1 Apr l 1954 M. KNOBEL MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF Filed July 12, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 April 6, 1954 M. KNOBEL MACHINE FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPH PRINTS FROM A CONTINUOUS STRIP THEREOF 49 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July l2, 19

REGULATED Pan/[n SUPPLY Patented Apr. 6, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT "OFFICE MACHINE'FOR CUTTING AND PERFORATING PHOTOGRAPHJPRINTS' "FROM A CONTINU- IOUS STRIP THEREOF Max KnobeLArlington, Mass., as'signor to Win- "throp-Atkins 00., Inc., Middleboro, Mass a corporation or =-'Massa'chusetts -Application J uly 12, 1949,-Seria1=No. 104,274

6' Claims. ,1

This invention relates ltosmachines. for operating on strips of sheet material and particularly to a machinefor automatically operating on a strip placed therein in. response to indicia carried by the strip.

Conventional feeding means in the form of feed rolls, reciprocating platens, etc. cannot be depended upon to present strip material to operating instrumentalities with such accuracy as to insure placing the. operations exactly with respect tospredetermined points, areas, etc. due to small errors in synchronization of the feeding and operating instrumentalities which accumulate in long runs to produce large displacements, to slippage, to backlashin 'the parts and to changing atmospheric conditions which affect the length of the strip. This becomes particularly important in operating on strip material which is to be divided into lengths containing repeating finite areas bearing indicia of like or unlike character or othersintelligible .matter which would be rendered valueless if ,the'divisions occurred withinthe compass of such an area. Such is the case Where it is desirable to out completely processed'strips of photographs so that the individual photographs'will' have the printed area properly centeredwithi respect to its marginal areas and withreference to other structural features such as perforations and score lines at one marginal endas may be provided for assembling Jandfastening'the photographs in sets between paper covers and for permitting removal of one or more ..of the prints from the assembly withoutremoving'the fastening means and covers.

The principalv objects of the invention are to ing perforations so that the prints maybe assembled between paper covers, and. a score line so that one or more of the assembled prints may be separated from the paper covers without removing the rest. Otherobjects are toprovide a machine to which the strip may be introduced without preliminaryadjustment or synchronizing of the strip with referenceto the operating. in-

istrumentalities and hence can bet-operated with unskilled help, which .will require a minimumflof 2 adjustment. duringoperation, which will require a minimum of alteration of the strip itself, and which will accommodate strips of different widths.

In the illustrated machine and in accordance .with onetaspect of the invention there are. instrumentalities for operating upon a strip of sheet material, means for advancing the strip to a position to be operated upon by the instrumentalities, and .means arranged in the path of the traveling strip responsive to preformed reference marks or elements on the strip to effect actuation of the instrumenta'lities at points corresponding to the spacing of the reference marks or elements on the strip. Preferably the reference marks are in the form of finite areas or spots of different light-absorbing characteristics from the remainder of the strip and the means for effecting. operation of the instrumentalities is a light-sensitive element receiving light for effecting its operation from that part of the traveling strip in which arelocated the aforesaid areas or spots of 'diiierent light-absorbing characteristics. Alternatively the reference elementsmaybe slots and there may be meanssin the form of a pneumatic motor, for example a vacuum-actuated motor, arranged tombe supplied with air through the strip each time a hole or slot therein comes oppositethe motor to change the flow of air through the motoror to'break the vacuum and thereby to effectopera'tion of suitable means to initiate actuation of the operating instrumentalities.

The machine is specifically designed for operating upon a printed strip of photographs so as to separate the individual photographs or prints from each other and leave a border around each, the border at one end being of somewhat greater width than. that at the other end and havingv formedtherein a series of holes for receiving fastening means so that they may be assembled inpapercovers and a line of weakness so that one or more of the photographs may be torn out of theassembled booklet without damaging ,it. ,Accordingly 'the operating instrumentalities include a cutter for severing the striptclear across, punches; for cutting the fastener .openings,...and a scoring tool for forming .theline of weakness across the strip.

Thestripfeeding means is in the form .of a pair-of feed rolls. which advance the strip and, in accordance with the invention, the means, for actuating the'foregoing instrumentalities con- .comitantly renders the'feeding means ine'fiec- 'tive and: applies brake means to the strip close to the operating instrumentalities so as to immobilize the strip during the operation. The strip is coiled on a reel and a guide is placed between it and the instrumcntalities to guide the strip to the instrumentalities. In accordance with a further aspect of the invention both the reel and the guide are adjustable for receiving different widths of strip.

Other objects and advantageous features in the construction of the machine will be apparent from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a vertical elevation of the machine as seen from the left side;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine as seen from the top;

Fig. 3 is a vertical end elevation of the machine as seen from the front;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a single print severed from a strip of prints;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary vertical side elevation. partly in section, enlarged to show the details of the feeding guide and brake means;

T is a fragmentary plan view of the guiding means;

Fig. 8 is a transverse vertical elevation in section on the line 38 of Fig. 2 showing the means for actuating the instrumentalities at predetermined times;

Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic illustration of the strip feeding means, brake feeding means and the operating mechanism for effecting operation thereof;

Fig. 10 is a plan view of a preprintecl photographic strip which is to be operated upon by the machine;

Fig. 11 is a wiring diagram of the circuit for controlling operation of the machine;

Fig. 12 is a vertical section through the stripcarrying reel showing the details of its construction; and.

Fig. 13 is a diagrammatic View of an alternative means for actuating the operating instrumentalities.

Referring to Fig. 1, the device comprises in general a box frame id, operating instrumentalities l2, feeding means M, and means l6 for initiating actuation of the operating instrumentalities 2 at the proper times to divid the strip into suitable lengths and to perform certain other operations thereon as will appear hereinafter.

The box frame lil consists of a base plate l8 (Figs. 3 and 4) from which rise vertical, spaced, parallel walls 28 and 22, bolted or otherwise secured to the base. A lateral extension 26 of the base extends from the Wall to receive part of the operating mechanism. The foregoing frame may be a single casting rather than a fabrication.

The operating instrumentalities l2 are situated at the forward part of the frame and are arranged to operat on a strip of sheet material supplied thereto which is moved across an anvil 23 (Figs. 1 and 6) rigidly supported on rearwardly extending horizontal ledges 29 formed on the inner sides of the walls and extends transversely between the side walls 20 and 22. The anvil 28 is in the form of a solid block of metal at each end of which there is formed a vertical opening 38 for receiving the lower end of a vertical post 32. A rigid bar 34 having openings 33 near its ends is mounted for vertical movement on the upper ends of the posts 32, extends transversely of the anvil,

and forms a support for the operating instrumentalities which are attached to it. To this end the forward face of the bar 34 is recessed to form in its lower front corner a right-angle rabbet 35 (Fig. 6) and in this rabbet there are bolted the operating instrumentalities which consist of a scoring tool (it, a punch 40 and a cut-off member 42. The scoring tool consists of a fiat blade hav ing a blunt edge which is arranged to be brought into engagement with the upper surface of a strip resting on the anvil and to scor the upper surface sufliciently so that it forms a line of weakness therein. Preferably the operating edge of the scoring tool is not a straight edge but is somewhat wavy so as to impart what is known as a deckled edge to the strip material upon separation of the scored parts. The punch ii! comprises a fiat bar having along its lower edge a plurality of spaced teeth 13 (Fig. 8), each of which is substantially rectangular in cross section, for punching through the strip of material resting on the anvil so as to form a plurality of spaced rectangular openings in the strip through which a spiral-type hinge member such as is employed in making up or assembling a plurality of the prints between paper covers may be inserted. A plurality of openings 4-! corresponding to the teeth 15 are formed through the anvil below the punch bar into which the lower ends of th teeth telescope during the punching operation to provide a clean shearing cut and through which the severed waste pieces may be discharged. The cut-off member is also in the form of a fiat bar and has a lower cutting edge which cooperates with the forward edge of the anvil to shear the strip clear across.

The bar E l which carries the foregoing instrumentalities is moved vertically by attachment to the under side of an overhanging, forwardly-projecting web 6d, the opposite ends of which are formed integral with spaced upwardly-projecting cheeks 46 which in turn are formed integral with the forward ends of a pair of spaced rails M (Fig. 2) joined by cross rails 19 to form a rigid frame $53 which is of generally rectangular shape and extends rearwardly 0f the machine between the side walls 26 and 22. At the rear end of the frame there are upwardly-projecting cheeks 50 (Fig. 1) which are pivotally supported on studs 52 set into the side walls so that the frame 8 may he raised and lowered about the pivots 52 and hence to raise and lower the operating instrumentalities carried by the forward end of the frame with respect to the anvil 25. Since the frame 48 is pivoted at one end and is rocked on the pivot, its forward end moves in an arc and even though the radius of this are is comparatively long as represented by the distance between the center of the openings 32 and the centers of the pivots G2, the posts would not slide freely into and out of the openings during rocking movement of the frame because the parts are perpendicular to the anvil. In order topermit free movement it is necessary to provide a small clearance to compensatefor the slight arcuate movement of the holes relative to the posts and this may be accomplished either by making the holes of slightly larger diameter than the posts or by making the posts of slightly smaller diameter than the holes. Reciprocation of the frame 48 is effected by means of a link 54 (Fig. 1) pivotally fastened to a horizontal shaft 56, the ends of which are journaled in th side rails of the frame 48 and with its lower end pivotally connected to an eccentric pin 58 fixed to one end of a shaft Ed journaled for rotation about ac'zaaos a horizontal axis in *a bearing 6'2 and :driven through the intermediary 0f -a one-revolution clutcht l (Figs. 2and 3) from a drive 'shaft fifi connected for continuous rotation i through a gear-reduction unit I 63 to amotor' M fastened to the' lateral extensionfifi at the base. A single rotation of the eccentric pin'58 will be effected each time the clutch 64-is engaged to move the 'frame48 downwardly'about its pivots 52 thus to bring the operating-instrumentalities into engagement witha strip i-estin-gonthe anvil and then'to return the instrumentalities to their inoperativeposition. GClutching and declutching of the one-way clutch *B4 will be described hereinafter.

The strip feedingmeans I4 (Figs. 1; Sand-9) is comprised of a lowerconstantly dr-iven feed roll andan upper feed'rol1'I2,=Which rotates freely abouta horizontal axis parallel to theaxisof the roll 1|];serving merely to hold the strip against the driven feedrollJIl. The ':lower feed roll I0 is mounted for rotation I on a horizontal shaft. I4 journaled in the side Walls 2|] and 22 and has on 'oneend apulley I6 '(FigsJ'Z' and 3) over which there is placed a-be'lt 13,- the opposite end of which 'is-engaged with a pulley- 83 fixed to theshafttfi. -=Accordingly the feed roll 'lfi isconstantly rotated aslongas theim otorMis energized. The upper feed roll "I2 is journaled between a .pair of upwardly extending arms 82whichare formed integral with aipair of-spaced rails 84- which extend forwardly toward the front of the machineand are pivotally: supported at 86 on the side walls so that the upper feed-roll '12 maybemoved to and from the upper surfacef the lower feed roll III. The rails84 are j'oined bycross, rails 85 (Fig. 2) to'form a rigid fram a'l. Normally the frame 81 is drawn downwardly-inacounterclockwise direction about its pivots 86 so as to hold the upper feed roll 'I'Z'in contact with the surface of the l owerfeed rollbya yoke (Figs. 1, 4' and9) which includes spaced legs 88,'the upper-ends of which are pivotally 'supportedon .pins 90 'setinto the side rails 84. The lower end ofone vofthe legs '88 extends nearly to the'base plateand is pivotally fastened toone end of a lever- 96. rBetWeen the legs' 88 there is fastened a-web 9 Ixtothe=under side ofwhich' there is in turn fastened an armature, not-shown, which forms'part of a solenoid L2, the coil ofthe magnet 93 of which is fastened to an adjustable platform' 95 below .the armature. a

"Whenthe solenoidLZ is energized themagnet attracts thearmature holding it"thereagainst and thereby holds'the rear endzof' the frame'tl depressed. A spring Ts fastened to the forwardsend of the frames? and to'therbaseplate tends to pull it *in clockwise directionabouti its pivot and hence to separate the feed rolls. The lever 96 is pivoted ona stud 98 set into the wall 20 andits forward end I09 is arranged to liewithin a cam groove IfiI formed on a cam I62 fastened to the shaft 68. When the solenoid L2 is disengaged by interruption of'its circuit as will appear hereinafter, the spring'Ts tiltsthe framed! so as to disengage the armature SI from' the magnet fi3. This inturn tilts 'the lever 96, the rear-end of which is connected to oneof the legs 88 in adirection to withdraw the forward ends of'the lever "from the notch 85; thereby releasing the one revolution clutch. The tilting 0f the framealso lifts theupper roll I2 out ofengagement withthe lower roll I0 thereby to'discontinue'a positive feed of th strip passing betweenthe same. To restore feeding. movement of the..strip.a' lever Ifld-is'pivposition the nub IIfi engageswthe end IIO of the iever lMthereby depressing its rear end and restoring thearmature to itspositionsagainst the magnet which -is :now energized and will, when the armature is mechanically restored thereto, hold the armature thereagainst.

The platform 95 is comparatively long; being formed integral with thedower, part of the. post I08 so that while it is fixedxat'its forward end, its rear end maybe elevated or depressed within limits to adj ust the. iheightwise' position of the magnet. An adjusting screw I09 is fixedin the free end of the :platform for this purpose and has a lower end resting on the baseplate.

"The strip; materialis: advanced. by the feeding =means froma reel I'IB (Figs; 1-,and'2) :mounted on a horizontal shaft I18 journaled in openbearing slots I20 formedin the sidewalls and is'deliver-ed throughza guide I22. (Figs. 1 and'G) to the anvil 28 where it is acted upon by. the foregoing instrumentalities. -While3the feeding of the strip is interruptedby. separation of the upper feed roll fromthe lower feed roll,-a;more positive immobilization of'the strip is..-desirab1eto insure accuracy of.:placement. :Accordingly brake means I24 (Figaro and9) isprovidedforclamping the strip against the anvil aheadzof. the operating-instrumental-ities. The .brake :means is carried at theiforwardends .of the frame 81 on upwardly projecting arms-I26 betweenzthe upper ends of whichis bolted a'transversely-extending bar I28 (Fig. 6) havingiin itsiunderside a-channel I30 for reception of a bar =.I 32. In" the lower surface of thexbar I32 there is fastened-a rubber or other resilient friction strip I34. lThebar I32 is fastened 'ln thechannel. I32 by means'of bolts I36. Since the brakemember is securedto the forward end of the frame 8!, tilting movement of the frame to separate the upper rollv I2 from the lowerroll I0 concomitantly brings thebrake strip I34 into engagement;withithe travelingstrip andpresses it firmly against .the. upper surface 0f. the anvil.

F'Ihe' reel II6 (Figs. 1, 2=and 12) upon which the strip is coiled comprisesazcylindrical body portion I38zand end flanges I45! and I42 which have on theiroutersurfaces hubs I44 and I46. .The hubsareboredaxially so as to receive the :horizontal' shaft H8 and to support the reel for rotation :thereabout'between the walls 20 and One of' the flanges; namely the flange I42 (Fig; 12), is constructed to beseparably associated with the cylindrical-body portion I38 and has on theside opposite the hubv I46 a corresponding hub I48. There is interposed between the hub I48 and the flange I42 an intermediate hub I50 which has-a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the body portion I38. The body portionhas an axialpassage I52 therethrough into which the hubs I46 and I48 are adapted telescopically to fit, and with the foregoing construction it is apparent that the width of the reel, that is, the distance between the flanges I40 and I42 may be changed by reversing the position of the flange I42, that is by engaging one or theotherof the "hubs I46, I48 within the passage I52. In one position the intermediate hub I50 forms'an extension-of the surface of the body portion I38 so that the reel will reotally mounted on a studIOG at thetop of a post ceive a strip bfone width --whi1e"-in"the" other 7 position the intermediate hub I50 will be situated at the outside and the reel will be shortened by the width of the intermediate hub so as to accommodate a strip of narrower width.

The foregoing construction permits use of a reel which has a constant over-all length between hubs, thereby affording no difficulties with the bearings, the distance between which is fixed by the spacing of the walls 29-22. A springpressed nub I54 (Fig. 2) is fastened to the wall in a position to engage an end of the shaft I I8 to hold it in place.

The guide I22 (Figs. 1 and 6) consists of a fiat plate I56 of generally rectangular shape, the lateral edges of which are arranged to rest on inwardly projecting ledges I58 (Fig. 7) formed on the inner surface of the walls 20 and 22 at such a level that its upper surface is substantially tangent to the upper surface of the feed roll Ill and in the plane of the upper surface I of the anvil 28. There is fastened to the upper surface of the plate I56 a pair of spaced angles forming with the plate guide channels ISI] for engaging the marginal edges of a strip advanced by the feed rolls toward the operating instrumentalities and to hold it centered with respect thereto. On the underside of the plate there is provided a second pair of spaced side channels I62 arranged at a difierent spacing so that a wider or narrower strip may be guided thereby. Thus by reversing the position of the guide plate I56 and adjusting the size of the reel IIG, strips of two different widths may be operated upon in the present machine.

The means I6 for bringing the operating instrumentalities into engagement with the strip at the proper time is responsive to certain reference marks carried by the traveling strip to effect the foregoing actuation in accordance with the spacing of the reference marks thereon. As illustrated (Figs. 8, 9 and 11) a source of light for example, a small electric bulb set into a socket I64 fastened in the wall 20 is arranged below the anvil 28. To concentrate the light and project it vertically upward, a bracket I66 is fastened I to the wall 20 so as to support a reflector I68 below the bulb and a lens I'II] above the bulb in such a manner as to direct rays from the bulb vertically upward toward a light-sensitive cell P housed within a hood I14 fastened to the frame above the operating instrumentalities. A hole H6 is drilled in the anvil 28 directly above and in axial alignment with the center line of the lens IH} into which there is set a translucent member, for example, a quartz or Lucite rod I78 or other similar material having unidirectional light-transmitting properties. Holes are drilled in the punch bar, the block 34 and the lip 44 to form a vertical passage I80. Another lighttransmitting rod I82 is placed in the vertical passage so as to be in axial end-to-end alignment with the light-transmitting rod I'IB. The lower end of the rod I82 is above the anvil sufliciently to permit free movement of the strip below it and is flush with the under side of a guide plate I83, the under surface of which is engaged with the upper surface of a strip resting on the anvil. Accordingly the rods I18 and I82 provide a continuous conduit for the passage of light from the bulb through the anvil, paper and operating instrumentalities. The upper end of the rod I82 enters an aperture in the hood I74 and is fixed thereto so that light transmitted by means of the foregoing rods from the light bulb will be carried to the light-sensitive cell P. The

passage I is sufliciently large so that the operating instrumentalities may reciprocate vertically relative to the rod. The central portion of the plate I83 is cut away to permit operation of the punches on the strip. The sensitive cell P is normally adjusted so that as the strip travels over the anvil there is sufiicient light conducted thereto and through the strip to activate it and activation of the sensitive cell is arranged through a suitable circuit which will be described hereinafter to energize the coil of the magnet 93 and hence hold the one-revolution clutch inoperative. The strip s which is being operated upon (Fig. 10) has on it a series of spaced indicia in the form of narrow reference marks 1 situated between printed areas p in the blank bordering areas b between the printed areas. The reference marks 1 are made by overexposing the sensitized film thereby to produce black marks, although other means could be used to make appropriate marks, which will pass less light than the portions of the strip between them; accordingly when one of the reference marks passes between the ends of the light-transmitting rods, the light intensity is reduced so that the light-sensitive cell P responds and actuates the aforesaid circuit momentarily to deenergize the coil which in turn permits the spring Ts to effect operation of the one-revolution clutch and this in turn brings about operation of the operating instrumentalities to out off a section of the strip, punch it so as to form a series of apertures or holes h therein and to form a score line 10 thereacross.

The aforementioned circuit for operating the instrumentalities in conjunction with and in response to the light-sensitive cell P, as shown in Fig. 11, includes a tube VI operable by response of the cell to effect actuation of a solenoid LI. This in turn closes a switch SI which, by way of a tube V2, energizes the solenoid L2 which, as heretofore explained, is constituted by the magnet and armature 93 and SI, respectively.

An alternative means (Fig. 13) may be employed to bring about actuation of the operating instrumentalities in which air is the controlling medium. As illustrated, in lieu of filling the drilled hole I16 with a light-transmitting rod, the light source 1 and the light-sensitive cell P, an air motor a in the form of a bellows is clamped to the under side of the anvil over the drilled hole. The lower end of the bellows is connected by a flexible conduit 0 to an exhaust engine or place of low pressure and removal of air from the bellows normally tends to collapse it in 0pposition to a coil spring d situated within it which tends to hold it extended. A lever e pivotally fastened to the lower end of the bellows will be operated by movement of the latter to actuate the switch S shown in Fig. 11. The reference elements 7" on the strip will now be small slots or holes and each time a hole in the strip comes opposite the drilled hole in the anvil the vacuum will be broken, the spring d will extend the bellows and the lever e will close the switch S, hence actuating the solenoid L2 as heretofore described. In this arrangement the tube VI and the solenoid LI will be omitted.

In operation when a light beam directed toward the light-sensitive cell P is momentarily interrupted by the passage of a reference mark r on the strip, current flow from the power supply will be interrupted so that the grid in the tube VI will become negative. This in turn interrupts the current flow through the tube VI with the result that the solenoid LI will be deacvasos energized thereby opening-the switch SI. As soon as theswitch SI opens, the grid of the tube V2 will become negatively :biasedandthe solenoid L2 will be deenergized. lmmediately upon deenergization of the solenoid-L2, the spring Ts tilts the frame 84 which separates the armature 9| fromthe magnet 93. This in turn tilts the lever 96, the rear end of which is connected to one of the arms 88 in a direction to withdraw the forward end of the lever from the notch 95 so that the one-revolution clutch is released. The shaft 60 is then rotated through one revolution to actuate the operating instrumentalities. In the interim between the time that the index mark on the strip cuts ofi the light to the light-sensitive cell and the actual discontinuance of feeding movement and clamping of the strip, the index mark will have moved beyond the light-sensitive cell so that the light beam is re-established. As soon as the light again passes to the cell P the grid in the tube VI becomes positively biased, current fiows through solenoid LI, and the switch SI is closed. Closing of the switch SI makes the grid of the tube V2 positive, thus reenergizing the solenoid L2. The magnet of the solenoid L2, however, is not strong enough to draw the armature back to it but this is taken care of so that the armature is positively restored to its original position against the magnet by tilting of the lever I04, the forward end of which is raised by the nub M6 on the cam as the latter completes a full revolution. Simultaneously the lever 96 is tilted in a direction to raise its forward end into a position to reengage the notch 95 and hence render the one-revolution clutch inoperative.

If the alternative means for actuating the operating instrumentalities is employed, the switch S will be actuated by means of the bellows a instead of the light-sensitive cell and associated tube VI and solenoid Ll.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A strip cutting and punching machine comprising a frame, an anvil on said frame, a rocker mounted on the frame, said rocker being pivoted at its rear end to the frame and having its forward end located adjacent to the anvil, said rocker being movable on its pivot to raise and lower its forward end with respect to the anvil, cutting and punching instrumentalities fast to the forward end of the rocker for movement therewith to and from the anvil, the length of the rocker being such that the movement of the cutting and punching instrumentalities is substantially vertical with respect to the anvil, power operated means operable intermittently to depress the forward end of the rocker to effect cutting and punching and then to elevate it, said power operated means being responsive to a signal, a second rocker on the frame pivoted intermediate its end for rocking movement, the forward end of said second rocker being close to the cutting and punching instrumentalities, a brake block carried by the forward end of said second rocker movable by said second rocker into engagement with the anvil just behind the cutting and punching instrumentalities, a driven feed roll on the frame near the rear end of the second rocker, an idle feed roll journaled on said second rocker for movement into and out of enease e t w t th dr n f e 0 power op ated means for rocking the second rockerfrom a position in which the feed rolls are' engaged for feeding a strip of material between them toward the anvil to a position in which they are disengaged and the brake block ispressed against the strip overlying the anvil to hold the strip immobile, said signal for effecting operation of the power operated means for depressing the first rocker simultaneously .efiecting operation of the power operated. means for rocking the seOOI d rocker in a direction to disengage the feed and apply the brake.

2. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein the anvil and forward end of the first rocker have cooperating guide members for constraining the cutting and punching instrumentalities to movement in a predetermined path.

3. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein the signal is carried by the strip and there is means responsive to the movement of the signal to a predetermined position on the anvil to effect actuation of said power operated means.

A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein the signal is carried by the strip, the strip supporting surface of the anvil has an aperture therein adjacent to the cutting and punching instrumentalities, there is a light source and light sensitive element arranged opposite the ends of the aperture and in vertical alignment therewith and the light sensitive element is responsive to a change in the amount of light transmitted to it from the light source through the aperture and the strip to effect actuation of the power operative means.

5. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein the signal is carried by the strip, the anvil and support for the cutting and punching instrumentalities have vertically aligned apertures therein adjacent the cutting and punching instrumentalities, located at opposite faces of the strip, there is a light source and light sensitive element located above and below the apertures and in vertical alignment therewith, the light sensitive element is responsive to a change of the amount of light transmitted from the light source through the apertures and the strip to efiect actuation of the power operated means and there is a light collocating means located between the light sensitive element and the light source for enhancing the transmission of said light through said apertures.

6. A strip cutting and punching machine according to claim 1 wherein the signal is carried by the strip, the anvil and support for the cutting and punching means have vertically aligned 3,138l'- tures therein adjacent to the cutting and punching means at opposite faces of the strip, there is a light source and light sensitive element located below and above the apertures and vertically aligned therewith, the light sensitive element being located out of the range of movement of said support, the light sensitive element is responsive to a change in the light transmitted from the light source through the apertures and the strip to efiect actuation of the power operated means, there is a collocating element located between the light source and the lower end of the aperture in the anvil for directing light thereto, and a light conducting element extending through the aperture in the support from the anvil upwardly to the light sensitive element, said conducting element being fixed. and said support being slidable on it.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 Number Name Date 810,977 Poure Jan. 30, 1906 851,366 Mossberg Apr. 23, 1907 947,744 Stohr Jan. 25, 1910 Foote Mar. 17, 1914 Number 12 Name Date Cumfer Dec. 29, 1925 Ferenci Jan. 22, 1935 Rubens Apr. 2, 1935 Gulliksen Aug. 11, 1936 Hayssen Nov. 3, 1942 Pitt et a1. Jan. 4, 1944 Bascom et a1. Feb. 8, 1944 Sjostrom Apr. 11, 1944

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