US946631A - Die for helically fluting wire-stock. - Google Patents

Description

G. H. BALLOU.

- DIE FOB HELIUALLY FLUTING WIRE STOCK. Y v nPLmu'Iox rum) JULY 22. 1908.

r 946,631 Patented Jan. 13,1910.

FUSE, -1 v Q i FIE-E- INVENTEIR.

eaesr To all whom it may concern:

- CHARLES H. BALLOU, F N'QBTH ATTLEBORO, MASSACHUSETTS.

DIE FOR HELICALLY FLUTIN'G WIBE-BTOGK.

Specification of Letters .ratent.

Patented Jan. 18, 1910.

Application filed July 22, 1908. Serial No. 444,761.

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. BALmU,

' a citizen of the United States of America,

and a resident. of North Attleboro, in the county of Bristol and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dies for Helically Fluting.

Wire-Stock, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to means for mechanically and simultaneously producing a plurality or series of longitudinally extending helically or diagonally arranged parallel ribs and grooves in the peripheral surface of round wire stock; the latter preferably being quite thin and tubular, although solid wire may be employed.

The object I have in view is primarily to or series of dies, capable of rapidly, accurately, and cheaply converting or. transforming the plain outer surface of a length of wire into a helicall 0 surface having comparatively shallow alternating ribs and grooves; the resulting product constitutes ornamental wire stock adapt L y "w rries wd I ed to be severed into short lengths or units and em loyed in the manufacture of articles 0 jewelry, as for example, chains, necklaces, bracelets, &c. Tubes thus ornamented, when having materially greater diameter than. wire stock, may be used in the arts other than that of jewelry, such as shadetice to rods, outer sleeves for gas-tubing, &c.

I am well aware that it is a common pracprovide tubes and even solid wire stock with corrugations extending In such case the die for producing the corrugations have the ribs and grooves thereof cut in the surface of the die opening exactly parallel with the longitudinal axis of the latter. In producing such corrugated wire the die itself is fixed or immovable, and the or prepared forward end of the stock extends through the dieso to be seized or gripped by suitably actuated jaws which in retreating from the die draw the wire through the latter in a wel-Lknown way. I am also aware that an integral wire having straight corrugations or rooves, as just described, has been subsequently twisted so as to form a product having the appearance or imitation of a plurality of wires twisted together. Such former products and dies I hereby disclaim.

In the accompanying sheet of drawings,

parallel g with the longitudinal axis of the wire.

Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a diedies revulubly mounted therein; a portion of the holder ca and one of the dies be' broken aw ay. ig. 2. is a corresponding to plan view. In this figure the wire or stoc is also represented in the act of being drawn through the first die, which action simultaneously converts the lain surface of the wire into a series of he ically arranged ribs and grooves. Fig. 3 is a transverse section, in enlarged scale, taken on line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4. 1s a back end elevation of the die member, a portion being broken away. Fig. 5 is a side view of a piece of thin plain tubular stock or wire havin a filler of wood or soft metal therein. Fig. 6 is an end view of the same. Fig. 7 is a side view of the,-

wire after being acted upon by my improved die, and Fig. 8 is a corresponding en view.

Again referring to the drawings, a. designates the base or die-holder member adapted to be rigidly secured in place in any suitable manner. As drawn it is provided with a series of four of my improved dies A, later described. The holder is counterbored from its front face or side to freely receive the dies; each counterbore, a, extends rearwardly a suitable depth and terminates in the annular bottom groove 6 adapted to receive a series of antifriction balls 0. The holder is also provided with a hole 6 cx tending therethrough and being concentric with the oounterbore, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. I V

The die, A, is cylindrical and made of steel, hardened, and fitted to rotate freely in said counterbored portion of the holder. The bottom or inner face of the die has an annular groove a, forming a fellow member of the groove b", for the balls 0. The die is provided with the central transverse aperture e, constituting the die proper, terminating or merging into the outwardly flaring mouth portion e. The said aperture e is in alinement with but. somewhat smaller in diameter than the hole I). The former, e, is provided with circumferentially spaced parallel alternating shallow ribs and grooves f (see also Fig. 4) extending in a longitudinal direction at an angle or diagonal with the bore or axis of the die and term:- nating in the said mouth portion e. See Fig. 3. The ribs and grooves of the die and the degree of their inclination with respect to the dies longitudinal axis are adapted n any manner holder is positioned with respect say to vided with gripping aws, as j, at the back if having its forward end portion reduced in the stationary die-carrying holder" (see aring the helical flutings or corrugations k a r e 946,631

impress or form their counter art in the! sin walls of the tube or stock, t .e pitch of ire helix or screw of the several ribs and rooves at the same time being determined r gaged by and conforming to the said. icimation of the corresponding members f the die. I

The several dies A are maintained end" See in the normal position in the holder a y the removable ca member a secured iereto by screws 8. T. e cap has an opening, therethroug'n concentric with each die, its iameter being somewhat smaller than that f the die, all as clearly shown. I

It may be stated here that when seamless ain walled plain hollow wire, as t, Figs. and 6, is to be transformed into wire havits wall corrugated with circumfereni ly disposed helical ribs and grooves I irefer to fill the bore of the tube. with some i oft -easily fusible metal, or even wooden 'ods, as 10, may he used, before the tube is :ubjected to the action of the dies, the said illing material being subsequently removed Assuming now that the die-carrying torn leting the product.

more fully formed, the last die of the series If desired the s toc may be annealed from time to time during its transformation. The outer diameter of the finished wireis by reason of the drawing process slightly less than that of the plain stock, the difference; however, being scarcely measureable on the drawings.

It may be added that the spirality or inclination of the ribs and mom-"es f of the die with respect to its longitudinal axis can be made right or left as desirable. In the drawings, Fig. 3, they are represented as being left hand, thereby producing in the wire helical ribs and grooves or'flutings having a right hand inclination. See Figs.

'2 and 7.

I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by United States LettersPatentz- 1; The combination with a stationary holder having a hole extending transversely therethrough and counter-bored from the front end thereof, of a revoluble die-member mounted in the said counter-bored portion, said die having a central transverse hole terminating in an outwardly flaring mouth,

the walls of the hole and mouth being proany well-known power driven device provided with a series of helically arranged of the holder adapted to grip the front end of the wire t about to be acted u on: the latter, provided with the filler r V w and diameter, is now freely inserted through the die and holder openings and gripped by the iawsj. As these gradually move away from rows Fig. 2) the said filled plain wire or stock t is forcibly drawn endwise in a nonrevolubie manner through the die A. The die, however, rotates axially (see arrow Fig. 1} in conformity with and by the inclination of the ribs f, the latter'at the same time form (Fir'. 8) in the stocks surface or wall and producing the finished wire a n is of course understood that the filling w is removedjrom the wire in any suitable way. In producing the said product It I refer to employ a plurality of the dies A, t a openings 4; thereof varying successively in a fiadually decreasing ratio or size in a wellown manner. That is to say, the passage of the stock through the first die produces the initial corrugations; upon passing it through the next die the corrugations are ribs and grooves, anti-friction balls between and engaging the inner end of the die member and the adjacent end of the counterbore and a plate secured to the holder having an a erture therethrough registering with the dies mouth.

2. The combination. of a plurality of mounted independently revoluble annular dies, A, each having the wall of its bore or die part pro er merging into an outwardly fiarin mout and provided with a series of paralilal helically fluted ribs and grooves terminating in said mouth, thebore of the first die being slightly greater than that of the next die, and so on progressively in a decreasing order with respect to the number of dies, and means adapted when in use t3 e'wire oemg acte seize the free end of t upon and forcibly draw it (the wire) nonrevolubly through the die, substantially as described.

Signed at Providence, R. 1., this 21st day of July, 1908.

CHARLES H. BALLOU.

Witnesses:

Geo. H. Rams-run, Canvm H. Brown.

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