Usm Corporation

British United Shoe Machinery Ltd.

Dvsg Patent Verwaltungs Gmbh

Dvsg Engineering Und Patentverwaltungs Gmbh

British United Shoe Machine Ltd.

Frank C Price

Raymond Hanson

Anthony M White

John Davies

Malcolm Tillyard

James R Flanders

David C Reedman

William H Berrill

Derek H Garner

Joseph A Shutt

David W Halford

George H Bosworth

Nigel R Tout

Andrew P Clarkson

Nicholas J Campling

Philip Reader

David W Whittingham

A filter unit is made of two portions (14) of rigid corrugated material secured together along lands (50,52) extending parallel with the corrugations and, if desired, intermediate them, and also along lands (54) formed along one end of the corrugations, thus closing the passages formed when the two portions (14) are secured together. Suitable fastenings are adhesive bonding, and metallic fasteners, e.g. eyelets, or stitching. Further flanges (56) may be provided for facilitating a connection with a suitable suction or other air-drawing source; also if desired, such further lands (56) may be out-flanged for facilitating such connection. Apparatus for forming the sheet material is also provided whereby material from a continuous supply is progressively formed between two sets of blade members (102), the blade members being moved sequentially and alternately (as between the two sets) into forming engagement with the sheet material. The blade members are preferably heated in order to treat the material being formed to render it rigid. The apparatus further may comprise a severing blade (112) by which the thus formed material is cut into suitable portions (14).

Self-supporting filter units

For accurately positioning a shoe upper on its last preliminarily to a pulling over and toe lasting operation, the machine comprises an optical scanning system (20) by which, in cooperation with a central processor unit (22), coordinate axis values can be determined for selected portions of the topline region of the shoe upper (the 'actual' values) and be compared with a set of taught data relevant to the shoe style, such taught data representing the positions in which the selected portions of the topline region of the shoe upper are to be located (the 'should be' values), the central processor unit (22) comparing the actual and 'should be' values and supplying correction signals to motors (16) associated one with each of the pincers (10, 12) whereby the shoe upper is selectively tensioned in order to achieve the desired location of the topline region of the shoe upper on its last.

Pulling over and toe lasting machines

A device applying a two-component composition to a workpiece surface comprises an applicator head (384) to which the two components are supplied separately via tubes (726, 382) arranged one inside the other. The applicator head includes a ball member (392) over the surface of which the components supplied via the tubes can flow and be applied to the workpiece surface, substantially unmixed at the point of application. The applicator head (384) supports a rotary brush assembly (398) which, when its annular operating surface portion is pressed against the workpiece surface, serves both to mix the substantially still separate components on the workpiece surface and to spread the thus formed adhesive composition over the workpiece surface. A gravity-fed system (T, RV1, RV2) is provided for supplying a first component and a pressurized feed system (P, R, RV3, RV4) for supplying a second component respectively to first and second bellows units (756, 744) from which said quantities are then fed separately at a controlled rate to the point of application (380). For metering the two components the bellows units are caused to increase or decrease in volume at a controlled rate, such that the component flow rate therefrom is constant throughout their operation. A control device for controlling the bellows units includes a pivotal lever (762) to which each unit is connected by an articulated linkage (760, 778).

Handling multi-component compositions

The device has a continuous adhesive-applying surface which is made up from a plurality of elements, articulated so as to enable the configuration of the surface to be varied by varying the relationship between the elements. More particularly, the elements comprise two base elements pivotally connected to one another and forming the base of the U, and two leg elements one pivotally connected to each of the base elements, forming the legs of the U. For adjusting the configuration of the surface, the distance between the pivotal connections of the leg elements with the base elements and also the distance between the remote ends of the leg elements are adjustable. For use in a pulling over and toe lasting machine, the central pivot between the two base elements is fixed in the machine so as to maintain the toe end of the applicator device in the correct relationship with other operating instrumentalities of the machine.

Adhesive applicator device

The transfer apparatus comprises a transfer arm (16) and a distributor (18). The transfer arm has two axes of movement (22,26) and is non-extendable so that it moves between a take-off station and an intermediate station (I) through a fixed distance. The distributor (18) has a table (50) which receives a shoe (S) at the intermediate station (I). Furthermore, the table (50) can be positioned at any one of four stations (I,F1,F2,F3) each aligned with a channel (12) of a heat setting apparatus (14). A pneumatic control circuit causes shoes (S) fed successively to the table (50) to be transferred in a sequence to the channels (12) by operation of pusher means. The apparatus is suitable for transferring shoes from a lasting machine, a shoe support (10) of which can be positioned at the take-off station, to a heat setting apparatus (14).

Transfer apparatus

In a combined heel seat and side lasting machine, in which the heel seat lasting operation takes place during the dwell time necessary for the cement side lasting operation, the backpart of the shoe remains free of any clamping pressure at least in and adjacent the backseam region thereof, which pressure would have the effect of forcing excess material out of the heel seat region into the region to be lasted by the side lasting instrumentalities, while at the same time provision is made for locating the shoe, prior to the side lasting operation, in a predetermined relationship, both heightwise and lengthwise, with the heel seat lasting instrumentalities. To this end, the shoe is first located lengthwise by the heel band (16), whereafter, with the shoe clamped against a holddown (20), the heel band is retracted out of engagement with the backseam region of the shoe during the side lasting operation. If desired, to assist in controlling any excess material, breast line grippers (172) may be provided, in which case the heel band, in its retracted position, is caused to clamp on to the shoe to maintain the tension provided by the breast line grippers and enable them to be released prior to initiation of the side lasting operation.

Lasting heel seat and side portions of a shoe

The apparatus comprises a support for a shoe part which is to have adhesive on a surface thereof activated by heat, and a heating member arranged to emit infra-red radiation to heat the shoe part. The heating member is mounted for movement between an operative position thereof in which the heating member is in opposed relationship with the support so that the shoe part can be heated, and an inoperative position in which the heating member is substantially enclosed by infra-red radiation reflecting screens.

Shoe part heating apparatus

The rod feed apparatus is made up of a number of telescoping tubes. A first tube (16) is fixed in the apparatus frame and has a connection (46) for a flexible pipe by which it is connected to a melt chamber. A guide tube (36) has a sliding fit with and can slide in the tube (16), the guide tube being secured to a lead-in tube (32) which is clamped inside a support tube (18), the support tube (18) being arranged to slide on the outside of the first tube (16). Rod adhesive is supplied through the lead-in tube (34), into the guide tube (36) and then to the first tube (16). The guide tube is thin-walled so that effectively the rod has a sliding fit with the internal bore of each of the three tubes referred to. For feeding the rod, a jaw (38) projects through slots in the support tube (18) and lead-in tube (32) and is mounted for movement with the various tubes (18, 32, 36). In operation, as the jaw and tubes referred to are advanced, the guide tube passing inside the fixed tube (16), while as they are retracted, a further jaw member (42) grips the adhesive rod and prevents its return movement therewith. The apparatus is suitable for use especially, but not exclusively, with machines for performing lasting operations on shoe bottoms, wherein adhesive is applied progressively along side portions of the shoe bottoms prior to operation of lasting instrumentalities thereof.

Apparatus for feeding adhesive in rod form

In a tack seat lasting machine the wiper plates (90) first effect an 'advancing+inwiping' movement and thereafter an 'inwiping only' movement, while a central wiping member (76), about which the wiper plates pivot, advances only. To achieve this motion, the member (76) is supported by an arcuate projection (78) which is accommodated in grooves (83) formed in the wiper carriers (88), the center of curvature of the projection and grooves coinciding with the axis of the wiper plates. Thus, the central wiping member is always brought to the same 'back tack' position (but the shoe can be adjustably positioned relative thereto by varying the fore-and-aft position of the heel band (20)). The nail pattern is adjustable, without affecting the back tack position, by limiting the stroke of the cylinder controlling the operation of the wiper assembly.

Machine for lasting heel seat portions of shoes

A single-station combined toe and side lasting machine comprises pulling over instrumentalities 20, 22 for tensioning an upper over its last, toe lasting instrumentalities, including toe wipers 38, toe pad 48 and toe band 50, a heel support 56, two adhesive applying nozzles 28 and side lasting instrumentalities 114 constituted by two lasting rollers 176. In operation, with the upper tensioned, first the shoe is clamped by the toe lasting instrumentalities and heel support to allow adhesive to be applied progressively along opposite side portions from the toe to heel breast. Then the lasting rollers operate progressively from the ball region to the heel breast, and, when the rollers have cleared the ball region, the inwiping movement of the toe wipers is completed. The nozzles and side lasting rollers are mounted on a common carriage 26 which moved rectilinearly, supports 116 for the rollers being mounted for movement thereon about three perpendicular axes 82, 122, 140. The rollers are also supported by carriers 174 on said supports for pivotal movement about a further axis 170. In this way, the rollers can follow the contour of the shoe bottom and also the angular relationship of the rolers with the shoe bottom can be varied in two planes. For following the shoe bottom contour the rollers (and also, independently, the nozzled) are moved by stepping motors 80, 166 (96) in accordance with a program instruction, under the control of which also the angular relationship is varied. The carriers for the rollers also support wiping fingers 222 which ensure that the lasting margin of the upper is correctly positioned for engagement by the rollers.

Combination toe and side lasting machine

The machine comprises a shoe support (20) on which a shoe can be positioned, and which includes a toe end engaging member (48) which senses the shoe length, two abutment faces (84, 90) being set along shoe length sensed. The machine also comprises adhesive-applying nozzles (262) and side lasting rolls (224) mounted on a carriage (216) for movement relative to the last support. The 'start' position of the nozzles is set by valves (334,336) actuated by cams (330, 332) positioned by a sensing member (326) engaging with one abutment face (84). Various other machine operations, which take place at the ball region of the shoe bottom, the position of which region thus varies proportionately with shoe length, are controlled by further valves (354, 356) actuated by cams (350, 352) carried on a control rod (344) the position of which is determined by a sensing member (338) engaging the other abutment face (90), an appropriate length grading arrangement (342) connecting said member and said control rod. The position of the abutment face (84) can be adjusted by the operator to accommodate different shoe styles.

Machine for lasting side portions of shoes

A shoe side or combined heel seat and side lasting machine has two side lasting assemblies, each comprising wiping elements mounted for pivotal movement, independently of adjacent elements, about first and second axes extending respectively transversely and lengthwise of the last bottom. For providing a substantially continuous wiping surface, the first axis lies in the plane of the work-engaging surface of its associated element, along the longitudinal center line thereof, when said surface lies horizontally. Also each shoe lasting assembly can pivot bodily about an axis adjacent the edge of the work-engaging surface of the most heelwardly disposed element, in the plane of its work-engaging surface. Associated with each pair of wiping elements is a clamp pad, said pad being caused clampingly to engage the shoe, while the inwiping movement of the elements continues, by operation of a common piston-and-cylinder arrangement.

Growing community of inventors

Leicester, United Kingdom

Frank C Price