Artos Engineering Company

Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Artos Engineering

Gerald E Blaha

Robert O Dusel

Ragnar Gudmestad

Harold J Keene

James J Berres

Fred J McMillin

Leon J Gorski

An improved wire feeding and measuring apparatus having a pair of cooperating feed belts to feed a wire in an axial direction. A drive wheel is located downstream of the feed belts and rotates in contact with the wire at a slightly faster speed than the feed belts, while a measuring wheel, operably connected to an encoder, is also engaged with the wire and is located opposite the drive wheel. The measuring wheel is biased toward the drive wheel by a spring exerting a light force. Guides are associated with each wheel and each guide includes a wire supporting surface and a slot located adjacent the supporting surface. The periphery of each wheel projects a slight distance through the slot in the respective guide and engages the wire. The guides maintain the wire in a tangential relation to the periphery of the wheels and prevent wrap around of the wire on the wheels.

Wire feeding and measuring apparatus

A wire feed mechanism alternately feeds a pair of parallel wire strands A and B through spaced-apart turret jaws on a rotatable turret, through a cutter-stripper head, through a wire gathering device and through spaced-apart conveyor clamps in a conveyor. When a desired length of first wire strand A is fed, a first conveyor clamp closes on strand A and the cutter-stripper head severes a wire segment 12A from strand A and strips the newly-severed ends of strand A and wire segment 12A. The turret then rotates 90.degree. in one direction to present the stripped end of strand A to a first terminating machine which attaches a terminal thereto. While termination of strand A occurs, a desired length of the other strand B is fed through the cutter-stripper head and wire gathering device and through a second conveyor clamp, whereupon the latter clamp closes on strand B and the cutter-stripper head severs a wire segment 12B from strand B and strips the severed ends of strand B and wire segment 12B. The turret then pivots 90.degree. in the opposite direction to present the stripped end of strands B to a second terminating machine which attaches a terminal thereto. The conveyor moves both wire segments 12A and 12B to a location where a wire lifter mechanism lifts wire segment 12A from the first conveyor clamp, where the conveyor moves wire segment 12B in the second conveyor clamp below wire segment 12A, and where a third terminating machine which attaches a single common terminal to the stripped ends of both sements 12A and 12B to provide a wire harness.

Apparatus and methods for making terminated wire segments

A machine including apparatus for accurately measuring and inserting into the machine almost any desired predetermined length of insulated wire, a device for cutting the wire to that length and stripping the insulation from the ends of the wire, and apparatus for attaching a terminal to one or both of the stripped ends. The measuring apparatus includes a pair of belts each reeved about a pair of pulleys. From the measuring apparatus the wire passes through a flexible tube and through two linearly aligned grippers, separated by the cutting and stripping device. Once the wire is fed to the proper length, the two grippers grip the wire, and the wire is cut and stripped, creating a lead of the predetermined length. As the wire and lead are drawn back, the stripped ends may be inspected by an inspection device so as to ensure that they are properly cut and stripped before electrical terminals are applied. Each of the two grippers then rotates in the same direction, that is, both clockwise or both counterclockwise, to align the respective end of the wire and the lead with a respective terminal attaching machine. There an electrical terminal is attached to each end unless the inspection device has determined the particular stripped end to be not properly stripped. The gripping means then rotate back to align with each other again and the wire and lead are released.

Lead making machine

Apparatus is provided for repeatedly severing cable segments of desired lengths from a continuous strand of thick multi-conductor cable for stripping desired lengths of tough outer insulation sheath from the strand and segment ends, and for coiling the stripped segments. The apparatus comprises a cutter/stripper machine, a long-strip attachment mechanism, and a coiling mechanism. The cutter/stripper machine comprises an axially retractable/extendable wire guide tube into which the cable strand is fed while the tube is extended and a movable clamp grips the lead end of the strand. A stationary clamp grips the exposed portion of the strand when the tube retracts. A cutter/stripper head mechanism between the clamps severs the strand and scores the insulation sheath. The cutter/stripper mechanism and the movable clamp move away from the stationary clamp at different rates of speed to effect stripping, open to release the stripped cable segment, and then return to their starting positions. The long-strip attachment mechanism is optionally usable to completely strip extra-long lengths of sheath from the trailing end of the segment. The coiling mechanism is optionally usable to coil the stripped segments. A control system operates the cutter/stripper machine, the long-strip attachment mechanism and coiling mechanism in synchronism and employs a programmable electronic controller responsive to sensors in the cutter/stripper machine to control electric solenoid-operated pneumatic actuators in the apparatus.

Cutter/stripper/coiling apparatus for thick cable segments

A machine cuts elongated wire segments from a continuous wire strand. A belt type conveyor conveys each segment in incremental steps along a path, with the axis of each segment transverse thereto. The conveyor initially grips a segment near one end and presents it to a first terminal attachment machine on one side of the conveyor where a first terminal is attached. Then, separator devices cause the conveyor to temporarily release its grip on the wire segment to allow wire shifter devices, first, to axially shift the wire segment very rapidly a great distance so that the conveyor can regrip the wire segment near its other end and, secondly, to axially shift the wire segment slowly for a short distance to precisely position its opposite end in final position wherein a second terminal attachment machine on the other side of the conveyor attaches a second terminal to the opposite end. A control system comprises sensors for determining when the wire segment has been moved by the wire shifters. Each sensor comprises separable electrical contacts between which a wire segment is received and which bias closed to provide a control signal when the wire segment is withdrawn axially by a wire shifter device. The contacts of one sensor are movable near the conveyor to initially receive the drooping end of a wire segment and are movable away from the conveyor to ensure proper timing of contact closure.

Apparatus for axially shifting wire segments in belt type conveyor

A belt type conveyor is provided for conveying segments of wire cut from a continuous strand by a cutting machine to other wire processing machines, such as terminal attachment machines or the like. The conveyor comprises a pair of endless flexible belts supported one above the other by pulleys and guide rails so that the upper flight in the lower belt closely confronts the lower flight in the upper belt whereby wire segments entrapped between the flights are movable along the path of travel of the confronting flights. Each wire segment is disposed so that its axis is perpendicular to the path of travel of the flights and the ends of the segment extend beyond the sides of the flights so as to be accessible to the processing machines. A drive mechanism drives the confronting flights in steps or increments in the same direction and at the same speed. The belts and guide rails are constructed so that the confronting flights are biased toward each other to ensure a firm grip on the wire segments. A mechanism is provided to periodically separate the infeed ends of the confronting flights to enable insertion of a wire segment therebetween.

Cutter and belt type conveyor for wire segments

A belt type conveyor is provided for conveying segments of wire cut from a continuous strand by a cutting machine to other wire processing machines, such as terminal attachment machines or the like. The conveyor comprises a pair of endless flexible belts supported one above the other by pulleys and guide rails so that the upper flight in the lower belt closely confronts the lower flight in the upper belt whereby wire segments entrapped between the flights are movable along the path of travel of the confronting flights. Each wire segment is disposed so that its axis is perpendicular to the path of travel of the flights and the ends of the segment extend beyond the sides of the flights so as to be accessible to the processing machines. A drive mechanism drives the confronting flights in steps or increments in the same direction and at the same speed. The belts and guide rails are constructed so that the confronting flights are biased toward each other to ensure a firm grip on the wire segments. A mechanism is provided to periodically separate the infeed ends of the confronting flights to enable insertion of a wire segment therebetween. In one embodiment, a mechanism is provided to periodically separate the confronting flights at some location between the infeed and outfed ends thereof so as to enable a wire segment to be shifted axially relative to the confronting flights to suit the position of processing machines along the conveyor.

Belt type conveyor for conveying wire segments

Apparatus for high-speed production of sets of accurately and identically sized insulated wire leads having wire terminals at the lead ends comprises: conveyor clamps for releasably gripping and conveying sets of wire segments arranged in parallel spaced apart relationship in a common generally horizontal plane; conveyor means for advancing the conveyor clamps and sets of wire segments therein through processing mechanisms and to a collecting station; processing mechanisms including wire cutter and stripper mechanisms for accurately trimming both ends of the wire segments in the sets simultaneously and for stripping insulation therefrom simultaneously and terminal attachment mechanisms for simultaneously attaching terminals to both ends of the wire segments in the sets; and a wire gathering mechanism for each processing mechanism for accurately guiding the ends of the sets of wire segments therethrough and for holding the sets against displacement during processing.

Wire gathering mechanism for wire lead production apparatus

Apparatus for high-speed production of sets of accurately and identically sized insulated wire leads having wire terminals at the lead ends comprises: a feed mechanism including counter-reciprocating wire feed clamps for repeatedly drawing a plurality of separate strands of insulated wire simultaneously from a plurality of wire reels; a mechanism for simultaneously straightening and arranging the strands as they are drawn therethrough in parallel spaced apart relationship in a common generally horizontal plane; a severing mechanism for repeatedly severing sets of wire segments of predetermined length simultaneously from the strands; conveyor clamps for releasably gripping successive sets of wire segments received from the feed clamps; conveyor means for advancing the conveyor clamps so that the ends of the wire segments in the sets pass through processing mechanisms, and conveyor clamp actuator mechanisms for causing the conveyor clamps to initially grip sets of wire segments for conveyance and to subsequently release sets of the finished leads at a collecting station. The processing mechanisms include wire cutter and stripper mechanisms for accurately trim cutting both ends of the wire segments in the sets simultaneously and for stripping insulation therefrom simultaneously, and terminal attachment mechanisms for simultaneously attaching terminals to both ends of the wire segments in the sets. The apparatus further comprises a wire gathering mechanism for each processing mechanism for accurately guiding, positioning, and securing the ends of the sets of wire segments in the processing mechanism and for holding the segments against displacement during processing.

Apparatus for producing sets of accurately and identically sized wire

A rotary wire stripping machine for removing insulation from the end of an insulated wire including a reciprocating carriage which supports a rotating stripping head. The rotating stripping head includes a central bore for receiving the end of a wire and a pair of cutting blades which are movable radially inwardly to cut the insulation of the end of the wire. The reciprocating carriage may be moved from a first position wherein the stripping head receives the end of the wire to a second position wherein the blades pull insulation off the end of the wire.

Growing community of inventors

Waukesha, WI, United States of America

Gerald E Blaha