Performance Design, Inc.

Marvin Whiteman

Wayne Malmstrom

Embodiments of an punch machine and a quick-change die assembly are shown and described. The die assembly may be quickly installed and removed from the punch machine, without bolting or unbolting of either machine housing or the die assembly itself. The die assembly is slid into the machine through a hole in the machine housing and into a position which mates part of the die assembly with the push-bar. A clamp, with a handle outside the machine, is then pivoted against the die assembly. The push-bar is adapted to be self-supporting without being bolted to the die assembly, keeping the push-bar in place without manual adjustment and alignment. The die assembly preferably includes a die, pin retainer, and punch pins, and preferably includes a flexible, pivotal, or hinged pin strap to secure the pins to the retainer. The preferred die assembly includes a positioning system that biases the pin retainer with its pin heads out from the die a proper distance for easy and unobstructed sliding into the machine housing and into a channel of the bar that drives the die assembly. The die assembly preferably includes a system for consistent referencing between various die assemblies, for reducing the instances in which the paper stop must be adjusted when a die assembly is changed.

Hole punch quick-change die assembly with pin strap and positioning system

Embodiments of features for a paper punch machine are shown and described. Preferably, these features, which may be called &ldquo;accessories&rdquo; whether they are built-in original equipment manufacture or retrofit equipment, assist in proper paper alignment and punch control. A first accessory is an improved paper stop that is both grossly-adjustable and finely-adjustable, by a preferred combination of a biased sliding mechanism, followed by a fine-tuning mechanism gradually laterally moving the paper stop by causing a threaded shaft to rotate after the paper stop is already in the preferred &ldquo;gross-adjustment&rdquo; position. This way, the paper stop is brought close to the proper marking on the housing appropriate for a particular paper or die assembly, and then exact adjustment may be made in very small and precise amounts. If desired, the user may record or remember how may turns of the threaded shaft are typically required for a particular fine-tuning job, because the threads on the threaded shaft represent quantifiable and reproducible adjustments.

Fine-tunable paper stop for paper punching machine

Hole punch quick-change die assembly with positioning system

Embodiments of an punch machine and a quick-change die assembly are shown and described. The die assembly may be quickly installed and removed from the punch machine, without bolting or unbolting of either machine housing or the die assembly itself. The die assembly is slid into the machine through a hole in the machine housing and into a position which mates part of the die assembly with the push-bar. A clamp, with a handle outside the machine, is then pivoted against the die assembly. The push-bar is adapted to be self-supporting without being bolted to the die assembly, keeping the push-bar in place without manual adjustment and alignment. The die assembly preferably includes a die, pin retainer, and punch pins, and preferably includes a flexible, pivotal, or hinged pin strap to secure the pins to the retainer. The preferred die assembly includes a positioning system that biases the pin retainer with its pin heads out from the die a proper distance for easy and unobstructed sliding into the machine housing and into a channel of the bar that drives the die assembly. The preferred die assembly system includes a clamp system with a resilient or spring-biased pivot bar that pivots against the die assembly to maintain tight clamping even after wear of the clamp system.

Hole punch quick-change die assembly with clamp system

Embodiments of an punch machine and a quick-change die assembly are shown and described. The die assembly may be quickly installed and removed from the punch machine, without bolting or unbolting of either machine housing or the die assembly itself. The die assembly is slid into the machine through a hole in the machine housing and into a position which mates part of the die assembly with the push-bar. A clamp, with a handle outside the machine, is then pivoted against the die assembly. The push-bar is adapted to be self-supporting without being bolted to the die assembly, keeping the push-bar in place without manual adjustment and alignment. The die assembly preferably includes a die, pin retainer, and punch pins, and does not require additional structure to secure the pins to the retainer or to connect the die and retainer, but may include a connection system and a pin strap as options. The preferred die assembly includes a positioning system that biases the pin retainer with its pin heads out from the die a proper distance for easy and unobstructed sliding into the machine housing and into a channel of the bar that drives the die assembly. The die assembly preferably includes a system for consistent referencing between various die assemblies, for reducing the instances in which the paper stop must be adjusted when a die assembly is changed.

Growing community of inventors

Boise, ID, United States of America

Marvin Whiteman