Globe Machine Manufacturing Company

Lightweight Labs, LLC

Victor Wayne Croston

Calvin D Bamford, Jr

Ronald Marvin Jacobsen

William M Owens

Antonin Pelc

Terrance William Cooke

Russell Carver Warrick

Jr Calvin D Bamford

Ronald M Jacobsen

Jr Bamford Calvin D

A method for thermally processing and curing unprocessed components within a thermal processing and consolidation system which includes upper and lower chamber assemblies configured to couple to one another and a first tool, the method including positioning the first tool on the lower chamber assembly moving the lower chamber assembly relative to the upper chamber assembly and coupling the upper chamber assembly and the lower chamber assembly to form a plenum, thereby completely enclosing the first tool in the plenum, the plenum operable to maintain a pressurized and/or temperature controlled environment about the first tool, providing services to the first tool and the plenum via a service interface, and thermally processing and curing the first set of unprocessed components within the first tool wherein the services are supplied to the first tool as directed by a set of process parameters.

Thermal processing and consolidation system and method

A thermal processing and consolidation system is provided that includes an upper chamber assembly lower chamber assembly, layup and demolding station, transfer assembly, automatic or permanent coupling system, and controller. The upper and lower chamber assemblies are coupled to form an enclosed plenum operable to maintain a pressurized environment about a tool. The layup and demolding station receives the tool and facilitates the layup, bagging and sealing of unprocessed components at the tool. A transfer assembly accurately positions the tool on the lower chamber assembly in alignment with the upper chamber assembly. An automatic or permanent coupling system provides services to the tool and the enclosed plenum. A controller directs services to be supplied to the enclosed plenum and tool in accordance with a set of process parameters. This set of process parameters allows an individual set of unprocessed components to be thermally processed and consolidated.

A flange feeder utilizes a pair of left and right handed gripper assemblies mounted to an overhead horizontal transport drive to successively convey a pair of flange members into overhead vertical alignment with left and right handed infeed sections of a longitudinal conveyor leading into a chords and webs assembly machine. The pair of flanges are successively conveyed from a lateral flange conveyor into two or more sets of rotating grippers mounted on a common rotating shaft. The rotating grippers are positioned to clamp opposite sides of the flange member which is positioned in alignment therewith by means of stops located at the discharge end of the lateral conveyor. The clamped flange is then rotated upwards into vertical alignment with an open one of the left and right handed overhead grippers. Initially, the flange is fed into the right hand gripper and the left hand gripper is indexed into operative position as the rotating grippers return to grip a next in-line flange. The arrangement of the grippers to simultaneously grip or release a flange enables flange stock to be gripped, rotated, transported and then fed into the infeed conveyor in positively controlled and predictably oriented manner.

Flange feeder for wooden I-beam assembly machine

A production line for manufacturing wooden I-beams wherein a pair of grooved flanges are conveyed along opposite left and right sides of a train of web members and converged so that the web longitudinal edges are inserted into the flange grooves is disclosed. The flanges are moved along left and right hand chutes of the assembly machine with plural vertical flange drive rolls engaging the wider flange faces for improved traction. These flange drive rolls and the chutes are mounted to the machine base with a lateral adjustment mechanism permitting center justified adjusting movement relative to the machine center line. The lateral adjustment mechanism utilizes a series of lead screws each formed with left and right handed threaded portions engageable with a threaded nut attached to each chute. A pair of web bottom rails are vertically adjustable in elevation with plural vertical column screws connected between the machine base and the support rails. Each of the infeed and outfeed flange drive rolls, and the web drive rolls, are all operated with hydraulic motors which are interconnected through microprocessor control so as to be monitored and adjusted during a production run to achieve substantially constant output speeds with predictable and repeatable drive roll speeds and pinching forces.

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Port Orchard, WA, United States of America

Victor Wayne Croston