Flying shear for metal strip stock

Abstract

In a flying shear wherein strip stock moves lengthwise forward, a lower blade carrier, confined to forward and backward motion, has an upwardly facing clamping surface and carries a lower shearing blade. An upper blade carrier, connected with the lower one for back and forth motion with it and for up and down motion relative to it, carries an upper shearing blade and is biased to a raised position. A gripper, connected to the lower blade carrier to swing about an axis spaced substantially above said clamping surface, has a bottom wedging surface curved eccentrically to said axis. The gripper is biased forward, for engagement of its said surface against strip stock whereby the strip stock is clamped to the clamping surface and pulls the blade carriers forward. There is a lost motion connection between the gripper and the upper blade carrier whereby the latter can descend independently of the gripper but whereby rise of the upper blade carrier to its raised position draws the gripper to a position in which its wedging surface is above the strip. For shearing, the upper blade carrier is driven down by an actuator at a fixed location above the blade carriers.