Elongated-member-driving apparatus – With means to move or guide member into driving position – Including carrier feed means for a plurality of members
Reexamination Certificate
2002-02-13
2004-07-20
Gerrity, Stephen F. (Department: 3721)
Elongated-member-driving apparatus
With means to move or guide member into driving position
Including carrier feed means for a plurality of members
C227S119000, C227S136000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06763991
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a nailing machine, in which connected nails are successively fed into an ejecting portion and the nail supplied into the ejecting portion is hammered by utilizing the power of compressed air after breaking the nail-to-nail connected condition. More specifically, the present invention relates to a nailing machine for both types of connected nails including the nails connected together by a metal wire and the nails connected by plastic sheets that are respectively formed into holding leaves by holding down both sides of the plastic sheets in order to hold and connect the nails.
2. Description of the Related Art
As connected nails for use in nailing machines driven by compressed air, there are known types of connected nails including wire-connected nails prepared by welding (fusion-bonding) a metal wire to nail shanks for the connecting purpose and nails connected by a plastic sheet prepared by forming a pair of bendable holding leaves integrally on both sides of the continuous plastic connecting sheet and inserting the nail shanks into the respective holding leaves for the connecting purpose. These types of connected nails are employed in different ways depending on the jobsite, and not only nailing machines capable of using both types of connected nails but also those adapted for alternately using both types of them have already been developed.
FIG. 6
shows the nail ejecting portion of a nailing machine for use in both types mentioned above. In a nose portion
20
provided in the lower portion of a nailing machine body, a nail ejecting opening
22
is formed for slidably guiding a driver
21
driven by a cylinder piston mechanism disposed within the body. An opening for introducing the front nail out of the connected nails in the nail ejecting opening
22
is formed in the nail ejecting opening
22
. As shown in FIGS.
7
(
a
) and
7
(
b
), a nail feeding passage
25
is formed between a fixed guide wall
23
that is continuous to one side edge of the opening and used to guide the connected nails up to the nail ejecting opening
22
and a door member
24
that is openable with respect to the nose portion
20
and supported opposite to the fixed guide wall
23
. A pressing plate
26
resiliently urged toward the fixed guide wall
23
is placed for the door member
24
whereby to maintain the space of the passage
25
for feeding wire-connected nails A and also to press nails B connected by a plastic sheet against the fixed guide wall
23
. The nail feeding passage
25
is disposed on the line prolonged from the center line of the nail ejecting opening
22
so as to arrange each of the connected nails in the center of the nail ejecting opening
22
.
When the front nail is hammered by the driver
21
in a case where the wire-connected nails A are used, a connecting wire
30
between the front nail
31
and the second nail
32
is cut, and the front nail
31
is hammered out of the nail ejecting opening
22
as the connected condition is removed. At this time, a cutoff piece
30
a
of the connecting wire
30
is formed on the front side of the shank of the second nail
32
. Since the cutoff piece
30
a
is usually formed in the direction of the tip of the nail (downward) as shown in
FIG. 6
, it is hardly allowed to penetrate into a workpiece along the shank of the hammered nail. For this reason, the tip of the cutoff piece
30
a
comes into contact with the surface of the workpiece when the nail is hammered into the workpiece, and the cutoff piece
30
a
may be curved and separated from the wire-welded portion of the shank of the nail. This is dangerous because the cutoff pieces
30
a
may possibly fly in all directions.
In order to prevent the cut-pieces
30
a
from flying in all directions, depressions
27
for containing the front portions of the cutoff pieces
30
a
of the wire
30
are formed in the nail ejecting opening
22
of the nose portion
20
as shown in
FIG. 6
, so that each cutoff piece
30
a
attached to the shank of the hammered nail is formed upward. Since the tip of the cutoff piece
30
a
of the wire is received by the depression
27
when the nail is sent to the nose portion
20
, the cutoff piece
30
a
is mated with the depression
27
. Then the cutoff piece
30
a
is moved together with the shank portion of the nail when the nail is hammered out. Therefore, the cutoff piece
30
a
is directed upward and prevented from jumping up and down.
However, the depressions
27
for containing the front portions of the cutoff pieces
30
a
of the wire
30
are formed on the front side of the nail ejecting opening
22
of the nose portion
20
in the conventional art. Therefore, the tip of the cutoff piece
30
a
of the wire
30
may not be contained in the depression
27
. This may happen in a case where the length of the cutoff piece
30
a
formed in front of the shank of the nail is short when connected nails have narrow connecting intervals or where the form of the cutoff piece
30
a
of the wire
30
becomes unstable. With respect to a special nailing machine for wire-connected nails A, the following technique has already been proposed as shown in FIG.
7
(
a
): the depressions
27
formed in the nail ejecting opening
22
are formed in the side of the direction of supply to ensure that the cutoff pieces
30
a
are mated with the depressions
27
by eliminating the nonconformity stated above; moreover, the nails are supplied by shifting (offsetting) the nail feeding position in the direction in which the depressions
27
are formed to ensure that the cutoff pieces
30
a
are prevented from flying in all directions by allowing even the short cutoff pieces
30
a
to be contained in the depressions
27
.
However, the introduction of the above technique into a nailing machine for use in both types results in placing a connecting sheet leaf
29
of the nail B connected by the plastic sheet closer to the center of the nail ejecting opening
22
. Accordingly, the shoulder portion
29
a
of the connecting sheet leaf
29
is hammered by the driver
21
when the nail
31
is hammered as shown in FIG.
8
. Consequently, the nail ejecting opening
22
may be clogged with the nail because the connecting sheet leaf
29
is crushed, and the supply of the nails B connected by the plastic sheet may also be impeded by the hammering trouble.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a feeding mechanism for connected nails in a nailing machine for simultaneous use in hammering wire-connected nails A and nails B connected by a plastic sheet, wherein cutoff pieces of a wire can be effectively prevented from flying in all directions and wherein nails connected by the plastic sheet can also be supplied and hammered into a workpiece without impediments.
In order to solve the foregoing problems, there is provided a feeding mechanism for connected nails in a nailing machine capable of feeding not only wire-connected nails prepared by fusion-bonding a metal wire to the nail shanks but also nails connected by a long plastic sheet into the nail ejecting opening of a nose portion. The nails connected by the plastic sheet are prepared by inserting the nail shanks into the respective holding leaves formed along the extended direction of the plastic sheet. The wire-connected nail is supplied by offsetting the nail shank toward the wire-bonded portion of the wire-connected nail with respect to the center of the nail ejecting opening, and depressions for containing cutoff pieces of the wire-connected nails are formed in the offset side of the nail shank in the nail ejecting opening. A discharging opening for sheet leaves of the nails connected by the plastic sheet is offset so that the front end of a driver is prevented from hammering the connecting sheet leaf of the nail connected by the plastic sheet by guiding the connecting sheet leaf in a direction opposite to the direction of offsetting the shank of the wire-connected nail.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5240161 (1993-08-01), Kaneko
Gerrity Stephen F.
Max Co. Ltd.
Morgan & Lewis & Bockius, LLP
Nash Brian D
LandOfFree
Feeding mechanism for connected nails in nailing machine does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Feeding mechanism for connected nails in nailing machine, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Feeding mechanism for connected nails in nailing machine will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3243008