Work preparation and ruling machine

A work preparation and ruling machine for production of semi-cylindrical rotary dies, comprising:

• a frame;
• a cylinder adapted to detachably receive the rotary die thereon, said cylinder being rotatably mounted in the frame and being provided with a plurality of equally spaced longitudinal rows of holes, the holes being radially formed in the surface of the cylinder relative to the central longitudinal axis thereof thereby forming a plurality of equally spaced radial rows of the spaced holes;
• an end wheel coaxially secured to one end of the cylinder and provided with a first positioning means whereby the cylinder can be rotated by a distance equal to the distance between each two adjacent longitudinal rows of the spaced holes said end wheel having the same diameter as that of a finished die;
• said first positioning means including a second stopper mounted on the guide bar and a set of equally spaced recesses provided in a peripheral surface of the end wheel;
• a guide bar mounted in the frame, said guide bar being spaced above the cylinder and parallel with the central longitudinal axis of the cylinder, said guide bar being equipped with a plurality of positioning recesses in a longitudinal surface thereof, said recesses being spaced from each other by the distance between each two adjacent radial rows of the spaced holes of the cylinder;
• a first carriage slidably mounted on the guide bar, said first carriage being equipped with a first stopper means adapted to engage the positioning recesses of the guide bar and including a drilling means perpendicularly movable to the surface of the cylinder between an inoperative position and an operative position, said drilling means being mounted on the first carriage in such a manner that the bit of the drilling means is perpendicular to the surface of the cylinder and is aligned with the corresponding hole when both the wheel and the first carriage are positioned;
• said guide bar being provided with a first digital distance measuring device which is actuated by the end wheel;
• said first carriage being equipped with a die cutting means which is rotatable between parallel and perpendicular cutting positions to the guide bar and which is perpendicularly movable between an inoperative position and an operative position;
• a second carriage slidably mounted on said guide bar, said second carriage being equipped with a tracing means adapted to rule the surface of the rotary die board on the cylinder and including a second digital distance device which is actuated by the guide bar;
• and a second wheel mounted on a shaft parallel to said cylinder and interconnected thereto for rotating the same.