Spindle control mechanism

An improved spindle control mechanism for a lathe, said lathe having a headstock, a spindle, a drive motor and a transmission for said spindle, a tool carriage, and a tailstock, said mechanism comprising

• a manually rotatable primary control knob, and a manually rotatable secondary control knob, said primary knob being mounted on the headstock of said lathe and said secondary knob being mounted on the carriage of said lathe,
• a control shaft connected with the transmission of said lathe for controlling the rotation attitude of said spindle, said control shaft extending from the headstock end to the tailstock end of said lathe,
• a primary connector lever connected to said control shaft, and a primary connector link pivotally connected to said connector lever at one end and pivotally connected to said primary control knob at the other end, said primary connector link's pivotal connection with said primary control knob being located at a position eccentric to the rotational axis of said primary control knob,
• a secondary connector lever connected to said control shaft, said secondary connector lever being connected in a fashion that permits longitudinal motion of said lever along said control shaft but prevents rotational motion of said lever relative to said control shaft, and a secondary link pivotally connected at one end to said secondary control knob and pivotally connected at the other end to said secondary connector lever, said secondary connector link's pivotal connection with said secondary control knob being located at a position eccentric to the rotational axis of said secondary control knob,
• a switch control drum connected to one of said primary and secondary control knobs, said control drum having forward, stop, and reverse fingers extending therefrom, and said control drum being rotated in response to rotation of either one of said primary and secondary control knobs through the mechanical linkage connector therebetween established by said control shaft, primary and secondary connector links and primary and secondary connector levers, and
• a forward switch, a stop switch and a reverse switch electrically connected with a drive motor for said lathe's spindle, said forward and reverse switches activating said spindle drive motor when said control knobs are in forward and reverse operative positions, and said stop switch deactivating said drive motor when said control knobs are in a stop position.

An improved spindle control mechanism for a spindle of a lathe, said mechanism comprising

• a manually rotatable primary control knob, said primary control knob being connected to said lathe,
• connector linkage connecting said primary control knob to a control shaft, said control shaft, and thereby said control knob, being connected with said lathe's spindle for controlling the rotational direction of said spindle, and
• rotation limit structure connected with said primary control knob, said rotation limit structure being selectively operable to limit rotation of said control knob between first and second positions when said rotation limit structure is engaged, said rotation limit structure comprising
• a limit pin axially movable between operative and inoperative positions, and said limit pin being carried by one of said primary control knob and that part of said lathe to which said primary control knob is connected, and
• a structure defining a limit slot in the other of said lathe part and said primary control knob, said limit pin limiting rotation of said control knob between first and second positions defined by said limit slot when said limit pin is operatively engaged with said limit slot.

An improved spindle control mechanism for a spindle of a lathe, said mechanism comprising

• a manually rotatable primary control knob, said primary control knob being connected to said lathe,
• switching apparatus directly connected to said primary control knob, said switching apparatus operating in response to the rotational position of said control knob for stopping and starting rotation of said lathe's spindle, and
• rotation limit structure connected with said primary control knob, said rotation limit structure being selectively operable to limit rotation of said control knob between first and second positions when said rotation limit structure is engaged, said rotation limit structure comprising
• a limit pin axially movable between operative and inoperative positions, and said limit pin being carried by one of said primary control knob and that part of said lathe to which said primary control knob is connected, and
• a structure defining a limit slot in the other of said lathe part and said primary control knob, said limit pin limiting rotation of said control knob between first and second positions defined by said limit slot when said limit pin is operatively engaged with said limit slot.