Separating device in an automatic stamping machine

A die for the separation station of a machine for separating the shaped sections from the waste portions of a previously cut sheet of paper stock, the shaped sections of which are still connected to the waste portions of the sheet of paper stock by spaced bridges of partially cut, rupturable paper, said bridges collectively having only sufficient strength to permit the sheet to be transported from a cutting station to a separation station without rupture of the bridges, said die comprising:

• a panel of plywood veneer having upper and lower faces and forming a lower die having formed therethrough plural die openings, an upper die having male die members of a size and shape to pass through said die openings with minimal clearance, the die openings in said lower die being separated from each other by at least one separator strip of a width such that said plywood cannot support forces of the magnitude generated by the upper die passing through said openings to rupture the bridges for effecting separation of the shaped sections from the waste portion of said paper stock while the paper stock is supported on said lower die;
• means for reinforcing said separator strip including a length of steel rule shaped to seat beneath said separator strip, one edge of said steel rule throughout its length being rigidly bonded to the lower face of and spaced from both side edges of said separator strip whereby said steel rule in combination with said strip forms a T-shaped section of which the steel rule constitutes the depending leg of the T-shape for resisting vertically acting bending loads.

A die for the separation station of a machine for separating the waste portions from the shaped portions of a previously cut sheet of paper stock, the shaped sections of which are still connected to the waste portions of the sheet of paper stock by a few, spaced, easily rupturable bridges of uncut paper, said bridges collectively having only sufficient strength to permit the sheet to be transported from a cutting station to a separation station without rupture of the bridges, said die comprising:

• a panel of plywood veneer having upper and lower surfaces and a plurality of contiguous openings therein of a size and shape just large enough to permit said shaped sections to be pushed therethrough as they are separated from the waste portion of the paper stock, said openings being separated by separator strips of the panel at least portions of which separator strips have a width such that said plywood alone cannot support the forces resulting from the upper die passing through said openings to rupture all of the bridges substantially simultaneously for effecting separation of the shaped sections from the waste portion of said paper stock;
• a reinforcement member for said separation strips comprising:
• lengths of steel creaser rule having one edge bonded throughout its length to the lower surface of each of said separator strips and depending therefrom to form a T-shaped reinforcement support for the paper stock above, which support is capable of withstanding the forces resulting from the upper die passing into the adjacent openings and rupturing all of the bridges substantially simultaneously to separate the shaped portions from the waste portion of the paper stock.

A method of making a separating die for separating shaped portions from a sheet of paper stock which has been cut to outline the shaped portions and leave them connected to the waste portion of the paper stock by a few, easily rupturable bridges of uncut paper, including the steps of providing a panel of plywood veneer;

• cutting said panel to form simultaneously a plurality of upper dies and a lower die having a plurality of openings therethrough spaced apart by separator strips and shaped to permit one or more of the shaped portions of the paper stock to pass therethrough with only enough clearance to prevent contact between the edges of the shaped portions and walls of the openings thus formed, mounting on a frame the upper dies of the panel removed from said panel each of said upper die portions being in alignment with the opening from which it was removed, providing a length of steel rule, of generally rectangular cross section with a substantially greater dimension in one direction than the other bending the steel rule about an axis parallel to its greatest cross-sectional dimension to a shape which substantially corresponds to a line which is substantially midway between the edges of the separator strip to which it is to be secured while maintaining all portions of one edge of the separator strip in a single plane;
• placing said one edge of said steel rule against the bottom face of the separator and rigidly bonding said steel rule throughout its entire length to said bottom face of said panel whereby the steel rule depends from said panel and operates with the separator strip as a substantially unitary body to reinforce and stiffen said separator strip.