Apparatus for movably supporting an object to be marked

Apparatus for movably supporting an object to be marked comprising,

• a fixed member having a horizontal surface,
• a table assembly movably positioned on said fixed member for linear reciprocatory movement relative thereto,
• an object to be marked being secured on the upper surface of said table assembly,
• a generally U-shaped support member for supporting a marking device, said support member having an intermediate plate portion, a base plate portion, and a support plate portion, said base plate portion and said support plate portion extending from said intermediate plate portion in generally parallel spaced relation to each other,
• said marking device having a longitudinal axis,
• guide means secured to said support member between said base plate portion and said support plate portion, said guide means supporting said marking device for linear movement relative to said support member and having a longitudinal axis,
• means pivotally mounting said marking device on said guide means,
• first drive means for moving said marking device linearly relative to said fixed member to apply a mark on an object positioned beneath said marking device on said table assembly,
• means for fixedly mounting said U-shaped support member adjacent to said table assembly with said base plate in a position either parallel to or perpendicular to said table assembly so that said marking device is arranged to mark either a vertical surface or a horizontal surface of said object to be marked, and
• second drive means to move said table assembly relative to said fixed member to a position beneath said marking device so that said marking device can mark said object.