Apparatus for correcting slide bottom dead center position of mechanical press

An apparatus for adjusting and correcting the bottom dead center position of a slide of a mechanical press, the apparatus connecting the slide to a connecting rod of the press spaced from the slide in a vertical direction, the apparatus comprising:

• a screw mechanism having a top end for connection to the connecting rod and a bottom end having screw threads;
• a cylindrical shrink member having a top end threadedly engaging said screw threads and a bottom end for operative connection to the slide, rotation of said screw mechanism adjusting a distance measured in said vertical direction between the connecting rod and the slide, thereby to adjust the bottom dead center position of the slide;
• a lock nut for fixing said screw mechanism against rotation relative to said shrink member;
• first means for applying a contraction force to said shrink member, the contraction force compressing the shrink member to reduce its length in the vertical direction, the first means additionally including means for loosening said lock nut to permit rotation of said screw mechanism for adjustment of the bottom dead center position, and for tightening said lock nut upon completion of the adjustment;
• second means for detecting a bottom dead center position of the slide;
• third means for setting a bottom dead center position of the slide;
• and
• control means, responsive to a detected bottom dead center position value output by said second means and a set bottom dead center position value output by said third means, for controlling said first means to correct the detected bottom dead center position to coincide with the set bottom dead center position.