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US 5,797,306 AGranted
Lamination notching apparatus
AssigneeMarathon Electric Mfg. Corp.
InventorLarry I. Kufahl
Life of this patent
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AssigneeMarathon Electric Mfg. Corp.
InventorLarry I. Kufahl
Estimating the term…
A lamination notching apparatus for forming dynamoelectric core laminations with winding slots includes a sprocket and drive belt system connecting an indexer to the drive table shaft of a lamination table. The indexer is driven from a punch drive and has an output sprocket. A coupling unit has a first sprocket and a second sprocket mounted on a common same shaft and connected by a passive clamp unit to produce a one-to-one rotation. Drive belts connect the indexer sprocket to the first sprocket and the second sprocket to the drive sprocket table shaft. The sprockets are formed with a special tooth profile to eliminate tooth-to-belt clearance and backlash with a standard HTD profile belt for precise rotary motion. The indexer is movably mounted for tension adjustment of the drive belt. The passive clamp unit includes telescoped tapered sprocket hubs on a tubular shaft, with a spring-loaded clamp nut and bolt passing therethrough. An air cylinder is coupled to the bolt to release the resilient clamp of the sprockets for separation of the bolt unit for changing the sprockets and for phase orientation of the sprockets with the table drive in a reference position.
A notching apparatus drive system operated in synchronism with a punch unit having a cyclical operation period and for sequentially rotating a blank lamination through the punch unit for forming of notches in the blank lamination, comprising a lamination support unit having a lamination receiving holder and a drive sprocket for rotating said holder, an indexing unit having an indexing output sprocket and having an input drive unit operable in synchronism with the punch unit, said indexing unit moving said output sprocket in predetermined steps including a dwell period, a coupling sprocket unit interconnecting said drive sprocket with said output sprocket of said indexing unit, said coupling sprocket unit including a coupling input sprocket and a coupling output sprocket mounted in common to a coupling shaft and rotatable supporting said coupling input sprocket and coupling output sprocket for simultaneous rotation, a first sprocket belt entrained about said drive sprocket and said coupling output sprocket and a second sprocket belt entrained about said coupling input sprocket and said indexing output sprocket, whereby said stepped movement of said indexing output sprocket rotates the lamination receiving holder through the punch unit for providing successive notches within the blank lamination with successive notches in equally spaced array, said coupling output sprocket and said coupling input sprocket include telescoped hub portions mounted on said coupling shaft, a passive and keyless locking unit coupling said hub portions to each other and to said shaft for said rotatably supporting said coupling output sprocket and said coupling input sprocket, said locking unit including a powered release unit coupled to said hub portions for quick release of said locking unit.
A notching apparatus having a punch unit and a lamination support unit operated in synchronism with the movement of said punch unit, comprising an indexing unit coupled to said lamination support unit for moving of the blank lamination through said punch unit for establishing spaced notches in said blank lamination, a belt and sprocket drive unit including a sprocket coupling unit having an input sprocket and an output sprocket, said sprockets having telescoped hub portions with complementing extended axially tapered surfaces permitting the ready axial separation of said sprockets and permitting frictional rotary engagement, a bearing structure, a sprocket shaft mounted in said bearing structure and projecting through the innermost hub portion of said telescoped hub portions mounted on said shaft, an elongated clasp member extended through said shaft and including first and second outer clamp members aligned with said hub portions, a resilient member coupled to said elongated clasp member and positioning said clamp members for forcing said input and output sprockets into firm abutting engagement establishing one-to-one rotating of the input and output sprockets, and a powered release unit coupled to said resilient member and operable to release said resilient member and thereby permitting direct separation of said input and output sprockets for replacement thereof.
A notching apparatus having a blank lamination receiving holder is it rotated in synchronism with a punch unit, comprising a drive system connected to said blank lamination support unit and to said punch unit, said drive system including a coupling unit having a first rotating drive member and a second rotating drive member, a bearing structure, a bearing shaft mounted within said bearing structure and projecting upwardly of said bearing structure, said first and second rotating drive members include hub portions mounted on said shaft, a passive and keyless clamping assembly engaging said hub portions and interconnecting said rotary drive members in interengagement to said shaft, said passive and keyless clamping assembly including a resilient member coupled to the rotating drive members and forcing the drive members into firm driving engagement to each other and to said shaft and establishing corresponding rotation to the drive members, and a powered release unit coupled to said resilient member and operable to release said resilient member and permitting manual separation of said drive members for replacement thereof.
A notching apparatus drive system for translating a drive operated in synchronous with a punch unit having a continuous reciprocal motion for sequentially rotating a lamination blank through the punch mechanism, comprising a drive unit for operating the punch unit, a lamination support for the lamination blank, an indexing unit having an input member connected to said drive unit for rotating the lamination support through the punch unit and producing successive notches within the blank with successive notches in equally spaced array, said indexing unit moving said lamination blank through the punch unit in equal and predetermined stepped relationship to define a spacing between adjacent notches within a preset distance, said indexing unit having a rotating output member, a coupling unit interconnecting said rotating output member of said indexing unit to said lamination support, said coupling unit including at least first and second sprockets mounted on a common shaft to establish a one-to-one rotation thereof, a passive and keyless clamping unit having a resilient member establishing a pressure engagement between the sprockets to said shaft, and a powered release unit coupled to said passive and keyless clamping unit for releasing said resilient member for removal of said first and second sprockets.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.