US3753452A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Potential-energy torque-generating mechanism for operating a take-up roll
Assignee: United Merchants and Manuf Inc
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Filing: 1971-04-22
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Granted: 1973-08-21
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Expires: 1991-04-22
Abstract
Abstract A torque-generating mechanism of the potential-energy type which steadily maintains a selected rotational force within selected limits for winding or unwinding operations. The mechanism comprises a toothed ratchet wheel which turns a drive shaft, a leverage means in the form of a lever arm and leverage weight which provides torque by pivotal movement through a selected arc, a torque arm means that transmits the pivotal movement to the perimeter of the ratchet wheel through a tooth-engaging pawl, a counter-rotation means, and an energy restoration means. The preferred counter-rotation means is a second leverage means which acts in alternating sequence and is disposed in opposed relationship to the first leverage means. When winding textiles, for example, the drive shaft may be connected to a sand roll which provides constant fabric tension at a single leverage weight setting or to the mandrel of a take-up roll which provides decreasing fabric tension at a constant leverage weight setting.
Inventors
- 👤 D Zebley
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 06:53
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65H; B65H18/00; B65H18/08; B65H18/10; D; D03; D03D; D03D49/00; D03D49/04; D03D49/20; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T74/00; Y10T74/21; Y10T74/2133; Y10T74/2136
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 14
Claim 1
Independent Claim
187 words
A torque-generating mechanism for rotatively driving a shaft comprising: lever means mounted for rotation about a pivot point; leverage weight means mounted upon said lever means at a location spaced from said pivot point for applying a force to said lever means to effect rotation thereof about said pivot point from a first to a second angular position; energy restoration means adapted to restore said lever means from said second to said first position; a ratchet mechanism for transferring torque from said lever means to said driven shaft when said lever means is rotated from said first to said second angular position by said leverage weight means, said ratchet mechanism including means from preventing counter-rotation of said shaft when said lever means is being restored from said second to said first angular position; and control means responsive to the positioning of said lever means for actuating said restoration means to restore said lever means to said first position each time that said lever means reaches said second position, said control means including means for sensing arrival of said lever means at said first and said second positions.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
187 words
A torque-generating mechanism for rotatively driving a shaft comprising: lever means mounted for rotation about a pivot point; leverage weight means mounted upon said lever means at a location spaced from said pivot point for applying a force to said lever means to effect rotation thereof about said pivot point from a first to a second angular position; energy restoration means adapted to restore said lever means from said second to said first position; a ratchet mechanism for transferring torque from said lever means to said driven shaft when said lever means is rotated from said first to said second angular position by said leverage weight means, said ratchet mechanism including means from preventing counter-rotation of said shaft when said lever means is being restored from said second to said first angular position; and control means responsive to the positioning of said lever means for actuating said restoration means to restore said lever means to said first position each time that said lever means reaches said second position, said control means including means for sensing arrival of said lever means at said first and said second positions.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
A mechanism according to claim 1 wherein said lever means comprise at least two levers each having leverage weight means mounted thereon, said levers operating in tandem to continuously alternately apply through said ratchet mechanism a torsional driving force to said driven shaft.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
86 words
A mechanism according to claim 2 wherein said ratchet mechanism comprises a pair of driving pawls, each operatively associated, respectively, with one of said levers, and a ratchet wheel rotatively driven by said pawls, said control means including switch means actuated by said pawls to alternately effect driving of said ratchet wheel by one of said levers while the other is being restored to a driving position, and driving by the other of said levers while said one lever is being restored to a driving position.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
47 words
A mechanism according to claim 3 wherein said pawls operate to actuate said switch means individually only when either of saId pawls has come into driving engagement with said ratchet wheel after the lever associated with said drivingly engaged pawl has been restored to a driving position.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
103 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein said restoration means comprises an air cylinder including a cylinder rod, said air cylinder being operative to extend and retract said cylinder rod, and connecting means including a lift pin and a guide slot within which said lift pin loosely fits, said connecting means being operatively engaged between said cylinder rod and said lever means, with said lift pin engaging said guide slot to enable free movement of said lever means from said first to said second position and to enable the restoration thereof from said second to said first position by operation of said air cylinder.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
15 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein said counterrotation means is a pivotally mounted holding pawl.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
42 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein said control means comprises upper and lower limit switches operatively associated with said restoration means, and a position transmittal means that actuates said limit switches when said lever means reaches said first or said second positions.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
23 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein said drive shaft is attached to wind a take-up roll assembly for fabric flowing from a loom.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
15 words
The mechanism of claim 8 wherein said take-up roll assembly includes a tension-derived compacting means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
51 words
The mechanism of claim 1 including shock absorption means disposed to be struck by said lever means when said lever means is restored to said first position whereby the momentum of said leverage weight attached thereto is dissipated in order to stop motion of said lever means at said first position.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
39 words
The mechanism of claim 1 including means for selectively changing the position at which said leverage weight is mounted upon said lever means thereby to enable selective alteration of the distance between said leverage weight and said pivot point.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
71 words
The mechanism of claim 2 wherein said lever means comprise a pair of levers and wherein said control means and said energy restoration means include means for alternately moving said pair of levers between first and second positions, respectively, with one of said levers moving from a first position to a second position while the other of said levers moves from a second position to a first position and vice versa.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
126 words
The mechanism of claim 12 wherein said ratchet mechanism includes a pair of pawls each operatively associated, respectively, with one of said levers, a toothed ratchet wheel operatively engaged to transmit torque to said driven shaft and positioned to be engaged by said pawls for transmission thereto of torque from said pair of levers, a pair of switches each operatively associated, respectively, with one of said pawls and adapted to sense the position of said pawls, said switches including means for controlling said energy restoration means to return either of said levers from its second to its first position only after the other of said levers has reached its first position with its respective pawl having become drivingly engaged with a tooth of said ratchet wheel.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-08-20 | 1977-02-19 | 1977-08-21 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-08-20 | 1981-02-19 | 1981-08-21 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-08-20 | 1985-02-19 | 1985-08-21 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |