Apparatus for cutting off successive portions from a strand of plastic material such as a strand of viscous glass

Claim 2

Apparatus for cutting off successive portions from at least one strand of plastic material, such as a strand of viscous glass, advancing in axial direction, said apparatus comprising a pair of opposite substantially parallel cutting knives extending in a direction transverse to said axial direction; means supporting said knives movable toward and away from each other in said transverse direction and in said axial direction and comprising a pair of parallel shafts respectively supporting said knives and at least one pair of carrier discs, one for each shaft, arranged turnable about parallel axes and turnably supporting the respective shaft extending parallel to and radially outwardly from the axis of the respective carrier disc; and drive means cooperating with said carrier discs and said shafts for rotating said carrier discs about their axes while preventing rotation of said shaft about the axes of the latter so as to move said knives in said transverse and axial directioNs while maintaining the same parallel to each and extending in said transverse direction, said drive means comprising a drive shaft, gear trains between said drive shaft, said carrier discs and said shafts, a main drive motor, planetary gearing means between said main drive motor and said drive shaft for driving the latter with a constant angular speed, an auxiliary motor, and means connected to said auxiliary motor and said planetary gearing means and cooperating with the latter to superimpose to the constant angular speed produced by said main motor additional rotary movements to said drive shaft.

Claim 3

Apparatus for cutting off successive portions from at least one strand of plastic material, such as a strand of viscous glass, advancing in axial direction, said apparatus comprising a pair of opposite substantially parallel cutting knives extending in direction transverse to said axial direction; means supporting said knives movable toward and away from each other in said transverse direction and in said axial direction and comprising a pair of parallel shafts respectively supporting said knives, at least two carrier discs, one for each shaft, arranged turnable about parallel axes and turnably supporting the respective shaft extending parallel to and radially outwardly from the axis of the respective carrier disc; two first gears respectively coaxially fixed to said shafts; two second gears respectively coaxially arranged with said carrier discs and respectively meshing with said pair of first gears; and drive means cooperating with said carrier discs and said shafts for rotating said carrier discs about their axes and preventing rotation of said shafts about the axes of the latter so as to move said knives in said transverse and axial directions while maintaining the same parallel to each other and extending in said transverse direction, said drive means comprising a planetary gearing including a sun gear, an outer annular gear coaxially surrounding said sun gear and turnable about the axis of the latter, a pair of planet gears arranged between said sun gear and said outer gear enmeshed therewith, means mounting said planet gears for rotation about their axes and about the axis of said sun gear, a drive shaft fixed to said mounting means and arranged coaxially with said sun gear, a pinion fixed to said drive shaft, first gear means meshing with said pinion and driving one of said second gears and the carrier disc coaxial with said second gear, a reversing gear meshing with said pinion, and second gear meshing with said reversing gear and driving the other of said second gears and the carrier disc coaxial with said other of said second gears.

Claim 4

Apparatus for cutting off successive portions from at least one strand of plastic material, such as a strand of viscous glass, advancing in axial direction, said apparatus comprising a pair of opposite substantially parallel cutting knives extending in direction transverse to said axial direction; means supporting said knives movable toward and away from each other in said transverse direction and in said axial direction and comprising a pair of parallel shafts respectively supporting said knives, at least two carrier discs, one for each shaft, arranged turnable about parallel axes and turnably supporting the respective shaft extending parallel to and radially outwardly from the axis of the respective carrier disc; two first gears respectively coaxially fixed to said shafts; two second gears respectively coaxially arranged with said carrier discs and respectively meshing with said pair of first gears; and drive means cooperating with said carrier discs and said shafts for rotating said carrier discs about their axes and preventing rotation of said shafts about the axes of the latter so as to move said knives in said transverse and axial directions while maintaining the same parallel to each other and extending in said transverse direction, said drive means comprising a planetary gearing including a sun gear, an outer annular gear coaxially surrounding said sun gear and turnable about the axis of the latter, a pair of planet gears arranged between said sun gear and said outer gear enmeshed therewith, means mounting said planet gears for rotation about their axes and about the axis of said sun gear, a drive shaft fixed to said mounting means and arranged coaxially with said sun gear, a pinion fixed to said drive shaft, first gear means meshing with said pinion and driving one of said second gears and the carrier disc coaxial with said second gear, a reversing gear meshing with said pinion, and second gear meshing with said reversing gear and driving the other of said second gears and the carrier disc coaxial with said other of said second gears.

Claim 5

Apparatus as defined in claim 12, wherein said means for supporting said knives comprise two pairs of spaced coaxial carrier discs, one pair for each shaft, with the discs in each pair aligned along a common axis and turnably supporting the respective shaft on opposite ends thereof extending parallel to and radially outwardly from the axis of the respective pair of carrier discs.

Claim 6

Apparatus as defined in claim 2, and including a main drive motor driving said sun gear, an auxiliary drive motor having a shaft, a first crank pin radially spaced from the axis of said shaft of said auxiliary drive motor and connected to said shaft for rotation about the axis of the latter, a second crank pin radially spaced from the axis of the outer annular gear and connected to the latter for movement therewith, and a connecting rod pivotally mounted on opposite ends on said first and said second crank pin.

Claim 7

Apparatus as defined in claim 4 and including means for adjusting the radial distance of at least one of said crank pins from the respective axis.

Claim 8

Apparatus as defined in claim 4, and including means for adjusting the length of said connecting rod.

Claim 9

Apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein said planetary gearing comprises a gear case having an axis coaxial with that of said sun gear and being mounted turnably about Said axis, said outer annular gear being located within said gear case and fixed thereto, said gear case having an end wall from which said second crank pin projects in axial direction.

Claim 10

Apparatus as defined in claim 3, wherein each pair of carrier discs carries a plurality of shafts angularly displaced from each other and each supporting at least one knife, the number of shafts and their angular displacement from each other being the same for each pair of carrier discs.

Claim 11

Apparatus as defined in claim 8, wherein said plurality of shafts on each pair of carrier discs are displaced through equal angles from each other.

Claim 12

Apparatus as defined in claim 3, wherein each shaft carries a plurality of knives spaced from each other along the shaft axis.