Abstract: Sound-damping liners for bar stock guide tubes and the like for use in automatic metal working machines, said liners being produced from ultra high molecular weight polyethylene; means insulating the outer periphery of the liner from the inner surface of the guide tube; and means for retaining the liner within the guide tube.

Abstract: A graphite lubricant system for applying a coating of the lubricant to successive mandrels in a seamless pipe mill just prior to their insertion therein. The system provides for the selective application of the smokeless lubricant to the mandrels before they are inserted within the seamless pipe shell and both are run into the mill itself. In order to prevent the lubricant from clogging, the system includes a self-flushing arrangement which provides a cleaning function thereto when the system has been inactive for a given amount of time.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the manufacture of helicoidal springs in which there is associated with the mandrel for rolling of the spring a rotating cylinder carrying a helicoidal trace corresponding to the helix of the spring to be manufactured. A moving carriage which moves the mandrel longitudinally supports a scanner of the photoelectric cell type directed toward the rotating cylinder which controls the displacement of the movable carriage. Control devices supply a memory with the comparative values which provide for the future automatic control of the machine. The invention therefore relates to automatic machines to form helicoidal springs.

Abstract: In each cycle of a sequence of repetitive cycles a longitudinal section of an elongated, continuous piece of material spaced from the free end of the piece is draped about an arcuate face of a mandrel by a bending tool moving about the axis of curvature of the mandrel face, and the free end of the piece is thereby engaged with the arcuate face of another mandrel and secured to the other mandrel, whereupon the section draped over the first mandrel is cut. The central portion of the blank severed thereby from the continuous piece is draped over the second mandrel bent into a ring, the curvature of the leading and trailing blank portion, being due to previous draping over the first mandrel.

Abstract: An apparatus and method of using the same to sequentially subject tubular members such as oil well tubing, drill pipe and the like from a stack thereof to a sequence of operations in which each tubular member while mounted in the apparatus is straightened, has rust and foreign material removed from the external surface thereof, has solid foreign material removed from the interior thereof, and the tubular member after being straightened and descaled being subjected to hydraulic testing at a desired magnitude. The apparatus is preferably wheel supported to permit it to be moved adjacent stacked pipe in the field. However, should it be desired, the apparatus may be mounted on skids and the like or other suitable base, and used at a stationary position either adjacent to or at a distance from stacked tubular members.

Abstract: A tube bend is started by compresssion bending and continued by draw bending. Conventional bending equipment is employed with one die slightly modified so that normal machine operation causes the pressure die to initially operate in a compression bending mode and then to operate in a draw bending mode. The tube is clamped between a rotatable bend and clamp die. The pressure die presses the tube against the bend die and initially moves with the tube so as to exert little axial restraint. The pressure die is caused to exert increasing pressure upon the tube, and its motion with the tube is stopped after a short initial travel, whereupon the pressure die restrains the tube as the bend and clamp dies continue to rotate, thereby to effect a draw bending to the completion of the bend.

Abstract: In the automated manufacture of helical coils from sheet-metal blanks, each station of a rotatable set or carrousel of winding stations picks up a flat elongated blank from a stationary loader and securely grips and locks one end in an angled position against a slightly-tapered arbor whose subsequent rotation then causes the blank to become tightly wrapped helically about the arbor while retractable ironing plates stretch-form it and while a second locking mechanism positions the opposite end of the blank untl wrapping is completed. The single thrust of a shaped actuating rod causes a locking member to both position itself and move into a clamping relation with the one end of the blank and the arbor, and both the second locking mechanism and the ironing plates are of toggle-type constructions which enable them to hold securely until positively released.

Abstract: The disclosure embraces an apparatus for reinforcing segments or selected lengths of wire such as that used in electric coils by continuously forming a desired number of loops of the wire and then twisting the formed loops together at their midpoint to reinforce the tensile strength of the wire product; the apparatus provides means for forming the loops such as at a point upstream of a coil winding machine and a twisting device for engaging the thus formed loops and twisting them about an axis to form a reinforced length of wire which is then fed to the coil winding machine.

Abstract: An initial well is formed into the rear end of a cylindrical billet thereby providing a centering collar. The billet is additionally centered at the receiver bottom and pierced by a frustoconical mandrel under retention of the well.

Abstract: A screw having a head and a threaded shank and, in the head, a cruciform shaped recess comprising a central cavity and four grooves radiating from the central cavity at 90.degree. angular spacings, the bases of the grooves lying on a conical (or pyramidal) surface and wherein the included angle at the vertex of such cone (or pyramid) has a value within the range 40.degree. - 45.degree., the preferred value being 40.degree..

Abstract: In a machine for draw bending pipe, a long pressure die that moves with the pipe during the bend is provided with a retractable rear section. Both sections are used for a large degree of bend but when a bend of lesser degree is made near the end of the pipe, interference between the pipe grasping chuck and the long pressure die is avoided by retracting the rear pressure die section.

Abstract: Apparatus for deploying a plurality of wires in predetermined co-planar relationship to each other comprises a templet plate having a plurality of wire-receiving grooves extending thereacross. The grooves diverge from each other so that wires positioned in the grooves will be located in predetermined spaced-apart relationship. The wires are pressed into the grooves by a roller which is movable across the templet plate. In order to control the wires and to ensure proper placement of the wires in the grooves, a controller member is disposed in front of the roller and movable with the roller across the templet. The controller elevates portions of the wires which are adjacent to the roller and approximately aligns the individual wires with the grooves into which they are to be pressed.

Abstract: Apparatus for winding a pair of elongated bodies, e.g. wires, on a mandrel in which a pair of bobbins and a U-shaped cage are rotatably mounted on a fixed shaft extending horizontally from a support slidably mounted on a pair of rails supported by a base. The arms of the cage extend on opposite sides of the peripheries of the bobbins and parallel to the axis of rotation of the bobbins, and the cage is motor driven. A mandrel with its axis aligned with the axis of the bobbins is supported by a cylindrical body rotatable with respect to the mandrel and a separable threaded connection with a rotatable sleeve in the shaft, and the body carries guide arms engageable with pins on the arms of the cage. A crank arm connected to the rotatable sleeve permits disengagement of the mandrel from the sleeve.

Abstract: A coil spring assembly having increased firmness in a preselected area of the assembly through use of a novel spring connector structure and method. The increased firmness is provided by, during fabrication, overlapping joint segments of a pair of adjacent coil springs' top loops, positioning a levelizer wire across the overlapped joint so formed, deflecting at least one of the overlapped joint segments out of its normal arcuate attitude toward a linear attitude, and wrapping a helical lacing wire around the overlapped joint segments and levelizer wire in a sufficiently tight manner to prevent the deflected joint segment from returning fully to its normal arcuate attitude, thereby maintaining the spring joint so established in a prestressed state. Preferably, this structure and method employs a single levelizer wire and a single lacing wire to connect adjacent springs in adjacent parallel rows from one end of the rows to the other.

Abstract: In a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a metal pipe wherein a flat strip or skelp is formed into a cylindrical pipe while being fed in its longitudinal direction by a forming mill having a prefinishing stand, a train of forming stands for forming the skelp with a U-shaped cross section, and a train of finishing stands, the improvement wherein both edge surfaces of the skelp are caused to contact in substantially point contact recess-defining surfaces of concave V-shaped recess in pairs of forming rolls, the respective rolls which are disposed symmetrically in a plane normal to the pass line as the skelp moves through the train of forming stands along the line, and the skelp has a bending load applied by the forming rolls so as to form the skelp into a U-shaped skelp.

Abstract: Two movable members are selectable positioned to form a passageway for handling dual in-line packages. A wheel, comprising resilient material, and a spreader member are selectable positioned in correspondence with the movable members to engage the leads on either side of the package and vertically straighten them. Lateral straightness of the leads, as well as various other package anomalies, are detected by optical scanning.

Abstract: A means and method is provided for reducing radius expansion of bent, elongated materials due to "spring-back" occurring after the material is released from the bender clamps of a hot bending apparatus, wherein the longitudinal axis of the unbent portion of the material is displaced by a small angle from a perpendicular to a line running through the center of the bend and the bender heating means.

Abstract: In an automatic screw thread cutting machine having a clamping carriage for clamping an elongated workpiece, one end portion of which is to be provided with a screw thread, and a spindle coaxially arranged with a workpiece held by said clamping carriage and carrying at one end thereof facing the end portion of the workpiece a screw cutting tool and being driven over a stepdown gearing from a motor, an advancing mechanism for advancing the clamping carriage towards said spindle and including a rod connected to the carriage and having a pair of opposite smooth parallel friction surfaces and a friction wheel driven by the spindle and pressed against one of the friction surfaces while the other friction surface is engaged by a counter roll. The friction wheel is exchangeble against a friction wheel of different diameter to thereby change the speed of advancement of the carriage.

Abstract: A tool for applying ties to bundles comprises a magazine chamber leading directly to the path of a reciprocable carriage adapted on forward movement to engage the leading tie in the magazine and drive it into a loop guide releasably disposed about a bundle. The tie tail is reversed about the bundle by the loop guide under the driving force of the carriage to pass through the head of the tie in a reverse direction to engage a gripper in the carriage. Reversal of the carriage tensions the tie about the bundle and repositions the carriage in a starting position in relation to the magazine. A shear device operating transversely of the carriage path and disposed at its forward end severs the tie tail adjacent the tie head, and opens the loop guide for removal of the bundle.

Abstract: An improved mandrel is provided for use with a tube-finning machine. The mandrel is mounted to a stationary arbor and supports a tubular member during a tube-finning operation. The mandrel comprises a stationary body axially mounted to the arbor and a lubricated bushing which is rotatably mounted on the body. The bushing facilitates rotation of the tubular member relative to the body and supports the interior surface of the tubular member during the finning operation.