Abstract: An armature manufacturing line includes one or more manufacturing cells, each having a winder facing a fuser and a rotatable armature transfer apparatus that transfers unwound armatures to the winder and wound armatures from the winder directly to the fuser. The armature transfer apparatus has a rotatable turret upon which are mounted a pair of grippers that face in mutually opposite directions and which are movable along mutually parallel axes. Independent drive means drives the grippers along their respective paths of movement relative to the turret. The turret is rotatably driven through 180.degree. in alternately opposite directions to place one gripper in confronting relation with the winder, then in confronting relation with the fuser, and so on. An elevator at the fuser moves wound and fused armatures from the fuser to a conveyor. Different embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: An armature shaft having an eccentric cam body extending from one end thereof is gripped by an adjustable collet mechanism and rotated by a drive motor, preferably a stepping motor, having an output shaft movable in discrete increments. This rotation continues until an imaginary reference point on the periphery of the cam body reaches first and second angular positions. The preferred reference point is the point on the periphery of the end face of the cam body that is farthest from the axis of rotation of the armature shaft. The number of steps necessary to rotate the armature shaft so that the reference point is moved from the first angular position to the second angular position is determined as the armature shaft is rotated and used to determine the position of the reference point relative to a centerline between the first and second angular positions.

Abstract: An armature manufacturing line includes one or more manufacturing cells, each having a winder facing a fuser and a rotatable armature transfer apparatus that transfers unwound armatures to the winder and wound armature from the winder directly to the fuser. An elevator at the fuser moves wound and fused armatures from the fuser to a conveyor. Different embodiments are disclosed.

Abstract: A stator winding machine has a turret plate mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with stator clamp mechanisms mounted at spaced locations around its periphery for clamping stators to the turret plate with the axes of the stators coplanar with the axis of reciprocation and oscillation of the winding shuttle used to wind coils on the stators. The turret plate is repeatedly indexed in one direction about its vertical center axis to repeatedly sequentially move each of the stator clamp mechanism to a load/unload station, an optional idle station, a winding station, a coil lead terminating station, and then back to the load/unload station. Parts of the machine are quickly replaceable and other parts are programmably adjustable to accommodate different stator configurations.

Abstract: A stator winding machine has a turret plate mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with stator clamp mechanisms mounted at spaced locations around its periphery for clamping stators to the turret plate with the axes of the stators coplanar with the axis of reciprocation and oscillation of the winding shuttle used to wind coils on the stators. The turret plate is repeatedly indexed in one direction about its vertical center axis to repeatedly sequentially move each of the stator clamp mechanism to a load/unload station, an optional idle station, a winding station, a coil lead terminating station, and then back to the load/unload station. Parts of the machine are quickly replaceable and other parts are programmably adjustable to accommodate different stator configurations.

Abstract: A stator winding machine has a turret plate mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with stator clamp mechanisms mounted at spaced locations around its periphery for clamping stators to the turret plate with the axes of the stators coplanar with the axis of reciprocation and oscillation of the winding shuttle used to wind coils on the stators. The turret plate is repeatedly indexed in one direction about its vertical center axis to repeatedly sequentially move each of the stator clamp mechanism to a load/unload station, an optional idle station, a winding station, a coil lead terminating station, and then back to the load/unload station. Parts of the machine are quickly replaceable and other parts are programmably adjustable to accommodate different stator configurations.

Abstract: A fusing electrode is mounted on a vertically movable carriage which is raised by a first air actuator and lowered by gravity into engagement with a commutator tang. During a fusing cycle, different pressures are applied between the fusing electrode and the tang by means of a fast-acting air actuator that has a downwardly-extending piston rod engageable with the carriage and which is controlled by a programmable pressure regulating valve. To increase the response time and the force follow through of the second air actuator, the programmable pressure regulating valve is mounted directly on top of the second air actuator with its air outlet located as close to the cylinder of the second actuator as permitted by the air fittings which connect them. Surge tanks associated with the programmable valve assist in ensuring speedy response times.

Abstract: The operation of a flier-type armature winding machine is monitored to detect if a tang connection is missed and for interrupting the operation of the machine in such event. Differences in wire usage between those cases in which a tang connection is successfully made and those cases in which a tang connection is missed are detected and, if the differences are substantial, the operation of the armature winding machine is terminated. The monitoring is done with a shaft encoder and an add-subtract counter by which is computed the degrees of forward and reverse rotation of a guide pulley over or around which the wire is coursed. In a modification, up and down movements of a dancer pulley are monitored to provide an indication of wire usage.

Abstract: A stator winding machine has a turret plate mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with stator clamp mechanisms mounted at spaced locations around its periphery for clamping stators to the turret plate with the axes of the stators coplanar with the axis of reciprocation and oscillation of the winding shuttle used to wind coils on the stators. The turret plate is repeatedly indexed in one direction about its vertical center axis to repeatedly sequentially move each of the stator clamp mechanisms to a load/unload station, an optional idle station, a winding station, a coil lead terminating station, and then back to the load/unload station. Parts of the machine are quickly replaceable and other parts are programmably adjustable to accommodate different stator configurations.

Abstract: A stator winding machine has a turret plate mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with stator clamp mechanisms mounted at spaced locations around its periphery for clamping stators to the turret plate with the axes of the stators coplanar with the axis of reciprocation and oscillation of the winding shuttle used to wind coils on the stators. The turret plate is repeatedly indexed in one direction about its vertical center axis to repeatedly sequentially move each of the stator clamp mechanisms to a load/unload station, an optional idle station, a winding station, a coil lead terminating station, and then back to the load/unload station. Parts of the machine are quickly replaceable and other parts are programmably adjustable to accommodate different stator configurations.

Abstract: Workpieces are conveyed from an incoming load station to a plurality of processing machines utilizing an endless conveyor having plural cradles for carrying the workpieces. A seat memory tracks each of the cradles and designates them as either work-to-be-performed cradles or work-finished cradles. The cradles are filled at a load station in accordance with an algorithm by which there is a predetermined ratio between those of the cradles being conveyed from the load station to the first of the processing machines designated as work-to-be-performed cradles and those of the cradles designated as work-finished cradles.

Abstract: An armature winding machine of the type having a flier for winding wire onto a core is driven by a servo system, including a direct current servo motor. The servo system is under the direction of a wind sequence control mechanism. To convert command signals from the wind sequence control mechanism to motor commands usable by the servo system and to prevent wire breakage, command signals issued from the wind sequence control mechanism are modified by motor interface control circuitry which includes acceleration, deceleration, speed select and direction control circuitry.