275 F. 164 | 2d Cir. | 1921
This suit is for infringement of patents Nos. 713,230, 972,272, 972,320, 972,495, and 1,071,677. They all relate to folding machines. Each patent was sustained, and the appellants were held to infringe, in the court below. We shall treat each patent separately and in the order ‘as above.
*166 “(3) In a folding machine, former mechanism comprising in part a former-plate and a former-block split part way of its length, one member thereof being bent to conform to the edge of said former-plate and secured thereto, and the other member being provided with means for securing the same to a supporting member of said former mechanism, substantially as described.”
This feature of the machine is for the supporting of the thin sheet metal die plate or former-plate which determines the shape of the folder blank, and over the edge of which the edge of the blank is in-turned by the folders. The former plate is a very thin sheet metal, and requires an immediate support to which it is attached. It is constructed SO' that the support can be readily mounted upon the die-head or former-head of the machine. The die-head is provided with a slide-way or seat, which is adapted to interchangeably receive and support the former-blocks for all forms of former-plate. The former-plates must differ in outline according to the blank to be folded. The former-block which is attached to the die-head must always be the same in order to be interchangeable with the other former-blocks, and the portion of the former-block to which the thin former-plate is directly attached must conform generally to the form of the edge of the particular thin former-plate. The former-plates thus adapted for folding the bands of collars are narrow and very irregular in outline, and the task was to machine a solid piece of metal onto a former-block of such necessary complex shape that one portion of it would be of standard form interchangeable with other former-blocks in attachment to the die-head. The portion to which the irregular former-plate is directly attached must conform to the shape of the thin former-plate. This was a difficult and expensive task, but the inventor accomplished -this by splitting the former-block partway of its length, having one of the members thus formed left in its original straight form, while the other member was made so as to readily bend to conform to the shape of the former-plate which is to be attached to it. This was done by bending this member of the split former-block without machine work upon it. The result is that all the former-blocks have the members whereby they are attached to the die-head of the same shape and dimensions, while the other members to which the thin former-plates are attached can be made of different forms, in each case corresponding to the shape of the former-plate to be attached thereto. The art shows that for many years the makers of folding machines had felt obliged to separately fashion the whole folder-block for each particular form of folder-plate. This consumed time and required labor and expense. The inventor has overcome this,, thus eliminating a great deal of loss of time and labor. These machines are equipped from time to time with differently shaped templets corresponding to the shapes of the respective blanks to be folded in making different styles of collars. The thin sheet metal templet plates riveted to the heavy metal blocks, which blocks in turn are removably mounted upon the die-head, which swings outward and from the bed of the machine, make possible the interchangeability of templets varying greatly in shape. If a solid block be employed to conform to the shape of and support each of these dif
There is infringement in the manufacture and use of appellants’ machine. This is beyond question. What was accomplished was a decided improvement in the art. Nothing in the prior art anticipated it.
We think this patent is valid and infringed.
(1) In a folding machino, a rigid frame, a bed-plate movable witbin the frame, means witbin the bed-plate for beating the same, a die-plate adapted to co-operate with the bed-plate for clamping between them a blank to be folded, slidable infolders for folding the edges of a blank over the die-plate, each folder being provided with means for tlio insertion of heating means, means for simultaneously operating the infolders, and means for pressing the bed-plaie and die-plate into co-operative relation, turning the edges of the blank over said die, and forcing said bed and die against the infolders to press the turned edges of the blank.
(2) In a folding machine, a rigid frame, a bed-plate movable witbin said frame, means for operating the bed-plate, means within the bed-plate for heating the same, a die-plate adapted to co-operate with tlie bed-plate for bolding a blank on the bed-plate, infolders for turning the edges of the blank over the die-plate, each infolder being provided with means for the insertion of heating means independent ot' the bed-plate heating- means.
(7) In a folding machine, a rigid frame provided with a bed-plate adapted to be heated, a movable die arranged to clamp blanks to be folded on the upper surface of said bed-plaie, infolders adapted to turn the edges of said blank over the edge of said die, and means for producing pressure between tho bed-plate and the die and infolders, each of said in folders being provided wiih means for the insertion of heating means separate of the bed-plate heating means.
The invention permits the infolders to be more highly heated than the bed. This is desirable. Having the infolding elements heated to
We think the appellant’s structure falls within the description of each of the claims and infringes the same.
We agree with the court below that the effort to show that one Brown, the predecessor in the business of the appellant, Margaret Heald, did in 1902 or 1903 employ Simplex or similar heating units in the folders of a folding machine, is not satisfactory to establish that fact. The correspondence indicates that it was not until 1908 that Brown learned how to make such a heating unit satisfactorily.
*169 (0). In a machine Tor folding collar and cuff blanks, a vertically movable bod-plate, a die of thin sheet material comprising a fixed section and a slid-able section, said die adapted to clamp blanks upon the bed-plate, slidable folder plates adapted to fold the edges of said blanks over the edges of said die, means for raising the bed-plate to press the folded blanks against the folder plates, means for supporting and lowering said die, and connections operated by said means for moving the slidable die section endwise to lengthen the die ar- said die is lowered.
(8) in a machine for folding collar and cuff blanks, a die therefor of thin sheet material formed of a plurality of sections, one of which is slidable limgitudinally of the die, a swinging die-head supporting said die, means engaging said slidable die section to move the same, and a connection attached to said moving means and hinged to a fixed part of the machino eccentric to the axis of oscillation of the die-head.
Tlie construction here is for automatically expanding and contracting a partly collapsible die. The new improvement in the art accomplishes a very material saving of time in the folding operation. By automatically expanding the die to full dimensions by the downward movement of the die into engagement with the blank on the bed, thus permitting the die to remain expanded throughout for the folding and pressing operations, and automatically contracting one end of the die by the upward movement of the die as it rises from the bed with the folded and pressed blank retained upon the die plates, the inventor accomplishes the improvement.
The movement of the movable member of the templet is accomplished in one direction 'by a swing and in the opposite direction whereby the templet is expanded to maximum dimensions by means of a cam actuated by a link or rod pivoted upon the frame of the machine eccentrically to the axis of oscillation of the die-head. The appellant infringes this invention, but it is sought to escape infringement by reference to the prior art patents, in which eccentric mechanism has been employed to expand or contract a collapsible die or templet for the purpose of withdrawing the templet from the folded edges of the blank before they are pressed. The prior art does not suggest expanding the die as it is lowered upon the bed, keeping it expanded not only during the pressing operation as well, but using it as a means for lifting the blank from the bed, and then contracting the die to permit a removal therefrom of the folded and pressed blank. This is accomplished by the present patent. The best reference referred to is Fenwick’s patent, No. 688,460. The vital difference is that in the prior art patents the die contracting and expanding mechanism was so constructed as to contract the movable templet plate or plates out from the infolding edges of the blank before those infolding edges were pressed, and in none of these do they show a construction employing a movable templet plate which remains within the folded edge of the blank during the pressing operation, and then serves to raise the folded and pressed blank from the bed, and therefore is automatically withdrawn from the infolded edge of the blank to release the blank. In this respect, the improvement is new. The fact that these advantages seem to he much appreciated by the trade, and {hat this new method of folding has rendered obsolete the prior method of collapsing the
(1) In a machine for folding collar and cuff blanks, a heated bed-plate, a die adapted to press blanks upon said bed-plate, infolders adapted to move inwardly and fold the edges of the blanks over said die, each of said in-folders being chambered and formed in two parts separably connected together, and an infolder plate attached to one of said parts, electric heating means within said chambers adapted to be supplied with current by electric wires from without, whereby the infolder plate of each infolder may be independently heated, means for moving said infolders to fold blanks over the die, and means for pressing the said blanks between the heated bed-plate and the folder-plates.
In appellant’s machine we find each infolder blank comprising a casting hollowed out on its underside, the thin bottom plates to complete the closing of the chamber for the heating coil. The bottom member of the folder-block is thinner than the bottom member of the folder-block shown in this patent, but it has in the appellee’s device the appellant’s two members complete—the chamber which receives the heating coils in substantially the same manner called for by the claim. There is a difference in the form of the two members of the folder-block by the fact that the terminals of the coils are led out from between the block members at the end instead of at the side of the folder-block. But this does not avoid the claim of the patent in suit. We find nothing in the prior art which anticipated what was here accomplished.
(8) In a folding machine, the combination with two folder-plate sections, on one side of the machine, provided with a slide connection extending lengthwise of the plate sections, of a single actuating crank connected by a close-ñtting connection with each section, whereby a circular motion is imparted to the plate sections, and means for operating the cranks, substantially as described.
(8) In a folding machine, the combination with two folder-plates adapted to fold one side of a blank and portions of two other and oppositely disposed sides, of a slide-connection between tlie plates extending lengthwise of their neighboring parts and transversely of the other parts which are adapted to fold portions of the opposite sides of the blank, a plate-actuating crank connected by a close-fitting connection with each of such folder-plates, whereby a circular motion Is imparted to tlie plate sections, and means for operating the cranks, substantially as described.
By moving the infoldcr in a circular or arcuate path, the infolders at a corner of the collar can he overlapped in any desired direction and at any desired angle of one side edge of the blank with respect to the inbeariug end edge of the blank. With the circular movement of the inventor’s infolder, the infolder can be moved through an arc of 90 degrees, and, in case of an acute angle corner in a blank, the throw of the eccentric can be eliminated so that the last folded edge on the side or end of the blank, as it may be, is not thrown out beyond the outer edge of the blank. This shows novel construction that is made within the claims. The crank for each folder exercises, through the sliding connection, a controlling and guiding effect upon the other folder in accomplishing the circular movement. There is nothing in the prior art which shows such a relationship or result, nor is such a result accomplished. The principal prior patent relied upon is Fen-wick’s, No. 688,462. But Fenwick provides for a movement in two straight lines, one at right angles to the other, while the very essence of tlie construction set forth in the patentee’s claim here is the production of a circular movement The claims make this statement. There are no equivalents between the two mechanical devices provided for in this patent and in Fenwick’s. They do not accomplish the same result, because the machine of the patent in suit produces a circular movement of the infolders, while the essential movement of the Fen-wick patent is two straight line movements at right angles to the
We think as to each of the patents in suit the appellee is the sole owner thereof, and that the appellant infringes the claims of each of the patents sued on.
We think these various patents have done much to advance the art, and the claims which we have found are infringed should be accorded the full rights of monopoly which were granted by the issuance of the patent in each instance.
Decree affirmed.