US2079614A - Coating machine - Google Patents

Description

May 11, 1937. M F, HOLT Er AL 2,079,614

GOATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 30, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 1l., 1937. M. F. HoLT Er Al.

COATING MACHINE Filed Jan. 50, 1933 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 `ATTORN Patented May 1l, 1937 PATENT OFFICE comme MACHINE Maynard F. non; Rye, and Sigmund N. Lipowski, New York, N. Y.; said Lipowski assignor to said Holt Application January 30, 1933, Serial No. 654,188

15 Claims.

This invention relates to a machine for applying a coating of lacquer to articles, 4in particular golf balls, and the invention contemplates a mac hine which delivers articles, which are fed there- 5 to, lacquered, dried and ready for use.

Golf balls are commonly coated with a White lacquer in order to render them readily distinguishable from the elements making up the surroundings in which they are used such as the earth, foliage and grass. When this white coating becomes chipped, broken and dirty, the balls become indistinguishable from the surroundings and in many instances such balls, frequently otherwise in excellent condition.- are lost. In l5 order to prevent the loss of balls because of this condition, it is necessary to have them relacquered whenever the white coating` becomes dulled and darkened. Heretofore, however', the relacquering of golf balls required the usual large, expensive lacquering plant equipment for that purpose. Because of the equipment and manual labor involved in properly lacquering balls, lacquering places have not commonly been located conveniently to the golf courses, and the cost of relacquering has been comparatively high.

It is a purpose of this invention to provide a machine for lacquering golf balls which is fully automatic. which is of a size convenient to be installed at a golf links and the loperation of which may be controlled by a coin. Such a machine should be capable of receiving several balls at once, sorting the balls, and delivering the balls relacquered and dried in the shortest possible elapsed time, and these desirable features are all 35 embodied in the machine of this invention. In accordance with the invention,- there is provided a lacquering machine which includes an article dispenser into which several balls may be placed at once and which includes a mechanism which upon operation delivers the balls successively into the machine proper. This delivery mechanism is such that only one ball is permitted to enter the machine at a time and the mechanism is so 45 controlled that delivery of `a ball is dependent upon the internal'mechanism being positioned to receive the ball. The internal mechanism includes a conveyor on to which the balls are delivered. The conveyor operates through a com- 50 plete cycle along a definite path foreach article lacquered. In the cyclic operation of the conveyor, it is moved by a. power device successively into operative relation to a lacquer container into which the ball is dipped, a drier which assists the drying of the coating of lacquer on the ball (ci. en -55) and a delivery chute from which the ball is delivered for use.

Among the features of the invention are included the fact that the mechanism is compact; the fact that the lacquer container is closed to 5 the atmosphere except during the actual dipping operation; the fact that the complete cycle of operation is performed in a minimum of elapsed time; and the elapsed time per ball decreases when a. large number of balls are lacquered suc- 10 cessively.

The advantages of our invention include the fact that the machine is small in size and Vdoes not require much space; the fact that the operation of the machine may be controlled by a coin; and the fact that the machine is comparatively inexpensive to manufacture'.

Specifically, a machine for `lacquering golf balls and constituting one embodiment of this invention includes a, rotatably mounted conveyor which operates in a horizontal plane. successively disposed about the' path oi the conveyorv relative to the direction of movement thereof, there is an article dispenser for receiving the golf balls, a lacquer receptacle, a drier and a delivery mechanism. The ball dispenser includes a hopper into which the balls are placed and mechanism for delivering the balls to the conveyor. The delivery of a ball through the dispenser is dependent upon two factors-a manually operative control element and a control element operative from the interiorof the machineboth of which must function to deliver a ball into the machine. The manually operative control element partially opcrates the delivery mechanism of the dispenser.

The connection between the manual control and the delivery mechanism for the partial operation thereof is coin controlled. Complete operation of the delivery mechanism of the dispenser to deliver a ball into the machine is controlledI in accordance with the operation of the conveyor so that the conveyor will be properly positioned to receive a ball when the ball is delivered through the dispenser.

Following the dispenser, there is a vertically movable lacquer container. This 'lacquer container is below the horizontal plane of operation of the conveyor. The conveyor-and container are relatively movable in a vertical direction to dlp' articles carried by the conveyor 'in '50` I thev lacquer. The lacquer container consists of a. dipping chamber and a reservoir. The dipping chamber is closed except during verticall movement of the lacquer container so thatthe lacquer is exposed to the atmosphere only during the actual dipping of an article. The movement of the container in a vertical direction is under the control of the dispenser so that the lacquer container will not be moved and the dipping chamber opened unless the conveyor actually carries an article to be dipped.

Next in the order of succession there is `an arcuate blower pipe mounted below the plane of operation of the conveyor. The upper surface of this blower pipe is perforated to form a series of air vents through which heated compressed air is blown upo the surface of the coated article carried by the conveyor. The several factors governing the drying of the lacquer, that is, the moisture content of the air delivered through the air pipe, the temperature of the air and the quantity of air per unit of time is such that the .coating of lacquer is completely dried while the article passes over this air pipe. At the end of the air pipe there is an abutment which'upon relative movement between it and the conveyor, lifts the article from the conveyor and on to the delivery mechanism through which the article is delivered to a pocket accessible from the exterior of the machine.

The specific embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings is described in detail below. From that detailed description, a clearer understanding of the invention and the several features thereof may be obtained.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan of a machine embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side sectional elevation of the same Fig. 3 is a rear end elevation of the same, the

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary sectional elevation.

taken on the line 9-.9 of Fig. 8; v

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary section taken on the line Ill- I of Fig. 1;

Fig. 11 is a sectional elevation of the lacquer container taken on the line II--II of Fig. 1; and

Fig.l l24is a wiring diagram of the power cir- Cuit.

The machine illustrated in the drawings is for lacquering golf balls; its operation is controlled by coin actuated means, and it is adapted to be installed at a golf links or any other suitable place. A casing I encloses the entire operating mechanism of the machine, a hopper 2 for receivingthe balls, a manually operative control lever 3 and a ball deliverypocket 4 being the vonly parts which are exterior of the casing. In 1 the casing, a transverse, horizontal partition 5 supports the operating mechanism of the machinwhich mechanism, in the machine illustrated, essentially includes a conveyor and a dispenser, a lacquer tank, a drier and delivery mechanism, all successively disposed about the path of the conveyor. The conveyor consists of a circular disk 6 and several unit conveyor elements 1, six in number, mounted on the disk. The circular disk 6 is formed integrally with a bushing 8 which is rotatably mounted upon a vertical shaft 9. The shaft 9 is rotatably mounted in a vertical bearing I formed integral with a bracket Il secured to the partition 5. The shaft 9 is held against longitudinal movement in the bearing I 8 -by two spaced collars I2 and I3 which abut against opposite ends of the bearing IIJ. Each of thecollars I2 and I3 is secured to the shaft by a transverse pin I2a and I3a. The lower end of the conveyor bushing 8 rests upon and is supported by the edge of the collar I2. 'On the disk, at the edge thereof and uniformly spaced about the disk, there is formed integral with the disk six bifurcated brackets 6a extending perpendicular to the disk. In these brackets, the six unit conveyor elements are mounted. Each conveyor element consists of two levers pivotally secured together, one lever 1 extending radially oi the disk 6 and pivotally mounted between its ends in a bifurcated bracket 6a and another lever I3 having one end pivotally secured to the radially outer end of the lever 1. 'I'he lever 1 carries a stop member I4 against which the lever I3 abuts to prevent this freely suspended lever from swinging radially inwardly from a vertical position. On the radially inner end of the ,lever 1 there is mounted a cam follower 1a which engages the cam edge of a cam bushing I5 mounted on the upper end of the shaft 9 extending through the conveyor bushing 8. This cam engaging the cam followers on the end of the levers 1 controls the vertical position of the levers during the rotation of the conveyor and normally maintains the levers 1 substantially horizontal. 'Ihe arm I3 of a conveyor element is curved to extend at a right angle near its lower or free end. 'Ihis end portion is widened to form a platform I6. The platform I6 of a conveyor element has a series of three spaced prongs I1 extending therefrom and upotn which a golf ball is supported by point contac The conveyor disk 6 is rotated in a step by step movement to move the conveyor elements through a circular path in a horizontal plane. The rotation of the conveyor is accomplished through a ratchet I8 secured to the conveyor bushing 8 adjacent that end of the bushing which abuts against the collar I2. Cooperating with this ratchet there is a pawl I9 pivotally mounted on a rod 20. A leaf spring 2| presses the pawl I9 against the ratchet. The rod is reciprocated to actuate the ratchet through mechanism at the rear of the machine and the rod extends through the machine to the rear thereof. The end of the rod 20 is pivotally connected to one end of a lever 22, the opposite end of which is rotatably mounted upon a shaft 23 supported by bearing brackets 24 and 24a mounted upon the partition Wall 5. Intermediate the ends of the lever 22, there is mounted a cam follower 25 which abuts against a cam 26 secured to a cam shaft 21 that extends transversely of the machine and which is rotatably mounted in bearing brackets 28 and 29. On this shaft there is mounted to rotate therewith a spur gear 30 which meshes with a pinion 3| secured on a' shaft 32 parallel to the shaft 21 and mounted in short bearing brackets 33 and 34. Secured on to the shaft 32 beside the pinion 3l there is a worm gear 35. The worm gear extends through a slot in the partition 5 and meshes with a worm 36 secured on a shaft 31 mounted below the partition 5. The shaft 31 is the shaft of an electric motor which is used for supplying power and movement to the parts of the machine. Thus, the train of motion for moving the conveyor is from the motor through the shaft 31 to the worm 36v and Worm gear 35 to the pinion 3|. From the pinion 3| motion is transmitted to the spur gear 30 and the cam shaft 21. As the cam shaft rotates. thev cam 26 is rotated therewith and acts upon the cam follower on the lever 22. The lever 22 is moved towards the rear of the machine for each revolution of the cam shaft by the action of the cam 26 and through the pawl and ratchet moves the conveyor through one-sixth of a revolution. The lever 22 is maintained against the cam by a spring 38 connected to the lever and the bearing bracket 28. The conveyor is thus rotated enesixth of a revolution for each revolution of the cam shaft 21.

The balls to be lacquered are delivered to the conveyor through'the hopper 2 mounted on the top of the machine. This hopper forms a part of a ball dispenser which includes delivery mechanism for delivering the balls to the conveyor elements. The hopper communicates with a dishshaped bracket 39 which is secured to and forms cooperatingwith these ratchet teeth rotate the a closed chamber with the upper wall of the casing. In this bracket 39 which is as deep as the diameter of a golf ball, there is rotatably mounted a disk 40 having a series, six in number, of ball receiving pockets. From the bottom of the brack- A et 39 there extends a ball chute 4| through which a ball may pass from the interior of the bracket on to one of the conveyor elements, thechute 4| extending adjacent the path of the conveyor and positioned so that the mouth of the chute is directly over a conveyor element when a conveyor element is properly positioned with respect thereto.' The opening through the upper wall of the casing connecting the hopper to the bracket 39 is angularly displaced through an angle of fromthe opening connectingthe chute 4| to the interior of the bracket 39 so that there is never a direct communication between the hopper and the chute 4|. The'pocket-containing disk 40 mounted in the bracket 39 is rotated counter-clockwise, as seen in Fig. 1, to bring the pockets successively into communication rst with the hopper and then with the chute 4|. ratchet teeth formed therein and angularly disposed about the disk through angles of 60. Pawls disk.

At one side of the disk, slidably mounted in brackets 43 and 43a, there is a bar 44. The bar 44 carries a pawl- 45 which is pressed against the side of the pocket disk 40 by a leaf spring 46. On the end of the bar 44, there is mounted a depending bracket 41 to one end of which there is pivotis secured to the front wall of the casing. The 1 shaft 52 extends through the front of the casing and has mounted on the end thereof the control i lever 3. Immediately behind the front wall of the casing, there is mounted on the shaft 52 a disk 54 which cooperates with a lever 55 for controlling theoperation of the shaft 52. The disk 54 extends between a plate 56 mounted on the back of the front wall of the casing. The plate 56 is spaced l from the casing a distance equal to the width of a l coin, such as a ve cent piece. The disk 56 has a `formed on the end of the lever 55 extends.

'lever l5 is pivotelly mounted between its endl in slot therein into which, in the normal or inoperative position of the lever 3, a wedge-shaped lug 51 The The disk has a series of n a bifurcated bracket 53 and is urged about its pivotal connection by a spring 59 to a position in which the lug 51 extends into the slot in the disk 54. The edge of the lug when itextends into the lslot abuts against the edge of the slot and pre-v vents the disk and shaft from rotating. When a coin is inserted in the coin-receiving opening in the front wall ofthe machine, it passes down the slot in the disk between the plate 56 and the wall of the casing and it acts against the inclined surface of the wedge-shaped lug and forces the lug out of the slot in the disk. The disk and consequently the shaft may then be rotated by the manually operative lever 3. As the disk is rotated the coin in the slot in the disk is carried around through an angle of approximately 135 and is deposited in a coin-receiving chute 60. As the shaft is rotated, the slot in the crank 50 permits the crank to move through an angle of approximately 105 without moving the bar 44. During the last 30 of movement, however, the end of the slot engages the pin 49 and moves the bar 44. 'Ihe bar 44 will rotate the pocket disk through the pawl 45, and the movement of the bar is just sufcient to move the pocket disk through an angle of 30. Ths, by the manually operative lever 3, the pocket which was formerly registering, with .the hopper 2 will be moved to a position between the opening in the casing communicating with the hopper 2 and the opening in the bracket 39 communicating with the chute 4 i.

The pocket disk is moved the remaining 30' to bring the pocket (thus moved to a position between the hopper and chute 4|) into register with the chute 4| by a pawl 6| mounted on a bar 62. The bar 62 to one side of the pocket disk 40 is diametrically opposite lto the bar 44. Like the bar 44, the bar 62 is slidably mounted in a pair of brackets 63 and 63a. The bar 62 is movable only through a distance sufficient to move the pocket disk through an angie of 30 so that it requires movementof the pocket disk through the limit of movement of the two bars 44 and 62 in order to move a pocket from a position in communication with the hopper 2 to a position in communication with the chute 4|. The rod 52 is actuated by the internal mechanism in relation to the conveyor elements and it is connected at one end to a lever 64, the other end of which is rotatably mounted on the shaft 32. Intermediate the ends of the lever 64, there is mounted on the lever a cam follower 65 which engages a cam 66 mounted on the cam shaft 21. The com 66`is so designed and mounted on the shaft that the lever 62 will be moved the full extent of its movement towards the rear of the machine after the conveyor disk 6 has completed a onesixth movement. When the conveyor is stationary at the end of each one-sixth movement a conveyor element is directly` beneath the chute 4|. The cam follower 65 is held against the cam 66 by a spring 61 acting 4upon the lever 64. Thus. it will be seen that rotation of the pocket disk through an angie of 60 is dependent upon two powerelements, one a manually operative element, the lever 3, and the other a mechanically operative element, the lever 64. The rst of these elements is coin controlled so that the pocket disk can not be moved` to deliver a ball without the insertion of a coin. The latter control ele- 'ment which is mechanically controlled assures that when a pocket containing a ball registers with the delivery chute 4| a conveyor element will be positioned beneath the chute to receive the ball passing therethrough.

Following the dispensing mechanism, relative to the direction of movement of the conveyor elements, and spaced angularly therefrom through an angle of 60, there is a lacquer container 89 mounted below the horizontal plane of rotation of the conveyor elements. The lacquer container is divided by a rectangular partition wall 18 into a dipping chamber and a reservoir. The dipping chamber and reservoir are in communication below the wall 18 and through perforations in the wall 10. The lacquer container is completely closed except for the opening to the dipping chamber and this chamber is closed by a pair of doors 1| and 12 which are pivotally secured to the upper edge of the container by pivots 1Ia and 12a extending through hinges formed on the doors and brackets on the container. Each of the doors has a lever 1lb and 12b extending therefrom transversely to, and beyond the edge of the container. Cooperating with the door evers are brackets 18 and 14 which extend over the levers in the closed position of the doors. 4 The lacquer container is movably mounted on a piston rod 15 one end of which is threaded into a lug 16 formed on the bottom of the container. 'I'he piston rod extends downwardly through a bushing 11 in the partition wall 5 and into a cylinder 18. In the cylinder. the piston rod is secured to a perforated piston and the cylinder and perforated piston act in the capacity of a dash pot to cushion downward movement of the lacquer container. With this piston rod mounting, the lacquer tankcan be moved in a vertical direction and for this purpose trunnions 19 and 88 extend from each side of the container. From these trunnions respective levers, 19a and 80a, extend downwardly, and their lower ends are pivotally connected to the arms 88h and 80c of a cradle 8l. The cradle 8| is formed on the end of a lever 82 which is pivotally mounted between its ends in a bracket 83 secured to and mounted on the partition wall 5. The iree end of this lever 82 is pivotally secured to two vertical levers 84 and 85, one on each side of the lever 82. 'I'he levers 84 and 85 are secured to a common pivot extending through and journaled in the lever 8i. The levers 84 and 85 are urged against a vertical stop 88, formed on the lever 82, by a spring 81 connected at one end to the lever 85 and at the other end to the lever 82. The lever 85 cooperates with a crank pin 88 mounted on a crank 89. The crank 89 is secured to the cam shaft 21 to rotate therewith. As the crank rotates, the crank pin abuts against the top of the lever 85, de- Pressing the lever 85 and the rear end of the lever 82. By virtue of this movement of the lever 82 the lacquer container is raised in a vertical direction through the cradle 8|. The position of the crank 89 is such, relative to "the conveyor movement cam, that the lacquer container is raised only after the .conveyor has completed a one-sixth revolution at which time a conveyor element is positioned directly over the dipping chamber of the lacquer container. It will be observed that as the lacquer container is moved upwardly, the 'levers 1lb and 12b on the doors 1l and 12 engage the brackets 13 and 14 and the doors are swung about the pivots to an open position as illustrated in Fig. l1. When the lacquer container descends to its original position the force of gravity acting on the doors cause them to close. Thus the smallest area of lacquer is exposed to the atmosphere for 'the shortest possible time, only during the actual dipping operation.

tition wall 5.

Since there are six conveyor elements and the conveyor makes one complete revolution for each bail, it is possible that a conveyor element not containing a bail may be positioned over the lacquer container. Six conveyor elements are provided merely to speed the operation in the event that a number of balls are to be successively lacquered. In order to prevent the lacquer tank from being open to the atmosphere when there is no ball in the conveyor element above the lacquer container, a control lever 98 is provided which cooperates with the lever 84 and normally maintains the lever 85 out of the path of the crank pin 88 to prevent operation of the lacquer container. The lever 90 is pivotally mounted between its end in a depending bracket 8i secured immediately behind the chute 4i. One end of the lever 98 extends through a slot into the chute 4i and the other end of the lever extends into engagement with the lever 84. A spring 93 normally maintains the lever 90 in position to press'the lever 84 rearwardly and thus hold the lever 85out of the path of the crank 88. When however a bali passes through the chute 4i, it actuates the lever 98 against the spring 93 and releases the lever 84. When the lever 84 is released, the spring 81 draws the lever 85 into the path of the crank pin 88. As the lacquer container does not operate until the conveyor makes a one-sixth revolution after a ball passes through the chute 4I, the container will not be elevated unless the conveyor element over the container carries a ball to be dipped. The lacquer containeris return from its raised position to its normal position by the action of the force of gravity acting thereon. The dash pot at the end of the piston rod serves to soften the downward movement of the lacquer container and thus avoid any splashing of the lacquer.

Following the lacquer container, and below the plane of operation of the conveyor elements, there is an arcuate pipe 94 supported by the par- This arcuate pipe is closed at both ends and has a seiies of perforations along its upper surface. 'Ihe pipe is connected through a pipe line 95 to a source of warm compressed air (not shown). This warm compressed air may be supplied from a tank Within the machine, a

compressor being connected to the operating motor of the machine to supply the compressed air to the tank. However, the source or supply is connected to the arcuate pipe 94 and a blast of warm air is directed vertically. The radius of curvature of the arcuate pipe is the same as the distance from the center of the conveyor to the carrying platform of the conveyor elements so that as the conveyor rotates the conveyor elements successively pass directly over the arcuate pipe. Thus the airblast from the perforations fn the pipe is directed onto the balls carried by the conveyor elements. The temperature, volume and water content of the air passing over a ball while a conveyor element passes over the pipe are suicient to dry the lacquer.

At the end of the arcuate pipe and slightly spaced therefrom, there is mounteda vertical rod 88 (see Fig. 10) which has a linger 91 extending directly under the path of movement ofthe platforms of theconveyor elements. As a conveyor element reaches this, the last of its six angular positions in a complete revolution, it is moved downwardly in a vertical direction.

This downward movement of the conveyor element is eiected through a groove as shown in leased to the coin receiving chute.

the cam |5 which is rotated through the shaft 9 to bring the groove into alignment with the cam follower on the end of the lever 1. The shaftv 9 is oscillated'through a crank 98 formed on the collar |2, a rod 99 pivotally secured at one end to the crank 98, a lever pivotally mounted on the shaft 23 and connected at its free end to the end of the rod 99, a cam follower I0| mounted between the ends of the lever |00, and a cam |02 mounted on the cam shaft 21. As the conveyor element moves downwardly the finger 91 engages the side of a ball on the conveyor element and displaces the ball so that the ball drops off of the conveyor element. Below thiselement there is the mouth of a chute |03 into which the ball 'is dropped. This chute communicates with the bracket 4 forming the pocket on the exterior of the machine into which the lacquered balls, dried and ready for use, are delivered.

In Fig. 12 of the drawings,- the power circuit to the motor of the machine is illustrated. 'I'his i circuit includes two switches, one |04 operated by the manual lever 3, and the other a hold-in switch consisting of a broken conductor ring |05 mounted on the conveyor bushing 0 and a brush to engage in sliding contact with the ring. 'The two switches are connected in parallel. The,

is as follows: In this description of the operation of the machine we shall .assume that the operator of the machine has but a single ball which he desires to be lacquered. The ball is inserted in the hopper 2 and passes into a pocket in the pocket disk 40. A coin is then inserted in the 'coin slot in the front of the machine. The coin moves down between the front wall of the casing and the plate 56 into the slotin the disk 54. As the coin lis pressed downwardly it forces the wedge lug 51 out of the slot in the disk 54. 'I'he operator may then rotate the lever 3. As theI lever 3 is rotated, into the paper as shown in Fig. 3, the shaft 52 is rotated through an angle of 135, the switch |04 is closed and the coin is re- During the last 30 of rotation of the shaft the edge of the groove in the crank 50 engages the pin 49, moves the bar 44 and rotates the pocket disk 40 through an angle of 30. The pocket which was in register with the hopper and into which the ball descended is thus moved to a position between registry with the hopper and with the chute 4I.

Operation of the rod 62, as heretofore described,

rotates the pocket disk through the remaining 30 to bring the pocket containing the ball into register with the chute 4|. The ball descends through the chute 4| on to the conveyor element and operates the lever 90 during its passage through the chute so that the lever 84 is released and the lever 05 moves into the path of the crank pin'80.

I'he cam 26 operating on the cam follower 25 .of the lever 22 rotates the conveyor through a `one-sixth revolution so that the conveyor elesame time the lever rotates the shaft 9 lso that the groove in the cam I5 becomes aligned with the end of the lever 1 of the 'conveyor element carrying the ball. The conveyor element thus moves downwardly as the tank moves upwardly and the ball is dipped into the dipping chamber. As the crank rides oif of the lever 85, the container descends to its original position; the dash pot arrangement, previously described, prevents a jarring of the lacquer container.

Following the dipping operation, the cam 26 again engages the follower 25 of the lever 22 and rotates the conveyor through another one-sixth of a revolution at which point the ball is over the forward en d of the pipe 94 relative to the direction of movement of the conveyor element. Each succeeding revolution of the shaft 21 rotates the conveyor one-sixth of a revolution until the ball carrying conveyor element reaches the position adjacent the delivery bracket 96 at which point, when the cam I5 is rotated, a groove in the cam is aligned with the end of the lever 1 and the conveyor element moves downwardly in a vertical direction. The pin or nger 91 abuts against the ball as the conveyor element moves downwardly and pushes the ball off the conveyor into the ball receiving chute through which itis delivered to the pocket 4.

If more than one ball is to be lacquered the several balls are placed in the hopper at one time and the operator inserts in succession as many 'coins as there are balls, rotating the lever 3 once the elapsed time will be approximately one andfive-sixths minutes for six balls by virtue of the fact that it will only be necessary for the con,- veyor to make approximately one and five-sixths revolutions for the entire six balls.

It will be seen that the machine which we have devised is of a convenient size and can be readily installed at a golf links or other suitable place. Its coin control mechanism avoids the necessity of manual supervision and thus permits an e'conomical lacquering of used balls.

It will be obvious that various changes may be made by those skilled in the art in the details of the embodiment shown. in the drawings and above particularly described Within the principle and scope of my invention as expressed in the 1. A machine for coating articles with a lacquer comprising a conveyor for carrying the articles to be coated and means for moving the conveyor in combination with an article dispenser for receiving articles to be lacquered and delivering the articles on to the conveyor, a lacquer containing receptacle, drying means for assisting the drying of lacquer, and delivery means for delivering articles from the machine, all operatively related to and disposed successively about the path of the conveyor, means for causing vertical movements in opposite directions of the conveyor and the lacquer receptacle respectively to dip an article carried by the conveyor in the lacquer, and control means for said lacquer receptacle'moving means.

- 2. In a machine for coating articles with alacquer the combination comprising a conveyor for carrying the article to be lacquered, means for moving the conveyor, and a dispensing device including a hopper for receiving the articles,

' means for delivering the articles in the hopper to the conveyor, and control means for said delivery means including a manually operative control element and a control element actuated in accordance with the position of the conveyor.

3. In a machine for coating articles with a lacquer the combination comprising a conveyor for carrying the article to be lacquered, means for moving the conveyor, a lacquer container below the conveyor, and means for causing vertical movements in opposite directions of the lacquer containing receptacle and the conveyor respectively to dip an article on the conveyor in the lacquer.

4. Automatic mechanism for coating used golf balls comprising in combination: a conveyor adapted to receive and convey through a predeterminedpath a plurality of balls delivered to said conveyor at uniformly separated time intervals said conveyor comprising a vertical shaft carrying a plurality of radially extended arms each of which is adapted to receive and convey a single ball; ball dispensing means to deliver a ball to said conveyor comprising a rotatable horizontal disc having therein a plurality of circular ball receiving and ball delivering apertures equal in number to the plurality of ball conveying arms on the conveyor, said disc cooperating with a subjacent plate having an aperture therein which registers with each disc aperture in turn as the `said disc rotates and simultaneously registers with each arm of the said conveyor; ball coating means; cam means to actuate the conveyor, the ball delivering means and the ball coating means respectively; and means cooperating with the ball delivering means and ball coating mechanism whereby the latter becomes operative to coat the ball only upon delivery of a ball by the ball dispensing means to the conveyor.

5. Automatic mechanism for coating golf balls comprising in combination; a conveyor adapted to advance a ball by intermittent motion to and from successive stations including a ball receiving and dispensing station and a ball coating station said conveyor comprising a plurality of radial arms adapted to rotate in a horizontal plane; ball dispensing means at the ball dispensing station comprising a horizontally rotatable disc carrying a plurality of peripheral apertures cooperating with a subjacent plate to form ball pockets, said plate having an aperture adapted to permit a ball to fall therethrough; ball coating means at the ball coating station; cam means on a common cam shaft to operate the conveyor, the ball dispensing means and the ball coating means which cam means during operation advances a ball` to and from its successive stations and simultaneously brings into registry a conveyor arm, a pocket in the rotatable disc and the said aperture in the subjacent plate thereby permitting the delivery of a ball from the dispenser to the conveyor; and means connected with the dispenser and ball coating mechanism respectively whereby the latter becomes operative to coat a ball only upon delivery of a ball from the dispenser to the conveyor.

6. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with a lacquer, the combination comprising a conveyor for supporting and carrying an articleincluding an arm rotatable about a vertical axis and point supports carried, thereby f9.1' 91h gaging the article, means for delivering an article on to the point supports carried by the arm, a lacquer container angularly disposed about the center of rotation of the conveyor arm with respect to said delivery means, means for rotating the conveyor arm from a position to receive an article from the delivery means to a vertical plane passing through the lacquer container and the axis of rotation of the conveyor arm, and means for effecting relative vertical movement of the conveyor arm and lacquer container to immerse the article carried thereby in the lacquer and remove the article from the lacquer.

7. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with a lacquer, the combination comprising a conveyor for supporting and carrying an article including an arm rotatable about a vertical axis and point supports carried thereby for engaging the article, means for delivering an article on to the point supports carried by the conveyor arm, a lacquer container angularly spaced about the center of rotation of the conveyor arm with respect to said delivery means, means for rotating the conveyor arm from a position to receive an article from the delivery means to a vertical plane passing through the lacquer container and the axis of rotation of the conveyor arm, means for effecting relative vertical movef ment of the conveyor arm and lacquer container to immerse the article carried thereby in the lacquer and remove the article from the lacquer, and means angularly spaced from the lacquer container for removing the article from the conveyor arm.

8. In a machine for coating the entire surface of articles with a lacquer, the combination comprising aconveyor for supporting and carrying an article including an arm rotatable about a vertical axis and point supports carried thereby for engaging the article, means for rotating the arm, delivery means for delivering an article on to the point supports of the conveyor arm, a lacquer container, drying means and an abutment all successively spaced angularly about the center of rotation of the conveyor arm, means for eiecting relative vertical movement of the conveyor arm and lacquer container to immerse the article in the lacquer, and means to effect relative vertical movement of the abutment and conveyor arm to remove the article from the conveyor arm.

9. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combination comprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means for delivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatably mounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive an article to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of said plates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the other having an article delivering opening therethrough angularly spaced about the disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other plate, and operating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, means foractuating one of the elements to rotate the disk from a point in which the opening therethrough registers with an opening through one of the plates to a position in which the opening therethrough is midway between the openings through the plates, and means for actuating the other element to move the disk to a position in which the opening therethrough registers with the opening through the other plate.

10. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combination comprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means for delivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatably mounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive van article to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of said plates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the other having an article delivering opening therethrough angularly spaced about the disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other plate, and operating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, means for actuating one of the elements to rotate the disk from a point in which the opening therethrough registerswith an opening through one of the plates to a position in which the opening therethrough is midway between the openings through the plates, means for actuating the other element to move the disk to a position in which the opening therethrough registers with the opening through the other plate, and means for coordinating the action of said last mentioned ele- .ment with the operation of the lacquering means.

11. In a machine for coating an article with a lacquer, the combination comprising means for coating an article with a lacquer and means for delivering articles to the lacquering means including a rotatably mounted disk having an opening therethrough adapted to receive an article to be lacquered, a plate on each side of said disk, one of said plates having an article receiving opening therethrough and the other having an article delivering Aopening therethrough angularly spaced 'about the disk with respect to the receiving opening in the other disk, and operating means for the disk comprising a pair of elements, manually operative means for actuating one of the elements to rotate the disk from a point in which the opening therethrough registers with an opening through one of the plates to a position in which the opening therethrough is midway between the openings through the plates, means for actuating the other element to move the disk to a position in which the opening therethrough registers with the opening through the other plate, and means for coordinating the action of said last mentioned element with the opdelivery means including a pair of control elements each operative to effect partial operation of the delivery means, manually operative means for actuating one of said control elements, and means for actuating the other of said control elements in accordance with the operation ofthe conveyor.

13. In a machine for coating golf balls by a dipping operation, article coating mechanism including a lacquer container, a conveyor, and ball delivering mechanism, said conveyor being located subjacent and in spaced relation to the ball delivering mechanism, said ball delivering mechanism including means for delivering the ball to the conveyor by a downward movement of the ball, said conveyor including means for receiving the ball from the ball delivering mechanism at a pre4 determined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintaining the ball in that position during' the coating operation, and means for eiecting substantially reciprocating movement of the conveyor and the ball ina vertical plane containedin the lacquer container to dip the ball on the conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

1,4. In a machine for coating golf balls by a dip- 'pin'goperatiom article coating mechanism including a lacquer container, a conveyor, and ball delivering mechanism, said conveyor including point support means i'or receiving the ball from the ball delivering mechanism at a predetermined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintaining the ball in that position during the coating operation, and means for eiecting substantially reciprocating movement of the conveyor and the ball ina vertical plane contained in the lacquer container to dip the ball on the conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

15. In a machine for coating articles by a dipping operation, article coating mechanism including a lacquer container, article delivering mechanism` and a conveyor, said conveyor being located in spaced relation to thearticle delivering mechanism, said article delivering mechanism including means for delivering the article to the conveyor by a downward movement of the article, said con've'yor'inc'luding means for receiving the article from thearticle delivering mechanism at a predetermined position in respect to the conveyor and for maintaining the article in that position during the coating operation, and means for eiecting reciprocating movement of the conveyor I and the article in a. vertical plane contained in the lacquer container to dip the article on the conveyor into the lacquer in the container.

MAYNARD F. HOLT.

SIGMUND N. LJIOWSKI.

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