Cable guide system for a mold forming and extruding machine and a method of use
First Claim
1. A cable guide system for a mold forming machine which has a pair of spaced apart vertical members, said cable guide system comprising:
- a) a support shaft aligned horizontally and secured to said pair of spaced apart vertical members;
b) a first stop member secured to said support shaft;
c) a tensioning device positioned on said support shaft and cooperating with said first stop member;
d) a spool containing a quantity of flexible reinforcement cable, said spool having a central aperture formed therethrough which is sized to slide over said support shaft, and said spool cooperating with said tensioning device such that a predetermined tension can be applied against said spool to prevent said flexible cable from prematurely unraveling;
e) a second stop member secured to said support shaft on an opposite side of said spool; and
f) a reciprocating plunger having a vertical face member with an outer periphery and having an aperture formed therethrough, said aperture being located completely inward from said outer periphery and being formed through a lower half of said vertical face member, and said plunger capable of expelling a moldable substance from said machine while allowing said flexible cable to pass through said aperture.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A cable guide system and method are disclosed for a mold forming and extruding machine. The machine has a pair of spaced apart vertical members. The cable guide system includes a support shaft secured to the pair of vertical members. The support shaft retains a first stop member, a tensioning device, a spool loaded with a flexible reinforcement cable, and a second stop member. The spool cooperates with the tensioning device to prevent the cable from prematurely unraveling. The cable guide system further includes a guide member located below and forward of the spool and in horizontal alignment with a plunger. The guide member is capable of changing the direction of the flexible reinforcement cable as it is unwound from the spool. The plunger is capable of extruding a moldable substance from the machine while allowing the flexible reinforcement cable to pass through an aperture formed therein.
45 Citations
28 Claims
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1. A cable guide system for a mold forming machine which has a pair of spaced apart vertical members, said cable guide system comprising:
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a) a support shaft aligned horizontally and secured to said pair of spaced apart vertical members; b) a first stop member secured to said support shaft; c) a tensioning device positioned on said support shaft and cooperating with said first stop member; d) a spool containing a quantity of flexible reinforcement cable, said spool having a central aperture formed therethrough which is sized to slide over said support shaft, and said spool cooperating with said tensioning device such that a predetermined tension can be applied against said spool to prevent said flexible cable from prematurely unraveling; e) a second stop member secured to said support shaft on an opposite side of said spool; and f) a reciprocating plunger having a vertical face member with an outer periphery and having an aperture formed therethrough, said aperture being located completely inward from said outer periphery and being formed through a lower half of said vertical face member, and said plunger capable of expelling a moldable substance from said machine while allowing said flexible cable to pass through said aperture. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6)
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2. A cable guide system for a mold forming machine which has a pair of spaced apart vertical members, said cable guide system comprising:
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a) a support shaft aligned horizontally and secured to said pair of spaced apart vertical members, said support shaft having a first member removably attached to one of said vertical members and a second end having an elongated hollow cavity formed therein, and a second member having a first end which is sized and shaped to telescopically engage with said elongated hollow cavity and a second end removably attached to said other vertical member, said first and second members cooperating to vary the length of said support shaft so as to accommodate various machine models; b) a first stop member secured to said support shaft; c) a tensioning device positioned on said support shaft and cooperating with said first stop member; d) a spool containing a quantity of flexible reinforcement cable, said spool having a central aperture formed therethrough which is sized to slide over said support shaft, and said spool cooperating with said tensioning device such that a predetermined tension can be applied against said spool to prevent said flexible cable from prematurely unraveling; e) a second stop member secured to said support shaft on an opposite side of said spool; and f) a guide member secured to said mold forming machine at a location below and forward of said spool and in horizontal alignment with a plunger, said guide member having an aperture formed therethrough which is aligned parallel to said support shaft and at an elevation in line with said plunger, said aperture having a diameter which is at least about 0.05 inches larger than said predetermined diameter of said flexible cable, said plunger capable of expelling a moldable substance from said machine while allowing said flexible cable to pass through said aperture, said guide member capable of changing the direction of said flexible cable which is unwound from said spool from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation, and said guide member axially aligning said unwound cable with said aperture formed in said plunger. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 7, 8, 9)
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10-15. -15. (canceled)
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16. A method of using a cable guide system with a mold forming and extruding machine to guide and embed a flexible reinforcement cable in a compacted and moldable substance, said method comprising the steps of:
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a) attaching a cable guide system to a mold forming and extruding machine having a pair of spaced apart vertical members, a hopper, an engine connected to a drive mechanism, which in turn operates a reciprocating ram connected to a plunger, said plunger having at least one aperture formed therein through which said flexible reinforcement cable can pass, said cable guide system including a support shaft aligned horizontally and secured to said pair of spaced apart vertical members, said support shaft having first and second members, said first member having a first end removably attached to one of said vertical members and a second end having an elongated hollow cavity formed therein, and said second member having a first end which is sized and shaped to engage with said elongated hollow cavity and a second end removably attached to said other vertical member, said first and second members cooperating to vary the length of said support shaft so as to accommodate various machine models, a first stop member secured to said support shaft, a tensioning device positioned on said support shaft and cooperating with said first stop member, a spool containing a quantity of flexible reinforcement cable, said spool having a central aperture formed therethrough which is sized to slide over said support shaft, said spool cooperating with said tensioning device such that a predetermined tension can be applied against said spool to prevent said flexible cable from prematurely unraveling, a second stop member secured to said support shaft on an opposite side of said spool, and a guide member secured to said mold forming and extruding machine at a location below and forward of said spool and in horizontal alignment with said plunger, said guide member having an aperture formed therein; b) unwinding said flexible reinforcement cable from said spool and passing a free end of said flexible reinforcement cable through said aperture formed in said guide member, said guide member capable of changing the direction of said flexible reinforcement cable from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation; c) advancing said free end of said flexible reinforcement cable through said aperture formed in said plunger such that said flexible reinforcement cable is axially aligned with said aperture formed in said guide member; and d) securing said free end of said flexible reinforcement cable at a predetermined location and operating said machine to move away from said predetermined location while said plunger extrudes said moldable substance around said flexible reinforcement cable. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18)
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19-20. -20. (canceled)
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21. A cable guide system for a mold forming machine which has a pair of spaced apart vertical members, said cable guide system comprising:
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a) a support shaft aligned horizontally and secured to said pair of spaced apart vertical members; b) a first stop member secured to said support shaft; c) a tensioning device positioned on said support shaft and cooperating with said first stop member; d) a spool containing a quantity of flexible reinforcement cable, said spool having a central aperture formed therethrough which is sized to slide over said support shaft, and said spool cooperating with said tensioning device such that a predetermined tension can be applied against said spool to prevent said flexible cable from prematurely unraveling; e) a second stop member secured to said support shaft on an opposite side of said spool; and f) a guide member secured to said mold forming machine at a location below and forward of said spool and in horizontal alignment with a reciprocating plunger, said guide member having an aperture formed therethrough which is aligned parallel to said support shaft and at an elevation in line with said plunger, said plunger having a vertical face member with an outer periphery and having an aperture formed therethrough, said aperture being located completely inward from said outer periphery and being formed through said vertical face member, and said plunger capable of expelling a moldable substance from said machine while allowing said flexible cable to pass through said aperture, said guide member capable of changing the direction of said flexible cable which is unwound from said spool from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation, and said guide member axially aligning said unwound cable with said aperture formed in said plunger. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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Specification