Quick-change collet chuck
First Claim
1. A quick-release collet chuck for an automatic capping machine, comprising:
- a shaft 103 for connection at one end to an existing drive of the capping machine, said shaft having a lengthwise through-bore and a lateral through-bore at an opposing end;
a pin 105 for insertion in the lateral through bore of said shaft;
a bell cap 102 mounted on said shaft;
a piston 101 slidably mounted on said shaft beneath said bell cap, said piston having a downwardly extending cylindrical sleeve a unitary 22 collet attached to said shaft inside the sleeve of the piston, said collet having an upper mounting collar for attachment to said shaft and a plurality of downwardly extended gripping tines each formed with a ramped bearing surface for engagement by said piston;
whereby air pressure supplied between said bell cap and piston via the lengthwise through-bore in said shaft urges said piston downward, the sleeve of said piston thereby engaging the ramped bearing surfaces of said gripping tines and closing the tines of said collet to grip a cap.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An improved quick-change collet chuck used with an existing single lane capping apparatus for gripping and installing container caps during the automated high-volume filling and capping process. The quick-change collet chuck allows quick and effortless swapping out of different size jaw sets for different size caps and minimizes interruption and downtime during the automated container capping processes. The quick-change collet chuck has a slim profile for low inertia so as not to interfere with high speed operation and accurate servo torquing. Another optional feature is shown in conjunction with the quick-change collet chuck to facilitate reversible operation when it is desirable to include on-the-fly cap removal and removal torque testing on the capping machine. This feature insures that the collet chuck cannot unscrew or spin loose from the spindle shaft after the quick-change collet is already locked in position.
50 Citations
10 Claims
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1. A quick-release collet chuck for an automatic capping machine, comprising:
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a shaft 103 for connection at one end to an existing drive of the capping machine, said shaft having a lengthwise through-bore and a lateral through-bore at an opposing end;
a pin 105 for insertion in the lateral through bore of said shaft;
a bell cap 102 mounted on said shaft;
a piston 101 slidably mounted on said shaft beneath said bell cap, said piston having a downwardly extending cylindrical sleeve a unitary 22 collet attached to said shaft inside the sleeve of the piston, said collet having an upper mounting collar for attachment to said shaft and a plurality of downwardly extended gripping tines each formed with a ramped bearing surface for engagement by said piston;
whereby air pressure supplied between said bell cap and piston via the lengthwise through-bore in said shaft urges said piston downward, the sleeve of said piston thereby engaging the ramped bearing surfaces of said gripping tines and closing the tines of said collet to grip a cap. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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Specification