Punch press having ejector and divergent product removal means

Claim 1

A HIGH SPEED PUNCH PRESS COMPRISING A FRAME STRUCTURE FOR SUPPORTING WEB MATERIAL IN SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL POSITION, MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY ADVANCING SAID WEB OVER SAID FRAME STRUCTURE, A PAIR OF PARALLEL LEADING AND TRAILING ROWS OF DIES MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME STRUCTURE AND DISPOSED IN STAGGERED RELATION TRANSVERSELY OF THE WEB FOR CUTTING TWO PARALLEL ROWS OF INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES FROM SAID WEB, SAID DIES EACH COMPRISING RELATIVELY MOVABLE UPPER AND LOWER DIE MEMBERS BETWEEN WHICH SAID WEB IS ADVANCED, WITH SAID UPPER DIE MEMBER HAVING ONE POSITION VERTICALLY SPACED FROM SAID WEB, AND HAVING SURFACES THEREON TO WHICH A CUT ARTICLE WILL FRICTIONALLY ADHERE, MEANS SYNCHRONIZED WITH SAID WEB ADVANCING MEANS FOR ACTUATING SAID DIES DURING WEB DWELL TO THEREBY CUT SAID ARTICLES FROM SAID WEB AND LEAVE PERFORATED WEB SCRAP, A KNOCKOUT MEMBER OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH EACH OF SAID UPPER DIE MEMBERS FOR EJECTING AN ADHERING CUT ARTICLE TO FALL FREELY THEREFROM WHILE SAID UPPER DIE MEMBER IS IN SAID ONE POSITION, KICKOUT MEANS DISPOSED ABOVE SAID WEB ADJACENT EACH UPPER DIE MEMBER FOR ENGAGING EACH EJECTED ARTICLE WHILE UNSUPPORTED AND TRANSFERRING THE ARTICLES OF THE LEADING ROW IN THE DIRECTION OF WEB TRAVEL AND THE ARTICLES OF THE TRAILING ROW IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION THROUGH SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL PATHS VERTICALLY SPACED FROM SAID WEB, MEANS FOR ACTUATING ALL OF SAID KICKOUT MEANS WHILE SAID UPPER DIE MEMBERS ARE IN SAID ONE POSITION AND AFTER THE ARTICLES ARE EJECTED THEREFROM, AND CONVEYING MEANS AT THE ENDS OF SAID ARTICLE PATHS RESPECTIVELY, FOR ENGAGING AND TRANSFERRING THE RESPECTIVE ARTICLE ROWS TRANSVERSELY OF THE DIRECTION OF WEB TRAVEL, THEREBY PREVENTING ENGAGEMENT OF ANY OF SAID ARTICLES WITH SAID ADVANCING WEB AND WEB SCRAP.