Web feed and severing device

Claim 1

IN A CONTINUOUS WEB FEEDING AND SEVERING MACHINE THE COMBINATION OF A FRAME, TWO PAIRS OF CONTINUOUSLY RUNNING CONVEYOR BELTS MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME, THE SURFACES OF THE BELTS IN EACH PAIR BEING NORMALLY HELD IN CLOSE CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER, SAID BELT PAIRS BEING SPACED APART SO AS TO GRIP ONLY THE RESPECTIVE SIDE EDGES OF THE WEB TO BE SEVERED, WHICH WEB IS NORMALLY HELD TIGHTLY BETWEEN THE ENDLESS CONVEYOR BELTS, MEANS TO DRIVE SAID BELT PAIRS, A WEB CUTTER RECIPROCAL ACROSS THE PATH OF THE WEB AND OPERATIVE TO ONLY PARTIALLY SLICE THE WEB TRANSVERSELY OF THAT PORTION OF THE WEB LYING BETWEEN THE CONVEYOR BELTS, BRAKING MEANS LOCATED UPSTREAM FROM SAID WEB CUTTER, MEANS UPSTREAM OF SAID WEB CUTTER TO RELEASE THE WEB GRIPPING CONTACT OF EACH OF THE BELT PAIRS TO A POINT DOWNSTREAM OF SAID WEB CUTTER, MEANS DRIVING SAID WEB CUTTER, SAID BRAKING MEANS AND SAID RELEASE MEANS, SAID BRAKING MEANS AND SAID RELEASE MEANS COOPERATING WITH SAID WEB CUTTER WHEREBY AS SAID WEB CUTTER IS DRIVEN AGAINST SAID WEB SAID BRAKING MEANS ENGAGES THE WEB AND SAID RELEASING MEANS SEPARATES THE CONTACTING SURFACES OF EACH PAIR OF CONVEYOR BELTS UPSTREAM FROM SAID WEB CUTTER, AND AS SAID WEB CUTTER IS DRAWN AWAY FROM SAID WEB, SAID BRAKING MEANS AND SAID RELEASING MEANS CEASE TO EXERT THEIR EFFECT AND PERMIT THE SURFACES OF THE CONVEYOR BELTS TO AGAIN COME IN CONTACT THEREBY GRIPPING THE WEB AND ADVANCING THE WEB.