Sheet piler with air flow side guides

Claim 1

A SHEET PILER COMPRISING BOX FORMING MEMBERS FOR RECEIVING SHEETS IN SUPERIMPOSED PILE FORMING RELATION, A CONVEYOR MOUNTED ABOVE SAID BOX FORMING MEMBERS AND HAVING A BOTTOM SHEET CARRYING SURFACE, MEANS TO OPERATE SAID CONVEYOR FOR ADVANCING SHEETS TO A PREDETERMINED POSITION ABOVE SAID FORMING MEMBERS AND SAID CONVEYOR HAVING MEANS FOR RELEASING THE SHEETS FOR DEPOSIT ON A PILE BETWEEN SAID BOX FORMING MEMBERS, SAID BOX FORMING MEMBERS INCLUDING A PAIR OF PARALLEL OPPOSITELY DISPOSED INTERNAL SURFACES FOR GUIDING THE DOWNWARD MOVEMENT OF THE SHEETS AS THEY ARE RELEASED BY THE CONVEYOR, MEANS FORMING TUBULAR AIR CHAMBERS ADJACENT SAID GUIDE SURFACES AND OUTSIDE THE PILING AREA, MEANS FORMING DOWNWARDLY AND INWARDLY DIRECTED PASSAGEWAYS CONNECTING THE AIR CHAMBERS WITH THE PILING AREA BENEATH THE BOTTOM OF SAID CONVEYOR, AND VALVE MEANS EXTENDING THE LENGTH OF SAID TUBULAR AIR CHAMBERS FOR CONTROLLING THE PASSAGE OF AIR THROUGH SAID PASSAGEWAYS WHEREBY TO CONTROL THE AIR TRAPPED BENEATH SUCCESSIVE SHEETS AS THEY FALL ONTO THE PILE.