Continuous stock advancing apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY FEEDING SHEETS WHEREIN A DEVICE FEEDS SHEETS ONE BY ONE FROM THE TOP OF A PILE, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING ELEVATOR MEANS FOR SUPPORTING A PILE OF SHEETS WITH TOP THEREOF IN OPERATIVE ASSOCIATION WITH SAID DEVICE FOR HAVING THE SHEETS REMOVED ONE BY ONE FROM SAID PILE, SAID ELEVATOR MEANS RAISING THE PILE AS THE LATTER IS BEING DISPLACED TO ALWAYS MAINTAIN THE TOP OF THE PILE IN ASSOCIATION WITH SAID DEVICE, SAID ELEVATOR MEANS INCLUDING PARALLEL GIRDERS DEFINING SPACES THEREBETWEEN AND FORMING A GRATE, RAKE MEANS LOCATED AT A LEVEL ABOVE THE ELEVATOR MEANS FOR BEING INSERTED INTO SAID PILE OF SHEETS AS THE ELEVATOR MEANS REACHES THE LEVEL OF SAID RAKE MEANS SO THAT THE LATTER SUPPORTS THE PILE INDEPENDENTLY OF THE ELEVATOR MEANS, MEANS FOR LOWERING THE ELEVATOR MEANS, WITH THE PILE SUPPORTED ON THE RAKE MEANS, TO THE INITIAL POSITION OF THE ELEVATOR MEANS WHEREBY THE LATTER MAY BE LOADED WITH A FRESH PILE OF SHEETS, MEANS FOR RAISING THE RAKE MEANS AND THE PILE SUPPORTED THEREON TO CONTINUE FEEDING OF THE SHEETS FROM THE PILE BY SAID DEVICE, TRUCK MEANS CONTAINING A FRESH PILE OF SHEETS FOR TRANSFERRING THE LATTER TO THE ELEVATOR MEANS, SAID TRUCK MEANS INCLUDING SPACED GIRDERS COOPERATIVELY ARRANGEE FOR BEING INSERTED INTO THE SPACAED BETWEEN THE GIRDERS OF THE ELEVATOR MEANS AT A LEVEL SLIGHTLY THEREABOVE, SAID ELEVATOR MEANS BEING LIFTED TO ENGAGE AND SUPPORT THE FRESH PILE OF SHEETS AND RAISED THE SAME FROM SAID TRUCK MEANS TOWARDS AND INTO CONTACT WITH SAID RAKE MEANS WHICH IS STILL RAISING THE FIRST SAID PILE TOWARDS SAID DEVICE, SAID RAKE MEANS BEING WITHDRAWN AS SAID FRESH PILE OF SHEETS ON THE ELEVATOR MEANS COMES INTO CONTACT THEREWITH TO CAUSE THE REMAINDER TO THE SHEETS FROM THE FRIST PILE TO BE DEPOSITED ONTO THE SHEETS OF THE FRESH PILE, SAID RAKE MEANS INCLUDING SPACED NEEDLES HAVING FREE ENDS FOR PENETRATING INOT A PILE OF SHEETS, A SUPPORT FOR THE FREE END OF THE SPACED NEEDLES ADJACENT A SIDE OF THE PILE THROUGH WHICH THE NEEDLES PENETRATE AFTER HAVING BEEN INSERTED INTO SAID SAID GIRDERS OF SAID ELEVATOR MEANS HAVING UPPER SURFACES PROVIDED WITH NOTCHES, EACH NEEDLE OF THE RAKE MEANS HAVING EDGES RESTING IN THE NOTCHES OF ADJACENT GIRDERS OF THE ELEVATOR MEANS AS SAID NEEDLES ARE INSERTED INTO SAID PILE WHEREBY SAID GIRDERS OF SAID ELEVATOR MEANS SUPPORT THE NEEDLES OF THE RAKE MEANS AS THE LATTER PENETRATE INTO SAID PILE, SAID GIRDERS OF THE ELEVATORS MEANS SUPPORTING SAID NEEDLES UNTIL THE LATTER ARE SUPPORTED AT THE FREE ENDS THEREOF ON SAID SUPPORT AFTER WHICH TIME THE ELEVATOR MEANS MAY BE LOWERED, SAID RAKE MEANS INCLUDING MEANS FOR MINIMIZING FRICTION BETWEEN SHEETS OF THE PILE AND THE NEEDLES AS THE LATTER ARE INSERTED AND WITHDRAWN FROM THE PILE, SAID MEANS INCLUDING MOVABLE STRAPS IN PART DEFINING A SURFACE OF SAID NEEDLES.