Sheet conveyor

Claim 1

A CONVEYOR FOR TRANSPORTING AND CHANGING THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF A SHEET HAVING A PREDETERMINED LENGTH, COMPRISING: (A) A MOVING ENDLESS BELT FOR SUPPORTING SUCH SHEET AND DEFINING A PATH OF TRAVEL OF SAID SHEET; (B) A FIRST MEMBER HAVING A CURVED SURFACE IN PERIPHERAL CONTACT WITH SAID BELT, WHEREBY SAID SHEET, WHEN MOVING ON SAID BELT AND IN CONTACT WITH SAID CURVED SURFACE, HAS SPEED RELATIVE TO SAID CURVED SURFACE WHICH IS DIFFERENT FROM THE SPEED OF THE BELT AT THE NEUTRAL AXIS OF SAID BELT BY VIRTUE OF THE DEFORMATION OF SAID BELT AS IT MOVES ALONG SAID CURVED SURFACE; AND (C) COMPENSATING MEANS FOR ARCUATELY DEFORMING SAID BELT, AT A POINT IN SAID PATH AHEAD OF SAID FIRST MEMBER RELATIVE TO THE MOVEMENT OF SAID BELT, SAID BELT BEING DEFORMED BY SAID COMPENSATING MEANS IN SUCH A MANNER AS TO CAUSE THE SHEET CONTACTING SURFACE OF SAID BELT IN THE AREA OF CONTACT WITH SAID COMPENSATING MEANS TO MOVE AT A SPEED NOT GREATER THAN THE SPEED OF THE SHEET RELATIVE TO SAID CURVED SURFACE; (D) THE DISTANCE OF SAID PATH BETWEEN SAID FIRST MEMBER AND SAID COMPENSATING MEANS BEING LESS THAN SAID PREDETERMINED LENGTH; (E) WHEREBY WHEN SAID SHEET IS MOVING IN SIMULTANEUOS CONTACT WITH SAID FIRST MEMBER AND SAID COMPENSATING MEANS THE SPEED OF THE PORTION OF THE SHEET IN CONTACT WITH SAID CURVED SURFACE IS AT LEAST AS GREAT AS THE SPEED OF THE PORTION OF THE SHEET WHICH IS IN CONTACT WITH SAID COMPENSATING MEANS, THE SHEET THEREBY BEING HELD IN A TAUT CONDITION AS IT MOVES IN SAID PATH.