Sheet handling apparatus

Claim 1

IN A SIGNATURE HANDLING APPARATUS THE COMBINATION OF A FIRST SIGNATURE FOLDING MEANS, A SECOND SIGNATURE FOLDING MEANS SPACED FROM SAID FIRST FOLDING MEANS, CONTINUOUS OPERATING MEANS TO CONVEY SIGNATURES IN A PREDETERMINED PATH BETWEEN SAID FIRST AND SECOND FOLDING MEANS, SIGNATURE STOP MEANS ADJACENT SAID PATH AND NORMALLY OPERATIVELY POSITIONED IN SAID PATH TO STOP A SIGNATURE, MEANS TO SELECTIVELY MOVE SAID SIGNATURE STOP MEANS OUT OF SAID PATH, SIGNATURE DETECTING MEANS POSITIONED IN SAID PATH AND ACTUATED BY THE PASSAGE OF A SIGNATURE TOWARD SAID STOP MEANS, SIGNATURE FASTENING MEANS OPERATIVELY POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID PATH, MEANS ACTIVATABLE IN RESPONSE TO SAID DETECTING MEANS UPON PASSAGE OF A SIGNATURE TO MOVE SAID SIGNATURE FASTENING MEANS INTO FASTENING POSITION RELATIVE TO A STOPPED SIGNATURE, AND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO MOVEMENT OF SAID FASTENING MEANS INTO SIGNATURE FASTENING POSITION TO RETURN THE LATTER TO ITS NON-FASTENING POSITION AND TO ACTIVATE SAID MEANS TO MOVE THE STOP MEANS OUT OF SAID PATH WHEREBY THE FASTENED SIGNATURE IS RELEASED BY SAID STOP MEANS TO BE FED INTO SAID SECOND FOLDING MEANS.