Sheet sorter having pivoted ramp

Claim 1

A SHEET SORTER COMPRISING A FRAME A DRIVE SHAFT ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON THE FRAME, A PLURALITY OF POCKETS DISPOSED ONE ABOVE THE OTHER AND ADJACENT TO OR CARRIED BY THE FRAME, RAMP MEANS HAVING AN ENTRY END AND A DELIVERY END, THE DELIVERY END BEING ADJACENT TO THE POCKETS, ENDLESS MEANS EXTENDING BETWEEN THE ENDS OF THE RAMP MEANS TO FEED SHEETS THEREON FROM THE ENTRY END TO THE DELIVERY END INCLUDING DIRECTING MEANS AT THE DELIVERY END TO DIRECT EACH SHEET INTO ITS POCKET; PIVOT MEANS CARRIED BY THE FRAME AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTING THE ENTRY END OF THE RAMP MEANS AT A POINT SPACED FROM THE POCKETS, AND THE DELIVERY END OF THE RAMP MEANS BEING ADJACENT TO THE ENDS OF THE POCKETS AS THE RAMP MEANS PIVOTS; RAMP OPERATING MECHANISM OPERATIVELY CONNECTED BETWEEN THE DRIVE SHAFT AND THE RAMP MEANS INCLUDING STEP BY STEP INDEXING MEANS MOVING THE RAMP MEANS IN ONE DIRECTION IN A DISTANCE CORRESPONDING WITH THE POCKET SPACING, RETURN OPERATING MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED BETWEEN THE DRIVE SHAFT AND THE RAMP MEANS TO MOVE THE LATTER IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION; TRIGGER MEANS CARRIED BY THE RAMP MEANS AND CONNECTED WITH THE INDEXING MEANS TO INITIATE ITS OPERATION INCLUDING A TRIGGER IN THE PLANT OF THE ENDLESS MEANS TO BE ENGAGED BY A SHEET MOVING THEREON; AND LIMIT CONTROL MEANS OPERABLE BY THE MOVEMENT OF THE RAMP MEANS AT THE ENDS OF ITS DOWNWARD AND UPWARD MOVEMENT TO HALT THE RAMP MEANS INCLUDING A FIRST LIMIT CONTROL CONNECTED WITH THE INDEXING MEANS TO DISCONTINUE ITS OPERATION, A SECOND LIMIT CONTROL CONNECTED WITH THE RETURN OPERATING MEANS TO DISCONTINUE ITS OPERATION, AND MEANS TO INITIATE OPERATION OF THE RETURN OPERATING MEANS.