Stacking apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR STACKING AND SQUARING PANELS AND THE LIKE OF VARIOUS SIZES, COMPRISING A LENGTH OF DRIVEN CONVEYOR, CONVEYOR DRIVING AND CONTROLLING MEANS OPERABLE TO TURN SAID CONVEYOR ON AND OFF, MEANS FOR DELIVERING PANELS ONTO SAID CONVEYOR IN SUCCESSION FROM ONE END THEREOF, A STOP MEMBER SPACED FROM SAID END, MEANS EXTENDING LENGTHWISE ADJACENT SAID CONVEYOR FOR MOUNTING SAID STOP MEMBER SELECTIVELY AT DIFFERENT POINTS ALONG THE LENGTH OF SAID CONVEYOR, MEANS OPERABLY CONNECTED TO SAID STOP MEMBER-MOUNTING MEANS TO MOVE SAID STOP MEMBER INTO AND OUT OF THE PATH OF PANELS BEING DELIVERED TO SAID CONVEYOR, A STATIONARY SIDE SQUARING ABUTMENT EXTENDING ALONG THE SIDE OF SAID CONVEYOR, ADJUSTABLE MEANS FOR MOUNTING SAID SIDE SQUARING ABUTMENT AT A PLURALITY OF STATIONARY POSITIONS RELATIVE TO SAID CONVEYOR, SIDE SQUARING MEANS AT THE SIDE OF SAID CONVEYOR OPPOSITE SAID SIDE SQUARING ABUTMENT, END SQUARING MEANS SPACED REARWARDLY FROM SAID STOP MEMBER TOWARD SAID ONE END OF THE CONVEYOR, MEANS OPERATING SAID SIDE AND END SQUARING MEANS REPETITIVELY WHEREBY PANELS ARE PUSHED AGAINST SAID STOP MEMBER AND SIDE SQUARING ABUTMENT TO FORM A SQUARED STACK, A PUSHER MEMBER MOVABLE AGAINST THE REARWARD END OF SAID STACK TO INITIATE MOVEMENT THEREOF ALONG SAID CONVEYOR, MEANS FOR OPERATING SAID PUSHER MEMBER, CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO DELIVERY OF A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF SAID PANELS UNTO SAID STACK TO OPERATE SAID STOP-MEMBER MOUNTING MEANS TO REMOVE SAID STOP MEMBER OUT OF THE FORWARD PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID STACK AND TO ACTIVATE SAID PUSHER-OPERATING MEANS, SAID CONVEYOR DRIVING AND CONTROLLING MEANS BEING OPERATIVE TO TURN SAID CONVEYOR ON RESPONSIVE TO THE REMOVAL OF SAID STOP MEMBER AND THE BEGINNING OF OPERATION OF SAID PUSHER MEMBER.