Rotating arm sheet unloader-stacker

Claim 1

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet of material at the unloading location, for pulling the engaged sheet of material from said machine, and for depositing the sheet of material on a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable along a predetermined path extending away from said machine and over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is farthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley and operable between a closed condition grippingly engaging a leading end portion of a sheet of material and an open condition releasing the leading end portion of the sheet of material, actuator means mounted on said trolley for operating said clamp means between the open and closed conditions, operator means mounted on said trolley for moving said clamp means between a lowered position and a raised position, said drive means being operable to move said trolley from the first position to the second position with said clamp means in the closed condition and the lowered position to pull a sheet of material gripped by said clamp means from said machine, and control means for effecting operation of said actuator means to operate said clamp means from the closed condition to the open condition and for effecting operation of said operator means to raise said clamp means from the lowered position to the raised position upon movement of said trolley to the second position to release the leading end portion of the sheet of material and deposit it on the pile.

Claim 2

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet of material at the unloading location, for pulling the engaged sheet of material from said machine, and for depositing the sheet of material on a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable along a predetermined path extending away from said machine and over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is farthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley and operable between a closed condition grippingly engaging a leading end portion of a sheet of material and an open condition releasing the leading end portion of the sheet of material, actuator means mounted on said trolley for operating said clamp means between the open and closed conditions, operator means mounted on said trolley for moving said clamp means between a lowered position and a raised position, said drive means being operable to move said trolley from the first position to the second position with said clamp means in the closed condition and the lowered position to pull a sheet of material gripped by said clamp means from said machine, and control means for effecting operation of said actuator means to operate said clamp means from the closed condition to the open condition and for effecting operation of said operator means to raise said clamp means from the lowered position to the raised position upon movement of said trolley to the second position to release the leading end portion of the sheet of material and deposit it on the pile.

Claim 7

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn, said machine including tool means for working on a sheet of material, carrier means movable within a predetermined area for positioning a sheet of material relative to said tool means to enable said tool means to work on various portions of the sheet of material and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading location upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading locatioN and transferring the sheet of material from said machine to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, clamp means mounted on said trolley for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet to pull the sheet from said machine upon movement of said trolley from said first position to said second position, said clamp means including first and second clamp members for gripping a sheet, operator means for moving said clamp members relative to said trolley between an extended position in which said clamp members extend into the area of movement of said carrier means when said trolley is in the first position to engage a sheet of material at the unloading location and a retracted position in which said clamp members are spaced from the area of movement of said carrier means when said trolley is in said first position, and actuator means for moving said clamp members between an open condition and a closed condition in which said clamp members are effective to grip the leading end portion of a sheet of material, and control means for activating said operator means to move said clamp members from the extended position to the retracted position upon movement of said trolley to the second position and for simultaneously therewith activating said actuator means to move said clamp members from the closed condition to the open condition to release the leading end portion of a sheet of material pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley to the second position.

Claim 8

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn, said machine including tool means for working on a sheet of material, carrier means movable within a predetermined area for positioning a sheet of material relative to said tool means to enable said tool means to work on various portions of the sheet of material and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading location upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading locatioN and transferring the sheet of material from said machine to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, clamp means mounted on said trolley for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet to pull the sheet from said machine upon movement of said trolley from said first position to said second position, said clamp means including first and second clamp members for gripping a sheet, operator means for moving said clamp members relative to said trolley between an extended position in which said clamp members extend into the area of movement of said carrier means when said trolley is in the first position to engage a sheet of material at the unloading location and a retracted position in which said clamp members are spaced from the area of movement of said carrier means when said trolley is in said first position, and actuator means for moving said clamp members between an open condition and a closed condition in which said clamp members are effective to grip the leading end portion of a sheet of material, and control means for activating said operator means to move said clamp members from the extended position to the retracted position upon movement of said trolley to the second position and for simultaneously therewith activating said actuator means to move said clamp members from the closed condition to the open condition to release the leading end portion of a sheet of material pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley to the second position.

Claim 13

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over tHe pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a direction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, operator means for moving said clamp means and the leading end portion of a sheet of material gripped by said clamp means upwardly away from the pile of sheets immediately prior to disengagement of the trailing end portion of a sheet from said support means, and control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets.

Claim 14

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over tHe pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a direction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, operator means for moving said clamp means and the leading end portion of a sheet of material gripped by said clamp means upwardly away from the pile of sheets immediately prior to disengagement of the trailing end portion of a sheet from said support means, and control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets.

Claim 15

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a direction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets, said clamp means being operable between a closed condition grippingly gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material and an open condition releasing the leading end portion of the sheet of material, said unloader means further including actuator means for effecting operation of said clamp means between the open and closed conditions, said control means including means for effecting activation of said actuator means to operate said clamp means to the open condition immediately after a trailing end portion of a sheet gripped by said clamp means is disengaged from said support means.

Claim 16

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a direction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets, said clamp means being operable between a closed condition grippingly gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material and an open condition releasing the leading end portion of the sheet of material, said unloader means further including actuator means for effecting operation of said clamp means between the open and closed conditions, said control means including means for effecting activation of said actuator means to operate said clamp means to the open condition immediately after a trailing end portion of a sheet gripped by said clamp means is disengaged from said support means.

Claim 17

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a dirEction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, and control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets, said control means including detector means for detecting when the trailing end portion of a sheet of material is in a predetermined position relative to said support means and means for initiating operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of the sheet in response to detection of the trailing end portion of the sheet by said detector means.

Claim 18

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising a machine for performing work operations on a sheet of material and positioning it at an unloading location, and unloader means for depositing the sheet on an uppermost sheet on a pile of sheets in such a manner as to tend to minimize movement of the uppermost sheet relative to the pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley which is movable along a predetermined path extending over the pile of sheets, drive means for moving said trolley between a first position adjacent to said machine and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine, clamp means mounted on said trolley for gripping the leading end portion of a sheet of material to pull it from said machine during movement of said trolley in a dirEction away from said machine, support means disposed adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is nearest to said machine for supporting a trailing portion of a sheet to maintain the sheet suspended above the pile as the sheet is pulled from said machine by movement of said trolley and clamp means in a direction away from said machine, and control means for effecting operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of a sheet as the trailing end portion of the sheet moves out of engagement with said support means and onto the pile of sheets, said control means including detector means for detecting when the trailing end portion of a sheet of material is in a predetermined position relative to said support means and means for initiating operation of said clamp means to release the leading end portion of the sheet in response to detection of the trailing end portion of the sheet by said detector means.

Claim 19

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising machine means for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading location upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading location and transferring the sheet of material from said machine means to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a forward position adjacent to said machine means and a rearward position ajdacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine means, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, and clamp means mounted on said trolley for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet to pull the sheet from said machine means upon movement of said trolley from said forward position to said rearward position, said clamp means including first and second clamp members for gripping a sheet and operator means for moving said clamp members downwardly and forwardly along an arcuate path relative to said trolley when said trolley is in said forward position to move said clamp members from a retracted position in which said clamp members are disposed above and rearwardly of the unloading location to an extended position in which said clamp members extend into the unloading location.

Claim 20

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising machine means for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading location upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading location and transferring the sheet of material from said machine means to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a forward position adjacent to said machine means and a rearward position ajdacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine means, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, and clamp means mounted on said trolley for engaging a leading end portion of a sheet to pull the sheet from said machine means upon movement of said trolley from said forward position to said rearward position, said clamp means including first and second clamp members for gripping a sheet and operator means for moving said clamp members downwardly and forwardly along an arcuate path relative to said trolley when said trolley is in said forward position to move said clamp members from a retracted position in which said clamp members are disposed above and rearwardly of the unloading location to an extended position in which said clamp members extend into the unloading location.

Claim 25

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising machine means for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading locatioN upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading location and transferring the sheet of material from said machine means to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a first position adjacent to said machine means and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine means, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, a clamp assembly mounted on said trolley, said clamp assembly being operable from an open condition to a closed condition to engage a leading end portion of a sheet and pull the engaged sheet from said machine means upon movement of said trolley from said first position to said second position, said clamp assembly being movable relative to said trolley between an extended position in which said clamp assembly extends into the unloading location when said trolley is in the first position to engage a sheet of material at the unloading location and a retracted position in which said clamp assembly is spaced from the unloading location when said trolley is in said first position, detector means for detecting when a trailing end portion of a sheet of material is pulled from said machine means by operation of said unloader means, and means for initiating operation of said clamp assembly from the closed condition to the open condition in response to detection of the trailing end portion of a sheet of material by said detector means.

Claim 26

An apparatus for operating on sheets of material, said apparatus comprising machine means for performing work operations on each of the sheets of material in turn and for positioning the sheet of material at an unloading locatioN upon completion of work operations on the sheet of material, unloader means for engaging a sheet of material at the unloading location and transferring the sheet of material from said machine means to a pile of sheets, said unloader means including a trolley movable between a first position adjacent to said machine means and a second position adjacent to an end portion of the pile which is furthest from said machine means, drive means for moving said trolley between said first and second positions, a clamp assembly mounted on said trolley, said clamp assembly being operable from an open condition to a closed condition to engage a leading end portion of a sheet and pull the engaged sheet from said machine means upon movement of said trolley from said first position to said second position, said clamp assembly being movable relative to said trolley between an extended position in which said clamp assembly extends into the unloading location when said trolley is in the first position to engage a sheet of material at the unloading location and a retracted position in which said clamp assembly is spaced from the unloading location when said trolley is in said first position, detector means for detecting when a trailing end portion of a sheet of material is pulled from said machine means by operation of said unloader means, and means for initiating operation of said clamp assembly from the closed condition to the open condition in response to detection of the trailing end portion of a sheet of material by said detector means.