Stacker

Claim 2

A stacker for converting a stream of overlapped articles into stacked piles of said articles, comprising: a frame; a batcher supported by the frame for receiving and transporting a stream of overlapped articles in a forward direction of movement, said batcher having a discharge end; a recieving platform adjacent to the discharge end to receive articles from the batcher and support them as a stack; a stop member disposed in the path of said articles and adjacent to the platform to stop the overlapped articles and align them as a stack; a pusher member adjacent to the stop member and disposed at an elevation above that of the platform member; lateral motive means mounted to the platform, to which lateral motive means the pusher member is attached for movement in a direction transverse to said forward direction, whereby to push a stack of articles on the receiving platform out of the path of the stream of articles; interrupter means for interrupting the flow of articles to the receiving platform after articles sufficient to constitute a stack of predetermined content has passed the interrupter means, and at least until the passed articles have formed the stack and said pusher member has shoved the stack away from its position in said path; and a speed control mounted to the frame and adapted to sense the linear speed of the stream of articles and to cause the batcher to operate so as to move the articles at substantially the same linear speed.

Claim 3

A stacker according to claim 1 in which the stacker includes a feeder mounted to the frame for receivinG articles from a supply source and conveying them to the batcher.

Claim 4

A stacker according to claim 1 in which the batcher is mounted to the frame in such a manner that its discharge end raises as the height of the stack increases.

Claim 5

A stacker for converting a stream of overlapped articles into stacked piles of said articles, comprising: a frame; a batcher including a plurality of conveyor belts supported by the frame for receiving and transporting a stream of overlapped articles in a forward direction of movement, said batcher having a discharge end; a recieving platform adjacent to the discharge end to recieve articles from the batcher and support them as a stack; a stop member disposed in the path of said articles and adjacent to the platform to stop the overlapped articles and align them as a stack; a pusher member adjacent to the stop member and disposed at an elevation above that of the platform member; lateral motive means mounted to the platform, to which lateral motive means the pusher member is attached for movement in a direction transverse to said forward direction, whereby to push a stack of articles on the receiving platform out of the path of the stream of artices, the platform extending laterally on both sides of said path, whereby the pusher member, upon being moved back and forth across the path, pushes successive stacks to opposite sides; interrupter means for interrupting the flow of articles to the receiving platform after articles sufficient to constitute a stack of predetermined content has passed the interrupter means, and at least until the passed articles have formed the stack and said pusher member has shoved the stack away from its position in said path; means included in the interrupter means to lift articles off the batcher; a feeder mounted to the frame for receiving articles from a supply source and conveying them to the batcher; and counter means for counting articles in the stream and providng a control signal for actuating the interrupter means each time a predetermined number of articles has passed the counter means.

Claim 6

A stacker for converting a stream of overlapped articles into stacked piles of said articles, comprising: a frame; a batcher including a plurality of conveyor belts supported by the frame for receiving and transporting a stream of overlapped articles in a forward direction of movement, said batcher having a discharge end; a recieving platform adjacent to the discharge end to recieve articles from the batcher and support them as a stack; a stop member disposed in the path of said articles and adjacent to the platform to stop the overlapped articles and align them as a stack; a pusher member adjacent to the stop member and disposed at an elevation above that of the platform member; lateral motive means mounted to the platform, to which lateral motive means the pusher member is attached for movement in a direction transverse to said forward direction, whereby to push a stack of articles on the receiving platform out of the path of the stream of artices, the platform extending laterally on both sides of said path, whereby the pusher member, upon being moved back and forth across the path, pushes successive stacks to opposite sides; interrupter means for interrupting the flow of articles to the receiving platform after articles sufficient to constitute a stack of predetermined content has passed the interrupter means, and at least until the passed articles have formed the stack and said pusher member has shoved the stack away from its position in said path; means included in the interrupter means to lift articles off the batcher; a feeder mounted to the frame for receiving articles from a supply source and conveying them to the batcher; and counter means for counting articles in the stream and providng a control signal for actuating the interrupter means each time a predetermined number of articles has passed the counter means.

Claim 7

A stacker for converting a stream of overlapped articles into stacked piles of said articles, comprising: a frame; a batcher supported by the frame for receiving and transporting a stream of overlapped articles in a forward direction of movement, said batcher having a discharge end; a receiving platform adjacent to the discharge end to receive articles from the batcher and support them as a stack; a stop member disposed in the path of said articles and adjacent to the platform to stop the overlapped articles and align them as a stack; a pusher member adjacent to the stop member and disposed at an elevation above that of the platform member; lateral motive means mounted to the platform, to which lateral motive means the pusher member is attached for movement in a direction transverse to said forward direction, whereby to push a stack of articles on the receiving platform out of the path of the stream of articles, the platform extending laterally on both sides of said path, whereby the pusher member, upon being moved back and forth across the path, pushes successive stacks to opposite sides; and interrupter means for interrupting the flow of articles to the receiving platform after articles sufficient to constitute a stack of predetermined content has passed the interrupter means, and at least until the passed articles have formed the stack and said pusher member has shoved the stack away from its position in said path.

Claim 8

A stacker for converting a stream of overlapped articles into stacked piles of said articles, comprising: a frame; a batcher supported by the frame for receiving and transporting a stream of overlapped articles in a forward direction of movement, said batcher having a discharge end; a receiving platform adjacent to the discharge end to receive articles from the batcher and support them as a stack; a stop member disposed in the path of said articles and adjacent to the platform to stop the overlapped articles and align them as a stack; a pusher member adjacent to the stop member and disposed at an elevation above that of the platform member; lateral motive means mounted to the platform, to which lateral motive means the pusher member is attached for movement in a direction transverse to said forward direction, whereby to push a stack of articles on the receiving platform out of the path of the stream of articles, the platform extending laterally on both sides of said path, whereby the pusher member, upon being moved back and forth across the path, pushes successive stacks to opposite sides; and interrupter means for interrupting the flow of articles to the receiving platform after articles sufficient to constitute a stack of predetermined content has passed the interrupter means, and at least until the passed articles have formed the stack and said pusher member has shoved the stack away from its position in said path.