US3834582A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Moving gate for hopper discharging flat articles of irregular thickness
Assignee: Comstock and Wescott Inc
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Filing: 1973-07-11
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Granted: 1974-09-10
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Expires: 1993-07-11
Abstract
Abstract In bookbinding apparatus a hopper accumulates a stack of books received from a binder with extra thick spines and discharges them to a book trimmer, the hopper having at its lower end an entrance through which a pusher drives a selected lower group of books out an exit. As a group of books exits a vertically reciprocating gate at the exit moves downwards from an upper position accommodating the extra thickness of the book spines to a lower position which allows only the selected group of books to pass out through the exit.
Inventors
- 👤 P Aspinwall
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-03 19:09
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65G; B65G59/00; B65G59/06; B65G59/067
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 8
Claim 1
Independent Claim
224 words
Apparatus for feedinG stacked, generally flat sided articles having a portion of enlarged thickness and a portion of normal thickness in one dimension, comprising: a hopper for holding the articles stacked on said one dimension, the hopper having a fore wall with respect to the direction of feed and the wall having an exit at its lower end; a pusher movable to feed the lowest of the stacked articles out the exit in a group; a gate at the exit vertically reciprocable between two positions, one position opening the exit more than the dimension of enlarged thickness and another position less than the dimension of enlarged thickness but greater than the dimension of normal thickness of the article; and drive means linking the pusher and gate including timing means cooperative with the pusher after movement by the pusher of an article into the exit but before movement by the pusher of an article out of the exit to adjust the gate between the two positions while an article is in the exit, so that the gate in one position allows feed through the exit of an article portion of enlarged thickness and in the other position obstructs feed of such enlarged thickness but allows feed of the portion of normal thickness so as to bar exitting of articles overlying article portions of normal thickness.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
224 words
Apparatus for feedinG stacked, generally flat sided articles having a portion of enlarged thickness and a portion of normal thickness in one dimension, comprising: a hopper for holding the articles stacked on said one dimension, the hopper having a fore wall with respect to the direction of feed and the wall having an exit at its lower end; a pusher movable to feed the lowest of the stacked articles out the exit in a group; a gate at the exit vertically reciprocable between two positions, one position opening the exit more than the dimension of enlarged thickness and another position less than the dimension of enlarged thickness but greater than the dimension of normal thickness of the article; and drive means linking the pusher and gate including timing means cooperative with the pusher after movement by the pusher of an article into the exit but before movement by the pusher of an article out of the exit to adjust the gate between the two positions while an article is in the exit, so that the gate in one position allows feed through the exit of an article portion of enlarged thickness and in the other position obstructs feed of such enlarged thickness but allows feed of the portion of normal thickness so as to bar exitting of articles overlying article portions of normal thickness.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
11 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the timing means is adjustable.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
15 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the gate includes means for adjusting its upper position.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
18 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 including means for limiting downward movement of the gate at an open position.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
25 words
Apparatus according to claim 1 including means to hold the gate open in one of its adjusted positions prior to operation of the timing means.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
204 words
Apparatus for feeding a group of nailhead (2) books (1) from a vertical stack, comprising: a vertical hopper (6) for holding the books in a stack of more than one group, the hopper having fore (8) and rear (7) walls with respect to the direction of feed of the books from the hopper, and the fore wall having an exit 10 at its lower end, the nailheads of the books being adjacent to the fore wall and exit; a pusher (11) reciprocably moving under the rear wall periodically to engage a selected group (1A) of the lowermost books of the stack and feed the group, nailheads first, through the exit and under the gate; a sliding gate (21) at the exit vertically reciprocable from an upper position (FIG. 2) to a lowered position (FIG. 3) to reduce the height of the exit after the nailheads of a group have been fed through the exit; and drive means (17, 18, 13, 29, 28) linking the pusher and gate to cause movement of the gate to lowered position at a time after the nailheads have exitted and before the books have completely exitted, whereby the gate bars exitting of a book overlying (1B) the selected group.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
204 words
Apparatus for feeding a group of nailhead (2) books (1) from a vertical stack, comprising: a vertical hopper (6) for holding the books in a stack of more than one group, the hopper having fore (8) and rear (7) walls with respect to the direction of feed of the books from the hopper, and the fore wall having an exit 10 at its lower end, the nailheads of the books being adjacent to the fore wall and exit; a pusher (11) reciprocably moving under the rear wall periodically to engage a selected group (1A) of the lowermost books of the stack and feed the group, nailheads first, through the exit and under the gate; a sliding gate (21) at the exit vertically reciprocable from an upper position (FIG. 2) to a lowered position (FIG. 3) to reduce the height of the exit after the nailheads of a group have been fed through the exit; and drive means (17, 18, 13, 29, 28) linking the pusher and gate to cause movement of the gate to lowered position at a time after the nailheads have exitted and before the books have completely exitted, whereby the gate bars exitting of a book overlying (1B) the selected group.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1977-09-09 | 1978-03-11 | 1978-09-10 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-09-09 | 1982-03-11 | 1982-09-10 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-09-09 | 1986-03-11 | 1986-09-10 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |