US3841622A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus for disposing thin sheet material in a shingled stream
Assignee: RR Donnelley and Sons Co
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Filing: 1973-10-12
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Granted: 1974-10-15
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Expires: 1993-10-12
Abstract
Abstract Apparatus for handling articles of sheet material which separates sheets that are delivered to a hopper with some sheets clinging to one another, and delivers the sheets individually onto a slowly moving conveyor to form a shingled stream. The apparatus is particularly adapted to delivering covers to the cover feed of a book binding machine of the perfect type.
Inventors
- 👤 K Swanson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 19:00
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65H; B65H29/00; B65H29/66; B65H29/6654; B42; B42C; B42C11/00; B42C11/04; B65H3/00; B65H3/08; B65H3/0808; B65H3/085; B65H3/0858; B65H3/0875; B65H5/00; B65H5/24; B65H2301/00; B65H2301/30; B65H2301/34; B65H2301/341; B65H2301/3411; B65H2301/34112; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S271/00; Y10S271/90
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 8
Claim 1
Independent Claim
348 words
Apparatus for removing identical rectangular sheets from a pile in a supply hopper and disposing them in a stream of precisely shingled, aligned, individual sheets, said apparatus comprising, in combination: a sheet supply hopper which is adapted to accommodate a small pile of sheets, said hopper having a floor, and a front wall against which the leading end of the pile abuts, there being a space between the floor and the front wall so the leading end portion of the pile is unsupported; a shaft which is beneath said hopper, parallel to said front wall, and substantially in the vertical plane of the unsupported forward end portion of the pile; a transfer drum on said shaft, said drum being adapted to receive sheets seriatim from the bottom of said pile at the top of the cylinder of revolution of the drum and deposit them at the bottom of said cylinder of revolution; means for driving saiD shaft to rotate the drum so its surface moves forwardly with respect to the hopper in the upper portion of said cylinder of revolution; means for withdrawing sheets seriatim from the bottom of the pile by moving their leading end portions downwardly into engagement with the drum; sheet receiving endless belt conveyor means which has an upper run immediately beneath the drum, said conveyor means having a line of travel parallel to the drum shaft; means for driving said conveyor means at a speed which is so related to the rate of rotation of the drum that the conveyor belts move a very small fraction of the length of a sheet for each half revolution of the drum, whereby successive sheets deposited on the upper run of the conveyor means trail one another by a distance equal to said very small fraction; fixed stop means alongside the conveyor means and positioned to be abutted by the leading ends of the sheets as the sheets are deposited by the drum; and jogger means for jogging the deposited sheets against the stop means, whereby said sheets are precisely aligned along the belt conveyor means.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
348 words
Apparatus for removing identical rectangular sheets from a pile in a supply hopper and disposing them in a stream of precisely shingled, aligned, individual sheets, said apparatus comprising, in combination: a sheet supply hopper which is adapted to accommodate a small pile of sheets, said hopper having a floor, and a front wall against which the leading end of the pile abuts, there being a space between the floor and the front wall so the leading end portion of the pile is unsupported; a shaft which is beneath said hopper, parallel to said front wall, and substantially in the vertical plane of the unsupported forward end portion of the pile; a transfer drum on said shaft, said drum being adapted to receive sheets seriatim from the bottom of said pile at the top of the cylinder of revolution of the drum and deposit them at the bottom of said cylinder of revolution; means for driving saiD shaft to rotate the drum so its surface moves forwardly with respect to the hopper in the upper portion of said cylinder of revolution; means for withdrawing sheets seriatim from the bottom of the pile by moving their leading end portions downwardly into engagement with the drum; sheet receiving endless belt conveyor means which has an upper run immediately beneath the drum, said conveyor means having a line of travel parallel to the drum shaft; means for driving said conveyor means at a speed which is so related to the rate of rotation of the drum that the conveyor belts move a very small fraction of the length of a sheet for each half revolution of the drum, whereby successive sheets deposited on the upper run of the conveyor means trail one another by a distance equal to said very small fraction; fixed stop means alongside the conveyor means and positioned to be abutted by the leading ends of the sheets as the sheets are deposited by the drum; and jogger means for jogging the deposited sheets against the stop means, whereby said sheets are precisely aligned along the belt conveyor means.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
64 words
The apparatus of claim 1 which includes means for retaining a large stack of sheets adjacent the supply hopper, means for sensing when the top of the pile of sheets in said hopper is between predetermined levels, and means controlled by said sensing means for moving sheets from said stack into said supply hopper to maintain the top of said pile between said levels.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
50 words
The apparatus of claim 1 in which the drum is provided with oppositely disposed sets of movable gripper means which grip the leading end portions of sheets at the top of the drum''s cylinder of revolution and release said leading end portions at the bottom of said cylinder of revolution.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
45 words
The apparatus of claim 3 which includes flaps of flexible material each of which extends circumferentially of the drum and has an end secured to the drum surface immediately trailing one of the sets of gripper means, said flaps being otherwise unconnected to the drum.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
51 words
The apparatus of claim 1 which includes flaps of flexible material each of which extends circumferentially of the drum and has a leading end secured to the drum surface, said flaps being otherwise unconnected to the drum and underlying all but the leading end portions of sheets received by the drum.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
99 words
The apparatus of claim 1 in which the conveyor means carries the sheets to another apparatus which collects a small supply of sheets for further use, said other apparatus has sensing means for maintaining said small supply within predetermined upper and lower limits, and there are means controlled by said sensing means to suspend the deposit of sheets on the conveyor and the movement of the conveyor when said small supply reaches the upper of said predetermined limits and to recommence said deposit of sheets and said conveyor movement when said small supply reaches the lower of said limits.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
23 words
The apparatus of claim 6 in which the means suspending and recommencing the deposit of sheets disables and enables the sheet withdrawing means.
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) | 1977-10-14 | 1978-04-15 | 1978-10-15 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-10-14 | 1982-04-15 | 1982-10-15 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-10-14 | 1986-04-15 | 1986-10-15 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |