US3861672A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Sheet material handling apparatus and method
Assignee: Harris Graphics Corp
•
Filing: 1973-12-28
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Granted: 1975-01-21
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Expires: 1993-12-28
Abstract
Abstract An improved sheet slowdown method and apparatus are advantageously utilized in association with a cutter and creaser having working cylinders which are effective to process a complete sheet upon each revolution of the working cylinders. To reduce deceleration forces, the sheet slowdown apparatus includes a plurality of sets of grippers which are effective to transport, slow down and release a sheet during two revolutions of the working cylinders. Thus, a first sheet is engaged at the pickup station by a first set of grippers, moved at a constant speed toward the receiving station by the first set of grippers, decelerated to a very low speed, and then released by the first set of grippers at the receiving station. As this is occurring, a second or next succeeding sheet is delivered to the pickup station. A second set of grippers engages the second sheet at the pickup station and moves it toward the receiving station at a constant speed while the first set of grippers is decelerating the preceding sheet. To enable the two sets of grippers to function in this manner, an improved drive arrangement is provided to vary the speed of movement of one set of grippers relative to the speed of movement of the other set of grippers. This enables one set of grippers to move at a constant speed while another set of grippers is either being decelerated prior to releasing a sheet at the receiving station or accelerated after releasing a sheet.
Inventors
- 👤 Robert K Norton
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-07 23:12
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65H; B65H29/00; B65H29/68; B65H29/683; B65H29/02; B65H29/04; B65H29/041; B65H2701/00; B65H2701/10; B65H2701/17; B65H2701/176
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 38
Claim 1
Independent Claim
249 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and depositing each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for maintaining said predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for enabling variations to occur in the path length distance between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for varying the speed of movement of said gripper assemblies of one of said sets of grippers relative to the speed of movement of said gripper assemblies of the other of said sets of grippers.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
249 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and depositing each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for maintaining said predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for enabling variations to occur in the path length distance between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for varying the speed of movement of said gripper assemblies of one of said sets of grippers relative to the speed of movement of said gripper assemblies of the other of said sets of grippers.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
72 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said drive means includes means for decreasing the spEed of movement of said first set of grippers along the path while maintaining the speed of movement of said second set of grippers along the path substantially constant to thereby decelerate a leading sheet engaged by said first set of grippers relative to a next succeeding sheet engaged by said second set of grippers.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
110 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between each of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers includes first chain means for interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, said means for maintaining a predetermined path length between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers including second chain means for interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, said drive means including means for moving said first and second chain means and means for varying the speed of movement of said first and second chain means relative to each other.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
96 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 3 wherein said means for moving said first and second chain means includes a first sprocket disposed in meshing engagement with said first chain means and a second sprocket disposed in meshing engagement with said second chain means, said first and second sprockets being disposed in a coaxial relationship, said means for varying the speed of movement of said first and second chain means including means for varying the speed of rotation of one of said sprockets relative to the speed of rotation of the other of said sprockets.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
76 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein said drive means includes a rotatable input member, means for rotating said input member at a substantially constant speed, a first rotatable output member connected with said first set of grippers, a second rotatable output member connected with said second set of grippers, and means for varying the speed of rotation of said first and second output members relative to each other and to said input member.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
301 words
A sheet material handling apparatus for sequentially slowing down and depositing at a receiving station sheets of material engaged at the pickup station, said apparatus comprising first and second gripper assemblies each of which is operable from an open condition to a closed condition to sequentially grip sheets of material at the pickup station and operable from the closed condition to the open condition to sequentially release gripped sheets of material at the receiving station, support means for supporting said first and second gripper assemblies for movement along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations and for enabling said first and second gripper assemblies to move relative to each other along the path, control means for effecting operation of said first and second gripper assemblies in turn from their open conditions to their closed conditions to sequentially grip sheets of material at the pickup station, for enabling said first and second gripper assemblies to remain in the closed condition as they move in turn from the pickup station to the receiving station and for sequentially effecting operation of said first and second gripper assemblies from the closed condition to the open condition to sequentially release gripped sheets of material at the receiving station, first drive means for moving said first gripper assembly along the path from the pickup station to the receiving station, second drive means for moving said second gripper assembly along the path from the pickup station to the receiving station, and means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of said other drive means to vary the speed of movement of one of said gripper assemblies along the path relative to the speed of movement of the other of said gripper assemblies along the path.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
301 words
A sheet material handling apparatus for sequentially slowing down and depositing at a receiving station sheets of material engaged at the pickup station, said apparatus comprising first and second gripper assemblies each of which is operable from an open condition to a closed condition to sequentially grip sheets of material at the pickup station and operable from the closed condition to the open condition to sequentially release gripped sheets of material at the receiving station, support means for supporting said first and second gripper assemblies for movement along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations and for enabling said first and second gripper assemblies to move relative to each other along the path, control means for effecting operation of said first and second gripper assemblies in turn from their open conditions to their closed conditions to sequentially grip sheets of material at the pickup station, for enabling said first and second gripper assemblies to remain in the closed condition as they move in turn from the pickup station to the receiving station and for sequentially effecting operation of said first and second gripper assemblies from the closed condition to the open condition to sequentially release gripped sheets of material at the receiving station, first drive means for moving said first gripper assembly along the path from the pickup station to the receiving station, second drive means for moving said second gripper assembly along the path from the pickup station to the receiving station, and means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of said other drive means to vary the speed of movement of one of said gripper assemblies along the path relative to the speed of movement of the other of said gripper assemblies along the path.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
113 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 6 wherein said means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means reLative to the speed of operation of the other of said drive means includes means for decreasing the speed of operation of said first drive means to decrease the speed of movement of said first gripper assembly along the path while maintaining the speed of operation of said second drive means and the speed of movement of said second gripper assembly along the path substantially constant to thereby decelerate a leading sheet engaged by said first gripper assembly relative to a next succeeding sheet engaged by said second gripper assembly.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
137 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 wherein said means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of the other of said drive means includes means for increasing the speed of operation of said first drive means to increase the speed of movement of said first gripper assembly after operation of said first gripper assembly to the open condition to release the leading sheet at the receiving station and for maintaining the speed of operation of said second drive means and the speed of movement of said second gripper assembly substantially constant during at least a portion of the time period in which the speed of operation of said first drive means and the speed of movement of said first gripper assembly are being increased.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
87 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 6 wherein said first drive means includes first chain means for effecting movement of said first gripper assembly, said second drive means include second chain means for effecting movement of said second gripper assembly, said means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of the other of said drive means including means for varying the speed of movement of said first and second chain means relative to each other.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
94 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 6 wherein said first drive means includes a first sprocket disposed in meshing engagement with said first chain means, said second drive means includes a second sprocket disposed in meshing engagement with said second chain means, said first and second sprockets being disposed in a coaxial relationship, said means for varying the speed of movement of said first and second chain means including means for varying the speed of rotation of one of said sprockets relative to the speed of rotation of the other of said sprockets.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
87 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 6 wherein said means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of the other of said drive means includes means for decreasing the speed of movement of said one gripper assembly while maintaining the speed of movement of said other gripper assembly substantially constant and for decreasing the speed of movement of said other gripper assembly while maintaining the speed of movement of said one gripper assembly substantially constant.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
98 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 6 wherein said means for varying the speed of operation of one of said drive means relative to the speed of operation of the other of said drive means includes a rotatable input member, means for rotating said input member at a substantially constant speed, a first rotatable output member connected with said first drive means, a second rotatable output member connected with said second drive means, and means for varying the speed of rotation of said first and second output members relative to each other and to said input member.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
122 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 12 wherein said means for varying the speed of rotation of said first and second output members relative to each other includes a cam, a first cam follower disposed in engagement with said cam, first gear means for connecting said first cam follower with said first output member, a second cam follower disposed in engagement with said cam, and second gear means for connecting said second cam follower with said second output member, said cam and first and second cam followers being movable relative to each other to effect operation of said first and second gear means to thereby vary the speed of rotation of said first and second output members relative to each other.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
131 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 13 wherein said first gear means includes a first arcuate gear segment connected with said first cam follower and a second arcuate gear segment connected with said first output member and disposed in meshing engagement with said first gear segment, said first cam follower being movable under the influence of said cam to effect relative movement between said first and second gear segments, said second gear means including a third arcuate gear segment connected with said second cam follower and a fourth arcuate gear segment connected with said second output member and disposed in meshing engagement with said third gear segment, said second cam follower being movable under the influence of said cam to effect relative movement between said third and fourth gear segments.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
240 words
A sheet material handling apparatus for sequentially slowing down and depositing at a receiving station sheets of material received at a pickup station from a machine having at least one rotatable cylinder which operates on each of the sheets in turn while they are moving at a predetermined speed, said apparatus comprising a first gripper assembly, means for operating said first gripper assembly to engage a leading sheet at the pickup station, first chain means for moving said first gripper assembly along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations, means for operating said first gripper assembly to deposit the leading sheet at the receiving station, a second gripper assembly, means for operating said second gripper assembly to engage a trailing sheet at the pickup station, second chain means spaced apart from said first chain means for moving said second gripper assembly along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations, means for operating said second gripper assembly to deposit the trailing sheet at the receiving station, first drive means for decelerating said first chain means, said first gripper assembly and the leading sheet prior to depositing of the leading sheet at the receiving station, and second drive means for moving said second chain means, said second gripper assembly and the trailing sheet at the predetermined speed along a portion of the path during deceleration of said first chain means, said first gripper assembly and the leading sheet.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
240 words
A sheet material handling apparatus for sequentially slowing down and depositing at a receiving station sheets of material received at a pickup station from a machine having at least one rotatable cylinder which operates on each of the sheets in turn while they are moving at a predetermined speed, said apparatus comprising a first gripper assembly, means for operating said first gripper assembly to engage a leading sheet at the pickup station, first chain means for moving said first gripper assembly along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations, means for operating said first gripper assembly to deposit the leading sheet at the receiving station, a second gripper assembly, means for operating said second gripper assembly to engage a trailing sheet at the pickup station, second chain means spaced apart from said first chain means for moving said second gripper assembly along a path extending between the pickup and receiving stations, means for operating said second gripper assembly to deposit the trailing sheet at the receiving station, first drive means for decelerating said first chain means, said first gripper assembly and the leading sheet prior to depositing of the leading sheet at the receiving station, and second drive means for moving said second chain means, said second gripper assembly and the trailing sheet at the predetermined speed along a portion of the path during deceleration of said first chain means, said first gripper assembly and the leading sheet.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
55 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 15 wherein said first drive means includes means for accelerating said first chain means and said first gripper assembly after depositing the leading sheet at the receiving station and during movement of said second chain means, said second gripper assembly and the trailing sheet at the predetermined speed.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
125 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 15 further including a rotatable input shaft, means for rotating said input shaft at a speed which varies as a function of the speed of rotation of the machine cylinder, said first drive means including a rotatable output shaft connected with said first chain means and said first gripper assembly, and means for transmitting drive forces from said input shaft to said output shaft to effect rotation of said output shaft and for varying the speed of rotation of said output shaft relative to the speed of rotation of said input shaft to effect movement of said first chain means and said first gripper assembly at the predetermined speed and to effect deceleration of said first gripper assembly.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
106 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 wherein said second drive means includes a second rotatable output shaft connected with said second chain means and said second gripper assembly, and means for transmitting drive forces from said input shaft to said second output shaft to effect rotation of said second output shaft and for varying the speed of rotation of said second output shaft relative to the speed oF rotation of said input shaft to effect movement of said second chain means and said second gripper assembly at the predetermined speed and to effect deceleration of said second chain means and said second gripper assembly.
Claim 22
Independent Claim
431 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and depositing each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending betw4en the pickup station and the receiving station, means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for maintaining said predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for enabling variations to occur in the path length distance between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for moving said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along spaced apart first portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart second portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart third portions of the path, said drive means for moving the plurality of gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along at least part of said first portions of said path during movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least parts of said second and third portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along at least part of said second portions of the path during constant speed movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least part of said first portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along at least part of said third portions of the path during constant speed movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least part of said first portions of the path.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
431 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and depositing each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending betw4en the pickup station and the receiving station, means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for maintaining said predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for enabling variations to occur in the path length distance between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for moving said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along spaced apart first portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart second portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart third portions of the path, said drive means for moving the plurality of gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along at least part of said first portions of said path during movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least parts of said second and third portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along at least part of said second portions of the path during constant speed movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least part of said first portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along at least part of said third portions of the path during constant speed movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along at least part of said first portions of the path.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
69 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 19 wherein said drive means is effective to sequentially move said gripper assemblies of said first and second sets of grippers along said second portions of the path in a period of time which is at least half as great as the period of time between the arrival of the leading edge portions of successive sheets of material at the pickup station.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
91 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 19 wherein said means for maintaining a predetermined path length between said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers includes first chain means for interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, said means for maintaining a predetermined path length between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers includes second chain means for interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, said second chain means being spaced apart from and extending parallel to said first chain means.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
231 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 19 wherein said drive means includes first means operable to move said gripper assemblies of said first sEt of grippers along the path, second means operable to move said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along the path, and control means for effecting constant speed operation of said first means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said first portions of the path, for decreasing the speed of operation of said first means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said second portions of the path, and for increasing the speed of operation of said first means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said third portions of the path, said control means further including means for effecting constant speed operation of said second means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said first portions of the path, for decreasing the speed of operation of said second means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said second portions of the path, and for increasing the speed of operation of said second means during movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of gripper assemblies along said third portions of the path.
Claim 27
Independent Claim
474 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and deposting each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a rotatable cylinder means for performing a work operation on each sheet of material in turn at a predetermined sheet feed rate, means for sequentially conveying sheets of material from said cylinder means to a pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate, a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for moving said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along spaced apart first portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart second portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart third portions of the path, said drive means being effective to move said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said first and second portions of the path in a period of time which is greater than the period of time between the arrival of leading edge portions of successive sheets of material at the pickup station during operation of said conveyer means to convey sheets of material to the pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate, said drive means including means for moving the plurality of gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along said first portions of said path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said second portions of the path and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said third portions of the path, said drive means being effective to move said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said first and second portions of the path in a period of time which is greater than the period of time between the arrival of leading edge portions of successive sheets of material at the pickup station duriNg operation of said conveyer means to convey sheets of material to the pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate.
Claim 28
Independent Claim
474 words
An apparatus for sequentially operating on sheets of material and deposting each of the sheets of material in turn at a receiving station, said apparatus comprising a rotatable cylinder means for performing a work operation on each sheet of material in turn at a predetermined sheet feed rate, means for sequentially conveying sheets of material from said cylinder means to a pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate, a first set of grippers, said first set of grippers including a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, means for supporting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers for sequential movement along a path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, a second set of grippers, said second set of grippers including a plurality of gripper assemblies disposed along the path and interspersed between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, means for sequentially operating said gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and drive means for sequentially moving said gripper assemblies along the path, said drive means including means for moving said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along spaced apart first portions of the path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart second portions of the path, and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along spaced apart third portions of the path, said drive means being effective to move said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said first and second portions of the path in a period of time which is greater than the period of time between the arrival of leading edge portions of successive sheets of material at the pickup station during operation of said conveyer means to convey sheets of material to the pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate, said drive means including means for moving the plurality of gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers at a substantially constant predetermined speed along said first portions of said path, for decelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said second portions of the path and for accelerating said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said third portions of the path, said drive means being effective to move said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said first and second portions of the path in a period of time which is greater than the period of time between the arrival of leading edge portions of successive sheets of material at the pickup station duriNg operation of said conveyer means to convey sheets of material to the pickup station at the predetermined sheet feed rate.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
39 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 23 further including means for enabling variations to occur in the path length distance between gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
49 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 24 further including means for maintaining a predetermined path length distance between each of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers and means for maintaining said predetermined path length distance between said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
94 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 23 wherein said drive means includes first chain means for interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers, second chain means interconnecting said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers, said first chain means being spaced apart from and extending parallel to said second chain means, means for driving said first and second chain means, and means for varying the speed at which one of said chain means is driven relative to the speed at which the other of said chain means is driven.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
390 words
An apparatus as set forth in claim 23 wherein said drive means includes a rotatable input member which is rotated at input speed which varies as a function of variations in the sheet feed rate, a first rotatable output member connected with said first set of grippers and said input member, means for rotating said first output member under the influence of forces transmitted from said input member and for varying the speed of rotation of said first output member between a maximum rotational speed which is greater than said input speed and a minimum rotational speed which is less than said input speed, means for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said first portions of the path during rotation of said first output member at its maximum rotational speed, for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said second portions of the path during deceleration of said first output member from its maximum rotational speed to its minimum rotational speed, and for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers along said third portions of the path during acceleration of said first output member from its minimum rotational speed to its maximum rotational speed, a second rotatable output member connected with said second set of grippers and said input member, means for rotating said second output member under the influence of forces transmitted from said input member and for varying the speed of rotation of said second output member between a maximum rotational speed which is greater than said input speed and a minimum rotational speed which is less than said input speed, and means for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said first portions of the path during rotation of said second output member at its maximum rotational speed, for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said second portions of the path during deceleration of said second output member from its maximum rotational speed to its minimum rotational speed, and for effecting movement of said gripper assemblies of said second set of grippers along said third portions of the path during acceleration of said second output member from its minimum rotational speed to its maximum rotational speed.
Claim 33
Independent Claim
241 words
A method of sequentially transferring sheets of material from a pickup station to a receiving station said method comprising the steps of providing a first set of grippers which includes a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, providing a second set of grippers which includes a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, moving the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers along A path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, maintaining a predetermined path length distance between the gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers as they move along the path, moving the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers along the path simultaneously with movement of the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers along the path, maintaining a predetermined path length distance between the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers as they move along the path, varying the path length distance between the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers and the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers as the gripper assemblies move along the path, sequentially operating the gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and varying the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of one of the sets of grippers relative to the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of the other set of grippers.
Claim 34
Independent Claim
241 words
A method of sequentially transferring sheets of material from a pickup station to a receiving station said method comprising the steps of providing a first set of grippers which includes a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, providing a second set of grippers which includes a plurality of spaced apart gripper assemblies, moving the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers along A path extending between the pickup station and the receiving station, maintaining a predetermined path length distance between the gripper assemblies of said first set of grippers as they move along the path, moving the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers along the path simultaneously with movement of the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers along the path, maintaining a predetermined path length distance between the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers as they move along the path, varying the path length distance between the gripper assemblies of the first set of grippers and the gripper assemblies of the second set of grippers as the gripper assemblies move along the path, sequentially operating the gripper assemblies to sequentially engage sheets of material at the pickup station and to sequentially release the engaged sheets of material at the receiving station, and varying the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of one of the sets of grippers relative to the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of the other set of grippers.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
73 words
A method as set forth in claim 28 wherein said step of varying the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of one of the sets of grippers relative to the speed of movement of the gripper assemblies of the other set of grippers includes the step of decreasing the speed of movement of the first set of grippers while maintaining the speed of movement of the second set of grippers substantially constant.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
59 words
A method as set forth in claim 28 further including the steps of operating a gripper assembly of the first set of grippers to release the leading sheet of material at the receiving station and thereafter increasing the speed of movement of the first set of grippers relative to the speed of movement of the second set of grippers.
Claim 37
Independent Claim
207 words
A method of sequentially transferring sheets of material from a pickup station to a receiving station said method comprising the steps of engaging a leading sheet of material at the pickup station with a first gripper assembly, operating a first drive assembly to move the first gripper assembly and the leading sheet of material along a path to the receiving station, engaging a next succeeding sheet of material at the pickup station with a second gripper assembly, operating a second drive assembly to move the second gripper assembly and the engaged sheet of material along the path to the receiving station while performing said step of operating the first drive assembly to move the first gripper assembly and the leading sheet of material along the path, and varying the speed of operation of one of the drive assemblies relative to the speed of operation of the other drive assemblies to vary the speed of movement of one of the gripper assemblies and engaged sheet of material relative to the speed of movement of the other of the gripper assemblies and the engaged sheet of material while simultaneously moving both of the gripper assemblies and both of the sheet of material along the path toward the receiving station.
Claim 38
Independent Claim
207 words
A method of sequentially transferring sheets of material from a pickup station to a receiving station said method comprising the steps of engaging a leading sheet of material at the pickup station with a first gripper assembly, operating a first drive assembly to move the first gripper assembly and the leading sheet of material along a path to the receiving station, engaging a next succeeding sheet of material at the pickup station with a second gripper assembly, operating a second drive assembly to move the second gripper assembly and the engaged sheet of material along the path to the receiving station while performing said step of operating the first drive assembly to move the first gripper assembly and the leading sheet of material along the path, and varying the speed of operation of one of the drive assemblies relative to the speed of operation of the other drive assemblies to vary the speed of movement of one of the gripper assemblies and engaged sheet of material relative to the speed of movement of the other of the gripper assemblies and the engaged sheet of material while simultaneously moving both of the gripper assemblies and both of the sheet of material along the path toward the receiving station.
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) | 1978-01-20 | 1978-07-22 | 1979-01-21 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-01-20 | 1982-07-22 | 1983-01-21 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-01-20 | 1986-07-22 | 1987-01-21 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |