Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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RICHARD J. MOLL
FEEDER TABLE WITH PHOTO-SCAN
CONTROLLED BELT MOTOR
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
Thi~ invention relate~ to a portable, self
contained feeding table which i9 u~eful to convert
existing pile fed paper folding machines to continuous
. feed.
: 10 DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
: Paper folding machine~ are well known in the art,
with most of those currently available employing a feed
board which .carrie~ a stacked pile of paper ~heet~ to
be folded by the folding machine, the feed board being
elevated to bring the top of the ~tack to a location
: for pick off and introduction into the machine f~r
folding. The use of a feea board restrict~ the
quantity of ~heet~ in the ~tacked pile of paper ~heets
to be folded, and frequent stoppage of the machine for
repleni3hment of the pile i9 neces3ary, which greatly
increa~e~ the time required to fold a quantity of paper
: which add~ to the co~t.
Variou~ conveyor~ having endles~ belts advancing
alon~ a horizontal table have heretofore been pr~po~ed,
but the~e are not ~uitable for use as a self contained
feeder table for conversion of existing pile fed paper
folding machine~. ~
Eller et al., ~n U.S. Patent No. 3,513,625 ~hows
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an interleaving system for sheet material stacking
apparatus which includes a flat table having parallel
belts. The sheets S have sheets P of protective
materlal interleaved and thereafter are stacked. The
sheets S are supplied to the belts 26 at the le-ft end
of FIG. 1, and advanced along the belts 98. The sheets
P, supplied from a roll 38 are severed by knives 108
and 109 and are delivered to the right ends of the
belts 98 to mate with the sheets S.
A light source 195 and photo-sensitive element
adjacent thereto detect the leading edge Sl of a sheet
S, to activate the nip rolls 102 and 103 to advance a
strip P for subsequent cutting, the actuation of the
cutter roll 106 being controlled by passage of the
trailing edge S-2, reestablishment of the light beam B
and activation of the lignt sensitive elements.
Eller et al. does not suggest a portable
self-contained feeder table useful to convert presently
existing pile fed paper folding machines to continuous
feed.
Morine, in U.S. Patent No. 3,474,893 shows a
portable self contained horizontal conveyor for
bakeries and the like, which is not suitable for the
same character of use as the feeder table of the
present invention, since it lacks a side guide for the
paper to be advanced, which is adjustable for width,
which is not adjustable as to height to accommodate
different paper folding machines, which does not have
any shut-off provisions in the event of failure of
paper supply, and which does not otherwise guide and
control the advance of the paper to be folded.
Bromberg, in U.S. Patent No. 2,926,907 shows
apparatus for folding and handling newspapers and the
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like, which has an elevated hopper 48 for receiving a
stack of newspapers, which are advanced downwardly
around a drum 45, and also around a smaller drum and
onto a wide belt 61, for transfer by suction cups 73a
onto a belt 82. No height varying provisions are
available in Bromberg, no delivery of fanned paper
sheets to a paper folding machine, and no detector
member for detecting and controlling the feeding of
fanned paper sheets.
The apparatus of my invention converts a pile fed
paper folding machine into a continuous feed machine
providing many advantages not found in the prior
art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention a portable feeder
table is provided for use in combination with presently
existing pile fed paper folding machines to convert
them to continuous feed, and which includes a housing
with a motor mounted therein, the housing being
adjustable as to height, to which a table is mounted
which has conveyor belts movable therealong with
provisions for motor control controlling the successive
advance of fanned sheets carried thereon to be advanced
to a paper folding machine for folding.
It is the principal object of the invention to
provide a portable paper feeder table which may be used
with presently existing pile fed paper folding machines
for more rapid and continuous feeding of paper sheets,
and without the necessity for modifying or changing the
paper folding machine with which it is used.
It is a further object of the invention to provide
a portable feeder table for use with presently
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existing pile fed paper folding machines, and which is
capable of utilizing the air pressure-vacuum paper pick
up mechanism on the paper folding machine as it is
presently installed.
It is a further object of the invention to provide
a portable feeder table for use with presently existing
pile fed paper folding machines, with which variable
linear delivery speed of the paper sheets to be folded
is provided, to match the speed of the paper folding
machine with which it is used.
It is a further object of the invention to provide
a portable feeder table for feeding sheets of paper to
a folding machine, which is provided with a detector to
determine the presence of sheets of paper to be
delivered for folding.
Other objects and advantageous features of the
invention will be apparent from the description and
claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The nature and characteristic features of the
invention will be more readily understood from the
following description taken in connection with the
accompanying drawings forming part hereof in which
FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the paper
feeder table of the invention prior to use and with
portions of a pile fed paper folding machine with which
the feeder table is to be used being shown in phantom;
FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view, taken
approximately on the line 2-2 of FIG. l;
FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the feeder table of
FIG. l;
FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the
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feeder table of the invention in place ready for use in
a pile fed paper folding machine; and
FIG. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view,
taken approximately on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4.
It should, of course, be understood that the
description and drawings herein are illustrative me~ely
and that various modifications and changes can be made
in the structure disclosed without departing from the
spirit of the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now more particularly to the drawings, a
motor housing 10 is provided, in the form of a box,
which serves as a supporting frame with height
adjusting plates 11 thereon, one opposite pair of which
carries rotatable supporting wheels 12, which permit
the housing 10 to be tipped and easily moved to a
location for use. The housing 10 has vertical slots 13
with bolts 14 therein and which have nuts 15 thereon.
The bolts 14 extend through opposite side walls 16 of
the housing 10, so that the plates 11 can be raised or
lowered as desired to position the bolts 14 at the
desired elevation in the slots 13 for clamping by the
nuts 15.
A table 17 is provided supported by the housing
10, which has side walls 20, a horizontal portion 21
between the rails 20, and with cut-away portions 22 and
23.
The side walls 20, at the left hand or delivery
end as seen in FIG. 1, have flange bearings 19 carried
on plates 24 mounted thereto by bolts 24a, for a shaft
25 carrying a driven roller 26.
The side walls 20, at the right hand or input end
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as seen in FIG. 1, have a shaft 24 carried in plates
27, which are retained by bolts 28 in slots 29 in the
side walls 20. The shaft 30 has bearing.s 30a thereon
rotatably engaged with an idler roller 31.
In order to drive the roller 26 a mo~or shaft 32
is provided, preferably driven by a variable speed
motor 32a. The shaft 32 has a sprocket 33 secured
thereto which i5 engaged by a driving chain 34. The
chain 34 preferably extends over an idler sprocket 35
on a shaft 36 supported in the housing 10, then around
a sprocket 37 on the shaft 25 to drive the roller 26,
then beneath the horizontal portion 21 and around an
idler sprocket 38 on a shaft 39 supported in the
side wall 20 and thence back to the sprocket 33.
The housing 10 also carries a control box 40 which
has an on-off power switch 41, and a knob 42 which is
connected to a suitable resistance element (not shown)
to control the speed of the variable speed motor 32a.
In order to maintain proper tension on chain 34,
motor 32a can be moved vertically by mounting bolts 43
carried in slots 44 in housing 10.
The rollers 26 and 31 have a plurality of spaced
endless belts 45 therearound, with the upper runs of
the belts 45 extending along the top face of the
horizontal portion 21, which are restrained Erom
sidewise movement by belt guide plate 45 which extends
between side walls 20.
In order to maintain the proper tension in the
belts 45 the plates 27 carrying the shaft 30 may have
the bolts 28 in slots 29 moved longitudinally until the
desired tension is obtained.
One of the side walls 20 has a bracket 4~ secured
thereto, which carries a rod 47 to which a longitudinal
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guide plate 48 is removably secured by clamping ~crew
49 and movable transversely across table l7~ The guide
plate 48 is also secured to a bracket 50, carried on
and movable along a bar 51, which is ~astened to and
extends between the side walls 20 at the input end.
The bracket 50 carries a clamp screw S2 wh;ch can be
tightened to retain the plate 48 at the desired
transverse location on bar 51.
The table 17 at the delivery end has a ~ixed
transverse nose plate 55 faatened there~o, which ia
provided with a plurality of cut-outs 56 to permit air
flow therebetween from an air source under pressure
(not shown) to flutter the paper sheets (not shown) for
pick off as described below.
On the underside of the plate 55 and extending
below one of the cut~outs 56 a scanner head 57 i9
provided, which detects the presence of a load of paper
to be delivered for folding and through electrical
t circuitry (not shown) activates the motor 32a to
advance the belts 45 and the sheets of paper thereon
(not shown~ for folding. The scanner head 57
associated circuitry and controls can be of any type
but preferably are as described in my U.S. patent no.
4,600,185 wh~ch issued July 15, 1986 enti~led
"Apparatus For Detecting And Actuating The Feeding Of
Paper In Paper Folding Machines".
In FIGS. 1, 3, 4, and 5, a portion of a pile fed
paper folding machine PF is illustrated for which the
eeder table of the present invention is particularly
u~eful. The folding machine PF has a pick off wheel PW
which may be of the vacuum air ~uction type, for
advancing the sheets delivered by the feeder table 17
into the machine PF, the conveyor portion 21 and its
belta 45 being at substantially the same height a~ the
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pick off wheel PW. The feed board 60 for conventional
pile feeding has been placed in lowered out of the way
position for use of the feeder table 17.
Any other suitable pick up structure for the
sheets may, of course, be used in the paper folding
machine PF.
The paper folding machine PF has a transverse rod
65 secured thereto which carries a pair of brackets 66
thereon each of which carries a longitudinal rod 67.
The longitudinal rods 67 each have brackets 68 fastened
thereto by clamping screws 68a which are engaged with a
transverse rod 69 with a pair of arms 70 carried
thereton, with rollers 71 on the ends thereof for
contact with the tail end of the paper sheets being
delivered for folding. An additional transverse bar 73
is provided fastened to rods 67 by clamping screws 74,
and which includes an adjustable guide plate 76 carried
thereon by bracket 77, which extends longitudinally for
engagement with the edge of the paper being advanced,
and a pair of paper hold-down shoes 80 are provided
also mounted on bar 73 by clamping brackets 81
The mode of operation will now be pointed out
The paper to be advanced for folding (not shown)
is loaded onto the belts 45 by placing properly spaced
shingled paper sheets onto the belts 45, and with
additional shingled sheets introduced below the
previous sheets for continuous feeding, and the on-off
switch 41 is actuated to control the motor shaft
operation to move the belts 45. The advancing sheets
are detected by the scanner head 57 which starts or
stops the motor 32a to advance the sheets as needed.
The movement is very rapid, and the sheets are
fluttered by the action of the air from an air source
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(not shown) and further advanced by the air suction
wheel PW into the paper folding machine PF for
folding.
It will be noted that the sheets are guided
transversely in their advance by the adjustable
longitudinal paper guide plate 48 and the guide plate
76, while being restrained against undesired upward
movement or displacement by the spaced rollers 71, and
the hold-down shoes 80.
It should be noted that by tilting the table 17
and its supporting housing 10 the wheels 12 engage
the supporting surface and permit movement to the
desired location for use.
