Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
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This invention relates to business forms handling
equipment suitable for business offices, and more particu
larly, to an apparatus for conveying and sealing collated form
sheets lnto form sets.
Continuous business form assemblies have long been
considered desirable for mass mailings and the like. High
speed printers have been used for both custom and non variable
printing of such assemblies. ~owever, certain desirable high
speed printers print with toners which are set or fixed by
heat. Such printers are incompatible with form assembly
cons~ructions having heat sealable adhesives. The assembly
webs having the heat sealable adhesives cannot be fed through
the printers or other heat generating equipment because other-
wise the webs would prematurely, undesirably adhere to the
equipment mechanisms. As a result, the webs of such
~assemblies having adhesive must be assembled or coilated witn
tAe printed webs after print~ng.
Ye~ with this sequence of assembly, sheet length
~o differentials occur between the sheets of the adhesive coated
webs, and the printed webs. The heating of the printed webs
during the setting of toners dries the sheets of the printed
webs, compounding a sheet length mismatch. Further, standard
sealing equipmen~ cannot accommodate a two ply collated form.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
; An object of the inventors which led to the making oE this invention was to provide business form sealing
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equipment capable of co~sistently, continuously collating and
sealing form sheets of matched and mismatched form sheet
lengths.
Another object was to provide such equipment of a
compac~ness, reliability, and ease of use suitable for typical
business offices and personnel.
The invention provides such sealing equipment, and
proceeds, in part, with a reversal of sealing and detaching
functions of standard sealing eqùipment. Form sheets are
collated first~ which allows sheet length dlfferences to be
accommodated, then detached from their webs, and then sealed.
The invention also incorporates the conveying of the sets of
sheets bein~ sealed in an overlapped or shingled manner.
In a principal aspect, then, the present invention
is an apparatus for conveying and sealing collated form sheets
into form sets, at least one of the form sheets for each set
having heat sealable adhesive. The apparatus comprises a
base, heating means and conveying means on the base. The
heating means constitutes means for heating the heat sealable
~o adhesive to seal form sheets of the group together. The
conveyor means constitutes means for conveying the groups of
form sheets through the heating means. The conveyor means
includes means for aligning the form sheets of the groups
before the groups enter the heating means.
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BRIFF DESCRIPTION Dr ~Z D~WIN~
The preferred embodiment of the invention will be
described in relation to the accompanying drawing, which
consists of four views, or figures The figures are as
follows:
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~IG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred
embo2iment with the infeed portion to the upper let;
FIG 2 is a side elevation view of the preferred
embodiment, with the frame partially cut away to reveal
internal detail;
FIG 3 is a top or plan view of the preferred
embodiment, with ~he partial cover shown in FIGS. 1 and 2
removed to reveal internal detail; and
FIG. 4 is a cross-section view taken along line 4-4
of FIG. 3~ .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION_OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiment of the present invention is
considered to be illustrative, and not restrictive, of ~he
pxesent invention. All modifications which come within the
scope of the appended claims are intended to be embraced
within the claims.
Referring to FIG. 1, the preferred embodiment of the
present invention is a sealer/conveyor 10 adapted to operate
on ll0 Volt current and rest atop.feet such as foot 11 on a
~ ~ mobile stand 12, for general office use. The sealer/conveyor
10 includes a ba~e or frame 14, heating structure 16, infeed
, . . .
con~eyor structuxe 18, output conveyor structure 20, and
stacking rack 22. Form sheets are fed in groups on the infeed
conveyor 18 through the heating structure 16, where they are
~5 sealed into form sets, then fed onto the outfeed conveyor 20,
and stacked against the rack 22.
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As shown only in FIG. 1, the infeed conveyor
structure 18 includes an infeed conveyor of a plurality of
conveyor belts such as ~elt 24 stretched about pulleys such as
pulley 26 on pulley shafts such as shaft 28.
Also as shown only in FIG. 1, a plurality of
alignment or nip rollers 30 are mounted to the base 14, above
the conveyor structure 18~ The rollers 30 axe adapted to be
friction driven by the infeed conveyor belts~ Pivotable links
32 provide for rotation of the rollers 30 about their central
axes, and pivoting of the rollers 30 about a shaft 34. The
shaft 34 slides within slotted support brackets 36, for
adjustment of the distance of the rollers 30 to the outermost
end 38 of the infeed conveyor structure.
The sealer/conveyor lO is usable with a detacher, a
collator, or similar machines, for receiving form sheets from
such equipment on the conveyor belts of the infeed conveyor.
The infeed conveyor belts are driven to provide a form speed
substantially less than that o an associated detacher or the
like. The sealer/conveyor is attached by frame hooks 35 to
the associated equipment. Form sheets, whe~her matched or
mismatched, are deposited on the infeed conveyor belts 24.
Whère mis~atching is expected, the rollers 30 arè adjusted to
be sufficiently close to the infeed end 38 that the distance
from the end rollers of the detacher or the like to the
rollers 30 is less than one form length. As a result of the
conveyor speed and position of the rollers 30, form sheets of a
orm set arriving mismatched at the rollers 30 are jogged or
slid relative to each other into alignment.
In more detail, where a plurality of mismatched form
sheets are driven onto the conveyor belts 24, the leading edge
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of the form sheet which is first to arrive at the rollers 30 will
be slowed to the speed of the belts 24 and rollers 30, at the nip
of the belts 24 and rollers 30. Remaining form sheets, the leading
edges of which have not arrived at the rollers 30, continue to be
driven at higher speed to the rollers 30. As the leading edge of
each remaining form sheet arrives at the nip of the belts 24 and
rollers 30, the leading portion of each form sheet is slowed, and
each leading edge is substantially aligned or matched with the
leading edge of the first arriving sheet.
The aligned form sheets continue to move, at the reduced
speed of the belts 24 and rollers 30, into the heating structure 16.
As form sheets of further form sets arrive at the rollers 30, these
further form sheets overlap the trailing portions of the form sheets of
preceding form sets. The sealer/conveyor 10 accommodates such
overlapped or shingled form sets, which remain shingled until racked.
The overlapped form sets move at the speed established
by the infeed conveyor structure 18 into the heater structure 16.
As shown in FIGURES 2-4, the heater structure 16 includes vertically
spaced upper and lower heating platens 40, 42. Platen or pressure
20 rollers such as roller assembly 44 include roller segments such as 46
on shafts such as 48. The roller segments extend through cut-outs
in the platens, to drive the shingled form sets through the heating
structure 16, between the platens 40, 42.
As showr. in FIGURE 2, the platen rollers include idler
rollers in the cover 52 of the heating structure 16, and driving rollers
driven by a chain drive 50 from a motor 54.
The motor 54 drives a shaft 56 of the output conveyor struc-
ture 20, which drives sprockets such as sprocket 58 mounted
along the shafts of the driving platen rollers. The shaft 56
and sprocket 58 are portions of the drive S0.
The platens ~0, ~2 heat by electrical resistance.
The speed of each form set through the heating structure 16 is
equal to the speed of the infeed conveyor 18, while the number
of form sets through the heating structure per unit time is
determined by the speed of the detacher or other associated
lO~ equipment. As an example, each form may travel through the,
heating structure 16 at an infeed conveyor speed of thirty
feet per minute, while the form sets may accumulate on the
sealer/conveyor at a detacher speed of up to sixty Eeet per
minute. The leng,th and temperature of the platens 40, 42 are
set to soften the heat-sealable adhesive of the form sets, as
they pass between the platens 40, 42~
As most preferred~ the platens 40r 42 soften adhe~
'sive on form sets traveling at the conveyor speed stated as an
example, thirty feet, per m-inute, and accumulating at the
detacher speed'stated as an example, up to sixty feet per
minute. Also as most preferred~ the platens 40, 42 soften
adhesive on form sheets of weiyht from 18 pound bond to 99
pound index.
The resulting, sealed form sets exit the heating
'structure 16 onto an output conveyor of a plurality of output
conveyor belts such as 60 stretched about pulleys such as 62,
as shown in ~IG. 1. The output conveyor belts are driven at
the same speed as the input conveyor belts. ~t the ter~inal
end of the output conveyor structure 20, the ~orm sets are
driven onto the rack 22. Since the form sets remain shingled
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on the outFut conveyor belts, each form set acts as a guide
for movement of followlng form sets onto the rack 22. The
form sets remain stacked upon the rack 22, in condition for
use, until manually removed.
The invention, and the manner and process of making
and using it, are now described in such full, clear, concise
and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to
which it pertains, to màke and use ~he same. The best mode
contemplated by ~he inventor of carrying out the invention is
set forth. It i5 to be understood, of course, that the fore-
going describes a preferred embodiment of the present inven-
tion and ~hat modifications may be made therein without
depar~ing from the spiri~ or scope of the present invention as
set forth in ~he appended claims.. To particularly point out
and distinctly claim ~he subject mat~er regarded as invention,
the following claims conclude this speclfication.
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