Adjustable gripping device for adjustable sheet-receiving pockets

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6612567
  • Patent Number
    6,612,567
  • Date Filed
    Monday, June 24, 2002
    22 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, September 2, 2003
    21 years ago
Abstract
An adjustable gripper system for releasably holding at least one sheet against a surface includes a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis and at least one gripper having a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, the gripper body connected to the shaft for pivoting the gripper about the axis, a gripper plunger slidably disposed in the cavity and holding the sheet against the surface, and a cam follower actuated by a cam. The cam follower is connected to the gripper plunger to displace the gripper plunger along the cavity dependent upon a position of the cam. The system can be part of a sheet-collating pocket having a forward wall and a rearward wall pivotally connected thereto and, together, defining an opening for receiving the sheet, which can be part of a sheet-collating machine having the cam, a conveyor, at least one sheet feeding device, and many of the pockets.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The invention lies in the field of printing presses. The present invention relates generally to a sheet-conveying apparatus, for example, for conveying newspapers, and, more particularly, to a sheet conveying apparatus having collating pockets moving on a track. In particular, the invention relates to an adjustable gripping device for holding folded sheet material sections in such a collating pocket and for separating folded ends of the sections from one another to allow nesting of inserted other sections.




2. Background Information




Sheet-conveying devices, in particular, devices for conveying newspapers, are required to be able to insert or nest or collate various sets of sheets inside one another. Specifically, to create a finished newspaper, a first folded section of the paper, taking the form of a folded sheet section, is opened and at least one second section of the newspaper is inserted between the two sides of the folded sheet section. It is possible that the second section is, itself, a section having third, fourth, or more other sections nested therein in the same manner as the first section. To process such sheets, in particular, newspapers, prior art conveying devices have an angle-shaped pocket that first picks up a first section, opens the first section, and then conveys the opened first section to a delivery station. Prior art systems including pockets include, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,521 to Müller and U.S. Pat. No. 5,213,318 to Newhall. A delivery unit drops the second section into the opened first section to create a nested paper with two sections. This process can be repeated for many different sections to create an entire newspaper.




There is a difficulty associated with the pocket properly opening the first section to the appropriate opening position. To facilitate proper opening, each section is formed with a lap. In other words, the two ends of the folded sheet section are not even. Typically, in a sheet-processing direction, the forward-most end of the folded sheet section is longer than the rear-most end of the folded sheet section. Thus, if the fold of the sheet section is at the bottom of the pocket, when viewing the ends of the folded sheet section in the pocket from above, the forward lap is higher than the rear lap.




In such a position, the folded sheet section can be opened if the forward, higher lap is secured by a device (applying a physical contact and/or air suction) and the pocket or folded sheet section is moved or tilted to allow gravity (possibly assisted with suction) to let the rear lap fall away from the forward lap. After the rear lap has fallen or is moved away from the forward lap, there exists an opening into which a second section can be inserted. Accordingly, a second section can be inserted into or nested within the first section. This combined section can then be inserted into a further section, and so on, to create a multiply nested set of sheets, typically, forming a common newspaper.




The securing device typically takes the form of a finger-shaped gripper. In the opening process, such a gripper is rotated or lowered onto the forward lap to secure the forward lap, and the forward sheet section, to a front wall of the pocket. Some examples of prior art gripper systems in such pockets include U.S. Pat. No. 4,723,770 to Seidel et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,988,086 to Schlough, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,024,432 to Thünker et al.




However, lap sizes are neither consistent nor equal. Therefore, there is a need to adjust such grippers in a vertical direction with respect to a pocket so that the forward lap is gripped in the most efficient place. Prior art pocket systems solve this positioning problem by vertically adjusting the lowermost surface of the pocket holding the folded sheet section. If such a surface is lowered, the folded section resting thereon is also lowered. Similarly, if the lowermost surface is raised, the folded section resting thereon is also raised. What is needed is more precise lap-gripping adjustment system that is independent of the lowermost surface of the pocket.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,416 to Klopfenstein describes a sheet material conveying apparatus with a plurality of pockets moveable around a track to accept sheet material from sheet material feeders. These pockets permit, for example, a first outer section of a newspaper to first be fed into the pockets by a first sheet material feeder, and then an inner newspaper section to be inserted between the folds of the first outer newspaper section. The Klopfenstein apparatus uses a lift cam


20


to move a semicircular actuator gear


150


to rotate a drive shaft


110


so as to set a height for pocket feet


90


disposed on racks


80


. A pawl and ratchet mechanism prevents the pocket from opening. The sheet material can then be accepted and inserted into the pockets. To deliver the sheet material, a trip cam


22


can release the pawl and ratchet mechanism. Tracks


80


move to a lower position through a biasing spring, so that feet


90


release through operation of a driver cam


130


. The sheet material in the pocket can, thus, move out of the pocket from the bottom to be further conveyed or to be stacked. The entirety of Klopfenstein is hereby incorporated by reference.




U.S. Pat. No. 5,251,888 to Eugster purports to describe pockets moveable along an endless path. Each pocket is provided with two vertically adjustable stops


14


mounted displaceably in a pocket carrier


8


. A guide member


28


purportedly can be set to vertically adjust the stops


14


as the pockets are moved along the endless path.




Other examples of adjustment devices for the bottom of a pocket can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,202 to Kircher, U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,710 to Hansen et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,968 to Linder et al.




These prior art pocket systems do not provide an adjustment device for setting placement of grippers at the top of the pocket or at the gripper location itself.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an adjustable gripping device for adjustable sheet-receiving pockets that overcomes the hereinafore-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known devices of this general type and that better separates the forward lap from the rearward lap by adjusting grippers in a vertical direction with respect to a pocket so that the forward lap is gripped in the most efficient place.




Commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/662,277, entitled “SHEET MATERIAL CONVEYING APPARATUS WITH INDIVIDUALLY-ADJUSTABLE POCKETS” filed on Sep. 14, 2000, describes a plurality of manually-adjustable pockets, each having a setting device for adjusting a height of the pocket.




Commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/702,012, entitled “SHEET MATERIAL CONVEYING APPARATUS WITH HEIGHT-ADJUSTABLE POCKETS” filed on Oct. 30, 2000, describes a plurality of manually adjustable pockets, each having a setting device for adjusting a height of the pocket so as to define a set height.




Commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/178,645, entitled “ADJUSTABLE GRIPPING DEVICE FOR ADJUSTABLE SHEET-RECEIVING POCKETS AND METHOD FOR ADJUSTING SHEET-RECEIVING POCKETS” and filed concurrently herewith, describes a different gripper adjusting system


70


where each gripper


71


is individually adjustable through a gripper plunger


73


having a plunger body


75


with a nose, a rod


76


, and a cam follower


77


attached to the end of rod


76


. The nose directly contacts and holds forward lap


61


of a section


6


, or holds the entire section


6


,


61


,


63


. Depending on a setting of a vertically adjustable cam


26


the nose moves away from or towards an upper edge of the rearward lap


63


.




Commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/178,642, entitled “LAP SEPARATOR FOR SHEET-RECEIVING POCKETS AND METHOD FOR SEPARATING LAPS IN SHEET-RECEIVING POCKETS” and filed concurrently herewith, describes a lap separator system


70


for extending a window of time for allowing grippers


53


,


55


to engage a forward lap


61


. The lap separating system


70


includes at least one lap separator


72


moveably disposed on a lap separator carrier system


74


, preferably in the form of an endless belt that follows pockets


10


, but moves at a different speed. Lap separator


72


contacts a rearward side of upper rear wall


54


and forces it against upper front wall


52


, thereby clamping a folded section


6


therebetween. As lap separator


72


is traveling with but faster than pocket


10


, it first lets go of upper rear wall


54


, then of rearward lap


63


, and, finally, of upper front wall


52


by dragging over the uppermost edge of each, similar to a fanning of a deck of cards.




A setting device of some of the commonly assigned applications is manually operated by an operator, who turns a knob gear and sets a lock ring for a desired pocket height. It may be desirable to provide a less time consuming, one-step setting device for each pocket.




Each of these commonly assigned applications is hereby incorporated by reference herein.




With the foregoing and other objects in view, there is provided, in accordance with the invention, an adjustable gripper system for releasably holding at least one sheet against a surface, including a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis and at least one gripper having a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, the gripper body connected to the gripper shaft for pivoting the gripper about the pivot axis, a gripper plunger slidably disposed in the plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against the surface, and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, the cam follower connected to the gripper plunger to displace the gripper plunger along the plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.




In accordance with another feature of the invention, the gripper is a plurality of grippers spaced apart from one another on the gripper shaft.




In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the gripper body is releasably connected to the gripper shaft.




In accordance with an added feature of the invention, the gripper plunger has a nose for holding the sheet against the surface.




In accordance with an additional feature of the invention, the cam follower has a follower to be actuated by the cam and a cam rod connecting the gripper plunger to the follower.




In accordance with yet another feature of the invention, the plunger cavity has a plunger body portion with a given diameter and a cam rod portion having a diameter smaller than the given diameter, the gripper plunger has a plunger body with a body diameter, the cam rod has a cam rod diameter smaller than the body diameter, the plunger body is slidably disposed in the plunger body portion, and the cam rod is slidably disposed in the cam rod portion.




In accordance with yet a further feature of the invention, there is provided a bias device connected to the gripper body and the plunger body, the bias device biasing the plunger body with respect to the gripper body. Preferably, the bias device is a spring.




In accordance with yet an added feature of the invention, the bias device is disposed in the plunger body portion.




In accordance with yet an additional feature of the invention, the gripper body has a wall between the plunger body portion and the cam rod portion and the bias device is disposed between the wall and the plunger body. The bias device can also be disposed around the cam rod. Preferably, the wall is disk-shaped.




In accordance with again another feature of the invention, the cam rod has an end and the follower is a wheel and an axle rotatably connecting the wheel to the end.




With the objects of the invention in view, there is also provided a sheet-collating pocket, including a forward wall having an upper end portion, a rearward wall pivotably connected to the forward wall for moving towards and away from the forward wall, the rearward wall and the forward wall together defining an opening for receiving at least one sheet, and an adjustable gripper system for releasably holding the sheet against the forward wall, the gripper system disposed at the upper end portion and having a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis and at least one gripper having a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, the gripper body connected to the gripper shaft for pivoting the gripper about the pivot axis, a gripper plunger slidably disposed in the plunger cavity and configured to hold the sheet against the forward wall, and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, the cam follower connected to the gripper plunger to displace the gripper plunger along the plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.




In accordance with again a further feature of the invention, the pocket travels in a given direction and the forward wall is disposed downstream of the rearward wall with respect to the given direction.




In accordance with again an added feature of the invention, the upper end portion is an upper third, an upper fourth, or an upper fifth of the forward wall. Preferably, the forward wall has a top and the gripper system is disposed substantially at the top.




With the objects of the invention in view, in a sheet-collating pocket having a top, a forward wall, and a rearward wall pivotably connected to the forward wall, the rearward and forward walls together defining an opening for receiving at least one sheet from the top, there is also provided an adjustable gripping system for setting placement of grippers at the top of the pocket, the gripping system including a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis and at least one gripper having a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, the gripper body connected to the gripper shaft for pivoting the gripper about the pivot axis, a gripper plunger slidably disposed in the plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against the forward wall, and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, the cam follower connected to the gripper plunger to displace the gripper plunger along the plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.




With the objects of the invention in view, there is also provided a sheet-collating machine, including a conveyor traveling along a transport direction, at least one sheet feeding device disposed at the conveyor for feeding at least one sheet towards the conveyor to a plurality of sheet-collating pockets, and a cam having an adjustment device placing the cam in different positions with respect to the pockets, the cam disposed at the conveyor and selectively contacting each of the pockets as each pocket respectively passes thereby. Each of the pockets is connected to the conveyor, receives the sheet from the sheet feeding device, and transports the sheet along at least a portion of the conveyor in the transport direction. Each of the pockets has a forward wall with an upper end portion, a rearward wall pivotably connected to the forward wall, and an adjustable gripper system for releasably holding the at least one sheet against the forward wall. The rearward wall and the forward wall together define an opening for receiving the sheet. The gripper system is disposed at the upper end portion and has a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis and at least one gripper having a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, the gripper body connected to the gripper shaft for pivoting the gripper about the pivot axis, a gripper plunger slidably disposed in the plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against the forward wall, and a cam follower actuated by the cam, the cam follower connected to the gripper plunger to displace the gripper plunger along the plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.




In accordance with again an additional feature of the invention, the conveyor is an endless conveyor.




In accordance with still another feature of the invention, the sheet feeding device is disposed above the conveyor and the pockets.




In accordance with a concomitant feature of the invention, the forward wall is disposed downstream of the rearward wall with respect to the transport direction.




The present invention permits the grippers to be set to a set height while moving and to operate for a relevant distance at the set height. To change a gripper height, a movable setting cam is set for a new height and may also include a lock engagement device. The present invention provides a simple device for resetting gripper height and allows for manual re-setting of the gripper height.




“Rod” as defined herein can be any elongated structure. “Slide gear” as defined herein specifically includes any type of slidable interlocking structure, and may include a gear with an exterior star gearing, a single key or tooth exterior structure, or any other structure with which a ring gear may be fixed rotationally and with which a lock ring may be selectively fixed or free to rotate, include one having a ball-detent mechanism.




Other features that are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.




Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in an adjustable gripping device for adjustable sheet-receiving pockets, it is, nevertheless, not intended to be limited to the details shown because various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.











The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.




BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a diagrammatic perspective view of a sheet material conveying apparatus according to the invention;





FIG. 2A

is a side view of a pocket according to the invention with certain elements omitted for clarity;





FIG. 2B

is a side view of an enlarged detail of a gripper of the pocket of

FIG. 2A

;





FIG. 3

is a fragmentary perspective view of the pocket of

FIG. 2A

with certain elements omitted for clarity;





FIG. 4

is a different, fragmentary perspective view of the pocket of

FIG. 3

;





FIG. 5

is a fragmentary, partially exploded, cross-sectional view of a setting device for setting a finger height according to the invention;





FIG. 6

is a fragmentary, exploded, perspective view of the setting device of

FIG. 5

;





FIG. 7

is an enlarged side view of a detail of the setting device of

FIG. 5

;





FIG. 8A

is a diagrammatic, partially cross-sectional, side view of a gripper system according to the invention; and





FIG. 8B

is a diagrammatic, partially cross-sectional, side view of the gripper system of

FIG. 8A

in a different cam-adjusted position.











DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS




Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to

FIG. 1

thereof, there is shown a diagrammatic representation of a sheet material conveying apparatus


100


having an endless track


101


for transporting a plurality of pockets


10


in transport direction


17


. Each pocket


10


includes moveable fingers


90


for defining a pocket height, an individual height setting mechanism


8


, and a releasable lock mechanism


9


for height setting mechanism


8


.




At a setting area


1


, each pocket


10


can be set manually by setting mechanism


8


to move fingers


90


to at least one of two desired heights, for example, a setting for receiving 10½-inch folded products. Pockets


10


are stationary during setting, and the setting can occur outside setting area


1


as well, for example, by an operator moving about track


101


.




Alternatively, pockets


10


can be moved to setting area


1


, the apparatus can be stopped, and each pocket can be set. An automated robot for interacting with setting mechanism


8


also could be located at setting area


1


to move each pocket


10


to the proper height, as a pocket


10


is moved to and stopped at setting area


1


.




After a pocket is set to a desired height, setting mechanism


8


is then locked in place by lock mechanism


9


so that the pocket height is set. After all the pockets


10


are set, the pockets are moved to pass beneath a first sheet material feed station


2


where, for example, a folded cover section


6


of a newspaper or other printed product, also referred to as a jacket, is delivered into pocket


10


. At a second and optional sheet material feed station


3


, a second section


7


may be inserted between forward and rear portions of cover section


6


to form a final printed product


12


. This process can be repeated for any number of feed stations


2


,


3


to create a final product


12


having many nested sections


6


,


7


.




After receiving sections


6


,


7


, pockets


10


can then pass a release station


4


, which releases lock mechanism


9


. Setting mechanism


8


, which is, preferably, spring-loaded, then releases fingers


90


so that the bottom of pocket


10


opens, and finished products


12


are delivered, for example, to a conveyor belt


11


.




As pockets


10


continue past release station


4


, pockets


10


pass through a reset station


5


, which can include a movable incline reset ramp


25


for interacting with a reset cam follower


156


(see

FIG. 3

) of setting mechanism


8


and a lock engagement device


35


for locking lock mechanism


9


. Pockets


10


, which are preferably all set to a common height, are then reset to the common height by reset ramp


25


, and locked into place by lock engagement device


35


engaging lock mechanism


9


.





FIGS. 2A

,


3


, and


4


show more details of pocket


10


.




Pocket


10


has an upper rear wall


54


and an upper front wall


52


, in between which is an opening


56


for accepting sheet material, for example, cover section


6


. Pocket


10


also has a side wall


44


. Pocket


10


also may have a lower rear wall


64


and a lower front wall


62


.





FIG. 2B

is an enlarged view of the upper portion of pocket


10


illustrated in FIG.


2


A.

FIG. 2B

shows the area where forward lap


61


of a cover section


6


is held. To hold cover section


6


in place, a set of grippers


53


,


55


are located at the top of upper front wall


52


. Grippers


53


,


55


are shown coaxially disposed on a single shaft


57


, albeit in different rotational positions. However, alternatively, different sets of grippers can be disposed on different shafts, each being independently controlled. For example, grippers of one set can be longer than grippers of another set. Also, grippers


53


,


55


are shown at the top of upper front wall


52


. However, grippers


53


,


55


can be located at the upper third, fourth, or fifth of upper front wall


52


, depending upon the distance between the top of section


6


and a top of upper front wall


52


.




A non-illustrated control device pivots the shaft


57


holding the grippers


53


,


55


between an engaged position and a disengaged position. In

FIG. 2B

, one gripper


53


is shown in the disengaged position and the other gripper


55


is shown in the engaged position. In the engaged position, the gripper


55


holds the forward lap


61


of the cover section


6


so that it is fixed with respect to the upper front wall


52


. A cover section


6


being so held is shown diagrammatically in

FIG. 2B

with a dashed line. See also

FIGS. 8A and 8B

.




When the cover section


6


is first deposited in the opening


56


, the bottom (lowermost) edge of the cover section


6


rests at the junction between the fingers


90


and the upper rear wall


54


. In the open position of the pocket


10


shown in

FIG. 2A

, gravity causes the cover section


6


to rest entirely against the upper rear wall


54


. To grip the cover section


6


with the grippers


53


,


55


, the upper rear wall


54


is pivoted about axis


51


to contact the upper front wall


52


. Alternatively and/or additionally, the entire rear wall


54


,


64


can be displaced towards the front wall


52


,


62


. When the cover section


6


rests against the upper front wall


52


, the grippers


53


,


55


can be rotated into the engaged position and hold the cover section


6


in place against the upper front wall


52


. If the grippers


53


,


55


are adjusted so that they extend no further than the top edge of the rearward lap


63


of the cover section


6


(see FIGS.


8


A and


8


B), then the grippers


53


,


55


only grip the forward lap


61


of the cover section


6


. After engaging the forward lap


61


, when the upper rear wall


54


is moved back to the position shown in

FIG. 2A

, the forward lap


61


is held against the upper front wall


52


and gravity carries the rearward lap


63


of the cover section


6


along with the upper rear wall


54


, thus creating an opening between the forward lap


61


and rearward lap


63


for receiving another section


7


therein, for example, from the second sheet material feed station


3


.




Slidable with respect to upper front wall


52


is a rack


80


, on which the fingers


90


are supported. The fingers


90


are supported on the rack


80


by a pivot


96


attached to a first section


92


of the finger


90


. A second section


94


of the finger


90


can define a pocket bottom when the fingers


90


are in a closed position (as illustrated in FIG.


2


A). As most clearly shown in

FIG. 4

, rack


80


includes teeth


82


that interact with a gear


122


of a pinion


120


(FIGS.


3


and


4


), which also includes a release cam


130


. Pinions


120


are located on a shaft


110


rotatably supported in wall


44


and wall


46


(only partially shown in FIG.


4


).




At the wall


46


, an end


111


of shaft


110


passes through a setting ring gear


140


, of which only a first part is shown in FIG.


3


. Ring gear


140


has an interior surface that ensures rotation of ring gear


140


in a fixed relationship with a slide gear


180


(

FIG. 5

) that is in a fixed rotational relationship with shaft


110


. Slide gear


180


, however, can slide axially with respect to shaft


110


for selective interlocking with the lock ring


160


(interior to gear


140


and visible in

FIG. 6

) that forms part of lock mechanism


9


. Lock mechanism


9


also includes a pawl


209


for interacting with a single ratchet


164


on the exterior of ring


160


. Ring gear


140


is shown in

FIGS. 2A

,


3


, and


4


only in part, with a second outer gear section


182


(

FIGS. 5 and 6

) for interacting with a non-illustrated setting rod. The details of slide gear


180


and its interaction with ring gear


140


and lock ring


160


will be described in more detail with respect to

FIGS. 5 and 6

.





FIG. 3

shows how fingers


90


extend through the front wall. Release cam


130


can interact with a release surface


100


(

FIG. 4

) of finger


90


located in an opening


86


between teeth


82


when fingers


90


are fully lowered, so that the fingers


90


rotate away from the rear wall


54


,


64


and release any products in the pocket


10


. Release of the fingers


90


is similar to the release of the feet in U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,416 to Klopfenstein, which has been incorporated herein by reference.





FIG. 2A

shows ring gear


140


interacting with a semicircular setting gear


150


. On one side of semicircular gear


150


is a reset cam follower


156


held rotationally at an axis


154


. The setting gear


150


pivots about an axis


152


.




As shown in

FIG. 4

, the semicircular gear


150


is attached to a spring


158


to spring-load the gear


150


in a direction


151


, as also shown in FIG.


2


A.





FIG. 5

shows an exploded view of certain details of the setting mechanism. End


111


of shaft


110


fits, passing through interior holes in ring gear


140


and lock ring


160


, into an interiorly toothed hole


147


of slide gear


180


. End


111


is fixed to a screw


145


that abuts slide gear


180


through a spring


146


. Thus, slide gear


180


can be moved against the force of spring


146


in the direction of arrow


240


so as to slide axially with respect to shaft


110


, however always remaining rotationally fixed with the shaft


110


.




Slide gear


180


has exterior star gearing


141


that matches interior star gearing


183


of ring gear


140


. Slide gear


180


and ring gear


140


thus rotate together at all times. Interior to slide gear


180


and ring gear


140


is lock ring


160


, which selectively engages, through an interior star gear


163


, exterior star gearing


141


of slide gear


180


when slide gear


180


is not moved axially against the spring force of spring


146


.




When moved axially against the spring force in direction


240


(see FIG.


5


), slide gear


180


releases from lock ring


160


, which then is held only by pawl


209


but is freely rotatable with respect to shaft


110


due to a smooth inner surface section


162


that rests on shaft


110


.




Slide gear


180


has a raised portion


142


for interacting with a disengaging device of a non-illustrated setting rod to permit the slide gear


180


to be moved against the spring force of spring


146


.




Ring gear


140


has external gear teeth


181


for interacting with semicircular gear


150


(FIG.


2


A), as well as external gear teeth of the second outer gear section


182


for interacting with the setting rod.




Lock ring


160


has a single ratchet


164


on an external surface, which interacts with pawl


209


, as shown in FIG.


7


. An extension


210


extends outwardly from pawl


209


, for permitting pawl


209


to move between an upward and a downward position. The pawl


209


may be spring-loaded to favor one position, or to click into both positions.




As stated above, after a pocket


10


is set to a desired height, the setting mechanism


8


is then locked in place by the lock mechanism


9


so that the pocket height is set. After all the pockets


10


are set, the pockets


10


are moved to pass beneath at least one sheet material feed station


2


,


3


where, for example, sections


6


,


7


of a newspaper or other printed product are delivered into the pocket


10


.




Once the pocket


10


is set to a desired height, it typically cannot be adjusted to account for variations in the size of the sections


6


,


7


being placed therein. Prior art devices have been created to adjust for such variations by only adjusting the level or location of the bottom of the pocket. Thereby, raising or lowering the section


6


,


7


placed therein from below. However, no prior art device has used an adjustment of the grippers


53


,


55


to compensate for section


6


,


7


size variation.




As set forth above, up until the invention, there was a difficulty associated with separating the forward lap


61


of a first section


6


from the rearward lap


63


to create a pocket therebetween into which the second section


7


can be inserted or nested.




The invention adds a new adjustment mechanism to the grippers


53


,


55


.





FIGS. 8A and 8B

diagrammatically illustrate a gripper adjusting system


70


. A single gripper


71


is depicted in

FIGS. 8A and 8B

for the sake of clarity. Nonetheless, system


70


can be expanded to many or all of the grippers used to grip forward lap


61


in a pocket


10


. Gripper


71


has a gripper body


72


, a gripper plunger


73


, and a reset spring


74


. Gripper plunger


73


includes a plunger body


75


with a nose, a rod


76


, and a cam follower


77


. The nose directly contacts and holds forward lap


61


of a section


6


, or holds the entire section


6


,


61


,


63


. Gripper body


72


is attached, preferably, fixedly but adjustably, to gripper shaft


57


, which is diagrammatically illustrated in

FIGS. 2A and 2B

. Thus, when shaft


57


rotates about its axis


58


in either rotation direction


59


, gripper


71


is rotated as well, and the nose of plunger body


75


either lifts away from upper front wall


52


to let go of or make room to grasp forward lap


61


or moves towards upper front wall


52


to grasp forward lap


61


of section


6


.




Gripper body


72


defines a cavity


78


having forward and rearward openings (with respect to an insertion direction of gripper plunger


73


). The larger forward opening is sized to slidably fit the outer circumference of plunger body


75


. The smaller rearward opening is sized to slidably fit the outer circumference of rod


76


. Cavity


77


also has a rear, disk-shaped wall


79


to hold the rearmost end of reset spring


74


. Thus, while reset spring


74


can slidably fit into cavity


78


, it can only be inserted until it hits rear wall


79


. Alternatively, reset spring


74


can be integral with rear wall


79


.




Rod


76


of gripper plunger


73


is inserted into cavity


78


. Rod


76


has an outer diameter that is smaller than an inner diameter of reset spring


74


and, therefore, rod


76


passes through reset spring


74


unobstructed. Rod


76


also passes rear wall


79


and exits the second smaller opening of cavity


78


to project out of the top (with respect to the views of

FIGS. 8A and 8B

) of gripper body


72


. A cam follower


77


is attached to the end of rod


76


.




The other, forward, end of reset spring


74


contacts a rearward disk-shaped wall of plunger body


75


. As such, when plunger body


75


enters cavity


78


, reset spring


74


is compressed. In such an embodiment, plunger body


75


is biased to travel out of cavity


78


.




The rod


76


and cam follower


77


combination and connection can take various forms. For example, rod


76


can have an axle hole (extending into the plane of the views of

FIGS. 8A and 8B

) for receiving an axle or shaft that is then attached to a wheel-shaped cam follower


77


. Other equivalent attachment embodiments can be used as well.





FIGS. 8A and 8B

illustrate how gripper system


70


works. A vertically adjustable gripper bite adjustment cam


26


is placed in the path of pockets


10


as they travel in transport direction


17


. Adjustment cam


26


is placed in a position similar to incline reset ramp


25


, in that, a portion of pocket


10


must contact adjustment cam


26


as the portion passes thereby. Before any pocket


10


reaches adjustment cam


26


, the bias of reset spring


74


pushes plunger body


75


out of the cavity


78


, for example, until the connection of rod


76


and cam follower


77


abuts the upper surface of gripper body


72


or to the fullest extent of an uncompressed reset spring


74


, whichever is smaller. In such a position, the nose of plunger body


75


is disposed at a given first distance


65


from the end of rearward lap


63


. Such an embodiment is illustrated in FIG.


8


A.




Adjustment cam


26


can be set to any vertical distance with respect to gripper body


72


.




In the view of

FIG. 8A

, adjustment cam


26


is set to a lowermost activating position. In such a position, when pocket


10


, including gripper system


70


, passes by adjustment cam


26


, cam follower


77


merely rolls along the upper surface


27


of adjustment cam


26


and does not contact ramp


29


. Such a position is called a lowermost activating position because adjustment cam


26


has no affect upon cam follower


77


if adjustment cam


26


is lowered any more than that shown in FIG.


8


A. In the lowermost activating position, the nose of plunger body


75


is at a distance


65


from the uppermost edge of rearward lap


63


.




In the view of

FIG. 813

, adjustment cam


26


is set to a position Δh higher than the lowermost activating position. In such a raised position, when pocket


10


, including gripper system


70


, passes by adjustment cam


26


, cam follower


77


first contacts ramp


29


and then rolls up and off ramp


29


onto upper surface


27


of adjustment cam


26


. This raised position of adjustment cam


26


has a specific affect upon cam follower


77


—cam follower


77


, attached to rod


76


, pulls rod


76


and, therefore, plunger body


75


further into cavity


78


of gripper body


72


. As such, the nose of plunger body


75


is raised vertically along the surface of upper front wall


52


to a distance


67


away from the uppermost edge of the rearward lap


63


.




In the lowermost activating position of

FIG. 8A

, the nose of plunger body


75


is shown at a distance


65


from the uppermost edge of rearward lap


63


. However, it is possible, due to a variation in size of rearward lap


63


, that the nose of plunger body


75


actually contacts rearward lap


63


and prevents rearward lap


63


from falling away from forward lap


61


to create the pocket for receiving an inserted section


7


. In such a situation, the printing press operator can use the invention and prevent this undesired condition by raising adjustment cam


26


such that the nose of plunger body


75


no longer contacts rearward lap


63


. Therefore, the invention allows an operator to raise a gripper system


70


of each of pocket


10


without having to manually adjust each gripper


71


of each pocket


10


.




The gripper system


70


shown is a linear raising system. In other words, if adjustment cam


26


is raised by Δh, then plunger body


75


will be pulled into cavity


78


along a distance equal to Δh. Thus, the difference between


65


and


67


is Δh. Gripper system


70


does not have to be a linear raising system, however. It is envisioned to have, if desired, a more complex lever system such that a small raising of the adjustment cam


26


results in a correspondingly larger or smaller raising of the plunger body


75


.




Ramp


29


of adjustment cam


26


is depicted as being relatively small and shallow. Of course, ramp


29


can have any length or be at any angle greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees. However, preferably, the length of ramp


29


is at least equal to a radius of the cam follower


77


. Also preferable is for the ramp angle to be between 30 and 60 degrees, in particular, to be between 30 and 45 degrees. Adjustment cam


26


is also shown in

FIGS. 8A and 8B

with a flat front surface


30


. In alternative embodiments, the forward-most end of the ramp


29


can be even lower than the illustration of

FIGS. 8A and 8B

. Preferably, the forward-most end of ramp


29


is approximately level with lower surface


28


of adjustment cam


26


and, where cam follower


77


is wheel-shaped, the forward-most portion


30


of adjustment cam


26


is rounded to permit smooth contact between ramp


29


and cam follower


77


.




Vertical movement of the adjustment cam


26


, therefore, determines how far gripper plunger


73


is pulled into cavity


78


, thus, pulling the nose of plunger body


75


upward along front upper wall


52


and upward along section


6


, preferably along forward lap


61


.




Vertical movement of adjustment cam


26


can be effected by any device that can raise or lower rod


76


.




In the embodiment shown, the bottom of cam follower


77


contacts upper surface


27


of adjustment cam


26


. Alternatively, the top of cam follower


77


can contact lower surface


28


of adjustment cam


26


. The above-noted example including an axle hole and wheel-shaped cam follower


77


can be used both for contacting upper surface


27


and bottom surface


28


of adjustment cam


27


. But, an embodiment can be made so that cam follower


77


only contacts lower surface


28


. For example, rod


76


can have a groove with a width and cam follower


77


can be a wheel rotatably disposed in such a groove, the wheel


77


having a width less than the groove width. Wheel


77


can be attached to rod


76


with an axle and cotter pin assembly, for example. In such an embodiment, the reset spring


74


could be positioned not to bias the gripper plunger away from the cam follower


77


, but, instead, to bias the gripper plunger


73


in the direction of the cam follower


77


. Alternatively, the reset spring


74


could have an adjustment device that limits a bias thereof.




The invention better separates the forward lap from the rearward lap by adjusting grippers in a vertical direction with respect to a pocket so that the forward lap is gripped in the most efficient place.



Claims
  • 1. An adjustable gripper system for releasably holding at least one sheet against a surface, comprising:a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis; and at least one gripper having: a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, said gripper body connected to said gripper shaft for pivoting said gripper about said pivot axis; a gripper plunger slidably disposed in said plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against the surface; and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, said cam follower connected to said gripper plunger to displace said gripper plunger along said plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.
  • 2. The gripper system according to claim 1, wherein said at least one gripper is a plurality of grippers spaced apart from one another on said gripper shaft.
  • 3. The gripper system according to claim 1, wherein said gripper body is releasably connected to said gripper shaft.
  • 4. The gripper system according to claim 1, wherein said gripper plunger has a nose for holding the at least one sheet against the surface.
  • 5. The gripper system according to claim 1, wherein said cam follower has:a follower to be actuated by the cam; and a cam rod connecting said gripper plunger to said follower.
  • 6. The gripper system according to claim 5, wherein:said plunger cavity has: a plunger body portion with a given diameter; and a cam rod portion having a diameter smaller than said given diameter; said gripper plunger has a plunger body with a body diameter; said cam rod has a cam rod diameter smaller than said body diameter; said plunger body is slidably disposed in said plunger body portion; and said cam rod is slidably disposed in said cam rod portion.
  • 7. The gripper system according to claim 6, including a bias device connected to said gripper body and said plunger body, said bias device adapted to bias said plunger body with respect to said gripper body.
  • 8. The gripper system according to claim 7, wherein said bias device is disposed in said plunger body portion.
  • 9. The gripper system according to claim 8, wherein:said gripper body has a wall between said plunger body portion and said cam rod portion; and said bias device is disposed between said wall and said plunger body.
  • 10. The gripper system according to claim 8, wherein:said gripper body has a wall between said plunger body portion and said cam rod portion; and said bias device is disposed: between said wall and said plunger body; and around said cam rod.
  • 11. The gripper system according to claim 8, wherein said wall is disk-shaped.
  • 12. The gripper system according to claim 7, wherein said bias device is a spring.
  • 13. The gripper system according to claim 5, wherein:said cam rod has an end; and said follower is a wheel and an axle rotatably connecting said wheel to said end.
  • 14. A sheet-collating pocket, comprising:a forward wall having an upper end portion; a rearward wall pivotally connected to said forward wall for moving towards and away from said forward wall, said rearward wall and said forward wall together defining an opening for receiving at least one sheet; and an adjustable gripper system for releasably holding the at least one sheet against said forward wall, said gripper system disposed at said upper end portion and having: a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis; and at least one gripper having: a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, said gripper body connected to said gripper shaft for pivoting said gripper about said pivot axis; a gripper plunger slidably disposed in said plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against said forward wall; and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, said cam follower connected to said gripper plunger to displace said gripper plunger along said plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.
  • 15. The pocket according to claim 14, wherein:the pocket travels in a given direction; and said forward wall is disposed downstream of said rearward wall with respect to said given direction.
  • 16. The pocket according to claim 14, wherein said upper end portion is an upper third of said forward wall.
  • 17. The pocket according to claim 14, wherein said upper end portion is an upper fourth of said forward wall.
  • 18. The pocket according to claim 14, wherein said upper end portion is an upper fifth of said forward wall.
  • 19. The pocket according to claim 14, wherein said forward wall has a top and said gripper system is disposed substantially at said top.
  • 20. In a sheet-collating pocket having a top, a forward wall, and a rearward wall pivotally connected to said forward wall, the rearward and forward walls together defining an opening for receiving at least one sheet from the top, an adjustable gripping system for setting placement of grippers at the top of the pocket, the gripping system comprising:a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis; and at least one gripper having: a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, said gripper body connected to said gripper shaft for pivoting said gripper about said pivot axis; a gripper plunger slidably disposed in said plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against the forward wall; and a cam follower to be actuated by a cam, said cam follower connected to said gripper plunger to displace said gripper plunger along said plunger cavity dependent upon a position of the cam.
  • 21. A sheet-collating machine, comprising:a conveyor adapted to travel along a transport direction; at least one sheet feeding device disposed at said conveyor for feeding at least one sheet towards said conveyor; a plurality of sheet-collating pockets, each of said pockets: connected to said conveyor; adapted to receive the at least one sheet from said at least one sheet feeding device; and adapted to transport the at least one sheet along at least a portion of said conveyor in said transport direction; a cam having an adjustment device adapted to place said cam in different positions with respect to said pockets, said cam disposed at said conveyor and adapted to selectively contact each of said pockets as each pocket respectively passes thereby; and each of said pockets having: a forward wall with an upper end portion; a rearward wall pivotally connected to said forward wall, said rearward wall and said forward wall together defining an opening for receiving the at least one sheet; and an adjustable gripper system for releasably holding the at least one sheet against said forward wall, said gripper system disposed at said upper end portion and having: a pivotable gripper shaft with a pivot axis; and at least one gripper having: a gripper body defining a plunger cavity, said gripper body connected to said gripper shaft for pivoting said gripper about said pivot axis; a gripper plunger slidably disposed in said plunger cavity and configured to hold the at least one sheet against said forward wall; and a cam follower actuated by said cam, said cam follower connected to said gripper plunger to displace said gripper plunger along said plunger cavity dependent upon a position of said cam.
  • 22. The sheet-collating machine according to claim 21, wherein said conveyor is an endless conveyor.
  • 23. The sheet-collating machine according to claim 21, wherein said at least one sheet feeding device is disposed above said conveyor and said pockets.
  • 24. The sheet-collating machine according to claim 21, wherein said forward wall is disposed downstream of said rearward wall with respect to said transport direction.
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Number Name Date Kind
3891202 Kircher Jun 1975 A
3955667 Muller et al. May 1976 A
4124203 Müller Nov 1978 A
4133521 Müller Jan 1979 A
4373710 Hansen et al. Feb 1983 A
4496141 Nayate Jan 1985 A
4723770 Seidel et al. Feb 1988 A
4982944 Eberle Jan 1991 A
4988086 Schlough Jan 1991 A
5024432 Thünker et al. Jun 1991 A
5213318 Newhall May 1993 A
5251888 Eugster Oct 1993 A
5440983 Dopke et al. Aug 1995 A
5911416 Klopfenstein Jun 1999 A
6213280 Abbadessa et al. Apr 2001 B1
6311968 Linder et al. Nov 2001 B1
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number Date Country
WO 8907571 Aug 1989 WO