Apparatus for conveying sheet-type flat items

Abstract

An apparatus for conveying sheet-type flat items to a sheet-collecting location includes at least one lower belt conveyor and one upper belt conveyor arranged above the lower belt conveyor. A first operating mechanism is arranged to move the upper belt conveyor relative to the lower belt conveyor between (1) a lower position in which the upper belt conveyor is in an operating position adjacent to the lower belt conveyor and comes in contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor and (2) a raised upper position in which the upper belt conveyor has a segment positioned at such a distance to the lower belt conveyor as to be out of contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features and advantages of the invention will be further understood from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view from the side of an embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention, in a first operating state for collecting sheets that are not conveyed in an overlapping flow.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view from the side of the same embodiment as in FIG. 1, in a second operating state for collecting overlapped sheets.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view from the side of the same embodiment as shown in FIG. 1, in an opened state while standing still.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view from the side, showing the same situation as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the opened device is in a locked position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The apparatus shown in the Figures represents a component of a paper processing machine that is not fully shown herein. In this machine, a paper web (among other things) is supplied with the aid of conveying belts to a cross cutter, which is also not shown herein, and is cut by the cross cutter into sheets of a desired length. The cut sheets that are trimmed to a specific format are subsequently conveyed through the apparatus shown in the Figures to a sheet-collecting location, also not shown, in which they are deposited one above the other in stacks. The apparatus shown in the Figures is used for a direct transfer to the sheet-collecting location and is therefore arranged essentially at the end of the processing line for the paper processing machine.

For the sake of completeness and to simplify the representation, the belt conveyors are represented in the Figures as a single conveying belt and described as such in the following description. Alternatively, however, a group of jointly driven conveying belts that are arranged parallel to each other can also be used. The conveying belts shown herein and described in the following are endless belts, which are driven by individual drives that are not shown herein. A belt conveyor therefore comprises not only the conveying belt or belts, but also the associated drive.

Referring to the Figures, there is shown an apparatus, which represents a collection and transfer device, that includes a stationary lower belt conveyor 2 and an upper belt conveyor 4. The surface of the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor 2 serves as the conveying path and/or the conveying plane, wherein the sheets of paper that are not shown individually herein are conveyed in the direction of arrow A, meaning from the left to the right in the Figures.

In an operating position of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the upper belt conveyor 4 is arranged directly above the lower belt conveyor 2, wherein the upstream-positioned segment of the lower belt section of the upper belt conveyor 4 overlaps the downstream-positioned end segment of the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor 2. In the embodiment shown herein, the downstream-positioned segment of the upper belt conveyor 4 is exposed and projects over a sheet-collecting location that is not shown in the Figures.

In a region of the upstream-positioned segment of the upper belt conveyor 4 and adjacent to the end of the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor, FIG. 1 shows a rotating overlap finger 6 in its operating position. If the sheets of paper are conveyed without being overlapped, that is individually and one after another, through the illustrated apparatus and to the sheet-collecting location (not shown), it is necessary for the trailing edge of the respective paper sheet to be pushed downward from the conveying plane at the instant when the sheet of paper is moving from the apparatus to the sheet-collecting location, so that the following paper sheet with its leading edge can run up onto the preceding paper sheet that is already moving into the sheet-collecting location. The trailing edge of a paper sheet is pushed downward with the overlap finger 6, which rotates with the timing of the paper sheets that are moving past. In FIG. 1, the overlap finger 6 is shown in a momentary position where it pushes down the trailing edge of a paper sheet, in a manner as described above.

The overlap finger 6 is positioned rotating on a swivel holder 8, which in turn is attached to a frame 12, such that it can swivel around a swivel axis 10. For the illustrated embodiment, the overlap finger 6 can thus be swiveled, from the lower operating state shown in FIG. 1 to an upper idle position shown in FIG. 2, around the swivel axis 10, approximately at a right angle to the conveying direction according to arrow A. Swivel axis 10 is approximately parallel to the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor 2. The function of the overlap finger 6 is not needed when conveying an overlapping paper flow through the illustrated apparatus to the sheet-collecting location (not shown), because the conveyed sheets of paper are already overlapped, which is a precondition for collecting the sheets in the non-depicted sheet-collecting location. For this operation, the overlap finger 6 is swiveled from its operating position shown in FIG. 1 to the raised, idle position according to FIG. 2. Thus, in cases where the sheets of paper are already conveyed in an overlapping flow, the overlap finger 6 is deactivated by swiveling it upward and removing it completely from the conveying flow.

An operating mechanism 14 is provided for the swiveling movement, which may comprise either an electric-motor drive or a pneumatic drive. A comparison of FIGS. 1 and 2 shows that the operating mechanism 14 for the illustrated embodiment also executes a swiveling movement. For this purpose a pneumatic piston-cylinder-arrangement is selected for the operating mechanism 14, wherein the cylinder is attached articulated to the swivel holder 8, and the piston rod (not visible in the Figures) is attached articulated to the frame 12. As a result of this design, the operating mechanism 14 also executes a swiveling movement during the activation, albeit a shorter one than the movement carried out by the swivel holder 8 with overlap finger 6. Of course, it is also conceivable to install the operating mechanism 14 stationary and to design the mechanism such that if a pneumatic cylinder-piston arrangement is used, the mechanism is attached articulated to the swivel holder 8.

A recoil safety device can be provided for safety reasons, which locks the swivel holder 8 that carries the overlap finger 6 into the position shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 shows an example of such a recoil safety device, which may comprise an end stop 15 positioned extendable and/or swiveling in its operating position. As shown, swivel holder 8 rests on end stop 15.

The upper, idle position shown in FIG. 2 can simultaneously function as an adjustment position because the overlap finger 6 can be moved to the required operating position during a format change. As shown in the Figures, the overlap finger 6 is attached to one end of the swivel holder 8, which is positioned downstream relative to the conveying direction according to arrow A. In the swiveled-up, idle position, the arrangement can therefore be accessed from the sheet-collecting location (not shown), as shown in FIG. 2.

A group of several parallel and coaxially arranged overlap fingers can also be provided in place of the single overlap finger 6, shown in the Figures. Furthermore, the overlap finger 6 drive that is not shown in the Figures may also be attached to the swivel holder 8, so that the complete unit, consisting of the overlap finger 6 and the associated drive, may be swiveled between the operating position shown in FIG. 1 and the upper, idle position shown in FIG. 2.

As previously mentioned, the upper belt conveyor 4 is necessary for the transport to the sheet-collecting location, which is not shown herein. Similarly to the overlap finger 6, the upper belt conveyor 4 can also be moved between a lower operating position as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and an upper, idle position as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

For this, the upper belt conveyor 4 is mounted on a swivel holder 16, which is attached with the aid of a swivel axis 18 to the frame 12, such that it can swivel. For the embodiment shown herein, the swivel axis 18 extends in the same way as the swivel axis 10, approximately at a right angle to the conveying direction shown with arrow A and parallel to the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor 2. The Figures furthermore show that the two swivel axes 10, 18 are arranged adjacent to each other, above the downstream-positioned end segment of the upper belt section 2a of the lower belt conveyor 2.

An operating mechanism 20 is provided for the upper belt conveyor 4, which can comprise an electric motor drive or a pneumatic drive.

To secure the upper belt conveyor 4 in the upper, idle position shown in FIG. 3 and to prevent an unintended dropping, for example, as a result of a pneumatic pressure loss in the operating mechanism 20, a recoil safety device may also be provided for locking in place the upper belt conveyor while it is in the raised position, as shown in FIG. 4. For the embodiment shown herein, this is achieved with an L-shaped recoil claw 22 that is positioned to swivel around a stationary fulcrum 24. Whereas the one, longer leg 22a of the L-shaped recoil claw 22 points in the direction of the swivel holder 16, the shorter leg 22b of the L-shaped recoil claw 22 is coupled to an operating mechanism 26. For the illustrated embodiment, this operating mechanism consists of a pneumatic piston-cylinder arrangement and is positioned stationary swiveling. With this operating mechanism 26, the recoil claw 22 can be swiveled correspondingly around the fulcrum 24. In FIG. 3, the recoil claw 22 is shown in the raised, idle position whereas in FIG. 4, it is shown in a downward swiveled, locked position. For the locked position according to FIG. 4, the recoil claw 22 engages with a recess 28, visible only in FIG. 4, in the long leg 22a in a pin 30 that is attached to the swivel holder 16 and simultaneously functions as a joint for coupling-on the operating mechanism 20, which is also shown in FIG. 4.

The above-described arrangement is configured such that the segment of the upper belt conveyor 4 that is positioned downstream, relative to the conveying direction shown with arrow A, is swiveled in an upward direction. In the raised, idle position of the upper belt conveyor 4, easy access is provided from the sheet-collecting location (not shown), as can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4.

The circulating conveying belt of the upper belt conveyor 4 and its drive can be mounted on the swivel holder 16. In this manner the upper belt conveyor 4 together with its drive can be swiveled as a complete unit between the lower operating position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and the raised, idle position shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

To be sure, for the illustrated embodiment, the upper belt conveyor 4 can be swiveled separately from the overlap finger 6. However, the overlap finger 6 may advantageously first be moved to its upper, idle position before the upper belt conveyor 4 is moved to its raised, idle position to provide complete access to the apparatus from the sheet-collecting location (not shown), in the region of the conveying plane.

It is furthermore also conceivable to provide a coupling mechanism, which optionally permits swiveling the upper belt conveyor 4 and simultaneously also the overlap finger 6 during a single operating step from the lower operating position to the upper, idle position.

The apparatus illustrated in the Figures has been described in connection with the processing of sheets and/or sheets of paper, but can in principle be used for the processing and/or the conveying of all types of flat items, preferably consisting of a flexible material.

It will be understood that the above description of the present invention is susceptible to various modifications, changes and adaptations, and the same are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for conveying sheet-type flat items to a sheet-collecting location, comprising: at least one lower belt conveyor;at least one upper belt conveyor arranged above the lower belt conveyor; anda first operating mechanism arranged to move the upper belt conveyor relative to the lower belt conveyor between (1) a lower position in which the upper belt conveyor is in an operating position adjacent to the lower belt conveyor and comes in contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor and (2) a raised upper position in which the upper belt conveyor has a segment positioned at such a distance to the lower belt conveyor as to be out of contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the segment of the upper belt conveyor is a downstream-positioned segment of the upper belt conveyor.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first operating mechanism includes a first swivel device to swivel the upper belt conveyor around a first swivel axis.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first swivel axis extends at approximately a right angle relative to the conveying direction for the belt conveyors.

5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first swivel axis is located upstream of the downstream-positioned segment of the upper belt conveyor.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first operating mechanism includes a first locking device to selectively lock in place the upper belt conveyor in the raised upper position.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the first locking device includes a first recoil claw.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: at least one overlap device; anda second operating mechanism arranged to move the overlap device, relative to the lower belt conveyor, between a lower position in which the overlap device is in an operating position adjacent to the lower belt conveyor and an upper position in which the overlap device is positioned at such a distance to the lower belt conveyor that the overlap device cannot come in contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the second operating mechanism includes a second swivel device to swivel the overlap device around a second swivel axis.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the second swivel axis extends at an approximately right angle, relative to a conveying direction of the belt conveyors.

11. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the overlap device can be swiveled in the same direction as the upper belt conveyor to move the overlap device between the lower position and the upper position.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the first and the second swivel axes are arranged adjacent to each other.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the second operating mechanism includes a second locking device to selectively lock in place the overlap device in the upper position of the overlap device.

14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the second locking device includes at least one second recoil claw.

15. An apparatus for conveying sheet-type flat items to a sheet-collecting location, comprising: at least one lower belt conveyor;at least one upper belt conveyor arranged above the lower belt conveyor;at least one overlap device; andan operating mechanism arranged to move the overlap device, relative to the lower belt conveyor, between a lower position in which the overlap device is in an operating position adjacent to the lower belt conveyor and an upper position in which the overlap device is positioned at such a distance to the lower belt conveyor that the overlap device cannot come in contact with the flat items positioned on the lower belt conveyor.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the operating mechanism includes a swivel device to swivel the overlap device around a swivel axis.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the swivel axis extends at an approximately right angle, relative to a conveying direction of the belt conveyors.

18. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein the operating mechanism includes a locking device to selectively lock in place the overlap device in the upper position of the overlap device.

19. The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the locking device includes at least one recoil claw.