Sheet feeding or delivering – Feeding – Separators
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-13
2001-05-15
Skaggs, H. Grant (Department: 3651)
Sheet feeding or delivering
Feeding
Separators
C271S100000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06231040
ABSTRACT:
The present Invention is an adjunct to machines which handle stacks of flat products, particularly newspapers. These are normally placed in stacks and one of the functions of the machines is to remove one paper at a time from the stack. This is accomplished by movement of a vacuum sucker which contacts the lowest newspaper in the stack and pulls it down into the machine. Since there are a number of variables in determining the precise relationship between the extreme position of the vacuum sucker and the stack of newspapers, it is desirable to have a device which is capable of being adjusted in this regard. Moreover, since the machines are large and operate at high speeds, it is even more desirable that this adjustment be capable of taking place while the machine continues to operate.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
As the vacuum sucker goes through its entire cycle, it moves up to and preferably contacts the lowermost newspaper of the stack; the vacuum is applied and the sucker retracts, carrying at least a corner of the newspaper with it. This enables the desired separation to be made. The vacuum is then released and the sucker moves back toward the stack to remove the next newspaper. The present Invention is a means of adjusting the extended position of the sucker cup without changing its retracted position.
It is an object of the present Invention to provide a device which is capable of adjusting the position of the vacuum sucker nearest the stack of newspapers while the machine with which it is associated continues to operate. The sucker adjustment device of the present Invention comprises a moving lever having a cam surface adjacent its far end. There is an axis adjacent its near end, remote from the far end, and a first cam follower is located intermediate the ends. The first cam follower bears against an actuating cam.
An actuating lever is pivoted about the axis and has a distal end and a remote end remote therefrom. There is an arm having a proximal end pivotally mounted on the actuating lever between the axis and the distal end.
A second cam follower is on the arm, remote from the point at which it is attached to the actuating lever, and bearing against the cam surface. A sucker bar has the sucker cup mounted thereon and has a pivot adjacent the rotating end which is spaced apart from the sucker cup.
Rotating of the actuating cam bearing against the first cam follower causes the moving lever to pivot about the axis. The cam surface bears against the second cam follower and urges the sucker bar to pivot about its rotatable end and bring the sucker cup to a position adjacent the lowest newspaper in the stack. By pivoting the actuating lever about the axis, the arm is caused to move and the extreme position (the one closest to the newspapers) can be adjusted. It is a feature of the present Invention that, when such an adjustment is made, the retracted position of the sucker is unchanged. Moreover, the adjustment can be carried out “on the fly”, i.e. while the machine is running.
In a preferred form of the device, it has been found desirable to provide a handle, mounted adjacent the distal end of the actuating lever, which can be grasped and moved to effect the desired adjustment. As previously indicated, this adjustment can be carried out without the necessity of stopping the machine.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3980292 (1976-09-01), Sakurai
patent: 5052672 (1991-10-01), Horii
patent: 5076565 (1991-12-01), Liepert
patent: 5120041 (1992-06-01), Schniter
Bierman Jordan B.
Bierman, Muserlian and Lucas
Graphic Management Associates, Inc.
Skaggs H. Grant
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