Manufacturing container or tube from paper; or other manufacturi – Bending – Folding
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-09
2001-11-27
Kim, Eugene (Department: 3721)
Manufacturing container or tube from paper; or other manufacturi
Bending
Folding
C493S429000, C271S206000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06322487
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatus for the delivery of flat products, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for the delivery of flat products which are to be folded during delivery in a printing press.
2. State of the Art
Conventional printing presses include devices for delivering flat printed products from one stage of the press to another. For example, a web of flat material which has been sliced along its length into multiple ribbons, is typically transported to a location where the ribbons are subsequently cut along their width into signatures. The signatures are then folded one or more times to form the multiple pages of, for example, a magazine or newspaper. A typical newspaper folder may receive a collection of ribbons which have already been previously folded one or more times, and be required to implement an additional fold, such as a half fold. The number of pages which the newspaper folder is required to fold can vary widely up to, on the order of 100 broadsheet pages or more. The devices used to implement these folds include jaw folders and rotary tucker blade folders.
Jaw folders, such as jaw folders which use a jaw to interface with a fixed tucker blade, have the advantage of providing a relatively accurate, mark-free cross-fold, such as an accurate half fold. However, jaw folders are constrained in the number of pages which they can fold due to limited engagement of tucker blades and jaws used to implement the folds, as well as by the space between the tucker blade and jaw cylinders. For example, typical jaw folders are limited to folding 64 pages or less.
Rotary tucker blade folders which use a rotating cylinder having either fixed or retractable tucker blades, can accommodate a large range of paging when implementing a fold. However, rotary tucker blade folders are less accurate than jaw folders, and create more marking on the printed product.
Thus, the newspaper folders used in conventional printing presses have resulted in the accurate folding of only a limited number of pages, or have resulted in folding a larger number of pages with less accuracy. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a newspaper folder which can provide the accuracy and absence of marking associated with a jaw folder, without being subject to the maximum paging range typically associated with a jaw folder. Further, it would be desirable to achieve such advantages in a relatively simple configuration which can provide positive and accurate delivery of a folded product, using for example, a gripping transport device.
Although gripping transport devices are available, these devices have not been suitable for transporting folded product of, for example, a printing press used in printing newspaper. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,132,403, U.S. Pat. No. 4,290,595, U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,175, U.S. Pat. No. 4,767,112, U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,175, U.S. Pat. No. 5,452,886 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,599 disclose the use of gripping elements associated with a rotatable gripper drum for grasping a product and transporting the product to a second location. Further, these patents disclose that during transport, the product can be decelerated from a first speed to a second speed. In addition, in co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 08/707,518, entitled “Method and Apparatus For Conveying Flat Printed Products”, a conveying device for flat printed products is disclosed which includes plural arms, each having a seizing device for seizing signatures emerging from a transport device.
However, the foregoing documents do not address the inability of conventional folders to provide accurate, mark-free folding of a wide maximum paging range, or the transport of folded products from such a folder to a downstream location of a printing press.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is generally directed to providing a method and apparatus for accurately and efficiently folding a flat product (e.g., a web of paper or signatures obtained therefrom) during its delivery. Exemplary embodiments provide a single device for performing the two functions of folding and decelerating flat products. Rotatable seizing elements of a deceleration drum interface with any known folding cylinder having a known tucker blade assembly. As such, the accurate and mark-free folding of a conventional jaw folder can be achieved with any desirable paging, including the wide maximum paging range typically associated with rotary tucker blade folders. A deceleration drum according to the present invention can interface with any folding cylinder having a tucker blade assembly used to create a cross-fold, and can thereby replace any conventional combination of a folder (e.g., rotary tucker blade folder or jaw folder) and associated downstream deceleration device. Seizing devices associated with the deceleration drum create a fold off of a fixed (e.g., a non-retractable) or a retractable tucker blade of the folding cylinder, each seizing element acting as a jaw which removes the signature, and creates the fold during product deceleration and delivery.
Generally speaking, exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to an apparatus and associated method for conveying flat products, where the apparatus comprises: a folding cylinder for use in folding a flat product; and at least one arm mounted at a first end for rotation about an axis, and having a seizing device located at a second end for establishing a fold in said flat product while seizing said flat product from said folding cylinder.
Exemplary embodiments are also directed to an apparatus and associated method for conveying flat products, wherein the apparatus comprises: a transport device for rotational transport of a flat product; and at least one arm mounted at a first end for rotation about an axis, and having a seizing device located at a second end, said seizing device being oriented relative to said transport device for seizing said flat product from said transport device in a radial direction with respect to said rotational transport of said flat product.
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Burns Doane , Swecker, Mathis LLP
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
Kim Eugene
LandOfFree
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