Manufacturing container or tube from paper; or other manufacturi – Bending – Folding
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-24
2001-05-01
Kim, Eugene (Department: 3721)
Manufacturing container or tube from paper; or other manufacturi
Bending
Folding
C493S476000, C493S478000, C493S479000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06224530
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a buckle folding mechanism with two or three folding pockets, a plurality of folding rollers, which are mounted in a folding mechanism block detachable from the machine frame, and with a drive arranged outside the folding mechanism block, wherein the folding mechanism block comprises a sheet input on one of its sides and a sheet output on its opposite side and wherein the sheets are fed to the folding mechanism block via transport devices along an input plane in the paper feed direction and are transported away along an outlet plane in the same direction.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the usual buckle folding mechanisms with two folding pockets the folding pockets are fixedly installed in the paper feed direction. Two arrangements of the folding pockets are possible, namely with the first folding pocket, in the paper feed direction, below and the second folding pocket above or vice versa. There are different folding possibilities, depending on whether the first folding pocket is below or above. If such folding mechanisms with two folding pockets are fitted on envelope stuffing machines or similar machines, the form must have a specific position after leaving the folding mechanism. If for example the envelope stuffing machine positions the envelope with the window lying upwards, the form must be so folded that the address is on top following the folding mechanism, since an additional device would otherwise be necessary to turn the form over. In order to overcome this problem it would indeed be possible to use a buckle folding mechanism which has one folding pocket and one pair of folding rollers more than folds are needed in the form in question, i.e. a buckle folding mechanism with three folding pockets for folding a form with two folds and a buckle folding mechanism with four folding pockets for folding a form with three folds. One of the folding pockets can be switched out of action in each case by suitable deflectors and the form be so folded that the address lies selectively on top or underneath following the folding mechanism. However additional expense and sources of error arise from the greater number of folding pockets, and also cycle time losses through the increase in the path of travel.
In one known buckle folding mechanism of the kind referred to initially (DE 2 459 294 C2,
FIG. 3
) the folding mechanism block consists of a driving block and a folding mechanism head, with the folding rollers and the folding pockets, fitted thereon and attached interchangeably. The sheet inlet and the sheet outlet are arranged at different heights in the folding mechanism head, as are the inlet and the outlet planes. The folding mechanism head can be interchanged with other folding mechanism heads with differing constructions and differing layouts, so that it would here also be possible to replace a folding mechanism head whose first folding pocket lay below with another with a first folding pocket lying above. However two different folding mechanism heads would be needed in this case, whereby the manufacturing costs and servicing costs of the buckle folding mechanism increase and space has to be provided to store the unused folding mechanism head.
A paper folding machine is further known (DE-PS 517 549) in which one of the folding rollers is movably mounted, so that it can cooperate selectively with two different other folding rollers and in which one of the folding pockets can moreover be changed from one side of the machine to the other. It is indeed possible to produce oppositely directed folds selectively through this but the sheet outlet lies either on the inlet side of the sheet or on the side opposite the inlet side, depending on the position of the movable folding roller and the interchangeable folding pocket. However the result of this is that the transport device with which the folded sheet is transported away must be arranged on different sides of the buckle folding mechanism, depending on the folding direction, which would in practice require substantial setting up work or would actually not be possible, because the various operating and feed assemblies which follow the buckle folding mechanism cannot be brought simply out of their original arrangement into one directed the other way.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a buckle folding mechanism with two or three folding pockets, of the kind initially recited, which can be produced cost-effectively and can be so changed over with a small amount of work that the initially mentioned different folds can be carried out therewith.
This is achieved according to the invention in that the inlet plane and the outlet plane of the transport devices are arranged substantially in a common plane, in that the folding rollers and folding pockets are so arranged in the folding mechanism block that the sheet inlet and the sheet outlet also lie in the region of this common plane in the existing installed position of the folding mechanism block in the machine frame, in that all folding rollers are drivably coupled together in the folding mechanism block by coupling gearwheels which are arranged on one end of each folding roller, in that the drive is arranged in the machine frame and comprises a driving gearwheel which is mounted in the region of the folding mechanism block in the machine frame and meshes with one of the coupling gearwheels in a first installed position of the folding mechanism block, and in that one of the folding rollers carries on its other end a driven gearwheel which meshes with the driving gearwheel in a second installed position of the folding mechanism block, in which this is fitted in the machine frame rotated relative to its first installed position through 180° about a conceptual axis running parallel to the paper feed direction.
The invention is thus based on the idea of fitting one and the same folding mechanism block in the machine frame in two different installed positions rotated through 180° relative to one another. Because of this the first folding pocket as regarded in the paper feed direction is below and the second folding pocket above in a first installed position and in a second installed position of the folding mechanism block the first folding pocket is above and the second folding pocket is below, whereby different foldings of the paper sheet or form can be created depending on the installed position of the folding mechanism block. However, since the sheet inlet and sheet outlet of the folding mechanism block are arranged in the same common plane as the inlet plane and the outlet plane, regardless of the current installed position, it is not necessary to adjust the transport devices preceding and following the buckle folding mechanism when the folding mechanism block is placed in its two installed positions rotated through 180° in the machine frame. The sole changeover feature consists in detaching the folding mechanism block from the machine frame, turning it through 180° , fitting it in the machine frame again and screwing it in there. Since the driving gearwheel mounted in the machine frame meshes either with one of the coupling gearwheels or with the driven gearwheel disposed on the other side of the folding mechanism block, depending on the installed position, no further fitting work is necessary to couple the drive to one of the folding rollers. Since four folding rollers are provided in a buckle folding mechanism with two pockets, the driven gearwheel can be so associated with one of these four gearwheels that reversal of the direction of rotation of the drive motor is not necessary in order to drive the folding rollers in the correct direction of rotation, regardless of the current installed position.
In a further arrangement of the invention the machine frame comprises positioning devices, by means of which the folding mechanism block can be so positioned relative to the machine frame in both of its installed positions that the sheet inlet and sheet outlet lie in the common plane and the d
Jorg Helmut
Okelmann Walter
Boewe Systec AG
Flynn ,Thiel, Boutell & Tanis, P.C.
Kim Eugene
LandOfFree
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