Cutting – Processes – With subsequent handling
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-28
2003-08-05
Goodman, Charles (Department: 3724)
Cutting
Processes
With subsequent handling
C083S036000, C083S091000, C083S093000, C083S698210, C083S468500, C083S468600, C083S468700
Reexamination Certificate
active
06601490
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to a process for forming and for the further processing of small stacks of sheet metal.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A process is known in practice for forming small stacks from an initial stack of sheet material by means of cutting, with subsequent transfer of the small stacks to a further processing station. In this process a single guillotine cutter machine is used. The latter comprises a rear table part for receiving the material to be cut and a front table part for receiving the cut material. The initial stack, which is in the shape of a right parallelepiped, is first separated into partial stacks by a plurality of cuts in a first direction perpendicular to its direction of feed. All these partial stacks, or part of these partial stacks, are subsequently subjected to further processing. For this purpose, the partial stacks to be processed are pushed, turned by 90°, from the front table part on to the rear table part for further cutting. The partial stacks are separated by at least one cut in a second direction in order to form the small stacks. The small stacks which are thus produced are fed manually, perpendicularly to the direction of feed of the guillotine cutter machine, to the further processing station, after they have previously been pushed manually slightly forward in the direction of feed, so as to be able to move them laterally past the housing of the cutting machine.
A guillotine cutter machine which can be operated according to the process described above is known from EP-A-0 056 874, for example. Processing cannot be carried out automatically with this machine, and in particular cannot be carried out automatically with respect to the cut for producing the small stacks and the transfer thereof to the further processing station. The latter can be an automatic bundling machine or a label punch, for example.
Furthermore, other apparatuses are known which enable small stacks of sheet material to be formed and further processed in an automated manner. However, these apparatuses are only suitable for carrying out defined processing steps during the formation and further processing of small stacks of sheet material, so that costly machine constructions, or at least two guillotine cutter machines, are necessary in order to cover the entire course of processing.
It is known from EP-A-0 242 763 that edge cuts which may be necessary can be made on the stack by a first guillotine cutter machine, after which the stack is present as an initial stack, and that the initial stack can also be separated into partial stacks by this machine. The partial stacks are collected on a support and are fed to the second guillotine cutter machine, which is disposed perpendicularly to the first-mentioned guillotine cutter machine. In the second cutter machine, the partial stacks are subdivided, on each cut, into small stacks which are arranged in rows. A first guide plate is disposed in front of the partial stacks with respect to the direction of feed of the material, and is thus disposed in the region of the front table part. A second guide plate can be introduced into a gap formed between the front and rear table parts, adjacent to the rear end of the front table part. The two guide plates form a transverse channel between them which receives the small stacks, which can be fed to a further processing station by means of an ejector.
Quite a costly process for cutting and for the further processing of small stacks of sheet material is known from WO 91/00168 A. This process employs a machine of complicated construction. The front table part of the machine is of two-part construction, wherein the front section of the table part is raised after separating the initial stack into partial stacks, so as thus to be able to bring a first movable guide plate, which is disposed underneath the front section of the front table part, into position in order to form small stacks in connection with the further separation of the partial stacks. Whereas the rear section of the front table part is fixedly mounted in a base frame which can be moved horizontally, the front section of the front table part is mounted in a vertically movable intermediate frame, which is mounted in the base frame and which, underneath the front section of the front table part, receives the first guide plate and elements for horizontally moving and swivelling said guide plate. The first guide plate thus forms a fixedly installed component of the front table construction. The operating procedure of this machine is costly, since due to its division into two regions the front table part is not only movable horizontally but is also movable vertically over a relatively large vertical distance.
EP-A-0 453 933 describes a process for cutting and for the further processing of small narrow stacks of sheet material. The guillotine cutter machine which is illustrated there can only produce stacks of constant dimensions as seen in the direction of feed of the material. An L-shaped element for receiving the cut small stacks is provided for this purpose. The lower arm of the L-shaped element fits under the small stacks, whilst the other arm serves as a lateral support for the stacks. The L-shaped element is mounted so that it can be moved and swivelled horizontally in a front table part of the guillotine cutter machine, but this table part is not employed for receiving the cut material. The purpose of this type of mounting of the L-shaped element is to enable the L-shaped element to be tilted away when separating the partial stacks by means of the wedge-shaped cutter and thus when forming small stacks which are initially displaced into the shape of a parallelogram, whilst the front edge of the L-shaped element remains in a plane with the table surface.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to further develop a process according to the precharacterising clause of claim 1 which, using one and the same guillotine cutter machine and a simple mode of operation, not only enables the steps to be carried out for producing partial stacks and small stacks, but which also creates conditions when this machine is used such that the small stacks can be fed automatically to further processing operations.
This object is achieved by a process according to the features of claim 1.
According to the invention, it is not until the partial stacks have been pushed back on to the rear table part, whereupon the partial stacks can rest in part on the front table part, that the first movable guide plate is installed above the front table. Before this, namely before the installation of the first guide plate, the entire table surface of the table, particularly the table surface of the front table part, is free, so that the material can be manipulated there in any desired manner, and in particularly can be turned after the cuts have been made for producing the partial stacks. It is also possible, using the guillotine cutter machine, to trim the edges of the initial stack before it is separated into partial stacks. The first movable guide plate is not installed until the front table part is no longer required for manipulating the material. Process steps which proceed automatically can be carried out by means of this guide plate, particularly in cooperation with the second movable guide plate.
Thus, the essential difference between the process according to the invention and that disclosed in WO 91/00168 A is that, according to the present invention, the first movable guide plate is installed above the front table part after the partial stack has been pushed back on to the rear table part, whilst according to the aforementioned prior art this first movable guide plate is fixedly installed underneath the front table part and is also permanently positioned underneath the front section of the front table part. Therefore, with the front section of the front table part raised, it is not possible to separate the front and rear table parts which are disposed in a plane in order to form a gap between them and in order to form the transver
Gross Helmut
Rasch Adolf
Schneider Horst
Adolf Mohr Maschinenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG
Goodman Charles
Price Heneveld Cooper DeWitt & Litton
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