Article dispensing – Mechanical release or separation of articles
Reexamination Certificate
2003-03-04
2004-09-28
Noland, Kenneth (Department: 3653)
Article dispensing
Mechanical release or separation of articles
C271S236000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06796456
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of registering two sheets, for example wood veneer sheets, at one ends thereof by aligning the ends against a registration stop surface, and also to an apparatus for practicing the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
Manufacturing of plywood which is made by gluing and pressing together, three or more veneer sheets, includes a process of cold pressing. In this cold pressing, a number of dried veneer sheets, including those veneer sheets which have both surfaces thereof coated with adhesive, is prepared. Veneer sheets having no adhesive and veneer sheets with adhesive coating are assembled by laying one sheet on another in a predetermined order to form a stack of such veneer sheets which is to be cold pressed. As is apparent to those skilled in the art, the assembling order varies according to the number of veneer layers in the plywood to be made. In making plywood of the simplest three-ply configuration, for example, two veneer sheets with no adhesive and one veneer sheet having adhesive coating on both surfaces are laid up in an alternate manner into a stack form for cold pressing. Informing the stack, veneer sheets should be arranged preferably with two adjoining sides thereof aligned properly so as to improve the yield rate of the resulting plywood.
Though the present invention is applicable to various kinds of sheet material, it can be used advantageously specifically in preparing sets of two registered veneer sheets at least one ends of which are aligned properly.
For better understanding of the underlying background of the present invention, reference is made firstly to
FIG. 1
which shows a prior art veneer sheets registration apparatus. The apparatus includes a pair of first and second belt conveyers
1
and
5
which are disposed one above the other in a convergent relation to each other as shown in the drawing for moving first and second veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
forward in the respective arrow directions at the same speed so that the veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
meet at a position adjacent to the downstream ends of the conveyers
1
and
5
. A third conveyer
9
is arranged which runs at the same speed as the first conveyer
1
and form a continuous conveying path with the first conveyer
1
.
First and second sensors
3
and
7
are located in vertical alignment with each other as indicated by a phantom line adjacent to the respective downstream ends of the first and second belt conveyers
1
and
5
for detecting the arrival of the leading ends of the first and second veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
at positions defined by the sensors
3
and
7
. The first sensor
3
is operable in response to the arrival of the leading ends of the first veneer sheet W
1
to generate a signal to stop the first belt conveyer
1
and hence the movement of first veneer sheet W
1
. Likewise, the second sensor
7
generates a signal to stop the second belt conveyer
5
when the leading end of second veneer sheet W
2
is detected by the second sensor
7
. The first and second veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
indicated by solid lines in
FIG. 1
shows a state where both sheets are stopped with the leading ends thereof positioned at the respective sensors
3
and
7
.
After both veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
have been thus positioned, the belt conveyers
1
and
5
are restarted simultaneously thereby to move forward the veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
again. On their way of the movement, the veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
meet each other at their forward edges thereof as shown by phantom lines in FIG.
1
and then transferred to the third belt conveyer
9
in an assembled state wherein the second veneer sheet W
2
is laid on top of the first veneer sheet W
1
with their leading ends aligned with each other. The aligned two veneer sheets W
1
and W
2
are then transferred to a subsequent station (not shown) where they are laid on the top of a stack in progress as described before with reference to cold pressing of veneer sheets.
In the above-described apparatus, however, each of the belt conveyers
1
and
5
may move a slight variable distance before it is completely stopped after brake application to its belt driving motors, and also simultaneous restarting of the conveyers
1
and
5
does not necessarily occur with such an accuracy that the second veneer sheet W
2
is laid on the first veneer sheet W
1
with the desired alignment. Additionally, veneer sheets are usually bent or warped in various ways due to the inherent characteristics of veneer and hence they receives air resistance varying depending on the manner or extend of such bending or warping while moving on the conveyer, so that some veneer sheets may not move exactly in accordance with the movement of the belt conveyer. As a result, alignment of two veneer sheets at their leading ends may not be achieved as intended. Thus, it has been difficult to achieve the desired alignment of two veneer sheets merely by controlling the operation of the first and second belt conveyers
1
and
5
in the above prior art apparatus.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide sheets registration method and apparatus which can solve the above problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to achieve the above objects, the invention provides a method of registering two sheets each having opposite ends. According to the method, firstly the two sheets are assembled by laying one sheet on top of the other sheet in an overlapped relation to each other wherein one end of the upper sheet is positioned outward of one end of the lower sheet. Then, the two sheets thus assembled are moved along a conveying path by a conveyer in the above overlapped relation in such an orientation that the above ends are moved as the leading ends.
For registration of the sheets, there is provided registration stop means which has a stop surface extending on the way of the conveying path in perpendicular relation thereto. On the way of movement along the conveying path, firstly the upper sheet is stopped by the registration stop means with its leading end aligned against the stop surface of the registration stop means, and subsequently the lower sheet is stopped by the registration stop means, having its leading end aligned against the stop surface. Thus, both sheets are registered with the leading ends thereof aligned properly against the stop surface of the registration stop means.
Various methods may be contemplated for assembling the two sheets in the above overlapped relation. According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, one sheet may be laid on the other sheet while moving the two sheets at substantially the same speed along separate feed paths one disposed below the other and extending in a convergent relation to each other toward the conveying path of the conveyer. In such a case, movement of the first and second sheets is controlled such that the sheet coming out from the upper feed path is laid on the sheet coming out from the lower feed path in the desired overlapped relation.
In another method of assembling the sheets, two feed paths are provided one above the other and substantially in parallel to each other, and one sheet placed in the upper feed path is dropped onto another sheet placed in the lower feed path, as will be described more in detail in later part hereof.
The present invention also provides an apparatus of registering two sheets. The apparatus comprises a first conveyer for moving a first sheet along a first path and a second conveyer disposed above the first conveyer for moving a second sheet along a second path at substantially the same speed as the first sheet moved by the first conveyer. In association with the first conveyer, there is provided first sensor means disposed at a first predetermined position adjacent to the downstream end of the first conveyer as seen in the moving direction of the first sheet for detecting the arrival of the leading end of the first sheet moved by the first conveyer at the first predetermined posi
Meinan Machinery Works Inc.
Noland Kenneth
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