Laminating system

A method of controlling the spacing between sheets during the process of laminating the sheets with an automated laminating system, the method comprising:

• providing a feeder apparatus adapted to hold a stack of the sheets and to feed individual sheets from the stack of sheets along a feed path at a feeder apparatus speed;
• providing a laminating apparatus adapted to receive the individual sheets from the feeder apparatus and to laminate the individual sheets with a continuous length of laminating film to form a continuous length of laminated sheets at a laminating apparatus speed;
• providing a simultaneous speed control operator input device, the operation of which simultaneously varies the magnitude of the feeder apparatus speed and the magnitude of the laminating apparatus speed, and a differential speed control operator input device, the operation of which varies the difference between the magnitude of the feeder apparatus speed and the magnitude of the laminating apparatus speed;
• varying the magnitude of the feeder apparatus speed and the magnitude of the laminating apparatus speed simultaneously by the operation of the simultaneous speed control operator input device;
• and
• varying the difference between the magnitude of the feeder apparatus and the magnitude of the laminating apparatus speed by the operation of the differential speed control operator input device in order to thereby control the spacing between individual sheets as the sheets are received by the laminating apparatus.

A laminating system, comprising:

• a feeder apparatus, a laminating apparatus, and a trimmer apparatus that are adapted to operate cooperatively to laminate sheets;
• and
• a movable support structure upon which the feeder apparatus, the laminating apparatus, and the trimmer apparatus are mounted;
• the feeder apparatus being adapted to hold a stack of sheets and to feed individual sheets from the stack of sheets to the laminating apparatus, and the feeder apparatus having a first motor adapted to power movement of the individual sheets to the laminating apparatus;
• the laminating apparatus being adapted to receive the individual sheets from the feeder apparatus, to laminate the individual sheets with a continuous length of laminating film to form a continuous length of laminated sheets, and to feed the continuous length of laminated sheets to the trimmer apparatus, and the laminating apparatus having a second motor adapted to power movement of the individual sheets through the laminating apparatus;
• simultaneous speed control means for enabling a user to simultaneously vary the speed of the first motor and the speed of the second motor by the operation of a simultaneous speed control operator input device;
• and
• differential speed control means for enabling the operator to control the difference between the speed of the first motor and the speed of the second motor by the operation of a differential speed control operator input device in order to thereby control the spacing between individual sheets as the sheets are received by the laminating apparatus.

A laminating system, comprising:

• a feeder apparatus, a laminating apparatus, and a trimmer apparatus that are adapted to operate cooperatively to laminate sheets;
• and
• a movable support structure upon which the feeder apparatus, the laminating apparatus, and the trimmer apparatus are mounted;
• the movable support structure being adapted to retain the feeder apparatus, the laminating apparatus, and the trimmer apparatus in alignment with each other for cooperative operation as a laminating system while enabling a user to move the support structure, the sheet feeder apparatus, the laminating apparatus, and the trimmer apparatus together without upsetting the alignment.

A feeder apparatus, the sheet feeder apparatus comprising:

• a tray adapted to support a stack of sheets so that a leading edge of each sheet in the stack of sheets is disposed toward the laminating apparatus;
• a motor-driven rotating vacuum sheet feeder assembly adapted to lift individual sheets one at a time from a top of the stack of sheets and to feed the individual sheets one at a time to a feed path leading to the laminating apparatus;
• a guide plate disposed alongside the leading edges of the sheets in the stack of sheets;
• the guide plate having an upwardly extending surface that faces the leading edges of the sheets in the stack of sheets;
• the upwardly extending surface of the guide plate extending horizontally perpendicular to the feed path;
• and
• the upwardly extending surface of the guide plate including an upper portion that protrudes slightly toward the stack of sheets so that as the stack of sheets is raised, the leading edges of uppermost sheets in the stack of sheets bear against the upper portion of the guide plate to thereby position the leading edges of the uppermost sheets perpendicular to the feed path.