Buckle chute folding machine with a deflector control mechanism

A buckle chute having a front side, a back side, a left side and a right side for use in a folding apparatus having a first driving mechanism and a second driving mechanism for folding at least one sheet of paper having first and second lateral edges defining a width into a folded piece of the same width, the first and the second lateral edges adjacent to the left and right sides of the buckle chute, said buckle chute disposed between the first driving mechanism and the second driving mechanism, said buckle chute comprising:

• an upper guide and a lower guide for forming a channel having an entry point on the front side of the buckle chute adjacent the first driving mechanism;
• a deflector mechanism, disposed near the entry point of the channel and operable
• in a first position for allowing a leading edge of said at least one sheet or the folded piece to enter to the channel while said at least one sheet or the folded piece is driven by the first driving mechanism toward the entry point of the buckle chute, or
• in a second position for preventing the leading edge of said at least one sheet or the folded piece from entering the channel and further directing the leading edge toward the second driving mechanism;
• and
• a stop, disposed in the channel between the front side and the back side, for stopping the leading edge of said at least one sheet or the folded piece entering the channel, when the deflector mechanism is operated in the first position, from advancing further into the channel toward the back side so as to cause said at least one sheet or the folded piece to buckle at a locality thereof outside the entry point of the channel toward the second driving mechanism for forming a folded edge at the buckled locality by the second driving mechanism as the first driving mechanism continues driving said at least one sheet or the folded piece toward the buckle chute, wherein the deflector mechanism comprises:
• an elongated member having a left end and a right end adjacent to the respective sides of the buckle chute, the left end and the right end each having a mounting section with a mounting point defining a rotational axis of the elongated member, and
• an extended section extended between the left end and the right end from the mounting section of each end and along the longitudinal axis, and
• a mounting system, disposed near the entry point of the channel for pivotably mounting the elongated member at the mounting point at each end of the elongated member, allowing the elongated member to rotate about the rotational axis relative to the mounting system such that
• when the deflector mechanism is operated in the second position, the extended section of the elongated member is caused to move toward the entry point of the channel, thereby blocking the entry point, and
• when the deflector mechanism is operated in the first position, the extended section of the elongated member is caused to move away from the entry point of the channel, thereby unblocking the entry point.