Back to results
US 4,236,706 AGranted
Signature conveyor for use with inserter and stitcher
AssigneeHarris Corporation
InventorJames R. Schlough
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
AssigneeHarris Corporation
InventorJames R. Schlough
Estimating the term…
A signature conveyor for use with an inserter or collator station and a stitcher station includes a saddle conveyor for moving signatures with a folded edge up along a path through a number of such stations. The saddle conveyor includes a chain to which steeples are connected to support the signatures and move them along the path. A rail guides the chain and the steeples to control their orientation along the conveyor path. Through a first portion of the conveyor path where the conveyor passes an inserter or collator station the steeples are centered directly beneath the folded edge or backbone of the signatures with the two leaves of the signature extending over the two sides of the steeples. During a second portion of the path the steeples are tilted and move out of the area directly beneath the backbone of the signatures. As the steeples move from directly beneath the backbone of a signature, a guide member simultaneously becomes located between the faces of the signature to support one of the faces of the signature. This causes the faces to be separated further. At some stations devices move up between the downwardly opening centerfold of the signature toward the backbone. These stations perform one of a number of operations on the backbone of the signatures including stitching and removing signatures from the saddle conveyor.
An assembly for transporting a signature folded along a line to form two leaves, said assembly comprising a signature support means for moving said signature support along a path, said signature support having a pair of sloping faces which meet to form an apex which is parallel with said path, guide means for varying the orientation of said signature support as it moves along said path between an upright position in which the signature support is centered below the fold of the signature with one leaf of the signature resting on one face of the support and the other leaf resting on the other face of the support and a tilted position in which only a first leaf of the signature rests on a face of the support, a support member having a face extending in the direction of said path, and the second leaf of the signature resting on said face of said support member when said signature support is in the tilted position.
An assembly for transporting and stitching a group of signatures each of which is folded along a line to form two leaves, said assembly comprising a signature support, means for continuously moving said signature support along a path, said signature support having a pair of faces which meet to form an apex which is parallel to said path, guide means for varying the orientation of said signature support as it moves along said path between an upright position in which said signature support is centered below the fold of the signatures with one leaf of the signatures resting on one face of the signature support and the other leaf of the signatures resting on the other face of the signature support and a tilted position in which only a first leaf of the signatures rests on the signature support, a support member having a face extending in the direction of said path, the second leaf of the signature resting on said face of said support member when said signature support is in the tilted position, and stitching means for stitching the group of signatures together including a clincher mounted for movement toward said fold from below when said signature support is in said tilted position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.