Machine for removing book bindings

A cascade feeder and bound material chopping assembly for use in severing the spine from the bound material, said assembly comprising:

• at least first and second generally parallel reciprocatable decks, said first deck overlying said second deck and having a downwardly extending dam at a front edge thereof;
• a cutter assembly having a reciprocatable cutter blade and a cooperating cutter stick, said second deck being movable to position a front edge of said second deck adjacent a first side of said cutter stick;
• a third reciprocatable deck generally parallel to said first and second decks and having a front edge positionable adjacent a second opposed side of said cutter stick;
• and
• means to reciprocate said decks so that the bound material which is placed on said first deck is fed to said cutter by movement of said first and second decks for severance of the spine from the bound material and further so that the spineless bound material is removed from said cutter by said third deck.

A machine for removing a binding of a hook comprising:

• a deck,
• a pusher located above said deck and being movable between an in and an out position,
• a frame member extending alongside and above said deck and said pusher, and
• a knife assembly including a knife blade swingably attached to said frame member and having two positions, an up and a down position,
• a table frame,
• a divider bar, said divider bar being supported by said table frame directly under said knife assembly,
• wherein when said knife assembly swings from the up to the down position said knife blade cuts off the binding of said book,
• said machine being constructed and arranged such that when said pusher is in its in position said pusher positions said book under said knife assembly,
• said knife assembly including a knife bar and connecting arms,
• said frame member including at least one horizontal beam spaced above the deck,
• said connecting arms extending between and being rotatably attached to said horizontal beams and said knife bar,
• said knife blade being attached to said knife bar,
• said knife assembly being constructed and arranged such that said knife bar and said knife blade move in an arc with respect to said horizontal beam when said knife assembly is swung between its up and down positions,
• wherein said knife blade remains horizontally parallel to said divider bar at all times during the operation of the machine.