US 5,051,058 AGranted

Apparatus for palletizing stacks of paper sheets and the like

OwnerOskar Rothinventor

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Abstract

A palletizing apparatus for stacks of paper sheets has a set of conveyors which deliver a succession of individual stacks or groups of two or more stacks to a palletizing station and onto an air cushion which is defined by two plenum chambers of a table. The palletizing station is equipped with pairs of stops which orient the stacks on the table in the direction of delivery of stacks as well as at right angles to such direction. The plenum chambers are retracted from the palletizing station when the orientation of stacks thereon is completed, and the stack or stacks then descend onto a pallet which is held in a position of readiness on the platform of a raised elevator below the palletizing station. The platform is provided with devices for shifting and/or rotating a pallet thereon to a desired position. The elevator is lowered stepwise to accumulate several layers of stacks and ultimately reaches the level of a receiving conveyor which accepts the loaded pallet. Empty pallets are delivered to the platform by a further conveyor which is located at the level of the receiving conveyor.

Claims22

Dependent claims

Apparatus for palletizing stacks of sheets, comprising a table providing a substantially horizontal air cushion and having two plenum chambers which are mirror symmetrical to each other with reference to a plane extending at right angles to the table and which are movable to and from predetermined positions in which the chambers jointly support one or more stacks;

means for transporting stacks to said table along a longitudinal feed path, said transporting means including a first conveyor arranged to advance toward said table a single file of stacks and a second conveyor arranged to independently transport preselected numbers of stacks from the file on the first conveyor onto the table;
means including pairs of longitudinal and transverse opposing movable stops, each stop selectively actuated toward and away from the opposite stop, for orienting stacks on said table;
an elevator for pallets below said table, said elevator comprising means for shifting a pallet thereon in a plurality of directions in substantial parallelism with said table;
means for moving said elevator between raised and lowered positions;
and means for jointly moving said chambers to and from said predetermined positions at such intervals that the chambers are moved to said predetermined positions preparatory to reception of one or more stacks from said transporting means and are moved from said predetermined positions upon completed orientation of the stack or stacks thereon and while the elevator with a pallet thereon is maintained in said raised position so that the oriented stack or stacks descend onto the pallet.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.