Apparatus for continuously supplying strip-like material

An apparatus for unrolling a strip-like member from a roll formed by winding a strip-like material and continuously supplying the unrolled strip-like material, in which at least a first and second roll can be loaded, wherein when unrolling of the strip-like material from one of said rolls is completed, a leading end of the strip-like material of the other roll, which is near a trailing end of said one roll, is joined to said trailing end so that the strip-like material can be supplied without interruption, and wherein indication tapes are adhered to leading and trailing end portions of the strip-like material of each of said rolls, said apparatus comprising:

• first and second loading means for removably receiving said first and second rolls, respectively;
• detection means for detecting indication tapes adhered to the strip-like materials of said rolls;
• driving means for rotating each of the rolls received by said first and second loading means in first and second directions, said driving means rotating the other roll in the first direction opposite to the second direction in which the strip-like material is unrolled from the roll, and rotating the roll in said second direction when an indication tape adhered to the leading end portion of the strip-like material of the roll is detected by said detection means;
• cutting/unrolling means including:
• (a) a chuck head for contact with and movement away from circumferential surfaces of said rolls, said chuck head having a stationary chuck pawl and a movable chuck pawl for movement into contact with and movement away from said stationary chuck pawl, wherein when each of said rolls is rotated by said driving means in said second direction, said stationary chuck pawl peels the leading end portion of the strip-like material of the roll from the circumferential surface thereof, and the leading end portion as peeled is interposed between said stationary chuck pawl and said movable chuck pawl so as to draw said leading end portion;
• (b) detecting means for detecting that said stationary chuck pawl has peeled the leading end portion of the strip-like material of the roll from the circumferential surface of the roll, said detecting means closing the chuck head after detection such that the leading end portion of the strip-like material of the roll is interposed between the stationary chuck pawl and movable chuck pawl;
• (c) cutting means for cutting an unnecessary part of the leading end portion of the strip-like material which is drawn by said chuck head, and cutting the trailing end portion of the strip-like material when said detection means detects an indication tape adhered to said trailing end portion, said detection means detects the indication tape after the leading end of the strip-like material of the other roll rotated in a first direction by said driving means passes under said chuck head, whereby the rotation of the other roll is stopped by said driving means, the other roll is reversely rotated in a second direction, and the leading end of the strip-like material of the other roll passed under said chuck head approaches said chuck head in the second direction and is pulled away from the circumferential surface of the other roll by said chuck pawls of said chuck head;
• and
• guide means, comprising a joining station arranged in a middle portion thereof, for guiding the strip-like material fed from said cutting/unrolling means along a predetermined path;
• feed means for conveying the strip-like material unrolled from one of said first and second rolls along said guide means via said joining station, for feeding the strip-like material unrolled from the other roll to said joining station, and for causing the leading end of the other strip-like material to stop and stand by at a position of said joining station;
• dancer roller means arranged midway along said guide means and on a downstream side of said joining station in a convey direction of the strip-like material, for accumulating a portion of the strip-like material conveyed along said guide means;
• and
• joining means arranged near said joining station, for, when the trailing end of the one strip-like material passes through said joining station, joining the leading end of the other standby strip-like material to the trailing end of the one strip-like material by a joining tape.