Apparatus and method for forming sheet material assemblages

An apparatus for use in forming sheet material assemblages, said apparatus comprising:

• a plurality of sheet material feeders;
• a plurality of pockets movable along a circuitous path past each of said plurality of sheet material feeders in turn, each of said pockets of said plurality of pockets including a sheet material support which is movable between a plurality of closed positions spaced different distances from an open upper end portion of said pocket and at least partially blocking a lower end portion of said pocket and an open condition offset from a lower end portion of said pocket, said sheet material support being ineffective to block said lower end portion of said pocket when said sheet material support is in the open condition;
• and
• an actuator surface movable between a plurality of positions relative to the circuitous path of movement of said pockets, said actuator surface being engageable with a portion of each of said pockets in turn to move said sheet material support in each of said pockets in turn from the open condition to any one of the closed positions depending upon the position of said actuator member relative to the circuitous path of movement of said pockets.

A method of forming sheet material assemblages of different sizes, said method comprising the steps of moving a pocket along a circuitous path with a sheet material support in the pocket in a first closed position in which the sheet material support is spaced a first distance from an open upper end of the pocket and in which the sheet material support at least partially blocks a lower end of the pocket, feeding first sheet material of a first size into the pocket through the open upper end of the pocket while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path with the sheet material support in the first closed position to form a first sheet material assemblage, moving the sheet material support from the first closed position to an open condition in which the sheet material support is ineffective to block the lower end of the pocket while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path, moving the first sheet material assemblage from the pocket through the lower end of the pocket while the sheet material support is in the open condition and while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path, moving the sheet material support from the open condition to a second closed position in which the sheet material support is spaced a second distance from the open upper end of the pocket and in which the sheet material support at least partially blocks the lower end of the pocket while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path, feeding second sheet material of a second size into the pocket through the open upper end of the pocket while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path with the sheet material support in the second closed position to form a second sheet material assemblage of a size which is different than the size of the first sheet material assemblage, moving the sheet material support from the second closed position to the open condition while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path, moving the second sheet material assemblage from the pocket through the lower end of the pocket while the sheet material support is in the open condition and while the pocket is moving along the circuitous path.