Coded coil element cartridge
AssigneeGeneral Binding Corporation
InventorRoger M. Scharer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A cartridge box serves as supply container for a plurality of spiral coil elements and is thus suitable for use in a system for automated repetitive spiral binding of sheet stacks. The cartridge box contains the individual coil elements in a series of parallel rows. One elongated opening is formed in the cartridge box top or bottom surface to expose intermediate portions of the coil elements to a driven feed roller. Another elongated opening is formed along a sidewall of the cartridge box for extraction of coil elements therethrough in endwise fashion under the influence of the feed roller.
Claims16
For use in a system for handling a supply of multi-spiral coil elements and extracting said coil elements one at a time from said supply:
- a container having a top surface, a bottom surface, and opposed sidewall surfaces extending therebetween for defining an interior space;
- a quantity of spiral coil elements disposed in said interior space, each coil element exhibiting a longitudinal axis about which its coil spirals parallel to the longitudinal axes of the other coil elements;
- a first elongated opening in at least one of said top and bottom surfaces extending lengthwise transversely of the longitudinal axes of said coil elements and exposing intermediate portions of said coil elements;
- and
- a second elongated opening in at least one of said sidewall surfaces extending lengthwise transversely of the longitudinal axes of said coil elements and exposing end portions of said coil elements.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.