Stacker for counting and stacking signatures delivered by a gripper conveyor

Stacking apparatus for stacking signatures, comprising:

• first, second and third stacking platforms;
• first, second and third independent drive means for respectively driving said first, second and third platforms;
• control means for operating said first, second and third drive means and comprising:
• means for moving one of said first, second and third platforms to a home position extending upwardly toward signatures moving along a path above said stacking apparatus while another one of said first, second and third stacking platforms moving along a stacking region is receiving signatures;
• means responsive to a predetermined signature count for rapidly moving one of the stacking platforms in the home position to a stream intercepting position between a predetermined signature moving above said stacking apparatus and which is to be delivered to one of the stacking platforms moving through the stacking region and a signature upstream of said predetermined signature and which is to be a first signature received by one of the stacking platforms which has moved to the intercepting position;
• means for moving one of the stacking platforms leaving the stacking region about a lower curved path to move the stacking platform leaving the stacking region out from beneath a stack of signatures supported thereon to enable the stack of signatures supported thereon to drop upon a collector;
• and
• means for moving one of the stacking platforms upwardly toward said home position in readiness to move to the intercepting position to control an amount of signatures delivered to one of the stacking platform in the stacking region.

Apparatus for conveying, counting and stacking signatures delivered to a take off location by a plurality of grippers arranged at spaced intervals, each gripper gripping a cut end of a signature, each signature being suspended from its associated gripper with a folded edge extending generally downwardly therefrom;

• a stacker for stacking signatures;
• said grippers moving along a path above said stacker and having a curved path portion curving generally downwardly as the grippers pass a region near a top of said stacker so as to move in a direction which generally converges with a direction of movement of a stacking platform moving downwardly through a stacking region;
• said stacker having at least first and second stacking platforms movable about a substantially oval-shaped closed-loop path;
• control means for independently moving said stacking platforms so as to move one of said stacking platforms downwardly through said stacking region and moving another one of said stacking platforms upwardly towards signatures being moved above said stacker by grippers;
• said control means further including means for moving the upwardly moving stacking platform along a curved path portion and into an intercept position between adjacent signatures carried by grippers causing a signature downstream of the stacking platform in the intercept position to be a last signature collected on the stacking platform moving through the stacking region and causing a signature upstream of the stacking platform in the intercept position to be a first signature collected upon the stacking platform in the intercept position when it moves into the stacking region;
• and
• means engaging each gripper as it passes a given location along said curved path to release a signature gripped thereby, enabling the released signature to fall toward a stacking platform moving downwardly through the stacking region.

Stacker apparatus for accumulating signatures comprising a pair of substantially oval-shaped side plates each having a substantially oval-shaped guide cam;

• means for maintaining said side plates in spaced parallel fashion;
• at least first and second stacking platforms each having first and second pairs of cam followers, said first pair of cam followers being slidable along the cam groove in one of said side plates and said second pair of cam followers being slidable along the cam groove in another one of said side plates;
• a first shaft arranged near a top end of said side plates and first bearing means for rotatably freewheelingly mounting said first shaft relative to said side plates;
• a second shaft mounted near a bottom end of said side plates and second bearing means for rotatably freewheelingly mounting said second shaft relative to said side plates;
• first and second pairs of sprockets arranged on said first shaft;
• third and fourth pairs of sprockets arranged on said second shaft;
• said first pair of sprockets being secured to said first shaft for rotation therewith;
• third bearing means for rotatably freewheelingly mounting said second pair of sprockets to said first shaft;
• said third pair of sprockets being secured to said second shaft for rotation therewith;
• fourth bearing means for rotatably freewheelingly mounting said fourth pair of sprockets to said second shaft;
• a first drive chain being entrained about one of said first pair of sprockets and one of said fourth pair of sprockets;
• a second drive chain being entrained about a remaining one of said first pair of sprockets and a remaining one of said fourth pair of sprockets;
• a third drive chain being entrained about one of said second pair of sprockets and one of said third pair of sprockets;
• a fourth drive chain being entrained about a remaining one of said second pair of sprockets and a remaining one of said third pair of sprockets;
• whereby rotation imparted to said first shaft by a first drive means moves said first and second drive chains and whereby rotation imparted to said second shaft by a second drive means moves said third and fourth drive chains independently of movement of said first and second drive chains;
• first coupling means for coupling said first stacking platform to at least one of said first and second drive chains;
• second coupling means for coupling said second stacking platform to at least one of said third and fourth drive chains;
• a fifth pair of sprockets and fifth bearing means for rotatably freewheelingly mounting said fifth pair of sprockets upon said first shaft;
• a sixth pair of sprockets and sixth bearing means for freewheelingly mounting said sixth pair of sprockets upon said second shaft;
• said fifth pair of sprockets being joined to sprocket joining means to rotate in unison;
• a driven pulley joined to said sprocket joining means for rotating said fifth pair of sprockets under control of a third drive motor means;
• a fifth drive chain being entrained about one of said fifth pair of sprockets and one of said sixth pair of sprockets;
• a sixth drive chain being entrained about a remaining one of said fifth pair of sprockets and a remaining one of said sixth pair of sprockets;
• and
• a third stacking platform and coupling means for linking said third stacking platform to said fifth and sixth drive chains;
• whereby said third stacking platform, having cam follower means slidably arranged within said cam means, is movable along said closed-loop path independent of said first and second stacking platforms.

Stacker apparatus for accurately counting and neatly stacking signatures thereon, comprising:

• a plurality of stacking platforms arranged to move about a closed substantially oval-shaped, closed-loop path comprised of a pair of substantially straight parallel portions and substantially semi-circular shaped portions respectively arranged at the upper and lower ends of said parallel portions;
• means for independently and successively moving the stacking platforms upwardly along one of said straight portions and around the upper semicircular-shaped portion which collectively constitute a return path and an intercept region respectively, and downwardly along a remaining one of the straight portions which constitutes a stacking region;
• conveyor means for moving signatures at spaced intervals along a path above said upper semi-circular-shaped portion and then along a downwardly curved conveyor path so as to move said signatures in a direction which substantially converges with the direction of movement of a stacking platform through said stacking region;
• and
• means for dropping each signature as it moves along said downwardly curved path and is above the stacking region.

A stacker for stacking signatures comprising:

• first and second rotatable shafts;
• first, second and third drive chain sets;
• means arranged on said first and second shafts for mounting said first, second and third drive chain sets so that each drive chain set is movable independently of the movement of all remaining drive chain sets;
• and
• a stacking platform coupled to each of said drive chain sets for receiving and stacking signatures delivered thereto.

A method for stacking signatures, comprising the steps of:

• (a) moving at least two stacking platforms arranged at spaced intervals about a closed loop path comprised of two substantially linear path portions and two substantially semi-circular shaped path portions, said stacking platforms being moved so that each platform is successively moved downwardly along one of said linear path portions which comprises a stacking region and moved along one of the semi-circular path portions joining lower ends of said substantially linear path portions and thereafter moved upwardly along a remaining one of the substantially linear path portions comprising a return region and thereafter moved about a remaining one of said substantially semi-circular shaped path portions joining upper ends of said substantially linear path portions to return to an upper end of the linear path portion which comprises the stacking region;
• (b) holding signatures along a cut edge thereof so that a folded edge thereof extends downwardly;
• (c) moving the held signatures at spaced intervals along a path which passes above an upper end of the closed-loop path and thereafter moving the held signatures downwardly as they pass over said upper end so that each held signature moves in a direction which substantially converges with a direction of movement of a stacking platform as it moves along the stacking region;
• and
• (d) releasing each signature at a given point along said downward path whereby a released signature falls toward the stacking platform moving through the stacking region so as to be collected thereon.