GB2037696A - Apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes - Google Patents

Abstract

Apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes comprises a first holder for a paper stack. A controllable bottom releases the paper stack. A second holder for a box is arranged underneath the first holder and is associated with a feeder conveyor 107 for empty boxes and a delivery conveyor 108 for full boxes. The first holder is arranged above the second holder and the bottom of the first holder is formed by two supports 116a, 116b which support the paper stack 102 and which are mounted for translatory movement in one plane and which are associated with driving means 119a, 119b for synchronous movement in opposite directions. The supports comprise at their mutually facing ends guides 115a, 115b for the paper stack falling into the box. The guides extend in the direction of the second holder. Limiting means 125a, 125b are provided for moving the supports to a spacing of the guides corresponding to the stack width or the stack length. Also, the two holders can be moved towards each other so that the ends of the guides project into the box and align it upon opening the supports. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes The invention relates to apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes with a first holder for a paper stack which comprises a controllable bottom for releasing the paper stack, and with a second holder for a box which is arranged underneath the first holder and which is associated with a feeder con veyorfor empty boxes and a delivery conveyor for full boxes, wherein the first holder is arranged above the second one and the bottom of the first holder is formed by two supports which support the paper stack and which are mounted fortranslatory movement in one plane and which are associated with driving means for synchronous movement in opposite directions.

During attempts to package stacks of sheets of large format, e.g. the format DIN A 1 and DIN A O, in this way, it was recognised that such paper stacks change their alignment and thereby cause disturbances, when the supports are withdrawn and they fall into the box. Stacks of sheets of a large format are considerably more flexible than stacks of sheets of a small format, so that they need supports with a very large area which in their stack receiving position form practically a closed table. This means, however, that for releasing the stacks, the supports must travel through a relatively long path, wherein the stack bends in the centre already in the direction of the box while it is still held by the supports in the region of its ends. Also folding over of the upper layer of the stack is frequently observed upon withdrawal of the supports.This leads to the fact that the paper stack does not drop as a closed unit into the box and frequently the upper layer comes to rest on one side on one of the walls of the boxes.

The invention is based on the object to perfect the apparatus of the kind referred to above for orderly insertion of stacks of sheets having a large format.

This problem is solved according to the invention in that the supports comprise at their mutually facing ends guides leading to the second holder for the paper stack dropping into the box, and that limiting means are provided for moving the supports to a spacing of the guides corresponding to the width of the stack or the length of the stack, respectively. The guides prevent the sheets from being able of placing themselves upon a sidewall of the box and re-align the stacks, or the sheets of the stacks, respectively, during the fall into the box, if they have been displaced during the withdrawal of the supports.

Empty boxes have the peculiarity to distend the sidewalls in such manner that the upper corners of the open box are pulled inwardly. Such a deformed box would lead to disturbances during insertion of a stack in the same way as a box which is not correctly positioned under the stack. In order to exclude such disturbances, according to a further embodiment of the invention the first holder and the second holder are movable one towards the other and the guides are thin-walled at least in the region of their ends.

Therefore, the two holders can be moved towards each other to such an extent that the ends of the guides project into the box and align the latter upon opening the supports. In order to reduce the friction between the supports and the paper stacks, according to a further feature of the invention the surfaces of the supports supporting the stack may comprise outlet openings for compressed air, or, however, the surfaces of the supports supporting the stack may be formed at least partly by peripheral surfaces of freely rotatable rollers.

The invention is explained in detail with reference to the drawing illustrating a constructional example.

There are shown in: Figure 1 apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes according to section line I-I in Figure 2, Figure 2 the apparatus according to Figure 1 in a view on the section line ll-ll in Figure 1, Figure 3 a view from above upon the apparatus, Figure 4 a variant of the construction of a support supporting the paper stack, of the apparatus according to the invention.

Figure 5 a further variant of the construction of a support supporting the paper stack.

Main component parts of the apparatus are a stationary first holder 101 for the paper stack 102 with a preceding feeder conveyor 103, a second holder 104 arranged below the first holder 101, for boxes 106 with a feeder conveyor 107 arranged in one line for empty boxes 106 and a following delivery conveyor 108forfull boxes 106' as well as a conveyor and positioning means 109 associated with the second holder 104, for boxes 106, and a common main drive in the form of a drive mechanism 111 which is accommodated in a machine frame 112 of the apparatus.

The first holder 101 is formed by a stationary wall 113 which is located opposite the feeder conveyor 103 and forms an abutmentforthe paper stacks 102, and by a controllable bottom in the form of two supports 1 14a and 1 14b which are mounted for displacement in one plane and have support surfaces 11 6a and 116b, respectively, which extend inclined towards the centre of the paper stack. The supports 1 14a and 1 14b comprise walls 1 17a and 117b, respectively, which constitute lateral limitations of the holder 101 and which are cranked in the direction of the feeder conveyor 103forforming an inlet means for the paper stacks 102.At their mutually facing ends, thin-walled lugs 115a and 115b, respectively, are bent away from the supports 1 14a and 11 4b in the direction of the second holder 104 to form guides. For the purpose of moving the supports 114a and 114b synchronously in opposite directions, the same are each fixed to a piston rod 11 8a and 118b, respectively, of a driving means in the form of a pneumatic cylinder 119a and 119b, respectively, the latter being connectable by way of conduit 121 and 122 and by means of a common adjuster member in the form of an electro-magnetic valve 123, to a source of compressed air 124. The electro-magnetic valve 123 is actuated by a control device 126, e.g. a cam disc with proximity initiator, which is drivable by the drive mechanism 111.

Adjustable abutments 1 25a and 1 25b attached to the wall 113 are provided as limiting means for moving the supports 1 14a and 114b apart. The feeder conveyor 103 is constructed as belt conveyor and consists of a plurality of continuously travelling conveyor belts 129 which are disposed in parallel with each other and which are guided around rollers 127 and 128. The roller 127 is in connection with the drive mechanism 111. For the purpose of introducing the paper stacks 102 into the first holder 101 by means of a guide 130, the former is preceded by a transfer conveyor 131.The latter consists of two pairs of chains 1 32a and 1 32b which are arranged above the feed path of the paper stacks 102 and which are guided around pairs of sprocketwheels 133a, 134a and 133b, 134b, respectively, and which carry always a downwardly projecting driver member 136a and 136b, respectively. The sprocket wheels 134a and 134b are kinematically connected to the roller 127 by means of shafts and bevel wheels not illustrated, this being indicated by a dash-dotted line. As a bottom, the second holder 104 comprises a slide track 137 as well as two parallel guide rails 138 for the boxes 106, the rails being disposed spaced from each other corresponding to the width of the boxes 6.The conveyor and positioning means 109 is constructed in the form of a step conveyor and consists of a carriage 143 which is mounted on rollers 141 and is reciprocably displaceable on rails 142 and which has driver members 146 which are pivotally mounted on shafts 144 and which are associated with an adjuster mechanism known per se and consequently not illustrated, for the purpose of swinging them away during the return stroke of the carriage 143. Appropriate slots are provided for the driver members 146 in the slide track 137. The carriage 143 is connected to the drive mechanism 111 by means of a crank drive 147 and a coupling 148; the feeder conveyor 107 and the delivery conveyor 108 for empty boxes 106 and full boxes 106', respectively, may also be connected to the drive mechanism 111.The guides 143 and the slide track 137 are fixed to a frame 151 which is vertically displaceable on the machine frame 112 in the direction of the double arrow 152, and for this purpose it is connected to the drive mechanism 111 by means of a crank drive 153. The drive mechanism 111 itself may be in connection with a main drive of a preceding finishing train for producing paper stacks 102, which are alternatively referred to as layers, so that the insertion device operates in synchronism with the paper stacks supplied.

Manner of operation of the apparatus The start is made with the state illustrated in the drawing in which the transfer conveyor 131 just inserts a paper stack 102 into the first holder 101 and the conveyor and positioning means 109 has positioned an empty box 106 in the second holder 104.

While the transfer conveyor 131 advances the paper stack 102 in the direction of the wall 113 of the first holder 101, the carriage 143 of the conveyor and positioning means 109 is moved back by the crank drive 147 in the direction of the feeder conveyor 107, whereby the driver members 146 are swung under the slide track 137, so that they do not collide with the empty boxes 106 during the return stroke of the carriage 143, and the frame 151 is lifted by the crank drive 153 to such extent that the lugs 115a and 115b of the supports 1 14a and 1 14b, respectively, extend into the box 106.As the driver members 136a and 136b of the transfer conveyor 131 are guided around the sprocket wheel pairs 133a and 133b, respectively, the paper stack 102 reaches it end position in the first holder 101, whereupon the electro-magnetic valve 123 is energised by the control device 126 in such a way that its illustrated switching state is changed. The pneumatic cylinders 1 19a and 1 19b are loaded with compressed air on their side facing the piston rod 1 18a and 118b, respectively, so that the piston rods 118a and 118b pull the supports 114a and 114b, respectively, away from under the paper stack 102 substantially suddenly in a horizontal direction. The lugs 115a and 115b come into engagement with the end faces of the box 106 in such a manner that the latter is accurately positioned and opened.While the paper stack 102 drops into the box 106, it is guided bythe lugs 115a and 115b.

Subsequently the frame 151 is lowered again by the crank drive 153, whereupon the filled box 106' is pushed upon the delivery conveyor 108 by the driver members 146, which had been erected again in the intervening period of time, of the carriage 143 now moved forwards. At the same time an empty box 106 which has been placed in readiness in the meantime by the feeder supplier 107, is transferred into the second holder 104.

Immediately afterthe lowering of the frame 151 by deenergisation of the electro-magnetic valve 123 which, thereupon, has returned to the illustrated switching state, the supports 1 14a and 1 14b have been moved back to the illustrated position by the pneumatic cylinders 11 9a and 11 9b, or by the piston rods 1 18a and 118b, respectively, thereof; in this position they may receive a next-following paper stack 102 which is conveyed there by the feeder conveyor 103 to the guide 130 and is engaged there, and thereafter advanced, by the driver members 136a and 136b, respectively, guided around the sprocket wheels 134a and 134b. The work cycle described above is repeated in the rhythm of the machine, i.e. in synchronism with the paper stack supply.

The apparatus may also be a collecting station for forming the paper stack from paper layers or paper sheets, in which case then the feeder conveyor 107 is omitted and the supports 1 14a and 1 14b form the table of the collecting station.

In order to reduce the friction between the lowest sheet of paper and the supports in the case of large paper stacks, Figure 4 illustrates with reference to an example of a support 214, that a freely rotatable roller 261 may be mounted at the end of the support 214 and the peripheral surface 262 thereof may guide the paper stack while it slides off during the withdrawal of the support 214. The further roller 261' illustrated by a dash-dotted line is intended to indicate that alternatively the support 214 may comprise a whole row of such rollers 261, so that the paper stack rests exclusively on the peripheral surfaces 262 of such rollers 261.

Figure 5 illustrates another solution for reducing the friction between a support 314 and the paper stack. Closable outlet openings in the form of ball valves 366 are inserted in the support surface 316 of the support 314 and are in connected with a source of compressed air through air ducts 367. When a paper stack travels onto the support 314, the balls 366a of the ball valves are pressed down, so that compressed air flows out of the ball valves 356 and the paper stack floats on an air cushion.

Claims (5)

1. Apparatus for inserting paper stacks into boxes, comprising a first holder for a paper stack having a controllable bottom for releasing the paper stack, a second holder for a box arranged underneath the first holder and associated with a feeder conveyor for empty boxes and a delivery conveyor for full boxes, the first holder being arranged above the second holder and the bottom of the first holder being formed by two supports which support the paper stack and which are mounted for translatory movement in one plane and which are associated with driving means for synchronous movement in opposite directions, wherein the supports comprise at their mutually facing ends guides for the paper stack falling into the box, which guides extend in the direction of the second holder, and limiting means are provided for moving the supports to a spacing of the guides corresponding to the stack width or the stack length.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first holder and the second holder are movable towards each other, and the guides are thin-walled at least in the region of their ends.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the surfaces of the supports supporting the stack comprise outlet openings for compressed air.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the surfaces of the supports supporting the stack, are formed at least partly by peripheral surfaces of freely rotatable rollers.

5. Apparatus for inserting stacks into boxes, substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.