US3510122A - Sheet folding machine - Google Patents

Description

May 5, 1970 1'. J. GAVAGHAN SHEET FOLDING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 26, 1968 INVENTOR. T60/na J 6am Mula@ HUM May 5, 1970 T. J. GAVAGHAN 3,510,122

SHEET FOLDING MACHINE Filed March 26, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 'A I INVENTOR W70/Was" (7a Vqg/mf? www wm May 5, 1970 T. J. GAVAGHAN SHEET FOLDING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 26, 1968 H Y waa, E mm/.mm mv. m w/WUT J. M MW 0 Y WB May 5, 1970 T. J. GAVAGHAN 3,510,122

SHEET FOLDING MAHINE Filed March 26, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 May 5, 1970 T. J. GAVAGHAN 3,510,122

SHEET FOLDING MACHINE Filed March 26, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 United States Patent O 3,510,122 SHEET FOLDING MACHINE Thomas J. Gavaghan, Norwalk, Conn., assignor t-o Pithey-Bowes, Inc., Stamford, Conn., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 26, 1l968` Ser. No. 716,044

Int. Cl. B65h 45/14 U.S. Cl. 270-68 10 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A folding machine in which all of the working components for storing, feeding, folding and discharging sheets of paper are located on one side of an interface of the folding machine to permit the folding machine to be operatively joined to other paper handling machines. A paper supply tray and a pair of buckle chutes are removably mounted so that a feeding and folding roller assembly located adjacent the interface can be readily completely exposed and made accessible to an operator of the folding machine.

Background of the invention This invention relates generally to sheet folding machines and more particularly to a novel arrangement and construction of the major operating components of such machines.

Sheet folding machines of the general type to which the present invention relates have long been known in the art and have enjoyed great commercial success. A wide variety of such machines have been developed for performing numerous different types of folding operations on various sized sheets of paper. In addition, other working operations, such as perforating, scoring or slitting, can be performed on the sheets as they pass through or are discharged from the folding machine.

These machines, while generally satisfactory for performing their intended functions and doing so while operating as an individual piece of apparatus, suffer two signiiicant drawbacks, and a number of operational disadvantages result either directly or indirectly therefrom. The first of these is that presently known folding machines are arranged and constructed in such a Way that it is either impossible or at least diliicult to the point of being commercially impracticable to operatively join these machines in modular fashion to other paper handling machines in order to effect a multi-handling process.

For example, envelope stuffing or inserting machines have been developed which can automatically insert a folded sheet into an envelope as each is successively fed from a supply thereof to an inserting station, after which the stuffed envelope is discharged to a stacking receiver for further manual handling or fed to further automatic equipment which can close and seal the envelope. Also, specialized feeders are known which can place inserts such as a postcard, small notice, return envelope, punch card and the like, between the folds of a sheet of paper after the latter has been folded, whereby the package of folded sheet and inserts is stuffed into an envelope by the envelope stuliing machine.

In situations such as the above, it is necessary in utilizing presently known folding machines to manually take a stack of folded sheets and place it in the feed tray of the subsequent sheet handling machine with the sheets being in a particular orientation suitable for the mechanism of the subsequent machine. Since these feed trays generally have a very limited capacity in proportion to the volume of sheets to be handled by any typical operation which warrants the availability and use of such sophisticated automatic equipment, an operator must be 3,510,122 Patented May 5, 1970 ICC constantly in attendance merely to keep feed trays loaded to present interruption in the smooth operation of the overall paper handling process.

The second major drawback referred to above is that the construction of prior art folding machines has generally rendered the problem of removing jammed sheets inconvenient, and in many instances extremely difficult. In high speed folding machines, because of the inherent difficulties in feeding sheets of paper at high speed, it is necessary to maintain very close spacing between such working components as paper guides, feed rollers and buckle chute openings. In order to assure maintaining such close spacing and hence proper guiding surfaces for the lead edge and folded lead edge of sheets being fed, the buckle chutes of prior art machines are customarily either rigidly mounted in the folding machine frame or are mounted in such a manner that removal thereof requires a substantial amount of disassembly of the machine. This is also generally true in regard to the paper supply tray. It therefore becomes extremely diflicult to clear jammed sheets of paper either from the buckle chutes or from the roller assembly because the buckle chutes are generally open only at the infeed end adjacent the rollers, and the latter are not readily accessible unless the buckle chutes and the paper supply tray are removed from the folding machine.

Brief description of the invention The present invention is directed toward a folding machine of novel arrangement and construction which obviates or substantially eliminates the disadvantages of prior art folding machines.

In its broader aspects the present invention comprises a folding machine having a generally rectangular upstanding frame for supporting all of the working components of the machine and which is partially enclosed by a housing. A generally vertically oriented feeding and folding roller assembly is supported adjacent to a forward end of the frame, and a paper supply means is removably mounted in an upper portion of the frame and extends from adjacent the roller assembly toward an opposite rear end of the frame. At least one buckle chute is also removably mounted in the frame beneath the paper supply means and in operative association with the roller assembly to cause sheets being fed by one portion of the roller assembly to buckle and be folded by another portion of the roller assembly. Suitable drive means are provided for driving the feeding and folding .roller assembly in a direction so as to feed a sheet from the paper supply means, buckle and fold the sheet of paper and subsequently discharge it from the forward end of the machine frame.

By this construction a folding machine is provided in which the forward end of the frame defines an interface beyond which no Working components of the machine project so that the folding machine can be operatively joined to another paper handling machine, for example, an envelope stuffing machine. In this respect the folding machine is modular and readily becomes a component of an automatic paper handling process in which the folding is merely the first operation performed on the paper.

In some of the more limited aspects of the present invention, there are two buckle chutes so that a sheet of paper can be folded in two places, each buckle chute being substantially planar, and both buckle chutes are mounted in the frame in vertically spaced apart parallel relationship beneath the paper supply means. Each buckle chute has an adjustable paper engaging stop member disposed therein and an open end located in closely spaced relation to the roller assembly so that sheets of paper are fed into the buckle chutes, buckled and immediately folded.

The roller assembly is generally vertically oriented along the forward end of the folding machine frame with the nips of coacting feed rollers being located as close as possible to the front end vertical spacing between the paper supply means and the buckle chutes. Other factors enter into the determination of the diameters of the several rollers in order to obtain proper feeding of the paper into and through the nips of cooperating folding rollers, but generally the vertical orientation of the forward ends ofthe paper supply means and the buckle chutes is proportional to that of the Several nips of the cooperating pairs of rollers.

The paper supply means and the buckle chutes are removably mounted in the machine frame by means which permits normal removal of these components without the necessity for disassembly or removal of any other parts. The paper supply means and buckle chutes are supported by a plurality of pins and tabs which engage with properly positioned slots on the removable components, the buckle chutes being held in operating position by spring latches.

The construction and arrangement is such that if sheets of paper become jammed in the machine, the paper supply means and the buckle chutes can be easily removed from the rearward end of the frame, thereby completely exposing both the front and rear sides of the feeding and folding roller assembly. It is thus possible to clear jams from the machine in a mattery of a very few minutes by an inexperienced operator and without the necessity for any tools or any disassembly of the folding machine.

A movable guide assembly is also provided as part of the feeding and folding roller assembly so that sheets fed forwardly from the paper supply means will be guided rearwardly toward the first buckle chute located under the paper supply means. This guide is movable away from the roller which it partially surrounds to provide unrestricted access thereto. The guide assembly includes an anti-skew roller which is movable with the guide assembly so that any sheets which might become jammed in this portion of the roller assembly can be easily removed.

Having briefly described the general nature of the present invention, it is a principal object thereto to provide a folding machine having a novel structure arrangement ment which offers advantages not heretofore known in folding machines.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a folding machine which is readily adaptable to use either by itself or as a modular component of a paper handling process.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a folding machine which has all of its working components mounted on one side of an end face of the machine so that the end face forms an interface between the folding machine and another paper handling machine when the two machines are operatively joined together.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a folding machine in which all parts of the feeding, buckling and folding components are readily accessible for clearing jammed sheets of paper.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a folding machine in which certain operating components are readily removable without any disassembly of the folding machine in order to render other non-removable components accessible for clearing jammed sheets of paper.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a folding machine which is economical to manufacture, highly reliable in operation and requires little or no maintenance.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily appreciated from an understanding of the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation with one frame plate removed to reveal internal detail of the folding machine of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary View similar to FIG. 1 but drawn to an enlarged scale showing the details of the feeding and folding roller assembly;

FIG. 3 is a front view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4 4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the upper lbuckle chute shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the buckle chute shown in FIG. 5;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are enlarged sectional views taken on the lines 7-7 and 8 8 respectively of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary plan view drawn to an enlarged scale showing the manner of mounting the upper buckle chute;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the lower buckle chute shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. l1 is a side view of the buckle chute shown in FIG. 10;

FIGS. l2 and 13 are enlarged sectional views taken on the lines 12-12 and 13-13 respectively of FIG. l; and

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary plan view drawn to an enlarged scale showing the manner of mounting the lower buckle chute.

Detailed description of the invention Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIGS. l through 4 thereof, the foldingmachine 10 cornprises an upstanding generally rectangular frame formed by a pair of spacedparallel side plates 12 and 14 having front, rear, top andbottom edges 16, 18, 20 and 22 respectively. Theside frame plates 12 and 14 support therebetween the working components of the folding machine as hereinafter described.

A generally vertically oriented feeding and folding roller assembly indicated by the numeral 24 is supported adjacent theforward end 16 of the frame and is disposed principally in an upper portion of the frame. A paper supply means generally indicated by the numeral 26 is removably mounted in an upper portion of the frame in position to have a discharge end of the paper supply means located adjacent the upper end of theroller assembly 24 and extending upwardly and toward and beyond therearward end 18 of the frame.

At least one and preferably a pair of buckle chutes generally indicated by thenumerals 28 and 30 are removably supported by theside frame plates 12 and 14 beneath the paper supply means 24, the buckle chutes being supported in operative association with theroller assembly 24 to cause sheets fed into the buckle chutes to buckle adjacent the inlet end of the buckle chutes for subsequent folding by the roller assembly in a manner more particularly described below.

Adrive motor 32 is located in a lower portion of the frame for driving the several rollers of theroller assembly 24 through any suitable system of drive connections, such as belts and pulleys and/or gears, which forms no part of the present invention and therefore is neither shown in the drawings nor described in detail, such driving connections being well known to those skilled in the art. Themotor 32 also drives apower stacker attachment 34 in a manner described below,

The feeding andfolding roller assembly 24 includes a sheet separator assembly 36 which comprises afeed roller 38 mounted on ashaft 40 which is rotatably supported bybushings 42 mounted in theside plates 12 and 14. Theshaft 40 is driven by themotor 32 in a counterclockwise direction, and theroller 38, which is relatively narrow as best seen in FIG. 3, is connected to theshaft 40, by any suitable one-way (not shown) so that theroller 38 can override theshaft 40 for a purpose to be made clear hereinafter. Astationary separator element 44 is mounted on aU-shaped bracket 46 the upper leg of which is connected to a atguide plate 48 supported by theside plates 12 and 14, the two legs of thebracket 46 terminating rearwardly in spaced apart relationship,

with the upper leg having ascrew 50 non-rotatably mounted thereon which carries ahand nut 52 threaded thereon. Thenut 52 bears against the underside of the lower leg of thebracket 46 wherein rotation of thenut 52 moves theseparator element 44 toward and away from thefeed roller 38 in order to obtain the proper spacing therebetween for successive seriation feeding of sheets by theroller 38.

A stack of sheets is held in feeding position by the paper supply means ortray 26 which comprises a flat plate 54 having dependingflanges 56 extending along the side edges of the plate 54. A pair of side guides 58 are laterally adjustably mounted on a shaft 60 by means of tabs 62 projecting downwardly from the side guides 58 which ride in a suitable slot formed in the plate 54, the shaft 60 being supported by theside flanges 56. Each side guide 58 terminates forwardly of the plate 54 in a projecting surface portion 64 adapted to rest on the upper surface of theguide plate 48 when thepaper supply tray 26 is in normal operating position in the folding machine. The forwardly projecting surface portions extend beyond the nip of thefeed rollers 38 and theseparator element 44 so that the lead edges'of a stack of sheets will always be adjacent the feedingroller 38.

The paper supply tray is held in the slanted position shown in FIG. 1 by means of aslot 66 formed in the front edge of eachside flange 56 which engages with apin 68 carried by eachside plate 12 and 14, and anotherslot 70 located about midway along each side ange 56 which engages with anotherpin 72 carried by each side plate. It will be observed that theslots 66 open forwardly while theslots 70 open downwardly. By this arrangement it will be apparent that thepaper supply tray 26 is readily removable from the folding machine frame by lifting the rearward end of thetray 26 until theslots 70 clear thepins 72 and withdrawing the tray rearwardly. The tray is readily reinstalled by inserting the forward end of the tray into the machine with the forwardly projecting surfaces 64 of the side guides riding on the upper surface of theguide plate 48 until theslots 66 engaged with thepins 68, then lowering the rearward end of thepaper tray 26 to reengage theslots 70` with thepins 72.

The feeding andfolding roller assembly 24 further includes a plurality of coacting feeding and folding rollers comprising afirst roller 74 carried by a shaft 76 rotatably supported inbushings 78 mounted in theside plates 12 and 14. The shaft 76 is driven by themotor 32 through a suitable driving connection in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. l. Asecond roller 80 of smaller diameter than theroller 74 is located over and in contact with theroller 74 and is carried by ashaft 82 rotatably supported bybushings 84 mounted in theside plates 12 and 14. Athird roller 86 of the same diameter as theroller 80 is located under and in contact with theroller 74 and is carried by ashaft 88 rotatably supported by bushings 90 mounted in theside plates 12 and 14. Afourth roller 92 of the same diameter as therollers 80 and 86 is located rearwardly of and in contact with theroller 74 and is carried by ashaft 94 rotatably supported bybushings 96 mounted in theside plates 12 and 14. As best seen in FIG. 2, the pairs ofbushings 84, 90 and 96 for theshafts 82, 88 and 94 respectively are mounted inslots 98 formed in theside plates 12 and 14 and are spring urged toward the shaft 76 in a manner well known in the art so as to maintain yieldable driving contact between theroller 74 and each of therollers 80, 86 and 92. As mentioned above, theroller 74 is driven by themotor 32, while therollers 80', 86 and 92 are driven by peripheral frictional contact with theroller 74.

In order to guide sheets of paper from thepaper supply tray 26 to the nip of therollers 74 and 80, that is, to afford a turn around passageway around theroller 80 so as to reverse the direction of feeding of sheets which are fed forwardly from the paper supply tray, aguide assembly 100 is provided at least a portion of which is functionally a part of the feeding and foldingassembly 24.

As best seen in FIG. 2, the guide assembly comprises aplate 102 `which extends between theside plates 12 and 14 and has an integrally formedear 104 at both ends, theears 104 being rotatably mounted on theshaft 40 adjacent theside plates 12 and 14. Theplate 102 has a shapedupper portion 106 which terminates at theupper edge 20 of theside plates 12 and 14, this upper portion cooperating with ahousing panel 108 in a manner more fully explained below. A verticalplanar mid-portion 110 is provided with an aperture 112 through which thefeed roller 38 projects. Theplate 102 also includes a lower forwardly projecting portion 114 which terminates in anarcuate portion 116 which partially surrounds the periphery of theroller 80 and defines with the peripheral surface thereof a turn aroundpassage way 118 which directs the leading edge of a sheet of paper into the nip of therollers 74 and 80.

Theguide assembly 100 is movable `from its operative position as shown in full lines in FIG. 2 to an inoperative shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2 in which thearcuate portion 116 of theplate 102 is disposed away from theroller 80 thereby fully exposing the latter and making the entire roller portion of theassembly 24 accessible for removal of jammed sheets of paper. As mentioned above, theears 104 of theplateI 102 are rotatably mounted on theshaft 40 to provide for this movement of theplate 102. In order to maintain theplate 102 in its operative position an L-shapedbracket 120 is secured to each end of theiutermediate portion 110 of theplate 102, each bracket supporting a locking device -which comprises a U-shaped por- -tion 122 formed integrally with the L of thebracket 120, theU-shaped portion 122 supporting apin 124 having anelongated head 126 on the inner end thereof. The pin is slidably mounted in holes in the legs of theU-shaped portion 122 and aspring 128 pressing on anabutment washer 130 mounted on thepin 124 normally urges the pin to a position where it is disposed in an aperture formed in theside plate 12. When in this position theplate 102 is located in its normal operating position. In order to free theplate 102 for movement to its inoperative or open position, apin release tab 132 is provided having anaperture 134 which surrounds thepin 124 between the inner leg of theU-shaped portion 122 and theenlarged head 126 of thepin 124. As shown in FIG. 4, movement of thetab 132 to the dotted line position withdraws thepin 124 from the aperture in theside plate 12 to allow theplate 102 to pivot about theshaft 40.

In order to insure that the leading edge of a sheet being fed from thepaper supply tray 26 to the nip of therollers 74 and 80 is properly aligned with the nip of the rollers, an anti-skew roller is provided which coacts with theroller 80 so that the sheets are being positively fed through the turn aroundpassageway 118 by therollers 80 and 140 rather than being merely pushed by thefeed roller 38 between it and the next sheet in the stack. Theroller 140 is carried by ashaft 142 rotatably supportd bybushings 144 which are mounted in aU-shaped extension 146 of eachbracket 120. Theroller 140 is urged into contact with theroller 80 by aspring 148 connected at one end thereof to theUshaped portion 146 and at the other end to a turned outlug 150 of thepin release tab 132 which projects through anopening 152 in the inner leg of theU-shaped portion 122 of thebracket 120. The lower portion 114 of theplate 102 is provided with an elongate slot 154 through which theroller 140 extends in order to yieldably contact theroller 80 when theguide assembly 100 is in its normal operating position.

From the above construction, it will be apparent that when theplate 102 is moved to its open position shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2, theanti-skew roller 140 is carried therewith so as not to interfere with the accessibility of theroller 80 for clearing of jams or for other service purposes.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 5 through 9, theupper buckle chute 28 is seen to comprise a pair of flatparallel plate members 160 and 162 having a plurality ofelongate slots 164 formed therein, the. plates being riveted together substantially at the four corners but spaced apart bydepressions 166 formed in theplate 162. Theplate 162 has a downwardly curvedfront end portion 168 to facilitate proper buckling of a sheet as more fully expjlained below. Theplate 160 has a downwardly projectingrear end portion 170 which deflects the leading edge of a sheet away from thebuckle chute 28 in the event that it is desired not to use theopper buckle chute 28 for folding. For this purpose the buckle chute can be reversibly mounted in the folding machine in a manner more fully explained below.

An adjustable paper stop is provided which comprises elongate parallel upper andlower bars 172 and 174 which are secured together by means ofscrews 176 fixed to thelower bar 172 on which are threadedly mounted tighteningknobs 178. The upper bar is provided with a plurality of dependingfingers 180 which project through theslots 164 in each plate which are engaged by the lead edge of a sheet of paper to stop movement thereof in the buckle chute. Thefingers 180 can be positioned at any location along theslots 164 by lo-osening theknobs 178 and sliding thebars 172 and 174 forwardly or rearwardly along the buckle chute.

As best seen in FIGS. 5, l6 and 9 the lower plate is provided with a pair of dependingtabs 182 located adjacent the side edge and in spaced relationship to the front edge of the -buckle chute, and a similar pair oftabs 184 located adjacent the side edges and in spaced relationship to the rear end of the buckle chute. TheIupper plate 160 is provided with a pair ofslots 186 located directly over thetabs 182 so that the rear edge of eachslot 186 is vertically aligned `with the front face of thecorresponding tab 182. A similar pair ofslots 188 is similarly located with respect to thetabs 184 when the buckle chute is reversed front to rear. A pair ofelongate notches 189 are formed in the side edge of theplate 160 substantially midway between the front and rear edge.

Referring to FIGS. l, 7 and 9, eachside frame plate 12 and 14 is provided with a forwardlydisposed tab 190 and a rearwardly disposedtab 192, these tabs projecting inwardly of the side plates and located at a height relative to theside plates 12 and 14 so as to support thebuckle chute 28 in a substantially horizontal position with its inlet end adjacent the nip of therollers 74 and 80. As best seen in FIG. 7, eachtab 190 is shaped to have ahorizontal shoulder portion 194. As best seen in FIG. 8, therear tabs 192 are also provided with ahorizontal shoulder portion 196. Referring back to FIG. l, aleaf spring retainer 198 is mounted on eachside plate 12 and 14 to yieldably engage the side edges of thebuckle chute 28 to hold the latter in place.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the buckle chute is readily removable from the folding machine without the need for any disasse-mbly thereof or the use of any tools. To insert thebuckle chute 28 into the folding machine, the buckle chute is held at an elevated angle and moved forwardly until thetabs 182 on thelower plate 162 engage thetabs 190 on theside plates 12 and 14. The buckle chute is then lowered to a horizontal position so that the lower surface of theplate 160 rests on theshoulders 194 and 196 of thetabs 190 and 192, with the upper portion of thetabs 190 extending through theslots 186, and the upper portion of thetabs 192 extending through thenotches 189 adjacent the rear end thereof. In lowering the buckle chute to the horizontal position, the side edges thereof compress theleaf spring retainers 189 and snap -over a high center thereof so that thespring retainers 189 effectively hold the buckle chute from accidental dislodgement from its operating position. To remove thebuckle chute 28, it is necessary -merely to lift the rear end of the buckle chute against the force of thespring retainers 189 to disengage theslots 186 from thetabs 190 and withdraw the buckle chute from the rear end Iof the folding machine.

If it is desired to reverse the position of thebuckle chute 28 in the folding machine so that the guide surface is adjacent the roller assembly, the above procedure is followed except that therear tabs 184 on the buckle chute will abut the tabs on theside plates 12 and 14.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 10 through 14, thelower Ibuckle chute 30 is similar in construction and function to thebuckle chute 28, themain distinctions being in the shape of the guide surfaces. Thus, thebuckle chute 30 is also formed of a pair of planarparallel plates 200 and 202 each provided with alignedslots 204 and having an adjustablepaper stop mechanism 206 disposed thereon which is substantially identical to the paper stop mechanism of thebuckle chute 28, and therefore need not be further described. Theplates 200 and 202 have upwardly curved guiding surfaces 208 and 210 respectively for guiding the lead edge of sheets of paper into the buckle chute and for assuring proper buckling of the sheet for subsequent folding. Theplate 202 has an upwardly directed generally V-shapedguide portion 212 at the rear end thereof for guiding sheets of paper through theroller assembly 24 without entering the buckle chute when the buckle chute is mounted in the folding machine in a front to rear reversed position.

As best seen in FIGS. 10, 1l and 14, thelower plate 202 is provided with a pair of dependingtabs 214 located adjacent the side edges and in spaced relationship to the front edge of the buckle chute, and a similar pair oftabs 216 located adjacent to the side edges and in spaced relationship to the rear edge of the buckle chute. Thelower plate 202 is also provided with a pair ofenlarged slots 218 located adjacent to thetafbs 214, and a similar pair ofenlarged slots 220 located adjacent to thetabs 216. Another pair ofnarrow slots 222 is located in rearwardly spaced relationship to thetabs 214, and a similar pair ofnarrow slots 224 is located in forwardly spaced relationship to thetabs 216.

Referring to FIGS. l, 12 and 14, eachside frame plate 12 and 14 is provided with a forwardlydisposed tab 226 and a rearwardlydisposed ta'b 228, thetabs 226 and 228 being identical in shape and function to thetabs 190 and 192 respectively associated with theupper buckle chute 28. These tabs are located at a height relative to theside plates 12 and 14 so as to support thebuckle chute 30 in a substantially horizontal position and in vertically spaced parallel relationship to theupper buckle chute 28 and with its inlet and adjacent the nip of therollers 74 and 86. Each of thetabs 226 and 228 has ashoulder portion 230 `adapted to support the undersurface of thelower plate 202 of thebuckle chute 30, as distinguished from thetabs 190 and 192 supporting theupper plate 160 of theupper buckle chute 28. Another leaf spring retainer 232 similar to theretainer 189 is mounted on eachside plate 12 and 14 to yieldafbly engage the side edges of thebuckle chute 30 to hold the latter in place against accidental dislodgement from its normal position.

From the foregoing it will be seen that thebuckle chute 30 is also readily removable from the folding machine in substantially the same manner as that described above for theupper buckle chute 28, the only difference being that all abutment and engagement between thelower buckle chute 30 and theside plates 12 and 14 is effected with thelower plate 202. Thus, when thetabs 214 of thebuckle chute plate 202 engage thetabs 226 on theplates 12 and 14, the upper portion of thetabs 226 extend through theenlarged slots 218, and therear tabs 228` on theside plates 12 and 14 extend through thenarrow slots 224 on thebuckle chute plate 202. If thebuckle chute 30 is reversed in the folding machine, the opposite corresponding tab and slot engagement is effected.

Referring back to FIG. 2, the front face of the folding machine is defined by thecover panel 108 which is pivotally connected as at 234 to the side fra-meplates 12 and 14 whereby thepanel 108 is movable from the closed position shown in solid lines to an open position shown in dotted lines. In this latter position the entire forward side of the feeding and folding roller assembly is exposed and accessible for servicing or removal of jammed sheets, particularly when theguide assembly 100 has been raised to its open position as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2. Thepanel 108 is provided with anelongated notch 236 located in horizontal alignment with the nip of therollers 74 and 86 through which folded sheets are discharged from the folding machine.

If it is desired to use the folding machine by itself, thepower stacker attachment 34 is mounted on the machine to receive the folded sheets. The attachment comprises a atplate 240 having depending side anges 242 and aroller 244 rotatably mounted on theplate 240 at each end (the roller not being shown at the outer end). Aclamp portion 246 is arranged to clamp over the L- shapedbar 248 secured to theside frame plates 12 and 14. Agear 250 is mounted on ashaft 252 underlying thebar 248 and connected to thedrive motor 32 in a suitable manner. Another gear (not shown) is mounted coaxially with theroller 244 to rotate the latter, and `theroller 244 driving one ormore belts 254 on which the folded sheets fall when they are discharged from the folding machine. The stacker is removable from the folding machine by merely disengaging theclamp portion 246 from thebar 248 and withdrawing the stacker forwardly, thereby leaving the front face of the machine unobstructed for joining the folding machine in modular fashion to another paper handling machine.

The operation of the machine described above is as follows: With all of the parts positioned as shown in FIG. 1, a stack. of sheets to be folded is placed in thepaper supply tray 26 with the lead edge thereof in staggered relationship with the top sheet foremost. With themotor 32 running and all rollers rotating, theroller 38, rotating at a relatively slow speed, feeds the top sheet until the lead edge thereof is picked up in the nip of therollers 80 and 140 which are rotating at a much faster speed than that of theroller 38. The sheet is then fed by these rollers, theroller 38 overriding its drive until the trailing edge of the first sheet passes theroller 38, and the sheet is guided around thepassageway 118 and into the nip of theroller 74 and 80, after which the sheet enters thebuckle chute 28. When the lead edge of the sheet abuts thestop fingers 180, the sheet buckles in the area of thecurved guide portion 168 of thebuckle chute 28 and thereby forms a curve in the sheet which is immediately picked up by therollers 74 and 92 which fold the sheet to form a new lead edge. This folded lead edge is then guided into thelower buckle chute 30 an fed therein until thefolded lead edge abuts the stop fingers of thestop mechanism 206 in thebuckle chute 30. The sheet then buckles again in the area of theguide surface 210 to form another curve which is immediately picked up in the nip of therollers 74 and 86 which fold the sheet a second time and discharge the fully folded sheet through the notch 326 in thepanel 108. The folded sheet then either falls onto thepower stacker 34 or is directed into the receiving mechanism of another machine with which the folding machine is associated for further processing such, for example, as inserting the folded sheet into an envelope or collating it with other material.

It will now be understood that the folding machine of the present invention possesses the distinct advantages over prior art folding machines in that all of the working components of the machine can be rendered completely accessible without the necessity for 4disassemblin-g any parts of the machine which are not readily removable. In addition the machine is so arranged and constructed that all operating components are located on one side of a face of the machine so as to make it possi-ble for the folding machine to be operatively joined to other paper handling machines to effect a continuous process, as well as also making it possible to remove components and render other components accessible while the folding machine is so associated.

It will therefore be apparent that there is provided a folding machine which achieves the foregoing objects and avoids the disadvantages of prior art folding machines. It is to be understood that the invention is not limitedto the embodiment described above and shown in the accompanying drawings which is merely illustrative of the principles of the invention and is the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention, and is susceptable to change in form, size, detail and arrangement of parts, the invention being intended to cover all such variations, modifications and equivalents thereof as may be deemed to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

. 1. A sheet folding machine having a plurality of operating components comprising:

(A) means defining an upstanding generally rectangular frame having forward and rearward ends, said forward end defining an interface of said folding machine from which all operating components of said folding machine project toward said rearward end,

(B) a generally vertically oriented feeding and folding roller assembly supported by said frame adjacent the forward end thereof,

(C) paper supply means mounted in an upper portion of said frame in position to have a discharge end thereof disposed adjacent said roller assembly so as to discharge sheets to said roller assembly and extending generally rearwardly of said frame from said roller assembly,

(D) at least one buckle chute mounted in said frame beneath said paper supply means in position to have the open end thereof disposed adjacent said roller assembly and extending therefrom toward the rearward end of said frame and operatively associated with said roller assembly to cause sheets of paper being fed by one portion of said roller assembly to buckle and be folded by another portion of said roller assembly, and

(E) means for driving said roller assembly to feed sheets of paper from said paper supply means, buckle and fold said sheets and discharge the folded sheets from the forward end of said frame.

2. A sheet folding machine according toclaim 1 wherein said roller assembly comprises:

(A) separator means located uppermost of said roller assembly and adjacent said discharge end of said paper supply means and operatively associated with said paper supply means to feed sheets of paper seriatim therefrom, and

(B) a plurality of coacting feeding and folding rollers disposed generally beneath said separator means for folding sheets of paper into said buckle chute and folding said sheets in the buckled area thereof.

3. A sheet folding machine according to claim 2 wherein said roller assembly further includes an arcuate turn around guide disposed adjacent said forward end of said frame and partially surrounding a forward peripheral portion of the uppermost of said plurality of coacting rollers for directing sheets of paper fed by said separator means from said paper supply means rearwardly into the nip of a first pair of said coacting rollers.

4. A folding machine according to claim 2 wherein said roller assembly further includes:

(A) a guide structure disposed upwardly of said roller assembly and forwardly of said separator means, said guide structure including an arcuate turn around guide portion partially surrounding a forward peripheral portion of the uppermost of said plurality of coacting rollers for directing sheets of paper fed by said separator means from said paper supply means rearwardly into the nip of a first pair of said coacting rollers, and

(B) means pivotally mounting said guide structure in said frame for movement between an operative position in which said arcuate guide portion surrounds said uppermost roller and an open position in which said arcuate guide portion is spaced away from said uppermost roller.

5. A folding machine according to claim 4 wherein said guide structure further includes a roller, and means on said guide structure for rotatably supporting said roller intermediate said separating means and said arcuate guide portion and in axially coeXtensive peripheral Contact with said uppermost roller whereby sheets of paper are positively fed around said uppermost roller and said roller mounted on said guide structure is moved away from said uppermost roller where said guide structure is moved to said open position.

6. A sheet folding machine having a plurality of operating components comprising:

(A) means defining an upstanding generally rectangular frame having forward and rearward ends, said forward end defining an interface of said folding machine from which all operating components of said folding machine project toward said rearward end,

(B) a generally vertically oriented feeding and folding roller assembly supported by said frame adjacent the front end thereof,

(C) an elongate paper supply tray supported by said frame in position to have a discharge end thereof disposed adjacent said roller assembly and to extend therefrom toward the rearward end of said frame,

(D) at least one buckle chute supported by said frame beneath said paper supply tray in position to have the open end thereof disposed adjacent said roller assembly and to extend therefrom toward the rearward end of said frame,

(E) means mounting said paper supply tray and said buckle chute in said frame for manual removal therefrom rearwardly of said frame, and

(F) means for driving said roller assembly to feed sheets of paper from said paper supply tray, buckle and fold said sheets and discharge the folded sheets from the forward end of said frame.

7. A sheet folding machine according to claim 6 wherein said means mounting said paper supply tray in said frame comprising:

(A) first means disposed adjacent the discharge end of said tray defining a pair of forwardly facing slots and second means disposed rearwardly of said first Y means defining a pair of downwardly facing slots,

(B) and a plurality of pins mounted on said frame in position to engage with said slots on said paper supply tray when the latter is in said frame, whereby said paper supply tray is removable from said frame by raising the rearward end of said tray and withdrawing said tray rearwardly of said frame.

8. A sheet folding machine according to claim 6 wherein said means mounting said buckle chute in said frame comprises:

(A) a plurality of inwardly projecting tabs formed on said frame, at least a pair of said tabs being located adjacent said feeding and folding roller assembly and at least a pair of said tabs being located adjacent the rearward end of said frame, said tabs having an upwardly facing shoulder portion, and

(B) a pair of downwardly projecting tabs formed on said buckle chute adjacent the front end thereof, said tabs on said buckle chute being adapted to engage the tabs on said frame adjacent to arrest forward movement thereof and said upwardly facing shoulder l on said tabs being adapted to support said buckle chute in the arrested position thereof.

9. A sheet folding machine according to claim 8 further including means formed on said buckle chute for engaging at least one of said pairs of tabs on said frame for preventing rearward movement of said buckle chute when said buckle chute is resting on said shoulders of said inwardly projecting tabs.

10. A sheet folding machine according to claim 9 further including yieldable means resiliently holding said buckle chute in position on said shoulders of said inwardly projecting tabs,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,143,714 1/1939 Rosebush 270-68 2,521,951 9/1950 Schubert 271-51 X 2,766,569 10/1956 Strother et al. 53-188 FOREIGN PATENTS 538,767 11/1931 Germany.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner P. V. WILLIAMS, Assistant Examiner

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