METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FEEDING SHEETS TO A PROCESSING MACHINE

• US 20100007076A1
• Filed: 07/13/2009
• Published: 01/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Heidelberger Druckmaschinen Ag
• Original Assignee: Heidelberger Druckmaschinen Ag
• Inventors: Müller, Andreas, Wolf, Burkhard
• Granted Patent: US 8,132,805 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 271/11
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 11/005 Suction belts
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2404/2691 Arrangement of successive belts forming a transport path
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2511/22 Distance
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2801/21 Industrial-size printers, e.g. rotary printing press
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 29/6654 changing the overlapping figure
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 5/24 Feeding articles in overlapping streams, i.e. by separation of articles from a pile
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 9/002 changing orientation of sheet by only controlling movement of the forwarding means, i.e. without the use of stop or register wall

Abstract

In a method and an apparatus for feeding sheets to a processing machine, in particular a printing press, provision is made for the sheet to be accelerated to processing speed by use of at least two acceleration stations arranged one after the other. One of the acceleration stations is arranged such that the acceleration station can be displaced in order to align the sheet.

Claims

1. A method for feeding sheets to a sheet-processing machine, which comprises the steps of:

feeding the sheets in an overlapping formation on a feed table to a first acceleration station and the sheets being accelerated by the first acceleration station; and

feeding the sheets to at least one second acceleration station and the sheets being accelerated by the second acceleration station to a machine speed of the sheet-processing machine, before they are fed to sheet gripper devices of a feed cylinder of the sheet-processing machine.

2. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises feeding the sheets by means of a transport device that can be driven continuously at a cycle rate of the sheet-processing machine to the gripper devices of the feed cylinder of the sheet-processing machine, after the sheets have been accelerated to the machine speed.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein as the sheets are accelerated, the sheets experience a skewed position correction by the first acceleration station.

4. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises aligning sideways the sheets in a transport plane by one of the first and second acceleration stations, as the sheets are accelerated.

5. The method according to claim 4, which further comprises aligning the sheets sideways a second time on the feed cylinder.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein as the sheets are accelerated, the sheets experience a skewed position correction by one of the first and second acceleration stations.

7. The method according to claim 1, which further comprises aligning the sheets sideways in a transport plane by the first acceleration station, as the sheets are accelerated.

8. An apparatus for feeding sheets to a sheet-processing machine, the apparatus comprising:

a feed table on which the sheets are transported in overlapping formation;

a first acceleration station for a sheet, said first acceleration station disposed in said feed table; and

at least one second acceleration station for the sheet disposed downstream of said first acceleration station.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, further comprising a transport device that can be driven at a cycle rate of the sheet-processing machine and is disposed downstream of said first and second acceleration stations.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said transport device and said first and second acceleration stations have transport belts.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said transport belts are assigned suction apparatuses that can have vacuum applied to them individually.

12. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein one of said first and second acceleration stations is constructed such that it can be displaced for sheet alignment.

13. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said first acceleration station is disposed such that said first acceleration station can be adjusted obliquely in a transport plane.

14. The apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said first acceleration station is disposed such that said first acceleration station can be displaced sideways in a transport plane.