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Apparatus with belt valve vacuum system for working on work material

  • US 4,587,873 A
  • Filed: 05/22/1985
  • Issued: 05/13/1986
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/22/1985
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An apparatus for working on work material, said apparatus comprising:

  • a table for supporting work material and including,a top layer of material providing a work material support surface and having air passages extending vertically therethrough and distributed over said support surface,means located below said top layer of material for vertically supporting said top layer and forming a plurality of compartments each having a top communicating with the air passages of that portion of said top layer overlying said compartment,means providing an air plenum,an elongated rigid air valving member having a valving face extending along its length,means defining a plurality of first ports and a plurality of second ports in said valving face, said valving face having a plurality of successive areas arranged in a row along its length with there being at least one of said first ports and at least one of said second ports located in each of said areas,means providing communication between said at least one first port of each of said areas and an exclusively associated one of said compartments,means providing communication between said at least one second port of each of said areas and said air plenum,a belt deflector unit movable along the length of said valving face,an air valving belt extending along the length of said valving face and cooperating with said belt deflector unit,means positioning the longitudinal portion of said belt located on either side of said deflector unit closely adjacent to said valving face,said belt deflector unit having means for deflecting said belt away from and holding it in spaced relation to said valving face at the location of said deflector unit to provide free communication between those first ports and those second ports located adjacent said deflector unit, andmeans for moving said belt deflector unit along the length of said valving face to vary the selection of which of said first and second ports are brought into communication with one another by said deflector unit.

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