EP0393235B1 - Device for collecting and depositing signatures - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for collecting and turning signatures for forming complete part book blocks. For the purpose of dispensing with an otherwise required separate turning apparatus, the device according to the invention has two identical fan wheels situated horizontally next to one another whose centre lines run parallel to one another and which are driven at the same speed in mutually opposite directions of rotation in such a way that the receiving compartments move downwards towards the despatch conveyor from the discharge station of the signatures, firstly in the direction of the receiving position and then in the direction of the point between the two paddle wheels. The receiving compartments of the two fan wheels are offset relative to one another in the circumferential direction in such a way that, in their mutually facing regions, and as seen in the circumferential direction, each paddle of the one fan wheel protrudes approximately into the centre of a receiving compartment of the other fan wheel. Provided behind the transverse cutting device, as a deflector, is a switchable tongue by means of which the signatures are optionally passed on to one of two conveyors having pairs of belts, each of these conveyors leading to the beginning receiving position of a receiving compartment of one of the two fan wheels. When two different part book blocks are placed one on the other in the collecting cycle, this tongue is switched from its one position to its other position. The despatch conveyor runs in the centre between the two fan wheels parallel to the axes of rotation of the two fan wheels and during the deposition is in the rest position. <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to a device for collecting signatures that arrive cross-processed from a web strand, and for depositing the partial book blocks collected from the signatures onto a conveying device and, if desired, also for stacking two different partial book blocks from the signatures thus collected .

DE-PS 37 25 225 discloses a device for collecting and storing signatures, in which the signatures can be collected in receptacles formed from vanes of an impeller driven in the collective cycle and can be pushed out of them onto a removal device, the signature cycle being an integral multiple of that Collective clock is. In this device, the vanes are pivotally mounted on a hub of the impeller axially parallel to the impeller axis, and when the hub moves uniformly, the wing to be loaded is pivoted periodically in the collecting cycle, with a phase of slow movement in the collecting angle area and then faster to the push-on position and back again in the initial recording position. With such a device, one can only collect and store signatures. But if, as is the case with many letterpress printing processes, you now alternate two different partial book blocks from those collected in this way Signatures, that is half turned, must be placed on top of each other in order to arrive at a complete book block, from which two complete books are then created by longitudinal cutting, then a separate turning device downstream of this signature collecting device is required, e.g. according to DE-PS 37 12 387 , which usually requires a not inconsiderable further construction effort for the entire system and in any case additional space expenditure.

It is therefore an object of the invention to further develop or supplement the above-described signature collecting device in such a way that, if desired, it can also be used to superimpose two different, that is to say mutually turned, partial book blocks, with a part of the same being turned, can use.

• a) zwei gleiche Flügelräder horizontal nebeneinander klappsymmetrisch zu der vertikalen Mittelebene, in der die Signaturen hinter der Querschneidvorrichtung nach unten geführt und abgeworfen werden, vorgesehen sind, deren Mittellinien parallel zueinander verlaufen und die in einander entgegengesetzten Drehrichtungen mit derselben Drehzahl angetrieben werden derart, daß sich die Aufnahmefächer von der Abwurfstelle der Signaturen zuerst in Richtung auf die Aufnahmestellung und dann in Richtung auf die Stelle zwischen den beiden Flügelrädern nach unten zur Abfördereinrichtung bewegen,
• b) wobei die Aufnahmefächer der beiden Flügelräder derart in Umfangsrichtung zueinander versetzt sind, daß in ihren einander zugekehrten Bereichen jeder Flügel des einen Flügelrads in Umfangsrichtung gesehen etwa in die Mitte eines Auffangfachs des anderen Flügelrads hineinragt,
• c) hinter der Querschneidvorrichtung eine umstellbare Zunge als Weiche vorgesehen ist, durch die die Signaturen wahlweise einer von zwei Bandpaar-Fördereinrichtungen zugeleitet werden, deren jede zur Anfangsaufnahmeposition eines Aufnahmefachs eines der beiden Flügelräder führt, wobei die Zunge bei Aufeinanderlegen zweier unterschiedlicher Teil-Buchblocks im Sammeltakt von ihrer einen in ihre andere Stellung umgeschaltet wird und die Anzahl der Signaturen, nach der die Umschaltung der Zunge erfolgt, verstellbar ist,
• d) die Abfördereinrichtung in der Mitte zwischen den beiden Flügelrädern parallel zu den Drehachsen der beiden Flügelräder läuft und während der Ablage in Ruhestellung ist.

This object is achieved according to the invention in that

• a) Two identical impellers horizontally side by side, symmetrical to the vertical center plane, in which the signatures are guided downwards and thrown off behind the cross-cutting device, are provided, the center lines of which run parallel to one another and the mutually opposite directions of rotation are driven in such a way that move the receiving compartments downwards from the ejection point of the signatures towards the receiving position and then towards the location between the two impellers to the removal device,
• b) wherein the receiving compartments of the two impellers are offset from one another in the circumferential direction such that, in their mutually facing regions, each wing of one impeller protrudes in the circumferential direction approximately into the center of a collecting compartment of the other impeller,
• c) behind the cross-cutting device, a switchable tongue is provided as a switch, through which the signatures are optionally fed to one of two belt pair conveyors, each of which leads to the initial receiving position of a receiving compartment of one of the two impellers, the tongue when two different partial book blocks are placed on top of one another Collective cycle is switched from one position to the other and the number of signatures after which the tongue is switched is adjustable,
• d) the discharge device runs in the middle between the two impellers parallel to the axes of rotation of the two impellers and is at rest during storage.

If you want to operate the device according to the invention only as a pure collecting device, such as corresponds to the operation of the device according to the already mentioned DE-PS 37 25 225, then the tongue remains fixed, only one impeller is supplied with signatures, and this impeller successively places partial book blocks on the discharge device. The mode of operation is then exactly the same as in this known collecting device. But if you want to put different partial book blocks on top of each other, then the tongue serving as a switch is switched in the collective cycle, so that a first group of signatures is collected in one impeller and another group of (other) signatures in the second impeller. One partial book block collected by one impeller is then placed on the discharge device which is at rest at this time and the other partial book block from the other impeller is then placed on this first partial book block so that there is now a complete book block on the discharge device which, for example, can expediently be designed such that it contains all the pages of a book twice next to one another in the correct order and two complete books are produced after the book block has been cut lengthways.

It is understandable that the addition of a second impeller, which is of exactly the same design as the first, by the installation of a tongue serving as a switch and by a different orientation of the discharge device, does not result in very great additional expenditure; in any case, this additional effort, especially in spatial relation, is in any case much less than if a special special turning device has to be provided for stacking two successive, different partial book blocks.

The device according to the invention is expediently designed such that the two belt pair conveyors are each composed of two adjoining belt pairs, the upper one of which runs slightly faster than the signature tape strand, while the second pair of belts is considerably slower, approximately half the speed of the upper one Band pair runs, so that a delay in the signature speed and an overlap (scale formation) of the signatures over one another is caused between the two band pairs. The purpose of the somewhat faster run of the upper pair of bands is to leave small gaps in the signature string, during which the tongue serving as a switch can then be switched. The lower band delays each signature for two reasons. On the one hand, the overlapping of the successive signatures facilitates their introduction and Slide into the slots of the impellers, because in this way they can slide down without interruption, as if on an inclined plane. On the other hand, the delay in the signatures that are very quickly approaching in today's fast-moving letterpress printing machines has the advantage that they hit the inside of the receiving compartment with considerably less force, so that the risk of damage to the signatures on these leading edges is greatly affected is reduced.

It is expedient that between the extended position of each impeller and the storage location on the discharge device on both sides of the partial book stack * is provided for guiding this partial book stack to be deposited in this way in order to transmit the partial book block in a manner corresponding to the orientation in the impeller to achieve and also prevent the creasing of individual signatures in this way.
* a fixed tour

Fig. 1 zeigt

einen kompletten Buchblock, wie er mittels der Vorrichtung nach der Erfindung durch Sammeln von Signaturen zu Teil-Buchblocks, Wenden des zweiten Teil-Buchblocks und anschließendes Aufeinanderlegen beider Teil-Buchblock-Arten erzeugt werden soll.

Fig. 2 zeigt

in Seitenansicht die Ausbildung und die Art des Arbeitens der Vorrichtung beim wechselweisen Aufeinanderlegen nicht gewendeter und gewendeter Teil-Buchblocks auf der Abfördereinrichtung.

Fig. 3 bis 18 zeigen,

in gleicher Seitenansicht, jeweils um den gleichen Bruchteil des Gesamt-Bewegungsablaufs während der Erzeugung eines kompletten Buchblocks zueinander versetzt, die Stellungen der Vorrichtungsbestandteile während der Herstellung eines kompletten Buchblocks vom leeren Anlaufen der Vorrichtung bis zum Vorliegen des kompletten Buchblocks auf der Abfördereinrichtung.

In the drawing, an embodiment of the invention is shown.

Fig. 1 shows

a complete book block, as is to be generated by means of the device according to the invention by collecting signatures for partial book blocks, turning the second partial book block and then stacking the two partial book block types.

Fig. 2 shows

in side view, the design and the way of working of the device when alternately stacking non-turned and turned partial book blocks on the discharge device.

3 to 18 show

In the same side view, each offset by the same fraction of the total movement during the production of a complete book block, the positions of the device components during the production of a complete book block from the empty start-up of the device to the presence of the complete book block on the removal device.

The signatures shown as an example in Fig. 1 are designed as follows: once each signature 1-4 is folded once in the transverse direction, the fold lines lying behind the plane of the drawing in the front view shown, and on the other hand two book page heights are contained next to each other in each signature. If, after finished stacking of a complete book block 6 from two partial book blocks 7 and 8, the latter is cut along the cutting line 5, then two complete books are obtained. As can be seen, the various signatures 1-4 are arranged once in ascending order and then in descending order from 4-1; the page numbers on the individual sheets are shown. Each signature contains a total of four pages, the finished book has 32 pages. Of course, when the individual signatures leave the letterpress or folding device, the two layers are not arranged at a distance from one another, as shown in FIG. 1, but lie flat and flat on one another, so that they are further processed in the device shown behave like a single leaf. They are drawn at a distance from each other only for the purpose of entering the page numbers. that on the left of the later section line 5, the pages 1-32 follow one another from top to bottom, on the right of the section line 5, on the other hand, from bottom to top. After cutting, two complete books are created.

In the description of FIGS. 2 to 18 that follows, the reference numbers are mainly entered in FIGS. 2 and 3, but not in all the other figures, but only to the extent that they are required to describe this particular figure in question.

The incoming strand package 9 runs to a cutting device 10, where it is cross-cut into individual signatures. Behind the transverse cutting device 10 is a switchable tongue 11 serving as a switch, the switchover from one position to the other taking place according to a preselectable number of signatures. This tongue causes the delivery of each signature either to one of two belt pair conveyors, the left one with 12 and the right one with 13. The left band pair conveyor 12 leads to a left impeller 14, the right band pair conveyor 13 leads to a right-side impeller 15. Each of the two impellers 14 and 15 has vanes 16 which form individual receiving compartments 17 in which the collection of the Signatures are made and from which the partial book blocks formed can be pushed out onto a removal device, which will be described further below. The signature clock is an integer multiple of the collective clock. The vanes 16 are pivotally mounted on a hub 18 of each impeller parallel to the axis of the impeller, with the uniform movement of the hub 18, the pivoting of the wing 16 to be loaded periodically in the collecting cycle with a phase of slow movement in the collecting angle area and then faster to the extended position and again back to the initial recording position is controlled, for example by suitable cams.

As shown, two identical impellers 14 and 15 are provided horizontally next to each other in a fold-symmetrical manner to the vertical center plane, in which the signatures are guided downwards and thrown off behind the cross-cutting device 10, the center lines of which run parallel to one another and the opposite directions of rotation, e.g. indicated by arrows in Fig. 3, driven at the same speed such that the receiving compartments 17 move from the ejection point of the signatures first towards the receiving position and then towards the location between the two impellers down to the discharge device. The receiving compartments 17 of the two impellers 14 and 15 are offset from one another in the circumferential direction such that, as can clearly be seen from the drawing, in their mutually facing region each wing 16 of one impeller protrudes in the circumferential direction approximately into the center of the receiving compartment 17 of the other impeller .

The discharge device 19 runs in the middle between the two impellers 14 and 15 parallel to the axes of rotation of these two impellers and is designed so that it is at rest during storage from both the impeller 14 and the impeller 15.

Each of the two belt pair conveyors 12 and 13 is composed of two adjoining belt pairs, the upper belt pair of the belt pair conveyor 12 with 20, the lower belt pair with 21, the upper belt pair of the right belt pair conveyor 13 with 22 and the associated one lower pair of bands is designated 23. The two upper belt pairs 20 and 22 run slightly faster than the signature tape strand in order to form small gaps between the individual signatures, during which the switching of the tongue 11 can take place without hindrance. The respective lower band pair 21 and 23 runs much more slowly, at about half the speed, like the upper band pair 20 or 22, so that an overlap (scale formation) of the signatures over one another is caused between the two band pairs 20, 21 on the one hand and 22, 23 on the other hand .

Between the extended position of each impeller 14 or 15 and the storage location on the discharge device 19, a fixed guide 24 is provided on both sides for the partial book stack to be deposited in this way.

The mode of operation of the illustrated embodiment of a device according to the invention is as follows:
2 shows in the end result how partial book blocks 7 and 8 of the left and right vane wheels 14 and 15 are alternately deposited on the discharge device 19 on the discharge device 19. Due to the fact that these two types of partial book blocks are deposited on the removal device 19 from different sides, one partial book block 7 is turned over in relation to the other partial book block 8, and vice versa, by one perpendicular to the signature plane the imaginary axis passing through the middle of the signature is turned by 180 °.

In the position according to FIG. 3, the first signature 7 is just being introduced into the device, specifically because the upper tip of the tongue 11 points to the right, is fed into the left belt pair conveyor 12 and thus to the left impeller 14. This first signature is drawn as a thick, continuous line. This will later (see Fig. 1) lowest signature 1 of the partial book block and is therefore also designated 1.

In Fig. 4, this first signature 1 has already reached approximately the lower end of the left belt pair conveyor 12, and the second signature 2 has reached the end of the upper belt pair 20 of the left belt pair conveyor 12. This second signature 2 is shown in dashed lines ------.

In Fig. 5, the first signature 1 has progressed only slightly due to the significantly lower belt speed of the lower belt pair 21 of the left belt pair conveyor 12, the second signature 2, however, considerably further, in such a way that at the transition point between the upper belt pair 20 and the lower pair of belts 21 of the pair of conveyors 12 the front end of the signature 2 already slightly overlaps the rear end of the signature 1.

In Fig. 6, for the same reason, the second signature 2 overlaps the first signature 1 by a much larger amount, and the first signature 1 begins to slide into the receiving compartment 17 of the left impeller 14. The third signature 3, the dash-dot-dash line -. -. -. is now located in the upper pair of belts 20 of the left pair of belt conveyors 12.

In Fig. 7, the first signature 1 has slid completely into the receiving compartment 17, the second signature 2, guided through the first signature 1, approximately half. The third signature 3 is located in the lower band pair 21 of the left band pair conveyor 12, and the fourth signature, which is shown in - x - x -, is still in the upper band pair 20.

8 there is an overlap between the signatures 3 and 4 at the transition between the upper band pair 20 and the lower band pair 21, the preceding signatures have moved accordingly.

In Fig. 9, the signatures 1, 2 and 3 are already in the receiving compartment 17, the signature 4 between the lower pair of bands 21.

A partial book block is now formed from four signatures and lies in a receiving compartment 17 of the left impeller 14. Now the tongue 11 is switched so that its upper tip comes to the left, and exactly the same process as described above is repeated for collecting signatures 1 to 4 in a storage compartment 17 of the right impeller 15. This process is repeated for the right impeller 15, corresponding to FIGS. 12 to 14. The last signature 4 is currently on the way into the associated receiving compartment 17th

In FIG. 15, the tongue 11 is switched over again, so that a new filling of the next receiving compartment 17 of the left impeller 14 begins, which continues until FIG. 18. In the meantime, as shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, both impellers 14 and 15, each with a filled receiving compartment 17, have rotated downwards in the clockwise direction or counterclockwise direction and reach the storage position (one after the other) via the intermediate position in accordance with FIG The removal device 19. In this way, two partial book blocks 7 and 8, rotated relative to each other by 180 °, that is to say turned, are placed on the removal device 19 and then transported away perpendicularly to the plane of the drawing in order to provide space for storing the next partial book blocks 7 and 8 to create.

The device can of course also be operated in such a way that two or more partial book blocks 7 are collected and stored in the left impeller 14 and only then are one or more partial book blocks 8 collected in the right impeller 15 and placed on the previously collected partial book blocks 7 will.

The scaling of the successive signatures 1, 2, 3 and 4 at the transition point between the upper and lower pair of belts 20, 21 and 22, 23 of the left and right pair of conveyors 12 and 13 can be done by well-known means, also at Printing machines can already be used, such as with scale feeders, can be facilitated and secured. Such agents have therefore not been described in the present context.

List of reference numbers used:

1 - 4

Signatures

5

Longitudinal cutting line

6

complete book block

7

Part book block

8th

Part book block

9

Strand package

10th

Cutting device

11

Tongue (as switch)

12

left belt pair conveyor

13

right belt pair conveyor

14

left impeller

15

right impeller

16

Wings of 14 and 15

17th

Compartments from 14 and 15

18th

Hub from 14 and 15

19th

Discharge device

20th

upper pair of bands of 12

21

lower band pair of 12

22

upper band of 13

23

lower pair of bands of 13

24th

fixed leadership

Claims (3)

1. Device for the collecting of signatures which, worked up into a roll, come transversely cut from a web strip and, for the depositing of the part book block collected from the signatures, with a winged wheel (14,15) driven in the collecting rhythm, the wings of which form individual reception compartments (17) in which the collecting takes place and from which the part block can be pushed out on to a conveying device, whereby the signature rhythm amounts to a whole numbered multiple of the collecting rhythm and the wings (16) are tiltably mounted on a hub (18) of the winged wheel (14,15) axis-parallel to the winged wheel axis, whereby, in the case of uniform movement of the hub (18), the tilting of the wing (16) to be loaded is controllable periodically in the collecting rhythm with a phase of slower movement in the collecting angle range and subsequently quicker up to the ejection position and again back into the initial take-up position and, if desired, additional to the laying on one another of two different part book blocks from the so-collected signatures, characterised in that

   a) two identical winged wheels (14,15) are provided, horizontally next to one another flap-symmetrically to the vertical middle plane in which the signatures (1-4) are guided downwardly after the transverse cutting device (10) and ejected, the middle lines of which run parallel to one another and which are driven in directions of rotation counter to one another in such a manner that the reception compartments (17) move from the ejection position of the signatures first in the direction to the take-up position and then in the direction to the position between the two winged wheels (14,15) downwardly to the removal device (19),

   b) whereby the reception compartments (17) of the two winged wheels (14,15) are staggered with regard to one another in the circumferential direction in such a manner that, in their regions facing one another, each wing (16) of one of the winged wheels projects in the circumferential direction, seen from about the middle of a reception compartment (17) of the other winged wheel,

   c) after the transverse cutting device (10) is provided an adjustable tongue (11) as deflector by means of which the signatures (1-4) are selectively passed to one of two band-pair conveyor devices (12,13), each of which passes to the initial take-up position of a reception compartment (17) of one of the two winged wheels (14,15), whereby the tongue (11), in the case of laying on one another of two different part book blocks (7,8), is switched over in the collecting rhythm from one of its positions into the other and the number of the signatures (1-4) after which the switch over of the tongue (11) takes place is adjustable,

   d) the removal device (19) runs in the middle between the two winged wheels (14,15) parallel to the axis of rotation of the two winged wheels (14,15) and, during the depositing, is in the resting position.
2. Device according to claim 1, characterised in that the two band pair conveying devices (12,13) are composed of two band pairs (20,21; 22,23) following one another, the upper (20,22) of which runs slightly more quickly than the signature web strip, whereas the second band pair (21,23) runs substantially more slowly with about half the speed of the upper band pair (20,22) so that, between the two band pairs (20,21; 22,23), a slowing down of the signature speed and an overlapping (flake formation) of the signatures (1-4) over one another is brought about.
3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that, between the ejection position of each winged wheel (14,15) and the depositing position on the removal device (19), there is provided on both sides a fixed guide (24) for the part book block (7,8) to be deposited in this way.

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