GB2068341A - Check copy extractor for newspaper conveyor - Google Patents

Abstract

A newspaper check copy extractor for use in removing selected copies of newspapers from a continuous overlapping stream of papers coming from a rotary press comprises arms (only one 72 shown) which upon command impedes the flow of copies 26 past a selected point and forms a gap in the stream of papers, check copy extractor means 38 movable between copy extracting (as shown) and non-extracting positions and sensing means 100, 102 to determine the presence and absence of a gap. In operation the arms create the gap, which, when sensed causes the arms to be released, and the extractor means then removes a predetermined number of copies from the first copies subsequently passing <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Check copy extractor for newspaper conveyor Background of the Invention In todays high speed web fed newspaper presses, which are predominately offset presses with multi-color capability, automatic inking and dampening control, etc., it is essential to be able to remove expeditiously check copies from the stream of overlapped newspaper copies originating from the press.

Extraction of check copies is especially important on press start-up to insure that the quality of the printed product meets required standards. Obviously, it is advantageous to be able to quickly obtain check copies at various stages during a press run to insure continuing proper performance of the press. Failure to check the performance of the press at start-up or at periodic intervals during a run can result in high waste and thereby reduce the commercial effectiveness of the entire printing operation.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide a check copy extractor for use with the out flow conveyor system of web fed newspaper presses which will readily and accurately remove a selected number of check copies from the copy stream upon command by an operator.

A further object of this invention is to provide a check copy extractor which forces a gap in the copy stream, senses the gap, senses the next copy following the gap, automatically removes the desired copies and then automatically resumes normal copy flow.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a check copy extractor which utilizes a radiant energy sensor system for detecting the presence and absence of copies in the copy flow stream.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be in part obvious and in part explained by reference to the accompanying specification and drawings in which: Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a portion of a newspaper copy conveyor showing the check copy extractor according to the invention applied thereto; Figure 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but with portions thereof omitted and showing the check copy extractor in its activated position; Figure 3 is a top view of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1; and Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the circuitry for controlling the check copy extractor.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment Referring to the drawings wherein only as much of a conventional newspaper copy conveyor is depicted as is necessary to a complete understanding of the invention, there is shown in Fig. 1 a portion of the conveyor's framework which is depicted generally by numeral 1 0. Among its various parts, the framework includes a pair of spaced upper tubular members 1 2 which extend in parallel relation and a pair of lower tubular members 14 that are spaced from and in vertical alignment with said upper tubular members 1 2.

These upper and lower tubular members are interconnected by opposed and vertically extending rectangular plates 1 6 and 1 8 which adjacent their ends are assembled to said tubular members by means of U-bolts 20.

With the rectangular plates being disposed in opposed relation, they provide a means for rotatably supporting well known idler rolls 22 that are provided with the usual circumferential grooves for guiding a plurality of conventional endless stream wires 24 which during the performance of their intended function are caused to advance a stream of folded newspapers 26 in overlapping relation. The idler rolls 22 are mounted on individual shaft 28 (Fig.

3) with the ends of the latter being supported in aligned openings not shown provided in the rectangular plates 1 6 and 1 8 respectively.

As shown in Figs. 1-3 the conveyor is provided with a pair of elongated support plates 30 and 32 which are mounted in spaced and aligned relation to the tubular members 1 2 and 14 by means of U-bolts 34 in the same manner as the rectangular plates 1 6 and 1 8. The check copy extractor according to the invention is carried by the support plates 30 and 32 and includes a gap forming means generally indicated by numeral 36 and means indentified generally by numeral 38 for extracting check copies from the stream.

With reference to Figs. 1 and 3, a junction box 40 is mounted on the outer side of the support plate 30 and serves to operatively interconnect the circuitry of the device with the various elements for activating and deactivating the gap forming means 36 and extracting means 38 in a pre-selected manner.

This junction box 40 is connected to a control panel (not shown) by means of a conduit 42.

The various elements comprising the gap forming means 36 include a pneumatic cylinder 44 that is pivotably attached as at 45 to a mounting bracket 46 which in turn is assembled to a support bracket 48. Support bracket 48 is mounted on the inner side and adjacent the top edge of the support plate 30. The piston rod extending outwardly from the pneumatic cylinder 44 is depicted by numberal 50 and its outermost end is pivotably connected to a lever 52 and is fixed on a shaft 54. Shaft 54 traverses the distance between the support plates 30 and 32 and its ends are journaled in suitable bearings 56 and 58 which are assembled to the inner sides of said support plates.

Shaft 54 has a pair of spaced and aligned levers 60 and 62 fixed thereon that extend in the general direction of the direction of flow of the stream of newspapers which is depicted by the indicating arrow 64 in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. The ends of levers 60 and 62 most remote from shaft 54 are pivotably connected to upwardly extending ear members 66 and 68 which form a part of and that are located adjacent one end of a pair of elongated arms 70 and 72 respectively. These elongated arms 70 and 72 are disposed above and in alignment with the stream of newspapers that are adapted to be carried by the plurality of stream wires 24. Adjacent the opposite ends of the elongated arm members 70 and 72, upwardly directed ear members 74 and 76 respectively are provided with the upper ends thereof being pivotably connected to generally downwardly directed levers 78 and 80 respectively.Levers 78 and 80 are pivotably mounted on a shaft 82 which as shown in Fig. 3 is supported so as to extend between the upper tubular members 1 2 by means of mounting brackets 84 and 86 that are attached to said tubular members by means of U-bolts 88.

The pneumatic cylinder 44 is connected to any suitable source of compressed air not shown by means of a supply line 88 and as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 the compressed air is caused to flow through a conventional arrangement of a pressure control valve and filters generally indicated by numeral 90.

Compressed air is directed to the pneumatic cylinder 44 through a reversing valve 92 which in turn is operatively connected to the junction box 40 and through the conduit 42 to an extract switch 94 (Fig. 4) that forms a part of a control panel not shown.

In Fig. 1 the elongated arms 70 and 72 of the gap forming means 36 are shown in their inactive or elevated position whereat they will not interfere with a stream of newspapers traveling immediately beneath said arms.

Upon selective actuation of the extract switch 94, the piston rod 50 is drawn into the pneumatic cylinder 44 causing lever 52 and shaft 54 to turn in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2. This motion is effective in causing levers 60, 62 and levers 78 and 80 to also move in a clockwise direction which in turn will simultaneously move the elongated arms 70 and 72 from that position depicted in Fig. 1 to that position shown in Fig: 2. In the Fig. 2 position, the downstream ends of the elongated arms 70 and 72 are caused to bear against the newspapers and to exert a downward force on a horizontally disposed plate member 96, across which said papers normally travel thereby stopping the stream and forming a gap as shown in this figure of drawing.Plate member 96 traverses the distance between the support plates 30 and 32 and is mounted therebetween on a pair of aligned brackets 98 (one only shown) that are fixed to the inner surfaces of said support plates.

The gap formed by stopping the flow of newspapers is detected by a sensing means comprising the combination of a radiant en ergy emitter 100 mounted on the support plate 30 and a radiant energy receptor 102 mounted on the support plate 32. The energy receptor 102 is positioned at a level which is lower than that of the light source so that the beam of light from the radiant energy emitter will ordinarily be blocked by the newspapers which are flowing through the conveyor appa ratus.

When the gap is detected by the sensing means the latter is effective in activating the check copy extractor means 38 now to be described. As shown in Figs. 1-3 the extrac tor means is disposed downstream of the gap forming and sensing means and includes a pneumatic cylinder 104 which is pivotably mounted as at 106 to a mounting bracket 108. This mounting bracket 108 is attached to an integrally formed and laterally extending ear 110 formed on the lower end of a de pending support plate 11 2 which is attached to the lower portion of the support plate 30 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The pneumatic cylinder 104 extends in an upwardly direction and receives its source of compressed air through a reversing valve 114 which in turn is connected to the same com pressed air source as the pneumatic cylinder 44.

The piston rod extending outwardly and upwardly from the pneumatic cylinder 104 is depicted by numeral 11 6 and as shown in Fig. 3, its outermost end is attached to one end of a horizontally disposed bar 11 8 which extends for a portion of the distance between the support plates 30 and 32.

Adjacent and extending parallel with bar 118 a shaft 1 20 is provided which traverses I the distance between the support plates 30 and 32 and with the ends thereof being suitably fixed in aligned openings provided in said support plates. A pair of spaced and aligned blade members indicated generally by numeral 1 22 are mounted intermediate their ends for pivotable movement on shaft 1 20.

The ends of these blade members depicted by numeral 1 24 are provided with aligned open ings through which bar 11 8 is caused to extend. The opposite ends of the blade mem bers 1 22 are tapered as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and define fingers 1 26 which are intercon nected by a bar member 1 28 (Fig. 3). Shaft 1 20 in addition to the blade members 1 22 has a plurality of sheave members 1 30 rotata bly assembled thereon which serve to guide endless stream wires 24 coming from any desirable exit conveyor apparatus (not shown) which is located in operative association with I the copy conveyor and in general alignment with said sheave members.

Intermediate the gap forming means 36 and the check copy extractor 38, an idler roll 1 32 is provided which is assembled between the support plates 30 and 32 and serves to guide endless stream wire 24 angularly downward to the exit conveyor apparatus. By means of an endless belt 1 34 (Figs. 1 and 3) the idler roll 1 32 is operatively connected to a shaft encoder 1 36 the purpose of which will be more fully described hereinafter.

To summarize the operation, the check copy extractor apparatus is provided with a control panel having the necessary control logic for the desired sequence of activating and deactivating of the various elements of said apparatus so as to effect accurate extraction of a pre-determined number of newspaper copies from the conveyor. The control panel is provided with a momentary push button switch that the press operator controls to selectively activate the check copy extractor and which includes two displays, one of which indicates that the power is on, and the other to indicate that the extractor is ready for actuation. The ready signal is generated when a stream is present as detected by the sensing means when the blade members 1 22 of the extracting means 36 are not in a position to effect removal of check copies from the conveyor.

When the extract switch is activated the pneumatic cylinder 44 is effective in moving the elongated arms 70 and 72 from the position shown in Fig. 1 to that position shown in Fig. 2 whereat the flow of newspapers 26 is stopped as shown in the latter figure df drawing. The gap in the stream caused by the stopping of the newspaper flow is then detected by the sensing means formed by the radiant energy emitter 100 and its cooperating receptor 102.

When the gap is detected the sensing means through its cooperating circuitry is effective in initiating simultaneous actuation of both penumatic cylinders 44 and 1 04. Pneumatic cylinder 104 draws its piston rod inwardly and downwardly and through its connection with bar 11 8 is effective in pivoting the blade members 1 22 to that position shown in Fig. 2 whereat its fingers 1 26 extend into the pathway which the stream is caused to follow and forms an opening leading to any suitable exit conveyor apparatus.

Pneumatic cylinder 44 pushes its piston rod outwardly and through the cooperating linkage interconnecting it with the elongated arms 70 and 72, the latter are raised to the position shown in Fig. 1 permitting the flow of the newspapers to resume. The sensing means is then utilized to detect the leading edge of the first paper following the gap which when detected pulses from the shaft encoder are caused to be counted. Pulses counted are based on a pre-determined number of inches of wire travel so that when a pre-selected number of check copies enter the opening leading to the exit conveyor apparatus, the pneumatic cylinder 104 is again actuated so as to return the fingers 1 26 of the blade members 1 22 to that position shown in Fig. 1 and the newspapers again flow in a normal manner through the conveyor.

Although the present invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that modifications and variations may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as those skilled in the art will readily understand. Such modifications and variations are considered to be within the purview and scope of the invention and the appended

Claims (8)

claims. CLAIMS

1. In combination with a newspaper copy conveyor system in which the copies are transported from the printing press to a stacking and loading area in overlapping, stream relationship by means of endless conveyors mounted on supporting framework, extractor means for removing check copies from the overlapping copies in transit, said extractor means being supported by the conveyor framework and comprising:: (a) gap forming means mounted for movement between an open position where no impedance of the copy stream occurs and a closed position where impedance to flow of the copy stream past a selected point does occur and a gap is thereby created in the copy stream; (b) means to move said gap forming means between said open and closed positions; (c) check copy extractor means mounted downstream from said gap forming means and movable between a copy extracting position and a copy non-extracting position; (d) means to move said extraction means between said extracting and non-extracting positions; (e) sensing means mounted outside the edges of the copy stream intermediate said gap forming means and said extractor means; (i) to sequentially determine the existence of a gap in the copy stream and the presence of the copy next following the gap; and (ii) to initiate a signal at the time each determination is made.

(f) means responsive to the gap sensing signal of said sensing means to activate said extractor moving means and move said extractor to said extracting position and simultaneously activate said gap forming moving means to move said gap former to said open position; and (g) means responsive to signal resulting from the presence of the copy next following the gap to activate said extractor moving means and move said extractor to said non active position when the copy next followng the gap is sensed.

2. Extractor means as defined in claim 1 wherein said gap forming means comprises: (a) an elongated arm capable of impeding the copy flowstream; (b) means pivotally connecting said elongated arm to the framework substantially adjacent the upstream end of said arm; and (c) means operably connecting said gap forming moving means to said bar so that the downstream portion thereof can be moved between said open and closed positions about the axis of said pivotal connection.

3. Extractor means as defined in claim 2 wherein said means operably connecting said gap forming means to said bar comprises a bell crank lever having one leg of such length as to cause said bar to form an acute angle with the endless conveyor when said bar is in said closed position.

4. Extractor means as defined in claim 1 wherein said check copy extractor means include fingers that are mounted for pivotal movement into the copy stream to obtain check copies.

5. Extractor means as defined in claim 1 wherein said sensing means includes a radiant energy emitter and a radiant energy receptor and is mounted in such a way that the radiant energy intercepts the plane of the copy stream during operation.

6. Extractor means as defined in claim 5 wherein said emitter and receptor are mounted on the same side of the copy stream at a pre-selected elevation with respect to the plane of the copy stream and a radiant energy reflector is mounted on the opposite side of the copy stream at an elevation with respect to the plane of the copy stream which is opposite in direction to that at which the said emitter and receptor are located.

7. A process for extracting check copies from a stream of overlapping copies of newspapers comprising: (a) impeding the flow of the copy stream past a pre-selected point to create a gap in the stream; (b) sensing the creating of the gap thus created; (c) releasing the impeded copy stream; and (d) removing a pre-selected number of check copies from the first copies of the released copy stream.

8. Copy extractor means for a newspaper conveyor system substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.