793,694. Bundling and stacking laths. WHEELING STEEL CORPORATION. Nov. 25, 1954 [June 29, 1954], No. 34182/54. Class 94(1). [Also in Groups XXII and XXIV] Laths, e.g., expanded metal laths issuing from a sheet-expanding machine, are formed into a pile at a piling station, the pile shifted to a bundling station and formed into a bundle by fastening means passed through holes in the laths, and the bundles delivered to a stacking station. The bundles may be stacked with the strands of the sheets extending alternately in opposite directions. Steel strip 2<SP>1</SP> from a reel 1<SP>1</SP> is fed through a rotary slitter 4<SP>1</SP>, an expander 51 which expands the strip into expanded lath, a roller leveller 6<SP>1</SP>, pinch rolls 9<SP>1</SP> and flying shears 10<SP>1</SP> which cut the strip into sheets. The sheets are passed by a speed-up conveyer 11<SP>1</SP> to pivoted arms 50, 51, Fig. 9, of a bundler 12<SP>1</SP>, and as each sheet passes under a roller 55 it operates a switch to separate the arms 50, 51 allowing the sheet to drop on to edge supports 94, 95, 96, 105, 106, 107, Fig. 7, the arms 50, 51 returning to support the next sheet. When ten sheets have been dropped, the supports 94, 95 &c. are lowered transferring the pile to a binding station, another set of edge supports 97, 98, 99, 108, 109, 110 being turned in to catch the following laths. At the binding station the side edges of the pile are gripped by jaws 298, Fig. 17, and a hollow rotary needle 280 fed with binding wire is raised to pierce the pile. The wire is thus fed through the pile and through holes in a yoke 289 embracing the edge of the pile, and is then cut by shears 232 and the yoke rotated two revolutions to twist the ends. Three binders are arranged on each side of the binding station to provide six fastenings for each bundle of laths. A conveyer 142 carries the bundle to a turntable 13<SP>1</SP> which is then rotated through 90 degrees and the bundles are drawn by arms 376 into a coating station 14 after which they are dried and delivered to a packaging station, where say fifty bundles are bound together in a package. The turntable 13<SP>1</SP> rotates in opposite directions for successive bundles of laths so that if the sides of the bundles are at an angle the bundles may be stacked vertically. If the reel 1<SP>1</SP> is mounted on a horizontal axis the lath delivered from the expander will be inclined and a guide is interposed between the roller leveller 61 and the pinch rolls 9<SP>1</SP> to return the lath to the horizontal plane. Stacker, Figs. 7 and 9. As each lath is cut from the expanded strip by the flying shears 101 its leading edge is resting on the speed-up conveyer 11<SP>1</SP> which carries it rapidly into the stacker between guides 33 on to the pivoted arms 50, 51 operated by a pneumatic cylinder 47. As the lath passes under roller 55 it operates a switch which through a timing device opens a compressed air valve to operate the cylinder 47 and move the arms apart, allowing the lath to drop on to the series of supports 94, 95, 96, 105, 106, 107, after which the arms 50, 51 return to the position shown in time to receive the next lath. The switch also operates a counter, and after ten laths have dropped a camshaft 62 is driven to rotate cams 63 . . . 73, Fig. 7, causing the supports, which are mounted on slidable and rotatable columns 90, to descend to the binding station and another set of supports 97, 98, 99, 108, 109, 110, which are at their highest elevation, to be turned inwardly into a position to support the next series of sheets to be dropped from the arms 50, 51. Binders, Figs. 9 and 17. Three binding units 185 arranged on each side of the stacker are each driven by a motor 190 through stepped sun and planet gearing (see Group XXIV) and are slidable towards and away from centre line of the stacker and moved inwards by cams on the shaft 62, as soon as the stack of laths reaches the binding position. so that the edges of the stack come between a shelf of each binder and a jaw 298 which is then lowered by a cam 304 to clamp and compress the edge of the stack. Shear knives 232, 234 for the binding wire are moved apart by cam rollers 229, 230 and the yoke 285 is moved forward by cam roller 295 to embrace the edge of the stack. Binding wire is positively fed through conduits 379, Fig. 9, to each binder, a switch 380 indicating the presence of wire. The wire is fed upwardly through a rotating tube 274 to a rotating needle 280 having an eccentric point 281. The needle is raised, the rotating point describing a helical path to find a hole in each lath and deform the mesh slightly if necessary to create a hole straight through the stack. Meanwhile the binding wire is being fed upwardly through the tube 274 and the needle 280 by feed rollers beneath the lower end of the tube 274, the needle moving faster than the wire so that its end is ahead of the wire while it is passing through the stack. The end of the wire will reach above the bundle and pass through the upper aperture 290 of the yoke 289 before the needle is retracted. The shears 232. 234 are then operated to cut the wire, and carriage 235 is retracted until the yoke 289 is clear of the edge of the stack, the yoke is then rotated two revolutions by gear 291 to twist the ends of the wire. The supports 94, 95, 96, 105, 106, 107 are then lowered further and rotated to the outward or inoperative position, the tied bundles of laths resting on supports 141, the binding units withdrawn from the edge of the bundle and the supports 94 &c. elevated to the same level as the supports 97 &c. supporting the next stack. A frame 138 carrying the supports 141 is then lowered, depositing the bundle on a conveyer 142 in front of a dog 177 on the conveyer, which is then started to move the bundle on to the turntable. Turntable, Fig. 28. This comprises a platform 364 mounted on a slidable and rotatable pillar 314 with gear teeth 360 engaging a rack 354 operated by a cam so as to rotate the table through 90 degrees alternately in opposite directions. A cam 336 acts on a lever 347 with rollers 350 engaging the bottom of the pillar 314 to raise and lower the table, which is in its lowermost position when the dogs 177 move the bundle on to the table between guides 371. The table is then partially elevated by the cam 336 so that the end of the bundle will be clear of the conveyer 142 and dogs 177, and then rotated through 90 degrees so that the bundle is turned sideways, and cam 336 then raises the table to its full elevation, the guides 371 being lowered beneath the level of the platform 364 against the action of springs 367 by a retainer 373 contacting a boss on the frame 313. In this position the bundle is located just beneath the arms 376 which draw the bundle into the coating station 14. Specification 793,693 [Group XXII] is referred to.