US2283255A - Device for cutting and stacking thin sheet material - Google Patents

Description

y ,1 I R. F. HOLTZ 2,283,25 5

DEVICE FOR CUTTING AND STACKING THIN SHEET MATERIAL Filed Aug. 1, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Ray fiHo/fz AfTOR/VEYS May 19, 1942. R. F. HOLTZ 2,233,255

DEVICE FOR CUTTING AND STACKING THIN SHEET MATERIAL Filed Aug. 1, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Kay filo/f2 AT TORNE Y5 Patented May 19, 1942 Bay I. Bolts, Mount Lebanon, Pa

The Lithograph Press Manufacturing pony. Pittsburgh, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylaslignor to Com- Application sum 1, 1940. Serial No. mass This invention relates to a paper cutting and delivery mechanism especially adapted for use in connection with the feeding and cutting of paper in web cylinder lithographing or printing presses.

In such printing and lithographing devices the printed impression is made on the paper web after which it is severed into sheets of the desired size and the sheets are accumulated in a stack. The present invention relates to that portion of the press through which the web passes after the printed impression has been made thereon.

An object of the invention is the guidance of the web in its path toward the cutting device by means of a fiat plate against which the webis directed by means of a blast of air directed against the web surface. This air blast is preferably directed against the upper surface of the web on an acute angle thereto and in the direction of motion of the web so that the air blast has a brushing action which assists the web in its motion along the plate, and also maintains it fiat against the plate. By maintaining the web in a constant position as it advances along the plate toward the cutting device, the invention provides means whereby the severed sheets are exactly uniform in width.

In connection with this feature of the invention, it is a further object thereof to so arrange the air blast and the web supporting plate that the web does not come into close frictional engagement with the plate, but a very thin layer of air is disposed between them. This arrangement serves to decrease the friction between the web and plate and to permit the free advance of the web. In the form of the invention shown, this object is efiected by making the supporting plate somewhat wider than the web and so arranging the air blast that a portion of it is directed D against the edge portions of the plate which extend beyond the web. It is found that some of the aircomes to be spilled under the edges of the web and is effective in forming a very thin air cushion between the web and the supporting plate.

Where the severing device includes a rotating cutter blade, it has been found that the leading end of the web is arrested momentarily during the cutting operation, and that by virtue of the continuous advancement of the web, its leading end tends to curl up somewhat and raise up slightly away from the guide plate. It is a cognate object of the invention to cause the end so raised to be immediately pressed down into the plane of the plate by means of the air blast I after the severing operation is completed, so that the leading end of the web again disposed in the direction of feed and the advancement of the web in the proper direction is not interfered with.

After the severing of a sheet from a web, the sheet is advanced toward the stack, by means of a plurality of spaced conveyor tapes or belts, and it is a further object of the invention to provide a blast of air so arranged as to maintain the severed sheets in firm frictional engagement with the surface of the conveyor tapes. This blast of airissodirectedasto alsoservetcstripthe trailing end of the severed sheets from the rotating cutting blade of the cutting device, in case there is any tendency for the end of the sheets to adhere to the cutter blade.

Another object of the invention is the provision of sets of spaced conveyor tapes in which some of the tapes extend nearer to the stacking arrangement than others,'so that the advancing sheets are supported by all the tapes while they are being moved through the region in which the air blast is operative and are later supported by only the longer tapes in the region near the stacking device.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a stacking device for staclclng the severed sheets, which very rapidly takes each sheet out of its forward path of travel, as determined by the conveyor tapes, and depresses it until it is in position just above the stack. The

stacking device is arranged to mechanicallyurge the sheets successively toward the top of the stack while at the same time not pressing them against the top sheet of the stack. The arrangement is preferably such that a thin film of air is left between the top few sheets as they settle downwardly onto the stack. This arrangement provides a suitable time for the drying of the ink on the printed sheets, thus preventing their printed surfaces from becoming smudged.

A cognate object of the invention lies in the provision of an oscillatable member which engages the upper surfaces of the severed sheets and advances them downwardly onto the stack. It was found, in operating such an oscillatable member in a press. turning out from 300 to 500 sheets a minute, that the oscillatable member commenced to vibrate, and the vibrations set up therein caused it to sometimes come into the path of feed of the severed sheets at the wrong time and thus prevent their proper feeding. This action is prevented in accordance with the present invention by the provision of a resilient memher which is disposed in the path of the oscillatable member and serves to damp any vibrations which may be set up therein.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention, the oscillatable member is formed of a plurality of-spaced operating fingers supported on a single rod, provision being made whereby the'fingers engage the printed sheets over only a small area of contact. This is secured by making each finger thin and widening it out at its forward edge, this design of the fingers also serving to provide a greater degree of rigidity therein Where sheets of different length are to be handled in the same machine, it is desirable that the fingers be adJustable to accommodate their different lengths. It is accordingly a feature of the invention that the fingers are supported on the oscillatable rod which rocks them by means of adjustable clamping devices which may be readily adjusted along the length of the rod and secured thereon in any desired position.

Further objects of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art as the description thereof proceeds. For a better understanding of. the invention and the operation thereof, reference is made to the following specificatlon and the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 'is a vertical section taken on the line l-l of Fig. 8 of a web feeding. cutting and stacking device embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view showing a portion of the stacking device on an enlarged scale; and

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 1.

In the illustrated embodiment the invention is shown in connection with mechanism mounted at one end of the main frame of a printing or lithographic press, the frame having oppositely disposed side members I ii, i l which support a pair of brackets l2, l3 in which is journaled a shaft l4 carrying a wide feed roller I! over which passes the web of paper W which has been previously lithographed and/or printed in the machine by suitable means (not shown). The shaft I 4 is driven by a gear wheel l6 secured to one end thereof, the gear i8 meshing with a drive gear Il. only a portion of which is shown and which in turn is driven from any suitable gearing forming part of the press. Before reaching the feed roller IS the printed web passes over an idler roller l8 secured to a shaft is which is pivotally supported in a pair of rocker arms 20 secured to a shaft 2| which in turn is pivotally supported in the side frame members Il I. The position of the idler roller I! may be adjusted through a certain range for the purpose of controlling the position of cut ofl by means of a link 22 which is pivotally connected to an arm 23 secured to the shaft 2|.

A pair of feed rollers '24 secured in spaced positions on a shaft 25 engage the upper surface of the web W as it passes over the feed roller II, the shaft 25 being pivotally supported in a pair of supporting arms 26, 21 which are in turn pivotally supported on a shaft 28' which extends between and connects the brackets l2|3. The feed rollers 24 are biased against the web W under the action of a pair of springs 29, only one of which is shown, the upper ends of the springs being connected to the arms 26-21 and their lower ends to pins 33 secured to the brackets l2-i3. To adjust the position of the rollers to properly engage the web W, the end portion of each of the arms 26-21 is tapped to receive a threaded screw 3| the lower end of which is adapted to engage the upper face of the bracket I! or l3. By adjustment of the screws 3 I. the position of the feed rollers 24 with respect to the web W and the main feed roll ll may be quickly and accurately regulated. The shaft 25 is driven in the opposite direction to the shaft I 4 by means of a gear 32 secured thereto and which meshes with the gear I carried by the shaft l4.

A fiat brass plate 33 is provided to guide the web toward the cutting mechanism to be later described, the upper end of the plate 33 being curved upwardly, as shown, and tapered toward a sharp edge to assist in stripping the web from the feed roll l5. Plate 33 is supported on a cross bar 34 which extends between the side brackets l2 and I3. At the point where the web W leaves the feed roller I! it is engaged by an idler roller 35 which assists in directing the travel of the web down onto the plate 33. The idler roller 35 is mounted on a cross shaft 38 supported at its ends by a pair of arms 31, 38 pivotally mounted on the shaft 23. A pair of fixed abutment members 33, 40 are rigidly secured to the 'shaft 23, the outer end of the arms 31 and 38 being connected to the abutment'members 39 and 40 by the springs 4|, so that the idler roller 36 is held in yielding engagement with the upper surface of the web under the bias of the springs 4|. To limit the pressure exerted on the web and regulate. the position of the roller 35 with respect to the roller II, the outer ends of the arms 31 and 38 are tapped to receive a pair of threaded screws 42 whose lower ends engage the upper faces of the fixed abutments 39 and 40. From the above it will be clear that the degree of pressure exerted by the idler roller 35 on the web may be readily controlled by adjustment of the screws 42.

As the web progresses downwardly along the face of the plate 33, an air blast indicated by the dash lines A is directed against the upper surface thereof by means of a plurality of jets of air emerging from a series of spaced holes 43 provided in a pipe 44, to one end of which a hose connection 45 is attached. A source of compressed air (not shown) is provided for attachment to the hose 45 for supplying air thereto at a suitable pressure. The pipe 44 is supported by means of a pair of end supporting arms 46, 41 which are secured to the shaft 28 by means of the pins 48. As shown in Fig. l, the air blast A is directed downwardly against the surface of the web as it passes along the plate 33 in the direction of travel thereof so that the air pressure has an action similar to that of a brush in keeping the web fiat and any wrinkles therein by maintaining the lower surface of the web closely adjacent to the surface of plate 33. It has also been found that by making the width of the web, which corresponds to the length of each printed sheet, narrower than that of the plate 33, as shown in Fig. 2, some of the air blast is impressed against the edge portions of the plate 33 which extend beyond the web W and comes to be disposed between the web and plate 33 to form a very thin'film of air therebetween. This thin film of air is found to considerably reduce the friction between the web and the surface of plate 33 and facilitates the passage of the web along the guide plate 33. Immediately after the web leaves the lower end of plate 33 it poses over the upper edge of a fixed cutter blade 49 which cooperates with a rotating cutter blade 50 to sever the web at this point. It is found that there is a slight pause at the leading end of the web as it is engaged by the blade 50,

preventing proper direction of feed.

The cutting mechanism is supported by a pair of side supporting plates 8| which are connected together by a cross bar 62, the plates 8| being supported on the side frame members It and ii. The fixed cutter blade 88 is secured to the upper surface of the cross bar 82 by means of a pluraiity of securing. screws 68 and is adjustable along the upper surface of bar 62 by means of adjusting screws 58, only one of which is shown, and which are. threaded into tapped holes provided in anupwardly extending lug 68 formed integral with the cross bar 62.

For the purpose of driving the rotating cutter blade 50, the gear wheel I I engages the gear 66 carried by the shaft 25, which gear in turn engages a gear 51 secured to a shaft 68 which is mounted in the bearings 58 formed at the upper portion of the side plates Between the bearlugs 58, the shaft 58 is formed as a hollow drum 68, one end of which is shaped to provide a counter weight 6| for the cutter blade 58. The drum 60 is provided with a radially extending supporting arm 62 to which the cutter blade 58 is secured by a plurality of securing screws 63. The cutting edge of the blade 50 is not disposed parallel to the axis of shaft 58 but is inclined upward- 7 ly and rearwardly. as shown in Fig. 1, so that the web W is' severed progressively from its front to its rear margins. The hollow drum 60 also carries a cam 64 which is adjustably secured to the drum 68 by means of a securing screw 65 passing through an annular collar 66 formed integrally with the cam 64. The purpose of the cam 68 will be referred to later.

After the web has been severed into separate sheets of the desired width, they are advanced to a stack S by means of mechanism about to be described. This mechanism is supported in a pair of side frame members 61 each of which is provided at its lower end with an outwardly projecting supporting lug 68 which rests on and is secured to a cross bar 69, which extends across between and ties together the frame members l8 and II. By means of the construction described, the frame members 61 and the sheet delivery and stacking mechanism supported thereby may be readily detached from the main frame of the press.

Rotatably mounted between the side plates 61 are the parallel arranged shafts 10, II and I2, each of which is enlarged between its ends to provide a tape supporting roller as indicated at l3, l8 and 15. As shown in the drawings, four short flexible conveyor tapes 16 pass over therollers 13 and I8, and three longer conveyor tapes 11 pass over the rollers 18 and 15. In the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, the peripheries of the rollers 13, 18 and 15 are notched out at the region where they are engaged by the conveyor tapes for a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the tapes so that the supporting surfaces of the tapes are substantially in line with the peripheries of the rollers. Similar notches are also formed in the intermediate roller 18 in the regions where the longer tapes 11 pass over this roller so that the upper reaches of the long and short tapes are disposed in the same horizontal plane.- The conveyor tapes are driven at a speed substantially three times as great as that of the web W by means of a pulley 18 secured to-the shaft 12, which pulley is driven by means of a belt which passes over a large pulley 88 secured to the feed roller shaft H.

Mounted in the upper ends of the side Plates 61 is a pipe 8| to which compressed air is supplied by means of a flexible hose 82 from a source of compressed air (not shown). The pipe 8| is provided with a plurality of spaced apertures 88 through which an air blast B is directed against the upper surface of the sheets as they pass along the conveyortapes I6 and I1. The'air blast B is of suihcient intensity to cause a good frictional engagement between the severed sheets and the conveyor tapes so that the sheets will be rapidly conveyed awayfrom the cutting mechanism above described and delivered to a stacking device. It is also found that this air blast serves to overcome any tendency for the trailing end of each sheet to adhere to the rotating cutter blade which passes through the air blast as indicated by its position shown in dotted lines. This action, combined with the pressure set up in the air in front of the rotating'cutter blade 50 due to its rapid rotation, causes the trailing end of each sheet to be disposed substantially in the curve shown in Fig. l, as the sheet is advanced onto the conveyor tapes. A shaft 84 having its end secured in the side frame plate 61 carries a pair of hangers 85 each secured to the shaft by a set screw 85'. Each hanger 86 is provided with two spaced apart depending arms which are notched out at their lower ends, as shown, to receive a short shaft 86' to the center of which is secured an idler roller 86 disposed between the arms. The idler rollers 86 are biased against the sheet as it passes over the feed roller 15 by gravity to assist in the feeding of the sheet into the stacking device. It will be noted that the rollers 86 are not disposed in engagement with any of the conveyor tapes, but at positions therebetween.

It is to be noted that in the region of the air blast B, the sheets are supported by both the long and short tapes 16-11, so that each sheet is supported at a sufficient number of points that it is maintained substantially flat while passing through this region. Shortly after the sheet leaves this region, the same amount of support is not required so that the-sheet need only be supported by means of the three longer tapes shown in the illustrated embodiment. It is thus not necessary to continue the short tapes "to the feed roller 15. Also, by not continuing the short tapes to this roller, a considerably greater space is left thereon free to be engaged by the idler rollers 86, which are usually adjusted to engage theprinted sheet between the lines of printing thereon so as not to smudge the printed surface. It has also been found that if the longer tapes 11 are disposed at the extreme edge of the sheet the fraying of one of these tapes causes it to have a greater frictional effect on the sheet than the tape at the opposite side, which might not be frayed. This action, especially against the trailing edge of the sheet, causes amore rapid advance of one side of the sheet than the other, resulting in a slight turning of the sheet so that it is-not presented in proper registration at the stacking device to be presently described.

are deposited in the form of a stack S onto a movable platform 99 which is automatically lowered as the stack is formed by means (not shown) which maintains the top of the stack at a substantially constant height. The leading ends of the sheets come to rest against a plurality of vertical narrow rods 99 which are secured by the screws 90 to a tie rod 9I extending between the side plates 91. The sides of the stack 8 are defined by means of a pair of vertical plates 92 which are secured at the ends of the square rods 99. The rods 99 pass through similarly shaped openings formed through the side plates 91 and the projecting bosses 99 formed integral therewith, and are secured in adjusted position by means of a pair of thumb screws 99.

Upon the leading end of a sheet coming into engagement with the rods 99, it is immediately knocked down towards the top of the stack 8 by means of an oscillatable device which comprises a set of fingers 99, each of which is formed from a cylindrical metal rod bent into the shape shown in Fig. 1. Each finger ls flattened out and tapered, becoming somewhat thicker or higher toward its outer end, as shown, to increase its stiffness and cause it to present only a small area of contact with the sheets. All the fingers 99 are supported on a cylindrical shaft 9'! which is journaled for rotation in the frame plates 91, the shaft being cut away on its under side throughout most of its length to provide a fiat surface 99, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Each finger 99 is secured in any desired position of adjustment against the fiat surface 99 by means of a clamping collar 99 through which the shaft 91 passes, the collar having a bore I09 somewhat larger than a finger 99 and through which the finger extends. At its opposite side, each collar 99 is tapped to receive a threaded set screw IOI, the tightening of which causes each finger 99 to be seated firmly against the surface 99 and locked in position. This arrangement permits some of the fingers 99 to be readily removed when operating on narrower web (shorter sheets) and fewer fingers are required to stack the sheets. It also permits the fingers to be readily adjusted lengthwise of the shaft 91 so that each finger may come to bear on the printed sheets in the clear spaces between the lines of printing thereon, the lines of printing extending along the sheets in a direction parallel to the fingers 99. The shaft 91 has secured thereto a crank arm I02 which is connected to a second crank arm I09 by means of a link I09, the arm I03 being pivoted to a stud I09 carried by the rear side plate 91. The arm I09 also carries a cam roller I09 which is biased against the cam 99 under the action of a spring I01, one end of which is secured to a pin I09 carried by the side plate 91 and the other end of which is secured to a pin I09 carried by the arm I 02. The design of the cam 99 and the timing of the mechanism is such that the severed sheet has been advanced against the stop rods 99 and is completely under the fingers 99 at the instant of severage of the next succeeding sheet by the cutter blade 99. During the time interval between the cutting of the sheet and the advancement of its leading end up to the fingers 99, the latter have been lowered to their lowest position as shown in dash lines, to knock the severed sheet towards the stack under the action of the spring I91, and again returned to their topmost position by the cam 99. It is to be noted that the fingers 99 do not come into contact with the top T of the stack S, but when in their lowest position are disposed a small distance above it. It is found that at the high speed at which the press operates, the sheet pressed down by the fingers 99 does not immediately settle on the top of the stack but is separated from the next lower sheetby a thin cushion of air. The top five or six sheets thus have thin cushions of air between them until they finally settle on top of the stack, thus keeping the wet print on one sheet from oifsetting on the next following sheet and providing additional time for the drying of the ink without the noose-- sity of slowing down the operation of the machine.

When operating at high delivery speeds of from 300 to 500 sheets a minute, it was found that vibrations were set up in the fingers 99 which caused the outer ends of some of them to get out of alignment with the others, so that their ends were no longer in the same plane at the time of delivery of the sheets to them. This caused some of the sheets to strike against their ends and not be delivered under them for advancement to the stack, thus clogging up the machine. It was found that by damping out these spurious vibrations of the delivery fingers 99, this action could be overcome and each sheet properly delivered under the fingers. The means disclosed for this purpose comprises a steel rod IIO which extends between the side plates 91 and is covered throughout most of its length with a soft rubber tube II I having a substantial thickness. The rod H0 and tube II I are so disposed that the fingers 99 are pressed into firm engagement with the rubber tube III every time the fingers are at the highest point of their travel, as shown in full lines in Fig. 1. It is also found that the tube III acts as a guide to assist in positioning the fingers 99 when they are installed, all the fingers being in the same plane and in proper position when they are so secured on the shaft 91 as to be in firm engagement with the tube III when the roller I09 is at the high point of the cam 99.

I have described what I believe to be the best embodiments of my invention. I do not wish, however, to be confined to the embodiments shown, but what I desire to cover by Letters Patent is set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a device for severing a thin web into a plurality of sheets, the combination of web severing means, a substantially fiat plate having one of its ends disposed near the severing means, means for feeding the web along the plate in the direction of the severing means, and means for directing a blast of air against the surface of the web as it advances along the plate, the air blast being directed at such an angle to the plate as-to assist in the advancement of the web toward the severing means.

2. A combination as set forth in claim 1 in which the means for directing the blast of air comprises a stationary tube disposed above the plate and provided with a set of spaced apertures along the lower portion thereof.

3. A combination as set forth in claim 1 in which a portion of the plate is so disposed in the blast of air as to cause a thin cushion of air to be formed between the web and the plate.

4. In a device for severing a thin web into a plurality of sheets, the combination of a fixed cutter blade, a rotatable cutter blade adapted to cooperate with the fixed blade to sever the web, a substantially fiat plate having one of its ends disposed in alignment with the fixed cutter 2,283,265 'blade, means for continuously feeding the web along the plate toward the cutter blades, and stationary means for directing a blast of air against the web near said one end of the plate so as to cause the leading end of the web to be pressed downwardly towards the plate immediately after severance thereof by the cutter blades.

5. In a device for severing a thin web into a plurality of sheets, the combination of web severing means, a. feed roller over which the web is disposed, a substantially fiat plate having one of its ends tapered to form a thin edge disposed closely adjacent to the feed roller for stripping the web therefrom, the other end of the plate being disposed adjacent to the severing means, an idler roller adapted to engage the web in the region where the web leaves the feed roller and passes onto the tapered end of the plate, movable means for pivotally supporting said idler roller and arranged to permit the adjustment of said roller towards the thin edge of said plate and yielding means for biasing the idler roller into engagement with the web.

6. In a device for severing a thin web into a plurality of sheets and conveying the sheets onto a stack, the combination of fixed and rotatable cutter blades adapted to sever the web into sheets, a plurality of spaced endless conveyor tapes disposed below the level of the cutter blades and adapted to advance the severed sheets towards the stack, and means for directing a blast of air against each sheet to press it into frictional engagement with the conveyor tapes, said blast of air also being disposed in the path of movement of the rotatable cutter blade to thereby overcome any tendency for the trailing end of each sheet to stick to the rotatable cutter blade.

'7. In a device for transferring sheets severed from a web of thin material away from a cutting device, a conveyor construction comprising, in combination, a set of spaced endless conveyor tapes disposed below the level of the cuttin device, a second set of spaced endless conveyor tapes substantially longer than the tapes of the first set and the tapes of both sets having their upper reaches disposed in the same plane, and means for maintaining the severed sheets in frictional engagement with the upper reaches of both sets of tapes.

8. The combination as set forth in claim 7 in which the outermost tapes of the second set are disposed between the outermost tapes of the first set.

9. The combination as set forth in claim '7 in which the means for maintaining the sheets in frictional engagement with both sets of tapes comprises an air blast directed against the sheets while they are supported by both sets of tapes, the trailing end of each sheet being disposed outside of said air blast as it passes along that portion of the longer set of tapes which lies beyond the end of the tapes of the shorter set.

10. The combination as set forth in claim 7 in which the conveyor tapes of the second set pass over a feed roller and one or more idler rollers are disposed over said feed roller and adapted to press the sheets against the same, said idler rollers being disposed out of contact with any of the conveyor tapes.

11. In a device for arranging a plurality of thin sheets on a stack, the combination of means for supporting the stack, means for advancin the sheets successively into position above said supporting means and mechanically operated means for engaging the sheets in said position and advancing them rapidly downwardly towards the stack, said means being withdrawn from each sheet a short interval before the sheet is in contact with the upper sheet oi the stack.

12. The combination as set forth in claim 11 in which the mechanically operated means comprises a plurality of thin, spaced apart fingers arranged with their lower edges in alignment, and means for oscillating said fingers in unison.

13. In a device for arranging a plurality of thin sheets on a stack, the combination of means for advancing the sheets successively into position above the stack, an oscillatable member adapted to engage the sheets in said position and advance them rapidly downwardly towards the stack, said oscillatable member being subject to spurious vibrations when rapidly oscillated, means for rapidly oscillating said oscillatable member, and a rubber cushion disposed in the path of the oscillatable member and adapted to dampen out any vibrations set up in the oscillatable member.

14. In a device for arranging a plurality of thin sheets on a stack, the combination of means for advancing the sheets successively into position above the stack, an oscillatable member adapted to engage the sheets in said position and advance them rapidlydownwardly towards the stack, said oscillatable member being subject tospurious vibrations when rapidly oscillated and a member formed of resilient material disposed at the upper end of the path of movement of the oscillatable member and arranged to dampen out any such vibrations therein.

15. A device as set forth in claim 14 in which the oscillatable member comprises a plurality of thin, spaced apart fingers arranged substantially in alignment with each other and the member formed of resilient material is disposed crosswise of said fingers.

16. In a device for arranging a plurality of thin sheets having spaced lines of printing thereon on a stack, the combination of means for advancing the sheets successively into position above the stack, a shaft disposed near the stack, a plurality of cylindrical rods secured to said shaft at spaced positions thereon, the outer ends of said rods being thinned so that their lower edges provide only small areas of contact with the sheets between the lines of printing thereon, and means for oscillating said shaft to cause the rods to engage the sheets at said position and advance them towards the stack.

1.7. In a device for arranging a plurality of sheets on a stack, the combination of means for advancing the sheet successively into position above the stack, a shaft disposed near the stack, a plurality of fingers extending transversely of said shaft, a plurality of clamping devices adjustable along the shaft, and each being provided with a centrally disposed bore through which the shaft extend and with a second bore disposed normal to and in communication with said central bore,- said second bore being slightly larger than the diameter of a finger and the end portions of thefingers being disposed in the second bores of said clamping devices, adjustable screw mean for securing the clamping devices at desired, spaced apart positions on the shaft,

fingers into firm engagement with said fiat face, the inclination of said fiat race with a horizontal plans being such that the fingers are separated, when in their extreme lowest position, from the top the stack by a distance substantially greater than the thickness oi a sheet.

19. In a device for severing a thin web into a plurality of sheets, the combination of web severing means, a substantially fiat plate having one of its ends disposed near the severing means, means for ieeding the web along the .plate towards the severing means so that a marginal portion oi the plate extends for a substantial distance beyond each sideot the web and means for directing a blast of airagainst the said marginal portions of the plate and against the surface oi the web as it advances along thesp ate. the air blast being directed at such an angle to the plate as to assist in the advancement of the web towards the severing means.

20.. In a device for severing a thin web into a aasaass near the other end of said plate and arranged to feed the-web along the plate towards the cutter blades and an elongated tubedisposed above saidplate-and providedwith a series oi spaced apertures for directing a blast of air against the web near said one end oi the plate so as to cause the leading end or theweb to be pressed downwardly towardsthe plate immediately after severance thereof by the cutter blades.

21. In a device ior arranging a plurality oi. thin sheets on a stack oi sheets, the combination or means for-advancing the sheetssuccessively into position above the stack, a plurality of spaced apart fingers arranged to engage the sheets consecutively in said position and advance them rapidly downwardly towards the stack, said fingers being subject to spurious vibrations when rapidly oscillated between extreme upper and lower positions. and means for eliminating such spurious vibrations comprising a stationary rigid rod disposed transversely or and higher than said fingers when the latter are in their extreme upper position and a tubing disposed on said rod in the path oi movement or the fingers, said tubing being formed of resilient material. 7

RAY r. Hourz.

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