US3917251A

US3917251A - Method for the high speed folding of sheet paper

Info

Publication number: US3917251A
Application number: US436716A
Authority: US
Inventors: Lise Stephen W De; Lise Frank C De
Original assignee: S AND F DELISE REALTY CORP
Current assignee: S AND F DELISE REALTY CORP
Priority date: 1974-01-25
Filing date: 1974-01-25
Publication date: 1975-11-04
Anticipated expiration: 1992-11-04

Abstract

A process for the high speed folding of sheet paper employing an automatic folding machine comprising applying a line of adhesive to the sheet paper and initial folding said sheet of paper parallel to the line of adhesive on the sheet for producing multi-page signatures.

Description

United States Patent De Lise et al. Nov. 4, 1975 METHOD FOR THE HIGH SPEED FOLDING 3,588,085 6/1971 Bailey 270/53 0F SHEET PAPER 3,743,273 7/1973 Katz 270/37 3,784,185 1/1974 Katz 270/37 [75] Inventors: Stephen W. De Lise, West Islip; Frank C. De Lise, Nissequogue, bot f Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell 73 S & F D Rea C Assistant Examiner-A. Heinz 1 lgnee Lynbrooi y orporauon Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Stanley Ira Laughlin [22] Filed: Jan. 25, 1974 [21] App]. No.: 436,716 [57] ABSTRACT [52] US. Cl. 270/37; 270/53 A process for the high speed folding Of sheet paper [51] Int. Cl. B4lL 43/12 em loying an automatic folding machine comprising [58] Field Of Search 270/ 37-38, applying a line of adhesive to the sheet paper and ini- /5 93/61 62 tial folding said sheet of paper parallel to the line of adhesive on the sheet for producing multi-page signa- [56] References Cited tures.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 494,233 1/1893 Scott 270/13 3 Claims, 1-11 Drawing Figures sheet 1 012 I 3,917,251

US. Patent Nov. 4, 1975 METHOD FOR THE HIGH SPEED FOLDING OF SHEET PAPER and pasting of sheet paper to produce eight, 12, 16, 24

to 64 page signatures, suchas brochures, flyers and booklets. The folding processes inthese machines comprise the steps of positioning the sheets of paper on a conveyor belt, applying an adhesive to the sheets of paper, cross folding of the sheets of paper in the buckle unit, right angle folding relative to the initial fold of the paper in the knife unit or another'buckle unit, and f1- nally trimming the pages to produce aneight page signature. If additional pages are required, additional steps employing knife or buckle "units before the steps of trimming the pages occur.

Present folding processes present 'm'any disadvantages such as when the adhesive is applied at the center of the sheets of paper before the buckle plate rollers, grooves are required in these-rollers so that the adhesive does not spread as the paper passes through these rollers. Although application of the adhesive to positions other than the center of the paper is possible, it is usually avoided because such operations entail machining additional grooves in the rollers. Also additional grooves may be the cause of undesired marks and defects in any paper passing through the rollers. Furthermore, the adhesive builds up in the grooves on the rollers requiring increased maintenance and loss of production time. Likewise, the adhesive gets on other parts of the paper causing a higher percentage of rejects.

Cross folding of the paper requires sheets of paper having a longitudinal dimension at least greater than twice that of one of the dimensions of the signature. Such papers may be difficult to control on the conveyor and result in a high percentage of rejections as well as loss of production time due to these rejections.

It is an object of Applicants invention to provide a method for increasing production of present high speed folding machines.

It is another object of Applicants invention to provide a method that is simple, economical and efficient for producing signatures having different sizes and shapes.

It is a further object of Applicants invention to employ presently designed equipment with less maintenance and less machine down time for operating changes.

It is still even a further object of Applicants inventive method to avoid employing sheets of paper of cumbersome lengths which are too awkward to be controlled properly in the machine.

The invention relates to a process in which the line of adhesive is applied either on or off center of the sheet paper in a direction parallel to its side edges and subsequently folding the paper parallel to the line of adhesive.

Applicants inventive method will be better understood by reference to the following drawings:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a conventional automatic folding machine.

FIG. 2 shows the folding machine of FIG. 1 modified in accordance with Applicants inventive method.

FIGS. 3(a), 3(b) and 3(a) illustrate prior art folding techniques of the automatic folding machine in FIG. 1 in a conventional sequence for forming an eight page signature. I

FIGS. 4(a), 4(b) and 4(0) illustrate Applicants inventive method to sequentially form an eight page signature.

FIGS. 5(a), 5(b) and 5(c) illustrate Applicants inventive method sequentially forming a plurality of eight page signatures.

' FIG. 1 shows a conventional combination automatic folding machine for the high speed folding of sheet paper to produce signatures usually having eight, 1 2, 16 to 64 pages of various sizes. The sheet paper 10 is individually supplied to buckle plate unit 14 via conveyor belt'system l2 and buckle roller system 16 for cross folding. In order to have the pages fastened together, it is'necessary to apply a line of adhesive 32 (see FIG. 3a); prior to cross folding, and this implemented by conventional adhesive dispensing device l8'positioned by support members 20. After the sheets of paper have been crossfolded folded traversely to the line of adhesive deposited by adhesive dispensing devices 18 in buckle plate unit 14, they are then individually supplied to knife folding unit 22 via conveyor belt system 24 for folding that is parallel to 'thelineof adhesive on the sheets of paper. Positioning the adhesive dispensing means 18 before the buckle plate roller 16 requires that a groove 26 be machined into buckle plate roller 16 to allow the line of adhesive 32 (FIG. 3a) on the sheets of paper to pass through without contacting the rollers.

As shown in FIG. 3(a), the conventional combination high-speed folding machine cross folds a sheet of paper 30 about axis x-x' in buckle plate unit 14 (FIG. 1) after application of adhesive 32 along the axis y-y' from dispensing means 18 (FIG. 1). The resultant from this operation is shown in FIG. 3(b) and comprises two sheets 30(a) and 30(b) joined at their centers 34 and tops 36. Folding of this four page resultant parallel to the line of adhesive 32 in knife unit 22 (FIG. 1) results in an eight page signature as shown in FIG. 3(0) when the top section is trimmed off. As a separate sentence Subsequent folding either parallel or traverse to the line of adhesive is implemented by means of additional conventional folding apparatus (not shown).

Applicants invention relates to modifying the conventional combination high-speed folding machine as shown in FIG. 2. Buckle plate unit 14 is removed and the adhesive dispensing means 18 is substituted therefore positioned before knife folding unit 22. Modifying the folding machine in this manner provides the advantage that the buckle plate rollers of the machine do not require grooves for the adhesive and therefore the adhesive dispensing means may be positioned anywhere along the surface of the sheets of paper. Likewise, for the same reason, any number of adhesive dispensing means may be utilized as more fully described in the following paragraphs.

As shown in FIG. 4(a), the folding machine as modified in accordance with Applicants inventive method parallel folds sheets of paper 40 about axis y-y after application of line of

adhesives

42a or 42b parallel to the y-y' axis from dispensing means 18' and 18" as shown in outline in FIG. 2. After the knife fold on axis y-y', the resulting four page signature without the adhesive contacting the rollers is shown in FIG. 4b and comprises two sheets 40a and 40b joined at their centers 44 and one edge 48 shown on the left hand side in 3 this Figure. An eight page signature is shown in FIG. 4(c) when the two sheets are again folded in another knife or buckle unit, and the edge 48 trimmed.

Although, it might appear that the same results are derived from the two processes described above, the advantages of Applicants inventive method will be more readily discerned upon closer scrutiny. Since Applicants adhesive applications can be positioned anywhere in a traverse position more readily without the necessity of machining grooves in the rollers as is presently required by conventional methods, a plurality of adhesive applicators can be used in Applicants method to increase the production of signatures of any size or shape as described as follows in reference to FIG. 5. Applying line of adhesive 52a and 52b to sheet 50 at locations which arenot symmetrical relative to axis y-y' will produce, after the the fold is parallel to said lines of adhesive made along the axis yy, two

sheets

50a and 50b.

These sheets are joined at three places;

centers

54a and 54b equidistant from axis y-y' and center 58, and center 58 and edge 60, respectively, and at axis y'y' as shown in FIG. 5(b). Additional folding along 54a and 54b will produce a pair of eight page signatures when cut along center 58 as shown in FIG. 5(0).

It is obvious that although Applicants inventive method has been described with respect to the above mentioned embodiments, said method is not so limited, but is applicable to such other embodiments as can be construed within the spirit and scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A method for the highspeed folding of individual on a portion of said surface on one side of said fold line i to adhere 'to a portion of said same surface on the other side of said fold line, (3) folding each folded sheet one or more times upon itself parallel to and coinciding with each of said lines of adhesive and said first fold line and triming the first fold of said sheets to produce muIti-page signatures.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the surfaces of each sheet contact and adhere substantially throughout the entire line of adhesives.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said folding step comprises folding along the center axisof said sheet.

Claims

1. A method for the high speed folding of individual sheets of paper traveling in a direction along a conveying means comprising the ordered steps of (1) applying adhesive to a surface of each sheet along one or more off-center lines parallel to said direction of travel, (2) immediately folding each sheet upon itself along a first fold line parallel to and not coinciding with any of said lines of adhesive to cause the line or lines of adhesive on a portion of said surface on one side of said fold line to adhere to a portion of said same surface on the other side of said fold line, (3) folding each folded sheet one or more times upon itself parallel to and coinciding with each of said lines of adhesive and said first fold line and triming the first fold of said sheets to produce multi-page signatures.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said folding step comprises folding along the center axis of said sheet.