SUCTION BELT
A suction belt for conveying an object, includes a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of an object; and a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area, wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area.
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This application is a continuation of copending International Application No. PCT/EP2011/057318, filed May 6, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and additionally claims priority from European Applications No. 10162320.5, filed May 7, 2010, and US Application No. 61/332,338, filed May 7, 2010, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
Embodiments of the invention relate to a suction belt, more specifically to a suction belt for conveying an object.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONSuction belts are known in the art and may be used in a paper handling apparatus, e.g. an inserter, a assembly station, a merger, for conveying goods, e.g. one or more sheets of paper, one or more envelopes, one or more inserts.
In a paper handling apparatus there are situations when an additional object is to be added to an object already transported by the suction belt. In such a situation it is useful to ensure that upon adding the additional object no collision occurs. Further, there are continuously operating inserters in which an envelope and the goods move during the inserting process. The envelope is moved with a velocity lower than the velocity of the goods to be inserted so that as the envelope and the goods travel in the same direction, eventually, the goods reach the envelope and are inserted. In such a case, it is to be ensured that the goods securely cross the flap of the envelope. When a conventional suction belt is used, additional elements are to be provided for avoiding the above mentioned collisions.
SUMMARYAccording to an embodiment, a suction belt for conveying an envelope having an envelope front side, an envelope back side and an envelope flap at the envelope front side may have: a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of the envelope; and a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area, wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area, and wherein the envelope is arranged on the suction belt such that its envelope flap is arranged on the first area adjacent to the second area, so that during a filling process one or more goods to be inserted into the envelope pass the second area without colliding with the envelope flap.
According to another embodiment, a suction conveyor may have: vacuum generator, a first, driven roller, a second roller, and a suction belt extending around the first roller and around the second roller, the suction belt for conveying an envelope having an envelope front side, an envelope back side and an envelope flap at the envelope front side, and including: a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of the envelope; and a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area, wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area, and wherein the envelope is arranged on the suction belt such that its envelope flap is arranged on the first area adjacent to the second area, so that during a filling process one or more goods to be inserted into the envelope pass the second area without colliding with the envelope flap, and wherein the vacuum generator is arranged to provide a suction force to be applied to the envelope arranged on the first area of the suction belt.
Embodiments of the invention provide a suction belt for conveying an object, comprising a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of an object, and a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area, wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area.
Further embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.
Embodiments of the present invention will be detailed subsequently referring to the appended drawings, in which:
Thus, by means of a suction belt 200 as shown in
In the embodiment of
When using the suction belt for transporting one or more sheets of paper, e.g. a single sheet or a stack of sheets, one or more additional sheets can be placed on the stack without any collision because it is moved out of the plane 2041 in which the sheet is held by the suction force, thereby allowing to cross the already held sheet. Also when inserting goods into an envelope held on the belt with its flap at the first transition 214, the goods can be moved securely into the envelope over the flap. In accordance with embodiments the second area 212 is an integral part of the suction belt 200, i.e. the first and second areas 210, 212 are formed from the same belt 200. Therefore, a fixed positional relationship between the two areas is ensured allowing for a secure and reliable operation.
In the embodiment of
In the embodiments described with regards to
Another embodiment of the suction belt will now described with reference to
Further it is noted that any combination of holes and slits may be used for realizing the openings for applying a suction force. Also holes or silts arranged side by side in the width direction may be provided.
The envelope 412 is arranged on the suction belt 200 in its first area 210 with its second side 412c in contact with the suction belt 200, more specifically, a part of the second side 412c of the envelope 412 is arranged on the second part 2102 having no holes. Another part of the second side 412c to which an envelope flap 412d is arranged on the first part 2101 of the belt 200 having the holes. As can be seen, the envelope 412 is placed on the suction belt 200 such that a trailing edge of the flap 412d is arranged at the transition 214. The thickness of the suction belt 200 in the second area 212 is such that the distance d3 (see FIG. 2—the height of the upper side 2042 of the second area 210 above the upper side 2041 of the first area 210) equals at least the thickness of the flap 412d. In accordance with embodiments the distance d3 is less than a maximum opening of an envelope throat 412e during the filling process. In any case the height d3 is selected such that the object 410 is raised from the transport level of the envelope 412 so that it securely passes the flap 412d on its way into the envelope.
In the embodiments described so far the suction belt included the holes, the diameter of which defined respective suction areas, i.e., an area in which a suction force can be applied through the hole to an object on the belt. However, the invention is not limited to this kind of suction areas.
In accordance with the embodiment depicted in
While this invention has been described in terms of several embodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and equivalents which fall within the scope of this invention. It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways of implementing the methods and compositions of the present invention. It is therefore intended that the following appended claims be interpreted as including all such alterations, permutations and equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. A suction belt for conveying an envelope comprising an envelope front side, an envelope back side and an envelope flap at the envelope front side, the suction belt comprising:
- a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of the envelope; and
- a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area,
- wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area, and
- wherein the envelope is arranged on the suction belt such that its envelope flap is arranged on the first area adjacent to the second area, so that during a filling process one or more goods to be inserted into the envelope pass the second area without colliding with the envelope flap.
2. The suction belt of claim 1, comprising a top side and a bottom side, wherein the top side of the first area is at least partially below the top side of the second area.
3. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein the second area comprises a first, upwardly rising partial part, a second, horizontal partial part and a third, vertical partial part.
4. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein the second area comprises a first, upwardly rising partial part and a second, vertical partial part.
5. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein the first area comprises one or more openings extending from a bottom side of the suction belt to a top side of the suction belt, wherein a suction force can be applied through the one or more openings to the envelope arranged on the first area.
6. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein at least two first areas and at least two second areas are arranged alternately along the longitudinal direction of the suction belt.
7. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein the envelope is moved during the filling process, or wherein the envelope is stopped during the filling process.
8. The suction belt of claim 1, wherein the transition between the first area and the second area comprises a step or a ledge.
9. The suction belt of claim 1, comprising one or more shallow recesses formed in the top side of the suction belt, wherein the respective openings extend from the bottom side of the suction belt to the respective recesses.
10. The suction belt of claim 9, wherein the shallow recess is larger than a diameter of one or more holes connected the recess.
11. The suction belt of claim 9, wherein the one or more shallow recesses comprise small and/or large recesses, wherein a small recess comprises a width along the width direction of the suction belt greater than a length along the longitudinal direction of the suction belt, and wherein a large recess comprises a length along the longitudinal direction of the suction belt greater than a width along the width direction of the suction belt.
12. The suction belt of claim 11, comprising a large recess arranged adjacent to the transition from the first area to the second area with a small recess arranged between the transition and the large recess.
13. A suction conveyor, comprising: wherein the vacuum generator is arranged to provide a suction force to be applied to the envelope arranged on the first area of the suction belt.
- vacuum generator,
- a first, driven roller,
- a second roller, and
- a suction belt extending around the first roller and around the second roller, the suction belt for conveying an envelope comprising an envelope front side, an envelope back side and an envelope flap at the envelope front side, and comprising:
- a first area configured to allow applying a suction force to at least a part of the envelope; and
- a second area which is arranged adjacent to the first area,
- wherein a thickness of the suction belt changes at a transition from the first area to the second area, and
- wherein the envelope is arranged on the suction belt such that its envelope flap is arranged on the first area adjacent to the second area, so that during a filling process one or more goods to be inserted into the envelope pass the second area without colliding with the envelope flap, and
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 17, 2012
Publication Date: Jul 5, 2012
Applicant: BOEWE SYSTEC GMBH (Augsburg)
Inventors: Joseph BATZER (Leitershofen), Thomas HUBER (Stadtbergen), Helmut FOERG (Grossaitingen), Bernd HOEPNER (Augsburg), Reinhard SEILER (Aindling), Roland CELESTE (Kuehlenthal)
Application Number: 13/351,683
International Classification: B65G 47/91 (20060101);