Abstract: In a pleating machine having intermittently driven pleating rolls (4,5), between which a pleatable fabric can be inserted with the aid of pleating blades which are disposed on an upper and a lower blade beam and work in the manner of feed tongs, and in which machine the blade beams are pivotably mounted on arms on a blade shaft (13) which in turn is adapted to be swivelled to-and-fro and optionally to perform axial reciprocating movements, individual drives (17, 18, 19, 20, 21) are provided for driving the individual components participating in the pleating, which drives are associated with the individual components and whose functions are controllable by an electronic control device (22).

Abstract: In an apparatus for guiding the folding blades (3,5) and for actuating the tilting arm (24) of a blade bar (4) mounted pivotably on the jib (10) of a blade shaft (11), a reversible individual drive (23) with a pivoting member (21) which can move a rocker (16) to and fro between two positions serves for actuating the tilting arm (24). Mounted pivotably on the rocker (16) is an intermediate member (14) on which the tilting arm (24) is articulated on a pivot pin (13) at a distance from the point of articulation of the intermediate member (14) on the rocker (16). The geometry of the articulated chain formed by the jib (10), the pivoting member (21), the rocker (16), the intermediate member (14) and the tilting arm (24) is, at the same time, selected so that the tip of the particular folding blade (3) is guided along on the upper or lower contact plate (7,8 ) of the pleating machine as a function of the position of the pivoting member (21).