Abstract: A sheet handling apparatus includes first and second endless belts (38, 40) which are of resiliently stretchable material and parts of which are in cooperative relationship with respect to each other, a sheet (68) being fed through the apparatus while gripped between the cooperating parts of the belt drives (38, 40). One of the belt drives (40) passes around a pulley (60) associated with selectively operable actuating members (42, 46, 50, 52, 54). Operation of the actuating members (42, 46, 50, 52, 54) moves the associated pulley (60) so as to bring out a deformation of the cooperating parts of the belt drives (38, 40) and thereby change the length of the feed path for the sheet (68) through the apparatus. By operating the actuating members (42, 46, 50, 52, 54), the time at which the sheet (68) arrives at a certain location, such as a stacking wheel 75, may be adjusted.

Abstract: In a mail handling machine, mail thickness measuring apparatus associated with a singulator mechanism for measuring mail thickness as soon as individual mail pieces are separated by the singulator from a stack of mail pieces.

Abstract: The apparatus comprises two parallel and spaced apart conveyor belts and a toothed take-along belt guided parallel to and interposed between the two conveyor belts. The take-along belt has a thickened or otherwise rigidified section providing an engagement region. The belt runs at constant speed, faster than the conveyors. The engagement region runs slightly beneath the conveying surface of the conveyors until it reaches an engagement location, at which it may halt and then be instantaneously raised and restarted in response to a signal indicating an adjacent batch or leaves to lift the leaves off the conveyor belt and cause them to be moved with greater velocity than the conveyor belts to the delivery end thereof where they are stacked.

Abstract: A reproducing machine with a document feeding apparatus in which a document on a document stacker can be fed repeatedly after it is returned to the document stacker through a document feeding portion and a processing unit, and a feeding speed of the document can be varied by a control device. The feeding speed of the document when a single copy is required and the feeding speed of the document in a first cycle of copying when plural copies are required are set slower than that of the document in following cycles when plural copies are required in which the speed is set to a value as high as the processing power of the reproduction machine.

Abstract: High speed sheet feeders receive blocks or bricks of paper sheets, cards or folders stacked edgewise on a downsloping supply ramp, and singulate these for edgewise feeding in rapid succession. The frontmost sheets ready for feeding are buckled and fanned at their upper edges, and their lower edges are arched forward to form a dimple or ridge-shaped pocket by an underlying central traction singulator. A pair of ganged or synchronized feed belts engage the frontmost sheet and propel it rapidly downward edgewise, and a slanting discharge belt receives and diverts the sheet at even higher speed between the discharge belt and a tractive pinch roller. A transfer assembly beneath the discharge belt may receive sheets from an adjacent feeder and interleave them upon command with sheets delivered by the discharge belt.

Abstract: A contact exposure unit for the exposure of image-containing sheet material includes a housing having upper and lower portions separated by a transverse slot extending from an infeed end to an exit end of the housing, the lower portion provided with a plurality of driven rolls, each with a segmented foam covering, the upper portion provided with a like plurality of upper idler rolls having a segmented foam covering, the segments of corresponding upper and lower rolls being in opposite relationship with each other, the upper rolls being driven principally by contact with the lower rolls, and being adapted for low friction vertical sliding action in the upper portion of the housing, and a light unit having an aperture lamp opposed by a foam covered lower roller for the exposure of sheet materials fed through the slot and pressed between the light unit and the covered roll.

Abstract: An apparatus for and a method of conveying a printing paper imprinted with an image by a printing device to a developing apparatus. The conveying apparatus includes a cutter for cutting the image printed printing paper for every image, and contacting and releasing apparatus for raising and conveying a piece of the cut printing paper and for releasing a holding condition of the printing paper. In consequence, a plurality of the pieces of the cut printing paper can be maintained between the printing apparatus and the developing apparatus without overlapping thereof.

Abstract: A sheet stack delivering apparatus has first and second pairs of opposing tape conveyors, the first pair moving at a faster rate of travel compared to that of the second pair, and the tapes of each pair being selectively pressed against one another for effecting delivery of sheet stacks at the faster or slower rates of travel of the first and second pairs of tapes.

Abstract: A set transport including a direction changing device is disclosed which includes a sun roll 76, arcuate guide means 80, 81 around the sun roll 76 and a plurality of spaced planet rolls 77, 78, 79 which coact with the sun roll 76. The planet rolls are driven faster than the sun roll. Preferably the sun roll 76 has a rigid surface and the planet rolls have compliant surfaces and form an interference relationship with the sun roll.

Abstract: The apparatus for changing the position of printed products arranged in an imbricated formation comprises two band conveyors arranged in tandem as viewed in the conveying direction, and a position-change device arranged in the end region of the conveying-active path of the first of the two band conveyors. The disc-shaped supporting elements of the position-change device and each having a cam are seated at shafts, the rotational axes of which extend substantially perpendicular to the plane of conveyance of the first of the two band conveyors. The shafts are driveable synchronously and in opposite directions. The trailing or upstream edges of the printed products come to bear upon the disc-shaped supporting elements and the cams upwardly project in the region of the imbricated formation.

Abstract: A sheet transporting apparatus, for use in laser beam printers, CRT printers or the like wherein the apparatus transports a photosensitive sheet to an exposure station for forming images thereon. The apparatus includes a guide plate for guiding the sheet to the exposure station and a conveyor belt having levers on its outer surface for pushing the trailing edge of the sheet by movement of the lever along the guide plate. The levers cause the sheet to move initially at a speed V1 and then at a speed V2 which is less than a speed V0 at which the sheet is transported to a station for further processing of the sheet.

Abstract: A method for feeding a blocked sheet unit for continuously taking out a blocked sheet unit from a sheet unit forming section and feeding the blocked sheet unit to a subsequent step, the method for feeding a blocked sheet unit comprises a first step of taking out a generally half length of the blocked sheet unit from the sheet unit forming section. A subsequent stop includes forming a state where a lower surface of a front portion of a blocked sheet unit subsequently fed is partially superposed on an upper surface of a rear portion of a blocked sheet unit precedingly fed. The preceding blocked sheet unit and subsequent blocked sheet unit are clamped at the superposed portion together and simultaneously taking out the generally half length of the blocked sheet units. The final steps include subsequently separating the preceding blocked sheet unit from the subsequent blocked sheet unit one after another and feeding thereof to the subsequent step.

Abstract: A conveyor system for reducing the speed of double-piece cut banks being fed to a stacker is provided. Cut-blanks are fed in pairs with the spacing between the blanks of the pair being small and the spacing between the pairs of objects being large along a first conveyor towards a detecting device which detects the leading edge of the blanks. A delivery member consisting of two sandwiching rollers is variably driven in accordance with signals given by the detecting device so as to deliver from the first conveyor the first blank of each pair at a first higher speed and the second blank of each pair at a second lower speed. Blanks are thereby delivered to a second slower conveyor which may be as low as V1=2l/LV2 wherein V2 is the speed of the first conveyor, l is the length of each blank, and L is the distance between the leading edge of a first pair of blanks to the leading edge of a second pair.

Abstract: An apparatus in which a sheet is advanced into registration with information developed on a moving member. Spaced belts having a sheet gripper secured thereto move the sheet in a recirculating path of movement. The belts move at a first velocity during registration of the sheet with the information on the moving member and at a second velocity during non-registration of the sheet with the information on the moving member.

Abstract: An automatic photosensitive material conveying apparatus to be disposed between an recording apparatus and a developing apparatus having different conveying velocities. The conveying apparatus comprises an inlet for receiving the photosensitive material from the recording apparatus, an outlet for feeding the photosensitive material to the developing apparatus, a first and a second conveying units extending between the inlet and the outlet in parallel to each other, and a guide mechanism switchable between a position to guide the photosensitive material to the first conveyor unit and a position to guide the photosensitive material to the second conveyor unit. Each of the conveying units is selectively driven at the conveying velocity of the recording apparatus and that of the developing apparatus.

Abstract: A sheet feed mechanism in a light scanning apparatus includes two pairs of rollers for gripping and feeding a sheet-like medium such as a stimulable phosphor sheet or a photographic film in a subscanning direction. The two pairs of rollers are spaced a distance smaller than the length of the sheet-like medium in the subscanning direction. While the sheet-like medium is being fed by the sheet feed mechanism in the subscanning direction, the sheet-like medium is scanned by a light beam deflected in a main scanning direction substantially normal to the subscanning direction, for thereby two-dimensionally scanning the sheet-like medium.

Abstract: To increase the operating speed of a printing machine in which sheets are fed from a make-ready table (5) to a printing system (P, G; 2, 3, 65, 63), sheets are fed to the make-ready table in a transport direction and a lateral force is applied to the sheets as they are being fed to the make-ready table, for example by inclined belts (6-9).

Abstract: A loop is formed between upstream and downstream pairs of rollers by driving the downstream pair slower than the upstream pair and/or by a direction changing guide. The downstream pair of rollers is axially movable to bring an in-track edge of a sheet to a predetermined sensed position to cross-track register the sheet. The loop permits cross-track movement of the sheet despite engagement of the sheet with the upstream pair of rollers.

Abstract: A postage meter is mounted to a mailing machine at a location along the feed deck of the mailing machine such that a portion of the postage meter is in spaced relation to the feed deck to define a printing station. An inserter or other type of mailpiece inserter delivers a plurality of mailpieces to the feed deck of the mailing machine in a seriatim manner for the printing of an indicia on each of the mailpieces as it traverses the print station by the postage meter. The mailing machine is provided with a transport system comprising means for capturing each of the mailpieces as it is received from the inserter and controllably transporting the mailpiece along the feed deck and maintaining control during indicia printing by the postage meter and thereafter ejecting the mailpiece from the mailing machine. Also, a control means is provided for controlling the transport speed such that the initial velocity of the transport is generally equal to or greater than the velocity of the fed mailpiece.

Abstract: A method of and an apparatus for changing the conveying speed of shingled paper products after each of the individual products has been seized and accelerated, whereby the products are seized on its upper surface or its lower surface as a result of a cyclically recurring contact pressure exerted vertically or approximately vertically on the latter.

Abstract: A both side recording apparatus for recording on both sides of a sheet of paper includes printer main body provided with an image forming device and a table provided with a feed-back path. In a one side print mode, a sheet of paper is fed from a cassette and it is temporarily halted by a registration roller, and then the sheet of paper is moved past a photosensitive drum to thereby have a toner image transferred from the drum to one side of the sheet of paper. Then, after having the toner image fixed to the sheet of paper, the sheet of paper is discharged onto a tray. In a both side print mode, after image fixing, the sheet of paper is routed to the feed-back path, so that the sheet of paper is inverted and again fed toward the registration roller. In accordance with the present invention, it is so structured that a sheet of paper is transported at an increased speed while being transported at least a part of the feed-back path.

Abstract: An apparatus for grouping a plurality of printed or like objects into a plurality of equal sets, while they are conveyed in a row in which they overlap one another in a mutually equally spaced apart relation, includes an upstream conveyor supported on a plurality of rollers and a downstream conveyor disposed downstream of the upstream conveyor at a level of height which is lower than that of the upstream conveyor. At least one of the rollers is disposed above the downstream conveyor so that the upstream conveyor vertically overlaps the downstream conveyor to transfer each of the objects to the downstream conveyor along a downward path. An object holding device is provided above that portion of the upstream conveyor which is supported on the at least one roller.

Abstract: A quarter folder machine for accepting half fold signatures and converting them into quarter signatures. The machine receives half signatures in an incoming shingle running at relatively low velocity, strips and accelerates the signatures to travel seriatim in a high speed stream which passes through camming and crimping means to create the quarter fold. A decelerating and re-shingling section then converts the stream back into an output shingle which runs at relatively low linear velocity but at a high rate in terms of signatures per hour--for transport to some subsequent processing device. The machine is characterized by a very high throughput rate. It is flexibly adjustable to match to the velocity of and setback of an incoming shingle from various sources, and yet to determine by choice the setback and velocity of the output shingle.

Abstract: A device for forming separate batches of flat objects, such as folded box blanks, from a flow of blanks received from a delivery station of a processing machines, such as a folder-gluer, includes a belt conveyor, a counting device, and a movable stop which is movable parallel to the belt surface and also movable vertical to the belt surface with a control device to move the stop in response to sensed conditions. The control device controls a drive arrangement for the belt conveyor so that the speed of the belt conveyor can be driven at a greater rate than the speed of discharge from the delivery station during a selected period for separating the batch of blanks from the remaining flow.

Abstract: Documents are advanced to a registered position along the trailing edge of the exposure platen of an electrophotographic copier by a flat belt supported adjacent to the registration edge by a pulley formed with axially spaced indentations to produce corresponding corrugations in the belt. A registration gate having a blocking position in which transversely spaced fingers extend into the belt corrugations arrests the documents at the registration edge while the normal-diameter portions of the belt pulley press the document downwardly to prevent it from riding over the registration gate. Position pulses from an encoding wheel are counted to determine the position of the document, and drive motor is slowed to one-fifth its normal speed when the document advances within a predetermined distance of the registration edge.

Abstract: A method of aligning sheets during stream feeding of a multiplicity of sheets over a feed table to a first steadily rotating cylinder of a sheet-processing medium includes in a first feeding stage, conveying the sheets in an imbricated arrangement thereof via the feed table and in a given direction to an alignment region; in a second feeding stage, aligning a lateral and a leading edge of the sheets in the alignment region while the sheets remain in the imbricated arrangement thereof and without interrupting movement of the sheets in the given direction and, in a third feeding stage, accelerating the speed at which the sheets are stream fed to a peripheral speed of a rotating cylinder and feeding the sheets to the first steadily rotating cylinder, while finally aligning the sheets at front markers.

Abstract: A document dispenser capable of dispensing documents from a plurality of separate bins is constructed of a modular design. The dispenser is constructed by assembling the modules, one for each bin, with each module including an input hopper and a document feeder. The modules are connected together to feed the documents along a common delivery feed path to a stacker which is provided on a module on the dispensing end of the device.

Abstract: An embossing module for an automatic embossing machine utilizes a pair of opposed embossing element carrying wheels driven by oscillating bail arms which directly engage the embossing punch and die elements. An electromechanical interrupter mechanically decouples motion of the bail arm from the embossing elements in the event of a failure. The printwheels are driven by separate motors utilizing separate position encoders and common servo command circuits.

Abstract: In a built-in type radiation image recording and read-out apparatus, n number of stimulable phosphor sheets wherein n denotes a natural number of 3 or more are circulated and reused for image recording. Waiting zones or a stack zone for keeping waiting n-2 or more stimulable phosphor sheets exposed to a radiation are positioned between an image recording section and an image read-out section in the sheet advancing direction. Waiting zones or a stack zone for keeping waiting n-2 or more stimulable phosphor sheets subjected to image erasing are positioned between the image read-out section and the image recording section in the sheet advancing direction or between an erasing section and the image recording section.

Abstract: This specification discloses a sheet conveying device for correcting oblique feeding of sheets and conveying the sheets in a predetermined direction of conveyance. The sheet conveying device has first sheet conveying apparatus for conveying sheets, second sheet conveying apparatus provided downstream of the first sheet conveying apparatus with respect to the direction of conveyance, and apparatus for forming a loop between the first and the second sheet conveying apparatus by the conveying force of the first sheet conveying apparatus and thereafter displacing the second sheet conveying apparatus holding a sheet thereon in a direction perpendicular to the predetermined direction of conveyance.

Abstract: Printed products to be opened are held at their folded or spine edge and, with their open or fan edge located opposite to this folded edge, are fed forward with their fan edge leading into an opening or spreading device or apparatus. A lower portion of the printed products possesses a leading edge section or marginal lap section due to an off-center fold. Circulatingly driven grippers or clamps grip this lower portion of the printed products in the region of the leading edge section and guide it along a downwardly and backwardly curved path. The printed products are simultaneously further transported or conveyed by means of feeders or feeding devices. Both portions of each printed product (i.e. the upper and the lower portions) are thus separated from one another. A collating conveyor of a collating drum or cylinder can be inserted into the opening thus formed between both product portions. Such a collating drum or cylinder may possess a plurality of circulatingly driven collating conveyors.

Abstract: There is disclosed a sorter provided with transporter for transporting sheet members supplied with a first speed at a larger second speed along a transport path and plural bins arranged along the transport path for storing the sheet members transported by the transporter, wherein said second speed is so selected that, when a sheet member is stored in one of the bins, the succeeding sheet member does not arrive at the most upstream bin in the transport path.

Abstract: A conveyor belt transfer section moves printed sheets at constant speed from a printer to a platen type die-cutter, this constant speed being equal to the printer speed. The die-cutter is provided with an intermittently operated sheet conveyor having a gripper bar that is moved intermittently so as to fully stop in succession at a plurality of locations including an infeed station and a working station downstream of the infeed station. When the bar is stopped at the infeed station, sheet grippers mounted thereon are opened and are kept open while the bar is accelerated in the downstream direction. As a sheet approaches the infeed station, the bar begins to move away from the infeed station at an acceleration rate which permits the sheet to enter the open grippers on the moving bar. These grippers are closed to hold the sheet when sheet speed and gripper bar speed are essentially equal.

Abstract: The paper feeding device for a box making machine eliminates the intermittent paper feeding which gives rise to operational defects. The device operates continuously at a low speed to match the speed of feeding a quantity of paper with a timing correcting conveyor and increases the paper fed in the foregoing with the drawing belt conveyor in order to supply the paper to the timing correcting conveyor. Furthermore, the device detects the paper passing the shutter on the paper feeding belt conveyor and stops the paper feeding belt conveyor temporarily when the paper happens to be mounted on the pawl of the timing correcting conveyor. The feeding of the paper starts again after a time lapse so that the paper is positively mounted between the pawls.

Abstract: An original feeding apparatus for single or both side original copy has belts and rollers to carry an original to an exposure position a glass platen, motors for driving the belts and rollers, an electromagnetic brake and a drive control circuit to apply electromagnetic and electric brake forces on the motors, and a .mu.-COM to control the operation of the apparatus. The original can be stopped at the exposure position with high position, and both side original copy can be automatically performed without requiring the user to rearrange the originals after the copy operation.

Abstract: In a drive system for a document feeder transport for a copier with a drive output normally driven at a high speed for document transport and driven at a lower speed for document registration at a registration position, the improvement wherein the drive system comprises a drive motor and a high speed drive normally driving the document feeder transport through a normally closed clutch in the high speed drive, and a reduction speed system also simultaneously driven by the drive motor, the reduction speed system including a normally over-driven over-running clutch connected to, but normally disengaged by, the high speed drive, and a system for automatically rapidly and smoothly switching the drive output to the lower speed, as the document approaches the registration position, by opening the normally closed clutch in response thereto, whereby the high speed drive is disengaged and shortly thereafter the reduction speed system automatically begins to drive the drive output at the lower speed by the automatic eng

Abstract: A paper feeding apparatus includes a combination of feeding roller and paper separating member for feeding a plurality of papers on the paper holding board one by one and a combination of transferring roller and thrusting member for receiving paper from the combination of feeding roller and paper separating member and transferring it further. To separate the foregoing paper away from the subsequent one the peripheral speed of the transferring roller is determined higher than that of the paper feeding roller. Both the paper feeding roller and the transferring roller are arranged on a single shaft and thereby the apparatus is constructed in smaller dimensions.

Abstract: An original document feeding arrangement for use in a copying machine and the like which includes a device for feeding original documents placed on a tray, a device for transporting the original document thus fed up to a predetermined position on an original document platform so as to be stopped thereat, a device for driving the transporting device, selecting members for selecting speeds of the transporting device according to kinds of the original documents, and a control unit for effecting speed control of the driving device at the speed selected by the selecting members.

Abstract: A drive mechanism is disclosed for a document feeder which is used in supplying documents to-be-copied onto the glass top of a copy machine.The drive mechanism includes a set of feed wheels which remove the document to-be-copied from a document support and by rotating in one direction move the document to-be-copied against a set of drive wheels. The drive wheels, when rotated in one direction, move the document onto the glass top of a document copier against a stop, where the document is copied. Thereupon the drive wheels rotate in the opposite direction to remove the copied document from the glass top of a copying machine and deposit the copied document into a receiving tray.

Abstract: The invention relates to a process and to an apparatus for transferring a sheet of material. The process is characterized in that:at least two successive conveyors (11, 12) are connected, the second conveyor having a coefficient of adhesion which is higher than the first conveyor, andfirst, the speeds of said conveyors are adapted to the speed (V.sub.2) prevailing on the sheet as it arrives on the first conveyors, and then,when the sheet covers the second conveyor with a portion deemed adequate, the speed of the second conveyor is modified until it attains the speed (V.sub.2) at which the second conveyor is to deliver the sheet, and,finally, as soon as the sheet has let the second conveyor, the speed of the second conveyor is brought back to that of the first. The method and the apparatus for carrying out the method have particular application to printing and cutting machines.

Abstract: Disclosed is a sheet material feeding device which has a first row of sheet materials comprising a number of sheet materials moved in the direction of arrangement and provided in the form of a row and a second row of sheet materials disposed in proximity to the first row of sheet materials and which is for converging these two rows of sheet materials into a single row of sheet materials. Accelerating apparatus is disposed in the first row of sheet materials and at this position, a sheet material of the first row of sheet materials is moved at a higher speed than the succeeding sheet material to thereby enlarge the interval between the two sheet materials, and accelerating apparatus for feeding a sheet material of the second row of sheet materials into the enlarged interval is disposed in the second row of sheet materials.

Abstract: Document counter with discharge means comprising a support for a wad of documents, an endless conveyor belt which can be moved about a rotational axis, means for guiding the conveyor belt in the plane of the support to engage the lowermost document on the support, and collecting means comprising a flap wheel system which can be rotated about a rotational axis which is parallel to the rotational axis of the conveyor belt, flaps extending from the periphery of the flap wheel system, said flaps forming pockets mutually spaced circumferentially, which open in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the flap wheel system, and a receptacle located at the moving path of the flaps for receiving the documents from the pockets of the flap wheel system.

Abstract: A stack of sheets arranged in an input stacker pass through a nip formed by cooperating feed rollers and stripper assemblies, which serve to separate sheets and feed them one at a time toward an acceleration assembly comprised of acceleration roller and cooperating idler means to form a gap between adjacent sheets for counting the sheets. The accelerated sheets are then fed into an output stacker. Belts couple drive from the accelerating drive rollers to accelerating driven rollers rotatable about an axis coaxial with the feed rollers and also cooperate with stationary guides to cause the sheets to experience some acceleration prior to reaching the acceleration nips. Resilient members cooperate with the feed roller to halt a sheet, in the event of an abrupt halt during normal operation to prevent the sheet from advancing to the acceleration nip.

Abstract: To provide a belt transport path in which the belts cyclically decelerate and accelerate, to feed paper subject matter, for example from a "first longitudinal folding apparatus" to a "second longitudinal folding apparatus" at reduced speed, two eccenter pulleys are located in respectively different planes, for example parallel to each other, rotating on a common shaft, and having the same eccentricity (x). A first run of the belt is guided from the paper transport path to loop, in part, about a first eccenter pulley, then guiding a second run of the belt from the first eccenter pulley into the plane of the second eccenter pulley, and a second guide pulley guides a third run of the belt from the second eccenter pulley back to the transport path. Two belt system may be used, located in mirror-image relationship, or a single belt can be guided adjacent the run which contacts the transported subject matter (E) from an eccenter located outside the plane of the printed subject matter.

Abstract: A conveyor system wherein sheets (10) are conveyed from a cutter (9) or the like at a given speed, are increased in speed before passing through a vacuum conveyor shingling section (5), are slowed down at the shingling section and then normally proceed at the slowed-down speed to a stacker (8) which is adapted to stack a fixed number of sheets before discharging a stack. The sheets are basically handled in accordance with the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,200,276. To prevent scattering of the sheets during shingling due to high input conveyor speeds and the like, the vacuum conveyor shingling section (5) includes a second (or pre-shingling) conveyor (38) upstream of the original shingling conveyor (15). The pre-shingling conveyor operates at a relatively high rate of speed while the original shingling conveyor operates at a relatively low rate of speed (which nevertheless may be as high as the device of the patent) relative to the sheet input speed.

Abstract: A work advancing mechanism for a sewing machine which includes a driven circulatory belt for positively advancing the work beneath the presser foot of the machine. The belt is entrained about and driven by a wheel assembly having an adjustable operative circumference for modulating the lineal advancement rate of the belt.

Abstract: The present invention provides an installation for the continuous production of presecured folded cardboard packing cases, this installation comprising essentially a glueing unit, a folding unit, a two-speed positioning station and a stapler, disposed in line.According to the invention, the positioning station comprises two devices (17 and 34) for transferring the sheets, the first of which (17) is formed by mechanical chains (18) with retractable studs (24a to 24d) and the second (34) consists of a "drive sandwich" formed preferably from two superimposed trains of mobile belts (37 and 52), the upper belt train (37) being moveable in height. These first and second transfer devices may be made respectively inactive and operational, in response to setting the glueing unit alone in operation and respectively operational and inactive in response to setting the stapler in operation.

Abstract: A continuous scalloped stream of paper sheets is divided into a succession of discrete sections by an accelerating device in cooperation with one or more belt conveyors which receive the sections. The accelerating device has an elongated rubber pad attached to an endless chain conveyor which can move the pad into the path of movement of the stream of sheets toward the belt conveyor or conveyors. The belt conveyor(s) and the chain conveyor are accelerated from the speed of the advancing stream to a higher second speed as soon as the trailing end of the section which is about to be separated from the stream is engaged by the trailing end of the pad on the chain conveyor. The chain conveyor and the belt conveyor(s) are decelerated back to the speed of the stream as soon as the entire freshly formed section is transferred onto the belt conveyor(s) and before the fresh leader of the stream reaches the discharge end of the conveyor for the stream.

Abstract: A high-speed compact sheet handling device is disclosed. In this device sheet members are supplied from a stacking table to a required position and are ejected at a higher speed from that position to the stacking table, and the functions of supply and ejection can be effected at the same time.

Abstract: An article feed mechanism for use in association with a franking device which operates on mail, comprises a feeding mechanism which includes an article feed path which is oriented so that it may be connected over a feed path of the franking device and which includes two separately driven conveyor sections. The first conveyor is driven by a drive motor and comprises a plurality of drive rollers which operate on the articles which are arranged in a stack at a stacking area and delivers them one at a time to the second conveyor mechanism which includes a pressure drive roller acting to drive the lowermost one of the articles under a sliding apron and then for advancing it into association with a driven roller cooperating with another overhead roller. A first sensor is located between the pressure roller and the cooperating over and under rollers and it acts when an article is advanced to disconnect the drive motor for the first conveyor.