Paddle wheel for laying out folded products

A paddle wheel is used to deliver folded products to a conveyor belt in a shingled fashion. The paddle wheel has a plurality of pockets which are formed by circumferentially spaced curved paddles. The thickness or width of each product receiving product is adjustable by providing a guide strip in each pocket. The end of the guide strip adjacent the bottom of each pocket can be shifted radially with respect to the axis of rotation of each paddle wheel by actuation of a drive assembly.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a paddle wheel for delivering folded 
products in a scale-like or shingled flow or orientation. 
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
A device for receiving printed products from a folding apparatus and for 
delivering them to a conveyor belt is known from EP 0 164 440 B1. In this 
prior art device the printed products are received between two paddles of 
several paddle wheels, which paddle wheels are spaced at a distance from 
each other in the axial direction. For braking an incoming printed 
product, a pre-stressed lever arm is hingedly fixed in place on the hub of 
the device in the vicinity of the bottom of a paddle wheel pocket located 
between two paddles. 
However, it is disadvantageous in connection with this device that, because 
of their low mass, thin printed products in particular are difficult to 
insert between the lever arm and the paddle, which results in 
irregularities in the alignment of products placed on the delivery belt. 
A device for stacking sheet-shaped objects is known from EP 0 104 383 B1, 
wherein at least one of the several identical paddle wheel disks, which 
are spaced apart from each other, is turned with respect to the other 
paddle wheel disks in such a way that the spaces between the paddle wheel 
pockets of the various paddle wheel disks are no longer aligned with each 
other. Because of this the front edge of the sheet-shaped objects in 
particular is made wavy and is therefore clamped. However, this can only 
be accomplished in connection with thin products, wherein these thin 
products are possibly permanently deformed in an undesirable manner at 
their front edge. 
In accordance with another embodiment of the above mentioned EP 0 104 383 
B1, the paddle wheel pockets of at least one paddle wheel disk have 
elastic boundary walls which utilize, for example leaf springs, for 
clamping the products on the front. In this case, the same as in 
connection with EP 0 164 440 B1, it is disadvantageous that, in particular 
because of their low mass, it is difficult to guide thin products in a gap 
between the pre-stressed leaf spring and a paddle, or respectively to 
deliver them in the correct position. It is not possible by use of this 
device to correctly deliver products of variable thickness. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is the object of the present invention to create a paddle wheel for 
delivering folded products. 
This object is attained in accordance with the invention by utilization of 
a paddle wheel for the delivery of folded products in which the paddles, 
which cooperate to form product receiving pockets, are slightly curved and 
overlap one another. A leaf-spring-like guide strip is situated at the 
outside of each pocket. A first end of each such guide strip is secured to 
the paddle lip and a second end of each guide strip ends in the vicinity 
of the pocket bottom. This second end of each guide strip can be moved 
radially with respect to the paddle wheel to effectively vary the width or 
thickness of the inner end of the product receiving product. An actuating 
assembly is provided to vary the radail location of the inner or second 
end of each guide strip. 
The advantages which can be achieved by the present invention in particular 
reside in that the width or thickness of the opening of the paddle wheel 
pockets in the vicinity of the bottom of the paddle wheel pockets can be 
automatically adjusted. This bottom or inner pocket width thus can be 
matched to the thickness of the folded product to be delivered. Because of 
this, a width, or respectively a breadth, of the pocket bottom, which is 
always matched to the folded product, or respectively to the machine rpm, 
is set, so that a positionally correct transfer, or deposit, of folded 
products can take place in every case. A taper of the gap between the 
paddle and the guide strip prevents the folded products from snapping back 
or rebounding after reaching the paddle wheel pocket bottom. After their 
front edges have met the paddle bottom, the kinetic energy of thin folded 
products in particular can be reduced in a directed manner in that the 
rear half of the folded product is deformed in wavy lines because of 
contact with the paddle wheel pocket between the paddle and the guide 
strip, which widens in the direction toward the paddle tip, and thereafter 
again takes on its elongated position. The paddle wheel pockets are 
suitable for securely receiving, as for well as positionally correctly 
depositing thick and thin folded products.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The hub 2 of a paddle wheel 1 is arranged, fixed against relative rotation, 
on a drive shaft 3 that is seated fixed in place in lateral frames, as 
seen in FIG. 1. The hub 2 has radially outward oriented spokes 5, which 
support an annular paddle holder 10 at their ends. On its outer 
circumference, the paddle holder 10 receives curved paddles 4, extending 
approximately in the tangential direction, whose paddle inner ends 6 are 
interlockingly connected with the paddle holder 10. The same parts numbers 
will be used for like parts throughout this description. The paddles 4 
overlap each other wherein, viewed in the clockwise rotational direction 
A, a paddle wheel pocket 11, which tapers inwardly or which reduces in 
width or thickness in the direction toward the pocket bottom 9, is 
respectively formed between the outside or outer surface 7, of paddle 4 
i.e. the side of a paddle 4 remote from the hub, and the inside or inner 
surface 8, of paddle 4 i.e. the side of a preceding paddle 4 close to the 
hub. The pocket bottom 9 is formed by the outer circumference of the 
paddle holder 10 and an inside 8 of a paddle 4. An opening or aperture 13, 
for example of rectangular shape, is located in the vicinity of the outer 
tip 12 of each paddle 4. A first end or outer 14 of a guide strip 16 is 
pivotably fastened, or seated in aperture 13. The guide strip 16 extends 
along the outside or outer surface 7, i.e. the surface of each paddle 4 
that is remote from the hub or facing away from the hub 2 of the paddle 
wheel 1, in the direction toward the pocket bottom 9 and ends with its 
second or inner end 17 before the pocket bottom 9, i.e. in the vicinity of 
the pocket bottom 9, without touching it. The guide strip 16 can consist 
of spring steel, has approximately the width of the paddle 4 and, in the 
state of rest, its second or inner end 17 rests against the inside paddle 
surface close to the hub of the adjoining paddle 4, so that the width "b" 
of the pocket bottom 9 approaches zero. Each guide strip 16 is hingedly 
connected with an operating member of an actuating means, for example with 
the piston rod 19 of a pneumatic short-stroke cylinder 21, as seen most 
clearly in FIG. 2. This connection is accomplished at an inside surface 18 
of guide strip 16 close to the hub 2 as well as in the vicinity of the 
second or inner end 17 of the leaf-spring-like guide strip 16. In this 
way, the guide strip 16 is arranged so it can be raised and lowered in the 
radial direction "c" of the paddle wheel 1 at its second or inner end 17 
in the vicinity of the pocket bottom 9 by means of a drive or actuating 
means, for example by the piston rod 19. Each one of the short-stroke 
cylinders 21 respectively connected with the inner surface 18 of the guide 
strip 16 is located in a bore 22 in the paddle holder 10 and extending in 
the radial direction "c" in respect to the hub 2, so that the direction of 
stroke C of the piston rod 19 of the short-stroke cylinder 21 also extends 
in the radial direction "c" of the hub 2, or respectively of the paddle 
wheel 1. The free end of the piston rod 19 is connected with the guide 
strip 16 by means of a hinged strap 23, for example in the form of a chain 
link. The first or outer end 14 of the guide strip 16 is angled and is 
designed to be semicircular, so that the end 14 extends beneath a bolt 24, 
which extends in the opening 13 in a direction axis-parallel with the 
drive shaft 3, and a bearing is formed in this way all as may be seen in 
FIGS. 1 and 2. 
All of the short-stroke cylinders 21 each have a connector 26 for 
compressed air, which connector 26 is connected with a circular line 27 
which, in turn, is connected via a supply line 28 with a bore of an axle 
journal of the drive shaft 3. In this case, the supply of compressed air 
for the short-stroke cylinder 21 extends from the connector 26 to an 
inflow opening 30, from where it flows into the part of the short-stroke 
cylinder 21 near the piston rod. A known rotary connector 29 for 
compressed air, as indicated in FIGS. 1 and 2, is located on the axle 
journal. The rotary connector 29 is supplied with compressed air from a 
central compressed air supply 32 via a known pressure-control valve 31, as 
depicted in FIG. 3, wherein the pressure-control valve 31 is connected by 
means of electrical lines 33, 34 with a presetting computer 36, for 
example a PC. The presetting computer 36 is furthermore also connected 
with an rpm counter 37 located at the drive of the paddle wheel 1, for 
example a tachometer generator, as well as with a folded product thickness 
measuring device 38, known from DE 38 38 314 A1. The presetting computer 
36 is furthermore connected with a keyboard 39. 
Several paddle wheels 1, not specifically represented, are spaced axially 
apart from each other, and are arranged on the drive shaft 3. The paddle 
wheel pockets 11 of each paddle wheel receive folded products coming from 
a folding blade cylinder, not represented, or from a wheel folding unit. 
The thickness of the folded products to be conveyed varies between four 
and 160 newspaper pages and, with tabloid products, between eight and 160 
pages. In order to assure a trouble-free reception of these folded 
products in the paddle wheel pockets 11, and a trouble-free delivery of 
the folded products out of the paddle wheel pockets, the width "b" of the 
pocket bottom 9 of the paddle wheel pockets 11 can be set and fixed as 
described below. The air pressure for operating the short-stroke cylinders 
21 is determined by the compater 36 as a function of the thickness of the 
folded products to be transported by the paddle wheels 1, and as a 
function of the rpm of the paddle wheels 1 and a width "b" is set, for 
example, of the pocket bottom 9 in the radial direction "c" of the paddle 
wheel 1, as seen most clearly in FIG. 2. The rpm-dependent value is 
required for compensating the centrifugal force of the guide strips 16. 
The input of data regarding the folded product can be performed by means 
of the keyboard 39. 
However, if there is no presetting computer 36 nor a folded products 
thickness measuring device 38, it is also possible to set the air pressure 
manually by means of a precision regulating valve at a central operating 
device, so that the width "b" of the pocket bottom 9 can also be adjusted 
in this way. 
It is furthermore possible to utilize a generally conventional adjusting 
spindle motor in place of a short-stroke cylinder for adjusting the 
position of the inner second or inner end 17 of the guide strip 16. The 
adjusting spindle motor respectively comprises a stator fixed in place on 
the paddle holder 10 and a rotor fixed in place on the adjusting spindle. 
In that case, the adjusting spindle respectively acts on the second or 
inner end 17 of the guide strip 16, wherein the spindle position is 
reported by a linear potentiometer. Current lines can be provided via the 
axle journal, for example by means of collector rings. 
Finally, it is also possible to adjust the second or inner end 17 of the 
guide strip 16 by means of a cam acting as a regulating means, and which 
is fixedly connected with a planetary wheel. A sun wheel of the size of 
the hub, which can be driven independently of the paddle wheel 1 and which 
can be rotatably seated on the paddle wheel 1, meshes with planetary 
wheels located at its circumference, wherein a planetary wheel with a cam 
is associated with each guide strip 16. 
While a detailed description of the preferred embodiment of a paddle wheel 
for laying out folded products, in accordance with the present invention, 
has been set forth fully and completely hereinabove, it will be apparent 
to one of skill in the art that a number of changes in, for example, the 
type of printing press with which the paddle wheel is associated, the type 
of folded product removal device, the material being printed and the like 
could be made without departing from the true spirit and scope of the 
present invention which is accordingly to be limited only by the following 
claims.