Apparatus for gluing attachment slips to printed products

The gluing apparatus has several carrier arms attached to a rotating organ, which carry holders at their free ends. Each holder picks up an attachment slip at the supply point, transports it past an adhesive-applicator apparatus whereby adhesive is applied to the attachment slips, and on to the printed products to which the slips are then attached. The printed products are transported on supports placed perpendicular to the feed direction (A), the holders enter between consecutive pairs of supports and have means of control to move them against supports, in order to glue the attachment slips on the printed products and press them firmly into place.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to an apparatus for gluing attachment slips 
to printed products, such as printed periodicals. 
PRIOR ART 
An apparatus of this kind is known from CH-A 538 366. In this the printed 
sheets are guided by a chain conveyor of triangular cross-section in a 
straight line past a gluing apparatus, to glue attachment slips to printed 
sheets. The chain-conveyor system has supporting elements placed behind 
one another parallel to the feed direction and form the sides of conveyor 
system, with which the printed sheets are in contact. The gluing apparatus 
has a grip-and-deposit drum on one side of the feed system and is driven 
to rotate about an axis transverse to the chain conveyor's feed direction 
and parallel to the supporting elements, and is in tangential contact with 
the printed sheets. With each rotation of the grip-and-deposit drum, its 
mechanically controlled gripper system pulls an attachment slip from a 
stack. As the drum continues to rotate, an adhesive-applicator system 
applies a line of adhesive to the attachment slip held on the drum. When 
the slip reaches the printed sheet, the grip-and-deposit drum presses it 
on to the sheet. The side panels form a counter-support for the printed 
sheets. 
DE-A 26 31 058 discloses another apparatus for gluing attachment slips to 
printed products. This has a driven rotary accelerating drum with 
separately controlled grippers which pulls printed and folded sheets from 
a stack one at a time, holds them against the drum, and turns them through 
180.degree.. Near the end of the deflection motion, centrifugal force 
opens the folded sheets and a conveyor having rods perpendicular to the 
feed direction picks up the open sheets and continues their transport. The 
gluing apparatus has a gluing roller driven parallel to and at the same 
speed but in the opposite sense to the accelerating drum, pulls an 
attachment slip from a storage stack, and applies it to the printed sheet 
held against the drum. An adhesive-applicator apparatus between the stack 
of attachment slips and the accelerating drum sprays adhesive on to each 
attachment slip. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Based upon this prior art, one object of the present invention is to 
propose a generic apparatus that makes it possible to glue attachment 
slips to printed products at high machine speeds by means of differently 
constructed conveyor systems. 
The present invention meets these requirements by having rotary means with 
supporting elements transporting the printed documents in a feed direction 
and a gluing apparatus which transports attachment slips from a supply 
point past an adhesive applicator to the printed products in the rotary 
means. The gluing apparatus includes means for pressing the attachment 
slips onto the printed products by means of holders and means for 
controlling holder movements toward the respective supporting elements for 
pressing the slips against printed products supported on the supporting 
elements. 
The invention described in this disclosure makes it possible to attach 
attachment slips reliably and correctly positioned to printed products 
moving at high speed and lying against supports placed behind one another 
and perpendicular to the conveyor's feed direction. 
Preferred embodiments of the invention proposed by the present disclosure 
are described in the relevant claims. 
A typical embodiment of the present disclosure is described in greater 
detail by reference to the drawings attached hereto which illustrate this 
invention in purely diagrammatic form, as follows:

The gluing apparatus 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 inclusive has a rotating 
organ 12 that in turn has several carrier arms 14; in the present case 
twelve in all. At its free end, each carrier arm 14 carries a holder 16 
designed to receive a slip for attachment 18, for example a card, at a 
supply point 20 (FIG. 1), move the slip 18 past an adhesive-applicator 
apparatus 22, then transport it to a printed product 24, for example a 
periodical or part thereof, and press it on to said product. For this 
purpose, means of control 26 are provided to govern the pivot angle of the 
carrier arms 14 that cantilever out from the rotating organ 12. Further 
means of control 28 ensure that the holders 16 are in the required 
cantilevered position in relation to the carrier arms 14. 
The folded printed products 24 are transported in the feed direction A 
astride saddle-shaped supporting elements 30 of a conveyor system 32 past 
a gluing apparatus 10. The supporting elements 30, which are set at fixed 
intervals behind one another, extend lengthwise more or less at right 
angles to the feed direction A, and the rear wall element 30' of the 
supporting elements 30, as viewed in the feed direction A, forms a support 
34, in close contact with which, within range of the gluing apparatus 10, 
lies the rear part 24' of the printed product 24. 
The rotating organ 12 with its carrier arms 14 and holders 16 is driven to 
rotate in direction B, so that each carrier arm 14 and its holder 16 fits 
between two consecutive supporting elements 30 of the conveyor system 32 
to glue the slip 18 to the portion 24' of the printed product 24 that lies 
against the support 34. 
In conjunction with the following detailed description of the construction 
of the gluing system 10, refer to the drawings, particularly FIGS. 2 and 
3. 
The rotating organ 12 has a bearing box 36 which is driven to rotate about 
shaft 38 in direction B. Placed in a circle about shaft 38, hollow shafts 
40 pass through the bearing box 36, each having a head 42 on the side that 
faces the means of control 26; a tubular-shaped carrier arm 14 is attached 
to each head 42. Lengthwise, each carrier arm 14 is perpendicular to the 
hollow shaft 40 which is secured to bearing box 36 and can rotate freely 
about an axis parallel to the shaft 38. Each hollow shaft 40 is closed on 
the side opposite head 32. 
A holder 16 is secured to each carrier arm 14 and can rotate freely about 
pivot 16' which is likewise parallel to shaft 38. Each holder 16 has a 
holding element 44 in which the axle 14' is engaged, the axle being shaped 
as a hollow shaft projecting from the carrier arm 14 in the direction of 
the swing axis 16' about which the holding element 44 can pivot. On the 
side facing away from this axle, the holding elements 44 have a flat 
surface and two recesses 44' separated from each other, but connected by a 
channel in the holding elements 44 to permit the free flow of air to each 
other and to the axle journals 14', and from these to the tubular carrier 
arms 14. Suction heads 46 with continuous lips 46' of elastic material, 
such as rubber, are fitted in the recesses 44' and project beyond the 
holding elements 44 (cf FIG. 3). Further, a supporting element 48, for 
example of thin metal plate, is fitted to the holding element 44 flush 
with its flat surface, in order that together with the holding element 44 
it can provide support to the whole of the surface of the attachment slip 
18 and prevent it from being bent or damaged. The suction heads 46 
projecting from the holder 16 hold an attachment slip 18 by partial vacuum 
during its transport from the supply point 20 to the printed product 24 
which is in close contact with the support 34. To press the slip 18 upon 
the printed product 24, the means of control 26 moves the holder 16 to the 
support 34 and presses the whole surface of the holder 16 against the 
printed product 24 on its support 34, whereby it causes elastic 
deformation of the lips 46' and presses the attachment slip 18 firmly upon 
the printed product 24. 
A control lever 50 projects on the face opposite the flat surface of the 
holding element 44, with which a control rod 52 forms a jointed 
connection. The control rod 52 crosses the carrier arm 14 and at its other 
end beyond the bearing box 36, again by a joint, connects to a ring-shaped 
disk 54 attached to the bearing box 36. The control rod 52 acts as a 
further means of control 28 and determines the pivot angle of the holder 
16 in accordance with the pivot angle of the carrier arm 14. 
Alternatively, the control rods can be connected directly to the bearing 
box 36. 
A valve system 56 ensures that the suction heads 46 are under partial 
vacuum only within the area from the supply point 20 to the relevant 
support 34. A hollow shaft 60 connected by a hose to a compressed-air 
supply (not shown) passes at intervals through the bearing box 36 
concentrically with shaft 38. For this purpose, the bearing box 36 has a 
central hole 62 in which a valve unit 64 is placed, each having a 
ballbearing 66 on each side (FIG. 2 and 4). The ballbearings 66 are 
supported on the hollow shaft 60 and the bearing box 36. The valve unit 64 
wedged into place on the hollow shaft 60 has on its circumference a valve 
groove 68 that extends through about 180.degree. and is connected to the 
compressed-air source by a radial channel 68' via the valve unit 64 and 
the hollow shaft 60. Between each pair of hollow shafts 40, a channel 70 
passes radially through the bearing box 36 and connects by a hose 72 to an 
ejector valve 74. The ejector valves 74 are attached to the circumference 
of the bearing box 36 and provide the partial vacuum for the suction heads 
46. For this purpose each ejector valve 74 is connected for free air flow 
by a vacuum channel 76 to its hollow shaft 40. Because the bearing box 36 
rotates with its ejector valves 74 about the stationary hollow shaft 60, 
the ejector valves 74 are always supplied with compressed air. Hence the 
suction heads 46 are under partial vacuum whenever a channel 70 happens to 
be opposite the valve groove 68. 
The face of the bearing box 36 is flanged to a hollow bearing shaft 78 
which can rotate freely in a set of bearings 80 fitted to a bearing plate 
82, on whose other end a sprocket wheel 86 is wedged into place. This 
sprocket wheel 86 is mechanically linked by a chain 86', shown by a 
dot-dashed line, to a drive system 88 described below. 
The means of control 26 for the pivot angle of the carrier arms 14 have a 
planetary transmission 90 placed eccentrically and axially offset in 
relation to shaft 38 on a second bearing plate 82' supported by a frame. 
The central sunwheel 92 and spider 94 of the planetary transmission 90 
rotate about shaft 94'. The central wheel 92 is wedged into place on a 
central shaft 96 and is likewise connected to the drive system 88 by a 
second chain drive 98. The sprocket wheel 98' of chain drive 98 is fixed 
to the central shaft 96 so that it cannot turn independently of it. The 
central shaft 96 passes through a webbed hollow shaft 100 on bearings that 
allow free rotation. At its end facing the central shaft 92, the shaft 100 
has a wheel-shaped spider 94 flanged to it. At the end of the spider shaft 
100 facing the sprocket wheel 98', a sprocket wheel 102 of a further chain 
drive 102' is wedged into place on the spider shaft 100, to link spider 94 
likewise to the drive system 88. A second bearing plate 82' supports the 
spider shaft 100 on a second set of bearings 80' that allow the shaft 100 
to rotate freely. The planetary wheels 104 are held in bearings on spider 
94, one for each carrier arm 14. On each planetary wheel 104, a guide 
element 106, through which the carrier arm passes, is fitted eccentrically 
and can rotate freely. The carrier arms 14 are thus held so that they can 
slide lengthwise in the guide elements 106. 
The spider 94 and the bearing box 36 are driven at the same speed of 
rotation in direction B, but the central wheel 92 is geared down by the 
chain drive 98 and thus turns in the same sense but only at half the 
speed. The ratio of the central wheel's diameter 92 to that of the 
planetary wheels 104 is such as to ensure that the planetary wheels 104 
make three complete turns when spider 94 makes a single complete turn. 
This design of the means of control 26 and of the further means of control 
28 produces the movement sequence of the holders 16 as shown in FIG. 1. 
Within the area of the supply point 20, the holders 16 are so oriented as 
to place their flat surface approximately tangential to their orbital 
track and to face outward in relation to this track. They maintain their 
position as they pass the adhesive-applicator apparatus 22 placed after 
the supply point 20. As the holders 16 continue to rotate in the direction 
indicated by arrow B, they pivot and move their flat surface to an 
approximately radial position facing forward. The area in which the 
attachment slips 18 are pressed on to the printed products 24 and glued 
thereto is more or less diametrically opposite the supply point 20 in 
relation to the rotating shaft 38 of the bearing box 36. In this area, 
because of the forward-pivoting movement of the carrier arms 14, the means 
of control 26 accelerate the holders 16, so that they move over to and 
press against the supports 34. The holders 16 are then delayed to release 
them from the support 34 with the attachment slip 18 glued to the printed 
product 24, and to move them in a direction approximately perpendicular to 
the support 34 and out of range of the supporting elements 30. The further 
means of control 26 keep the holders 16 parallel to the support 34 while 
they place the attachment slips 18 in position and press them on. As the 
system continues to rotate, the holders 16 progressively return to their 
tangential position at supply point 20. 
The drive system 88 consists of a drive wheel 108 which has gap-toothed 
recesses 110 distributed along its circumference. The distance between the 
recesses 110 is about the same as the distance between the free ends of 
the supporting elements 30 of the conveyor system 32. With the gluing unit 
10 in position against the conveyor system 32, the supporting elements 30 
engage in these recesses 110, so that the drive wheel 108 meshes with the 
supporting elements 30 and is thus driven by and synchronously with the 
conveyor system 32. This rotary movement of the drive wheel 108 is 
transmitted via a further chain drive 112 to a drive shaft 114 on which 
the sprocket wheels 98' and 102' of the chain drives are wedged into 
place. A further sprocket wheel 86" is fixed to the drive shaft 114 so 
that it cannot turn independently of the shaft, but its rotary position 
relative to the drive shaft 114 is adjustable. The sprocket wheel 86" is 
linked by a chain 86' to the bearing box 36. This permits the adjustment 
of the rotary position of the bearing box 36 in relation to spider 94 of 
the planetary transmission 90, in order to adjust the sequence of movement 
of the holders 16. 
The bearing plate 82' is on a supporting frame 116 (FIG. 1) and can be 
pivoted about its axis 116'. A hollow shaft 118 is fixed to bearing plate 
82' that provides the seating for a clamping ring 120 to which the bearing 
plate 82 is fixed. When the clamping ring 120 is released, the relative 
position of the two bearing plates 82, 82' can be altered, similarly for 
adjusting the sequence of movement of the holders 16. 
The drive shaft 114 passes inside the hollow shaft 118 and can freely 
rotate within it. Similarly, a lever 122 shaped like a bearing plate is 
fitted to the drive shaft 114 and can freely rotate on it, and near its 
free end is located the drive-wheel shaft 108' which can likewise rotate 
freely around it. The drive wheel 108 is flanged on to the drive-wheel 
shaft 108' on which the sprocket wheel 112' of chain drive 112 is wedged 
into place, and the corresponding sprocket wheel 112' is seated on drive 
shaft 114. The rotary position of sprocket wheel 112' relative to drive 
shaft 114 is likewise adjustable to alter the phase position of the 
conveyor system 32 and the gluing unit 10. 
An adjustment system (not shown) permits adjustment of the pivot angle of 
lever 122 relative to the second bearing plate 82', in order to alter the 
depth that the holders 16 penetrate into the conveyor system 32 when the 
drive wheel 108 is in its normal working position, as shown in FIG. 1, in 
which it meshes with the supporting elements 30 of the conveyor system 32. 
By these means and because the gluing unit's position 10 is adjustable 
perpendicular to the feed direction A, it is possible to vary the position 
of the attached slip 18 on the printed product 24, as required. 
A conveyor 124 (FIG. 1) feeds the attachment slips 18 one by one to the 
supply point 20. The conveyor 124 has two conveyor belts 126, 126', each 
of which forms a closed loop. Between them, they form a feed slit 128 for 
the attachment slips 18. The conveyor belt 126 passes around a lower 
roller 130 that rotates about a shaft 116' and an upper roller 130'. The 
conveyor belt 126' likewise passes around the lower roller 130 and is in 
close contact with the feed-active section of the conveyor belt to the 
approximate position of the upper roller 130'. The guide rollers 132 press 
the feed-active section of the conveyor belt 126' against the feed-active 
section of the conveyor belt 126 between the lower and upper rollers 130, 
130', so that at the supply point 20 the end of the feed slit 128 runs 
obliquely outward relative to an imaginary straight line connecting the 
lower and upper rollers 130, 130' on the one hand and the orbital path of 
the holders 16 on the other. Between them, the flat surface of the holders 
16 and the conveyor belt 126 that passes around the upper roller 130' form 
a tapered transfer slit at the supply point 20 which ensures the safe 
transfer of the attachment slips 18 to a holder 16 as each slip 18 leaves 
the feed slit 128. The supporting elements 48 of the holders 16, made as 
automatically spring-loaded supports, clamp the attachment slips 18 
between themselves and the conveyor belt 126 and hold them in place by 
spring action. At the supply point 20, the feed direction of the conveyor 
124 thus forms an acute angle with the orbital track of the holders 16 and 
the holders 16 themselves. It would also be feasible in this area to align 
the feed direction of the conveyor 124 approximately parallel to the 
orbital track. 
The upper roller 130', the guide rollers 132, and the other guide rollers 
132" that act on the feed-inactive return section of the conveyor belt 
126' are held in bearings in a generally known manner on a bearing plate 
(not shown) which pivots about an axis 116'. In the area of the supporting 
frame 116, the conveyor belt 126' passes over guide rollers 134, in order 
to guide the return section of the conveyor belt at a distance over the 
lower roller 130 and to form an approximately horizontal transfer area 136 
that projects in front of the feed slit 128. In the transfer area 136, the 
slips for attachment 18 are deposited singly and at the right intervals on 
the conveyor belt 126', for example by a sheet feeder or feeding 
attachment. 
The conveyor 124 is likewise driven by the drive shaft 114. A sprocket 
wheel 142, 142' fits on the drive shaft 114 and shaft 140 respectively, 
which is fixed to the lower roller 130 so that it cannot rotate 
independently, and a chain 142" links the sprocket wheels 142, 142'. 
The adhesive-applicator apparatus 22 is attached to the bearing plates (not 
shown) at the upper end of the conveyor 124. An endless 
adhesive-applicator belt 144 passes over two deflection rollers 146, one 
of which is driven by a chain drive 148 (indicated by a dot-dashed line) 
in the direction C (indicated by an arrow). The adhesive-applicator belt 
144 has several adhesive-applicator beads 150 spaced behind one another at 
the same interval as the holders 16 in this area and perpendicular to the 
sense of rotation C, which apply a strip of adhesive to each attachment 
slip 18 held by its respective holder 16. The speed of rotation of the 
adhesive-applicator belt 144 is the same as the speed of the holders 16 in 
the area in which the holders 16 act in unison with the 
adhesive-applicator apparatus 22. A scoop roller 152 is mechanically 
linked to the driven deflection roller 146 by a gear system (not shown). 
The scoop roller 152 takes up adhesive from an adhesive tub 154 and 
moistens each adhesive-applicator bead 150 with adhesive. A storage flask 
156 filled with adhesive continually tops up the contents of the adhesive 
tub 154 to replace the used adhesive. 
It is, of course, also possible to interrupt the supply of adhesive to the 
adhesive-applicator belt 144 and its adhesive-applicator beads 150 when 
required, particularly when there are gaps in the supply of slips 18 for 
attachment. 
A lever drive 158 is provided to pivot the second bearing plate 82' with 
all components of the gluing apparatus 10 fitted thereto, including the 
conveyor 124 and the adhesive-applicator apparatus 22, out of the working 
position, shown by continuous lines in FIG. 1, to a position of rest which 
places the gluing apparatus 10 outside the operational area of the 
conveyor system 32. In FIG. 1 dot-dashed lines indicate conveyor 124' and 
the adhesive-applicator apparatus 22' in the position of rest, i.e. in 
this position, no slips 18 can be attached. 
The gluing apparatus 10 is on a machine frame 160 that is movable across 
the floor and is adjustable in position in the longitudinal direction of 
the supporting elements 30. For this purpose the machine frame 160 has two 
carrying shafts 162 that pass through the base section of the supporting 
frame 116 for the gluing apparatus 10. The gluing apparatus 10 is movable 
along the carrying shafts 162. The lever drive 158 is also fitted on the 
machine frame 116. It would also be feasible to fit the gluing apparatus 
10 on a mobile frame of its own and move it into position against the 
conveyor system 32 when and where required. In that case the second 
bearing plate 82' would no longer have to be capable of being pivoted. 
In the present case, the system described as conveyor system 32 is an 
apparatus for collecting and/or collating and inserting printed products, 
as disclosed in the following prior-art documents: EP-A-0 354 343 or the 
corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,438, EP-A-0 341 423 or the corresponding 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,291, EPA-0 341 424 or the corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 
5,052,666, and EP-A0 341 425 or the corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,667. 
See these documents for details of the construction and operation of the 
devices to which they refer. 
The profile-type supporting elements 30 are placed drum-like about a common 
axis of rotation 164, with their length parallel to this axis. Each 
supporting element 30 forms a saddle-type support on which printed 
products 24 can be deposited astride, and each pair of adjacent supporting 
elements 30 forms a pocket-shaped receptacle into which the printed 
products 24 can be introduced. For each supporting element 30 there is a 
mechanically controlled clamping device 166 (FIG. 3) to prevent the 
printed products 24 falling off as they are moved through the lower part 
of the drum-type processing apparatus and at the same time to effect a 
displacement of the printed products 24 toward the axis of rotation 164. 
FIG. 3 shows that the clamping device 166 acts on the printed products 
only after the attachment slips 18 have been glued on. Thus, while the 
slips 18 are being attached, the printed products are not displaced along 
the supporting elements 30. The drum-type system is held in bearings on 
the machine frame 160. 
Operation 
The apparatus shown in the figures works in the following manner: 
At a supply point 168, a folded printed product 24 is deposited astride 
each supporting element 30. As it turns about the axis of rotation 164 in 
direction A, indicated by an arrow, the printed product 24, which lies in 
close contact with support 34 while it is in this area of its processing 
path, comes within working range of the gluing apparatus 10, in which the 
adhesive-applicator apparatus 22 applies adhesive to an attachment slip 18 
which a holder 16 introduced in a pocket-shaped receptacle attaches to and 
presses upon a portion 24' of a printed product 24. After the printed 
products 24 to which an attachment slip 18 has been applied have moved 
past the gluing apparatus 10, the clamping device 166 comes into action 
and displaces the printed products 24 toward the axis of rotation 164 for 
further processing. If required, a further printed product may be 
deposited at a further supply point on these printed products 24 and a 
further gluing apparatus 10 may be used to glue a further attachment slip 
thereto. 
At the supply points 168, it is also possible, for example, to introduce 
printed products "fold first" in the receptacle formed by two adjacent 
supporting elements 30 and then use the gluing apparatus 10 to attach an 
attachment slip thereto. 
The gluing apparatus can also be used with machines that process printed 
products by means other than a drum-type layout, for example as described 
in EP-A-0 346 578 or the corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,104,108 and in 
EP-A-0 354 343 or the corresponding U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,438. Common to all 
these and the other systems previously described above is the fact that 
their supporting elements with supports for the printed products are 
oriented across the feed direction A, preferably perpendicular thereto. 
The control elements can also be constructed differently; for example, the 
holders may be fitted to slide in the carrier arms and make a translatory 
movement, in order to allow the means of control to act upon the control 
rods 52. 
Instead of suction heads 46 fitted to the holders 16, as described above, 
the carrier arms 14 may have mechanically controlled grippers to pick up 
and transport the attachment slips 18. In such an embodiment, it may be 
preferable to provide pressure pads or some other such means over part or 
the whole of the area where adhesive is applied to the attachment slips 
18, in order to press the attachment slips 18 properly upon the printed 
products 24.