BELT-DRIVEN DOCUMENT ACCUMULATOR HAVING BELT-DAMPENING TABLE AND SIDE GUIDES

Abstract: The invention relates to belt-driven ramp document accumulators. Prior accumulators typically jam at very high speeds. The document accumulator of the present can operate reliably at high speeds without jamming. The document accumulator (1) includes first (55, 61) and second (57, 59) outer belts extending between first and second pulleys for contacting and transporting a document, and an inner belt (65, 67) generally parallel to and horizontally displaced from both the first and second outer belts such that it lies between the first and second outer belts. A belt-dampening table (51, 53) having a horizontal surface adjacent to a horizontal reach of the inner belt is provided for dampening oscillations of the inner belt which occur at high speeds.

Description: BELT-DRIVEN DOCUMENT ACCUMULATOR HAVING BELT-DAMPENING TABLE AND SIDE GUIDES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field ofthe Invention The invention relates in general to insertion machines for compiling sets of documents and inserting such sets into envelopes, and in particular to an accumulator device having a belt-dampening table and side guides for dampening the oscillating tendencies ofthe belts when driven at high speeds. 2. Related Art Belt-driven accumulators are well-known for accumulating sets of documents from a stream of documents fed seriatim thereto. Such accumulators typically include at least two driven belts which engage a document at its upper and lower surface, respectively, shaft- mounted pulleys for directing and driving the belts, two side guides which engage and guide the edges of documents being transported by the belts, a ramp for directing the document upward onto the top of a stack of accumulated documents ("over-accumulation") or downward under a stack of documents ("under-accumulation"), and a sheet-restraining means for preventing the stacked documents from being fed by the belts until all sheets for a particular set have been accumulated. However, belt-driven ramp accumulators ofthe prior art have typically had limitations which prevent them from being operated reliably at very high speeds. Such limitations include the inability to operate consistently at certain speeds without jamming due to, e.g., document collisions. OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object ofthe invention to provide a belt-driven accumulator which can be reliably operated at high speeds without jamming. The invention according to a preferred embodiment comprises a document accumulator having first and second pulleys, a first outer belt extending between the first and second pulleys for contacting and transporting a document, a second outer belt extending between the first and second pulleys, and extending generally parallel to and horizontally displaced from the first outer belt, for contacting and transporting a document, and an inner belt generally parallel to and horizontally displaced from both the first and second outer beltns such that it lies between the first and second outer belts. A first side guide means has a first vertical surface adjacent to a horizontal reach ofthe first outer belt, and a second side guide means has a second vertical surface adjacent to a horizontal reach ofthe second outer belt means. A belt-dampening table having a horizontal surface adjacent to a horizontal reach of the inner belt means is provided for dampening oscillations ofthe inner belts which occur at high speeds. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages ofthe invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of preferred embodiments as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the various views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating principles ofthe invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the accumulator ofthe invention. SUBSTITUTE SHEET (RULE 2φ FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the lower deck of the accumulator of the invention. DETAILED DESCRD7TTON FIG. 1 illustrates a double-level accumulator 1 having top and bottom deck assemblies and a divert gate 11 for selecting whether documents fed to the accumulator will be received in the lower or upper deck. Deck selection is controlled via operation of the gate solenoid 5 to position the divert gate 11. During steady-state operation, the deck selection will normally alternate at each new set. Each deck comprises an upper and lower belt assembly, with each assembly comprising three belts, e.g., belts 13, IS, and 17, which are retained by three pulleys mounted on each ofthe respective shafts, e.g., shafts 19 and 21. The belts are preferably the "round" type, also known in the art as "spaghetti belts." Motion ofthe belts is accomplished via a clutch 23 operably connected to a motor. Each deck comprises at least two ramps, e.g., 25a and 25b, for performing over- accumulation and under-accumulation, respectively. Each ramp is mounted on a shaft which is in-turn connected at a first end to a rotating assembly and at a second end to a second rotating assembly. The first rotating assembly comprises an outer bracket 9a and an inner bracket 10a, and the second rotating assembly comprises an outer bracket 10b and an inner bracket 9b. Cam-type Release levers 7a, 7b, 7c, and 7d can be operated without the use of tools to permit the rotating assemblies 9a and 9b to be rotated upwards for over-accumulation or downwards for under-accumulation. When the release levers are in a closed position, the inner and outer brackets are biased toward each other such that they are tightly clamped to the frame 30. In an open position, the inner and outer brackets do not clamp the frame, whereby the inner bracket is permitted to rotate and the entire rotating assembly is permitted to translate along the slots, e.g., 27a and 27b. When the rotating assemblies are rotated in a first direction, the lower ramp 25a rotates upwardly, whereby it will engage an incoming sheet and direct it upwardly onto the top of a stack of accumulated documents. When the assemblies are rotated in a second direction, the upper ramp 25b rotates downward such that it will engage an incoming sheet and direct it downward under a stack of accumulated documents. The rotating assemblies are longitudinally translatable in slots 27a and 27b to adjust for various paper lengths. Side guides 45, 46, 3c, and 3d are provided for guiding the outer edges of documets as they are transported through the accumulator. All of the side guides are laterally translatable to adjust for various paper widths. The side guides are moved into a lateral position which places them adjacent to the outer-most belts, which are described in more detail below. This adjacent relationship permits the side guides to act as a dampening means to dampen oscillations ofthe outer-most belts when the belts are moving at high speeds. Three multi-grooved pulleys 51, 53, and 55 are mounted on the shaft 19. A similar configuration is used on the other shafts, e.g., 20, 22, 24, etc. Each ofthe three endless belts 13, 15, and 17 engage one groove of each of the multi-grooved pulleys 51, 53, and 55, respectively, such that each belt extends between the shafts 19 and 21. By providing multiple grooves into which a belt can be placed, the accumulator can be easily reconfigured for various paper sizes. For example, for accumulating sheets having a relatively wide paper width, the belts 13 and 17 can by physically moved by an operator, without the use of tools, into the outer grooves ofthe multi-grooved pulleys 55 and 51, respectively. Likewise, for accumulating sheets having a relatively narrow paper width, the belts 13 and 17 can be physically moved into the inner grooves ofthe multi-grooved pulleys 55 and 51. Similar adjustments can then be made between grooves ofthe other pulleys in the system. In this manner, the accumulator can be quickly and easily configured for paper widths ranging from, e.g., 6 inches wide to 12 inches wide. It should be understood that a "multi-grooved pulley" within the scope ofthe invention could include, e.g., two or more adjacent pulleys having single grooves. The pivot shaft shown in FIG. 1, which is a drive shaft for the upper deck, serves also to interconnect the upper and lower decks such that it becomes a hinge point around which the upper deck can be rotated. This facilitates access to the lower deck by releasing and pivoting up the upper deck without the need for a time-consuming deck-removal process. FIG. 2 shows a partial view ofthe lower deck ofthe accumulator, with some portions removed for purposes of illustration. The two side guides discussed above with reference to FIG. 1 are positioned adjacent to the outer-most belts 55, 61 and 57, 59, respectively, to dampen oscillations. Specifically, the side guides are positioned to contact the belts 55 and 57 along their lower reaches and the belts 59 and 61 along their upper reaches. These particular reaches are dampened because they are reaches that come into contact with a document being transported through the accumulator. However, such side guides are not used to dampen the document-contacting reaches of the inner belts in that placing side guides adjacent to such reaches would obstruct the document path through the accumulator. First and second belt-dampening tables 51 and 53 are provided to dampen oscillations ofthe document-contacting reaches ofthe inner belts 65 and 67. The first and second belt-dampening tables 51 and 53 are mounted on first and second mounting shafts 73 and 71, respectively, such that their upper horizontal surfaces lie just beneath the upper reaches ofthe belts 65 and 67. The mounting shafts 73 and 71, and the belt-dampening tables 51 and 53 mounted thereto, lie between upper and lower reaches ofthe belts 59, 61, 65, 67. The ends ofthe horizontal surfaces ofthe tables 51 and 53 may be tapered downward away from their adjacent belts so as to reduce the belt-wear caused by engagement ofthe belts by the tables at high speeds. It should be noted that the lower deck is illustrated in FIG. 2 and that identical or similar belt-dampening tables may be used in the upper deck of the accumulator of the invention. While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention.

Claims: The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows: 1. A document accumulator comprising: first and second pulley means; first outer belt means extending between said first and second pulley means for contacting and transporting a document; second outer belt means extending between said first and second pulley means, and extending generally parallel to and horizontally displaced from said first outer belt means, for contacting and transporting said document; inner belt means, generally parallel to and horizontally displaced from both of said first and second outer belt means such that said inner belt means lies between said first and second outer belts means; first side guide means having a first vertical surface adjacent to a horizontal reach of said first outer belt means; second side guide means having a second vertical surface adjacent to a horizontal reach of said second outer belt means; at least one beh-dampening table having a horizontal surface adjacent to a horizontal reach of said inner belt means, whereby oscillations of said inner belt means are dampened by said horizontal surface. 2. The accumulator according to claim 1, wherein said first and second pulley means comprise first and second pluralities of pulleys. 3. The accumulator according to claim 1, wherein said first and second pulley means comprise first and second multi-grooved pulleys.

Inventors: NEIFERT LEONARD, RICKER MARK, NEIFERT, LEONARD, RICKER, MARK
Applicants: BELL & HOWELL MAIL PROC SYS CO, BELL & HOWELL MAIL PROCESSING SYSTEMS CO.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: B65H43
IPC codes: B65H29