Patent GB-190124500-A (GB)
Title: Machine for Applying Labels and Stamps to Packages
Inventor: BIRKBECK HENRY
Filed: 1901-12-02
Granted: 1902-02-20
Abstract: 24,500. Birkbeck, H., [Wright, R. H.]. Dec. 2. Feeding sheets.- Relates to machines for applying labels and d revenue or other stamps to packages of tobacco or other material. The packages are fed by an endless chain into a stationary receiver, under which the pasted label is placed, and then are forced into recesses in the wheel which advances step by step. The projecting ends of the label are folded down, and then at the next step of the wheel a stamp is pasted, brought over the package, and folded over it. Finally, the package is ejected from the wheel and carried away by another belt. The feeds for the labels or stamps are stopped if a package is missing on the belt or wheel. The holding and feeding mechanisms for the stamps and labels may be used for other purposes. Fig. 5 is a section of the conveying and labelling part of the machine, and Fig. 13 is a section at rightangles thereto showing the stampapplying mechanism. The labels L are held in a box 33 by an upwardlypressed spring plunger, and are pushed forward one by one by a roughened roller 41 so that their rear ends are torn away from the pointed and sharpened pin 40 and their front ends buckle up against pins 58 on a lever 59. The roller 41 is fixed on its spindle but can be turned to expose a fresh surface. It is carried by a frame mounted on a slide 25 reciprocated by the lever 50 and is pressed down on a forward stroke but lifted on the return. In case a package is absent, the lever 83 carrying a spring 32 to press down the package, is allowed to drop and its end engages a rod 78 attached to a supplementary slide 76 on the main slide 45. This second slide lifts the roller so that a label is not fed. Otherwise when the lever 59 is lowered, the label springs forward and is caught by the first pair of driven rollers 64 and fed forward through the second pair 65 which advance it to a position in which it is pasted and applied. At the next step of the wheel k the stamps S are brought over the package as shown in Fig. 13. They are pressed upwards in the box 124 by a spring-pressed follower and are held by a curved recessed plate 162, Fig. 13<a>, and an adjustable pointed bar 158 with an inclined rear cutting-edge arranged to give a drawing cut. They are slipped out one by one by means of the plate 126 reciprocated by a lever 128 driven by a crank disc r with a slotted connection so as to lift the plate on the return. In case a package is not present in the wheel, the plunger 2 will lift and allow the bell crark 152 to come into the dotted position so that its end comes under a pin 156 on the lever 128 to hold it up and thereby prevent the feed of a stamp. The stamp as it advances is caught by the driven pasting- roller 165 which applies two lines of paste during the time when it is gripped and drawn across the package by the tongs 135 reciprocated by the lever 138 and crank disc s. The tongs are held open by a catch 141 which is tripped by a stop 145 at the end of the forward stroke, and they are opened at the end of the back stroke by the tail end of their movable member coming under a fixed stop. A supplementary slide, attached by a spring 150 to the tongs and coming against the adjustable stop 151 at the end of the back stroke, carries a finger 147 which frees the stamp from the tongs and also acts as a gauge at both ends of the stroke to ensure the proper position of the label. The connections and details are fully described and illustrated in nine sheets of drawings attached to the Specification. A modification of the devices for holding and feeding the labels or other sheets is shown in Fig. 19. The reciprocating roller 41 is replaced by a pair of rollers 187, 188 positively driven from the gear of the feeding-rollers 64, 65, through a clutch gear 219 which is thrown out of gear by the descent of the lever 83 if a package is not present. Part of the periphery of these rollers is roughened so as to drive forward the top label during part of their revolution. The holding and gauge pins 58 are carried by a rock shaft worked by cam gear 199 from a lever 50, the bridge-plate 176 and lower feed-roller 64 being slotted and grooved to allow room for the pins. A pair of pins or needles 208, which are lifted by a stud 209 on the roller 187 and then dropped to hold the label underneath the one being removed, is provided in addition to the holding-knife 40.