Patent ID: 8128088

Claim:
A sheet buffering and inverting device comprising: a sheet transport path receiving a stream of sheets at a first location and feeding said stream to a second location, each of said sheets in said stream initially having an orientation with a first edge comprising a leading edge and a second edge opposite said first edge comprising a trailing edge; and a plurality of sheet inverter paths connected to said sheet transport path and being approximately perpendicular to said sheet transport path, each sheet inverter path comprising: a first end adjacent to said sheet transport path and a second end opposite said first end; a first gate at said first end diverting a selected sheet from said stream such that said first edge enters said sheet inverter path; a sheet transport device transporting said selected sheet away from said sheet transport path at least until said second edge is contained within said sheet inverter path, said sheet inverter path buffering said selected sheet and said sheet transport device subsequently reversing direction and transporting said selected sheet back to said sheet transport path such that said selected sheet is inserted back into said stream at said first end; and a second gate guiding said selected sheet, as said selected sheet is inserted back into said stream, such that said selected sheet is inverted with said second edge comprising said leading edge and said first edge comprising said trailing edge; and an additional sheet transport path branching off of said sheet transport path between said first location and said sheet inverter paths and being connected to a least one of said sheet inverter paths at said second end, said additional sheet transport path comprising additional sheet transport devices and additional gates that allow an additional selected sheet to be diverted into said additional sheet transport path and transported into said at least one of said sheet inverter paths at said second end so that said additional selected sheet is buffered and also maintains said orientation when subsequently inserted back into said stream at said first end.