Patent ID: 7431280

Claim:
A method for forming groups of flat articles having at least partly differing sizes, the method comprising the steps of: supplying the articles in a plurality of imbricated supply streams, all supply streams having the same scale spacings and the same conveying speed; combining the supply streams at least one combining point by superimposing them to form an imbricated group stream having the same conveying speed as the supply streams, wherein on combining, the supply streams are synchronized such that leading edge zones of superimposed articles of all supply streams are aligned with each other in the group stream; wherein when viewed from above, respective lines, defined by the direction of travel of each supply stream, are parallel to each other and to the line defined by the direction of travel of the group stream at the combining point; wherein when viewed from the side, the lines defined by the direction of travel of each supply stream extend toward and have an acute angle with respect to a line defined by the direction of travel of the group stream at the combining point; and at least in a part of each of the imbricated supply streams and imbricated group stream the articles are conveyed with leading edges aligned transverse to the conveying direction of the imbricated group stream; separating groups from a head end of the group stream by clamping the aligned leading edge zones of superimposed articles and accelerating the clamped articles; and wherein the lateral arrangement of the articles in each group is such that: an article bisecting line, that runs parallel to the direction of group stream travel, of at least some of the articles does not coincide with the same bisecting line of all other articles within the same group; and the lateral edges of at least some of the articles in each group are not aligned with the lateral edges of all of the other articles in the group.