Patent ID: 7585146

Claim:
A device for forming stacks of sheet products, the device comprising: at least two set-down tables, each of the set-down tables including at least one set-down surface for receiving the stacks of the products; a drive or transporting arrangement that moves the at least two set-down tables independently from one another along a single table-circulating path, wherein the table-circulating path comprises: a transfer section to which the products are supplied in an input stream by a feed conveyor; a stacking section arranged downstream of the transfer section and in which product stacks are formed on the set-down surfaces of the set-down tables; a delivery section arranged downstream of the stacking section and from which the finished stacks are removed from the set-down tables by a removal conveyor; and a table store for intermediate storage and stacking of the set-down tables and subsequent release of the stored set-down tables for further circulation, the table store being arranged downstream of the delivery section, and wherein the set-down tables include flexible segments such that a shape of each of the set-down tables is configured to conform to curvatures of the table-circulating path, the curvatures being located at least in parts and subregions of the table-circulating path; wherein the drive or transporting arrangement further includes: a first drive means located at a first location along the table-circulating path for selectively lowering one of the at least two set-down tables in the stacking section, a second drive means located at a second location along the table-circulating path for selectively engaging one of the at least two set-down tables in the delivery section, and a third drive means located at a third location along the table-circulating path for selectively engaging and transferring one of the at least two set-down tables from the table store to the stacking section, each of the drive means being independently driven.