Patent ID: 7575545

Claim:
A product folding apparatus comprising: a transport track to transport a product and having a transport track drive mechanism, said transport track drive mechanism moving the product along said transport track in a product transport direction; a longitudinal folding apparatus connected to said transport track to receive the product from said transport track and to fold said product longitudinally in said product transport direction; a vertically reciprocable folding blade positioned in said longitudinal folding apparatus and being aligned in said product transport direction; a folding table supporting said folding blade for said vertically reciprocable movement of said folding blade with respect to said folding table; a folding blade drive motor to vertically reciprocate said folding blade with respect to said folding table through a folding blade drive mechanism, said folding blade drive motor being controlled independently of said transport track drive mechanism; a folding blade drive motor control device to provide said independent control of said folding blade drive motor to vertically reciprocate said folding blade at a product folding time when said product is aligned beneath said vertically reciprocable folding blade on said folding table; an optical product sensor located adjacent said folding table and before said folding blade in said product transport direction, said optical product sensor being usable to determine a product phase relation of said product at said product sensor location; and means for controlling said folding blade drive motor, using said folding blade motor control device, in response to said product phase relation determined by said optical product sensor at said product sensor location, and before said folding blade, to synchronize said vertical reciprocation of said folding blade, at said product folding time, with said product alignment on said folding table, beneath said vertically reciprocable folding blade with said determined product phase relation of said product to be folded, as said product phase relation has been determined by said optical product sensor, to longitudinally fold said product in said product transport direction.