Patent ID: 8402642

Claim:
A pocket coil spring structure assembling apparatus that assembles a plurality of rows of pocket coil springs into a mat-like pocket coil spring structure such that one coil spring is contained in one pocket that is made of sheet material having air permeability and that is formed in a continuous cylindrical shape like a pocket, thereafter a row of pocket coil springs are successively arranged in a row, and a plurality of rows of pocket coil springs are bonded together, the pocket coil spring structure assembling apparatus comprising: a row-of-pocket-coil-springs auxiliary feed stock mechanism; a row-of-pocket-coil-springs delivery mechanism that is provided to deliver a row of a predetermined number of pocket coil springs; a sealing/cutting mechanism that seals and separates a row of pocket coil springs that have been delivered from the row-of-pocket-coil-springs delivery mechanism and that have a predetermined length; a row-of-pocket-coil-springs conveying mechanism having a pair of conveying belts arranged so as to oppose each other in a horizontal direction, wherein the row-of-pocket-coil-springs conveying mechanism holds a row of pocket coil springs that have been cut between the pair of conveying belts with a central axis of each pocket coil spring extending in the horizontal direction and conveys the row of pocket coil springs that have been cut to a predetermined position; a melt application mechanism that applies an adhesive to a row of pocket coil springs that have been conveyed by the row-of-pocket-coil-springs conveying mechanism; a pressure bonding mechanism that presses a next row of pocket coil springs conveyed by the row-of-pocket-coil-springs conveying mechanism against the row of pocket coil springs to which an adhesive has been applied; an applicator mechanism that supplies an adhesive to the melt application mechanism; and a control apparatus that controls each of the mechanisms; wherein the row-of-pocket-coil-springs auxiliary feed stock mechanism and the row-of-pocket-coil-springs delivery mechanism are connected together in series so as to form a plurality of row-of-pocket-coil-springs supply units, the plurality of row-of-pocket-coil-springs supply units are disposed on an upstream side with respect to the sealing/cutting mechanism, the control apparatus alternatively selects a row-of-pocket-coil-springs supply unit to face the sealing/cutting mechanism from the plurality of row-of-pocket-coil-springs supply units, and a row-of-pocket-coil-springs supply unit alternatively selected is moved to face the sealing/cutting mechanism.