Patent ID: 8424870

Claim:
A sheet handling device adapted to accommodate sheets of varying length comprising: a sheet transport path; a transport mechanism adapted to advance a sheet along the transport path with a non-uniform speed, wherein the transport mechanism is intermittently driven in order to obtain a stepwise advancement of the sheet, and a discharge mechanism arranged at the transport path for receiving the sheet from the transport mechanism and discharging it, wherein the transport mechanism advances the sheet in a stepwise manner, the discharge mechanism being controlled to convey the sheet with a momentary speed that is different from that of the transport mechanism; and a portion of the transport path between the transport mechanism and the discharge mechanism being curved to define a buffer space, wherein the buffer space is adapted to accommodate varying lengths of the sheet between the transport mechanism and the discharge mechanism, which allows the sheet to freely bend in an unrestricted manner within the buffer space and thereby absorb any speed difference between the stepwise advance of the transport mechanism and the discharge mechanism, a path sensor arranged at the buffer space, and a drive controller operatively associated with the path sensor and the discharge mechanism for inputting a signal from the path sensor to the discharge mechanism, wherein the path sensor detects a distance between a portion of the transport path and the sheet when it is bent into the buffer space whereby the discharge mechanism is driven due to the input from the path sensor to the drive controller, allowing the speed of the discharge mechanism to be controlled so that a section of the sheet which is within the buffer space is mechanically stress relieved, thus avoiding tension of the sheet between the transport mechanism and the discharge mechanism, said discharge mechanism continuously advancing the sheet while the transport mechanism stepwise advances the sheet, said portion of the transport path includes a curved guide plate passing about one-half turn around the buffer space, the transport mechanism and the discharge mechanism are controlled to have like average speeds, and a discharge sensor is operatively associated with the discharge mechanism and the drive controller.