Patent ID: 7320155

Claim:
Apparatus for taking up a web material supplied at a take-up speed and for outputting the material at a discharge speed which fluctuates with respect to take-up speed but on average matches the take-up speed, comprising: two endless transport belts together defining a take-up site for receiving the web material therebetween and a discharge site for outputting the web material, such transport belts being guided in juxtaposition between the take-up site and the discharge site to substantially continuously clamp the web material between the belts, each transport belt including: a feed section of varying length and having a substantially U-shaped feed path portion, the belts in such feed sections together being guided over a first deflecting roller substantially half-wrapped by the belts, and a return section of varying length, the belts in such return sections being separately guided from the discharge site to the take-up site and each running through a substantially U-shaped return path portion extending opposite to the U-shaped feed path portion and substantially half-wrapping one of second and third deflecting rollers, respectively; and a common mounting frame rotatably supporting the three deflecting rollers and movable on a machine stand, the common mounting frame moving substantially parallel to the U-shaped path portions, whereby for each belt the length of the feed section varies with respect to the length of the return section and the web material is protected through substantially the entirety of the transport path.