Man Roland Druckmaschinen Ag

M.a.n. Roland Maschinenfabrik Ag

Eckhard Schneider

Klaus-Ulrich Lange

Erwin Saalfrank

Ingo Kobler

Hans Schwopfinger

Friedrich Michaelis

Walter Purkl

A method and apparatus for guiding a sheet in a folding device of a printing machine includes a belt conveyor system and a bucket wheel conveyor system including a bucket wheel. The belt conveyor system includes two belts rotated by a plurality of rollers. Two of the rollers are disposed at a delivery area near the bucket wheel. The two rollers include a ridge imparting mechanism for introducing a ridge or corrugation to a sheet being fed between the belts and between the rollers. The two rollers are disposed in a common horizontal plane and are spaced at a substantially equal distance from the bucket wheel in a vertical direction relative to the bucket wheel. At least one of the two rollers is adjustable relative to the other roller so as to adjustably increase or decrease a degree or depth of ridge that is applied to the sheet. A guide member is disposed between the two rollers and the bucket wheel to prevent a sheet from being diverted from the bucket wheel.

Sheet guiding device in folding apparatus of printing machine

To cross-fold a moving web into one-third lengths, a cutter blade cylinder (1, 26) is at a cutting position with a counter cylinder (4, 28), which carries needles and may also carry cutting knives. The cutting knives are arranged to cut the web into a format of one-third/two-third length, respectively. The needles (5, 6) on the cylinder transfer the one-third cut element to a second needling cylinder (9, 32) which re-transfers the cut elements to a group of needles (6) on the first needling cylinder (4, 28) so that the one-third length portion is superimposed on the two-third length portion. These two superimposed portions are then transferred to a combination needling-folding blade cylinder (10, 33) which folds the two-third portion in half and transfers the fold to a folding jaw cylinder (14, 38) so that the one-third portion is interlaced into the two-thirds portion. The arrangement has the advantage that the punctures from the puncturing needles are at the outer margin, which can be small, and be trimmed off.

Cross-folding apparatus for printed webs, particularly to obtain

To move folding jaws (4, 5) in a scissor-like or pincer-like movement symmetrical with respect to a center line (CL) and to permit adjustment of the gap or opening of the jaws, for acceptance of folded substrates of different thicknesses, the jaws are coupled together by a rotation reversal arrangement (14, 114, 112, 314) so that rotation of one of the carrier bodies (6) will be transferred as an equal and opposite movement to the other (7) of the carrier bodies. An axial position adjustment spindle (25, 125, 325), controllable by a hand wheel (29) or servo motor (30), changes the axial position of gears rotating or rotating with a shaft (2, 202, 402) of a folding jaw cylinder (1, 201, 401), at least some of the gears or gear pairs having inclined teeth, to thereby transfer a positioning movement into a relative rotary shift of the respectively rotating gear with respect to the gear driving the shaft, thereby causing rocking or tilting of the folding jaw carriers (6, 7).

Folding jaw adjustment system for a printing machine folding cylinder

A web (17) received, for example, from an 8-page or 16-page printing machine, is severed in a cutter blade cylinder (6) needle-tucking blade cylinder (7) combination and the severed sheets are provided with a cross fold in a first system (A) formed by the combination needle-tucking blade cylinder (7) and a combination needle-cutter blade cylinder (12), to be then further cross-folded and cut in a second system formed by the combination of the needle-cutter blade cylinder (12) with a needle-folding jaw cylinder (13). To permit the second combination to be operative, the combination needle-cutter blade cylinder (12) is additionally formed with tucking blades (21) for engagement in the folding jaws (22) of the needle-folding jaw cylinder (13). This arrangement permits double cutting and folding, for example, of longitudinally folded superimposed webs into, selectively, 81/2'.times.11' or A4 products and cross-folding them to 51/2'.times.81/2 or A5 products.

Versatile folding apparatus to provide folded products of selectively

To prevent deposition of ink, and accumulation of ink deposits on the paddles or vanes (8) of a paddle wheel distributor (2), the paddles or vanes are made of a plastic material which has a surface which rejects ink, and prevents accumulation thereon; a suitable material is polyamide, preferably reinforced with fiber or filamentary material, such as carbon fibers, the polyamide of the type polyamide 6.6 being present in about 70% with 30% carbon fibers. This permits making the vanes with a part-spherical or part-circular, or elliptical cross section to provide rounded corners and hence gentle handling of printed products (7) collected in the pockets between adjacent vanes. Braking tongues (9) located between axially staggered rings (4) of vanes can be of the same material and are so positioned that, in a plane transverse to the printed folded products, such as newspapers being inserted into the pockets between the vanes, are deformed in a gentle or slightly undulating shape.

Ink rejecting paddle wheel distributor

To permit selectively stapling paper products which are to be folded in advance of formation of a first or a second cross fold, a stapling cylinder (18) can be selectively placed in engagement with a first folding blade cylinder (5) carrying transport needles (6) or a second folding blade cylinder (10) having folding blades and grippers (11) thereon. If the stapling cylinder (18) is engaged with the first needle and folding blade cylinder (5), staples can be placed into the products prior to formation of the first cross fold at the position of the fold line. Upon engagement of the stapling cylinder (18) on the gripper and folding blade cylinder (10), the once folded products are stapled at the fold line of a second fold, which is then carried out after stapling. The respective first and second folding blade cylinders include staple counter plates (13) to close the staples supplied by the staple applying stapling cylinder (18).

Combination folding and cut product attachment apparatus

To permit formation of a transverse perforation in advance of a second cross fold, a first folding blade cylinder (5) equipped with needles (6) and preferably forming a collection cylinder has folding blades, to receive products, cooperation with a first folding flap cylinder (8). In accordance with the invention, the folding flap cylinder is formed with at least one axially extended perforating groove (10) and an associated folding and perforating blade cylinder (11) has a combination perforating and folding blade (13) which engages a folded product once to push the folded product into the perforating groove (10) to form perforations and, upon further travel of the folded product, transfers the product to a second folding flap cylinder (14) having folding flaps (16) to again engage the products with the combination perforating and folding blade to form a second transverse fold in the folding flaps of the second folding flap cylinder (14). Selective control permits enabling or disabling the combination perforating and folding blade (13), for transferring, for example, sheets directly to grippers (15) on the second folding flap cylinder (14), if no second transverse fold is to be made.

Combination folding and cross-perforating system

To provide, selectively, different outputs from a cutting and folding apparatus (FIGS. 3, 4, 5), first and second cutting and folding groups (11, 12, 13; 608, 609, 610, 611; 14, 15, 13; 621, 622, 623) provide, respectively, first and second types of printed substrates (A1, A2), for example forming advertising material for men's wear and ladies' wear, for subsequent insertion into a newspaper, the respective first and second cutting and folding apparatus delivering the printed substrates which may have undergone one longitudinal fold, and have been transversely folded by the cutting and folding apparatus to transport belts, which, further and selectively, either transport the two different types of cut and folded substrates to separate receiving stations (21, 22) which may form further longitudinal folds therein, or, in dependence on a setting of a switch (16, 16'; 26, 611), supply the two types of printed subject matter to one further receiving station (22; 614) and associate the two types of substrates (A1, A2) by an alignment apparatus providing different path lengths for the respective substrates, so that the leading edges thereof are in alignment and match, for ready and automatic insertion into a newspaper.

Folding apparatus for transverse folding and transporting of two types

To permit, selectively, assembly of different types of copy products (A1, A2), for example each containing different information, such as inserts advertising men's wear and ladies' wear, respectively, for a newspaper, first and second transverse severing and folding units (1, 8, 9, 10; 15, 18, 19, 20) are provided receiving, selectively, different portions (1a, 1b) of webs on which different copy product information is printed. An intermediate transport system (21, 25) is provided receiving, selectively, the first type of copy products (A1) from the first transverse severing and folding unit (1, 8, 9, 10) and, selectively, supplying the first type copy products with predetermined alignment to a folding flap cylinder (20) of the second severing and folding unit (15, 18, 19, 20), the second folding flap cylinder guiding the first copy products (A1) together with a severed, folded copy product (A2) of another type about a portion of its circumference and transferring the now joined copy products to, for example, a third folding unit (23) via an output transport system. The intermediate transport system which may include another folding flap cylinder (11) can be, selectively, enabled or disabled so that copy products can be supplied separately from either severing or folding units, for example via a delivery transport system (12, 13) and the current transport system (21, 22) separately. The separate webs may be cut portions from a single web which, for example, can be directed to the first severing and folding unit, for providing multiple folded inserts which can be selectively distributed by the intermediate transport system on the respective output transport system (21, 22) and the delivery system (12, 13).

Versatile printed copy severing, folding and assembling apparatus

To pull apart interfolded, imbricated paper copy products (4, 5), two pairs (1, 2) of upper and lower transport systems, typically sprocket chains, each have engagement projection elements (10-13), preferably roller elements, extending therefrom, and gripping laterally projecting edges of the respective imbricated in-folded copy products. The paths of the upper and lower transport systems (6-7, 8-9) converge towards each other to grip the copy products and, after having gripped the copy products, the pairs diverge laterally from each other to pull out and pull apart the copy products (4', 5') gripped by the respective pairs of the transport systems, the upper and lower transport systems then diverging to release the copy products to further removal transport arrangements, for example transport belts (17, 18).

Growing community of inventors

Stadtbergen, Germany

Eckhard Schneider