John Brown Inc.

James H Kundinger

Gaylord W Brown

William F Kent

Apparatus and method for severing and stacking articles which have been differentially pressure formed in a sheet of thermoplastic material from the sheet. Apparatus is provided for moving the sheet in a horizontal path and relatively vertically moving opposed upper and lower trim dies into engagement with vertically opposite sides of the sheet to trim the articles from the sheet at a trim station. The articles free fall through an opening in the lower die and free fall to an underlying accumulator. The accumulator includes mechanism which is moveable from a stack forming position in the path of freely falling articles to receive and accumulate freely falling severed articles in a stack, and a releasing position in which a formed the stack is released for vertical free fall. Mechanism is provided for accumulating additional severed articles at a higher predetermined vertical level until the released stack vertically clears the stacking station and then releasing the partial stack for free-fall to the stacking station at which another stack is completed.

Growing community of inventors

Midland, MI, United States of America

James H Kundinger