Photographic film stacking device

Abstract

A film strip stacking device is provided for use in an order finishing station in conjunction with the negative cutter to accept film strips from the negative cutter which cuts the film into strips. The strips are collected into a stack which can then be loaded into a film sleeve prior to return to the customer. The film strip stacker of the present invention includes a channel divided into an upper and lower portion. The upper portion being adapted to receive initially the film from the negative cutter and including parallel rails movable to contact the film strip after it is cut and while it is in the upper portion of the channel and force the film to deform sufficiently to snap past the shelf members supporting the film into the lower portion of the channel. A pusher blade is movably mounted on the base of the film stacker and operable to contact an end of the film stack to push the stack out of the channel and into a film sleeve held in communication with the lower portion of the channel. The rails contact the edges of the film where there is no image to minimize the potential for damage to the image-containing portions of the film strip. Preferably, a sleeve opener mechanism is provided in conjunction with the stacker and operable in timed relation with the pusher blade to open the film sleeve to allow easy entry of the stack into the film sleeve as the pusher moves the stack from the second channel into the film sleeve. Also, the operation of the rails, the pusher blade, and the sleeve opener are all controlled in timed relation to the action of the knife in the negative cutter.