The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 24, 1998
Filed:
Apr. 11, 1997
Murray O Meetze, Jr, Rochester, NY (US);
Kenneth G Christy, Webster, NY (US);
Arthur H Kahn, Cohocton, NY (US);
Thomas P Lambert, Webster, NY (US);
Xerox Corporation, Stamford, CT (US);
Abstract
A stalled sheet folding and flattening apparatus for reducing a sheet, stalled between a withdrawable and a fixed component of a cut sheet handling system of a sheet handling machine, into a shape and size suitably enabling reliable removal of the stalled sheet through even a relatively narrow gap between the withdrawable and fixed components of the sheet handling system. The stalled sheet folding and flattening apparatus includes a fixed component of the sheet handling system connected to a frame of the machine and having a first section of a sheet path; a withdrawable component of the sheet handling system mounted to the frame, and having a sheet flattening side defining a relatively narrow gap between a fixed surface within the machine and the withdrawable component, and including a second section of the sheet path adjoining the first section of the sheet path; and a sheet folding device mounted to the fixed component. The sheet folding device includes a generally U-shaped portion defining a slot and having a sheet contact surface forming a part, of an edge of the first section of the sheet path, for contacting and deflecting into a first fold, an edge of a sheet stalled across an interface between the first and the second sections of the sheet path, when the withdrawable component is being pulled out of the machine. The sheet contact surface of the U-shaped portion has a first radius of curvature defining a first concave surface for deflecting and folding the stalled sheet, and a second radius of curvature defining a second surface for guiding the folded sheet out of the slot.