Device for splitting a sheath stream

Abstract

Device (1) for dividing a shingle stream (2) of partially overlapping print products (3) conveyed in a transport direction x into a plurality of spaced-apart shingle stream sections (8) each with a defined number n of print products (3), wherein each print product (3) has a leading edge (10) and a trailing end (11) as seen in the transport direction x, wherein the device (1) comprises: at least one first transport device (4-1) for transporting the printed products (3) designed as a continuous shingle stream (2) in the transport direction x; a retaining device (5) for temporarily spatially fixing a selected printed product (3F) to be fixed from the continuous stream of scales (2); wherein by temporarily fixing the selected print product (3F) to be fixed, the print products (3) located downstream of the fixed print product (3F) in the shingle stream (2) in the transport direction x can be divided into shingle stream section (8) with a defined number n of print products (3).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a device for dividing a shingle stream of partially overlapping printed products conveyed in a transport direction x into a plurality of spaced-apart shingle stream sections, each with a defined number n of printed products, wherein each printed product, viewed in the transport direction x, has a leading edge and a trailing end, and wherein the device comprises at least one first transport device for transporting the printed products designed as a continuous shingle stream in the transport direction x.

[0002] Solutions are known from the prior art in which a stream of shingles consisting of a large number of partially overlapping printed products is stacked into a plurality of stacks, or in which a plurality of printed products are unstacked into stacks with a defined number of printed products, for example, into book blocks.

[0003] However, such solutions have the disadvantage that for further processing steps such stacks can only be transported with technically complex solutions and / or at low speed, especially if slippage of the printed products in a stack must be avoided and / or if the stacks have fundamentally different heights, as can be the case, for example, with the book-on-demand process.

[0004] Furthermore, the methods known from the prior art have the problem that, in such applications, the productivity of the overall system is limited by the component with the lowest throughput of printed products per unit of time, since a continuous shingle stream comprising a large number of partially overlapping printed products cannot be divided with product-specific precision. While solutions are known from the prior art in which nested printed products can be extracted perpendicular to the transport direction in order to laterally divide a shingle stream into two shingle streams, the two separate shingle streams thus generated also exhibit the problem described above.

[0005] The object of the invention is therefore to find a solution in which a stream of shed material can be divided into easily transportable sections with a defined number of printed products.

[0006] The problem is solved by the device comprising a holding device for temporarily spatially fixing a selected print product to be fixed in the continuous shingle stream, wherein by temporarily fixing the selected print product to be fixed the print products located downstream of the fixed print product in the shingle stream in the transport direction x can be divided into a shingle stream section with a defined number n of print products.

[0007] Such a solution has the advantage that an essentially endless stream of scales can be divided into a plurality or multitude of partial scale sections, each containing the exact number and / or the correspondingly required printed products, for example, for the production of a book block, and can be sequentially divided to different post-processing components if necessary to avoid limitations in productivity, but that these scale stream sections, which are not yet completely stacked on top of each other, can be transported at high speed using simple technical means.

[0008] According to one embodiment, the retaining device includes a stop, wherein the stop can be brought into contact with the leading edge of the printed product to be fixed, which is located at the front in the transport direction x.

[0009] Such a design has the advantage that it allows a division of a shingle stream into a plurality of shingle stream sections using simple technical means, and that the printed product to be fixed can be reliably and temporarily held back using simple technical means.

[0010] According to a further embodiment, the stop on the side facing the shed stream includes at least one roller.

[0011] This design has the advantage that the stop can be set against the shingle stream without also holding back the at least one printed product which is at least partially located below the printed product to be fixed, so that an adjustment of the end position of the set stop to hold back the corresponding printed products to the thickness of the printed products and / or to the shingle of the shingle stream is not necessary.

[0012] According to a further embodiment, the retaining device comprises a holding device, wherein the holding device is designed to force-fit the rear end of the printed product as seen in the transport direction x, or in the area of ​​the printed product end of the printed product to be fixed.

[0013] Such a design has the advantage that by clamping the end of the printed product to be fixed, it is reliably held in place without the need for adjustments to the thickness of the printed product and / or the shingle stream.

[0014] According to a further embodiment, a second transport device is arranged downstream of the holding device in the transport direction x.

[0015] This design has the advantage that the individual shingle stream sections can be conveyed by means of a separate transport device, so that, for example, the second transport device can be operated at a different speed than the first transport device and / or the design of the second transport device can differ from that of the first transport device, especially since no shingle stream needs to be formed in the second transport device. Thus, for example, the alignment of the individual printed products of a shingle stream section relative to each other can be ensured in the second transport device by means of suitable technical means.

[0016] According to a further embodiment, the second transport device includes conveyor belts for clamping the shed stream sections on both sides.

[0017] Such a design has the advantage that the individual printed products of the shingle stream sections can be fixed in their position relative to each other in the second transport device, and that each entire shingle stream section can also be reliably transported with a predetermined timing and speed.

[0018] According to a further embodiment, the second transport device for the shed stream sections can be operated at least temporarily with a transport speed v that differs from that of the first transport device.

[0019] This design has the advantage that, in the event of a build-up, the first printed products of a shingle stream section (viewed from the transport direction) can be returned to the desired shingle pattern. It is also possible to adjust the spacing between the individual shingle stream sections to a desired dimension, for example, by increasing or decreasing the distances between them, if this is advantageous or necessary for further processing.

[0020] According to a further embodiment, a dividing device is arranged downstream of the restraint device in the transport direction x, wherein the dividing device deflects the conveyed shed stream sections into at least a second transport device and a third transport device.

[0021] Such a design has the advantage that the shingle stream sections can be divided among a plurality of parallel transport devices, making it possible to divide the shingle stream or shingle stream sections among a plurality of separate post-processing facilities without impairing overall productivity.

[0022] Preferred embodiments of the invention are described in the dependent claims and the following description. Various exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail with reference to the drawings, without being limited thereto. These show: Fig. 1 an uninterrupted sheath stream on a first transport device Fig. 2 an uninterrupted sheath flow on a first transport device at the time of activation of the restraint device Fig. 3. An uninterrupted stream of scales on a first transport device after activation of the restraint device. Fig. 4 a retaining device designed as a holding device Fig. 5. A division of a shed stream into shed stream sections using a second transport device Fig. 6. A division of a shingle stream into shingle stream sections using a stop equipped with rollers. Fig. 7. A division of a shingle stream into shingle stream sections using a stop equipped with rollers. Fig. 8 an exemplary embodiment of a holding device designed as a holding device Fig. 9 an exemplary embodiment of a holding device designed as a holding device Fig. 10 a division of shed stream sections into two transport devices by means of a dividing device

[0023] Fig. Figure 1 shows an exemplary representation of a device 1 which conveys a shingle stream 2 in a transport direction x on a first transport device 4-1, wherein the shingle stream 2 consists of a plurality of partially overlapping printed products 3. In the Fig. In the purely schematic representation, the printed products 3 are depicted purely as lines. Although this gives the impression that the printed products 3 are unfolded sheets, it should be noted here that all purely symbolic representations of the printed products 3 can be unfolded, single-folded, or multi-folded, which, contrary to the purely symbolic representation in the Fig. 1 to 10 are not or only conditionally dimensionally stable and thus, contrary to the purely symbolic representation in the Fig. 1 to 10 typically exhibit a deflection in a sheath stream 2.

[0024] Fig. Figure 1 also shows, purely symbolically, a restraint device 5 in a switched-off state, so that the entire shed stream 2 can be transported by means of the first transport device 4-1, wherein the first transport device 4-1 can, for example, be designed as a conveyor belt, or, for example, as a transport device 4 comprising a plurality of individual conveyor belts arranged side by side, optionally slightly spaced apart from each other, as are known from the prior art. With the in Fig. In the configuration shown in 1, the sheath flow 2 can be conveyed unhindered and consequently without division or separation in the transport direction x.

[0025] Fig. Figure 2 shows the device 1. Fig. 1 in basically the same design, wherein the configuration of the device 1 differs in Fig. 2 opposite Fig. 1 differs in that in the Fig. 2 shown variant of the restraint device 5, which is in Fig. 2 is designed as a stop 6, is positioned against the shingle stream 2 or arranged at a small distance above the shingle stream 2, so that the leading edge 10 of the printed product 3F to be fixed abuts the retaining device 5 designed as a stop 6. The printed product 3F to be fixed is, viewed in the transport direction x, the first printed product 3 of a shingle stream section 8.

[0026] The activation of the restraint device 5 can be achieved, for example, by the following means: The corresponding device 1, and preferably the upstream one, in the Fig. 1 to 10 not shown manufacturing or provisioning device of the printed products 3 a so-called product tracking, in which each of the printed products 3 is defined by the timing and tracking of its current location with regard to position and condition, the activation of the retention device 5 via this in the Fig. 1 to 10 product tracking device not shown, since the position of the printed product 3F to be fixed relative to the retaining device 5 is thus known.

[0027] However, it is also possible, particularly in the production of shingle stream sections 8 with identical content for each production run, that after a single reference cycle, the number of printed products 3 conveyed under the retaining device 5 is determined, so that the subsequent activation of the retaining device 5 is based solely on the number of printed products 3 conveyed past the retaining device 5. The determination of the corresponding number of printed products 3 conveyed through the retaining device 5 can be done purely mathematically using the transport speed v. However, it is also possible to determine the number of printed products 3 conveyed through the retaining device 5 using at least one [method / method] in the Fig. 1 to 10 not shown, to implement a sensor which, for example, either detects the leading edges 10 of all printed products 3 or in the Fig. 1 to 10 brands not shown were recorded and the number of promoted print products was determined via the corresponding impulses.

[0028] However, it is also possible that the control of the retaining device 5 is carried out by means of control marks. In this case, a control mark specific in shape and / or size and / or position and / or content and / or color is applied to an area visible in the shingle stream 2, for example on the printed products 3F to be fixed, which is detected by a sensor not shown and by storing the specific design of the control mark, the activation of the retaining device 5 can be controlled with product-specific precision.

[0029] Fig. Figure 3 shows the device 1 according to the Fig. 2, however, a short period of time after the leading edge 10 of the printed product 3F to be fixed has come into contact with the retaining device 5. Since the in Fig. 3. For example, a retaining device 5 designed as a stop 6 can at least temporarily hinder the further transport of the printed product 3F to be fixed as well as the subsequent printed products 3 of the shear flow 2, in the sense of briefly. Fig. 3 illustrative four exemplary printed products 3 lying on the first transport device 4-1, viewed in the transport direction x downstream of the restraint device 5 from the one in the Fig. 1 and Fig. The two uninterrupted shingle streams 2 are separated because they are transported further by the first transport device 4-1 in the transport direction x as a separate shingle stream section 8 consisting, for example, of four partially overlapping printed products 3. This shingle stream section 8 thus generated consists, as already explained above, of a defined number of partially overlapping printed products 3 and consequently has essentially the same property as the original shingle stream 2. Therefore, shingle stream sections 8 generated in this way can be transported with relatively simple technical means at relatively high transport speeds without the risk of the printed products 3 slipping relative to each other.

[0030] Although not in Fig. As shown in Figure 3, after the printed product 3F to be fixed is briefly held back against the transport direction x, the holding device 5, designed as a stop 6, is deactivated again, so that the leading edge 10 of the printed product 3F to be fixed is released and both the printed product 3F to be fixed and the subsequent printed products 3 of the shingle stream 2 are again transported by the first transport device 4-1 in the transport direction x. After a defined number of subsequent printed products 3 have passed under the holding device 5, it is reactivated, for example according to one of the technical possibilities described above, so that a new shingle stream section 8 is formed from a defined number of subsequent printed products 3 and is transported further in the transport direction x, separate from the shingle stream 2.

[0031] Since the retention of the print product 3F to be fixed and the subsequent print products 3 by the retaining device 5 only occurs very briefly in order to form a sufficiently large gap between the respective shingle stream section 8 and the shingle stream 2, any slippage of the print products 3 of the shingle stream 2 relative to each other or the resulting relative movement of the print product 3F to be fixed and the subsequent print products 3 to the first transport device 4-1 can be neglected.

[0032] Fig. Figure 4 shows an embodiment in which the retaining device 5 is not positioned as in the Fig. 1 to 3, depicted as a stop 6 for temporarily holding the printed product 3F to be fixed at its leading edge 10, but in which the holding device 5 is designed as a clamping device 7 for clamping and thus for force-fit fixing of the downstream end of the printed product 11 in the transport direction x. Since clamping the printed product 3F to be fixed against the first transport device 4-1 is not possible, in this technical embodiment the holding device 7 is designed in two parts, for example with a fixed part 7 inside or below the first transport device 4-1, which, for example, comprises a plurality of spaced-apart transport belts at least in the area of ​​the holding device 7, as exemplified in the Fig. 8 and Fig. Figure 9 shows. In addition, the holding device 7 includes at least one movable part, which is arranged, for example, above the first transport device 4-1.

[0033] The process for forming shed stream sections 8 from shed stream 2 is essentially identical to that described below. Fig. As described in section 3, however, the printed product 3F to be fixed is not held back at its leading edge 10, but rather clamped in the area of ​​the printed product end 11 as viewed in the transport direction x. Due to the overlap of the printed products 3 in the shingle stream 2, care must be taken to ensure that the clamping of the printed product 3F to be fixed takes place in an area where the last printed product 3 of the shingle stream section 8 to be formed is not clamped, as otherwise the number and assignment of the printed products 3 to the respective shingle stream section 8 no longer correspond to the specifications.

[0034] Although not in Fig. As shown in 4, it is also possible to... Fig. 3. The embodiment of the retaining device 5 as a stop 6 is to be combined with a holding device 7, so that the printed product 3F to be fixed is held both at the leading edge 10 by the stop 6 and in the area of ​​the end of the printed product 11 by the holding device 7.

[0035] By clamping the end 11 of the print product 3F to be fixed, the subsequent print product 3 of the print product 3F, viewed in the transport direction x, is usually clamped due to the partial overlap of the print products 3, which serves to retain the flux flow 2.

[0036] An advantage of designing the retaining device 5 as a holding device 7 is that, due to the force-locking clamping mechanism, no adjustment of the holding device 7 to the thickness of the printed products 3 and / or to the thickness of the flake stream 2 is required.

[0037] Furthermore, the absence or at most optional retention of the printed product 3F to be fixed at the leading edge 10 allows the immediate feeding of the shingle stream section 8 into a channel from the first transport device 4-1 as in Fig. 5 shown, simplified accordingly.

[0038] Fig. 5 essentially shows the Fig. 4 configuration shown, where in contrast to Fig. 4 seen in the transport direction x downstream of the restraint device 5 the first transport device 4-1 ends and a second transport device 4-2, different from the first transport device 4-1, is arranged in the transport direction x for transporting the shed stream sections 8.

[0039] At the in Fig. In the example shown in Figure 5, the second transport device 4-2 is designed as a transport device 4-2 with two conveyor belts 4-2a and 4-2b arranged opposite each other, wherein the upper conveyor belt 4-2a is also referred to as the upper belt and the lower conveyor belt 4-2b as the lower belt. The two conveyor belts 4-2a and 4-2b can be configured, viewed perpendicular to the transport direction x across the width of the printed product, either as a continuous conveyor belt or as a plurality of conveyor belts arranged side by side, advantageously spaced apart from each other.

[0040] With this in Fig. In the embodiment of the second transport device 4-2 shown in Figure 5, it can be achieved that the shingle stream sections 8 separated by the shingle stream 2 are clamped between two transport belts 4-2a and 4-2b during further transport, so that reliable transport with a defined transport speed v as well as slippage of the printed products 3 of a shingle stream section 8 is avoided.

[0041] Although not in Fig. As shown graphically in Figure 5, it is also possible that the second transport device 4-2 transports the shed stream sections 8 at least temporarily at a different transport speed v than the shed stream 2 is transported in the first transport device 4-1. This offers, for example, the possibility of varying the distance of the shed stream section 8 to the shed stream 2 and / or the distances between the individual shed stream sections 8.

[0042] The Fig. 6 and Fig. Figure 7 shows an exemplary embodiment in which the restraint device 5 is comparable to the Fig. 1 to 3 is designed as a stop 6, wherein the stop 6 on the side facing the shed stream 2 comprises at least one roller 9.

[0043] Fig. Figure 6 shows an example side view, whereas Fig. 7 a top view of the in Fig. The 6 shown version is shown.

[0044] During the Fig. 6 and Fig. In the exemplary embodiment shown in 7, the stop 6 on the side facing the shingle stream 2 has three recesses across the width of the printed products 3 perpendicular to the transport direction x, in each of which a roller 9 is rotatably mounted. Although in Fig. Figure 7 shows an example with three rollers 9 across the width; however, it is also possible to attach a different number of rollers 9 to the stop 6. It is also possible to attach the rollers 9 to the stop 6 with the same function or mode of operation but in a different design.

[0045] The rollers 9 attached to the stop 6 provide a defined stop surface along the length of the leading edge 10, ensuring that the printed product 3F can be reliably and precisely fixed to the stop 6. However, using the rollers 9 on the side facing the shingle stream 2 offers the advantage that the stop 6 can be aligned with the shingle stream 2, particularly since the last printed product 3 of the forming shingle stream section 8, viewed in the transport direction x, is positioned according to Fig. 3 even when the stop 6 is pressed against the shingle stream 2, it is not held back by the stop 6 designed as a retaining device 5, so that even when the stop 6 is pressed against the shingle stream 2, the printed product 3F to be fixed is reliably held back without the need to adjust the stop 6 to the thickness of the printed products 3 or the shingle stream 2.

[0046] The Fig. 8 and Fig. 9 show, as already described in the description of Fig. Figure 4 discloses an exemplary embodiment of the first transport device 4-1, which can be used by way of example when the restraint device 5 is as in Fig. Figure 4 shows a holding device 7. To ensure that the end 11 of the printed product 3F to be fixed is reliably clamped by the holding device 7, the first transport device 4-1 cannot be designed as a continuous conveyor belt across the width of the printed products 3 perpendicular to the transport direction x, at least in the area of ​​the retaining device 5. Instead, the first transport device 4-1 must be designed as a plurality of first conveyor belts 4-1a arranged side by side and spaced apart from each other, so that the holding device 7, for example, which may be multi-rowed, can be arranged between the spaced-apart first conveyor belts 4-1a. In the case of the Fig. 8 as a side view and in Fig. In the example shown in Figure 9 as a top view, the first transport device 4-1 comprises three first conveyor belts 4-1a arranged laterally next to each other and spaced apart from each other, such that a holding device 7 is arranged as a restraint device 5 between the middle first conveyor belt 4-1a and the two outer first conveyor belts 4-1a.

[0047] Fig. Figure 10 shows an embodiment in which a dividing device 12 is arranged downstream of the restraint device 5 when viewed in the transport direction x. The dividing device 12 allows the shear flow sections 8, which were separated from the shear flow 2 by the restraint device 5, to be deflected and thus divided into at least a second transport device 4-2 and a third transport device 4-3.

[0048] At the in Fig. In the exemplary embodiment shown in 10, the first transport device 4-1, viewed in the transport direction x downstream of the restraint device 5, as well as the second transport device 4-2 and the third transport device 4-3, are as a belt transport system with at least one upper belt and at least one lower belt each, as described in Fig. 5 explained in detail, as this usually ensures better guidance of the individual shed stream sections 8.

[0049] At the in Fig. In the example shown in Figure 10, downstream of the restraint device 5, the first shear flow section 8-1 and the second shear flow section 8-2 are conveyed by the first transport device 4-1 to the symbolically represented dividing device 12. The dividing device 12 is located at the point shown in Figure 10. Fig. The example shown in Figure 10 is designed such that every second shed stream section 8 is conveyed into the second transport device 4-2 and every other second shed stream section 8 is conveyed into the third transport device 4-3, so that in the Fig. In the example shown in Figure 10, the third shed stream section 8-3 and the fifth shed stream section 8-5 are conveyed in the third transport device 4-3 in the third transport direction x-3, and the fourth shed stream section 8-4 is conveyed in the second transport device 4-2 in the second transport direction x-2.

[0050] Although in Fig. If not shown in more detail in Figure 10, the dividing device 12 can either be designed as a switchable product diverter, for example in the form of a switchable guide element, which diverts the odd-numbered shingle flow sections 8-3, 8-5 into the third transport device 4-3 and the even-numbered shingle flow sections 8-4 and following into the second transport device 4-2.

[0051] However, it is also possible that the dividing device 12 is designed as a rotating cam with which the respective shear flow sections 8 are deflected into the second transport device 4-2 or into the third transport device 4-3. Alternatively, it is also possible that the dividing device 12 is designed as a cyclically pivoting belt conveyor with which the respective shear flow sections 8 are deflected into the second transport device 4-2 or into the third transport device 4-3.

[0052] Although not in Fig.As shown in Figure 10, the dividing device 12 can also be designed in such a way that the shingle stream sections 8 transported in the first transport device 4-1 are conveyed completely or successively in a defined number exclusively into the second transport device 4-2 or into the third transport device 4-3, so that a defined quantity of shingle stream sections 8 is conveyed either into the second transport device 4-2 or into the third transport device 4-3, whereby, however, the possible advantage of further simultaneous processing by dividing the shingle stream sections 8 into a plurality of transport devices 4 is reduced or lost. Reference symbol list 1 Device 2 Shed stream 3 Printed product 3F fixing print product 4-1 first transport device 4-1a Conveyor belt 4-2 second transport device 4-2a Conveyor belt 4-2b Conveyor belt 4-3 third transport device 5 Restraint device 6 stops 7 Holding device 8 Shed stream section 9 roll 10 Leading edge 11 End of printed products 12 Dividing device x direction of transport

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