GB2239000A

GB2239000A - Automatic dispenser for components in continuous strip form

Info

Publication number: GB2239000A
Application number: GB9024883A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Antonio Consola Lozano
Original assignee: MULTILOGIC BUSINESS SA
Current assignee: MULTILOGIC BUSINESS SA
Priority date: 1989-11-16
Filing date: 1990-11-15
Publication date: 1991-06-19
Anticipated expiration: 2010-11-15
Also published as: FR2654421A1; FR2654421B1; GB9024883D0; DE4036248A1; ES2017357A6; GB2239000B

Abstract

An automatic dispenser device is described for dispensing components in continuous strip form 19, the device comprising a chassis consisting of two flat parallel facing plates 1,1' between which the following are mounted transversely: a drum 21, carrying a supply coil 20 of the continuous strip 19; a step-by-step drive motor 5; a roll 13 on which the said strip 19 is placed; three shafts 10, 11, 12 located around the roll 13 of which one shaft 10 is coupled to the shaft 6 of motor 5, the shafts 10, 11, 12 being connected together by means of endless elastic belts 16 enclosing the strip 19 against the roll 13 to unwind strip 19 from coil 20; and a rotary helical blade and a cooperating fixed blade which is pivotable between a raised position and an operating position by an independent micro-motor that also drives the rotary blade. The strip 19 is forced to pass between the blades. The device includes an alarm arrangement to terminate movement of strip 19 and to provide optical and/or acoustic signal if strip 19 in coil 20 drops below a predetermined level. <IMAGE>

Description

A 1 ' 1, Title AUTOMATIC DISPENSER FOR COMPONENTS IN CONTINUOUS STRIP FORM

This invention relates to an automatic dispenser for components in continuous strip form.

More specifically the invention relates to a unit for allowing automatic dispensing of small size components from a strip - such as stamps, prints, bills, etc. including strip components of greater rigidity, such as puzzle components, etc. - wrapped in a sequence of envelopes, forming a continuous strip.

There is already on the market a number of devices which allow automatic distribution of strip components and more particularly bills, cards and similar items, from a continuous strip of such items, which devices, in many cases, effect part or all of any printing on the strip.

All these units are fed from a coil of the items to be dispensed and include means for unrolling the coil and means for cutting and ejecting and, sometimes, printing the piece of the coil unrolled in each operational cycle. Such known units which operate suitably when dealing with a single strip thickness, i.e. with a uniform single strip band, rolled in the form of a coil. are subject to breakdown when used for dispensing continuous strips including two or more superimposed items, as is the case particularly with strip components packed in a continuous strip of envelopes, such as prints, for instance envelopes containing one or several prints, stamps. bills. etc. In addition, the automatic dispensers at present known are already subject to a large number of failures, breakdowns and operational defects, if not practically ineffective when required for automatic dispensing of strip components of a certain rigidity, for instance more particularly, strip items which are not paper, but board, cardboard, plastic or the like, as for instance pieces for puzzles, booklets, p 1 2 bristol board, etc. packed in envelopes. The reasons for this inefficiency lie mainly with the pulling system used by known devices, operating with a minimum contact surface between the continuous strip and the pulling components, also the cutting system with a fixed and a moving blade defining a narrow slit of invariable dimensions, for the pitch of the items to be cut, in the narrow angles the strip is obliged to follow as it is unrolled from the coil, mainly to compensate for the reduction in contact surface as referred to, and the impossibility of a response of the assembly in the face of failures or defects in unrolling or cutting which may eventually occur.

The difficulties and defects in known automatic distributors have been particularly brought out when used with regard to the equipment for promoting savings, the subject of Spanish Patent No. 88 03960, applied for on the 28th December 1988 by the same applicant, one of the main features of which is to endeavour more precisely, as an incentive to juvenile saving, and in response to cash receipts, to provide a number of strips packed in a continuous roll of envelopes. The particular difficulties and defects have been specified, leading to the design of the equipment which is the subject of this invention, which, while also being applied in the automatic dispensing of continuous strips of single strip components, of common type, and although allowing for a wide range of applications, is also particularly suited to automatic dispensation of the relevant items and for incorporation in the relevant equipment.

According to the present invention there is provided an automatic distributor device for flat components in the form of a continuous strip, wherein the device comprises a chassis consisting of two parallel flat plates, facing each other, between which are transversely fitted a shaft for holding a coil of a continuous strip of flat-components, a step-bystep t 3 electro-motor for determining the controlled unrolling of the said coil, a roll upon which-the continuous sheet unrolled by the coil is obliged to adapt itself, three shafts located around the said roll, one of which is coupled to the motor shaft through a suitable transmission, on which end pulleys are fitted and connected between each other by means of elastic endless belts, constantly applied to the said roll, for securing the fed sheet against the roll by its edges, and a block through which the sheet is obliged to pass, comprising a rotary helical blade, an actuating motor for the said blade and a fixed straight blade which can be actuated by the same motor through a suitable set of gears.to pivot along an ideal longitudinal axis between an operational position and a raised position, in which an ample feed is defined for step-by-step movement of the continuous band.

The device of the present invention is fitted more particularly with pulling mechanisms consisting of the pair of belts reacting upon the margins of the continuous strip, applied to a number of rolls of relatively large diameter, so that the unrolling is effected with complete safety and accuracy without the possibility of slipping, without affecting the components packed in the envelopes and without obliging the assembly to bend round small radii. In addition, the fixed blade of the cutting system is able to pivot about an ideal horizontal axis so as to increase the dimensions of the slit defined between it and the moving blade while the system is at rest, that is to say, while the continuous strip advances, allowing complete freedom to the movement, although the assembly is of relatively considerable thickness, and thanks to an electronic control arrangement, automatically stopping and starting a given reversing movement in the event of a failure.

In order to enable the invention to be more readily understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate diagrammatically 4 and by way of example an embodiment thereof, and in which:- Figs. 1 and 2 are perspective views from opposite sides of an automatic dispenser device, and Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective of the device shown in Figures 1 and 2.

Referring now to the drawings, the device there shown comprises a chassis basically consisting of two flat rigid metal plates 1 and 11. The plates are mounted in parallel facing positions, and secured to each other at a suitable distance, by means of a series of cross pieces 2, which receive at their ends a number of securing screws 3. Alternatively, the plates may be secured by another appropriate system or for instance, the whole device may be based upon a single component curved into a 11U11 shape. In the preferred arrangement shown in the drawings, a number of these cross pieces 2 orthogonal to the two plates, consists of the shafts of mechanical components which are described in greater detail at a later stage. In any case it is particularly advantageous for the assembly to form a compact unit, easily dismantled and designed for coupling to the chassis or body of equipment of greater complexity, into which it is integrated. In order to facilitate the installation, for instance, by means of a box slide, the lower edges of the said plates may be curved back outwards in orthogonal manner, forming equal plane coupling edges 4 and 41.

Between the two plates 1 and 11 of the chassis, is located an electro motor 5 preferably of the step-bystep type, with its shaft 6 projecting to the outside and bearing a pulley or preferably a gear wheel 7, which by means of a belt or similar component 8, connects with a pinion 9 mounted on a transverse shaft 10, determining its rotation movement.

t The transverse shaft 10 combined with two other transverse shafts 11 and 12, is located around a roll 13, also mounted on a transverse shaft 14, upon which it is allowed to rotate freely. The shafts 10, 11 and 12 have at their ends pulleys or gear wheels 15, on which are mounted elastic belts 16, constantly bearing against the periphery of the roll 13. For that purpose and in a preferred form, the roll 13 will have two end zones of increased diameter 17 and 179 and, eventually a central zone of equal diameter 18, the said belts bearing upon the end zones.

A continuous sheet 19 of components which has to be cut and supplied is rolled to form a coil 20, upon a drum 21, and the drum is mounted on the chassis 1 so that it can be removed therefrom, for instance by simply inserting trunnions or end pivots 22, projecting beyond the said drum, into corresponding notches 23 formed in the upper parts of the two vertical plates forming the chassis.

The continuous sheet of components from coil 20, may eventually pass through one or several transverse guide rollers and is finally secured between the endless belts 16 and roller 13, or more precisely the end zones of greater diameter 17 of the roll, being forced to advance and be directed towards the cutting means to which reference is made further on. It should be noted in particular that there is a very ample contact and pressure surface between the continuous strip which is being pulled and the components between which the strip is retained, so that the pull occurs under excellent safety conditions without danger of slipping. Furthermore, the said sheet is only retained at the longitudinal edges, so that the arrangement is particularly suited to the feeding of continuous strips of envelopes containing flat components, since it acts upon the edges, of constant thickness, of the said envelopes, the central zone of greater diameter 18 of the 6 roll 13 simply ensuring support. Finally it should also be noted that this roll, to which the continuous strip is fitted, has a relatively large diameter in its bearing areas, so that the assembly may be perfectly well used for dispensing flat components having a certain amount of rigidity.

The motor 5 controlled by micro processor, fitted for instance upon a support plate 24 located on one of the side plates 1 forming the chassis, gives the continuous strip in each operating cycle the exact amount of forward movement corresponding with the number of envelopes or other flat components which are to be dispensed. A photo electric cell or a sensor or other similar component controls the pitch of the successive envelopes, recording for instance the distance between them and triggering the operation of the cutting means as required.

A serious inconvenience in known cutting arrangements lies in the narrow slit arising therein between the edge of a fixed blade and the helical edge of a rotary blade effecting the cutting action. The throat of the slit, imposed by the efficiency and cleanliness of the cut, is the cause of continuous operating defects, particularly when attempting to apply the unit to the dispensing of envelopes containing flat components, i.e. items of a certain thickness. In order to obviate this inconvenience, in the present device, a fixed plate 25 has a number of pivoting facilities, so that it can assume a good raised position - represented by the broken line in the drawing - allowing a wider opening to the pitch of the continuous sheet, or into an approximately vertical position - represented by the continuous line in which it remains available to allow operation of the moving blade. These movements are determined by the same motor as the one defining the rotary blade movement, by way of a set of gears located in a side compartment 26 formed by a chassis or support 27, on which all these _z 7 components are mounted and which in turn, is mounted transversely between the plates 1 and 11. In a preferred and more particularly advantageous form, within the supply circuit to the motor, located on chassis 27, defining the pivoting movement of the fixed blade 25 and the movement of the helical moving blade (hot visible in the drawings), an alarm system is provided which before any failure of the continuous sheet of flat components. reverses the movement of the said blades, returning the blade 27 to the open position, so that the advance movement can once more be induced for the sheet.

Finally, the assembly has an alarm arrangement which cuts off the movementof the continuous sheet and provides an optical and/or acoustic signal or other, when the stock of continuous sheet in the coil 20 drops below a pre-established limit. This alarm system may for instance consist of a sensor arm 28, mounted on a transverse shaft 29, which may freely rotate in relation to the general chassis 1. A helical spring 30 forces the arm 2,8 to turn so as to bear constantly with its end upon the coil of continuous flat components, in such a way that, when the diameter of the coil drops below a given pre-established minimum, the stop or arm 32 radially projecting beyond a journal 33, secured at the projecting end of shaft 29, reacts upon the operating arm 31 of a micro switch 34, thus cutting off the operation of the device and triggering the alarm previously referred to.

It will be understood that the invention is not to be deemed in any way restricted or limited to the example described and shown here, and that within its essence, it allows numerous additions and modifications, some of which have already been expressly indicated and all of which as is only logical, must be deemed to be included within the scope of the protection applied for herein.

8

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. An automatic distributor device for flat components in the form of a continuous strip, wherein the device comprises a chassis consisting of two parallel flat plates, facing each other, between which are transversely fitted a shaft for holding a coil of a continuous strip of flat components, a step-by-step electro-motor for determining the controlled unrolling of the said coil, a roll upon which the continuous sheet unrolled by the coil is obliged to adapt itself, three shafts located around the said roll, one of which is coupled to the motor shaft through a suitable transmission, on which end pulleys are fitted and connected between each other by means of elastic endless belts, constantly applied to the said roll, for securing the fed sheet against the roll by its edges, and a block through which the sheet is obliged to pass, comprising a rotary helical blade, an actuating motor for the said blade and a fixed straight blade which can be actuated by the same motor through a suitable set of gears to pivot along an ideal longitudinal axis between an operational position and a raised position, in which an ample feed is defined for step-by-step movement of the continuous band.

2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the actuation electro-motor is controlled by a micro processor fitted upon a support plate secured to one of the sides of the chassis, and is connected with the drive shaft of the elastic belts by means of a toothed endless belt and a set of pinions which are located on the outer part of one of the said plates.

1 cl 9

3. A device according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein the roll against which the continuous sheet is applied by the elastic belts has two end zones of larger diameter, against which these belts bear so as to secure the strip by its longitudinal edges.

4. A device according to the Claim 3, wherein the roll against which the continuous strip is secured has a least an intermediate zone of larger diameter, equal to that of the end zones, against which the said sheet is able to bear.

5. A device according to the any preceding claim, wherein the device has a pivoting sensor arm, flexibly operated so as to bear constantly upon the periphery of the feed coil of the continuous strip of flat components, which when pivoted as the diameter of the coil drops below a given pre-established minimum, actuates a micro switch thus cutting off the operation of the device and triggering an alarm.

6. An automatic dispenser device for flat components in the form of a continuous strip substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Publish d 1991 at lle Patent Office, State House, 66171 High Holborn. LondonWC I R 41P. Further copies may be obtained from ea Sales Branch. Unit 6. Nine Mile Point. Cwmrelinfach. Cross Keys, Newport, NPI 7HZ. Printed by Multiplex techniques ltd, St Mary Cray, Kent.