GB2351932A

GB2351932A - Die cutting tool

Info

Publication number: GB2351932A
Application number: GB9908499A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jeff Mitchell Greaney
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-04-15
Filing date: 1999-04-15
Publication date: 2001-01-17
Also published as: GB9908499D0

Abstract

A die cutting tool for cutting sheet material has a main die tool body 1 comprising front and rear rectangular zones 1d and 1e. Operation-performing rules 3-5 are carried in the front zone 1d and comprise cutting, creasing and trimming rules respectively for the cutting out of box blanks. Balancing rules 6 are carried in the rear zone 1e and may extend rearwardly from the trim cutting rules. The balancing rules are angled from the transverse direction B by between 30{ and 90{. The arrangement allows for a reduction in the total length of balancing rules for a given area of balancing zone.

Description

DTD / D20 2351932 APPARATUS This invention relates to a die tool device

for sheet material.

Various forms of die tool device are known for cutting blanks from sheet material, for example corrugated cardboard.

One form includes a body consisting of a plywood plate and having rules let into an underneath face of the plate.

The rules comprise blank-cutting rules which cut out profiled blanks from the sheet material. It is also usual to have trim-cutting rules extending from at least some of the outermost blank-cutting rules and also let into the plate.

Inwards of the outermost blank-cutting rules there may also be blank-creasing rules, again let into the same face of the plate. Where the front-to-back dimension of the plate is significantly greater than the front-to-back dimension of the operation-performing zone over which the cutting rules extend, it is conventional to provide, over a blancing zone of the plate rearward of the operation-performing zone, balance rules which extend parallelly to each other in the side-to-side sense of the plate and thus extend perpendicularly to the front-to-back sense, i.e. to the feed direction, of the plate.

Another known form of die tool device consists of a front body carrying the blank-cutting rules, and any trim cutting rules and blank-creasing rules and, spaced rearwardly therefrom, a back body carrying the balance rules which again extend in the side-to-side sense of the two bodies, each body again consisting of a plywood plate into which the rules are let.

In both of those known forms, the cutting rules have pads of elastic material, for example foam plastics, arranged adjacent to them to push the trim and the blank off the cutting rules after cutting. Such pads are sometimes provided adjacent the balance rules.

In circumstances where the balancing zone is relatively large, a relatively large number of balance rules each extending from side-to-side of that zone are provided.

According to the present invention, there is provided a 1 DTD / D20 .Le tool device for sheet material, comprising die tool body means for extending substantially parallelly to said sheet material and comprising first and second body means arranged one after another in a direction of feed of said sheet material relative to said device, operation-performing rule means carried by the first body means for performing operations upon said sheet material when zones of the latter are opposite said rule means, and balancing rule means carried by the second body means, said balancing rule means being inclined to a transverse direction which is perpendicular to said direction of feed and is widthwise of said die tool body means.

The balancing rule means are preferably inclined at an angle of between 30' and 90' to the transverse direction.

The operation-performing rule means may be selected from blank-cutting rules, blank-creasing rules and trim-cutting rules. The balancing rule means may be spaced rearwardly from the operation-performing rule means; alternatively, the balancing rule means may extend rearwardly from the operation-performing rule means themselves, particularly from trim-cutting rule means.

Owing to the invention, it is possible to reduce the total length of balance rule required for a given area of balancing zone, with a consequential reduction in the total cost of the balance rule and in the cost of letting the balance rule into the body means.

In order that the invention may be clearly and completely disclosed, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figures 1 to 3 are underneath plan views of respective versions of a die tool device for cutting blanks from sheet material.

Referring to the drawings, the device includes a body in the form of a plywood plate 1 which is mounted horizontally in a press (not shown) and below which either individual sheets of material, such as corrugated cardboard, or a continuous web of such material is fed in the direction indicated by the arrow A, the plate 1 being rectangular and 2 DTD / D20 .,aving a front edge la, a rear edge lb and side edges 1c. The body 1 has a rectangular front zone ld which can be considered to be an operation-performing zone, and a rectangular rear zone le which can be considered to be a balancing zone. Formed through the plate 1 at a location adjacent its rear edge lb is a hand hole 2 for use in carrying the device. Let into the plate I in an appropriate pattern in the zone ld so as to protrude from the underneath surface of the plate 1 are blank-cutting rules 3, blank creasing rules 4, and trim-cutting rule means 5 or 51, all of which perform respective operations upon the board. Let into the plate 1 in the zone le so as to protrude from the underneath surface thereof are balancing rule means 6 or 61.

In the version shown in Figure 1, the balance rules 6 are spaced a short distance rearwardly from the rearmost trim cutting rules 5, and extend continuously to short of the edge 1b. The rules 6 are at 900 to a transverse direction which is in the side-to-side sense B of the plate 1 and is thus perpendicular to the feed direction A.

The version shown in Figure 2 differs from that shown in Figure 1 simply in that the balance rules 6 are obliquely inclined to the side-to-side sense B. The version shown in Figure 3 differs from that shown in Figures 1 and 2 in that the balancing rule means is in the form of extensions 61 of the knife-edged trim-cutting rules 5' at the rear of the operation-performing zone ld of the plate 1. The extensions 61 (and if desired the trim-cutting rules 5') may be perpendicular to the side-to-side sense B, as shown, or may be obliquely inclined thereto. The trim cutting rules 51 preferably do not extend rearwardly from the rearmost blank-cutting rules 3 by more than 50mm., advantageously by no more than 20mm.

In all three versions, all of the blank-cutting rules 3 and the trim-cutting rule means 5 and 51 have arranged at both sides thereof pads, such as indicated at 7, of resilient foam plastics for example, to push the cardboard off the rule means 3, 5 and 51, but the balancing rule means 6 and 61 may not have such pads adjacent to them.

3 DTD / D2 0 The position occupied in turn underneath the operationperforming zone ld by the sheets or areas of material upon which operations are to be performed is indicated in Figure I by the chain lines C and, although not so shown, is the same in each of the versions of Figures 2 and 3.

If desired, although not illustrated, the single plate 1 of each of the versions of Figures 1 and 2 can be replaced by two plywood plates spaced rearwardly one after the other, the front plate corresponding to the zone ld and the rear plate corresponding to the zone le.

4 DTD / D20 MAAM 1. A die tool device for sheet material, comprising die tool body means for extending substantially parallelly to said sheet material and comprising first and second body means arranged one after another in a direction of feed of said sheet material relative to said device, operationperforming rule means carried by the first body means for performing operations upon said sheet material when zones of the latter are opposite said rule means, and balancing rule means carried by the second body means, said balancing rule means being inclined to a transverse direction which is perpendicular to said direction of feed and is widthwise of said die tool body means.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein said balancing rule means is inclined to said transverse direction at an angle of between 300 and 900.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein said balancing rule means is obliquely inclined to said transverse direction.

4. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein said operationperforming rule means comprises cutting rule means. 5. A device according to claim 4, wherein said cutting rule means comprises blank-cutting rule means and trim-cutting rule means.

6. A device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein said first body means carries, immediately adjacent to said cutting rule means, resilient, material-repelling means, but resilient material-repelling means are not carried by said second body means adjacent to said balancing rule means.

7. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein the first and second body means comprise respective parts of a single body.

8. A device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein said first and second body means comprise first and second bodies, respectively, of which the second body is spaced rearwardly from the first body.

9. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein said balancing rule means are spaced rearwardly from said DTD / D20 ?eration-performing rule means.

10. A device according to claim 7 as appended to claim 5, wherein said trim-cutting rule means comprise rearmost trim cutting rule means and said balancing rule means comprise rearward extensions of said rearmost trim-cutting rule means.

11. A device according to claim 5 or 10, or any one of claims 6 to 9 as appended to claim 5, wherein said trimcutting rule means do not extend outwards more than 50mm from the blank-cutting rule means.

12. A device according to claim 11, wherein said trim- cutting rule means do not extend outwards more than 20mm. from the blank- cutting rule means.

13. A die tool device for sheet material, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of Figures 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings.

6