US2640208A - Method and apparatus for building in the cases of books - Google Patents

Description

June 2, 1953 D E FLOREZ ETAL METHOD AND APPARATUS 'FOR BUILDING IN THE CASES OF BOOKS Filed Nov. 13, 1948 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS has dz Flvrez amen Z. dare BY Emma/z Bar rm MS).

J1me 1953 DE FLOREZ EIAL 2,64

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING .IN THE CASES OF BOOKS Filed Nov. 15 i948 'r sh'e ets sheet 2 i H ll 7 l 26 z Q y W METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING IN THE CASES OF BOOKS Filed Nov. 15, 1948 June .2, 1953 L DE FLOREZ ETAL '7 Sheets-Sheet 5 I NVENTORS [ms de Flarez Owen Z.

HTTORNfZ June 1953 L. DE FLOREZ EI'AL 2, 208

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING IN 'THECASES OF BOOKS Filed Nov. 13. 194

7 Slieets-Sheet 4.

IIIIIIIIIIII I U 10 E a I 20 1 IHT 5 g F L g )NVENTORS I." guts a2; gz r r vz wen 1 20 BY [111M011 Jack June 2, 1953 L DE FLOREZ r ZQ640,208*

METHOD 'AND APPARATUS FOR Buiwmciiu THE CASES OF" BOOKS Filed Nov; 15, 1948 I *7 Sheets-Sheet 5 viii/Ill! 01001 A (rare grime/v5? INVENTORS [411s de Flarez,

Emma .Back

June 2,1953 L. DE FLQR EZ Em 2,640,208

' METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING IN THE CASES OF BOOKS Filed Nov. 13, 1948 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 1NVENTO s Ems de lanzz dawn Z. flare BY Em; non flack June 2, 1953 95 FLQREZ T 2,640,208

METHODAND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING IN THE CASES OF BOOKS Filed NOV- 13, 1948 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 Zur's e ore Gwen Z. (10rd BY Emma flack 4 TTORNEY Patented June 2, 1953 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING IN THE CASES OF BOOKS- Luis de Florez, Pomfret, Conn., and Owen L. Gore, Douglaston, and Emmon Bach, Scarborough, N. Y., assignors, by mesne assignments, to The de Florez Company, Inc., a corporation of Dela- Ware Application November 13, 1948, Serial No. 59,846

This invention relates to the manufacture of books and more particularly to the method and apparatus of applying the hard cases or covers to the. book page blocks after the latter have been bound and their backs have been rounded and received a covering of crash.

The operation of applying the hard cases to books is referred to as casing-in and buildingin. The term casing-in includes the operations for applying adhesive coatings to the end sheets, hinges and crash of the page block and the placing of the case or book cover in registry on the page block. The expression building-in refers to the operations for ironing the hinge into the case of the book after the case has been placed on the page block, drying the adhesive between the hinge of the page block and the case and pressing the sides of the case into adhesive contact with the end sheets and the associated crash which extends from both sides of the binding edge of the page block. In present practice these operations are carried out by various types of machines having intermittent automatic motion and in some cases only the casing-in operation is carried out automatically, the building-in being accomplished manually by placing the cased-in books in pressboards where they remain for a number of hours. An important object of the present invention is to eliminate the time consuming methods which employ intermittent automatic movement machinery and the manual operations.

Another object is to provide a method and apparatus which will reduce the wastage resulting from imperfect squaring or registering of the cases in relation to the page blocks.

A further object is to obviate the applying of excess paste to the crash and the attendant difiiculties arising from bubbles of paste being squeezed out between the end sheets and the case or cover. This invention makes it possible to apply a thin non-viscous adhesive so that there is no excess; the adhesive being such thatmize or substantially eliminate warping of the case.

A still further object is to greatly increase the speed of the casing-in and building-in operations} Claims. (01. 111) 5s views of the casing-in portion of apparatus emregister and articulated pusher assembly;

This invention provides for the applying of cases to the page blocks by continuously advancing successive age blocks along a, predetermined path, moving them into engagement with successive work means to carry out the operations a crease in the hinges, cases and. page blocks and vdrying the adhesive between the hinge of the page blocks and the cases and pressing the case covers into adhesive contact with the end sheets. Reference is made to an embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, in which: Figs. la and 1b are schematic perspective bodying the invention;

Figs. 2a and 2b are side views of the casing-in portion of the device;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged side view of the case Fig. 3a is an'enlarged vertical section of a part of Fig. '3;

Figs. 4 and 5 are plan and side views, respectively, of the assembly for applying adhesive to theend sheets;

Figs. 6 and 7 are plan and sectional end views, respectively, of the apparatus for applying adhesive to the hinge of the page block;

Fig. 7a, is a side view of an alternate form of roller for applying adhesive to the hinge and the end sheets of the page block;

Fig. 8 is a schematic perspective view of the building-in portion of the apparatus;

.Fig. 9 is a plan .view of a portion of the building-in assembly;

Fig. 10 is a sectional view of the building-in assembly, taken along the line l0l0 as indicated in Fig. 9; and

Figs. 11 and 12 are detailed views of the ap- I paratus for vertically adjusting the receiving and delivery platforms which may be associated with the building-in portion of the apparatus.

The apparatus embodying the invention which isillustrated in the drawings is supported, in a level, straight line operational arrangement, by a suitable frame not shown or described further than to say that it supports the apparatus at a.

height sufficient to provide proper clearance for the several drives, and chain sprockets associated with the apparatus, and also at a height which is convenient for the operators of the apparatus.

Referring to Figs. ld and 1b, the book page blocks II] are received on platform II in a vertica1 position with the binding edges uppermost.

The book ciage'blocks may be fed mechanically 3 or by hand onto the platform. The book page blocks are advanced endwise toward the apparatus by articulated pushers (2 carried by the endless chain !3, which moves around and is driven by the sprockets [4. one of which is shown in Fig. 1a.. As the book page blocks advance toward the machine they pass between two pairs of vertical guide rollers l5 and I6. The guide rollers of each pair are disposed on opposite sides of the path along which the page blocks are being advanced, and as each page block passes between the rollers they engage the outer faces of the page blocks, each pair of rollers being yieldable for simultaneous equilateral displacement so that they are adapted to center each passing page block in the path. Any suitable means for mounting and actuating the pairs or". selbcentering rollers and it may be used.

The page blocks thus properly centered advance and are engaged by a vertical splitter plate I! disposed in the center of the page blocks path, the splitter entering between the leaves of each page block at a point which substantially splits the leaves of thepage block into two equal groups. The sides of the splitter ll diverge'in the direction in which the page block is being advanced, so that as it advances thesplit in the page block is widened. The split page block ispushed along two U-shaped channels 3-, the inner walls of which are the diverging sides IQ of the splitter plate. As the page block advances along the U- shaped channels Hi the pusher lug l2 rises out of engagement with the page block at a locality where a supporting and conveying saddle 2i), rising through the opening between the diverging sides (9 of the splitter, enters the split in the page block and lifts the book' fromthe' U-shaped channels l8 and moves it forward for processing. The saddle 2i] is provided with a projection or register stop 2| at its rear edge, against which the page block is pressed by a springdoaded lug 22 positioned above and depending in thepath of the page block which is being carried forward by the saddle. The saddle is part of the saddle conveyor consisting of endless roller chains 23, 23a, on which individual saddles are attached at spaced intervals. The attachment is so designed that the saddle remains parallel to the path of the book at all times. This is accomplished by attaching the forward end of the saddle to one chain, i. e;, endless chain 23, and the rear end to another chain, i. e;, endless chain 23a. The sprockets 25, 242: on which the chains 23 and 23a are mounted are offset along the path of travel as shown in Figs. 2a and 22) by an amount equal to the distance between the chain attachments to the saddle, the chain attachments to the saddles 28 being at the front and rear ends of the saddle plate at the pointsflll, 26. It will also be noted that the chains and the sprockets upon which they are mounted are slightly offset laterally on either side of the path of the saddle. The attachment 25 to the front of the saddle on endless chain 23' and the attachment 25 to the rear end 'of the saddle on endless chain 2311. are made from opposite sides or the saddle plate, giving it support from both sides and atfording a high degree of stability 'to the saddle, also thereby permitting the saddles to be conveyed in a constant parallel upright position. The saddles themselves comprise. single thin plates having a height and length sufiicient to, accommodate books of several sizes and shapes and having suitable projections. 21 attached to the.

rear end of the saddle which: act as registerstops against which the book may he slid as described above. The projections 21 may be easily removed to substitute projections of diiierent sizes to allow for the processing of books of various thicknesses.

The book page block resting on the saddle and in register against the projection 2| at the rear of the saddle is flattened down against the top of. the saddle by means of rollers 2'! and then passes between adjustable vertical rolls 56 which apply an adhesive coating to the end sheets of the page blocks. The book page block then advances between a second pair of adjustable rolls 59; these being sized and positioned to apply an adhesive coating to the hinge of the page blocks.

The page block being processed is then moved forward to receive the case or hard cover of the book. The cases 34 are fed from a vertical magazine 38, as best shown in Fig. 2a, by a conveyor comprising a pair of endless chains 3| and 32 with attached pusher lugs 33, the case conveyor being located directly above, and sloping down at a slight angle to the saddle conveyor. The angle of the slope should be such as to provide sufiicient clearance for the book blocks resting on the saddles to pass, beneath the case conveyor and the associated case ironer 35, to the point where the cases are positioned on the page blocks. An angle of about 4 has been found suitable. The individual cases, having been withdrawn from the bottom of the vertical magazine 30, pass under guides 35 spaced to correspond to the width of the backstrap and positioned above the cases and over a heated case ironer 36 which reproduces the shape of the book being processed, the guides 35 comprising parallel bars disposed longitudinally in the direction of the travel of the case and, contacting the case along their edges, they press the case into engagement with the heated case ironer 36 causing the center of the case to conform to the curve of the case ironer 36 thus forming a backstrap corresponding in size and shape to the rounded back of the page block. With regard to the position of the case conveyor, it should be noted that the cases are delivered to the page blocks as soon as possible after gluing. The cases 3d are released onto the page block and the pusher lugs 33 move out of engagement with the case at the position shown in Fig. 2b where the overhead register or articulated pusher assembly 31 contacts the back strap of the case and holds it in position on the page block. The overhead register assembly 31 comprises an endless chain 38 supported by sprockets 39. At intervals along the endless chain resilient pads 40 are mounted in spring-loaded plungers 4|. The pads are adapted to engage the backstrap of the case. Associated with the pads 43 and also mounted on the endless chains are pusher lugs 42, which are adapted to press against the rear end of the case and insure the proper registry with the book blocks. Referring to Fig. 3a each resilient pad 46] is positioned on the end of shaft which is slidably mounted in the" plunger 4!. The plunger M, in turn, is mounted slidably in the sleeve 8! which contains spring 82 arranged to urge the plunger 4| up and out of engagement withthe backstrap of the case 34. Roller 83 is rotatably mounted at the upper or inside end of the plunger 4!, which projects above the sleeve 8|. The shaft 88 with its associated pad 40 is urged out ofv the plunger toward the backstrap.

of the case by the spring 35 positioned inside the plunger M. Fixed pin 81 which is mounted in the slot 88 of the shaft 86 retains the shaft 86 in theplunger 4| permitting it to "slide in and j out-within the limits of the slot-88.. The articulated pusher lugs 42 are pivotally mounted on the endless chain at points 43 and have arms 44 extending at right angles to the pusherzlugs. At the end of each arm 44 is mounted a roller 45.

As the pusher lugs 42 and the resilient pads 40 move around the sprocket 39, the rollers ,83 onv the inside end of the plungers 4i and the rollers .10 lugs contact, respectively, the cam plates 46 and ll which are located above the endless chain 38,. in the area where theendless chain ismoving 45 positioned at the end of the arms of the pusher along adjacent to the books. Cam plate. 48 cone tacts and depresses the plungers 41 at the point 84 so that the pads 40 contact thebackstrap of the .case as the case is being delivered to the page block. After the, plunger 4| has been depressed by the cam 45 the pad 40 is held against the back-v strap of case 34 by the pressure of spring 85-;

The cam plate Tl causes the roller 45. t:o;be. d.epressed, swinging the pusher lug 42 into a vertical position behind the case 34, asbest shown in Fig.

3. .Before being depressed bythe cam 11, the. pusher 42 is held in the position shown by the.

dash-line in Fig. 3. Therspring-49 maintains the pusher 42 out of operative position.

As the books advance beyond the case conveyor, the covers of the case are allowed to drop into position beside the adhesively coated end sheets of the page block .I 0. The books continue to advance, with the cases. held in registry by the pads 49 and the lugs 42, to .a positionwhere they are engaged by nipper bars 47 which are located.

on opposite sides of the path of thehook and engage the hook along the groove of the hinge of the case and page block. The;nipper bars comprise parallel strips which. are flared out at the book receiving end and engage the hinge of the book along their parallel edges, the book being urged into engagement and slid along the nipper bars by the pusher lugs 42 and the resilientpads 40. At the. position as shown in Figs.

1b and 2b., where the book,includingthecase and.

page block, is fully supported along its hingeby the nipper bars 41, the conveying and supporting saddle withdraws from its positionin the-page block and passes down and around the. sprock-.

between the saddles during the casing-in -opera-- tions. However, during the building-in process the space between the books maybe reduced to.

that of the maximum book length for which the machine is to be designed, thereby reducing the speed of travel and permitting the building in time to be increased for any given length of machine. In order to accomplish this reduction of speed and distance betweenuthe books, the:

articulated pusher conveyor, including the pusher lugs 42 and the resilient pads 40 mounted on the plungers 4i, advances the book, which is still supported on the nipper bars 47, into engagement with and between fiat belts 48. The fiat belts are .driven at a reduced speed, having an overdrive clutch (not shown) It has been found that several pairs of opposing rollers may be sub-,

stituted for the. fiat belts 48, with individual over-.

drive clutches. Each pair of'the rollers may be self-centering in the same manner as rollers l5 and I6.

As the books enter between the flat belts 48,

the pusher lugs 42 and the spring-loaded plungers 4|, with their associated pads 40, move out of engagement with the backs of the cases. In

order to avoid the possibility of a pusher lug 42' damaging the end of a case as it moves up and out of engagement with the case, the cam plate 11, terminates at the point where the page blocks are engaged and conveyed forward by flat belts 48. The roller 45 at the end of the arm of the pusher lug 42 no longer supports the pusher lug in its vertical position after the cam plate 1! has terminated, and the spring 49 associated with the pivot 43 for the pusher lug 42 presses the pusher lug back'and out of engagement with the end of the case 34. Similarly, the cam plate 46 terminates and the pads 40 move up and out of;

engagement with the backstrap of the case 34.

Should it only be necessary to case-in the book, the latter would be removed at this stage in the operation or it might be removed prior'to the transfer from the articulated pusher and register conveyor 37 to the flat belt conveyor 48,

i. e. just after the withdrawal of the saddle 26.

The fiat belt conveyor comprised of belts 48, advances the book along the nipper bars 4! into and between a series of sets of heated nipper bars 54 which are positioned on-opposite sides of the path of the book at a height to enter the hinge of the book. As the book advances from the'supporting bars 4'! to the heated nipper bars 50, thesides of the book are released by the. fiat belts .48

and are received between the plate or fiat belts 54 of a plate belt-conveycr 5l (see Fig s.,:9 and 10), which further compress the case covers against the adhesively coated end sheets and slide the book along the heated nipper bars 5b.,

The nipper bars 50 between which the book has been introduced are so shaped that they, will form the required hinge in the book, Theymay be continuous parallel strips or maybe made up in sections which flare out at the ends as indicated in Fig. 8 and Fig. 9, so as to prevent damage to the case as the book is introduced or released from the bars 50.- Thenipper bars are; electrically heated bypassing a, low voltage di ff rectlythrough them so that an ironing efiect is, produced at the hinge line of the book. The.

heat is also utilized'to drythe adhesive between the case and the hinge of the page block. In order to permit the processing of books of various thicknesses, the bars 50 are constructed so as to permit adjustment in a horizontal plane about a constant center line. They are also springloaded by springs 52 with suitable adjustable stops 18 to permit the introduction of the book and the subsequent application of even pressure along the hinge.

to -be used depends onthe depthof :the hinge desired and the length of time required todry the I adhesive used in the hinge.

As we have-noted, the book is introduced from the flat or V-belt conveyors ill into a continuous flat or plate belt conveyor. 5| associated with the nipper bars 5 0. This conveyor system may con-' sist of narrow verticalplates 54 attached to an: endless roller chain 55 as illustrated in Figs. 9' and 10 such that the bookwhile compressed from both sides by these plate belt units is advanced along between the heated nipper bars 50. The plateszii l may be backed by rollersor ballsruns- The-length of the individual. nipper bar sections and the number of sctions- 7. hing on tracks or by a continuous large roller chain supported against a fixed track so that by adjustment of the tracks continuous pressure can be exerted against the sides of the book to obtain a firm bond between the covers of the case 34 and the end sheets.

The adhesive applyingassemblies illustrated in Figs. 4 to 7 include-the vertical adhesive ap-- plying assembly having adhesive applying rolls 56- which are disposed at the two sides of the path of the page block and are so positioned that-a coating cfadhesive is applied to the end sheets on each side of thepage block. Thevertical applicator rolls 56 are sized tocontact the entire width of the ends sheets which pass between them', the peripheral speed of the rolls '56 being the same as the speed of the saddle conveyor 29- and the page blocks H! carried on the conveyor. Each of the applicator rolls 55 receives a thin coating of adhesive from a glue reservoir, not shown, which feeds the adhesive to the roll 56 by pouring adhesive through a small tube 58 positioned near the top of the roll 56 as shown in Fig. the adhesive being fed by gravityto the juncture of the doctor roll 5! and the applicator roll 56; The doctor rolls 5! are of smaller diameter than the applicator rolls and are geared to rotate at a speed considerably less than the speed of the applicator rolls, and in the opposite direction to the rotation of the respective applicator rolls. As the adhesive is fed to the rolls 56 and 51 from the tube 58, a bead of adhesiveforms and is carried down between them. As the adhesive emerges from between the rolls the adhesive clings to the applicator rolls 56, the

doctor rolls 5! remaining substantially dry.

It is believed that the difference in speed of the rolls 56 and 51 causes all of the adhesive passing through the gap between the rolls to adhere to the roll 56 rather than the film of adhesive dividing itself between the surfaceof the roll 51 and the surface of the roll 56. However, dust, small pieces of paper or other forci'gn'matter passing between the rolls adhere to the doctoring roll 51 rather than the applicator roll 56. In any event,- the-phenomenon-is important in achieving a fine tolerance in the thickness of'the adhesive film-to be applied to the page block; The'relative thick. ness of the adhesive coating to be applied may be controlled by changingthe distance between the doctor rolls and the applicator rolls, i. e; the smaller the distance between the doctor rolls and their respective applicator rolls the thinner the coat of adhesive which is transferred to the applicator rolls and consequently the thinner the film of adhesive applied by the applicator rolls 56' to the end sheets of the page blocks, theactual transfer'ofthe adhesive not being accomplished by the contact of the transfer rolls with theirrespective applicator rolls but rather by the head or bridge of adhesive which builds 'up-between the rotating surfaces. The greater speed of the roll 56 causes the adhesive bubble or'bead to remain against the roll 51 and between the two rolls. Adjustment between rolls- 51' and 56 is made by moving the mounting 16 of the rolls along the slots and fixing it in the desiredposition. In this manner it is possible to apply a continuous film of resin emulsion as thin as .0025 inch to the end sheets. Such thin films as may' be applied in this mannerpreclude all possibility of" excess adhesive being squeezed out between the end sheets and the case, as is experienced in other casing methods. The application of the adhesive to the end sheets may be accomplished- 8 bymeans of one set of scribed above or bya series of sets of applicator rolls of the type described, in order toapply several coats of adhesive tothe end sheets, or as illustrated in the present embodiment itmay be practical to apply the adhesive to the end sheets by av single set of applicatorrolls and apply theadhesive for the hinge of the page block by a second set of applicator rolls as illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7. The applicator rolls 59 illustrated inFigs. 6 and" 7 are set. at an angle and have a.

curved contacting surface of a configuration suitable to enter and contact the hinge of the passing page block. The applicator rolls 59 for the hinges are driven through bevel gears v93 at a peripheral speed which is the same as that of the advancing page. block. The adhesive is transferred to the hinge applicator rolls 59 by transfer rollsfifl which. rotate in the. opposite direction tothat of the applicator rolls and at the same-speed as the latter rolls, and in theillustrated form the transfer rolls 60 are partially submerged in the glue pets 63. and carry the glueup to the applicator: rolls 582 from the glue reservoir 63. The opening between the rolls. 56- and 66 may be changed; to control the thickness of the adhesive coating applied to the hinge, by adjusting the rolls 60 to any desired position along the shafts l3.

Asnoted'above, the applicationcf the adhesive to the end sheets and hinges may be accomplished by means of one or a series of sets of applicator rolls. Inthe embodiment illustrated, one set of applicator rolls, 1. e. vertical rolls 56. has been used to apply adhesive to the end sheets of the page block, and a second set of rolls, i. e. applicator rolls 59', has been used to applyadhesive to the hinge of the. page block. Another method of applying adhesivev to the hinge and the end sheets isto use a single set of rollers shaped to conform to thehihge and also to the vertical sides of the end. sheets. Each of such rolls may be cylindrical in shape'wi-tha beveled upper end 59a such that willconformto the shape of the hinge, as shown.v in Fig. 7c. Incertain operations it may be found.

that separate combinations of rolls arev needed to apply the. necessary amount of adhesive. evenly onto the end sheets; crash and hingesv of the page blocks. Also, it hasbeen found-that one means of applying an even coat of. adhesive. to both the,

crash lflcand the end sheets of the page blocks l0; is'to provide applicator rolls. which have been milled down, as indicated by dash line 56a in Figs. 5 and 7a: so that the portion of the. roll which contacts the crash isxof less diameterv than that which contacts the endxsheets, the. recessed.

portion being only as deep as the thickness of; thecrash. This arrangement. is satisfactory be cause it permits the applicator rolls to be in full contact at all times with the-end sheets. and the crash and-the recess. provides space for an additional thickness of adhesive for application tothe crash.

It has also been. found satisfactory to apply the. adhesive to the hinges and crash and thereafter to'the whole end sheet, e. g. by interchanging the positions of adhesive rollers 56 and 59.. This latter: arrangement is of advantage. because the adhesively coated end sheets tend to curl, and it is desirableto delay the end sheet coating so that they do not have too much opportunity to curl. before the cases are applied. However, for purposes of illustration in this application, the description has been limited to asingle-set of vertical applicator-rollsfor applying adhesive to the.

and sheets and a second set ofadhesive applicator" applicator rolls as de-' 9 rolls, shaped to conform to the hinge of the page block, for applying adhesive to the hinges of the page blocks. The vertical applicator rolls 56 should be of sufficient length so that they will invention may be used effectively in a continuous process method of book manufacture in which the invention becomes an integral part of the process. In such a process the page blocks to be cased-in and built-in may be received directly from a rounding and backing operation such as that described and claimed in the co-pending application of Luis de Florez, Peter de Florez and Owen L. Gore filed May 1, 1948, Serial No. 24,494, now Patent 2,577,568, granted December 4, 1951; and the books, after being cased-in and built-in may be forwarded to a locality where the jackets or dust covers may be folded onto the book covers. An apparatus of the type described and claimed in the co-pending application of Luis de Florez and Garrett B. Linderman, Jr., filed June 13, 1948, Serial No. 38,416, would be suitable for the jacketing operation.

So that the apparatus of this invention may have suitable flexibility for handling books of the various sizes and shapes which are normally processed in a book publishing plant, the several members and. elements of the apparatus are made adjustable to receive books of different thicknesses, lengths and widths. Specifically referring first to Fig. 1a the initial conveyor assembly including endless chains l3 mounted on the sprockets I4 and the associated articulated pusher l-u'gs I2 may be vertically adjusted by suitable screw adjustments 89 so that the pusher lugs l 2 may be raised and lowered to contact the various sizes of books being processed at the rear end of the page blocks slightly below the binding edge. As we have noted the sets of vertical rollers I5 and I6 are laterally adjustable and are spring loaded to press against the sides of the page block which is being advanced therebetween. The unit consisting of the rollers 15 and Hi, the slitter I! and the U-shaped channels 18 may be hinged at the receiving end of the assembly as indicated at 80 to permit the raising and/or lowering of the book at the delivery end so that books of various widths, i. e. varying in height in the machine, may be processed. The screw adjustment 9| may be utilized to accomplish the vertical adjustment at the delivery end. The glue rolls 55 are pivotally mounted at points 19 and are adjustable for book thickness (as shown in Fig. 4). Springs 80 (Fig. 4) press the rolls 5B lightly against the book.

The case conveyor may be hinged at its upper end as indicated at 92 (Fig. 2a) to permit the case delivery end to be raised or lowered so that the case will be positioned on the page blocks at the proper level. The vertical adjustment at the case delivery end may be accomplished by suitable means 93. With regard to the case conveyor it may also be said that the vertical magazine 30 is adjustable to receive cases of various sizes, the sides of the magazine 3!! being laterally adjustable by means of the screw-adjustments 94. The'case ironer 36 with its associated guides 35 is laterally adjustable by means of screw adjustments and 96 (Fig. 1a) to process cases for books of varying thicknesses. The case ircner 36 may be composed of two segments to permit the lateral adjustment. The guides 35 are also vertically adjustable by suitable means 91. Adjustment for the various overhangs of the cases for diiferent books is accomplished by the rotation of the drive sprocket 6| in relation to the shaft 62. The adjustment may be accomplished in any suitable manner such as by providing releasable set screws filo on the hubs of sprockets 6| as shown in Fig. 2a. By the proper adjustment, the case pusher lugs 33 will deliver the cases the necessary distance of overhang in front of the page blocks. The overhead registry or articulated pusher conveyor assembly 31 is vertically adjustable to the height of the books being processed by screw adjustments 99 (Fig. 21)). An adjustment of pusher lugs '42 and the pads 40 for a change in the overhang of the cases may be accomplished by a rotation of the drive sprocket 39 in relation to its shaft, by providing releasable set screws 39a as shown in Fig. 3. It should be noted that the adjustment of the pusher lugs 42 may be made in conjunction with the case conveyor adjustment for overhang by driving both assemblies by their adjacent sprockets from a common sprocket (not shown) and making the adjustment at the common sprocket.

The nipper bars 4! are laterally adjustable throughout their length to receive books of different thicknesses and are vertically adjustable at their receiving end by screw adjustment I00, to receive books having hinges at different vertical locations. In books of great thickness the hinge isfurther down from the center or peak of backstrap, than in thinner books. The belt conveyors 48 associated with the nip er bars 4'! are also laterally adjustable.

In the building-in portion of the machine the heated ironing nipper bars 50 are laterally adjustable so that they may enter the hinges of boo-ks of various thicknesses and apply the proper ironing pressure to the hinges. In connection with the lateral adjustments of the nipper bars 41 and also the heated ironing bars 50, the adjustments are made by turning the threaded bushings 53, as best shown in Fig. 10, a certain additional flexibility of the adjustment is achieved by the fact that the ironing bars 50 and the nipper bars 41 are urgedinward by springs 52 associated with the threaded bushings 53.,

The plate or flat belt conveyor system comprised of plate belts 54 are also laterally adjustable to conform to the thickness of the books being processed and may be adjusted so that any suitable degree of pressure may be applied to the covers of the cases 34. The entire assembly 5| is adjusted about the center line, for book thickness by a double ended lea-d screw not shown in the drawing. The nipper brackets and their associated nipper bars 5|] are thereby largely adjusted for book thickness. The additional adjusting arrangements at 53 permit two additional adjustments. The movement of the screw 18 and the threaded bushing 53 simultaneously permits adjustment of the amount of overhang between the nipper 50and the pressing plates 54. This adjustment may be made for the kind of cover material involved as well as for the size of the book. Rotating bushing 53 while holding the screw '18 stationary changes the amount of spring loading, by spring 52; on the nipper bar 50.

This may :also be an adjustment to cause a desired pressure on a given cover material.

If the building-in (portion of the apparatus is used as a unit, the receiving and delivery platforms of the apparatus should also be vertically adjustable in the manner shown in Figs. 11 and '12, i. e. by the rotation of hand Wheel 64 actuating the chain and sprocket assembly 65 and the gear train 66 to raise or lower the screw-threaded shaft 61 which moves up through sleeve 68, the receiving platform 69 being mounted at the upper end of the shaft 61; the shaft may be used to connect the adjustment assembly of delivery platform 690 with that of the receiving platform adjustment assembly thereby making'it possible to raise and lower both platforms the same distance simultaneously byturning the hand wheel 64. The shaft 61 may be provided with longitudinal groove H to receive the projection 12 so that the shaft will not revolve in the sleeve and change the orientation of the platform positioned thereon.

If the building-in portion of the apparatus is to be used in conjunction with, and as an-integral portion of the whole apparatus. there is no necessity for a vertical adjustment of the receiving platform for when the machine is part of the whole apparatus, the receiving platform and the device associated therewith is dispensed with and the books merely "slide from the nipper bars 4'! onto the heated nipper bars 59, the vertical adjustment for the books having been made by the vertical screw adjustment H at the point where the books were received between the nipper bars 41.

In the case ironing station of the apparatus, as shown in Fig. 1a, the Hat cases are advanced by thepus'her lugs 33 so that they pass into contact with the guides 35 and the hackstrap or" the case-is urged downward into engagement with the case ironer 36, which is a heated bar member having the shape of the book page block upon which the case is to be mounted, the guides 35 acting to hold the back strap of the case down and-against the heated-ironing member 36 so that where the cases are introduced under the guides 35, itheguides curve upward'slig-htly so as "not to dam-age the case as it is pressed down into contact with the ironing member .36.

It will now be understood that an additional object of this invention is to provide :a method and apparatus by which the cases oi books may be applied to the page blocks in .a straight line continuous operation tomake a new .and efficient method of book manufacture, and that this and the other objects are achieved 'by this invention.

Inlaccor'dance with the provisions of the patent statute we have described .herein the principles of this invention, together the best mode of carrying out those principles, 'butit will be .understood that 'thestructnre .disolosed'is only .i-llustrative and the invention .may be carried out by other means. Also while it is designed to .use various features and elements .in the combinations .andlrelations 'clescribed, some of these may be altered and modified in ways, other than those suggested, without departingfrom the spirit and .scopeof the invention.

'We claim:

1. Inthe manufacture of books the methodof Lbuilding-in the .hinge of books comprising .con- 7 tinuously conveying successive work assemblies composed of page blocks, the end sheets and hinges of which have been coated with an adhesive, and cases registered thereon, along a predetermined path, engaging the cases of the assemblies, as they are continuously moved, along the line where the hinge is to be built in and continuously applying heat and pressure along substantially the entire length of said line and continuously applying pressure to substantially the entire faces of the sides of the cases, thereby ressing the cases into adhesive contact with the end sheets of the page blocks and ironing a hinge into the cases and drying the adhesive between the case and the hinges of the page blocks.

2. An apparatus for building-in the cases of page blocks, comprising, means for continuously conveying successive page blocks with the cases registered thereon and with wet adhesive between said page blocks and said registered cases along a predetermined path and into engagement with parallel supporting and ironing means positioned to engage the cases along the line where the hinge is to he built in, resilient means for continuously pressing said supporting and ironing means into pressure contact along substantially said entire line, said supporting and ironing means being adapted to iron the hinge into the cases as the successive page blocks are continuously advanced along the path defined by the parallel supporting means, and pressure applying and conveying means disposed adjacent and para'llel to said supporting and ironing means to convey the "successive page blocks and cases along said supporting and ironing means.

3. An apparatus for budding-in the cases of page 'biocks, comprising, means for continuously conveying successive page blocks with the cases registered 'thereon'a'nd with wet adhesive between said page blocks and said registered cases along a predetermined path, conveying means adapted to engage the sides of the cases and to compress the cases against page blocks as the page blocks are moved along the path, parallel supporting and ironing means positioned aiong said path and adapted to engage and support the page blocks and cases along the :line where the hinge is to be built in, resilient means'for continuously pressing the supporting and ironing means into pressure contact along substantially said entire line, said supporting and ironing means .being adapted to iron the hinges .intotthe cases as successive page blocks are continuously advanced along the .path'defined by the parallel supporting means, and by said pressure (applying conveying means associated with said supporting andi-ron- 'ing-means.

A. Anapparatus'as-described in claim 3 Wherein-the pressure applying and conveying means .are endless flatplate :beltsihaving vertically disposed case-engaging rfaces, resilient means being pro- "vided to press theportions-of theirespectiye conveyors adjacent the path into resilient pressure contact with substantially theentiresides of the cases.

:5. The-apparatus described in \claimsii wherein heating means anemrovided forheating -the ironing andwsupporting means.

IiUIS "no 'FLOREZ.

- OWEN L. GORE. 'EMMUN BACI-I.

".(Re'ferences on following page) Reterences Cited. in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 5 Trust May 29, 1923 Pleger Apr. 14, 1925 Kleineberg July 16, 1929 Alger May 27, 1930 Schramm June 17, 1930 19 Number 14 Name Date Cahen July 15, 1930 Schramm Mar. 29, 1932 Willis Sept. 28, 1937 Davis Mar. 28, 1939 Schramm Mar. 28, 1939 Sillars Jan. 4, 1944 Knowlton Aug. 14, 1945

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