Chopper Fold Device for a Folder

The present invention relates to a chopper type folding device for a web in an offset printing press.

A crank chopper method (another name, an arm method) is known for folding parallel folded objects along a line perpendicular to a cutting surface by use of a chopper blade.

Recently, several methods have been developed by reducing inertia of the chopper blade so as to increase the machine operating speed and vertically move the chopper blade so as to increase the folding accuracy. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, German Federal Republic Laid-Open Application No. 2247707 discloses a device for driving a folding knife.

In that application, a linearly feeding crank mechanism (a slider crank mechanism) A is utilized incorporating a belt or a chain 1, a wheel 2 on which the belt or the chain is wound, a crank shaft 3 integrally attached to the wheel 2, a crank 4 integrally connected to the crank shaft 3, a connecting rod 5 connected to the crank 4 with a pin, a slider 6 connected to the connecting rod 5 by a pivot, and a linear guide 7. A folded object W on a folding table 9 is inserted between folding rollers 10 by vertically moving downwardly a folding knife 8, which is integrally connected to the slider 6.

However, the slider 6 and the linear guide 7 are necessary for the linearly feeding crank mechanism A. Therefore, the size of the mechanism becomes large, and the durability of the mechanism is reduced due to the a sliding surface of the slider can be coming abraded.

A purpose of the present invention is to provide a chopper type folding device of simplified construction and of enhanced durability, even though the device employs a linear feeding crank mechanism.

According to the present invention, the chopper blade is supported by at least two linear feeding crank mechanisms provided at opposite ends of the chopper blade. The linear feeding crank mechanisms each comprise two rotary member of equal planar arranged in a pair and mutually rotating in opposite directions each other. Two connecting rods of equal length, are connected to the rotary members by bending pins at there upper ends, and the lower ends thereof are coaxially connected to an upper end of the chopper blade by a bearing pin.

The two connecting rods in each pair move towards and away from each other at ther upper ends by rotation of the two rotary members in each pair, so that the chopper blade is moved up and down in a vertical direction in the absebce of swinging the chopper blade. Preferably, the rotary members are provided by gears having teeth meshed with teeth of the next adjacent gear, whereby rotation of the respective gears is synchronized in the extent of their angular movement.

FIG. 1 shows a side view of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a transverse cross section of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal cross section of the embodiment as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 shows working principle of a linearly feeding crank mechanism of the embodiment;

FIG. 5 shows elevation velocity curve of the chopper blade of the embodiment, and

FIG. 6 shows a schematic drawing of the conventional embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, a gear box 12 is fixedly supported between a pair of left and right main frame members 11 for it to extend transverse to the main frame members 11 direction of feeding of object W. A chopper blade 13 is hung from the gear box 12 through two sets of a front linear feeding crank mechanism B1 and B2.

Four identical spur gears 14a-14d are supported in the gear box 12 through rotational axles 15a-15d, respectively. In the gear box 12, each gear 14 engages with an adjacent gear 14.

The front end rotational axle 15a is rotatory driven as a driving shaft by a driving device (not shown) which is connected to one end of the rotational axle 15a.

The linear feeding crank mechanism B1 is formed by the two spur gears 14a, 14b and the rotational axles 15a, 15b. The linear feeding crank mechanism B2 is formed by the two spur gears 14c, 14d and the rotational axles 15c, 15d.

Discs 16a-16d of equal diameter are coaxially fixed as a crank member at an end of the rotational axles 15a-15d by bolts 17. Two links 19a, 19b are pivotally connected, respectively to hung from a respective the two discs 16a, 16b at one side of the gear box 12 through an off-set bearing pins 18a, 18b, and are coaxially fixed to the adjacent end portion of the chopper blade 13 with a bearing pin 20a, 20b. The two links 19c, 19d are similarly supported from the discs 16c, 16d through an off-set bearing pins 18c, 18d, and are coaxially fixed at their lower end portions to the chopper blade 13 by bearing pins 20c, 20d.

The four links 19a-19d have the same length as each other and are connected to the off-set pins 18a-18d through ball bearings 21a-21d and the pins 20a-20d through ball bearings 22a-22d, respectively.

In the drawings, numerals 23a-23d and numerals 24a-24d indicate ball bearings, and numerals 25a-25d and numerals 26a-26d indicate sleeves. Numerals 27a-27d indicate bearing caps. In FIG. 3, numeral 28 indicates a feeding belt, numeral 29 indicates a folding table, and numeral 30 indicates a folding roller.

When the rotational axle 15a is rotated clockwise by the driving device (not shown), the first disc 16a and the third disc 16c from the front side rotate clockwise and the second disc 16b and the fourth disc 16d rotate counterclockwise due to the engagement of the spur gears 14a-14d (see arrows in FIGS. 1 and 2).

Thereby, in accordance with working principle of the linear feeding crank mechanism B1, B2 as shown in FIG. 4, each pair of the links 19a and 19b, 19c and 19d is opened and closed so as to synchronously move two connecting points 20a and 20b, 20c and 20d with respect to the chopper blade 13 upwards and downwards. The chopper blade 13 thus moves up and down without any swinging movement of the chopper blade, and, the object W on the feeding belts 28 is accurately folded between the folding rollers 30.

During vertical upward and downward movement of the chopper blade 13, the connecting point 18a to 18d of each link 19a-19d is shifted with respect to a perpendicular line 1 crossing a shaft center of the rotational axles 15a-15d, respectively. Thereby the velocity of the chopper blade 13 during the upward movement and the downward movement are different each other as clearly shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 5 shows an elevation characteristic of the chopper blade 13. In FIG. 5, x-axis and y-axis shows crank angle and stroke of the chopper blade 13, respectively. As shown in FIG. 5, the gradient is steep and a period of the upward movement is shorter during the upward movement. On the other hand, the gradient is gentle and a period of the downward movement is longer during the downward movement. Accordingly, a preferable elevator velocity can be selected by changing a rotational direction of each disc 16a-16d.

The present invention is not limited by the above embodiment. Various minor modifications are suggested, such as driving each rotational axle 15a-15d individually, or providing additional linear feeding crank mechanisms at an intermediate positions along the chopper blade 13. Bar-shaped cranks can be employed instead of discs 16a-16d.