Feeding station for an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs

DESCRIPTION

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to the field of sheet and web processing.

In particular, the invention relates to a feeding station within an apparatus that can process both sheets and webs .

Description of the prior art

Apparatuses are known for engraving and laser processing of sheets and/or webs of various materials, such as for example paper, cardboard, plastic, leather, etc.

In particular, such apparatuses comprise three main stations: a feeding station which forwards the sheet or web on the line, a laser processing station and a station for receiving the sheet or web.

In these machines, the feeding and transport of the sheets or webs to the processing station involves the use of support elements designed to define a path along which these are conveyed. In particular, for the sheets rollers, nets or other supports are necessary to allow the sheets to remain aligned and not to curve. While, for the conveyance of belts, traction rollers are necessary to allow the belt to be kept under tension and at the same time to drag it from the feeding station towards the processing station.

These systems are alternative to each other and to switch from sheet processing to web processing, or vice versa, the line must be radically changed, replacing both the feeding and receiving stations and the intermediate elements suitable for handling the sheets or webs to work.

Therefore, in order to be able to work with lasers both sheets and webs, even in staggered times, it is necessary to provide two separate apparatuses, with evident economic expense and increase in size, in addition to a greater number of operators involved in controlling the operations.

JP2013014048 describes an apparatus that facilitates the control of a print result comprising an image forming unit both on single sheets and on continuous sheets, or web. A continuous web conveyance path and a single sheet transport path are positioned so that the single sheet is conveyed to be superimposed on the continuous web in the image forming unit. As a result, the single sheet can be conveyed and the image can be printed while the continuous web is transported continuously, which facilitates the control of the print result and the correction of the print density.

This system would allow, by adapting it to laser processing, to process sheets and ribbons on a single line. However, this apparatus would require the complete replacement of the supply station, resulting in a highly costly operation.

We therefore feel the need for a solution that allows the integration of both sheets and webs on one line, without having to completely replace the feed stations already present on the processing line.

Summary of the invention

It is therefore a feature of the present invention to provide a feeding station in an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs which allows to introduce both sheets and webs, alternately or simultaneously.

It is also a feature of the present invention to provide such a feeding station that allows an aligning precision of sheets and webs not inferior to the machines of the prior art .

It is a further feature of the present invention to provide such a feeding station that is arranged on the line combining a sheet feeder and a supplier of webs, already present on the production lines.

It is also a feature of the present invention to provide an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs that comprises such feeding station.

These and other objects are achieved by a feeding station configured for introducing sheets and/or webs in an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs, according to claim 1.

The presence of the two diverting rollers, below or above the sheet feeder, allows the sheet feeder and the supplier of webs to be placed in series, without having to completely replace the feeding station.

Other features of the feeding station are described in the claims from 2 to 10.

According to another aspect of the invention, an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs according to claims 11 and 12 is claimed.

Brief description of the drawings

Further characteristic and/or advantages of the present invention are more bright with the following description of an exemplary embodiment thereof, exemplifying but not limitative, with reference to the attached drawings in which:

— Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs, according to the present invention;

— Fig. 2 shows a side view of the feeding station, according to the present invention;

— Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of an apparatus for processing sheets and/or webs, according to the present invention, wherein both the feeding station and the receiving station provide a double conveying path for sheets and webs;

— Fig. 4 shows a side view of the receiving station Fig. 3.

Description of a preferred exemplary embodiment

In the figures 1 and 2 an exemplary embodiment is shown of the feeding station 100, according to the present invention, configured for introducing sheets 10 and/or webs 20 in an apparatus 200 for processing such sheets 10 and/or webs .

Such apparatus 200 comprises a workstation 210, arranged to provide for example a laser processing, and a receiving station 220, downstream of the workstation 210, arranged to receive such sheets 10 and/or webs following the processing .

In particular, the feeding station 100 comprises a sheet feeder 110 and a web feeder 120 arranged to send sheets 10 and webs 20 towards the workstation 210 through, respectively, a first path y and a second path y ₂ different from each other.

With reference in particular to Fig. 2, the feeding station 100 comprises a plurality of diverting rollers 150 arranged to divert the web 20 for defining the second path y ₂ and let it pass under the sheet feeder 110.

In particular, the second path y ₂ comprises:

a first linear portion y _2a , upstream of the sheet feeder 110 and having height h _2a from ground;

— a second linear portion y _2b , which is located below sheet feeder 110 and having height h _2b from ground;

— a third linear portion y _2c , downstream of the sheet feeder 110 and having height h _2c from ground.

Advantageously, there is h _2c = h _2a .

This way, it is possible to put in series the sheet feeder 110 and the web feeder 120, without completely replacing the pre-existing feeding station 100 on the line.

Furthermore, a conveyor roller 150a is provided arranged to divert the web 20 in such a way that the first path y _x joins to the second path g ₂ at a convergence area G downstream of both of the sheet feeder 110 and the web feeder 120.

At the convergence areas G a sliding plane 215 is also provided arranged to transport sheets and webs up to the workstation 210.

This way, as evident, the feeding station 100 of the present invention allows sending, alternatively, or at the same time, sheets and webs to the workstation 210 without changing in any way the components of the production line.

In particular, on the sliding plane 215 an aligning device is also provided adapted to align and to keep parallel to each other the sheets 10 and the webs 20. With reference to Figs. 3 and 4, the present invention further provides an apparatus 200 for processing sheets 10 and/or webs 20 comprising a receiving station 220 also configured for receiving both sheets and webs, in a manner similar to the feeding station 100.

In particular, in the exemplary embodiment of Figs. 3 and 4, the receiving station 220 comprises a sheet receiver 110' and a web receiver 120' arranged to receive sheets 10 and webs 20 by the workstation 210 through, respectively, a first receiving path g ₁ ' and second receiving path y ₂ different from each other.

This way, the whole apparatus 200 is configured to pass quickly from the processing of webs to the processing of sheets, or vice-versa, or to be able to operate them at the same time.

The workstation 210 can perform a laser cutting processing, or another predetermined type of processing.

The foregoing description some exemplary specific embodiments will so fully reveal the invention according to the conceptual point of view, so that others, by applying current knowledge, will be able to modify and/or adapt in various applications the specific exemplary embodiments without further research and without parting from the invention, and, accordingly, it is meant that such adaptations and modifications will have to be considered as equivalent to the specific embodiments. The means and the materials to realise the different functions described herein could have a different nature without, for this reason, departing from the field of the invention, it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology that is employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation .