The invention relates to a method for enveloping, at least partially so, an object in a envelope comprising a sheet, whereby the object to be enveloped is transported in a direction of transport to a sheet extending transversely to the direction of transport, after which the sheet is carried along by the moving object and folded round the object about a folding line extending transversely to the direction of transport, whereby a first end part of the sheet extends beyond a rear part, seen in the direction of transport, of the object, after which said first end part is folded round said rear part of the object and is attached to a second end part of the sheet folded round the object.

The invention also relates to a device suitable for carrying out such a method.

A method and a device of this kind are known from Dutch

Patent Application NL-A-9300006 and are suitable for enveloping a magazine in a paper sheet, for example, which sheet envelopes said magazine either partially, in the form of a wrapper, or completely, in the form of an envelope.

According to the known method said first end part is folded round the rear part of the object in a manner not shown, after which said first end part is attached to the second end part by means of an adhesive. The object of the invention is to provide a method by which said first end part is moved into contact with said second end part and attached thereto in a simple and efficient manner.

With the method according to the invention this objective is accomplished in that, after the sheet has been folded round the object, the sheet-enveloped object is moved in the direction of transport by means of first and second rollers, which are rotatable in opposite directions and which are positioned in opposed parallel relationship, and is then deflected in a first direction of deflection, which is determined by a deflecting platform and which includes an acute angle with the direction of transport and extends transversely to the folding line, to a predetermined stop position on said deflecting platform, and that the enveloped object is then moved in a direction opposite said

first direction of deflection, after which the enveloped object is deflected in a second direction of deflection extending transversely to the folding line by means of said first roller and a third roller, which are positioned in abutting parallel relationship and which are rotatable in opposite directions, whereby the first end part of the sheet is folded round the rear part of the object, seen in the direction of transport, and round the front part of the object, seen in the second direction of deflection.

With the method according to the invention the object is turned around while being deflected, that is, the rear part, seen in the direction of transport, becomes the front part, seen in the second direction of deflection, whereby the first end part is brought into abutment with the second end part during said turning around. Thus the objective set is accomplished in a simple manner. The entire transport of the sheet-enveloped object is carried out by means of only three rollers and a single deflecting platform. This minimizes the risk of failures.

It is noted that from Dutch Patent Application NL-A- 7203107 a method is known wherein a sheet is folded around an object in a manner which is not described in detail, after which the sheet-enveloped object is transported between two rollers and is then deflected by means of a surface curved to form a part of a cylinder, which surface is capable of pivoting movement about a pivot pin, and is then deflected in a second direction of deflection by means of said pivotable curved surface. The object is thereby prevented from returning to the rollers by fingers secured to a tiltable beam. Then the sheet-enveloped object is transported along between a third roller and said curved surface. The pivotable curved surface and the tiltable beam make this known method relatively sensitive to failure. Furthermore this method requires a precise synchronisation between the position of the object and the angle through which the curved surface is pivoted. Also this makes the method relatively sensitive to failure.

One embodiment of the method according to the invention is characterized in that the enveloped object is deflected in a direction away from the first end part when the deflection in the first direction of deflection takes place, after which the enveloped object is deflected

in a direction towards said first end part when the deflection in the second direction of deflection takes place.

When the deflection in the first direction of deflection takes place the first end part of the sheet is already partially folded round the rear part of the object, after which the first end part is completely folded round the object and brought into abutment with the second end part when the deflection in the second direction of deflection takes place.

Preferably the end parts and/or the side edge of the sheet are attached together by means of an adhesive, for example a glue.

Another preferred embodiment of the invention is characterized in that an address is provided on the envelope comprising said sheet by means of a printing device after the object with the sheet folded therearound has been deflected in the second direction of deflection.

In this manner the enveloped object is immediately ready for shipment. This is desirable in particular in connection with the enveloping and sending of periodicals.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device for carrying out said method.

This objective is accomplished with the device according to the invention in that said device is provided with a first, a second and a third rotatable conveyor roller and also with a deflecting platform provided with a stop, whereby an object with a sheet folded therearound can be moved in a direction of transport and then in a first direction of deflection determined by said deflecting platform up to said stop by means of said first and said second conveyor roller, which are positioned in opposed parallel relationship and which are rotatable in opposite directions during operation, and whereby said object with the sheet folded therearound, which abuts against said stop on said deflecting platform, can be moved in a second direction of deflection by means of said first and said third conveyor roller, which are positioned in opposed parallel relationship and which are rotatable in opposite directions during operation. The invention will be explained in more detail hereafter with reference to the drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic front view of a device according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the device shown in Figure

1; Figures 3A - 3F are front views of a part of the device shown in Figure 1, showing various steps of the enveloping of an object with a sheet.

In the Figures like parts are numbered alike. Figures 1 and 2 are a front view and a plan view respectively of a device 1 according to the invention, which is provided with an object supplying part 2, a sheet supplying part 3, an enveloping part 4 and a printing and discharging part 5.

The object supplying part 2 comprises three at least substantially horizontally extending rollers 7, 9, 11, which are driven so as to rotate counter-clockwise by a motor (not shown). Endless belts 13 are passed over the rollers 9 and 11, said belts extending substantially parallel to a direction of transport indicated by arrow T. Endless belts 15 are passed over the rollers 7 and 9, said belts including and angle α with the direction of transport T. The object supplying part 2 is furthermore provided with a strip 17 extending parallel to the direction of transport T and being positioned between rollers 7 and 9, said strip forming a stop for an object to be enveloped, which is being transported in the direction of t.he strip 17 by means of the obliquely disposed belts 15. The strip 17 brings one side of the object to be enveloped into alignment with the direction of transport T.

The sheet supplying part 3 comprises a magazine 19 for sheets, a vacuum roller 21 and a deflecting device 23, which is provided with endless flat belts 25, which are passed over a number of horizontally extending rollers 27, 28. A deflecting plate 29 (see Figure 3A) is positioned opposite the rollers 28 being arranged so as to form a circle. The sheet supplying part 3 furthermore comprises a plurality of guides 31 for guiding a sheet into a vertical position. It will be apparent that the space through which the sheet moves downward towards the position shown in Figure 3B must thereby be such that the sheet will remain in a substantially vertical position and cannot collapse and form a number of wrinkles thereby. A stop 33 is provided under the guides 31, which stop can be vertically adjusted to the length of the sheet to be processed.

The folding part 4 comprises two parallel conveyor rollers 35, 37, one being disposed above the other, which are driven in opposite directions by a motor (not shown) and by means of which a object is conveyed in the direction of transport T during operation from the moment the object has passed the roller 7. The folding part 4 furthermore comprises a first, a second and a third rotatable conveyor roller 39, 41, 43 and a deflecting platform 45, which will be explained in more detail hereafter with reference to Figures 3A - 3F.

The printing and discharging part 5 comprises two conveyors 47, 49, which are each provided with endless conveyor belts 51, which are passed over rollers 53, whereby said rollers 53 can be rotated anti-clockwise by means of a motor (not shown).

One part of the conveyor 47 can be pivoted in the direction according to arrow P2 by means of an air cylinder 55 in order to discharge a rejected object. The conveyor 49 is provided with a printer 57, by means of which an address can be placed on the enveloped object. The various parts 2, 3, 4, 5 of the device 1 are mounted on a frame 59.

The operation of the device and a detailed description of the folding part 4 will now be described in more detail with reference to Figures 3A - 3F, which show various steps of the enveloping of an object with a sheet.

The roller 21 is provided with a plurality of openings 63, which are connected, via a channel 65 extending parallel to the central axis of the roller 21, to a vacuum source (not shown). The roller 21 is positioned under a plate 67, in which a recess 69 (see Figure 2) is provided, through which the roller 21 partially extends. A sub-atmospheric pressure is generated in the openings 63, after which the roller 21 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow PI, whereby the lowermost sheet 61 of a stack present in the magazine 19 is carried along and transported in the direction of the arrow P3. The transport of a sheet 61 is detected by means of a photocell 71, which is located behind the roller 21, seen in the direction of the arrow P3, whereupon glueing units 73 are actuated by means of a control unit (not shown), which glueing units apply strips of adhesive on a rear part of the side edges of the sheet 61 extending parallel to the arrow P3. The sheet 61 is then transported along by means of the flat belts 25 driven by the roller 27 rotating counter-clockwise, and deflected between the rollers 28 and the deflecting

plate 29 and between the guides 31 in the direction of the stop 33 (see Figure 3A), until the sheet 61 is supported on the stop 33 (see Figure 3B). The sheet 61 is laterally aligned in the magazine 19 by means of adjustable sides of the magazine 19. During transport the sheet 61 is accurately aligned in lateral direction again by two adjustable stops. At the moment when the sheet 61 is supported on the stop 61, the strips of adhesive are located above the level of the object to be enveloped. The object 75 to be wrapped, for example a magazine or a book, is placed on the belts 13 and transported in the direction of transport T by means of the belts 13. Then the object 75 is transported along by the belts 15, whereby the oblique position of the belts 15 causes one side of the object 75 to be aligned with the strip 17. The transport of the object 75 is taken over by the conveyor rollers 35, 37 (see Figure 3B), which press the object 75 against the sheet 61, which is in a vertical position by now. The sheet 61 is carried along by the object 75 and folded round the object (see Figures 3C - 3D) about a folding line 77 extending transversely to the direction of transport T (and transversely to the plane of the drawing of Figures 3B, 3C). Then the object 75 and the sheet 61 folded therearound is guided between the rollers 39 and 41 and transported along in the conveyor T until the front part 75' of the object 75 strikes the deflecting platform 45. The object 75 with the sheet 61 folded therearound is deflected by the deflecting platform 45 in the first direction of deflection indicated by the arrow P4 until the object abuts against an adjustable stop 79 of the deflecting platform 45 (see Figure 3D). Then glueing units 83 are actuated by means of the control unit (not shown), which glueing units apply a line comprising a plurality of dots of glue on the sheet 61, parallel to the folding line 77. A first end part 61' of the sheet 61 extends beyond the rear part 75" of the object 75, and is still positioned on the roller 39 in the position of object 75 illustrated in Figure 3D. From this position the object 75 with the sheet 61 folded therearound is moved in a direction opposed to the direction indicated by the arrow P4. This may for example be effected by springing lips (not shown) provided in the stop 77, by means of which the object 75 is shot back to the roller 39, as it were. The object 75 with the sheet 61 is carried along by the rollers 39, 43 and deflected in a second direction of deflection indicated by an arrow P5, whereby the first end part 61' is folded round the object 75 into contact with the second end

part 61" of the sheet 61, and is connected to said second end part 61" by the dots of glue applied to the second end part 61" (see Figure 3E). The object 75 with the sheet 61 around the object is moved to a horizontal position (see Figure 3F) by means of conveyor 47. If a fault is detected by the photocells and other sensors (not shown), the air cylinder 55 is actuated by means of the control unit, as a result of which the left-hand part (Figure 3F) of the conveyor 47 is tilted in the direction of the arrow P2, whereupon the "faulty" object is discharged. When no faults are detected, the enveloped object is taken over by the conveyor 49 and supplied to the printer 57. A printer 57 will then provide an address on the envelope formed by the sheet. Prior to or after the object 75 is supplied to the printer 57 side edges of the sheet 61 are pressed together by means of wheels or in another manner known per se, whereby the side edges are interconnected by means of the strips of adhesive applied by the glueing units 73.

The stop 33 is provided with a photocell 85 (see Figure 1), which detects whether or not a sheet is present. The moment the photocell 85 detects that the sheet has been removed from the stop 33 the control unit will activate the vacuum roller 21, as a result of which a new sheet 61 is supplied from the magazine 19.

The speed at which the respective rollers rotate is infinitely controllable by means of the control unit.

The method and the device according to the invention also make it possible to provide an envelope with surrounds the object in the form of a band, whereby the side edges of the object remain uncovered. When a band is provided round an object the glueing units 73 are made inoperative by means of the control unit. Thus the device shown in the Figure is both suitable for providing a band and for providing an envelope-forming cover around an object to be wrapped.