| 摘要 |
A batch stacker for converting a downstream moving stream of overlapping articles into stacks of said articles. The articles are fed to the stacker in a continuous and overlapped stream by an infeed conveyor and carried away in stacks by an outfeed conveyor. A batcher feeds the overlapped articles to the outfeed conveyor on which the stack is formed. Intermittent drives drive the batcher and the outfeed conveyor in alternate relationship so that the outfeed conveyor stops to receive a stack while the outfeed conveyor takes the stack away, both without requiring stoppage of the infeed conveyor. The batcher acts as a gate, stopping flow to the outfeed conveyor while a completed stack is moved away and accommodating and accumulating incoming flow during the removal operation. A preferred but optional feature of the invention includes a counter which causes actuation of the intermittent drive means so that scacks of predetermined count are delivered. Another preferred but optional feature of the invention is means for driving the batcher in the reverse direction while the outfeed conveyor is driven in its forward direction to carry away a stack so as to provide a more positive separation in the stream.
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