A panel cutting machine having a table with an endless belt conveyor and a pair of rollers mounted thereon for advancing a fabric to be cut to a desired length across and beyond a line of cut of a cross-cutter and along the table toward a sensor located a pre-selected distance from the line of cut. The sensor, which may be the usual micro switch or a photo-electric sensor switch, responds to the arrival of the leading edge of the fabric to activate a roller revolution counter to count a predetermined number of further revolutions and fractions thereof of one of the rollers, corresponding to a further distance of advance of the leading edge of the fabric beyond the sensor. Upon completion of the count, the counter activates a control circuit to stop the rollers and conveyor and start a cross-cutter to cut the fabric along the cutting line to form a panel of the desired length.
In an improved
panel cutting machine of the type comprising a table, roller and conveying means for advancing a fabric onto and along said table, and cross-cutting means disposed on said table for cutting said fabric, so advanced to a desired length to form a panel, the improvement of which comprises Means attached to said table for sensing when a leading edge of said fabric has advanced to a pre-selected position beyond said cross-cutting means, and roller revolution counting means responsively connected to said roller and sensing means for de-activating said roller and conveying means and for activating said cross-cutter.
Panel cutting machines have long been known and used in the prior art. Typically, such machines feature a pair of rollers, through which is fed a cloth fabric to be cut to the desired length. The rollers feed the fabric across the line of cut of a motor driven cross-cutter blade and onto a table containing a multi-belted conveyor, whereupon the conveyor carries a free end portion of the fabric away from the cutting line. While the rollers and conveyor are carrying the fabric along the table, a roller revolution counter associated with the driven roller counts the revolutions and fractions thereof, indicative of the distance that the leading edge of the fabric has moved beyond the cutting line. Upon the occurrence of a preselected accumulated angular displacement of the driven roller, the counter activates a control circuit to shut down the roller and conveyor drive motor and simultaneously activate the
cross-cutter motor to propel the cross-cutter blade transversely across the table to cut the fabric and form a panel of the desired length. Upon completion of the cut, the assembly upon which the blade is mounted engages one of a pair of limit switches located on opposite sides of the table to de-energize the cross-cutter motor and restart the conveyor and roller drive motor in preparation for the next panel cutting cycle. In the meantime, the roller revolution counter has automatically reset and indexed itself in preparation for a new counting operation commencing when the roller and conveyor drive motor restarts at the beginning of the next panel cutting sequence.
One difficulty that has been encountered using such prior art panel cutters is inaccuracy in the length measurement of the fabric by the roller revolution counter. Such inaccuracy results from slippage of the fabric within the rollers. Also, when such machines are used with fabrics of varying texture and thickness, the degree of mashing or flattening of the material passing through the rollers varies. Accordingly, variations in length measurement may occur when cutting different fabrics to the same length on the same machine. By means of my invention, these and other difficulties encountered in the use of prior art panel cutting machines are substantially lessened and overcome.
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