Method and device for the suspended transport of objects on a transport track comprising an accumulated store

1. A method for transporting and buffering articles ( 2 ) comprising the steps of:

providing a rail ( 5 );

providing a plurality of holding elements ( 1 );

transporting the holding elements ( 1 ) one behind the other along a stretch of the rail ( 5 ), wherein each holding element ( 1 ) holds an article ( 2 ) in a defined position, and wherein the holding elements ( 1 ) are conveyed in a conveying direction (F) along a conveying track defined by the stretch of rail ( 5 ),

banking up the holding elements ( 1 ) during transport to form an accumulation store ( 12 ) upstream of a front banking-up point (P. 1 ), wherein the accumulation store ( 12 ) comprises, in addition to the front banking-up point (P. 1 ) and upstream thereof, a rear banking-up point (P. 2 ) and wherein the banked-up holding elements ( 1 ) have a defined minimum distance (d Min ) between one another,

in the accumulation store ( 12 ), pre-forming groups of holding elements ( 15 ) between the front banking-up point (P. 1 ) and the rear banking-up point (P. 2 ), wherein each group comprises a plurality of holding elements ( 15 ),

releasing the groups of holding elements ( 15 ) from the accumulation store ( 12 ), wherein in each released group the holding elements ( 15 ) are spaced apart the defined minimum distance (d Min ), and

conveying away the released groups of the holding elements ( 15 ), and

wherein the groups of the holding elements ( 1 ) pre-formed in the accumulation store, released from the accumulation store, and conveyed away from the accumulation store in succession comprise varying numbers of the holding elements ( 1 ), wherein a distance between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point (P. 1 and P. 2 ) corresponds to a length in the conveying direction of a group ( 15 ) to be released, and wherein, for pre-forming or releasing the groups, one of the banking-up points (P. 1 or P. 2 ) is stationary and the other banking-up point (P. 2 or P. 1 ) is displaced parallel to the conveying direction.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the groups of the holding elements ( 15 ) are pre-formed and released from the accumulation store ( 12 ) using first and second banking-up means ( 16 , 16 . 1 , 16 . 2 , 16 . 3 , 16 . 4 , 16 . 5 ), wherein the first banking-up means acts at the front banking-up point (P. 1 ) and the second banking-up mean acts at the rear banking-up point (P. 2 ).

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the first and second banking-up means ( 16 . 1 , 16 . 2 , 16 . 4 ) is displaced parallel to the conveying direction (F) between successive releases.

4. The method according to claim 2 , wherein groups ( 15 ) are pushed out of the accumulation store ( 12 ) by the second banking-up means ( 16 . 2 ).

5. A method for conveying articles along a conveying path, for stopping the articles being conveyed, for establishing a buffer store on the conveying path, for releasing the articles from the buffer store in groups of a plurality of the articles each, and for conveying away the groups, wherein each article is held by a holding element and the holding elements within each group are spaced from each other by a defined minimum spacing, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a rail track along the conveying path;

providing a plurality of holding elements that are displaceable behind each other and are independent from each other, said holding elements having a predetermined minimum spacing;

moving the holding elements along the rail track;

defining along the rail track a front banking-up point and a rear banking-up point upstream of the front banking-up point;

selectively buffering the holding elements behind the front banking-up point or the rear banking-up point, or moving the holding elements past the front banking-up point or the rear banking-up point, said buffering or moving being performed in the following steps:

(a.) buffering the holding elements behind the front banking-up point and moving the holding elements past the rear banking-up point;

(b.) for forming a group of the holding elements between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point, buffering the holding elements behind the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point;

c) for releasing the group formed between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point to be conveyed away, downstream, moving the holding elements past the front banking-up point and buffering the holding elements behind the rear banking-up point; and

d) repeating steps a) to c) for every successive group; and

wherein for forming groups of varying numbers of the holding elements, the distance between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point is varied.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the holding elements are acted on by banking-up means at the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point for pre-forming and releasing the groups.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein for varying the distance between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point, the banking-up means is displaced parallel to the rail track.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein banking-up means acting on the rear banking-up point is displaced parallel to the rail track for pushing the formed group to move past the front banking-up point.

9. The method of claim 5 , wherein a first banking-up means and a second banking-up means act alternately at the front banking-up point and at the rear banking-up point.

10. The method of claim 5 , wherein a plurality of banking-up means are displaceable parallel to the rail track and act alternately at the front banking-up point and at a plurality of rear banking-up points.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of banking-up means are displaced parallel to the rail track by being arranged on a circulating transport organ.

12. The method of claim 5 , wherein at least one banking-up means is fixedly disposed at the front banking-up point or the rear banking-up point.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the at least one banking-up means comprises a first banking-up means acting at the first banking-up point and a second banking-up means acting at the second banking-up point, said first banking-up means comprising gravity, friction or momentary absence of driving force, and said second banking-up means being fixedly disposed at the second banking-up point.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the second banking-up means comprises a timing wheel ( 16 . 5 ).

15. The method of claim 5 , wherein, for being supplied to the accumulation store ( 12 ), for being transported through the accumulation store ( 12 ) to the front banking-up point (P. 1 ), and for being conveyed-away from the front banking-up point (P. 1 ), the holding elements ( 1 ) are coupled to a single drive, wherein banked-up holding elements slip relative to the drive or are uncoupled from it.

16. The method of claim 5 , wherein, for being supplied to the accumulation store ( 12 ) and/or for being transported though the accumulation store ( 12 ) to the front banking-up point (P. 1 ) or to the rear banking-up point (P. 2 ), the holding elements ( 1 ) are driven by gravity.

17. The method of claim 5 , wherein the articles are printed articles.

18. A device for conveying articles along a conveying path, for stopping the articles being conveyed, for establishing a buffer store on the conveying path, for releasing the articles from the buffer store in groups of a plurality of the articles each, and for conveying away the groups, wherein each article is held by a holding element and the holding elements within each group are spaced from each other by a defined minimum spacing, the device comprising:

a rail track along the conveying path;

a plurality of holding elements that are displaceable behind each other and are independent from each other, said holding elements having a predetermined minimum spacing;

driving means for moving the holding elements along the rail track;

at least two banking-up means arranged for acting at a front banking-up point and a rear banking-up point along the rail track, said rear banking-up point being positioned upstream of the front banking-up point, said at least two banking-up means being operable to selectively buffer the holding elements behind the front banking-up point or the rear banking-up point, or move the holding elements past the front banking-up point or the rear banking-up point; and

control means for controlling the at least two banking-up means in the following steps:

(a.) buffering the holding elements behind the front banking-up point and moving the holding elements past the rear banking-up point;

(b.) for forming a group of the holding elements between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point, buffering the holding elements behind the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point;

c) for releasing the group formed between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point to be conveyed away, downstream, moving the holding elements past the front banking-up point and buffering the holding elements behind the rear banking-up point; and

d) repeating steps a) to c) for every successive group; and

wherein for forming groups of varying numbers of the holding elements, at least one of the two banking-up means is displaceable parallel to the rail track; and

wherein the control means is operable to move the displaceable banking-up means between the formation of successive groups.

19. The device of claim 18 , wherein said at least two banking-up means comprises a first banking-up means arranged to act at the front banking-up point and a second banking-up means arranged to act at the rear banking-up point, and wherein one of the first and second banking-up means is displaceable parallel to the rail track .

20. The device of claim 18 , wherein said at least two banking-up means ( 16 ) are capable of being selectively activated and are coupled to a circulating transportation organ ( 31 ).

21. The device of claim 18 , wherein said at least two banking-up means comprise a second banking-up means, which is disposed at the rear banking-up point (P. 2 ) and is stationary, and wherein for banking-up at the front banking-up point (P. 1 ), the rail track and the drive means are designed such that a group pre-formed between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point is either selectively conveyed away or is banked-up by not being conveyed away.

22. The device of claim 21 , wherein the rail track rises from the rear banking-up point to the front banking-up point so that gravity acts as a first banking-up means at the front banking-up point (P. 1 ).

23. The device of claim 21 , wherein the second banking-up means disposed at the rear banking-up point (P. 2 ) is a timing wheel ( 16 . 5 ).

24. The device of claim 18 , wherein the drive means comprises a slip drive disposed at least between the front banking-up point and the rear banking-up point.

25. The device of claim 24 , wherein the slip drive and the holding elements are equipped for magnetic coupling of the holding elements to the slip drive.

26. The device of claim 18 , wherein in a gravity zone of the rail track in the conveying direction (F), at least upstream of the front banking-up point (P. 1 ), the rail track drops, wherein, in the gravity zone of the rail track, gravity acts as the drive means.