Apparatus for conveying sheets through a printing machine

Abstract

An apparatus for conveying sheets through a printing machine allows driving a sheet transport belt obliquely with respect to the conveying direction with a simple configuration. At least one deflection roller has a conical running surface (with or without a crowned face). At least one belt travels over deflection rollers, including the at least one deflection roller, and the belt running direction is oblique with respect to the sheet transport direction.

1 . An apparatus for conveying sheets in a printing machine, comprising: 
 a plurality of deflection rollers;    at least one belt laid over said deflection rollers and disposed to run in a running direction oblique with respect to a sheet transport direction in the apparatus;    wherein at least one of said deflection rollers is a substantially conical deflection roller.    
   
   
       2 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein said deflection rollers include a first deflection roller having a substantially conical configuration and a second deflection roller having a crown-face configuration.  
   
   
       3 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein said conical deflection roller has a symmetrical crown-face running surface.  
   
   
       4 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein said deflection rollers are rotatably supported about respective axes enclosing an acute angle with respect to one another.  
   
   
       5 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , which comprises at least one belt formed with vacuum openings and laid over said deflection rollers, for conveying the sheets in the printing press, and a vacuum device operatively associated with said at least one belt.  
   
   
       6 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein said at least one belt is one of at least two belts each running over two said deflection rollers, and said two belts defining running directions diverging symmetrically with respect to the sheet transport direction.  
   
   
       7 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein said deflection rollers lying upstream as seen in the sheet transport direction are conical and having mutually aligned axles.  
   
   
       8 . The apparatus according to  claim 1 , which comprises a common drive selectively coupled to said conical deflection rollers.