A folding machine for folding fiber products and fiber products formed and stacked thereby are disclosed. The folding machine includes two folding devices, each of which includes a cutting device, a delivery wheel, a folding-line wheel, a platen wheel, and a folding wheel. The cutting device cuts the fiber product and transports the cut fiber product to the delivery wheel. The folding-line wheel is adjacent to the delivery wheel for making a first folding line on the fiber product carried by the delivery wheel, and then the platen wheel folds the fiber product along the first folding line. Subsequently, the once-folded fiber product is transported to the folding wheel. The folding wheels of the two folding devices are adjacent to each other and are used to fold the fiber product passing therethrough for a second time, and thus fiber products with three folds are formed.

A method of manufacturing endless pallet chain sheet material is provided. The method includes: (a) providing a pallet having a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; (b) providing a chain sheet material; (c) positioning the chain sheet material on the pallet to include a first row and a second row, wherein: the first row and the second row are arranged along the lateral direction; the first row is disposed at a layer the same as or below that disposed at by the second row; each of the first row and the second row includes N bundles arranged along the longitudinal direction, wherein N?2; and each of the N bundles includes an upper portion and a lower portion; and (d) connecting the lower portion of the first bundle of the first row with the upper portion of the N-th bundle of the second row.

A stack of laminar material for forming packages, the stack including full panels having a predetermined total length and formed with transverse creases along which the full panels are folded in accordion-like pleats. The stack includes at least one longitudinal cut on each full panel to form at least two transversely adjacent stacks of partial panels having respective partial widths, which are less than the total width. The at least one cut is incomplete, so that each partial panel of a respective stack and the partial panel of the stack adjacent thereto will have at least one connecting section therebetween, having a predetermined minimum length, for holding the partial panels of the adjacent stacks together, to thereby keep the adjacent stacks substantially aligned while facilitating the separation of each of the partial panels as they are unwound by a pulling action from each adjacent stack.

A system for stacking a fanfolded continuous web of sheet material of indefinite length, such as corrugated cardboard, includes a feeding device that guides the continuous web longitudinally, a creasing device downstream of the feeding device to form transverse creases on the continuous web with a constant longitudinal pitch to define a succession of adjacent partitions, a folding device downstream of the creasing device for progressively and alternately fanfolding adjacent partitions along the creases, and a collection device for collecting the folded web. The collection device includes a vertical column for retaining the stack of fanfolded adjacent partitions, and a cutting unit is mounted at the top of the column to act on the fly on the top adjacent partition of the stack while tracking stack-formation without stopping the folding device. A method of stacking a sheet material, such as a fanfolded continuous web of corrugated cardboard of indefinite length.

Systems and methods for folding and stacking fanfold corrugated board material. A system may include a rotatable member (e.g., a wheel) having a number of head pieces disposed thereon. Each head piece has a vacuum setting that can be used to pick up a portion of a length of fanfold and hold it while the rotatable member rotates around its axis and a second blower setting that blows the portion of the length of fanfold that was picked up and rotated around the rotatable member down onto a stack of fan fold. Such a system is capable of forming regular and consistent stacks of fanfold material efficiently and cost effectively without the need for significant human intervention.

A converting machine is used to convert sheet material into packaging templates for assembly into boxes or other packaging. The converting machine includes a converting assembly that performs transverse conversion functions and longitudinal conversion functions on the sheet material to create the packaging templates. A fanfold crease sensing mechanism detects the presence and location of fanfold creases in the sheet material. Based on the location of the fanfold creases, the fanfold creases are either cut out of the sheet material, or the sheet material is cut to adjust the position of the fanfold crease in a packaging template.

The application relates to a method for zigzag folding a material web, the method having the following steps: continuously feeding a material web to be folded into a folding apparatus along a feed direction, alternately gripping the material web in a proximal region of the folding apparatus by means of gripping devices, holding and conveying the material web by means of the gripping devices into a distal region of the folding apparatus, the material web being zigzag folded thereby, and releasing the material web from the gripping devices and depositing the material web in a stack (9) with folds in the distal region, a distance between adjacent gripping devices (4, 5) being equal to a fold length. Furthermore, the application also relates to an apparatus for zigzag folding a material web.

A system for forming and fanfolding a sheet material, from a web of indefinite length, having a bottom, top and longitudinal side edges, the system includes a frame, a feeding device, a creasing device downstream of the feeding device to form transverse creases on the web spaced apart at a constant longitudinal pitch and defining adjacent partitions, and a folding device located downstream of the creasing device for folding adjacent partitions along creases into a fanfold arrangement. The folding device includes at least one first group of thrust tools acting on creases formed on the bottom side of the web and at least one second group of thrust tools acting on creases formed on the top side of the web. The thrust tools of each group are mechanically connected to and operatively dependent on each other so that tools of the same group are forced to follow the same trajectory.

A system for stacking a fanfolded continuous web of sheet material of indefinite length, such as corrugated cardboard, includes a feeding device that guides the continuous web longitudinally, a creasing device downstream of the feeding device to form transverse creases on the continuous web with a constant longitudinal pitch to define a succession of adjacent partitions, a folding device downstream of the creasing device for progressively and alternately fanfolding adjacent partitions along the creases, and a collection device for collecting the folded web. The collection device includes a vertical column for retaining the stack of fanfolded adjacent partitions, and a cutting unit is mounted at the top of the column to act on the fly on the top adjacent partition of the stack while tracking stack-formation without stopping the folding device. A method of stacking a sheet material, such as a fanfolded continuous web of corrugated cardboard of indefinite length.