Batt stacker/loader

Claim 1

Apparatus for stacking batts of compressible material, said apparatus comprising: a. a main frame having a hollow rectangular shaft extending from top to bottom of said frame; b. a carriage; c. means supporting said carriage for vertical movement on said frame; d. a platen supported for lateral movement in said carriage; e. means for moving said platen laterally on extend said platen across said hollow shaft and to withdraw said platen from said shaft; f. means for moving said carriage downwardly when said platen extends across said shaft and for moving said carriage upwardly when said platen has been withdrawn from said shaft; g. means for delivering batts of compressible material to the upper end of said hollow shaft; h. drop-gate means in said shaft near the upper end thereof for supporting a delivered batt when said drop-gate means is in closed position; i. means for opening said drop gate means in response to delivery of a batt thereonto and for thereafter closing said drop gate means; j. queue-gate means in said shaft near the upper end thereof spaced below said drop-gate means for supporting, when said queue-gate means is closed, one or more batts in stacked arrangment; k. means for opening and closing said queue-gate means; l. said queue-gate means, when opened, being adapted at start-up to drop said batts to the bottom of said shaft and being adapted when said platen extends across shaft to drop batts onto said platen m. said platen, when extended across said shaft, being adapted when said carriage is lowered to compress a stack of batts in said shaft therebeneath.