U.S. patent number 3,658,167 [Application Number 05/045,359] was granted by the patent office on 1972-04-25 for method of and device for conveying and arrangeing empty receptacles, such as bottles or jars.
Invention is credited to Walter McDonald, Norbert J. Seitel, Frank Zabroski.
United States Patent |
3,658,167 |
Zabroski , et al. |
April 25, 1972 |
METHOD OF AND DEVICE FOR CONVEYING AND ARRANGEING EMPTY
RECEPTACLES, SUCH AS BOTTLES OR JARS
Abstract
An endless conveyor fitted with parallel open-ended troughs
passing through a bin containing empty receptacles scoops up
several receptacles simultaneously which then settle in the troughs
with their axes aligned. Endwise advance of the receptacles along
each trough causes all but one receptacle to be ejected, resulting
in the formation of a single continuous row of parallel receptacles
along one conveyor edge. After removal from the row the receptacles
are upended, placed in converging lanes which merge to produce a
continuous supply line of a capacity of several hundred receptacles
per minute.
Inventors: |
Zabroski; Frank (Convent
Station, NJ), McDonald; Walter (Landing, NJ), Seitel;
Norbert J. (Meyersville, NJ) |
Family
ID: |
21937431 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/045,359 |
Filed: |
June 11, 1970 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
198/388; 198/400;
198/453; 198/447; 198/397.06 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B
35/08 (20130101); B65G 47/1471 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65B
35/08 (20060101); B65B 35/00 (20060101); B65G
47/14 (20060101); B65g 047/24 () |
Field of
Search: |
;198/33R,33AA,29,30,31,102,32,20,75 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Aegerter; Richard E.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. The method of continuously conveying and arranging empty
receptacles, such as bottles or jars, the method comprising passing
in an upwardly slanted direction substantially horizontally
disposed parallel troughs of a conveyor means through the lower
portion of a space containing said receptacles in random
arrangement to effect formation in said troughs of parallel rows of
receptacles disposed end to end, thereafter guiding said conveyor
means and receptacles on a further ascending, reversely slanted
path back over said space and simultaneously advancing the
receptacles in each trough endwisely sufficiently far to eject all
but one receptacle from each trough to effect formation on said
conveyor means of a single row of receptacles having their ends
aligned; thereafter guiding that portion of said conveyor means
which carries said parallel disposed receptacles on a path which
diverts from the path of the remainder of said conveyor means in a
zone downstream from the zone of receptacle transfer, and removing
successively the receptacles from said conveyor means portion in
said downstream zone.
2. The method of continuously conveying and arranging empty
receptacles, such as bottles or jars, the method comprising passing
in an upwardly slanted direction substantially horizontally
disposed parallel troughs of a conveyor means through the lower
portion of a space containing said receptacles in random
arrangement to effect formation in said troughs of parallel rows of
receptacles disposed end to end, thereafter guiding said conveyor
means and receptacles on a further ascending, reversely slanted
path back over said space and simultaneously advancing the
receptacles in each trough endwisely sufficiently far to eject all
but one receptacle from each trough to effect formation on said
conveyor means of a single row of receptacles having their ends
aligned; thereafter guiding that portion of said conveyor means
which carries said parallel disposed receptacles on a path which is
horizontally spaced from the path of the remainder of said conveyor
means; removing successively the receptacles from the
receptacle-carrying conveyor portion by endwisely moving said
receptacles in one or the opposite direction, depending on the
orientation of the mouth of the respective receptacle; then
upending said receptacles and forming two lanes of the upended
receptacles by guiding receptacles removed in one direction into
one lane and receptacles removed in the opposite direction into the
other lane to effect formation of two discontinuous lanes of
receptacles in the sense of presence of a receptacle in one lane
corresponding to absence of a receptacle in the other lane;
continuously advancing said two lanes of receptacles towards a zone
of merger and finally merging said two lanes into a single
continuous lane.
3. A device for conveying and arranging empty receptacles, such as
bottles or jars, the device comprising in combination a storage bin
having an upwardly inclined bottom, an endless feed conveyor means
comprising successive parallel substantially horizontally disposed
troughs of a length sufficient to accommodate more than two
receptacles disposed end to end in each trough, the conveyor
comprising an upward run in which the troughs face upwardly and a
downward return run in the troughs are inverted, a portion of the
upward run passing above said bin bottom to scoop up in its troughs
receptacles stored in said bin; said conveyor being composed of two
parallel portions, the major portion of which comprises troughs of
a length to accommodate at least two receptacles end to end, and
the minor portion of which comprises troughs of a length to
accommodate a single receptacle in each tough, a transverse
conveyor disposed diagonally across a portion of said upward run,
said transverse conveyor comprising lugs extending into the spaces
between successive troughs of said feed conveyor in a position
endwisely to engage receptacles in said troughs and to advance them
lengthwisely of said troughs from said major conveyor onto said
minor conveyor, the transverse conveyor being so disposed in
relation to one lateral edge of said minor conveyor as to eject all
but one receptacle from each trough to effect placement of said one
receptacle remaining in the trough in a single row of parallel
receptacles adjacent said lateral edge; means for driving said
transverse conveyor in timed relationship to said feed conveyor,
such as to maintain said lugs in mesh with the spaces between said
troughs; and means within the return run of said feed conveyor for
successively removing the receptacles from said minor conveyor.
4. A device for conveying and arranging empty receptacles, such as
bottles or jars, from a storage station at which the receptacles
are disposed in random arrangement in a bin to a delivery station
at which the receptacles are evenly spaced, at which their axes are
parallel, and at which their ends are aligned, the device
comprising, an endless conveyor means comprising successive
parallel evenly spaced troughs, each trough being sufficiently wide
to accommodate a plurality of receptacles end to end, the conveyor
means comprising an upward run within which the troughs face
predominantly upwardly and a return run within which the troughs
face predominantly downwardly, the upward run being guided to
present, in side view, a lower upwardly slanted portion within the
area of said bin within which the troughs are in a position to
scoop up receptacles resting in said bin, an upper reversely
upwardly slanted portion substantially vertically above the said
lower portion, and an intermediate concavely curved portion between
said upper and said lower portion; a transverse conveyor extending
at an upward slant transversely across said upper reversely slanted
portion of said conveyor means, said transverse conveyor comprising
lugs extending into the spaces between successive troughs in a
position to engage and endwisely advance receptacles resting in
said troughs, said transverse conveyor being of such length and so
disposed as to expel from one end of each trough all the
receptacles therein except the one receptacle remaining in said
troughs forming a single row of parallel receptacles having their
ends aligned; and removal means for removing from said row the
receptacles in successive troughs.
5. A device as defined in claim 4 in which an upwardly slanted bar
extends across said upper portion in advance of said transverse
conveyor, said bar being sufficiently close to said troughs to
engage receptacles caught between, and protruding from, successive
troughs.
6. A device for conveying and arranging empty receptacles, such as
bottles or jars, from a storage station at which the receptacles
are disposed in random arrangement in a bin to a delivery station
at which the receptacles are evenly spaced, at which their axes are
parallel, and at which their ends are aligned, the device
comprising a minor and a major conveyor driven at the same linear
rate, each conveyor being fitted with successive parallel evenly
spaced troughs, the troughs of the minor conveyor being of a length
adapted to hold a single receptacle only, the troughs of the major
conveyor being of at least double the length of the troughs of the
minor conveyor, each conveyor comprising an upward run within which
the troughs face predominantly upwardly, and a return run within
which the troughs face predominantly downwardly, the upward run of
the major conveyor being guided to present, in side view, a lower
upwardly slanted portion within the area of said bin within which
the troughs are in a position to scoop up receptacles resting in
said bin, an upper reversely upwardly slanted portion substantially
vertically above the said lower portion, and an intermediate
concavely curved portion between said upper and said lower portion;
the said minor conveyor being disposed alongside said major
conveyor within at least the upper portion thereof and in such
manner that the troughs of both conveyors are in sufficient
alignment for transfer of receptacles from said major to said minor
conveyor; a transverse conveyor extending transversely and upwardly
across the said upper portion of said major conveyor, said
transverse conveyor comprising lugs extending into the spaces
between successive troughs in a position to engage and endwisely
advance towards said minor conveyor receptacles in the troughs of
said major conveyor, said transverse conveyor terminating at a
point approximately at the junction of the major and minor
conveyors, the point being so selected as to effect removal from
the troughs of the major conveyor the respective one receptacle
directly engaged by a lug and transfer of said one receptacle onto
the aligned trough of said minor conveyor, the course of the minor
conveyor deviating from the course of the major conveyor at a zone
downstream with respect to the zone of transfer to expose both ends
of the troughs of the minor conveyor; and removal means disposed at
both ends of the troughs of the minor conveyor within the zone of
deviation for endwisely removing the receptacles from successive
troughs of the minor conveyor.
7. A device as defined in claim 6 in which an upwardly slanted bar
extends across the said upper portion of the major conveyor, said
bar being sufficiently close to the troughs of the major conveyor
to engage receptacles caught between, and protruding from,
successive troughs.
8. A device as defined in claim 6 in which the said zone of
deviation of the conveyors is within the return run of both major
and minor conveyors and in which a rail is provided substantially
parallel to the minor conveyor across the face of its troughs for
retaining receptacles in the spaces between successive downwardly
facing troughs.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Fully automated lines for the filling and packaging of hollow
receptacles, such as bottles or jars, demand a continuous supply of
receptacles, as an interruption of the supply necessitates a
corresponding interruption of the filling or packaging
operation.
In filling and packaging plants it is common practice to keep
supplies of empty plastic bottles, jars, etc. in large bins and to
employ an automatic feeding device for removing receptacles one by
one from a bin, arranging the removed receptacles in the desired
order and conveying them to the filling machine or line.
The continuity of the receptacle supply is interrupted if the
element which removes receptacles from the bin fails to feed a
receptacle, thus skipping a stroke or cycle of operation.
Difficulties are also experienced if the demand for receptacles is
high, for example of the order of several hundred receptacles per
minute. At such demand rates, as far as we are aware,
intermittently operating feeding mechanisms or mechanisms employing
reciprocating or oscillating elements fail to operate
dependably.
SUMMARY
The present improvements are based on the consideration that a
continuous dependable delivery at a high rate is obtainable by
first conveying an oversupply of receptacles from a supply bin,
more particularly by removing and conveying several receptacles
simultaneously, followed by elimination of those receptacles which
are in excess of the demand. The remaining receptacles then form in
continuous unbroken flow of supply.
In carrying out this objective, we pass a conveyor comprising
parallel substantially horizontally disposed troughs through a
supply bin in which the receptacles are disposed in arrangement.
The troughs are of sufficient length to scoop up and hold several
receptacles simultaneously. The scooped-up receptacles generally
settle in the troughs in a position in which their axes are
parallel to the trough axis.
In the handling of receptacles of complex configuration some
receptacles may be grasped in a manner which precludes their
subsequent settling in the troughs. Such receptacles are
removed.
The troughs containing receptacles emerge from the bin on an
upwardly slanted path. Preferably the slant direction is then
reversed so as to conduct the troughs back over the bin. This
causes improperly grasped receptacles to drop out of the conveyor
means by gravity.
Substantially simultaneously the receptacles are advanced in their
respective troughs towards one end of the trough and sufficiently
far to cause ejection of all but one receptacle from the end of
each trough. A single uninterrupted row or series of parallel
receptacles remains along one lateral edge of the conveyor
means.
Appropriate devices can then be employed for consecutively removing
the receptacles from the single row in the conveyor means,
orienting them so that all the necks or open mouths are pointed in
one direction and forming a supply line in which the receptacles
advance to the filling machine in single file.
By appropriate choice of the length of the troughs, having regard
to the dimension and shape of the receptacles, to the exposure of
the conveyor troughs to the bin, and to the ultimate numerical
demand of receptacles per minute, it is therefore possible to
deliver one receptacle from each and every trough of the conveyor
means with great dependability.
The objects, features and advantages of this invention will appear
more fully from the detailed description which follows accompanied
by drawings showing, for the purpose of illustration, a preferred
embodiment of the invention. The invention also resides in certain
new and original features of construction and combination of
elements, as well as certain steps and sequences of steps
hereinafter set forth and claimed.
Although the characteristic features of this invention which are
believed to be novel will be particularly pointed out in the claims
appended hereto, the invention itself, its objects and advantages,
and a manner in which it may be carried out, may be better
understood by referring to the following description taken in
connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part of it, in
which
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conveyor means emerging from an
empty receptacle bin;
FIG. 2 shows the device of FIG. 1 in operation, the bin being
partially filled;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the conveyor means from the
opposite side of the bin;
FIG. 4 is a perspective side elevation of the conveyor;
FIG. 5 is a perspective rear view of the device;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the delivery station of the device
and a partial view of a representative form of bottle moving and
orienting mechanism arranged to either side of the delivery
station, the view being in a direction opposite to the that of FIG.
5;
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the terminal portion of the bottle
orienting mechanism at which a single line of upended bottles
emerges; and
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a bottle upending mandrel unit used
in the orienting mechanism.
In the following description and in the claims various details will
be identified by specific names for convenience. The names,
however, are intended to be generic in their application.
Corresponding reference characters refer to corresponding parts in
the several figures of the drawings.
The drawings accompanying, and forming part of, this specification
disclose certain specific details of construction for the purpose
of explanation of broader aspects of the invention, but it should
be understood that structural details may be modified in various
respects without departure from the principles of the invention and
that the invention may be incorporated in other structural forms
than shown.
It is further to be understood that whatever is stated in the
following description with respect to bottles equally applies to
other forms of empty receptacles, such as jars, tubes, etc.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The receptacle conveying and arranging device comprises a supply
bin 11 (FIGS. 1 and 4) normally filled with receptacles (FIG. 2)
which in the illustrated example are plastic bottles of relatively
complex configuration. The bottles lie in the bin in random
disorder.
A conveyor means, generally designated 13, serves to transport
bottles 12 out of the bin 11.
The conveyor means comprises an upward run generally shown in FIG.
4 and a return run generally shown in FIG. 5.
The upward run may be considered as starting at the front of the
bin at 14 (FIG. 4). It first follows the curved bottom 15 of the
bin along a course indicated by a broken line 16 marked on the side
wall of the bin and has a generally upward slant in a direction
towards the upper right.
At or near the top rim 17 of the bin the path of the conveyor means
is curved within a zone 18, the curvature being concave as viewed
from the front of the bin. Beyond the zone 18 the path of the
conveyor means continues at a reverse slant towards the upper left,
thus bringing the conveyor means back over the bin 11.
The upward run of the conveyor means 13 thus comprises a lower
portion within the bin 11 within which the direction of ascent is
toward the right, an upper portion substantially above the bin
within which the direction of ascent is toward the left, and a
concave reversal portion 18 approximately within the zone where the
conveyor means emerges from the bin 11.
The conveyor means is fitted with open-ended troughs 19 comprising
front lips 20 which point upwardly within the upward run of the
conveyor means and cause the troughs to act as scoops adapted to
scoop bottles from the bin (FIG. 2).
The troughs 19 are mounted on lugs 21 extending from chains 22
through slots 23 in the bottom of the bin and also in an upwardly
extending slanted panel 24.
The chains 22 are best seen in FIG. 5 showing the return run of the
conveyor means within which the troughs 19 are inverted and the
lips 20 point downwardly.
Referring to FIG. 1, it is seen that by reason of the mounting of
the troughs 19 on conveyor lugs 21 the spaces between the troughs
which are relatively wide within the bin become narrower within the
concave reversal zone 18. Above this zone the spacing between the
troughs becomes larger again. As shall be pointed out later, the
variation in spacing aids in the removal of improperly seated
bottles from the conveyor means.
Advantageously the conveyor means may be composed of two conveyors
113, 213, disposed side by side, each conveyor being fitted with
troughs, the troughs being aligned and both conveyors being driven
at the same linear rate.
This arrangement, which may be considered a split conveyor, is by
no means essential to the basic function of the device and to the
practice of the basic underlying method, but it offers certain
advantages in the removal of the bottles from the device at the
delivery station, having regard to the particular form of removal
mechanism shown in the drawings and briefly described further
below.
In the illustrated preferred embodiment of the invention the
conveyor means comprises a major conveyor 113 and a minor conveyor
213, the latter entering the space of the bin at a level above the
bin bottom 15, this being also a matter of preference. It should be
pointed out, however, that the minor conveyor 213 may also be
constructed to enter the bin at or near the bin bottom, for example
near the point 14 (FIG. 4) in which case the minor conveyor
increases the pickup capacity of the conveyor means by about one
bottle per trough.
The troughs of the illustrated major conveyor are of a length
sufficient to scoop up a maximum of three bottles simultaneously
while passing through the bin (see FIGS. 2 and 3).
FIGS. 2 and 3 show that the conveyor means occasionally picks up
bottles by their necks or by their lower body portions. Such
bottles will not settle in the troughs in a position in which the
bottle axis is substantially parallel to the trough axis, and
require removal from the conveyor means, preferably within the
reversely slanted portions of the upward conveyor run.
Considering the lowest trough visible in FIG. 2, the neck of the
bottle 12' at the extreme left faces the observer. This bottle is
tightly grasped between the two lowest visible troughs which are
relatively narrowly spaced within the reversal area 18. The spacing
however increases as the troughs enter the reversely slanted
portion, and it is clearly apparent that a similarly grasped bottle
12" in the third trough above the bottle 12' is being held only
very loosely and is about to drop back into the bin. Bottles
hanging by their necks, such as bottle 12'", similarly are released
from the conveyor means and return to the bin.
Means are provided for advancing bottles resting in the troughs
towards one end of the troughs. Such means may take a variety of
forms and be disposed in different ways. For example, a finger may
be associated with each rising trough, the fingers passing through
a curved slot in the panel 24 to extend into the respective trough
from the back. The slot extending from the lower left to the upper
right causes the finger to move from left to right, thereby
advancing bottles in the troughs to the right.
Alternatively, the bottle advancing means may be disposed at the
front and may have the form of a transverse endless conveyor (FIG.
3) extending at an upward slant substantially diagonally across the
upper reversely slanted portion of the conveyor means 13. The
conveyor 25 is fitted with pushers or paddles 26 shaped to fit the
spaces between adjacent troughs so as to engage and advance the
bottles in each trough in the direction towards the right in FIG.
3.
The run of the transverse conveyor to which the number 25 is
applied is the return run moving toward the lower left as indicated
by an arrow 27 and the idle pushers 26' thereon are disengaged from
the troughs by reason of the conveyor assembly 25 being set
somewhat askew with regard to the panel 24 along which the troughs
19 move.
The ascending run of the conveyor is hidden behind an angle iron 28
which serves a double purpose. It acts as a guard and guide for the
ascending run of the chain with its pushers and it acts as a
deflecting rail for forcing improperly seated bottles, such as
bottle 12", out from between adjacent troughs.
The transverse conveyor 25 pushes the bottles in each trough far
enough to eject all bottles, except the one directly engaged by a
pusher 26. For this purpose a terminal sprocket wheel 29, about
which the conveyor 25 is trained, is so located near the line of
division 30 between the conveyor portions 113 and 213 that the
pusher moving about the sprocket wheel leaves the respective bottle
in a precisely defined position with respect to the lateral edge 31
of the conveyor means.
The bottle in the topmost trough in FIG. 2 had reached its final
position. The bottle in the next lower trough is still being
advanced. Two bottles are nested in the third trough from the top.
The right bottle is about to be ejected from the trough and the
bottle on the left will eventually be moved to a position in which
its ends are aligned with the bottle shown in the topmost
trough.
The transverse conveyor 25 is supported by the terminal sprocket
wheel 29, which is an idler wheel, and a driven sprocket wheel 29'
at the lower end which received its drive through drive chains 32,
33 and an angle gear 34 therebetween.
Appropriate bearings 35 and 36 for the shafts of the sprocket
wheels are mounted near the ends of a supporting bar or rail 37,
the upper end of which is secured to a bracket 38 welded to the top
of the machine frame, the lower end being attached to the framework
39 encircling the bin 11.
Precise alignment of the bottle ends is facilitated by a short
endless conveyor 44 mounted adjacent the upper portion of the
lateral edge 31. The conveyor 44 is fitted with abutment blades 45
against which the mouth, or the bottom, of a bottle moves. The
blades 45 move upwardly at a rate substantially equal to the rate
of the troughs and temporarily close the end of the trough
approximately at the level of the return of the transverse conveyor
25 (FIG. 3).
The troughs of the conveyor means reaching the top of the machine
are empty of bottles except for the single row of parallel bottles
adjacent the right lateral edge 31, there being a bottle in each
and every trough.
The empty troughs of the major conveyor 113 are visible in FIG. 5,
their lips 20 being pointed downwardly.
The return run of the minor conveyor 213 is first downwardly
directed at an angle of approximately 45.degree. as shown at 40,
and then continues in a vertical direction past the delivery
station or zone generally designated 41.
The troughs of the conveyor means are inverted during the return
run. As a consequence, the bottles 12 slide from their previous
positions in a trough to a new position on the bottom of the
preceding trough, which bottom surface now faces upwardly (see FIG.
6).
In order to prevent bottles from being tossed out of their
respective compartments, particularly at high operating speeds, a
pair of hold-down rails 42 are provided within the inclined
portions 40. A single centrally disposed retaining rail 43 is
provided within the vertical conveyor portion extending past the
delivery zone.
The ends of the conveyor pockets or spaces passing through the
delivery zone 41 are open and permit endwise removal of the bottles
therefrom.
This may be accomplished in a variety of ways, a preferred manner
of removal being one in which each bottle is positively grasped and
held by its neck until it is put, down onto a carry-out
conveyor.
According to the preferred procedure, particulars of which form the
subject of a separate copending application, Ser. No. 45656, filed
June 12, 1970, each bottle is approached from opposite ends by a
pair of expansible mandrels, one of which pushes against the bottle
bottom while the opposite mandrel enters the bottle neck and is
expanded to grasp the bottle. The latter mandrel continues to hold
the bottle while the troughs of the conveyor are retracted to
release the bottle. The mandrel and bottle are then pivoted about
an axis transverse to the axis of the mandrel, thereby upending the
bottle which is finally put down onto a compartmented conveyor
which carries it away.
The two groups of mandrel assemblies which approach the bottles
from opposite sides are identical, although oppositely facing. It
will for this reason be sufficient to describe only one.
Each group of assemblies is carried by a pair of parallel endless
chains 46 to which bases 47 are transversely secured, comprising
arms 48 (see also FIG. 8).
A substantially cross-shaped tilt body 49 is pivotally supported by
the arms 48 between pivots 50 defining a tilt axis.
The tilt body 49 has a longitudinal bore through it within which a
hollow stem 51 is longitudinally slidable. One end of the stem
carries an expansible mandrel 52, the opposite end carries a cross
head 53 comprising rollers 54 which straddle an endless guide rod
alongside the course of the conveyor chains 46.
It is readily seen that approach of the guide rod 55 towards the
conveyor 46 causes the stem 51 and mandrel 52 to move towards the
left, thereby extending the mandrel towards a bottle. Increasing
distances of the guide rod 55 from the chains 46 cause retraction
of the mandrel 52 by movement of the stem 51 to the right.
Assuming next that the guide rod 55 were disposed at a constant
distance form the chains 46 but that the plane within which the
guide rod 55 lies were to change relatively to the plane within
which the adjacent chain portion lies, the result would be a tilt
of the body 49 about its tilt axis 50. Various degrees of such tilt
can be seen in FIG. 7.
It is thus possible by appropriate changes in the curvature and
distance of the guide rod 55 with respect to the course of the
conveyor assembly 46, 47 to extend or retract and simultaneously
tilt the mandrel, and to produce corresponding movement of the
bottles grasped by the mandrel.
The mechanical action by means of which the mandrel is expanded and
contracted is briefly as follows:
Expansion of the mandrel for the purpose of grasping a bottle is
effected by two laterally serrated blades 56 which are projectable
from and retractable into, longitudinal slots 57 in the mandrel 52.
The blades are normally retracted, and may be projected by movement
of a transverse pin of bolt 58 in the direction of the stem 51.
The stem 51 of the mandrel is slotted at 59, and an internal spring
(not visible) normally maintains the pin 58 against the forward end
of the slot in the stem. The stem slot registers with a longer slot
60 in the cross shaped body 49 and the pin 58 is long enough to
engage the ends of the slot 60. Movement of the stem 51 in a
direction to project the mandrel moves the pin 58 to the end of the
long slot 60 in the tilt body, and further movement of the stem
causes the stem 51 to advance in relation to the pin which is now
arrested by the forward end of the body slot.
The advance of the stem in relation to the cross pin amounts to a
retraction of the cross pin relatively to the stem and causes the
mandrel blades 56 laterally to emerge from the mandrel, thus
grasping the bottle into the neck of which the mandrel was
inserted.
Returning now to FIG. 6, it is seen that the second mandrel
assembly from the top is being projected by the guide rod 55
towards a bottle whose bottom surface faces the mandrel. The
mandrel therefore is about to displace the bottle slightly to the
left where an oppositely facing mandrel of the far
conveyor-and-mandrel assembly enters the bottle neck.
The mandrel of the third assembly from the top in FIG. 6 has
entered the neck of the bottle. Its stem has been displaced to the
left, as is apparent from a comparison of the lengths of the
exposed stem portion and of the assembly directly above. It is also
seen that its pin 58 has reached the end of the slot 60 in the tilt
body, thus causing the mandrel to grasp and hold the bottle by its
neck.
The bottommost bottle in FIG. 6 is firmly held by the corresponding
mandrel which is about to move away in a direction to the lower
right while the conveyor troughs are about to move away towards the
lower left by reason of the fact that the chains 61 of the conveyor
are trained around the sprocket wheel 62 visible at the lower
left.
In FIG. 7 sequential positions of the bottles are identified by a
corresponding number of dots on the respective bottles.
The first bottle was just removed from the conveyor space in which
it had rested and is beginning its downward swing. The mandrel
which had acted on its bottom is visible on the right next to the
bottle.
The second bottle has assumed an inclination of about 30
degrees.
The third bottle had been reversely oriented and is being handled
by the mandrel-conveyor assembly on the right. The corresponding
mandrel on the left is vacant.
The fourth bottle has been released and is seated between bars 63
of a conveyor moving towards the observer. The conveyor space in
front of the fourth bottle is vacant, but the fifth bottle occupies
the corresponding space on the opposite side.
The bottles are guided along lanes 64, 65 towards a point of merger
66 where the bottles merge into a continuous line without mandrel
interference as, due to the operation of the device, presence of a
bottle in one lane, such as 64, between any two transport bars is
matched by a vacant space in the other lane 65 between the same two
transport bars.
After release of the bottles the mandrel stems are retracted
(compare mandrels of the fifth and sixth bottle) and are swung into
horizontal position for return to the station 41.
DRIVE
The drive motor is located under the bottle orienting mechanism and
lies beyond the margin of FIG. 4. From the motor a drove chain 67
extends to a lower transverse shaft 68 from which the bottle
orienting mechanism is driven via a chain 69.
A further chain 70 extends upwardly to drive an upper transverse
shaft 71 from which the short chain 72 extends to a shaft 73 of the
abutment conveyor 44 (FIG. 3). The upper transverse shaft 71 has
the sprocket wheels keyed to it over which the major and minor
conveyors 113, 213 are trained. One such sprocket wheel 74 is
visible in FIG. 5. The end of the shaft 71 carries a sprocket wheel
75 from which the drive chain 33 of the transverse conveyor 25
extends.
An idler shaft 76 near the bottom of FIG. 5 carries sprocket wheels
77 about which the return run of the conveyor 113 is trained.
CHANGES IN RECEPTACLE SIZE AND SHAPE
A unique feature of the conveying and arranging machine is that it
requires practically no adjustments nor adaptations if receptacles
of different dimensions are to be conveyed.
Any bottles or jars that fit into and can be carried by the troughs
can be handled. The receptacle may be short or tall, it may be of
circular, oval, rectangular, hexagonal or any other cross sectional
shape. The presence or absence of a neck is immaterial. Only if
extreme variations in average diameter are encountered, the
retaining rail 43 at the delivery station may be set closer to, or
farther away from, the lips 20 of the troughs to insure a fair
degree of centering, enough for the mandrels to find the neck or
mouth of the receptacle. The delivery capacity of the machine is
variable by means of a variable transmission associated with the
drive motor.
SUMMARY OF OPERATION
Parallel troughs of a continuous conveyor (FIG. 2) pass through a
bin containing bottles in random disorder and scoop up several
bottles, on the average, by each trough. Endwise advance of the
bottles along each trough causes elimination of all but one bottle
from each trough, leading to formation of an uninterrupted row of
parallel bottles along one margin of the conveyor.
The single row passes through a delivery station (FIG. 6) where the
bottles are removed by their necks, are then upended (FIG. 7) and
placed in two converging conveyor lanes which merge and produce an
uninterrupted line of supply of bottles capable of very high
delivery rates.
* * * * *