Abstract: An assembly tray is injection molded with an open bottom to provide access to articles supported by the tray during manufacturing. Gear teeth are included on the bottom of the tray in the shape of a timing belt for indexing the tray during manufacturing. Stacking ledges are provided in the rim on top of the tray so that one tray can be stacked on top of another without sticking. A torsion box is provided on the sides of the tray to provide torsional stability. The assembly tray can be selected from a stack of other trays, used in automated manufacturing and stacked in another stack. The assembly tray is particularly suited for assemblying components of tape cassettes.

Abstract: The charging-and-conveying device includes screws (5 and 6) effecting the removal of piece articles (3) from a bulk pile (2) and positioned relative to each other with their turns mutually overlapping, the screws rotating towards each other. Positioned in the overlap zone is a member (16) orienting the articles (3) being conveyed. The device further includes screws (8 and 9) having an area for accumulation of the latter. Guides (21 and 21a) are arranged along the screws (8 and 9).

Abstract: Belt conveyor comprises first and second endless belts in side-by-side relationship which move in opposite directions. Articles such as connector housings are loaded onto the first belt at its first end and carried towards the second end of the first belt. The articles may be in either of two stable attitudes. A sorting guide extends transversely across the first belt and separates the articles in the second stable attitude from those in the first attitude, the articles in the second attitude being pushed onto the second belt. The articles pushed onto the second belt are carried to the first end of the second belt and transferred laterally to the first end of the first belt. The attitudes of the articles transferred are changed during transfer so that they are then in the first stable attitude.

Abstract: A bucket for attachment to the chain in a mill duty bucket elevator, includes a one piece wrapper member bent into a U-shaped trough defined by a sloping front wall, a horizontal bottom wall, an upright rear wall, a forwardly sloping rear wall, and a horizontal top lip. A rectangular hole in the wrapper plate defines the outside edges of a chain channel in which the chain lies when the bucket is fastened to the chain. Four side pieces having identical shapes and outside dimensions lie transversely across the trough to provide two end walls and two inside partitions. The partitions brace the front wall and act as side walls of the chain channel. A back plate fastened to the partitions and to the top lip and bottom wall adjacent the rectangular hole acts as the front face of the chain channel. The top lip, fastened to the two end walls and the two partitions, provides torsional stiffness to the bucket.

Abstract: First and second walking beams are coupled by a proportional displacement arrangement to a reciprocating drive mechanism. Respective ends of the first and second walking beams are positioned in close proximity to one another to permit an article positioned on the first walking beam to be transferred to the second walking beam. The first walking beam has a close or narrow pitch between adjacent article-bearing slots thereon, while the second walking beam has a wide pitch. Inter-article spacing on the second walking beam is thus greater than the spacing between adjacent articles on the first walking beam. This arrangement permits a large number of closely spaced articles to be simultaneously deposited upon the first walking beam while standard spacing may be provided between the articles on the second walking beam for improved efficiency in the automatic positioning and handling of the articles.

Abstract: A universal vibratory feeder has a removable tray provided with a continuous serpentine path. A plurality of carriers are received in the path, and articles of manufacture are carried by the carriers around the path in the tray. A vibrating platen beneath the tray has a plurality of bristles engaging the bottom of the respective carriers. The bristles are oriented in the direction of travel of the carriers around the path. The path in the tray is formed by a continuous through opening which separates the tray into two portions. The carriers straddle the thickness of the tray and are in substantial abutting relationship to one another throughout the path, thereby precluding the tray portions from separating.

Abstract: Container transporting apparatus comprising a plurality of pulleys (16) each supported by a support (30,28) in spaced pairs to maintain one or more belts (15) forming a path along which the containers are transported. Each pulley includes guides (24) for maintaining the belts aligned on the pulley and idler wheels (47) for aligning the belts with the pulley. The support for the pulleys includes a locking assembly (31) allowing the position of the pulley to be adjusted for transporting different sizes of containers.

Abstract: In an escalator, at least one of a plurality of staircase steps connected in an endless manner and supported by a body frame is made for a wheel chair loading staircase step. The staircase step comprises an upwardly movable main tread board, a sub-tread board supported by the main tread board, a lifting mechanism for lifting the main tread board, an electric drive unit for driving the lifting mechanism and a widening mechanism for automatically widening the sub-tread board by means of the electric drive unit.

Abstract: A conveyor comprising a pulley (5,6) supported belt (1), which forms a tubular section when conveying materials. Material (4) is fed into the belt (1) by means (7) discharging below the level (CL) at which the belt is formed into a tube, but above the point which the line of the angle of repose of the material (4) being conveyed would be tangent to the inner face of the belt (1), ensuring that the tubular section is completely filled. The material (4) is conveyed to a discharge pipe (8) where the belt looses its tubular shape, causing the material to be discharged. A sleeve (9) may be provided to support the belt on vertical or inclined sections, and to ensure the tubular section is properly sealed.

Abstract: A floor member (10) of channel form is pushed downwardly to install it onto bearings (16, 90, 144) which have been previously installed onto guide tubes (12, 12', 12") which extend in the same direction as the floor members (10). The bearings (16, 90, 144) have sidewall portions which slope downwardly and outwardly to a lower edge (76, 108, 154, 156). These sidewalls (66, 68, 100, 102, 150, 152) are connected at their upper portions to the bearings (16, 90, 144) in such a way that they will flex inwardly, into spaces provided for them, in response to the downward "snap on" movement of the floor member (10). Brace wings (52, 54, 110, 112, 174, 176) may be provided to function together with the lower edges (76, 108, 154, 156) to hold the floor members (10) onto the bearings (16, 90, 144). Bearings (90, 144) are provided which themselves snap onto the guide beams (12', 12").

Abstract: Positionally correct transfer of elongated objects, particularly cigarette cartons, to a packing machine for producing large packages with re-orientation, in relation to the feed, in close succession, is achieved by transversely pushing the successive front objects (19) along a conveyance path by transversely movable pushers (33) or (56). The pushers separate the front object (14a) and feed it for side entry to an endless chain discharge conveyor (12) at the point where the endless chain conveyor rotates about a sprocket.

Abstract: A transfer assembly of a belt conveyor comprises a discharge drum of the conveyor rigidly secured on a frame at the discharge end of the conveyor. Also on the discharge end of the conveyor is hinged a deflector shield which has a curvilinear portion whose concavity faces the discharge drum and is located after the drum along the conveyor belt movement. The shield has an entry portion located before the discharge drum along the conveyor belt movement. A support is secured rigidly to the frame at the discharge end of the conveyor. Two rods are hinged by first ends to the support, the rods being positioned one after the other along the conveyor belt. The other ends of the rods are hinged to the shield so that the distance between the first ends does not exceed the distance between the other ends of the rods.

Abstract: In order to avoid caking of bulk material when feeding from a feeder into an inlet opening of lesser cross-section, there is provided a trough with a central discharge opening located below the discharge of the feeder. Two double paddle conveyors extend in the trough towards the central discharge opening. A vertical gravity tube joins on the trough. The tube is surrounded by one or several annular channels guiding a gaseous medium. This medium forms a gaseous screen between the bulk material flow and the gravity tube.

Abstract: In a conventional bottle conveyor chain, in which sheet metal chain links are joined by a hinge between the links formed by a transverse pin mounted through two outer hinge parts constituted by rolled up plate strips projecting from one link, and a broad middle hinge part made as a rolled up strip projecting from the other link, the hinge pin is narrower than the middle hinge part, whereby the links are mutually transversely pivotal, for horizontal curve driving of the chain. For increasing the pivotability without weakening the chain, the front edge of the middle hinge part is maintained at full width, but the outer end of the rolled up strip is formed with a considerably reduced width.

Abstract: A holding device for gripping and retaining containers, including can bodies or cans which have one open end, during transport on conveyers, includes a planar carrier which can be connected at the conveyer chain or forms part thereof. A plurality of clamp elements is secured at the carrier. The clamp elements are made of resilient material, and they are fastened for clamping or snap-like retention of the container bodies at diametrically opposite locations respectively in pairs at the carrier. The clamp elements of each pair have respectively crossing adjacent sections, and the inner clamp is adapted to operatively contact the peripheral edge of the respective retained container. The outer clamp is adapted to operatively engage the outer wall surface of the container rim which is directed towards the carrier.

Abstract: An apparatus for automatically sequentially processing a large number of substrates. A plurality of substrate processing stages are arranged around a single imaginary circle, and a substrate attaching/detaching stage has its center as one position on the single imaginary circle. A conveyor transports substrates to or from the substrate attaching/detaching stage. A substrate holder receives each substrate from the conveyor and transfers each substrate to the conveyor after processing. The holder includes a mechanism for changing the attitude of a substrate from horizontal to vertical, for conveying the substrate in the vertical attitude to the processing stages, and for changing the attitude of a processed substrate from vertical to horizontal. A revolving mechanism sequentially conveys the holder in the vertical attitude from the attaching/detaching stage to each processing stage and returns the holder to the substrate attaching/detaching stage.

Abstract: An apparatus for a moving conveyor feeder comprises an hydraulic actuator to alternatively move a shaft in opposite directions. Motion amplification is operationally coupled to the shaft to amplify the amount of motion thereof, and a conveyor feeder is operationally coupled to the motion amplification; whereby a small amount of linear movement imparted to the shaft by the hydraulic actuator results in a much larger linear movement by the conveyor feeder.

Abstract: When it is desired to single consecutive filled wafer slices, which are advanced with abutting trailing and leading faces, respectively, so that the singled wafer slices are ultimately spaced apart, a separation between consecutive wafer slices is to be effected in time even if the wafer slices are filled with cream so that their filling layers will strongly adhere to each other. This can be ensured in that a transfer device is provided between a feeding conveyor for advancing consecutive wafer slices abutting at their trailing and leading faces, respectively, and a delivering conveyor for advancing the rows of wafer slices on a delivery plane, which is vertically spaced from the feeding plane, on which the wafer slices are advanced by the feeding conveyor, and the transfer device pulls each leading wafer slice from the next succeeding wafer slice and moves the pulled-off wafer slice to the delivery plane.

Abstract: The balustrade comprises glass panels arranged on opposite sides of the passenger conveyor steps circulating endlessly, guide frames each of which has a U-shaped recess and is mounted on and bonded to the upper edge portion of the glass panel by adhesive, with the upper edge portion being inserted in the U-shaped recess so that both ends of the glass panel project from the ends of the guide frame, joint frames each of which has the same cross-section as the guide frame and is disposed in a gap formed between the adjacent guides by arranging the glass panel with the guide frame in an end-to-end relation, coupling plates disposed on both sides of the guide frames and joint frame to sandwich them and means for fastening the coupling plates. The guide frames and the joint frame, which support handrails circulating endlessly, are firmly and easily secured to the glass panels with simple construction.

Abstract: An elevating conveyor having a first endless belt entrained around a plurality of spaced support or guide drums for elevating material through an elevating section to a discharge station and a second endless loading belt also entrained around guide drums to cooperate with the first belt at least where a loading station and the elevating section merge so that in this vicinity the belts are in overlying relationship with each other so that material on the upper surface of one belt is held on the surface by the other belt. The two belts are moved at similar speeds in the same direction and a fixed plate cooperates with the first belt in the elevating section so that material located between the belt and plate is elevated to the discharge station by upward movement of the first belt through the elevating section. The conveyor may be of C, L or Z shape and the first belt preferably has upstanding side walls, the top faces of which bear against low friction material supported on the plate.