Abstract: In a boxing plant for cones and/or conoids which at its inlet are disposed in groups of a certain number each, an apparatus for feeding groups of cones in an orientated and ordered arrangement to boxes comprises a first section (A) in which groups of cones (11) positioned on a container tray (12) in an essentially horizontal plane are orientated in a predetermined manner on opposite sides so that they all lie with their tails pointing towards the center, and a second section (B) in which they are discharged from the container trays (12) onto racks (15) and the cones (11) on one side are offset relative to the cones on the other side, and then moved while offset onto a central region (16) which can be opened in the manner of a sliding door above boxes (17) and in which the cones (11) disposed side by side in a head-tail arrangement are compacted (18) into matrices (44) having the same dimensions as the boxes and are then allowed to fall into the boxes by opening the sliding door.

Abstract: An improved filling and casing system is disclosed herein, which comprises a case conveying device for conveying cases, a carrier conveying device disposed adjacent to and in parallel to the case conveying device for conveying carriers capable of accommodating and holding containers, an uncasing station including a container gripper movable between the case and the carrier for taking out the containers from the case and accommodating them in the carrier, a filling station including a filling head for performing a filling operation for the containers accommodated and held in the carrier, and a capping station including a capping head for performing a capping operation for the filled containers. The uncasing station, the filling station and the capping station are disposed in succession along the case conveying device and the carrier conveying device.

Abstract: A bag inserter for inserting a liquid filled bag into a preselected position within a container. A funnel receives and guides the bag into the container. The funnel has a bag receiving aperture for guiding the bag into a tapered bag forming section. The bag passes into a bag discharge chute beneath the bag forming section and then through a bag discharge aperture formed at a substantial vertical angle across the lower end of the chute. Container positioning means are provided for positioning a container to receive the bag with a bag receiving aperture of the container adjacent the discharge aperture and with a wall of the container opposite the container bag receiving aperture at approximately the same angle at which the bag discharge aperture intersects the bag discharge chute.

Abstract: A case packing apparatus comprising a stacking assembling, a case positioning assembly, and a pusher assembly. The stacking assembly is provided to form a stack of articles; the case positioning assembly is provided to receive a case in a receiving position and to move the case to a loading position, wherein an open end of the case is located adjacent that stack of articles; and the pusher assembly is provided to push the stack of articles into the case. The case positioning assembly includes an engagement member and a pivot arm that is spaced from the engagement member when the case is in the receiving position; and, as the case is moved toward the loading position, the pivot arm engages the engagement member and pivots the case about an upwardly moving axis to move the case into its loading position.

Abstract: A bin transport system for a fiber baling apparatus utilizes a plurality of portable upwardly opening bins which have openable bottoms. The bins are transported from a plurality of fiber filling stations to a single compression staton by a four-part transport means utilizing a dual carriage cross shuttle which moves the portable bins to and from positions adjacent the filling stations and the compression station. A pair of dedicated bin transporters are utilized to transport the bins such that one transporter delivers full bins from the filling stations to a position adjacent the compression station while the other transporter delivers empty bins from the compression station to a position adjacent each filling station.

Abstract: A conveyor moves empty containers for single-piece goods one-by-one below an openable bottom on which successive accumulations of the goods are supported. A device for holding an empty container is raised by a control system from a lower position adjacent the conveyor to an upper position below said bottom, the control system being operable to impart to said device with a container thereon a dampened and continuous downward movement from its upper to its lower position in response to falling of a said accumulation against the container when said bottom is opened. The control system includes a valve having a first position for supplying compressed air to one side of a plunger-cylinder assembly to raise said device, a second position for supplying compressed air to the other side of said assembly to hold said device in its upper position, and a third position for venting said one side of said assembly to effect said continuous downward movement.

Abstract: Apparatus for packing bulk material including high moisture agricultural products such as grain in plastic bags has a transferring mechanism with a rotating device disposed in a generally upwardly directed plane relative to a support frame for positioning and locating the rotating device to create a rotating wedging action against bulk material within a plastic bag to provide an acceptable level of density both for ensiling of agricultural products and for storage of bulk materials.

Abstract: Apparatus for handling a stream of flat, flexible web products where first and second gripper means are disposed to intersect said stream for tandem operation, and with means operably associated with the first gripping means for deactivating the same after a predetermined number of web products has been gripped.

Abstract: A fowl harvesting apparatus receives fowl which are conveyed upwardly and deposited in a metering tray which actuates a switch to cut off the conveyor when a desired number of fowl have been deposited in the tray. The tray is then moved downwardly on a supporting framework to be positioned adjacent an open coop compartment of a multi-compartment coop unit following which the tray is pivoted to deposit the fowl in the associated coop compartment. The multi-compartment coop unit is shiftable into one of two positions in which one of two vertically aligned banks of coop compartments is positioned in alignment with the fowl receiving and depositing tray. Conveyor is provided for removing the multi-compartment coop unit following the filling of same so as to permit the positioning of an empty multi-compartment coop unit on the apparatus for subsequent filling purposes.

Abstract: A transportable bagging apparatus for continual, sequential loading of individual bales of agricultural products such as grass, alfalfa, corn stalks, hay, etc., into plastic tubing. The apparatus can be towed by an ordinary farm tractor or other vehicle, and can be loaded with any fork-type bale carrier or loader. A removably mounted bracket delivers plastic tubing from a roll over one of opposite open ends of a vertically positioned, pivotally mounted drum on the apparatus. When the entire roll of plastic tubing is gathered over the drum outer surface and tied over one of the drum's opposite open ends, the drum is then pivoted to a horizontal operating position with the opposite open end facing a bale engaged by a carriage. The engaged bale activates a hydraulic cylinder to force a telescoping ram against the opposite face of the carriage. This causes the engaged bale to enter the drum and load into the plastic tubing.

Abstract: A case lift apparatus having a case receiving platform and a powered lift cylinder operatively connected to the platform to raise and lower the same, and a pair of endless extensible belts operatively journalled on the platform in spaced parallel relation, with a horizontal course positioned slightly above the upper surface of the platform for support of cases on said platform and a lower course positioned below the platform; and a driving roll means below the platform to engage and drive the belts when the platform is at or approaching its lowered position.

Abstract: The stroke of an air driven power cylinder is controlled through a load means attached to the piston rod, a control valve means connected to the cylinder to control air exhaust from the cylinder on the extension stroke of the piston, and an external cushion valve means operably connects to the control valve means and the load means for air exhaust flow therethrough in a controlled manner but for shut-off of the air exhaust as the piston approaches the end of its stroke to trap some air in the cylinder before the piston stroke ends, the cushion valve means having a member therein of adjustable position for control of the length of stroke of the piston.

Abstract: An apparatus for retaining the bottom flaps of a carton in their infolded position prior to sealing, in a manner which permits filling of the carton.

Abstract: A pan indexer for use with a moulder/panner with a gate and a conveyor, having a carrier for a cantilevered template with a spaced series of tangs for successively engaging and releasing pans on the conveyor when the template is moved up and down in synchronism with dough pieces being deposited through a gate from the moulder/panner to pans on the conveyor.

Abstract: An automatic meat arranging device is adapted to send meat slices sequentially cut by an automatic meat cutting machine and regularly overlappingly arrange the meat slices on a meat tray which are sent by a meat slice conveying means and meat tray conveying means.

Abstract: Apparatus for introducing stacks of paper sheets into boxes has a receptacle for reception of stacks which are delivered by a feeding conveyor or a transfer conveyor and a bottom consisting of two sections which are movable in a horizontal plane toward each other to support a stack in the receptacle and away from each other to allow the stack to descend by gravity into an empty box therebelow. Empty boxes are supplied onto a platform which is located below the bottom of the receptacle, and filled boxes are removed from the platform by a carriage which is reciprocable along the platform and has pushers for moving an empty box below the receptacle while moving a filled box onto a receiving conveyor.

Abstract: An automatic tray loading apparatus for cookies or the like in which cook are divided into two rows with cookies in each row separated into groups of a given count and continuously conveyed to a loading station for loading into trays. A pair of drop chute members are aligned with the rows of cookies and each arranged to receive a discrete cookie group dropped therein by a drop gate device. The cookie group dropped into one of the drop chutes is moved laterally into close proximity to a second cookie group resting in the second drop chute to bring the cookie spacing into register with the spacing of cookie receiving compartments in the trays. Drop gate slides for each drop chute are then activated to open chute outlet openings to drop each cookie group into an appropriate compartment of a waiting cookie tray. A tray conveyor then carries away the cookie-filled tray and spots an empty tray below the drop chute outlet openings.

Abstract: An apparatus for handling of unsealed slit boxes (2) of the type having at least at the bottom thereof two pairs of close flaps (3, 4), and which comprises a cradle-like support (11) in the form of a U-bar which is open at the top and which at the bottom is formed with a guide and lock bar (17) having two lock plates (19, 20) provided spaced one above the other and spaced from the bottom of the cradle support and between which two opposite close flaps (4) at the bottom of the slit box (2) can be introduced and moved in the longitudinal direction of the cradle support while retaining the slit box and preventing the slit box from moving upwards.

Abstract: A machine for wrapping elongated articles of the type in which the machine advances a strip of wrapping material past a loading station, folds the strip into a tube around the articles and longitudinally seals the strip as it is advanced past a longitudinal sealing station, and thereafter transversely seals the tube between the articles and severs the tube to form separate packages.

Abstract: A machine which drops flat articles such as flattened cartons into a case. The articles are delivered to a basket having a floor which can be opened. The basket is mounted for up and down movement. The case is mounted below the basket with its top open and can be held in position by vacuum cup means. When the stack has been formed, the flow of articles is halted and the basket can be lowered into close proximity to the open top of the case. The basket floor is opened to drop the stack into the case. If desired, two stack sections can be formed and dropped into a single case one after the other. When the stack has been dropped into the case, the basket is raised to free the basket from the case. The vacuum is released, and the case is then advanced laterally out of alignment with the basket. The case can then be raised by a lift table to a convenient height for inspection and, following inspection, can be discharged.