Abstract: Apparatus for feeding individual cardboard sheets to a rotary die cutting machine has two conveyor systems. The first system conveys a sheet from the bottom of a stack to a gap in a gate which passes only one sheet, and the second system conveys the sheet from the gap to the machine. Each system includes a perforated belt traveling in a closed loop over a suction box near the gate. The belt of the first system is shifted cyclically between an operative position of simultaneous engagement with the associated suction box and the bottom sheet of the stack and a retracted position and is accelerated and decelerated between a minimum speed in the retracted position and a maximum speed in the operative position, air being drawn from its suction box only in the operative belt position. The belt of the second system is driven continuously at a speed approximately equal to the maximum speed of the other belt, and air is drawn from its suction box only when the first belt is in the retracted position.

Abstract: There is disclosed a backstacker-reclaimer apparatus which includes a frame having a combined stacking and reclaiming boom. A plurality of spaced stacking and reclaiming flights are longitudinally driven about the boom by an endless chain drive. A conveyor is provided which feeds material to be stacked to the lower reach of the boom so that flights traveling along the lower reach may push the material up onto the stack. The material is confined in the lower reach by side skirts which may be raised for a reclaiming operation.

Abstract: A paper sheet holding device for holding and bringing paper sheets to a paper sheet counter of suction type. The holding device includes two base plates, one of which is stationary whereas the other is rotatable and both of which are used to bear thereon the paper sheets in an upright position. Further inclusive are an upright holder plate, which is carried in an upright position on the rotatable base plate for holding the back of the paper stack, and a holder arm which is made coactive with the holder plate for holding the paper sheets. A pair of telescopic pipe rods are telescopically received in the holder plate and in the holder arm so that they may be pulled out to and retained at a preset height. Thus, the pipe rods can be extended to prevent the paper sheets from being hung even if the paper sheets are too wide for the height or heights of the holder plate and arm as they are.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided for transporting layers of sheets in which the layers of sheets are carried off discontinuously transversely to the direction in which they are supplied and follow the layers of sheets previously carried off. The apparatus comprises a belt conveyor running at a substantially constant velocity, and a belt run with upper and lower belts which is connected in front of the continuously running belt conveyor and overlaps it at least in part. The belt run may be driven intermittently at a velocity varying between standstill and a higher velocity than that of the belt conveyor. The distance between the upper and lower belts may be varied cyclically.

Abstract: A sorter pocket flag back-up assembly and switch indicating means comprises a non rotatable rectilinearly, slideably moveable support member engageable with one side or face of an item entering the pocket of a sorter including a zero clearance bearing and an integral linear rack having radially disposed teeth engageable with a drive pinion coupled to a reversible stepping motor. The support and rack include a lower guide track coextensive with the rack and an upper spring loaded pin which together maintain a constant depth engagement of the pinion and rack teeth and avoid any tilt of the rack transverse to the long dimension thereof.

Abstract: A bucket conveyor comprises a drive pulley and at least one guide pulley with endless traction cable means engaged over the guide pulley and the drive pulley. A bucket member or a conveyor trough has an axle thereon on each side and with a pulley on the axle. In one embodiment the pulley is pivotal on the axle and in another embodiment the pulley is fixed on the axle. In addition, the construction includes a guide pin on the trough on each side of the axle and the endless traction cable is trained around each guide pin and has a loop engaged over the pulley between the pins. In this manner the endless cable is guided between the drive pulley and the guide pulley and around the pin of each bucket and over the bucket pulley on an axle of the bucket and around the pin on the opposite side of the bucket pulley. The construction is applicable both for a fixed bucket in respect to the traction cable or a bucket that pivots or swings in respect thereto and in which the bucket pulley is rotatable on its bucket axle.

Abstract: Grippers pull the leading ends of sheets along a sheet transport path, and a guidance structure facilitates sheet travel. The guidance structure comprises a plurality of longitudinally extending guide bars provided with suction openings, the ribs spaced apart transverse to the sheet-transport direction. Intermediate the bars are large-surface-area plates having suction openings. When guiding sheets printed on only one side, the intermediate suction plates are at about the same level as the longitudinally extending guide bars, and the entire face of the sheet is engaged, with the help of suction force. When guiding sheets printed on both sides, the imtermediate suction plates all drop down out of contact with the sheet, leaving only the spaced apart and narrow longitudinal guide bars to engage the sheet. The guide bars are furthermore transversely shiftable, so that they can be brought into engagement with parts of the sheets bearing no printing.

Abstract: A parison handling assembly receives tubular plastic parisons from a random bulk storage, orients the parisons, and feeds the parisons in a controlled manner to one or more blow molding machines. Parisons are stored in the random bulk storage and fed at a controlled rate by a metering apparatus to a parison orienter which orients the parisons into a closely grouped arrangement wherein the parisons are both upright and side-by-side. The parisons are fed from the parison orienter to a parison escapement mechanism which holds the parisons temporarily. The escapement mechanism is actuated to release parisons into a parison transporter depending on the production demands of the individual blow-molding machines. Released parisons, from the parison escapement mechanism, move along the parison transporter to be pushed axially into stuffer tubes. The stuffer tubes hold the parisons in properly oriented, end-to-end relationship for delivery to the actual loading station of the blow-molding machine.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a device for turning over and for transferring a glass bracket from a first conveyor line to a second conveyor line. An end of the first conveyor line is offset both lengthwise and laterally from the beginning of the second conveyor line. The device also provides a means for locating the glass bracket as it is being moved between the two conveyor lines so that it can be positioned in a precise location on the second conveyor line.

Abstract: A jam detector comprising a sensor for producing a first signal which indicates the presence of a document at a predetermined position in a document path and a second signal which indicates the absence of a document at the predetermined position in the document path. The presence and absence indicating signals are sampled at regular intervals of document motion along the document path and the resultant signals are applied in a preferred embodiment to a bidirectional counter to increment for presence signals and decrement for absence signals. These presence and absence signal indications are accumulated in the counter and a jam indication is produced when the accumulated count reaches a predetermined value.

Abstract: The buckets used for producing hoist conveyor devices according to the invention comprise at their upper and lower edges reinforcing means for the purpose of improving the rigidity of the wall of said buckets, which walls include laterally a greater convergence so as to prevent the largest passage for the lateral feeding between the walls of the upper bucket and the leading edge of the following bucket. For the purpose of modifying the positioning pitch according to the nature of the substance to be carried, the rear surface of the bucket becoming supported on the conveyor belt includes at its upper edge a bevel shoulder whose cutout is of a size to circumscribe the contour of the lower part of the bucket placed immediately above.

Abstract: A transfer conveyor for transferring goods from one conveyor to another comprises two pairs of similar conveyor chains each chain being guided around a closed path, including a top run extending from one conveyor to the other, by guide means including reversing pulleys at the opposite ends of the top run. The top runs of all of the chains are preferably of the same length, parallel and substantially co-planar with the other top runs, lying just below the conveying planes of the two conveyors between which transfer is to be made. The chains are driven in synchronism and a set of lifting elements includes a pair of lifting elements secured to each chain so that during circulation of the chains, all of the lifting elements of the set rise above or fall below the conveying plane at the same time by passing around the respective reversing pulleys at the same time, to lift an article on one conveyor, transfer it laterally to above the other conveyor and lower it on to the same.

Abstract: In an exemplary photographic exposure installation, supply magazines for image sheets of varying format are provided with a transport path for transporting the image sheets between rollers bearing in a resilient fashion against both sides of the image sheets. The rollers disposed on different sides of the transport plane are axially offset relative to one another by at least one roller-width, the track gauges of the rollers are adapted in pairs to the distance between the lateral borders of each format to be transported, and the rollers associated with the smaller formats are smaller in their diameter as well as being arranged more closely to the center of the transport path than the rollers associated with the larger format.

Abstract: An auger conveyer having an elongated auger shaft with closely spaced spirally wound bristles having their base ends affixed to the shaft and having the bristle tips extending outwardly from the shaft. A tubular housing extends from the input end of the spiral to the output end. The shaft is mounted for rotation about the shaft axis and when rotated conveys particles, such as grain, from the input end to the output end. The first several spiral flights of bristles at the input end are filled with a plastic material to solidify the bristles and form a substantially solid spiral to inhibit particle expulsion which otherwise would be caused by the bristles.

Abstract: Drag type feed chains employing links interconnecting one with the other at positions sufficiently above the center lines of the links to increase the strength of the associated abrasion dragging surfaces of the links.

Abstract: A shuttle conveyor for moving articles fore and aft on a cargo support such as the baggage area in an aircraft cargo compartment comprises a shuttle carriage assembly travelling in tracks moved fore and aft by a cable. A control mechanism is provided to raise and lower selectively one of two cargo engaging pawls mounted on the shuttle carriage. The pawls are adapted to move cargo forward or aft in the compartment and are operated by a cable or chain operator.