Abstract: Sheet feeding apparatus includes a relatively small number of horizontally adjustable suction cups distributed over the length of a feed opening. The suction cups are raisable to grasp the bottommost sheet in the stack at the most ideal position to assure removal of the sheet from the feed opening. Adjustable guide members align the corners of a stack of sheets above the feed opening. Each suction cup is fed from a separate pneumatic tube extending from a manually switchable control panel where a source of low suction pressure is selectively connectible to the suction cups in various connection combinations.

Abstract: Apparatus for providing additional effective length to the telescoping boom of a material handling apparatus is provided. A pivotable boom cradle is supported on an upper structure of the material handling apparatus. The boom cradle pivotally supports the base boom section by means of front and rear cradle arms. Front and rear straps are provided to attach the boom to the cradle arms. In addition, front stop blocks are provided intermediate the length of the base boom section while rear stop blocks are provided adjacent the trailing end thereof. In normal operation, bolts secure the front stop blocks to the front portion of the boom cradle. When it is desired to operate with an additional entended length of the boom, the material handling implement is imbedded in the ground, the bolts securing the front stop blocks to the boom cradle are removed and the bolts securing the front and rear straps to their respective cradle arms are loosened.

Abstract: The invention concerns a system for the unsupervised control of the use of lockers or the like in bath houses, reading rooms, hotels or the like in which the locker doors are provided with a deposit lock; in order to optimize the possibilities of variation while retaining the most favorable structural shape, the locks are operated with codes such that the deposit locks can be brought into the position of readiness to receive a code and store the code and the memory is automatically erased upon the return of the deposit coin.

Abstract: A spray pump having a connecting portion connectable to a container and whose housing is provided with co-axially step bores defining a venting chamber for venting the container and a pump chamber. The pump piston has oppositely conically divergent lips engaging the walls of the respective chambers and is hollow to receive the restoring spring which can also bear upon a checkvalve ball.

Abstract: To carry bills in a bill container in a correct rearward inclined position, the bills are carried by first belts at the rear half of the container but by second belts at the front half of the container. Since the second belts are driven at a speed higher than that of the first belts, the bills carried to the discharging roller are arranged at a correctly rearward inclined position before the succeeding discharge operation.

Abstract: A coin-operated latch mechanism for a newspaper rack includes a coin-receiving mechanism into which coins are deposited. A coin-return mechanism is provided which, when depressed, swings the coin-receiving mechanism to a position in which the outlets of the coin slots overly a coin-return diverter. The coin-return diverter is normally disposed in a coin return mode and is moved to a coin retention position in response to the opening of a door of the rack. A key-actuated wall of the rack is mounted on hinges which permit a simplified removal of the wall from the rack. The key-actuated wall includes a latch which enables the wall to be closed and relatched without the use of a key.

Abstract: Paper sheets transported from a transporting line are stacked successively into a receiving station by a vane-wheel type receiving and guiding device. The paper sheets stacked in the receiving station are taken out to a subsequent transporting line one by one by a friction pick-up and separating and feeding device. The friction pick-up and/or the vane-wheel type receiving and guiding device are rotatable. The friction pick-up is retracted from the surface of the stacked paper sheets when the paper sheets are stacked and when the paper sheets are taken out and is moved to abut the surface of the stacked paper sheets to thereby permit the taking out of the paper sheets.

Abstract: A stream feeder for moving a shingled stream of signatures forwardly to maintain a small upright stack of signatures at a packer box of a bindery line collator has a transversely extending impaling pin bar movably mounted on a forward end portion of the stream feeder frame, and a line of impaling pins that are individually adjustable in the pin bar have free ends projecting into the path of movement into the packer box of signatures from the small upright stack. Mechanism for moving the pin bar to simultaneously adjust the extent of projection of all the pins includes a manually movable adjustment control member mounted at a position spaced from the pin bar where it is readily accessible to an operator attending the bindery line.

Abstract: A coin acceptance shuttle for electronic parking meters adapted to receive coins, one at a time, from a predetermined family of permitted coins and to laterally transport such coins to the channel inlet of the electronic coin acceptance apparatus. The shuttle includes a manually operated plunger having a coin recess therein defined between the body of the plunger and a pivotally mounted gate. Coins enter the recess through a replaceable housing slot member selected in accordance with the family of coins to be used. The gate member pivots to facilitate full and proper coin exit from the shuttle plunger in the event of a coin jam or the premature return travel of the plunger. The gate includes an offset pivot axis and opposed coin stop bosses whereby the gate may be installed in alternative orientations according to the preselected family of coins to be used.

Abstract: A device for automatically dispensing a unitary product has a frame having two grooves therethrough. A coil having a movable core is joined to the frame and one end of one U-shaped flange is joined to one end of the core of the coil for movement therewith. A stud is fixed relative to the frame and cooperative with the one U-shaped flange for guiding its movement. A projection from the one end of the one U-shaped flange joined to the core also butts against the stud, whereby to limit the movement of the one U-shaped flange with the core. A rack on the one U-shaped flange and a pinion rotate a toothed wheel at one end of another U-shaped flange. Two fingers are rotatably connected to the other end of the other U-shaped flange for movement respectively along the grooves upon the rotation of the other U-shaped flange for dispensing the product.

Abstract: A disk operated mechanism having two pivotable members spaced apart by an amount less than the diameter of the disk. A lever extends from one pivotable member. Co-operable stops on each pivotable member restrict pivoting of the members when the lever is moved, thus restricting further movement of the lever. The arrangement ensures that a disk placed between the pivotable members will transmit force applied to one pivotable member by the lever to the other pivotable member to widen the spacing between the pivotable members so that the co-operable stops cannot contact each other to restrict pivoting of the members and thus movement of the lever.

Abstract: A paper feeder includes a paper feeder main body arranged above a rectangular, parallelepiped stack of sheets. A support mechanism for supporting the main body above the stack is provided on the paper feeder main body. A feed roller is supported by the paper feeder main body and in contact with the uppermost sheet to feed the uppermost sheet in a predetermined direction. Metal pawls for allowing movement of the uppermost sheet and preventing movement of the other sheets are likewise supported by the paper feeder main body. The mechanism moves downward together with the paper feeder main body in accordance with a change in the height of the stack upon sheet feed, thereby supporting the paper feeder main body and metal pawls at a predetermined position with respect to the uppermost sheet.

Abstract: Apparatus for picking up and transferring layers of round food articles and the like including movable pickup heads mounted on a carriage, each pickup head comprising a vacuum manifold or plenum forming multiple openings on a lower surface and adapted for developing low vacuum, high flow rate conditions variant, a vacuum cup mounted in each of the openings and having a bellows-like construction for permitting expansion and contraction along its axis, a flexible base portion of the vacuum cup forming a seal surface for engagement with one of the round food articles, the vacuum cup also forming a relatively large orifice for permitting relatively unrestricted communication between the vacuum cup and the plenum upon engagement of the vacuum cup with a food article in order to very rapidly produce a vacuum within the cup for causing adherence of the food article. The vacuum cup is also particularly adapted for assuring that the food article is retained upon the vacuum cup until released.

Abstract: Sheet feeding apparatus for feeding sheet material one at a time from the bottom of a stack including a horizontal support for a stack of sheets, the horizontal support retaining a vertical stack of sheet material and terminating short of the front end of the stack providing a feed opening which exposes the front end portion of the bottom sheet in the stack. A support ledge for supporting the weight of the front end of the stack of sheets, confronts the feed opening. Suction cups engage the bottom surface of the exposed end portion of the bottommost sheet in the stack and pull the sheet downwardly from the stack through the feed opening. An upstanding front wall engages the front end of the stack of sheets. A movable ledge support has a resilient, flexible and adjustable lip projecting rearwardly into the feed opening from the front wall so that the degree to which the lip projects into the feed opening varies.

Abstract: A remote control proportional flow adhesive dispensing gun is pneumatically actuated and electrically controlled. An electric current applied to a magnetic torquemotor rotates a torquemotor arm which displaces the spool of a three-way air valve, admitting air to a control valve stem actuating piston. A constant rate feedback spring directly disposed between the actuating piston and the torque arm of the torquemotor acts to restore the air valve spool to an equilibrium non-flow position as the control valve stem approaches a position proportional to torquemotor control current. The air valve exhausts air from the piston and return springs close the control valve when control signal is removed. A shaped control plug attached to the flow control valve stem varies a control opening linearly as stem position changes.

Abstract: A seal member for use in a pellet dispensing apparatus which can provide a barrier between a rotor member and a supply hopper so that gas emitted from the supply hopper will not escape. The seal arrangement also serves the function of a spacing or biasing member for a drive gear as well as a bearing surface. The seal member is disposed in a manner that it will selfadjust during wear yet is flexible to withstand contact with debris. Preferably the seal unit is fabricated from a fluorocarbon resin and is frusto conical in shape.

Abstract: A vending machine includes a plurality of selection switches corresponding to a plurality of items to be sold respectively, and in response to insertion of coins and the subsequent operation of any of selection switches, the item corresponding to the selection switch is vended. A RAM is installed associatedly with a microcomputer, and this RAM contains memory areas for storing the sales quantity and the sales amount on item basis, and these data are renewed at every vending. The RAM further contains a price memory area for storing the sales price of each item. When any of selection switches is operated in ready state of the machine, the price of the item corresponding to that selection switch is read from the RAM and is displayed on the inserted-amount display. Furthermore, when a selection switch is depressed in the state when the management mode is set up, the price of the item corresponding to that switch is displayed likewise.

Abstract: A control system for a movable robot, having a movable member which is linearly movable on and articulated about a base and having an articulated arm with a work element, executes a prestored continuous path program for moving the work element through a continuous path by simultaneous coordinated linear and articulation displacements of the movable member and arm in all degrees of freedom. These simultaneous coordinated displacements are produced by interpolating in advance the position of the movable member at a teaching point and by loading the interpolated position of the movable member into an interpolation calculation of the arm position.

Abstract: In order to achieve a mechanical retraction of piles in a sheet feeding apparatus with a lifting table, the lifting table can be lowered to the level of the floor and serves to take up, one at a time, a pile supporting surface loaded with a pile of sheets. Each of the pile supporting surfaces is in the form of a mobile carriage and there is a carriage retracting mechanism with a tugging device which is located on the floor. The tugging device has a reversible driving device, bridges a distance of at least one length of a carriage, is situated outside the surface area of the lifting table, and has at least one dog able to engage and disengage by the lifting or respectively lowering motion of the lifting table, with a coupling element. The coupling element has edges of contact parallel to the lifting or respectively lowering direction of the lifting table, is fixed to the carriage, and projects over the surface area of the lifting table when the carriage is on the lifting table.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus includes an edge aligning device for aligning an edge of individually fed sheets with respect to an underlying table. A tray overlies the table and has an upper sheet-receiving surface for receiving the individually fed sheets. An aligning member mounted to overly the tray includes an aligning wall having a knife edge lightly engageable with the tray. The tray is reciprocated by a reciprocating drive through a forward stroke positioning the tray to receive a sheet on its sheet-receiving surface laterally of the knife edge, and a return stroke moving the sheet-receiving surface towards the knife edge to move the sheet thereon against the knife edge, thereby to align the sheet therewith, and then past the knife edge while further movement of the sheet is arrested by the knife edge, thereby permitting the sheet to drop onto the underlying table.