Abstract: Apparatus of the tributary garment hangers on to the moving carrier include a conveyor for transporting the garment hangers, a drive for moving the carrier, and a coordinating mechanism cable controlling the relative movements of the conveyor and the drive such that a carrier being moved by the drive and a garment hanger being transported by the conveyor can be separately moved to a contact location in which the carrier will contact the garment hanger although the carrier and garment hanger are moving. The conveyor and the carrier configured such that the garment hanger is caused to be transferred onto the carrier following the carrier's initial contact with the garment hanger. The garment hangers are suspended from a rotatable shaft having an external helical thread to convey the articles.

Abstract: Workpieces in the shape of plates can be transported from an input station to a workstation and from there to an output station by means of two manipulation device in a working plane. A gripper of one of the manipulation means can be displaced between the input station and the workstation. The gripper of the other manipulation device can be displaced between the workstation and the output station, whereby the displacement ranges overlap. As the first half of the processing time has been approximately completed in the workstation, the workpiece r is transferred from the gripper on the input side to the gripper on the output side. Meanwhile, the respectively free gripper returns to its station and to the workstation, so that the processing can be carried out almost without any interruption.

Abstract: A sheet trailing edge restriction member (65) according to the present invention has a main body (68) disposed upright in a sheet holding portion. The main body (68) is provided with a hook (71) for fixing the main body upright to the sheet holding portion. The restriction member is attached to and detached from the sheet holding portion by deforming the hook (71) toward a space (72) defined between the hook and the main body. Unless the hook is deformed toward the space (72), the restriction member cannot be detached from the sheet holding portion. The main body (68) is provided with a rear support plate (70) for supporting a rear end of a sheet stack. The rear support plate (70) is displaceable so as to support the rear end of the sheet stack. An insert (82) is provided integrally with the rear support plate (70). The insert (82) is usually inserted in the space (72) to prevent the deformation of the hook (71).

Abstract: An apparatus for loading and unloading a container on to and off of a vehicle, wherein the container has two symmetrically arranged rollers and a centrally arranged hook. The apparatus includes an angular arm at an end of which is arranged a coupling device which is provided with a pair of hooks for engaging behind the rollers and which can be engaged into the hook.

Abstract: A transportation mechanism of magnetic handling for accessing Compact Disks. The transportation mechanism includes a reciprocating device having a base, an electromagnetic head provided on the base, a control unit controlling the reciprocating device such that the base is reciprocated between different processing positions, and a magnetic spacer. The Compact Disk, sandwiched by the electromagnetic head and the magnetic spacer as the magnetic spacer is attracted by the electromagnetic head, is further transported by the transportation mechanism whereby the damage due to bad suction for CDs is minimized. Comparing with the conventional suction means by vacuum, the transportation mechanism of the invention is also advantaged for the simple structure, easy maintenance, and low cost, thereby raising the production yield.

Abstract: In an escalator step having respective supports at each side of its underside, a first fastening is provided at an upper support end for a transport chain and a second fastening is provided at the lower support end for a guide roller. The second fastening consists of a cantilever arm and a bearing pin with a bore, which are integrated components of the escalator step, wherein the escalator step, cantilever arm, bearing pin and bore are produced as a single unitary casting. A countersunk self-tapping screw is used for fixing a guide roller bearing on the bearing pin. A washer lying under the screw presses on an outer ring of the bearing, whereby the bearing is exactly positioned against a shoulder of the bearing pin and held by the washer.

Abstract: A board unscrambler for lumber processing provides an upwardly and forwardly extending S-shaped curvilinear conveyor with a rearward horizontal portion to receive an agglomeration of scrambled boards, a medial uprising portion to unscramble and align the boards and a forward portion to deliver the boards at an elevated position. The conveyor provides at least two spaced link chains and interconnecting bars that are carried on an S-shaped conveyor support surface defining spaced parallel open top channels where each link chain is supported and maintained by synchronously driving both the lower rearward input portions of the chains to push the lower chain portions and the upper output portions to pull the upper chain portions to maintain the chains in the channels without vertical restraints. The unscrambled boards are delivered in an aligned single layer from the forward elevated portion of the conveyor.

Abstract: The invention concerns a device conveying products, in particular fruits, for feeding a unit sorting said products, comprising a conveyor including a plurality of rollers (5) consisting or two parallel disks (9, 10) having the same diameter, borne by a transverse shaft (8) mounted freely rotating about an axis of rotation (7). Said conveyor further comprises two fixed lateral rails (11, 12) symmetrically arranged on either side of the disks (9, 10), and sloping towards said disks at an angle (&agr;) relative to a plane (P) passing through the axis of rotation (7) of the rollers (5), said sliding rails being each arranged so as to present a lower edge (11a, 12a) extending in the proximity of the neighbouring disk (9, 10) and of each roller (5) transverse shaft (8).

Abstract: A low backline pressure conveyor belt and modules therefor characterized by modules having thin upstanding supports supporting a transverse axle on which article-conveying rollers are rotatably mounted in a closely-spaced relationship.

Abstract: The invention relates to an escalator step having an edge strip attached to a step body, which edge strip covers at least one edge of the escalator step in such a manner that it is flush at the top with a tread of the escalator step, the edge strip being mounted on the step body by means of a snap connection. The snap connection is formed by clips provided on the edge strip or on the step body, which clips engage in corresponding recesses in the step body or in the edge strip, respectively.

Abstract: A semiconductor wafer review system and method. A method and system for front and back side review of semiconductor wafers is provided in various embodiments. Inspection data for the front side is used to position the wafer for front side review, and a wafer inverter is provided to flip the wafer for back side review. Inspection data for the back side is used to position the wafer for back side review.

Abstract: A baggage receiving device specifically designed for airport passenger luggage handling. It provides a telescoping conveyor system which can be installed in an airport terminal in connection with an airline ticket counter to assist airline personnel in initially processing a passenger's luggage without the need to lift the luggage between the baggage platform of the counter and the take-away conveyor running behind the ticket counter.

Abstract: A container handling system (10) comprises a first belt conveyor (14), an air bed conveyor (16) adjacent the outlet (34) of the first belt conveyor (14), a second belt conveyor (18) adjacent the outlet 54) of the air bed conveyor (16), a pattern forming apparatus (110) including first and second partitions (114) defining therebetween a lane (118), a top cover (154) slidably positionable over the air bed conveyor (16) and over a portion of the pattern forming apparatus (110), and an alignment mechanism (170). The lane (118) has an inlet (138) positioned over the air bed conveyor (16) and an outlet (142) positioned over the second belt conveyor (18). The top cover (154) is movable along the direction of flow of containers (C) between covered and uncovered positions. The top cover includes a solid portion (158), and a perforated portion (162) allowing air to flow therethrough.

Abstract: For handling elongate and flat workpieces flowing in a manufacturing line, two arrangements are disclosed, one being an arrangement including a workpiece posture changing device which changes the posture of each workpiece at the time when the workpiece is transmitted from a first conveyer to a second conveyer, and the other being an arrangement for bundling the workpiece flowing in the manufacturing line.

Abstract: A bank-note processing device wherein disposed between a pair of rotary drums (22, 23) is a stacker lever (53) that presses that portion of the bank-note (31) inserted in bank-note guide slits (22b, 23b) which is positioned on the side of a bank-note reverse-flowing-preventive lever (32) toward a stacker (20) in operative association with the movement of a stacker chute (51), whereby even if a large number of wrinkled bank-notes are received in the stacker, jamming of bank-notes is minimized.

Abstract: An apparatus for loading condoms onto mandrels is disclosed, the apparatus comprising a plural number of expansion rods adapted to receive and stretch a condom and a plural number of detaining rods to abut and retain the condom ring, the rods being mounted on a reciprocating carriage assembly which moves the rods past the mandrel, the mandrel itself stripping the condom from the rods.

Abstract: The auger includes a first cast section and a second cast section. The first cast section includes a first flight having a gate projection that remains on the first flight after a gate which is used during casting the first cast section has been removed from the first cast section. The second cast section includes a second flight having a recess that receives the gate projection when the first flight is coupled to the second flight such that the gate projection does not need to be ground off in order to attach the first cast section to the second cast section. The first flight is attached with the second flight to create a substantially smooth and unbroken transition between the first flight and the second flight such that the auger efficiently transports paving material from the hopper of a road paving machine onto a prepared road bed.

Abstract: The invention relates to conveying means (1) which can be rail-guided and are provided for conveying especially flat products in a conveying direction (F). Said conveying means comprises a guiding part (2) which runs in a v-shaped manner in a conveying direction and constructs a three point support. In addition the conveying means comprises a supporting part (3) which is provided for holding the product and arranged in fixed manner on the guiding part (2). The conveying means also have a coupling part (4) which is arranged on a driving means (9) such that it can be coupled.

Abstract: Aspects for package orientation checking in a laser marking machine are provided. In a system aspect, the system includes a handler, the handler including a unit loader. A laser mark chamber receives units from the handler for laser marking. A package orientation checking mechanism is positioned between the unit loader and the laser mark chamber for detecting an orientation of each unit passing to the laser mark chamber based on a chamfer side of each unit.

Abstract: A collator includes a first conveyor having a discharge end and a second receiving conveyor positioned below the discharge end of the first conveyor. As each product bag falls toward the second conveyor, an air blast assists in uprighting the bag. The second conveyor may be temporarily operated at a high speed to separate the product bags into groups. A deflector may be mounted at the discharge end of the second conveyor for directing product bags into containers. Chutes may be used to direct incoming product bags between parallel conveyors.