Abstract: Apparatus for transferring wafers between storage magazines and processing trays. The trays are mounted on a generally cylindrical carousel which is rotated about its axis to bring successive ones of the trays into position for loading wafers on to the trays and unloading wafers from the trays. An elevator assembly is mounted within the carousel and is moveable in an axial direction for alignment with different wafer holding positions which are spaced along the trays. The storage magazines are mounted on the elevator assembly, and wafer transfer blades transfer the wafers between the magazines and radially moveable chucks which carry the wafers to and from the wafer holding positions in the trays.

Abstract: An unloading mechanism for a goods wagon having a container with a cylindrical bottom and rotatably carried at its ends in bearings on bogies comprises an arcuate guide affixed to the container and extending on the underside around the cylindrical bottom of the container in a helical configuration and two rollers respectively rotatably carried on supports at different levels and disposed on opposite sides of a travelling path of the wagon As the wagon is moved to an unloading station the roller at the lower level comes into contact with the underside of the guide and forces the container to turn 180.degree. into an inverted position. The container can then be forced to turn another 180.degree. to a transport position by bringing the roller at the higher level into contact with the upper side of the guide.

Abstract: A wheel supported open top receptacle such as a railway car is provided with a liner arrangement comprising a plurality of belt members arranged between the end walls of the car with the sides of adjacent ones of the belts overlapped in the direction between the end walls, and with each belt overlying the side walls and bottom wall of the car. One end of each belt member is attached to the upper end of the corresponding one of the side walls and, by upward displacement of the other end, each belt is adapted to be displaced upwardly relative to the car. Material in the car is progressively unloaded laterally outwardly of the car by sequential displacement of the belts in accordance with the pattern of overlap.

Abstract: An apparatus for manipulating bottles of wine to precipitate and collect sediments in the wine includes a base frame from which a pair of stanchions extend upwardly. A rectangular frame is disposed between the stanchions and pivotally supported by the stanchions to rotate about a horizontal axis. A generally cubic housing is disposed within the rectangular frame, and is pivotally supported by the frame on an axis which is perpendicular to the horizontal axis. The housing includes doors which permit the unloading of bins of wine bottles supported in the housing in parallel arrays. The housing may be rotated slowly while the frame is slowly pivoted, so that the wine bottles are gradually rotated and tipped from horizontal to vertical disposition, the sediments in the wine precipitating to the upper neck portion of each wine bottle.

Abstract: A dry wall panel lift is provided in which a vertical support has spaced apart legs of about ceiling height and at least two crossbars, one at full height and one at worktable height.A work frame has a pivotal detachable connection at one end to one of the crossbars and legs of worktable height at the other end extending away from the work surface of the frame.A stiff leg is pivotally connected to the end of the work frame opposite the connection and is of length about equal ceiling height.A work stop extends across the work frame in the region remote from the connection. When one end of the work frame is lowered to slope downwardly from the connection, the stop will restrain a ceiling panel on the work frame preparatory to elevating the panel to ceiling height. The work frame can be connected to either of the bars for selectively functioning as a ceiling panel lift or for a worktable support.

Abstract: A support assembly for a vehicle includes a pair of strips extending from front to rear. Each strip forms a pair of V shaped ends which are twisted so that the load carried by the support assembly is spread over each strip and an outer surface for the vehicle.

Abstract: A transporting device for lifting and relocating material from one position to another. In one embodiment, the transporting device comprises a stationary central support pedestal and a rotatable turret situated at the top of the pedestal. The turret has at least a pair of arms which extend radially outwardly from the pedestal. Each arm has an adjustable lifting and stacking mechanism for gripping and transporting of material as the turret is rotated. In another embodiment, the transporting device comprises a rotatable central support turret situated on a stationary pedestal. A pair of arms extend radially outwardly from the turret. Each arm may be raised and lowered independently of the other and includes a mechanism for gripping material as the turret is rotated. In either embodiment, the turret is driven by a motor situated in the stationary pedestal.

Abstract: An apparatus for unloading bulk material from ships includes a vertical conveyor arranged on a pivotable jib of a rising scaffold bridge. Since in the case of known vertical conveyors it is not possible to take up the bulk material to the very bottom a ship to be unloaded, the apparatus provides a bulk material unloading apparatus for ships in which in the bottom area the vertical conveyor cooperates with a horizontal conveyor arranged in a casing, which is open in the bulk material receiving area along the horizontal conveyor. The bulk material taken up by the horizontal conveyor is conveyed into the receiving area of the vertical conveyor at the end of the conveying zone by a guide plate. This apparatus makes it possible to take up bulk material to the very bottom of the ship to be unloaded, while ensuring a high working efficiency and capacity.

Abstract: A method and device for positioning and guiding pipe, including coupling and uncoupling pipe, in a drilling derrick having a work table for securing pipe extending into the well. The upper end of a first pipe section is received and horizontally secured by a mechanical arm attached to the derrick pipe so that the upper end of the first section is disposed above a second pipe section secured in the work table. In uncoupling the first pipe section is unthreaded and raised prior to releasing it from the mechanical arm. In coupling, the first pipe section is lowered and coupled to the second pipe section prior to releasing it from the mechanical arm. The mechanical arm is movable from a horizontal to a vertical position to avoid obstructing the work area. A lock and a remote fluid operating system are preferrably provided for the arm.

Abstract: A device for selectably positioning onto an automobile an invalid's wheelchair comprising a fixed support apparatus mountable onto the roof of an automobile and defining a fixed track, an axle arranged for rotational rolling engagement with the track and movement therealong, and wheelchair support shaft apparatus defining first and second ends, the first end being rotatably mounted onto the axle and the second end being associated with a wheelchair for support thereof.

Abstract: In a conveyor system for bulk materials used for loading and unloading large containers, and particularly ships, including a gantry, a boom pivotally mounted on the gantry, a vertically positioned leg extending from the boom and mounted to rotate relative to the boom and conveyor belt devices movably carried by the gantry, the boom and the leg for conveying the bulk materials, improvements are provided which are characterized by providing a simplified construction of the conveyor system allowing both loading and unloading operations and eliminating the necessity of plural conveyor belts by utilizing a single continuous conveyor belt, spaced guide mechanisms for the conveyor belt carried by the rotating leg and by the boom for allowing the conveyor belt to twist with rotation of the leg relative to the boom, and a motor for selectively driving the conveyor belt in forward and reverse directions for loading and unloading bulk material.

Abstract: To convey particulate materials such as grain to a top central cavity of a large container such as an on-farm silo or bin, there are provided a first auger-containing flexible roof-mounted conveyer section having on its receiving end a guide, a cooperating ground-adjacent auger-containing conveying section, keys and dogs on the augers cause the auger in the second section to drive the auger in the first section, and hooks and pins for securing the two sections together. Preferably, the apparatus further includes carriage for the ground-adjacent conveyor section. By making the roof-mounted section of suitable length to accommodate the geometry of the silo or bin, any of a great variety of bin geometries may be accommodated with the use of a single standard length of ground-adjacent conveyor section, which affords considerable economies to the manufacturers, distributors, and users of such equipment.

Abstract: Apparatus for automatically separating stacks of nested, cup-shaped containers having outwardly projecting lips around their rims so that individual containers are continuously supplied to a point of use. The apparatus includes a separating mechanism for continuously separating the containers in a stack and a feed mechanism for receiving a plurality of stacks of the containers and supplying the same to the separating mechanism as a stack being separated nears depletion.The separating mechanism includes a plurality of vertically extending circumferentially spaced bars forming a channel for retaining a stack being separated. Pairs of oppositely arranged, substantially horizontally extending holding and stripping fingers engage, hold and separate the lowermost container of the stack, and a pair of oppositely arranged holding shoes support the stack when the holding and stripping fingers are disengaged from the stack during each separating cycle.

Abstract: An automatic palletizer for newspaper bundles is disclosed. Bundles arriving on an infeed conveyor are oriented according to a predetermined stacking pattern. A row staging area receives the oriented bundles, and a row sweep moves completed bundles into a layer staging area. A reciprocating layer sweep has a blade that can be raised or lowered to move completed layers from the layer staging area onto a retractable floor which then opens to drop the bundles onto a pallet below. Each layer is compacted before being dropped and guide means control the movement of the bundles as they drop onto the pallet. The palletizer forms either complete layers or partial layers, the layer sweep having a shorter stroke when moving partial layers. An upstream group of rollers in the layer staging area can be selectively driven or braked to form a gap at either of the two starting positions of the layer sweep into which gap the blade may be lowered. A mechanism accurately locates the pallet below the retractable floor.

Abstract: An apparatus for sequentially feeding and stacking elongated or lengthy material in a receptacle channel of a load-carrying bed or stand. The apparatus is constructed to transfer the elongated material to the receptacle channel by a reduced number of support beams which are movable vertically to permit adjustment of the distance the elongated material is to be dropped onto the receptacle channel from the support beams.

Abstract: A device for separating and taking off of one or more notched stamped sheets from a stack of sheets located in a receiving magazine is provided. A tool having first and second tool parts which are movable relative to one another is used to remove the sheets. The first tool part includes a first surface which engages the notched sheets to cause the sheets to slide on one another in the plane of separation. The sliding movement of the sheets is of a limited distance such that the sheets do not come into engagement in the region of their notches. A second surface is also provided on the first or second tool part for engaging and applying pressure against at least one location of the sheets which is exposed during the relative sliding movement between the sheets. In this manner, the sliding sheets are separated from one another in a direction normal to the plane of separation and thereafter a relative transverse movement between the sliding sheets can take place without danger of catching.

Abstract: An apparatus for causing a load support guided on rectilinear rails to move gradually. The apparatus having a rectilinear slot integral with the support to be driven and a crankpin which engages in the slot and forces the slot to move. The slot (54) is elongated perpendicularly to the direction of movement and is open at both its ends and it has two toothed wheels (42, 43) driven in opposite directions, mounted on either side of a neutral central position of the slot and each bearing an excentric crankpin (50, 52) which engages in the slot an drives it while it runs through a half-circumference round the toothed wheel, the other crankpin engaging in the slot and driving it while it runs alone through the other half-circumference.

Abstract: The specification discloses stacking of bars and the like. A plurality of stacking cradles are positioned adjacent to a table from which bars are moved transversely to the stacking cradles. Deflector members are selectively movable between a position in which they bridge over the stacking cradle and a position leaving the stacking cradles open. Members are provided for shifting the product in the stacking cradles for alignment of the ends of the product.

Abstract: An assembly is provided for selecting at least one vertically oriented planate article such as a disc-shaped wafer (10) from an array of such wafers. A carrier (20) holds the wafers (10) in a mutually spaced, substantially parallel relationship along a single horizontal file. Peripheral portions of each wafer (10) are supported in opposing guides (26) formed generally vertically along opposing first and second sidewalls (22) and (24), respectively, of the carrier (20). A frame (42) positions the carrier (20) so the file of wafers (10) extends substantially along a vertical plane (44) passing generally centrally of each wafer and of the frame (32). A rotatable shaft (62) extends parallel to the file and subjacent of the wafers (10). For selecting a singular wafer (10), at least one cam (64) is mounted to and rotates with the shaft (62) for engaging and displacing a randomly selected wafer (10) a desired distance upwardly along the guides (26) of the carrier (20).

Abstract: Below a stationary stacker device are prestackers movable out-of-phase between receiving and delivery positions. Within a stacker chute of the prestacker located in the receiving position a partial stack is formed from incoming printed products and reposes upon a displaceable support table. In the delivery position, by raising the support table, the partial stack on the support table is displaced into the stacker chute which is closed at its bottom by pivotable restraining flaps. The flaps are pivoted out of their effective position by the introduced partial stack. The flaps are elevationally displaceable and receive the partial stack to be introduced from the support table located in its upper terminal position and, during their displacement movement, convey the engaged partial stack completely into the stacker chute. Both of the prestackers are arranged upon a rotatable support arm. The one prestacker is fixedly connected with the support arm, the other prestacker is rotatably mounted in the support arm.