Abstract: A safety push rod assembly includes a vertical sleeve adapted to extend through the marginal portion of the bonnet of a rotary container filling machine, in which the sleeve is rigidly mounted. Slidably mounted in the sleeve and extending above it is a tubular upper rod that supports a container rest, and slidably mounted in the upper rod and extending down below the sleeve is a lower rod provided with a transverse passage therethrough inside the upper rod, with a detent ball in each end of the passage and with an axial bore extending from the upper end of the rod down to the transverse passage. In the lower end of the bore and resting on both detent balls is a center ball pressed downwardly by a coil spring compressed between that ball and a stop in the upper end of the bore for urging the detent balls into engagement with the encircling upper rod that is provided with an annular groove receiving projecting portions of the detent balls to thereby normally hold the push rod assembly in extended position.

Abstract: A vertical nozzle extending downwardly from the bottom of a tank supports below it a tubular member communicating with the inside of the nozzle and having an outlet in its side normally closed by a sleeve slidably mounted on the tubular member and in the nozzle and provided with a collar spaced below the nozzle and pressed downwardly by a coil spring to normally hold the sleeve in a lower position closing the valve outlet. A downwardly facing sealing washer encircles the sleeve below the collar, and a telescoping bottle guide encircles the nozzle and sleeve and has an opening in its lower end coaxial with the sleeve and small enough for the lower end of the guide around the opening to be engaged by the neck ring of an upwardly moving bottle, which will telescope the guide and move it upwardly while opening the valve.

Abstract: The upper edge of a cup-shape flexible diaphragm in the lower part of a vertical dispensing cylinder is sealed to the side of the cylinder, with the bottom of the diaphragm engageable with the bottom of the cylinder around an inlet and outlet port to close it. The bottom wall of the diaphragm may have a central thickened portion for engaging the bottom wall of the cylinder, with the rest of the diaphragm bottom spaced from the cylinder bottom wall. Engaging the side wall of the cylinder above the diaphragm is a piston having a lower portion filling the diaphragm cup and attached to its bottom wall. The diaphragm and piston are movable upwardly in the cylinder by liquid product forced up through the cylinder port, and the upper part of the cylinder has an inlet for air to move the piston and diaphragm downwardly to expel liquid product from the cylinder.

Abstract: Three fluidic control devices of special construction receive streams of air that are deflected to the atmosphere at predetermined intervals by means of jets of air controlled by valves and the liquid level in a container being filled as a filling machine moves through its cycle. At one point in the cycle, air pressure from one of the fluidic control devices causes the filling valve of the machine to open and remain open until a jet of control air is delivered to another of the fluidic control devices when the desired liquid level in the container is reached, whereupon those two control devices are vented to the atmosphere and the filling valve closes. If a container is not in filling position when it should be, there will be no blow-down through the level-sensing tube and the filling valve will not open.

Abstract: A housing that is continuously rotatable on a vertical axis has an opening in its bottom and contains a central vertical shaft rotatable a limited number of degrees relative to the housing. This shaft is connected through the housing opening with a chuck that contains means for gripping a screw cap to screw it onto a container. Valve means connect a source of air pressure with the gripping means to cause such means to grip a screw cap. Secured to the housing is a valve member provided with a bleed passage through it, the inlet of which is connected with the air pressure source and the outlet of which normally is closed by a closure member. Projecting from the side of the shaft is a torque arm that is pressed by compressible means carried by the housing to cause stop means projecting from the side of the shaft to move the closure member away from the bleed passage a certain distance.