Abstract: An apparatus for orienting a plurality of articles with a head and a shank. An elevator dumps the articles onto a track having a pair of laterally spaced apart rails which slope downwardly so that articles can slide toward the lower end of the track. Some of the articles fall off the track, others assume a desired orientation with their heads bearing on the rails and their shanks depending therebetween, and the remainder begin to slide down the track in other orientations. A gate associated with the track permits only those articles in the desired orientation to continue sliding down the track and prevents all the articles in other orientations from going past the gate. To remove the misoriented articles, a discharge section of the track immediately upstream from the gate is moved intermittently so that the articles fall off this section of the track.

Abstract: An apparatus for feeding articles with a head and a shank such as screws one at a time to a tool such as a power screwdriver through a hose. The apparatus has a pilot passageway into which articles are transferred one at a time by a metering arm driven by a fluid motor. Preferably, upon transfer, each article is instantaneously propelled through and discharged from the pilot passageway by a stream of compressed air discharged into the pilot passageway downstream of the inlet through which articles are transferred into the pilot passageway. Each article is propelled through the pilot passageway initially by aspiration and, subsequently, by the stream of compressed air impinging on the article. Alternatively, each article falls due to gravity through the pilot passageway and a portion of the hose and is then propelled through the hose by a stream of compressed air.

Abstract: In a fastener driving tool having a fastener holding nosepiece comprised of three concentric sleeves, the middle one of which is axially movable to carry a circumferential array of radially shiftable balls to and from inwardly cammed engagement against cam surfaces in the outer sleeve to grip the fastener head against the inner sleeve and release the head, improved structure wherein (1) the inner and outer sleeves have portions axially displaced from the middle sleeve which are threadedly connected to adjust the axial distance between the cam surfaces and inner sleeve for accommodating fastener heads of different axial thicknesses and radial tolerances; (2) to facilitate interchangeability of nosepieces, the inner sleeve is axially slidably retained on an adapter sleeve against a spring bias by a pin and slot connection with inner and adapter sleeves having means cooperable upon relative turning thereof to withdraw the pin from the slot and the pin being movable inwardly into engagement with a retaining ring

Abstract: A power driven screw driving tool having a screw holding nosepiece detachably mounted to its end, the nosepiece having slidable sleeve members cooperable with ball elements to obtain an initial locked condition of a screw entered into the nosepiece for positioning the screw relative to the work, and being cooperable with one another to obtain a released condition to permit the screw to be finally driven out of the tool into the work. A first embodiment describes the nosepiece as adapted for use with a tool in which the spindle and driving bit are restrained against axial movement relative to the housing. A variation of the first embodiment describes the nosepiece as having a screw back-up sleeve as being fixed to an inner sleeve, rather than relatively slidable as in the first embodiment.

Abstract: Nosepiece comprises an adapter for mounting on a tool such as a power screw driver and a slide on the adapter movable parallel to the stroke of the driver. Lever-type jaws are pivoted onto the slide for holding and releasing a screw shank. Balls carried by the slide are aligned between a conical surface on the adapter and extensions of the levers to block the jaws from opening in advanced position of the slide. Upon relative retraction of the slide, the balls are aligned with a smaller diameter of the adapter so that they can shift inwardly to release the jaws for passing a screw head in either direction. Upon relief of the retracting force, the slide is returned abruptly to advanced position by a spring for closing the jaws. The conical surface, balls and lever extensions cooperate to retain the slide on the adapter against the spring force.