Abstract: A method of and an apparatus for transferring annular articles from one stage to another, each article having a ferromagnetic element, comprising hanging the annular articles from a hanger bar having spacer elements arranged at spacings from each other, the articles suspended from the hanger bar being axially spaced apart in parallel from each other across the spacer elements and having center axes aligned with each other in a predetermined direction, and transferring the articles from the hanger bar to a subsequent stage by repeating the steps comprising transferring one of the articles from the hanger bar to a carrier member constructed of permanent magnet, the article transferred to the carrier member being attached to the carrier member with the ferromagnetic element attracted to the permanent magnet, moving the article transferred to the carrier member upwardly with respect to the hanger bar so that the article is disengaged from the two adjacent spacer elements, moving the carrier member away from the h

Abstract: For automatically feeding a rubbery strip to a tire-building drum for the production of, for example, a green tire, the rubbery strip is forwardly conveyed toward the tire-building drum until a leading end portion thereof is received on a smooth surface with one face of the leading end portion directed toward the tire-building drum so as to establish close contact between the other face of the leading end portion of the rubbery strip and the smooth surface portion throughout the width of the rubbery strip whereby the leading end portion of the rubbery strip is detachably retained to the smooth surface portion, whereupon the leading end portion of the rubbery strip is transferred from the surface portion to the tire-building drum for permitting the leading end portion of the strip to be wrapped round the tire-building drum and thereafter the leading end portion of the rubbery strip is cut from the remainder of the strip for forming a cut segment having a predetermined length, the tire-building drum being there

Abstract: A method of forming a closed loop of a flexible strip, comprising conveying an elongated flexible strip in a predetermined longitudinal direction to a predetermined position on a predetermined conveyance plane, detecting the locations and geometry of end portions of the strip while the strip is being conveyed toward the predetermined position thereof, driving two carrier members to move into positions determined with respect to the end portions of the strip in the predetermined position on the conveyance plane on the basis of the detected locations and geometry of the end portions of the strip, transferring the end portions of the strip to the carrier members, respectively, from the conveyance plane, further driving the carrier members to move along paths determined to cause the strip to be gradually deformed into loop form so that the end portions of the strip have respective edges slightly spaced apart in parallel from each other, correcting the positions of the carrier members with respect to each other wh