Abstract: A method of operating a digging machine, including damping the response of a boom hydraulic cylinder operationally connected to a boom arm and actuating a bucket hydraulic cylinder operationally connected to a bucket.

Abstract: The invention provides a component feed device (2) enabling metered delivery of components to a workstation, the device comprising a conveyor belt (6) having an upper strand (7) and a lower strand (8), drive means (9, 10, 13, 14, 16) for driving the conveyor belt (6) in a loop, and holder means configured to contain the components on the upper strand (7) of the conveyor belt (6). The upper strand (7) is configured to form a container, in particular a bowl-shaped container, having an upstream face (11a), a bottom (11b), and a downstream face (11c), said upstream and downstream faces being configured to encourage components to move down under gravity into the bottom. The conveyor belt (6) has an outside face (6a) and an inside face (6b), the outside face having component retaining means (19) configured to retain the components resting on said outside face (6a) at least when they are situated on the downstream face (11c).

Abstract: A rotary loader taught herein comprises a rotatable load plate including a plurality of component pockets arranged about a rotational axis of the load plate, the load plate inclined with respect to a horizontal surface at an angle of inclination of less than 50 degrees and a load wall arranged about a lower portion of the load plate adjacent certain ones of the plurality of component pockets and extending above a height of the load plate. The load wall includes a retention surface extending in a direction parallel to an outer peripheral edge of the load plate and a loading surface inclined with respect a line perpendicular to a top surface of the load plate in a direction away from the retention surface at an angle of inclination of less than 45 degrees.

Abstract: The present invention refers to the field of devices for arranging containers enabling the correct positioning of containers or bottles made of plastic on the bottling feeding line. The device (1) for arranging plastic containers (100) with one or more devices for blowing down the containers (101) overlapped on the erecting elements, includes a cylindrical hopper (17) inwardly provided with a conical or flat base, conveying elements (19) and erecting-aligning elements, and includes one or more blowing elements (2), for example blowers, adapted to inwardly blow, adjacent to the upper edge of the hopper (17) aligning elements, an air flow for hitting possible containers (101) overlying other containers located on the erecting elements themselves.

Abstract: A method and a system for stabilizing the sight line of a chip component being carried on two discs, for stabilizing delivery of the chip component between the two discs, and improving and stabilizing the inspection accuracy in the visual check of the chip component. This is achieved by employing a mechanism for carrying the chip component while supporting it on the horizontal plane of the first rotary disc and then carrying the chip component while suction-holding it on the vertical plane of the second rotary disc. When the chip component is carried on the first rotary disc, the upper surface and one side face of the chip component are imaged by first and second cameras. When the chip component is carried on the second rotary disc, the lower surface and the other side face of the chip component are imaged by third and fourth cameras.

Abstract: A method and a system for stabilizing the sight line of a chip component being carried on two discs, for stabilizing delivery of the chip component between the two discs, and improving and stabilizing the inspection accuracy in the visual check of the chip component. This is achieved by employing a mechanism for carrying the chip component while supporting it on the horizontal plane of the first rotary disc and then carrying the chip component while suction-holding it on the vertical plane of the second rotary disc. When the chip component is carried on the first rotary disc, the upper surface and one side face of the chip component are imaged by first and second cameras. When the chip component is carried on the second rotary disc, the lower surface and the other side face of the chip component are imaged by third and fourth cameras.

Abstract: A conveyor which can be used to route oriented objects, such as caps, covers, lids, etc. from a finishing machine of the type including a belt, a vibrating bowl or other. The conveyor includes a module having a vertical conveyor in the form of a column with an adjustable height and an intermediate conveyor in the form of a casing which is disposed between the finishing machine and the column. In addition, the module includes channel-type devices for guiding the objects and devices for propelling the objects, in the form of jets of air pulsed through eyes. The channel and the eyes form a continuous assembly between the finishing machine and the upper end of the column. The conveyor also includes devices enabling the automatic ejection of objects from grooves provided in the belt of the machine.

Abstract: An improvement to finishing machines that are used to orient objects. The finishing machine includes a hopper for receiving loose objects, such as lids, and an endless belt for extracting the lids from the hopper. The belt moves vertically upwards with the lids and sorts the lids automatically, such that only correctly-oriented lids are retained.

Abstract: Apparatus for transferring pliant articles, such as poultry carcasses or parts thereof, includes a first separator stage comprising a slide plate with spaced apart sets of guides for receiving articles and for conveying the articles toward a second separator stage. The second separator stage comprises a rotary drum with spaced apart hook-like tines which engage articles received from the slide plate for rotation to a position whereby the force of gravity allows the articles to be released from the drum to fall into respective compartments of a third separator stage. The third separator stage includes spaced apart moveable closures which are operated in timed relationship to each other to release the articles onto a conveyor or other apparatus to provide spacing and alignment of the articles generally in single file.

Abstract: A part sorting and aligning apparatus for picks parts out of a hopper, aligns the parts and conveys them to another location. The apparatus includes a tilted rotary wheel next to the hopper. Multiple arrays of hooks or pickup members are mounted for rotation on the wheel. The bottom of the hopper has a sliding plate which has slots through which the hooks travel as the hooks move upwardly into and through the hopper. Each pickup member has a weight bar which hangs from the pickup member. As the wheel rotates, the hooks engage and pick up parts as the hooks move upwardly through the hopper. The weight bar maintains a desired orientation of the hooks and the parts as the wheel rotates. Pair of rails pick the parts off of the hooks, so that the parts can be transferred to another location.