Holder Formed Of Nongripping Elements Which Self-open As They Pass Through A Curved Path Patents (Class 198/803.13)
  • Patent number: 8992208
    Abstract: A device for forming containers from heated parisons of thermoplastic material, which includes a heating section and a blow molding unit provided with at least one blow molding station. The parisons are held along at least a portion of a transport path between the heating section and the blow molding unit by a carrying element, which has a head that can be inserted into a mouth section of a parison and which includes at least two positionable clamping elements. At least one of the clamping elements is positioned in a recess provided on a side of the head relative to a longitudinal axis of the carrying element. The recess has upper and lower sliding surfaces that extend obliquely relative to the longitudinal axis for acting on the clamping element. The upper head part and the lower head part are braced relative to each other by at least one spring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: KHS Corpoplast GmbH
    Inventors: Michael Linke, Rolf Baumgarte
  • Patent number: 8985315
    Abstract: A loading member includes a receiving section that changes a posture thereof from a receiving posture where a loading material is received to a rising posture where the loading material is supported in a raised state; and a positioning section that is projected from a portion of a base end of the receiving section and then positions a lower end position of the loading material when the posture of the receiving section is changed to the rising posture; wherein the positioning section is provided with a loading assisting member assists the positioning of the loading material in a case of the receiving posture, while the front end of the loading assisting member rotates in a direction to approach a receiving surface of the loading material at the receiving section in a case of changing from the receiving posture to the rising posture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Masaaki Mizutani, Junichi Ootaka
  • Patent number: 8739964
    Abstract: Carrier puck for a conveyer system, comprising a non-circular lower body, an upper body and an intermediate circular portion connecting the lower body with the upper body, where the rear section of the lower body comprises a concave shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2014
    Assignee: FlexLink Components AB
    Inventor: Anders Ek
  • Patent number: 8720674
    Abstract: A sorting apparatus sequentially receives and holds a plurality of transported items that are transported and sorts and supports the transported items, and includes an endless movement member disposed so as to form a constant revolving movement pathway, and a plurality of support members that are attached to the movement member so as to be arranged along the direction in which the movement member revolves and that are capable of supporting respective transported items. In a support region that is a region of the revolving movement pathway of the movement member in which the transported items are supported by respective support members, the highest position of the support members decreases the closer the support members are to the downstream side of the direction in which the movement member revolves.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Makoto Kawamoto
  • Patent number: 8684165
    Abstract: The present device is a collator and an infeed conveyor wherein the collator receives product from the infeed conveyor at an infeed point of the infeed conveyor. The product includes a flat side and an edge side and the collator and infeed conveyor are adapted to select between delivery of the product to the collator at an on flat load position and delivery of the product to the collator at an on edge load position. Preferably the collator includes an adjustment mechanism for urging the collator between a left position and a right position and the conveyor includes an height adjustment mechanism for urging the conveyor between a raised position and a lowered position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2014
    Inventors: Chris Follows, Kevin Crosby
  • Patent number: 8561789
    Abstract: A sorting apparatus sequentially receives and holds a plurality of transported items that are transported and sorts and supports the transported items, and includes an endless movement member disposed so as to form a constant revolving movement pathway, and a plurality of support members that are attached to the movement member so as to be arranged along the direction in which the movement member revolves and that are capable of supporting respective transported items. In a support region that is a region of the revolving movement pathway of the movement member in which the transported items are supported by respective support members, the highest position of the support members decreases the closer the support members are to the downstream side of the direction in which the movement member revolves.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Makoto Kawamoto
  • Patent number: 8413797
    Abstract: A slat segment is disclosed for use in packaging machines which dispense discrete pharmaceuticals, vitamin, or food products into containers. The slat segment is comprised of a straight elongated bar, whose first surface contains a plurality of substantially cylindrical cavities separated by adjacent walls. Discrete products ready for packaging are deposited into contoured intake flutes which guide the pharmaceuticals, vitamin, or food products into the cavities within the slat segment. The products are then dispensed from the slat segment via contoured disposal flutes connected to each cavity, to eventually be deposited into containers being conveyed proximate the packaging machine. Salient thermal radiation blocks are arranged along a second surface of the slat segment, along with thermal radiation webs, which facilitate conduction of thermal radiation away from the slat segment. The slat segment thereby maintains maximum strength and stability and minimizes necessary maintenance of the slat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2013
    Inventor: Sabrie Soloman
  • Patent number: 8220619
    Abstract: A conveyer apparatus for transporting and processing pellet-shaped articles includes a conveyer and a discharge device. The conveyer includes a plurality of carrier bars to convey a plurality of articles along a predetermined conveyer path. Each carrier bar has a pocket half that cooperates with a pocket half of an adjacent carrier bar to form an article receiving pocket to receive and transport an article along the predetermined conveyer path. The discharge device is positioned with respect to the carrier bars to dislodge articles from the carrier bars.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2012
    Assignee: Ackley Machine Corporation
    Inventor: E. Michael Ackley
  • Patent number: 7654386
    Abstract: A machine (1) for wrapping bundles (2) of roll products (3), where the products (3) are grouped together in piles (4), comprises a bundle (2) forming line (6), equipped with a chain conveyor (7), and a product (3) feed line (12) that serves the forming line (6); the feed line (12) having an elevator (13) which is equipped with a product (3) supporting platform (14) and which is vertically mobile under the forming line (6) between a lowered position where it receives the products (3) and a raised position where it delivers the products (3) to the forming line (6); a screw mechanism, fixed to a fixed machine mounting structure and screwed on a lead nut placed inside a mounting frame, adjusts the position of the chain conveyor, the pair of pulleys and the pusher rods relative to the raised position of the product supporting platform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 2, 2010
    Assignee: Tissue Machinery Company S.p.A.
    Inventors: Davide Dall'omo, Christian Zagnoni
  • Patent number: 7611321
    Abstract: A method of providing portable storage and a portable storage system including a vehicle for carrying a container. The vehicle includes a tilting bed carried by a wheeled carriage. A lift system tilts the bed from the carriage to load and unload the container by using a conveyor on the bed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2007
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2009
    Inventor: D. Jeffrey Cooper
  • Patent number: 7475771
    Abstract: A device for stacking flat, deformable, items contains a transfer device that accommodates individual items conveyed to it in receptacles and conveys them to a serializing device. At that transfer device, a row of compartments, into which the items are inserted, is conveyed transversely to the direction along which items' arrive. During insertion, items receive a velocity component in the compartments' direction of motion, while being brought to a standstill along their original direction of motion by one or the other of their flat sides coming into contact with a compartment wall, or an item that had been previously inserted into the compartment, in order that the compressive forces, and thus the deforming forces, exerted on the items will be slight.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2009
    Assignee: Optima Filling and Packaging Machines GmbH
    Inventor: Dietmar Schmetzer
  • Patent number: 7337892
    Abstract: The invention provides a device for sorting products, comprising bogies which are movable in a direction of transport along a conveying path, which bogies are pivotally interconnected, and supporting platforms comprising a supporting surface for supporting products to be sorted. Each of the supporting platforms includes supporting elements which are movable with respect to an adjacent supporting element for changing the circumference of the supporting platform in question during passage of a bend in the conveying path, which supporting elements include two outer supporting elements which, seen in the direction of transport, are located at the front side and the rear side, respectively, of the supporting platform in question and at least one intermediate supporting element positioned between the outer supporting elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2008
    Assignee: Vanderlande Industries Nederland B.V.
    Inventors: Frits Franciscus Carolus Groot, Gregorius Maria Adrianus Van Vught, Cornelius Christiaan Goelema, Simon Stikkelorum
  • Patent number: 6866140
    Abstract: A conveyance apparatus of the present invention holds and conveys a group of items, and includes conveyors and driving devices. The conveyors include first and second conveyance belts, items-group holders, and detaching/attaching devices. The first and second conveyance belts operate around a circulating path. The detaching/attaching devices support the items-group holders, which include a plurality of partition members that partitions and holds the group of items. The plurality of partition members are connected to one another. The detaching/attaching devices render the items-group holders detachable from and attachable to the first and second conveyor belts. In this manner, replacement of the plurality of partition members can be performed easily and quickly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2005
    Assignee: Ishida Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Seisaku Iwasa
  • Patent number: 6823981
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for accumulating articles (28) include conveying a plurality of individual articles with a stacking conveyor (96) In particular aspects, the vacuum conveyor (96) can be arranged with an elbow configuration to substantially avoid an undesired encircling or surrounding of a substantially fixed portion of cooperating downstream equipment, and the stacking conveyor (96) can have a plurality of holding members (112) that project away from an article-side surface of the stacking conveyor. In another aspect, the method and apparatus can include a turning mechanism which forms the desired elbow configuration. A further aspect can include a transfer system (98) which can cooperate with a vacuum system (100) to load the articles (28) into downstream packaging equipment. Still another aspect can include a storage buffer mechanism (104) which provides an area upon which to stage at least one article-set (70).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2002
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2004
    Assignee: Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc.
    Inventors: Richard J. Ogle, Steven A. Hellmann
  • Patent number: 6811024
    Abstract: A conveyor apparatus for folding boxes in a boxing machine has conveyor chains which are respectively supported in pairs in a guide rail and have pusher lugs attached to them, between which the folding boxes are contained in a positively engaging fashion. To permit adjustment of the conveyor apparatus with regard to different box widths and box lengths, the conveyor chains are respectively coupled to cross sectionally polygonal shafts. The format adaptation to different folding box widths is permitted by means of a self-locking adjusting mechanism, for a simple format adaptation in terms of the folding box length, according to the invention it is necessary that the gears that are operationally connected to the one guide rail be disposed on the respective shaft in a rotationally fixed, but movable fashion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2004
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Ulrich Wieduwilt, Johann Zeller
  • Patent number: 6343688
    Abstract: A conveyor and escalator for transporting objects having a substantially uniform size and length such as eggs horizontally, vertically and helically vertically comprising at least one flexible endless support means; a drive means operably engaging said flexible endless support means for driving said flexible endless support means in a direction of advance; and a plurality of equispaced elongated paddles attached substantially perpendicular to said flexible endless support means, said paddles being adapted to support an object during linear travel and to open for receiving or releasing said object therebetween during arcuate travel. The endless flexible support means comprises an endless chain, an endless belt or an endless cable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2002
    Inventor: Bruce Archibald McKinlay
  • Patent number: 6269937
    Abstract: A conveyor device for erected collapsible box. The conveyor device has a number of conveyor chains with drive ribs for the collapsible boxes. The conveyor chains are made up of chain links that are connected to one another in an articulating relationship. The chain links have guide pins that are guided in an upper and lower guide rail. The conveyor device is made to embody the deflecting regions of the conveyor chains so that the conveyor chains are free of guide elements. This is achieved by a particular disposition of the guide pins and the guide rails. The conveyor device has a particularly simple design and is also suited for small collapsible box formats.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 7, 2001
    Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
    Inventors: Walter Dietrich, Eberhard Krieger, Klaus Stoeckel
  • Patent number: 6260690
    Abstract: A modular transport and gathering system used for moving a material to be fed (250) in a direction of transport and comprising a plurality of transport modules (A, B) having input-side and output-side end sections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: July 17, 2001
    Assignee: Bowe Systec AG
    Inventor: Josef Batzer
  • Patent number: 6170638
    Abstract: A conveyor which includes one or more pocket assemblies which are adapted to be transported in a closed path. The assembly includes a pocket having two walls which are hinged to each other. In the closed position, the walls retain the product (newspaper) between them and, in their open position, they are spaced apart and can receive the product inserted therein. There is a pair of aligners mounted on the pocket which move from a retracted position to a forward position. If the product is misaligned in either direction transverse to the path of the pocket, one of the other of the aligners will contact the nearest edge of the product and push it into a central position in the pocket.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 7, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2001
    Assignee: Graphic Management Associates, Inc.
    Inventor: Gary Davenport