Abstract: A lifting frame assembly having first and second spaced hooking members adjustably carried on a second portion of the lifting frame assembly is connectable to work tools of different sizes. The lifting frame assembly is connected to a lifting device by a lever arm which causes the lifting frame assembly to hang at an acute angle relative to a vertical plane so that the work tool may be aligned relative to a tool holder of a machine tool without interference. A first end portion of the lifting frame assembly is extensible in order to traverse the length of a ram of the machine tool and further improve alignment capabilities with the tool holder.

Abstract: An automobile hardtop storage apparatus that includes a flexible cover adapted to be draped over the outer surfaces of a hardtop while in position on the automobile. Attachment devices are carried on edge areas of the cover for attachment of the cover to the hardtop. An overhead lifting device is connectable to the cover for lifting the cover and hardtop to an elevated storage position. Cradle elements at opposite ends of the lifting device support the hardtop when in its storage position.

Abstract: A collection container adapted to be lifted and emptied with a grasping device. The container forms an enclosure with two sections each having a projection and being pivotally connected to each other. The sections are held together with a spring. The container includes an opening to receive objects. The spring tension is set so that the grasping device can lift the container by the projections without the section separating. The projections are angled on the enclosure so that if the grasping device were to squeeze the projections together the two sections would pivotally open and dump the objects in a bin. A trough is coupled to a slot on the container to prevent the container's contents from being pilfered.

Abstract: The individual grippers of a gripper head provided for simultaneously introducing a number of bottles into a box or removing them from the box, where the bottles have neck diameters close to the diameter of the body of the bottle, have polygonal external cross sections with even numbers of sides so that the cylindrical sockets can lie close together. The sockets receive elastic inserts which are actuatable by pistons.

Abstract: A rotator including a base frame for being attached to a lift mechanism; a rotating frame; a first latch member attached to the rotating frame; a second latch member attached to the rotating frame a spaced distance from the first latch member for coacting with the first latch member to securely attach a trailer chassis to the rotating frame; and axle structure rotatably attaching the rotating frame and the base frame to one another for allowing the rotating frame to rotate between a first position and a second position to rotate the trailer chassis between an upright position and an inverted position about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the trailer chassis.

Abstract: A wafer processing system includes an autoloader mounted within a load lock for providing batch, cassette-to-cassette automatic wafer transfer between the semiconductor processing chamber and cassette load and unload positions within the load lock. The system provides rapid, contamination-free loading and unloading of semiconductor wafers.

Abstract: A handling apparatus pulls a group of lightweight cargo carrying sleeves out of a container in which they have been transported onto a storage bed. The collapsed sleeves are individually supported in an upright orientation on the bed by fingers which can be selectively withdrawn from a sleeve when it is to be removed. An overhead crane has a carriage that translates across the sleeves on the storage bed and a sleeve loading and unloading apparatus that is positioned beside the bed. The carriage can also be raised and lowered. The carriage carries hooks which engage the sidewalls of the sleeves and can be moved toward and away from one another. After the hooks engage the sidewalls of a sleeve the carriage is raised to lift the sleeve out of the group. The carriage is then moved above the loading apparatus and the hooks are moved apart from one another to expand the sleeve. Finally, the carriage is lowered to place the expanded sleeve on the loading apparatus and the hooks are disengaged from its sidewalls.

Abstract: A self-propelled, counterbalanced, container transporter vehicle having a frame, a counterweight supported at the rear, an elevating upright, carriage pick-up and lift frame assembly for lifting, transporting and stacking containers in which a tower structure supports a cab providing an operator's station with controls for hydraulically raising and lowering the upright, the cab has a wide angle front window area that partially wraps around the operator's station to permit a horizontal line of sight to the maximum extension of the lift frame and is sloped back to afford high angle vision to the maximum vertical extension of the upright for high stacking containers.

Abstract: The device comprises two winches (12, 12') fastened to the outer surface of a hollow body (2) having a vertical channel (3) in which the load (4) is displaced. Each of the winches (12, 12') comprises two drums (13a, 13b) driven by a common motor (14). The drums (13a, 13b) of a first winch (12) are each arranged opposite a drum of the second winch (12') in relation to the axis of the channel (3). The device comprises two cables (15a, 15b) which are common to two drums located opposite one another around the body (2). The cables (15a, 15b) are wound with their end part on the drums located opposite one another and on their run between the drums pass over deflecting pulleys (16a, 16b), the axis of which is stationary, and over load-supporting pulleys (34a, 34b), the axis of which is movable and accompanies the load. The device ensures that the load is held and displaced in the event of a failure of one of the motor assemblies (14) and in the event of a break of one of the cables.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a device 32 for taking out a grown monocrystal rod 22 from monocrystal pulling up devices 10 to 14 and conveying them to a predetermined position. An object is to simplify the overall structure, which includes a plurality of monocrystal pulling up devices 10 to 14, and reducing the overall cost. A rail 31 is disposed along the monocrystal pulling up devices 10 to 14 and travelling portions 33 and 34 travel along the rail 31. The upper end portion of an upper cylinder 36 is fixed to the travelling portions 33 and 34, the upper portion of an elevational shaft 37 is inserted into the upper cylinder 36, the lower portion of the elevational shaft 37 is inserted into a lower cylinder 39 and a plate 44 is able to approach and move away from the lower cylinder 39. A plate 45 is able to rotate around a shaft 46 with respect to the position of the plate 44. Futhermore, the plate 45 has a receiving finger 53A and a holding finger 54A.

Abstract: A conveying and/or handling device for containers has a plurality of coupling claws, and latching members cooperating with the latter essentially in the manner of tongs. In order to provide for simple handling of all types of containers and to load and move them about, two coupling claws are provided on a transverse bearer or beam of a lifting carriage. The transverse bearer or beam carrying the coupling claws runs in vertical guideways on the lifting carriage for vertical motion and is driven by a hydraulic piston and cylinder unit. The lifting carriage is provided with at least one fork or supporting plate to be placed under the floor of the container. The carriage runs in guideways of the vertical beams of a lifting rig and is driven by a hydraulic drive unit.

Abstract: The apparatus comprises a rectangular frame (20) disposed horizontally, which is fixed to the forks (25) of a lift truck. Gates (29) depend downwards from the sides of the frame, and each gate carries a pad (32). When the gates are operated hydraulically the pads clamp a pallet-sized layer (43) of cardboard cases (36) therebetween. Other layers of cases resting on the clamped layer may be picked up along with the clamped layer. The layer is clamped on all four sides, and the pads are long enough that no bottle (38) can "escape" the clamping force. The apparatus allows a high clamp force to be used, without the danger of damaging the cases or bottles.

Abstract: A railway wheel lifting device is provided wherein a railway wheel can be readily and positively affixed to a lifting device. Upon such affixing and lifting, the wheel can be moved as necessary with the lifting device. Positive locking mechanisms are provided whereby the rim section of the wheel is held between depending legs of a frame support. When it is desired to release the wheel, an operating cylinder is operatively connected to operating rods which in turn can move cam assemblies out of contact with the wheel to thereby permit the wheel to be released from the lifting device.

Abstract: The invention relates to an automatic charging member for positioning of heavy loads, particularly sheet-like objects as anodes and cathodes into electrolysis tanks. According to the invention, between the loading member (1) and the gripping device (8) there is attached a control frame (3) so that on the ground of the information received from the position detectors (9) the positioning of the gripping device (8) is carried out by moving the control frame (3).

Abstract: The invention relates to an intermediate storage system mounted adjacent to a bending furnace in a windshield production line, said system comprising a first intermediate storage (1) for pairs of flat glass sheets and a second intermediate storage (2) for pairs of bent glass sheets. Each intermediate storage includes a number of separate storage racks (3) for pairs of glass sheets and a carrier trolley (5, 9) for pairs of glass sheets. A carrier trolley (5) in first storage (1) is controlled for carrying pairs of glass sheets one at a time from storage racks (3) to the proximity of the loading end of a bending furnace (11) and carrier trolley (9) in second storage (2) is controlled for carrying pairs of bent glass sheets from the proximity of the end of bending furnace (11) onto the storage racks (3) of second storage (2).

Abstract: A method of and system for handing a load by transferring a load between a storage base and a transport base by engaging a portion of at least one engagement member, e.g. a suction cup or an electromagnet, with an engagement surface on a side or end of the load, and displacing the engagement member to thereby pull the load onto the transport base for transport by the transport base or to push the load from the transport base onto the storage base. The engagement surface has a size at least equal to that of the portion of the engagement member.

Abstract: An oil tube bundle positioning device (26) for supporting and restraining oil cooler tube bundles (10) so that they can be safely oriented from one position to another, e.g., from a vertical position to a horizontal position, for cleaning and servicing. The positioning device (26) includes a substantially rigid beam element (28), a first plate (30) fixed to the beam element (28) and a second plate (32) movably supported by the beam element (28) and spaced from the first plate (30). The positioning device is designed to receive an oil tube bundle (10) in the spacing between the first and second plates (30, 32). A plurality of tapered dowels (42) extend from each of the first and second plates (30, 32). Each dowel (42) is positioned to engage an end of a tube (14) of the tube bundle (10) upon the tube bundle (10) being received between the first and second plates (30, 32).

Abstract: A cable suspension compliance mechanism has a top plate for attaching the mechanism to a robot and a bottom plate for attaching the mechanism to a gripping device. Steel cables interconnect the plates and maintain the plates substantially parallel relative to each other. Pneumatic cylinders are also disposed between the plates to adjust the mechanism's stiffness by adjusting the tension of a selected number of the steel cables. The mechanism is also equipped with magnetic inductance sensors to sense the position and classification of the article to be gripped. Additionally, the mechanism has an overtravel sensor to indicate the presence of unexpected obstacles, and to stop the mechasnism in response thereto.

Abstract: A plate handling apparatus grips a group of vertically oriented stacks of plates that are being transported serially, lifts them out of the pockets they are being transported in, reduces the separation between them, moves them to a remote location and deposits them for further processing. In addition, the apparatus picks up the stacks in two groups that are 180.degree. opposed from one another with the stacks in one group being interposed with the stacks in the other group. The stacks of plates are engaged by gripping heads that employ paired cam elements carrying gripping fingers. The cam elements have two separate cam faces that permits them to be positively opened and closed by linear movement of a cam follower that fits between the cam elements and engages the cam faces. The set of cam faces used to open the fingers has a steeper ramp angle than the set used to close the fingers. Accordingly, the fingers are opened quicker than they are closed and a greater pressure is exerted upon closing.

Abstract: A positioner suitable for use in warehouses where stored products are carried with on pallets or on horizontal forks. The positioner is designed to load, unload, select, store, pull out, prepare orders, etc., of any kind of the aforementioned products. The positioner has a structure with two vertical masts with a bolster moving vertically between them, a slider slidably mounted on this bolster, a longitudinal frame on which moves a second slider carrying a vertical column with its free end provided with an air hole or clamp to carry out the transfer of products, with operations monitored and controlled by computer.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method and apparatus for removing conical yarn bobbins, particularly in relation to withdrawing them from a conveyor belt which receives and moves said conical bobbins after they have been doffed and discharged from the units of a bobbin producing textile machine, and depositing them in an ordered arrangement on a peg trolley.

Abstract: A suspension frame for raising or lowering by a crane or hoist carries an assembly of depending limbs or legs which are power operated by a ram for extension apart or retraction and when retracted have a detachable hook engagement with load bearing portions of a split pallet assembly. On extension of the legs the pallet portions are withdrawn apart from under the load in order to deposit it on the ground after which the separated pallet portions are raised clear of the load. An assembly of load holding or steadying plates also depend from the suspension structure and are power operated by a ram against the load to hold or steady the latter during withdrawal of the pallet portions from under the load and its deposit on the ground or other surface, on or after which the plates are released from the load.

Abstract: A robotic pelletizer includes a roller carriage having an improved grasping device which has first and second plates contacting opposed sides of an item to be lifted, a bottom support having a plurality of fingers moveable underneath the item, and a clamping plate to contact a top of the item. An elevating device lifts the item from a support surface so that the fingers may move under the item, and thereby support the item when the elevating device is lowered.

Abstract: The lifting and transportation of sensitive articles incapable of bearing a mechanical load, without manual involvement, presents special difficulties in packaging technology. This applies, above all, to tray packs in which articles are arranged standing on a bottom part (11) of small height, without any additional anchoring. For grasping and lifting articles of this type, there is provided a raisable and lowerable suction box (15) which, with suitable dimensions, is placed over the article in the manner of a bell. By the generation of a vacuum within the suction box (15), the article (tray pack 10) is held carefully and can be lifted by means of the suction box (15). Side walls (22) of the suction box (15) are arranged pivotably, to make it easier to place the suction box (15) onto the article.

Abstract: Two sets of fork units are dependingly supported from a suspension frame for engagement with a stack of cargo units, such as bags. The ends of the fork units are articulated so as to be positioned in either a perpendicular position relative to the upper portion of the fork unit or a longitudinally aligned position. End plates on the suspension frame cooperate with a special pallet to vertically and horizontally align the tip ends of the forks with openings in the special pallet.

Abstract: A bobbin conveying system includes an automatic travelling car for conveyance of spinning and empty bobbins, a station for carrying out a spinning bobbin to the automatic travelling car and carrying in an empty bobbin from the car, and a station for carrying in a spinning bobbin from the automatic travelling car and carrying out an empty bobbin to the car, the spinning and empty bobbins carrying-in and -out operations being performed simultaneously at both the stations.

Abstract: A bottle handling device comprising a tool for grasping the sides of the bottles, the tool being tiltably mounted to one end of a flexible cord and the other end of the cord is coupled to a balancing device for balancing the grasping tool and developing a balancing force that is adjustable between two values depending on whether the tool is loaded or unloaded. The device also has a support table for supporting a plurality of bottles standing in a row, and a backing piece mounted along the table in order to accommodate the tilting of the bottles while the value of the balance force is changing.

Abstract: An article lifting device includes vertically elongate hollow tubular frame members, one telescopically received within the other for guided vertical movement. The outer member includes a bracket for fixedly mounting the outer member upon a support, which may be a horizontally movable shuttle carriage, and carries a reversible drive motor coupled to a drive gear mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis near the lower end of the outer member. A flexible belt having teeth at one side is fixed at opposite ends to the upper and lower ends of the inner member and a bight portion of the belt is meshed with the drive gear, the bight portion projecting from the inner member between two idler rolls mounted on the outer member and passing around the drive gear. The idler rolls hold those portions of the belt other than the idler rolls in face-to-face engagement with the inner member.

Abstract: A support system comprises a cantilever for taking up objects running on roller wheels. The cantilever is formed to roll the objects onto the cantilever in a first direction up to a lock position and to remove them from the cantilever by rolling in a substantially opposite direction. The roller wheels shall be locked in a rest position and removal of the objects by rolling the roller wheels from the cantilever shall be eased. In order to achieve this object the cantilever comprises a depression formed at the lock position of the roller wheels and extending transversely to the roll-on direction. A substantially plane portion is provided at the roll-on side of the depression and a roller wheel arriving in the depression contacts said plane portion.

Abstract: A parts transfer apparatus for progressively advancing workpieces through successive work stations. A frame is movably mounted within a surrounding, rigid, support structure. Workpiece engaging devices are mounted on the frame for engaging a workpiece in each work station. Pairs of cams are fixedly mounted on the support structure and disposed on opposite sides of the frame to define a reciprocal path of movement for the frame. Cam followers mounted on the frame engage and move along the pairs of cams. A drive mechanism, preferably in the form of opposed acting fluid cylinders, is coupled between the support structure and the frame for reciprocatingly driving the frame between the first and second ends of the support structure.

Abstract: An overhead support for receiving medical appliances comprises an extension arm and appliance receiving means and is modified for receiving various chassis-mounted appliances on said appliance receiving means. To this end the appliance receiving means is level-adjustable such that it receives a medical appliance carried on a chassis by grabbing the chassis from below.

Abstract: The present invention provides a high productivity, high density container storage yard adjacent to a facility for loading and unloading containers, such as to and from ships, with the individual containers stored therein being stacked up to four containers high. An integrated container handling system is designed to move the containers from the container storage yard to the loading and unloading facility, and includes an overhead grid rail system on which container carrying shuttle vehicles are routed to designated yard locations by a master control system. Passive switching mechanisms are utilized to selectively move the shuttle vehicles through the grid rail network, wherein the actual switch mechanism is carried on the shuttle vehicle rather than on the track. One disclosed embodiment of the loading and unloading facility comprises overhead cranes and associated buffers in a marine terminal for loading and unloading a container ship.

Abstract: The apparatus has a frame formed with vertical and horizontal supports to which are assembled a plurality of parallel spaced shelves. A horizontal load girder is vertically movable along vertical supports with load pickup oriented toward the shelf arrangement. The frame is movable toward and away from a storage shelf arrangement while the load pickup maintaining its vertical position; to this end, the frame has deflection wheels, substantially at its upper and lower corners, for a tensioning arrangement extended in a FIG. 8 in the vertical direction; with their upper and lower ends, the tension means are attached in stationary fashion, likewise in a FIG. 8, either to the shelf arrangement or to a point corresponding to the maximum distance of the frame from the shelf arrangement.

Abstract: A storage system for wheeled trailer frames includes a staircase-like support rack. Frames are stacked horizontally with their front ends supported by the rack and with their rear wheels nested. Trailer frames are lifted and stacked by means of a traveling overhead yard crane provided with a lifting attachment or by means of a forklift truck provided with a lifting attachment slidingly engaged by its tines.

Abstract: The inventive manipulator for heavy loads, preferably printing products in loose scale formation and wound up to form rolls, only has a single pivot pin (35) or joint which, according to the invention, is arranged in such a way that the load (5) can be brought into three main positions orthogonal to one another using this single pivot pin or joint. The load is held by a holding device (33,38). The pivot pin (35) passes through the center of gravity of the load, or the center of gravity is located in the pivot point or fulcrum. This makes it possible to grip in frontal or lateral precise manner heavy loads and subsequently to deposit same on a loading device or in a store without great force expenditure using a drive and/or manually. The invention is also characterized by the combination of an industrial truck (10), a lifting device (11) arranged thereon and a mounted implement (31-38) located on the truck and preferably constituted by the inventive manipulator.

Abstract: The output of a high speed press or bindery is formed into stacks which are then combined into four stack "cubes". The cubes are handled as units and formed into tiers which can be loaded onto pallets. A pickup head for manipulating the cubes is carried by a transport device such as a gantry or robot arm. It has a top plate which is connected to the transport device. The top plate carries horizontal guide members from which depend four side panels. The side panels may be retracted to grasp the sides of the cube or extended to release the cube. Fingers mounted along the bottom edges of the side panels are designed to extend between the bottom sheets of the cube and the surface on which it sits. They can be locked into this position, permitting the cube to be lifted and transported by the pickup head. Also disclosed is a gantry-type transport device with a telescoping extender to which the pickup head is connected.

Abstract: A magazine for the maturation of cakes of synthetic foam material, for a plant served by a conveyor belt bringing the cakes for distribution in the magazine, and by an overhead crane with a gripper intended for lifting a cake from the belt conveyor, for shifting it laterally and for depositing the same into a maturation space, which comprises stands arranged parallel to and at the side of the belt conveyor; each stand comprises a frame which supports a fixed lower shelf whose width and length are adapted to the width and length of the cakes to be received, and above the fixed shelf, at vertical mutual distances somewhat greater than the height of the cakes to be received, a plurality of movable shelves for receiving the cakes; each movable shelf is shiftable between a working position, in which it constitutes a surface whose width and length are adapted to the width and length of the cakes to be received, and a rest position, in which it leaves free the access from above to the shelf lying below.

Abstract: A mechanical closed loop robotic arm end effector positioning system which produces a precision reference frame with an associated workpiece fixture or other robotic manipulator system is disclosed. The positioning system results in decoupling of end effector operation from gross movement inaccuracies or vibrations of the robotic arm, thus allowing less precise robots to perform high precision tasks. The system includes a wrist assembly which is mountable to the robotic arm near the arm's distal functional end. The wrist assembly has a compliant member and a first positioning member connected thereto. The first positioning member includes a first docking arrangement. A second positioning member associated with the workpiece fixture includes a second docking arrangement. The first and second docking arrangements are sized and positioned to engageably mate within the robotic arm's resolution when the robotic arm attains a target position relative to the workpiece fixture.

Abstract: A drum clamping unit for plastics material drums with peripheral "L'8 chime rings below the drum head is adapted to be mounted on suitable lifting and transporting devices such as lift trucks, overhead cranes, and the like to automatically engage, latch onto, and discharge one or more of the molded plastics material drums without damaging the drums. The unit has a plurality of clamping jaws automatically triggered to clamping positions by the drum heads as the unit is lowered alongside the drums. These clamping jaws are positioned to engage only with the bottom and inner face of the "L" chime ring of each drum and remain clear of the drum head and drum periphery thereby avoiding any damage to the drums especially as they are raised to clamp onto the "L" rings. Then, when the raised clamped drums are conveyed to and lowered on a desired location, the jaws are released, retracted automatically and held in a retracted position until the unit is again lowered to engage a drum head in a subsequent operation.

Abstract: A device for inserting a support holding an object into and removing said support with the object from a galvanizing bath comprises a transporting carriage and a lifting device for lifting and lowering said support. The support has outwardly extending arms engageable by the lifting elements of the lifting device. Guiding strips are provided for the lateral portions of the support to prevent its tilting during the lowering and lifting movement.

Abstract: A holder and cementing apparatus for string wound baseball cores includes six vertically downwardly depending tines arranged in a circular pattern to allow the ball to be wedged between the tines with an ejector pin moved upwardly by engagement of the ball and later forced downwardly to eject the ball with the holder supported on a trolley moving along horizontal guides from a first station where the ball is pushed upwardly by a supporting member into the ball holder to a second position inside an enclosure over a coating liquid supply where a cup is raised from below the level of the liquid to immerse the ball in the cup's liquid with movable side panels that open and close to allow the ball to enter the enclosure and to protect from liquid splatter when the ball is rotated at a high rate of speed to remove excess liquid followed by movement out of these openings to a destination station where a ball is sensed to insure proper operation.

Abstract: For passing stepwise bottles (F, F') in front of different stations, in order to more particularly take liquid samples, the bottles are placed in receptacles formed on a plate (24). The rotation of the plate is ensured by a lifting support action using compressed air delivered by injectors (18). Immediate rotation stoppage is obtained when a hole (38) formed in plate (24) faces the end of an optical fiber, whereof the opposite end issues onto an optical detector. Associated with an automatic sampling and dilution system, the assembly can be advantageously installed in a glove box or shielded enclosure in the nuclear industry.

Abstract: The apparatus of this invention is an apparatus for hanging and transferring a plurality of plate members, is provided with a plurality of hanger members, which are slidable along a supporting frame therefor and are able to space apart or bring together the hanging plate members. Therefore, when this apparatus is used for handling of electrode plates in electrowinning of a metal, the electrode plates can be subjected to various treatments in the spaced-apart condition or the brought-together condition as desired as being hung therefrom. Thus the treatments of the electordes can be efficiently effected. The apparatus can be provided with clamp means which bring the hanging plate members together, and tightly assemble them. The thus assembled electrode plates can be immersed in an electrolytic cell as a set, which improves the efficiency of the electrowinning process.

Abstract: The manipulator for sheet-metal pieces is used in conjunction with a sheet-metal working machine and has two rotatable holding members (20) displaceable in three dimensions. The holding members (20) each have both clamping tongs (22), which act on the surface of the sheet-metal piece (24) to be worked, and a clamping strip (23) exerting pressure parallel to the sheet surface. It thereby becomes possible for the sheet-metal piece to be worked, in a first working phase when it is still plane, to be grasped along two parallel edges by means of tongs and, after the first working, to be held only by means of the clamping strips.

Abstract: A gripper mechanism for sampling nuclear fuel pellets at a predetermined depth in a stack of pellets includes a housing and gripping fingers movably mounted to the housing. The fingers are preferably three relatively thin, arcuate-shaped, blade-like fingers angularly displaced from one another for grasping the pellet at spaced locations about its circumference. The fingers have lower facing surfaces which are brought adjacent to one another for engaging and grasping a pellet when the fingers are moved toward their closed position and retracted remote from one another for disengaging and releasing the pellet when the fingers are moved toward their opened position.

Abstract: Apparatus for booking an elastomer such as a rubber sheet is disclosed. A conveyor has a series of driven rollers. A stop member is positioned to stop the movement of the elastomer by contacting the front end. The stop member may be fixed on a transfer or grasp member, typically a vacuum head which is employed to transfer the elastomer on to a flatcar.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for storing/taking-out a rod-like stored article enables the article such as a printing-plate cylinder, which must be kept out of contact with other thing in its barrel surface in storing, to keep out of contact with other thing in storing/taking-out operation thereof, which apparatus use a foldable ladder-like, or a like chain-like holder unit for holding a plurality of the rod-like articles in parallel to each other at certain intervals so that the thus held articles can be transferred between its storing area and its taking-out area for use, while its storing space is remarkably reduced without fear of contact with each other.

Abstract: A workload regulator for controlling the flow of articles between work stations at which the articles are produced.The apparatus receives a continuous flow of articles on various inbound tracks, subdivides the continuous flow into individual arrays or groups of articles, picks up these groups of articles and deposits them in trays for transient storage, removes them from trays and transfers them to one or more outbound tracks, or transfers the groups from inbound to outbound tracks in a buffer area. The apparatus also positions as needed the trays into which plural groups of articles are being placed during the filling, or from which the groups are being taken as the tray is emptied. Also, the apparatus adds or withdraws trays, as needed, from magazines which hold full and empty trays, respectively.The apparatus may have more than one transfer apparatus and may include equal or unequal numbers of inbound and outbound tracks.

Abstract: These machines have the task to separate the containers stacked on the pallet as well as the intermediate bottoms provided for stabilization from each other. For this purpose additional devices are provided which are intended exclusively for the extraction and transportation of these intermediate bottoms. Now an essential simplification is to be accomplished, so that the extraction of the containers and the removal of the intermediate bottoms occurs automatically with the transposal movement of the container layer.

Abstract: A system for the pressing of scrap in skips which charge furnaces in steel works, whereby a skip (12) is borne on a support with legs (15) by means of a vehicle with a vertically moveable platform (16) and is then rested on a press cradle (17), the press (11) comprising hooks for engaging with support pins (13) included on the skip (12) so as to support the skip itself (12) momentarily below the press (11).