Feeding and positioning apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR SUPPLYING INCOMPLETE ASSEMBLIES FOR SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES TO A WORK AREA IN AN ASSEMBLY MACHINE AND FOR POSITIONING THE ASSEMBLIES AT THE WORK AREA WITH RESPECT TO A CONTACT WIRE TO BE ATTACHED THERETO, SAID APPARATUS INCLUDING IN COMBINATION, AN ELONGATED CARRIER, A PLURALITY OF ROTARY MEMBERS SUPPORTED BY SAID CARRIER IN POSITIONS SPACED ALONG THE LENGTH THEREOF, SAID ROTARY MEMBERS EACH HAVING MEANS FOR RECEIVING AND SUPPORTING ONE OF THE AFORESAID ASSEMBLIES, TRACK MEANS FORMING A STRAIGHT TRACK FOR SUPPORTING SAID CARRIER AND HAVING GUIDING SURFACES ON WHICH SAID CARRIER IS SLIDABLE PERMITTING SMOOTH INCREMENTAL LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT OF SAID CARRIER IN A STRAIGHT LINE PATH THROUGH SAID WORK AREA, SO THAT SAID CARRIER IS ADAPTED TO MOVE SAID ROTARY MEMBERS IN SUCCESSION TO AND PAST A WORK POSITION AT THE AFORESAID WORK AREA, DRIVING MEANS POSITIONED AT THE WORK AREA AND SELECTIVELY ENGAGEABLE WITH SAID ROTARY MEMBERS IN SAID WORK POSITION THEREOF, AND CONTROL MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID DRIVING MEANS AND OPERABLE IN A CONTROLLED MANNER TO ACTUATE SAID DRIVING MEANS AND ROTATE A ROTARY MEMBER ENGAGED THEREBY IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH AN ASSEMBLY PROVIDED ON SUCH ROTARY MEMBER IN A FIRST POSITION FOR ATTACHING ONE CONTACT WIRE THERETO AND IN A SECOND POSITION SPACED ANGULARLY A PREDETERMINED DISTANCE FROM SAID FIRST POSITION FOR ATTACHING ANOTHER CONTACT WIRE THERETO.