Casing machine

Claim 1

A CASE FILLING MACHINE COMPRISING, A SUPPORT FRAME, A CONTAINER LOADING PLATFORM, A CASE LOADING STATION BELOW SAID PLATFORM FOR SUPPORTING A CASE FOR THE CONTAINERS, MEANS FOR STACKING A GROUP OF CONTAINERS ON THE LOADING PLATFORM, A CONTAINER PICK-UP HEAD, HEAD ELEVATING MEANS INCLUDING AN ELONGATED FLEXIBLE MEMBER HAVING ONE END PORTION OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID HEAD, ROLLER MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID FRAME ABOVE SAID PLATFORM, SAID FLEXIBLE MEMBER EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM SAID HEAD OVER SAID ROLLER MEANS AND HAVING MEANS ANCHORING THE OTHER END PORTION OF THE FLEXIBLE MEMBER TO SAID FRAME FOR NORMALLY SUPPORTING SAID HEAD IN AN INITIAL POSITION SPACED ABOVE THE CONTAINERS ON SAID LOADING PLATFORM, SAID HEAD ELEVATING MEANS INCLUDING CAM ACTUATED MEANS ENGAGING SAID FLEXIBLE MEMBER INTERMEDIATE SAID ROLLER MEANS AND SAID OTHER END PORTION FORMING A LOOP IN SAID FLEXIBLE MEMBER AND OPERABLE WHEN DRIVEN TO CHANGE THE EFFECTIVE LENGTH OF SAID LOOP AND MOVE SAID HEAD THROUGH A CYCLE TO SEQUENTIALLY LOWER SAID HEAD INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CONTAINERS ON THE PLATFORM; RAISE THE HEAD TO ELEVATE THE CONTAINERS ABOVE THE PLATFORM; LOWER THE HEAD TO A POSITION BELOW SAID PLATFORM TO LOAD THE CONTAINERS IN A CASE AT THE CASE LOADING STATION; AND RETURN THE HEAD TO SAID INITIAL POSITION; MEANS OPERATIVE WHEN A PRESELECTED NUMBER OF CONTAINERS ARE STACKED ON THE PLATFORM FOR DRIVING SAID CAM ACTUATED MEANS THROUGH SAID CYCLE, MEANS ON SAID HEAD OPERABLE TO GRIP THE CONTAINERS WHEN HEAD IS LOWERED INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CONTAINERS ON THE LOADING PLATFORM AND TO RELEASE THE CONTAINERS WHEN THE CONTAINERS ARE LOWERED INTO THE CASE, AND MEANS OPERATIVE IN TIMED RELATION WITH SAID ELEVATING MEANS FOR MOVING SAID LOADING PLATFORM OUT OF THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID HEAD WHEN THE CONTAINERS ARE LIFTED OFF THE PLATFORM.