Control system for article feeding apparatus

Claim 1

IN ARTICLE FEEDING APPARATUS; MEANS FOR ADVANCING A PLURALITY OF ARTICLES ALONG A SINGLE PREDETERMINED PATH TO A POSITION WHERE ARTICLES MAY BE DISCHARGED, A FIRST STOP MEANS MOVABLE BETWEEN A BLOCKING POSITION PREVENTING SAID DISCHARGE AND A RELEASE POSITION PERMITTING SAID DISCHARGE, A SECOND STOP MEANS SPACED ALONG SAID PATH FROM SAID FIRST STOP MEANS A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT TO ACCOMMODATE A PLURALITY OF ARTICLES THEREBETWEEN AND MOVABLE BETWEEN A BLOCKING POSITION ARRESTING ADVANCE OF ARTICLES INTO THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID TWO STOP MEANS AND A RELEASE POSITION PERMITTING ADVANCE OF ARTICLES INTO SAID SPACE, ACTUATING MEANS FOR SO MOVING SAID TWO STOP MEANS THAT WHEN ONE IS MOVED TO ITS BLOCKING POSITION THE OTHER IS MOVED TO ITS RELEASE POSITION; FEED CONTROL MEANS OPERABLE IN TIMED RELATION TO SAID ACTUATING MEANS AND IN RESPONSE TO THE PRESENCE OF EACH ARTICLE OF SAID PLURALITY OF ARTICLES WHEN IN A PREDETERMINED POSITION IN SAID SPACE AND AS A RESULT OF ANY ONE OF SAID PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF ARTICLES BEING OUT OF ITS PREDETERMINED POSITION, TO RENDER SAID ACTUATING MEANS OPERABLE AND INOPERABLE, RESPECTIVELY, FOR EFFECTING SAID MOVEMENTS OF SAID TWO STOP MEANS; SAID ACTUATING MEANS AND SAID CONTROL MEANS INCLUDING MEANS FOR RENDERING SAID CONTROL MEANS AND ACTUATING MEANS INOPERABLE TO CAUSE SAID FIRST STOP MEANS TO RELEASE SAID ARTICLES DURING MOVEMENT OF ARTICLES INTO AND FROM SAID SPACE.