Continuously transferring and arranging rod-shaped articles

Claim 1

A METHOD OF CONTINUOUSLY ARRANGING A SUCCESSION OF ROD-SHAPED MEMBERS; COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PLACING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES, EACH OF WHICH IS DIVIDED INTO A PLURALITY OF PARTS CONSTITUTING SAID MEMBERS, INTO AXIALLY EXTENDING GROOVES SPACED APART EQUALLY IN THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL DIRECTION ON THE SURFACE OF A WORKING ROLLER, WITH AT LEAST ONE EMPTY GROOVE BEING LEFT ON SAID WORKING ROLLER BETWEEN THE SUCCESSIVE GROOVES OF THE LATTER IN WHICH SAID ARTICLES ARE PLACED, ROTATING AT LEAST ONE TRANSFER ROLLER AT THE SAME CIRCUMFERENTIAL SPEED AS SAID WORKING ROLLER AND TANGENTIALLY TO THE LATTER, WITH SAID TRANSFER ROLLER HAVING AXIALLY EXTENDING GROOVES IN THE SURFACE THEREOF WHICH ARE CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED APART BY DISTANCES EQUAL TO THE SPACING BETWEEN SAID GROOVES OF THE WORKING ROLLER AND WHICH REGISTER SUCCESSIVELY WITH THE LATTER GROOVES DURING ROTATION OF THE WORKING AND TRANSFER ROLLERS, THE NUMBER OF SAID TRANSFER ROLLERS BEING SMALLER BY AT LEAST ONE THAN THE NUMBER OF SAID PARTS INTO WHICH EACH OF SAID ARTICLES IS DIVIDED, RETAINING ONE OF SAID PARTS OF EACH ARTICLE IN THE GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER IN WHICH THE ARTICLE HAS BEEN PLACED WHILE TRANSFERRING AT LEAST ANOTHER OF SAID PARTS TO A GROOVE OF SAID TRANSFER ROLLER WHICH REGISTERS WITH AN ARTICLE CONTAINING GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER, THE NUMBER OF GROOVES IN THE TRANSFER ROLLER BEING SELECTED SO THAT, UPON A REVOLUTION OF THE TRANSFER ROLLER, A GROOVE OF THE LATTER TO WHICH SAID OTHER PART OF AN ARTICLE HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED THEN REGISTERS WITH AN EMPTY GROOVE OF SAID WORKING ROLLER, AND RETURNING SAID OTHER PART OF THE ARTICLE TO SAID EMPTY GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER.

Claim 2

A METHOD OF CONTINUOUSLY ARRANGING A SUCCESSION OF ROD-SHAPED MEMBERS; COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PLACING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES, EACH OF WHICH IS DIVIDED INTO A PLURALITY OF PARTS CONSTITUTING SAID MEMBERS, INTO AXIALLY EXTENDING GROOVES SPACED APART EQUALLY IN THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL DIRECTION ON THE SURFACE OF A WORKING ROLLER, WITH AT LEAST ONE EMPTY GROOVE BEING LEFT ON SAID WORKING ROLLER BETWEEN THE SUCCESSIVE GROOVES OF THE LATTER IN WHICH SAID ARTICLES ARE PLACED, ROTATING AT LEAST ONE TRANSFER ROLLER AT THE SAME CIRCUMFERENTIAL SPEED AS SAID WORKING ROLLER AND TANGENTIALLY TO THE LATTER, WITH SAID TRANSFER ROLLER HAVING AXIALLY EXTENDING GROOVES IN THE SURFACE THEREOF WHICH ARE CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED APART BY DISTANCES EQUAL TO THE SPACING BETWEEN SAID GROOVES OF THE WORKING ROLLER AND WHICH REGISTER SUCCESSIVELY WITH THE LATTER GROOVES DURING ROTATION OF THE WORKING AND TRANSFER ROLLERS, THE NUMBER OF SAID TRANSFER ROLLERS BEING SMALLER BY AT LEAST ONE THAN THE NUMBER OF SAID PARTS INTO WHICH EACH OF SAID ARTICLES IS DIVIDED, RETAINING ONE OF SAID PARTS OF EACH ARTICLE IN THE GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER IN WHICH THE ARTICLE HAS BEEN PLACED WHILE TRANSFERRING AT LEAST ANOTHER OF SAID PARTS TO A GROOVE OF SAID TRANSFER ROLLER WHICH REGISTERS WITH AN ARTICLE CONTAINING GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER, THE NUMBER OF GROOVES IN THE TRANSFER ROLLER BEING SELECTED SO THAT, UPON A REVOLUTION OF THE TRANSFER ROLLER, A GROOVE OF THE LATTER TO WHICH SAID OTHER PART OF AN ARTICLE HAS BEEN TRANSFERRED THEN REGISTERS WITH AN EMPTY GROOVE OF SAID WORKING ROLLER, AND RETURNING SAID OTHER PART OF THE ARTICLE TO SAID EMPTY GROOVE OF THE WORKING ROLLER.