Apparatus for removing articles from pallets

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLE ARRANGED IN PARALLEL ROWS IN HORIZONTAL TIERS STACKED ON A PALLET AND COMPRISING AN ELEVATOR FOR SUPPORTING THE PALLET WITH THE UPPER TIER AT A SELECTED ELEVATION, A HORIZONTAL DEADPLATE DISPOSED ADJACENT SAID UPPER TIER, A PUSHER BAR MOVABLE FROM A RETRACTED TO AN ADVANCED POSITION WHILE ENGAGING THE REAR ROW IN THE UPPER TIER TO MOVE THE ENTIRE TIER ONTO THE DEADPLATE, MEANS FOR RECIPROCATING THE SAID PUSHER BAR BETWEEN ITS RETRACTED AND ADVANCED POSITIONS, A SWEEP BAR ENGAGEABLE WITH THE REAR ROW IN THE TIER ON THE DEADPLATE TO ADVANCE THE TIER ACROSS THE DEADPLATE AND THEREBY TO THRUST ARTICLES OFF THE DEADPLATE IN SUCCESSIVE ROWS FROM THE FRONT OF THE TIER, CONTROL AND OPERATING MEANS FOR ENGAGING THE SWEEP BAR WITH THE TIER ONLY AFTER THE PUSHER BAR HAS MOVED TOWARD RETRACTED POSITION AND FOR ADVANCING THE TIER IN INCREMENTS OF MOVEMENT OF SUCH EXTEND AS TO THRUST A SELECTED NUMBER OF ROWS FROM THE DEADPLATE FOR EACH INCREMENT, AND CONTROL MEANS FOR RAISING SAID ELEVATOR TO SUPPORT EACH TIER IN SUCCESSION AT SAID SELECTED ELEVATION ONLY AFTER SAID PUSHER BAR HAS BEEN ADVANCED AND THEN RETURNED TO IS RETRACTED POSITION.