Coil feeding apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING KNOTTED HELICAL WIRE SPRING COILS INDIVIDUALLY FROM A LATERALLY-NESTED STACK OF SUCH COILS TO A REMOTE POINT WITH THE KNOTS OF SAID COILS IN PREDETERMINED ROTATIVE ORIENTATION, COMPRISING A MAGAZINE FOR RECEIVING A LATERALLY-NESTED STACK OF SUCH COILS WITH THE KNOTS THEREOF HAVING A GENERALLY COMMON ROTATIVE ORIENTATION IN SAID STACK, MEANS FOR EXTRACTING THE LEAD COIL FROM THE LATERALLY-NESTED STACK IN A FORWARD MOTION PERPENDICULAR TO THE AXIS OF THE COIL, MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH SAID MAGAZINE FOR ORIENTING SAID COIL DURING THE EXTRACTION SO THAT THE KNOT OF THE COIL HAS A SPECIFIC ROTATIVE ORIENTATION RELATIVE TO THE DIRECTION OF MOTION OF THE COIL, AND A TRANSFER MECHANISM FOR RECEIVING SAID COIL AT THE END OF SAID EXTRACTION MOTION AND DELIVERING IT TO SAID REMOTE POINT BY FURTHER MOTION INCLUDING MOVEMENT PERPENDICULAR TO SAID COIL AXIS AND WITH SAID KNOTS DISPLACED A QUARTER-TURN FROM THE CENTER LINE OF THE PATH OF SAID MOVEMENT.