Apparatus for automatically depalletizing ferrous metal cans

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY DEPALETIZING FERROUS METAL CANS AND DELIVERING THEM TO A TAKE-AWAY BELT OR OTHER REMOVAL MEANS IN A UNIFORMLY ORIENTED POSITION COMPRISING IN COMBINATION: A VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE PALLET PLATFORM ADAPTED TO RECEIVE A PALLET LOADED WITH SEPARATED LAYERS OF FERROUS METAL CANS ARRANGED IN LINES; POWER AND CONTROL MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE HEIGHT OF THE PLATFORM; A MAGNETIC CONVEYOR BELT MOUNTED ABOVE THE PALLET PLATFORM AND FURNISHING A MAGNETIC FIELD ON ITS OUTER SURFACE SUFFICIENT TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN FERROUS METAL CANS WHEN IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THEM; PULLEYS ROTATABLY SUPPORTING SAID MAGNETIC BELT, THE AXES OF THE PULLEYS BEING MOUNTED IN VERTICALLY MOVALBE SUPPORTS, POWER MEANS TO DRIVE SAID BELT-SUPPORTING PULLEYS; POWER AND CONTROL MEANS FOR LOWERING AND RAISING SAID PULLEY SUPPORTS, WHEREBY THE LOWER RUN OF THE MAGNETIC BELT MAY BE BROUGHT INTO CLOSE PROXIMITY TO FERROUS METAL CANS ARRANGED ON A PALLET ON SAID PALLET, PLATFORM AND THEREAFTER REMOVED FROM SUCH CLOSE PROXIMITY, WHEREBY CANS RETAINED ON ITS LOWER RUN MAY BE DELIVERED TO A RECEIVING MEANS; MEANS FOR TRAVERSING THE MAGNETIC BELT PERPENDICULARLY TO ITS RUN ACROSS A PALLET ON SIAD PALLET PLATFORM, SAID MEANS COMPRISING A WHEELD CARRIGE, HORIZONTAL CARRIAGE-SUPPORTING RAILS PERPENDICULAR TO THE RUN OF THE MAGNETIC BELT, A FRAMEWORK FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON SAID CARRIAGE AND ADAPTED TO SUPPORT SAID MAGNETIC BELT, SAID BELT PULLEYS AND SAID PULLEY SUPPORTS IN SPACED OPRABLE RELATION, POWER MEANS ARRANGED TO TRAVERSE SAID CARRIAGE IN EITHER DIRECTION ACROSS SAID PALLET PLATFORM, AND CONTROL MEANS ADAPTED TO ARREST AND INITIATE TRAVERSE OF SAID CARRIAGE IN EITHER DIRECTION AS REQUIRED; A CAN-RECEIVING MEANS COMPRISING A FLEXIBLE TRANSFER TUBE HAVING A CROSS SECTION ADAPTED TO RECEIVE AND MAINTAIN IN UNIFORM ORIENTATION FERROUS METAL CANS DELIVERED BY THE MAGNETIC BELT, THE RECEIVING END OF SAID TUBE BEING MAINTAINED IN ALINEMENT WITH THE DELIVERY END OF THE MAGNETIC BELT BY A TUBE SUPPORT AFFIXED TO SAID CARRIAGE WHEREBY CANS CARRIED BY THE MAGNETIC BELT ARE ENTERED INTO THE TUBE, MEANS FOR URGING THE DELIVERED CANS THROUGH THE TUBE, THE DELIVERY END OF THE TRANSFER TUBE BEING FIXEDLY MOUNTED ADJACENT A REMOVAL MEANS AND EJECTION MEANS MOUNTED ADJACENT THE DELIVERY END OF THE TRANSFER TUBE ADAPTED TO EJECT CANS ONE BY ONE FROM THE TRANSFER TUBE ONTO THE REMOVAL MEANS IN UNDISTRUBED ORIENTATION.