Feeding of groups of articles

Claim 1

ARTICLE FEEDING MECHANISM COMPRISING A FIRST CONVEYOR FOR FRICTIONALLY ADVANCING A LINE OF ABUTTING ARTICLES, LATCH MEANS RESTRAINING ADVANCE OF THE FOREMOST ARTICLE OF SAID LINE, A SECOND CONVEYOR ALIGNED WITH THE FIRST CONVEYOR AND HAVING SPACED LUGS MOVABLE ALONG A CLOSED PATH, A PORTION OF WHICH IS UPWARDLY INCLINED FOR ENGAGEMENT OF A LUG WITH THE TRAILING FACE OF AN ARTICLE SPACED TO THE REAR OF SAID FOREMOST ARTICLE TO SEPARATE THE GROUP OF ARTICLES BETWEEN IT AND THE FOREMOST ARTICLES FROM OTHER ARTICLES ON THE FIRST CONVEYOR AND ADVANCE SAID GROUP PAST SAID LATCH MEANS, THE RATE OF TRAVEL OF SAID LUGS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN THE RATE OF ADVANCE OF SAID FIRST CONVEYOR, MEANS FOR DETECTING A DIMINUTION IN THE LINE OF ABUTTING ARTICLES ON SAID FIRST CONVEYOR BELOW A POINT SUFFICIENT TO INSURE SEPARATION OF THE GIVEN NUMBER OF ARTICLES IN A GROUP PAST SAID LATCH MEANS, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO A SENSING OF SAID DETECTOR MEANS FOR DISPLAYING REMAINING ARTICLES OF SAID CONVEYOR LUGS A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT PATH OF TRAVEL OF SAID CONVEYOR LUGS A DISTANCE SUFFICIENT TO PREVENT THE LUGS FROM ENGAGING THE TRAILING FACE OF SUCH ARTICLES TO THEREBY PREVENT ADVANCE OF LESS THAN THE GIVEN NUMBER OF ARTICLES IN A GROUP PAST SAID LATCH MEANS AND MEANS FOR RETURNING SAID ARTICLES TO A POSITION FOR FEEDING FURTHER GROUPS OF ARTICLES WHEN THE LINE OF ARTICLES HAS AGAIN REACHED A PROPER LENGTH.