Automatic packing apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR FILLING CONTAINERS WITH ROWS OF COMESTIBLE ARTICLES OR THE LIKE WHEREIN ADJACENT ROWS OF PACKED ARTICLES ARE SEPARATED WITH FLEXIBLE SPACERS, SAID APPARATUS COMPRISING A ROW-LOADING STATION INCLUDING CONVEYOR MEANS FOR SUPPORTING AND DELIVERING IN SEQUENCE INDIVIDUAL CONTAINERS FROM A SUPPLY SOURCE TO SAID STATION, ELECTRICALLY OPERABLE STOP MEANS MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID CONVEYOR FOR STOPPING THE TRAVEL OF A CONTAINER BOX THEREON, SAID MEANS BEING ADAPTED WHEN ELECTRICALLY ENERGIZED TO RELEASE SAID CONTAINER FOR ADVANCE TRAVEL, CONTAINER SENSOR MEANS MOUNTED ADJACENT SAID ROWLOADING STATION FOR PRODUCING A CONTROL SIGNAL IN RESPONSE TO THE ARRIVAL OF A CONTAINER TO BE LOADED, A STAGING STATION FOR DELIVERING AN ASSEMBLED ROW OF PRE-ORIENTED COMESTIBLE ARTICLES TO A POINT ADJACENT SAID LOADING STATION, MEANS FOR TRANSFERRING SAID ASSEMBLED ROW OF ARTICLES FROM SAID ASSEMBLY STATIOIN TO SAID CONTAINER, SAID MEANS INCLUDING PLURAL PNEUMATICALLY ACTUATED PICKUP HEADS, ONE FOR EACH ARTICLE, AND A SUPPORT ARM FOR SAID HEADS WITH DRIVE MEANS FOR TRANSPORTING SAID ARM AND SAID HEADS BETWEEN SAID ASSEMBLY STATION AND A STOPPED CONTAINER ON THE CONVEYOR, FIRST TRANSFER ARM SENSOR MEANS PROVIDED TO PRODUCE AN ARM-DELIVERY OUTPUT SIGNAL WHEN A ROW OF ARTICLES HAS BEEN DELIVERED TO SAID BOX, SECOND TRANSFER ARM SENSOR MEANS PROVIDED TO PRODUCE AN ARM-RETURN OUTPUT SIGNAL WHEN SAID ARM HAS RETURNED FROM SAID CONTAINER TO THE START POSITION, SPREADER MEANS MOUNTED ABOVE A STOPPED CONTAINER ON SAID CONVEYOR FOR SPREADING THE FLEXIBLE SPACERS DEFINING A ROW SPACE IN SAID CONTAINER, SAID MEANS INCLUDING A PAIR OF SPACED FINGERS MOUNTED FOR UP AND DOWN MOVEMENT ON A SUPPORT ELEVATOR, WITH CAM MEANS PROVIDED TO CLOSE AND THEN OPEN SAID FINGERS DURING THE DOWNWARD MOVEMENT OF THE ELEVATOR, REVERSIBLE DRIVE MEANS FOR DRIVING SAID ELEVATOR TO EITHER THE UP POSITION OR THE DOWN POSITION, FIRST CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE SIGNAL FROM SAID CONTAINER SENSOR FOR ENERGIZING SAID ELEVATOR DRIVE IN THE DOWN DIRECTION AND RESPONSIVE TO THE SIGNAL FROM THE ARM DELIVERY SENSOR FOR ENERGIZING SAID ELEVATOR DRIVE IN THE UP DIRECTION, AND SECOND CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SAID ARM-RETURN SIGNAL PROVIDED TO ENERGIZE SAID STOP MEANS AND THEREBY RELEASE SAID CONTAINER.