Coordinated conveyor and programmed apparatus

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION, PROGRAM-CONTROLLED APPARATUS HAVUNG A MAIN BASE AND INCLUDING A WORK DEVICE, A CONVEYOR FOR TRANSPORTING AN ARTICLE ALONG A PATH PAST SAID PROGRAM-CONTROLLED APPARATUS, AND RECIPROCABLE DRIVING MEANS FOR TRANSPORTING SAID BASE FORWARD ALONG THE CONVEYOR TO ENABLE THE WORK DEVICE TO PERFORM PRESCRIBED OPERATIONS ON AN ARTICLE WHILE IN TRANSIT AND TO RETURN THE BASE TO A STARTING POSITION PREPARATORY TO THE ADVANCE OF ANOTHER ARTICLE, SAID PROGRAM-CONTRALLED APPARATUS INCLUDING SUPPORTING AND ARCUATING MEANS FOR MOVING SAID WORK DEVICE IN MULTIPLE DEGREES OF FREEDOM, PROGRAM-CONTROLL MEANS IN MEANS COOPERATING WITH SAID PROGRAM-CONTROL MEANS AND CONTROL MEANS FOR SAID ACTUATING MEANS AND FOR SAID WORK DEVICE CONTROLLED BY SAID SENSING MEANS, AND COORDINATING MEANS FOR INITIATING OPERATION OF SAID PROGRAMCONTROLLED APARATUS AND SAID BASE-DRIVING MEANS AND SAID COORDINATING MEANS INCLUDING ARTICLE-POSITION INDICATING ELEMENTS MOVABLE COORDINATELY WITH SAID CONVEYOR AND CONTROL MEANS FOR SAID BASE-DRIVING MEANS MOVABLE COORDINATELY WITH SAID PROGRAM-CONTROLLED APPARATUS AND COOPERABLE WITH SAID ARTICLE-POSITION INDICATING MEANS FOR MAINTRAINING PRESCRIBED ORIENTATION OF SAID PROGRAM-CONTROLLED APPARATUS IN RELATION TO AN ARTICLE ON THE CONVEYOR DURING THE PROGRAM-CONTROLLED OPERATION OF SAID APPARATUS.