Control system for molding machines and the like

Claim 1

IN A SYSTEM FOR THE AUTOMATIC CONTROL OF AN APPARATUS PRODUCING A SERIES OF WORKPIECES, THE COMBINATION WITH AN ELECTRIC CIRCUIT ADAPTED TO BE TRIGGERED UPON THE OUTPUT OF WORKPIECES FROM SAID APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING SAID APPARATUS, OF: GUIDE MEANS AT SAID APPARATUS FORMING A PATH FOR THE WORKPIECES DISCHARGED THEREFROM; SENSING MEANS ALONG SAID GUIDE PATH AND RESPONSIVE TO THE PASSAGE OF A WORKPIECE THEREALONG, SAID SENSING MEANS INCLUDING AN ELONGATED ELEMENT EXTENDING ABOVE SAID PATH TRANSVERSELY THEREOF AND JOURNALED FOR ROTATION ABOUT A LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID ELEMENT, A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY OFFSET SENSING LEAVES DEPENDING FROM SAID ELEMENT INTO SAID PATH AND JOURNALED ON SAID ELEMENT FOR INDEPENDENT ROTATION THEREON, AND ABUTMENT MEANS ON SAID ELEMENT AND ON SAID LEAVES FOR ROTATABLE ENTRAINING SAID ELEMENT ALONG WITH ONE OF SAID LEAVES DEFLECTED IN ONE ROTATIONAL SENSE BY A WORKPIECE TRAVERSING SAID PATH WHILE PERMITTING SAID LEAVES TO SWING FREELY RELATIVELY TO SAID ELEMENT IN THE OPPOSITE ROTATIONAL SENSE; AND SWITCH MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH AND ACTUATABLE BY SAID ELEMENT UPON ROTATION OF SAID ELEMENT BY ONE OF SAID LEAVES AND CONNECTED IN SAID CIRCUIT FOR OPERATING SAME TO CONTROL SAID APPARATUS UPON DISPLACEMENT OF SAID ONE OF SAID LEAVES BY A WORKPIECE DISCHARGED FROM SAID APPARATUS.