Tooling for vibratable bowl

Claim 1

For use with a vibratable bowl adapted to impart motion along a predetermined axially progressing spiral path to shaped articles of common geometric configuration each including an enlarged portion and a shank portion, and defining a radially extending annular shoulder portion therebetween, and selected from a supply of randomly disposed such articles in said bowl; means operatively connected with said bowl for orienting the articles and for constraining the path of travel thereof to a discharge gate, said means including a track portion having a fixed upstanding wall portion and an adjacent adjustable upstanding wall portion spaced from said track in an axial direction opposite the outer marginal edge of said track portion to define an axial slot along said track of substantially uniform width, and means for axially adjusting the width of said slot for escapement of a portion of each of said shaped articles and retention of said enlarged portion thereof, an outwardly extending downwardly inclined apron along the outer marginal edge of said track portion, means adjacent the discharge gate for returning to the random supply of shaped articles any articles no portion of which extends through said slot including an abrupt discontinuity in the inner marginal edge of the track and the balance of track portion prior to the discharge gate being downwardly and inwardly sloped, said discharge gate including: a. a vertically disposed single straight downwardly sloped planar rail tangentially continuing the outer marginal edge of said track and positioned and dimensioned to support said shaped article on its edge by the radially extending shoulder of said shaped article and to engage the shank portion; b. a generally L-shaped member having vertically disposed planar baffle plate portion and a horizontally disposed portion including elongated parallel slots, said baffle plate being radially outwardly spaced from and adjacent said rail to define a discharge slot having a width greater than the thickness of the shank portion and less than the thickness of the enlarged portion and being shaped to engage only the enlarged portion; c. a pair of C-shaped brackets secured to the fixed upstanding wall portion at spaced points adjacent the discharge gate and extending outwardly therefrom for supporting said baffle plate; and d. means for adjusting the width of said discharge slot in a radial direction including a spacer bar supported between said C-shaped brackets and bolts coacting in the slots between said horizontally disposed portion of said L-shaped member and said spacer bar, to allow movement of said baffle plate in a radial direction from said rail to permit said baffle plate to adjust the width of said discharge slot.