Bakery-product-stacking method and apparatus

Claim 3

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 1, and the intermediate step of inverting each product unit in at least one row following the releasing of the product units from the marshaling zone and prior to said diagonal movement.

Claim 4

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 2, and wherein said inverting step comprises turning over each product unit without displacing it laterally from its primary path of movement.

Claim 5

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 1, and the additional step of engaging each stacked pair of product units after their movement into stacked relationship to assure their longitudinal alignment and registration in the stack.

Claim 6

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 4, where said engagement to assure longitudinal alignment and registration comprises directing a fluid jet toward one side of the stack while engaging the opposite side of the stack with an abutment member.

Claim 9

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 6, and slidably supporting the product units moving on the diagonal path at an elevation slightly above the product units advancing in said other row, and said common moving element causing the product units sliding on the elevated diagonal path to move off of the support on which they are sliding and to then become stacked with the underlying product units of the superposed pairs of units.

Claim 10

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 2, and releasing the leading product units in one row after the lapsing of a predetermined time delay interval following the release of corresponding product units in the other row.

Claim 11

A method of arranging product units as defined by claim 6, and the additional step of inverting each product unit in at least one of said rows during said advancing of the product units.

Claim 12

Apparatus for handling product units comprising power conveyor means for moving product units from a marshaling station in two discrete rows, a diagonal crossover mechanism receiving the moving product units in one row and including means to convey the product units from said one row on a diagonal path toward superposed relation with corresponding product units of the other row, said crossover mechanism further including means to support the product units moving on said diagonal path at an elevation above the product units of said other row while maintaining transverse alignment of said corresponding product units, and an additional conveyor means common to the product units on said Diagonal path and in said other row and engaging pairs of said superposed product units in a manner to establish and maintain vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement while maintaining vertical separation of the product units, and advancing the superposed transversely aligned pairs together until the upper unit of each pair is removed from said supporting means and thereby rests upon the lower product unit of the pair in stacked relation.

Claim 13

Apparatus for handling product units comprising power conveyor means for moving product units from a marshaling station in two discrete rows, a diagonal crossover mechanism receiving the moving product units in one row and including means to convey the product units from said one row on a diagonal path toward superposed relation with corresponding product units of the other row, said crossover mechanism further including means to support the product units moving on said diagonal path at an elevation above the product units of said other row while maintaining transverse alignment of said corresponding product units, and an additional conveyor means common to the product units on said Diagonal path and in said other row and engaging pairs of said superposed product units in a manner to establish and maintain vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement while maintaining vertical separation of the product units, and advancing the superposed transversely aligned pairs together until the upper unit of each pair is removed from said supporting means and thereby rests upon the lower product unit of the pair in stacked relation.

Claim 14

Apparatus for handling product units as defined by claim 10, wherein said means to support the product units moving on said diagonal path comprises a generally horizontal plate over which the product units are moved by the conveyor means of the crossover mechanism, said plate having a slotted terminal portion overlying the conveyor means for the product units in said other row, and said additional conveyor means including spaced pusher elements which propel the product units of said other row and rise through the slots of said terminal portion to also engage the product units deposited thereon in said superposed relation by the conveyor means of the crossover mechanism.

Claim 15

Apparatus for handling product units as defined by claim 11, and means to adjust the height of at least the end of the crossover mechanism carrying said slotted terminal portion.

Claim 16

Apparatus for handling product units as defined by claim 11, and wherein the conveyor means for the product units in said other row includes a substantially level portion consisting of stationary parallel spaced bars having passages between them and through which passages said pusher elements also rise to engage rearwardly of the product units thereon.

Claim 17

The apparatus of claim 10, and a turnover mechanism for product units moving in one of said rows in advance of said crossover mechanism.

Claim 18

The apparatus of claim 14, and means supporting said turnover mechanism and operable to raise the mechanism to an inactive position and also allowing the mechanism to be shifted laterally from one discrete row to the other row for use in inverting the product units of the other row.

Claim 19

The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said turnover mechanism comprises a relatively stationary support structure, a rotary assembly on said support structure, means forming a turnover compartment on the rotary assembly adapted to receive individual product units from the conveyor means while in a substantially level position, and intermittently operable pusher device within said compartment forming an abutment to engage product units introduced into the compartment and later ejecting such product units from the compartment, and mechanism to rotate the rotary assembly intermittently and move said pusher device intermittently from one end of said compartment to the opposite end and to maintain the pusher device stationary during the rotation of the assembly.

Claim 20

The apparatus of claim 16, wherein said turnover compartment is formed by a pair of spaced parallel plates and the distance between the plates is sufficient to accommodate the thickness of one product unit.

Claim 21

The apparatus of claim 16, wherein said mechanism comprises at least one drive chain for said rotary assembly and pusher device having a connection with the pusher device and assembly and power means to move the drive chain on a substantially D-shaped path, the straight side of said path defining movement of the pusher device and the arcuate portion of the path defining rotary movement of said assembly.

Claim 22

The apparatus of claim 18, and wherein the rotary assembly comprises at least one low-friction bearing having an outer race secured to said support structure and a freely rotating inner race, said means forming the turnover compartment secured to the inner race.

Claim 23

The apparatus of claim 19, and linear guide rod means for the pusher device secured to said inner race and turning therewith.

Claim 24

The apparatus of claim 13, and mechanism connected with said pusher elements and maintaining them Upright at all times.

Claim 25

The apparatus of claim 21, wherein said mechanism comprises endless drive chains for said pusher elements, flights connected with said drive chains and carrying pusher elements in spaced apart rows and with the elements spaced laterally in each row, and an additional endless chain near one of the drive chains and being offset longitudinally relative thereto and pusher element erecting links interconnecting said additional chain and said one chain at each flight.

Claim 26

The apparatus of claim 10, and wherein the conveyor means of the crossover mechanism comprises spaced flights extending at right angles to said discrete rows and diagonally of the path defined by the crossover mechanism, alignment blades carried by said flights and extending forwardly thereof and substantially at right angles thereto and coacting with the flights to maintain the squareness and lateral alignment of product units moving on said diagonal path, and endless chain drive means for said flights.

Claim 27

The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the chain drive means for said flights is a pair of endless chains adjacent the sidewalls of the diagonal crossover mechanism including upper runs spaced substantially above the floor of the crossover mechanism and lower runs arranged close to said floor, whereby said flights may push the product units over said floor slidably in one direction, and means for maintaining said flights erect as they travel with said chains.

Claim 28

The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the erecting means comprises roller carriages on said flights engageable with the floor of the crossover mechanism along said lower run, and an elevated cam track on one sidewall of the crossover mechanism engageable with said carriages along said upper runs.

Claim 29

The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said power conveyor means comprises a product infeed conveyor conveyor section including relatively slack infeed belts supporting the product units at said marshaling station, substantially rigid rods arranged slightly below the belts and between the belts at the marshaling station, and vertically movable product holddown grids above the belts at the marshaling station operable to press product units against the rods for restraining the units while the slack belts slide beneath the product units.

Claim 30

The apparatus of claim 10, and power means connected with the holddown grids to raise and lower the same relative to said belts independently.

Claim 31

The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the power means to raise and lower the grids independently is a cylinder piston unit connected with each grid near the forward end thereof.

Claim 32

The apparatus of claim 28, and means to bodily adjust the elevation of the cylinder piston units.

Claim 33

The apparatus of claim 26, and a pair of relatively large soft compressible product infeed rollers closely following said infeed conveyor section and holddown grids and adapted to receive between them leading product units released by the holddown grids and advance such product units forwardly at increased speed toward further apparatus components without damaging said product units.

Claim 34

The apparatus of claim 30, and a product unit turnover device closely following the infeed rollers and having a shallow product compartment to receive product units from the infeed rollers preparatory to inverting such product units.

Claim 35

Apparatus for handling product units comprising a marshaling station including product infeed conveyor sections and means to interrupt the movement of product units on the infeed conveyor sections so that a substantial number of product units can accumulate at the marshaling station in two discrete rows, a product-inverting mechanism for the product units in at least one row downstream form the marshaling station, a product rapid infeed mechanism between the marshaling station and said inverting mechanism to deliver individual product units in a controlled and timed sequence from the marshaling station to the inverting mechanism, downstReam product conveyor means for product units in the two rows following the inverting mechanism, a crossover conveyor downstream of said last-named conveyor means to carry product units in one row on a diagonal path toward and above corresponding product units of the second row, and an additional conveyor means common to the product units of the two rows near the discharge end of the crossover conveyor engageable with product units from both rows arranged in superposed pairs and delivering the same in stacked relationship to a discharge end of the apparatus.

Claim 36

Apparatus for handling product units comprising a marshaling station including product infeed conveyor sections and means to interrupt the movement of product units on the infeed conveyor sections so that a substantial number of product units can accumulate at the marshaling station in two discrete rows, a product-inverting mechanism for the product units in at least one row downstream form the marshaling station, a product rapid infeed mechanism between the marshaling station and said inverting mechanism to deliver individual product units in a controlled and timed sequence from the marshaling station to the inverting mechanism, downstReam product conveyor means for product units in the two rows following the inverting mechanism, a crossover conveyor downstream of said last-named conveyor means to carry product units in one row on a diagonal path toward and above corresponding product units of the second row, and an additional conveyor means common to the product units of the two rows near the discharge end of the crossover conveyor engageable with product units from both rows arranged in superposed pairs and delivering the same in stacked relationship to a discharge end of the apparatus.

Claim 37

The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the rapid infeed mechanism comprises a pair of infeed rollers in substantially vertically spaced relation, and transfer roller means on opposite sides of the infeed rollers and between such rollers and the infeed conveyor sections and inverting mechanism.

Claim 38

The apparatus of claim 33, and wherein the tops of said infeed conveyor sections, transfer roller means and the lowermost infeed roller lie substantially in a common plane in advance of the product inverting mechanism.

Claim 41

Apparatus for stacking one product unit upon another comprising: means for moving the product unit in one row toward and over the product unit in the other row while maintaining transverse alignment of the units, means for advancing the resultant superposed and vertically separated product units in a manner to establish and maintain vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement while maintaining vertical separation of the product units, and means for depositing the top product unit on the bottom product unit while maintaining said vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement to produce a transversely aligned stack of product units.

Claim 42

Apparatus for stacking one product unit upon another comprising: means for moving the product unit in one row toward and over the product unit in the other row while maintaining transverse alignment of the units, means for advancing the resultant superposed and vertically separated product units in a manner to establish and maintain vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement while maintaining vertical separation of the product units, and means for depositing the top product unit on the bottom product unit while maintaining said vertical alignment transversely of the direction of movement to produce a transversely aligned stack of product units.

Claim 43

A method as defined in claim 34 including means for aligning the transversely aligned stack longitudinally of the direction of movement.

Claim 44

Apparatus as defined in claim 36 and including means for aligning the transversely aligned stack longitudinally of the direction of movement.