Power and free conveyor system

Claim 2

A conveyor traveling along a conveyor line comprising in combination, a power rail, a free rail which is provided beneath said power rail in parallel there-to and at a suitable interval therefrom to allow added components to pass through between both of said rails, a conveying means with rollers provided with a movable cam in contact with said free rail and which can freely move along said rail, when coupled, and which is arranged above said free rail, a power trolley below said power rail comprising rollers which movably contact with said power rail for the movement of said trolley below said rail, a moving means connected with said trolley in order to make said trolley move along said power rail, a lever means on said trolley comprising a pusher which can freely move vertically and is arranged below said power rail to be coupled to a coupling means and which is provided with rollers, at least on one side, which combine said power trolley and a conveying means in order to move it together with said power trolley, and a subrail which is arranged at least on one side of said free rail to project slightly upward from said rail in order to steadily keep up the coupling state between said pusher and said free trolley, and which guides said rollers of said pusher, an upper guide rail arranged in a falling gradient section of the conveyor line and above said subrail at a suitable interval in order to prevent said rollers on at least said one side of said conveyor line which move along said free rail from escaping upward, a bracket, upon which are arranged lever means for a predetermined number of power trolleys connected with said moving means and which is firmly fixed to the lower end of said trolley to extend backward and angularly downward, and a pusher which is fixed to said bracket by a pivot to freely swing and extends forward and descendingly downward.

Claim 3

In a conveyor having: a. a power rail (1) held in space and generally disposed parallel to the surface beneath said rail; b. a free rail (15) under said power rail and parallel thereto, disposed at a suitable distance therefrom so that additional components can pass therebetween; c. at least one conveying means (20) with rOllers (38) movably connected to said free rail (15), for free movement therealong beneath said rail; d. coupling means (18, 19) arranged above and connected to said conveying means which when engaged will then move said conveying means along said rail; e. a power trolley (5) mounted under said power rail (1) including rollers movably connected to said power rail for movement of said trolley under said rail; f. moving means (7) connected with said power trolley (5) for moving said trolley along said power rail (1); g. lever means on said power trolley including a pusher (9) with rollers (13, 14) disposed under said power rail (1) to engage said coupling means (18, 19) for linking said power trolley and said conveying means so as to move said conveying means with said power trolley; a bracket (8) in which are disposed said lever means firmly fixed to the lower end of said power trolley to extend backward and angularly downward, said pusher being fixed to said bracket by a pivot to freely swing and extends forward and angularly downward; h. subrails (37) which are arranged on both sides of said free rail projecting slightly over said rail to maintain the coupling state between said pusher and said free trolley by guiding said rollers (13, 14), said rollers normally rolling on said subrails; i. a stopper having a pusher force plate (39) with an upper end (39a) coinciding with a moving locus of the lower end of one of said rollers (13, 14) in a normal condition and which will project upward from said locus when said lever means is released from said coupling means so that at least one of said conveying means will be stopped, the improvement therein wherein: j. said coupling means includes a leading main free trolley which has a pair of tilting dogs (18, 19) engaged by said pusher (9) and a rear subfree trolley which is connected with said main free trolley at the rear end section of which is a cam element (21) having a U-shaped notch (32), said cam element being fixed to said subfree trolley so as to swing horizontally at the curved section of the conveyor line along the inner side of said subrail.

Claim 4

In a conveyor having: a. a power rail (1) held in space and generally disposed parallel to the surface beneath said rail; b. a free rail (15) under said power rail and parallel thereto, disposed at a suitable distance therefrom so that additional components can pass therebetween; c. at least one conveying means (20) with rOllers (38) movably connected to said free rail (15), for free movement therealong beneath said rail; d. coupling means (18, 19) arranged above and connected to said conveying means which when engaged will then move said conveying means along said rail; e. a power trolley (5) mounted under said power rail (1) including rollers movably connected to said power rail for movement of said trolley under said rail; f. moving means (7) connected with said power trolley (5) for moving said trolley along said power rail (1); g. lever means on said power trolley including a pusher (9) with rollers (13, 14) disposed under said power rail (1) to engage said coupling means (18, 19) for linking said power trolley and said conveying means so as to move said conveying means with said power trolley; a bracket (8) in which are disposed said lever means firmly fixed to the lower end of said power trolley to extend backward and angularly downward, said pusher being fixed to said bracket by a pivot to freely swing and extends forward and angularly downward; h. subrails (37) which are arranged on both sides of said free rail projecting slightly over said rail to maintain the coupling state between said pusher and said free trolley by guiding said rollers (13, 14), said rollers normally rolling on said subrails; i. a stopper having a pusher force plate (39) with an upper end (39a) coinciding with a moving locus of the lower end of one of said rollers (13, 14) in a normal condition and which will project upward from said locus when said lever means is released from said coupling means so that at least one of said conveying means will be stopped, the improvement therein wherein: j. said coupling means includes a leading main free trolley which has a pair of tilting dogs (18, 19) engaged by said pusher (9) and a rear subfree trolley which is connected with said main free trolley at the rear end section of which is a cam element (21) having a U-shaped notch (32), said cam element being fixed to said subfree trolley so as to swing horizontally at the curved section of the conveyor line along the inner side of said subrail.

Claim 5

A conveyor as claimed in claim 2, wherein said pusher force plate (39) has a polygon shape and can freely rotate, while in said subrail with an upper side in the same horizontal plane as the upper end of the subrail, a first gradient side and a second gradient side, making a obtuse angle, and when said pusher force plate is rotated for a fixed angle, the first gradient side rises up to be horizontal to project above said sub-rail and is positioned at a height over said tilting dogs (18, 19).

Claim 6

A conveyor as claimed in claim 3, including a pressure cylinder means disposed over said power rail, a bell crank lever, a connecting lever, and a rod connecting said pressure cylinder means and said force plate so as to rotate said force plate.

Claim 7

A conveyor as claimed in claim 4, including a second power rail, said first and second power rails having curved sections and a converting point, a first pusher ascending rail with roller leading-in gradient sections and roller-discharging gradient sections respectively provided along and above said curved sections of said rails, a pusher leading-in means behind said first pusher-ascending rail, but above said first free rail and at an interval slightly wider than the diameter of said rollers of said pusher.

Claim 8

The conveyor as claimed in claim 5, including a fixed upper plate of said roller leading-in means, a movable lower plate which is arranged at a fixed interval from said fixed upper plate and which said rollers of said pusher contact and a spring which constantly presses down on said lower plate.

Claim 9

The conveyor according to claim 5, wherein said pusher has inside and outside rollers, and the inside roller pushes the rear end section of said cam, while the outside roller contacts said roller leading-in means.