US3712453A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus for transferring articles
Assignee: Ball Corp
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Filing: 1970-12-18
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Granted: 1973-01-23
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Expires: 1990-12-18
Abstract
Abstract Completely automatic system is disclosed for handling articles such as metal discs for closures of the two-piece type which are stamped and formed and then fed sealing face down to a conveyor belt. At first transfer zone, magnet pulls each disc or lid up against lower pass of second conveyor belt. Magnetic pulley retains lids in contact with belt to swing up through arc to upper pass of belt. Lids are then conveyed to treating zone where gasket material is applied as lids are rotated and transported arcuately. Radial arms on carousel travel in circle to pick up lids sequentially by magnetism or vacuum from coating table and transfer them to upper pass of next conveyor. At next transfer zone, lids are picked up sequentially by individual magnets on lower pass of next conveyor and moved to next transfer zone where they are released in groups to form transverse rows on wide conveyor belt. Belt passes through curing station and diverter realigns transverse rows to fore and aft single file. Next conveyor transfers and feeds lids sequentially to assembly zone. Closure bands are also fed sequentially to assembly zone and combined with lids to produce assembled two-piece closures. Lids may alternatively be fed to different assembly zone where they are packed in sets for shipping. One-piece closures with integral lid and flange may be formed and processed in same manner.
Inventors
- 👤 R Hurst
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-03 20:51
CPC Classifications
B; B21; B21D; B21D51/00; B21D51/16; B21D51/38; B21D51/44; B21D51/46
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
202 words
Apparatus for automatically transferring articles of paramagnetic material from a first conveyor to a second conveyor without surface damage, comprising: a first conveyor for carrying said articles; magnetic field creating means disposed in spaced relation above a portion of said first conveyor; a second conveyor having a portion disposed intermediate the magnetic field creating means and the first conveyor, said second conveyor including a second magnetic field creating means in the form of a magnetized pulley for guiding one end loop of the second conveyor through an arc of approximately 180 degrees in a vertical plane, said pulley being disposed adjacent an end of said first magnetic field creating means and cooperating therewith to produce a substantially continuous magnetic field, and said pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with the second conveyor during travel through said arc to invert the attitude of each article; and means for operating both of said conveyors so that said articles carried by the first conveyor will pass into the magnetic field and be forced by said field into contact with the overlying portion of said second conveyor and be retained thereagainst, and will be carried out of said magnetic field by said second conveyor.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
202 words
Apparatus for automatically transferring articles of paramagnetic material from a first conveyor to a second conveyor without surface damage, comprising: a first conveyor for carrying said articles; magnetic field creating means disposed in spaced relation above a portion of said first conveyor; a second conveyor having a portion disposed intermediate the magnetic field creating means and the first conveyor, said second conveyor including a second magnetic field creating means in the form of a magnetized pulley for guiding one end loop of the second conveyor through an arc of approximately 180 degrees in a vertical plane, said pulley being disposed adjacent an end of said first magnetic field creating means and cooperating therewith to produce a substantially continuous magnetic field, and said pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with the second conveyor during travel through said arc to invert the attitude of each article; and means for operating both of said conveyors so that said articles carried by the first conveyor will pass into the magnetic field and be forced by said field into contact with the overlying portion of said second conveyor and be retained thereagainst, and will be carried out of said magnetic field by said second conveyor.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
243 words
Apparatus for Conveying, transferring, and inverting articles having first and second faces, comprising: a first conveyor provided with an endless loop belt adapted to sequentially convey said articles, first face down, on its upper pass from a source of supply to a transfer zone; a second conveyor provided with an endless loop belt overlying the first conveyor at the transfer zone and extending in a direction generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the first conveyor to deliver said articles from the transfer zone to another zone; the lower pass of the second conveyor overlying the upper pass of the first conveyor in spaced relation; an elongate magnet overlying the lower pass of the second conveyor and the upper pass of the first conveyor and extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second conveyor; a magnetized pulley located laterally adjacent to the first conveyor and rotatable about a horizontal axis to guide the belt of the second conveyor from its lower pass in an arc to its upper pass, the first conveyor serving to sequentially deliver said articles under the lower pass of the second conveyor; said elongate magnet serving to attract said articles toward the lower pass of the second conveyor belt and retain them with their second faces in contact therewith; and said magnetized pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with said belt thereafter during its arcuate travel to invert said articles to a first face up attitude.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
243 words
Apparatus for Conveying, transferring, and inverting articles having first and second faces, comprising: a first conveyor provided with an endless loop belt adapted to sequentially convey said articles, first face down, on its upper pass from a source of supply to a transfer zone; a second conveyor provided with an endless loop belt overlying the first conveyor at the transfer zone and extending in a direction generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the first conveyor to deliver said articles from the transfer zone to another zone; the lower pass of the second conveyor overlying the upper pass of the first conveyor in spaced relation; an elongate magnet overlying the lower pass of the second conveyor and the upper pass of the first conveyor and extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second conveyor; a magnetized pulley located laterally adjacent to the first conveyor and rotatable about a horizontal axis to guide the belt of the second conveyor from its lower pass in an arc to its upper pass, the first conveyor serving to sequentially deliver said articles under the lower pass of the second conveyor; said elongate magnet serving to attract said articles toward the lower pass of the second conveyor belt and retain them with their second faces in contact therewith; and said magnetized pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with said belt thereafter during its arcuate travel to invert said articles to a first face up attitude.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
61 words
Apparatus as claimed in claim 2; said first conveyor being provided with a second belt; said first and second belts being adapted to deliver laterally adjacent pairs of articles to said second conveyor simultaneously; said elongate magnet serving to pick said articles up two at a time and retain them against the second conveyor belt to arrange them in single file.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
65 words
Apparatus as claimed in claim 3; and a source of supply adapted to deliver said articles sequentially to both of said first conveyor belts at selected time intervals; said belts being driven at sufficient speed to produce substantial gaps between successive articles to enable the second conveyor belt to remove each pair of articles from the transfer point before the arrival of the succeeding pair.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
50 words
Apparatus as claimed in claim 4; said source of supply being adapted to deliver said articles to each of the first conveyor belts alternately, resulting in a staggered relation; and means to drive said belts differentially to cause each related pair of articles to arrive at the transfer zone simultaneously.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
224 words
Apparatus for conveying, transferring, and inverting articles having first and second faces, comprising: a first conveyor provided with an endless loop belt adapted to sequentially convey said articles, first face down, on its upper pass from a source of supply to a transfer zone; a second conveyor provided with an endless loop belt overlying the first conveyor at the transfer zone to deliver said articles from the transfer zone to another zone; the lower pass of the second conveyor overlying the upper pass of the first conveyor in spaced relation; an elongate magnet overlying the lower pass of the second conveyor and the upper pass of the first conveyor and extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second conveyor; a magnetized pulley located immediately adjacent said elongate magnet and rotatably mounted to guide the belt of the second conveyor from its lower pass in an arc to its upper pass; the first conveyor serving to deliver sequentially said articles under the lower pass of the second conveyor; said elongate magnet serving to attract said articles toward the lower pass of the second conveyor belt and retain them with their second faces in contact therewith; and said magnetized pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with said belt thereafter during its arcuate travel to invert said articles to a first face up attitude.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
224 words
Apparatus for conveying, transferring, and inverting articles having first and second faces, comprising: a first conveyor provided with an endless loop belt adapted to sequentially convey said articles, first face down, on its upper pass from a source of supply to a transfer zone; a second conveyor provided with an endless loop belt overlying the first conveyor at the transfer zone to deliver said articles from the transfer zone to another zone; the lower pass of the second conveyor overlying the upper pass of the first conveyor in spaced relation; an elongate magnet overlying the lower pass of the second conveyor and the upper pass of the first conveyor and extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the second conveyor; a magnetized pulley located immediately adjacent said elongate magnet and rotatably mounted to guide the belt of the second conveyor from its lower pass in an arc to its upper pass; the first conveyor serving to deliver sequentially said articles under the lower pass of the second conveyor; said elongate magnet serving to attract said articles toward the lower pass of the second conveyor belt and retain them with their second faces in contact therewith; and said magnetized pulley serving to retain said articles in contact with said belt thereafter during its arcuate travel to invert said articles to a first face up attitude.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
168 words
An apparatus for moving articles of paramagnetic material from a first predetermined conveying means to a second predetermined conveying means, said apparatus comprising: means for supporting articles on said first predetermined conveying means; transfer conveying means having a receiving end adjacent to said first conveying means and a discharge end adjacent to said second conveying means; first magnetic force means adjacent to said transfer conveying means to sequentially cause articles at said first conveying means to terminate contact with said first conveying means and thereafter brought into contact with said transfer conveying means and retain them in said contact so that said transfer conveying means carries said articles to said second conveying means; second magnetic force means for maintaining said articles in contact with one of said conveying means; and means acting upon said articles in a direction other than the conveying direction to release said articles from said transfer conveying means at the discharge end thereof so that said articles are deposited at said second conveying means.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
168 words
An apparatus for moving articles of paramagnetic material from a first predetermined conveying means to a second predetermined conveying means, said apparatus comprising: means for supporting articles on said first predetermined conveying means; transfer conveying means having a receiving end adjacent to said first conveying means and a discharge end adjacent to said second conveying means; first magnetic force means adjacent to said transfer conveying means to sequentially cause articles at said first conveying means to terminate contact with said first conveying means and thereafter brought into contact with said transfer conveying means and retain them in said contact so that said transfer conveying means carries said articles to said second conveying means; second magnetic force means for maintaining said articles in contact with one of said conveying means; and means acting upon said articles in a direction other than the conveying direction to release said articles from said transfer conveying means at the discharge end thereof so that said articles are deposited at said second conveying means.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-01-23 | 1976-07-24 | 1977-01-23 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-01-23 | 1980-07-24 | 1981-01-23 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-01-23 | 1984-07-24 | 1985-01-23 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |