Small article dispenser and counter

Claim 2

Apparatus for dispensing a predetermined number of articles from a storage container into a separate receptacle comprising: means for temporarily positioning said storage container on said apparatus so that the articles may be dispensed therefrom; counting means; a vibrator adapted to be activated by said counting means and de-activated thereby when a predetermined number of articles have been dispensed; means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position; means for transporting said articles from said storage container to said receptacle including: a chute member, means for receiving vibratory motion from said vibrator, and flexible means disposed between said container and said chute portion; means for temporarily attaching said transporting means to said storage container; means for transmitting the vibratory motion from said vibrator to said transporting means whereby said predetermined number of articles are caused to move through said transporting means into said receptacle; wherein said chute member has a triangularly shaped outlet and is adapted to be rotated so that the apex of each angle of the triangle may be moved to the lowermost position and act as the outlet angle.

Claim 3

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the angles forming said triangularly shaped chute portion each differ from each other so as to accommodate different sized and shaped articles.

Claim 4

The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the means for receiving vibratory motion from said vibrator is a cam adjacent said chute member and the flexible means disposed between said chute member and the storage container is a flexible elbow.

Claim 5

The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said counting means includes a photoelectric cell which intercepts a beam of light in the path of the articles as they emerge from the outlet of the chute member and into the receptacle, whereby each of said articles interrupts said beam of light, and means interconnected between said cell and said vibrator to de-activate said vibrator after a predetermined number of articles have interrupted said beam of light.

Claim 6

The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said angles of said chute member are about 30*, 60* and 90*.

Claim 7

The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the chute includes an insert in the form of a ribbon having its ends secured flat against the two sides of said chute which define said angle of 90*.

Claim 8

The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said flexible elbow has baffling means therein for restricting the flow of articles into the chute.

Claim 9

The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position comprise two arms having overlapping jaws for holding said receptacle, said arms being adjustable with respect to each other so as to accommodate varying sized receptacles.

Claim 10

Apparatus for dispensing a predetermined number of articles from a storage container into a separate receptacle comprising: means for temporarily positioning said storage container on said apparatus so that the articles may be dispensed therefrom; counting means; a vibrator adapted to be activated by said counting means and de-activated thereby when a predetermined number of articles have been dispensed; means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position; means for transporting said articles from said storage container to said receptacle; means for temporarily attaching said transporting means to said storage container; means for transmitting the vibratory motion from said vibrator to said transporting means whereby said predetermined number of articles are caused to move through said transporting means into said receptacle; said transporting means including a dispensing chute and a hollow flexible member for connecting said container with said chute, and a baffle located within said flexible member and secured to the end of said flexible member adjacent said chute, said baffle being formed of relatively rigid material, and a resilient rod secured to said baffle and extending upwardly therefrom into said container for transmitting vibrations from said baffle to articles within the bottom portion of said container, said rod being formed of the same material as said baffle and having a relatively small diameter.

Claim 11

Apparatus for dispensing a predetermined number of articles from a storage container into a separate receptacle comprising: means for temporarily positioning said storage container on said apparatus so that the articles may be dispensed therefrom; counting means; a vibrator adapted to be activated by said counting means and de-activated thereby when a predetermined number of articles have been dispensed; means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position; means for transporting said articles from said storage container to said receptacle; means for temporarily attaching said transporting means to said storage container; means for transmitting the vibratory motion from said vibrator to said transporting means whereby said predetermined number of articles are caused to move through said transporting means into said receptacle; said transporting means including a dispensing chute and a hollow flexible member for connecting said container with said chute, and a baffle located within said flexible member and secured to the end of said flexible member adjacent said chute, said baffle being formed of relatively rigid material, and a resilient rod secured to said baffle and extending upwardly therefrom into said container for transmitting vibrations from said baffle to articles within the bottom portion of said container, said rod being formed of the same material as said baffle and having a relatively small diameter.

Claim 12

Apparatus for dispensing a predetermined number of articles from a storage container into a separate receptacle comprising: means for temporarily positioning said storage container on said apparatus so that the articles may be dispensed therefrom; counting means; a vibrator adapted to be activated by said counting means and de-activated thereby when a predetermined number of articles have been dispensed; means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position; means for transporting said articles from said storage container to said receptacle; means for temporarily attaching said transporting means to said storage container; means for transmitting the vibratory motion from said vibrator to said transporting means whereby said predetermined number of articles are caused to move through said transporting means into said receptacle; said transporting means including a dispensing chute and a flexible member for connecting said container with said chute, said flexible member having a hollow chamber therein, and a baffle located within said chamber and secured to the end of said flexible member adjacent said chute, said baffle being formed of self-supporting material and having a plurality of panels secured interiorly thereto to define a passageway leading from said container to said chute which increases in cross section in stepwise fashion from said container tO said chute.

Claim 13

Apparatus for dispensing a predetermined number of articles from a storage container into a separate receptacle comprising: means for temporarily positioning said storage container on said apparatus so that the articles may be dispensed therefrom; counting means; a vibrator adapted to be activated by said counting means and de-activated thereby when a predetermined number of articles have been dispensed; means for maintaining said receptacle in a receiving position; means for transporting said articles from said storage container to said receptacle; means for temporarily attaching said transporting means to said storage container; means for transmitting the vibratory motion from said vibrator to said transporting means whereby said predetermined number of articles are caused to move through said transporting means into said receptacle; said transporting means including a dispensing chute and a flexible member for connecting said container with said chute, said flexible member having a hollow chamber therein, and a baffle located within said chamber and secured to the end of said flexible member adjacent said chute, said baffle being formed of self-supporting material and having a plurality of panels secured interiorly thereto to define a passageway leading from said container to said chute which increases in cross section in stepwise fashion from said container tO said chute.

Claim 14

The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said baffle includes a tubular portion having a circular cylindrical cross section, and an outwardly extending flange secured to the end of said tubular portion, and locking means for securing said flange to said flexible member adjacent said chute.

Claim 15

The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said flexible member has an outwardly extending flange adjacent the flange of said baffle, said resilient flange having a plurality of protuberances thereon, and the flange of said baffle having a plurality of apertures aligned with said protuberances to secure said baffle member and said resilient member in aligned relation.

Claim 16

The apparatus of claim 12, wherein a cam member is included, surrounding a portion of said flexible member and said baffle inwardly of said flanges, said cam member having a tubular portion adapted to extend outwardly beyond the said flanges, and said locking means comprises a ring adjustably threaded onto said cam member whereby rotation of said ring relative to said cam member is effective to adjust the amount of compression between said flanges.