US3884347A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus for orienting articles having magnetic projections
Assignee: AT&T Inc
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Filing: 1973-12-14
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Granted: 1975-05-20
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Expires: 1993-12-14
Abstract
Abstract An apparatus for orienting articles such as axially leaded tantalum capacitors, each having a magnetic lead at one end and a nonmagnetic lead at the other end. The apparatus includes a pair of counterrotating cylinders spaced apart to form a gap therebetween which is small enough to prevent passage of the capacitors therethrough. The cylinders have magnetic inserts therein which attract the magnetic leads to align the capacitors by pulling the leads into the gap as the cylinders rotate. The capacitors, being too large to pass through the gap, will be supported by the cylinders. Helical grooves cut in the surface of one of the rotating cylinders engage the capacitors, as they are being aligned, to advance the capacitors along the gap to a discharge station. The helical grooves may include a single queuing groove just upstream of the discharge station to receive the capacitors after they have been oriented and to stabilize the capacitors before they are discharged. If a capacitor happens to become misoriented, a rotating disk with magnetic studs attracts and removes the capacitor from the gap before it arrives at the discharge station.
Inventors
- 👤 Ronald V Gallagher
- 👤 Robert R Swanson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 21:13
CPC Classifications
H; H05; H05K; H05K13/00; H05K13/02; H05K13/022; B; B65; B65G; B65G47/00; B65G47/22; B65G47/24
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
104 words
An apparatus for orienting an article having a body portion with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles, comprising: a rotatable cylinder; a surface extending adjacent to the rotatable cylinder and spaced from the rotatable cylinder to define a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portion so that the article is supported between the cylinder and the surface; means for creating a magnetic field in the gap to attract the magnetizable pole into the gap to thereby orient the article; and means for moving the oriented article in the gap upon rotating the cylinder to clear the gap to receive and orient a subsequent article.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
104 words
An apparatus for orienting an article having a body portion with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles, comprising: a rotatable cylinder; a surface extending adjacent to the rotatable cylinder and spaced from the rotatable cylinder to define a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portion so that the article is supported between the cylinder and the surface; means for creating a magnetic field in the gap to attract the magnetizable pole into the gap to thereby orient the article; and means for moving the oriented article in the gap upon rotating the cylinder to clear the gap to receive and orient a subsequent article.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
35 words
The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the moving means includes at least one helical groove in the cylinder surface to receive the article and move the article relative to the cylinder as the cylinder rotates.
Claim 4
Independent Claim
147 words
An apparatus for orienting articles having body portions with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portions but wider than the poles so that the articles may be supported by the surfaces of the cylinders with one or the other of the poles extending into the gap; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the articles are supported toward the gap so that the articles remain above the gap; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable poles into the gap while the articles are supported above the gap to orient the articles with the magnetizable poles extending into the gap; and means for advancing the articles along the gap upon rotating the cylinders to clear the gap to receive and orient subsequent articles.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
147 words
An apparatus for orienting articles having body portions with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portions but wider than the poles so that the articles may be supported by the surfaces of the cylinders with one or the other of the poles extending into the gap; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the articles are supported toward the gap so that the articles remain above the gap; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable poles into the gap while the articles are supported above the gap to orient the articles with the magnetizable poles extending into the gap; and means for advancing the articles along the gap upon rotating the cylinders to clear the gap to receive and orient subsequent articles.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
36 words
The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the advancing means includes at least one helical groove formed in one of the cylinders which engages the articles and moves the articles along the gap as the cylinders rotate.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
41 words
The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the magnetic field is produced by arrays of magnetic inserts mounted in at least one of the cylinders to attract the magnetizable poles and pull the magnetizable poles into the gap as the cylinders rotate.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
54 words
The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the magnetic inserts are mounted in both of the cylinders and wherein the individual inserts on one cylinder align with corresponding individual inserts on the other cylinder so as to juxtapose the inserts in aligned relation across the gap and create a strong magnetic field in the gap.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
203 words
An apparatus for orienting articles having body portions with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portions but wider than the poles along a narrower section of the gap, and which is wider than both the poles and body portions along a wider section of the gap so that the articles while in the narrow section are supported by the surfaces of the cylinders and so that the articles can fall through the gap when in the wider section; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the articles are supported toward the gap so that The articles remain in the gap while in the narrow section; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable poles into the gap while the articles are supported in the gap to orient the articles with the magnetizable poles extending into the gap; and helical means disposed on one of said cylinders for advancing the oriented articles in the gap as the cylinders rotate so as to move the articles to the wider section of the gap where the oriented articles fall through the gap.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
203 words
An apparatus for orienting articles having body portions with magnetizable and nonmagnetizable poles comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portions but wider than the poles along a narrower section of the gap, and which is wider than both the poles and body portions along a wider section of the gap so that the articles while in the narrow section are supported by the surfaces of the cylinders and so that the articles can fall through the gap when in the wider section; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the articles are supported toward the gap so that The articles remain in the gap while in the narrow section; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable poles into the gap while the articles are supported in the gap to orient the articles with the magnetizable poles extending into the gap; and helical means disposed on one of said cylinders for advancing the oriented articles in the gap as the cylinders rotate so as to move the articles to the wider section of the gap where the oriented articles fall through the gap.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
147 words
The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the helical means includes: an array of helical grooves disposed adjacent to the narrow section of the gap wherein each groove in the array has a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion of an article and wherein each groove in the array has a pitch which is long enough to accommodate a plurality of similar grooves between each convolution of each groove so as to advance numerous articles rapidly; and a single groove disposed downstream of the array of grooves, said single groove having a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion and a pitch substantially shorter than the pitch of the grooves in the array so as to vertically align the articles and to advance the articles slower than the array advances the articles to thereby stabilize the articles before they fall through the gap.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
38 words
The apparatus of claim 8 further including a supporting shelf extending partially along the narrow section of said gap and juxtaposed with said single groove to support the articles while the articles are stabilized by the single groove.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
57 words
The apparatus of claim 9 further including means disposed above the gap to attract the magnetizable pole of any article which might happen to be misoriented with the magnetizable pole thereof extending away from the gap instead of into the gap to thereby remove the article from the gap before the misoriented article falls through the gap.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
320 words
An apparatus for orienting axially leaded electrical components each having a body portion with a magnetizable lead extending from one end and a nonmagnetizable lead extending from the other end, comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portion but wider than the leads along a narrow section and which is wider than both the leads and body portions along a wider section so that the components while in the narrow section are supported by the surfaces of the cylinders and so that the components fall through the gap when in the wider section; means for directing the components into the gap; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the components are supported toward the gap so that the components remain in the gap while in the narrow section; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable leads into the gap while the components are supported in the gap to orient the components with the magnetizable leads extending through the gap; an array of helical grooves disposed adjacent to the narrow section of the gap wherein each groove in the array has a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion of a component and wherein each groove in the array has a pitch which is long enough to accommodate a plurality of similar grooves between each convolution of each groove so as to advance numerous components rapidly; and a single groove disposed downstream of the array of grooves, said single groove having a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion of a component and a pitch substantially shorter than the pitch of the grooves in the array so as to vertically align the article and to advance the components slower than the array advances the articles to thereby stabilize the oriented components before they fall through the gap.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
320 words
An apparatus for orienting axially leaded electrical components each having a body portion with a magnetizable lead extending from one end and a nonmagnetizable lead extending from the other end, comprising: a pair of cylinders with juxtaposed outer surfaces defining a gap therebetween which is narrower than the body portion but wider than the leads along a narrow section and which is wider than both the leads and body portions along a wider section so that the components while in the narrow section are supported by the surfaces of the cylinders and so that the components fall through the gap when in the wider section; means for directing the components into the gap; means for counterrotating the cylinders to move the surfaces upon which the components are supported toward the gap so that the components remain in the gap while in the narrow section; a means for disposing a magnetic field to attract the magnetizable leads into the gap while the components are supported in the gap to orient the components with the magnetizable leads extending through the gap; an array of helical grooves disposed adjacent to the narrow section of the gap wherein each groove in the array has a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion of a component and wherein each groove in the array has a pitch which is long enough to accommodate a plurality of similar grooves between each convolution of each groove so as to advance numerous components rapidly; and a single groove disposed downstream of the array of grooves, said single groove having a width wide enough to positively engage a body portion of a component and a pitch substantially shorter than the pitch of the grooves in the array so as to vertically align the article and to advance the components slower than the array advances the articles to thereby stabilize the oriented components before they fall through the gap.
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) | 1978-05-19 | 1978-11-18 | 1979-05-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-05-19 | 1982-11-18 | 1983-05-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-05-19 | 1986-11-18 | 1987-05-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |