Machine for transferring indicia to cylindrical articles

Claim 2

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING INDICIA TO A SUCCESSION OF GENERALLY CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES WHILE THE ARTICLES ARE IN MOVEMENT, THE INDICIA BEING REMOVABLY ATTACHED TO AN ELONGATED WEB AND BEING SEQUENTIALLY SPACED ON SAID WEB AT FIXED INTERVALS, COMPRISING CONVEYOR MEANS FOR MOVING A SERIES OF ARTICLES SEQUENTIALLY ALONG AN ARTICLE TRANSPORT PATH, MEANS FOR MOVING AN INDICIA CARRYING WEB ALONG TRANSPORT PATH, A PORTION OF SAID WEB TRANSPORT PATH EXTENDING PARALLEL TO AND ADJACENT SAID ARTICLE TRANSPORT PATH, MEANS FOR TURNING ARTICLES WHILE THE ARTICLES ARE MOVING ON SAID ARTICLES TRANSPORT PATH TO CAUSE SAID ARTICLES TO ROLL ALONG SAID WEB AND AGAINST SAID INDICIA TO PEEL SAID INDICIA FRON SAID WEB, MEANS FOR SPACING SAID ARTICLES ON SAID ARTICLE TRANSPORT PATH, AND SENSOR MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE RELATIVE POSITIONS OF SAID INDICIA AND SAID ARTICLES FOR AUTOMATICALLY ACTUATING SAID SPACING MEANS DURING OPERATION OF SAID APPARATUS TO ADJUST THE SPACING OF SAID ARTICLES WHILE MAINTAINING SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT THE SPEED OF MOVEMENT OF SAID WEB.

Claim 3

Apparatus as in claim 1, wherein said conveyor means runs at a substantially constant speed, and said spacing means is operative to release articles at different time intervals for movement on said conveyor path.

Claim 4

Apparatus as in claim 2, wherein said spacing means comprises a timing screw and drive means for turning said screw at different speeds.

Claim 5

Apparatus as in claim 3, wherein said sensor means is connected to control said drive means in order to vary the speed of said timing screw.

Claim 6

Apparatus as in claim 1, wherein said article turning means comprises first belt means, second belt means spaced from said first belt means, said article transport path extending through said space between said first and second belt means, and said web transport path also extending through said space between said belt means and said web being in contact with said first belt means.

Claim 7

Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein one of said first and second belt means moves at a different speed than the other of said belt means, thereby causing said articles to turn.

Claim 8

Apparatus as in claim 5, wherein said second belt means comprises two spaced apart belts.

Claim 9

A MACHINE COMPRISING AN INDICIA TRANSFERRING MECHANISM, MEANS FOR MOVING A WEB THROUGH THE MECHANISM THE WEB HAVING INDICIA THEREON AT FIXED INTERVALS, MEANS FOR MOVING CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES THROUGH SAID MECHANISM AT SPACED INTERVALS, SAID MECHANISM INCLUDING MEANS FOR ROLLING EACH ARTICLE ALONG SAID WEB AND ACROSS AN INDICIUM TO PEEL AN INDICIUM FROM SAID WEB AND THEREBY ATTACH THE INDICIA TO THE ARTICLES, AND AUTOMATIC MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE SPACING BETWEEN ADJACENT ARTICLES DURING OPERATION OF SAID MACHINE AND WHILE MAINTAINING SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT THE SPEED OF MOVEMENT OF SAID WEB IN ORDER TO PROPERLY TIME THE ENTRANCE OF SAID ARTICLES AND SAID INDICIA INTO SAID MECHANISM.

Claim 10

A MACHINE COMPRISING AN INDICIA TRANSFERRING MECHANISM, MEANS FOR MOVING A WEB THROUGH THE MECHANISM THE WEB HAVING INDICIA THEREON AT FIXED INTERVALS, MEANS FOR MOVING CYLINDRICAL ARTICLES THROUGH SAID MECHANISM AT SPACED INTERVALS, SAID MECHANISM INCLUDING MEANS FOR ROLLING EACH ARTICLE ALONG SAID WEB AND ACROSS AN INDICIUM TO PEEL AN INDICIUM FROM SAID WEB AND THEREBY ATTACH THE INDICIA TO THE ARTICLES, AND AUTOMATIC MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE SPACING BETWEEN ADJACENT ARTICLES DURING OPERATION OF SAID MACHINE AND WHILE MAINTAINING SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT THE SPEED OF MOVEMENT OF SAID WEB IN ORDER TO PROPERLY TIME THE ENTRANCE OF SAID ARTICLES AND SAID INDICIA INTO SAID MECHANISM.

Claim 11

A machine as in claim 8, wherein said spacing adjusting means is operable to adjust said spacing to either a relatively long distance or a relatively short distance.

Claim 12

A machine as in claim 8, wherein said spacing adjusting means comprises a first sensor for sensing each article moving to said mechanism, and a second sensor for sensing each indicium moving to said mechanism.

Claim 13

Apparatus for applying indicia to a succession of articles while the articles are in movement, the indicia being removably attached to an elongated web and being sequentially spaced on said web at fixed intervals, comprising conveyor means for moving a series of articles sequentially along an article transport path, means for moving an indicia carrying web along a web transport path, an indicia transferring mechanism including means for turning articles to cause said articles to roll along said web and against indicia to peel said indicia from said web, said article transport path and said web transport path extending through said mechanism, spacing means adjacent said article transport path at a location which is upstream from said mechanism for spacing articles on said path, first sensor means on said article transport path between said mechanism and said spacing means, second sensor means on said web transport path and responsive to the entrance of indicia to said mechanism, and automatic control means connecting said first and second sensors with said spacing means for controlling the spacing of the articles entering said mechanism during operation of said apparatus and while maintaining substantially constant the speed of movement of said web.

Claim 14

Apparatus for applying indicia to a succession of articles while the articles are in movement, the indicia being removably attached to an elongated web and being sequentially spaced on said web at fixed intervals, comprising conveyor means for moving a series of articles sequentially along an article transport path, means for moving an indicia carrying web along a web transport path, an indicia transferring mechanism including means for turning articles to cause said articles to roll along said web and against indicia to peel said indicia from said web, said article transport path and said web transport path extending through said mechanism, spacing means adjacent said article transport path at a location which is upstream from said mechanism for spacing articles on said path, first sensor means on said article transport path between said mechanism and said spacing means, second sensor means on said web transport path and responsive to the entrance of indicia to said mechanism, and automatic control means connecting said first and second sensors with said spacing means for controlling the spacing of the articles entering said mechanism during operation of said apparatus and while maintaining substantially constant the speed of movement of said web.

Claim 15

Apparatus as in claim 11, wherein said spacing means comprises a rotatable timing screw and a two-speed drive for said screw.

Claim 16

Apparatus as in claim 12, wherein said control means comprises a time delay means connected to respond to said first and second seconsors, said time delay means being actuated into a timing interval when said first and second sensors simultaneously respond to an article and to an indicium, said time delay means actuating said drive to one of its two speeds during said timing interval and at other times actuating said drive to the other of said two speeds.

Claim 17

Apparatus as in claim 12, wherein said one speed is slower than said other speed.