US3992245A — Machine for delivering secondary work-pieces to p…

Claim 1

Independent Claim 481 words

A material handling machine for lifting secondary work-pieces from stacks thereof and delivering them to a primary work-piece, said machine comprising a frame, primary and secondary work-piece supports mounted on said frame for movement with respect to each other, a secondary work-piece upholding surface means mounted on said secondary work-piece support and having a first wall assembly thereon at least partially bounding a first stack area and for holding a first vertical stack of said secondary work-pieces in stacked position, a primary work-piece receiving surface means mounted on said primary work-piece support, a secondary work-piece first pick-up assembly mounted on one of said supports, said first pick-up assembly comprising at least a first work-piece-engaging pick-up member having a suction opening therethrough, said first pick-up member having a secondary work-piece-engaging exterior surface surrounding its said suction opening, said first pick-up being adapted to enter said first stack area for engaging a top secondary work-piece on said first stack, said first pick-up assembly having pneumatic conduit means connected to said suction opening at another side of said pick-up member from said secondary work-piece-engaging surface, first controllable pressure reducing means attached to said pneumatic conduit means and reducing the pressure at said suction opening to a lesser pressure than the pressure at the exterior of said first pick-up member whereby when said first pick-up member is in touch with a secondary work-piece the latter is caused to be held by suction against said work-piece-engaging surface of said first pick-up member, said frame having first and second frame sections supporting said primary and secondary work-piece-receiving surface means respectively, a controllable first moving assembly for moving said first pick-up member, said first moving assembly having a transfer portion attached to said first pick-up member and movably mounted on one of said work-piece supports and when activated in a first way moving said first pick-up member from a position above said first stack area to a release location above said primary work-piece receiving area, a first synchronizing control means operably correlated with said first controllable pressure reducing means and causing said lesser pressure to exist when said first pick-up member is above said first stack area and to cease for releasing a secondary work-piece when said first pick-up member is in a certain first release position which latter is above a primary work-piece, said first work-piece support having at least one other secondary work-piece receiving surface means, and a second and similarly describable secondary work-piece pick-up assembly mounted on one of said work-piece supports, means attached to said frame and moving said first and second work-piece supports so that said primary work-piece receiving surface means is moved with respect to said secondary work-piece receiving surface means so as to dispose first one then another of said secondary work-piece receiving surface means in a position adjacent to said primary work-piece receiving surface means automatically in a predetermined sequence.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 481 words

A material handling machine for lifting secondary work-pieces from stacks thereof and delivering them to a primary work-piece, said machine comprising a frame, primary and secondary work-piece supports mounted on said frame for movement with respect to each other, a secondary work-piece upholding surface means mounted on said secondary work-piece support and having a first wall assembly thereon at least partially bounding a first stack area and for holding a first vertical stack of said secondary work-pieces in stacked position, a primary work-piece receiving surface means mounted on said primary work-piece support, a secondary work-piece first pick-up assembly mounted on one of said supports, said first pick-up assembly comprising at least a first work-piece-engaging pick-up member having a suction opening therethrough, said first pick-up member having a secondary work-piece-engaging exterior surface surrounding its said suction opening, said first pick-up being adapted to enter said first stack area for engaging a top secondary work-piece on said first stack, said first pick-up assembly having pneumatic conduit means connected to said suction opening at another side of said pick-up member from said secondary work-piece-engaging surface, first controllable pressure reducing means attached to said pneumatic conduit means and reducing the pressure at said suction opening to a lesser pressure than the pressure at the exterior of said first pick-up member whereby when said first pick-up member is in touch with a secondary work-piece the latter is caused to be held by suction against said work-piece-engaging surface of said first pick-up member, said frame having first and second frame sections supporting said primary and secondary work-piece-receiving surface means respectively, a controllable first moving assembly for moving said first pick-up member, said first moving assembly having a transfer portion attached to said first pick-up member and movably mounted on one of said work-piece supports and when activated in a first way moving said first pick-up member from a position above said first stack area to a release location above said primary work-piece receiving area, a first synchronizing control means operably correlated with said first controllable pressure reducing means and causing said lesser pressure to exist when said first pick-up member is above said first stack area and to cease for releasing a secondary work-piece when said first pick-up member is in a certain first release position which latter is above a primary work-piece, said first work-piece support having at least one other secondary work-piece receiving surface means, and a second and similarly describable secondary work-piece pick-up assembly mounted on one of said work-piece supports, means attached to said frame and moving said first and second work-piece supports so that said primary work-piece receiving surface means is moved with respect to said secondary work-piece receiving surface means so as to dispose first one then another of said secondary work-piece receiving surface means in a position adjacent to said primary work-piece receiving surface means automatically in a predetermined sequence.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 90 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a secondary work-piece holding assembly for holding a vertical stack of generally horizontally extending secondary work-pieces which latter are of rectangular shape in top plan view, said wall means being on said holding assembly and said wall means defining four sides of a stack-space rectangular in top plan view, means mounting said stack-space wall means on said second frame section in a position for passage of said work-piece engaging surface of said first pick-up member between said sides of said stack-space wall means.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 34 words

The machine of claim 1 wherein said first pick-up assembly has an upstanding first post assembly, and a first post assembly mounting means mounting said first post assembly on said one of said supports.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 29 words

The machine of claim 1 further having pin means on said first work-piece support for holding thereon in precise positions a plurality of primary work-pieces having pin-receiving openings therein.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 75 words

The machine of claim 3 wherein said first pick-up assembly has a vertically movable elongated upholding means attached to and upholding and vertically moving with its said pick-up member, said upholding means being telescopably mounted on said first post assembly for vertical movement with respect thereto, and a spring correlated with said vertically moving upholding means and said first post assembly and urging said first upholding means downward to resiliently urge its pick-up member downward.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 72 words

The machine of claim 5 further having track follower and track means mounted on different ones respectively of said first post assembly and of said first vertically moving elongated upholding means and guiding the latter into vertical movements yet preventing rotation of the latter with respect to said post assembly so that secondary work-pieces carried by said first pick-up assembly can be delivered to said primary work-piece-receiving surface means with precise positioning.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 137 words

The machine of claim 4 in which said first post assembly is rotatable about a vertical axis so as to swing said pick-up member in a secondary work-piece delivery rotational motion from a first pick-up position adjacent said first stack area over to a first release position above said primary work-piece-receiving surface means, said first post assembly mounting means causing said first post assembly to rotate about said axis for causing said first pick-up member to define said first delivery motion, said first post assembly mounting means having as one of its portions a first post assembly vertical position control means causing said first post assembly to cause said first pick-up member to move upward from said first pick-up position and to remain upward during said swinging thereof and then to lower into said first delivery position.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 93 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a positioning assembly having a first section mounted on one of said supports and other spaced sections mounted on the other of said supports, said first positioning assembly section controllably engaging and disengaging whatever one of said other spaced positioning member sections it is adjacent, and means automatically causing said latter engagements whenever one of said secondary work-piece-receiving surface means is first disposed opposite said primary work-piece-engaging surface means and causing said latter disengagements prior to a movement of said supports with respect to each other.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 41 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a gluing assembly comprising gluing means delivering glue to the area of said primary work-piece-receiving surface means for engaging a primary work-piece at times when said supports are stationary with respect to each other.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 41 words

The machine of claim 9 in which said gluing assembly has a stencil with multiple openings in it and has a moving roller intermittently applying glue through said stencil openings when a primary work-piece supporting surface is opposite said gluing assembly.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 56 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a primary work-piece feed stack holding means mounted on a certain one of said supports, a primary work-piece feed pick-up assembly mounted on said certain support and moving primary work-pieces from said primary work-piece feed stack holding means on said certain support over to the other of said supports.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 55 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a primary work-piece finished stack holding means mounted on said certain one of said supports, a finished primary work-piece removal pick-up assembly mounted on said certain support and moving primary work-pieces to said primary work-piece finished holding means on said certain support from the other of said supports.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 162 words

The machine of claim 10 in which said gluing assembly has a frame and said roller has a roller frame mounted on the gluing assembly frame in a manner for reciprocation with respect thereto and reciprocating across said stencil for applying glue therethrough, a pair of cables connected to said roller frame and extending over inner and outer pulleys spaced apart along the pathway of reciprocating movement of said roller, a pneumatic cylinder mounted on said gluing assembly frame and having a piston therein, said cables extending from upper sides of each of said pulleys respectively each into an opposite end of said cylinder and each being connected to an opposite side of said piston, and first and second sealing means disposed at opposite ends of said cylinder and sealing the space between respective ones of said cables on the inner side of said cylinder and slidably receiving said cables snugly therethrough for maintaining pneumatic pressure at desired times in said cylinder.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 97 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a secondary work-piece holding assembly for holding a vertical stack of generally horizontally extending secondary work-pieces which latter are of rectangular shape in top plan view, said holding assembly having upwardly extending wall means, as seen in top plan view said wall means being disposed on four sides of a stack space rectangular in top plan view, means mounting said wall means on said secondary work-piece support in a position for passage of said work-piece engaging surface of said first pick-up member between said sides of said stack-space wall means.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 36 words

The machine of claim 1 wherein said first pick-up assembly has a first post assembly having a first upstanding post, and a first post mounting means mounting said first post on said one of said supports.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 36 words

The machine of claim 1 further having at least two pins attached to and extending upwardly from said first work-piece support for holding thereon in precise positions a plurality of primary work-pieces having pin-receiving openings therein.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 84 words

The machine of claim 15 wherein said first pick-up assembly has a vertically movable elongated upholding means attached to and upholding and vertically moving with and disposed above its said pick-up member, upholding means mounting means mounting said upholding means on said first post assembly telescopically for vertical movement with respect to said first post assembly, and a spring correlated with said vertically moving upholding means and said first post assembly and urging said upholding means downward to resiliently urge its pick-up member downward.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 152 words

The machine of claim 16 in which said upholding means is horizontally spaced from said first post and said first post is rotatable about a vertical axis so as to swing said pick-up member in a secondary work-piece delivery rotation motion from a first pick-up position adjacent said first stack area over to a first release position above said primary work-piece-receiving surface means, said first post mounting means causing said first post to rotate about said axis for causing said first pick-up member to define said first delivery motion, said first post mounting means having as one of its portions a first post vertical position control means connected to said first post and to said frame and causing said first post assembly to cause said first pick-up member to move upward from said first pick-up position and to remain upward during said swinging thereof and then to lower into said delivery position.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 213 words

The machine of claim 1 further havng a positioning assembly having a first section mounted on one of said supports and other spaced sections mounted on the other of said supports, said first positioning assembly section controllably initially moving toward and engaging said spaced positioning member sections one at a time as said positioning member sections are sequentially positioned opposite said first positioning member section whenever one of said secondary work-piece-receiving surface means and one of said primary work-piece-engaging surface means are disposed opposite each other, and said first positioning assembly section moving away from and out of the way of said other positioning assembly sections respectively prior to a movement of said supports with respect to each other, said first section and other sections of said positioning assembly having mutually engaging surfaces which latter are disposed in positions for guiding said first sections and each respective other section into precise positions with respect to each other laterally of the direction of relative movement of said supports as said first section and each sequential one of said other sections are moved towards each other respectively whereby said precise positioning of said first and other positioning assembly sections with respect to each other causes precise positionings of said supports with respect to each other.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 60 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a gluing assembly having a gluing assembly frame mounted on said secondary work-piece support, gluing means mounted on said gluing assembly frame and delivering glue to the area of said primary work-piece-receiving surface means for applying glue to a primary work-piece at times when said supports are stationary with respect to each other.

Claim 22

Dependent Claim 55 words

The machine of claim 20 in which said gluing assembly has a glue supply means, a stencil with multiple openings in it, a roller movably mounted on said glue assembly frame and intermittently rolling across said stencil and applying glue through said stencil openings when a primary work-piece supporting surface is opposite said gluing assembly.

Claim 23

Dependent Claim 36 words

The machine of claim 21 in which said glue assembly frame is slidably mounted on said secondary work-piece support and is movable toward and away from a primary work-piece supporting surface means which it is opposite.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 61 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a primary work-piece feed stack holding means mounted on said secondary work-piece support, a primary work-piece feed pick-up assembly of a general description similar to said first pick-up assembly and mounted on said primary work-piece support and moving primary work-pieces from said primary work-piece feed stack holding means over to said primary work-piece support.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 61 words

The machine of claim 1 further having a primary work-piece finished stack holding means mounted on said secondary work-piece support, a finished primary work-piece removal pick-up assembly of a general description similar to said first pick-up assembly and mounted on said secondary work-piece support and moving primary work-pieces to said primary work-piece finished stack holding means from said primary work-piece support.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1979-11-16	1980-05-17	1980-11-16	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1983-11-16	1984-05-17	1984-11-16	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	1987-11-16	1988-05-17	1988-11-16	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Machine for delivering secondary work-pieces to primary work-pieces

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