Accumulating conveyor

Claim 2

An accumulator conveyor comprising, in combination, frame means including a pair of longitudinal laterally spaced frame members, a plurality of article carrier rollers, defining a path of travel and supported by said frame means for rotation about axes substantially transverse to said path, said carrier rollers defining at least two discrete zones of rollers, drive means operatively associated with each discrete zone and adapted to effect driving rotation of at least one of the carrier rollers in the corresponding zone so as to effect movement of an article having engagement with said rotationally driven roller in said corresponding zone, each drive means including a clutch wheel having a frustoconical peripheral drive surface, support bracket means supported by one of said frame members for pivotal movement about a pivot axis substantially parallel to said path of travel and supporting said clutch wheel for rotation about an axis lying in a plane substantially normal to a plane containing the axes of said carrier rollers and for pivotal movement with said support bracket means between a position wherein said peripheral drive surface of said clutch wheel engages at least one carrier roller in the corresponding zone with said peripheral drive surface substantially parallel to the rotational axis of said carrier roller, and a position wherein said clutch wheel is spaced from said at least one carrier roller, and means operatively associated with said clutch wheel for effecting continuous rotation thereof, and control means including sensor means associated with each of said discrete zones and adapted to be actuated by an article disposed within the corresponding zone, and actuator means operatively associated with each of said support bracket means and being responsive to actuation of sensor means within a selected one of the other zones to disengage an associated clutch wheel within a zone upstream from the zone in which an article is detected so as to stop driven movement of an article disposed within said upstream zone when an article is halted within said selected one of said other zones.

Claim 3

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said support bracket means comprises a clutch bracket pivotally mounted on a selected one of said longitudinal frame members for pivotal movement about a generally fixed pivot axis substantially parallel to said path of travel.

Claim 4

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 2 wherein each of said clutch brackets has a hinge tab formed thereon received through an opening in the selected one of said longitudinal frame members and retained therein so as to be pivotable about a pivot axis substantially parallel to said path of travel.

Claim 5

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein each clutch wheel support bracket means includes means facilitating manual adjustment of the axis of the associated clutch wheel relative to its associated carrier roller.

Claim 6

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein each actuator means comprises a fluid pressure actuator, said control means further including a sensor control valve operatively associated with the fluid pressure actuator of each of said discrete zones and adapted to connect the associated fluid pressure actuator to a source of fluid pressure, each of said sensor control valves having operative association with sensor means in a zone different from the zone in which its associated fluid pressure actuator is located.

Claim 7

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 5 wherein each of said zone includes a plurality of carrier rollers, said drive means associated with each zone including at least two clutch wheels adapted for driving relation with different ones of said carrier rollers within the corresponding zone, said control means including a fluid pressure actuator operatively associated with each of said clutch wheels in each zone, each sensor control valve being adapted to connect all of the fluid pressure actuators within a zone to a source of fluid pressure and having operative association with sensor means disposed in a different zone.

Claim 8

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said clutch wheels and associated support bracket means are positioned so that each clutch wheel is adapted to engage a pair of adjacent carrier rollers in driving relation therewith.

Claim 9

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein the sensor means in at least one of said conveyor zones has operative association with the actuator means in said one of said zones so as to effect disengagement of the clutch wheels disposed within said one of said zones from their associated carrier rollers when an article is stopped within said one of said zones.

Claim 10

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 wherein said means for effecting continuous rotation of said clutch wheel includes drive belt means.

Claim 11

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 9 wherein said drive belt means has operative association with all of said clutch wheels so as to effect simultaneous rotation thereof.

Claim 12

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 10 wherein said drive belt means comprises an endless drive belt supported by said frame means and having a reach extending substantially transverse to said clutch wheels in driving engagement therewith.

Claim 13

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 1 including means biasing each of said clutch wheel support bracket means toward positions wherein the associated clutch wheels are spaced from their corresponding carrier rollers.

Claim 14

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 12 wherein said biasing means is adjustable to selectively vary the biasing force acting on said clutch wheel support bracket means.

Claim 15

In a conveyor having a plurality of article support rollers rotatably supported on frame means and defining a path of travel for articles disposed thereon, said frame means including a pair of laterally spaced longitudinal frame members, the combination therewith comprising drive means operatively associated with at least one of the article support rollers and adapted to effect driving rotation thereof, said drive means including a clutch wheel having a frustoconical peripheral drive surface, support bracket means supporting said clutch wheel for rotation about its longitudinal axis with said longitudinal axis lying in a plane substantially perpendicular and transverse to said path of travel, said support bracket means being pivotally mounted on one of said frame members and movable about a generally fixed pivot axis substantially parallel to the path of travel defined by said support rollers between a first position wherein said clutch wheel is spaced from the associated article support roller and a second position wherein said clutch wheel engages said associated support roller in driving relation therewith, said support bracket means and said clutch wheel being adapted to position said clutch wheel so that its peripheral drive surface is substantially parallel to the axis of said associated support roller when said clutch wheel is in said driving relation therewith, and means operatively associated with said clutch wheel and adapted to effect driving rotation thereof so as to effect driving rotation of said associated support roller when said clutch wheel is in driving relation therewith.

Claim 16

In a conveyor having a plurality of article support rollers rotatably supported on frame means and defining a path of travel for articles disposed thereon, said frame means including a pair of laterally spaced longitudinal frame members, the combination therewith comprising drive means operatively associated with at least one of the article support rollers and adapted to effect driving rotation thereof, said drive means including a clutch wheel having a frustoconical peripheral drive surface, support bracket means supporting said clutch wheel for rotation about its longitudinal axis with said longitudinal axis lying in a plane substantially perpendicular and transverse to said path of travel, said support bracket means being pivotally mounted on one of said frame members and movable about a generally fixed pivot axis substantially parallel to the path of travel defined by said support rollers between a first position wherein said clutch wheel is spaced from the associated article support roller and a second position wherein said clutch wheel engages said associated support roller in driving relation therewith, said support bracket means and said clutch wheel being adapted to position said clutch wheel so that its peripheral drive surface is substantially parallel to the axis of said associated support roller when said clutch wheel is in said driving relation therewith, and means operatively associated with said clutch wheel and adapted to effect driving rotation thereof so as to effect driving rotation of said associated support roller when said clutch wheel is in driving relation therewith.

Claim 17

The combination as defined in claim 14 wherein said clutch wheel has an annular groove formed therein facilitating driving connection of said clutch wheel with a drive belt.

Claim 18

The combination as defined in claim 14 including actuating means operatively associated with said support bracket means and operative to effect selective pivotal movement thereof about said pivot axis.

Claim 19

The combination as defined in claim 16 including means biasing said support bracket means toward a pivotal position wherein said clutch wheel is disposed in its said first position.

Claim 20

The combination as defined in claim 14 wherein said drive means includes a driven endless belt, said clutch wheel having an annular groove therein having continual cooperation with said driven belt so as to effect rotation of said clutch wheel, said clutch wheel and driven belt having cooperating relation so that said belt does not engage said article support rollers during operation of the conveyor.

Claim 21

An accumulator conveyor comprising, in combination, frame means, a plurality of article carrier rollers defining a path of travel and supported by said frame means for rotation about axes substantially transverse to said path, said carrier rollers defining at least two discrete zones of rollers, drive means operatively associated with at least one of said discrete zones and adapted to effect driving rotation of at least one of the carrier rollers in the corresponding zone so as to effect movement of an article having engagement with said rotationally driven roller in said corresponding zone, said drive means including a clutch wheel having a frustoconical peripheral drive surface, means supporting said clutch wheel for rotation about an axis lying in a plane substantially normal to a plane containing the axes of said carrier rollers and for pivotal movement about a pivot axis substantially parallel to said path of travel between a position wherein said clutch wheel directly engages said at least one carrier roller in the corresponding zone and a position spaced from said at least one carrier roller, said support means and said clutch wheel being adapted to position said clutch wheel so that its peripheral drive surface is substantially parallel to the axis of said at least one carrier roller when said clutch wheel is moved into driving engagement with said at least one carrier roller from a position spaced therefrom, means operatively associated with said clutch wheel for effecting continuous rotation thereof, and control means including sensor means associated with each of said discrete zones and adapted to be actuated by an article disposed within the corresponding zone, and actuator means operatively associated with each of said clutch wheel support means and being responsive to actuation of sensor means within a selected one of the other zones to disengage an associated clutch wheel within a zone upstream from the zone in which an article is detected so as to stop driven movement of an article disposed within said upstream zone when an article is halted within said selected one of said other zones.

Claim 22

An accumulator conveyor comprising, in combination, frame means, a plurality of article carrier rollers defining a path of travel and supported by said frame means for rotation about axes substantially transverse to said path, said carrier rollers defining at least two discrete zones of rollers, drive means operatively associated with at least one of said discrete zones and adapted to effect driving rotation of at least one of the carrier rollers in the corresponding zone so as to effect movement of an article having engagement with said rotationally driven roller in said corresponding zone, said drive means including a clutch wheel having a frustoconical peripheral drive surface, means supporting said clutch wheel for rotation about an axis lying in a plane substantially normal to a plane containing the axes of said carrier rollers and for pivotal movement about a pivot axis substantially parallel to said path of travel between a position wherein said clutch wheel directly engages said at least one carrier roller in the corresponding zone and a position spaced from said at least one carrier roller, said support means and said clutch wheel being adapted to position said clutch wheel so that its peripheral drive surface is substantially parallel to the axis of said at least one carrier roller when said clutch wheel is moved into driving engagement with said at least one carrier roller from a position spaced therefrom, means operatively associated with said clutch wheel for effecting continuous rotation thereof, and control means including sensor means associated with each of said discrete zones and adapted to be actuated by an article disposed within the corresponding zone, and actuator means operatively associated with each of said clutch wheel support means and being responsive to actuation of sensor means within a selected one of the other zones to disengage an associated clutch wheel within a zone upstream from the zone in which an article is detected so as to stop driven movement of an article disposed within said upstream zone when an article is halted within said selected one of said other zones.

Claim 23

An accumulator conveyor as defined in claim 19 wherein said peripheral drive surfaces are defined by relatively high coefficient of friction surfaces formed on said clutch wheels.