Method and apparatus for conveying linear articles

Claim 1

A conveyance apparatus for conveying linear articles while maintaining the specific orientation thereof, which apparatus comprises: a supply station for supplying linear articles having a specific orientation, said supply station including an electromatic feeder, and a main trough vibrated by said electromagnetic feeder in such a manner as to dispense a required amount of the linear articles; distribution means for distributing to a plurality of locations the linear articles supplied by said supply station, and for holding said linear articles at said locations, said distributing means including an arraying tray for receiving the linear articles dispensed by the main trough, said arraying tray having an opening in the bottom thereof, a mechanism for reciprocating said arraying tray along the direction of conveyance, and a stand-by tray adapted to be raised through the opening in said arraying tray, said stand-by tray having a multiplicity of V-shaped grooves in the floor thereof for receiving and holding the linear articles in said arraying tray as said stand-by tray is raised through said opening; a pair of walking beams having a multiplicity of first holders disposed along the direction of conveyance for taking up the distributed linear articles; a crank mechanism for oscillating said pair of walking beams while moving them in the direction of conveyance so that said first holders describe circular orbits; first holder drive means provided on said walking beams for actuating the first holders corresponding to those linear articles that are to be conveyed from the linear articles previously distributed articles to said plurality of locations, in order that the linear articles to be conveyed may be taken up from said previously distributed articles, linear articles being distributed to said plurality of locations so as to be positioned on the circular orbits of the actuated first holders, the linear articles on the circular orbits of said first holders being taken up by said actuated first holders in the course of their circular orbits, and being conveyed forwardly in the direction of conveyance; a weighing station provided with a plurality of weighing machines arranged in the direction of conveyance, each having a weighing scale, the linear articles distributed to said plurality of locations being conveyed selectively to the weighing scales of said weighing machines; a multiplicity of second holders provided on said walking beams along the direction of conveyance for taking up the linear articles conveyed to the weighing scales of said weighing machines; second holder drive means provided on said walking beams for actuating said second holders; and an electronic computing unit for forming combinations of weight values of the linear articles conveyed to the weighing scales of said weighing machines, for selecting from said combinations the best combination of weight values whose sum is closest to a preset target weight, and for causing said second holder drive means to actuate those second holders that correspond to the weighing machines which give said best combination of weight values, linear articles being deposited in each of said weighing scales so as to be positioned in the circular orbits of the actuated second holders, the linear articles on the circular orbits of said second holders being taken up by said actuated second holders in the course of their circular orbits and being conveyed to a discharge station and, at the same time, predetermined linear articles distributed to said plurality of locations are supplied to the weighing scales of said weighing machines that give the best combination, along the circular orbits of said first holders.