Carton transfer apparatus with effective constant length inverting arm

Claim 1

A carton transfer apparatus for transferring carton blanks between pickup and discharge locations by pivotally moving an inverting arm of fixed pivot length with a feed carrier on one end betwen the pickup and discharge locations and about a moving pivotal axis, comprising: (a) a frame (b) a drive arm pivotally secured to said frame for rotation about a first axis; (c) a track pivotally secured to said frame; (d) an inverting arm having a follower defining a pivotal axis, said inverting arm having a feed carrier at one end, the follower being positioned on said inverting arm and guided by said pivotal track which forms substantially the entire path of travel for said follower so as to control movement of the inverting arm, said inverting arm being pivotally connected to said drive arm and pivotally movable about the follower's pivotal axis in response to rotation of said drive arm about the first axis; and (e) means for rotating said drive arm about said first axis and guidingly moving the follower freely along said track and simultaneously pivoting the inverting arm about the follower's pivotal axis as the feed carrier is moved between the pickup and discharge locations, wherby the inverting arm has an effective fixed pivot length and is pivoted about a moving pivotal axis to avoid imposing acceleration on said inverting arm and maintain control and smooth transfer movement of the carton blanks.