CA1312037C - Rotary feeder to orient and feed bottle caps and similar parts - Google Patents
Rotary feeder to orient and feed bottle caps and similar partsInfo
- Publication number
- CA1312037C CA1312037C CA 505121 CA505121A CA1312037C CA 1312037 C CA1312037 C CA 1312037C CA 505121 CA505121 CA 505121 CA 505121 A CA505121 A CA 505121A CA 1312037 C CA1312037 C CA 1312037C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- articles
- bowl
- ramp
- guide ring
- ledge
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
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- Feeding Of Articles To Conveyors (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A rotary feeder for articles is provided and consists of a rotating bowl that has a domed floor and an upper ledge, an inclined stationary ramp that will carry the articles from the domed floor to the upper ledge, a stationary guide ring that has an exit port and a device for rejecting improper positioned articles before the articles are discharged from the exit ramp of the guide ring.
A rotary feeder for articles is provided and consists of a rotating bowl that has a domed floor and an upper ledge, an inclined stationary ramp that will carry the articles from the domed floor to the upper ledge, a stationary guide ring that has an exit port and a device for rejecting improper positioned articles before the articles are discharged from the exit ramp of the guide ring.
Description
1 31 ~37 BACKGROUND OF THE~I,NVENTION
The instan-t invention relates generally to article feeding apparatuses and more specifically it relates -to a rotary feeder for articles such as bo-ttle caps.
Numerous apparatuses have been provided in prior art that are adapted to feed articles therethrough. For e~ample, U.S. patents numbered 3,065,841; 3,285,387; 3,338,372;
3,599,829; 3,669,260; 3,~26,405; 3,831,734, 3,g00,107;
3,912,120; 4,006,812; 4,093,062 and 4,092,412 all are illustrative of such prior art. While these units may be sui-table for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purpose of the present invention, as heretofore described.
SUMMARY OF_T_IE I_~ ENTIQN
A principle object of the present inven-tion is to provide a rotary feeder for articles that will feed only properly positioned ar-ticles to a remo-te location of use.
Another object is to provide a rotary Eeeder for ar-ticles tha-t can be adjusted -to accommodate ar-ticles of various sizes and shapes.
An additional objec-t is to provide a rotary -Eeeder for articles that will preven-t jam-up of the articles so -that the feeder will require a minimum o-F care and attention.
A further object is to provide a rotary eeder for articles that is economical in cost to manufacture.
A still further object is to provide a rotary ~eeder for articles that is simple and easily, and ~ully adjustable.
A still additional further object is to to provide a rotary feeder for bottle caps and similar parts that has a minimum of production down time since they are adjus~ed rapidly simply by turning one or two knobs and the discharge bracket chute assembly.
Further objects o the invention will appear as the description proceeds.
To the accomplishment o the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described within the scope of the appended claims.
BRIEF DESÇRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FI~
The figures in the drawings are briefly described as follows:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first form of the invention showing the caps sliding up the stationary ramp onto the upper ledge of the bowl.
Figure 2 is a perspective view thereof showing an air jet pushing bad (open side down) caps back into the bowl.
Figure 3 is a perspective view thereof showing the caps discharged from the exit ramp.
Figure 4 is a diagrammatic perspective view in cross section of the bowl with parts 'oroken awayO
Figure 5 is a top plan view of a second form of the invention showing the air jet rejector.
Figure ~ is a top plan view thereoE with parts broken away showing the electronic sensor.
Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view of the operation of the electronic sensor.
Figure 8 is a perspective view in cross section of a third form of the invention adapted for spout caps.
Figure 9 is an elevational view of three different types of spout caps that can be used in figure 8.
DETAILED DE~C_ PTION OF T~IE PREFERR~L~ aL~
Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, figures 1 through 4 illustrate a rotary feeder 10 that includes a rouncl bowl 12, spinning clockwise on a vertically mounted shaft 14. The bottom of the bowl is a domed floor 16 such that articles, in this case bottle caps 18, when dumped into the bowl, slide to the outside perimeter of the bowl. The caps 18 are dumped into the center of the rotating bowl 12 from a cap supply hopper (not shown) above the :Eeeder 10. The caps 18 will be delivered to the bowl 12 on demand only and this will be determined by a switch (not shown) that is inserted into the bowl and is physically or photo electrically in contact with -the caps being oriented. Once the caps are in the inside of the bowl 12 they will be Eorced by centrifugal force, back pressure, and gravity to the outside perimeter of the bowl.
Figure 1 shows how the caps 18 are forced onto an upper ledge 20 of the bowl 12 by sliding up an inclined s-tationary ramp 22 approxima-tely five or six inches to the upper ledge.
The ramp 22 is a tube or can be a flat plane 22a as sen in figure 5. Attached to the top of -the ramp is an air line 24.
~ 3 1 ~037 The air escapes through a series of air jets 26 which are arranged in a spiral fashion such that the caps 18 are pushed up the ramp so that the cups are flipped over allowing for the majority of the caps to be in the good open side up position.
The ramp 22 has a mounting pos-t 28 attached to a ramp support bracket 30 which goes half way across the upper end of a stationary housing 31. Support bracket 30 is bolted to side of housing 31 by two bolts for rigidity.
There is an adjustable guide ring 32 around approximately half of the perimeter of the upper ledge 20 of the rotary bowl 12 such that the cap diameters can be presented to lay flatly on the upper ledge and is supported by only one or two screws 48 for easy adjustment. This guide ring 32 serves only as a leaning wall and has no mechanical function other than to keep the caps in a single file and to be adjusted depending upon cap diameters. The drive shaft 14 is driven by a variable D.C. motor 82 and gear box 84. This variable speed input is used for diEferent stylings of caps such that each style of cap has its optimum performance speed.
Cap discrimination is assisted with the use of a proximity switch 34 which is mounted on the guide ring 32 just above the caps being oriented. This proximi-ty swi-tch 34 senses the caps 18 as to whether they are open side up or open side down. If the cap is open side up, it will be sensed by the proximity switch 34 as a good cap and it will be allowed to pass without being rejected. IE, however, the cap is open side down when it passes under the proximity switch, it will be sensed as a bad cap and a momentary air burst from an air 1 ~ ~ 2037 jet 36 located below the proximity switch 34 will reject the cap by pushing it back into the bowl 12~ These good caps on the upper ledge 20 will then proceed in a clockwise direction, until they are discharged from an exit ramp 38 where they will be used for a future process (see Figure 3).
Figure 5 shows a first modified rotary feeder 10a. The caps 18 are dumped into the center of a bowl 12a in the same manner as in feeder 10. the caps are spun to the outside edge of the clockwise rotating bowl and are facilitated by a domed floor 16a which helps to push them to the edge. Once they are at the periphery of the bowl, they are pushed up the ramp 22a.
the ramps 22 and 22a both have ingers 40 which fit into grooves 42 on the domed floors 16 and 16a; so as to give a continuous smooth surface for the caps to climb up the ramp.
The ramp 22a like 22, is supported by a ramp support bracket 30a, and does not rotate with the bowl but is rather fixed to a stationary housing 31a of the feeder 10a. The ramp 22a can be changed in varying widths to accommodate wider or narrower caps. The bracket 30a is only a partial bracket as shown in figure 5 and allows for ample clearance for the caps 18 being dumped in. Once the caps are sent up the ramp 22a the top of the ramp has a slight twist that will push and turn the caps onto an upper ledge 20a and can ei-ther use air assist as in ramp 22 or only by back pressure from -the other caps in the feeder pushing up the ramp. They move from the ramp along the upper ledge to an ad]ustable wiper bar 44 where all the stacked up caps are pushed bac~ into the bowl with only one level of caps permitted to pass the point of the wiper bar 44.
From here, -they continue to a spring steel ledge width selector 46 which is adjusted with a screw 48a. It is made of a spring steel metal so that when the adjusting screw 48a for the ledge width selector is turned, it will increase or decrease the width of the upper ledge 20a the cap 18 is riding on. An adjustmen~ can be made from a 13mm diameter cap to a 70mm diameter cap or more depending on the width oE the upper ledge 20a. The width of this ledge is important because at the point of where the adjusting screw 48a for the ledge width selector is, the caps are selected. This selection is accomplished in several ways that will be discussed later.
In addition, the spring steel ledge width selector 46 is inserted at two points 50, 50 through the housing 31a of the feeder lOa which keeps the spring steel ledge width selector 46 levels flat and at a positive position at all times. After the caps have been selected at or about point "X" only the caps that are open side up still remain on the upper ledge 20a with the caps continuing in a clockwise fashion to an adjustable exit wiper 520 This wiper is made adjustable by a support bracket 54 mounted on the housing 31a of the feeder lOa. Its function is to push the cap 18 tha-t is now hanging over the edge of the upper ledge 20a of the bowl 12a back against the housing 31a of the feeder lOa so that it may exit on an exit ramp 38a, while at the same time being ~uided by a discharge bracket assembly 56.
The majority of flat cap styles are preferably selected for by the use of a single air jet 58 placed over the point "X" so that all selections of upside down or open side up caps ~ 31 2037 is done at or near point "X". This air jet 58 is mounted on a slotted bracket 60 and can be adjusted both horizontally and vertically by the bracket. It is adjusted sideways by actually directing the air jet 58 onto the cap. The principle of how the air jet works is simple. Once the cap 18 is positioned on the upper ledge 20a so that it is hanging over the upper ledge, the air jet 5~ will actually push the open side up cap against the outside wall of the spring steel ledge width selector ~6 and prevents it from falling back into the bowl 12a. However, if the cap is upside down, the same air jet 58 will work in a different fashion. It will actually push down on the edge of the cap 18 that is closest to the center of the bowl which will cause it to fall back into the bowl. Once they have passed the air jet 58 only the open side up caps 18 will remain and be discharged in the fashion described earlier. In addition, the pressure of air applied to this cap is critical and needs to be adjusted depending upon the weight and size of the cap. This air pressure is adjusted with the use of a simple valve 58a.
In cases not shown where the caps are not flat, two of these air jets 58 are used side by side. The first air jet is used to reject the caps that are laying on their side and these caps are pushed by air and roll off the upper ledge 20a and pushed back into the bowl 12a. After the first air jet, only the caps that will remain are the caps that are open side up or open side down, and these caps will be selected for the same as a typical ~lat cap described above.
In figure 6 the selection is done at point "X" by using both an air jet 62 and a photo electric sensor 64. The sensor 64 is mounted on the spring steel width selector 46 directly above the cap. The air jet 62 is placed behind the spring steel ledge width selector 46 being directed through a hole in the spring steel width selector. There the proximity switch sensor 64 will determine if the cap is open side up or open side down. If it is open side up, the sensor 64 will allow for the cap 18 to pass by and not switch on the air jet 62 as shown in figure 7. However, if the cap is open side down once it is under the sensor, the air jet 62 will ba activated and will push the cap to be rejected back into the bowl 12a.
This rejection can be accomplished by air physically pushing the cap 18 back into the bowl 12a or by a small piston of an ejector solenoid (not shown~ pushing the cap back into the bowl, since both work satisfactorily. The schematic drawing for this control is shown in detail in figure 7.
Amplifier 66 is set on low ampliEication for dark-on operation. When the sensor 64 does not "see" the cap 18, the amplifier 66 will activate the air jet 62 of ejector solenoid by a switch 67. A time delay relay 68 can be added to shut off the air jet or ejector solenoid when no cap is detected after a predetermined amount of time. The distance between the top of the cap 18 and the sensor 64 should be one half to one inch. The lower -the profile of the cap, the closer the sensor should be with decreased sensitivity. A 80ma transistor output 70 could be used in place of the relay 68 to control the air jet or ejector solenoid for longer operating 1312~37 life. The replacement of the electronic sensor 64 with a pneumatic sensor (not shown) may also be used with equal success.
Figure 5 shown that for a flat cap 18 one air jet 58 can be used to discriminate open side up and open side down caps.
For a cap that is either tall or "square" -two air jets 58, 58 side by side will be required as mentioned earlier.
"square" cap is one where the diameter and the width are identical or nearly identical, and therefore, both good open side up, bad open side down and caps on their sides will be kept on the ledge 20a after passing adjustable wiper bar 44.
The above system of discrimination cannot be applied to certain caps 18a that have a spout, snip top, push-pull or any ~-other protrusion, as shown in figure 9. In figure 8 these caps 18a are oriented such that they hang from two rings 72 and 74. Again, they are dumped into the center of the bowl 12a as any other type of cap. They are pushed up the ramp 22a and lay on these rings 72 and 74. These two rings are installed by screws 76 into the feeder 10a described earlier, and can be removed when standard caps are to be oriented.
Once the caps 18a are laying be-tween the inner and outer rings 72 and 74, they will not fall out, thus they pendulate between the rings. A rejecting wiper 78 will push them off, and back into the bowl before exiting, if the~ are not pendulating (hanging protrusion pointed down).
In addition, the entire feeder 10 or 10a rests on four adjustable support legs 80. The bowls 12 and 12a are driven by 1/4 HP D.C. motor 82 with an electronic variable speed ~IZ037 controller (not shown) reduced with a right angle reducer (gear box) 84. The need for any pulleys, sprockets, belts or chains are not required. By turning a knob tnot shown) on the controller, the rpm's of the feeder 10 and lOa will increase and decrease. For most applications the speed is not very critical, but generally the greater the rpmls of the bowl 12a, the faster the caps 18a will be oriented and discharged.
In addition so that the rotary feeder may run continuously even when caps or parts are not required to be discharged due to an excess of parts being oriented, an air jet can be successfully mounted on the housing 31a just prior to the adjustable exit wiper 52. The air jet is operated by a solenoid switch, such as those manufactured by ASCO, that will upon receiving a signal from an electric eye mounted in a discharge chute tnot shown) cause a blast of air to push all caps about to exit back into the feeder bowl 12a. When the discharge chute, after the exit of the caps, is again open the electric eye will then shut off the air jet and allow for more caps to be discharged.
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.
The instan-t invention relates generally to article feeding apparatuses and more specifically it relates -to a rotary feeder for articles such as bo-ttle caps.
Numerous apparatuses have been provided in prior art that are adapted to feed articles therethrough. For e~ample, U.S. patents numbered 3,065,841; 3,285,387; 3,338,372;
3,599,829; 3,669,260; 3,~26,405; 3,831,734, 3,g00,107;
3,912,120; 4,006,812; 4,093,062 and 4,092,412 all are illustrative of such prior art. While these units may be sui-table for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purpose of the present invention, as heretofore described.
SUMMARY OF_T_IE I_~ ENTIQN
A principle object of the present inven-tion is to provide a rotary feeder for articles that will feed only properly positioned ar-ticles to a remo-te location of use.
Another object is to provide a rotary Eeeder for ar-ticles tha-t can be adjusted -to accommodate ar-ticles of various sizes and shapes.
An additional objec-t is to provide a rotary -Eeeder for articles that will preven-t jam-up of the articles so -that the feeder will require a minimum o-F care and attention.
A further object is to provide a rotary eeder for articles that is economical in cost to manufacture.
A still further object is to provide a rotary ~eeder for articles that is simple and easily, and ~ully adjustable.
A still additional further object is to to provide a rotary feeder for bottle caps and similar parts that has a minimum of production down time since they are adjus~ed rapidly simply by turning one or two knobs and the discharge bracket chute assembly.
Further objects o the invention will appear as the description proceeds.
To the accomplishment o the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described within the scope of the appended claims.
BRIEF DESÇRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FI~
The figures in the drawings are briefly described as follows:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first form of the invention showing the caps sliding up the stationary ramp onto the upper ledge of the bowl.
Figure 2 is a perspective view thereof showing an air jet pushing bad (open side down) caps back into the bowl.
Figure 3 is a perspective view thereof showing the caps discharged from the exit ramp.
Figure 4 is a diagrammatic perspective view in cross section of the bowl with parts 'oroken awayO
Figure 5 is a top plan view of a second form of the invention showing the air jet rejector.
Figure ~ is a top plan view thereoE with parts broken away showing the electronic sensor.
Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view of the operation of the electronic sensor.
Figure 8 is a perspective view in cross section of a third form of the invention adapted for spout caps.
Figure 9 is an elevational view of three different types of spout caps that can be used in figure 8.
DETAILED DE~C_ PTION OF T~IE PREFERR~L~ aL~
Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, figures 1 through 4 illustrate a rotary feeder 10 that includes a rouncl bowl 12, spinning clockwise on a vertically mounted shaft 14. The bottom of the bowl is a domed floor 16 such that articles, in this case bottle caps 18, when dumped into the bowl, slide to the outside perimeter of the bowl. The caps 18 are dumped into the center of the rotating bowl 12 from a cap supply hopper (not shown) above the :Eeeder 10. The caps 18 will be delivered to the bowl 12 on demand only and this will be determined by a switch (not shown) that is inserted into the bowl and is physically or photo electrically in contact with -the caps being oriented. Once the caps are in the inside of the bowl 12 they will be Eorced by centrifugal force, back pressure, and gravity to the outside perimeter of the bowl.
Figure 1 shows how the caps 18 are forced onto an upper ledge 20 of the bowl 12 by sliding up an inclined s-tationary ramp 22 approxima-tely five or six inches to the upper ledge.
The ramp 22 is a tube or can be a flat plane 22a as sen in figure 5. Attached to the top of -the ramp is an air line 24.
~ 3 1 ~037 The air escapes through a series of air jets 26 which are arranged in a spiral fashion such that the caps 18 are pushed up the ramp so that the cups are flipped over allowing for the majority of the caps to be in the good open side up position.
The ramp 22 has a mounting pos-t 28 attached to a ramp support bracket 30 which goes half way across the upper end of a stationary housing 31. Support bracket 30 is bolted to side of housing 31 by two bolts for rigidity.
There is an adjustable guide ring 32 around approximately half of the perimeter of the upper ledge 20 of the rotary bowl 12 such that the cap diameters can be presented to lay flatly on the upper ledge and is supported by only one or two screws 48 for easy adjustment. This guide ring 32 serves only as a leaning wall and has no mechanical function other than to keep the caps in a single file and to be adjusted depending upon cap diameters. The drive shaft 14 is driven by a variable D.C. motor 82 and gear box 84. This variable speed input is used for diEferent stylings of caps such that each style of cap has its optimum performance speed.
Cap discrimination is assisted with the use of a proximity switch 34 which is mounted on the guide ring 32 just above the caps being oriented. This proximi-ty swi-tch 34 senses the caps 18 as to whether they are open side up or open side down. If the cap is open side up, it will be sensed by the proximity switch 34 as a good cap and it will be allowed to pass without being rejected. IE, however, the cap is open side down when it passes under the proximity switch, it will be sensed as a bad cap and a momentary air burst from an air 1 ~ ~ 2037 jet 36 located below the proximity switch 34 will reject the cap by pushing it back into the bowl 12~ These good caps on the upper ledge 20 will then proceed in a clockwise direction, until they are discharged from an exit ramp 38 where they will be used for a future process (see Figure 3).
Figure 5 shows a first modified rotary feeder 10a. The caps 18 are dumped into the center of a bowl 12a in the same manner as in feeder 10. the caps are spun to the outside edge of the clockwise rotating bowl and are facilitated by a domed floor 16a which helps to push them to the edge. Once they are at the periphery of the bowl, they are pushed up the ramp 22a.
the ramps 22 and 22a both have ingers 40 which fit into grooves 42 on the domed floors 16 and 16a; so as to give a continuous smooth surface for the caps to climb up the ramp.
The ramp 22a like 22, is supported by a ramp support bracket 30a, and does not rotate with the bowl but is rather fixed to a stationary housing 31a of the feeder 10a. The ramp 22a can be changed in varying widths to accommodate wider or narrower caps. The bracket 30a is only a partial bracket as shown in figure 5 and allows for ample clearance for the caps 18 being dumped in. Once the caps are sent up the ramp 22a the top of the ramp has a slight twist that will push and turn the caps onto an upper ledge 20a and can ei-ther use air assist as in ramp 22 or only by back pressure from -the other caps in the feeder pushing up the ramp. They move from the ramp along the upper ledge to an ad]ustable wiper bar 44 where all the stacked up caps are pushed bac~ into the bowl with only one level of caps permitted to pass the point of the wiper bar 44.
From here, -they continue to a spring steel ledge width selector 46 which is adjusted with a screw 48a. It is made of a spring steel metal so that when the adjusting screw 48a for the ledge width selector is turned, it will increase or decrease the width of the upper ledge 20a the cap 18 is riding on. An adjustmen~ can be made from a 13mm diameter cap to a 70mm diameter cap or more depending on the width oE the upper ledge 20a. The width of this ledge is important because at the point of where the adjusting screw 48a for the ledge width selector is, the caps are selected. This selection is accomplished in several ways that will be discussed later.
In addition, the spring steel ledge width selector 46 is inserted at two points 50, 50 through the housing 31a of the feeder lOa which keeps the spring steel ledge width selector 46 levels flat and at a positive position at all times. After the caps have been selected at or about point "X" only the caps that are open side up still remain on the upper ledge 20a with the caps continuing in a clockwise fashion to an adjustable exit wiper 520 This wiper is made adjustable by a support bracket 54 mounted on the housing 31a of the feeder lOa. Its function is to push the cap 18 tha-t is now hanging over the edge of the upper ledge 20a of the bowl 12a back against the housing 31a of the feeder lOa so that it may exit on an exit ramp 38a, while at the same time being ~uided by a discharge bracket assembly 56.
The majority of flat cap styles are preferably selected for by the use of a single air jet 58 placed over the point "X" so that all selections of upside down or open side up caps ~ 31 2037 is done at or near point "X". This air jet 58 is mounted on a slotted bracket 60 and can be adjusted both horizontally and vertically by the bracket. It is adjusted sideways by actually directing the air jet 58 onto the cap. The principle of how the air jet works is simple. Once the cap 18 is positioned on the upper ledge 20a so that it is hanging over the upper ledge, the air jet 5~ will actually push the open side up cap against the outside wall of the spring steel ledge width selector ~6 and prevents it from falling back into the bowl 12a. However, if the cap is upside down, the same air jet 58 will work in a different fashion. It will actually push down on the edge of the cap 18 that is closest to the center of the bowl which will cause it to fall back into the bowl. Once they have passed the air jet 58 only the open side up caps 18 will remain and be discharged in the fashion described earlier. In addition, the pressure of air applied to this cap is critical and needs to be adjusted depending upon the weight and size of the cap. This air pressure is adjusted with the use of a simple valve 58a.
In cases not shown where the caps are not flat, two of these air jets 58 are used side by side. The first air jet is used to reject the caps that are laying on their side and these caps are pushed by air and roll off the upper ledge 20a and pushed back into the bowl 12a. After the first air jet, only the caps that will remain are the caps that are open side up or open side down, and these caps will be selected for the same as a typical ~lat cap described above.
In figure 6 the selection is done at point "X" by using both an air jet 62 and a photo electric sensor 64. The sensor 64 is mounted on the spring steel width selector 46 directly above the cap. The air jet 62 is placed behind the spring steel ledge width selector 46 being directed through a hole in the spring steel width selector. There the proximity switch sensor 64 will determine if the cap is open side up or open side down. If it is open side up, the sensor 64 will allow for the cap 18 to pass by and not switch on the air jet 62 as shown in figure 7. However, if the cap is open side down once it is under the sensor, the air jet 62 will ba activated and will push the cap to be rejected back into the bowl 12a.
This rejection can be accomplished by air physically pushing the cap 18 back into the bowl 12a or by a small piston of an ejector solenoid (not shown~ pushing the cap back into the bowl, since both work satisfactorily. The schematic drawing for this control is shown in detail in figure 7.
Amplifier 66 is set on low ampliEication for dark-on operation. When the sensor 64 does not "see" the cap 18, the amplifier 66 will activate the air jet 62 of ejector solenoid by a switch 67. A time delay relay 68 can be added to shut off the air jet or ejector solenoid when no cap is detected after a predetermined amount of time. The distance between the top of the cap 18 and the sensor 64 should be one half to one inch. The lower -the profile of the cap, the closer the sensor should be with decreased sensitivity. A 80ma transistor output 70 could be used in place of the relay 68 to control the air jet or ejector solenoid for longer operating 1312~37 life. The replacement of the electronic sensor 64 with a pneumatic sensor (not shown) may also be used with equal success.
Figure 5 shown that for a flat cap 18 one air jet 58 can be used to discriminate open side up and open side down caps.
For a cap that is either tall or "square" -two air jets 58, 58 side by side will be required as mentioned earlier.
"square" cap is one where the diameter and the width are identical or nearly identical, and therefore, both good open side up, bad open side down and caps on their sides will be kept on the ledge 20a after passing adjustable wiper bar 44.
The above system of discrimination cannot be applied to certain caps 18a that have a spout, snip top, push-pull or any ~-other protrusion, as shown in figure 9. In figure 8 these caps 18a are oriented such that they hang from two rings 72 and 74. Again, they are dumped into the center of the bowl 12a as any other type of cap. They are pushed up the ramp 22a and lay on these rings 72 and 74. These two rings are installed by screws 76 into the feeder 10a described earlier, and can be removed when standard caps are to be oriented.
Once the caps 18a are laying be-tween the inner and outer rings 72 and 74, they will not fall out, thus they pendulate between the rings. A rejecting wiper 78 will push them off, and back into the bowl before exiting, if the~ are not pendulating (hanging protrusion pointed down).
In addition, the entire feeder 10 or 10a rests on four adjustable support legs 80. The bowls 12 and 12a are driven by 1/4 HP D.C. motor 82 with an electronic variable speed ~IZ037 controller (not shown) reduced with a right angle reducer (gear box) 84. The need for any pulleys, sprockets, belts or chains are not required. By turning a knob tnot shown) on the controller, the rpm's of the feeder 10 and lOa will increase and decrease. For most applications the speed is not very critical, but generally the greater the rpmls of the bowl 12a, the faster the caps 18a will be oriented and discharged.
In addition so that the rotary feeder may run continuously even when caps or parts are not required to be discharged due to an excess of parts being oriented, an air jet can be successfully mounted on the housing 31a just prior to the adjustable exit wiper 52. The air jet is operated by a solenoid switch, such as those manufactured by ASCO, that will upon receiving a signal from an electric eye mounted in a discharge chute tnot shown) cause a blast of air to push all caps about to exit back into the feeder bowl 12a. When the discharge chute, after the exit of the caps, is again open the electric eye will then shut off the air jet and allow for more caps to be discharged.
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.
Claims (2)
1. A rotary feeder for articles which comprises:
a) a rotating bowl having a domed floor and an upper ledge, said domed floor will centrifugally distribute and align said articles while said articles are accelerating;
b) an inclined stationary ramp at the periphery of said conical floor of said bowl, said ramp will discharge said accelerating articles in alignment so that said upper ledge of said bowl will centrifugally carry said articles in single file alignment away from top of said ramp:
c) a stationary guide ring having an exit ramp, said guide ring being around periphery of said upper ledge of said bowl to guide said articles around said ledge of said bowl to be discharged from said exit ramp; and d) means for rejecting improper positioned articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring, wherein said rejecting means comprises:
i) a proximity switch mounted on said guide ring for sensing whether said articles are in improper positions;
and ii) an air jet located below said proximity switch and activated by said proximity switch if one of said articles is in an improper position so that a momentary air burst from said air jet will reject said articles by pushing said article back into said bowl.
a) a rotating bowl having a domed floor and an upper ledge, said domed floor will centrifugally distribute and align said articles while said articles are accelerating;
b) an inclined stationary ramp at the periphery of said conical floor of said bowl, said ramp will discharge said accelerating articles in alignment so that said upper ledge of said bowl will centrifugally carry said articles in single file alignment away from top of said ramp:
c) a stationary guide ring having an exit ramp, said guide ring being around periphery of said upper ledge of said bowl to guide said articles around said ledge of said bowl to be discharged from said exit ramp; and d) means for rejecting improper positioned articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring, wherein said rejecting means comprises:
i) a proximity switch mounted on said guide ring for sensing whether said articles are in improper positions;
and ii) an air jet located below said proximity switch and activated by said proximity switch if one of said articles is in an improper position so that a momentary air burst from said air jet will reject said articles by pushing said article back into said bowl.
2. A rotary feeder for articles which comprises:
a) a rotating bowl having a domed floor and an upper ledge, said domed floor will centrifugally distribute and align said articles while said articles are accelerating;
b) an inclined stationary ramp at the periphery of said conical floor of said bowl, said ramp will discharge said accelerating articles in alignment so that said upper ledge of said bowl will centrifugally carry said articles in single file alignment away from top of said ramp;
c) a stationary guide ring having an exit ramp, said guide ring being around periphery of said upper ledge of said bowl to guide said articles around said ledge of said bowl to be discharged from said exit ramp; and d) means for rejecting improper positioned articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring, wherein said rejecting means comprises:
i) an adjustable wiper bar mounted on said guide ring above said upper ledge of said bowl so that stacked up articles can be pushed back into said bowl with only one level of said articles permitted to pass said wiper bar;
ii) means for selecting said articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring;
iii) an adjustable exit wiper mounted on said guide ring above said upper ledge of said bowl to push back against said guide ring any said article hanging over edge of said upper ledge so that said article can be discharged from said exit ramp;
iv) an adjustable ledge width selector mounted to said guide rings so that each said article passing by will hang over said upper ledge;
v) an adjustable air jet mounted to said guide ring above said ledge width selector so that continuous air from said air jet will in one instant push a properly positioned article against said ledge width selector preventing it from falling back into said bowl and in another instant push an improperly positioned article back down into said bowl;
vi) an adjustable ledge width selector mounted to said guide ring so that each of said articles passing by will hang over said upper ledge of said bowl;
vii) a sensor mounted on said ledge width selector for sensing whether said articles are in improper positions;
and viii) an air jet placed behind and through said ledge width selector below said sensor and in alignment with said articles passing by, said air jet activated by said sensor if one of said articles is in an improper position so that a momentary air burst from said air jet will reject said articles by pushing said article back into said bowl.
a) a rotating bowl having a domed floor and an upper ledge, said domed floor will centrifugally distribute and align said articles while said articles are accelerating;
b) an inclined stationary ramp at the periphery of said conical floor of said bowl, said ramp will discharge said accelerating articles in alignment so that said upper ledge of said bowl will centrifugally carry said articles in single file alignment away from top of said ramp;
c) a stationary guide ring having an exit ramp, said guide ring being around periphery of said upper ledge of said bowl to guide said articles around said ledge of said bowl to be discharged from said exit ramp; and d) means for rejecting improper positioned articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring, wherein said rejecting means comprises:
i) an adjustable wiper bar mounted on said guide ring above said upper ledge of said bowl so that stacked up articles can be pushed back into said bowl with only one level of said articles permitted to pass said wiper bar;
ii) means for selecting said articles before said articles are discharged from said exit ramp of said guide ring;
iii) an adjustable exit wiper mounted on said guide ring above said upper ledge of said bowl to push back against said guide ring any said article hanging over edge of said upper ledge so that said article can be discharged from said exit ramp;
iv) an adjustable ledge width selector mounted to said guide rings so that each said article passing by will hang over said upper ledge;
v) an adjustable air jet mounted to said guide ring above said ledge width selector so that continuous air from said air jet will in one instant push a properly positioned article against said ledge width selector preventing it from falling back into said bowl and in another instant push an improperly positioned article back down into said bowl;
vi) an adjustable ledge width selector mounted to said guide ring so that each of said articles passing by will hang over said upper ledge of said bowl;
vii) a sensor mounted on said ledge width selector for sensing whether said articles are in improper positions;
and viii) an air jet placed behind and through said ledge width selector below said sensor and in alignment with said articles passing by, said air jet activated by said sensor if one of said articles is in an improper position so that a momentary air burst from said air jet will reject said articles by pushing said article back into said bowl.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 505121 CA1312037C (en) | 1986-03-26 | 1986-03-26 | Rotary feeder to orient and feed bottle caps and similar parts |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 505121 CA1312037C (en) | 1986-03-26 | 1986-03-26 | Rotary feeder to orient and feed bottle caps and similar parts |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1312037C true CA1312037C (en) | 1992-12-29 |
Family
ID=4132745
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 505121 Expired CA1312037C (en) | 1986-03-26 | 1986-03-26 | Rotary feeder to orient and feed bottle caps and similar parts |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1312037C (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN104828525A (en) * | 2015-05-09 | 2015-08-12 | 常州汇拓科技有限公司 | Pump cover arranging machine and cover arranging method thereof |
| CN110002197A (en) * | 2019-04-21 | 2019-07-12 | 黄河科技学院 | A kind of plastic bottle closure screening plant |
-
1986
- 1986-03-26 CA CA 505121 patent/CA1312037C/en not_active Expired
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN104828525A (en) * | 2015-05-09 | 2015-08-12 | 常州汇拓科技有限公司 | Pump cover arranging machine and cover arranging method thereof |
| CN110002197A (en) * | 2019-04-21 | 2019-07-12 | 黄河科技学院 | A kind of plastic bottle closure screening plant |
| CN110002197B (en) * | 2019-04-21 | 2023-11-21 | 黄河科技学院 | Plastic bottle cap screening device |
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| Date | Code | Title | Description |
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| MKLA | Lapsed |