GB2025354A

GB2025354A - Stacking apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2025354A
Application number: GB7923829A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Monte Vite SA L
Current assignee: Monte Vite SA L
Priority date: 1978-07-13
Filing date: 1979-07-09
Publication date: 1980-01-23
Also published as: FR2430904A1; DE7918472U1; NL7904898A; ES244852U; ES244852Y; GB2025354B

Abstract

In apparatus for depositing articles such as bags onto pallets a conveyor belt having a supporting run 4a is supported in part by a carriage 3 movable towards a depositing station P. The carriage 3 is moved to the depositing station and the conveyor belt is driven at the same speed by drum 6. The belt is then halted so that movement of the carriage 3 away from the depositing station results in the supporting run of the belt remaining stationary relative to the depositing station. The carriage moves away from under the article A and slipping of the article relative to the supporting run is avoided as the article is deposited. Stop member 13 aids precise location of the article to be deposited. The belt and carriage are mounted on a frame which is raised as the stack height increases. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Apparatus for stacking articles The present invention relates to an apparatus for the stacking of articles, and more particularly to an apparatus for depositing articles such as bags on a pallet.

It is well known that the loading of pallets poses a number of problems of which not the least is the stability of the load, stability cannot be achieved unless the articles are deposited in the required vertical alignment, i.e. depositing is carried out without lateral slipping of the article.

It has already been thought of to stack articles with the use of a belt conveyor supplying devices discharging with a tipping action, however, this type of device does not allow sufficient precision when depositing to permit stacking on a pallet.

Apparatus are also known which comprise a conveyor supplying an intermediate table where the articles are received or collected by a pusher rake, the table, situated above the pallet, being subsequently withdrawn so that the articles are transferred onto the pallet.

Although this latter type of apparatus constitutes a distinct improvement relative to the first described type, it is understood that slipping still occurs when the intermediate table is withdrawn.

An aim of the present is to overcome the shipping of the articles when depositing it on the pallet.

Accordinyly the present invention consists in an apparatus for stacking articles, comprising a continuous-belt conveyor for bringing the articles to a depositing station, characterised in that the end of the conveyor at the depositing station is movable in a reciprocating alternating movement towards and away from the depositing station in the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

Various features and advantages will become apparent from the following description of a particular embodiment of the present invention given in relation to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention with the conveyor belt removed, and Figs. 2 to 4 are diagrams showing various phases in the operating cycle of the apparatus.

The apparatus comprises a vertical frame 1 forming a gantry, and a mobile horizontal frame 2 which can occupy horizontal frame 2 which can occupy horizontal positions at various heights relative to the frame 1.

Two members 2a serves as rails for wheels 3a of a carriage 3 comprising an upper plate supporting the upper run 4a of a thin flexible endless belt 4. The carriage is movable in the direction of movement of the belt 4.

The plate has a front portion which forms a lip or nose around the belt which runs so that the lower run 4b of the belt is directed back towards a rear portion of the plate.

The rear portion of the plate carries a roller 5 about which the run 4b loops before passing over the driving drum 6.

Furthermore, a roller 7, situated on the rear portion of the frame, serves as a tensioning roller for the belt 4.

The drum 6 is rotated by means of a geared motor 8 provided with a braking device.

The alternating translational movement of the carriage may be brought about by any suitable .means including jacks, but it appears advantageous to use a second geared motor 9 with a braking device, acting on a driving wheel or any other transmission means.

The ascending-descending movements of the frame 2 relative to the gantry 1 are obtained from a third geared motor unit 10, provided with a brake and which has two output shafts on which are fixed toothed wheels 11 which drive chains which are connected to the frame 2 so as to raise and lower the frame.

The geared motors 8 and 9 are regulated in such a way that the speed of displacement of the belt is the same as the speed of translational movement of the carriage (for example a speed of 0.75 metres per second). A mobile stop or abutment 1 3, movable by jacks 14, is situated transverse to the iongitudinal axis of the belt 4; it limits the displacement of the articles transported on the said belt.

As seen in Figs. 2 to 4, the pallet P on which the articles, for example bags, are to be stacked is placed below the frame 2 at the depositing station just below the level of the abutment 13.

By means of the geared motor 10 the frame 2 is brought to a height such that the level of the lower run 4b is only slightly higher than the upper level of the pallet P.

The bag A is brought in on the belt run 4a, the carriage 3 being preferably in its withdrawn position (Fig. 2).

The bag A is carried at speed V in the direction of the depositing station. When it reaches the abutment 13 (Fig. 3) the geared motor 8 stops and the belt is halted. The direction of operation of the geared motor 9 is then reversed and the carriage starts its return movement and the bag A gradualiy comes into contact with the Pallet P (Fig. 4).

As can be seen, there can be no slipping between the bag A which has come into abutment and its support, the belt 4, since depositing is carried out the moment the belt moves away from under it as the carriage is moved backwards.

Since the distance between the lower level of the belt and the deposition level is very small because of the fact that the conveyor ends in a lip or nose portion, the article or bag may be placed with great exactitude in alignment with the preceding one.

It is to be understood that the details of the present invention may be varied within the scope of the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for stacking articles, comprising a continuous-beit conveyor for bringing the articles to a depositing station, characterised in that the end of the conveyor at the depositing station is movable in a reciprocating alternating movement towards and away from the depositing station in the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the said end of the conveyor is supported by a carriage to which an alternating movement is imparted.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that the carriage comprises an upper plate, and the conveyor is constituted by a belt, the said belt bearing on the upper plate.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that the upper plate ends at the said end in a rounded nose of slight thickness and the belt turns around the nose for the purpose of reversing its direction of travel.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, characterised in that the speeds of the displacement of the belt and the translation movement of the carriage may be made equal.

6. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 2 to 5, characterised in that the travel of the belt toward the depositing station is stopped at the moment of depositing.

7. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 2 to 6, characterised in that the carriage is stopped at the moment the articles arrives on the belt.

8. An apparatus as claimed in any of preceding claims, characterised in that an abutment is situated transversely with respect to the direction of movement of the conveyor-belt with a view to limiting the displacement of the article.

9. An apparatus as claimed in claim 8, characterised in that the abutment is withdrawn at the instant of the descending movement or ascending movement of the mobile horizontal frame.

10. An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8, characterised in that it comprises means for allowing the plane of the conveyor to remain at a constant spacing from the depositing plane even if the latter plane is variable.

1 An apparatus as claimed in claim 10, characterised in that it comprises a vertical frame, a horizontal frame movable vertically and serving as a trackfortranslational movement of the carriage, and means for moving vertically the horizontal frame.

12. An apparatus for stacking articles, comprising a continuous-belt conveyor having a supporting run which is supported in while or in part by a movable member, the member being movable towards and way from a depositing station, and being located at an end of the run of the conveyor belt such that the belt returns around an end of the member, which end is to be located at or near the depositing station, and means whereby as the member is moved away from the depositing station the supporting run of the conveyor belt remains stationary relative to the depositing station.

1 3. An apparatus for stacking articles, comprising a continuous-belt conveyor for bringing articles to a depositing station, and having a conveying surface of variable length, the supporting surface of the belt being so retractable than an article can be deposited from the conveyor at the depositing station with little or no relative movement occuring between the article and the depositing station during deposition of the article.

14. An apparatus for stacking articles substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.