GB731945A - Improvements in or relating to conveying systems - Google Patents

Abstract

731,945. Conveyers; shoots. FISHER & LUDLOW, Ltd. Nov. 10, 1953 [Aug. 14, 1952], No. 20428/52. Class 78 (1). In a conveying system including means for advancing a succession of load-supporting elements along a track between one or more loading and one or more discharging positions, each element has a trip member movable under the weight of a load into a discharging position and movable into a charging position when the load is removed, and load-feeding means at each feeding position automatically feeds a load on to an empty element having its trip member in charging position, but inhibits feeding of a load to a loaded element, discharge means also being provided at each discharge position to discharge a loaded element passing that position. As shown, an article 10, e.g. a shell case, rolls down a feeding shoot 3 until arrested by the retaining surface 28 of a lever 27 pivoted at 31 in a slot in the shoot. A succession of carrier elements 18 carried by strips 15 extending upwardly from a roller chain 11 running in a track 12 passes the end of the shoot 3, each element 18 being upwardly concave to support an article and being provided with a vertically sliding pin 20 spring-pressed upwardly into projecting position above the element. In its projected position, a trip member 22 on the pin 20 engages the operating lever 35 of a valve 34, causing compressed air to be supplied to a cylinder whose piston 30 is connected to the lever 27. Lever 27 is thereby rocked, thus releasing the article retained by its surface 28 while a second surface 24 of the lever rises, giving the article a push and at the same time intercepting a following article, so that the first article rolls down the shoot on to the passing element 18 where it is stopped by a buffer 33. Pin.20 is now depressed, thus releasing lever 35 of.valve 34 and restoring lever 27 to its original position in which its surface 28 retains the following article. A plurality of feeding stations may thus be provided along the conveyer, since no article will be fed to a carrier member which is loaded. Manually-operated switch means may be used to cut off one or other of the feed stations as desired. The articles are then carried by the elements 18 on the chain 11, which is of the form disclosed in Specification 665,883, [Group XXV], along the track 12 which is constructed as described in Specification 665,886, until one of a number of discharge stations is reached. At-each discharge station the trip member 22 on the pin 20 of any loaded element 18, i.e. with its pin depressed, engages the operating lever 39 of a valve 38, causing compressed air to be supplied to a cylinder whose piston 36 carries an ejector head 37 so that the article is pushed off the element 18 on to a discharge shoot 40 where it is further moved clear of the conveyer by a discharge roller 41 which receives rotation from engagement with the passing element 18 as the latter receives a lateral thrust from the impact of the ejector head 37 on the article. As the article leaves the element pin 20 rises, releasing lever 39 so that ejector head 37 is retracted. To ensure that the ejected article is well clear of the conveyer before another article is ejected valve 38 is arranged to be rendered inoperative after each operation and must be re-set by operation of a re-setting valve 43 which occurs only when the ejected article has passed over a pivoted lever 42. Manual switch means may be provided for cutting out any of the discharge stations. The trip members 22 may be arranged so that on some elements 18 they project to one side only and on the other elements 18 they project to the other side only so as to co-operate with two series of discharge stations, discharging to either side of the conveyer, each element thus being arranged for discharge to one side only.