MXPA00001820A - Article transfer apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus (10) for tranferring articles (8) onto a moving carrier (3), the apparatus (10) including a conveyor (6) for transporting articles (8), drive means (20) for moving a carrier (3), and coordinating means. The coordinating means is capable of controlling the relative movements of the conveyor (6) and the drive means (20) such that a carrier (3) being moved by the drive means (20) and the article (6) being transported by the conveyor (6) can be separately moved to a contact location at which the carrier (3) will contact the article (8) whilst both the carrier (3) and the article (8) are moving. Additionally the conveyor (6) and the carrier (3) are configured such that the article (8) is caused to be transferred onto the carrier (3) upon or following the carrier's initial contact with the article (8).

Description

APPARATUS TO TRANSFER ITEMS FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an apparatus for transferring one or more articles on moving carriers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In apparatuses designed for the automated handling of articles, it is often necessary to transfer an article on a carrier. The article can, from there, be processed while it is transported in the carrier. This processing may include labeling, cleaning, de-labeling, identification, packing sorting or some other similar operation. The present invention does not deal with the way in which an article can be processed while being transported by the carrier, but rather is related to an apparatus for transferring articles conveniently and quickly, on a carrier that can then deliver the Items in another destination for further processing. The invention is particularly suitable for use in a clothing hook sorting apparatus such as the type described in the copending International Patent Application of Applicant PCT / AU96 / 00721 and the content of this prior application is incorporated by reference. P1135 / 00MX It will be appreciated that the invention described below is suitable for use in the transfer of a variety of different articles into a carrier used in automated apparatus for handling articles. For convenience, however, much of the subsequent disclosure of the invention is made with reference to loading a clothes hanger onto a carrier. It should be appreciated that the present invention, while having particular applicability in the loading of clothes hooks onto a carrier, is not so limited and that the invention is suitable in a variety of diverse applications in which the articles are to be hung by means of automated merchandise processing equipment. In any equipment for the processing of goods, the speed at which items can be transferred or loaded on a carrier or carrier can be a limiting factor (and often the most limiting factor) to determine the speed at which they can operate. the device. Clearly, the speed at which items are loaded into an automated processing apparatus sets an upper limit on the speed at which the apparatus can operate (in terms of number of items per unit of time). For example, in the case of devices for classifying clothes hooks, such as P1135 / 00MX which is described in Applicant's International Application PCT / AU96 / 00721, the speed at which garment hooks can be classified is limited by the speed at which individual garment hooks can be loaded on the garment conveyor. hooks. The present invention relates more particularly to an apparatus and method by means of which an article can be transferred in a carrier while the carrier is in motion. If the carrier is required to be fixed for the transfer of items therein, this not only slows down the performance of the operation but may also lead to a malfunction due to the need for intermittent operation of the apparatus between the operations of the operator. loaded and processing. The damage is particularly likely if the items that are transferred are suspended from a conveyor and the items are moved to the carrier and then stopped. This intermittent operation can cause items to swing and potentially become tangled.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for loading an article in a carrier in a fast manner and under conditions where it is less likely to be a malfunction. P1135 / 00MX Accordingly, in one embodiment of the present invention there is provided an apparatus for transferring an article on a moving carrier, the apparatus includes: (a) a conveyor for transporting an article; (b) a driving means for moving a carrier; and (c) a means of coordination; wherein the coordinating means is able to control the relative movements of the conveyor and the driving means in such a way that a carrier that is being moved by the driving means and an article being transported by the conveyor can be moved separated to a contact location in which the carrier will contact the article while, both the carrier and the article are moving and wherein the conveyor and the carrier are configured in such a way as to cause the article to be transferred onto the carrier at the time of the initial contact of the bearer with the article, or immediately after it. Preferably, the coordination means controls the relative movement of the conveyor and the driving means in such a way that the carrier is moving faster than the article at the contact location. Preferably, the article P1135 / 00 X is being transported by the conveyor at the contact location at a speed that is between half and two thirds of the speed at which the carrier is moving at the contact location. Preferably, the article and the carrier are moving in virtually the same direction immediately before reaching the contact location. Since the item is moving at the time of contact, the article is less likely to advance by shaking in an uncontrolled manner when contact occurs that is stationary and this helps the efficient transfer of the article on the conveyor. In the case of clothes hooks, there are particular difficulties that arise from sudden and abrupt contact if the clothes hook is fixed. If the clothes hanger is suspended from a conveyor it is likely to oscillate if there is abrupt contact. Furthermore, in the case of clothes hooks comprising a body rotating on a wire hook, abrupt contact can lead to the body turning and if the clothes hooks have little separation on a conveyor, this can again lead to its tangled, which causes damage. Preferably, there is no significant difference between the carrier speed and the P1135 / 00MX article speed at the contact location. More preferably, the differential is no more than 0.10 m / s. In a preferred embodiment, for the transfer of clothes hooks, the wearer travels at a speed between 0.15 m / s and 0.30 m / s at the contact location and the clothes hook is traveling at a speed between 0.10 m / s 0.20 m / s at the contact location. It is preferred that the apparatus be capable of processing multiple items in succession. Consequently, it is preferred that the conveyor be capable of simultaneously conveying a plurality of articles and that the driving means be capable of moving a plurality of carriers. In this arrangement, the means for coordinating must control the relative movements of the conveyor and the driving means in such a way that for each article transported to the contact location, a separate carrier will move to reach the contact location at the same time. The carrier can collect the article to be transferred from the carrier at the time of initial contact and this can be achieved, for example, by the carrier incorporating a hook or a ridge on which the article can be transferred. However, the transfer is preferably delayed so that the article can be moved in synchrony or together with the P1135 / 00MX carrier by a distance before transfer. This allows a progressive increase of the speed for the article and in this way, a smoother transfer in the carrier. Preferably, the carrier includes fastening means for coupling at least a portion of the article. Preferably, the fastening means is in the form of a recess in the carrier, which is configured to accommodate at least a portion of the article. In one embodiment, wherein the apparatus is used to collect and transport clothes hooks, the recess includes a flat seat on which the hook portion of the clothes hook can be located. In this arrangement, the seat supports the hook with the remaining portion of the hook arranged to be suspended from the carrier. The carrier is intended to be shaped and designed to be able to carry items from one location to another. Preferably, each carrier includes a stop surface that abuts against a portion of the article at the contact location. The stop surface is preferably projected forwardly from the holding means in the direction of movement of the carrier, so that upon abutment with the stop surface, the article moves with the carrier under operation of the driving means before P1135 / 00MX to be coupled by the fastening means. Preferably, at least part of the conveyor is mounted on a portion including a ramp that is inclined with respect to the direction of movement of the carrier. In this arrangement, the conveyor functions to move the article along the ramp to the contact location from where it can be moved at a faster speed by the carrier under operation of the drive means. While the article moves along the ramp, it is preferred that it be moved simultaneously in relation to the abutment surface and the apparatus is arranged such that this relative movement continues until the article is moved from the abutment surface and to a position where it can move towards engagement with the fastening means. Preferably, the carrier further includes retaining means that can operate to retain the article in the fastening means. In one form, the retaining means may be placed in either an operative mode, where it operates to retain the article in the securing means or in an inoperative manner where it does not retain the article with respect to the securing means. In a preferred form, the retaining means includes a pair of fingers that can be located on opposite sides of the article. The fingers P1135 / 00MX can be controlled by means of an operating arm that is capable of moving the fingers to thereby change the retention means between operative and inoperative modes. In one form, the fingers are located at one of the opposite ends of the operating arm. A pivot is located intermediate between the arm ends and the mode of the fingers is controlled by the movement of the arm. In this form, the retaining means is capable of switching between operating and inoperative modes by applying a force to the end of the operation arm opposite the fingers. In a preferred form, the force can be applied automatically through the use of a cam or the like. The conveyor can be of a suitable form for transporting articles from a location away from the contact location to the contact location. Preferably, the conveyor moves the articles at a constant speed when they are close to the contact location. The conveyor preferably includes means for transporting articles to the contact location at a constant frequency. The articles, preferably, are transported by the conveyor with the articles being separated equidistantly on the conveyor. In the situation where the items that P1135 / 00MX are transferred onto the moving carrier are clothespins or any other items that could be hung from a hook, it is preferred that the conveyor is or includes a rotating shaft having an external helical thread. The helical thread may be of the type of a slot or of a raised rib located on the surface of the arrow. More preferably, the arrow is provided with a helical groove. In this arrangement, the clothespins may be suspended from the arrow by engaging the hooks of the respective clothespins in the helical groove on the arrow. Preferably, the width of the slot is slightly wider than the width of the hook portion of the clothes hook that is suspended therefrom. Preferably, the clothes hooks are located along the slot and separated by the distance of the slot passage. In this way, the clothes hooks, when suspended from the arrow in this way, will be equally separated and a complete rotation of the arrow will advance each hook for clothes, a distance equal to the thread pitch. When the arrow is fully loaded in this way, for each full rotation of the arrow a hook will be delivered at the end of the arrow. In this arrangement, in order for a carrier to be associated with each clothing hook (or other P1135 / 00MX similar article) delivered at the end of the arrow by means of a complete rotation thereof, it is necessary that the respective carriers are transported by the driving means towards the contact location for each full rotation of the arrow. Once the distance between the respective carriers and the rotation speed of the arrow is determined, the coordinating means can control the movement of the conveyor or the movement of the driving means, or both, to ensure that a respective carrier is transported in this manner. , to reach the contact location for each full rotation of the arrow. Preferably, the forward movement of the clothes hook or other article by means of the rotation of the arrow is such that it is less than the speed of the wearer. Preferably, the conveyor also includes an inclined ramp with an associated conveyor belt and the article is transferred on the carrier at an adjacent location to the moving conveyor belt. Preferably, the conveyor belt moves the article forward at a speed greater than the speed at which it moved on the rotary arrow, but less than the speed at which the carrier is moved by the driving means. More preferably, the arrow carries the article at a speed of about one third of the speed of the P1135 / 00 X carrier, the conveyor belt transports to the clothes hook at a speed that is approximately two thirds of the carrier's speed. In this way, the speed at which the article is transported to the contact location increases progressively. This minimizes the possibility of damage. Preferably, the conveyor belt is inclined with the same inclination of the arrow and the conveyor belt is positioned in such a way that a hook or other similar article delivered at the end of the arrow on the conveyor belt will not experience any substantial upward or downward movement. . In other words, that part of the conveyor belt located near the end of the arrow preferably has its topmost surface at a level approximately equal to the level of the base of the groove in the rotating shaft. Preferably, the conveyor belt is located on a separate support element that is hinged to allow downward movement if there is any malfunction in the transfer of the article from the conveyor belt onto the carrier. For example, if a clothes hook is trapped under a carrier, the continuous forward movement of the carrier will cause downward pressure on the carrier.

P1135 / 00MX conveyor belt and thus, on the articulated support element causing the downward movement for the expulsion of the hook or other article transferred on the carrier incorrectly. Preferably, the coordination means is provided by means of linked encoders and hardware that is designed to measure and regulate the conveyor speed and the speed of the drive means and the respective positions of the carriers and articles to ensure simultaneous delivery of the media. an item and a carrier at the contact location for soft transfer on the carrier. The applicant's preferred arrangement includes the following: 1. Set the speed of the drive medium. Preferably, the driving means includes a chain or band that is driven by an electric motor. The speed of the chain is set by adjusting the electric current supplied to the electric motor. 2. An encoder placed adjacent to the chain or band, measures the speed and position of the carrier and this information is retransmitted to a controller to establish the speed at which the arrow is to be rotated. 3. The speed at which the arrow is rotated is communicated with a separate device that P1135 / 00MX H it regulates the speed of a servo motor linked to the impeller of the conveyor belt. The apparatus for the speed of the respective components is known in the art. The coordination means is preferably fixed, to ensure that the conveyor belt operates so as to move the article at a speed greater than the speed at which it is transported by the arrow conveyor but slower than the speed at which the conveyor is moved. Drive means moves the carrier. Positional coordination by means of coordination is important to ensure that a respective carrier is delivered at the contact location at the same time an item is delivered by the conveyor belt at that location so that the item can be transferred on the carrier while both They are in motion. In a further embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus for the continuous processing of articles is provided, the apparatus includes: (a) a drive means that includes a continuous chain or web to which a multiplicity of equally spaced carriers are attached; the band or chain; (b) a conveyor to transport items to a location in which articles may be associated with the carriers P1135 / 0OMX respective; and (c) coordination means; wherein the coordinating means controls the relative movement of the conveyor and the driving means so that the carriers are moved by the driving means and the articles are transported by the conveyor will, in turn, be delivered separately in a location of contact where the respective carriers are contacted sequentially with the respective articles while both the articles and the respective carriers are moving and thereby causing the articles to be sequentially transferred onto the respective carriers in the moment or after the contact of each carrier with a respective article. Preferably, the articles are loaded onto the conveyor and separated in such a way that the respective articles can be sequentially transferred onto each carrier passing the contact location.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A preferred embodiment of the invention is described below, with reference to the following drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic view of a loading apparatus according to the present invention.

P1135 / 00MX 3-6 invention; and Figure 2 is a schematic representation of the apparatus illustrating the interconnection of several encoders when used as the coordination means.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In Figure 1, an apparatus 1 is illustrated that includes a chain 2 that is driven by a drive wheel that is not shown. The chain 2 is preferably a continuous chain that is running in a circuit. Suitable respective carriers 3 are attached to the chain for securing and transporting articles for further processing. The apparatus further includes a conveyor 4 that includes a conveyor arrow 5 and a conveyor belt 6. The conveyor arrow 5 is positioned at an angle and is inclined upwards. The arrow 5 is rotated, in normal operation, in such a way that the articles retained therein will move in the direction of the arrow marked 7. A clothes hook 8 is shown located in a portion of the helical thread 9 formed in the outer surface of the conveyor shaft 5. The uppermost surface 10 of the conveyor belt 6 is aligned to be at a height approximately equal to the bottom of the seat 11 in the helical thread 9 so that when a clothes hook 8 is transported towards the end P1135 / 00MX of the conveyor shaft 5, is transferred smoothly on the conveyor belt 6 without any substantial movement upwards or downwards. further, to minimize any disorganized or jerky movement in the transfer between the conveyor shaft 5 and the conveyor belt 6, the conveyor belt end 6 is located within the end portion 12 of the conveyor shaft 5 which is hollow to house this section of the conveyor belt 6. In operation, the hooks 8 are sequentially loaded on the conveyor shaft 5, while the hook portion of the hooks engages the uppermost portion of the conveyor shaft 5 and since only one The hook is located inside the helical groove 9 in any location, the respective hooks are each separated by the passage of the helical groove 9 which is shown as the distance A in Figure 1. The carriers 3 are separated by the distance B and they are separated equidistantly around the entire chain circuit. Since a complete rotation of the conveyor shaft 5 will deliver a clothes hook or an additional article on the conveyor belt 6 for collection by the carriers 3, it is necessary for the proper operation of the apparatus that the respective carriers move through a distance equal to B in the P1135 / 00MX same time that the conveyor arrow 5 is carried to rotate by a complete rotation. In addition, the location of the respective carriers 3 should be coordinated with the location of the clothespins that move on the conveyor 6 so that the carrier 3 can pick up the clothespins before they run out of the end of the conveyor belt. 6. Alternatively, if the carrier 3 arrives at the contact location before the clothes hook, there will be damage, for example, the hook being trapped under the carrier. In the case of this damage, it is preferred that the support 6a for the conveyor belt 6 can pivot resiliently around the pivot point (such as 6b) so that the support 6a can move downward for the ejection of hooks not associated (the down position is shown in Figure 1 in dashed line). The speed of the hook in the conveyor belt is preferably slightly less than the speed at which the carrier is moving such that there is a positive contact and then a pickup while the carrier 3 passes the conveyor 6. However , the differential speed must not be such that the pickup is abrupt or it causes the hook to jump or move forward in a way that will not allow smooth transfer on the carrier 3. P1135 / 00MX Preferably, each carrier 3 incorporates a movable locking mechanism 13 which is activated by an associated lever 14 and a separate cam 15 located adjacent to the conveyor belt 6 such that when the carrier moves towards the conveyor belt 6, the operating arm 14 moves downward to opening the locking mechanism 13 and keeping the mechanism open during its travel to pass the conveyor belt 6. A carrier with the locking mechanism in this position Open n is identified in Figure 1, as 3a. Once the article has been transferred onto the carrier, the working mechanism is designed to close as in the carrier shown in Figure 1 as 3b. The closure timing can be determined by the length of the cam 15 located adjacent to the drive chain. It will be appreciated from the following that the hooks 8 can be transported by the rotation of the conveyor shaft 5 at a first speed, transferred on the conveyor belt 6 operating at a second speed, moved forward by the conveyor 3 at length of the conveyor belt 6 after making contact with a third speed and then coupled by the locking mechanism 13 to retain the hook 8 on the carrier 3. It is preferred that the first speed be less than the second speed, which at its time, P1135 / 00MX is less than the third speed. In this arrangement, the speed at which the carrier moves can be progressively increased and this allows smoother transition of the hook on the carrier 3. In the embodiment shown, each of the respective carriers is first contacted with a hook to be transferred while the hook 8 is moving on the conveyor belt 6. As the carrier 3 is moving faster than the hook 8 while it is on the conveyor belt, after contact the carrier moves the hook along the band at a higher speed at which the band is moving. The carrier 3 includes a stop face 16 that makes contact with the hook. As the hook moves upwards along the inclination of the conveyor belt 6, it moves to a position above the stop face 16 so that it can be accommodated and moved in the seat 17 by the locking mechanism 13. The relative positions of the carriers and the hooks are controlled in this preferred embodiment by a series of encoders and controllers, as shown in Figure 2. In operation, the chain 2 is set at the desired speed by adjusting the current to an electric motor that drives a wheel (not shown) which, in turn, drives the chain 2. The encoder 18 P1135 / 00MX identifies the speed at which the carriers 3 are moving and also their position. This information is retransmitted to the controller 19 which, in turn, controls the servo motor 20 which drives the conveyor shaft 5. The controller 19 ensures that the location of the hooks 8 with respect to the carriers 3 and their speeds are such that the respective hooks and carriers will be in the contact location adjacent to the conveyor belt 6. The information from the servo motor 20 is, in turn, retransmitted to the controller 21 which determines the speed at which the servo motor 22 drives the conveyor belt 6. Through this arrangement, the coincidence of the hooks 8 with the carriers 3 to make contact and the subsequent collection are coordinated thus allowing a rapid transfer of hooks on the carriers. It will be appreciated that the present invention allows the transfer of items such as clothes hangers directly onto a moving carrier, in a smooth manner, is unlikely to cause a flaw and in a manner that facilitates the rapid delivery of items on the carrier. Instead of collecting the articles that are fixed, the present invention provides for the movement of both the carrier and the article coming from different directions and at different speeds and coordinated in such a way to simultaneously reach the contact location where the article can be transferred smoothly. over the carrier or immediately after the item has been gently transferred onto the carrier. This allows faster transfer over the carriers than with the similar apparatus that includes picking up from a stationary position and thus allows faster processing of items in any subsequent processing arrangements. It will be appreciated that various modifications and / or improvements may be made to the apparatus described herein above, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as herein described.

P1135 / 00MX

Claims (41)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as a novelty and, therefore, the content of the following CLAIMS is claimed as property; 1. An apparatus for transferring articles on a moving carrier, the apparatus includes: (a) a conveyor for transporting articles; (b) a driving means for moving a carrier; and (c) a means of coordination; wherein the coordinating means is able to control the relative movements of the conveyor and the driving means, so that a carrier that is being moved by the driving means and an article that is being transported by the conveyor can be moved in a separated to a contact location in which the carrier will make contact with the article while both the carrier and the article are moving, and wherein the carrier and the carrier are configured in such a way as to cause the article to be transferred over the carrier at the time of the initial contact of the carrier with the article or after that contact.
2. 2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coordination means controls the movement P1135 / 00MX relative to the conveyor and drive means, so that the carrier moves faster than the article at the contact location.
3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the article is transported by the conveyor at the contact location at a speed that is between half and two thirds of the speed at which the carrier moves at the contact location.
4. 4. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the article and the carrier move substantially in the same direction immediately before reaching the contact location.
5. An apparatus according to any of claims 2 to 4, wherein the differential between the carrier speed and the article speed at the contact location is not more than 0.10 m / s.
6. An apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the article is a clothes hook, and wherein the carrier travels at a speed between 0.15 m / s and 0.30 m / s at the contact location and the clothes hook travels to a speed between 0.10 m / s and 0.20 m / s at the contact location.
7. 7. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the apparatus is capable of processing multiple articles in succession.
8. 8. An apparatus according to claim 7, in P1135 / 00MX where the conveyor is capable of simultaneously conveying a plurality of articles and the driving means is capable of moving a plurality of carriers, and wherein the coordinating means controls the relative movements of the conveyor and the driving means, so that for each item transported to the contact location, a separate carrier will move to reach the contact location at the same time.
9. 9. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the carrier collects the article in a manner that facilitates the transfer thereof from the transported at the time of initial contact.
10. 10. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the carrier incorporates a hook or a ridge on which the article is transferred.
11. 11. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the transfer of the article from the conveyor to the carrier occurs after a period in which the article moves in synchrony by effect of the carrier or with the carrier, through from a distance before the transfer.
12. 12. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 11, wherein the carrier includes fastening means for coupling at least a portion of the article. PX135 / 00MX
13. 13. An apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the fastening means is in the form of a recess on the carrier, which is configured to receive at least a portion of the article.
14. 14. An apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the article is a clothes hook and wherein the recess includes a flat seat on which the hook portion of the clothes hook can be located, the seat supports the hook with the remaining part of the hook arranged so as to be suspended of the carrier
15. 15. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 14, wherein each carrier includes a stop surface that can bump against a portion of the article at the contact location.
16. 16. An apparatus according to claim 15 when it depends on any of claims 12 to 14, wherein the abutment surface is projected forward, from the fastening means, in the direction of movement of the carrier, so that when bumping into the abutment surface, the article moves with the carrier under operation of the driving means before being coupled by the holding means.
17. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 16, wherein at least part of the conveyor is mounted on a portion including a ramp that is inclined with respect to the P1135 / 00MX direction of movement of the carrier and where the conveyor operates to move the article along the ramp to the contact location from where it can be moved at a higher speed by the carrier, under operation of the driving means.
18. 18. An apparatus according to claim 17 when it depends on any of claims 12 to 16, wherein while the article moves along the ramp, it is moved simultaneously in relation to the abutment surface, the movement Relative continues until the article moves from the abutment surface and into a position where it can move towards engagement with the fastening means.
19. 19. An apparatus according to any of claims 12 to 17, wherein the carrier further includes retaining means operable to retain the article in the securing means.
20. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the retaining means is placed in either an operative mode where it operates to retain the article in the securing means or in an inoperative manner where it does not retain the article with respect to the means of subjection.
21. 21. An apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the retaining means includes a pair of fingers that can be located on opposite sides of the P1135 / 00MX article, the fingers can be controlled by means of an operating arm that can move the fingers to switch to the retention means between operational and inoperative modes.
22. 22. An apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the fingers are located at one of the opposite ends of the operating arm and a pivot is positioned intermediate between the ends of the arm, the mode of the fingers is controlled by the movement of the arm that occurs by applying a force to the end of the operating arm opposite the fingers.
23. 23. An apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the force is applied automatically through the use of a cam or the like.
24. 24. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 23, wherein the articles are moved by the conveyor at a constant speed when they are close to the contact location.
25. 25. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 24, wherein the conveyor includes means for transporting articles toward the contact location at a constant frequency.
26. 26. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 25, wherein the articles are transported by the conveyor being equidistantly spaced on the conveyor. P1135 / 00MX
27. 27. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 26, wherein the articles that are transferred on the moving carrier are hooks for clothes or any other articles that could be hung from a hook, and the conveyor is or includes a rotary arrow having an external helical thread, the clothes hooks are suspended from the arrow by engaging the hook portions of the respective clothes hooks inside the helical groove in the arrow.
28. 28. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein the helical thread is a slot or a raised rib located on the surface of the arrow.
29. 29. An apparatus according to claim 28, wherein the arrow is provided with a helical groove.
30. 30. An apparatus according to claim 29, wherein the width of the slot is slightly wider than the width of the hook portion of the clothes hook that is suspended therefrom.
31. 31. An apparatus according to claim 29 or 30, wherein the clothes hooks are located along the slot and are separated by the distance of the slot passage.
32. 32. An apparatus according to any of claims 27 to 31, wherein the movement of P1135 / 00 X advance of the hook for clothes or other article by the rotation of the arrow is such that it is less than the speed of the carrier.
33. 33. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 32, wherein the conveyor includes an inclined ramp with an associated conveyor belt and the article is transferred on the carrier at an adjacent location to the moving conveyor belt.
34. 34. An apparatus according to claim 33, wherein the conveyor belt moves the article forward at a speed greater than the speed at which it moves on the rotary arrow, but less than the speed at which the carrier is moved by the drive medium.
35. 35. An apparatus according to claim 34, wherein the arrow transports the article at a rate of about one third of the speed of the carrier and the conveyor belt transports to the clothes hook at a speed that is approximately two thirds of the speed of the transporter. carrier
36. 36. An apparatus according to any of claims 33 to 35, wherein the conveyor belt is inclined at the same inclination of the arrow and the conveyor belt is positioned so that a hook or other similar article delivered at the end of the arrow on the band P1135 / O0MX conveyor will not experience any substantial upward or downward movement.
37. 37. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 36, wherein the conveyor belt is located on a separate support element that is hinged to allow downward movement in a defect in the transfer of the article from the conveyor belt onto the carrier.
38. 38. An apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 37, wherein the coordination means is provided by linked encoders and hardware which is designed to measure and regulate the conveyor speed and the speed of the drive means and the respective positions of the carriers and articles, to ensure the simultaneous delivery of an item and a carrier at the contact location for smooth transfer on the carrier.
39. 39. A method for operating an apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 38, which includes: 1) setting the speed of the driving means, which has a chain or band that is driven by an electric motor, adjusting the electric current supplied to the motor; electric motor; 2) place an encoder adjacent to the chain or band to measure the speed and position P1135 / 00MX of the carrier and retransmit this information to a controller to set the speed at which the arrow will rotate; 3) communicate the speed at which the arrow is rotated towards the separate apparatus which, in turn, regulates the speed of a servo motor linked to the conveyor belt drive.
40. 40. An apparatus for the continuous processing of articles, the apparatus includes: (a) a drive means that includes a continuous chain or web to which a multiplicity of carriers separated at equal distance from the chain or band is attached; (b) a conveyor for transporting articles to a location in which the articles can be associated with the respective carriers; and (c) a means of coordination; wherein the coordinating means controls the relative movement of the conveyor and the driving means so that the carriers being moved by the driving means and the articles being transported by the conveyor will, in turn, be delivered in the form separated in a contact location in which the respective carriers will be contacted sequentially with the respective articles while both the respective carriers and P1135 / 00MX the items are moving and thereby causing the items to be transferred sequentially on the respective carriers at the time of contact of each carrier with a respective article or after this contact.
41. 41. An apparatus according to claim 39, wherein the articles are loaded onto the conveyor and separated so that the respective articles can be transferred sequentially on each carrier passing the contact location. P1135 / 00MX