US1234729A - Feeding mechanism for bottling-machines. - Google Patents

Description

lMAM Wfl/(wlw J. H. CHAMP.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BOTTLING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED 1AN.21.|913.

J. H. CHAMP.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BOTTLING MACHINES.

Patented Juy 31, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

APPLICATION FILED ]AN.2I, |913.

77 A 7 v L Mu @M WI www@ /A/VEA/TO/ ad# W@ J. H. CHAMP.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR BOTTLING MACHINES.`

APPLlcATloN FILED 11111.21, 1913.

1,234,729. Patented Ju1y 31, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

' a' "MIMI-Alli UNTTED STATES PATENT oEEIcE.

JOSEPH H, CHAMP, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.l

EEEDING MEcHANisnr Eon BoTTLrNG-MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 31, 1917.

Application led January 21, 1913. Serial No. 743,396.

To all 'whom it may concern.:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH H. CHAMP, a' citizen of the United States, and a resident of Cleveland, county of Cuyahoga, and

State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Feeding Mechanism for Bottling-Machines, of which 'the fol'- lowing is a specification, the principle of the invention being herein explained and the best mode in which I have contemplated' applying that principle, so as to distinguish it. from -other inventions.

The present improvements more particuf larly relate to the handling of bottles in con-t are put ontothe bottles by automatic machines. The present invention, accordingly, further comprehends an arrangement or layout of conveying mechanism which provides, not merely for theI convenient bringing up of theempty bottles and their feeding onto the machine, but also for the removal and convenient disposition of the filled bottles for the crking operation, where Stoppers" are used requiring -manipulation on the part of operators stationed for the purpose.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and vrelated ends, the invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out -in the claims.

' The annexed drawings and thev following description set forth in detail certain mechanism embodying the invention, such disclosed means constituting, however, but one of various mechanical forms in which the principle of the invention may be used.

In said annexed drawings Figure 1 is aplan view of my improved bottle handling mechanism in proper relation to that portion of the filling machine wherewith it cooperates; Fig. 2 `is a side yelevation of such bottle ,handling mechanism; Fig. 3 is a plan view on an enlarged scale of certain operative parts of the mechanism directly associated with the feeding of the bottles onto the bottle holders of the filling machine and the -removal of such bottles therefrom; Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the foregoing parts taken 011 the line 4 4 Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a transverse sectionV of another detail of the mechanism taken on the plane indicated by the lines 5 5 in Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a section'of another "detail taken on the line 6 6, Fig. 1; Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate a modification in the construction of the supports for the pulleys around which the conveyer belts run; Fig. 9 illustrates a detail ofone of the bottle guides; and Fig. `10 shows a preferred arrangement of driving means for driving the aforesaid conveyer belts.

As has been indicated, the` mechanism illustrated in thel drawings just described is designed primarily for use where the bottles, after being discharged from the fill-v ing machine, require to be manually handled incidentally to corking or other operation performed thereon. It will be understood,

however, that the several features of im provement embodied'herein are not necessarily limited to use in this precise combination, and that the feeding and discharging mechanisms forexample, may be employed in conjunction with automatic sealing niachines, which would not make necessary the provision of such an extensive conveyer table with the adjuncts here shown.

The conveyer table 1 as shown in Figs..

1' and 2 is of considerably greater extent longitudinally than transversely, said table being furthermore jointed or hinged at 2,

so as to permit the portion 3 thereof projecting` to the right beyond the' filling machine (as shown in said figures), to be folded back above the other portion out lof the way, when the mechanism is not in actual use. The portion of the table l adjacent to .the filling machine, of which only two of the corner supports 4 of the frame, together with a few of the bottle holders 5 are shown, is cut out on a curve corresponding with the circular path of travel 'of said holders and is disposed in the same plane.

which said holders occupy when in position fr receiving the empty bottles 6. Said holders, it will be understood, are lowered again to this same plane when the bottles are to be discharged.

Brackets 7 extending from the corner posts 4 of the filling machine,v together with supplemental posts or standards 8 serve to support the conveyer table, such supporting members permitting of the vertical adjustment of the table to bring the same in the desired plane as just explained.

Running the entire length of the table are two conveyer belts 9 and 10 traveling in opposite directions as indicated by arrows 10 in Figs. 1 and 2, the upper laps of said belts being slidably supported upon the smooth upper surface of the table and passing around rollers or pulleys 11, 11, and 1'2, 12, at the respective ends of the tables, while idler pulleys 13, 13 carried by swinging ` arms 14, 14 rest upon the lower laps of they belts and maintain said belts under proper tension. The swinging arms 14, 14 which Vcarry said idler pulleys are pivotally at- 'taehed to the table on approximately the same axis 2 about which the portion 3 is hinged, so that the latter may be turned up into the position indicated in dotted outline inFig. 2, and the belts readily accommodate themselves to the change in position Y without becoming either loose or entangled with the otherrtparts of the mechanism.

For driving belts 9 and 10 a chain Ydrive is preferably employed, such drive consist- 3e ing' of a single chain 15 passing around a double sprocket 16 of the driving shaft 17 and thence' around two separate sprockets 18, 18 attached to the respective rollers or pulleys 11, 11 around which pass said two belts (see Figs. 1, 2 and 9). The arrangement of the chain, as will clearlyappear Y' from inspection of the last-named of these three figures, is such that, with the driving sprocket 16 `turning continuously in one diaareetion, the two driven sprockets 18, 18y with their attached rollers 11, 11, willbe rotated p in opposite directions. Supported above the upper surface of the table, and of the conveyer belts traveling thereon in opposite directions, as justy described, are guides 19 disposed along each side 'of the table and between the inner edges of the belts, which are spaced some distance `from each other. In fact this central guide 5 is desirably left of such width that it may serve as a shelf on which to place bottles that are to'be discarded, or are improperly iilled, or for any other reason require to be re moved from the general lot. At each end ofthe table there is, moreover, a curved guide 20 similarly supported above the table top, which guideV 20 joins the outer guides and is suitably spaced from the end of the inner guide to leave a continuous, closed path for the bottles to travel down with the one conveyer belt 9 and back on the other conveyer 10.

To facilitate the transfer vr-of the bottles at the respective ends of the table from the one V belt to the other, a thin flatdisk 21 is ro- The inner guide 19 on the table is interrupttatably supported with its under surface resting on the two belts and with its axis of rotation midway between them and just at the end of the central guide 19. The weight of this disk, which may be augmented by attaching a weight 22 to the bolt or spindle 23 which pivotally secures the same to the table, as shown in Fig. 5, produces suiiicient frictional contact between said disk and the two belts so that the latter will rotate each disk in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. l. The disks, however, are sufficiently thin so that a bottle traveling on thefone belt will slide onto the disk and be carried around by it and discharged onto the other belt withoutwlifculty.

By reason of the recess in the inner edge of the conveyer table 1, the corresponding edge of the conveyer belt 10 on that side of the table, is brought into substantially tangent relation to the circular` path of travel of the bottle holders 5 of the filling machine, at a point approximately midway between the two posts 4 of the filling machine frame.

ed for some distance on either side of this point and special mechanism provided there, for transferring the empty bottles on to the successive holders of the filling machine, as they are brought up to this point "byY the inner belt, and for removing the bottles from said holders onto the same belt, as they are brought around again nearly to this point, to be carried toward the right hand end of the table as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2.

Noting first the device for feeding the empty bottles onto the holders of the lling machine, the principal element comprised in said device is a pivotal gate member 24 oscillatory in a substantially horizontal plane and of theconformation appearing in Figs. 1 and 3 asthere shown.y The forward end of this member comprises a concave portion 25 adapted to receive a bottle for the purpose of transferring the same on to the adjacent holder when the member is swung inwardly, and a convex portion 26 which, when interposed in front of the line of bottles on the conveyer belt, serves as a stop to prevent the further progress of said bottles. A weight 27 adjustable on a rocker-arm 28 supported from a bracket 29 beneath the table, is connectedby means of a lever 30V and connecting rod 31 with the opposite end of this gate member, so asl` to rnormally retain the same in the position illustrated in Fig. l, where the member acts as a stop. In such posi/tion, an arm 32`integral withthe member ,and carrying a roller 33 to reduce the friction, extends inwardly toward( theV filling machine into a position where it will? be engaged by the bottle holders 5 or some corresponding part of the machine. The member/is thereby locked into the position illustrated in Fig. 3, whereythe stop portion 130 the holders of the filling 26 of the member is carried out of line with the bottles resting on the conveyer belt 10, and the concave portion 25 of said member disposed to receive the foremost bottle in said line. Immediately, however, that the particular bottle holder which thus actuates the member has passed beyond the point shown in Fig. 3, the roller-bearing arm 32 is released, and the weight 27 swings the gate 24 back into the position of Fig. 1. This movement carries, or transfersthe particular bottle engaged by the recessed portion 25 of the member off the belt 10 and onto the adjacent bottle holder 5 which will be positioned to receive the same by the time this movement is consummated.

The point of transfer is not exactly that at which the line of travel of the bottles on the beltis tangent to the circular path of travel of the bottle holders, but to the left of such point, as will be obviousI from a reference to Fig. l. Accordingly, the holder is in a sense moving away from the bottle when the latter is'thus being transferred, and this is purposely so designed, since Iv have found that there is much less tendency for the bottle to break between the moving parts when the latter are thus relatively disposed, than where the transfer takes place at a point substantially tangent to the path of travel of the holders.

The section 34 of the guide 19 adjacent the transfer point of the empty bottles onto machine, is pivotally secured to the table at the point 35, so as to-be capable of a limited amount of oscillation in a horizontal plane. The free end of such swinging guide section is, moreover,- recurved so as to assist in forcing the bottles back into the holders after they have been transferred by the swinging gate member. Said guide section is backed by a spring 36 so that a certain amount of resilience isV assured its action.

By suitably adjusting the weight 27 along the rocker arm 28, just the proper amount of force to effect the transfer of the particu- ,i vlar size of bottles being dealt with can be gate member 24 is secured, and accommodation is furthermore made for handling different sizes of bottles by attaching to the resiliently supported pivotal section 34 of the guide, a plate 37 (See Fig. 9), which serves to constrict the width of the passage along which the empty bottles are conveyed, sufficiently to prevent such bottles being shoved out of line when the positioned to serve as a stop.

As the filled bottles arebrought around on the holders 5 of the filling machine' to a point adjacent to the feeding point, Ias shown :in Fig. l, they are engaged by an arm or finger 38 that is pivotally mounted on a/ support 39 .beside the gate member, such finger being inclined at the proper angle to the direction of movement of the holders to force said bottles from the latter with a wedging or cam action, the flanges on the holders being inclinedy at the. proper angle to coperate with this finger in producing the desired result.

A s the bottles are thus shoved off the successive holders they are received onto the same belt l0 which brings the emptyV bottles up to the feeding station, said belt extending for a sufficient distance beyond this point to afford an opportunity for one or more operators, stationed beside the table, to attend to the corking. Such bottles will be removed as fast as corked into trays, or

set aside, it may be placed on the shelf-like central guide member 19. Should the rate of operation be such that a single operator can not take care of the corking, one may be stationed on either side of the table eX- tension 3, since the bottles will be transferred from the rear belt to the front belt by the rotating disk at the end of said table, just as the empty bottles are carried across the other end of the table.

The finger 38, which thus serves to remove the bottles from the holders, is normally held in the position where it thus operates by a compression spring 40 surrounding a rod 41 eccentrically connected with said finger, as clearly shown in Fig. 3. Should,

'crates,disposed by the side of the operator, or if for any reason a bottle requires to bev however, the bottle stick on the holder, or, i

tion 25 of said member is disposed to receive the bottles, and the roller on the arm thus held out of the path of travel of the holders 5. The spring is designed to be strong enough to' overcome the tendency of the weight 27 to force the gate member into its other position, so that said gate member is effectually locked and the feeding operation thus automatically stopped until the operator restores the finger to its normal operation, first, of course, correcting the cause of the disturbance.

The foregoing described means provide a simple and very Jeffective.mechanism for handling bottles in connection with a bottle filling machine of the class in mind, and it has been found by actual experiment that the difficulties heretofore encountered with automatic bottle handling machines for use in such connection, such as the upsetting and breaking of bottles,is effectively done away with. It is, of course,`immaterial what be the extent of the table, and where an automatic corking or sealing machine is employed it will suliice if the conveyer belt, that carries the filled bottles away from the machine, simply carries such bottles to such sealing machine, Without a special eXtension for the manual handling of the bottles being provided, as inthe present case.

In the modification shown in Figs. 7 and 8, the rollers 12 are carried by brackets 45 that are adjustably attached to the table by setbolts 46. The tension of the belts 9 and l0, may, by this means, be still further varied.

In referring herein to operationof the gate-member 24 by engagement of successive holders 5 with the roller-bearing arm 32 of said member, it will be understood that said holders merely typify any corresponding, spaced elements on the rotatable, or

moving, portion of the filling machine,

which are adapted one after the other to thus actuate the member. The holders, specifically, are desirably utilized in the par-V ticular patented machine previously referred to because in such machine they have a ver-v tical reciprocatory movement, and unless lowered into the proper plane e., that of the table l), the gate member 24 should of course not be actuated. The same remark applies to operation of the linger 38, which normally lies above the plane of the holders when in proper lowered position for the discharge of the filled bottles, but which will be engaged by said holders, or their supports, if the latter are notjthus positioned.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change being made as regards the mechanism herein disclosed, provided the means stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention l. The combination with a machine ofthe character described having a series of conjointly movable holders for bottles or the like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of movement of said holders; an oscillatory member havin one portion' adapted to receive and trans er a bottley from said conveyer to a holder and another portion 4 adapted to stop the movement of the bottles by said conveyer; and means normally retalningfsuch stop-portion of said member in operative position. Y

2. The combination with a machine of the character described having a series of conjointly movable holders for bottles or the like; of, a conveyer passing adjacent to the Y path of movement of said holder; an oscillatory' member having one portion adapted to receive and transfer a bottle' from said conveyer to al holder and another portion adapted to stop the movement of the bottles by said conveyer; and gravity-actuated means normally retaining such stop-portion of said member in operative position.

3. The combination with a machine of the character described having a series of conjointly movable holders for bottles or the like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of movement of said holder; an oscillatory memberv having one portion adapted to receive and transfer a bottle from said conveyer to a holder and another portion adapted to stop the movement of the bottles by said conveyer; means tending to move said member tol placesuch stop-portion thereof in operative position; and means adapted to move said member into position to receive a bottle, said first-named means being thereupon adapted positively to trans'- fer the bottle, thus received, onto an adjacent holder. V

di. The combination with a machine of the character described having a series of con'-A jointly movable holders for bottles or the like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of movement of said holder; an oscillatory member havin one portion adapted to receive and trans er a bottle from said conveyer to a holder and anotherV portion adapted to stop the movement of the botties by said conveyer; gravity-actuated meansq tending to move' said member to place such stop-portion thereof in operative position; and-means adapted 'to move said member into position to receive a bottle, said irst-named means being thereupon adapted positively to transfer the bottle, thus re ceived, onto an adjacent holder.

5. The combination with a machine of the character described having a series of conjointly movable. holders for bottles or the like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of movement of said holder; an oscillatory member havin one portion adapted to receive and trans er a bottle from said conveyer to a holder and another portion adapted tostop the movement of thev bottles by said conveyer; gravity-actuated means tending to move said member to vplace such stop-portion thereof in operative position; and means operable by said holders to move said member in position to receive a bottle, said lirst-named means being thereupon adapted positively to transfer the` bottle, thus received, onto an adjacent holder.) 1

6. The combination with a machine of the character described havin a series of conjointly. movable holders or bottles or theV like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of' movement of said holders; a pivotal finger adapted inl one position to transfer bottles from successive holdersl `onto said f conveyer and 'in another position to, lie cleai-` 130 of such bottles; and a spring connected With said finger eccentrically of its axis and tending to retain the same in Whichever.

position it is placed.

7 The combination with a machine of the character described having a series of conjointly movable holders for bottles or the like; of a conveyer passing adjacent to the path of movement of said holder; an oscillatory member havin one portion adapted to receive and trans er a bottle from said l conveyer to a holder and another portion adapted to stop the movement of the bottles by said conveyer; a lever connected With said member to oscillate the same; and a JOSEPH H. CHAMP. Attested by- Y F. L. HINDS, v JOHN H. ROBERTS.

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