US1557772A - Stop device for conveyer systems - Google Patents

Description

ocr. 20,1925'. 1.551.712

- O .FL B. PEEBLES ifi F. B. PEEBLES y SATOP DEVICE FOR CONVEYER SYSTBIS Find AApril 19. 192s 'z shears-snee: a

' Patented Oct. 20, 1925.

FRANK B. PEEBLES, or sYRAcUsE, NEW YORK, AssIGNoR To THE LAMs'oN vcoiviPANY Pari-:wr OFFICE.

OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION F MASSACHUSETTS.

STOP DEVICE FOR CONVEYER SYSTEMS.

Application led April 19, 1923. Serial No. 633,133.

j T 0 all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, FRANK B. PEEBLES, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of Newv York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Stop De-.

vices for Conveyer Systems, of which the following is a specific-ation.

This invention concerns conveyer systems of that type in which article supporting carriers move along elevated tracks or rails, and relates more particularly to means for preventing interference of carriers approaching along converging tracks.

Conveyer systems of the type designated are commonly employed in packing establishments, warehouses, docks and the like and often comprise what may conveniently be termed main tracks' with which branch or feeder tracks converge at intervals. In some cases the main track is furnished with driving means, as for'example an endless chain, for propelling the carriers along it, while the branch or feeder tracks may be of gravity type, depending upon the inclina-l tion of their rails to cause the carriers to move toward the main track.

In a system such as just suggested, great care must be exercised to prevent collision of carriers approaching the junction point along the main and branch tracks, respectively, as such collision not only tends to block lthe system and damage the individual carriers with their loads, but frequently causes the articles being transported to fall and injure workmen passing beneath.

The principal object of the present invention is accordingly to provide a stop device for use at the intersection of the tracks of such a system, operative automatically to prevent interference of carriers approaching the junction point. v In lthe accompanying drawlngs a pre- .'ferred yembodiment of the invention is illus- 4 trated and in such drawings Fig. 1 is a fragmentary plan view of av conveyer system having the present inven-k a horizontal shaft 24. A stop element, here tion embodied therein; Y

50. shown in Fig. 1 llooking in the direction of the arrow A in said ligure; and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the partsH Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the devices parallel therewith, a pair of supporting rails 6, 7 are provided uponA which carriages 8 travel. chain 9 furnished at 4intervals with projecting lugs 10 for engagement with article supporting carriers resting upon the main' track.A

These carriages support a driving` As rherein disclosed a pair of substantial-v ly parallel endless chains 12, 13 are associated with the branch track 2, such lchains being' trained over guiding sprockets 14, 15 and being connected at intervals by bars 16. IIhese bars constitute driving elements for moving carriers'such as 11a along the branch tracks 2 until the carriers reach the inclined portions 3 of the latter, whereupon -they descend by gravity toward the main track.

'All of the above features are of known construction and form no essential part of the present invention.

At a point near the unction of the branch track with the main track, a support 17 is provided which has 'bearings for a vertical shaft 18. A b'ell crank lever comprising the arms 19, 2() is securedlto the lower end of the shaft 18. Normally the shaft is held in shown as a substantially flatv plate 25, is secured tothe shaft 24 and normally depends across the inclined portion 3 of the branch track so as`,to lie in fthe y path of carriers moving down theJ latter. A controlling arm 26 is also secured to the shaft 24, and preferably lies substantially parallel to the stop element 25. The lower end of the controlling arm projects across the plane of movement of the arm of the bell crank lever.

The operation of the device is substantially as follows: If a carrier such as 11 is allowed to descend the inclined trackB, and provided a carrier is not at the same time passing along the main track, the descending carrier engages the stop element 25, and, as the latter is free to swing, merely pushes; it out of the way and continues its descent, passing onto the main track, along which it may be propelled by one of the lugs 10 o-f the chain 9. If, however, at the instant a carrier starts to descend the incline 3, a carrier should be moving along the main track, the engagement of the latter carrier with the arm 19 will swing the bell crank lever until its arm 20 vcomes into engagement with the controlling arm 26. VSo long as the carrier on the mam track remains 1n engagement with the arm 19 the controlling arm and the stop member are restrained fromV ference or collisio-n of carriers appro-aching the junction point of the two tracks is avoided, thus making vit unnecessary to keep a workman at the junction point to hold back the carriersI upon the branch track and prevent their collision with carriers on the main track.

lVhile certain forms of driving mechanism have herein been illustrated as desirable for moving the carriers along their tracks, it is clear that the present'invention is not in any manner restricted to use with such devices, but is applicable in general to systems in which converging tracks are used.

I claim: j l j n 1. A conve-yer system comprising a pair of tracks converging ,c to a junction point, a movable stop normally extending across one of said tracks' and normally movable freely from across the track by a carrier moving therealong, and an actuator, operable by a carrier approaching thejunction point along the other track, to prevent movement of the stop from normalV position.

2. `A eonveyer system comprising a pair of vtracks converging to a junction point, a pivotally supported stop normally dependingV over one of said tracks in the path of carriers moving along said track but normally free to be moved out of the way by a passing carrier, and an actuator operable by a. carrier approaching the junction point along the other track to restrain the stop member against movement whereby to arrest a carrier moving along the first track.

3. A. conveyer system comprising a pair of converging to a junction point, a freely turning shaft extending across and above one of said tracks, a stop member secured to said shaft and normally depending into the path of carriers moving along said track, an arm secured to the sha-ft, and an actuator movable by a` carrier approaching the junction point along the other track and having' an element engageable with said arm for restraining the latter and thereby the stop member, from movement.

4l. A conveyer system comprising a main track and a. branch track 'converging to a junction point, a` normally inoperative carrier stop associated with the branch track, and an actuator associated with the main track and operable by a carrier passing along the latter to render the stop operative, said actuator comprising an arm normally extending across the path of carriers moving along the main track, and an arm for controlling the stop.

5. A co-nveyer system comprising a pair of tracks converging to` a, junction point, a freely swingin;` stop normally positioned across one of said tracks, and a stop actuator associated with the other trac-lgsaid actuator comprising a lever having one arm normally positioned to be moved by a carrier passing therealong, and a second arm constituted and arranged to restrain, the stop from movement while a carrier engages' the ,first named arm of the lever. A 4

6. A conveyer system comprising a main track anda branch track converging tol a junction point, a freely turning, substantially horizontal shaft extending across the branch track, a stop secured to the shaft and depending in the 'path of carriers moving along the branchtrack, a controlling arm secured to the shaft, a bell crank lever turning about a substantially vertical axis, one

arm of the lever normally extending across the main track in position to be swung by carriers moving therealong, and a` spring retaining the bell crank lever inA- normal position, the other arm of the lever being constructed and arranged to engage the" aforesaid co-ntrolling arm whereby to prevent movement of the'stop while a carrier is passing onthe maintrack.

Signed by me at Syracuse, Ygthis six-` A'pril, 1923.

teenth day of V Y FRANK B.

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