US2000292A

US2000292A - Material handling apparatus

Info

Publication number: US2000292A
Application number: US565060A
Authority: US
Inventors: Frank S Miller
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1931-09-25
Filing date: 1931-09-25
Publication date: 1935-05-07
Anticipated expiration: 1952-05-07

Description

May 1935.

I F. 'S. MILI ER MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Fi led Sept. 25, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 y 7, 1935. F. s. MILLER MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 25, 1931 y 7, 1935. F. s. MILLER MATERIAL HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 25, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VENTOR M A? m A12 44-, m

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Patented May 7, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,000,292 MATERIAL HANDLING srrm'rus Frank S. Miller, Steubenvillc, Ohio Application September 25, 1931, Serial No. 565,060

3 Claims. (01. 198-81) The present invention relates broadly to the art of handling materials, and more particularly to an apparatus especially designed and constructed for the selecting of sheet materials such 5 as tin plate and the like. It will be understood,

however, that the utility of the invention is not limited with respect to the particular materials being handled, it being equally applicable to any flat or substantially fiat materials having magnetic characteristics. The terms sheets" and sheet material" as hereinafter used therefore, unless specifically limited, are to be construed broadly as words of definition and not words of limitation.

At the present time it is necessary to subject tin plate, for example, to a rigid inspection, the sheets usually being divided into three general classifications as follows-primes, wasters and menders. The primes are obviously sheets suitable for regular commercial use. The menders are sheets which require further coating, while the wasters are sheets which are not acceptable commercially for the intended purpose.

In the present practice of handling tin plate, it is necessary to separately inspect both sides of the sheets and then individually count and pile the prime sheets, the counter usually being referred to as a reckoner. The required number of sheets having been counted and piled, they are weighed to determine the actual weight of the box.

The present invention has for one of its objects the provision of an apparatus by which the inspection, counting, piling and weighing of sheets of the general character referred to may be performed automatically, thereby reducing the inspection costs, eliminating the reckoner, and precluding the possibility of errors in counting.

In the accompanying drawings there is illustrated more or less diagrammatically one embodiment of the present invention. In the drawings:

Figure l is a top plan view of the left hand end or entering end of the apparatus;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the portion of the structure illustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the right hand end of the apparatus, and shows a continuation of the structure illustrated in Figure l;

Figure 4 is a side elevational view of the apparatus illustrated in Figure 3, and constitutes a continuation of the structure of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a wiring diagram for the apparatus; and

Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view illustrating one form of magnetic roll construction.

Referring first to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, there is shown diagrammatically a portion of an automatic feeder 2 efiective for delivering sheets to the inspecting, counting, piling and weighing apparatus. This apparatus as herein illustrated comprises a longitudinally extending frame 3 within which is journaled a series of supporting rollers l for a non-magnetic conveyor 5. This conveyor is herein illustrated as comprising a series of endless fabric bands passing around a feed-in roller 6 at one end and a discharge roller I at the opposite end, the desired tension being maintained on the conveyor by means of an adjustable idler 8 of'suitable construction. The conveyor is adapted to be driven in any desired manner as, for example, from a shaft 9 operatively connected to the discharge roller 1.

Sheets having been supplied to the apparatus by the automatic feeder 2, are delivered to the conveyor 5 and caused to travel in the direction indicated by the arrows l0. During this travel they pass an inspector's station S where they undergo an examination. If the sheets are defectively coated, as in the case of menders, they are permitted to travel under a cross conveyor ll comprising a series of magnetizable rollers l2. When under this conveyor, the rollers are magnetized by the inspector at the station S, and the menders lifted from the conveyor 5 and caused to travel in the direction of the arrow l4. On the other hand, wasters are permitted to travel to a second cross conveyor l5 similar in construction to the conveyor II, and in turn including a series of magnetizable rollers l6. When the wasters come under the conveyor l5 it is energized by the inspector at station S, and the wasters thereby caused to travel in the direction indicated by the arrow II. This brings them over a second conveyor l8 similar to the conveyor 5, and travelling over a roller l9 at the end adjacent the conveyor l5, and over a roller 20 at the opposite end. The roller 20 is preferably in line with the roller 1 and adapted to be driven by the power shaft 9. In this manner the two con-' veyors 5 and I8 can be continuously driven in the desired synchronous relation.

If the sheets are primes, they are permitted by the before mentioned inspector to travel past the mender conveyor II and the waster conveyor I5 to a turn-over reel 2| carried by a shaft 22 and adapted to be rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow 23 in any desired manner.

During such rotation, the fingers of the reel engage the prime sheets and invert them, depositing them on the conveyor 6 with the opposite side uppermost. The continued travel of the sheets causes them to pass an inspector's station S where they undergo a second inspection.

If the sheets are menders, they are permitted to travel to a second mender conveyor 24, similar to the conveyor H and effective when energized for causing the sheets to travel in the direction indicated by the arrow 25. If they are wasters, they are brought under a waster conveyor 26, similar to the conveyor l5 and effective for transferring the sheets from the conveyor 5 to the conveyor l8. The sheets passed by both inspectors as being prime sheets as to both sides, continue their travel on the conveyor 5.

The waster sheets removed by the waster conveyor |5 are carried by the conveyor I8 to the discharge end thereof. At the discharge end of the apparatus there is a prime conveying mechanism 21 and a waster conveying mechanism 28. These two mechanisms are of similar construction, each including a piler and counter 29 with each of which cooperates a stop 36, and each including a weighing platform 3|.

By reference to Figure 6, one form of mender or waster conveyor structure will be understood. In this figure there is illustrated diagrammatically a portion of the mender conveyor including the rolls l2 with which cooperates a magnet 32 illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 2.

Similar magnets

33, 34 and 35 cooperate respectively with the waster conveyor l5, the mender conveyor 24 and the waster conveyor 26. By supplying current to the windings 36 on any one of these magnets, the rolls are magnetized to such an extent that the sheets lying immediately thereunder are lifted from the non-magnetic conveyors and caused to travel in the direction in which the rolls of the respective conveyors are driven, it being understood that any desired driving means for this purpose may be provided.

In Figure 5 the control mechanism for the motors is diagrammatically illustrated. In this figure I have shown line wires L and L' connected to a suitable current source not shown. To these wires are connected the

magnets

32, 33, 34 and 35 through suitable circuits to control switches 31, 38, 39 and 46, respectively, the switches 31, and 38 being accessible to the inspector at station S, and theswitches 39 and 46 being accessible to the inspector at station S, whereby the inspector at either station may readily energize the rolls of either conveyor at will.

Adjacent each of the discharge rollers 1 and 26 there is provided a light source 4| above the conveyor and so disposed as to direct light rays onto a suitable light responsive mechanism 42 which may comprise a selenium cell, grid glow tube or the like. This light responsive mechanism includes a local circuit 43 in which is placed a solenoid operated switch 44. With the light responsive mechanism directly exposed to the light rays from the light source 4|, the unit will become conductive in such manner that the solenoid switch 44 will be energized and the contactor 45 thereof raised out of engagement with the contacts 46 and 41. Each time, however, that a sheet passes between the light source and the light responsive mechanism, the light responsive mechanism will become non-conductive and the circuit 43 will thus be deenergized, thereby permitting the contactor 45 to engage the contacts 46 and 41.

With these contacts engaged, current will flow from the line wire L through wire 48 to contact 46 and thence through contactor 45 to contact 41. This contact has a connection 49 to one terminal of a solenoid 56, the opposite terminal of which has a connection 5| to the line wire L.

Thus with the circuit including the solenoid 56 closed by the contactor, the solenoid will be energized and effective for moving its core 52 to the left as viewed in Figure 5 against the action of a return spring 53. This movement will be effective through a pawl 54 for rotating a ratchet wheel 55 in a counter-clockwise direction. Secured to the shaft 56 of the ratchet wheel is a pinion 51 meshing with a gear 58 mounted on a shaft 59. Secured to the shaft 59 is an adjustable circuit closing contact 66 cooperating with a brush 6|.

With the contact 66 in engagement with the brush 6|, current will flow from line wire L through wire 62 to a solenoid 63, thence by way of brush 6| and contact 66 to wire 64 connected to the line wire L. This will be effective for energizing the solenoid 63 and thereby moving one or the other of the stops 36 downwardly against the action of a return spring 65. The downward movement of the stop will permit a previously formed and counted pile P to travel onwardly along either the conveyor 21 or 28 to one of the weighing platforms 3| where it will be automatically weighed and then discharged from the conveyor to a suitable automatic boxing machine not shown. Al-

though the conveyors 21 and 26 may be driven.

conveyors, they are preferably so installed in actual practice as to be efiective as gravity conveyors, so that the weight of the piles produces the desired travel of the material therealong.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that each time a sheet passes between the light source 4| and the light responsive unit 42, the solenoid circuit 56 will be energized and the ratchet wheel 55 moved a distance equal to one tooth, such movement being insured by the provision of an adjustable stop 66 cooperating with the solenoid core 52. As soon as the sheet has passed out from between the source 4| and the unit 42, the local circuit 43 will again be energized for breaking the solenoid circuit 56 and permitting the return spring 53 to move the pawl 54 into position to engage a succeeding tooth of the ratchet. This operation will be repeated each time a sheet travels in the path mentioned. If the ratchet 55 is provided with twenty teeth, and the gears 51 and 58 have a 1 to 5 ratio, the gear 58 will be rotated once for each operations of the ratchet wheel 55. If piles of 100 sheets are desired, the adjustable contact 66 will be so set that it will not engage the brush 6| until the gear 58 has made a complete revolution. If piles of 56 are desired, the parts would be set so that the stop circuit will be energized for each half revolution of the gear 58. In this manner successive sheets are automatically piled against one of the stops 36, automatically counted by the apparatus and then automatically released. This same procedure applies both to the prime sheets and to the wasters, thus enabling'an accurate count to be maintained at all times without manual intervention.

The advantages of the present invention arise from the provision of a mechanism effective for enabling successive inspection of opposite sides of successive sheets, and the division of sheets into the desired accepted classifications with the for rendering said cross conveyors individually subsequent automatic counting, piling, and weighing of certain of the sheets.

While I have herein illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it will be understood that changes in the construction and operation of the parts may be made without departing either from the spirit of the present invention or the scope of my broader claims.

I claim:

1. In a material handling apparatus, a conveyor, a plurality of individually operative cross conveyors for receiving material therefrom, means for rendering said cross conveyors individually operative, a tum-over mechanism receiving material to be turned over immediately from said first mentioned conveyor, a second series of cross conveyors for receiving material from said tumover mechanism, and means for rendering the conveyors of said second series operative at will.

2. In a material handling apparatus, a conveyor, a plurality of individually operative cross conveyors for receiving material therefrom, means operative, a tum-over mechanism cooperating with said first mentioned conveyor, a second series of cross conveyors for receiving material from said tum-over mechanism, and means for rendering the conveyors of said second series operative at will, there being a conveyor extending substantially parallel to said first mentioned conveyor and cooperating with one of the cross conveyors of each series.

3. In a material handling apparatus, a pair of substantially parallel longitudinally extending conveyors, a pair of spaced cross conveyors effective for transferring material from one of said first mentioned conveyors to the other at spaced points, and a turnover mechanism cooperating with one of said conveyors intermediate said points, said cross conveyors being of the magnetic type and being constructed and arranged to-lift material from said one of said first mentioned conveyors and convey the same laterally to the other.

FRANK S. MILLER.