USRE45025E1

USRE45025E1 - Conveyor assembly

Info

Publication number: USRE45025E1
Application number: US11/010,250
Authority: US
Inventors: Fred W. Evers, Jr.; Marc Aury; Stephane Lorange
Original assignee: Gebo Corp Taiwan
Current assignee: Gebo Corp Taiwan
Priority date: 2001-04-09
Filing date: 2004-12-10
Publication date: 2014-07-22
Anticipated expiration: 2021-04-09
Also published as: US6491152B1

Abstract

A conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprises a conveyer belt of articulated sections and with guide rollers with an upper lifting section having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower loading section with an angled path of travel. Sprockets on the guide rollers effect movement of the belt in an upward path of travel through the lower section and then the upper section. Cleats are secured to the exterior surface of the conveyer belts belt. Supporting surfaces of the cleats extend at right angles from the exterior surface of the conveyer belt for retaining bottle caps thereon when the upper top surface of the bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the lower edge thereof generally cylindrical perimeter of the bottle cap is supported in a trough of on the supporting surfaces of the cleats but to effect. The trough effects the dropping thereof when the of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a conveyor system for lifting and orienting bottle caps and more particularly, to lifting and orienting bottle caps through a conveyor with a lower loading zone and a vertical lifting zone which is 11 adjustable to the needs of the run.

2. Description of the Background Art

In the past, caps, container closures, and crowns with a diameter greater than height, were oriented during feeding by changing the angle of an inclined, cleated conveyor. This angle change caused incorrectly-oriented caps to fall from the cleat and back into a hopper at a loading zone. Incorrectly-oriented caps are considered to be those with the open side toward the conveyor belt. Correctly oriented caps are considered to be those having the open side away from the conveyor belt.

The standard for many years was to begin with an angle at about 25 degree degrees from the vertical angle for increased pickup of caps. The angle change was 20 degrees to an angle of 5 degrees from vertical. This method worked fine for large diameter closures. As the diameter of the closures being conveyed decreases, and the height also decreases, the angle change becomes critical for in order to obtain a consistent orientation. Several procedures were tried in attempts to compensate for this. The present invention is a device for varying the angle on all cleated, conveyor-style cap orientors and feeders. The assembly can be installed on an existing inclined, cleated, conveyor-type orientor in order to vary the angle.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an improvement which overcomes the aforementioned inadequacies of the prior art devices and provides an improvement which is a significant contribution to the advancement of the oral inflation art.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising a conveyer belt which is formed of articulated sections and with guide rollers to support the belt with an upper lifting section having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower loading section with having an angled path of travel. Also included are sprockets on the guide rollers to effect movement of the belt in an upward path of travel through the lower section and then the upper section. Further included is a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of the conveyer belts. The cleats have supporting surfaces which extend at a generally right angles from the exterior surface of the conveyor belt, each cleat being of a generally rectangular cross section with an upper face and a lower face, and with an interior face therebetween a front face and a rear face, wherein the upper cap supporting surface having has a trough for retaining bottle caps thereon in a proper orientation when the upper top surface of the bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the lower edge thereof supported on generally cylindrical perimeter of the bottle cap is in contact with the supporting surfaces of the cleats but to effect. The trough effects the rejecting thereof when the of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation. Also included is a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of the conveyer belt in the lower extent of the upper section to form an outwardly directed bow in the belt and effect the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps not in the proper orientation. Further included are adjustment means to vary the extent of the bow as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed.

It is a further object of the invention to bow the lower end of a vertical conveyor for rejecting improperly oriented caps.

It is a further object of the invention to vary the extent of a conveyor bow as a function of the caps being conveyed.

The foregoing has outlined some of the pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

For the purpose of summarizing this invention, this invention comprises a new and improved conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps, container closures, and crowns, comprising a conveyer belt which is formed of articulated sections and with guide rollers to support the belt, with an upper lifting section having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower loading section with an angled path of travel. Also included are sprockets on the guide rollers to effect movement of the belt in an upward path of travel through the lower section and then the upper section. Further included is a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of the conveyer belts. The cleats have supporting surfaces which extend at a generally right angles from the exterior surface of the conveyer belt, each cleat being of a generally rectangular cross section with an upper face and a lower face, and with an interior face therebetween a front face and a rear face, wherein the upper cap supporting surface having has a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with a lower hemispherical region for retaining bottle caps, container closures, and crowns thereon in a proper orientation when the upper top surface of the bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the lower edge thereof supported on generally cylindrical perimeter of the bottle cap is in contact with the supporting surfaces of the cleats but to effect. The trough effects the rejecting thereof when the of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation. The lowermost extent of the hemispherical region being closer to the front face than to the rear face, the cleat also has a plurality of bores extending from the front face to the rear face where they can be coupled to the conveyer belt by means of a screw. Also included is a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of the conveyer belt in the lower extent of the upper section to form an outwardly directed bow in the belt and effect the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps not in the proper orientation. Further included are adjustment means to vary the extent of the bow as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed. Further included is a plate positioned in close proximity to the cleats in the region of the conveyer belt beneath the bow whereby bottle caps on the conveyer belt may drop under gravity into the hopper due to the orientation of the bow. Still further included is a source of pressurized air adjacent to the upper extent of the upper section at one lateral side of the belt to pneumatically urge bottle caps to the opposite lateral side of the belt with a chute to receive the pneumatically conveyed bottle caps while maintaining their proper orientation. A hopper is also included for a quantity of randomly oriented bottle caps adjacent to the lower section of the conveyer belt for the initial positioning of bottle caps on the conveyer belt prior to movement to the bow. Further included is a shield baffle which has a raised central extent, parallel with the direction of flow of the conveyor belt and positioned over the lower loading section, whereby bottle caps dropped thereon will limit movement of the caps onto the conveyor except at the leading edge of the plate.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the more pertinent and important features of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood and so that the present contribution to the art can be more fully appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be had made to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration of the preferred embodiment of the new and improved conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention,.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the device shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 but with parts broken away to shown certain internal constructions.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged side elevational view of the mechanisms for adjusting the angle of the bow in the conveyor.

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the mechanism shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a perspective illustration of the mechanism shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the plate positioned over the lower extent of the conveyor.

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of the plate shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view taken along line x-x 10-10 of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is side elevational view of the cleat of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is cross sectional view taken along line 12-12 of FIG. 11.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention, the new and improved conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps, is comprised of a plurality of components. In their broadest context, such components include a conveyor belt, sprockets to effect the movement of the belt, a plurality of cleats on the surface of the belt, a supplemental sprocket for creating a bow, adjustment means for varying the extent of the bow, a keeper to maintain the bow at a predetermined configuration, a source of pressurized air at the upper extent of the belt, a guide at the edge of the belt to receive caps, a shield baffle to preclude the direct dropping of caps onto the belt, and a plate to preclude falling caps from inadvertently removing properly oriented caps. Such components are specifically configured and correlated with respect to each other to attain the desired objectives.

More specifically, the main component of the system is a housing 10 adapted to support a conveyor belt 12 constrained for movement in a predetermined path of travel. The conveyor belt 12, shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 is formed of articulated sections 14 coupled with respect to each other along lines perpendicular to the path of travel. Rotatable rollers and ultra-high molecular weight guides 16, 17, 18 and 19 support the belt in a configuration to constitute an upper lifting section 22 having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower loading section 24 with having an angled path of travel slightly offset from the horizontal. An intermediate section 26 is located between the upper and lower sections. The upper guide roller 16 is driven by a motor 30 while the remaining guide rollers and ultra high molecular weight guides are

idlers

17, 18, 19 for go movement as caused by the belt 12 being driven by the drive roller 16.

An adjustment device 32 is secured to the housing 10 and is coupled with regard to the roller 19 beneath the lower section 24, as shown in FIG. 2, to maintain a proper tension on the belt 12 during operation and use.

A pair of sprockets 34 are located on each of the

guide rollers

16, 17, 18, 19 to effect movement of the belt 12 in an upward path of travel through the lower section 24, intermediate section 26, and then the upper section 22.

Located on the exterior surface of the conveyor belt 12 are a plurality of cleats 80. Each cleat 80 extends laterally across essentially the entire width of the belt 12. They The cleats 80 are spaced in the direction of the path of travel to receive a bottle cap 38 thereon. Each cleat 80, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, has a supporting surface 82 extending at a right angles angle from the exterior surface of the conveyor belt 12. It is this surface 82 which retains bottle caps 38 thereon by gravity in a proper orientation when the upper top surface 37 of the bottle cap 38 is in contact with the conveyor belt 12. In such proper orientation, the generally cylindrical edge perimeter 39 of the cap 38 is in contact with the horizontal supporting surface 82 of the cleat with 80 while the closed flat face top surface 37 of the cap 38 is in contact with the belt 12. When so properly oriented, the caps 38 may be elevated through the upper section 22 of the belt 12 in a vertical orientation. When not properly oriented, the bottle caps 38 will simply fall by gravity from the surface of the belt 12 away from the cleat 80 when entering the upper lifting section 22 of the conveyor.

In order to ensure proper orientation of the bottle caps 38 on the conveyor belt for 12 while being elevated, supplemental sprockets 34 are provided at the lower most lowermost extent of the upper lifting section 22. Such sprocket 34 is in contact with the interior face of the conveyor belt 12 to form an outwardly outward bow 44 in the belt 12. It is this bow 44 which ensures that there is effected the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps not in the proper orientation. An adjustment assembly 20 is provided to vary the extent of the bow 44 as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed.

SuchThe adjustment mechanismassembly 20, shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, is in the form of a U-shaped bracket 46 with parallel vertical walls and a lower horizontal wall therebetween. The bracket 46 is supported for rotational motion about the axis of a supporting rod 48 at the upper extent of the vertical walls. The rod 48 extends through the vertical brackets with one end 50 being provided with an adjustment lever 52 for manual rotation. Rotation of the lever and 52 about the rod which 48 functions to vary the angular position of the sprockets 34 with respect to the housing 10 and, hence, vary the extent of the bow 44.

As can be best seen in FIG. 4, taken in combination with FIGS. 5 and 6, the ends of the rod 48 are secured by

releasable collars

54 and 56. The

collars

54, 56 are fixed to the housing 10. Adjustment of a pair of bolts 58 on the

collars

54, 56 allows loosening thereof for rotating the rod 48. The rod 48, after having been rotated to the proper orientation by the adjustment lever 52, the bolts 58 are tightened to secure such orientation and sprocket positioning. The

collars

54, 56 are secured to the end plates of the housing 10 of the conveyor assembly.

Supplemental collars

59, 69 are on the exterior surfaces of the vertical plates of the U-shaped member bracket 46. The rod shaft 61 for the supplemental sprockets 34 extends therethrough. It The shaft 61 is mounted in bearings for free rotation thereof. A conventional plastic keeper on the vertical side walls of the housing 10 in sliding contact with the exterior face of the belt ensures that the bow 44 will maintain its proper curvature during operation and use.

Located at the upper extent of the upper lifting section 22 is a source 60 of pressurized air. Such source is located at one lateral edge of the conveyor belt 12, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, and tends to pneumatically eject supported bottle caps 38 to the opposed lateral edge of the conveyor. The opposite lateral edge is provided with a guide chute 65 whereby caps 38 moved laterally by the flow of air will enter the guide chute 65 for further movement. Such caps 38 are then in an elevated orientation for rolling along the chute 65. They are also oriented for proper receipt at the next station of the system for further processing. In association therewith, a plate 67, preferably a transparent plate, is in close proximity to the bottle caps 38 and flights to ensure the proper movement of the raised and oriented caps from the flights to the chute 65 for further handling.

Located in the path of travel of the conveyor, beyond the hopper 64, is a plate 62. Such plate 62, shown in FIG. 1, is positioned in close proximity to the cleats 80 in the region of the conveyor belt 12 beneath the bow 44. In this manner, bottle caps 38 on the conveyor belt 12 which are dropped by gravity therefrom at the bow 44 will fall back into the hopper 64 under the influence of gravity. The falling caps, however, will not contact and improperly drive caps from the cleats 80 which are already properly positioned. Such improper contact is precluded by the plate 62.

Next, located adjacent to the lower loading section 24 of the conveyor is a hopper 64. The hopper 64 is formed as a part of the housing 10. The housing 10 functions to allow a quantity of caps 38 to be dumped to a location over the lower loading section 24 of the conveyor so that they may be entrained by the cleats 80 and moved in the upper path of travel. This is prior to movement of the caps 38 vertically in the upper lifting section 22. Note FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 8.

The last component of the system is a baffle 66. The shield baffle 66, as shown in FIGS. 8, 9, and 10, is a plate in a tent-like configuration. It has a bend 70 at a slight angle along the longitudinal center thereof in the -direction of flow of the conveyor belt 12 and bottle caps 38 being conveyed. It then has four corner legs 72 depending downwardly therefrom and secured to the housing 10 on the sides of the conveyor adjacent to the lateral edges of the conveyor. In this manner, a space is created above the conveyor at the lower loading section 24 and beneath the lower surface of the baffle 66. In this manner, bottle caps 38 dumped in the conveyor remain above the shield baffle 66 and are deposited on the conveyor belt 12 only at the leading edge of the loading section 24 immediately in anticipation of the intermediate section 26.

In summary then, the bow adjusting adjustment assembly 20, shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, consists of sprockets 34 mounted on a shaft 61 which is mounted in bearings. These bearings are mounted to a bracket 43 46 which is in turn mounted to a second rod or shaft 48. This rod 48 is mounted in collars or

bearings

54 and 56 54, 56 which are in turn mounted to the sides of the housing 10. One end 50 of this second shaft the rod 48 extends through the conveyor side. A shaft rod position clamp mechanism is fixed to the external conveyor side. A lever 52 and dial indicator are attached for ease of use as the shaft rod 48 is turned, the sprockets 34 rotate in an arc about the center of the shaft rod 48. This allows the sprockets 34 to come in contact with the back of the conveyor belt 12. This in turn displaces the conveyor belt 12 away from its normal path. The conveyor belt 12 is restrained on the opposite side by low friction guide material or keeper. A machined arc in the guide material at the area of the sprocket 34 causes the conveyor belt 12 to follow the arc of the sprocket 34. This in turn allows an angle change of greater than 20 twenty degrees for a short space on the conveyor. In practice, instead of a final angle of 5 five degrees from vertical, it is possible to have an angle past vertical for this short space. This allows the center of the cap to fall from the cleated conveyor while correctly oriented caps remain.

FIGS. 11 and 12 disclose an alternate embodiment of the present invention inventions wherein the cleat of the present invention would be replaced with an invention. The improved cleat 80 shown in FIG. 11. These improved cleats have has a supporting surfaces surface 82 extending outwardly at a generally right angles angle from the exterior surface of the conveyer belt 12. Each cleat 80 is of a generally rectangular cross section with an upper face 84 supporting surface 82 and a lower face 86, and with a front face 87 and a rear face 88 therebetween wherein the. The upper cap supporting surface 82 has a trough 90. This trough region 90 has a sloped interior recess 92 in contact with a lower hemispherical region 94 for retaining bottle caps thereon in a proper orientation; more specifically, when the upper top surface 37 of the bottle cap 38 is in contact with the conveyer belt 12 and the lower edge generally cylindrical perimeter 39 thereof supported on is in contact with the supporting surfaces surface 82 of the cleats but to effect cleat 80. The shape of the trough 90 effects the dropping thereof when the of bottle caps 38 that are not in the proper orientation. The lowermost extent of the hemispherical region 94 is closer to the front face 87 than to the rear face 88. The cleat 80 also has a plurality of bores 96 extending from the front face 87 to the rear face 88 where they the cleat 80 can be coupled to the conveyer belt 12 by means of a screw 98.

The present disclosure includes that contained in the appended claims, as well as that of the foregoing description. Although this invention has been described in its preferred form with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred form has been made only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A new and improved conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising, in combination:

a conveyer belt formed of articulated sections and with guide rollers to support the belt with an upper lifting section having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower loading section with having an angled path of travel;

sprockets on the guide rollers to effect movement of the belt in an upward path of travel through the lower section and then the upper section;

a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of the conveyer belts belt, the cleats each cleat having an upper supporting surfaces surface extending outwardly at a generally right angles angle from the exterior surface of the conveyer belt, each cleat being of a generally rectangular cross section with an upper face supporting surface and a lower face and with an interior face therebetween a front face and a rear face wherein the upper cap supporting surface having has a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with the lower curved region for retaining bottle caps thereon in a proper orientation when the upper a top surface of the bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the lower edge thereof supported on generally cylindrical perimeter of the bottle cap is in contact with the upper supporting surfaces surface of the cleats but to effect cleat and wherein the trough effects the dropping thereof when the of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation, the lowermost extent of the lower curved region being closer to the front face than to the rear face, the each cleat also having a plurality of bores extending from the front face to the rear face where they the cleat can be coupled to the conveyer belt by means of a screw;

a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of the conveyer belt in the lower extent of the upper section to form an outwardly directed bow in the belt and effect the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps not in the proper orientation;

adjustment means to vary the extent of the bow as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed;

a plate positioned in close proximity to the cleats in the region of the conveyer belt beneath the bow whereby bottle caps on the conveyer belt may drop under gravity into the hopper due to the orientation of the bow;

a source of pressurized air adjacent to the upper extent of the upper section at one lateral side of the belt to pneumatically urge bottle caps to the opposite lateral side of the belt with a chute to receive the pneumatically conveyed bottle caps while maintaining their proper orientation;

a hopper for a quantity of randomly oriented bottle caps adjacent to the lower section of the conveyer belt for the initial positioning of bottle caps on the conveyer belt prior to movement to toward the bow; and

a baffle having a raised central extent parallel with the direction of flow of the conveyor belt and positioned over the lower loading section whereby bottle caps dropped thereon will limit movement of the caps onto the conveyor except at the leading edge of the plate.

2. A conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising:

a conveyer belt formed of articulated sections and with guide rollers to support the belt with an upper section having an essentially vertical path of travel and a lower section with having an angled path of travel;

sprockets on the guide rollers to effect movement of the belt in a path of travel through the lower section and then the upper section;

a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of the conveyer belts belt, the cleats each cleat having an upper supporting surfaces surface extending outwardly at a generally right angles angle from the exterior surface of the conveyer belt, each cleat being of a generally rectangular cross section with an upper face supporting surface and a lower face and with an interior face therebetween a front face and a rear face wherein the upper cap supporting surface having has a trough for retaining bottle caps thereon in a proper orientation when the upper a top surface of the bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the lower edge thereof supported on generally cylindrical perimeter of the bottle cap is in contact with the upper supporting surfaces surface of the cleats but to effect cleat and wherein the trough effects the dropping thereof when the of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation, each cleat having a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with the lower curved region with the lowermost etent extent of the curved region being closer to the front face than to the rear face of the cleat; and

a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of the conveyer belt in the lower extent of the upper section to form an outwardly directed bow in the belt and effect the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps not in the proper orientation.

3. A conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising:

a conveyer belt driven by sprockets on guide rollers to effect movement of said belt along a generally upward path of travel; and

a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of said belt, each cleat having a generally rectangular cross section, an upper supporting surface and a generally opposing lower face, and a front face and a generally opposing rear face,

wherein said upper supporting surface of extends outwardly at a generally right angle from said exterior surface of said belt,

and wherein said upper supporting surface includes a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with said lower curved region for retaining a bottle cap thereon in a proper orientation wherein a top surface of said bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the generally cylindrical perimeter of said bottle cap is in contact with said upper supporting surface of said cleat, and wherein said trough effects the dropping of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation, the lowermost extent of said lower curved region being closer to said front face than to said rear face.

4. The conveying system of claim 3, further comprising:

a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of said conveyer belt to form an outwardly directed bow in said belt and thereby effect the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation.

5. The conveying system of claim 4, further comprising:

adjustment means to vary the extent of the bow as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed.

6. The conveying system of claim 4, further comprising:

a plate positioned in close proximity to said plurality of cleats in the region of said belt beneath said bow, whereby bottle caps on the conveyer belt may drop under gravity into a hopper due to the orientation of said bow.

7. The conveying system of claim 3, further comprising:

a source of pressurized air adjacent to the upper extent at one lateral side of said belt, said source having a pressure sufficient to pneumatically urge said bottle caps to the opposite lateral side of said belt, with a chute to receive said pneumatically conveyed bottle caps while maintaining their proper orientation.

8. The conveying system of claim 4, further comprising:

a hopper for a quantity of randomly oriented bottle caps adjacent to the lower section of said conveyer belt for the initial positioning of bottle caps on said conveyer belt prior to movement toward said bow.

9. The conveying system of claim 6, further comprising:

a baffle having a raised central extent parallel with the direction of flow of said conveyor belt and positioned over a lower loading section whereby bottle caps dropped thereon will limit movement of said caps onto said conveyor except at the leading edge of said plate.

10. A conveying system for lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising:

a conveyer belt driven by sprockets on guide rollers to effect movement of said belt along a generally upward path of travel;

and wherein said upper supporting surface includes a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with said lower curved region for retaining a bottle cap thereon in a proper orientation wherein a top surface of said bottle cap is in contact with the conveyer belt and the generally cylindrical perimeter of said bottle cap is in contact with said upper supporting surface of said cleat, and wherein said trough effects the dropping of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation, the lowermost extent of said lower curved region being closer to said front face than to said rear face; and

11. The conveying system of claim 10, further comprising:

12. The conveying system of claim 10, further comprising:

13. The conveying system of claim 10, further comprising:

14. The conveying system of claim 10, further comprising:

15. The conveying system of claim 12, further comprising:

16. A method of lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising:

conveying said bottle caps along a conveyer belt driven by sprockets on guide rollers to effect movement of said belt along a generally upward path of travel;

retaining said bottle caps on a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of said belt, each cleat having a generally rectangular cross section, an upper supporting surface and a generally opposing lower face, and a front face and a generally opposing rear face, wherein said upper supporting surface of extends outwardly at a generally right angle from said exterior surface of said belt, and wherein said upper supporting surface includes a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with said lower curved region for retaining a bottle cap thereon, the lowermost extent of said lower curved region being closer to said front face than to said rear face; and

orienting said bottle caps in a proper orientation on said plurality of cleats, wherein said proper orientation is characterized in that a top surface of each bottle cap is in contact with said conveyer belt and the generally cylindrical perimeter of each bottle cap is in contact with said upper supporting surface of said cleat, such that said trough effects the dropping of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

forming an outwardly directed bow in said conveyor belt to assist in the removal, by gravity, of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein said bow is formed by a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of said conveyer belt.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

varying the extent of the bow as a function of the particular bottle cap being conveyed.

20. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

positioning a plate in close proximity to said plurality of cleats in the region of said belt beneath said bow, such that bottle caps dropping off said conveyer belt fall into a hopper.

21. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

pneumatically urging said bottle caps using a source of pressurized air positioned adjacent to the upper extent at one lateral side of said belt, said source having a pressure sufficient to urge said bottle caps to the opposite lateral side of said belt toward a chute positioned to receive said pneumatically conveyed bottle caps while maintaining their proper orientation.

22. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

positioning a hopper adjacent to the lower section of said conveyer belt to hold a quantity of randomly oriented bottle caps for the initial positioning of said bottle caps on said conveyer belt prior to movement toward said bow.

23. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

positioning a baffle over a lower loading section of said belt, said baffle having a raised central extent parallel with the direction of flow of said conveyor belt and positioned whereby bottle caps dropped thereon will limit movement of said caps onto said conveyor except at the leading edge of said plate.

24. A method of lifting and orienting bottle caps comprising:

retaining said bottle caps on a plurality of cleats secured to the exterior surface of said belt, each cleat having a generally rectangular cross section, an upper supporting surface and a generally opposing lower face, and a front face and a generally opposing rear face, wherein said upper supporting surface extends outwardly at a generally right angle from said exterior surface of said belt, and wherein said upper supporting surface includes a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with said lower curved region for retaining a bottle cap thereon, the lowermost extent of said lower curved region being closer to said front face than to said rear face;

orienting said bottle caps in a proper orientation on said plurality of cleats, wherein said proper orientation is characterized in that a top surface of each bottle cap is in contact with said conveyer belt and the generally cylindrical perimeter of each bottle cap is in contact with said upper supporting surface of said cleat, such that said trough effects the dropping of bottle caps that are not in the proper orientation; and

25. The method of claim 24, wherein said bow is formed by a supplemental sprocket in contact with the interior face of said conveyer belt.

26. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

27. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

28. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

pneumatically urging said bottle caps using a source of pressurized air positioned adjacent to the upper extent at one lateral side of said belt, said source having a pressure sufficient such to urge said bottle to the opposite lateral side of said belt toward a chute positioned to receive said pneumatically conveyed bottle caps while maintaining their proper orientation.

29. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

31. A cleat for lifting and orienting a bottle cap along a conveyor, the cleat comprising:

an upper supporting surface and a generally opposing lower face, and a front face and a generally opposing rear face, such that said cleat has a generally rectangular cross section;

wherein said upper supporting surface extends outwardly at a generally right angle from a surface of said conveyor,

and wherein said upper supporting surface includes a lower curved region and a trough with a sloped interior recess in contact with said lower curved region for retaining said bottle cap thereon in a proper orientation, the lowermost extent of said lower curved region being closer to said front face than to said rear face,

wherein said proper orientation is characterized in that a top surface of said bottle cap is in contact with said conveyer and the generally cylindrical perimeter of said bottle cap is in contact with said upper supporting surface of said cleat,

and wherein said upper supporting surface effects the dropping of said bottle cap if it is not in said proper orientation.

32. The cleat of claim 31, wherein said upper supporting surface retains said bottle cap in said proper orientation when said conveyor is moving along a generally vertical path of travel.

33. The cleat of claim 31, wherein said upper supporting surface effects the dropping of said bottle cap if it is not in said proper orientation when said conveyor is moving along a generally vertical path of travel.

34. The cleat of claim 31, wherein said upper supporting surface effects the dropping of said bottle cap if it is not in said proper orientation and if said conveyor is moving along a path of travel that exceeds vertical at least momentarily.

35. The cleat of claim 31, wherein said upper supporting surface effects the dropping of said bottle cap if it is not in said proper orientation, but only if said conveyor is moving along a path of travel that exceeds vertical by a sufficient degree, at least momentarily, wherein said degree is a function of the particular size and shape of the bottle cap being conveyed.