WO2009022268A2

WO2009022268A2 - Conveying and/or accumulation apparatus apt to axial loading of products

Info

Publication number: WO2009022268A2
Application number: PCT/IB2008/053155
Authority: WO
Inventors: Simone Berchiolli
Original assignee: Crc S.R.L.
Priority date: 2007-08-10
Filing date: 2008-08-06
Publication date: 2009-02-19
Also published as: WO2009022268A3

Abstract

In a conveying and/or accumulating apparatus including chain deflection wheels or other flexible elements apt to support and transmit the motion to product containers suspended at their ends to said chains, the paths followed by the chains and/or the conformation of the anchoring means of the containers to the chains themselves are such that they do not obstruct at the loading and/or unloading stations of the product the necessary space for the passage of the products in direction of the longitudinal axis of said containers, thus allowing for loading and unloading operations in said direction. The apparatus guarantees for many types of products particularly reliable and fast loading and unloading operations permitting to optimize the layout of the production lines.

Description

CONVEYING AND/OR ACCUMULATION APPARATUS APT TO AXIAL

LOADING OF PRODUCTS ooooooooo

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to an apparatus for conveyance and/or accumulation of products, in particular but not exclusively within production lines.

More specifically the invention refers to an apparatus for conveyance and/or accumulation of the type that includes deflection elements of flexible transmission means, such as belts or chains, apt to support and to transmit motion to containers connected at their ends to said transmission means.

The invention also refers to a method of loading and/or unloading of products to/from accumulating apparatuses as outlined above.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

In many industrial sectors for the conveyance of half-finished or finished products between one machine and the following or within temporary accumulating apparatuses inserted in the production lines between machinery of a different production cycle or in order to avoid production standstills of the downstream machinery in the case of failure or blocking of upstream machinery or vice versa, flexible transmission means, such as toothed belts or chains are used which move around series of deflection elements supporting the containers of the above mentioned products.

Obviously such containers and their mode of connection to the transmission means are of different type as function of the material to be transported. Among the most common we may name the suspended containers, i.e. suspended from the ends by hinge links in order to be able to freely oscillate between two transmission chains running in parallel at the ends of the container. The shape of such containers varies as function of the material to be transported but their operating principle is that described e.g. in US 4.142.626, in US 6.053.304, or in EP 1371583.

The suspended containers offer substantial advantages compared to accumulating apparatuses where the containers of the products are rigidly connected to the respective transmission means of the motion as the containers themselves maintain during the movement of the transmission means on the deflection elements their orientation referred to a fixed reference system, independently of the direction of the transmission chain, thus also during the rotation around the deflection elements, said orientation being dictated by the own weight with the relative load being applied to the gravity center of the container itself properly arranged at a certain distance below the pivot point.

As may be easily concluded also by the above representations, this type of solution however is severely limited by the need of carrying out the loading and unloading of the products to/from the containers by feeding the products transversally with reference to the longitudinal dimension of the containers themselves. As a matter of fact, the overall dimensions determined by the belt or chain transmission means and by the means of anchoring the containers to the transmission means themselves prevent the loading and unloading operations of the products from being performed in parallel with the longitudinal axis of the containers. This pattern of axial loading in many cases could be of extreme advantage as far as the management of the production line, structural efficiency and simplicity of the loading apparatuses and other aspects directly connected to the pattern of products to be treated are concerned. Another limit of the suspended containers is related with the possibility of the container to freely rotate around its suspension axis. As a matter of fact, the transport speeds need to be low in order to avoid oscillating movements of the container itself, generated by the forces of inertia during the changes of direction and speed, from being initiated, oscillations which also could cause the loss of the load. Moreover the shape of the containers, precisely for the possible presence of oscillating movements, shall provide for the presence of walls for the containment of the products or incorporate structures apt to provide stability to the transported load.

For this reason, very often solutions as those illustrated e.g. in US 2003/000081 1 or in EP 1375394 are applied to the transport of prism shaped products, such as packages.

Another pattern of containers and relative linkage elements is that described e.g. in WO2004/080860 or in WO2003/002437 wherein the containers are linked to the transmission chains by rigid connections. In this case the direction of the container follows the feed direction of the chain and for this reason specific means for the containment of the products placed on the path of the containers have to be provided for or are provided already by the shape itself of the containers. As may be easily concluded, this type of apparatuses and relative containers are specifically designed for a particular pattern of containers and therefore in general do not have a sufficient flexibility of use.

Therefore it seems to be advisable to look for alternative solutions of conveying apparatuses and methods in order to overcome the above exposed limits of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is that of proposing a conveying and/or accumulating apparatus where the products are loaded on containers connected to flexible transmission means which allow for the loading and unloading of the products also in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the containers themselves.

A further object of the present invention is proposing a flexible and versatile conveying and/or accumulating apparatus where the loading and unloading of the products on/from the containers takes place in an extremely fast, efficient and reliable manner.

A further object of the present invention is proposing a method for the conveyance and/or the accumulation of products in apparatuses including containers connected to flexible transmission means wherein loading and unloading take place in a particularly easy and efficient manner.

The above mentioned objects are achieved by a conveying and/or accumulating apparatus including deflection elements configured by at least two chains or other closed cycle flexible transmission elements which solidarily move on paths arranged in parallel running planes, and including product containers connected by links at their longitudinal ends to said chains or flexible elements where the paths followed by said chains or flexible supporting and transmission elements are such that said chains or flexible elements do not obstruct at the loading and/or unloading stations of the product the necessary space for the passage of the products themselves in direction of the longitudinal axis of said containers, and the conformation of the containers and of the relative means of anchoring to said links is provided in a way that said chains or flexible means, said containers and said anchoring means do not obstruct at the loading and/or unloading stations of the product the necessary space for the passage of the products themselves in direction of the longitudinal axis of said containers, all in a way to allow for loading and unloading of the products in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the containers.

Advantageously the links are provided by the number of two arranged at the opposed longitudinal ends of the container and in a coaxial position, and in a top view of said apparatus the longitudinal axis of the container is inclined referred to the axis of the above links by a sufficient value in order to prevent any interference of the chains or transmission belts with the passage areas of the products during said loading and/or unloading operations. Alternatively the two links arranged at the opposed longitudinal ends of the containers are parallel to each other but non coaxial and horizontally and/or vertically offset in a way that the path of said chains or flexible elements does not interfere with the passage areas of said products during said loading and/or unloading operations. Still alternatively the links again are coaxial to each other but the longitudinal axis of the container in a top view is parallel to the axis of the links, and the loading and/or unloading stations are arranged at not vertical spots of the path of said chains so that the path of said chains does not interfere with the passage areas of said products during said loading and/or unloading operations.

Advantageously the apparatus includes auxiliary conveying means apt to feed the products in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the container placed in the loading and/or unloading station.

Still advantageously the containers are composed of rigid supporting structures of the products preferably constituted by a supporting structure composed of spaced parallel longitudinal bars connected by at least one transversal bar. The anchoring means are suspension arms rigidly connected to the containers and simply suspended from the links due to the fact that said chains or transmission belts include extensions in which profiled ends of the suspension arms engage which have an opening towards the bottom and lower safeguarding means against the profiled ends coming loose from said extensions. Still advantageously the number of extensions of each of said transmission chains is a multiple, not necessarily an integer, of the number of containers installed in the apparatus so that the containers can be added to or removed from the apparatus as function of the dimensions of the products and of the required accumulating and/or conveying capacity of the apparatus itself. The above objects are also achieved by a method for the conveyance and/or accumulation of products in apparatuses including deflection elements of at least two chains or other closed cycle flexible transmission elements which solidarily move on identical parallel paths in parallel planes and including product containers connected at their longitudinal ends to said chains or flexible elements by links, wherein said products enter into said apparatuses and are transferred to loading and/or unloading stations of said apparatuses by movement of said products in directions parallel to a longitudinal axis of the container to which the products shall be loaded or from which they shall be unloaded.

Advantageously the containers, during their motion induced by the transmission chains, maintain their orientation with reference to a fixed spatial reference system unchanged in a stable and defined manner.

Still advantageously the method includes operations of linking/unlinking the containers to/from said transmission chains which can be performed by relative movements between said transmission chains and said containers. The advantages associated with the apparatus of the invention become immediately evident as far as the possibility of using containers simply suspended from the transmission means is concerned, maintaining all the advantages relating to this type of configuration and simultaneously being capable of carrying out the loading and unloading of the products in direction of the longitudinal axis of the containers themselves, thus allowing for a particular rationalization of the loading and unloading means and of the whole production line inside which the apparatus can be arranged. Moreover it is possible, still maintaining the configuration with suspended containers, to prevent the oscillation of the containers themselves, thus allowing for a safer transport and at higher transporting speed and acceleration.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other advantages associated with the apparatus of the invention may be still easier to understand by illustrating some not exhausting examples of embodiment as described below with the aid of the attached drawings, wherein:

- Figure 1 represents a schematic front view of an apparatus according to the invention;

- Figure 2 represents a view from above of the apparatus of fig.1 ;

- Figure 3 represents a view from above of specific components of the apparatus of fig.1 ;

- Figure 4 represents a lateral view of the components of fig.3;

- Figure 5 represents a front view of another embodiment of the apparatus of the invention;

- Figure 6 represents a view from above of the apparatus of fig.5;

- Figure 7 represents a view from above similar to the view of fig. 2 of another embodiment of the apparatus of the invention;

- The figures from 8 to 10 represent lateral, front views and from above of the specific components of the figures 3 and 4 according to the embodiment of fig.7;

- Figure 1 1 represents a front view of another embodiment of the components of the figures from 8 to 10; - Figure 12 represents a schematic front view of a further embodiment of some components of an apparatus according to the invention;

- Figure 13 represents a view from above of the apparatus of the invention according to the embodiment of fig.12.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The figures 1 and 2 indicate by 10 a complete apparatus according to the invention. Specifically, this embodiment of the invention deals with an apparatus for the temporary accumulation of products, e.g. of the type used as buffer between a section upstream and a section downstream of a production line.

The apparatus 10 includes a supporting structure, 1 1 , composed of columns,

12 and cross beams, 13. In appropriate positions on the front and on the rear of the structure 1 1 , deflection elements are anchored in a perfectly mirrored arrangement which define the path of the two chains, 14, supporting the containers, 15, of the products, 16, and transmitting their motion and which therefore run in parallel one besides the other close to the front and to the rear of the structure.

In particular the two chains 14 extend between a first series of fixed axis deflection wheels, 18, arranged in the lowest part of the structure, a first mobile axis wheel, 19, and second series of fixed axis wheels, 10, also arranged in the lowest part of the structure, and second mobile axis wheels, 21.

Flexible connecting means, 22, deflected by pulleys, 23, anchored to the top of the structure 1 1 , reciprocally link the movements of the first mobile axis wheel 19 to those of the second wheels, 21 , connected in a way to form a set with solidary movement.

Actuators connected at least to one of the fixed axis wheels and appropriate deflection organs, not shown for reasons of simplifying the illustration, put into motion the whole system of deflection wheels and thus the chains 14.

The containers 15 shown in detail in the figures 3 and 4 are composed of a series of bars, 24, running parallel to a longitudinal axis, 25, joint by transversal bars 26. On the opposed longitudinal ends of the container suspension arms,

27 and 28, are arranged which are rigidly connected to the bars 24 by which the container is suspended from bolts, 29, attached to the chains 14.

The bolts 29 from which the ends shaped appropriately as a reversed "U" completed by a lower retaining device of the suspension arms 27 and 28 are suspended, form hinge links around the axes, 30, of which the container 16 can oscillate, with the two links resulting always substantially coaxial due to the perfectly mirrored arrangement of the deflection elements and the synchronization of the two chains 14.

The suspension arms 27 are conformed in a way that the longitudinal axis 25 of the container in a view from above of the container results inclined referred to the axis 30 formed by the bolts 29 by a value sufficient to permit at least on one side of the container 15 leaving the covered area constituted by the deflection wheels 21 and the chains 14 which otherwise would prevent the loading and/or unloading of the products 16 in the direction of the longitudinal axis 25.

The operation of the apparatus is described below with reference to the figures from 1 to 4. The products, 16, arrive at the apparatus by means of a conveying belt that is part of the section upstream of the production line and access to a loading station, 32, of the apparatus by means of special auxiliary conveying means, 31 which allow for the feed of the products to the station 32 in direction of the longitudinal axis 25 of the containers15.

The products are loaded onto the containers 15 pushed towards the top by the movement of the transmission chains 14, pass through the sets of mobile axis wheels 21 in order to return downwards to the unloading station, 33, where they are unloaded onto further auxiliary conveying belts, 34, from which they are transferred, always in direction of the longitudinal axis 25, to a conveying belt that is part of the section downstream of the production line. The empty containers then continue their way via the various fixed axis and mobile axis deflection wheels until returning to the loading station 32. The movement of the wheels 19, e.g. in the position 19a of fig. 1 , to the bottom and the following lifting of the wheels 21 in the position 21 a allow for increasing the number of loaded product containers present in the apparatus, increasing thereby its loading capacity. The opposite movements obviously cause a decrease of the loading capacity.

On their whole path the containers always maintain their orientation with regard to a fixed spatial reference system unchanged, except for small oscillations. The loading capacity of the apparatus moreover can be varied by simply increasing or decreasing the number of containers 15 connected to the bolts 29. As a matter of fact it is sufficient to provide on the transmission chains 14 a multiple of bolts, not necessarily an integer, of the minimum number of bolts and perhaps use only a certain number of them as function of the required loading capacity and of the dimensions of the products to be transported.

It should be noted that e.g. when doubling the number of containers the feeding motion that the flexible transmission means have to complete in order to shift the products e.g. from the loading station to the following position has to be halved, thereby predisposing the same loading station to a new empty container.

Due to the simple and efficient method by which the containers 15 are linked, linking and unlinking of the containers takes place extremely fast. It is sufficient to displace the container towards above referred to the transmission means 14 in order to remove the profiled ends of the suspension arms 27 and 28 from the bolts 29 and thus allow for the removal of the container. Obviously the opposite operation allows for adding the containers to the apparatus.

The figures 5 and 6 show a different embodiment of the apparatus of the invention which provides for a simpler path of the chains 14' which are deflected between a set of fixed axis wheels, 18', arranged in the lower part of the apparatus, and a further set of fixed axis wheels, 20', arranged in the upper part of the apparatus.

With this type of configuration the rotation of the deflection means 18' and 20' in one direction allows for the lifting of the containers 15' at the loading station 32', whilst the rotation in the opposite direction will cause the lowering of the containers at the same loading station 32' causing the unloading of the products onto the auxiliary conveying means 31 '. As may be easily understood thus the specialty of this configuration lies in the fact that, as shown in fig. 6, the loading and the unloading station coincide and in that the auxiliary conveying means 31 ' can be used not only for loading of the products coming from a line upstream but also for unloading them onto a line downstream of the apparatus.

As may be observed in the above figures with respect to the first described embodiment there is no difference in the conformation of the containers and of their suspension arms which, able of inclining the longitudinal axis 25' of the containers themselves with reference to the axis 30' formed by the hinge links, shift the area of the passage of the products during the loading and/or unloading in axial direction with reference to the vertical axis through which Ie chains 14' pass.

The just described embodiment moreover serves for showing how a conveying and/or accumulating apparatus according to the invention may be obtained also by applying modifications to the apparatus which are substantial to the functioning of the apparatus but simple, with regard to their implementation, to apparatuses of the prior art as described in the already mentioned patents US4142626A1 and US6053304A1.

The figures from 7 to 10 represent another embodiment of the invention. Fig. 3 shows a view from above by which it is possible to observe that the loading and unloading station, 32" and 33", are perpendicular to the transversal centerline axis and thus also the longitudinal axis of the containers 15" is parallel to the axes of the links, identifiable with that of the bolts 29". The containers 15" shown in detail in the figures from 8 to 10 are constituted by a series bars, 24", parallel to a longitudinal axis, 25", joint by a transversal bar 26". At the opposite longitudinal ends of the container suspension arms 27" and 28" are arranged which are rigidly connected to the bars 24" by which the container is suspended from the bolts, 29, which are part of the respective transmission means 14.

The bolts 29 from which the ends of the suspension arms 27" and 28" are suspended form the hinge links around the axes of which the container 15" could rotate if the rotation and also the simple oscillation would not be impeded on the straight sections of the path by the fact that the bolts 29 are not coaxial, whilst the rotation is permitted but not the oscillation on the curved sections around the deflection wheels.

The horizontal and vertical offset of the two hinge links by which the containers 15" are supported by the chains 14" is obtained due to the position and conformation of the suspension arms 27" and 28" and also due to the fact that the two chains 14 realize a combined movement on identical paths in parallel planes but offset the one towards the other not only horizontally, as may be deduced from the fig. 7, but also vertically.

The value of the offset in horizontal direction of the two links is such that it displaces the relative chain 14 referred to the axis 25" of the container 15" which is placed in the loading station 32" or in the unloading station 33" by a value sufficient to permit the passage of the products 16, thus allowing for the feed of the products to the loading station 32" and removing the products from the unloading station 33" in the direction of the longitudinal axis 25" of the containers 15".

This particular solution with not coaxial links thus allows not only for loading the products in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the products but also for cinematically preventing the oscillation of the suspended containers themselves during their movement.

Fig. 1 1 shows a variant of the embodiment 15'" of a container according to the invention with a similar design to that of the containers 15" of the figures from 7 to 10 but particularly suitable for being loaded with round shaped products 16", such as coils, round bars, pipes etc.

Also this solution provides containers supported by suspension arms, 27'", 28'", positioned and conformed in way to obtain elements which can be anchored by two hinge links with parallel but not coinciding axes.

The figures 12 and 13 represent another variant of an embodiment of the apparatus of the invention.

In particular fig. 12 diagrammatically represents the area of the apparatus close to the loading and unloading station 32^IV with the omission, in order to simply the illustration, the carrying structure of the apparatus itself.

The fixed deflection wheels 18^IV are arranged in a way that the chains, 14, and thus the containers, 15^IV, which are suspended from them, pass through the loading and unloading station, 32^IV, in horizontal direction.

As the longitudinal axis 25^IV of the containers, as can be seen in fig. 13, is parallel to the axis of the links, which in this embodiment are coaxial, the possibility of loading and unloading in direction of the axis 25^IV itself is obtained not only due to the fact that the chain 14 follows a horizontal path at the loading and unloading station 32^IV, but also due to a particular conformation of the supporting arms 27^IV and 28^IV which, starting from the linkage point, laterally open in order to be joint again at the longitudinal bars of the 15^IV, thereby not obstructing the space destined to the axial passage of the products 16. Obviously the advantages of the apparatus and of the relative conveying and/or accumulation method as illustrated above are safeguarded also in the presence of further variants or modifications.

For instance the arrangement of the deflection wheels and thus the paths followed by the supporting chains or belts of the containers also may be very different from those previously described only for purposes of example. In particular with respect to the embodiment of fig. 12, the path of the chains at the loading and unloading station may be more or less inclined with regard to the horizontal plane, always however apt to avoid the chains themselves passing during the loading and unloading operations in direction of the longitudinal axis of the containers through the area of the passage of the products.

Also the suspension arms themselves of the containers 15 can assume conformations much different from those above described but substantially equivalent in their function of maintaining the containers suspended from the supporting chains without obstructing but rather favouring loading and unloading of the products in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the containers. The auxiliary conveying means 31 could be substituted by apparatuses of different design, however apt to carry the products at the loading station of the apparatus and feeding them in direction of the longitudinal axis of the container to be loaded. The same discourse certainly applies also to the conveying means apt to unload the products. Moreover both operations also could be performed manually.

These and other variants or modifications may be applied to the product conveying and/or accumulating apparatus according to the invention and to the relative method, being always protected by the claims as defined below.

Claims

1 - Conveying and/or accumulating apparatus (10) including deflection elements (18, 19, 20, 21 ) of at least two chains (14) or closed cycle flexible transmission elements solidarily moving on identical paths in parallel planes and containers (15) of products (16) connected at their longitudinal ends to said chains or flexible elements by links (29), characterized by the fact that the paths followed by said chains (14) or flexible supporting and transmission elements are of a nature that said chains (14) or flexible supporting and transmission elements do not obstruct at the loading (32) and/or unloading station (33) of said products (16) the space required for the passage of said products (16) in direction of the longitudinal axis (25) of said containers (15), and that the conformation of said containers (15) and of their anchoring means (27, 28) to said links (29) does not obstruct at the loading (32) and/or unloading station (33) of said products (16) the space required for the passage of said products (16) in direction of the longitudinal axis (25) of said containers (15) in order to allow for loading and unloading of said products (16) in direction of the longitudinal axis (25) of said containers.

2- Apparatus according to claim 1 characterized by the fact that said links (29) are at least two which are arranged at the longitudinal opposite ends of said container (15) of products (16), the axes (30) of said links being substantially parallel between each other.

3- Apparatus (10", 10'") according to the claim 1 or 2 characterized by the fact that said links (29) are coaxial between each other and that said two chains (14) or closed cycle flexible transmission elements solidarily move on identical paths in parallel planes, offset between them horizontally and/or vertically.

4- Apparatus according to claim 2 or 3 characterized by the fact that, in a top view of said apparatus, the longitudinal axis (25) of said containers (15) is inclined referred to the axis (30) of said links (29).

5- Apparatus (10, 10') according to claim 2 characterized by the fact that said links (29) are coaxial between each other and that the longitudinal axis (25) of said container (15) is inclined referred to the axis of said links in a top view of said apparatus by a value sufficient to prevent possible interferences of said chains (14) or flexible transmission elements with the areas of passage of said products (16) during said loading and/or unloading operations.

6- Apparatus (10^lv) according to the claim 2 wherein said links (29) are coaxial between each other and wherein the longitudinal axis (25^IV) of said container (15^IV) is parallel in a top view of the apparatus to the axis (3O^IV) of said links (29) and wherein said loading and/or unloading station (32^IV) are arranged at not vertical sections of the path of said chains (14) or flexible elements in a way that the path of said chains or flexible elements does not interfere with the areas of the passage of said products (16) during said loading and/or unloading operations.

7- Apparatus according to one of the preceding claims characterized by the fact of including auxiliary conveying means (31 ) arranged at said loading and/or unloading station (32, 33). 8- Apparatus according to the preceding claim characterized by the fact that said auxiliary conveying means (31 ) are apt to feed said products in the direction of the longitudinal axis of said containers.

9- Apparatus (10', 1 O^IV) according to one of the preceding claims characterized by the fact that said loading and said unloading station coincide.

10- Apparatus according to one of the preceding claims characterized by the fact that said containers (15) are constituted of rigid supporting structures of the products (16) and that said anchoring means are suspension arms (27, 28) rigidly connected to said containers (15) and suspended from said links (29).

1 1 - Apparatus according to the preceding claim characterized by the fact that said chains (14) or flexible transmission elements include extensions (29) in which profiled ends of said suspension arms (27, 28) are inserted.

12- Apparatus according to the preceding claim characterized by the fact that said profiled ends have an opening towards the bottom.

13- Apparatus according to the preceding claim characterized by the fact that said profiled ends have safeguarding means against the profiled ends coming loose from said extensions (29).

14- Apparatus according to the claim 1 1 , 12 or 13 wherein the number of extensions (29) of each of said chains (14) or transmission belts is a multiple not necessarily integer of the number of containers (15) installed in said apparatus. 15- Apparatus according to one of the preceding claims characterized by the fact that said container (15) includes a supporting structure composed of spaced parallel longitudinal bars (24), connected by at least one transversal bar (26).

16- Apparatus according to one of the preceding claims characterized by the fact that said apparatus is a temporary accumulating apparatus arranged between a section upstream and a section downstream of a production line.

17- Method for the conveyance and/or accumulation of products in apparatuses including deflection elements of at least two chains or closed cycle flexible transmission elements solidarily moving on identical paths in parallel planes and including product containers connected at their longitudinal ends to said chains or belts by relative links, characterized by the fact that said products (16) enter into said apparatuses and are transferred to loading (32) and/or unloading stations (33) of said apparatuses by movement of the said products (16) in directions parallel to the longitudinal axis (25) of the container (15) where they shall be loaded or from which they shall be unloaded.

18- Method according to the preceding claim characterized by the fact that said containers (15) during their motion induced by said chains (14) or flexible transmission elements maintain their orientation with reference to a fixed spatial reference system unchanged in a stable and defined manner.

19- Method according to the claim 17 or 18 characterized by the fact of including operations of linking/unlinking said containers (15) to/from said chains or flexible transmission elements which can be performed by relative movements between said transmission chains (14) and said containers (15). 20 Method according to the claim 17 or following characterized by the fact that said method is applied to conveying lines included in temporary accumulating apparatus arranged between a section upstream and a section downstream of a production line.