Alto, Inc.

David Laverne White

An endless conveyor and belt where the conveyor belt is made from a plurality of laterally extending rods linked together at the edges of the belt to form a fixed pitch driving chain on one edge of the belt and a variable pitch chain on the other edge of the belt. The driving chain is formed of links extending upstream from rods and surrounding the adjacent upstream rods. The links in the variable pitch chain loosely surround the adjacent rod ends to permit relative movement between the adjacent rods. The rods rest on fixed supports which, during movement of the belt along the path of the conveyor, exert drag forces on the rods tending to rotate the upstream-extending links of the fixed pitch chain against seats on adjacent upstream links, thereby locking the links one to another and supporting the rods against drag forces without column loading. Drive forces are not transmitted across the belt. The ends of the rods at the variable pitch chain float with respect to each other.

Endless conveyor

A bakery product slicer and method for forming vertical slits extending along proof lines between adjacent buns in clusters of buns. The slicer includes a rotary vertical slicing blade located in the path of movement of clusters past the slicer at the nominal location of the proof line and a fixed aligner having a heel portion with a curved bow and divergent flanks located upstream of the blade with plates extending from the heel portion to either side of the blade and beyond the downstream edge of the blade so the blade is fitted in a slot between the plates. As clusters are moved toward the aligner the open crease above the proof line is moved adjacent the heel portion of the aligner so that the flanks engage the buns and assure that the proof line between the buns is held in alignment with the fixed blade so that the vertical slit extends along the actual proof line.

Growing community of inventors

Dallastown, PA, United States of America

David Laverne White