Polytype America Corporation

C-power Companies, Inc.

Dennis Dutkevitch

Algert J Maldanis

Pieter S Van Der Griendt

Robert I Courts

David J Mooney

A tube loading system includes two flat conveyor belts which are perpendicular to each other for holding a tube having an open end thereagainst with two lines of contact; a motor drive for moving the conveyor belts; a gap between the two lines of contact at meeting edges of the conveyor belts; a vacuum source positioned behind the conveyor belts for supplying a vacuum to the gap so as to pull the tube against both conveyor belts in engagement with the two lines of contact; a pin chain having a plurality of pins spaced therealong for receiving the open ends of the tubes thereon, the pins being positioned adjacent the conveyor belts; and a delivery device for supplying the tubes in sequence to the conveyor belts such that each tube is held in engagement against both conveyor belts with the two lines of contact by the vacuum at the gap, and as the belt moves, each tube is deposited on a respective pin of the pin chain.

Tube loading system

A vending mechanism for a cylindrical article dispenser of a type having a column of stacked cylindrical articles moved along a dispensing pathway by a force, such as by the force of gravity, is disclosed, which has an escapement mechanism which is attachable in operative alignment with a vending pathway of a column of stacked cylindrical articles. An upstream arm is pivotably attached in the escapement mechanism, having a first position blocking a portion of the vending pathway and having a second position retracted from the vending pathway to allow cylindrical articles to move past the upstream arm. A downstream arm is pivotably attached in the escapement mechanism, having a first position blocking a portion of the vending pathway and having a second position retracted from the vending pathway to allow cylindrical articles to move past the downstream arm. A first rotary cam is rotatably attached in the escapement mechanism and has a profile shape for moving the upstream arm between its first and second positions. A second rotary cam is coaxially rotatable with the first cam and has a profile shape for moving the downstream arm between its second position and its first position. The first and second rotatable cams have their profile shapes offset with respect to each other so that the upstream arm is moved into its blocking position only when the downstream arm is also in its blocking position, and so that the downstream arm is moved into or out of its blocking position only when the upstream arm is in its blocking position, such that co-rotation of the cams does not act to raise either the upstream or the downstream arm against the force which causes the column to move along the dispensing pathway.

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Clifton, NJ, United States of America

Dennis Dutkevitch