Barry-wehmiller Container Systems, Inc.

Specialty Conveyor B.v.

Gebo Packaging Solutions France

Dorian F Steeber

Wouter Balk

Emiel Martijn Schouten

Haim Touitou

A buffer conveyor comprises a drivable endless conveyor belt which successively follows a transport path from an input station to an output station and a return path. A frame includes two parallel transport path frame legs and a U-shaped transport path bridge. The transport path bridge includes a curved bridge portion and parallel bridge legs extending therefrom. Each transport path frame leg is provided with a transport path frame guide for a lateral contact side of the belt in outward direction as seen from the other frame leg. The transport path bridge is shaped such that along the curved bridge portion and respective twisted regions of the bridge legs adjacent to the curved bridge portion the belt has a transverse down-slope towards the inside of the U-shape and such that the lateral contact side (of the belt at said twisted regions is above the respective transport path frame guides.

Buffer conveyor

A conveyor accumulator for conveying articles comprises first and second parallel rails, a turnaround wheel, an endless loop conveyor chain, an infeed drive device, and an outfeed drive device. Each of the rails comprises a support surface and a guide surface. The support surfaces slope downward as they extend outboard of the center plane of the accumulator. The turnaround wheel is movable between the guide rails. The conveyor chain is slideable along and supported against gravity by at least the support surfaces of the first and second rails and is prevented from moving outboard by the guide surfaces. The turnaround wheel is configured to move in a manner extending and, alternatively, contracting the path of the portion of the conveyor chain configured to hold articles. The turnaround wheel is configured and adapted to cause the conveyor chain to bank as the conveyor chain extends around the turnaround wheel.

Conveyor accumulator for controlling the flow of articles being conveyed

A buffer assembly is configured to buffer a stream of articles moving along a conveyor. The buffer assembly is interposed in said conveyor. The buffer assembly has a horizontal in-feed accumulator that is configured to receive the stream of articles from said conveyor, and a horizontal mass storage accumulator connected to an output of the horizontal in-feed accumulator for receiving said stream of articles therefrom. Each of the horizontal in-feed accumulator and the horizontal mass storage accumulator are configured to buffer said stream of articles. The buffer assembly also has a horizontal out-feed accumulator connected to the output of the horizontal mass storage accumulator that is configured to buffer the stream of articles. The in-feed buffering of the articles prevents product compression and the buffering of the out-feed articles prevents the formation of gaps between product articles.

A conveyor accumulator is configured to buffer a stream of articles moving along a conveyor path. The conveyor accumulator comprises an in-feed accumulator for diverting a flow of articles from an upstream source to various downstream output locations. The conveyor accumulator also comprises a mass storage accumulator connected downstream of and to the in-feed accumulator. The mass storage accumulator has a plurality of lanes. The conveyor accumulator further comprises an out-feed accumulator connected downstream of and to the mass storage accumulator for diverting the flow of articles from various upstream sources to a downstream output location.

Apparatus () for handling articles (), including an endless infeed drive member () moving in an infeed direction (ID); an endless outfeed drive member () moving in a second, outfeed direction (OD); and an endless carrier conveyor () having. The carrier conveyor includes an infeed section () overlying the infeed drive member (), whereby the infeed drive member () drives the infeed section () in the infeed direction (ID); an outfeed section () overlying the outfeed drive member (), whereby the outfeed drive member () drives the outfeed section () in the outfeed direction (OD); and an arcuate intermediate section () bridging the infeed section () and the outfeed section () along a transfer path () between a diverting point (DIV) where the carrier conveyor () disconnects from the infeed drive member (), and an inverting point (INV) where the carrier conveyor () connects the outfeed drive member ().

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Fort Gibson, OK, United States of America

Dorian F Steeber