Roberts Systems, Inc.

Philip S Lachapelle

Philip L Reid

John T Roberts

Ralph S Goldstein

Danny R Williams

A process and apparatus for a cleated wheel assembly for aligning and securing a cleat to the outer circumference of a wheel which provides a cleat having attachment apertures which are secured by dowel pins within spaced receptacles, defined within the outer wheel rim, with mated plugs securing the cleat within the spaced receptacles. The assembly comprises a cleated wheel and a second wheel, the two wheels rotating in opposite direction, in order for the cleated wheel to separate a single article from a stack of articles, the second wheel preventing the next sequential article from leaving the stack.

Cleated wheel assembly and method of separating a sheet using a cleated

An apparatus for packaging articles having a conveyor; means associated with the conveyor for forming groups of articles and moving the groups independently of other articles on the conveyor; means for moving the groups of articles transversely to the conveyor; an elevator for receiving said groups of articles in stacked groupings; and means for moving the stacked groupings into a carton. Means are also provided for assembling and closing the carton upon receipt of the stacked groupings.

Apparatus for conveying and packaging groups of articles

A carton blank prefeeding apparatus generally comprising a carton blank stack magazine situated above a conveyor. The conveyor is preferably tri-sectional, having a blank withdrawal section, an intermediate section and a delivery section. Typically, the blank withdrawal section and the delivery section are pivotally attached to the supporting subframe, thus allowing adjustment of the relative angles of inclination between successive conveyor sections. An upper conveyor may be situated above the delivery section to cooperate therewith in the delivery of the blanks. A center driven pulley may be utilized to drive the tri-sectional conveyor directly, as well as the upper conveyor via an interconnecting drive belt. A pair of opposing blank flexing members situated laterally of the conveyor facilitate the removal of debris on the blanks. The process of the invention contemplates first providing a stack of carton blanks. Second, individual blanks are removed from the bottom of the stack in shingled arrangement. Next, the blanks are flexed while in the shingled arrangement such that they are convex. Then the blanks are restacked.

Carton blank prefeeding apparatus and process

An apparatus for the feeding of individual carton blanks from a stack of blanks held in a retaining magazine to an adjacent takeaway belt of a conveyor. A bi-directional roller of two or more wheels is provided whereby a cleat attached to the rim of one wheel is used to bias a package blank to an adjacent carton blank conveyor. A second wheel of the roller rotates in the opposite direction of the first wheel which engages and supports the remaining blanks.

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Tega Cay, SC, United States of America

Philip S Lachapelle