Douglas Machine Inc.

Shawn P Pundsack

Irvan Leo Pazdernik

Lee A Fredrickson

Timothy D Wilts

An article inspection and orientation adjustment assembly is generally provided. The assembly is generally characterized by a primary subassembly operatively linked for travel with a secondary subassembly. The primary subassembly includes a vision system for visually inspecting conveyed articles, and an array of actuators, actuators thereof responsive to detections of the vision system and selectively energizable for conveyed article engagement in furtherance of altering an orientation of the conveyed article. The secondary subassembly includes a friction bar extending along a travel path for the conveyed articles, energization of an actuator of the array of actuators resulting in frictional engagement of an actuated article with the friction bar so as to rotatingly orient the actuated article.

Article orienter and attendant orientation operations

Product is conveyed as a continuous stream by a meter conveyor () unto a transfer plate () and a transfer device () in the form of a thin piece of flexible material. The transfer device () is movable between retracted and extended positions extending over a sweep conveyor () by securing its trailing and leading ends to flexible belts () on opposite longitudinal sides of the sweep conveyor (). Product is transferred from the transfer device () to the sweep conveyor () as the transfer device () moves from the extended position to the retracted position and is engaged by a metering bar () which controls the product acceleration on the sweep conveyor () and by a sweep bar () which collects the product on the sweep conveyor (). The metering and sweep bars () move independently in the same direction along the same endless path.

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Freeport, MN, United States of America

Shawn P Pundsack