Indexing device

Abstract

The present invention relates to a transfer arrangement for transferring sausage-shaped products, like sausages, to a rod-like element, like a smoking rod, provided in a loading position in a hanging line, each of the sausage-shaped products contain a flowable filling material in a tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing provided with a suspension element, like a suspension loop, through which the sausage-shaped products can be suspended on the rod-like element. The transfer arrangement comprises an infeed device having an infeed conveyor and a guide bar along which the suspension elements of the sausage-shaped products are guided in an infeed direction to the rod-like element, a transport device which is arranged above the rod-like element and the guide bar and which has a conveyor device with transportation elements for transporting the sausage-shaped products along the guide bar towards the rod-like element, and a drive device for driving the conveyor device, and an indexing device for supporting the guide bar. The indexing device includes at least two pairs of indexing pins configured to be reversibly moved pairwise and alternately into an engagement position for engaging with the guide bar for supporting the guide bar and into a release position for disengaging with the guide bar for allowing the passage of a suspension element of a sausage-shaped product to be suspended on the rod-like element in the loading position, wherein the indexing pins of each pair of indexing pins are arranged on opposite sides of the guide bar and at least substantially opposite to each other, and a transmission arrangement for driving and controlling the movement of the indexing pins. The transmission arrangement is driven by the transport device.