The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 18, 1989
Filed:
Feb. 01, 1988
Brian E Lock, Princeton, NJ (US);
John G Aceti, Princeton Jct., NJ (US);
General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US);
Abstract
An apparatus for feeding headed pins includes a frame having thereon a hopper into which the pins are placed. A ramp extends substantially horizontally from the hopper and has a plurality of spaced, parallel slots therein which are adapted to receive the pins with the heads of the pins seated on the surface of the ramp. At the end of the ramp is a transfer shuttle assembly which is adapted to feed pins from the slots into passages in a chute which extends vertically downwardly from the end of the ramp. The upper ends of the passages are offset from the ends of the slots. The shuttle transfer means includes a shuttle plate movable back and forth across the end of the ramp by means of pneumatic cylinders, and a plurality of gates mounted on the shuttle plate. Each gate has a notch in its end which can receive a pin. The shuttle plate is moveable between a position in which the notches in the gates are aligned with the slots so as to receive a pin, and a position in which the notches in the gates are over a passage in the chute. The gates are individually movable toward and away from the end of the ramp by individual pneumatic cylinders connected to the gates. When the gates are over the passages in the chute, they can be moved away from the end of the ramp to drop the pins down the chute.