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:
Sep. 21, 2004
Filed:
Feb. 12, 2003
Richard Jerome Schoeneck, Alexandria, MN (US);
Ronald Matthew Gust, Miltona, MN (US);
Douglas Machine, Inc., Alexandria, MN (US);
Abstract
Product is conveyed as a continuous stream by a meter conveyor ( ) unto a transfer plate ( ) and a transfer device ( ). The transfer device ( ) is movable between a retracted position and an extended position extending over a sweep conveyor ( ). In a preferred form, the transfer device ( ) is in the form of a thin piece of flexible material and is moved in the conveying direction from the retracted position to the extended position by engaging with the sweep conveyor ( ) and is moved to the retracted position by being wrapped around a rotated roller ( ). 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 ( ) to match the meter conveyor ( ) until the product group leaves the transfer device ( ). With nested product, the leading edge of the transfer device ( ) can be scalloped to represent the product bottom leading edge. Alternatively, nestable product is conveyed by the meter conveyor ( ) through a guide rail unit ( ) including an infeed portion ( ) for conveying product in a conveying direction, a nesting portion ( ) at an arranging angle (N) to the conveying direction, and an aligning portion ( ) at a grid angle (Z) to the nesting portion ( ) to align the product in a square grid pattern when transferred unto the transfer device ( ). Similarly, product in a grid pattern can be conveyed by the meter conveyor ( ) through the guide rail unit ( ) onto a loader conveyor ( ). A pack pattern is pushed by a pusher ( ) from the loader conveyor ( ) between a loader guide ( ) abutting with the leading row of the pack pattern and a retractable loader guide ( ) abutting with the last row of the pack pattern.