Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
Tllc present invention relates to a dcvicc for taking over bags
or suchlike items from a production machine and conveying same away in
predetermined amounts, in other words a device making it possible that,
from a machine for producing bags, as paper bags, plastic foil bags and
other bags, the products, bags in the present case, can be conveyed away,
without having to stop the machine or to interrupt the cycle, and collected
in positively determined amounts in order that, once the suitable number
of bags or suchlike items per pile is attained, this pile can be conveyed
away, all this being done without having to stop the production machine
: 10 or to interrupt its cycle even once.
Although the suchlike device is more especially intended for
collecting small bags which are made from plastic foil, it is clear that
the device according to the present invention may be used as well for
collecting and conveying away small paper bags, fabric bags or bags made
from other materials and also for collecting and conveying away sheets,
films, foils and suchlike items.
According to the invention there is provided apparatus for
continuously accumulating laminar articles produced by a production machine
and for conveying stacks containing predetermined numbers of said articles,
comprising a plurality of spaced conveyor belts located side by side,
temporary receiving means located above said conveyor belts for receiving
the articles temporarily from the production machine, means for retaining
the received articles, and means for accumulating a predetermined number
of the articles on the conveyor belts, means operable after the predeter- :
mined number of articles are accumulated on the conveyor belts for render-
ing said temporary means operable to temporarily receive and retain one :
or more articles so that the machine can continue to work without
interruption or substantially without interruption and thereby supply
articles to the apparatus, said temporary receiving means comprising
laterally spaced fingers which extend parallel to the path of the articles
and are rotatable about an axis transverse to the article path, said
temporary receiving means including retaining means comprising vertical
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depending fingers d-irectecl downwardly an(l socurc(l to a comn~on bar, said
vertical fingers are locnted betwecn the fingers of said temporary receiving
means and above the conveyor belts supporting the articles supplied by
the production machine.
In order to throw more light on the characteristics of the
device according to the invention, a number o preferred embodiments are
described hereafter, as examples without any limiting character, with
reference to the attached drawings in which:
Figure 1 shows a lateral view with cut-away sections of a
device according to the invention;
Figure 2 shows a bird's-eye-view of the object shown on
figure l;
Figure 3 shows a section along the lines III-III of figure l;
Figures 4 through 9 show, schematically and in lateral section,
six characteristic positions of the components of the device according to
the invention;
Figures 10 through 15 show the partial front views of the
objects shown on figure 4 through 9;
Figures 16 through 20 show five characteristic positions
of the components of a variant of the device according to the invention;
Figures 21 through 25 show five characteristic positions of the
components of a second variant of the devîce according to the invention.
In ~he embodiment as shown in the figures 1 through 9, the
device according to the invention mainly consists of a frame 1, which
suitably supports a belt-conveyer 2, consisting of a number of commonly
driven belts 3, an appropriate distance a being provided
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between the aforesaid belts.
On the sides, the fra~l i9 provided with two
guides or rails, respectively 4 and 5, with which the
small riding wheels, respectively 6-7 and 8-9 of a small
carriage 10 can cooperate, in which carriage, via a shaft
11, are fixed a series of, in this case L-shaped, fingers
12, the number of which shall preferably be equal to the
number of belts 3 of the belt-conveyer 2, each finger
12 being preferably located above an aforesaid belt 3.
It is clear, however, that the numbèr of fingers 12
may be different from the aforesaid number of belts 3,
depending on the product to be transformed and material
- from which it is made.
In-this embodiment, on the shaft 11, there also
i9 provided an appendage 13, which is suitably coupled
with the piston ~od of a pressure cylinder 14, which is
fixed to the small carriage 10, the positions of the
fingers 12 being controlled by this pressure cylinder 14.
: Furthermore, the small carriage 10 proper is
. coupled to the piston rod 15 of a pressure cylinder 16,
which it self is fixed to the frame 1.
To the framel are also fixed two pressure
cylinders, respectively 17 and 17', the piston rods`of
which are fixed to a common rod or lath 18, provided with
vertical teeth 19, which are hanging down, these teeth
~ being so arranged that they can preferably be located
; between the belts 3 of the belt-conveyer 2, these teeth
: being nevertheless able to act upon the belts 3.
Further~ore, to the fram~l are fixed two
: pressure cylinders, respectively 20 and 21, the piston
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rods of which are connected by a rod or lath 22, on which
a multiplicity of, in this case T-shaped, fingers 23 are
fixed, so that the horizontal part 24 of each T-shaped
finger is located in such a way that it can pass through
the distance a between the belts 3 of the belt conveyer
2. The device provided as per the above description is
~ installed, as shown in the figures 4 through 9, behind
the transfer device 25 of the production machine, this
transfer device consisting, in the present case, of
shafts, respectively 26 and 27, on which pick-up means,
e.g. rubber parts, respectively 28 and 29, are provided,
which do pick-up the transferred products, in this case
bags 30, to transfer them to the device according to-the
invention, where the bags are piled up, up to a certain
number, and then conveyed away in small piles~
The operation of the device described above
will be explained, with especial reference to figures
4 through 15.
As ~own in figures 4 and 10, the small carriage
10 in its forward position has its fingers 12 horizontal;
the T-shaped fingers 23 and fingers 19 are in the lowest
position, in other words the lower ends of the fingers
19 are located just under~e-~h the upper face of the --
belts 3 of the belt-conveyer 2.
In this position, the bags or suchliXe items
30, continuously transferred by the device 25, are
received on the horizontal fingers ~2, whilst the fingers
}9 ensure that these bags or suchlike items 30 are
retained and get superposed in a row.
In order to achieve that the bags or suchlike
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items form a neat pile, a stop 31 shall be provided,
whilst laterally two adjustable guides 32-33 are pro-
vided, which are schematically shown on figure 2.
In the positions shown in figures 5 and ll,
the T-shaped fingers 23 are moved upwards, the horizontal
part 24 of each finger 23 passing between two belts 3
and next to a finger 19, so that the pile of bags or
suchlike items 30 supported ~y the fingers 12 is lifted,
in other words becomes free from the fingers 12, while
the transfer of bags 30 to the already existing pile
continues.
In the position shown in the figures 6 and 12,
all components remain in the same position in relation to
the previous position, except that the smaIl carriage 10
is moved backwards, whereby the fingers 12 are removed
from under the pile of bags or ~uchlike items 30, which
. is possible because the latter is resting on the fingers
23 which, after the carriage lO is moved backwards, will
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be moved downwards, while bags 30 can continue being fed .
on the pile.
20:.
In the pO9 ition shown in the figures 7 and 13,
the fingers 12 are turned upward around shaft 11, on the
one handJ while, on the other hand, the fingers 23 are
moved downwards again, resulting in the already formed
pile of bags or suchlike items 30 reaching the still
stopped belt-conveyer 2, the transfer of bags 30 remaining
enæured in the meanwhiie.
In the position shown in figures 8 and 14, the
sma~l carriage 10, with the fingers 12 fixed thereon still
remaining in their upper position, is moved forward again,
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it still remaining clear that also in this position, the
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transfer of bags or suchlike items 30 on the ~ 'formed
B pile remains possible.
When the suitable number of bags or suchlike
items is attained, which is established by a - not shown -
counter, located either on the device or on the production
machine, the fingers 12 move downwards again, until they
reach the position as shown in figures 4 and 10, whereby
the bags or suchlike items 30, which are still being fed,
automatically arrive on these flngers 12. This motion
of the fingers 12 will~ of course, take place very rapidly .
a~ in the time interval between the transfers of two suc-
cessive bags ~hile, in certain conditions, the machine
may ke interrupted by one transfer, in order to make it
possible for the device to bring the fingers 12 back to
the horiæontal position~
After this, the fingers lg are moved upwards
figures 9 and 15 - while, when the fingers are in their
uppex position, the belt-conveyer 2 is automatically
started and moves the pile of bags or suchlike items 30
which is placed on it.
It is clear that in this way there is achieved
a device that makes it possible for bags or suchlike items,
transferred from a production machine, to be arranged
into piles and to convey away the said piles, the transfer
of bags from the aforesaid production machine not having
: to be interrupted.
; It is also ~lear that a suchlike device, depend-
ing amongst others on the kind of goods to be produced
and material from which they are made, can be achieved
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in other ways.
A first example thereof is given in the figures
16 to 20, according to which the device consists of the
aforesaid components, the fingers 23 being, however,
removed. In this case, whenever the pile is complete,
the fingers are simply withdrawn from under the pile, the
fingers 19 keeping the pile back and the piling up
conti~uing until the pile is complete. At that moment,
the fingers 19 are drawn upwards and the belt-conveyer is
started, so that the formed pile is carried away, while
the bags or suchlike items which are fed, further arrive
on the meanwhile returned fingers 12. Although good
results may be achieved with this-simplified device, the
latter i5 only applicable to relatively rigid bags or
suchlike items.
If fairly flexible goods mu~t also be produced
with such simplified embodiment without fingers 23, it
is possible to locate the fingers 12 so that they can be
- inserted between the belts 3. As may be clearly seen in
figures 21 through 25, the bags or suchlike items 30 will
- first be piled up on the fingers 12, in which case, when
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a sufficient number is attained, the finge~ 12 are simply
movad downwards, backwards and again upwards, so that,
when the pile of bags counts a sufficient amount of bags,
~; ~ 5 the fingers 19 mo~e upwards while simultaneously the
fingers 12 move forward again and the belt 2 is started
to carry away the first pile of bags, whilst bags or
suchlike items are further being transferred on the
fingers 12.
It thus is clear that the present invention is
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in no way limited to the embodiments described as example
and shown in the attached drawings, but that a suchlike
device can be achieved in various shapes and dimensions
without going outside the scope of the present invention.
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