Delivery mechanism for packaging machine

• US 3,897,886 A
• Filed: 06/14/1974
• Issued: 08/05/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kenneth Winston Franklin
• Original Assignee: Kenneth Winston Franklin
• Inventors: Franklin, Kenneth Winston
• Primary Examiner(s): Reeves, Robert B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bartuska, Francis J.
• Application Number:
  US05/479,436
• Time in Patent Office: 417 Days
• Field of Search: 221/222,266,277,297,231,236,263 214/8.5H,8.5K,6DK,6BA
• US Class Current: 221/222
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 35/26 by rotary conveyors
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 57/06 Gates for releasing articles

Abstract

A delivery mechanism including two delivery members rotatable in unison oppositely about parallel axes contained in a horizontal plane. Each member defines a channel defining base, support and stripping surfaces arranged such that whenever the members are at a loading station, the support surfaces will lie below the horizontal plane for jointly supporting an article. Rotation of the members causes the support surfaces to release the article downwardly, the stripping surfaces being engageable with the article at or after the point of release whilst the base surfaces will not engage the article before that point is reached.

Claims

1. A delivery mechanism, for articles such as packets, including two elongate delivery members which are rotatable about parallel axes contained in a generally horizontal plane and are drivable in unison in opposite senses, a channel defined by each delivery member, each said channel extending from one end of the delivery member parallel with the axis of rotation of the delivery member, article feed means positioned adjacent said one ends of the delivery members for feeding an article into said channels from said one ends axially of said delivery members, a support surface and a stripping surface defined by each said channel, the channels being positioned so that whenever the delivery members are at a loading station the support surfaces will lie below the said generally horizontal plane for jointly supporting the article fed into said channels, rotation of said delivery members from the loading station causing the support surfaces to release the article for downward delivery, said strippinG surfaces being positioned for engagement with the article at or after the point of release of the article by the support surfaces, a base surface defined by each said channel which interconnects the corresponding support and stripping surfaces and which will extend each side of the said generally horizontal plane whenever the delivery members are at the loading station, each base surface being shaped so that it will not engage the article before the article is released by the support surfaces.

2. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 1, including a substantially radial surface portion defined by each said base surface, an article positioning surface extending between the support surface and the radially outer end of the substantially radial surface portion for positioning an article accurately between the delivery members during loading, and an article relief surface extending between the stripping surface and the radially inner end of the substantially radial surface portion, the distance between the said article relief surfaces of said delivery members being greater than the distance between the article positioning surfaces when the delivery members are at said loading station whereby, during delivery of the article, the article relief surfaces will not engage the article before the article is released by the support surfaces.

3. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 2, in which the article positioning surface and the article relief surface occupy generally parallel planes.

4. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 1, in which the support and stripping surfaces occupy generally parallel planes.

5. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 1, in which each delivery member is formed as a solid element.

6. A delivery mechanism according to claim 5, in which the solid element is of circular cross-section prior to the formation of the channel.

7. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 6, in which the delivery members are of substantially equal diameter.

8. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 1, in which each delivery member defines at least two channels.

9. A delivery mechanism, according to claim 1, including an article positioning surface and an article relief surface defined by each said base, said article positioning surface extending from said support surface towards said generally horizontal plane when the delivery members are at said loading station to position an article accurately between the delivery members during loading, said article relief surface extending from said stripping surface towards said generally horizontal plane when the delivery members are at said loading station, the distance between said article relief surfaces of said delivery members above said generally horizontal plane being greater than the distance between the article positioning surfaces when the delivery members are at said loading station whereby, during delivery of the article, the article relief surfaces will not engage the article before the article is released by the support surfaces.