Container inspecting apparatus having rotary indexing apparatus
First Claim
1. A container inspecting apparatus comprising:
- a rotatable inlet star wheel for introducing containers successively;
a rotatable outlet star wheel for discharging the containers successively;
a plurality of feed units movable along a circular path for successively receiving the containers from said inlet star wheel, stopping the containers in respective inspecting positions, and successively transferring the containers to said outlet star wheel;
an inspecting device disposed in each of said respective inspecting positions for inspecting a container placed in said each inspecting position;
a feeding and indexing device for intermittently moving said feed units along said circular path such that said feed units are stopped in said respective inspecting positions at mutually different times;
a support mechanism vertically mounted on each of said feed units for supporting the bottom of said container placed on said feed units; and
rotating means for rotating said support mechanism to rotate the container about its own axes.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A container inspecting apparatus for inspecting containers such as vials, ampuls, or the like has an inlet star wheel rotatable for admitting containers successively, and an outlet star wheel rotatable for discharging the containers successively. A plurality of feed units are movable along a circular path for successively receiving containers from the inlet star wheel, stopping the containers in respective inspecting positions, and successively transferring the containers to the outlet star wheel. A plurality of inspecting devices, each comprising an illuminating unit and an imaging unit, are disposed respectively in the inspecting positions for inspecting the containers in the respective inspecting positions. The feed units are intermittently moved along the circular path by a feeding and indexing device. A support mechanism is vertically mounted on each of the feed units for supporting bottoms of the containers on the feed units. The support mechanism is rotated to rotate the containers about their own axes while the containers are being inspected by the inspecting devices.
52 Citations
12 Claims
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1. A container inspecting apparatus comprising:
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a rotatable inlet star wheel for introducing containers successively; a rotatable outlet star wheel for discharging the containers successively; a plurality of feed units movable along a circular path for successively receiving the containers from said inlet star wheel, stopping the containers in respective inspecting positions, and successively transferring the containers to said outlet star wheel; an inspecting device disposed in each of said respective inspecting positions for inspecting a container placed in said each inspecting position; a feeding and indexing device for intermittently moving said feed units along said circular path such that said feed units are stopped in said respective inspecting positions at mutually different times; a support mechanism vertically mounted on each of said feed units for supporting the bottom of said container placed on said feed units; and rotating means for rotating said support mechanism to rotate the container about its own axes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A container inspecting apparatus comprising:
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a rotatable inlet star wheel for introducing containers successively; a rotatable outlet star wheel for discharging the containers successively; a plurality of feed units movable along a circular path for successively receiving the containers from said inlet star wheel, stopping the containers in respective inspecting positions, and successively transferring the containers to said outlet star wheel; an inspecting device disposed in each of said respective inspecting positions for inspecting a container placed in said each inspecting position; a feeding and indexing device for intermittently moving said feed units along said circular path such that said feed units are stopped in said respective inspecting positions at mutually different times; a support mechanism vertically mounted on each of said feed units for supporting the bottom of said container placed on said feed units, said support mechanism including suction tubes positioned to engage bottoms of said containers and having outside diameters substantially smaller than outside diameters of said containers such that edges of said bottoms of said containers are visible for inspection; and rotating means for rotating said support mechanism to rotate the container about its own axes.
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Specification