Food article loading head and method
DCFirst Claim
1. A loading head for loading food articles into packaging, comprising:
- a) a transfer conveyor in operable communication with a source of articles to be loaded and for communicating the articles from an upper receiving position to a lower loading position;
b) a first drive for driving said transfer conveyor at a variable speed;
c) a second drive oscillating said transfer conveyor between a first position and a second position;
d) a controller in operable association with said first and second drives for varying the speed of said transfer conveyor as a function of the instantaneous speed of said transfer conveyor; and
e) an article holder at said loading position for receipt of a transferred article.
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Abstract
A loading head for loading food articles into packaging includes a transfer conveyor in operable communication with a source of articles to be loaded. The transfer conveyor communicates the articles from an upper receiving position to a lower loading position. A first drive drives the transfer conveyor at a variable speed. A second drive oscillates the transfer conveyor between a first position and a second position. A controller is in operable association with the first and second drives for varying the driving speed of the transfer conveyor as a function of the position of the transfer conveyor. An article holder is disposed at the loading position for receipt of a transferred article.
64 Citations
42 Claims
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1. A loading head for loading food articles into packaging, comprising:
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a) a transfer conveyor in operable communication with a source of articles to be loaded and for communicating the articles from an upper receiving position to a lower loading position; b) a first drive for driving said transfer conveyor at a variable speed; c) a second drive oscillating said transfer conveyor between a first position and a second position; d) a controller in operable association with said first and second drives for varying the speed of said transfer conveyor as a function of the instantaneous speed of said transfer conveyor; and e) an article holder at said loading position for receipt of a transferred article. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. A loading head for loading food articles, comprising:
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a) an intermediate conveyor for transferring food articles from a source; b) a transfer wheel in operable communication with said intermediate conveyor for receiving the articles. c) a transfer conveyor in operable communication with said transfer wheel for receiving the articles from said transfer wheel and for communicating the articles to a loading position; d) a first drive for driving said transfer conveyor at a variable speed; e) a second drive oscillating said transfer conveyor between a first position and a loading position; f) a controller in operable association with said first and second drives for varying the speed of said first drive and thus of said transfer conveyor as a function of the instantaneous speed of said transfer conveyor; g) an article holder at the loading position for receipt of a transferred article; and h) an intermittently operated stripper device for removing articles from said article holder. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A method for loading food articles for packaging, comprising the steps of:
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a) transferring a source of food articles onto a continuously driven transfer conveyor and moving the articles from a receive position to a load position; b) oscillating the transfer conveyor between a first position and a second, and varying the driving speed of the transfer conveyor as a function of the instantaneous speed of the transfer conveyor; and c) discharging the food articles from the transfer conveyor at the loading position. - View Dependent Claims (41)
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42. A method for loading food articles for packaging, comprising the steps of:
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a) supplying at a constant instantaneous speed a source of food articles onto a continuously driven transfer conveyor and moving the articles from a receive position to a load position; b) oscillating the transfer conveyor between a first position and a second, and varying the driving speed of the transfer conveyor as a function of the rate of the transfer conveyor; c) discharging the food articles from the transfer conveyor at the loading position onto a holding surface; and d) stripping the food articles from the holding surface at a constant speed and uniform force independent of the rate at which food articles are supplied from the source.
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Specification