SORTER SLAT ATTACHMENT
First Claim
1. A positive displacement sorter, comprising:
- a plurality of parallel laterally extending slats and a pair of wheel assemblies, each interconnecting common end portions of said slats thereby defining an endless web that travels in a longitudinal direction, an upper surface of said web defining an article-conveying surface;
a plurality of pusher shoes, each of said shoes travelling along at least one of said slats in order to laterally displace articles on said conveying surface; and
a plurality of attachment mechanisms, each attaching an end portion of one of said slats to one of said wheel assemblies, wherein each of said attachment mechanisms comprises a shoulder and a collar and at least one locking member, said collar engaging said shoulder thereby providing retention of said slat to said one of said wheel assemblies, said locking member providing retention of said collar on said shoulder, wherein said locking member comprises a generally horizontally moveable elongated member on one of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies engaging an opening on the other of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A positive displacement sorter includes a plurality of parallel laterally extending slats and a pair of wheel assemblies, each interconnecting common end portions of the slats thereby defining an endless web that travels in a longitudinal direction. An upper surface of the web defines an article-conveying surface. A plurality of pusher shoes travel along the slats in order to laterally displace articles on the conveying surface. A plurality of attachment mechanisms are provided. Each of the attachment mechanisms attaches an end portion of one of the slats to one of the wheel assemblies. Each of the attachment mechanisms includes a shoulder and a collar and at least one locking member. The collar engages the shoulder thereby providing retention of the slat to the wheel assembly. The locking member provides retention of the collar on the shoulder.
15 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A positive displacement sorter, comprising:
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a plurality of parallel laterally extending slats and a pair of wheel assemblies, each interconnecting common end portions of said slats thereby defining an endless web that travels in a longitudinal direction, an upper surface of said web defining an article-conveying surface; a plurality of pusher shoes, each of said shoes travelling along at least one of said slats in order to laterally displace articles on said conveying surface; and a plurality of attachment mechanisms, each attaching an end portion of one of said slats to one of said wheel assemblies, wherein each of said attachment mechanisms comprises a shoulder and a collar and at least one locking member, said collar engaging said shoulder thereby providing retention of said slat to said one of said wheel assemblies, said locking member providing retention of said collar on said shoulder, wherein said locking member comprises a generally horizontally moveable elongated member on one of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies engaging an opening on the other of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of removeably attaching a slat from a positive displacement sorter having a plurality of parallel laterally extending slats and a pair of wheel assemblies, each interconnecting common end portions of said slats thereby defining an endless web that travels in a longitudinal direction, an upper surface of said web defining an article-conveying surface and a plurality of pusher shoes, each of said shoes travelling along at least one of said slats in order to laterally displace articles on said conveying surface, and an attachment mechanism attaching an end portion of one of said slats to one of said wheel assemblies, said method comprising:
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each of said attachment mechanisms comprises a shoulder and a collar and at least one locking member, said collar engaging said shoulder thereby providing retention of said slat to said one of said wheel assemblies, said locking member providing retention of said collar on said shoulder, wherein said locking member comprises a generally horizontally moveable elongated member on one of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies engaging an opening on the other of said slat and said one of said wheel assemblies; and horizontally retracting said elongated member from said opening and separating said collar from said shoulder.
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17. A pin retraction tool that is adapted to retracting a plurality of biased pins from openings in a plate, said pins and said plate attaching a slat of a sorter, said tool comprising:
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a plurality of spaced apart arms that can be positioned to engage a plurality of pins generally concurrently to retract the pins from openings; a handle that joins said arms; and an end of each of said arms configured to retract the pins from openings in a plate, said end including a pivot defined in said arms to pivot against a top of the plate to retract the pins. - View Dependent Claims (18)
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Specification