Патент USA US2400484

May 21, 1946.
. s. A CAMPANA '
CAN COOLER LOADING MACHINE
vFiled July 1, 1942
7 -sheets-sheet 1
~ May 21, 1946.
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s. A. C¿\MPANA
"2,400,484
CAN COOLER LOADING MACHINE
Filed vJulyl; 1942
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IN VEN TOR.
‘ JAM ` A . CA MPM/A
May2l, 1946.*Y
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s. A.V CAMPANA
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2,400,484
w GAN COOLER- LOADING MACHINE
Filed July 1, »1942. y
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INVENTQR.
SAM- A. CAMPANA
4
fMay~21,Y 1946.
2,400,484
s. A. CAMPANA
CAN GQOLER LOADING MACHINE ,
Filed July 1,_ 1942 `
fr sheetS-sheét- 4
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[email protected]
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INVENTOR.
SAM A'. CAMPANA
May 21, 1946- O
‘ -5A. CAMPANA
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CAN COOLER LOADING MACHINE
Filed July l, 1942
79
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2,400,484
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INVENTOR.
SAM A.' CAMPANA -
-May 2_1, 1946.
n
2,400,484
s.- A. CAMPANA
ì CAN-COOLER LOADING MACHINE
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Filed July 1‘, 1942
v sheets-sheet s`
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79
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INVENTÓR.
JAM A. CAMPANA
BY
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1 May ,21,1945
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l,i f' `s'.` A; CAMPANA '
GAN
CÓOLER
2,400,484 ’ f
LOADINGVMACHINE
1 lrFìli'ed'Juiy Yl,> '19.742
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'7 Sherets-Sheet 7
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'f 2,400,484...
Patented May 21, 1946
yCAN
,_ (zoomen1..',0AD1NGMACHINE»v
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v Sam A' caminan?, SanFrariclS'cQÄCaIif.
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Application- Sclalms.,
July l! 1942’
(01522914)
Señal Nè'. 4 49’ .221
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Fig; 7 is a `vertical lsectional view taken on >`tl'ie-
The presentinvention relates to> machines for,
lineVII-VII ofFigA;
loadlng‘can coolers, or more'particularly` .toa
machine for receiving cans as theyilare carried
byr a conveyor- orfthe like, counting themand
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Fig. s isjan' enlarged` detail 'internen see
l taken on the-'line VIIIe-VII-Ifof` Figr3`,v and"
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arranging them in rows ,of ¿ predetermined num
bers, andthen depositing them in a container.
-It is customary in the canning oil-fish and other.l
{Referring first to Figs. 1 andg2juthe' machine
of the present invention is illustrated as `vreceiving'
foods to subject the liilledandusealed cans to a
cans from a conveyor 10.* The -cansare delivered
cooking temperature and thereafter to., subject
from this conveyor to a turret, generallyl indi
the cans to .the` atmosphere fory cooling before
they are labeled and packed into boxesor cartons
for shipping. To facilitate handling ofthe cans
before theyfare cooked and also *during*y their
cooling, they are placed in large metal'ilats or
baskets, known as can coolers, .in which they re-v
cated atr I‘I~,r whichv counts 'oiî the cans'linfgroups
of predetermine'djfnumber's, as it' moves them
throughan arc to: deliver them to a lcor'iveyc'ìx" I2>
which travels‘transversely of themachine and
aty‘r‘ight' angles'to the conveyor I0, and carries"
these groups ofjcans into a_'position "opposite a>
series of vertical chutespr hoppers which fare-a.“
` main until they are cooled and transportedato
the labeling machine.
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part of> an elevator I3.l ".When' each'can in» ‘such
,
It is the object of the presentinvention yto
a group isjalígned with’ o'ne'ofv the" hopper'sfof'
rprovide a. machine for receivingv cansv fromA a 20 the elevatorïlS, _a pusher Abar,‘generally:indi;
conveyor, which mayk deliver thern'from a seamer
cated at _14,2 _advances` to contactther group' of
' or'the like, and for depositing them compactly I cans and slideeachïcan into its'respective hopper
and efllciently in a cooler entirely automatically.
in the-elevator. _ .At this time the` elevator de
A further object of the invention is the >pro- _ scends and deposits "theicans contained¥byitv
vislon'of means for depositing cans‘fin a cooler 25 into a cooler ¿which is vsupportedfbyl a l'pair >of
conveyor' chains ¿I5 which'pas's‘beneath theele
one row at a timeand for automatically' ad
vancing the cooler the »necessarydistance’I be
vator and""are~ï operated to-'move 'the »cooler p for-`
Wardly oneste? each’ time that a groupï'or'row
tween rows and also for staggering the rows suf
of cans has lbeen deposited' init.l The elevator
ilciently to accommodate the maximum'number
of _cans in each cooler.
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its ascent in order-to retain the‘cans which are'
next 4’deposited in its hóppers. The elevator also
has a “movement from side to >side rduring its
provision of means >in a machine of lthe character
described for counting cans and 'arranging‘them
in rows to be deposited ina cooler, vthe count
in alternate rows varying one v.can -to enable
staggering of the rows `for compactness.
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Various' other objects and advantages of this
invention _are made apparent infth'e 'following'
accompanying drawings, -which illustrate a ma
chine embodying the invention._
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lIi'i the drawings-
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`The conveyor-I0 is unconventional‘construc
40 tion, and consists >"of av belt ’or metallic conveyor
comprising'chain links, >each 'carrying a small
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descent ‘and'as’cent so thatwalternate- rows of
cans are staggered to enable the placing of -a_
maximum numbervof cans in a Cooler of 4'a given
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specification, wherein ref_erence'is made tothe
automatically releases >the vcans atthe bottom of
its >vertical travel, and closes automatically before
A still further object ofthe _invention'is' the
metal plate to form-a level‘surface for support- _
ing the cans on top of its upper'flight.- vThe Vpath
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Y Fig, 1 is a plan view of a` machine embodying
r the present invention;
of -this conveyor is indicated by the'broken line.
f >l 6 in Fig. 2.
_ Fig. 2 is aside elevation of the’ machin'ew'illusf
It is~ continuously driven, by a motor
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which operates all of themoving' parts ofthe
machine; through‘a series of chains and sprockets
Fig. `«i-ls an enlarged> detail >lView Iinjplan ofthe
vturret and` associated 'mechanism which .isf-illus,- I
2|' constantly >driven b'y _the ’motor _illustrated
tratedinFig.1;
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Fig. 3 is`a vertical sectional view taken on
line III-‘f-I‘lI of Fig. 1;'>
ti‘ated in Fig.y 1;'
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indicated at I-'l land l8;`tlie'chain*l8lbeing driven
byv a -spro'ck’et‘which' isflxed to'an'idlerpulley'
l 9 driven -by a-'belt '20 leading over a motor pulley
r
' Fig.w 5 is a` `vertical sectional-view ftak'e'n/-ï'on
"at'ZZinFiglLL'
yThe-_details ’of nconstruction
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of 'the "turret
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theFig'.
unevev
`6 is a horizontal
effigie; fragmentary
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‘ " lsection‘ ijf* taken
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i are m'ost'clea'riy"illustrated in Figs. 2,> 4 and 5.
on the line VI-'VI of Fig. 5;"~ `
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The turret includes a head 25 supported by aver
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tical rotatable shaft 26. Around the major por
roller 51 which is engaged by a rise 56 on the
tion of the periphery of the -turret are a plural
periphery of a circular cam '59. The cam 59 is
mounted on the upper end of a shaft 60, which
ity of can-receiving recesses 21 which cooperate
with an arcuate guard rail 26 to receive cans
one at a time from the conveyor I0, swing them
180 degrees through an arcuate path, and de
the turret head 25 may be accurately timed with
shaft, as shown in Fig. 2, carries a lbevel gear
6I at its lower end in mesh with a bevel gear
62 on the .end of a stub shaft 63, vwhich is driven
by a chain 64,., and suitable sprockets from the
stub shaft 31. The shaft 60 which carries and
the operation of the elevatorand other parts of
rotates the cam 59, operates at half the speed
" liver them on to the conveyor I2. In order that
the machine which are driven by the same power 10 of the turret, and` the cam is timed to close the
source, the head is clamped by means of bolts*y
gate lover the twelfth recess Vfor every other ro
2l and an annulus 30 to a separate hub portion
3|, which in tum is keyed or splined to the ro
tatable shaft 26. This shaft passes through a
tation of the turret. The gate 50 is also em'
lployed as a safety stop to prevent the feeding
of cans to the turret whenever there is no cooler
bed plate v32 suitably supported by the frame-,
work of the machine and is journaled adjacent
presentbeneath the elevator to receive the cans.
To hold the gate closed a pawl shown at 65 in
its lower end in a bracket 3l. 'A bevel gear 35>l
Fig. 4 is urged by a spring 66 against a stop 66a
at the lower end of the shaft is driven by a sim
to engage ~the pin >which supports the roller 51
ilar gear 36 on a stub shaft 31 connected by
at the’endf’of the bell crank 54 and hold the.
sprockets and a chain 38 to a main shaft 39.. 20 bell crank in its gate closing position. f This pawl
The main shaft'39 is driven through'a chain 40,
is carried `atthe upper endo'f a'vertical shaft
shown in Fig. 1, and trained over a sprocket on»
61, and fixed to thel lower end of this/shaft is
the shaft V`4| which extends transversely» of the
an arm 68 having an end which normally pro
machine and is connected by gears.“ and 43`
jects into the/path of the coolers/as theyare ‘
to the same shaft 44 that supports the pulley I9. 25 conveyed beneath the elevator‘frohi »which they
This pulley I9, which normally idles on theshaft
M, may/.be connected thereto 'tof drivethe ma
receive the cans. vThe presence of a coolerfbe
heath the elevator urges/)the arm ,lieto'um/p0-
, chine through the -medium/v ofra’clutch /ll eon-v f.
sition illustrated» 'in Fig.` ‘4, thug turning the
trolled by an operatingff'lever 46, as shown in .
shaft 61 slightly and holding the pawl 6.5; against
Figs. land 2,.
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When the clutch ,is engaged, the entire ma,
r/chine is operating and the turret head 25 ro
tates continuously. As.y the can coolers being
the tensione! theV spring 66 in a .position where
Íit will not engage'and retain the leyer 54m itsgate closing position.- ¿If, however; no cooler is
f presentv beneath the` elevator the end of the arm
loaded are of a width just to receive twelve cans,
/Ißiswings into the path of vthe coolers, permit
the recesses 21 in »the turret head are twelve Yin 35 ting the'pawl to assume a,l position where the
number, and when twelve cans have been re , ¿pin on‘theïleveril will snap into place thel ilrst
ceived by the turret, the smooth. or unrecessèd ' 'time that .ther lever is operated to'close the gate
portion of its periphery intercepts the- line ofr
by the rise 58 on _the cam 59. .v As this would
cans on the conveyor I0 and prevents delivery
take place normally only after the delivery „of
yof cans to the machine'for a brief period of time 40 eleven ‘cans `to vthe turret and the safety lock
-during disposal of the cans last counted. ylis.
would thus fail to operate on alternate rotations
valternate rows of cans are staggered in the cooler,
of theturret, `a second rise 69 is provided onthe
cam 59 for'closing the’gate, but as this rise yis
smaller in width than the rise 5B it closes the
In order that. the turret head will count eleven 4
cansv rather than twelve on every-second rota 45 gate -only »after the _twelfth can has been re
ceived andl for no „purpose other than to pre
tion, a gate is provided'for closing the twelfth
sent the arm 54 to the pawl v65.v in the event
recess 21 in the turret head. `This gate is shown
at 50 in Fig. 4, and consists of anfarcuate strap " that there is no cooler in position to receive
f every other row therein contains eleven/cans.
disposed substantially parallel with the periph
the
cans.
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ery of the turret head and having one end curled 50
The conveyor I2, which is of conventional con
struction and consists of chain links each carry
depends from a 1ever.52 which/is mountedfor -
\ swinging movement about the center of rotation
ing a‘ rectangular metallic plate„ is trained over
a drivelsprocket 10, as shown .in dotted lines in
of the turretby having its inner endembracing
' Fig. 4, at one end and over an idler sprocket 1|,
about and pivotally supported byya pin 5| which
the turret head 3l, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. 55 as shown in Fig. l3. In order to prevent the lower
A tension spring 52a engaging the lever 52 urges - flight of this conveyor from sagging and thus in
terfering with other mechanisms, the entire con
' the gate toward its open position. The free end
of gate'50 is slidable in ia groove 53 formed in
veyor wherevit crosses in front of the' elevator is
housed, as shown in’Flg. '1, by two pairs’ of angle
l the periphery of the turret headl and intercept
ing the points between the recesses 21, as shown 60 irons bolted together to form inwardly projecting
in Fig. 5, so as to form a continuous recess` which
top ledges 12 supporting the platesof the upper
receives the gate during rotation vof the turret.
night of the conveyor and bottom ledges 13 sup
porting the plates of `the lower flight of the con
On alternate rotations of the turret thelever
52 is swung to the dotted line position indicated
veyor, the conveyor plates being shown at 14 and
in Fig. 4 toadvance the free end of the gate 50 65 the chain links to which lthey are secured at 15.
across the path of the cans entering the turret
vThe conveyor driving sprocket 1li _is keyed toa
from the conveyor I 0, thusïclosing the twelfth
shaft on the inner end lof Ywhich is fixed a bevel
recess 21 and intercepting the can` which would
pinion 16, which, as shown in dotted lines in Fig.
have entered that recess and causing‘the tur
4, meshes with a bevel gear 11 (see also Fig. 5)
ret to delivel` eleven cans to the conveyor I2 70 keyed tothe> shaft which supports and rotates
rather than twelve. This closing of the gate -is
the turret head so that the conveyor is driven
accomplished by a bell crank 54 pivoted on pin
.constantly when the turret is in operation. The
55. One end of this bell crank is connected by
cans received by the conveyor l2 Vare stopped by
a pin and slot connection 56 with the lever 52,
a plate 18 extending -across the conveyor, as shown
and its opposite end carries an anti-friction 75 in Fig. l, in positions opposite the chutes by which
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tending between thesel members I ||l> and support-À
they are to be received in the _elevator I3.A The
pusher bar Il, which is provided with arcuate- re
ed by them are a back wall 'I I_l and 'a' front wall ~
| I2, and the back wall carriesja;- plurality of par-`>
cesses 1'! to register with and assist in guiding
the cans into their respective chutes, is then ad- t
yanced overthe conveyor to-slide thecans off
"ofit and into the elevator.> This pusher bar has .
a pair of forwardly extending brackets 30, the
titions I|'I,3 >which _extend tqwardeth’e front wall,
terminating y.just short ofy it',4 "and fdepend down
` wardly,4 terminatingl at their' lower extremitiesï
in tapered ends„such,as shown at 'I'Iiiri Fig. 8."v
*The
wausjiu 'and Iiizvandthe partitions us'`
outer ends of which are pivoted to the upperends
form'the hoppery portion ofthe elevatorwhich`
of` a pair of/levers 8| mountedon fulcrumpins
10 is dividveçilbyy the‘partitions into'subsvtantially
I2 andpivotally- connected at their lowerv ends
withial bar 83 which extends transversely of the
machine and connects the two levers together for
squarereticules of a size to receive a can ‘and’
simultaneous movement. . Adjacentfthe centerof.
this bar a connecting rod. 84, extends »rearwardly
and has a bifurcated end'85 (see Figs¢3 and 5)
which embraces `the main shaft 39` vbetween a
collar 86 and a boxfcam 81„ A„pin,»88-f(shown
in dotted -lines in Fig. 5)` projects into the cam so
that upon rotationof the shaftthe :connecting
rod uis reciprocated to swing theJ-levers‘ßyl to
advance andfretract the» pusher'bar, „the boxl cam
in alignment `withthe positions'f: occupied by," the /
„ cans when they are’ advanced 'off of the con
'veyor |2'by the Ipusher bar.' A‘sill |I5,"as illus- n
trated in Fig. 8,' spans .the space between'vthef'
conyey'or andthe hopper and overlies the upper“
edge> of the wall .I'|_2 to facilitate deposit of the
cansin -,the> hopper. The bottomof y‘the hopper is'
effectively closed by fingers ||6 and I‘|1v'ï"s_upl-~
ported i in rows on the 'shafts 90 and 9|, respec-rk
tively,^to which they arel keyed and also secured '
against longitudinal imovement'by a set screw
/31 being contoured to time the operationof vthe
pusher` bar with relation to the operation of the
'turret which 'feeds' the `cans toward their posi
tion in front of the elevator. ' i
ç The individun hoppers ci theeievatcr by'whicn
the cans' are `received are effectively closed at their
eitherv to the' closed position rillustrated in'Fig. 8.
` or swung from that position to a vertical `or‘ open
position Íwherein the can’ob'structed by themy isl
permitted/to gravitate to the cooler by which'it
lo/wer ends by two groups of elements presently to¿ vv“is receiv/ed below the elevator- The fingers' IIB
be described, each group being supported on one
of a pair of parallel shaftsßliand 9| (see Figs. 2, 4
and 7) which, as brest illustrated'v in Figs.f2 and; 5,
are journaled at their opposite `ends in castings .
92¿which retain the shafts in spaced parallel rela-v
tionship extending tramsverselyl of-ft-he‘machine
and ‘i i1are' positioned in alignment _with the par,- 1
titions I|3 so that eachìñnger `projects partially
intotwo ‘of the reticules formed byl the ‘partitions
Fig. 6,"wherein each fingerïis'illustrated ashav-A
»_ ing twoïcon-cav'eu sides formed on an arc^which
and which are mountedf’fo? vertical sliding move-_
is> the same as‘the peripheral contour of ltheizcan.
menton posts '93"secured/i'n' vertically .aligned - ¿ Thus, four-'fingers serve to forma guide which
brackets “and 95. . ` The weight ofthe elevator '
-accurately,positions'- the can'as it yslides‘fdownak
is- counter-balanced byy springs 96,.-best/shown , in ' wardly toward thecooler. Both the fingers IIEV
Fig. 3, and it- isiraised vv'and'loweredduring the
and |_|,1I are slotted, as indicated at"| Isand H9,
operation of the machine by a connecting rod 91 40 respectively, y'to receive the edges of the dividing
pivoted to the casting 92 at its upper end by means .
partitionsY | I3 and -to permit them-to swing over
of 'a pinf98 and connected at its lower end with » the tapered lower ends of these partitionsyas
a crank pin` 99 carriedgon> a crank disc |00, which
shown"l in Fig. ii.v _When the elevator isy in its
is keyed to' the outer end». of-fithe main lshaft 39.
lowermost position, the lower-ends of the .fingers
45
Theforce which raises and 'lowers the .elevator is
IIBstop just' abovev the bottom of thefcooler'in
preferably balanced by duplicationof this mech
anism’on the opposite side of themachine from
that shown. Thelpositionof- theelevator at the
top of its vertical movement is` always the same.v
which the "cans are to’be deposited. »The vfingers
` I'|1k are,l however,` terminated considerably short`
off' this point and each ñnger supports> a curved
plate |20 which mayïbe formed of thinvspring
However, as the rows of cansl in the can cooler areA 50 »steel or the like, and which is >contoured to regis
staggered the elevator must on every .alternate
ter withî thecans in the row preceding the row
descending movement,_`shift sidewise. a distance
equal to half ‘a can diameter and then uponi-ts '
ascent return to normall alignment for reception
of cans.. This movement is accomplished by slid
ing the shafts 90 and 9| axially during vertical
travel of the elevator. These shafts are embraced
by a casting |0| (see Figs. 4 and 5) which has a
which isl being deposited. Consequently, when
the upper row shown in Fig. ôisbeing placed in
the coolerfand the kfingers 'I l1 swing from theire
inclined position'to their vertical position to re
lease `the cans, t'heplates'v |20 »register with the
cans in the row last deposited and urge thesef
vcans forwardlyin the cooler to insure that they
'- central vertical opening |02 embracing and adapt- '
60 are ¿perfectly aligned fand contacting :the `cans
ed to slide over a vertical post |03. » The post |03
, 'is engaged and supported at its upper yand lower
ends‘by identical levers |04, both fixed to a ver
tical-rotatable shaft |05 which at its lowermost
end carries a lever |06 with a downwardlypro
je‘cting pin or anti-friction roller |01 (seeFigs.
2 and 3)" jwhich extendsv into’ a peripherally
grooved cam |08 which is mounted on and driven
by ther shaft 63 and which is contoured and timed
to effect sidewise shifting of >the entireelevator
during its descent and returned ~to normal dur
ing its ascent on alternate operations.v -
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The general assembly of the elevator I3 is best
illustrated inF-igs. 1, 5 and 8„wherein the cast
ings |0I are shown each as supporting a verti
which- precede them imorder 'to conserve space'.
». The mechanism foi",` openingy and` closing the
rlingers IIB and I»|`I is shown ,in-_`
',ïwhere-_the
shafts 90 and 9|, are illustratedasfñtted'with
gear quadrants |2| yand |22,-'respectively,vwhich
mesh with each other. The quadrant |122 carries
a tail |23 whichl upon downward „movement of
the elevator contacts a stop in the form of an
adjustable lset screw |24, which during ythe last
part of the downward movement of the elevator
w effects
just ,sufiicient rotation Voftheshafts to '
move the fingers to their vertical or open posi,
tions. An identical stop |25 contacts the tail,> |23
during` thek upward movementvof the elevator,
cally disposed, channel-shaped member I|0.v `Ex 75 thus reversing the rotationvof the quadrants and
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2,400,484
again returning the fingers to their closed or_
the invention which is definedl by the Vappended
can-receiving positions.
claims.
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Having thus described >my invention,r'what
The conveyor chains vI5, which support and
advance the coolers, have their upper flights’sup
ported and guided in channels |26, These chains
y claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: ‘
are trainedy over sprockets- |21 on a shaft |29
at one end of the machine and over sprockets |29
on a shaft |30 at' the opposite end of the/ma
like, means for receiving ycans from/a conveyor
and delivering them toa second conveyor in
groups of predetermined numbers comprising, a
chine.' Feed bars I3| extend transversely of the
rotating turret having a plurality of recesses
1. In a machine for loading can coolers or 'the
two chains and are driven by lthem to engage 10 formed throughout a-portion of its periphery,
each to receive and advance one can; a gate, and
and advance the coolers |32. The leading edge
means to close said gate across the last recess
of the cooler is presented by the feed bar to a
on alternate rotations of the- turret to effect de
position'beneath the elevator to receive the first
livery of groups varying'alternatelyvone can in
row of cans and the cooler is then advanced a
distance equal to the width of a -row of cans for
each operation of the elevator until it is` filled, at`>
which time the cooler conveyorchains , I5 are
advanced approximately twice this distance,
which is sufficient to bring the leading edge of'
number.
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2. ‘In a machine for loadingcan coolers or the
like, means for receiving cans fromv a conveyor
and delivering them to a second conveyor in
groups of predetermined numbers comprising, a
the next cooler into registry beneath the elevator 20 rotating turret havinga pluralityof recesses
formed throughout a portion of its periphery,
for the reception of the next row of cans de
each to receive andjadvance one can, a gate asso
posited. To feed the cans in this manner, the
ciated with-said turret,'means to close said gate
across the last recess on alternate rotations of the `
(see Figs. l a’nd 9), by which it may be driven.
A pin |34 resting on top of this wheel and adapted 25 turret to eifect delivery to the second conveyor of
groups varying Áalternately one can in number,
to engage with the teeth thereof, isvcarried by
' shaft |30 is provided with a toothed wheel |33
the end of a’rod |35, the opposite end of which
carries an eccentric strap |36 which embraces
an eccentric „I 31 fixed to and rotated bythe main
shaft 39.` The action of the eccentric upon each
rotation of the shaft 39 causes the pin |34 to
f' engage behind one of the teeth on the wheel |33
and advance the same a distance which effects
the movement of the cooler feed the Width of one
row of cans.
As there are fourteen rows of cans
means to deliver saidgroups of cans into an
advancing cooler, _and means to retain said gate
ina closed positionin the absence. of` a cooler
from a can receiving position.
3, In a machine for loading can coolers or the
like, means> for receiving cans from, a conveyor
and delivering them in groups of predetermined '
numbers comprising a rotating turret having can
35 receiving recesses in its periphery, agate asso
ciated with the turret and slidable to close one
in each cooler, the wheel |33 has fourteen teeth
of said recesses, and means to operate said gate
and one space, as indicated at |38, in which the
automatically on alternate rota-tions of the turret
pin | 34 will be ineffective. When this space is
to
eñ'ect‘delivery `of groups varying alternately
reached a similar but smaller toothed wheel |39,
40 one can in number. t
«
which is also carried by the shaft |30, and which
4. In a machine for loading can coolers or the
has a single tooth projecting from its periphery,
like, means for receiving cans from a.y conveyor
is engaged by a pin !40 identical with the pin
and delivering them in groups of predetermined
|34 and carried by a rod |4| identical with the
numbers comprising a rotating turret having can
rod |35,'and also driven by an eccentric |42«on 45 receiving recesses in its periphery, said turret
the main shaft 39'. Thus, rwhen the toothed wheel
having a groove formed in its periphery,»an ar
|33 has advanced the cooler fourteen spaces and
cuate gate member associated with the turret and
becomes inoperative for the fifteenth space, the
received by said groove, and means `to slide the
wheel |39 is timed to effect engagement of its
gate to a position obstructing‘entrance of cans
single tooth with the pin |40. As the diameter 50 into the turret.
of this wheel is about half that of the largerA
5. In a can cooler loading machine, a turret
one, the can-conveyor is advanced approximately
for receiving cans from a conveyor and delivering
twice the usual distance, which is sufiicient to
them in groups toward an elevator, means for
bring the second cooler into position to receive its
advancing coolers beneath the elevator to receive
ñrst row of cans and also to advance the large 55 -cans therefrom, a gate for obstructing entrance
toothed wheel |33 to a position where it will again
of a single can upon alternate rotations of the
operate to advance the cooler for the reception
turret„and means operating automatically to
of the next thirteen rows of cans.
As the cool
close said gate upon the absence of a cooler from
ers travel along the conveyors, one side is guided
a can receiving position beneath the elevator.
by the immovable rail |43, as shown in Fig. 1, V60
6. In a can cooler loading machine, an ele
while on the opposite side a shorter rail |44,
vator, means to raise the elevator to position for
which is urged inwardly by springs- |45, insures
receiving cans from a conveyor and to lower the
perfect alignment of the cooler as it passes be
elevator to a position to deposit the cans in a
neath the elevator.
~
cooler, said elevator comprising an elongated hop
While the present invention has for the purpose 65 per adapted to receive a row of cans. can sup
of illustration been disclosed in the form of` a
porting members carried by the elevator and in
machine constructed for the specific purpose of
clined toward each other to support and retain
arranging cans in ar cooler, it is readily adapt
the cans in the hopper, means to swing said sup
able to other uses, and, in fact, for any use where
cans or similarlyvshaped objects are to be ar
ranged in orderly> manner in any type of con
tainer or on any surface.
porting members away from each other as the
70 elevator descends whereby the cans will gravitate
into the cooler as the elevator reaches its lower
position, and means carried by one side of said
The foregoing disclosure is intended in no way
supporting members‘to engage aV previously de
to limit the invention to the specific mechanisms
posited row of cans as the supporting members
and constructions shown, but only to illustrate 75 swing away from each other whereby the en~
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2,400,484 ^
gaged cans will be aligned and urged forwardly.
f 7. In a can cooler loading machine, an elevator,
means to raise the elevator to position forreceiv
i
5
.conveying means. a counting device associated
with said conveying means for counting cans and
-having means for varying the count of cans in
alternateirows of cans, means for advancing the
ing cans from a conveyor and to lower the ele
cans
the elevator in rows varying alter
vator to a position to deposit the cans in a cooler, 5 natelytoward
one can in number and means for lowering `
said elevator comprising an elongated hopper .
the elevator to dispose the cans in the cooler.
adapted to receive a row of cans, can supporting
9. In a machine for loading a can cooler or
members carried by the elevator and inclined
the
like, an elevator under which the cooler may
toward eachother to support and retain the cans
in the hopper, means to swing said supporting l0 pass, conveying means, a counting device -asso
ciated with said conveying vmeans for counting
members- away from each other as the elevator
cans and having means _for varying the count of
descends whereby the cans will gravitate into the
can‘s in alternate rows of cans, means for ad
, cooler as the elevator reaches its'lower position,
vancing the counted cans toward the elevator in
and a plurality of curved plates carried by said
-supporting members and spaced to engage one 16 rows varying alternatelyv one can in number,
means for lowering the elevator to deposit the
with each can in a previously deposited row as
cans in the cooler, and means for moving the ele
thev supporting members swing away fromeach
vator‘sidewise during its descent as it deposits
@other whereby the engaged cans will be held out
o! the path of the descending cans. ,
8. In a machine for loading a can cooler or the ß
like, an elevator under~ which the kcooler may pass,
every other row of cans.
‘
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SAM A. CAMPANA.