Conveyors: power-driven – Conveyor for changing attitude of item relative to conveyed... – By member adjacent conveyor for contacting successive...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-29
2001-05-29
Bidwell, James R. (Department: 3651)
Conveyors: power-driven
Conveyor for changing attitude of item relative to conveyed...
By member adjacent conveyor for contacting successive...
C198S443000, C414S745100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06237742
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an apparatus for and method of aligning elongated workpieces parallel to one another. More particularly this invention concerns such an apparatus capable of reducing a plurality of criss-crossed and overlapping elongated workpieces into a neat parallel array.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In various manufacturing operations a plurality of elongated workpieces which may be solid or hollow are delivered to an input station in basically jumbled condition, with some of the workpieces overlying, and some underlying others. In order to act on the workpieces individually, for instance to saw them to length, they have to be sorted into an array extending generally parallel to one another with no workpiece lying underneath or atop another. This is a particular problem in a milling operations where the generally straight roundwood is dropped from a truck onto a chain conveyor, or in an industrial system cutting into sections long lengths of tubing or hose delivered in bundles which might actually be twisted.
In a trample-beam system there are a plurality of separately driven beams extending transverse to the workpieces and that basically repeatedly push down on them until the workpieces are only one layer thick. The movements of the various beams are synchronized, with the downward movement starting at one end and traveling longitudinally along the workpieces to hanmmer them into place. Obviously such a piece of equipment is very large and complex. Furthermore the vertical stroke of the trample beams must be carefully adjusted for maximum workpiece diameter. See German utility model 295 00 945.
Another system has a brush arrangement that rotates to brush back the workpieces in a direction opposite their displacement direction which, as usual, is transverse to the elongated workpieces. Thus any workpiece lying atop another is brushed back until it falls into place. The brush can travel along the workpieces to orient them as it travels.
In another system (U.S. Pat. No. 4,997,079) there is a roller provided above the transport surface which has wheel elements with grooves extending transverse to the transport direction. When driven against the movement direction of the workpieces these rollers again sort the workpieces into a generally parallel array. Conveyor belts (German 2,937,496) can also be used.
All these devices are quite complex, often require careful readjustment as workpiece size changes, and occasionally let two crossed workpieces get through to the downstream end of the input conveyor, where they are supposed to lie one deep and extend generally parallel to one another.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved system for orienting elongated workpieces parallel to one another.
Another object is the provision of such an improved system for orienting elongated workpieces parallel to one another which overcomes the above-given disadvantages, that is which is of simple construction, which does not need adjustment for workpiece size, and which never lets crossed workpieces past.
A further object is to provide an improved workpiece-aligning method.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A conveyor defining a horizontal transport surface receives elongated workpieces in crossed-over and nonparallel orientation at an input side of the surface and moves them in a horizontal transport direction to an output side of the surface. A workpiece-aligning apparatus has according to the invention a guide extending generally parallel to the workpieces along the surface, a carriage displaceable along the guide parallel to the workpieces, and a pushdown element vertically displaceable on the carriage between a lower position engaging and pushing down the workpieces and an upper position above the workpieces. A drive displaces the carriage along the guide with the element in the lower position and thereby presses the workpieces down against the transport surface and moves the workpieces into generally parallel alignment with one another.
Thus the apparatus, which can move in the workpiece transport direction as well as transverse to it, sweeps from one end of a group of workpieces on the surface to the other end. As the element presses the workpieces down it aligns then starting from the one end to the opposite end, leaving the workpieces behind it in its wake aligned generally parallel to each other. The apparatus according to the invention sweeps back and forth rapidly enough that the workpieces that move off the output side of the conveyor are arranged generally parallel to one another and never overlie or underlie adjacent workpieces.
The transport direction according to the invention is transverse to the workpiece and the guide and the carriage is at the output side of the surface. The carriage can also move somewhat transversely of the workpieces.
The element in accordance with the invention has a downwardly directed surface elongated transverse to the workpieces and engageable therewith. In fact the element is a generally cylindrical roller rotatable about a horizontal axes transverse to the workpieces. The roller in turn is carried on a lower end of an arm having an upper end pivoted on the carriage.
The roller-carrying arm has an upper-end extension formed with a cam follower and the guide has one end provided with a cam engageable with the follower to raise the roller into an upper position out of engagement with the workpieces on the surface. One such cam can be provided at each end for raising the roller. Normally the roller is swept in one direction only, but it can work bidirectionally.
A latch engageable between the carriage and the arm retains the roller in an upper position out of contact with the workpieces on the surface. Means is provided at one end of the guide for releasing the latch and letting the roller drop down on the workpieces. This release is combined with the above-described cam follower and cam so that the roller can be latched at the downstream end of its stroke, with single-direction aligning, returned to the upstream end latched in the up position, and then the latch is released and the roller is slowly lowered by the upstream-end cam as it moves off downstream.
The method according to the invention therefore basically comprises the steps of pressing an element down on the workpieces and displacing the element while it is pressed down on the workpieces longitudinally along the workpieces and thereby arraying them generally parallel to one another. The element is rotated and rolled over the workpieces as it is displaced longitudinally along the workpieces. In addition the element can be vertically vibrated while pushing it down on the workpieces for best aligning effect.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4526269 (1985-07-01), Henderson et al.
patent: 4573860 (1986-03-01), Peddingraus
patent: 4997079 (1991-03-01), Suopjarvi
patent: 5363950 (1994-11-01), Laluna et al.
patent: 5842559 (1998-12-01), Madsen et al.
patent: 2937496 (1980-03-01), None
patent: 295 00 384 U (1995-03-01), None
Dünwald Karl-Heinz
Schmidt Rainer
Bidwell James R.
Dubno Herbert
RSA Entgrat-U. Trenn-System GmbH & Co.
Wilford Andrew
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