Material or article handling – Article reorienting device – Article support means rockable on fixed surface
Reexamination Certificate
2006-12-19
2006-12-19
Lillis, Eileen D. (Department: 3652)
Material or article handling
Article reorienting device
Article support means rockable on fixed surface
C414S754000, C414S758000, C414S798900, C198S468900, C198S468110
Reexamination Certificate
active
07150598
ABSTRACT:
Apparatus and methods for handling pallets, such as for inspection and sorting, are disclosed. In a disclosed embodiment, an up-ender includes a support frame, a pallet-tilting mechanism coupled in a pivotal manner to the frame, and first and second generally upright pusher arms coupled to the frame. The pallet-tilting mechanism is pivotable between an up position and a down position, such that when the pallet-tilting mechanism is in the up position, an upright stack of pallets can be loaded onto the pallet-tilting mechanism and when pivoted to the down position, the stack is rotated about 90° so that the pallets become generally vertically oriented. The pallet-tilting mechanism also is adapted to displace the stack of vertically oriented pallets along a support surface. The pusher arms are positioned to receive the stack of pallets from the pallet-tilting mechanism and automatically index the pallets in the stack along the support surface.
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Smets John S.
Smets Robert D.
Klarquist & Sparkman, LLP
Lillis Eileen D.
Lowe Michael
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