US 4,062,168 AGranted

Container filling machine

OwnerThomas E. Watts, Thomas R. Wattsinventors

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Abstract

A container filling machine has a conveyor assembly arranged for transporting articles to an elevated loading station at which is disposed a box or other suitable receptacle to be filled with the articles. The receptacle is raised to the loading station by an elevator device which lowers the receptacle as a function of articles placed in the container by a discharge portion of the conveyor assembly. A control system includes a sensor mounted on an area of the discharge portion of the conveyor assembly which is inserted into the receptacle being filled for discharging the articles from within the receptacle so as to actuate the elevator device upon detection by the sensor of the presence of articles within the receptacle up to a level immediately adjacent the sensor. By this arrangement, the distance the articles must fall when passing from the conveyor system to the receptacle is kept at a practical minimum so as to prevent damage to the articles.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A container filling machine, comprising, in combination:

a. conveyor means for transporting articles to an elevated loading station;
b. elevator means for sequentially raising a container to be filled to the loading station and subsequently lowering the container as same is filled;
and
c. control means connected to the elevator means for lowering the elevator means as a function of articles in the container, the conveyor means including a discharge portion extending into a path of travel of the elevator means for insertion into the container, and the control means including sensing means are mounted on the discharge portion of the conveyor means for detecting a level of articles in the container and lowering the elevator means as a function of the level detected, and the conveyor means further including an endless conveyor comprising a lifting portion arranged for lifting articles to the loading station, and also including the discharge portion, with the latter arranged for receiving articles from the lifting portion, a pulley arranged over the endless conveyor at the transition thereof between the lifting portion and the discharge portion, with an endless hold-down including a web being disposed over only the pulley and extending along the lifting portion of the endless conveyor for holding articles on the lifting portion as the articles are conveyed to the discharge portion.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 05/729,971Filed 6 Oct 1976
Granted: 13 Dec 1977
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

B65B 35/44
Arranging and feeding articles in groups: by endless belts or chains
B65B 1/04
Packaging fluent solid material, e.g. powders, granular or loose fibrous material, loose masses of small articles, in individual containers or…:…
B65B 1/30
Packaging fluent solid material, e.g. powders, granular or loose fibrous material, loose masses of small articles, in individual containers or…:…
B65G 47/19
Arrangements or applications of hoppers or chutes: having means for controlling material flow, e.g. to prevent overloading