Carousel type dispenser
AssigneeElsner Engineering Works, Inc.
InventorRobert E. Molison
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A cap dispenser includes a carousel cap magazine holding a number of cap stacks and a cap delivery assembly for dispensing individual caps on demand. A drive assembly actuates the cap delivery assembly to dispense a cap and indexes the magazine when a low supply of caps are within the cap delivery assembly to supply cap stacks thereto.
Claims8
A machine for dispensing caps or the like comprising a support plate having a smooth upper surface and a discharge hole extending through the plate at the surface, a carousel magazine rotatably mounted on the top of the plate over the hole including means for supporting a number of circumferentially spaced cap stacks for sliding movement over such surface with rotation of the magazine, and a magazine gear rotatably mounted below the plate;
- a magazine clutch forming a drive connection between the magazine gear and the magazine so that when the clutch is engaged rotation of the magazine gear rotates the magazine;
- a cap discharge assembly mounted below the plate under the hole for supporting cap stacks falling down the hole from the magazine including at least one rotary cap dispensing disk for dispensing individual caps from a cap stack and a disk drive gear connected to rotate the disk;
- a drive assembly including a drive motor, an output gear rotatably mounted below the plate, a chain drive clutch forming a drive connection between the drive motor and the output gear so that when the drive clutch is engaged the motor rotates the output gear, and a drive chain under the plate extending around all of said gears whereby rotation of said output gear drives the chain to rotate said disk drive gear and said magazine gear;
- a sensor for generating a low level signal when the height of a cap stack in the cap discharge assembly falls to a level below the plate;
- and a control circuit operable in response to an input signal to engage the chain drive clutch without engaging the magazine clutch to thereby rotate the output gear, move the chain and rotate the dispensing disk sufficently to discharge a cap from the discharge assembly without rotating the magazine, said control circuit including means for engaging said magazine clutch upon receipt of a low level signal from the sensor so that when the chain drive clutch is next engaged in response to an input signal the cap discharge assembly discharges a cap as before and the magazine is rotated to position a cap stack to fall down the hole to resupply the discharge assembly.
A machine for dispensing caps or the like comprising a support plate having a discharge hole extending through the plate, a magazine movably mounted on the top of the plate over the hole including means for supporting a number of cap stacks for discharge through the hole and a magazine gear rotatably mounted below the plate;
- a magazine clutch forming a drive connection between the magazine gear and the magazine so that when the clutch is engaged rotation of the magazine gear moves the magazine;
- a cap discharge assembly mounted below the plate under the hole for supporting cap stacks falling down the hole from the magazine including at least one rotary cap dispensing disk for dispensing individual caps from a cap stack and a disk drive gear connected to rotate the disk;
- a drive assembly including a drive motor, an output gear rotatably mounted below the plate, a chain drive clutch forming a drive connection between the drive motor and the output gear so that when the drive clutch is engaged the motor rotates the output gear, and a drive chain under the plate extending around all of said gears whereby rotation of said output gear drives the chain to rotate said disk drive gear and said magazine gear;
- a sensor for generating a low level signal when the height of a cap stack in the cap discharge assembly falls to a level below the plate;
- and a control circuit operable in response to an input signal to engage the chain drive clutch without engaging the magazine clutch to thereby rotate the output gear, move the chain and rotate the dispensing disk sufficently to discharge a cap from the discharge assembly without moving the magazine, said control circuit including means for engaging said magazine clutch upon receipt of a low level signal from the sensor so that when the chain drive clutch is next engaged in response to an input signal the cap discharge assembly discharges a cap as before and the magazine is moved to position a cap stack to fall down the hole to resupply the discharge assembly.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.