Device for gripping and placing members

Device for gripping, lifting and releasing a member such as a package or individual article and used in automatic handling apparatus, comprising at least a pair of gripping arms each having a first end and a second end, said gripping arms being pivotally displaceable, means engageable with said gripping arms and arranged for moving the second ends thereof into and out of gripping relation with a member, wherein the improvement comprises that the seconds ends of said gripping arms are arranged to grip the underside of the member to be lifted, said means are arranged to support the first ends of said gripping arms for movement generally horizontally and during such generally horizontal movement for displacing said gripping arms between a gripping position where said gripping arms depending generally vertically from the first end thereof and a released or open position where said gripping arms extend obliquely relative to the vertical and out of engagement with the member each said gripping arm has a pivot axis at the first end thereof, and said means are arranged to move said gripping arms between the gripping and released positions by pivoting the first ends of said arms about the pivot axis thereof and at the same time for moving the first ends of said gripping arms away from or toward one another so that the second ends of said gripping arms move into or out of gripping engagement with the member.