Cassette for loose-piece parts such as electrical terminals and method of loading

A cassette for containing loose-piece parts for automated dispensing into a machine, the loose-piece parts being contained in a belt within the cassette, the belt having parallel side edges and having spaced-apart cells extending between the side edges, each of the cells containing one of the parts and being open at least at a relative bottom end in a manner permitting and facilitating removal of a said part therefrom while the cell is within the cassette, the cassette comprising a housing having oppositely-facing major surfaces, side walls therebetween, a belt storage chamber, a belt feeding portion, a part discharge station, and a belt passageway extending from the storage portion to the feeding portion, a relative bottom one of the housing major surfaces supports a relative bottom side edge of the belt within the storage chamber and the passageway and includes an edge supporting surface portion in the feeding portion enabling movement of the belt along a feed path during in-service use, and the feeding portion comprises a recess through the housing major surfaces shaped and dimensioned to receive a feeding means of the machine to engage the belt disposed adjacent a side wall of the recess and move the belt forwardly along the feed path, the cassette being characterized in that:

• the storage chamber is cylindrical and has a centrally located chamber axis defined by axis projection means extending between said major housing surfaces, and the belt is spirally wound in the storage chamber about said axis projection means.