Vacuum beam product dispenser and singulator and method for singulating products

Apparatus for singulating a stream of soft products comprising:

• an inclined conveyor belt;
• means for supplying a stream of products to overlay a lower end of the inclined conveyor belt having an upper end such that a portion of the stream of products extends over a side edge of the conveyor belt;
• means for gripping a product with the inclined conveyor belt;
• means for actuating the conveyor belt to pull the gripped product along the conveyor belt;
• and
• means for holding the gripped product to the actuated conveyor belt while the conveyor belt carries the gripped product towards the upper end whereby products other than a gripped product fall from the conveyor belt.

A method for singulating a stack of products with a vacuum beam product dispenser including a selectively controlled inclined vacuum conveyor belt having an input end and an output end, and a container for holding a stack of products overlaying the input end of the conveyor belt, comprising the steps of:

• positioning a container from a horizontal conveyor belt adjacent to the input end of the inclined conveyor belt;
• gripping a single product from a product stack;
• rotating the conveyor belt in direction to pull the gripped product from the stack of products;
• applying a vacuum to the gripped product as the conveyor rotates to hold the product to the conveyor for movement of the product toward the output end, all products pulled from the product stack not subject to an applied vacuum fall from the inclined conveyor belt;
• and
• dispensing the product from the output end of the conveyor belt by releasing the vacuum applied to the product.

An automatic order dispensing system for dispensing soft products comprising:

• a central output conveyor;
• a plurality of vacuum beam product singulators contiguous to the central-output conveyor for delivering selected products to the central conveyor according to a product-dispensing input, each vacuum beam product singulator having an infeed conveyor belt and a vacuum control element mounted on the infeed conveyor belt, said vacuum-control element picking a product from a stack of products and placing the picked product under vacuum control to be carried to a second end of the infeed conveyor for product delivery to said output conveyor;
• a horizontal conveyor perpendicular and adjacent to an input end of said infeed conveyor belt including means responsive to the product dispensing input to cause movement of the horizontal conveyor;
• means for supporting a container holding the stack of products in a position that the products overlay the input end of the infeed conveyor belt;
• first means for pushing the container from said means for supporting onto the horizontal conveyor;
• and
• second means for pushing a container from the horizontal conveyor onto said means for supporting.