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US 5,311,976 AGranted
Method and arrangement for opening a self-closing gripper on a gripper conveyor
AssigneeIdab Wamac AB
InventorRalf Backman
Life of this patent
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AssigneeIdab Wamac AB
InventorRalf Backman
Estimating the term…
In order to enable a gripper carried by a rapid moving gripper conveyor to be opened and therewith release an object gripped by the gripper, for instance a newspaper, without influencing neighboring grippers, the gripper is opened (45', 47) while moving along a path which is shorter than the distance (t) at which the grippers are spaced on the gripper chain (1) and the opened gripper is held open by means (4, 45') which only act on the thus opened gripper. The means which holds the gripper open accompanies the movement of the gripper conveyor. The method and the arrangement find use in conveyors that are provided with self-closing grippers where the conveyors have a high conveying capacity and enable independent release of individual objects. An opened gripper is held open while the gripper moves through a distance which is greater than the gripper spacing interval and which is sufficiently long to ensure that the object will fall free from the gripper.
A method for opening self-closing grippers (3) disposed at regular spaced intervals (t) and mutually similar orientation on a driven first conveyor chain (1), comprising the steps of:
A method for opening self-closing grippers (3) disposed at regular spaced intervals (t) and mutually similar orientation on a driven first conveyor chain (1), comprising selecting a gripper (3) to be opened, opening the selected gripper (3) independently of the other grippers, and maintaining the opened gripper (3) in an open state independently of the other grippers along a gripper conveying path which is longer than the gripper spacing intervals (t) on the first conveyor chain (1) and comprising causing moveable devices (45, 45') to activate an opening arm on a moveable gripper leg (32) of a selected gripper (3) in a manner to open the gripper (3), and by causing the moveable devices (45, 45') to accompany the gripper (3) through a distance which is greater than the gripper spacing interval (t) on the first conveyor chain (1) while holding said gripper open, said method further comprising supporting a plurality of moveable devices (45, 45') on a moving second conveyor chain (4) at the same spacing interval (s) as the gripper spacing interval (t) on the first conveyor chain (1), and moving the second conveyor chain (4) synchronously with the first conveyor chain (1).
An arrangement for opening self-closing grippers (3) which are disposed on a driven first conveyor chain (1) at regular gripper spacing intervals (t) and similar orientation, comprising
An arrangement for opening self-closing grippers (3) which are disposed on a driven first conveyor chain (1) at regular gripper spacing intervals (t) and similar orientation, characterized by means (6, 44, 45) for opening a selected gripper independently of the other grippers, and by means (4, 45, 52) for holding the selected gripper open along a gripper transport path which is greater than the gripper spacing interval (t) on the first conveyor chain (1), independently of the other grippers (3);
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.