Drive for linear pick-and-place assembly apparatus

A pick-and-place assembly for moving work pieces cyclically between adjacent work stations, said assembly comprising:

• an input shaft rotably mounted in a housing and having a lift cam and a translator cam mounted thereon;
• first and second output shafts rotably mounted in said housing generally transverse to said input shaft;
• a first cam follower mounted on said first output shaft and engaging said translator cam, and a second cam follower mounted on said second output shaft and engaging said lift cam;
• a carriage plate disposed in said housing and having a first set of V-rollers mounted thereon for slidably engaging respective V-tracks mounted on a carriage guide bar in said housing, said carriage plate having a second set of V-rollers mounted thereon and positioned to slidably receive respective V-tracks mounted on a translator bar;
• a translator arm having a first end mounted on said first output shaft and a distal end positioned to engage said translator bar such that when said input shaft is rotated, said translator arm imparts horizontal movement to said translator bar;
• and
• a lift arm having a first end mounted on said second output shaft and a distal end connected to said carriage plate such that when said input shaft is rotated, said lift arm impacts vertical movement to said carriage plate and said translator bar.