Apparatus for charging tubular canisters with a stack of flat, disk-shaped items, particularly potato chips

An apparatus for charging tubular canisters in an item feeding direction with a stack of face-to-face oriented items, the items being stacked such that their faces are perpendicular to the feeding direction, and a direction of stacking is parallel to the feeding direction, the apparatus comprising:

• (a) a conveyor for supporting and positioning an item stack thereon;
• (b) a canister holder for supporting and positioning a canister;
• said canister holder adjoining an outlet end of said conveyor;
• (c) means for advancing the item stack in the feeding direction from the conveyor into the canister positioned by said canister holder;
• (d) an elongated guide member movable parallel to said feeding direction for introduction into and withdrawal from the canister positioned by said canister holder;
• said elongated guide member having a frontal end that is a leading end when the elongated guide member is introduced into the canister in said feeding direction;
• (e) a holding plate supported at said frontal end of said guide member and being pivotal into a first position in which it projects into a feed path of the item stack for engaging a leading item of the item stack and into a second position in which it is clear of said feed path, wherein said guide member comprises two parallel-spaced guide bars extending on either side of said feed path parallel to said feeding direction for straddling the item stack located in said feed path;
• the frontal end of the guide member being a frontal end of each guide bar;
• each guide bar carrying, at the frontal end thereof, a respective said holding plate;
• and
• (f) drive means for moving said guide member parallel to said feeding direction and for rotating said plate into said first and second positions.