Drop pocket system for reorienting flat articles
AssigneeLockheed Martin Corporation
InventorsEdward Engarto, Robert J. Felice, Patrick J. Fitzgibbons
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A drop pocket system and method reorients flat articles in a serial stream, by horizontally receiving a horizontally moving, serial input stream of substantially vertically oriented flat articles, sensing reception of each flat article, engaging each sensed flat article, accelerating each engaged flat article into substantially downward movement, and conveying each flat article with the downward movement into a substantially horizontal orientation and movement.
Claims9
A method for reorienting flat articles in a serial stream, comprising:
- receiving a horizontally moving, serial input stream of substantially vertically oriented, flat articles, including partially rotating each flat article towards the substantially horizontal orientation;
- sensing reception of each flat article;
- engaging each sensed flat article;
- accelerating each engaged flat article into substantially downward movement;
- and
- conveying each flat article with the substantially downward movement into a substantially horizontal orientation and movement.
A system for conveying flat articles from a substantially vertically oriented position to a substantially horizontally oriented position, comprising:
- an effective curved path channel having a substantially vertically oriented input port and a substantially horizontally oriented output port;
- a lower, driven flexible belt conveyor located to form a lower boundary of said effective curved path channel from said input port to said output port;
- and
- an upper, driven flexible belt conveyor located and adapted to place a portion of its weight on said lower, driven flexible belt conveyor and any flat articles located between said lower, driven flexible belt conveyor and said upper, driven flexible belt conveyor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.