Apparatus to insert articles into bags

An apparatus to aid in locating an article in a bag containing a product, said apparatus having a generally central vertical axis and including:

• a reservoir to receive a plurality of the articles and including an upwardly facing surface extending from said axis and upon which the articles rest;
• a plurality of stationary discharge locations arranged angularly about said axis, each location having a discharge aperture to which the articles are delivered to be conveyed to a packaging machine that forms bags containing the product;
• and
• a plurality of conveyor devices to deliver the articles from the reservoir to the discharge apertures, each device being operatively associated with a respective one of the locations and including:
• a support, the support being movable between a first position and a second position by angular oscillation of the support between the first and second positions about a generally horizontal axis;
• and
• an article engaging portion attached to the support so as to be at least partly supported thereby, said article engaging portion being located adjacent said surface when said support is in said first position so as to engage one of the articles so that the article is secured thereto, with said surface being located relative to a respective one of the discharge apertures so that upon release of the article engaged, the engaged article is delivered to the respective one of the discharge apertures when said support is in said second position.