Egg chain gripper actuating device and egg transfer device

Egg transfer device for receiving eggs from an egg chain and feeding those eggs to a supply conveyor which moves the eggs in a supply direction with a supply speed away from the egg transfer device, which egg transfer device comprises:

• multiple parallel egg chains provided with grippers for engaging eggs and for carrying the eggs along the lower run of the egg chains at a transport speed in a transport direction;
• a transfer unit for receiving multiple rows of eggs from the egg chains in a transfer location directly below the egg chains and lowering them into the transfer buffer below the egg chains for feeding the eggs to a the supply conveyor for moving the eggs in a conveyor direction away from the buffer, which transfer unit is supported by a driven support for moving the transfer unit along an endless transfer trajectory extending in a vertical plane parallel to the supply direction such that the transfer unit can be moved from the transfer location, via a let down location for releasing the eggs, into an end location and back up into the transfer location, and wherein the driven support is designed such that in the let down location the transfer unit moves in the supply direction, preferably with the supply speed, as well as in the downward direction through the transfer buffer for setting down the eggs on the transfer buffer which transfer buffer transports them into the supply direction and to the supply conveyor, and wherein the direction of movement of the transfer unit in the transfer location is inverted from an essentially upward direction into an essentially downward direction such that an egg is received in an essentially vertical direction from a gripper.