Unit for sequencing and guiding items

A unit for sequencing and guiding items while they are advanced from an input station, in which said items are arranged at least in one line parallel to an advancing direction, to an output station, in which item batches, arranged according to desired spacings along the advancing direction and each formed by one or more items, are made available for a subsequent operation, said unit comprising:

• a first conveyor for advancing said items;
• a sequencing apparatus configured to cooperate with the items to form said batches and to drive the batches of items, arranged at the desired spacings, to said output station;
• wherein said sequencing apparatus comprises a second conveyor in turn comprising a track and a plurality of movable elements independently movable along said track to interact with said items to drive them to said output station;
• wherein said first conveyor is configured to carry said items from said input station to said output station, said track has a work portion distinct from said first conveyor, said movable elements are provided with respective interacting portions that protrude over said first conveyor when said movable elements are advanced along said work portion of said track, and the respective interacting portions cooperating with said items to drive them to the desired positions along said first conveyor so as to define said batches of items and to locate the batches of items at the desired distances from one another;
• said interacting portions including a leading-type interacting portion and a trailing-type interacting portion, said leading-type interacting portion being configured to cooperate with a leading surface of a leading item of one of said batches of items, said trailing-type interacting portion being configured to cooperate with a trailing surface of a trailing item of said one of said batches of items;
• and
• the leading-type interacting portion and the trailing-type interacting portion that respectively cooperate with the leading surface of the leading item of the one of said batches of items and the trailing surface of the trailing item of the one of said batches of items are independently movable along the track as the items are being carried by the first conveyor.