Device for transporting a hollow body comprising improved grasping means

Device (10) for transporting a hollow body (12) that is equipped with a neck (16) that comprises a vertically-oriented inner wall (24) and an upper edge (20) that circumferentially delimits an opening (22) for access to the interior of said hollow body (12), with said device (10) comprising at least means (50) for gripping the hollow body (12) by engagement with the inner wall (24) of the neck (16) that are mounted at the lower free end of a control rod (32) and movably connected to the control rod (32), with said control rod (32) being mounted to move vertically between:

• a top position in which the gripping means (50) are retracted upward by the control rod (32) to make it possible to insert the neck (16) of the hollow body (12) radially into a specified reference position relative to the gripping means (50) of the device (10), and
• a bottom position in which the gripping means (50) engage radially with the inner wall (24) of the neck (16) to ensure the gripping of the hollow body (12),
• wherein the gripping means (50) are mounted to move radially between:
• a retracted position in which the gripping means (50) are inserted vertically from top to bottom inside the neck (16), without contact with the inner wall (24), and
• a deployed position in which the gripping means (50) engage with the inner wall (24) of the neck (16),
• wherein the change in position of the gripping means (50) from the retracted position toward the deployed position is controlled by the downward vertical movement of the control rod (32), from the top position toward the bottom position, and
• wherein the device (10) comprises an intermediate support part (60) of the gripping means (50) that is movably connected to the control rod (32) and that is mounted to move vertically relative to the control rod (32), and an intermediate return element (64) toward the bottom of said intermediate part (60).