Claims
- 1. A magazine for holding a plurality of stacked, flatwise folded cartons which are to be singularly withdrawn therefrom at a downstream end thereof, said magazine comprising:
- an upper guide and a lower guide each having a respective inner surface between which said stacked cartons are held, said upper guide and said lower guide being spaced apart by a distance greater than a given distance between a pair of edges of respective cartons in their flatwise folded condition, thereby creating a gap at least at said downstream end of said magazine between said upper guide and one of said pair of edges of respective cartons;
- a first stopper and a second stopper oppositely projecting from respective portions of said magazine toward each other, said first stopper and said second stopper being spaced apart by a distance less than a given distance between a pair of edges of said cartons;
- at least one feed roller, at least a portion of which projects from said lower guide surface toward said upper guide surface and is spaced from said upper guide surface by a distance less than said given distance between said pair of edges of said respective cartons, said distance by which said upper guide and said lower guide are spaced apart being greater downstream of said one feed roller than said distance upstream of said one feed roller;
- means for driving said at least one feed roller for rotation toward said downstream end of said magazine; and
- a sensor operatively associated with said driving means for controlling said rotation of said at least one feed roller as a function of the quantity of cartons positioned downstream of said at least one feed roller.
- 2. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein each of said stoppers has an inner end face such that a spacing is defined between said inner end face of said first stopper and said inner end face of said second stopper which gradually decreases toward said downstream end of said magazine.
- 3. A magazine according to claim 2, wherein said inner end face of each of said stoppers is curved.
- 4. A magazine according to claim 2, wherein said inner end face of each of said stoppers is inclined.
- 5. A magazine according to claim 1, further comprising a supply conveyor having a conveyance portion disposed upstream of said second guide for supplying a plurality of cartons, wherein said conveyance portion is adapted to be driven in synchronism with said at least one feed roller.
- 6. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein said feed roller is mounted for selective adjustment toward and away from said downstream end of said magazine.
- 7. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein the folded cartons which are to be held in said magazine have folding lines which extend in a predetermined direction and along which said folded cartons are folded, wherein said first stopper and said second stopper are positioned relative to said magazine so as to be adapted to engage opposite edges of said folded cartons, which edges are space from each other in the direction of the folding lines of said folded cartons.
- 8. A magazine according to claim 7, wherein said lower guide supports said cartons on edges of said cartons, said magazine further comprising a third stopper projecting upwardly from said lower guide, and wherein said first stopper and said second stopper projected generally perpendicularly to said third stopper.
- 9. A magazine according to claim 8, wherein said gap is positioned between respective upper edges of said cartons and said upper guide and wherein said first stopper, said magazine defining a pathway for said cartons, said second stopper and said third stopper are the sole stoppers projecting into said pathway for said cartons, no stopper thereby projecting from said upper guide.
- 10. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein said upper guide has an upstream portion, upstream of said feed roller, and a downstream portion, downstream of said feed roller, wherein said downstream portion of said upper guide defines a surface which is spaced from said lower guide by an amount greater than an amount by which said upstream portion of said upper guide is spaced from said lower guide.
- 11. A magazine according to claim 10, wherein said upstream portion of said upper guide and said downstream portion of said upper guide are non-continuous.
- 12. A magazine according to claim 11, wherein said downstream portion of said upper guide extends generally parallel to said upstream portion, said upstream portion defined by a stepped guide portion.
- 13. A magazine according to claim 10, wherein said upstream portion of said upper guide and said downstream portion of said upper guide are continuous.
- 14. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein said lower guide has an upstream portion, upstream of said feed roller, and a downstream portion, downstream of said feed roller, wherein said downstream portion of said lower guide defines a surface which is spaced from said upper guide by an amount greater than an amount by which said upstream portion of said lower guide is space from said upper guide.
- 15. A magazine according to claim 14, wherein said upstream portion of said lower guide and said downstream portion of said lower guide are non-continuous.
- 16. A magazine according to claim 15, wherein said downstream portion of said lower guide extends generally parallel to said upstream portion, said upstream portion defined by a stepped guide portion.
- 17. A magazine according to claim 14, wherein said upstream portion of said lower guide and said downstream portion of said lower guide are continuous.
- 18. A magazine according to claim 1, wherein said magazine is generally horizontally oriented.
- 19. An apparatus for storing folded articles in a supply and for facilitating withdrawal of said articles from said supply, said articles having fold lines which extend in a predetermined direction, and at least a pair of edges which are spaced from each other in said predetermined direction, said apparatus comprising:
- (a) means for guiding said articles for movement from an upstream position to a downstream position comprising at least two guide surfaces;
- (b) a discharge end located at a downstream portion of said guiding means for which said articles can be withdrawn from said supply;
- (c) means located along said guiding means, upstream of said discharge end, for substantially isolating a first quantity of said articles in said supply from a second quantity of said articles positioned upstream of said first quantity of said articles, said guide surfaces being spaced apart by a distance downstream of said isolating means greater than a distance upstream of said isolating means; and
- (d) at least a pair of stoppers which are positioned downstream of said isolating means so as to be adapted to engage said articles proximate said pair of edges, said pair of stoppers extending in a direction generally transverse to said pair of edges.
- 20. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein said guiding means comprises at least two generally parallel guide surfaces.
- 21. The apparatus of claim 20 wherein said at least two guide surfaces comprise a lower guide surface upon which said articles within said supply are to be supported on respective additional edges, said additional edges being other than said pair of edges, ad an upper guide surface adapted to be spaced from said lower guide surface at a distance greater than a predetermined width dimension of one of said articles.
- 22. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein said means for isolating comprises means for temporarily engaging and advancing at least one of said articles in said supply towards said discharge end of said supply.
- 23. The apparatus of claim 22 wherein said means for temporarily engaging and advancing comprises an intermittently driven roller.
- 24. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein said means for isolating comprises means for engaging and advancing at least one of said articles in said supply, said means for engaging and advancing being positioned proximate one of said at least two guide surfaces and at least partially projects from said one of said at least two guide surfaces toward a second of said at least two guide surfaces by a distance less than a predetermined width dimension of one of said articles.
- 25. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein said guiding means comprises at least two generally parallel guide surfaces, and wherein said means temporarily engaging and advancing comprises means projecting from one of said two guide surface which is adjustable toward and away from the other of said two guide surfaces.
- 26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein said isolating means comprises a roller projecting from said other of said two guide surfaces and which is positioned generally opposite to said adjustable means.
- 27. The apparatus of claim 19 wherein said articles are flatwise folded cartons and wherein said apparatus further comprises means for facilitating at least partial opening of said folded cartons.
- 28. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein said means for guiding comprises at least two guide surface sand wherein said means for facilitating at least partial opening of said folded cartons comprises said pair of stoppers.
- 29. The apparatus of claim 28 wherein said pair of stoppers comprise a first projection and a second projection which are spaced apart by a distance less than a width dimension of at least one of said cartons such that, upon engagement of a first portion of a respective carton at said discharge end by a withdrawal mechanism for withdrawing said respective carton from said supply, second and third opposed portions of said carton engage respective portions of said first and second projections to thereby enable said respective carton to be at least partially opened.
- 30. The apparatus of claim 29 wherein said first projection and said second projection comprise respective surfaces which converge toward said discharge end of said apparatus.
- 31. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said respective surfaces are substantially planar.
- 32. The apparatus of claim 30 wherein said respective surfaces are curved.
- 33. A magazine according to claim 19 wherein said means for isolating comprises means for engaging and advancing at least one of said articles in said supply, said means for engaging and advancing being positioned proximate one of said at least two guide surfaces and at least partially projecting from said one of said at least two guide surfaces toward a second of said at least two guide surfaces to be spaced from said second guide surface by a distance less than a predetermined width dimension of one of said articles.
- 34. A magazine according to claim 33 wherein said means for engaging and advancing comprises a roller which engages and advances said at least one of said articles in said supply.
- 35. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein said apparatus for storing articles is generally horizontally oriented.
- 36. An apparatus for storing articles in a supply and for facilitating withdrawal of said articles from said supply, said apparatus comprising:
- (a) means for guiding said articles for movement from an upstream position to a downstream position comprising at least two spaced apart guide surfaces having respective upstream portions and downstream portions;
- (b) a discharge end located at a downstream portion of said guiding means form which said articles can be withdrawn from said supply, said two guide surfaces being spaced apart, at least at said discharge end, by a distance greater than a predetermined width dimension of one of said articles and wherein the distance between said two guide surfaces is greater downstream than upstream; and
- (c) means located along said guiding means, upstream of said discharge end, for substantially isolating a first quantity of said articles in said supply from a second quantity of said articles positioned upstream of said first predetermined number of said articles.
- 37. The apparatus according to claim 36 wherein said two guide surfaces comprise a lower surface and an upper surface and wherein said upper surface comprises a stepped portion and a portion which is not stepped, said stepped portion projecting closer to said lower surface than said portion which is not stepped, said stepped portion being spaced from said discharge end and extending upstream therefrom.
- 38. The apparatus according to claim 36 wherein said two guide surfaces comprise a lower surface and an upper surface and wherein said lower surface includes an upstream portion and a downstream portion, and wherein said downstream portion is spaced from said upper surface by a distance greater than that of said upstream portion.
- 39. An apparatus according to claim 36, wherein said apparatus for storing articles is generally horizontally oriented.
- 40. A method of feeding flatwise folded cartons, each having a predetermined width and fold lines extending in a predetermined direction, through a magazine, from an upstream portion to a downstream portion, and of facilitating withdrawal of said cartons from said magazine comprising:
- (a) creating a supply of stacked cartons within said magazine;
- (b) guiding said folded cartons within said magazine between an upstream position to a downstream end by means of at least a pair of generally parallel guide surfaces spaced apart, at least at said downstream portion of said magazine, by a distance greater than said predetermined width of said cartons to thereby define a gap between a first edge of each of said stacked cartons and one of said guide surfaces;
- (c) engaging a respective second edge of at least one of said cartons within said magazine and moving said at least one of said cartons toward and against a second of said guide surfaces to thereby isolate an upstream quantity of cartons from a downstream quantity of cartons; and
- (d) engaging opposite end portions of successive cartons at a discharge end of said magazine at which said cartons are successively withdrawn, said end portions being spaced from each other generally in said predetermined direction in which fold lines of said cartons extend.
- 41. The method of claim 40 further comprising the step of engaging, at said discharge end of said magazine, an edge portion which extends generally parallel to said fold lines of said cartons.
- 42. The method of claim 41 wherein said edge portion includes said second edge.
- 43. The method of claim 40 wherein said pair of generally parallel guide surface comprise an upper guide surface and a lower guide surface, wherein said step of guiding said folded cartons comprises guiding said folded cartons by supporting respective said second edges of said cartons.
- 44. The method of claim 43, wherein said cartons have a predetermined height between said first edge and said second edge, said method comprising the additional step of guiding a further quantity of cartons having a height which is different from said predetermined height.
- 45. The method according to claim 40, wherein said flatwise folded cartons are fed through a magazine which is generally horizontally oriented.
- 46. An apparatus for storing folded articles in a supply and for facilitating withdrawal of said articles from said supply, said articles having fold lines which extend in a predetermined direction, and at least a pair of edges which are spaced from each other in said predetermined direction, said apparatus comprising:
- (a) means for guiding said articles for movement in a direction from an upstream position to a downstream position comprising at lest two guide surfaces;
- (b) a discharge end located at the most downstream portion of said guiding means from which said articles can be withdrawn from said supply;
- (c) means located along said guiding means, upstream of said discharge end, for substantially isolating a first quantity of said articles in said supply from a second quantity of said articles positioned upstream of said first quantity of said articles; and
- (d) means for engaging said articles proximate said pair of edges for arresting movement of said first quantity of articles at said discharge end of said guiding means and for permitting withdrawal of articles at said discharge end of said guiding means from said first quantity of articles generally in said direction.
- 47. An apparatus according to claim 46, said articles having respective further edges, wherein said means for isolating a first quantity of articles comprises means for engaging and moving said respective further edges of said articles toward and against one of said two guide surfaces.
- 48. An apparatus according to claim 46, said articles having respective further edges, wherein said means for guiding is oriented in a manner for generally supporting said articles on said further edges, whereby said means for isolating a first quantity of said articles further comprises means for causing said first quantity of articles to lean toward said second quantity of articles.
- 49. An apparatus according to claim 46, wherein said apparatus for storing folded articles is generally horizontally oriented.
Priority Claims (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
1-110300 |
Apr 1988 |
JPX |
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63-107897 |
Apr 1988 |
JPX |
|
Parent Case Info
This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 07/292,422, still pending, which was filed on Dec. 30, 1988, the subject matter of which is hereby incorporated by reference thereto.
US Referenced Citations (7)
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
282478 |
Mar 1915 |
DEX |
59-26833 |
Feb 1984 |
JPX |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
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Parent |
292422 |
Dec 1988 |
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