초록 ▼

A feeder for shape unstable articles such as pads for absorbing body fluids has an upright hopper having top and bottom openings for receiving and discharging pads. First and second rotationally driven upper pulleys having a plurality of round belt receiving grooves in their peripheries are mounted

A feeder for shape unstable articles such as pads for absorbing body fluids has an upright hopper having top and bottom openings for receiving and discharging pads. First and second rotationally driven upper pulleys having a plurality of round belt receiving grooves in their peripheries are mounted adjacent the bottom opening of the hopper on opposite sides of the vertical center line of the hopper. Third and fourth idler pulleys are arranged in laterally spaced apart relationship and symmetrical to the center line of the hopper at a lower level than the first and second pulleys. Because the lower pulleys are closer to each other than the upper pulleys, the belts converge toward each other such that articles which settle out of the hopper finally become wedged between the belts proximate to the lower pulleys. A stepping motor is energized to drive the pulleys and translate the belts so that the lowermost article in the stack is dispensed from between the lower pair of pulleys by reason of being frictionally engaged at its edges by the belts on the grooved pulleys. The stepping motor is started at the moment a pad should be dispensed and is stopped in response to the pad dropping across the beam of a photosensor so the feeder is self-timing. Thus, the feeder is self-adjusting for each individual article ranging from a short feed time for a compressed article to a longer feed time for the next article which may not be compressed and, hence, thicker.

대표청구항 ▼

A machine for feeding soft, pliable articles having an unstable shape, comprising: a hopper having a top opening for input of said articles and a downwardly facing bottom opening for outflow of said articles, first and second similar pulley shaving a plurality of peripheral grooves and rotatable abo

A machine for feeding soft, pliable articles having an unstable shape, comprising: a hopper having a top opening for input of said articles and a downwardly facing bottom opening for outflow of said articles, first and second similar pulley shaving a plurality of peripheral grooves and rotatable about parallel axes and laterally spaced apart by a predetermined distance in a common horizontal plane adjacent said bottom opening such that the space between said pulleys is in vertical alignment with said bottom opening, third and fourth similar pulleys having a plurality of peripheral grooves corresponding to the grooves in the first and second pulleys and rotatable about parallel axes lying in a common horizontal plane and laterally spaced apart by a distance less than said predetermined distance by which said first and second pulleys are spaced apart, the third and fourth pulleys being arranged below the first and second pulleys and the space between said third and fourth pulleys being substantially aligned with the space between the first and second pulleys, a first plurality of round belt means running over said first pulley in the respective grooves thereof and downwardly to over said third lower pulley in the respective grooves thereof and a second plurality of round belt means running over said second pulley in the respective grooves thereof and downwardly over said fourth lower pulley in the respective grooves thereof, said first and second plurality of belt means converging toward each other in the downward direction to define a generally v-shaped passageway into which articles from said hopper settle and at least the lowermost article is frictionally engaged directly between sides of the two pluralities of belt means between the lower third and fourth pulleys, motor means operatively coupled to said pulleys for driving said pulleys rotationally, and means for causing said motor means to run repeatedly to cause said belt means to translate by an amount sufficient to dispense only the lowermost article from between the lower pulleys under the frictional influence of the belts and then to stop running.