US20040118085A1

US20040118085A1 - Apparatus for and method of transporting and stacking groups of flat articles and moving the group stacks to another location

Info

Publication number: US20040118085A1
Application number: US10/326,225
Authority: US
Inventors: Roger Williams
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-12-20
Filing date: 2002-12-20
Publication date: 2004-06-24

Abstract

A plurality of flat substantially similar articles such as meat patties which have been formed from an elongated cylindrical meat log of sausage or hamburger are deposited onto one or more parallel conveyors and then advanced in a co-planer and end to end relationship through a series of lift stations where predetermined numbers of paddies are divided into individual groups and each group of paddies is moved onto a carrier member and advanced one at a time by a shuttle to a stacking station. There each group is deposited onto each preceding group until a predetermined number of groups has been vertically stacked after which the entire stack is moved to a conveyor for further processing. The lifting stations prevent the articles from being pressed together or shingling one on top the other thereby avoiding article damage during processing, and servo motors enhance the speed and efficiency of the operation.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is directed to an apparatus for and a method of loading flat articles such as meat paddies in a suitable apparatus and, more particularly, to collecting freshly cut meat paddies from parallel moving conveyers so that a group of a predetermined number of paddies is discharged from a product release station, sequentially positioned in a stack with other groups of paddies on an elevator assembly, discharged in stack formation onto a moving conveyor on which the stacks are supported and packaged in shipping or storage receptacles.

2. Description of the Prior Art

The standard apparatus for accumulating, stacking and packaging meat paddies is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,236,855 issued Dec. 2, 1980, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. This machine has been used for a considerable period of time in the industry and has functioned adequately, however there are some features of the machine that restrict its output because of product distortion occurring when increased conveyor speeds are employed. This machine is also limited by the use of conventional conveyors that cannot be instantaneously started or stopped or move products in more than one direction. Thus there is a pronounced need for an improved machine to overcome these deficiencies, and it is to that need that the present invention is directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to an apparatus for and method of continuously accumulating a plurality of similarly sized preformed flat articles such as meat paddies where individual paddies are received from slicing stations and advanced in parallel and individually controlled conveyors to one or more lift stations each of which is selectively operable to elevate a number of paddies away from the moving conveyors and hold them in a stationary position until a desired occurrence takes place. Elevating a number of paddies at lift stations slows overall movement of the paddies which reduces pressure on the paddies normally arising when they collide and enables the formation of the paddies into individual, separated groups of paddies at a product (group) release station. Each group is then engaged by a shuttle and advanced to an elevator assembly. At the elevator assembly, they are lowered, group-by-group, so that each individual group is placed on an existing, building stack of groups or begins the formation of a new stack of groups until a predetermined number of groups, each containing the same number of patties, have completed the stack. When the predetermined number of paddy groups (15-20, for example) are accumulated in a stackproducts, the group stack is moved from the elevator assembly, deposited on a conveyor and advanced to a packing station where an operator lowers a container over the group stack and completes the packaging procedure.

The operating speed of the invention is significantly greater than that of its mechanical predecessor because of the use of servo motors in all movement sensitive locations. These servo motors can be operated to instantaneously stop, start or reverse direction of a conveyor or moving carrier. Additional machine operating speed and efficiency is achieved by use of a shuttle or transversing belt which first receives a group of paddies on a carrier member such as a sheet of paper, moves both to an elevator station and thereafter instantaneously withdraws to permit the group and carrier member to nest upon the previously deposited group and carrier member. The elevator is lowered in increments approximately equal to the thickness of a single article and carrier member until the predetermined number of groups have accumulated in the stack.

The lift stations also enable the machine to operate faster without paddy damage because they can lift a number of patties at a particular lift station off the parallel conveyors to terminate paddy movement. Sensors in each conveyor sense the absence of a paddy at a vacant paddy position, and the lift station nearest the paddy entrance station will immediately lower so that more paddies engage the conveyor and move toward the vacant paddy location.

The primary objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for and a method of bulk loading a substantially continuous supply of flat and circular paddies where each individual paddy is severed from an elongated cylindrical log of paddy meat, a predetermined number of paddies is formed into a group, and the formed groups are stacked and packaged in a rapid and efficient manner heretofore unachievable in the art without damage or distortion to the paddies.

Thus there has been outlined the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. In that respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its arrangement of the components set forth in the following description and illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways.

It is also to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting in any respect. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the concept upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for designing other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of this development. It is important that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent methods and products resulting therefrom that do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The application is neither intended to define the invention, which is measured by its claims, nor to limit its scope in any way.

Thus, the objects of the invention set forth above, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are noted with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific results obtained by its use, reference should be made to the following detailed specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like characters of reference designate like parts throughout the several views.

The drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. They illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with their description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the collecting and group forming machine of the present invention; [0013]
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1; [0014]
FIG. 3 is a side elevational and fragmentary view of the front or beginning end of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 which contains the second and third lift stations; [0015]
FIG. 4 is a side elevational, slightly enlarged and fragmentary view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3; [0016]
FIG. 5 is a first end elevational and schematic view of the first or final lift station wherein products have been raised, disengaged from the conveyor belt and held in a stationary condition; [0017]
FIG. 6 is a second end elevational and schematic view of the first or final lift station wherein products have been raised, disengaged from the conveyor belt and held in a stationary condition; [0018]
FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the product stop/release station; [0019]
FIG. 8 is an end elevational view of the components shown in FIG. 7 illustrating the traversing belt in the group and carrier member receiving position and wherein a receptive platform or elevator A is in a position to receive a group and carrier member; [0020]
FIG. 9 is an end elevational and schematic view of platform A in a raised position to receive additional carrier members and paddy groups; [0021]
FIG. 10 is an end elevational and schematic view of carrier member receptive platform A in a lower position during formation of a group stack; [0022]
FIG. 11 is an end elevational and schematic view of the elevator assembly with platform A moved to its lowest position to complete a group stack; [0023]
FIG. 12 is an end elevational and schematic view of the elevator assembly with platform A moving toward the raised position and platform B moved to the active raised position to begin another paddy stack as recited in the n description of FIGS. [0024] 9-11;
FIG. 13 is a plan view of the product release station shown in FIG. 7; and [0025]
FIG. 14 is a side elevational, schematic view of the product release station shown in FIG. 7 with a blown up view of the product stop/release mechanism.[0026]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings and particularly to FIG. 1, the apparatus for sequentially transporting, accumulating and stacking a predetermined number of groups of individual flat paddies generally designated [0027] 20 has a frame 22 supporting the components subsequently to be described at a predetermined location above floor 24. The front loading end of machine 20 shown generally as 26 is fed by a conventional slicer of the type which includes rotating blades adapted to continuously sever a plurality of slices from an elongated substantially cylindrical meat log such as sausage or hamburger. Since the slicer is of conventional construction, it is not shown, it being understood that such devices are commercially available for such use in the meat packing industry.
An accumulating and advancing section of the machine is shown generally as [0028] 28 and includes a third lift station 30, the details of which are shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. Third lift station 30 has a plurality of rails 32 (FIG. 3) that are slidably displaceable by appropriate displacing means such as air or fluid cylinders 34. In FIG. 5, two parallel conveyors 48, 50 are formed by rails 32 positioned between a number of conveyor strands 36 and movable with respect thereto to form third lift station 30. Rails 32 have slots 41 cooperating with lugs 40 that raise rails 32 and lift station 30 formed thereby between conveyor strands 36 to hold a number of paddies in a raised and stationary condition.
The lift stations normally operation together with all stations raising and lowering at the same time. They serve to control the paddy flow, prevent products from being pressed together and perhaps shingling one on top of the other, and avoid product distortion because of pressure created when paddies collide or cling together. When paddies are urged against each other, a temperature rise caused by friction builds pressure within the paddy mass resulting in product damage or distortion. Thus the lift stations control the driving force of the paddies to minimize contact and temperature rise. [0029]
[0030] Third lift station 30 has two independent lane lifts that are controlled by a sensor 46 in each lane 48, 50. When a missing paddy is sensed by sensor 46, lift station 30 (made up of rails 32 and conveyor strands 36) lowers rails 32 and products are engaged by conveyor strands 36 to move products into the sensed vacant paddy spaces. The need to supply both lanes 48, 50 with the required amount of paddies usually averages out with the rate of rejected or unacceptable paddies. There is a need to maintain close balance of paddy flow in lanes 48, 50. If a paddy is sensed to be absent at a location in lane 50, the lane 50 portion of third lift station 30 will lower out of its normal cycle. This occurs when the normal reject rate increases in one of lanes 48, 50 or the other. If the lane sensor or lane sensors 46 call for paddies over an amount of time that effects normal operation of the machine, the machine will go to a cycle stop position. This is because a fixed distance of product is required to operate in a normal condition. In the cycle stop mode, first and second lift stations 38, 40 are up and stop/release mechanism 42 is in the stop position. Third lift station 30 is up or down depending upon the sensors. The machine will start and cycle normally once all lanes are satisfied with required products continuously supplied by the slicing machine. Conveyor strands 36 run continuously.
First left [0031] station 38, when activated, lifts a predetermined number of patties forming a group of paddies. Second lift station and third lift station 30 lift at the same time to keep pressure off first lift station 38. If products are moving left to right, the stop/release mechanism is located to the right of first lift station 38. The distance d (FIG. 13) between stop/release mechanism 42 and first lift station 38 is determined by the amount of paddies required to form one group of paddies.
From [0032] first lift station 38, groups of paddies move to a conveyor 52 positioned under a cooperating belt 54 both of which engage and drive paddy groups horizontally to the product stop/release station shown generally as 56. Belt 54 can be slowed to make certain that paddies are not dislodged or move upon arrival at product stop/release station 56. Station 56 includes a rotatable paddle wheel 58 with a single paddle 60 affixed to a supporting hub 62 all of which make up stop/release mechanism 42. Paddle 60 serves as a stop mechanism 42 when a group moving on conveyer 52 encounters it in the stop or down position as shown in FIG. 14. Movement of the group ceases momentarily until the elevator assembly shown generally as 64 and shuttle 66 are ready to receive it. At that time paddle 60 releases the group and is rotated 360 degrees and at a speed to reach another stop position precisely in the middle of the separation or gap between groups created when the released group moves just slightly before the first station lift is lowered and the group behind the released group is moved toward stop/release station 56. When paddle 60 returns to the stop position, second and first lift stations 40, 38 will lower. This step is repeated continuously so long as apparatus 20 is active.
[0033] Shuttle 66 is a multi-hinged, rectangular, preferably plastic slat grid capable of rapid reciprocatory movement from a group pickup location to the elevator assembly 64. It is servo motor driven and moves forwardly toward elevator assembly 64 a distance of 15½ inches in 0.265 second and then instantaneously reverses and moves through the 15⅕ inch-distance again in 0.09 second.
Rolls of [0034] paper 68 are mounted on frame 22 as shown in FIG. 1, and a web 70 from one roll is fed upwardly through driving and cutting elements 73 that cut the web into sheets, each of which forms a carrier member 71 of a preselected size compatible with the size of the group. The sheets 71 are moved one by one to shuttle 66, the released paddy group is moved onto sheet 71 and shuttle 66 all of which are then moved directly to a first platform A of elevator assembly 64. As shuttle 66 and carrier sheet 71 and the released group reach the appropriate position over platform A, shuttle 66 is quickly withdrawn by the action of the servo motor, and sheet 71 and the carried group slide off and nest on platform A either as a first entry of a new stack or on top of previously positioned similar sheets and groups building a stack.
Platforms A and B are initially presented in a fully elevated position as shown in FIG. 9. Each time a group and sheet [0035] 71 are deposited, the active elevator platform (A in FIGS. 9-12) will be lowered a distance equal to the thickness of a group and sheet 71 in precise increments until a predetermined number of groups, each supported by a sheet 71, forms a vertical stack and platform A is in the position shown in FIG. 11. Platform A is then quickly withdrawn rearwardly and deposits the entire stack of groups and sheets onto an outfeed conveyor 75 where packaging takes place by, for example, lowering an inverted carton over the group stack, turning the carton over and closing the side and end flaps. The packaged group stack is now ready for refrigeration, storage or delivery.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, [0036] elevator assembly 64 comprises a left operative section designated platform A and a right operative section designated platform B which are identical in structure and motion, both of the sections being suitably counter balanced. When the left section of elevator assembly 64 is up with platform A elevated and extending outwardly to accept a sequence of group-laden carrier members, platform B of the right section is located in a fully elevated but inoperative position, having been elevated from its lower most retracted to its fully raised position. In this position platform B is poised for rapid movement to the left. The advance of platform B occurs simultaneously with the retraction of platform A and these steps are continuously repeated.
The input speed of [0037] belt 42 and conveyor strands 36 is twice the speed of the highest number of product groups required per minute. The functions necessary to the present invention to control cycle time, settings to adjust for product thickness, group size and others are preferably supplied by a Human Machine Interface (“HMI”), a programmable controller well known in the art. A very satisfactory unit for the present invention is produced by CTC Parker Automation of Milford, Ohio.
From the detailed description, it can be seen that an apparatus for and method of transporting and stacking groups of flat articles and removing the groups to a remote location has been provided that will meet all of the advantages of prior art devices and offer additional advantages not heretofore achievable. With respect to the invention, the optimum dimensional relationship to the parts of the invention including variations in size, materials, shape, form, function, and manner of operation, use and assembly are deemed readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed herein. [0038]
The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described. All suitable modifications and equivalents that fall within the scope of the appended claims are deemed within the present inventive concept.[0039]

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for collecting meat paddies, assembling meat paddies into groups and moving the assembled groups to be packaged comprising: one or more individually controlled conveyors having continuous single paddy receiving receptacles to collect similarly sized meat paddies in the paddy receiving receptacles received from a paddy source; a third lift station extending across the one or more conveyors; sensor means in the one or more conveyors positioned to detect the absence of a paddy at one or more paddy receiving receptacles; third lift station control means responsive to the sensor means to detect the absence of a paddy in the paddy receiving receptacles and activate and lower the third lift station; a second lift station adjacent the sensor and extending across the one or more conveyors; a first lift station adjacent the second lift station and extending across the one or more conveyors; a paddy stop/release station adjacent the first lift station having a rotatable paddle wheel extending across the one or more conveyors, the paddle wheel becoming a paddy stop when in the down position and rotatable thereafter to permit paddy flow and become positioned as a paddy stop for the trailing paddies; second and first lift station and paddy/stop release station control means operable to raise and lower the second and first lift station to control paddy flow and form a group of paddies having a selected number of paddies, interrupt paddy flow when the moving paddy group engages the paddle wheel paddy stop and rotate the paddle wheel 360 degrees to restore paddy flow and reposition the paddle wheel in front of the trailing paddy group; an elevator assembly; and a shuttle movable from the paddy stop to the elevator assembly and back, the shuttle cooperatively receiving the paddy group from the paddy stop and depositing the paddy group at the elevator assembly.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the elevator assembly has one or more elevators receiving the paddy group from the shuttle, lowering the paddy group in incremental distances equal to the thickness of a paddy group as subsequent paddy groups are received from the shuttle until a chosen number of paddy groups form a stack, and moving the stack of groups to an outfeed conveyor for packaging.

3. Apparatus for collecting meat paddies, forming meat paddies into groups and moving the formed groups to be packaged comprising: one or more individually controlled conveyors having single paddy receiving receptacles to collect similarly sized meat paddies from a paddy source; sensor means in the one or more conveyors positioned to detect the absence of paddies in the single paddy receiving receptacles; one or more lift stations extending across the one or more conveyors; a paddy stop/release station adjacent the one or more lift stations having a rotatable paddle wheel extending across the one or more conveyers, the paddle wheel becoming a paddy stop when in the down position and rotatable thereafter to permit paddy movement and become positioned as a paddy stop for subsequent paddy groups; one or more lift station and paddy stop/release station control means responsive to the sensor means to detect the absence of paddies in the paddy receiving receptacles and cause the one or more lift stations to lower, the sensor means operable to raise and lower the one or more lift stations to control paddy flow and form a group having a selected number of paddies, interrupt paddy flow when the moving paddy group engages the paddle wheel paddy stop, and rotate the paddle wheel 360 degrees to restore paddy flow and reposition the paddle wheel in front of the trailing paddy group; an elevator assembly; and a shuttle movable from the paddy stop to the elevator assembly and back, the shuttle cooperatively receiving the paddy group from the paddy stop and depositing the paddy group at the elevator assembly.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 3 wherein the elevator assembly has one or more elevators receiving the paddy group from the shuttle, lowering the paddy group in incremental distances equal to the thickness of the paddy group as subsequent paddy groups are received from the shuttle until a chosen number of groups form a stack, and moving the stack of groups to an outfeed conveyor for subsequent packaging.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising: a paper source; cutting means forming paper sheets and advancing the formed sheets one by one to the shuttle and under the paddy group moving onto the shuttle.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2 further comprising: a paper source; cutting means forming paper sheets and advancing the formed sheets one by one to the shuttle and under the paddy group moving on to the shuttle.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein the third lift is activated and lowered when an absence of a paddy is detected by the sensor means to assure rapid flow of paddies from the paddy source to fill the vacant receptacles.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein a gap is created between the group released by the paddle wheel paddy stop and the group held by the first lift station before it is lowered which receives the rotated paddle wheel paddy stop in the down position.

9. A method of collecting meat paddies, assembling meat paddies into groups and moving the assembled groups to be packaged comprising the steps of: advancing at least two columns of similarly sized meat paddies in an end to end relationship along a continuous path of travel from a paddy source; detecting missing paddies separately in the at least two columns and providing new paddies for those paddies detected missing; adjusting the movement, compaction and arrangement of the moving paddies to form paddy groups each having a preselected number of paddies; transporting the paddy groups group by group to a group stacking location; forming a stack of paddy groups group by group; moving the formed group stack from the group stacking location to another location for further processing.

10. The process as claimed in claim 9 wherein the paddies are advanced on at least two conveyors, the missing paddies are detected by separately operated sensors in the at least two computers, the missing paddies are replaced with the assistance of a lifting station, the groups are formed by adjusting the movement, compaction and arrangement of the moving paddies on one or more lifting stages, the formed groups are advanced group by group by the operation of a stop/release mechanism, and the stack forming means is an elevator assembly.