5746results about "Roller-ways" patented technology

A case flow bed for the handling of merchandise. The case flow bed including (a) a loading end and, opposite thereto, an unloading end; (b) a roller bed positioned between the loading end and unloading end for supporting and permitting sliding movement of merchandise from the loading end to the unloading end; and (c) apertures associated with at least the loading end for removably receiving at least one lane divider in any of a plurality of laterally extending positions for delimiting lanes of travel for the sliding movement of the merchandise.

A shelving assembly comprises a unit that comprises a base plate having a first side and a second side opposite the first side. The base plate has an integral one-piece configuration including a plurality of strengthening or reinforcing vertical and / or horizontal ribs disposed on the second side. A plurality of securing members are disposed in a parallel relationship on the first side. Each of the plurality of securing members has a plurality of snap fit openings. A plurality of rollers that each comprises a centrally disposed cylindrical portion and a pair of connection rods extending from opposite ends of the cylindrical portion. The connection rods are removably and fixedly insertable into a pair of oppositely disposed snap fit openings of adjacent securing members, thereby forming a row of rollers disposed on the base plate.

An apparatus for transferring articles such as absorbent cores or disposable diaper chassis components from a rotary mechanism, such as a pad turner, to a linear mechanism, such as a conveyor, for further processing. A puck on the apparatus is capable of manipulating the article during this transfer procedure.

A conveying holder for cylindrical cell is provided which is capable of stably supporting a cylindrical cell irrespective of variation in outer diameter of the cell or impact during transfer. An outer wall member 20 of which inner diameter is greater than the diameter of a cylindrical cell 7 is provided. A plurality of elastic inner wall portions 21 are concentrically arranged to have a distance from the inner side of the outer wall member 20, each elastic inner wall portion joined at both ends to the outer wall member 20. A cell holding portion 22 is provided projecting inwardly from the inner side of each elastic inner wall portion 21 and having a cell holding surface 29 thereof corresponding in shape to the outer side of the cylindrical cell 7. The cell holding surfaces 29 are arranged along a concentric circle which is smaller in diameter than the cylindrical cell 7 so that they can hold the cylindrical cell 7 in-between under pressure.

A conveyor system, and method of controlling the conveyor system, includes providing a conveying surface, at least one motor propelling the conveying surface and a plurality of lower-level controllers. At least one of the lower-level controllers adapted to control the at least one motor. An upper-level controller is provided in communication with the plurality of lower-level controllers. The upper-level controller is adapted to send communications to the lower-level controllers for controlling the at least one motor. A communications bus is provided that carries the communications between the upper-level controller and the lower-level controllers. The upper-level controller is adapted to automatically assign each lower-level controller a unique communications address. The unique communications address enables the upper-level controller to send messages over the communications bus to individual ones of the lower-level controllers.

Apparatus for filling sterile containers is disclosed which defines an elongated but narrow sterile zone in which a number of operating stations are disposed. An elongated vertical wall is carried by an elongated frame and a cabinet type enclosure cooperates with the vertical wall to define the sterile zone. The plurality of operating stations are disposed in sequential relation over the length of the sterile zone, and an elongated container conveyor is disposed within the sterile zone to convey the containers through the plurality of operating stations. The conveyor is vertically oriented, consisting an endless belt mounted on end wheels that rotate on horizontal axes. Each of the operating stations includes an operating portion disposed within the sterile zone. Actuating means are included for each of the operating stations as well as the elongated conveyor, each of which is disposed outside the sterile zone. Connecting means operabably connect each of the actuating means outside the sterile zone through the vertical wall to the associated operating station within the sterile zone. By orienting the conveyor vertically and disposing the various actuating means outside the sterile zone in side-by-side relation, the effective width of the sterile zone is significantly reduced. As a result, the sterile zone is more easily accessed, and also more easily drained after washdown operations. In addition, the sterile zone of reduced size results in an apparatus that much easier to manufacture and maintain in a sterile state.

Conveyor systems for storage and movement of goods on pallets and slip sheets. The transfer structures enable slip sheet mounted loads to be transferred to a roller conveyor by providing structures that cooperate with wide platen forks of a lift truck. The structures provide roller contact between a portion of the underside of the slip sheet at all times. In other areas there is alternatively contact between a lift truck platen or additional rollers that cooperate in a manner making it possible to move the slip sheet mounted load from the lift truck to an adjacent conveyor system.

A guard for a conveyor used for conveying objects where the objects may have elements which extend outside the object itself, and which thereby may become stuck in the conveyor structure per se is provided between extremities of the free ends of conveying elements to prevent entanglement.

Various methods, apparatuses, and program products that are used to control at least a portion of a conveyor, determine information about an article conveyed by the conveyor, or otherwise operate a conveyor are provided. One method includes detecting whether a second conveyor controller is connected to the first conveyor controller and, in response to detecting that there is a second conveyor controller connected to the first conveyor controller, identifying whether the second conveyor controller is connected to a predetermined network interface of the first conveyor controller. The method further includes configuring the first conveyor controller to rotate a motorized roller in a first predetermined direction if a second conveyor controller is connected to the predetermined network interface and configuring the first conveyor controller to rotate the motorized roller in a second predetermined direction if a second conveyor controller is not connected to the predetermined network interface.

An autonomous transport robot for transporting a payload, the autonomous transport robot including a drive section assembly having at least one motor and a pair of drive wheels coupled to the motor, a frame configured to support a payload, a transfer arm connected to the frame and configured for the autonomous transfer of payload to and from the frame, and a suspension system movably connecting the drive section assembly and the frame allowing relative movement between the frame and the drive section assembly.

A method and apparatus for accumulating articles includes providing a conveying surface adapted to convey articles from an upstream direction towards the downstream direction. The conveying surface is divided into a plurality of tandem zones. Individual zones are activated to convey articles and deactivated to accumulate articles. A particular zone is actuated if no article is sensed in that particular zone and an article is sensed in an adjacent upstream zone. The particular zone and adjacent upstream zone are actuated sufficiently to position a first article at an upstream portion of the particular zone and re-actuated in response to sensing a second article at the adjacent upstream zone and deactuated with the first and second articles in the particular zone.

A system and method for conveying and for accurately handling a generally flat object employing a plurality of support elements. The system comprises: a plurality of vacuum preload drive wheels arranged in one or more drive units, each drive unit comprising at least one vacuum preload drive wheel; one or more vacuum ports located on one or more counter plates adjacent each of the vacuum preload drive wheels, for applying induced holding down forces on the object. The vacuum ports of each drive unit are fluidically connected to a main vacuum pipe with controllable valve to a vacuum source. When the main vacuum pipe is connected to a vacuum source the normal force between the object and the vacuum preload drive wheels is increased and accordingly the lateral drive force is increased.

A zone controller enabling flexible conveyance according to the use by simple change of setting. An aspect of the invention is a zone controller 10 for a particular zone picked from a plurality of zones for control into which a roller conveyor line 1 is divided and which are arrangeable in a row in the direction of conveyance, being capable of controlling operation of a driving roller 4a for conveyance provided in the particular zone, having a mode-setting means 14 capable of switching between a slug mode and a singulation mode. In the slug mode, operation of the driving roller is controlled so that articles in the zones are conveyed uniformly to downstream, maintaining the order of the articles in the conveying line. In the singulation mode, operation of the driving roller is controlled so that the articles are conveyed separately to downstream with a predetermined number of zones in which no article exists preserved between the zones in which the articles exist.

A roller-conveying system includes a sorter for sorting the articles from one passage to others as desired, the sorter including a plurality of cells arranged on substantially the same level as the conveying surfaces of the passages; and at least some of the cells including a motorized roller rotatably carried in a shell, and a shifter for changing the direction of the motorized roller; wherein the shifter includes a revolving shaft vertical to the conveying surface, the revolving shaft connected to the motorized roller, so as to revolve the motorized roller so as to cause it to direct toward a desired conveying passage.

A conveying apparatus (1) is composed of several conveying modules (2) each having a controller (40) for control of a motorized roller (6) having a motor (16) incorporated in it. A motor-controlling section (45) installed in the controller (40) operates to sense an article being transported on and along the module (2). An article-state detector (48) included in the motor-controlling section (45) compares the actual number (Pr) of signal pulses indicating the number of rotations of the motor (16) with a standard number (P) of such pulses, when judging whether the article is or is not on the module, without aid of any conventional and discrete prior art sensors.

An arrangement for adjusting the position on a substrate of a patterned beam generated by a light engine relative to the substrate. The arrangement moves an array of focusing elements, each of which focuses a portion of the patterned beam onto a point on the substrate, relative to an array of individually controllable elements to impart the pattern to the patterned beam.

A method and control system are provided for controlling a modular conveyor system, which may be networked together with other such systems in order to implement a control strategy for a modular conveyor system. The control system comprises a communications port for interconnection of the control system with a network for sending outgoing addressed data to other devices on the address-based network and for receiving incoming addressed data from other devices. The control system further comprises a logic system, which may receive a signal from an object sensor and provide a control signal or output adapted to control activation of a motorized roller assembly, based on an input signal from the object sensor or the communications port. The logic system may provide for single step operation whereby system troubleshooting may be facilitated, and in addition may provide situation aware and output value source selection functionality.