Felix E Gomez

US Patent:

59576553, Sep 28, 1999

Filed:

Sep 10, 1998

Appl. No.:

9/151198

Inventors:

Felix A. Gomez - Bergenfield NJ

Assignee:

Polytype America Corporation - Mahwah NJ

International Classification:

B65G 5910

US Classification:

4147989

Abstract:

A lid infeed system includes a pair of adjacent and parallel spinning rods for holding a stack of lids thereon; a rotatable transfer plate at one end of the spinning rods and rotatable in a plane substantially transverse to an axial direction of the spinning rods, the transfer plate having three spaced openings through which a vacuum is applied for holding and carrying a forwardmost lid from the stack of lids during rotation of the transfer plate, and the transfer plate reducing in thickness from a center thereof to a periphery thereof, so as to provide an annular sloping front face against which the forwardmost lid is held; an adjustable hold down bar positioned above the spinning rods and in front of the transfer plate for holding down the stack of lids on the spinning rods; a vacuum block for limiting the supply of the vacuum through each opening, for a predetermined angular extent of rotation of the transfer plate, the vacuum block having a front face with a recess therein which extends for a predetermined angular extent, and the transfer plate is positioned against the front face of the vacuum block such that the vacuum is applied to each opening in the transfer plate during alignment of each opening with the recess; and a vacuum roller for carrying the forwardmost lid after the vacuum is released at an end of the predetermined angular extent of rotation.