Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
  • B65G47/52—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices
  • B65G47/68—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
  • B65G47/682—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor from a single conveyor lane consisting of one conveyor or several adjacent conveyors
  • B65G47/683—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor from a single conveyor lane consisting of one conveyor or several adjacent conveyors with tilting of at least part of the conveyor to make use of gravity
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
  • B65G47/52—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices
  • B65G47/68—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
  • B65G47/682—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor from a single conveyor lane consisting of one conveyor or several adjacent conveyors
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
  • B65G47/52—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices
  • B65G47/68—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
  • B65G2047/685—Devices for preventing jamming in converging flows
  • B65G2047/687—Lane boundaries which comprise rotatable elements, e.g. discs, cylinders, endless belts
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
  • B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
  • B65G47/52—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices
  • B65G47/68—Devices for transferring articles or materials between conveyors i.e. discharging or feeding devices adapted to receive articles arriving in one layer from one conveyor lane and to transfer them in individual layers to more than one conveyor lane or to one broader conveyor lane, or vice versa, e.g. combining the flows of articles conveyed by more than one conveyor
  • B65G2047/685—Devices for preventing jamming in converging flows
  • B65G2047/688—Lane boundaries which are compliant

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the field of conveying products within an industrial line for the treatment of products of the bottle, bottle, can, etc. type, and has for its object, on the one hand, a particular conveying device with a function aligner, and, secondly, a method implementing this device.
• US3866739 discloses for example an aligner type device where products arrive with an uncontrolled configuration, including several products next to each other, and come out in a single column of products.
• the downstream guide is animated by a regular movement that aims to promote the transition to a single-line flow.
• FR2981874 discloses an aligner where the products arrive at the input in several columns parallel to each other and exit in a single column.
• the products pass through an acceleration zone, which separates the parallel feed conveyor and the output conveyor.
• the acceleration zone comprises a plurality of parallel chains, the speed of the chains being generally higher near the exit conveyance.
• the unidirectional flow arrangement is facilitated by the fact that some chains have different speeds than a pattern of continuous speed increase from the input conveyor to the output conveyor.
• a single guide is provided in the acceleration zone, and this to form a delineation of the flow downstream.
• This guide is oriented through the acceleration zone so as to shift the products transversely from the input conveying to the output conveying.
• a receiving tray is provided against the single-ended conveyance output, which allows to harvest the fallen products.
• a linear counter-guide is then mounted vis-à-vis the guide in the single-wire conveying zone.
• US4489820 discloses a different principle, wherein the guide in the acceleration zone forms the edge upstream, the products being brought against him by gravity, given the inclination of the product flow plan. Such a principle is however complicated to achieve given the inclination to create and causes falls of products.
• US 3109529 discloses an aligner principle where the products, organized in a wide flow of a few front units, pass through a convergent portion oriented towards the output conveyor, which is faster.
• the acceleration zone is formed here, however, only one conveyor, which limits the ratio between output speed and input speed, or, in other words, between size of the flow at the input and size of the flow at the exit, since the passage between two successive speeds can be done only with an acceleration which does not entail the fall of the products.
• the constant performance criteria of the aligner devices of this type are, among other things, the reliability, the occurrence of jamming in a convergence portion, the reduction ratio between the flow at the inlet and the flow at the outlet, and, conversely, the ratio of increase between the speed at entry and the speed at the exit, as well as the size of the equipment.
• the invention thus aims in particular to provide an aligner type conveying device which is compact and therefore reliable to obtain, over a shorter distance, a single-line product flow from a wider flow.
• the invention proposes to provide the device, in the acceleration portion, with a flexible counter-guide delimiting the flow of products on the upstream side, thus exerting, if necessary, a slight pressure on the products to help bring them against the fixed guide opposite and thus finalize the alignment.
• the invention thus relates to a conveying device in a conveying plane, for transforming a wide flow of products into a flow single-line downstream, comprising an inlet conveyor, adapted to convey the wide flow, an output conveyor adapted to convey the single-wire flow, an acceleration conveyor, positioned between the inlet conveyor and the outlet conveyor and having a plurality of conveyor units with a speed gradient, said device also comprising a guide, for transversely bringing the products of the input conveyor to the output conveyance and positioned downstream of the product stream so that the products are brought against it under the effect of successive conveyors.
• a counter-guide, flexible arranged substantially vis-à-vis the guide at the acceleration conveyor and forming with said guide a convergent portion of guidance oriented towards the output conveying.
• the invention also relates to a method implemented by this device, namely a method of conveying products in a conveying plane, during which products, crossing an acceleration conveyor, pass a wide flow. on an input conveyor to a single-wire flow on an output conveyor.
• the products circulate on the acceleration conveyance between a fixed guide, downstream, and a flexible counter-guide, upstream, which together form a convergent portion to the output conveyance.
• FIG. 1 shows an aligner architecture diagram according to the invention
• FIG. 2 shows a conveying device according to the invention further comprising an accumulation table upstream.
• the invention therefore firstly relates to a conveying device 1 in a conveying plane 9, for converting a wide flow of products 2 into a downstream single-stream flow, comprising an inlet conveyor 3, suitable for conveying the wide flow, an output conveyor 4 adapted to convey the single-wire flow, an acceleration conveyor 5, positioned between the inlet conveyor 3 and the outlet conveyor 4 and having a plurality of conveyor units 12 with a gradient of speed, said device also comprising a guide 6 for transversely bringing the products 2 of the inlet conveyor 3 to the outlet conveyor 4 and positioned downstream of the product stream 2 so that the products 2 are brought against it under the effect successive conveyors.
• Such a device 1 thus makes it possible in particular to reduce the width of a stream of products 2 conveyed in an industrial line, that is to say its transverse dimension to its advance movement.
• the device 1 may also comprise an accumulation table upstream of the reduction of the flux width ensuring the actual aligner function.
• the products 2 therefore circulate preferably in the form of a single column. Upstream at this stage, the flow is wider, and is thus delimited on both sides by guides which are distant from a distance greater than the size of a product 2. Such a wide flow therefore has a width more important before the alignment after that, which may correspond to the passage of a wide flow of a width of a few products 2 front to a width of a single front product.
• the products 2 are preferably circular base, placed on the drive surface, their dimension taken into account then corresponding to a diameter. It will also be noted that a flow of products 2 with a circular base may be such that the products 2 are nested in staggered rows, the number of products 2 facing in the flow then corresponding to the largest number of products 2 facing. Indeed, the number of front products 2 in a staggered flow varies from one unit to each front.
• the input conveyor 3 thus has guides that are sufficiently distant from each other so that a wide flow can settle between them, including a flow of at least two products 2.
• the products 2 are held between two guides that pass only one product 2 front.
• the output conveyor 4 often has at the beginning only one guide against which the flow of single-product products 2 flows, the other side being free to allow the release in particular of coated products 2.
• an acceleration conveyor 5 is arranged between the inlet conveyor 3 and the conveyor 4, and receives the products 2 of the input conveyor 3 to bring them to the output conveyor 4.
• the acceleration conveyor 5 increases the speed of the products 2 as they approach transversely the output conveyance 4.
• the speed gradient at the level of the acceleration conveyance 5, transversely to the direction of displacement generally makes it possible to stretch the flow of products 2 and relatively easily to arrive at a flow of at most a few or even just two front 2 products.
• the speed of the acceleration conveyance 5, generally greater than the speed of the input conveyance 4, allows it to bring the flow of products 2 against the guide 6, which then delimits the border downstream, the guide 6 s' extending at least partially transversely to the conveying direction followed by the acceleration conveyance 5 and towards the exit conveying 4.
• the conveying device 1 further comprises a counter-guide 7, flexible, arranged substantially vis-à-vis the guide 6 at the acceleration conveyor 5 and forming with said guide 6 a portion convergent guide 8 oriented towards the output conveying 4, the counter-guide 7 extending in particular in a rectilinear manner between two fixing points.
• the counter-guide 7 is flexible enough not to exert significant pressure on the flow of products 2 towards the guide 6 and then likely to generate jamming. In the free position, the counter-guide 7 thus extends essentially linearly between two anchor points.
• the counter-guide 7 intervenes to destabilize the arrangement of the flow where two products 2 still advance one beside the other, while a single-wire flow is expected on the output conveyance 4.
• the guide 6 passes through the acceleration conveyor 5 from the inlet conveyor 3 to the outlet conveyor 4, with, generally, a certain angle with respect to the conveying direction 10.
• the counter-guide 7 then passes through it too. the acceleration conveyor 5 of the input conveyor 3 to the output conveyor 4, but with a less oblique direction.
• a convergent portion 8 is thus formed between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7, whose end, or restriction zone 13, is at the level of the acceleration conveyance 5.
• the relative positioning and the respective shape of the guide 6 and counter-guide 7 are such that the counter-guide 7 normally comes into contact with a product stream 2 of a width significantly greater than a single product 2 at the front end. the convergent portion 8.
• the counter-guide 7 is deformable by winding around an axis perpendicular to the conveying plane 9, in particular taking the form of a link chain connected to each other parallel to said axis.
• the counter-guide 7 can bend and, thanks to its low tension in its free rectilinear configuration between two mounting points, bend and deform slightly.
• the distance between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 may therefore vary slightly depending on the configuration of the product flow 2.
• counter-guide 7 in the form of a link chain mounted with pivots perpendicular to the conveying plane 9 combines the flexibility required to modify the contour taken by the counter-guide 7 in the conveying plane 9, while giving it the necessary mechanical strength in the other directions.
• the inlet conveyor 3, the acceleration conveyor 5 and the outlet conveyor 4 are parallel to each other and extend in a conveying direction 10, in the conveying plane 9, orientation of the counter-guide 7 having a component transverse to the conveying direction 10 to the output conveying 4.
• the counter-guide 7 thus approaches the output conveying 4 transversely to the conveying direction 10, as it advances in the said direction.
• the inlet 3, acceleration 5 and outlet 4 convoys are therefore next to each other, perpendicular to the conveying direction 10.
• the products 2, guided by the guide 6, move to progressively leave the input conveyor 3 transversely, then cross the acceleration conveyor 5 transversely and then arrive at the exit conveyor 4.
• the guide 6 passes through the acceleration conveyance 5 with an upstream portion 11 and a downstream portion 12, the first having generally, relative to the conveying direction 10, an angle greater than the second.
• the guide 6 nevertheless preferably has the rounding required between the two portions 11, 12.
• the upstream portion 11 and / or the downstream portion 12 may or may be curved or curved.
• the guide 6 thus has two different zones: with a similar path in the conveying direction 10, the upstream portion 11 passes a greater width transversely to said direction than the downstream portion 12.
• rollers 7 are provided, on its inner surface of contact with the products 2, free rollers in rotation to facilitate the movement of the products 2 against him, the guide 6 being in particular also provided with such rollers.
• These rollers have the role of rotating about an axis perpendicular to the conveying plane 9. They thus reduce the friction in case of contact by products 2, and can therefore be provided at the inner face of the guide 6 and / or of the inner face of the counter-guide 7.
• the conveying device comprises an accumulation table mounted upstream of the input conveyor 3, and whose output is directly fed to the input conveyor 3.
• Such an accumulation table as illustrated in FIG. 2 has, at its input as at its output, a large stream of products 2, that is to say a flow not simply single-wire.
• the products 2 are received on a course whose length varies according to the quantity of products 2 brought upstream and accepted output.
• the operating regulation of the input conveyor 3, the accumulation conveyor 5 and the output conveyor 4 is preferably coordinated with the regulation of the operation of the accumulation table.
• the subject of the invention is also a method implementing the device as described above, namely a process for conveying products 2 in a conveying plane 9, during which the products 2, while passing through a conveyance of acceleration 5, pass from a wide flow on an inlet conveyor 3 to a single-wire flow on an output conveyor 4.
• the three convoys are parallel and contribute to accelerate the products 2 so as to reduce the width of the flow, preferably up to 'to a flow of a single column.
• the products 2 circulate on the acceleration conveyance 5 between a fixed guide 6 downstream and a counter-guide 7 flexible, upstream, which together form a convergent portion 8 to the output conveyance 4.
• the counter-guide 7 can constrain the flow of products 2 to reduce its width.
• the distance between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 is much greater than the size of the flow, the width of which is already reduced under the effect of the increase in the speed caused. by the acceleration conveyor 5.
• the embodiment in the form of a flexible element slightly tensioned between two anchor points guarantees the against-guide 7 its simplicity, and its ability to sufficiently unbalance the flow still too wide so that under the effect of the drive by the acceleration conveyance 5, the products 2 then all come against the guide 6 forming a single-wire flow.
• the counter-guide 7 essentially folds towards the guide 6 the products 2 which are distant from him by at most the equivalent of a column of a single product 2 front.
• a product 2 remote from the guide 6, right of the acceleration conveyance 5, with a distance greater than a product 2 is folded towards the guide 6 under the effect of the speed of the conveyance 5.
• the counter-guide 7 is positioned vis-à-vis the guide 6 to finalize such an alignment.
• the acceleration conveyor 5 comprises a plurality of conveyor units 12 extending in the conveying direction 10 and arranged next to the others from the input conveyor 3 to the output conveyor 4, the speed of each conveyor unit 12 being higher than that of the neighboring unit 12 in the direction of the input conveyor 3.
• the speed of the units 12 increases therefore regularly between the input conveyor 3 and the output conveyor 4.
• the smallest section of the convergent portion 8 forms a restriction zone 13 which represents in size between one and two product width 2, and is located in particular at a distance from the fixing points of the counter-guide 7.
• This restriction zone 13 has for example for dimension the width of a product 2 and a half.
• the conveying device 1 has an inlet conveyor 3 and an outlet conveyor 4, extending in a conveying direction 10.
• the conveying of the products 2 is done in a plane of horizontal conveying 9 within the conveying device 1.
• the products 2 are preferably of elongate shape, in particular with a circular or essentially circular base, of the bottle type, or the like.
• the base of the product 2, circular or otherwise, is normally in the conveying plane 9.
• the products 2 can arrive on the input conveyor 3 arranged in bulk, that is to say arranged relatively randomly between two walls longitudinal boundaries that delimit the flow.
• a wide flow corresponds to products 2 which are organized between two guides which are spaced, perpendicular to the direction of movement of the products 2, with a distance greater than the size of a product 2.
• Such an organization can take the form of a quinconage with products 2 in contact with each other, or a spaced arrangement in which the products 2 do not touch.
• the products 2 can thus be on the input conveyor 3 in a random or compact, staggered configuration, which occurs as soon as the products 4 are circular and are at a relatively high density or pressure.
• the products 2 are thus placed vertically on the input conveyor 3, and continue their journey in this position through the acceleration conveyor 5 to the output conveyor 4.
• These three elements, conveying input 3, conveying acceleration 5 and output conveying 4, each take the form of at least one element of the mat or endless chain type.
• the inlet conveyor 3 thus possibly has a plurality of parallel chains or units 12 oriented in the conveying direction 10 and traveling at a homogeneous speed.
• the output conveyance 4 has a reduced number of units 12, since the width of the flow is reduced compared to the input conveyor 3.
• the output conveyor 4 can thus have a single chain oriented in the conveying direction 10. It will be understood that the products 2 must be accelerated between, on the one hand, the input conveyance 3, where they can each circulate at low speed, since they are distributed over a wider width, and, on the other hand, the output conveyance 4, where they circulate behind each other in a single-wire column.
• the acceleration conveyor 5 ensures the gradual increase in the speed of the products 2 between the input conveyor 3 and the output conveyor 4.
• the acceleration conveyor 5 has a plurality of chains or units 12 parallel to each other along the conveying direction 10, and whose speed, globally, is higher as the chain is close to the output conveyance 4. We thus obtain a set in which the three conveyances together form a plurality of parallel chains between they in the conveying direction 10, with a speed increasing to the output conveyance 4.
• each chain of the acceleration conveyor 5 has a different speed of the chains next to it: the speed of a chain of the acceleration conveyor 5 is greater than that of the chain located beside it towards the conveyor The speed increase in the acceleration conveyance 5 is therefore continuous perpendicular to the conveying direction 10.
• the conveying device 1 is provided with a guide 6 which extends in particular at the level of the acceleration conveyor 5 so as to form a border downstream of the flow and against which the products 2 are normally brought by the acceleration conveyor 5 himself.
• This guide 6 thus extends transversely to the conveying direction 10, from the inlet conveying side 3 to the outlet conveying 4, on the opposite side, and also in the flow direction, from the conveyance of inlet 3 to the outlet conveyor 4, downstream.
• the guide 6 is oblique when it passes through the conveyor acceleration 5 and has the necessary curvatures to avoid sudden changes of direction.
• the guide 6 extends upstream and downstream and it is the width of the flow of products from said guide 6 against which it circulates which gradually decreases under the effect of acceleration.
• the configuration of the guide 6 is preferably such that it has a first part upstream and a second part downstream, the first deviating much faster products 2 to the output conveyance 4 than the second.
• the transverse shift of the guide 6 is much larger in the first part than in the second.
• the maximum width of the product flow 2 corresponds to several product units 2 at the inlet conveyor 3, up to one unit at the outlet conveyor 4.
• the speed differential of the conveyor belts Acceleration 5 is preferably such that the product stream 2 has the maximum, after the first most oblique portion of the guide 6 and in the event of a counter-guide 7 absent, a width of two products 2.
• the counter-guide 7 then ensures the passage of a stream of two products 2 front, in a flow of a product 2 front. Comparatively, the initial stream with the largest width is called wide stream.
• the conveying device 1 also has a counter-guide 7, which extends essentially at the level of the acceleration conveyor 5.
• This counter-guide 7 extends in front of the guide 6 and force, if necessary, the products 2 to be inserted in a single-line column along the guide 6.
• the counter-guide 7 takes the form of a flexible wall, held between two remote anchoring points l one of the other. Its flexibility allows it to wind slightly around an axis perpendicular to the conveying plane 9, so as to create a curved shape, if any, observed perpendicularly to said plane. This flexibility prevents the products 2 from being subjected to excessive pressure during the acceleration of the flow and the tightening of the flow.
• Counter-guide 7 normally extends substantially linearly between its two anchor points. In certain embodiments, it is parallel to the conveying direction 10. In preferred embodiments, it extends along a path that has a longitudinal component, in the direction of the conveying direction 10, as well as a transverse component, between the inlet conveyor 3 and the output conveyor 4. The counter-guide 7 is therefore closer to the output conveyance 4 that it advances in the conveying direction 10.
• the flexibility of the counter-guide 7 makes it possible to exert only a weak force in the direction of the guide 6 at the final end of the convergent portion 8. By this action, a product 2 which would not be against the guide 6, because of products 2 which are between it and said guide 6, is gently pushed towards the guide 6 so as to change the balance of the positions of the products 2 and force the creation of a space in which the product 2 can come, then against the guide 6.
• This action of the counter-guide 7 to slightly push the products 2 towards the guide 6 is provided only at the end of a convergent portion 8 that together form said guide 6 and said counter-guide 7.
• the gap between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7, forming an available channel for the products decreases gradually in the direction of advance of the products 2 to the end of the convergent portion 8, which then forms the place the smallest passage between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7, or restriction zone 13.
• the passage section of the channel formed between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 thus decreases gradually to the end of the convergent portion 8, then increases again preferably from this restriction 13. Due to the angle between the conveying direction 10 and the guide 6 in its downstream portion, the distance between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 increases.
• restriction zone 13 is at a distance from the fixing points of the counter-guide 7 allows the latter to deform at said restriction zone 13, if appropriate , without creating excessive pressure on the products 2, thanks to its low mounting voltage.
• the counter-guide 7 push work is done essentially at the level of Restriction Zone 7, the risk of jamming or falling is further limited.
• Counter-guide 7 is therefore substantially along a linear contour between its two attachment points. With respect to the conveying direction 10, the counter-guide 7 is preferably less oblique than the guide 6 in its first part, which has a strong component transverse to the conveying direction 10.
• the opening of the convergent portion 8 is such that the action of the counter-guide 7 is essentially at the tip of said portion 8.
• the essential of the reduction of the width of the flow from the input conveyor 3 is made thanks to the high initial inclination of the guide 6 and the speed gradient at this point in the acceleration conveyor 5.
• the channel defined between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 then acts to further reduce the width of the flow and bring it to a single-wire flow only at the mouth or restriction zone 13 of the convergent portion 8.
• the action of the counter-guide 7 is mainly to unbalance the situations in which a first product 2 forms with another second product 2 against the guide 6, an alignment locally perpendicular thereto.
• the speed gradient in the acceleration conveyor 5 and the orientation of the guide 6 have the effect that the products 2 are rapidly arranged in a flow of a maximum width of two products 2. Thanks to the curvature of the guide 6, the counter-guide 7 can therefore be positioned so as to interact only at the level of two such products 2 side by side, and not in areas where a larger number of products 2 evolves abreast.
• the flexibility of the counter-guide 7 and the fact that it works essentially at the end of the convergent portion 8 have the effect that it can easily deform when the flow is too wide at the end of the convergent portion 8, which avoids jamming. It does not act by forming a convergent portion 8 rigid, but the width of the channel can slightly adjust.
• the distance between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 therefore evolves over the conveying and is initially higher than the width of the flow on the inlet conveyor 3, then decreases in the convergent portion 8 to its end which forms a restriction zone 13, then increases again. It is at the level of the restriction zone 13 that the distance between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 is the smallest. Restriction zone 13 does not normally allows not two products 2 to pass simultaneously, so that if two products 2 arrive side by side, the counter guide 7 gently pushes towards the guide 6 the one of the two which is furthest away. In cases where two products 2 arrive abreast, the counter-guide 7 deforms in accordance with its flexibility, which increases its tension and allows it then to push products 2 slightly towards the guide 6. Such a principle based on tension counter-guide 7 allows in particular to pass two products 2 front in exceptional situations, as when one of them is lying.
• the position of the counter-guide 7 is such that in the restriction zone 13, which forms the zone of smaller dimension between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7, the widest flow that can circulate without touching the counter -guide 7 is a column of a single product 2.
• the restriction zone 13 where it is closest to the guide 7, at a distance from it which is between one and two products 2.
• the points of attachment of the counter guide 7 flexible are such that the counter-guide 7 is then normally, closer to the guide 6, at a distance which would make it possible, without contact with the counter-guide 7, to pass a product 2 but not two.
• the counter-guide 7 is positioned so that the restriction zone 13, which forms the passage zone where the counter-guide 7 is closest to the guide 6, allows the maximum to move forward slightly more than as much as products 2 only on the output conveyor 4.
• the size of the restriction zone 13 to obtain a single-stream of products 2 is about the size of a product 2 and a half.
• the gap between the guide 6 and the counter-guide 7 is, at the level of the restriction zone 13, greater than the diameter of a product 2 with a circular base but less than twice this diameter.
• the low tension of the linear counter-guide 7 between its anchoring points remote from the restriction zone 13, however, allows it to be deformed sufficiently to allow a product 2 to pass against the guide 6 that a product 2 fallen and lying on the acceleration conveyance 5 against the counter-guide 7.
• a bulk flow is rapidly transformed, in the convergent portion 8, upstream of the restriction zone 13, into a flow having at most two products 2 aligned perpendicular to the guide 6.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Attitude Control For Articles On Conveyors (AREA)
• Framework For Endless Conveyors (AREA)

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• 2015
  • 2015-08-27 FR FR1557963A patent/FR3040382A1/fr not_active Ceased
• 2016
  • 2016-08-11 WO PCT/FR2016/052070 patent/WO2017032942A1/fr not_active Ceased
  • 2016-08-11 CA CA2995876A patent/CA2995876A1/fr not_active Abandoned
  • 2016-08-11 US US15/755,905 patent/US10538396B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2016-08-11 EP EP16763909.5A patent/EP3341311A1/de not_active Withdrawn

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