Method and apparatus for uniformly orienting shafts with dissimilar ends
US6059518A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 17, 1998 |
| Grant date | May 9, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 17, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB65G47/846
- WIPO fieldHandling
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
The invention, in its various embodiments is a method and apparatus for uniformly orienting shafts which contain an operational feature on one end and which are blunt on the other end. In one aspect of the present invention, a machine feeds the shafts onto a surface containing one or more slots, where the slots are shaped to completely receive a shaft only when the shaft is in a preferred orientation. Shafts which are in the preferred orientation are oriented 180.degree. differently from shafts which are not in the preferred orientation. Shafts which are not in the preferred orientation will be dislodged from the slots and sent down a first exit chute. Shafts which are in the preferred orientation are sent down a second exit chute. The method comprises dispensing the shafts into slots on a surface where the slots are shaped to completely receive a shaft only when the shaft is in a preferred orientation, and selectively removing shafts which are not in the preferred orientation from the slots.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.