Patent ID: 9415952
Filing Date: 2016-08-16
CPC Classification: B65B,B65G

Claim Text:
1. An apparatus for stacking and retaining Christmas trees on a pallet, the apparatus comprising: a conveyor moving pallets from one end of said conveyor to an opposite end of said conveyor, wherein said conveyor comprises a stacking section, a clamping section, and an unload section, said clamping section positioned between said stacking section and said unload section of said conveyor for wrapping a band about a first pallet of trees; a stacking bin secured to said conveyor and being structured and disposed for receiving trees on a second pallet positioned within said stacking section while the first pallet is positioned within said clamping section, the stacking bin is configured to slide along the conveyor to deliver the second pallet to the clamping section and retract all the way back to the stacking section leaving the second pallet in the clamping section; wherein said unload section of said conveyor extends from said clamping section and positions a third pallet of trees thereon while said first pallet is in said clamping section and said second pallet is in said stacking section; and wherein wrapping a band about the first pallet in the clamping section, receiving trees on the second pallet in the stacking section, and positioning the third pallet in the unload section are simultaneous processes on said conveyor.