Transporting device for mass articles

A transporting device for mass articles, in particular package covers for use in drying surfaces for drying and/or jelling of varnished or coated surface, the transporting device comprises two endless rotating transporting elements extending parallel and opposite to one another so that mass articles can be guided between the transporting elements from a supply station to a withdrawal station, the transporting elements being formed as corrugated hoses with parallel corrugations having substantially straight flanks for forming receiving grooves, and tubular and laterally open guides guide the corrugated hoses.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a transporting device for mass articles. 
More particularly, it relates to a transporting device for mass articles, 
in particular package covers for use in drying furnaces for drying and/or 
jelling of varnished and/or coated surfaces. 
In particular it relates to a transporting device which has two endless 
rotatable transporting elements extending parallel at a distance from one 
another, so that the mass articles are guided between them from an inlet 
station to an outlet station individually in receiving grooves. 
A transporting device of the above mentioned general type is disclosed for 
example in the European patent document EP 0 100 427. In this device the 
transportation of the package covers is performed by transporting chains 
which rotate paternoster-like endless over chain wheels and are provided 
laterally with a plurality of receiving pockets with grooves for receiving 
the covers. For securing the covers in the region of the straight 
transporting paths a four-point guide is provided. The guide is composed 
of lateral receiving pockets and two 90-degree-arrangement stationary 
guiding rods. In the deviation region of the transporting chains, the 
covers are supported with an edge region on a circular-arc-shaped 
supporting surface. In the practice such a transporting system is prone to 
instability despite an additional and technically expensive transporting 
chain guide, and it is disadvantageous for the whole working process. 
During disturbances in the transporting system, such as for example cover 
jamming or elongation of a chain strand, the joint support of the chain 
wheels arranged in pairs in a transporting strand prevents the 
post-clamping or change of an individual chain strand. Instead both chain 
strands together with the receiving pockets mounted on them must be 
dismounted and again oriented. As a rule it results in undesirably high 
stoppage time as well as stoppage in transporting operations and furnace 
operation. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a 
transporting device for mass articles, which avoids the disadvantages of 
the prior art. 
More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a 
transporting device which has a simpler construction and at the same time 
reduced susceptibility to disturbances. 
In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent 
hereinafter, one feature of the present invention resides, briefly stated, 
in a transporting device in which instead of a plurality of individual 
parts of the transporting system only two guided corrugated hoses with 
parallel corrugation are provided. The good shape stability and bending 
strength of the thusly arranged corrugated hoses solves the problems 
specified hereinabove. The corrugated hoses can be mounted and then 
clamped individually when needed. For example for receiving differently 
shaped mass articles, they can be replaced by another corrugated hose pair 
with correspondingly adjusted corrugation pitch in a fast and simple 
manner. Due to the continuously closed guiding paths of sliding 
transporting means, the transportation of mass articles can be performed 
both vertically and horizontally without providing additional features on 
the transporting paths in particular in the region of circular arc-shaped 
deviations for securing and supporting the mass articles. Since the 
transporting system operates without lubrication the inventive 
transporting device can be used in particular for such mass articles which 
handled in the beverage industry and foot stuff industry. 
The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention 
are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, 
however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together 
with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood 
from the following description of specific embodiments when read in 
connection with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The device in accordance with the present invention is designed for 
transportation of lacquered covers or covers provided with sealing masses 
as identified with reference numeral 10. For drying and/or jelling of the 
varnished and/or coated surfaces they pass through a gas or electrically 
heated industrial furnace 11 identified with dash-dot line and formed for 
example as a turret furnace. The transporting device for this purpose has 
two endless rotatable corrugated hoses 12 and 13 extending parallel to one 
another at a distance from each other. The covers 10 are transported in a 
column form from a supply station 14 to a discharge station 15 in a 
paternoster manner through at least one upwardly extending and at least 
one downwardly extending transporting paths 16, 17. An arc-shaped transfer 
is connected with the vertical transporting paths 16, 17 and merges into a 
horizontal path region. 
As can be seen particularly from FIG. 3, the corrugated hoses 12 and 13 are 
corrugated substantially with straight flanks and arranged relative to one 
another so that the corrugation troughs of the individual covers 10 serve 
as receiving grooves 18. Therefore it is guaranteed that within the cover 
column the covers 10 are maintained under one another with a constant 
distance. The corrugated hoses 12, 13 composed for example of high grade 
steel or Teflon are assembled from individual corrugated hose pieces which 
are connected with one another as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 to an endless 
transporting element. 
In a basic structure of FIGS. 1 and 2 the transporting paths are formed 
with the aid of a stable frame 19 which is firmly connected with a 
foundation. It has four vertical supports 20 which are connected with one 
another by lateral transverse and longitudinal carriers 21 and 22. The 
longitudinal carriers 22 are additionally reinforced in the top and bottom 
region by a further transverse carrier 23. The supports 20 in their upper 
third are subdivided into two parts and connected with one another by a 
displacement seat 24. Additional intermediate carriers 25, 26 are provided 
below and above the displacement seat 24. They engage inwardly on the 
supports 20 and are connected with one another by four threaded rods 27. 
Two further intermediate carriers 28 are provided near the bottom in the 
lower region of the frame. By means of the displacement seat 24 the frame 
19 can be adjusted as to its height, so that in this manner, the clamping 
of both corrugated hoses 12, 13 guided on the frame can be provided. The 
height adjustment of the supports 20 is performed by the threaded rod 27. 
Instead, springy elements can be utilized for this purpose. 
A row of holding plates 29, 30 are provided at both sides of the support 20 
as well as on the upper longitudinal carriers 22 at certain distances. 
They extend in pairs in a plane which is perpendicular to the outer 
surface of the frame outwardly and are mounted in the plane displaceably 
on the frame. Correspondingly oriented and displaceable holding plates 29, 
30 are arranged near the bottom of the frame on both intermediate carriers 
28. Each holding plate 29, 30 has a circular recess 31, 20 at the same 
distance to the adjacent frame and opposite to one another. It is limited 
by the inner plate edge in a segment-like manner. With identical distances 
between two holding plates 29, 30 arranged in a plane, their recesses 31, 
32 are axially oriented with the respective recesses of the subsequent 
holding plates and thereby form a solid line surrounding the frame at the 
constant distance. 
As can be seen from FIG. 4 in the recesses 31, 32 of one row of the holding 
plates 29, 30 a pipe 33 which serves as a guide is adjusted to the endless 
rotating corrugated hose 12, 13. The pipe 33 which can be composed of the 
same or similar material as the corrugated hose is composed of several 
pipe pieces assembled by displacement seat connections 34 to form a closed 
system. The displacement seat connections 34 are provided for thermal 
reasons and arranged preferably so that at least one connecting location 
is arranged in one straight transporting path region. The pipe 33 is 
provided in an opening region of the recess 31, 32 with a longitudinal 
slot 35 whose free opening cross-section corresponds to an arc of 
preferably 60 degree. The corrugated hose 12, 13 which slidingly engages 
in the pipe 33 extends in the opening region of the longitudinal slots 32 
with its corrugated surface outwardly beyond the inner edge of the holding 
plates 29, 30. Therefore the cover 10 can be supported with an edge region 
on the oppositely located corrugated hose 12, 13. The opening 
cross-section of the longitudinal slot 35 is dimensioned so that the 
movement play of the cover 10 inside the supporting region is limited. The 
longitudinal slots 35 are expanded at the inlet side and at the outlet 
side at the height of the supply and discharge stations 14, 15 for guiding 
the cover in and out as can be seen from FIG. 5. 
FIGS. 6 and 7 show two possibilities for connecting individual corrugated 
hose pieces to form an endless transporting element. In both cases the 
oriented hose ends 12a are joined to one another at a distance which 
corresponds to a corrugation trough or the width of one receiving groove 
18. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6 the connection is performed by a 
clamping device 36 composed of two semi-shell-shaped elements 37, 38. 
Their arc-shaped outer profile corresponds to the inner profile of the 
corrugated hoses 12, 13. Both elements 37, 38 are connected form-lockingly 
with one another for example by a threaded pin 39. In the corrugated hose 
connection of FIG. 7 the hose ends 12a are oriented by means of an 
outwardly abutting fitting member 40 with an injection opening 41 and the 
inner space of the pipe ends is foamed with a hardenable material 42. Then 
it is sealed by the lateral partitions 43. 
As can be seen in particular from the section shown in FIG. 4, both 
corrugated hoses 12, 13 are driven through a shaft 44 and preferably by a 
double-toothed toothed belt 45 synchronously with the speed which is 
determined by the supply speed of the supply station 14 and the withdrawal 
speed of the withdrawal station 15. For the drive which preferably is 
performed outside of the drying furnace 11 in FIG. 1, the pipe 33 is cut 
out in a 90-degree arrangement to the cover column so that the toothed rim 
45 can engage directly into the corrugated hose 12, 13. A light barrier 
arrangement is preferably used as a signal transducer for a possible cycle 
movement control of the corrugated hoses 12, 13. 
Within the spirit of the invention it is possible to orient several 
upwardly and downwardly running transporting paths one behind the other or 
to orient all transporting paths horizontally. In the latter case mass 
articles with different designs can be transported without expenditures 
for changes by providing suitable carrier elements in the receptacle 
grooves for the upwardly open corrugated hose guide for example to suspend 
the mass articles on them. 
FIG. 8 shows that it is advisable to form the recesses in the holding 
plates as a throughgoing massive guide 46 which directly received the 
corrugated hose 12, 13 without interposition of a pipe and its inner 
profile is formed hexagonal. The shape of the inner profile can be of any 
type and can be different as to the course in a transporting path as long 
as there is a sufficient number of contact points between the corrugated 
hoses and the hollow bodies for a reliable corrugated hose guide. For 
transporting mass articles of different sizes the massive guides 46 are 
mounted similarly to the holding plates 29, 30 displaceably on the frame. 
FIG. 9 shows a further modification of a drive for the corrugated hoses 12, 
13. As can be seen from this Figure, a toothed pinion 46 rotates about its 
axis and the teeth of the toothed pinion engage with corrugations of the 
corrugated hose 12. During rotation of the toothed pinion 46, the 
corrugated hose 12 is displaced in a transporting direction. 
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or 
more together, may also find a useful application in other types of 
constructions differing from the types described above. 
While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a 
transporting device for mass articles, it is not intended to be limited to 
the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may 
be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present 
invention. 
Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of 
the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, 
readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, 
from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential 
characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention.