Abstract:
A unitized vertical support for attaching auxiliary equipment to a conveyor system or other industrial application. The support is made of a tube having one end in a molded plastic base. When plastic is injected into the mold, plastic flows into the tube during the molding process, thus creating a unitized support which presents movement of the tube relative to the base.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/612,066 filed on Jul. 7, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,427,829, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and made part of this application. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates in general to a bracket or support used in assembly line and conveyor belt systems and, in particular, to an improved upright or vertical support for auxiliary devices or guide rail systems. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Vertical members are commonly mounted to a conveyor system frame, packaging system frame, or other industrial application to support guide rails or auxiliary equipment for the system. For example, an electric eye that may be used for counting or inspection purposes is required to be mounted in close proximity to a conveyor without interfering with the system itself. To attach these auxiliary devices, an initial vertical member is attached to the frame and then additional elements are added to obtain the correct geometry for the application (FIG.  2 ). Typically, to attach the initial vertical member, a two-piece structure comprised of a clamp with a means for attachment to the system, and the vertical member is used. There are a variety of differing approaches that exist to implement the clamping system. In one variant, the clamping device is “T” shaped with a channel through the middle arm through which the rod is inserted. The arm includes a horizontal-action, resilient, clamping method to help hold the rod in place. In another variant, a bracket is attached to the system and the member inserted vertically and a screw is used to press the member against the bracket, holding it in place. 
     During usage, the attached vertical member must not rotate, or be subject to vertical slippage. Should either of these movements occur, further elements attached to the vertical member will become misaligned. For example, an electric eye, or proximity switch on a conveyor that is misaligned can cause serious production problems. 
     A variety and combination of materials have been used in an attempt to solve these problems. For example, a plastic clamp and a rod, a plastic bracket and a rod, a plastic rod and a metal bracket, and the like. However, insufficient friction is obtained when trying to compress plastic around steel rods; plastics fail to provide the strength and friction necessary to completely resist normal torsional loads, and plastic rods are easily damaged or misshapen by steel clamping methods. One common technique employed to avoid rotation is to use a square cross-sectional rod. This method will reduce axial rotation, unfortunately, it also limits the opportunity for attaching further optional implements, radially, to the rod. 
     Thus a need exists for a method of attaching a vertical member to various industrial applications that will not suffer from slippage or rotational problems. Additionally, to avoid inconvenience and unnecessary costs, this method should encompass the flexibility to adapt to a variety of geometries and specifications set by the user. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Briefly stated, a vertical support is provided utilizing a rigid tube connected to a plastic base by injection molding the base with the tube fixed in the mold. This results in injected plastic flowing into the tube, permanently fixing the tube to the base and providing a one-piece support. This eliminates the problem of support rods slipping or rotating within plastic bases that grip a rod utilizing nut and bolt arrangements. This technique also eliminates the labor of assembling and periodically checking or re-tightening of fasteners which is involved with supports having two or more separate pieces. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Having thus summarized the general nature of the invention and its essential features and advantages, certain preferred embodiments and modifications thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description herein having reference to the figures that follow, of which: 
     FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a typical conveyor system which shows a vertical rod, supporting auxiliary equipment; 
     FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a typical prior art clamp and support rod; 
     FIG. 3 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of this invention; 
     FIG. 4 is an isometric view of another preferred embodiment of this invention; and 
     FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional schematic view of a support tube within one end in an injection mold. 
     FIG. 5 a  is a schematic cross-sectional view of a variation of the lower end of the support tube of FIG.  5 . 
     FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a variation of a conveyor frame and a variation of the upright illustrated in FIG.  4 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to FIG. 1, schematically illustrated is a conveyor system  10  including a conveyor chain  12  mounted on frame  13  having vertical side walls  14 . A bottle  16  is illustrated on the conveyor chain being guided by guide rails  18  on each side of the conveyor chain. Mounted on each of the side walls is a unitized support  20  which includes an upright tube  22  secured to a base  24 , which in turn is secured by fasteners to the frame  13 . Mounted on the upper ends of the support members  22  is a conventional clamp  26 . The clamp in turn supports a horizontally oriented rod  28  to which is attached another bracket  30  carrying a component related to the conveyor function such as a sensor  32  that monitors the movement of items on the conveyor belt. The system shown in FIG. 1 is typical except that the support  20  is an embodiment of this invention. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a prior art upright  34  that includes a rod or tube  36  extending through and gripped by two arms of a clamp  38 . A nut and bolt combination force the arms toward each other to grip the rod. Thus, to utilize that type of clamp, the user must first insert the rod  36  through a hole between the clamp arms; then insert a bolt through the arms, and tighten a nut on the bolt. Such constructions are subject to loosening and thus, are subject to rotation and slippage problems. This, in turn, affects the accuracy of whatever sensing function is being performed by the device supported by the rod and clamp. The upright support carries all of the load of whatever accessory equipment is mounted on it, and hence, it is the most critical connection inasmuch as rotational or axial slippage on it affects everything mounted on the support. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates in more detail the unitized support  20  illustrated in FIG.  1 . As can be seen, the base  24  includes a pair of fastener holes  23  on each side of the base central portion which supports the tube  22 . The base is formed of a moldable material such as plastic, and the plastic extends through the tube and forms a cap  25  on the upper end of the support. This integral construction prevents rotation of the tube relative to the base in view of the large functional area within the tube. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates another form of the invention in which the upright member  22  is supported directly by a bracket base  40  without the need for other fasteners. A slot  42  for mounting the bracket on the side of the conveyor or other frame is situated between the two side walls of the bracket. This support is also formed of a rigid tube filled with the plastic or other moldable material and formed integral with the base. It should, of course, be recognized that a multitude of other base configurations may be employed, but all having the common inventive feature of the upright being supported by the base in a fashion not requiring other fasteners to grip the rod. 
     FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a cross section of a mold  50  for injection molding the base  24  of FIG.  3 . As can be seen, one end of the support tube  22  is inserted through an opening in a wall of the base portion  50   a  of the mold  50 , and the other end is in a top portion  50   b.  The central portion of the mold  50  also positions the tube. When plastic  52  is injected into the base mold portion  50   a  in conventional fashion, plastic fills the mold portion  50   a  to create the base, but in addition, plastic  52  flows through the open tube itself and out the other tube end to be shaped by the portion  50   b,  to thereby create the desired unitized, stable structure. This arrangement not only offers the necessary support, but it limits the need for a clamp and the attendant installation and loosening problems. To facilitate flow of plastic into the base end of the tube  22 , the end  22   a  may be cut at an angle, as shown in FIG. 5 a.    
     FIG. 6 shows a cross-section of an extruded conveyor support or frame  60  having an elongated slot or channel  62  on each side. Mounted to the frame is an upright  64  of the type illustrated in FIG. 4 with the addition of one or more inwardly extending bosses  66 . As seen from FIG. 6, the boss is sized to fit snugly within the slot  62 . The boss has upper and lower edges which engage the slot edges. This approach provides additional stability to the upright by preventing it from rotating about an axis through the lower end of the upright and perpendicular to the frame  60 . 
     While utilizing an upright having a tubular lower end is perhaps the simplest form of the invention, it should be recognized that the lower end of the support member could have a variety of configurations that will interengage satisfactorily with the plastic during the injection molding operation so as to securely fix the support to prevent movement of the support relative to the plastic base. Also, tubes of various cross sections may be employed, including, of course, straight sided ones that prevent rotation. However, a circular cross section is usually preferred in order to obtain the maximum range of orientation for the clamp to be attached to the upper end of the tube. 
     Although this invention has been disclosed in the context of certain preferred embodiments and example, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention extends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to other alternative embodiments and/or uses of the invention and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. Thus, it is intended that the scope of the present invention herein disclosed should not be limited by the particular disclosed embodiments described above, but should be determined only by a fair reading of the claims that follow.