Patent GB-607590-A (GB)
Title: Improvements relating to the transport of goods from a chocolate coating or like machine to a cooler
IPC: A23G7/02
Filed: 1944-12-19
Abstract: 607,590. Endless conveyers. TUNLEY, A: A., and BAKER PERKINS, Ltd. Dec. 19, 1944, No. 25482. [Class 78 (i)] In apparatus for conveying batches of goods such as sweetmeats or biscuits through a chocolate or like-coating machine and then delivering them to the trays of an endless conveyer of a cooling plant, wherein the coated goods are delivered to plaques or flexible sheets as the latter are led up over a knife-edge or nose of a table and the loaded plaques subsequently transferred to the trays of the cooler conveyer, the plaques are moved over the knife-edge and along the table at a rate lower than the rate of travel of the trays and with a pitch spacing less than that of the trays such that adjacent ends of successive plaques abut or overlap when passing over the knifeedge, whereby the latter is covered by the plaques, the batches are spaced before delivery to the plaques so that they have a pitch spacing conforming to the pitch of the abutting or overlapping plaques and the loaded plaques are subsequently spaced so that their pitch conforms to the pitch of the tray. The Figures show the application to a cooling plant as described in Specification 553,309 in which the plaques are separated from the cooler conveyer trays on the return circuit and pass upwardly over the knife-edge of a table for loading and are then again transferred to the trays at the delivery end of this table. The trays 1, Figs. 1a, 1b, 1c are coupled by rods 2 to endless chains 3 and support flexible plaques 11 having rods 12 engaging in slots 13 in lugs 14 secured at the forward end of the trays. After the trays with loaded plaques have passed through the cooler at 3a, the plaques are unloaded in known manner and the trays with the plaques travel along the return lap 3b of the conveyer 3 around sprockets 15 to a lap 3c, being maintained horizontal when moving round the sprocket by rollers 8 engaging cam tracks 16, Fig. 1, and rollers 7 passing through a slot 17 in the track 5b. As the trays pass along the lap 3c, the rods 12 are pushed up inclines 18 by the lugs 14, whereby the plaques are removed from the trays and the rods pushed around a groove 20 by a cam 19 to be engaged by dogs 23 on endless chains 24 by which the plaques are conveyed to the loading position A. Mean. while, the empty trays rise to the track 4, Fig. 1b, to a position where they receive the loaded plaques from the delivery end 51a of a loading table comprising parts 34, 51. At its feeding end the table 34 is provided with a knife-edge or nose comprising a rotary bridge piece 42 over which the plaques are drawn by the chains 24 to receive the coated goods from an enrober band 39 and then drawn along the table 34. The spacing of the dogs 23 compared with the length of the plaques is such that as successive plaques are drawn over the bridge piece 42, the trailing edge of one plaque abuts the leading edge of the next. From the table 34 the plaques are drawn over the table 51 by dogs 54 on chains 53 passing round sprockets 55, 56, 57. At its delivery end 51a the table slopes down so that the plaque rods 12 when below the sprockets 56 are engaged by the tray lugs 14 and the plaques drawn on to the trays, the rods being positioned correctly in the slots 13 of the lugs 14 by a spring-pressed lever 58. The driving sprocket 56 of the chain 53 is driven from the chain 3 through a sprocket 60 connected to the sprocket 56 through chain-and-sprocket gearing whilst the driving sprocket 38 of the chain 24 is driven from the chain 53 through the sprocket 55. The gearing is arranged so that the chain 53 travels at the same speed as the chain 3 and the chain 24 travels slower than the chain 53 with the spacing of the dogs 54 greater than that of the dogs 23, this latter enabling the plaques to be spaced in conformity with the spacing of the trays. Alternatively, the chains 24, 53 may be driven at the same speed, the faster moving trays engaging the plaque rods to space the plaques.