Patent Publication Number: US-9428846-B2

Title: Module feeder with panels

Description:
This application is a division of application Ser. No. 12/584,710, filed Sep. 11, 2009, which is a division of application Ser. No. 11/350,314, filed Feb. 3, 2006. 
    
    
     This invention relates to a method and apparatus for removing a wrapping or cover from cylindrical modules of fibrous materials. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Although this invention has potential application for handling other cylindrical bales of fibrous materials, it will mainly be described in conjunction with its most imminent and important application, which is the handling of cylindrical cotton modules. 
     Handling of seed cotton from the time it is picked, or stripped, in the field until it enters a cotton gin has evolved over the years. Fifty years ago, seed cotton was dumped into small trailers and hauled to the gin. This was supplanted by cotton module technology where cotton from a picker/stripper is delivered to a module builder on the edge of the field. A large rectangular cotton module is made by alternately dumping seed cotton into the builder and then packing the cotton. The module is discharged from the module builder onto the ground and the top is covered with a plastic tarpaulin or cover. Later, the module is picked up by a special module retriever truck and hauled to the gin where it is stored, almost always outside, along with a large number of other modules until the gin is ready to handle this particular module. The module is then picked up by the same or similar module truck and hauled to a module feeder. The plastic cover is removed and the module conveyed to a disperser where the module is disintegrated and the cotton fibers are delivered to the gin. Cotton module technology, expensive as it is, is considerably more efficient, all things considered, than hauling loose cotton in cotton trailers. Accordingly, cotton module technology completely replaced cotton trailers and has been the standard of the industry for several decades. 
     Current cotton module technology has its problems. A major problem is that module builders discharge the packed cotton module onto the ground. Even though the cotton is fairly tightly packed and attempts are made to position the cotton modules on fairly high ground, there is always the potential for water to collect around the base of the module and wick up into the module, damaging a bottom layer of the cotton to an extent where it is not ginned. Six inches or a foot of damaged cotton on the bottom of a module will be seen to be a significant part of a module ten feet high. In addition, the plastic covers on top of the module, which are intended to shed water, are not perfect. The worst thing that can happen is for the cover to have, or develop, a hole where rain enters and damages the seed cotton resulting in the loss of an entire module. Conventional rectangular cotton modules weigh in the range of 18,000 to 26,000 pounds and contain 5,000-9,000 pounds of lint cotton so it is easy to see the extent of potential losses. 
     Disclosures of interest are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,991,944; 4,057,876; 4,592,698; 4,610,596; 4,929,141; 5,179,878; 5,228,628; 5,318,399; 5,340,040; 5,371,938; 5,454,683; 6,202,950; 6,332,426 and 6,481,653. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In response to these problems, it has been proposed to make cylindrical cotton modules, often called round modules, which are wrapped in plastic in such a manner that the plastic wrap covers the cylindrical sides of the module and part of the ends so water cannot enter the module to an extent sufficient to damage a significant part of the cotton. The current generation of cylindrical modules is about one quarter the weight of conventional rectangular modules. The problem addressed by this invention is to completely remove the plastic wrap in an efficient, expeditious, reliable and inexpensive manner in a way that does not disrupt or interfere with normal ginning operations. It is apparent that other fibrous agricultural products may be similarly wrapped, such as corn stover, kenaf, hemp and the like although the problems in unwrapping such modules are very different for reasons which will become apparent. 
     In one embodiment of this invention, cylindrical cotton modules that are wrapped with a cover are aligned and abutted on a conveyor with the cylindrical axis of the modules parallel to the direction of movement of the modules toward a disperser. A device picks up each module in turn and rotates the module to remove the cover either by unwrapping it, in the alternative, slitting and then rotating the module to remove the cover. Because the conveyor continues to move in order to feed cotton into the disperser, the rotating device also travels at the same rate so that when plastic removal is complete, the unwrapped module is repositioned on the conveyor in juxtaposed relation to an upstream module so there is normally no substantial gap between adjacent modules as they enter the disperser. After the unwrapped module is placed back on the conveyor, the unwrapping device moves back toward the inlet end of the conveyor to pick up the next adjacent cylindrical module. 
     In one embodiment, a system provides for handling conventional rectangular cotton modules and for handling wrapped cylindrical modules. This is accomplished by positioning the cylindrical module handling equipment on a frame or gantry and moving the equipment laterally or upwardly out of the path of movement of the rectangular cotton modules. Thus, in this embodiment, the conveyor and disperser are used to selectively handle rectangular and cylindrical cotton modules. 
     There is a need for many alternatives and many components to produce an effective system for removing a cover from seed cotton modules. 
     It is an object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for removing covers from cylindrical agricultural modules. 
     Another object of this invention is to provide a technique for removing a cover from cylindrical seed cotton modules in an expeditious manner. 
     A more specific object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for determining which direction a cover is wrapped around a cylindrical agricultural module. 
     Another more specific object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for dealing with a loose piece of plastic on the inside of the cylindrical module. 
     Another more specific object of this invention is to provide a technique for dealing with a loose plastic tail on the inside of the module. 
     These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become more fully apparent as this description proceeds, reference being made to the accompanying drawings and appended claims. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a pictorial view of a module feeder incorporating a cover removal station; 
         FIG. 2  is a partial isometric view of a cylindrical cotton module wrapped with a cover, illustrating that the cover may be wrapped in one direction; 
         FIG. 3  is a partial isometric view of a cylindrical cotton module wrapped with a cover, illustrating that the cover may be wrapped in an opposite direction; 
         FIG. 4  is an isometric view of a chain bed conveyor used to convey cylindrical cotton modules toward a disperser; 
         FIG. 5  is an isometric view of a chain used in the chain bed conveyor of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged view of a chain link used in the chain bed conveyor of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a pictorial view of a cotton module truck equipped with a modified chain bed type conveyor of this invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a top view of another type of a slat type conveyor usable with this invention; 
         FIG. 9  is an isometric view of the slat conveyor of  FIG. 8  as it goes around an end sprocket; 
         FIG. 10  is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the slat conveyor of  FIG. 8 , illustrating the overlapping nature of the slats; 
         FIG. 11  is a view similar to  FIG. 10  illustrating a different shaped conveyor slat; 
         FIG. 12  is a view looking through the module feeder toward the disperser showing the cylindrical cotton module handling equipment out of a path of movement of a conventional rectangular cotton module, certain parts being broken away for clarity of illustration; 
         FIG. 13  is a view similar to  FIG. 12  showing the cylindrical cotton module handling equipment in an intermediate position between the retracted position of  FIG. 12  and a position raising the cylindrical module off the underlying conveyor; 
         FIG. 14  is a view similar to  FIGS. 12 and 13  showing the cylindrical cotton module handling equipment raising the cylindrical module off the underlying conveyor; 
         FIG. 15  is a partial isometric view of a powered roller comprising a part of the cylindrical cotton module handling equipment of this invention; 
         FIG. 16  is a partial broken isometric view of the powered roller of  FIG. 15 ; 
         FIG. 17  is an isometric view of a system for slitting the cover and a system for removing the cover from the module after it is slit; 
         FIG. 18  is a top view of the systems of  FIG. 17 ; 
         FIG. 19  is an isometric view of one side of a slitter frame; 
         FIG. 20  is an isometric view of the opposite side of the slitter frame of  FIG. 19 ; 
         FIG. 21  is an isometric view of another embodiment of a cover puller of this invention; 
         FIG. 22  is an enlarged side elevational view of the cover puller of  FIG. 21 , certain parts being broken away for clarity of illustration; 
         FIGS. 23-25  are end views of the device of  FIGS. 21-22  illustrating retractable grippers; 
         FIG. 26  is an isometric view of another embodiment of a cover puller of this invention; 
         FIG. 27  is a top view of the cover puller of  FIG. 26 ; 
         FIG. 28  is an end view of the cover puller of  FIGS. 26-27 ; 
         FIG. 29  is a broken isometric view of a drum of the cover puller of  FIGS. 26-28 ; 
         FIG. 30  is an isometric view of the cover puller of  FIGS. 26-29  showing a cover being pulled therethrough; 
         FIG. 31  is a schematic view illustrating the relationship between the module  12  and the cover puller of  FIGS. 26-30 ; 
         FIG. 32  is an isometric view of a disperser and cover removal device showing a pair of doors minimizing cotton leakage from a side of the device; 
         FIG. 33  is an enlarged isometric view of the doors of  FIG. 32 ; 
         FIG. 34  is a view looking into the open mouth of the disperser housing illustrating the position of the doors of  FIGS. 32-33 ; 
         FIG. 35  is a side view of the module feeder showing the cylindrical cotton handling equipment in the process of being lowered toward a cylindrical cotton module; 
         FIG. 36  is a side view of the module feeder in the course of picking up a cylindrical cotton module; 
         FIG. 37  is a side view of the module feeder in the operative position of  FIG. 14 , showing the cylindrical cotton handling equipment in a position raising the cylindrical module off the underlying conveyor; 
         FIG. 38  is a side view of the module feeder at a location where it is placing the unwrapped cylindrical module back onto the conveyor; 
         FIG. 39  is a schematic view, similar to  FIG. 31 , illustrating the operation of a different embodiment of a cover puller of this invention; 
         FIG. 40  is a broken isometric view of the cover puller shown schematically in  FIG. 39  showing an upper belt; 
         FIG. 41  is another broken isometric view of the cover puller shown in  FIGS. 39-40  showing a lower belt; 
         FIG. 42  is an enlarged broken isometric view of the upper belt drums showing a beater assembly between the drums; and 
         FIG. 43  is an isometric view, similar to  FIG. 1 , of the application of this invention to a travelling head disperser. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , there is illustrated a module feeder  10  of a type that is capable of handling cylindrical seed cotton modules  12  that are wrapped with a cover or wrapping  14  that is sufficient to shed water. The current cover proposed for use in wrapping seed cotton modules is an organic polymer, or plastic, but it will be understood that this invention is usable with any suitable material that is effective to shed water and it is desired to keep the wrapping material out of the ginned cotton. The current version of the plastic cover is wrapped a plurality of times around the seed cotton and relies on stretch film technology and an adhesive to secure adjacent wraps of the plastic to each other. It will be understood that other suitable techniques for adhering the cover to itself will be apparent to those skilled in the art, such as high or low temperature shrink wrapping techniques, heat sealing techniques, twine, or combinations thereof, and the like. As used herein, the word adhere or adhered is used to describe any suitable technique for securing adjacent wraps of the cover to itself. 
     The module feeder  10  comprises, as major components, a conveyor  16  for delivering the cotton modules  12  toward a disperser  18  where the modules  12  are disintegrated and a device  20  upstream of the disperser for removing the wrapping  14 . 
     An overriding problem with plastic wrapped cotton modules  12  is that the plastic must be completely removed and not allowed to enter the gin where cotton fibers are separated from cotton seed. The reason is that cotton is used to manufacture threads, yarns and ultimately textiles and the presence of plastic in the ginned cotton is completely unacceptable to textile manufacturers because it will ruin large batches of produced yarn and/or textiles, mainly because it will not take dyes and other textile treatments. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , one of the peculiarities of current generation of plastic wrap  14  is that most of it is adhered or adhesively secured to the underlying or overlying material except for a tail  22  on the inside of the wrapping  14  which is not adhered to the overlying wrap. Current module builders leave about six feet of unadhered tail  22  in a module of nominal eight foot diameter. The tail  22  is unadhered because of the nature of the device that wraps the plastic  14  around the seed cotton. The presence of the tail  22  creates a set of problems in removing the plastic wrapping  14  because the wrapping  14  cannot simply be slit because there is a danger that part of the tail  22  will be severed from the balance of the plastic wrapping  14  and the severed tail  22  will enter the gin, get ground up in some manner and thereby become intermingled with cotton fibers making the ginned cotton fibers unsalable or, worse, getting into a textile operation, ruining a large batch of textiles and creating havoc backwards through the supply chain. It is not a simple matter to adhere the tail  22  to the remainder of the plastic wrapping  14  because of inherent situations in the module builder which cannot readily be cured, at least at the present. Although not shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the cover  14  overlaps the ends of the module  12  so that water cannot wick up into the seed cotton when the module  12  is laying on its side. This degree of overlap is currently on the order of six inches to one foot. 
     One peculiarity in the operation of cotton gins is that it is very desirable to provide a consistent flow of cotton to the gin stands in order to promote high sustained rates of cotton going through the gin. Although cotton gins have some surge capacity, it is quite limited and there is no assurance that the surge capacity will be full when there is a reduction in cotton flow from the module feeder toward the gin stands caused by the module feeder. For this reason, it is very desirable to present a more-or-less constant cross-section of cotton to the disperser  18 . This leads to the decision to align the cylindrical modules  12  so the cylindrical axis  24  is aligned, or parallel to, the direction of movement  26  of the conveyor  16  as opposed to the situation where the axis  24  is perpendicular to the direction of movement  26  and the module  12  is simply rolled toward the disperser  18 . This seems counterintuitive because the natural inclination is to place the cylindrical modules  12  so they can be rolled toward the disperser  18 . The problem is that the vertical cross-section of the modules  12  being presented to the disperser  18 , in this situation, varies significantly from the edge of the cylinder to its maximum height. By placing the modules  12  with the cylindrical axis  24  aimed toward the disperser  18 , the vertical cross-section of the modules  12  is more consistent, leading to more consistent flow of cotton from the disperser  18 . 
     Another peculiarity in the operation of cotton gins is that each farmer&#39;s cotton is ginned separately. In other words, the business model of cotton gins is to act as a service to farmers in contrast to a situation where the gin buys seed cotton modules, mixes cotton from various farmers and then sells ginned cotton bales. In order to promote high sustained rates of cotton through the gin, the gin attempts to handle a substantial part of the cotton from a single farmer at one time, i.e. handle multiple cotton modules from the same farmer. In order to promote high sustained cotton flow through the gin, the flow of cotton from the module feeder should be as consistent as possible, meaning that the seed cotton modules should be close to each other as they enter the disperser. This problem is ameliorated somewhat by the nature of most dispersers in that the disperser drums are inclined to a vertical plane so the highest disperser drum is closer to the module. This assures that cotton is being taken off both an old module and a new one, even though they are spaced slightly apart. As used herein, the phrase that the modules are juxtaposed or substantially abutted means there is no substantial change in the rate of cotton feed at the junction of two modules as they move into contact with the disperser drums. Desirably, the only substantial gaps between adjacent modules  12  occur when one farmer&#39;s cotton is finished and another is starting. This leads to the desirability of removing the plastic wrap  14  in such a manner that an unwrapped module is juxtaposed to an upstream module so that there is very little change in the rate of cotton flow away from the disperser  18  as one cylindrical module  12  is disintegrated and the next one is started. 
     A problem with picking up and rotating the cotton modules  12  is in positioning the pickup device so it picks up the module with no overlap, i.e. no attempt is made to pick up the front end of one module and the back end of an adjacent module. One of the characteristics of cylindrical modules is that they are the same length, i.e. from end to end, but vary considerably in diameter depending on how much cotton is delivered into the wrapping device. This allows the pickup and rotating device to be made slightly shorter than the length of the modules  12  and allows the difference in diameter to be used as a technique for distinguishing between one module and an adjacent module. In the alternative, a device is provided to sense the gap between adjacent modules in order to determine where one module starts and another ends. This gap is capable of being detected even though the cylindrical modules are placed as close together as can be accomplished, as will be pointed out more fully hereinafter. 
     Another problem in handling plastic wrapped cylindrical cotton modules  12  is that the handling or conveying equipment cannot tear the plastic to any substantial extent. The reason is that small pieces of plastic, from the tear, tend to separate from the major part of the plastic wrap, enter the gin and become intermingled with ginned cotton. It will accordingly be seen that many types of conveying equipment commonly used in handling conventional rectangular cotton modules are unacceptable when handling plastic wrapped cotton modules. 
     An important feature of this invention is to provide a module feeder that will accommodate both conventional rectangular cotton modules and plastic wrapped cylindrical modules.  FIG. 1  shows such a device and, although the conveyor  16  must be modified or of a particular type, the disperser  18  is conventional and the conveyor  16  may be conventional, meaning that the only new equipment in the module feeder  10  is the device  20  for removing the plastic wrapping. Thus, a conventional cotton module feeder may be equipped with the device  20  and, after modifying the conveyor  16  to prevent tearing of the plastic, handle both conventional rectangular modules and plastic wrapped cylindrical modules. 
     Another peculiarity of plastic wrapped cylindrical cotton modules is that the direction of the wrapping will vary. Some of the modules  12  will be placed on the conveyor  16  so that the wrap is in one direction, suggested in  FIG. 2 , and other modules  12  will be placed on the conveyor  16  so that the wrap is in the other direction, suggested in  FIG. 3 . Because of the unadhered tail  22  or because it is decided to unwrap the plastic  14 , it is often desirable to be able to accommodate cylindrical plastic wrapped cotton modules where the wrap is in either direction. This may be accomplished before the module  12  is placed on the conveyor  16  by orienting the modules  12  in a given direction. It is preferred, however, to design the device  20  to handle modules with the plastic wrapped in either direction. 
     Given the requirements not to disrupt normal ginning operations and not introduce plastic into the gin, it will be apparent that many constraints are imposed on the design of equipment to remove plastic wrapping from cotton modules. Another constraint for cylindrical cotton module handling equipment before it becomes the exclusive mode of cotton handling between the field and the gin is the ability to handle conventional rectangular modules as well as cylindrical plastic wrapped modules. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-10 , the conveyor  16  is desirably made in several segments including a long approach conveyor  16 ′, a short conveyor  16 ″ and a conveyor  16 ″ under the plastic removing device  20 . The problems are slightly different because the modules  12  have the plastic wrap  14  on them while on the conveyors  16 ′,  16 ″ but the plastic is off when the module is on the conveyor  16 ′″, as will be more fully apparent hereinafter. 
     The conveyors  16 ′,  16 ″ may be of many suitable types consistent with the requirement not to tear the plastic wrap  14 . Although many different type conveyors are suitable, it is currently preferred to use a continuous moving floor conveyor, a roller bed conveyor, a slat type conveyor where the slats are perpendicular to the direction of movement  26  or a chain bed type conveyor where the pusher elements are modified to prevent tearing of the plastic wrap  14 . A chain bed type conveyor is generally not suitable for use as the conveyor  16 ″ because the chains will simply cut a groove in the cotton without moving the unwrapped module so the conveyors  16 ′″ will typically be a roller bed conveyor, a slat type conveyor or a moving floor. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4-6 , there is illustrated a modified chain bed type conveyor  28  having a series of chains  30  driven in the same direction at the same rate. The chains  30  include conventional chain links  32  joined together by conventional chain pins  34  and an occasional pusher link  36  designed not to tear the plastic wrap  14 . The pusher links  36  accordingly comprise a body  38  having openings  40  receiving adjacent chain pins  34 . The body  38  includes a top edge  42  parallel to the chain  30  and a leading edge  44 , both above the plane  46  of the chain  30 , i.e. above the plane of the conventional chain links  32 . The top edge  42  and the leading edge  44  define therebetween an obtuse angle  48 , of about 130° to about 160°. The leading edge  44  defines, with the plane  46 , an acute angle  50  of about 20° to about 50° facing toward the top edge  42 . Preferably, the pusher link  36  also includes a trailing edge  52  defining an obtuse angle  54  with the top edge and an acute angle  56  with the plane  46 , the acute angle  56  also facing toward the top edge  42 . The obtuse and acute angles  54 ,  56  are of similar sizes to the angles  48 ,  50 . 
     In normal operation of the module feeder  10 , only the leading edge  44  of the pusher link  36  engages the cylindrical modules  12  and would therefore be prone to tearing the plastic wrap  14  so it might appear that making the trailing edge  52  of similar configuration would be wasted effort. In fact, the conveyor  16  is occasionally run in reverse to move the modules  12  away from the disperser  18  in order to correct some problem, so it is desirable, even in module feeders, to provide both leading and trailing edges  44 ,  52  that are not prone to tear the plastic wrap  14 . In addition, it is desirable to convert a conventional module truck  58 , see  FIG. 7 , with a chain bed conveyor  60  to handle cylindrical cotton modules  12  which can be done by replacing conventional pusher links with the pusher links  36 . An important feature of the pusher links  36  is that they are capable of handling both conventional rectangular cotton modules, which have a packed cotton bottom abutting the chain  30 , and a plastic wrapped cylindrical cotton module  12  having a plastic bottom. If will be evident, of course, that the module trucks  58  have the capability of moving cylindrical modules  12  on and off the truck  58  without tearing the plastic wrapping  14 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 8-10 , there is illustrated a slat type conveyor  62  for conveying plastic wrapped cotton modules  12 . The conveyor  62  comprises a plurality of rows of slats  64  mounted on a chain (not shown) and wrapped around sprockets or wheels  66 , one of which is preferably driven. An important characteristic of the slat conveyor  62  is that the edges close up, or abut, in the run between the end wheels  66  but open up, as shown in  FIG. 9 , as the slats  64  go around the wheels  66 . This prevents substantial amounts of cotton from falling through the slats  64  and collecting on shafts, bearings, platforms and the like below the plane of the slats  64  in the run between the end wheels  66 . Unfortunately, there is a tendency for cotton to get trapped at the inlet end of the conveyor  62  because the gaps between the slats  64  open up around the inlet wheel. To avoid this problem, a shield  68  is placed over the inlet end wheel  66  as shown in the lower right of  FIG. 8  over that portion of the wheel  66  that would contact loose cotton and where the slats  62  have opened up. and yet allows any trapped cotton to be released as the slats  64   
     As shown in  FIG. 10 , one embodiment of the slat  64  provides one end, preferably a front end, with a tapered section  70  that overlies or abuts a curvilinear or bulbous rear end  72  in a more-or-less sealing fashion. As shown in  FIG. 12 , another embodiment of a slat  74  includes tapered ends  76  that overlie or abut adjacent slats in a more-or-less sealing fashion. 
     The disperser  18  may be of any suitable type and is illustrated as a conventional disperser having a hood or housing  78  opening toward the conveyor  16 ′″ and providing a series of disperser drums  80  for disintegrating the unwrapped cylindrical cotton module or a conventional rectangular cotton module in a more-or-less conventional manner. Dispersers are commercially available, such as from Stover Equipment Company, Corpus Christi, Tex. As mentioned previously and as shown in  FIGS. 1, 35-38 , the disperser drums  80  incline forwardly toward the modules  12  and inherently have the capability of removing cotton from a trailing module and a forward module as the forward module is nearly gone. Thus, the modules  12  do not have to abut, but they do have to be close. The goal is to provide substantially constant cotton flow to the gin. In a way, this can be quantified because, if the modules  12  are further apart than about one foot, cotton flow to the gin is noticeably reduced. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 12-19 and 35-38 , the plastic wrap removing device  20  is illustrated in various stages of operation. As discussed previously, an important feature of this invention is to provide a module feeder that will accommodate both conventional rectangular modules and plastic wrapped cylindrical modules.  FIG. 12  shows that the operative components of the plastic removing device  20  are movable to a position outside a path of movement  82  of a conventional rectangular cotton module so a conventional rectangular module can pass unhindered through the device  20  into the disperser  18 . 
     The plastic removing device  20  includes a number of components or subsystems including a frame or gantry  84 , the conveyor  16 ′″ receiving modules  12  from the conveyor  16 , a mechanism  86  suspended from the frame  84  for raising the module  12  off of the conveyor  16 ′″ so an operation may be conducted on the module  12 , a system  88  for rotating the module  12 , a system for determining the direction of rotation of the wrapping  14 , a cover puller  90  for removing the plastic wrap  14 , a system for discriminating between one module  12  and a following or downstream module, and a suitable mechanism  92  ( FIG. 1 ) for moving the frame  84  in the same direction and at the same speed as the conveyor  16 ′″, such as one or more hydraulic cylinders or any other suitable mechanism. 
     The frame or gantry  84  may be of any suitable type and includes suitable columns  94  supporting a pair of beams  96  spanning the path of movement  82 . Wheels  98  on the columns  94  cooperate with a pair of tracks  100  allowing the gantry  84  to move toward and away from the disperser  18  as the situation requires. 
     The mechanism  86  for raising the modules  12  includes a pair of curved arms  102 ,  104  arranged to move under the module  12  as shown in  FIGS. 12-14 . The arm  104  is mounted for pivotal movement about an axis  106 . If the gantry  84  can be made high enough, i.e. there is sufficient room in the gin where the plastic removing device  20  is being installed, the pivot axis  106  and the arm  102  simply rotate about the axis  106 . If the gin has height limitations and the gantry  84  must be considerably lower, the axis  106  may be movable as shown best by a comparison of  FIG. 12  with  FIGS. 13-14  where, for purposes of convenience, the mounting of the right arm  104  is shown, it being understood that the mounting of the left arm  102  is a mirror image. Also for clarity of illustration, only the lower part of the arm  102  is shown in  FIGS. 12-14 . A hydraulic cylinder  108  works on an angled extension  110  of the arm  102  and thereby pivots the arm  102  about the axis  106 . The pivot axis  106  is provided by a bearing mounted on a strut  112  fixed to a bracket or sleeve  114  slidable on the beam  96  as propelled by a hydraulic cylinder  116 . It will accordingly be seen that the pivot axis  106  is movable from side-to-side while the arm  104  is pivoted about the axis  106  to provide the clamshell type action shown in  FIGS. 12-14 . The cylinders  108 ,  116  are synchronized to lower and close the arms  102 ,  104  about the module  12  and to raise and move the arms  102 ,  104  to a stowed position under the gantry  84 . 
     Synchronization of the arms  102 ,  104  may be accomplished either by the use of suitable sensors detecting the position of the output rods of the cylinders  108 ,  116  at suitable times or by the use of rephasing cylinders. It is preferred to use sensors such as commercially available under the name Tempasonics as are available from Power Systems of Florida of Titusville, Fla. 
     An important feature of this invention is maintaining the modules  12  more-or-less juxtaposed as they enter the disperser  18  in order to provide more consistent cotton flow out of the disperser  10 . An initial step is to abut the modules  12  at the inlet end of the conveyor  16 ′, and making the upstream conveyors  16 ″ capable of running faster than the conveyor  16 ′. Similarly, any remaining gap between adjacent modules  12  is closed up by running the conveyor  16 ″ faster than the conveyor  16 ′″. Suitable sensors  120  ( FIG. 1 ) are provided at the junction of the conveyors  16 ′,  16 ″ and  16 ′″ to determine that a gap exists between successive modules  12 . A suitable signal is generated to speed up the upstream conveyor and thereby close up any gap. It will be appreciated that the conveyor  16 ′″ is typically run at rather slow speeds because of the time involved for the disperser  18  to digest the modules  12  so it is relatively easy for the conveyors  16 ′,  16 ″ to close up any gap between successive modules  12  as they move onto the conveyor  16 ′″. 
     Carried on the arms  102 ,  104  are a series of powered rollers  122 ,  124 . As shown best in  FIG. 15 , the rollers include an outer cylindrical surface  126  for contacting the cylindrical module  12 . At least some of the rollers  122 ,  124  having a roughener  128  to increase the friction between the surface  126  and the plastic wrapping  14  of the module  12 . The roughener  128  comprises extensions projecting out of the cylindrical surface  126  of any suitable shape. Preferably, the extensions comprise metal components welded or otherwise affixed to the surface  126  and preferably comprises a series of elongate rods  130  spaced about the periphery of the cylindrical surface  126 . It will be apparent that the roughener  128  may be any suitable projection from the cylindrical surface  126  that does not tear the plastic wrap  14 . 
     An important feature of the rollers  122 ,  124  is that the hydraulic motors  132  rotating the rollers  122 ,  124  are located inside the cylindrical surface  126  so that the motors  132  do not provide abutments for cotton to impact or snag on and allow the rollers  122 ,  124  to be long relative to the length of the modules  12 . For example, if the motors  132  were mounted externally, the rollers  122 ,  124  would have to be shorter because the motors would contact the upstream and/or downstream modules  12  on the conveyor  16 ′″.  FIG. 15  is a view of one end of the roller  122  with an end cap  134  removed to expose the motor  132 . It will be apparent that suitable hydraulic fittings (not shown) extend through the end cap  134  delivering hydraulic fluid to the motor  132 . As the arms  102 ,  104  move toward the position of  FIG. 14 , the rollers  122  engage the plastic wrap  14  of the module  12 . Another important feature of this invention is the ability to rotate the module  12  without tearing the plastic wrap  14 . To this end, the motors  132  are driven at a speed so there is no relative movement between the periphery of the roller  122  and the plastic wrap  14  as the arms  102 ,  104  converge. In other words, the rollers  122 ,  124  roll on the plastic wrap  14  but do not slip relative to the plastic wrap  14 . This is accomplished by a control unit that controls the amount of hydraulic fluid delivered to the motors  108 ,  116  and to the motors driving the rollers  122 ,  124 . It will be apparent that during this motion of the arms  102 ,  104 , the rollers  122  are turning in opposite directions as suggested by the arrows  136 . 
     As the arms  102 ,  104  converge to the position shown in  FIG. 14 , the outermost ends of the arms move under the module  12  and raise the module  12  off the conveyor  16 ′″ so that one or more operations may be conducted on the module  12 . For most of these operations, it is necessary or desirable to rotate the module  12  about its axis  24  shown in  FIG. 1 . To this end, the rollers  122  rotate in the same direction, thereby imparting an opposite direction of rotation to the module  12 . The rollers  122  will be seen to be a system for rotating the modules  12  as well as part of the system for raising the module  12  off the underlying conveyor  16 ′″. 
     There are two potential ways to remove the plastic wrap  14 . First, the wrap  14  may simply be unwrapped, making as many revolutions of the module  12  as is necessary. Second, the wrap  14  may be slit and then unwrapped, meaning that only one revolution or less of the module  12  is needed. Both techniques are within the scope of this invention, although it is preferred to slit and then unwrap the module for a variety of reasons. First, a single layer of the plastic wrap  14  is relatively weak and prone to tear thereby creating the potential of allowing plastic to enter the gin. Second, it is sometimes difficult to start the unwrapping process because the outer end of the wrap  14  is intentionally well bonded to the next lower layer. Third, because of the weakness of the plastic wrap  14 , rotating the module  12  becomes less reliable when only one or two layers remain. Even though slitting the plastic wrap  14  requires an additional subsystem, it is currently the preferred technique. 
     To prevent plastic from entering the gin and to thereby successfully slit the plastic wrap  14 , it is necessary to locate the tail  22  so any cut is well away from the tail. Although there are many different ways to do so, one way to start is by locating the outside edge  138  of the wrap  14  shown in  FIGS. 2-3 . This is conveniently done by locating a device  140  placed on the wrap  14  at the time the module  12  is made. The device  140  is consistently positioned on one end of the module  12  as it is being wrapped, as by a suitable device in the module builder. The device  140  may be of many different types, e.g. a strip detectable by a magnetic reader, a bar code label, an RFID tag or the like. In the event an RFID tag is used, it may be encoded with suitable information such as the name of the farmer, the field location, the cotton variety, where the module is located in the field or in the gin yard and the like. 
     The device  140  may be located simply by placing two detectors  142  ( FIG. 17 ) on opposite ends of a suitable member, such as a slitter  144  used to cut the plastic wrap  14  as discussed more fully hereinafter. As the module  12  is rotated, one or the other of the detectors  142  indicate the presence of the device  140  and the other detector  142  will indicate the absence of the device  140 . By determining which end the device  140  is on, one will know whether the module  12  is positioned as in  FIG. 2  or as in  FIG. 3  and thereby know which direction the wrap  12  is wound. 
     One convenient way to determine the location of the tail  22  is to take advantage of the fact that the current version of module builders employs plastic sheets of a predetermined length. There is considerable variation in the diameter of modules from the current version of module builders but, by determining the diameter, the location of the tail  22  becomes known when one also knows the location of the device  140 . The diameter of the module  12  can be determined in a variety of ways. It can be done directly by a distance measuring device, such as a laser device made by Power Systems of Florida of Titusville, Fla. mounted on the gantry  84  and looking downward at the module. The diameter can also be determined by rotating the module  12  at a known speed, as by driving the rollers  122  at a known speed, and measuring the time it takes for the device  140  to twice pass the detector  142 . Knowing the location of the edge  138  because the device  140  is adjacent the edge  138  and the diameter of a particular module  12  allows the rotation to be stopped at a location where the tail  22  is far removed from the slitter  144  shown in  FIGS. 17-18 . It will accordingly be seen that the detector  142  cooperates with a control unit  146  which monitors and controls other functions of the plastic removing device  20 , such as the hydraulic system driving the motors  132 , to provide a system for locating the tail  22 . 
     The control unit  146  also controls rotation of the rollers  122  so that, after the location of the tail  22  is determined, the module  12  is rotated a substantial distance to position the tail  22  far from the slitter  144 . Typically, the module  12  is rotated so the tail  22  is 180° from the slitter  144  or so that the tail  22  is at the bottom of the module  12  adjacent the conveyor  16 ′″. If an RFID tag is used as the device  140 , this is best accomplished by rotating the bale  12  until the RFID tag  140  is sensed twice by the detectors  142 . The bale  12  is then rotated an additional one half revolution. This method does not require knowing which direction the bale  12  is wrapped. 
     The cover  14  may be cut in a variety of ways, such as with a mechanical slitter as disclosed hereinafter, or with other suitable cutting equipment, such as an abrasive jet, a water jet or the like. The slitter  144  cuts the plastic wrap  14  in a linear fashion and in a direction parallel to the module axis  24  and the direction of movement  26  and is accordingly located between the arms  102 ,  104  at a location  148  ( FIG. 13 ) and is mounted for movement toward and away from the module  12 . To this end, the slitter  144  comprises a frame  150  supported by arms  152  of a movable subframe  154  carried by the gantry  84 . One or more hydraulic cylinders  156  slide the subframe  154  up and down relative to the columns  94  thereby raising and lowering the slitter  144 . 
     The slitter  144  includes two or more cutting devices  158  comprising a hub  160  driving a rotary knife  162  such as a sharp unserrated wheel which cleanly slits the plastic cover  14  without snagging cotton fibers. As shown best in  FIGS. 19-20 , each hub  160  is mounted on a subframe  164  pivoted by a pin  166  to a member  168 . The arc of pivotal movement of the subframe  164  is constrained for purposes more fully apparent hereinafter. The rotary knives  162  are driven in any suitable fashion, as by a chain drive  170  shown in  FIG. 20 . A motor (not shown), on the member  168  drives a sprocket  172  which drives shafts  174  on which the knives  162  are mounted. The hubs  160  act as large rollers to engage the cylindrical module  12  and thereby position the cutting edge of the knives  162  at an appropriate distance from the plastic cover  14  to be cut. It is desirable that the cut be through the plastic cover  14  but not substantially into cotton inside the modules  12 . It will be seen that the knives  162  are separately pivotally mounted so one knife can be substantially below the other in order to accommodate a module which is tapered rather than more-or-less cylindrical. 
     Because space is at a premium between the arms  102 ,  104 , it is desirable to move the knives  162  as little as practical in the direction of conveyor movement  26  which corresponds to the direction of movement of the modules  12  through the module feeder  10 . For this reason, more than one cutting element is provided, meaning that the amount of linear movement of the member  168  is reduced. The member  168  may be moved in any suitable manner relative to the frame  150 . A convenient technique for moving the member  168  is to provide a rack  176  on the member  168  and a motor (not shown) having a sprocket (not shown) on the frame  150  so that rotation of the motor causes the member  168  to move in the direction  26  and thereby advance one of the knives  162  from one end to about the middle of each module  12  while the other knife moves from about the middle of each module  12  to the other end, thereby slitting the cover  14  from end to end. Any suitable technique may be used to stop movement of the member  168 , such as a limit switch or photoelectric eye. 
     After the cover  14  is slit, it is necessary to remove the cover from the fibrous material inside the module. To this end, the cover puller  90  is provided. Broadly, there are at least two operating concepts for a puller: (1) a prong type puller that has elements that attempt to penetrate the cover in order to gain traction and (2) a friction based puller that relies only on friction surfaces to gain traction. A friction type puller is disclosed in connection with  FIGS. 39-42 . Although several versions of a prong type cover puller are disclosed, it will be apparent that they have certain common characteristics: (1) they have some way of applying the prongs to the cover  14 , (2) they have some way to pull on the cover  14  after it is grasped, (3) they have some way to move the cover  14  as it is unwinding or after it is unwound to a disposal location and (4) they have some way of retracting the prongs and thereby releasing the grasp on the cover  14 . For purposes of economy, the cover puller  90  may be suspended on the same subframe  154  as the slitter  144  and thus move up and down with the slitter  144 . From an optimum operational standpoint, it is preferred to mount the cover puller  90  on a separate subframe (not shown) on the opposite side of the gantry  84  so the slitter  144  and the cover puller  90  may be operated independently. 
     To these ends, the cover puller  90  may come in several versions. Shown in  FIGS. 17-18  is a modified windrowing device made by Sund Manufacturing of Newburg, N. Dak. The cover puller  90  accordingly provides a series of fingers  178  mounted in rows. A mechanism  180  moves the rows of fingers  178  in the direction shown by the arrows  182  so they grasp a free end of the slit cover and pull it over the top of the puller  90 . As each row of fingers  178  nears the end of the puller  90 , they retract, leaving the cover  14  free to be picked up by an outfeed conveyor  184  and moved to a disposal location to one side of the frame  84 . It will accordingly be seen that the cover puller  90  is driven at the same time the module  12  is rotated so the wrap  14  is pulled off the module  12  as it is rotated. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 21-25 , another cover puller  186  is illustrated comprising a basket or funnel shaped frame  188  having upper and lower rims  190 ,  192 . The position of the slitter  144  and the cover puller  186  relative to a module  12  and the direction of movement  26  is shown in  FIG. 21 . A plurality of spikes or sharpened fingers  194  extend from the bottom of the lower rim  192  and act to pierce the cover  14  when the puller  186  is forced into the module  12 . Inside the lower rim are a plurality of normally retracted slats  196  pivotally mounted on an inner hub  198 . At the outset of rotation of the funnel frame  188 , the slats  196  are advanced by rotation of the inner hub  198  through a limited arc as suggested by the arrow  200 . The cover puller  186  is mounted on a subframe  202  similar to the subframe  154  in  FIG. 17  and is raised and lowered by the provision of hydraulic cylinders operating on the sleeves  204 . When the funnel frame  188  is forced into the module  12 , the fingers  194  pierce the cover  14  and the inner hub  198  is drivably rotated to advance the slats  196 . Drivably rotating the funnel frame  188  while rotating the module  12  causes the cover  14  to unwind from the module  12  and wrap around the funnel  188 . After the cover  14  is removed from the module  12 , the puller  186  is raised, away from the module  12 , and moved to a disposal location adjacent a side of the frame  84 . The slats  196  are then retracted by rotating the inner hub  198  in a direction opposite to the arrow  200 . The cover  14  then falls off the funnel  188  into a disposal area. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 26-31 , there is illustrated another cover puller  206  of this invention comprising, as major components, a frame  208 , a pair of drums  210 ,  212  driven in counterrotating directions and a driven outfeed conveyor  214 . The frame  208  is raised and lowered much like the frame  202  of the cover puller  186  in  FIG. 21 . The drums  210 ,  212  include an outer cylinder  216 ,  218  having a series of openings  220 ,  222  therein through which spikes or rods  224 ,  226  extend.  FIG. 29  is an isometric view of the drum  210 , it being understood that the drum  212  is essentially identical. The rods  224  of the drum  210  are mounted on a crankshaft  228  having an axis  230  offset from an axis of rotation  232  of the cylinder  216 , meaning that the rods  224  move in and out, relative to the exterior of the cylinder  216 , as the cylinder  216  rotates. The crankshaft  228  is adjustably mounted inside the cylinder  216  so the amount of in and out movement is adjusted. The drums  210 ,  212  are adjustably mounted on the frame  208  so the arcuate location of the maximum extension of the rods  224 ,  226  can be rotationally adjusted, horizontally adjusted and vertically adjusted. As seen best in  FIGS. 26 and 31 , the upper drum  212  is forward of the lower drum  210  so the slit cover  14  can be removed from the top of the module  12  in a manner that the free end  234  of the cover  14  passes, in a more-or-less straight horizontal path into the bight between the drums  210 ,  212 . Those skilled in the art will recognize the drums  210 ,  212  as being front beater spikes in the auger of a combine. 
     It will be realized that the width of the cover  14  being pulled through the puller  206  is greater than the width of the drums  210 ,  212  because the cover puller  206  has to reside between the arms  102 ,  104  which are slightly less than the length of the module  12 . Thus, some provision needs to be made to reduce the width of the cover  14 . To this end, a pair of rollers  236  force the cover  14  into the opening between the drums  210 ,  212  as the cover  14  is being pulled into puller  206 . After the cover  14  has been pulled from the module  12 , the outfeed conveyor  214  delivers it to a disposal location, such as a large trash container. It will accordingly be apparent that the outfeed conveyor  214  may be of any suitable type. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 32-34 , another feature of this invention is illustrated. After the cover  14  has been slit and removed from the module  12 , there is nothing to prevent cotton or other material inside the module from sloughing off and falling outside the frame  84  so that a worker has to continually shovel or otherwise encourage this material to pass into the inlet of the disperser  18 . To minimize this problem, a pair of mirror image doors  238 ,  240  are provided that act in conjunction with a stationary transition panel  242  bolted to the frame of the disperser housing  78 . The transition panel  242  simply prevents cotton from passing on the outside of the disperser housing  78 . Each of the doors  238 ,  240  comprises a lower panel  244  and an upper panel  246 . The lower panels  244  are pivoted to plates  250  secured to the floor of the gin forward of the disperser  18 . The upper panel  246  is pivotally connected by a suitable connection  252  to the lower panel  244 . 
     A hydraulic cylinder  254  is pivotally mounted on a stand  256  and pivotally connects to the lower panel  244  for pushing the lower panel  244  from an outwardly inclined position to a more nearly vertical position as shown in dashed lines in  FIG. 34 . The upper panel  246  reclines against a pad  258  supported by a column  260  which is preferably vertically adjustable. When the cylinder  254  pushes the lower panel  244  toward its more vertical position, the upper panel  246  simply slides on the pad  258  and assumes a more inclined position shown in dashed lines in  FIG. 34 . The ends of the panels  244 ,  246  are curved and slidably abut the stationary panel  242  during movement between the solid and dashed line positions shown in  FIG. 34 . 
     Operation of the doors  238 ,  240  should now be apparent. As suggested from  FIGS. 12-14 , it will be seen that the arms  102 ,  104  move toward and away from the gantry  84  creating clearance problems between the arms  102 ,  104 , the gantry  84  and the doors  238 ,  240 . In order to accommodate movement of the arms  102 ,  104 , the doors  238 ,  240  are moved to the solid line position of  FIG. 34  where the doors  238 ,  240  are concave toward each other providing greater clearance at times when the arms  102 ,  104  are moving or when the arms  102 ,  104  are encircling a module  12  at a time when the gantry  84  is adjacent the disperser housing  78 . It will be appreciated that  FIG. 12  illustrates a situation where the gantry  84  has been moved away from the disperser  18  in order to pick up the module  12 . At such times, the gantry  84  is at the position shown in  FIG. 1  where the gantry  84  is spaced from the doors  238 ,  240  and there is no danger of collision between the arms  102 ,  104  and the doors  238 ,  240 . 
     When the gantry  84  moves toward the disperser  18  with the arms  102 ,  104  down, as shown in  FIGS. 13-14 , there is a danger of collision, so the cylinder  254  is actuated to move the doors  238 ,  240  to their concave position shown in  FIG. 34 , thereby allowing the arms  102 ,  104  to pass. It is desired to move the panels  242  to its more nearly vertical position when the cover  14  has been removed from the module  12  and the arms  102 ,  104  have been retracted. This will push any cotton resting against the stationary transition panel  242  onto the conveyor  16 ′″ and thereby into the disperser  18 . 
     As mentioned previously, another feature of this invention is the provision of a system for discriminating between one module  12  and a following or downstream module. This is necessary to actuate the arms  102 ,  104  at an appropriate time so they pick up a module immediately below the device  20 , as contrasted to a situation where the arms  102 ,  104  attempt to pick up the rear end of one module and the front end of a trailing module. To this end, a detector  262  is provided as shown in  FIG. 34 . The sensor  262  may be of any suitable type, such as a laser distance measuring device from Smith &amp; Gray of Columbus, Ga. Devices of this type operate because there is always a very small gap between adjacent modules, caused by the module slumping. 
     Operation of the module feeder  10  of this invention should now be apparent. Referring to  FIGS. 1, 12-14 and 34-37 , a series of modules, in more or less abutting relation, pass from the conveyor  16 ′ onto the conveyor  16 ″ and then onto the conveyor  16 ′″. In the event there is a substantial gap between the module  12  and the following module, the gap is sensed by one of the sensors  120  and the upstream conveyor is speeded up thereby closing the gap. With the gantry  84  in its furthermost location away from the disperser, i.e. in the position shown in  FIG. 34 , the sensor  262  discriminates between the module  264  underneath the gantry  84  and the following module  266 . The output from the sensor  262  is an input detected by the control unit  146  to actuate the cylinders  108 ,  116  to move the arms  102 ,  104  downwardly to engage and pick the module  264  up off the conveyor  16 ′″ as suggested in  FIG. 35 . 
     The module  264  is then rotated to detect the direction of wrap of the cover  14  and to determine where the tail  22  is located. The module is then rotated to position where the tail  22  is away from the slitter  144 . The slitter  144  is then lowered so the knives  162  are low enough to cut the cover  14  and the frame member  168  is moved to draw the knives  162  across the module and thereby slit the cover  14  from end to end. The cover puller is then lowered into contact with the module and the cover  14  pulled off as the module  12  is rotated in a desired direction. It will be appreciated that it is desirable to pull the cover  14  into the cover puller so that the adhered end of the tail  22  passes first into the cover puller as suggested in  FIG. 31 . It will be seen that the rollers  122 ,  124  are capable of rotating the module in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. This is particularly important if it is desired to unwrap the cover  14  from the module  12  rather than slit it first and then pull the cover  14  off. In addition, the ability to rotate the modules  12  in both directions gives the option to pull the cover  14  off on either side of the device  20 . 
     While conducting these operations on the module immediately beneath the gantry  84 , all of the modules on the conveyor  16  continue to move toward the disperser  18 . In order to keep its place in line, the gantry  84  moves toward the disperser  18  at the same speed as the conveyor  16 ′″ as controlled by the cylinders  92 . It will accordingly be seen that the gaps between the modules  268 ,  264 ,  266  do not change substantially during the operation of the module feeder  10 . After the cover  14  has been pulled from the module  264 , it is discarded by the side of the gantry  84  at a disposal location. In other words, the gantry  84  moves toward the disperser  18  at the same speed, or synchronously, with movement of the conveyor  16 ′″. The control unit  146  then instructs the cylinders  108 ,  116  to move the arms  102 ,  104  to lower the module  264  back onto the conveyor  16 ′″ as shown in  FIG. 36  at a location near the end of the conveyor  16 ′″. 
       FIG. 37  represents the situation where the arms  102 ,  104  have replaced the module  264  onto the conveyor  16 ′″ in response to commands from the control unit  146 . The next movement of the device  20  is to raise the arms  102 ,  104  to a position where the gantry  84  can be moved away from the disperser  18  by the cylinders  92  and moved upwardly toward the position shown in  FIG. 12 , also in response to commands from the control unit  146 . The next movement of the device  20  is to move the gantry  84  to the position shown in  FIG. 31  where the cycle starts again. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 39-42 , there is illustrated another embodiment of a cover puller  270 . Although the schematic view of  FIG. 39  illustrates a situation where the cover  14  has been cut, the puller  270  is adept at unwinding the cover  14  as will be apparent hereinafter. The puller  270  comprises a frame  272  on which is mounted an upper set of belts  274  and a lower set of belts  276 . As shown best in  FIGS. 40-41 , the belts  274 ,  276  extend from an inlet end  278  of the frame  272  to an outlet end  280  so that movement of the cover  14  through the puller  270  is shown by the arrow  282 . The belts  274 ,  276  are mounted on drums  284 ,  286  driven in any suitable manner. 
     The belts  274  pass over an intermediate roller  288  and around an end roller  290  and back to the drums  284 . The belts  276  pass over an intermediate roller  292  and around an end roller  294  and back to the drums  286 . An important feature of the puller  270  is a series of beater assemblies  296  located between the drums  284  of the upper belt  272  as shown best in  FIG. 42 . The beater assemblies  296  include a series of flexible beating elements  298  mounted by a suitable connection (not shown) to a shaft  300  between adjacent drums  284 . The elements  298  extend beyond the periphery of the drums  284  so they beat on the cover  14  as the puller  270  is lowered next to the module  12 . The beating elements  298  act to separate the slit end  302  of the cover  14 , or the end of the cover  14  in the event the cover  14  is simply unwound from the module  12 , and deliver the slit end  302  to the bight between the drums  284 ,  286  so that the cover  14  is propelled into engagement between the lower run of the belt  274  and the upper run of the belt  276 . The belts  274 ,  276  are accordingly closely spaced and pull the cover  14  in the direction shown by the arrow  282  during removal. A series of fingers  304  supported by a bracket (not shown) may be provided near the outlet end  280  of the puller  270  to separate the cover  14  from the upper belt  272 , there being the potential for the cover  14  to come up over the top of the puller  270 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 43 , there is illustrated an older type disperser  310  known as a traveling head disperser because modules are placed by a module retriever truck in a line in front of the disperser  310  and the disperser  310  is moved by suitable means in the direction of the arrow  312  to disintegrate modules lined up in front. The disperser  310  includes a hood or housing  314  and a series of disperser heads  316 . Travelling head disperser  310  is typically mounted on rails  318  secured to a concrete floor for movement toward and away from modules placed in front of the hood opening. 
     A device  320  of this invention is mounted in front of the disperser  310  in some manner so it does not contact the disperser  310 , such as by providing an outer set of rails (not shown) so the device  320  can move over the top of the disperser  310 , or the device  320  is simply mounted in front of the disperser  310  which will effectively reduce the number of modules that the disperser  310  can digest in one cycle of movement. 
     The device  320  contains essentially the same components as the device  10 , i.e. a support  322  such as a gantry, a device  324  for raising and lowering each module  12  in order to remove the cover  14  and a mechanism (not shown) to move the support  322  from one module  12  to the next. The operation of the disperser  310  is much like the operation of conventional travelling head dispersers. The module retriever truck discharges the cylindrical modules  12  in a line in front of the disperser  310  with the modules  12  essentially abutting. The device  320  moves to each module  12 , picks it up, removes the cover  14  and replaces the module in its place, either at the front or rear of a row of modules  12 , or in between adjacent modules  12 . After the device  320  has unwrapped the first module adjacent the disperser  310  and moved toward the second module, the disperser  310  can be moved toward the first module to disintegrate it as the device  320  is working on the second module. 
     Although this invention has been disclosed and described in its preferred forms with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure of the preferred forms is only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of operation and in the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.