Patent ID: 7775756

Claim:
A bucket transfer apparatus for transferring buckets to storage racks of a cart, the apparatus comprising: a conveyor; a turntable, disposed intermediate opposite ends of the conveyor, for lifting and rotating a bucket to adjust the position of the bucket on the conveyor; a bucket detecting sensor, provided proximate the turntable, for detecting the position of the bucket on the conveyor; a transfer frame; an elevating device operably supported in the transfer frame; a supporting arm connected to the elevating device and being movable in a horizontal direction perpendicular to a bucket storage direction along which a bucket is transferred to a storage rack of the cart; first and second holding devices connected to first and second ends of the supporting arm, respectfully, wherein the first holding device comprises a first opening/closing arm, a first holding piece provided at a lower end of the first opening/closing arm, first guiding rollers provided on opposite sides of the first opening/closing arm, and a pair of first guiding plates each having a guiding groove for receiving the at least one of the first guiding rollers on a corresponding side of the first opening/closing arm, wherein the second holding device comprises a second opening/closing arm, a second holding piece provided at a lower end of the second opening/closing arm, second guiding rollers provided on opposite sides of the second opening/closing arm, and a pair of second guiding plates each having a guiding groove for receiving at least one of the second guiding rollers on a corresponding side of the second opening/closing arm, wherein the first and second opening/closing arms are arranged to close while being lifted to hold the bucket from opposite sides of the bucket storage direction and to open while descending to release the bucket; and a push-out member for pushing the bucket, held by the first and second opening/closing arms, out in a horizontal direction that is parallel to the bucket storage direction; wherein, when pushing the bucket out by the push-out member, the push-out member engages a rear wall of the bucket below a brim portion of the bucket, and, when a front end of the bucket is located above a brim supporting portion of the storage rack on an intrusion side thereof, the first and second opening/closing arms are moved downwardly and opened to release the holding condition of the bucket, and thereby the bucket is delivered by the push-out member at an angle with respect to the storage racks.