Patent ID: 8387903

Claim:
An apparatus for receiving and destructuring collectable items, the apparatus having at least one item destructurer at an exit of the apparatus, the apparatus comprising: an item receiving floor, an item pusher reciprocally slidable along the floor, and means for causing an item when placed on the floor to be engaged by a surface of the pusher and pushed towards and into engagement with said destructurer, wherein drive means of said item pusher is mechanically configured to provide gradually increasing pushing force on the item along the floor towards the destructurer, and wherein said pusher drive means comprises a drive motor and a pushing force mechanism, the pushing force mechanism including at least one pivotally arranged link member and wherein said pushing force mechanism comprises: first, second and third link member pairs; and link registering means, each of said first link members at one end thereof being pivotally operative with a drive shaft of the motor, and at the other end being pivotally connected to one end of an associated one of the second link members, each of said second link members at the other end thereof being pivotally linked to and associated with one of the third link members at a location between the ends thereof, and at a location between its ends being pivotally attached to a housing of the apparatus, and each of said third link members at one end pivotally attached to the pusher, and at its other end being fork shaped for successive engagement with registering pins forming said link registering means upon movement of the pusher from one end position to another end position along the floor.