Patent ID: 8297431

Claim:
An apparatus ( 1 ) for unscrambling and aligning bulk plastic containers ( 2 ), comprising: a substantially circular hopper ( 6 ) to collect the containers ( 2 ) the hopper comprising an outer wall ( 5 ) and a bottom; a plurality of pockets ( 7 ) to cradle the containers ( 2 ), the pockets arranged in a circular ring ( 7 a ) inside and concentric with the hopper ( 6 ) between the bottom and the outer wall ( 5 ); an aperture ( 5 a ) formed in the outer wall ( 5 ); a checking device ( 11 ) to monitor an orientation of each container ( 2 ); a rotary pull-out turret ( 50 ); linear guides ( 40 ) mounted on the rotary pull-out turret ( 50 ); a plurality of pick-up units ( 3 ) arranged to pick up the containers ( 2 ), the pick-up units ( 3 ) mounted to the pull-out turret ( 50 ), each said pick-up unit ( 3 ) adapted to pull out the container ( 2 ) from the pocket ( 7 ) at the corresponding aperture ( 5 a ) and rotate the container neck up, said pull-out action being substantially radial to the position of the container ( 2 ) in the ring ( 7 a ) of pockets ( 7 ), wherein each pick-up unit ( 3 ) comprises a rotation adjusting unit ( 14 ) provided to adjust rotation in a first horizontal axis (AA), each pick-up unit ( 3 ) slideably mounted to one of said linear guides ( 40 ) to allow a height adjustment of the pick-up unit ( 3 ) in a second axis (BB), to change both the pick-up position and the release location according to the type of container ( 2 ), and wherein the checking device ( 11 ) to monitor the orientation of the container ( 2 ) in the cradling pocket ascertains the orientation prior to the container's arrival at the aperture ( 5 A), and preventively transmits the proper orientation of the pick-up unit ( 3 ) to said pick-up unit ( 3 ), by adjusting the rotation in first horizontal axis AA and the height in second axis BB.