Patent ID: 7018285

Claim:
An apparatus for guiding and aligning dispensed discs, the apparatus comprising: a hopper for dispensing discs; a guiding device, having a guiding passageway, which guides and aligns the discs; a disc holding device for holding one or more discs in the guiding device located at a lower section of the guiding passageway including a guide housing forming a slanting surface relative to the guiding passageway and opened relative to the guiding passageway opposite the slanting surface and a ball mounted within the guide housing for relative movement along the slanting surface into the guiding passageway for preventing discs from being released at the lower section of the guiding passageway, the slanting surface having an opening smaller than a diameter of the ball at a position adjacent the lowest relative movement of the ball when it engages and prevents a disc from being released at the lower section of the guiding passageway wherein an operator can insert a tool through the opening in the guide housing slanting surface to release the ball from engagement with the disc to enable a release of discs at an entrance to the lower section of the guiding passageway; and a supporting plate pivotally mounted on the guiding device at one end above the guide housing and extending over the guide housing, the supporting plate having a first opening for receiving a joining device below the guide housing for attachment to the guiding device.