Patent ID: 8562274

Claim:
A load smart system for continuous loading preformed pouches having an upper edge and an indicia, said system comprising: a pouch delivery device containing a plurality of the preformed pouches; a fill machine having a rotating turret; a plurality of grippers radially extending from said rotating turret, said plurality of grippers rotating between a loading station, an opening station, a filling station, and an unloading station; a robotic transfer device positioned between said pouch delivery device and said loading station of said fill machine, said robotic transfer device having a gripper member operable to pick up the pouch from said pouch delivery device and deposit the pouch within one of said plurality of grippers at said loading station; an optical sensor attached to said gripper member; and a control station having a controller and a database, said database having a plurality of preloaded pouch characteristics correlating to the indicia, said preloaded pouch characteristics include an orientation of the pouch within said pouch delivery device, dimensions of the pouch including a predetermined distance between the upper edge of the pouch and said grippers at said loading station, and sequential movements based on an XYZ coordinate system utilized by said controller to articulate said gripper member to pick up the pouch from said pouch delivery device and deposit the pouch within said grippers with said predetermined distance between the upper edge and said grippers; wherein said optical sensor scans the indicia and said controller accesses said database to determine said preloaded pouch characteristics correlating to the scanned indicia, said controller controls the robotic transfer device to orient said gripper member to pick up the pouch, based on said preload orientation, articulates said gripper member to transfer the pouch to said loading station, based on said sequential movements, and deposits the pouch within said grippers of said loading station with the upper edge of the pouch said predetermined distance from said grippers based on said dimensions of the pouch and said predetermined distance.