Patent ID: 7784603

Claim:
Gripping Device (G) for containers (B), in particular for bottles in container transport systems or container handling systems, comprising at least two relative to each other movable gripper arms, the gripper arms being impinged in gripper direction by magnetically cooperating permanent magnets (P 1 , P 2 , P 3 , P 4 ), the permanent magnets simultaneously repelling and attracting each other, the permanent magnets being designed in such manner and arranged movably relative to each other by the working motion of the gripping device (G) that the sum is essentially constant of the repulsive and attractive forces acting in grip direction on the gripper arms within a pre-determined grip range (d 1 to d 2 ) covering various container grip sizes, wherein the first and second permanent magnets (P 1 , P 2 ) have one of like, mutually repelling polarities (N, N; S, S) or opposing, mutually attracting polarities (N, S; S, N), the first and second permanent magnets (P 1 , P 2 ) are connected with one of grippers arms or gripper arm extensions, at least a third permanent magnet (P 3 , P 4 ) is aligned with one of the first or second permanent magnets (P 1 , P 2 ), and the third permanent magnet (P 3 ), with repelling first and second permanent magnets and with attracting first and second permanent magnets, operates with the same polarity as the assigned first or second permanent magnet.