PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 15909033
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2018-03
Publication Date: 2018-09
Patent Classification: ["414", "795200"]

Abstract:
An automatic egg tray stacking apparatus turns alternate egg trays through the operation of movable guides at the junction with a loading conveyor before conveying the egg trays toward a stacking mechanism that first stops the egg tray and then lowers the stack on top of the egg tray before re-elevating the partially formed stack to permit the entrance of a new egg tray into the stacking mechanism. Once the stack of egg trays is completed, the stack is allowed to move onto a stack conveyor and is moved forwardly for shipment. The stacking mechanism is operated by a single actuator having dual pneumatic cylinders that provide a three position operation of the lifting function with the stacking mechanism having lifter members engaging all four sides of the lowermost egg tray of the elevated stack. A control mechanism operates the apparatus with input from appropriately positioned sensors.

Claim (Index 15):
An egg tray stacking apparatus comprising:\n a loading conveyor carrying a supply of egg trays in a first orientation to be formed into a stack; a first conveyor oriented perpendicularly to said loading conveyor and being positioned to receive egg trays from said loading conveyor; a movable guide member mounted on said first conveyor and being movable between a retracted position and an engagement position, the positioning of said movable guide member into said engagement position engages a corner of an egg tray moving along said first conveyor to allow said engaged egg tray to rotate approximately ninety degrees to affect an orientation of alternating egg trays in different orientations with odd numbered egg trays being in a first orientation and even numbered egg trays being in a second orientation perpendicular to said first orientation; a stacking mechanism operable at a stacking location along said second conveyor, said stacking mechanism including:\n a forward stop member operable to stop an incoming egg tray along said first conveyor; and \n four lifter members corresponding respectively to the four sides of said incoming egg tray stopped by said forward stop member within said stacking mechanism, said lifter members being selectively movable in unison vertically to elevate said incoming egg tray; and \n an actuator mechanism operably connected to said stacking mechanism to control the vertical positioning of said forward stop member and said four lifter members, said actuator mechanism being operable to position said lifter members in three vertically spaced positions, including a stop position, a stack elevating position and a retracted position that permits passage of a fully completed stack of egg trays past said forward stop member to a stack conveyor.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 32.0
- Percentile: 90.0
- Lexical Diversity: 1.80952
- Patent Class: 414.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['12286700', '10143861', '11412051', '10919179', '13139915']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.8297843718124359
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.5107608914219528
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.7978820237733877
- Mean Citation Score: 250.904004
- Max Citation Score: 272.376
- Similarity Product: 169.0234887084961

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 1
- Claim Label 112: 1
- Combined Label: 1
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test