Importance

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Abstract

Containers such as bottles are conveyed on a conveyor belt in single file between parallel infeed guide rails above its laterally opposite edges to a transition region where the parallel guide rails become confluent with smoothly S-shaped transition side rails that diverge but ultimately become parallel in a container discharge region with the conveyor belt running centrally between them. A flexible and swingable diverter blade has one end fastened down stream of the transition region and has a slider on its other freely movable end. The slider is guided on a rod that extends across and above in the belt in the upstream transition region. A controlled actuator moves the slider back and forth across the belt to swing the diverter blade in one direction for the blade to form a passageway in conjunction with one of the S-shaped side rails and then swings back to form a passageway in conjunction with the other so as to alternately divert container bottles to opposite sides of the longitudinal center line of the belt. The containers encounter a separator guide rail after they pass the diverter blade which rail is arranged over the center line of the belt for cooperating with alternate S-shaped side rails to keep the containers on the belt. Broken bottles become too short for their necks or bodies to be guided so they can fall from the belt.

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First Claim