US1677739A - Assembling machine - Google Patents

Description

July 17, 1928. 1,677,739

l H. E. 'rowNsEND ASSEIIBLING IIACHINE Filed uns, 1925 4 sheets-'sheet 1 IN V EN TOR.

H. E. TOWNSEN s h2 A A TTORNE YS.

i July 17, 1928.,

1,677,739 H. E. TOWNSEND Assmann@ incarna INVENToR. HE. Tow/SEND A TTORNEYS.

July 17, 1928. 1,677,739

H. E. TowNsEND Assauunc ummm; Flea nec. e. 1925 4 sheets-sheet 3 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

H. E. 'row/15mm.

,4 EN h lol July 17, 1928.

, 1,677,739 H. E. 'rowNsEND ASSEIBLING MACHINE Filed Dec. 9. 1925 4 sheets-sheet 4 IN V EN TOR.

H. E. TOW/VSE ND ATToRNYs.

Patented July 17, 1928.

'HARnY E. 'rOwNsnNn or BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

*.AssEMBLING iiinonmii.`

Application ined neceinber 9, i925'. serial no. 74.295..

My invention relates to machines*` for handling articles, and has special reference to machines ot this character that are particularly adapted for use in assembling articles, such as hard candies. iny stacks or rolls.

@ne object of the invention is to provide a machine of this character which isV simple in construction and rapid and eiiicient in op,- eration, rand lwhich is particularly adapted for use in handling hard candies that are coatedwith sugar' and thus are liable to become more. or less moist and sticky in warm weather, and are more Or less kununitorni in shape and size. Y

Another object ot the invention is torprovide a machine of the character indicated in` which there is provision ot means for elin'iiiiating broken pieces, soas to ensure that no such pieces shall reach the assembled articles.

The several features ot' the inventionl whereby the above mentioned and other` Objects may be attained, will be clearly undei'- i.

stood from the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional View of a machine embodying the features of the invention in their preferred form; Fig. 2 is a view corresponding to a portion of Fig. 1 onV an enlarged scale and portions of the sides of saidrods 4 beingr .showing certain parts of the machine in a different position;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, onl an enlarged scale, ot the rear portion of the machine; Fig. 4 is a detail sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 5; y

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on the linee-5 vot Fig. 3; Fig. 6y is a transverse sect'onal view taken on the line 6-6 ol' Fig. 3; Y

Fig. 7 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken on the line 7 7 of Fig. 1;

Figi is a detail sectional view taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 9 is a plan view partly broken away looking tace down oii the inclined raceways ot the machine. n n

The machine illustrated in the drawings is particularly adapted for usein assembling articles` such as hard candies that are in the ttorm ot circular disks, in stacks or rolls. i/is shown. the machine in general comprises a hopper 2 for` receiving the articlesgagitatlevifes 4 which selectively arrange the ingv r artic in rows with tle articles in each .row 'angeli edge to edV in upright posi?- tion; an endlesspconveyor 6 which receives the articles as thus arranged romthe agitat-` ing rdevices and hopper; raceways 8 to which n the several rows of articles are delivered vby said conveyor, and which are .inclined downwardl)7 and diverge toward their lower ends; and devices for causing the endmost articles inmthe severalfraceways to be suc-- cessively delivered into4 position to permit them to be easily removed either by hand or machine, the varticles thus delivered being arranged side by side.

.The hopper 2 is provided with longitudinal 'side walls 12 and 'front and reary end walls 14. The bottom lof the vhopper coniprises a plurality of bars 16 having their ends secured to the front yand rear walls 14 and being arranged side by sideand spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the thieknessof the articles. l The agitating devices 4 comprise bars or rods oit wood which are arranged to slide upon the bottom bars 16 and have their ends projecting through guiding apertures in the front and .rear walls 14 of the hopper., The agitating ldevices or rods 4 are rectangular in cross-section except 'that the upper. portions of their sides extending between the front and rear walls 14 are beveled or inclined upwardly and outwardly as indicated at 18'.y the lower' substantiallyllush withthe sides of the bottom bars 16. These agitating devices or rods 4 are reciprocated in Opposite directions alternately wliich causes the articles to work down over the inclined sides of the v4devicesand into the spaces between the bot# vtom bars16.- the articles entering each space e c eived in the spaces between Athe bars they rest upon the conveyor. rThe front end o f the conveyor is spaceda distance back of the inner lower edge of the front wall of the hopper,` and the conveyor is operated to carry I ther articlesforwardly `thereon and discharge them through said space, the upper ends of the raceways 8 being arranged s o as to re* ceive the articles as theypassthrough said discharge space or opening. Theendless conveyor 6 is driven back., and forth alternately. the advancing movementstliereof beii'rig' substantially twice as long as its bac-,k1

oo l

shaft.

ward movements. Such actuation of the conveyor causes the articles to be fed toward the raceways and at the same time prevents them from materially piling up and clogging the discharge space or oi'ienincadjacent the inlet ends of the raceways. To still further prevent the articles from piling; up and clogging said discharge space or opening, a device is provided which comprises a transverse plate 2O arranged adjacent the upper portion of the inner side of the front wall of the hopper and having); its upper end secured to arms 22 depending.` from a rock shaft 24 which 'is journalled in suitable bearings in brackets 26 mounted on the upper edges of the longitudinal sides of the hopper. The plate 2O has depending teeth 28 secured to its lower end and extendingT downwardly through the spaces between the agitatinp; devices 4L and between the bottom or spacingF bars 16. Upon actuation of the rock shaft 2/l the plate 2O and the teeth 28 are carried back and forth toward and from the front wall la, and thus tend to work the articles back from the front `wall and away from said discharge openi1ii,'the lower end of the teeth 28 being` spaced a sutiicient distance from the front end of the conveyor' 6 to pen mit the articles to pass one ata time beneath cach of them.

The agitatinp,` devices t are reciprocated in opposite directionsalternately, as above described, by means of rocker arms 30 and 32 which are alternately arranged. The lower ends of the arms 30 and 32 are mounted upon a rock shaft 34; and their upper ends are forked so as to embrace rearwardly extending;- rods or pins 36 secured to the .rear ends of the agitating` devices i and each is positioned between abutment washers and nuts 3S screw-threaded upon the pins. The oscillating` arms 32 are secured to the rock shaft M- so to be actuated thereby, while lthe arms 30 are pi'vetally mounted upon the rock shaft 34 and means is provided forl oscillating the latter arms uponthe rock lhejrock shaft 231i has its ends eX- tended through bearings in rearwardly projecting` brackets l2 and is actuated by a shaft 40 having its ends extending through and journaled in bearings in said brackets 42. rllhe ends of the shaft 40 project beyond the outer sides of the brackets 42 and are reduced in diameter and arranged eccentrically of the axis of the shaft. The connection between the shaft i-0 and the rock shaft 3a comprises links ist having one end pivotally mounted upon the eccentric ends of the shafty l0 and havingI their other ends` pivotally connected by studs 'or pins i6 with the free ends of arms i8 that are secured to the projecting ends of the rock shaft 34.

The rocker arms 30 form one arm of bell crank levers, the otlier arms 5t) of which engage a rod 52, the two endmost arms 5() beingsl provided with apertures through which the rod loosely extends so as to support the rod` and the remaining arms 50 having bifurcated ends that straddle the rod. The ends lof the rod 52 extend through clearance openings in the brackets 42, and links 54e connect the ends of said rod with the eccentric ends of the actuatingr shaft 40. lith this construc tion. it will. be apparentthat upon rotation of the shaft 40, the rocker arms 30 and 32 will be reeiprocated in opposite directions as desired. o

The shaft ll-O is driven from the driving shaft 58 of the machine through sears 6() and 61 (Fig. 4) secured to the shaft 4() and to a shaft 62 havingV its ends journaled in bearings in the brackets 42. The shaft 62 carries a spiral `gear 64 that engages' a spiral gear 66 mounted opon the rear endof a downvmrdly and forwardly inclined shaft GS which has its rear end'journaled in a bearing; on a bracket G9 secured to the right hand bracket 4t2 and having its forward end joui naled in a nearing; on the machine frame. The lower end of the inclined shaft carries a spiral gear 72 that is engaged by a spiral gear 74 carried by a transverse shaft 76 that has its ends journaled in suitable bearings in the. frame of the machine, and is driven by a sprocket chain 78 that passes over sprocket wheels 80 secured on said shaft and a shaft 82. This shaft 82 is driven through a large gear 84 secured thereon and engaged by a pinion 86 carried by the d riving shaft 58, the latter shaft being continuously driven by a pulley 8'?.

The endless conveyor 6 passes over pulleys or drums 88 that are carried by shafts 89 and 90,v respectively, `iournaled in bearings in the machine frame. conveyor passes over a supporting table 91 so as to maintain it substantially fiat. rlf'he conveyor may be divided longitudinally into a number of sections, which are maintained under proper tension by upwardly springl pressed tension rolls 92 that engage the lower runs thereof. One end of the drum shaft 89 carries ratchet wheels 93 and 9st having their teeth oppositely arranged and engaged by actuating` pawls 95 and 96. These pawls 95 and 96 are pivotally mounted on an oscillatingl lever 97 which is pivotally mounted upon the outer end of the drum shaft 89. The pawls are pressed toward the ratchet wheels by a spring,l 98 coiled about a stud, $9 on the lever 9i", and has its ends engaging the top sides of the pawls. The pawl '96 is adapted toride upon a pin 100 projecting' from the side of the .hopper duringl a portion of the movement of the lever 9T in both directions. Wlith vthis construction, during the movement of the lever 97 in a counter' clockwise direction, viewing Fig. 3, the pawl 95 and ratchet wheel 93 aet through the shaft 89 to rotate the conveyor G ina The upper run of the 'nii lll)

direction to carry the articles Vtoward the racewa-ys8; and during the vmovement of the lever 97 lin the opposite direction, the pawl 96 and ratchet wheelv 94 actto reverse the movement of the conveyor. During l `the latter movement ofthe lever 97 Athepawl 96 rides upon the pin 100 and thereby is not permitted to operatively `engage its ratchet wheel until near the last half of said move- 4ment of the lever 97. Thus it will be apparent, that upon actuation of theoscillating lever 97, the endless conveyor 6 will be driven in opposite directions, the advancing movements thereof being substantially twice as long as its retractingmovements, as above described. The lever 97 is'actuatedby link or rod 101 hav-ing one end pivotally connected with the lever and its other end pivotally connected with a crank arm 102 secured on one end of the shaft 62. l i

The rock shaft 24 that carries the oscillating device or comb28 is actuated by a link or rod 103 having one end pivotally connected with an arm 104 secured to said; shaft, and having its other end pivotally mounted on the reduced end of the shaft 62, which end is arranged eccentrically lto the axis of th`eshaft. u, u w Q' The major upper portions of the raceways 8'are arranged side by side'vand spaced apart, and each comprises. a bottomfstrip 106, and a top strip 107 lwhich is providedA withA a longitudinally extending-groove for receiving and guiding'l theupper portions of lthe articles as they ride down 'upon the bottom plate. The top plates 107 are all secured to the under side of transverse `bars 108having their ends fsecuredon the upper ends of standards 109 secured tofthemachine frame. The bottom .strips 106 areallmounted upon transverse bars 110 secured to thel standards.

Screw bolts 111'ex'tendlooselyfthrough aper.- tures in the 'cross barsv 110 and are. screw-y threaded into the undersidesof the bottom strips 106 so as to v:hold the strips'from longiQ tudinal movement 'but permitting limited vibratory movement thereof. The top surface vof the upper portion 11,2 ofeach y of the bottom strips 106 lis substantially flat, while the remaining` portionthereof is provided with a longitudinal g'roove1113, VlVith this construction, in case a broken' article enters one of the raceways, the vibration ofthe plate by means hereinafter described, causes itto be discharged over the edge of the `iattened portion 112, of the strip, thus `it is prevented from riding dwn the length of the raceway.. l Y A y The several .bottomy strips 106 of the raceways are vibrated by means of devices comprising adjustable"screws114",` which'y are mounted upon a platey115 thatis secured on the upwardly turned end of a lever 116 which is pivotall'y' mountedv upon the sprocket wheel shaft 82..' The lever 116 car- 'the ends of the screws 114 to strike against the undersides of the bottom strips of the raceways and thus vibrate the strips.

The remaining `portions of the raceways 8, comprise bottom members 120 each 'of which is provided with a relatively deep longitudinally extending groove 121` for guiding the articles, andal'lof the members are securedy upon a sheet metal plate 122 whichfhas its upper end mounted upon a transverse bar 124 that is vsupported and eX tends between` standards 126 secured to the machine frame. The lower portion of the platey 122 is mounted upon ay transverse n bracket Vmember 1128 secured to the frame.

Bolts 130'eXtend through apertures in the transverse supporting bar 124 andbracket member 128 and are screw-threaded into the sheet metalfplate 122 so as to Ahold the platey from longitudinal movement but permitting it to be vibrated y'sofas to vibrate the'raceway members'120.y kTopstrips 132 extend over the members 120, and have their upper endsr secured by bolts 134 to va transverse bar 136 extendingr .between the standards 126, and

havetheir lower'portions secured bolts 138 to a transvei'se'har 140 extending hetween standards 142 which is securedI to. the bracket member 128. Thelower ends of the strips 132 are spaced aV distance backofthe forward ends vof thebottomraceway members 120.y The sheet metal plate 122 and the bottom members 1,20 lof the racewaysarev adapted to be vibrated by means of a hammer 144r which is formed upon lthe upwardly turned end of a lever 1146 which is pivotally c mouted upon therearsprocket wheel shaft f 76 and is provided with a'cam roll 148 which is held in engagement with a rcam 150r on the lower sprocket wheel shaft 82 by means `of a 'coiled spring 152having one end con? nected with the lever and its other end secured tothevmachine frame. n

An escapement bar- 153y extends transversely over the lower end portions of the raceways in front "of the lower ends of the top strips 132 and is provided with depending ears onits ends that are secured on pivot shafts. 154 and 155 which extend through bearings 156 mounted upon the bracket member 128, the pivot shafts being invalinem'ent andv having their axis iny sub-` stantial'ly the same plane with the axes of the articles as they move down `thev raceways. The under side of 'the bar 153 is curved concentricall'y with the axis. of the bar, and its 'radiusof curvature is slightly greater than that of the articles. When the 4ment of the roll.

vstop member 158 is released.

escapement bar 153 is in the position shown in Fig. 1, it serves as a stop to limit the downward movement of the candies in the several raceways and causes the candies to` benniformly arranged in each raceway one behind the other and in contact with each other, and with the candies in the several raceways arranged side by side, and with the endmost candies in close proximity. When the escapeinent bar is turned in a counter-clockwise direction to the position shown inllig. 9., it permits the articles to advance down the raceways until the endmost articles engage the under curved surfac'eof the bar, which limits said advancing .moie- Then the escapement bar 153 vis then swung back to its initialposition, it releases said end most row of articles andengages the next succeeding row so as to hold it from advancing movement, but permits the row that is` released to drop down into engagement with a second stop member 158. A supporting` plate 159 .is interposed between the ends of the raceways and thestop member 158. kThe stop member 158 comprises a plate or bar having upwardly extending ears 160 on its `ends which lembrace and are secured to a shaft 162 hav- AThe members 153 and 158 are connected `to move in unison so that when the i'nember 153 releases the endmost row of articles to permit it to separate from the others, the stop members 158 isbrought into position to limity said movement of that row, and when the member 153 is swung in the opposite direction to permit limitedv advancing movement of the articles in the several raceways, as above described, the stop member 158 is swung forwardly outro-f the way so as to permit the row of articles that may be held thereby to Adrop down into 'a discharge chute 166. It is intended, however, that the separated row of articles shall be removed before the stop member 158 is swung out of the way. In case, however, the operator should.A find that there is not the requisite number of articles in the row or for other reasons, hemay permit the row to remain in position and thus be discharged through the discharge chute 166 when the Because of the thickness of the walls between the raceways, the articles delivered. tl'ierefrom to the station adjacent the stop 158 are spaced apart, but it will be apparent that in removing the row the articles may be easily brought together to form a stack or roll.

It will be apparent that the members 153 and 158 may be operated either by hand or automatically. In the construction illustrated in the drawings they are shown as operable by means of a hand operated lever 168 that is secured upon a shaft 170 is pressed upwardly by means of a coiled spring 180 having one end secured to an arm that is secured to the shaft 170 and having its other end secured tothe machine frame The escapement member 153 is connected with the lever 168through an arm 182 (Fig. 9) secured to the projecting` end of the pivot shaft 1.511 and connected 4by a link 184 with the free end of the lever. The 'stop member 158 is connected with the lever 168 by 'an arm 186 secured to the projecting end of the shaft 169J and` connected by a link 188 with the freeend of the lever 168. The lever 168 is provided with van operating handle 190.

In the position of the parts shown in Fig. 1, the lever 168y is pressed downwardly by the operator so as to move the stop member 158 into its stopping position to be engaged by the row of articles discharged from the raceways,A and the member 153 into `engagement with the lowermost articles in the several raceways. Vhen the handle 190 yis released bythe operator, the lever 168 is swung upwardly, by its spring to position the members 153 and 158 in the position shown in Fig. 2, as above described.

The forward edge of the escapement 153 is spaced a sufl'icient distance above the bottom plate 120 so that Vin case a broken or small piece of candy reaches the lower end of its raceway it may pass beneath the escapement and be dischargedinto` the chute 166, whereupon the next candy in the raceway may move downwardly gravity vto take its place against theescapement. 1

As will be evident to those skilled in the art, my invention permits various modifications without departing from the spirit thereof or. the scope of the appended claims.

lhat I claim is: 1. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination,` a

hopper having a discharge opening adjacent to its lower end, an endless conveyor adjacent to the bottom of the hopperlfor conveying the articles toward said dischargeopening, mea-ns for arranging' the articles on said conveyor in rows `extending longitudinally thereof, with the articles in 'each rowy arranged edge to edge in upright position, and means for imparting advancing and retraeting movements to said conveyor to tend to move the articles toward and from said discharge opening, said ,advancing movements being of greater extent than the retracting movements. l

2. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination,l a hopper, an endless conveyor adjacent to the bottom of the hopperhaving one end thereof spaced a distance away yfrom the lowerend of a wall ofsaid hopper to provide an opening through whichvthe articles may be discharged, mea-ns for arranging the articlesfon said conveyor Vinrows eat/ending le 'l nally thereof with the articles in each row arranged edge to edge in u pright position, and means for imparting advancingand retracting movements to saidv conveyor to tend to move the articles toward and from said discharge opening, said advancing movements being ot greater extent than the retracting movements. y

' 3. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combinatiomra hoppper, a plurality'o'f bars arranged longitudinally adjacent to the bottom of ,the hopper and spaced apart a distance slightly greater that the thickness oty the articlesr so as to permit the articles to be positioned between them in upright position, means fory thus positioning the articlesbetween the bars, means for reciprocating alternatebars in opposite directions, and a conveyorexf tending beneathY said bars for-conveying Athe articles vlongitudinally ofthe bars and dis-y charging them adjacent to one end thereof. 4. A machine vfor handling articles. of the kind described having, in combination, a

hopper` a plurality of bars arranged longi.

tudinally adjacent to the bottom ofthe hopper and spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the thicknesszot the. articles so as to permit the articles to be placed in up#y iiglit position between the bars, agitating members mounted tov slide longitudinally over the tops of the bars, said members being spaced apart so as to permit the articles to drop downwardly between the bars, means for reciprocating said agitator-s longitudi- V nally. and a conveyor for conveying the articles thus positioned between the bars rlongitudinally thereof and discharging tl'iem adjacent to one end thereof. y

5. A machine for handling Aarticles of the kind described having, iny combination, a`

hopper, a pluralitj7 of agitating members arranged longitudinally of thevhopper and adapted to be reciprocated longitudinally, the lower portions of said members being spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the thickness of said'articles", and the upper iportionsthereot being inclined outwardly so as to direct the articles in upright position downwardly between said lmembers,

means for reciprocating said members, and

means for conveying the articles inthe position arranged bysaid members from said hopper.

6. A machine for handling articles of the,

kind described having, in. `combination, a

lhopper, a plurality of agitating lmembers arranged longitudinally adjacent'the bottom ot the hopper and spaced apartl a 'distance 'slightly greater than the thicknessrof theV after they pass between said. agitating members.

the articles.

i. 7 A machine forvhandling articles of the l kind described having, in combination, a y hopper having a discharge opening adjacent to its lower end, a plurality yof bars arranged' longitudinally adjacent to the bottom ot the hopper and spaced'apart a distance slightly `greaterthan ,the thickness ot the articles, means lor directingI the articles downwardly between the bars comprising agitating members mounted to slide longitudinally over the top longitudinal sides ot saidv bars, means for reciprocatingsaid agitating .members longitudinally, yan agitator arranged adjacent vthe discharge end ot said. bars .andy agitating members and having ,teethy extending downwardly between said agitating members and between said. bars, and means for oscillating said agitator to 'cause the teeth lthereof to work back and forth in said spaces. 'l y Y 8. Avmachine for handling articles ofthe kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in Vrows with the articles in each row'arranged edge to edge in upright position, rracewaystor receiving the several/rows, respectively, and

having their nforward portions spaced apart,

stripl upon which fthe articles rest,vv andy a grooved strip for guiding the'upper portions,

:for handling articles of the 9.` A mach'n'e having, in combination,

kind l described means forassembling the articlesin' rows Y' with the articles in each "row arranged edge to edge in uprightv position, 'raceways for receiving the several rows, respectively, each of said raceways being inclined downwardly from saidassembling means rand the' upper 'portions thereof being substantiallyV parallel, andthe remaining portions diverging so as to position their rear 'or lower yends in close proximity, each ra'ceway comprising a bottom strip upon whichthe articles rest, anda grooved vstrip for guidingthe upper portions ot'the articles, the In'p'perend portionsv ot said bottom strips'being spaced apart and substantially fiat. l

10. yA machine for'liandling'articles of the kind 'described having, in combination, Ymeans 'for assembling the articles in rows with the articles in leach row arranged edge to edge in,upright-position, raceways for receivingthe several rows, respectively, 4inclined downwardly ,"from said 'assembling means, and each comprising a strip upon which the articles rest,vand a groove'd strip for guiding the Lipper portions of the articles, Vsaid bottom strip being looselyniounted, and vmeans for vibrating said bottom strip. "11. A machine for handling articles of the kind describedr having, inv combination, a plurality of raceways arranged' 'side 'by side lio and inclined downwardly and rearwardly,

' the lower end portion of said raceways comprising a plate and a plurality of strips arranged side by side and spaced apart mounted upon the plate `for receiving the articles'between them, said plate being loose ly mounted, and means for vibrating said plate.

12. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in rows arranged side by side with the articles 1n each row arranged side by side, a device pivotally mounted with its axis substantially in the plane of the axes of the articles of said rows engaging the endmost row to hold the several rowsfrom advancing movement and adapted to be released from said endmost row to permit the several rows to advance and to re-engage the endmost row to limit said advancing movement thereof, and adapted to be thereafter' released from said endmost row and by engagement with the next succeeding row` to hold the remaining rows from advancing movement, and means for thus operating said device.

13. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in rows arranged side by side with the articles in each row arranged side by side, a device en- 'gaging the endmost row to hold the several rows from advancing movement and adapted to be released from said endmost row to permit the several rows to advance and to re-engage the endmost row to limit said advancing movement thereof, and adapted to be thereafter released from said endmost row and by engagement with the next succeeding row to hold the remaining rows fromadvancing movement, means for thus operating said device, a stop for limiting the last-mentioned advancing movement of said endmost row, and means for releasing said stop.

111. A machine for handling articles ofthe kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in rows arranged side by side with the articles in each row arranged side by side, a member pivotally mounted with its axis substantially in the plane of the axes of said rows, and

having a pocket adapted when the memberis in one position to receive the endmost row to hold the rows from advancing movement, when moved to another position to release said endmost row and to engage the next succeeding row to hold the remaining rows from advancing movement, and means for operating said member.

15. A machine for handling'articles of the lkind described having, in combination, means for assembling'` the articles in rows arranged side by side with the articles in to hold the remaining rows from advancing movement, a stop for limiting the `advancing movement of said first-mentioned endmost row when released from said device, and means for simultaneously releasingv said stop from said last-mentioned row and for releasing said device from said next succeeding row and for causing said reengagement of said device with said last-mentioned` row.

16. A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in 'rows arranged side by side with the articles in each row 'arranged side byk side, a device adapted to engage the endmost row to hold the several rows from advancing movement, means adapted to be operated by the operator for releasing said device from said endmost row to permit said row to advance independently of the other rows, and to cause said device to engage the next succeeding row to hold the ren'iaining rows from advancing movement, and upon release of said means by the operator acting automaticallyV to release said device from said next succeeding row to peri'nit'the several rows to advance, and to cause said device to re-engage said next succeeding rowl to limit the ad# vancing movement of said rows, a stop for limiting said advancing movement of the endmost row independently of the other rows, and means under the control of the operator for releasing said stop.

17.- A machine for handling articles of the kind described having, in combination, means for assembling the articles in rows with the articles in each row arranged edge to edge in upright position, raceways for receiving the several rows, respectively, each comprising abottom strip upon which the articles yrest in upright position, the several raceways and their bottom strips having their upper portions spaced a distance apart to permit broken pieces of the articles to 'drop down between them, and their lower HARRY n; Tiowivsinvn.`

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