An automatic cart transport system. A track located in a factory working floor provides a trackway for an endless flexible conveyor chain. A plurality of chain units including a first chain portion having vertical rollers and a second chain portion having horizontal rollers are flexibly coupled, and the chain is advanced along the trackway by a drive motor. The chain units support thereabove, but within the track, a coupling plate having therein an aperture for accepting and capturing a chain connection shaft which is detachably connected to a cart. The cart is automatically towed along a defined pathway on the working floor of a factory by the chain, when connected to the coupling plate on the endless flexible conveyor chain.

A transport system for transporting capsules within a machine for preparing capsules for producing capsules. Housings, wherein each housing is configured to house a capsule for producing beverages, and wherein the housings comprise at least a first housing for holding a first capsule and a second housing for holding a second capsule, wherein the second capsule is different in size and/or shape from the first capsule. Seats are configured to receive one of the housings with each seat configured to receive either the first housing or the second housing. An extractor extracts the first housing from a seat in which it is received. An insertor inserts the second housing into the seat. A machine for preparing capsules for producing beverages in which such a transport system is implemented is also presented.

A blow moulding machine for blow moulding a container having an integrally formed handle; said container blow moulded from a previously injection moulded preform; said preform comprising a body portion and said integrally formed handle; said machine including a preform loading station at which said preform is oriented by a preform orienting apparatus.

A permanently fixed or transportable power generation station employs one or more shelter structures, containing a chain or series of photovoltaic solar panels on wheeled support frames, each hinged one to the next. The system can be deployed onto a large, relatively flat land area, e.g., unprepared or prepared land surfaces, where the solar panel chain(s) can be extended out and secured by various attachment methods which may include external tracks, cable or bracket attachment systems. Wind turbines on the housings can be raised or tipped up for collection of wind-generated energy. The captured energy is stored in a bank of housed storage batteries and can be delivered to the local electric grid, used for electric vehicle charging stations or provided for primary or back-up power to critical infrastructure.

A permanently fixed or transportable power generation station employs one or more shelter structures, containing a chain or series of photovoltaic solar panels on wheeled support frames, each hinged one to the next. The system can be deployed onto a large, relatively flat land area, e.g., unprepared or prepared land surfaces, where the solar panel chain(s) can be extended out and secured by various attachment methods which may include external tracks, cable or bracket attachment systems. Wind turbines on the housings can be raised or tipped up for collection of wind-generated energy. The captured energy is stored in a bank of housed storage batteries and can be delivered to the local electric grid, used for electric vehicle charging stations or provided for primary or back-up power to critical infrastructure.

A method of transferring an item between a motor vehicle and a locker can include extending an extension mechanism between a motor vehicle and a locker. The extension mechanism includes a conveyor system having an extension mechanism item carrying surface. The locker includes a conveyor system having a locker item carrying surface. The method assesses whether the motor vehicle is receiving an item from the locker, or transferring an item to the locker. When the item is to be transferred from the locker, the method positions the extension mechanism relative to the locker such that the extension mechanism item carrying surface is vertically lower than the locker item carrying surface. When the item is to be transferred from the motor vehicle, the method positions the extension mechanism relative to the locker such that the extension mechanism item carrying surface is vertically higher than the locker item carrying surface.

This disclosure concerns an article and a method for using it. The article enables the user to conveniently stand, temporarily, on the rollers of a roller conveyor. The user sets the article on the roller conveyor, stands on the article, and when finished with his task, steps off the article and removes it from the roller conveyor. The article is made of a material which is light and strong, such as ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. It features semi-circular recesses in a bottom surface which selectively and operatively receive the rollers of the roller conveyor. Packages can pass on the roller conveyor and the rollers can still turn in many cases, while the package passes next to the article.

Embodiments of product handling systems facilitate transfer of individual product items from incoming bulk form into dedicated trays for inspection, sorting, selection, and packaging. Inspection may comprise interrogation of product items within a tray by electromagnetic (e.g., optical, hyperspectral) or other (e.g., physical, acoustic, gas sensing, etc.) techniques. Prior to packaging, product items disposed within the tray may be stored in a moveable carousel responsible for controlling environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, illumination, ambient gases, product-to-product interactions, and/or others. Movement of product items from a carousel's transfer station to an outside staging position may be accomplished using robots and/or conveyor belts. Embodiments may allow rapid, low-cost consumer selection of specific individual product items based upon their accompanying metadata (e.g., source, identifier), in combination with the results of inspection (e.g., visual appearance). Embodiments may receive product items pre-packaged in tray format to expedite inspection, sorting, selection, and packaging.

A vertical washer or dryer, such as integrated into an egg handling operation. The vertical washer or dryer includes a vertically extending body supporting a carousel conveyor adapted to support pluralities of eggs during transport in successive ascending and descending fashion within the body between an inlet location and an outlet location of the body. A first egg conveyor communicates the eggs with the inlet location of the carousel conveyor, a second egg conveyor communicating the eggs with the outlet location. A least one of a plurality of egg washer spray bars or, in the separate variant, a plurality of egg dryer air knives, are integrated into the body in communication with the carousel conveyor for washing/drying the eggs while supported upon the carousel conveyor.

A laboratory distribution system is presented. The system comprises diagnostic laboratory container carriers and a conveyor. The conveyor comprises an endless drive defining a closed-loop conveyor pathway. The system comprises supporting elements attached to the endless drive. The supporting elements receive a container carrier and transport the container carrier in an upright position along a pathway section. The supporting elements are mounted pivotally about a horizontal pivot axis to the drive and structured such that a center of gravity of the supporting element with or without an empty or loaded container carrier is arranged below and vertically aligned with the pivot axis when the supporting element is in an upright position such that each supporting element is free to pivot about the associated pivot axis under the effect of gravitational forces acting on the supporting element for maintaining the supporting elements in an upright position while travelling along the path.