A seat arrangement of a passenger cabin includes at least two seat groups. The at least two seat groups are arranged consecutively between two passenger aisles running parallel to a longitudinal direction of the passenger cabin and each have two outer seat units and just one central seat unit. The seat units are set in a seating configuration. A central seat unit of at least one of the at least two seat groups is arranged offset with respect to at least one of the outer seat units of the same seat group in the longitudinal direction of the passenger cabin, as a result of which each seat unit has obstacle-free access to at least one cabin aisle.

An article induction system for preparing a stream of articles, such as mail parcels, for processing employs a series of conveyors operating under control of a controller for feeding articles to an operator at a cull belt at an optimal paced rate. The article induction system includes a destacking section, a separation and alignment section, a buffer section and a culling section manned by an operator. A controller controls the speed of each component based on measurements provided by sensors so as to feed articles to the operator at a desired paced rate.

An apparatus includes a linear feeding-unit having a first linear section and a transfer device that transfers containers, as a group, from the linear feeding-unit to a clocked processing-machine and an entry device having a main feeding-unit distribution-stars. The first distribution-star receives containers from the main feeding-unit at a first transfer-region and transfers and the second distribution-star receives containers from the main feeding-unit at a second transfer-region. A periphery of the first distribution-star comprises a receiving section that receives containers from the main feeding-unit and an empty section interrupts receiving of the containers. The empty section is devoid of supporting-and-retaining elements. However, the receiving section comprises as many supporting-and-retaining elements as there are containers in the container group.

A method for separating containers in a densely packed container flow from each other so that they are spaced by a defined distance includes using a compartment star to place the containers on a rearrangement portion and then sweeping the containers forward using catch elements that move along the rearrangement portion so that they arrive at an inlet star with a separation that enables them to be picked up by a waiting inlet-star receptacle.

A product selection and grouping system for the metering, selection, grouping and accumulation of varying size and/or configuration products into packs for packing in a substantially continuous motion operation is provided. The product selection and grouping system includes a metering station that receives the products in a substantially continuous line of flow from a product infeed, and meters the line of products to selectively form a series of spaces therebetween. The metered products are formed and fed to a product grouping conveyor in groups of sets a selected number of products, and are engaged by laning flights of a laning unit, which transfer the product groups to selected ones of a series of lanes defined along the product grouping conveyor. The groups of products are accumulated for transfer to a downstream packing machine.

Machine and method for conveying items in a production line, wherein there is an incoming batch of separate items on or in an incoming batch carrier, the plurality of items of the incoming batch are moved in a perpendicular vertical direction, while keeping the items immovable relative to the incoming batch carrier in the horizontal plane, the captured items are brought directly above a horizontal conveyor belt having a horizontal movement in a direction of travel in the horizontal plane, a horizontal movement of the items is adjusted and synchronized with the movement speed of the conveyor belt, the items are moved in the vertical direction in order to bring the items to rest on the conveyor belt while maintaining the horizontal movement of the items synchronized with the movement speed of the conveyor belt, then the items are discharged in a batch of outgoing items by the conveyor belt.

Apparatus for handling bars including a support plane configured to support a plurality of bars having an oblong development, and handling devices configured to remove a bar from a removal zone of the support plane and to deliver it to a delivery zone. Movement devices are associated with the support plane which are configured to distribute the bars on the support plane and to move them toward the removal zone.

Apparatus for handling bars including a support plane configured to support a plurality of bars having an oblong development, and handling devices configured to remove a bar from a removal zone of the support plane and to deliver it to a delivery zone. Movement devices are associated with the support plane which are configured to distribute the bars on the support plane and to move them toward the removal zone.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for grouping containers, comprising: a first conveyor belt for transporting the containers in a first transport direction; a second conveyor belt; a container receiving device; a transfer device, which is designed to transfer at least some of the containers from the first conveyor belt to the second conveyor belt transversely to the first transport direction and to transfer at least some of the containers transferred to the second conveyor belt to the container receiving device transversely to the first transport direction; and a motor device, in particular a long stator motor device, which is designed to move the transfer device for transferring a container.

A product management system (100) including a first panel (102) with a first continuous track (106) including a queuing section, a product engagement section and a return section, and a first series of magnetic sources (115) disposed circumferentially along the first continuous track (106). A first series of lugs (116) are movably dispersed around the first continuous track (106) configured to react to the first series of magnetic sources in order to increase or decrease a velocity of each lug (116) of the first series of lugs along the first continuous track (116) and a product engagement member (118) attached to each lug configured and adapted to actuate to engage a product.