A transport apparatus includes a moving member, a shaft, a contact member, and an air damper. The moving member is moved along a table where an article is to be disposed. The shaft is rotatably connected to the moving member. The contact member is connected to the shaft and is to be brought into contact with the article. The air damper attenuates kinetic energy of the contact member and the shaft while the contact member and the shaft are being moved down toward the table.

A brick layering system includes an infeed conveyor that brings layers of bricks, one or more brick layer compacting systems that remove unwanted gaps in the layers of bricks, an outfeed carousel for receiving compacted piles of bricks and a robot arms that moves the brick layer between the infeed, outfeed and compacting systems. The brick layer compacting system includes a table top having a generally flat surface for receiving the brick layer; and two mechanical stops secured to the table top on the generally flat surface so as to define two straight edges on the table top that are perpendicular to each other. The table top is oriented so that a virtual intersection of both straight edges is lower than any other parts of the two straight edges. Bricks received on the flat surface are moved by gravity towards the virtual intersection of the two straight edges, thereby removing gaps between the bricks and indexing the bricks relative to both straight edges.

A pickface builder for a storage and retrieval system for storing goods units and having an in-feed conveyor and a picking device, each goods unit holding at least one product package therein, the pickface builder including a frame, a pusher member movably coupled to the frame, and a snugger member movably coupled to the frame, wherein the pickface builder is configured to receive goods units from the in-feed conveyor and the pusher member and snugger member are movable at least in a direction transverse to a direction of goods unit travel on the in-feed conveyor and configured to form the goods units into a pickface picked by the picking device as a unit and having a predetermined reference datum relating the pickface to a placement position of goods units forming the pickface along a storage surface of the storage and retrieval system.

A palletizing device for a piling of layers from at least two rows of filled sacks to a sack stacking comprising a sliding device with a sliding area for the formation of a layer of filled sacks and a supply device with at least a conveyor belt for the supply of filled sacks in a feed position on the sliding area, wherein the sliding device comprises a sliding table beneath the sliding area and a slider for sliding of the filled sacks from a sliding position on the sliding area on the sliding table, wherein the conveyor belt is performed in a way that a supply distance between a feed position and the sliding position is smaller than a sliding distance between the sliding position and a frame of the sliding device at the supply edge of the conveyor belt.

A case manipulator receives cases from an infeed conveyer and manipulates individual cases or groups of cases and transfers the manipulated cases to a row accumulator platform in a desired and pre-determined orientation and positioned on the accumulator platform to a desired and pre-determined location. The manipulation of individual cases, or groups of cases, is continued in a sequential operation until a complete row is formed on the accumulator platform according to a pre-determined build menu. The case manipulator includes a swing plate pivotal on a first axis and a paddle arm that is attached to the swing plate and pivotal on a second axis that is transverse to the first axis. The invention allows the palletizer to have the next case in a row transferred from the infeed conveyer to the row-build staging area while the case manipulator is operating on an already-delivered case.

A system for grouping and rotating packages (101) includes a first conveyor (102) configured to drive a stream of packages from a first end (102A) to a second end (102B) at a predefined first speed, an actuation section (104) situated at the second end (102B) of the first conveyor (102) configured to receive the stream of packages from the first conveyor (102) and actuate the stream of packages to an orienting section (108) at a predefined second speed, wherein the second speed is less than the first speed, and a plurality of lugs (106) adjacent to the actuation section (104) configured to actuate forward packages in the stream of packages forming groups (105) of two or more packages (101).

A device for handling and/or grouping piece goods having a handling table extending along a main axis with a manipulation zone and a collection zone disposed one behind the other along the main axis in a transport direction. A first manipulator manipulates the piece goods and is designed to be movable at least partly in the direction of the main axis with variable positions. The first manipulator is moved between at least one normal position and at least one required position differing from the normal position. The first manipulator has a base working region paired with the normal position for manipulating the piece goods in the manipulation zone and a required working region paired with the required position for manipulating the piece goods outside of the base working region. An optical detection device monitors the manipulation of the piece goods in the manipulation zone and/or collection zone.

A case manipulator receives cases from an infeed conveyer and manipulates individual cases or groups of cases and transfers the manipulated cases to a row accumulator platform in a desired and pre-determined orientation and positioned on the accumulator platform to a desired and pre-determined location. The manipulation of individual cases, or groups of cases, is continued in a sequential operation until a complete row is formed on the accumulator platform according to a pre-determined build menu. The case manipulator includes a swing plate pivotal on a first axis and a paddle arm that is attached to the swing plate and pivotal on a second axis that is transverse to the first axis. The invention allows the palletizer to have the next case in a row transferred from the infeed conveyer to the row-build staging area while the case manipulator is operating on an already-delivered case.

Automated system for handling, in particular for overturning, containers such as cage trays for housing laboratory animals. The automated system being suitable to be positioned at the outlet module of a station for treating or washing, the containers and possibly other component parts of the cages such as the lid, the trough and similar component parts. The system then receives the containers and/or other component parts at the outlet from the treatment station, in particular washing station. The system can comprise a first conveyor belt capable of interfacing the outlet module so as to receive the containers and/or the component parts at the outlet of the treatment station. A second conveyor belt can be arranged in succession so as to define a transport direction of the containers and/or component parts substantially parallel to the feed direction of the containers and/or component parts at the exit from the treatment station.

In a feeder (1) for feeding cut pieces of wood (2) from an accumulation conveyor (3) to a carrier conveyor (4), according to the invention, the feeder (1) comprises a first clamping jaw (6) that is disposed on a first moving device (5) as well as a second clamping jaw (8) that is arranged on a second moving device (7), the first clamping jaw (6) and the second clamping jaw (8) form a clamping unit (10) for clamping a cut piece of wood (2) in a conveying zone (9) and conveying the cut piece of wood (2) in a clamped state as the first clamping jaw (6) and the second clamping jaw (8) perform a movement in the same direction.