US1775003A - Bottle-washing machine - Google Patents

Description

BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE Original Filed Oct. 29, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 2, 1930. G. F. SOELCH BOTTLEQWASHING MACHINE Oxiginal Filed Oct. 29, 1925 4 sheets sheet 2 2%2/6/1/0? Qea geldoe 56/14 @MV 1/ I Sept. 2, 1930. G. F. SOELC H BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE Original Filed OQt. 29, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 G. F. soELcH 1,775,003 I .Sept. 2, 1930.

BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE Original Filed Oct. 29, 1925; 4 5 5 t 4 J N I lww wnol nw GEORGE E. SOEIICH, OF WAUKESHA, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR IO THECBEAMERY PACK OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS,.A CORPORATION an improved bottlewashing Patented Sept. 2, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE AGE MFG. COMPANY,

BOTTLE-WASHING MACHINE Original application filed October 29,

1925, Serial No. 85,568. Divided and this application flied October 14, 1927. Serial No. 226,071.

struction and operation of machines for automatically washing and sterilizing milk bottles or the like, in succession.

An object of the invention is to provide machine which is simple in construction an efficient in operation. Another object of the invention is to provide improved mechanism for enhancing the efiicienc of operation of bottle washin machines 0 the type formin the subject 0 patent applications Serial umber 744,594,

filed October 20th, 1924, and Serial Number 65,569, filed October 29th,

1925, from which latter application this application has been divided.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved mechanism for automatically and effectively delivering bottles in succession from a bottle washing machine or the like, without damaging t e bottles. Still another object of the invention is to provide im'provedsafety appliances for automatical- 1y preventing the operation of or stoppin a bottle washing machine or the like, un er abnormal operating conditions. These and other objects a "d advantages of the present improvement will be apparent in the course of the following description.

While the improvements have been shown and described herein as being specifically applied to a machinefor automatically washmg glass milk bottles of relatively standard design, such disclosure should not be considered as an intentional limitation in the scope of the invention the principles of which are obviously capable of more general application. 1

A clear conception of embodiments of the various features of the present invention and of the operation of devices constructed in accordance with the improvement, may be had by referring to the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts in the various views.

Fig. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic longitudinal section through an improved automatic milk bottle washing machine, some of the operating mechanism having been omitted for the sake of clearness.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of the improved bottle discharge mechanism.

Fi .3 is an enlarged side elevation of a portlon' of the improved bottle discharge mechanism, showing the elements in another position of adjustment.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged side elevation of a portion of the improved bottle discharge mechanism, showin the elements in still another position of adjustment.

Fig. 5 is a somewhat diagrammatic side elevation of the improved bottle washing machine showing the automatic control and stolp mechanisms associated therewith.

1g. 6 is an enlarged fragmentaryside view of a portion of the improved automatic stolp mechanism.

ig.-7 is a fragmentary side elevation, showing elements of the operating connections between the several mechanisms.

9 The improved automatically operable milk bottle washing machine specifically shown in the drawings, comprises in general a main frame and easing 2; an endless series of bottle carriers 3 transportable along a definite course within the casing 2 by means of conveyor chains 4; an initial soaking and washing basin 5 located in the lower portion of the casing 2 near the inlet end thereof; a final soaking and washing basin 6 located in the lower portion of the casing 2 adjacent to the basin 5; a rinsing water basin 14 located in the medial portion of the casing 2 above the basin 6; a series of external spray nozzles tion of the casing 2 above the carriers 3; a series of internal spray nozzles 9, 15, 11 located within the casing 2 below the upper horizontal run of the conveyor chain 4; mechanism for supplying dirty bottles 28 to and for discharging clean bottles from the car riers 3 at the same end of the casing 2; and mechanism for automatically controldriving shaft 77 which is intermittently rotatable by means of a motor 46 in a manner which will be explained later.

The initial soaking and washing basin 5 contains a strong solution of liquid which is capable of being heated by virtue of a heating coil 26 immersed therein. The final soaking and washing basin 6 may contain a weaker but hotter solution of liquid which is capable of being heated by virtue of a heating coil 27 located below the basin 6. An inclined wall or guide 7 extends upwardly from the discharge end of the final basin 7 toward the carrier inverting sprocket 25. The nozzles 8, 9 may be supplied with liquid from the basin 6 as shown and described in the copending applications above referred to, and the rinsing nozzles 10, 11, 12, 15 may be supplied with relatively clean liquid from the basin 14. The rinsing nozzles 13 may be supplied with pure liquid from any suitable source and the liquid delivered from these nozzles is eventually delivered into the basin 14. The movable internal spray nozzles 9, 11 are adapted to be vertically reciprocated by means of arms 76 and levers in a well known manner.

The mechanism for supplying the dirty bottles 28 to the washing machine, comprises a series of guides and an oscillatory stop plate 63 formed to periodically release a'series of bottles 28 resting upon the guides. The mechanism for delivering the clean bottles 28 from the washing machine is located at the same end of the casing 2 as the supply mechanism, and comprises a series of bottle ejectors 17 supported for periodic oscillation about a pivot 7 8, and bottle receiving and righting devices cooperable with the ejectors 17. The ejectors 17 are adapted to push the clean bottles 28 from the successive rows of carriers 3 upon laterally spaced weighted bottle retainers 18 secured to an oscillatory plate or support 35. The support 35 is suspended at its upper end upon the swinging extermity of carrier arms 29, by means of a transverse pivot 37. The carrier arms 29 are journalled upon an oscillatory shaft 31, and are provided with upper and lower abutments 32, 38, and with a bottle bottom support 34. The upper abutments 32 are cooperable with adjustable limit stops '33 on the casing 2, to limit the movement of the arms 29 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. The lower abutments 38 are engageable with the lower extremity of the plate 35 to arrest the movement of the support 35 in a clockwise direct-ion about the pivot 37, as viewed in like manner. One or more push arms 30 rigidly attached to the shaft 31 carry rollers 36 at their upper ends, which are engageable with the rear medial portion of the support 35. A bottle discharge conveyor 19 of well known construction is supported upon a frame 39 and extends transversely across the machine in proximity to the bottle retaining supports 18 and support 35 closely adjacent to the bottle supply mechanism.

The actuating mechanism comprises a motor 46 operatively connected with a main driving shaft 50 through a jaw clutch 47 and gearing 49. The clutch 47 is manually operable by means of a handle 55, a connection 52 and a lever 51, a spring 48 at all times tending to disconnect the clutch 47. The connection 52 has a lower notch 53 cooperable with a latch plate 54 secured to the casing 2, to hold the spring 48 in compression and to maintain the clutch 47 in normal driving position. The drive shaft 50 has a worm 64 secured to an end thereof, which meshes with a worm wheel 65 secured to the transverse power shaft 80. From the shaft 80, intermittent motion is transmitted to the carrier driving sprockets 16, to the movable nozzles 9, 11, to the bottle supply plate 63 and to the bottle dis charge mechanism, by means of Geneva ge af ing as shown and fully described in copending application Serial No. 744,594, filed October 20th, 1924, and illustrated herein in Fig. 7. The opposite end (see Fig. 7) of the transverse shaft carries a revolving crank 81 having a pin 82 which. is adapted to successively engage the radial slots 83 of a Geneva star wheel 84 secured to one end of the conveyor-sprocket shaft 77. The shaft 80 also has a crank which is operatively connected to nozzle-actuating arms 75 by means of connections 85 and 74, the former of which is variable in efiective length by virtue of a compression spring 86. The shaft 80 additionally carries a cam of ordinary construction operatively associated with the pivot lever 87, the latter being effective to intermittently reciprocate the connection 44 and to thereby simultaneously oscillate the transverse shafts 40, 31 in opposite directions by virtue of the lever 43 and the mutilated gears 41, 42 shown in Fig. 2. The lever 43 is operatively connected with the supply plate 63 by means of a connection 45, crank 88 and shaft 89. The bottle ejectors 17 are secured on the shaft 78, the latter carrying a crank 88 (see Fig. 5) having a connection 89 with a pivot lever 90 which is actuated by a grooved cam of ordinary construction secured to the power erly spaced pins 66, 68 secured to shaft 80 inwardly of the worm wheel 65, whereby timed reciprocatory movement is imparted to the ejeotors 17. v

The automatic motion preventing and stop mechanisms are shown 1n detail in Figs. 5 and 6, and comprise means for automatically stopping the machine in the event that the supply plate 63 fails to assume normal bottle receiving position; means for automatically stoppin the machine in case the ejectors 17 fail to scharge a bottle from a carrier 3; and means for automatically stopping the machine if the internal spray nozzles 9, 11

are prevented from functioning properly.

These several automatically functioning stop mechanisms are operated by means of Prop an element such as the worm wheel on the power shaft 80, and cooperating with elements 67, 69 which are normally retracted from the paths of revolution of the pins 66,68. The means for automatically stopping the machine when the supply plate 63 fails to assume normal bottle receiving position comprises nection 62 connecting the element 67 with a crank on the shaft 89 which supports the plate 63, and a latch release bar 7 1. secured to the vertical portion of the connection 62. The means for automatically stopping the machine in case the ejectors 17 fail to deliver a bottle from a carrier 3, comprises a cross-plate 56 vertically slidably supported in guides 57 on the casing 2; a lever 59 pivotally associated with the casing 2 and connected to the plate '56 by'means of connections 58; a spring 60 cooperating with one end of the lever 59 to normally urge the plate 56' upwardly in the guides 57; and a latch release bar 61 connecting an end of the lever 59 with the connection 52. The means for automatically stopping the machine if the spray nozzles 9, 11 fail to function properly, comprises an arm 73 secured to the nozzle actuating shaft; a horizontally movable connection 72 secured to the arm 73; a lever element 69 pivotally associated with an end of the connection 72; a latch release bar connecting an end of the element 69 with the connection 52; and levers and a connection 74 for simultaneously actuating the two sets of nozzles 9, 11.

During normal operation of the improved bottle washing machine, the motor 46 is operating and the hand lever 55 has been pulled forward to cause the latch 54 to engage the notch 53 in the connection 52'thereby compressing the spring 48 and positively hold-- ing the elements of the jaw clutch 47 m-driving engagement. With the clutch 47 thus engaged, continuous rotary motion is transmitted through the gears 49, shaft 50 and gearing 64, 65 to the power shaft 80, and from the shaft through the Geneva gearing to the various movable elements of the machine in the form of intermittent motion.

Intermittent motion is thus imparted to the chains4 and to the carriers 3 supported thereby. -Dirty bottles 28 are placed in inverted position upon the feed plate 63 while the plate is in upper position, whereupon an liquid contained by the bottles is drained 0 The intermittent motion transmitted through the connection 44, lever 43 and connection 45 eventually causes the plate 63 to move downwardly and to precipitate the row of dirty bottles 28 by gravity into the carriers 3 below.. After'the .bottles have'been thus delivered to the carriers 3, the plate 63 is again automatically returned to bottle receiving position and the advancing carriers 3 submerge and transport the bottles in and through the initial soaking bath 5. At the end of the bath 5 the bottles 28 are elevated from the liquid and inverted to empty the same after which they are submerged in and transported through the second bath 6. From the bath 6 the bottles 28 substantially filled final soaking liquid, are eventually elevated along the inclined wall 7 after which the bottles are inverted andemptied by the reversing sprocket 25. As the carriers 3 and the invertedbottles 28 therein are intermittently advanced through the upper portion of the casing 2, the spray nozzles 8, 9, 10, 15, 11, 12,

'13 automatically function to cleanse the bottles by delivering liquid spray thereagainst, the nozzles 9, 11 being movable into and out of the successive bottles by means of the levers 76 and weights associatedwith these levers. At the supply end of tlr'e machine, the carriers 3 and the clean bottles therein are carried over the sprocket 16 and are eventually brought into proximity with the ejector 17 which positively pushes the successive bottles 28 from the carriers 3 onto the inclined support 35, the, bottles 28 assuming the tilted position shown in Fig. 2. When the bottles have been thus positioned upon the carrier arms 29 and the support 35, the push arms 30 are swung forward and urge the support 35 and the arms 29 forwardly to the position fully righted and momentarily rest upon the arm support 34 in the plane of the top of the conveyor 19. When the elements have been so positioned, the arm abutments 32 engage the adjustable stop 33 and the motion of the arms 29 is arrested. The push arms 30 however continue to move the support 35 forward causing the support to swing about the pivot 37 and to push the clean bottles 28 from the arm support 34 onto the moving conveyor 19 with the as'shown in Fig. 4. The conveyor 19 automatically removes the clean bottles 28 from the machine and the discharge mechanism is returned to bottle receiving position as the next row of carriers 3 is brought into cooperative relation with the ejectors 17. In this manner the successive bottles 28 delivered to the machine are thoroughlycleaned and automatically discharged by the conveyor 19 at the same end of the washer, without in any manner damaging the bottles.

The operation of the automatic stop mechanisms is as followsz-If for any reason, the

supply plate 63 is prevented from assuming Lil) bottle receiving position, the connection 62 is forced re'arwardly and causes the element 67 to remain in the path of movement of the pins 66. As one of the pins 66 engages the element 67, the bar .71 is pulled upwardly and engages the connection 52, releasing the notch 53 from the latch 54 and causing the spring 48 to become effective to release the jaw clutch 47 and to stop the machine. If the ejectors 17 fail to deliver a bottle from one of the carriers 3 upon the support 35, the retained bottle projecting from the advancing carrier 3 will strike the cross-plate 56 and will move this plate downwardly in the guides 57, causing the spring 60 to be compressed-and raising the bar 61 associated with the lever 59. The upwardly moving bar 61 will engage the connection 52, likewise releasing the notch 53 from the latch 54 and causing the spring 48 to become effective to release the jaw clutch 47 and to stop the machine. If for any reason, the reciprocable nozzles 9, 11 are prevented from moving downwardly out of the carriers 3, the lever element 69 will be held in the path .of the revolving pins 68 by the arm 73 and the connection 72. As one of the pins 68 engages the end of-the element 69, this element swings about its central pivot and raises the bar 70 thereby elevating the connection 52, releasing the notch 53 from the latch 54 and causing the spring 48 to become effective to release the jaw clutch 47 and to stop the machine. It will thus be apparent that the machine is automatically stopped under various abnormal conditions of operation thus avoiding destruction of the mechanism.

-From the foregoing description, it will be noted that the invention provides improved means for automatically supplying and delivering bottles in succession to and from an endless series of movable carriers, and also provides simple and efficient mechanism for controlling the operation of bottle washing machines and for avoiding damage thereto.

It shouldbe understood that it is not desired tolimit the invention to the exact details of construction and operation herein said carriers, means for delivering said bottles from said carriers closely adjacent to said supply means, means for moving said carriers in proximity to said supply and delivery means, and means for stopping said moving means when either said supply or said delivery means fails to function properly.

2. In combination, a series of bottle carriers, means for moving said carriers, means for supplying bottles to said carriers, means operable to enter and retract from the bottles supported by said carriers, means for delivering bottles rom said carriers, and means for stopping said moving means when said supply, said bottle entering or said delivery means fails to function properly.

3. In combination, a bottle carrier, means for moving said carrier along a definite course, means for supplying bottles in succession to said carrier at one portion of said course, means successively entering the bottles supported by said carrier at another portion of said course, means for ejecting bottles from said carrier at another portion of said course, and means for stopping said moving means when said supply, said entering or said ejecting means fail to function properly.

4. In combination, a bottle carrier, driving means including a clutch for moving said carrier along a definite course, an element rotatable by said driving means, means for normally retaining said clutch in driving condition, and means operable by a bottle .abnormally positioned in said carrier to engage said rotatable element and thereby be actuatcd to release said clutch retaining means.

5. In combination, an endless series of hottle carriers, driving means including a clutch for intermittently advancing said carriers along a definite course, an element rotatable by said driving means, manually adjustable means for setting and retaining said clutch in driving condition, and means operable upon abnormal retardation to the movement of one of said carriers to engage said rotatable element and be actuated thereby to release saidclutch and to stop the movement of said series.

6. In combination, an endless series of bottle carriers, means for supplying bottles to 1 said carriers in succession, means operable to enter the successive bottles supported in said carriers. means for delivering the successive bottles from said carriers, means for imparting motion to said carriers and to said sup- 1 ply, entering and delivery means, and automatic stop mechanism operable upon abnormal functioning of said supply, entering or delivery means to disconnect said motion imparting means.

7. In combination, an endless series of hottle carriers, means for supplying bottles to said carriers in succession means operable to enter the successive bottles supported in said carriers, means for delivering the successive bottles from said carriers, means for imparting motion to said carriers and to said supply, entering, and delivery means, said motion imparting means including a clutch and a rotatable element, and mechanism operable to release said clutch and sta said motion impartin means. upon the ailure to function norma y of said carriers, said supply means, said entering means or said delivery means, said mechamsm having an actuating member automatically movable into the path of said rotating element for actuating engagement thereby upon the occurrence 015 said failure to function normally of either of said means. 10 In testimony whereof, I have hereunto afixed my signature.

GEORGE F. SOELCH.

.so I

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