| 摘要 |
<p>A method and apparatus for stacking curved, triangular snack food chips (10), e.g., tortilla chips (10), for packaging in a sleeve-type container. The chips (10) are fed into a first, U-shaped vibratory chute (30), which automatically causes the apex corners (A) of the chips (10) to extend beyond the opposing base edges (B) of adjacent chips (10) and which automatically orients the chips (10) such that lines (20) about which they are curved are oriented parallel to the longitudinal direction (21) of the U-shaped chute (30). The chips (10) are then fed into a W-shaped chute (40), with the chips (10) facing in opposite directions falling automatically into opposite troughs (44, 46) of the W-shaped chute (40). The chips (10) are then automatically reoriented by 120° such that their upturned apex corners point (A) in the direction of travel, and the chips (10) are stacked automatically as they slide up along one another in a shingled manner.</p> |
