DEVICE FOR SEPARATING GROUPS OF ARTICLES WITH DIFFERENT LENGTHS

摘要

An apparatus for cyclically separating articles in groups, includes a guide floor on which the articles are forwarded in a direction of advance in an edgewise standing orientation to form an article stack of undetermined length thereon; a pickup gate arranged for geing abutted by a leading article in the stack; a separating member arranged for being introduced between two articles of the stack at a predetermined distance from the pickup gate upstream thereof as viewed in the direction of advance for separating a group of articles of predetermined length from the article stack; a driving mechanism for cyclically introducing the separating member between two articles of the stack and moving the pickup gate and the separating member together in a stroke of predetermined length for shifting away the article group situated between the pickup gate and the separating member from the article stack of undetermined length; a first setting mechanism for varying the distance of the separating member from the pickup gate to vary the length of the article groups and a second setting mechanism for altering the position of the guide floor parallel to the direction of advance of the articles.