Apparatus including a portable manipulator for the axial alignment of an inspection or repair device with a selected tube in a heat exchanger. The manipulator is angularly positionable about a center toward and away from an arbitrarily chosen axis and radially toward and away from the center by remotely controlled servomotors. Incorporated in the manipulator are position feedback devices whereby the manipulator is positioned to the predetermined polar coordinates of the selected tube.

An apparatus for removing a casting from a die casting machine and transporting it to a predetermined location comprises a plurality of hydraulic cylinder and piston sets connected in series and arranged in parallel with each other for driving a product gripping and conveying mechanism 30 towards and away from the die casting machine, thereby reducing the installation space and the operating time. Preferably, the apparatus has a turning device 40 for rotating the removed casting, and the gripping and conveying mechanism is inclined from 5 to 20 degrees to facilitate the removal of the casting.

The picker includes an open frame carrier secured to a molding machine for linear movement along support rods in the direction of movement of one of the mold platens, i.e., a Y-axis direction, under control of a first fluid cylinder. The carrier, in turn, mounts a carriage for linear movement in a direction normal thereto, i.e., an X-axis direction, also under the control of a second fluid cylinder. Depending from the carriage is a picker arm under control of a third fluid cylinder for movement in the X-axis direction and which picker arm terminates at its inner end in a pair of jaws or fingers, the opening and closing of which are under control of a fourth cylinder. A limit switch is mounted on the mold machine for actuation when the movable mold platen obtains its open position. A pair of air switches are carried by the carrier. When the mold is fully open, the limit switch is closed by the movable platen to actuate the first air switch which, in turn, actuates the second and third cylinders for movement of the jaws along the X-axis and between the mold faces. Toward the end of the movement in the X-direction, the first cylinder is actuated to move the jaws in the Y-direction. At the end of the carriage movement, the carriage actuates an air switch which closes the jaws about the article. The carrier is then automatically retracted after a time delay in the X and Y-directions. The second air switch is then reset and opens the jaws whereby the article grasped is dropped onto a chute.

Apparatus for handling materials, such as robots, in which the transfer units are connected with drive that cause the swinging movement of the transfer units between two positions about a neutral position located therebetween. Retaining are disposed on the apparatus in the form of magnetic members for either engaging the respective transfer unit or repelling the same.

Automatic loader equipment picks up a cup-shaped metal pulley blank at a supply station and places the blank between headstock and tailstock assemblies of an automatic pulley spinning machine; and simultaneously removes or unloads a previously placed blank in which pulley groove means has been spun from the headstock and tailstock assemblies and deposits the spun pulley at a discharge station. A carriage is mounted on a pair of slide rods above the spinning machine for transverse sliding movement with respect to the longitudinal axis of the machine between the pulley blank supply or pickup station and the spun pulley discharge station. A pair of load and unload assemblies is mounted on the carriage for relative independent sliding movement on the carriage parallel to the longitudinal axis of the spinning machine. Each slide assembly has a gripper assembly mounted on its forward end which moves generally toward and away from the axis of the spinner or vertically between outer and inner or raised and lowered positions. Finger means are provided on an end of each gripper assembly for gripping a pulley blank or a spun pulley therebetween. The load slide gripper assembly grips a pulley blank by its finger means simultaneously with the unload slide gripper assembly finger means gripping a spun pulley positioned on the headstock spindle of the spinning machine. Both gripper assemblies move away from the axis or vertically upwardly, simultaneously with the horizontal sliding movement of the carriage whereupon the gripped spun pulley is deposited at the discharge station and the pulley blank is placed on the headstock spindle upon the carriage reaching the pulley discharge station. During the subsequent spinning operation of the pulley blank the carriage, slide assemblies and gripper assemblies return to their normal or home positions for initiating another cycle of operation.