Elscint recently supplied a vibratory bowl feeder for feeding of small tapered plastic caps. The requirement was to feed the same in “open side down orientation” to the capping machine of the customer. The scope of supply included a vibratory bowl feeder, gravity chute with a sensor on the same to switch off the bowl feeder once the chute was full of caps, a stand to mount the bowl feeder and the chute and an Elevator with a hopper having a capacity of 100 litres. The caps were slightly rectangular having a size of 19.50 x 31.50 x 17 mm. Furthermore, one side was slightly shiny than the other and the customer wanted reference to the shiny side (shiny side to be trailing). Orientation w.r.t. the shiny side was very tricky but Elscint managed the same and achieved a speed of 160 caps per minute as against the required speed of 120 caps per minute. Elscint used its Model 400 with a bowl diameter of approximately 700 mm for this purpose.

The caps came out in open side facing sky in the bowl, thereafter the caps were twisted in the bowl itself to make them all upside down (open side down) as the tendency of the caps was to come in open side up position in the bowl feeder. The elevator base structure was made in Aluminium extruded sections with a stainless steel hopper and belt with PU Slats. A level controller was provided in the bowl to ensure that the elevator would work only when the caps in the bowl feeder were less. Additionally, a polycarbonate cover was provided for dust free operation for the Elevator feeder.  The vibratory bowl feeder was mounted on a cubical stand with (+/-) 100 mm ht. adjustment for each of adjustment. Elscint not only completed the order on time but immediately completed the commissioning of the same at the customer’s site in Haridwar.