Elscint recently manufactured a 7 outlet bowl feeder for stacking of plates. These plates had dimensions of 13 x 22.5 x 0.8 mm thickness. The requirement was to stack the same on their slit and take it forward upto a stopper. From this point, the operator would pick up the stacks manually with a fixture. The slit was of just 1 mm and hence stacking the plates on such a small slit was difficult. Further, the weight of the plates was on the top side which resulted in the plates falling down, either front or back once engaged on the slit. Taking them forward meant that they needed to be held on both the sides. Holding them in such a way made it impossible for the operator to lift the same with the fixture.
All these problems were overcome by using an outer track bowl with small airjets for making the plates engage on the slit. Further, the plates were stacked in 7 rows as required by the customer. The speed of operation was around 100 plates per minute per row. This ensured that by the time the operator filled and unloaded two stacks, other stacks were ready for pick up.
You can watch the video of the equipment.