US 11,981,511 B2
Article transport vehicle
Douglas B. Jones, Kilcahill (IE); Jared L. Snow, Fort Lorenzo (IE); Willard Beamer, Palmetto, FL (US); Joseph C. Stitt, Craughwell (IE); and Lawrence M. Minor, McKinney, TX (US)
Assigned to Transitions Optical, Ltd., Tuam (IE)
Appl. No. 17/041,737
Filed by Transitions Optical, Ltd., Tuam (IE)
PCT Filed Mar. 28, 2018, PCT No. PCT/EP2018/057906
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 25, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/185132, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 3, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2021/0122576 A1, Apr. 29, 2021
Int. Cl. B65G 17/32 (2006.01); B29D 11/00 (2006.01); B65G 35/06 (2006.01); B65G 54/02 (2006.01)
CPC B65G 17/323 (2013.01) [B29D 11/00423 (2013.01); B65G 35/06 (2013.01); B65G 54/02 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An article transport vehicle comprising:
a carrier base configured for movement along a guideway;
a pair of gripping arms, each gripping arm having a first end connected to the carrier base and a second end protruding from the carrier base, the pair of gripping arms movable between a closed position configured for holding an article and an open position configured for releasing the article; and
a closure mechanism for moving the pair of gripping arms between the closed position and the open position, the closure mechanism biasing the pair of gripping arms to the closed position and moving the pair of gripping arms to the open position when the carrier base is positioned at a predetermined portion of the guideway,
wherein the second end of each gripping arm has a pair of projections protruding inwardly from an inward lateral surface and upwardly from an upper surface of each gripping arm.