Stuart L. Rieben - Pittsburgh PA Ralph W. Kugler - Pittsburgh PA Joseph J. Scherpenberg - Columbia SC Dale T. Wiersema - Florence SC James L. Fogg - Columbia SC
Assignee:
Westinghouse Electric Corp. - Pittsburgh PA
International Classification:
G21C 1900 G21C 2100 B65B 104
US Classification:
376261
Abstract:
A pellet collating system includes a tray positioning station located adjacent a pellet collating line with a tray transfer robot located therebetween. The tray positioning station has mobile carts lodged thereat, some supporting pellet supply trays and others supporting pellet storage trays. Pellets on one supply tray and later placed on one storage tray are of the same enrichment. Pellet enrichments on some trays are different from on others. The collating line includes pellet input, work and output stations arranged in tandem. The robot is operable to transfer supply and storage trays one at a time to and from the positioning station and the respective input and output stations. An input sweep head is operable for sweeping pellets onto the work station from a supply tray on the input station. A gripping and measuring head is operable for measuring a desired length of pellets on the work station and then separating the measured desired length of pellets from the remaining pellets, if any.
