US Patent 7398870 Article transfer and placement apparatus

An apparatus for transferring articles such as absorbent cores or disposable diaper chassis components from a rotary mechanism, such as a pad turner, to a linear mechanism, such as a conveyor, for further processing. The invention provides a device for picking an article from the outside of a toroidal surface, thence extending transversely under tension the article to be transferred so that at the point of deposition the article is held flat and at full length. Further, the invention allows for apparatus to match the velocity of both the first and second transfer points, even if these velocities are not the same. The device is of particular benefit where an article to be transferred is subject to internally biasing elastic forces.