Product contact sensor for an article handler

1. An article retrieving apparatus, comprising:

a storage area ( 11 ) for storing articles along at least one longitudinal axis;

an article extracting device ( 14 ) comprising an air hose ( 21 , 23 , 26 ) including a free end ( 28 ) for selectively becoming adhered to for extracting an article from the storage volume via suction in said air hose created by a negative air pressure source ( 20 ) coupled to said air hose;

a positioning mechanism ( 12 ) coupled to the air hose and responsive to control signals for positioning the free end thereof in alignment with a said longitudinal axis;

a drive mechanism ( 190 ) coupled to said air hose for moving the free end thereof in axial alignment with the longitudinal axis in the storage volume; and

control apparatus for initiating an article retrieving operation, and generating control signals which are applied to said positioning mechanism and said drive mechanism for causing controlled movement of the article extracting device so that a selected article is extracted from the storage volume by the free end of said hose and placed in an area for being retrieved;

wherein the free end of said hose includes a product contact sensor, comprising:

a weight having one end attached to said hose, and an air passage formed axially therethrough, said air passage having a diameter which is sufficient for allowing substantially all said suction to be conducted to an other end of said weight, said other end being axially opposed to the one end;

a movable element mounted within the axial air passage formed in the weight, said element being positioned in the passage so as to extend beyond the other end of the weight and contact an article to be retrieved, said contact tending to move said element in an axial direction within the air passage,

a sensor mounted on said weight for generating an electrical signal representative of the sensing of movement of said movable element in response to contact of said movable element with an article to be retrieved, and

a electrical signal conductor coupled to said sensor for conducting said electrical signal from said sensor to said control apparatus, said electrical signal conductor being routed so as to pass through said air hose on its way to said control apparatus.

2. The article retrieving apparatus of claim 1 , further including a suction cup mounted to said other end of said weight so as to surround the air passage in the weight and the moveable element, where an article contacting portion of the suction cup extends from the other end of the weight so that movement of the moveable element in response to contact with an article to be retrieved, does not occur until after the article contacting portion of the suction cup has made contact with the article to be retrieved.

3. The article retrieving apparatus of claim 2 wherein said suction cup comprises a cylindrical shape.

4. The article retrieving apparatus of claim 3 wherein said suction cup comprises a flexible material having pleated side walls.

5. The article retrieving apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said moveable element comprises a metallic blade and the sensor comprises a magnetically operated reed switch.

6. The article retrieving apparatus of claim 5 , wherein one end of the metallic blade is adapted to make contact to an article to be retrieved, and an opposed end of the metallic blade is positioned adjacent an operative area of the reed switch, so that upon movement of the metallic blade due to contact with an article to be retrieved, the opposed end of the metallic blade moves within the operative area of the reed switch, thereby causing the generation of said electrical signal.