Conveyer

1. A conveyer which conveys rectangular wires comprising:

a mounting base;

a plurality of rotating discs each of which is rotatable about a rotating axis thereof relative to the mounting base, each of the rotating discs having formed in an outer periphery thereof grooves in which the rectangular wire is receivable; and

a drive unit which works to rotate each of the rotating discs about the rotating axis, wherein

the rotating discs includes a preceding upstream rotating disc and a following downstream rotating disc which are arranged to partially overlap each other in an axial direction thereof,

the preceding upstream rotating disc and the following downstream rotating disc are arranged to have a supplying groove that is one of the grooves of the preceding upstream rotating disc overlap with a receiving groove that is one of the grooves of the following downstream rotating disc in the axial direction to pass the rectangular wire from the supplying groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc when the preceding upstream rotating disc and the following downstream rotating disc are located at a given angular position relative to each other, and

when the rectangular wire is passed from the supplying groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc, the rectangular wire has four side surfaces retained by a combination of the supplying groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc and the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc.

2. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , wherein when the rectangular wire is required to be carried, the drive unit locates the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc at a delivery position where the rectangular wire is to be passed from the supplying groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc, rotates the preceding upstream rotating disc until the supplying groove coincides with the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc in the axial direction, and then rotates the following downstream rotating disc to pass the rectangular wire from the supplying groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the receiving groove of the following downstream rotating disc.

3. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the rotating discs include an upstream rotating disc, a middle rotating disc, and a downstream rotating disc which are arranged in this order from an upstream to a downstream side of a conveying path for the rectangular wire, and

the middle rotating disc is rotated 90° around an axis thereof from a delivery position where the rectangular wire is to be passed from the groove of the upstream rotating disc to the groove of the middle rotating disc to a delivery position where the rectangular wire is to be passed from the groove of the middle rotating disc to the groove of the downstream rotating disc.

4. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , wherein each of the rotating discs has a plurality of types of grooves which are contoured to conform with the rectangular wires which are different in shape or size of a cross section from each other, and

the preceding upstream rotating disc and the following downstream rotating disc are arranged in a given angular relation to each other to have the same type of grooves coincide with each other when the rectangular wire is passed from the preceding upstream rotating disc to the following downstream rotating disc.

5. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising conveyer covers which are arranged to cover outer edges of the rotating discs, respectively, and serve to hold the rectangular wires from being removed from the grooves of the rotating discs.

6. The conveyer as set forth in claim 5 , further comprising delivery covers each of which is arranged to cover a place where the rectangular wire is passed from the groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the groove of the following downstream rotating disc and around the place, and wherein the delivery covers are located closer to the outer edges of the rotating discs than the conveyer covers are.

7. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising machining units, stoppers, and presses, the machining units being located each for one of the rotating discs and each working to machine at least one of surfaces of a corresponding one of the rectangular wires, each of the stoppers being contactable with a first end of a length of a corresponding one of the rectangular wires, each of the presses working to press a second end of the length of a corresponding one of the rectangular wires toward the stopper.

8. The conveyer as set forth in claim 1 , further comprising clamp levers and release devices, each of the clamp lever being arranged to be rotatable together with a respective one of the rotating discs and pressing a corresponding one of the rectangular wires against a first inner surface that is one of inner surfaces of the groove of the one of the rotating discs, the first inner surface facing a rotating direction of the rotating discs or facing away from the rotating direction, and wherein each of the release devices works to release pressing the rectangular wire, as achieved by the clamp lever, when the rectangular wire is passed from the groove of the preceding upstream rotating disc to the groove of the following downstream rotating disc.