US Patent 7320491 Object handling apparatus and method

A method and an apparatus for handling objects, in particular discs such as CD's having an aperture therein defining a rim. The apparatus comprises a first set of jaws moveable towards and away from one another and a second set of jaws moveable towards and away from one another. In use, the jaws of each set may be moved apart to exert a radial gripping force on the rims of the objects. The second set of jaws is extendible and retractable axially. By operating the sets of jaws through sequences of extension, gripping, retraction and releasing, the objects can be loaded onto or off of the apparatus. The gripping action of the jaws allows the apparatus to hold the objects in any orientation.