Distributing and conveying system

Claim 1

A CONVEYING SYSTEM OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, COMPRISING A MAIN ENDLESS BELT CONVEYOR INCLUDING SUCCESSIVE LONGITUDINAL GROUPS OF A PREDETERMINED NUMBER OF SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL INCREMENTS, MEANS INTERMITTENTLY ADVANCING SAID CONVEYOR AN INCREMENT THEREOF, A PLURALITY OF HOPPERS DISPOSED ALONG AID CONVEYOR, THE SPACING BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE HOPPERS BEING A MULTIPLE OF SAID INCREMENTS DIFFERENT THAN THE NUMBER OF INCREMENTS IN SAID GROUP AND SAID HOPPERS CONCURRENTLY REGISTERING WITH DIFFERENT INCREMENTS IN SAID RESPECTIVE GROUPS, EACH OF SAID HOPPERS INCLUDING A BIN HAVING A FRONT WALL AND A BOTTOM WALL AND SIDE WALLS, SAID FRONT WALL HAVING A TRANSVERSE OPENING FORMED THEREIN DIRECTLY ABOVE SAID BOTTOM WALL, A METERING DISCHARGE MEMBER ASSOCIATED WITH EACH OF SAID HOPPERS AND INCLUDING A PLATE DISPOSED ABOVE AND SLIDABLE IN A PLANE PARALLEL TO SAID HOPPER BOTTOM WALL BETWEEN AN ADVANCED FORWARD DISCHARGE POSITION AND A RETRACTED POSITION, AND MEAN INTERMITTENTLY CONCURRENTLY ACTUATING SAID DISCHARGE MEMBER UPON ADVANCE OF SAID CONVEYOR A GROUP OF INCREMENTS.