Device for managing the spools of conductive wires in a machine for forming electric winding components

Abstract

An apparatus (1) for managing spools (B) of conductive wire (A) in a machine for forming electric winding components, comprising at least one containing structure (2) for at least one spool (B) of conductive wire (A) and at least one support cradle (3) for at least one containing structure (2) of at least one spool (B). The cradle (3) can slide along at least one respective transverse guide (6) of the machine for transferring the structure (2) from a first active position for dispensing the conductive wire (A) to a second unloading position. The apparatus (1) further comprises at least one bin (4) for temporarily containing at least one spool (B) of conductive wire (A) wound thereon, arranged side by side with at least one containing structure (2) when the latter is in the first active position, and at least one temporary storage unit (5) for at least one empty spool (B). The bin (4) comprises transfer means (9) configured to transfer at least one spool (B) arranged in the bin to the containing structure (2), and the second unloading position is for delivering the empty spool (B) to the temporary storage unit (5) by means of the action of at least one respective unloading actuator (8).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for managing spools of wires in a machine for forming electrical winding components. Background Technology

[0002] Electric motors, generators, alternators, and transformers include a ferromagnetic core on which windings are arranged, the windings being made of electrical wires arranged in a specific geometry. Current circulation in at least one winding determines the induced current circulation in at least one other winding via electromagnetic induction. Furthermore, forces interact between the windings and their respective ferromagnetic cores, enabling, for example, rotation of the rotor relative to the stator in an electric motor.

[0003] Inductor windings are made of elements made of a conductive material (usually copper), which are covered with a layer of insulating material (non-conductive) to keep them insulated. For certain applications, windings are provided by using sheets of conductive material connected to each other at at least one end, which are inserted into specific recesses in the ferromagnetic core of the machine under construction. These sheets are technically referred to as "hairpins".

[0004] The copper (or other conductive material) components used to make hairpins are supplied in the form of spools and are cut and shaped on specific machines. During processing, the copper (or other conductive material) wires must be unwound from the spools and supplied to stations for cutting and bending.

[0005] The capacity of the spools is usually large in order to minimize replacement operations (which require a long machine downtime): therefore, a spool fully loaded with wire is very heavy.

[0006] After removing the old spool, the operator (using a forklift and other similar equipment) must insert the new spool into the machine and unwind the wire to resume production.

[0007] It's important to consider that the machines typically consist of two production lines for forming and cutting hairpins, and multiple machines can be installed in the same production area. Therefore, it's obvious that if two or more production lines run out of spools around the same time, machine downtime can accumulate. In practice, operators will be forced (using forklifts) to move the corresponding spools along each production line, increasing the time required to resume production. To reduce this time, the company must hire more operators to perform these tasks and equip each operator with a forklift, resulting in extremely high management costs (making extended machine downtime a preferred option). Summary of the Invention

[0008] The objective of this invention is to address the aforementioned disadvantages by providing a device for managing spools of wires in a machine that forms electrical winding components, which ensures that machine downtime required for spool replacement is minimized.

[0009] Within this objective, one object of the present invention is to provide a device for managing spools of wires in a machine for forming electrical winding components, which does not require direct and immediate operator intervention to replace depleted spools.

[0010] Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for managing spools of wires in a machine for forming electrical winding components, which is suitable for production sites with multiple machines without requiring a large number of specialized operators.

[0011] Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for managing spools of wires in a machine for forming electrical winding components, which is suitable for production sites with multiple machines without requiring a large number of forklifts.

[0012] Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for managing spools of wires in a machine for forming electrical winding components, which is low in cost, easy to implement, practically feasible and safe to use.

[0013] This objective, as will become more apparent below, and these and other objectives are achieved by the device according to claim 1.

[0014] This objective and these purposes are also achieved by the machine according to claim 9. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Other features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred, but not exclusive, embodiments of a device for managing spools of wire in a machine forming an electrical winding component, which are illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 This is a schematic perspective view of a possible embodiment of a device according to the invention for managing a spool of wire in a machine forming an electrical winding component, in a first operating arrangement.

[0017] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 The device in the second arrangement is shown in a schematic perspective view, in which the exhausted spool has been moved;

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 The device is in a schematic perspective view of the third arrangement, in which a new spool has been inserted and a depleted spool has been unloaded. Detailed Implementation

[0019] Referring specifically to the accompanying drawings, reference numeral 1 generally indicates a device for managing a spool of wire A in a machine that forms an electrical winding component.

[0020] The device 1 according to the invention is adapted to be installed in a machine for forming an electric winding component, the device comprising at least one receiving structure 2 for at least one spool B having a conductor A.

[0021] In a possible version of the device according to the invention shown by way of non-limiting example, the receiving structure includes at least one guiding element 2a, 2b for conductor A and at least one station (not shown in the figures) for bending and cutting conductor A to form a particular component (which may be, for example, a hairpin designed to provide stator or rotor windings for an electric motor).

[0022] The device 1 also includes at least one support bracket 3 for at least one receiving structure 2 for at least one spool B. This bracket 3 can be conveniently slid along at least one corresponding lateral guide 6 of the machine for transferring the structure 2 from a first active configuration for dispensing wire A to a second unloading configuration.

[0023] The device 1 according to the invention may advantageously include: at least one compartment 4 for temporarily accommodating at least one spool B on which a wire A is wound (the compartment 4 is arranged side by side with the at least one accommodating structure when the at least one accommodating structure 2 is in an activated position for dispensing wire A from the spool B); and at least one temporary storage unit 5 for at least one empty spool B.

[0024] The bin 4 advantageously includes a transfer device 9 configured to transfer at least one spool B arranged in the bin to the receiving structure 2; the second unloading position is envisioned for conveying the empty spool B to the temporary storage unit 5 by means of at least one corresponding unloading actuator.

[0025] After replacing spool B in one of the above-described ways, it should be noted that, as a non-limiting example, device 1 may have features such as attachments. Figure 3 The configuration shown.

[0026] It should be noted that at least one receiving structure 2 may advantageously include a pair of parallel and laterally adjacent rollers 10, which are designed for the peripheral portion of the corresponding spool B to rest upon.

[0027] At least one roller 10 (belonging to the pair of rollers described above) can be advantageously associated with a corresponding motor element to rotate the roller and thus rotatably drag the corresponding spool B located on structure 2.

[0028] The rotation of the electric roller 10 allows for a rotational motion to be applied to the spool B, which in turn allows the conductor A on the spool to be unwound (and thus distributed).

[0029] The lateral guide 6 can be conveniently constructed from a lateral guide shaft 6, and the bracket 3 is associated with the lateral guide shaft via a kinematic pair selected from cylindrical pairs and prism pairs.

[0030] More specifically, it must be noted that there can advantageously be two transverse axes 6: each axis 6 advantageously passes through the support 3. Thus, each roller 10 is rigidly coaxially supported by the corresponding axis 6.

[0031] Referring specifically to embodiments with undeniable practical and applied significance, a transfer device 9 configured for transferring at least one spool B includes at least one enclosure and guide channel 11 designed to temporarily support the spool B; referring to embodiments presented by way of non-limiting example, the channel 11 may be designed to restrict and guide a side disc of the spool B.

[0032] According to this example, spool B rests on the corresponding surface of channel 11, that is, the spool rests on the corresponding surface of the channel at the peripheral edge of the spool defining the disc.

[0033] The device 9 also includes at least one slider 12 that can slide along the channel 11 and is provided with a shoulder unit 13 that abuts against at least a portion of the edge of the spool B (in the example shown above, the shoulder unit abuts against at least a portion of the edge of the side disc of the spool B).

[0034] The slider 12 is advantageously movable between a first arrangement (shown by way of non-limiting example in all figures) at the maximum distance from the receiving structure 2 of the spool B and a second arrangement at the minimum distance from the structure 2.

[0035] As the slider 12 changes from the first arrangement to the second arrangement, the spool B located on the channel 11 is pushed along the channel 11 (by rolling motion or a combination of rotational and translational motion) until the spool is conveyed to the receiving structure 2.

[0036] It should be noted that the shoulder unit 13 of the slider 12 includes at least one columnar rod on which a freewheeling bushing is mounted: a portion of the outer surface of the freewheeling bushing is adapted to abut against at least a portion of the edge of the spool B (according to the example shown by way of example, a portion of the outer surface of the freewheeling bushing abuts against at least one disc) for a combined rotational translational movement of the spool from the bin 4 to the structure 2.

[0037] Referring specifically to possible implementations with certain effects, it should be noted that the unloading actuator 8 for the depleted spool B is a pusher provided with a terminal sleeve, which is also adapted to abut against at least one edge of the defining spool B of the abutment disc for a combined rotational translational movement of the spool B from structure 2 to storage unit 5.

[0038] It should also be noted that at least one receiving structure 2 may advantageously include two symmetrical structures 2, both of which are integral with a corresponding support bracket 3, which can be moved along at least one corresponding lateral guide 6 from a first activation position for distributing wire A to a second unloading position for conveying empty spool B to temporary storage unit 5 by means of at least one corresponding actuator 8. The second unloading position may be shared by the two receiving structures 2 and arranged between the first activation positions of the corresponding support brackets 3 (therefore, in these activation positions, the corresponding spool B is in a laterally more outward region relative to its arrangement in the second unloading position, which is further closer to the longitudinal central plane of the device).

[0039] The invention also extends its scope of protection to include machines for forming electrical winding components, the machines including at least one guiding element 2a, 2b for conductor A and at least one station for bending and cutting the conductor to form a particular component.

[0040] In a possible implementation, the at least one guiding element 2a, 2b may further be included in at least one receiving structure 2.

[0041] Furthermore, the machine according to the invention advantageously includes at least one device 1 of the aforementioned type.

[0042] In the machine according to the invention, at least one guide element 2a, 2b may advantageously include at least one tension pulley 2b pivotally connected to a block 14, which can be translated by means of an actuator 15: in this case, the motion law of the translational block 14 will be defined by feedback according to the motion law of the guide wire A moving toward the bending and processing station (not shown in the figure).

[0043] It should be noted that the machine according to the invention can conveniently include a device 1 with two symmetrical receiving structures 2 of the aforementioned type (to ensure higher productivity).

[0044] According to this version, which includes a device 1 with two structures 2, the machine according to the invention is symmetrical with respect to the vertical longitudinal central plane, thereby ensuring high productivity of the electrical winding components.

[0045] It should be noted that this application also relates to a method for replacing the spool B of the wire A in a machine of the aforementioned type, which requires a series of pre-set steps.

[0046] In the first step, the housing structure 2 with the depleted spool B needs to be translated until the housing structure is arranged side by side with the temporary storage unit 5.

[0047] In the second step, the depleted spool B needs to be pushed from the receiving structure 2 into the temporary storage unit 5 by the actuator 8.

[0048] Then, in the third step, the empty receiving structure 2 can be translated again in the reverse motion until it is brought back to be aligned with the chamber 4 having a spool B on which a predetermined amount of wire A is wound.

[0049] At this point, in the final step, the spool B, on which a predetermined amount of wire A is wound, needs to be pushed from the channel 11 of the compartment 4 into the receiving structure 2.

[0050] At this point, conductor A can be unwound from spool 2, extended along pulleys 2a and 2b, and inserted into the station for bending and cutting conductor A: this operation can be performed manually by the operator, but the possibility of it being fully automated is not excluded.

[0051] Advantageously, the present invention solves the above-mentioned problem by providing a device 1 for managing the spool B of the conductor A in a machine forming an electrical winding component, which ensures that the machine downtime required to replace the spool B can be minimized.

[0052] Conveniently, the device 1 according to the invention does not require direct and immediate operator intervention to replace the depleted spool B, just as it does not require immediate intervention by a forklift to supply new spool B. In fact, during machine operation (i.e., during the production of the electrical winding components of interest), the spool B loaded with conductor A can be pre-loaded into channel 11 at any time.

[0053] Advantageously, the device 1 according to the invention is suitable for production sites with multiple machines without requiring a large number of specialized operators. In fact, as explained above, the pre-loading of new spools B can be carried out at any time, not necessarily when the installed spools are used up, thus greatly facilitating the logistics organization of the production plant (which can be easily planned).

[0054] Advantageously, the device 1 according to the invention is suitable for production sites with multiple machines, without requiring a large number of forklifts.

[0055] Clearly, the device 1 according to the invention is easy to implement, practically achievable, and low in cost: these features make the device 1 according to the invention and the machine including the device a safe and innovative use.

[0056] The invention conceived thus is readily subject to numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, all details can be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.

[0057] In the illustrated embodiments, the features shown for specific examples can actually be interchanged with other different features present in other embodiments.

[0058] In practice, the materials and dimensions used can be any materials and dimensions as required and in accordance with existing technology.

[0059] This application claims priority to Italian Patent Application No. 102022000007331, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0060] Where any technical feature mentioned in a claim is followed by a reference mark, such reference marks are included only to improve the comprehensibility of the claim, and therefore these reference marks have no limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example through these reference marks.

Claims

1. A device for managing a spool (B) of wire (A) in a machine forming an electrical winding component, the device of this type comprising: At least one receiving structure (2) for at least one spool (B) having a conductor (A); The device further comprises: at least one support bracket (3) for at least one of the receiving structures (2) of at least one of the spools (B), the bracket (3) being slidable along at least one corresponding lateral guide of the machine for transferring the structure (2) from a first activation position for dispensing the wire (A) to a second unloading position, characterized in that the device further comprises: at least one compartment (4) for temporarily receiving at least one spool (B) wound with the wire (A), the at least one compartment being arranged side by side with at least one of the receiving structures (2) when at least one of the receiving structures (2) is in the first activation position; and at least one temporary storage unit (5) for at least one empty spool (B), the compartment (4) comprising a transfer device (9) configured to transfer at least one spool (B) disposed in the compartment to the receiving structure (2), and the second unloading position being used to convey the empty spool (B) to the temporary storage unit (5) by means of at least one corresponding unloading actuator (8).

2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that, At least one of the receiving structures (2) includes a pair of parallel and laterally adjacent rollers (10) designed to allow the peripheral portion of the spool (B) to rest on the rollers, at least one of the rollers (10) being associated with a corresponding motor element to rotate the roller and thus drag the corresponding spool (B) by rotation.

3. The device according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lateral guide is a lateral guide shaft (6), and the bracket (3) is associated with the lateral guide shaft by a kinematic pair selected from cylindrical pairs and prism pairs.

4. The device according to claim 3, characterized in that, There are two said transverse guide shafts (6), each transverse guide shaft (6) passing through the bracket (3), each roller (10) is designed to allow some part of the spool (B) to rest on the roller and each roller is designed to be coaxially supported by the corresponding shaft (6).

5. The device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, The transfer device (9) includes: at least one enclosure and guide channel (11) designed to temporarily support the spool (B); and at least one slider (12) slidable along the channel (11) and provided with a shoulder unit (13) abutting at least a portion of the edge of the spool (B), the slider (12) being movable between a first arrangement at a maximum distance from the receiving structure (2) of the spool (B) and a second arrangement at a minimum distance from the structure (2), wherein the spool (B) is transferred from the channel (11) to the receiving structure (2) when changing from the first arrangement to the second arrangement.

6. The device according to claim 5, characterized in that, The shoulder unit (13) of the slider (12) includes at least one columnar rod, on which a free-spinning bushing is mounted. The outer surface of the free-spinning bushing is adapted to abut against the edge of the spool (B) for a combined rotational translational movement of the spool from the compartment (4) to the structure (2).

7. The device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The unloading actuator (8) for unloading the spool (B) is a pusher provided with a terminal sleeve adapted to abut against at least one edge of the spool (B) for combined rotational translational movement of the spool from the structure (2) to the storage unit (5).

8. A machine for forming electrical winding components, the type of machine comprising: At least one guiding element (2a, 2b) for a conductor (A); and at least one station for bending and cutting the conductor (A) to form a component, characterized in that the machine includes at least one device (1) according to at least one of the preceding claims.

9. The machine according to claim 8, characterized in that, At least one of the guiding elements (2b) includes at least one tensioning pulley pivotally connected to a block (14), which is translatable by means of an actuator (15), and the motion law of the translatable block (14) is defined by feedback based on the motion law of the conductor (A) moving toward the bending and processing station.

10. A method for replacing a spool (B) of a wire (A) in a machine according to any one of claims 8 and 9, the method comprising: - Translate the housing structure (2) with the depleted spool (B) until it is arranged side by side with the temporary storage unit (5). - The depleted spool (B) is pushed from the receiving structure (2) into the temporary storage unit (5). - Translate the empty receiving structure (2) until the empty receiving structure is brought back to be aligned with the hopper (4) having a spool (B) with a predetermined amount of wire (A) wound around it. - The spool (B) with the predetermined amount of wire (A) wound around it is pushed from the compartment (4) into the receiving structure (2).

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