A raw material transport and supply device

Abstract

The utility model provides a kind of raw material transport and feed device, it uses mechanism different from manipulator to be used for the joint traction of standby roll, etc., can also be convenient for the arrangement of each mechanism in production line simultaneously.The structure includes rack, first gas inflation shaft and second gas inflation shaft are installed on rack by rotating arm, rotating arm can rotate and make first gas inflation shaft and second gas inflation shaft switch between material discharging position and standby position, it further includes three coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism, three coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism includes X-axis movement unit, Y-axis movement unit, Z-axis movement unit and fourth axis material pulling mechanism, fourth axis material pulling mechanism at least includes unloading assembly and material pulling assembly, and the position of unloading assembly and material pulling assembly can be switched, fourth axis material pulling mechanism can also move in X, Y, Z axis direction by X-axis movement unit, Y-axis movement unit and Z-axis movement unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of hygiene product manufacturing technology, specifically a raw material transportation and feeding device. Background Technology

[0002] Disposable hygiene products such as sanitary napkins and diapers are made of many strips of material. Raw material suppliers wind these strips into rolls. To achieve material roll replacement without stopping the machine, disposable hygiene product equipment manufacturers generally use a solution: two rolls of raw material are placed simultaneously. One roll is released in real time as the release roll, and the other is kept as a spare roll. When the release roll is detected to be running out of material, it stops unwinding. The splicer glues the end of the spare roll to the release roll, and then the splicer cuts off the tail of the release roll. The two rolls of material are then successfully replaced and connected. During the operation of the splicer, the material required by the production line comes from the storage bin. After the splicing action is completed, the spare roll is converted into the release roll to release material. At this time, the core of the exhausted roll needs to be removed, the next spare roll needs to be installed, and the end of the spare roll needs to be taped and placed into the splicer.

[0003] To facilitate the above operations, the applicant previously filed a patent application with publication number CN212245436U, which discloses a raw material feeding and switching device. This device includes a frame and a robotic arm. The frame is equipped with a splicer and a rotary unwinding mechanism. The rotary unwinding mechanism includes a rotating arm, with a first air shaft and a second air shaft mounted at both ends of the rotating arm for holding the unwinding roll and the spare roll. The roll is switched by rotating the rotating arm. The robotic arm has a working head that rotates via a working arm. The working head includes a unloading mechanism for removing the waste core of the used roll, a feeding mechanism for loading new material rolls onto the air shaft located at the preparation position, and a traction mechanism for pulling the joint of the spare roll to the splicer.

[0004] In actual use, the applicant found that the robotic arm was not the only option, and that the robotic arm had certain limitations, requiring the various mechanisms on the production line to be arranged around the robotic arm's range of motion. Utility Model Content

[0005] To address the aforementioned problems, this utility model provides a raw material transportation and feeding device, which employs a mechanism distinct from that of a robotic arm for operations such as jointing and pulling of spare material rolls, while also facilitating the arrangement of various mechanisms within the production line.

[0006] The technical solution is as follows: a raw material transportation and feeding device, comprising a material rack, on which a first air shaft and a second air shaft are mounted via a rotating arm. The rotating arm is capable of rotating and switching the first air shaft and the second air shaft between a material discharge position and a material preparation position. The device is characterized by further comprising a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism, which includes an X-axis motion unit, a Y-axis motion unit, a Z-axis motion unit, and a fourth-axis material pulling mechanism. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism includes at least a material unloading component and a material pulling component, and is capable of switching the positions of the material unloading component and the material pulling component. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism is also capable of moving in the X, Y, and Z-axis directions via the X-axis motion unit, the Y-axis motion unit, and the Z-axis motion unit.

[0007] Furthermore, each of the three-coordinate four-axis material handling mechanisms corresponds to two oppositely arranged material racks, and the X-axis motion unit spans the two material racks.

[0008] Furthermore, the extension direction of the Y-axis motion unit is perpendicular to the extension direction of the X-axis motion unit and is arranged along the extension direction of the material rack; the extension direction of the Z-axis motion unit is along the vertical direction.

[0009] Furthermore, the raw material transportation and feeding device also includes a material roll storage mechanism and a feeding vehicle. The material roll storage mechanism is used to store material rolls, and the feeding vehicle can retrieve material rolls from the material roll storage mechanism and transfer the material rolls from the material roll storage mechanism to the material rack area.

[0010] Furthermore, the feeding trolley includes a mobile trolley and a V-shaped base, the V-shaped base being mounted on the mobile trolley, and a transfer device being installed at the material roll storage mechanism for placing the material rolls on the material roll storage mechanism onto the V-shaped base.

[0011] Furthermore, the fourth-axis material pulling mechanism also includes a feeding component. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism can switch the positions of the feeding component, the unloading component, and the pulling component. The feeding component is used to transfer the material roll on the V-shaped base to the first air shaft or the second air shaft at the material preparation position.

[0012] Furthermore, the material roll storage mechanism includes a base, on which multiple material rolls are placed and arranged along the axial direction of the base, and the base is capable of conveying the material rolls along its axial direction.

[0013] Furthermore, the feeding trolley includes a mobile trolley and a roll loading / unloading mechanism. The roll loading / unloading mechanism is mounted on the mobile trolley and includes a third air shaft and a pusher. When loading the roll, the third air shaft can approach the roll center hole on the roll storage mechanism and align it with the same axis. When unloading the roll, the third air shaft can approach the first air shaft or the second air shaft in the preparation position and align it with the same axis. The pusher is used to push the roll onto the first air shaft or the second air shaft.

[0014] Main benefits: 1. This solution replaces the robotic arm mechanism with a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism. The three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism can also be used for operations such as joint pulling of spare material rolls.

[0015] 2. X-axis motion units, Y-axis motion units, and Z-axis motion units of appropriate lengths can be flexibly laid out at the corresponding positions as needed, without being limited to the working range of the robot arm. This facilitates the arrangement of various mechanisms in the production line. For example, by having the X-axis motion unit span two material racks, the two material racks can be operated through a fourth-axis material pulling mechanism, saving equipment costs.

[0016] 3. Since the working range of the robotic arm is no longer limited, the material roll storage mechanism can be arranged in an area far away from the material rack. The material rolls can be transferred by a material delivery vehicle, which greatly reduces the space occupied by spare material rolls in the production workshop. At the same time, it also avoids the need for personnel to carry spare material rolls into the production area, reducing the risk of manual handling. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the installation structure of the material rack and the fourth shaft material pulling mechanism in Embodiment 1;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a top view of Embodiment 1;

[0019] Figure 3 This is a side view of Embodiment 1;

[0020] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the fourth shaft material handling mechanism during unloading in Embodiment 1;

[0021] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the feeding cart when picking up materials in Example 1;

[0022] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the feeding car during material loading in Example 1;

[0023] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the production line structure using Example 1;

[0024] Figure 8This is a top view of Embodiment 2;

[0025] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the material feeding vehicle picking up materials in Example 2;

[0026] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the fourth-axis material-lifting mechanism in Embodiment 2 when it picks up materials from the feeding vehicle;

[0027] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the fourth axis material feeding mechanism in Embodiment 2.

[0028] Reference numerals: 1. Material rack; 11. Rotary winding mechanism; 111. Rotating arm; 112. Second air shaft; 113. Guide wheel; 114. First air shaft; 12. Material storage device; 13. Splicer; 2. Three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism; 21. X-axis motion unit; 22. Y-axis motion unit; 23. Z-axis motion unit; 24. Fourth axis material pulling mechanism; 241. Unloading assembly; 242. Material pulling assembly; 243. Loading assembly; 3. Feeding trolley; 31. Moving trolley; 32. Material roll loading and unloading mechanism; 33. Pusher; 34. Third air shaft; 35. V-shaped base; 41. Spare material roll; 42. Working material roll; 5. Strip material; 6. Material roll to be replaced; 7. Material roll storage mechanism; 8. Reserve material roll. Detailed Implementation

[0029] Example 1:

[0030] like Figures 1-3 The illustrated raw material transport and feeding device includes a material rack 1, on which a first air shaft 114 and a second air shaft 112 are mounted via a rotating arm 111. The rotating arm 111 is rotatable and allows the first air shaft 114 and the second air shaft 112 to switch between a material discharge position and a material preparation position. It also includes a three-axis four-axis material handling mechanism 2, which includes an X-axis motion unit 21, a Y-axis motion unit 22, a Z-axis motion unit 23, and a fourth-axis material handling mechanism 24. The fourth-axis material handling mechanism 24 includes at least a discharge assembly 241 and a material handling assembly 242, and is capable of switching the positions of the discharge assembly 241 and the material handling assembly 242 so that the corresponding assemblies are oriented toward the desired discharge or material handling position. The fourth-axis material handling mechanism 24 is also capable of moving in the X, Y, and Z-axis directions via the X-axis motion unit 21, the Y-axis motion unit 22, and the Z-axis motion unit 23.

[0031] Specifically, each three-axis four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 corresponds to two oppositely arranged material racks 1. The X-axis motion unit 21 is installed on the upper part of the material rack 1 and spans the two material racks 1, so that the two material racks 1 can be pulled or unloaded by a fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24, thus saving the cost of the device. In addition, the Y-axis motion unit 22 is mounted on the moving end of the X-axis motion unit 21 (for example, the X-axis motion unit 21 is a slide rail, and the Y-axis motion unit 22 is mounted on the X-axis motion unit 21 via its moving end, i.e., a slider), so that it can move along the X-axis. The extension direction of the Y-axis motion unit 22 is perpendicular to the extension direction of the X-axis motion unit 21 and is set along the extension direction of the material rack 1 to facilitate material pulling operation. The Z-axis motion unit 23 is mounted on the moving end of the Y-axis motion unit 22, so that the Z-axis motion unit 23 can move along the Y-axis. The extension direction of the Z-axis motion unit 23 is vertical. The fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24 is mounted on the moving end of the Z-axis motion unit 23, so that the fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24 can move in the Z-axis direction to adjust the height of each component on the fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24.

[0032] In addition, combined Figure 7 The raw material transportation and feeding device also includes a roll storage mechanism 7 and a feeding cart 3. The roll storage mechanism 7 is used to store rolls and includes a base. Multiple rolls are placed on the base and arranged along the axial direction of the base. The base can transport the rolls along its axial direction. Specifically, the base has two conveyor belts arranged in a V-shape. The spacing of the conveyor belts is adjustable to accommodate rolls of different diameters. The two V-shaped conveyor belts cooperate with the rolls to automatically align the axes of several rolls and ensure smooth and reliable transportation. The feeding cart 3 can retrieve rolls from the roll storage mechanism 7 and transfer them from the roll storage mechanism 7 to the material rack area. Specifically, in this embodiment, the feeding trolley 3 includes a mobile trolley 31 and a roll loading and unloading mechanism 32. The roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 is mounted on the mobile trolley 31 and includes a pusher 33 and a third air shaft 34. When loading a roll, the third air shaft 34 can approach the roll center hole on the roll storage mechanism 7 and make it coaxial. When unloading a roll, the third air shaft 34 can approach the first air shaft 114 or the second air shaft 112 in the preparation position and make it coaxial. The pusher 33 is used to push the roll onto the first air shaft 114 or the second air shaft 112.

[0033] When the above-mentioned feeding car 3 is used, the feeding of the material roll can be carried out entirely by the feeding car 3. The fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24 no longer needs a feeding component. It only needs to include a material unloading component 223 for removing the waste core of the used material roll and a material pulling component 224 for pulling the joint of the material roll at the preparation position to the splicer 13.

[0034] The working process of this embodiment is as follows:

[0035] 1. Roll replacement and splicing:

[0036] like Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, the first air shaft 114 and the second air shaft 112 on the rotary winding mechanism 11 correspond to two unwinding and releasing stations (i.e., the unwinding position and the material preparation position). The first air shaft 114 rotates to release the working material roll 42, while the second air shaft 112 remains stationary. When the working material roll 42 is detected to be almost exhausted, the first air shaft 114 that drives the release of the working material roll 42 stops rotating, and the material of the working material roll 42 stops relative to the splicer 13. The splicer 13 splices the spare material roll 41 and the working material roll 42 together. The previously stationary spare material roll 41 is driven to release by the second air shaft 112, providing strip material 5 to the production line. The rotating arm 111 of the rotary winding mechanism 11 rotates counterclockwise around the main shaft, and the spare roll 41 rotates to the position of the original working roll 42 and is converted into a working roll. During the operation of the splicer 13, the material 5 required by the production line comes from the storage tank 12.

[0037] 2. Unload the core tube:

[0038] like Figure 4 As shown, the exhausted material roll, residual tail material, and core cylinder are fitted onto the first air expansion shaft 114. The first air expansion shaft 114, which fixes the core cylinder, has now contracted, and the core cylinder is loosely fitted onto the first air expansion shaft 114. The three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 drives the fourth-axis material pulling mechanism 24 to move above the first air expansion shaft 114. During the movement, the three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 rotates the unloading assembly 241 to the required angle. The three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 controls the unloading assembly 241 to clamp the core cylinder and tail material and discard them into the waste bin.

[0039] 3. Material Retrieval:

[0040] like Figure 5 As shown, the feeding trolley 3 moves to the corresponding area of ​​the spare material and finds the corresponding material roll storage mechanism 7 of the material roll to be taken. Then, the feeding trolley 3 controls the material roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 to move to the output end of the material roll storage mechanism 7, and aligns the third air expansion shaft 34 on the material roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 with the axis of the spare material roll 8. The material roll storage mechanism 7 stores several reserve material rolls 8 with the same rotation direction and can transport the reserve material rolls 8 forward to ensure that the feeding trolley 3 can obtain the reserve material rolls 8 in the accurate position. After obtaining the position of the reserve material roll 8 by the sensor, the feeding trolley 3 controls the third air expansion shaft 34 on the material roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 to remain in the retracted state and insert it into the core of the material roll. Then, the feeding trolley 3 obtains and transports the material roll.

[0041] 4. Loading:

[0042] like Figure 6As shown, the feeding car 3 transports the material roll 6 to be replaced to the front of the empty air shaft on the material rack 1. The feeding car 3 controls the third air shaft 34 on the material roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 to be coaxial with the empty air shaft. The feeding car 3 controls the pusher 33 of the material roll loading and unloading mechanism 32 to install the material roll onto the air shaft of the material rack 1.

[0043] 5. Pull-out joint:

[0044] like Figure 1 As shown, after the material is loaded, the three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 drives the fourth-axis material pulling mechanism 24 to retract and switches the material pulling assembly 242 to the front. The air expansion shaft of the newly loaded material roll drives the roll to rotate. The joint of the roll is attached with color mark tape. The position of the color mark tape is detected by the sensor until the joint with the color mark tape stops at the set position. Then, the three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 controls the material pulling assembly 242 to approach and contact the joint of the roll from the radial direction. The edge of the joint is attached to the material pulling assembly 242. The air expansion shaft cooperates with the material pulling assembly. 242 rotate together, allowing the adhesive side of the material roll joint to wrap around the material pulling component 242 once. Then, the material pulling component 242 pulls the joint onto the adsorption component of the splicer 13. At this time, the negative pressure channel of the adsorption component is connected and sucks the material joint on the material pulling component 242. While the material pulling component 242 releases the joint, the adsorption component adsorbs the released material joint until the material joint is completely detached from the material pulling component 242. Then, the three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism 2 drives the fourth axis material pulling mechanism 24 to withdraw, waiting for the next roll change and splicing.

[0045] Example 2:

[0046] This embodiment employs different feeding carriages 3 and fourth-axis traction mechanisms 24, combined with... Figures 8-11 The feeding cart 3 includes a mobile trolley 31 and a V-shaped base 35. The V-shaped base 35 is mounted on the mobile trolley 31. A robotic arm is installed at the material roll storage mechanism 7 to place the material rolls on the material roll storage mechanism 7 onto the V-shaped base 35. Since the feeding cart 3 in this embodiment only has the function of transporting material rolls, it needs to rely on the fourth-axis material pulling mechanism 24 for feeding. For this purpose, the fourth-axis material pulling mechanism 24 also includes a feeding component 243. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism 24 can switch the positions of the feeding component 243, the unloading component 241, and the pulling component 242, for example, by rotation. The feeding component 243 is used to transfer the material rolls on the V-shaped base 35 to the first air shaft 112 or the second air shaft 114 at the material preparation position.

[0047] When using them, the main differences are: 1. Figure 9As shown, when picking up materials, the feeding car 3 moves to the spare material stacking area and finds the corresponding material roll storage mechanism 7. Then, the reserve material roll 8 is loaded onto the V-shaped base 35 of the feeding car 3 by a transfer device such as a robot. The feeding car 3 starts to transport the material roll. Since the material roll is placed from the material roll storage mechanism 7 onto the feeding car 3 by a robot, the material roll storage mechanism 7 may not have the ability to transport material rolls.

[0048] 2. During loading, if Figure 10 , Figure 11 As shown, the feeding trolley 3 transports the material roll to a predetermined area next to the material rack 1. The three-coordinate four-axis automatic feeding mechanism 2 locates the position of the feeding roll 6 on the automatic feeding trolley 3 through vision. The three-coordinate four-axis automatic feeding mechanism 2 controls the feeding component 243 on the fourth axis feeding mechanism 24 to locate the core cylinder axis of the feeding roll 6 on the automatic feeding trolley 3 and make the air expansion shaft on the feeding component 243 coaxial with the core cylinder of the material roll. Then, the three-coordinate four-axis automatic feeding mechanism 2 controls the air expansion shaft on the feeding component 243 to insert into the core cylinder of the material roll to pick up the material roll. Then, the three-coordinate four-axis automatic feeding mechanism 2 sends the material roll to the front of the empty air expansion shaft and controls the air expansion shaft on the feeding component 243 to be coaxial with the empty air expansion shaft. Subsequently, the feeding component 243 installs the material roll onto the empty air expansion shaft.

[0049] The beneficial effects of adopting the above two embodiments are as follows: 1. This solution is conducive to realizing the automatic replacement and connection of raw materials in the production line of disposable hygiene products, which further improves the automation and intelligence of the device and can be used to realize unmanned factories and intelligent workshops.

[0050] 2. This solution uses a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism to pull materials, and also uses a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism or a feeding car to load materials, which reduces the demand for labor and lowers the labor intensity of workers.

[0051] 3. This solution uses a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism to pull and place material joints, avoiding workers' contact with rotating and shearing workstations, thus improving equipment safety.

[0052] 4. This solution uses a three-coordinate four-axis material handling mechanism to place material joints onto the splicer, which ensures high stability, reduces downtime due to malfunctions, and improves equipment uptime and product qualification rate.

[0053] 5. This solution uses a rotary winding mechanism to enable the three-coordinate four-axis material handling mechanism to load and unload materials at the same position, thereby improving the stability and accuracy of the loading and unloading of the three-coordinate four-axis material handling mechanism.

[0054] 6. The feeding cart of the present invention can transport material rolls to the production station, which greatly reduces the space occupied by the storage of reserve material rolls in the production workshop, and also avoids the need for personnel to carry spare material rolls into the production area, thus reducing the risk of manual handling.

[0055] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A raw material transport and feeding device, comprising a material rack, wherein a first air shaft and a second air shaft are mounted on the material rack via a rotating arm, the rotating arm being rotatable and capable of switching the first air shaft and the second air shaft between a material feeding position and a material preparation position, characterized in that: It also includes a three-coordinate four-axis material pulling mechanism, which includes an X-axis motion unit, a Y-axis motion unit, a Z-axis motion unit, and a fourth-axis material pulling mechanism. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism includes at least an unloading component and a material pulling component, and can switch the positions of the unloading component and the material pulling component. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism can also move in the X, Y, and Z-axis directions through the X-axis motion unit, the Y-axis motion unit, and the Z-axis motion unit.

2. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the three-coordinate four-axis material handling mechanisms corresponds to two oppositely arranged material racks, and the X-axis motion unit spans the two material racks.

3. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The Y-axis motion unit extends perpendicularly to the X-axis motion unit and is positioned along the extension direction of the material rack; the Z-axis motion unit extends vertically.

4. A raw material transportation and feeding device according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that: The raw material transportation and feeding device also includes a material roll storage mechanism and a feeding vehicle. The material roll storage mechanism is used to store material rolls, and the feeding vehicle can retrieve material rolls from the material roll storage mechanism and transfer the material rolls from the material roll storage mechanism to the material rack area.

5. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The feeding trolley includes a mobile trolley and a V-shaped base. The V-shaped base is mounted on the mobile trolley. A transfer device is installed at the material roll storage mechanism to place the material rolls on the material roll storage mechanism onto the V-shaped base.

6. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism also includes a feeding component. The fourth-axis material pulling mechanism can switch the positions of the feeding component, the unloading component, and the pulling component. The feeding component is used to transfer the material roll on the V-shaped base to the first air shaft or the second air shaft at the material preparation position.

7. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The material roll storage mechanism includes a base, on which multiple material rolls are placed and arranged along the axial direction of the base, and the base is capable of conveying the material rolls along its axial direction.

8. The raw material transportation and feeding device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The feeding trolley includes a mobile trolley and a roll loading / unloading mechanism. The roll loading / unloading mechanism is mounted on the mobile trolley and includes a third air shaft and a pusher. When loading the roll, the third air shaft can approach the center hole of the roll on the roll storage mechanism and align it with the same axis. When unloading the roll, the third air shaft can approach the first air shaft or the second air shaft in the preparation position and align it with the same axis. The pusher is used to push the roll onto the first air shaft or the second air shaft.

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