SEPARATOR FOR PROFILES

Description

Technical area

[0001] The invention relates to a separating device for profiles with transfer devices provided between support surfaces of successive cross conveyors, which have receptacles for several profiles which can be displaced in rotational steps of a shaft between a take-over position and a transfer position and which form a carrier surface which engages under only one profile in the take-over position. State of the art

[0002] Particularly with stackable profiles with a pronounced longitudinal extent, there is a risk that when several profiles taken from a stack are placed on a cross conveyor, the profiles will not only lie next to each other, but also on top of each other, which makes it more difficult to separate the profiles by successively removing the profiles from the cross conveyor. In order to separate profiles that may be lying on top of each other, it is known (US 2 993 606) to provide several successive cross conveyors in the form of sloping support surfaces forming a slideway and, between the support surfaces, transfer devices with transfer discs arranged on a shaft that comprise receptacles for several profiles distributed over the circumference. These receptacles are delimited by approximately tangential support surfaces and radial driver surfaces between the support surfaces.In a transfer position, one of the carrier surfaces engages under the profile, which at the end of its sliding movement along the support surface rests against the corresponding receiving surface. Provided that the support width of the profiles, i.e., the width of the support surface, corresponds to the radial extent of the carrier surface, the profile resting against the receiving surface, along with any profiles resting on this profile, is lifted from the support surface of the cross conveyor by the carrier surface during a subsequent rotation of the discs and transferred to the support surface of the continuing cross conveyor.During the rotation step from the receiving position to the transfer position, the tangentially aligned receiving surface receives the profiles lifted from the carrier surface of the preceding cross conveyor in a side-by-side arrangement, so that the topmost of the stacked profiles is transferred to the receiving cross conveyor as the frontmost in the conveying direction on the support surface. The profiles, now arranged side by side, are transferred individually to another cross conveyor by means of the subsequent transfer device via successive carrier surfaces.

[0003] A disadvantage, however, is that in order to take into account profiles with different support widths, an adjustable stop must be assigned to the receiving surfaces of the holders, which limits the effective radial length of the driver surfaces, so that the distance of the outer end of the driver surfaces from the stop in front of the receiving surface determines the support width for which the separating device is set.

[0004] EP0365102A1 discloses a separating device according to the preamble of claim 1. Description of the invention

[0005] The invention is therefore based on the object of designing a separating device for profiles in such a way that no additional, complex construction measures are required to adapt to profiles of the same cross-sectional shape but different support widths.

[0006] Starting from a separating device of the type described at the outset, the invention achieves the stated object in that stop cams for the profiles are assigned to the receptacles, that stop points of the stop cams which determine the contour determine an angle of rotation of the stop cams and a distance from the support surface of the cross conveyor, that the rear boundary edge of the support surface, which is determined by the stop points depending on the cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles, has at least the same distance from the shaft as the outer end of the driver surface and that the cross conveyors can be controlled depending on the stop of the profiles on a stop cam which is rotated into the rotational position for the cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles to be separated.

[0007] For a given cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles to be separated, a contour point of a supported profile determines the position of its support surface in relation to the contour point. Accordingly, if a profile conveyed by a cross conveyor preferably strikes a stop cam that limits the conveying path with a longitudinal edge, the position of the profile's support surface on the cross conveyor can be derived from the position of the stop cam. This applies to different cross-sectional dimensions if the stop points, in particular of a profile longitudinal edge, determine the contour of the stop cam over a given rotation angle range for profile cross-sections of different sizes, so that the stop point associated with a specific rotation angle specifies the distance of the stop point from the support surface of the cross conveyor and thus the height of the profile edge above the support surface for a specific cross-sectional shape and size.

[0008] In the rotational position for a given cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles to be separated, such a stop cam can limit the conveying path of the profiles so that the rear limiting edge of the support surface of the impacting profile, in the conveying direction, is in a predetermined position. This means that with an appropriate design of the contour of the stop cam, a consistent position of the rear limiting edge of the support surface of the impacting profiles can be determined for all profile cross-section sizes.

[0009] If the distance of the rear boundary edge of the profile support surface from the shaft of the transfer device is equal to the distance of the outer end of the carrier surface from the shaft, then in a subsequent rotation step of the transfer device only the profile, the position of which on the cross conveyor was determined by the stop cam and released by the rotation of the transfer device from the stop cam, along with any profiles resting on this profile, is lifted from the cross conveyor by the carrier surface and fed to the onward cross conveyor, and this when several profiles are taken over one after the other due to the tilting rotation in the conveying direction, whereby the correct separation is ensured by the individual pickup of the profiles which then strike the stop cams of the subsequent transfer device one after the other.In order to adapt to different cross-sectional sizes of the profiles to be separated, the transfer devices only need to be turned to a starting position in which the stop cams assume the angle of rotation for the respective cross-sectional size, and the cross conveyors need to be controlled depending on the stop position of the profiles in such a way that the stop position of the profiles is maintained until they are taken over by the transfer devices, i.e. that the conveying by the cross conveyor is interrupted after the profile has struck the stop cam for the transfer.

[0010] In order to lift only the profile, whose position is determined by the stop cam, from the cross conveyor using the carrier surface, the distance of the outer end of the carrier surface from the shaft must be no more than the distance of the rear boundary edge of the profile support surface of the impacting profile from the shaft of the transfer device. A smaller distance is possible as long as the profile's center of gravity lies above the carrier surface that receives the profile. Under these conditions, it is also possible to separate profiles that deviate from a straight line. If necessary, the angle of rotation of the stop cam, which determines the stop position for such profiles, must be changed.

[0011] To increase separation performance, the individual transfer devices are equipped with multiple holders and corresponding stop cams. In this case, it is recommended to equip the transfer devices with diametrically opposed holders and stop cams for the profiles.

[0012] Since the profiles are transferred to the downstream cross conveyor via their shafts using the transfer devices, simple design requirements arise if the cross conveyors are arranged offset relative to one another in the conveying direction, increasing in height, so that, due to the height offset, simple conditions are achieved for a profile transfer to the downstream cross conveyor, preferably rotated by approximately 90°. Brief description of the invention

[0013] The drawing shows an example of the subject matter of the invention. Fig. 1 shows a separating device according to the invention in a schematic side view and Figs. 2 to 4 show a transfer device in a schematic side view in several positions on a larger scale. Ways to implement the invention

[0014] A separating device according to the invention comprises several cross conveyors arranged one behind the other in the conveying direction, of which only the first three are designated 1, 2, and 3. The cross conveyor 1, which, like the other cross conveyors, is constructed from circulatingly driven traction means 4, such as toothed belts or chains, arranged at a distance from one another, is fed via a feed conveyor 5 with profiles 6 of a profile stack 7 to be separated.

[0015] Transfer devices 8 are provided between the cross conveyors, which remove the profiles 6 from the preceding cross conveyor and transfer them to the following cross conveyor. These transfer devices 8 each have discs 10 mounted on a common shaft 9 and arranged between the traction means 4, which form at least one receptacle 11 for several profiles 6. In the illustrated embodiment, two diametrically opposed receptacles 11 are provided for each disc 10. The receptacles 11 are provided with a driving surface 12 extending in a plane containing the shaft 9.Since the shafts 9 also lie in a plane which is determined by the support surface 13 of the cross conveyors delivering the profiles 6, these driver surfaces 12 engage under the delivered profiles 6 resting on the support surface 13 in the takeover position of the transfer devices 8, so that these profiles 6 are lifted from the preceding cross conveyor during a rotation step of the transfer devices 8 and transferred to the following cross conveyor with a rotation of preferably 90°.

[0016] Stop cams 14 for the profiles 6 are assigned to the receptacles 11 on the side facing away from the driving surfaces 12. The contour 15 of these stop cams 14 is determined by stop points 16, which preferably result from a longitudinal edge of the profiles 6 due to different cross-sectional sizes of the profiles 6, if each stop point 16 is assigned a separate angle of rotation α of the stop cam 14.Since the distance h of a stop point 16 from the support surface 13 of the cross conveyor at a rotation angle α of the stop cam 14 associated with this stop point 16 corresponds to the height distance of the contour point of the profile 6, which determines the stop point 16 and is preferably located on a longitudinal edge of the profile, from its support surface 17, the stop cam 14 specifies a distance h of a longitudinal edge of the profile from the support surface 13 in a certain rotational position, so that the stop position of the profiles 6 is clearly determined with a corresponding height distance h of the longitudinal edge of the profile from the support surface 17.

[0017] This means that with a corresponding design of the contour 15 of the stop cams 14, the distance of the rear limiting edge 18 of the support surface 17 of the profile 6 resting against the stop cam 14 from the shaft 9 in the conveying direction can be adapted to the distance of the outer end 19 of the driving surface 12 from the shaft 9, as shown in theFig. 2 and 3 for two profiles 6 of different sizes, which are square in cross-section for the sake of simplicity. The conveying path on the cross conveyor preceding the transfer device 8, which is limited by the stop cam 14 due to its rotational position depending on the size of the profile cross-section, thus ensures that during a subsequent rotational step of the transfer device 8, only the foremost profile 6 is lifted off the cross conveyor by the carrier surface 12, but not an adjoining one, because the contour 15 of the stop cam 14 limits the conveying path of the profiles 6 with different cross-section sizes in such a way that a consistent position of the rear limiting edge 17 of the support surface of the stopping profile 6 results for all cross-sectional sizes.

[0018] Based on the Fig. 4The separation of the profiles 6 is explained in more detail for the case in which several profiles 6 from the profile stack 7 come to lie on top of one another on the cross conveyor 1. The conveying path of the foremost profile 6 with the profiles 6 resting on it is limited by a stop cam 14 of the transfer device 8 between the cross conveyors 1 and 2 in the manner described above such that the carrier surface 12 which engages under the foremost profile 6 during the subsequent rotation step of the transfer device 8 lifts only this foremost profile 6 with the profiles 6 resting on it from the cross conveyor 1. During the rotation of the transfer device 8, the profiles 6 lying on top of one another are tilted onto the subsequent cross conveyor 2 with a rotation so that they usually come to lie one behind the other on the cross conveyor 2.On the cross conveyor 2, the profiles 6 are fed to the transfer device 8 to the cross conveyor 3, whereby this transfer device 8 again limits the conveying path of the foremost profile 6 on the cross conveyor 2 using a correspondingly rotationally adjusted stop cam 14 such that, with the subsequent rotation step, only the foremost profile 6 can be gripped by the carrier surface 12 of the holder 11. After this transfer of the foremost profile 6, the subsequent profiles 6 are individually gripped one after the other by the transfer device 8 between the cross conveyors 2, 3 and transferred to the cross conveyor 3, from which they can be removed individually.

[0019] Since the profiles 6 are rotated about their longitudinal axis by the transfer device 8 during transfer to a subsequent cross conveyor, it may be necessary for the transfer device 8 following the further conveying cross conveyor to provide stop cams 14 with a curved profile 15 adapted to the rotated profile cross section.

[0020] If profiles 6 are still lying on top of each other in the area of ​​the cross conveyor 2 or 3, these overlapping profiles 6 are separated in the manner described in connection with the cross conveyor 1.

Claims

1. Separating device for profiles (6) with transfer devices (8) provided between bearing surfaces (13) of successive transverse conveyors (1, 2, 3), which transfer devices (8) have receptacles (11) for a plurality of profiles (6), which receptacles (11) are displaceable in rotary steps of a shaft (9) between a pick-up position and a transfer position and form a driver surface (12) which in the pick-up position engages under only one profile (6), characterized in that stop cams (14) for the profiles (6) are associated with the receptacles (11), that stop points (16) determining the contour (15) of the stop cams (14) define an angle of rotation (α) of the stop cams (14) and a distance (h) to the bearing surface (13) of the transverse conveyor (1, 2, 3), that the rear boundary edge (18) of the bearing surface (17) defined by the stop points (16) depending on the cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles (6) is at least at the same distance from the shaft (9) as the outer end (19) of the driver surface (12) and that the transverse conveyors (1, 2, 3) can be controlled in dependence on the stop of the profiles (6) at a stop cam (14) rotated into the rotational position for the cross-sectional shape and size of the profiles (6) to be separated.

2. Separating device according to claim 1, characterised in that the transfer devices (8) have diametrically opposite receptacles (11) for the profiles (6).

3. Separating device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the transverse conveyors (1, 2, 3) are arranged offset from one another in increasing height in the conveying direction.