A system for loading a bobbin into an unwinder, a manipulator for loading the roll and a method for loading a roll into an unwinder

Abstract

The object of the application is a system (1) of loading a bobbin (2) onto an unwinding apparatus (100) for unwinding a material strand from the bobbin (2), comprising a (2) storage (3, 22) of bobbins, a manipulator (5) provided with an expanding gripper (31) for gripping a carrier roll (8) of the bobbin (2), characterised by being further provided with an inspection station (6) adapted to identify the bobbin (2) and to detect the direction of winding of the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2) and a reverse table (7) for receiving the bobbin (2) adapted to support the bobbin (2) without supporting the carrier roll (8) so as to provide access of the expanding gripper (31) to the carrier roll (8) from either of two sides depending on the detected direction of winding the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2). The object of the application is also head (30) of the manipulator (5) for the system of loading a bobbin (2) and a method of loading a bobbin (2).

Description

[0001] A SYSTEM FOR LOADING A BOBBIN INTO AN UNWINDER, A MANIPULATOR FOR LOADING THE ROLL AND A METHOD FOR LOADING A ROLL INTO AN UNWINDER

[0002] The object of the invention is system of loading bobbin onto unwinding apparatus, manipulator head for system of loading bobbin and method of loading bobbin.

[0003] In the tobacco industry, the processes for manufacturing rod-like articles are highly efficient and require frequent changes of semi-finished products in the form of strands of, for example, wrapping material for the whole product or a semi-finished product, wrapping material for wrapping the mouthpiece of a finished product or wrapping material for partial wrapping of a semi-finished product. Unwinding apparatuses are designed to combine successive strands of material to maintain the production without interruption, and require the use of apparatuses which feed bobbins of material efficiently and without the risk of feeding a wrong material and without the risk of feeding the bobbin oppositely to the required unwinding direction.

[0004] The document US6604704 B2 describes a method and apparatus for manipulating bobbins. The apparatus disclosed in the document US6604704 B2 is used for transporting and simultaneously changing the orientation of the bobbins between a stack of bobbins and a horizontal receiver or a support. The mentioned apparatus is provided with a pusher and jaws including a gripper which are inserted into the core of the bobbin and then extended inside the core so that the bobbin can be lifted from the stack. The apparatus is then moved in an up-down direction along a vertical guide. According to the disclosure of document US6604704B2, the gripper together with the lifted bobbin can be rotated 90° by means of a geared motor so that the bobbin can obtain the desired orientation in reference to the receiver.

[0005] The patent EP1798174 B1 discloses an apparatus and method for manipulating bobbins within an automated machine group. The apparatus is provided with a manipulation element in the form of a bobbin gripper enabling to pick up, fix, transport and transfer the bobbin. The gripper allows gripping the bobbin in the core and has an additional element (e.g. a laser sensor) enabling to identify the position of the bobbin and find the centre of the bobbin. In addition, the apparatus has a manipulation element in the form of a bobbin turning apparatus which allows the bobbins lying within the loading area, in a horizontal position, to be turned by 90° to a perpendicular position in which the bobbins are transferred to the bobbin changing apparatus.

[0006] The document EP1256538 A2 discloses a system and method for feeding a tobacco industry material into an operating unit. The system comprises a feeding unit for feeding the material (for example in the form of a bobbin) laid flat on a support to a corresponding unwinding spindle of the feeding unit. According to the disclosure of document EP1256538 A2, the bobbin is unwound on an unwinding spindle mounted on the circumference of a rotary platform rotating around a horizontal axis. The system allows to change the position of the unwinding spindle to a vertical receiving position by changing the position of the rotary platform.

[0007] The publication WO02 / 092483 A1 discloses a method for feeding a bobbin from a bobbin storage and an apparatus for feeding the bobbin. According to the disclosure of the document WO02 / 092483 A1 , the apparatus comprises a manipulator including a gripping member for transferring the bobbin from the bobbin storage and for manipulating the bobbin. The manipulator has an articulated arm attached to the frame for rotating the bobbin around a vertical axis. The gripping member is provided with a distance sensor which allows the gripping member to be correctly positioned in the hole in the bobbin so that the bobbin can be correctly transferred onto the unwinding unit. The application US9670021 B2 discloses a station for unwinding a bobbin of rolled material strand for the manufacture of nappies. According to the disclosure of the patent US9670021 B2, the unwinding station can be provided with an apparatus for gripping the bobbin of the wound strand of material in the form of a robotic arm capable of automatically determining the characteristics of the bobbin, e.g. diameter of the bobbin, diameter of the bobbin core, type of material wound onto the bobbin. Moreover, the robotic arm allows the bobbin of material to be moved to any position or location.

[0008] The document WO2016 / 033399 A1 describes an apparatus for feeding, loading, splicing and unwinding wound material strands for making disposable materials such as nappies. The apparatus described in the publication WO2016 / 033399 A1 is in the form of a multi-axis robot having an arm, a wrist subassembly, an end effector, a handle, a rocker arm and an extension arm. The multi-axis robot can determine roll characteristics of the wound material, e.g. bobbin diameter, core diameter, type of material wound onto the bobbin, as well as its physical properties. According to the disclosure of the document WO2016 / 033399 A1 , the robot may have at least six independent axes of rotation.

[0009] In light of the state of the art presented, there is a need to provide a comprehensive solution to automate the bobbin loading process and to maintain the production without interruption, while eliminating the risk of feeding a wrong material and placing the bobbin for unwinding in a direction opposite to the unwinding direction required on the unwinding apparatus.

[0010] The object of the invention is a system of loading a bobbin onto an unwinding apparatus for unwinding a material strand from the bobbin, comprising a bobbin storage and a manipulator provided with an expanding gripper for gripping a carrier roll of the bobbin. The system is characterised by being provided with an inspection station adapted to identify the bobbin and to detect the direction of winding of the material strand on the bobbin, a reverse table for receiving the bobbin adapted to support the bobbin without supporting the carrier roll so as to provide access of the expanding gripper to the carrier roll from either of two sides depending on the detected direction of winding of the material strand on the bobbin.

[0011] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the manipulator is provided with a jaw gripper provided with a sensor for checking the presence of the end of the material strand of the bobbin between the jaws of the jaw gripper and closing the jaw gripper when the end of the material strand of the bobbin is detected, the manipulator being adapted to wind through the material strand of the bobbin placed on the unwinding apparatus to a splicing unit for splicing a new material strand of the bobbin with the old material strand of the used bobbin.

[0012] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the bobbin storage holds at least two stacks of the bobbins, furthermore, the system is provided with a monitoring camera adapted to monitor the bobbin storage, and with a system controller adapted to preselect a bobbin from any of the bobbin stacks in the bobbin storage, based on the image from the monitoring camera.

[0013] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the inspection station is provided with an inspection camera adapted to observe the circumferential surface of the bobbin held by the manipulator, and a controller adapted to identify the bobbin and / or detect the direction of unwinding the material strand from the bobbin on the basis of the image from the inspection camera.

[0014] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the system is provided with the storage adapted to buffer the identified bobbins. Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the system is provided with a laydown area for putting away unidentified bobbins or bobbins with an unidentified unwinding direction of the material strand by the manipulator.

[0015] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the manipulator is adapted to dispose empty carrier rolls, and the system is further provided with a second container for disposing empty carrier rolls.

[0016] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the manipulator is adapted to remove a waste section of the new material strand and a waste section of the old material strand remaining after the material strand splicing operation, and the system is further provided with a first container for disposing the waste sections of the material strands.

[0017] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the manipulator head is provided with suction cups adapted to hold the lateral surface of the bobbin.

[0018] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the head is provided with a distance meter.

[0019] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised by being provided with a system controller adapted to preselect a bobbin roll first from the stack higher than any of the bobbin stacks in the storage.

[0020] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the head is provided with a head camera and the controller is adapted to control the manipulator so that the first axis of the head is in the axis of the bobbin before the bobbin is gripped.

[0021] Preferably, the system according to the invention is characterised in that the controller is adapted to determine the height at which the top of the bobbin stack is located, based on the image from the head camera and the information of the distance meter.

[0022] The object of the invention is also a manipulator head for the system of bobbin loading, comprising: an expanding gripper for gripping the carrier roll of the bobbin from either of two sides, suction cups for gripping the lateral surface of the bobbin, a jaw gripper for gripping the end of the material strand of the bobbin and a distance meter for measuring the distance of the manipulator head to the bobbin to be picked up. The head also comprises a head camera for determining the position of the bobbin to be picked up and a sensor of the end of the material strand of the bobbin.

[0023] Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the expanding gripper comprises three fingers arranged around the first axis of the head, slidably mounted and linearly driven by a rotating cam element with its axis of rotation situated in the first axis of the head.

[0024] Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the guides of the slides of the fingers are arranged in a plane perpendicular to the first axis of the head.

[0025] Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the rotating cam element is driven by means of an actuator.

[0026] Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the distance meter and the head camera are situated inside the space of the expanding gripper. Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the axis of the head camera is centrally situated in the space of the expanding gripper.

[0027] Preferably, the head according to the invention is characterised in that the second axis of the head, being the longitudinal axis of the jaw gripper, is positioned perpendicular to the first axis of the head.

[0028] The object of the invention is also a method of loading a bobbin, comprising steps wherein: the manipulator head is positioned above the bobbin stack, the position of the uppermost bobbin is checked on the basis of the image from the head camera and the signal from the distance meter, the bobbin is gripped from the bobbin stack from the first side by means of the manipulator provided with the expanding gripper adapted to grip the bobbin from either of two sides and the picked up bobbin is carried to the inspection station. Then the bobbin is positioned with its axis essentially central to the circular path of movement of the inspection camera, the bobbin is identified and the winding direction of the material strand on the bobbin is detected on the inspection station by scanning the circumferential surface of the bobbin with the inspection camera. If the winding direction of the material strand on the bobbin is detected to be opposite to the unwinding direction required on the unwinding apparatus, the bobbin is carried to the reverse table and the bobbin is gripped from the other side by means of the manipulator head. Then, according to the method according to the invention, the bobbin is carried to the unwinding apparatus directly in front of the fixing spindle and the position of the expanding gripper with respect to the fixing spindle is checked, then the bobbin is placed on the fixing spindle, the jaw gripper of the manipulator is pressed against the circumferential surface of the placed bobbin, the placed bobbin is rotated until the end of the material strand is detected by the sensor on the jaw gripper, the end of the material strand is gripped by means of the jaw gripper, the end of the material strand is detached and the material strand is wound between the rolls of the unwinding apparatus to the splicing unit for splicing the material strands. Then, after splicing the material strands, the unused waste section of the old material strand is gripped with the jaw gripper and disposed into the first container, the unused waste section of the new material strand is gripped with the jaw gripper and disposed into the first container and the carrier roll of the used bobbin is collected by means of the expanding gripper and disposed into the second container.

[0029] The head according to the invention is a multifunctional head so as to handle both the process of loading a new bobbin and receiving waste material. The central location of the head camera makes it possible to verify the alignment of the expanding gripper in reference to the carrier roll of the bobbin both before and during the head movement towards the new bobbin or towards the spindle on the unwinding apparatus before and during the movement, as the camera remains centrally aligned in reference to the carrier roll or spindle during the approaching movement of the expanding gripper. The expanding gripper can both pick up a new bobbin and collect an empty carrier roll after a material strand has been used. The jaw gripper makes it possible both to start unwinding the material strand and to pick up unused waste sections of the material strand. The system, the head and the method according to the invention facilitates to automate the process of bobbin loading by eliminating operator errors related to feeding a wrong material or bobbin in a way opposite to the required unwinding direction of the material strand on the unwinding apparatus. The elimination of human errors, on the other hand, carries a further beneficial technical effect related to the reduction of labour intensity of the process. Due to the use of the apparatus and method according to the invention, the bobbins do not have to be stacked axially. The gripper is able to appropriately centre the bobbin, showing tolerance to its non-axial alignment. This further speeds up the process as the operator does not have to perform the labour-intensive axial stacking of the bobbins. Finally, the apparatus, the head and the method according to the invention enable the proper segregation of waste, which is due to the multifunctionality of the head capable not only of placing a new bobbin, but also of receiving waste materials. The object of the invention is illustrated in more detail in a preferred embodiment in a drawing in which:

[0030] Fig. 1 shows a system of loading a bobbin;

[0031] Fig. 2 shows a manipulator head in a view towards the axis of an expanding gripper in a position when the expanding gripper is not holding the bobbin and the jaw gripper is open;

[0032] Fig. 3 shows the manipulator head in a view perpendicular to the axis of the expanding gripper, and the grippers are positioned as in Fig. 2;

[0033] Fig. 4 shows the manipulator head in a view towards the axis of the expanding gripper in a position when the expanding gripper is holding the bobbin and the jaw gripper is closed;

[0034] Fig. 5 shows the manipulator head in a view perpendicular to the axis of the expanding gripper, and the grippers are positioned as in Fig. 4;

[0035] Fig. 6 shows a cross-section through the jaw gripper.

[0036] Fig. 1 shows a system 1 of loading a bobbin 2 onto an unwinding apparatus 100. The system 1 comprises a storage 3 of bobbins 2, a manipulator 5, an inspection station 6 and a reverse table 7. The bobbin 2 comprises a carrier roll 8 (Fig. 3) and a material strand 9 wound onto this roll. The system 1 further comprises a first container 10 for receiving waste sections of the material strands of the bobbins 2 and a second container 12 for receiving empty carrier rolls 8. The system 1 may comprise a laydown area 13 for receiving and storing unidentified bobbins and / or bobbins with unidentified material strand unwinding direction.

[0037] In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, the bobbin 2 storage 3 accommodates two stacks of 14 bobbins 2. The bobbin stacks can comprise new bobbins, but also partially unwound bobbins recovered in other production stages or in other apparatuses where the production process required the bobbin to be replaced before the bobbin material strand was fully used. For the sake of simplicity, both types of bobbins put into the system are referred to as new bobbins. The system 1 may be provided with a monitoring camera 15 adapted to monitor the storage 3 of new bobbins 2, and a system controller 16 adapted to preselect the new bobbin 2 from any of the stacks 14 of new bobbins 2 in the storage 3 of new bobbins 2, based on the image from the monitoring camera 15. The system 1 may be provided with a system controller 16 adapted to preselect the new bobbin 2 in first order from a stack 14 higher than any of the stacks 14 of the bobbins in the storage 3.

[0038] The inspection station 6 is provided with an inspection camera 17, which is mounted on a rotating arm 18. The arm 18 moves the inspection camera 17 along a circular motion path 19, whereas the head 30 of the manipulator 5 moves the new bobbin 2 to the inspection station 6 and holds it horizontally so that the axis m of the new bobbin 2 substantially coincides with the centre of the circular motion path 19 along which the inspection camera 17 moves. In Fig. 1, the new bobbin 2 being inspected is indicated by a dashed line, whereas the head 30 which holds the new bobbin 2 is not shown. The inspection camera 17 is arranged to observe the circumferential surface 2A of the new bobbin 2 held by the manipulator 5, while the controller 16 is adapted to identify the new bobbin 2 by reading the bar code 20 (Fig. 3) and / or to determine the unwinding direction of the new material strand 9 from the new bobbin 2 based on the image from the inspection camera 17, the unwinding direction being defined by an arrow 21 drawn on the circumferential surface 2A of the bobbin 2.

[0039] In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, the system 1 comprises a storage 22 adapted to buffer the identified new bobbins 2. In the buffer, there are placed new bobbins 2 which have been identified at the inspection station 6 and whose unwinding direction is known, i.e. they are prepared to be put onto the unwinding apparatus 100 without checking, i.e. the manipulator 5 can pick up the new bobbin 2 from the storage 22 and carry it directly to the unwinding apparatus 100.

[0040] The system shown in Fig. 1 is provided with containers 10, 12 for waste materials. The manipulator 5 is arranged to lay away waste sections of the material strand into the first container 10, furthermore, the manipulator 5 is arranged to lay away empty carrier rolls 8 into the second container 12. The waste sections of the material strand are understood to be the waste section 9A of the new material strand 9 and the waste section 29A of the old material strand 29 remaining after the operation of splicing the new material strand 9 with the old material strand 29. The new material strand is understood to be the strand that will be unwound after the change of the bobbins, the old material strand is understood to be the strand that is unwound before the change of the bobbins. As 101 is denoted the splicing unit in which the splicing of the new material strand 9 with the old material strand 29 takes place. The section 9A of the new material strand is wound so that it can be picked up from the unwinding apparatus 100 by the jaw gripper 33 situated on the head 30 of the manipulator 5 discussed below. Similarly, the section 29A of the old material strand 29 is wound so that it can be picked up from the unwinding apparatus 100 by the jaw gripper 33. The system 1 is further provided with a second container 12 for the carrier rolls 8 of the used bobbins 2. The empty carrier roll 8 is gripped by an expanding gripper 31.

[0041] The head 30 of the manipulator 5 shown in Fig. 2 of the system 1 of loading a new bobbin 2 includes the expanding gripper 31 for gripping the carrier roll 8 of the new bobbin 2 and the empty carrier roll 8, suction cups 32 adapted to grip the lateral surface 2B of the bobbin 2, the jaw gripper 33 for gripping the end 9B of the new material strand 9 of the new bobbin 2, for gripping the waste sections 9A, 29A of the material strands 9, 29, a sensor 34 for detecting the end 9B of the new material strand 9 of the new bobbin 2, a distance meter 35 for measuring the distance of the head 30 of the manipulator 5 to the new bobbin 2 being picked up or to the fixing spindle 102 on the unwinding apparatus 100, a head camera 36 for determining the position of the picked up new bobbin 2.

[0042] In Fig. 3, the first axis k of the head 30 is denoted as k. The expanding gripper 31 comprises three grooved fingers 37 arranged around the first axis k. The finger 37 has circumferential grooves, whereas the finger 37 may have any elements to facilitate immobilization of the carrier roll 8 on the finger 37. The fingers 37 are linearly slidably mounted and may make a movement perpendicular to the first axis k. Each finger 37 is mounted on a slide 38, the slides 38 being arranged radially relative to the first axis k of the head 30, the guides 39 of the slides 38 being mounted on the body 40 of the head 30 (the fixing is not shown in the figure). On each slide 38, there is fixed a roll 41 which is situated inside a groove 42 which acts as a cam, the grooves 42 being situated in a cam element 43 in the form of a ring which is mounted rotatably about the first axis k of the head 30. The cam ring 43 is moved by an actuator 44. The movement of the cam element 43 in the form of the cam ring, in the direction T1 causes the rolls 41 and the fingers 37 to be pushed together towards the main axis k (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3), T1 being the direction of the release movement of the expanding gripper 31. The movement of the cam element 43 in the direction T2 causes the rolls 41 and the fingers 37 to be pushed apart so that the fingers 37 move to the holding position, i.e. they press against the carrier roll 8 of the bobbin 2 from the inside (Fig. 4 and Fig. 5), T2 denotes the direction of the gripping movement of the expanding gripper 31. The fingers 37 and the cam element 43 move in a plane perpendicular to the first axis k of the head 30. Substantially centrally within the expanding gripper 31, there is situated the head camera 36 for observing the space in front of the expanding gripper 31. The optical axis of the head camera 36 may coincide with the first axis k of the head 30. Next to the head camera 36, there is arranged an optical distance meter 35 for measuring the distance to objects situated in front of the expanding gripper 31 in the direction of the first axis k. The controller 16 is adapted so that, on the basis of the image from the head camera 36 and the distance meter 35, it determines the height of the top of the stack of new bobbins 2 and the position of the gripper 31 relative to the new bobbin 2. The image from the head camera 36 enables the movement of the manipulator 5 to be controlled so that it is possible to centrally position the gripper 31 relative to the new bobbin 2 to be taken from the stack 14.

[0043] The head 30 is provided with a jaw gripper 33 positioned along the second axis n of the head 30 which is positioned substantially perpendicular to the first axis k. The jaw gripper 33 comprises a first jaw 45 which is positioned along the second axis n and a second jaw 46 which is rotatably mounted on the axis t. The second jaw 46 can be moved by an actuator (not shown) or any other drive. The head 30 may be provided with a vacuum gripper for gripping the end of the material strand.

[0044] In order to load a new bobbin, the new bobbin 2 is taken from the stack 14 of bobbins by means of the gripper 31 arranged on the head 30 of the manipulator 5. During the gripping, the distance meter 35 together with the head camera 36 check the position of the first bobbin 2 on the stack 14 of new bobbins 2. The head 30 is positioned above the stack 14 of new bobbins 2, the head camera 36 captures an image including at least the carrier roll 8, the head camera 36 may capture an image of the entire new bobbin 2, while the distance meter 35 measures the distance of the lateral surface 2B of the new bobbin 2 from the head 30. The controller 16 determines the centre of the carrier roll 8. The head 30 together with the bobbin 2 is then moved so that the first axis k of the head 30 is positioned substantially coaxial with the axis m of the carrier roll 8. The manipulator 5 moves the head 30 so that the fingers 37 are positioned inside the carrier roll 8, whereas the movement of the head can be verified by the head camera 36 during the movement to pick up the new bobbin 2. The expanding gripper 31 grips the new bobbin 2, and the manipulator 5 carries the picked new bobbin 2 to the inspection station 6 and there holds it in a horizontal position. At the inspection station 6, the bobbin 2 is identified and the direction of winding of the material strand 9 on the bobbin 2 is verified. The bobbin 2 has, on its circumferential surface, a bar code 20 which contains data such as, inter alia, the type of material strand, the width of the material strand, the diameter of the carrier roll, etc. Furthermore, the bobbin 2 has, on its circumferential surface 2A, an arrow 21 which indicates the winding direction of the material strand 9 so that the controller 16, upon receiving the image from the inspection camera 17, has information as to whether the bobbin 2 is gripped correctly, i.e. so that when the bobbin 2 is placed onto the fixing spindle 102 of the unwinding apparatus 100, the material strand 9 will be unwound according to the unwinding direction U defined on the unwinding apparatus 100. The circumferential surface 2A is scanned, the inspection camera 17 moves along the path of movement 19 which is a circle and captures an image of the circumferential surface 2A of the bobbin 2, and the controller 16 reads the bar code 20 applied on this surface and finds the arrow 21 which indicates the unwinding direction of the material strand 9. The camera 17 transmits the image to the controller 16 where the new bobbin 2 is identified. The head 30 of the manipulator 5, after gripping the bobbin 2, does not have the possibility to grip the new bobbin 2 from the side opposite to the gripping side, while the unwinding apparatus 100 has a fixed unwinding direction U. In case of incorrect gripping, it is necessary to change the gripping side of the new bobbin 2. The manipulator 30 carries the bobbin 2 to the reverse table 7 situated below the inspection station 6. Due to such positioning of the reverse table 7, placing the new bobbin 2 on the reverse table 7 requires that the bobbin 2 is released by the expanding gripper 31, the suction cups 32 are switched off and that the head 30 moves downwards. The head 30 places the new bobbin 2 on the reverse table 7 and then grips the new bobbin 2 from the other side, i.e. from above. After renewed gripping the new bobbin 2, the manipulator 5 places the new bobbin 2 on the fixing spindle 102 of the unwinding apparatus 100. During the placing of the bobbin 2, the head camera 36 together with the distance meter 35 verify the position of the head 30 in reference to the fixing spindle 102, the first axis k being positioned substantially parallel to the axis of the fixing spindle 102. The recorded image of the front surface of the spindle 101 on the unwinding apparatus 100 enables the head 30 to be controlled so that the first axis k of the head 30 is aligned coaxially with the axis of the fixing spindle 102, furthermore, the position of the fingers 37 in reference to the notches in the fixing spindle 102, into which the fingers 37 are put during the placing of the new bobbin 2, is verified. The distance meter 35 checks the distance of the head 30 from the front surface of the fixing spindle 102 so that the position of the head 30 can be verified before and during the movement of the head 30. Once the bobbin 2 is placed on the fixing spindle 102, the head 30 is withdrawn and the jaw gripper 33 is pushed against the circumferential surface 2A of the new bobbin 2, then the bobbin 2 is rotated until the end 9B of the material strand 9 is detected by the sensor 34 on the lower, first jaw 45 of the jaw gripper 33. Once the end 9B is detected and the rotational movement of the bobbin 2 is stopped, the end 9B is gripped by clamping the upper, second jaw 46 of the jaw gripper 33 (Fig. 6). The manipulator 5 moves the head 30 so that the end 9B is detached from the bobbin 2 and winds the new material strand 9 between the rolls of the unwinding apparatus 100 to the splicing unit 101 for splicing the unwound old material strand 29 from the currently unwound used bobbin 2' with the new material strand 9 of the new bobbin 2. After splicing the new material strand 9 with the old material strand 29 in the splicing unit 101, the unwinding apparatus 100 unwinds the unused waste section 29A of the old material strand 29 and the head 30 moves so that the jaw gripper 33 grips the unused waste section 29A of the old material strand 29 and disposes it into the first container 10, furthermore, the unwinding apparatus 100 unwinds the unused waste section 9A of the new material strand 9 and the head 30 moves so that the jaw gripper 33 grips the unused waste section 9A of the new material strand 9 and disposes it into the first container 10. The head 30 moves so that the expanding gripper 31 grips the empty carrier roll 8 of the used bobbin 2', carries the empty carrier roll 8 and disposes it into the second container 12.

[0045] List of reference designations:

[0046] 1 system 35 distance meter

[0047] 2 bobbin 36 head camera

[0048] 2' used bobbin 37 fingers

[0049] 2A circumferential surface of the bobbin 38 slide 2B lateral surface of the bobbin 39 guide

[0050] 3 storage 40 body

[0051] 5 manipulator 41 roll

[0052] 6 inspection station 42 groove

[0053] 7 reverse table 43 cam element

[0054] 8 carrier roll 44 actuator

[0055] 9 strand material I new strand material 45 first jaw 9A waste section of new strand material 46 second jaw 9B end of strand material 100 unwinding apparatus

[0056] 10 first container 101 splicing unit

[0057] 12 second container 102 fixing spindle

[0058] 13 laydown area T 1 direction of release movement

[0059] 14 bobbin stack T2 direction of grip movement

[0060] 15 monitoring camera U unwinding direction of material strand

[0061] 16 controller

[0062] 17 inspection camera

[0063] 18 arm

[0064] 19 movement path

[0065] 20 bar code

[0066] 21 arrow

[0067] 22 storage

[0068] 29 old material strand

[0069] 29A waste section of old material strand

[0070] 30 head

[0071] 31 expanding gripper

[0072] 32 suction cups

[0073] 33 jaw gripper

[0074] 34 sensor

Claims

Patent claims1 . A system (1 ) of loading a bobbin (2) onto an unwinding apparatus (100) for unwinding a material strand from the bobbin (2), comprising a bobbin (2) storage (3, 22), a manipulator (5) provided with an expanding gripper (31) for gripping a carrier roll (8) of the bobbin (2), characterised in that it is further provided with an inspection station (6) arranged to identify the bobbin (2) and to detect the direction of winding of the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2), a reverse table (7) for receiving the bobbin (2) arranged to support the bobbin (2) without supporting the carrier roll (8) so as to provide access of the expanding gripper (31) to the carrier roll (8) from either of two sides depending on the detected direction of winding of the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2).

2. The system as in claim 1, characterised in that the manipulator (5) is provided with a jaw gripper (33) provided with a sensor (34) for checking the presence of the end (9B) of the material strand (9) of the bobbin (2) between the jaws of the jaw gripper (33) and closing the jaw gripper (33) when the end (9B) of the material strand (9) of the bobbin (2) is detected, the manipulator (5) being arranged to wind through the material strand (9) of the bobbin (2) placed on the unwinding apparatus (100) to a splicing unit (101) for splicing the new material strand (9) of the bobbin (2) with the old material strand (29) of the used bobbin (2').

3. The system as in claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the bobbin (2) storage (3, 22) accommodates at least two stacks (14) of the bobbins (2), furthermore, the system (1) is provided with a monitoring camera (15) adapted to monitor the storage (3, 22) of the bobbins (2), and with a system controller (16) adapted to preselect a bobbin (2) from any of the stacks (14) of the bobbins (2) in the storage (3, 22) of the bobbins (2), based on the image from the monitoring camera (15).

4. The system as in any of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the inspection station (6) is provided with an inspection camera (17) adapted to observe the circumferential surface (2A) of the bobbin (2) held by the manipulator (5), and a controller (16) arranged to identify the bobbin (2) and / or to detect the direction of unwinding the material strand (9) from the bobbin (2) on the basis of the image from the inspection camera (17).

5. The system as in any of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the system (1) is provided with the storage (22) adapted to buffer the identified bobbins (2).

6. The system as in any of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the system (1) is provided with a laydown area (13) for putting away unidentified bobbins or bobbins with an unidentified unwinding direction of the material strand by the manipulator (5).

7. The system as in any of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the manipulator (5) is arranged to dispose empty carrier rolls (8), and the system (1) is further provided with a second container (12) for disposing empty carrier rolls (8).

8. The system as in any of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the manipulator (5) is adapted to remove a waste section (9A) of the new material strand (9) and a waste section (29A) of the old material strand (29) remaining after the material strand (9, 29) splicing operation, and the system (1) is further provided with a first container (10) for disposing the waste sections (9A, 29A) of the material strands (9, 29).

9. The system as in any of preceding claims 1 to 8, characterised in that the manipulator (5) head (30) of the manipulator (5) is provided with suction cups (32) adapted to hold the lateral surface (2B) of the bobbin (2).

10. The system as in any of preceding claims 1 to 9, characterised in that the head (30) is provided with a distance meter (35).11 . The system as in any of claims 2 to 10, characterised by being provided with a system controller (16) adapted to preselect a bobbin (2) first from the stack (14) higher than any of the bobbin stacks (14) in the storage (3, 22).

12. The system as in any of claims 2 to 11 , characterised in that the head (30) is provided with a head camera (36) and the controller (16) is adapted to control the manipulator (5) so that the first axis (k) of the head (30) is in the axis (m) of the bobbin (2) before gripping the bobbin (2).

13. The system as in any of claims 2 to 12, characterised in that the controller (16) is adapted to determine the height at which the top of the bobbin (2) stack (14) is located, based on the image from the head camera (36) and the information of the distance meter (35).

14. A head (30) of a manipulator (5) for the system of loading a bobbin (2), comprising: an expanding gripper (31) for gripping a carrier roll (8) of the bobbin (2) from either of two sides, suction cups (32) for gripping the lateral surface (2B) of the bobbin (2), a jaw gripper (33) for gripping the end (9B) of a material strand (9) of the bobbin (2), a distance meter (35) for measuring the distance of the head (30) of the manipulator (5) to the bobbin (2) to be picked up, a head camera (36) for determining the position of the bobbin (2) to be picked up, a sensor (34) of the end (9B) of the material strand (9) of the bobbin (2).

15. The head as in claim 14, characterised in that the expanding gripper (31) comprises three fingers (37) arranged around the first axis (k) of the head (30), slidably mounted and linearly driven by a rotating cam element (43) with its axis of rotation situated in the first axis (k) of the head (30).

16. The head as in claim 14 or 15, characterised in that the guides (39) of the slides (38) of the fingers (37) are arranged in a plane perpendicular to the first axis (k) of the head (30).

17. The head as in any of claims 14 to 16, characterised in that the rotating cam element (43) is driven by means of an actuator (44).

18. The head as in any of claims 14 to 17, characterised in that the distance meter (35) and the head camera (36) are situated inside the space of the expanding gripper (31).

19. The head as in any of claims 14 to 18, characterised in that the axis of the head camera (36) is centrally situated in the space of the expanding gripper (31).

20. The head as in any of claims 14 to 19, characterised in that the second axis (n) of the head (30), being the longitudinal axis of the jaw gripper (33), is positioned perpendicular to the first axis (k) of the head (30).21 . A method of loading a bobbin (2), comprising the steps of: positioning the manipulator head is positioned above the stack (14) of bobbins (2), checking the position of the topmost bobbin (2) on the basis of the image from the head camera (36) and the signal from the distance meter (35), gripping the bobbin (2) from the stack (14) of bobbins (2) from the first side by means of the manipulator (5) provided with an expanding gripper (31) adapted to grip the bobbin from either of two sides, carrying the picked up bobbin (2) to the inspection station (6), positioning the bobbin (2) with its axis (m) essentially central of the circular path of movement (19) of the inspection camera (17), identifying the bobbin (2) and detecting the winding direction of the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2) on the inspection station (6) by scanning the circumferential surface (2A) of the bobbin (2) with the inspection camera (17), if the winding direction of the material strand (9) on the bobbin (2) is detected to be opposite to the unwinding direction (U) required on the unwinding apparatus (100), carrying the bobbin (2) to the reverse table (7) and gripping the bobbin (2) from the other side by means of the head (30) of the manipulator (5), carrying the bobbin (2) to the unwinding apparatus (100) directly in front of the fixing spindle (102) and checking the position of the expanding gripper (31) in reference to the fixing spindle (102), then the bobbin (2) is placed on the fixing spindle (102), pressing the jaw gripper (33) of the manipulator (5) against the circumferential surface (2A) of the inserted bobbin (2), rotating the inserted bobbin (2) until the end (9B) of the material strand (9) is detected by the sensor (34) on the jaw gripper (33), gripping the end (9B) of the material strand (9) by means of the jaw gripper (33),detecting the end (9B) of the material strand (9) and winding the material strand (9) between the rolls of the unwinding apparatus (100) to the splicing unit (101) for splicing the new material strand (9) and the old material strand (29), gripping the unused waste section (29A) of the old material strand (29) with the jaw gripper (33) and disposing into the first container (10), after splicing the new material strand (9) and the old material strand (29), gripping the unused waste section (9A) of the new material strand (9) with the jaw gripper (33) and disposing into the first container (10), collecting the empty carrier roll (8) of the used bobbin (2') by means of the expanding gripper (31) and disposing into the second container (12).

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