Method and device for the production control of carding machines

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a device for the production control of operating carding machines (1, 2, 3, 4), having a controller (5) and a multiplicity of carding machines that are operating with respective production outputs (16), and having a production level (20) predefined in the controller, wherein the individual carding machines (1, 2, 3) are controlled by the controller such that a sum of the individual production outputs of the respectively operating carding machines corresponds to the production level. If a carding machine fails, the controller increases the production output of at least one of the remaining carding machines or switches on a carding machine (4) that is not in operation, in order to maintain the production level.

Description

[0001] Method and device for production control of cards

[0002] The invention relates to a device and a method for controlling the production of cards during operation.

[0003] Carding machines are used in spinning preparation plants. These machines contain various working elements for cleaning, sorting, opening, carding, etc., the fiber material to be processed. A wide variety of fibers are processed, including cotton fibers, synthetic fibers, or mixtures thereof. A blowroom upstream of the carding machines has a production level many times higher than the production output of a single carding machine. For this reason, the fiber material prepared in the blowroom is distributed among numerous cards for further processing. The fiber material to be processed is fed to each card in the form of fiber flakes via a feeder and a downstream licker-in. The production output of an individual carding machine depends primarily on the quantity of fiber material fed to the carding machine, with the intensity of the cleaning and the associated amount of waste influencing production output.Production output is determined by measuring the mass of processed fiber material leaving the card. In the card, the revolving flat unit, together with the drum, forms the main carding zone and is responsible for breaking down the fiber flakes into individual fibers, separating impurities and dust, eliminating very short fibers, breaking up neps, and parallelizing the fibers. Viewed in the direction of drum rotation, there is a pre-carding zone upstream of the revolving flat unit and a post-carding zone downstream of the revolving flat unit, which also contain cleaning and carding elements. The processed fiber material is removed from the drum in the form of a fiber web and often fed to a sliver forming unit. In the sliver forming unit, the fiber web is formed into a fiber sliver, which is deposited in cans for further processing.

[0004] In spinning preparation plants, a large number of cards are operated in parallel to achieve a high production level when processing a fiber material. The production level corresponds to the sum of the production outputs of all cards used to process the same fiber material. In addition to a certain production output, the operating mode of the cards is also subject to a specification regarding the quality of the processed fiber material. Quality is influenced by a wide variety of settings during fiber processing. Quality indicators include the number of neps and the length of the fibers in the fiber web or sliver. The trash level, i.e. the amount of waste in relation to the amount of raw material, is also an indicator of the quality of a card's operation. A narrow gap, called the carding gap, forms between the clothings of the revolving flats of the revolving flat unit and the clothing of the drum.The size of the carding gap significantly determines the removal of neps from the fiber material. Furthermore, the position of the knife or cleaning elements significantly influences the amount of waste. The drum speed is primarily responsible for the fiber length in the fiber web. The production output of individual cards can therefore vary, even when processing the same fiber material.

[0005] The state of the art attempts to achieve the highest possible quality with the greatest possible production output, or the highest possible production output with still acceptable quality. Individual machines are monitored by control systems combined with a wide range of sensors and automation, and increasingly adjusted fully automatically. For example, DE 100 55 025 A1 discloses a higher-level control and display system for spinning preparation with a large number of cards. Changes in production due to necessary reductions in the production output of a card, for example, during a can change, can also be carried out automatically without any loss of quality, as disclosed, for example, in WO 2021 / 165017 A1.The disadvantage of this technology, however, is that the control and automation are based on individual machines, not on a network of machines used to process the same fiber material. Therefore, if a machine or card fails, the production level is reduced, which persists until manual intervention by the operating personnel, thus leading to a significant loss of production in the spinning preparation phase.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to propose a method and a device that, in the event of a carding machine failure, allows the production level to be maintained for a fiber material to be processed by a plurality of cards. A further object of the invention is to enable the production level to be maintained while maintaining the quality or reducing it within specified limits.

[0007] The problem is solved by the features in the characterizing part of the independent patent claim. To solve the problem, a method for controlling the production of cards in operation is proposed. The problem is solved by a method with a controller and a plurality of cards in operation, each with a production output and a production level predetermined in the controller, wherein the individual cards are controlled by the controller in such a way that the sum of the individual production outputs of the cards in operation corresponds to the production level. If a card fails, the control increases the production output of at least one of the remaining cards in order to maintain the production level. The cards in operation are used to produce fiber fleece or fiber sliver from the same raw material or fiber material and form a card assembly.According to the invention, the term "control" refers to the entirety of the controls and regulations involved in the operation of the individual cards and the card assembly. This includes machine controls and controls of individual modules or machine parts, as well as higher-level controls and automation systems that monitor and regulate the processes of an entire spinning preparation line or a spinning mill as a whole.

[0008] In an alternative procedure, a card that is not in operation is switched on instead of individual production outputs. This procedure can be used when a standstill card is available for processing the corresponding fiber material. The connection of an additional card has the advantage that the operating modes and therefore settings of the cards that are in operation do not have to be changed. Depending on the status and degree of automation of the card that can be switched on, manual intervention by the operating personnel is necessary to start the card from a standby state. As soon as the card is in operation, it is added to the network by the control system and controlled accordingly.

[0009] Advantageously, the production output of individual cards can be increased by increasing the feed associated with the respective card. Alternatively, for example, the density of a fiber wadding fed into the feed can also be increased, which would also lead to an increase in production output. However, increasing the feed has the advantage that only an increase in fiber mass per unit of time occurs, which is fed to the card. In this case, a corresponding change in the card settings (for example, increasing the operating speed of the individual fiber-transporting elements) is much easier than increasing the density of the fed fiber mass.

[0010] To achieve the further object of the invention, the control system preferably makes a selection from the cards in operation and assigns a respective production output increase to the selected cards, wherein the selection and the respective production output increase take into account quality specifications stored in the control system. Since this usually involves processing a natural product, such as cotton or cotton blends, quality specifications with a certain range are provided. Since the control system knows the current data on the production output and quality of the individual cards, the control system can, for example, initiate an increase in production output at the expense of quality in the case of a card with a low production output and an operating mode that does not exhaust the specified quality range.This means that if one card fails, its production output can be compensated for by the other cards operating in the network, preventing a production loss or a reduction in production output without compromising quality. For example, if ten cards are operated to produce a specific fiber sliver, if one card fails, the production output of the remaining cards in operation must be increased by the total output of the failed card. For example, if a card fails with 100 percent production output, this can be achieved by increasing the production output of four cards by 25 percent each.

[0011] To ensure compliance with quality specifications, the control system advantageously adjusts at least one of the following parameters in the selected cards in addition to increasing the feed: drum speed, cleaning intensity, nep reduction, and sliver formation. This results in appropriate compromises being made with regard to the quality of the final product. The extent to which an increase in production output may be achieved at the expense of quality is predefined in the control system in the form of a range of individual quality criteria within which the quality requirements of the final product are still considered to be met.For example, increasing the drum speed results in a reduction in fiber length, increasing the cleaning intensity results in an increase in the amount of waste, reducing the neps reduction by adjusting the revolving flat unit results in an increased number of neps in the fiber web, and adjusting the sliver formation leads to an irregular formation of the fiber sliver. Adjusting the individual parameters also has secondary effects on the behavior of the various carding elements. The control system stores corresponding specifications in the form of target values ​​and strip widths for the individual quality criteria, enabling an increase in the production output of individual cards even when there is a significant deviation from the target values ​​of individual quality criteria.Alternatively, a temporary increase in production output at the expense of quality is also possible in order to maintain a specified production level at least for a certain period of time. Corresponding specifications are stored in the control system for this, for example, how long certain quality criteria may be suspended or exceeded within a certain range. The fault that led to the carding machine failure must be remedied within this period; if this is not successful, the changed production output is reversed. Quality changes in a certain area can be compensated for in downstream processes, such as draw frames or combers, which facilitates a temporary expansion of the range of quality criteria.

[0012] It is advantageous if one of the following procedures is stored in the control system: a) When the production output of a card is increased, a certain waste quantity must be maintained. This prevents any changes to the settings in the cleaning elements with regard to the existing production output. For example, if an increase in production output results in an increase in the fiber load on the drum, the cleaning elements attached to the circumference of the drum must be adjusted accordingly in such a way that the specified trash level is maintained. b) When the production output of a card is increased, a certain sliver quality must be maintained. This prevents an increase in the number of neps and prevents any adjustment of the revolving flat unit.Adjustment of the sliver formation unit is also only permitted if adapted to the production output, or rather the total draft resulting from the carding machine's speed ratios of the rollers. c) When increasing the production output of a carding machine, a certain fiber length must be maintained. This prevents an increase in the drum speed, and an increase in production output can only be achieved by increasing the fiber loading of the drum. d) Increasing the production output of an operating carding machine is not permitted; maintaining the production level is only permitted by connecting an additional carding machine. This results in the application of the described alternative solution, and if an additional carding machine cannot be connected, maintaining the production level is not possible.By choosing the appropriate approach, the control system ensures that the carding system operates in a manner that is tailored to the fiber material being processed, thus avoiding undesirable quality losses. Prioritization can be established based on quality criteria that are less disruptive to further fiber processing.

[0013] Furthermore, to achieve the object, a device for controlling the production of cards in operation is proposed, wherein the device has a controller and a plurality of cards in operation, each with a production output. The sum of the individual production outputs of the cards in operation corresponds to a production level predetermined in the controller. If a card fails, the controller provides for an increase in the production output of at least one of the remaining cards or, alternatively, for switching on a card that is not in operation in order to maintain the production level. Preferably, the controller comprises an input means provided for recording quality specifications and ranges of quality values. The input means can be a keyboard, a voice module or an interface to a mobile input device.Because the control system has a corresponding input device, corresponding data valid for the entire card assembly can be transmitted to or entered into the control system.

[0014] Advantageously, quality specifications and ranges of quality values ​​are defined individually for each card. This has the advantage of allowing the mechanical condition of a card to be taken into account. For example, the production outputs to be achieved for certain quality specifications, or rather their ranges, are different for a card that has been in operation for a long time than for a card that has been recently overhauled or equipped with new clothing.

[0015] The control system preferably comprises a mode selector switch, which allows each card to select from at least one of the following operating modes: maintaining the waste quantity, maintaining the sliver quality, maintaining the fiber length, or maintaining the production output. The mode selector switch easily defines the procedure described above for each card and stores it in the control system. For the effects of the individual operating modes, see the description above. With an electronic version of the mode selector switch, it is also possible to select multiple operating modes for a card, whereby the "maintaining the production output" operating mode precludes the selection of any further operating mode.

[0016] Advantageously, each carding machine is equipped with one or more of the following sensors: waste quantity measurement, sliver quality measurement, fiber length measurement, production performance measurement, and carding gap measurement. The various properties can also be determined manually, but this results in a time delay for correcting the carding machine settings. Equipping the carding machine with the appropriate sensors enables instantaneous measurement of quality and operating data, leading to improved quality. A possible design and configuration of the aforementioned sensors is known from the state of the art and will not be discussed further here.

[0017] Furthermore, a spinning preparation system with a device as described above is proposed. Spinning preparation equipped in this way has the advantage of achieving maximum production without any loss of quality, while minimizing the need for manual intervention in the operating system.

[0018] The invention is explained below using an exemplary embodiment and is illustrated in more detail by Figure 1. Figure 1 shows, by way of example, a schematic view of a combination of four cards 1, 2, 3 and 4, which process the same fiber material 6, or the same type of fiber material 6. A first card 1, a second card 2 and a third card 3 are in operation. The fourth card 4 is not in operation. The operating state of the individual cards 1, 2, 3 and 4 can be seen from a production output display 16. The cards 1, 2, 3 and 4 shown are of the same design, so that in the following the individual elements of the cards 1, 2, 3 and 4 are briefly explained using the first card 1. The fiber material 6 fed to the first card 1 is transported in the first card 1 from left to right. The fiber material 6 passes via a filling chute 7 to a feed 8 with a feed roller and is transferred from there to a licker-in roller 9.From the licker-in roller 9, the fiber material 6 is transferred to a drum 10 and is further processed by cleaning and carding elements arranged between the drum 10 and a schematically illustrated revolving flat unit 12, as well as on the circumference of the drum 10. The processed fibers are then removed from the drum 10 in the form of a fiber web by a doffer 11 and forwarded to a sliver forming unit 13, where the fiber web is compacted into a card sliver and transferred to a fiber sliver depositor (not shown). Furthermore, the first card 1 is equipped with a machine control system 14. By way of example, the machine control system 14 shows a display of a quality specification 15 and a production output 16.

[0019] The individual machine controls 14 of the first card 1, the second card 2, the third card 3, and the fourth card 4 are connected to a central control 5. A mutual exchange of signals and commands takes place between the machine control 14 and the control 5. As a result, the control 5 is informed about the current operation of the individual cards 1, 2, 3, and 4 and can influence or control the operating mode and settings of the cards 1, 2, 3, and 4 at any time.

[0020] The controller 5 comprises at least one input means 17 and various displays, of which, by way of example, a status display 18 of the individual cards 1, 2, 3 and 4 involved in the production process in a card assembly, as well as the quality specification 19 and the production level 20. The quality specification 19 and production level 20 displayed in the controller 5 relate to the status of the card assembly. Via the input means, specifications for the quality to be maintained and the production outputs with regard to the individual cards 1, 2, 3 and 4 and the production level of the card assembly can be transmitted to the controller 5 or the machine controls 14. The present invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiment shown and described. Modifications within the scope of the patent claims are just as possible as a combination of the features, even if these are described in different exemplary embodiments.

[0021] legend

[0022] 1 First carder

[0023] 2 Second card

[0024] 3 Third card

[0025] 4 Fourth card

[0026] 5 Control

[0027] 6 Fibre material

[0028] 7 filling shaft

[0029] 8 Feeding

[0030] 9 licker-ahead

[0031] 10 drums

[0032] 11 customers

[0033] 12 revolving lid unit

[0034] 13 Band formation

[0035] 14 Machine control

[0036] 15 Quality specification card

[0037] 16 Production output

[0038] 17 Input devices

[0039] 18 Ad Carding

[0040] 19 Quality specification card combination

[0041] 20 production height

Claims

Patent claims 1. Method for controlling the production of cards (1, 2, 3) in operation, comprising a controller (5) and a plurality of cards (1, 2, 3) in operation, each with a production output (16), and a production level (20) predetermined in the controller (5), the individual cards (1, 2, 3) being controlled by the controller (5) in such a way that a sum of the individual production outputs (16) of the cards (1, 2, 3) in operation in each case corresponds to the production level (20), characterized in that in the event of a card (1, 2, 3) failing, the controller (5) increases the production output (16) of at least one of the remaining cards (1, 2, 3) or switches on a card (4) that is not in operation in order to maintain the production level (20).

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the increase in the production output (16) of individual cards (1, 2, 3) is carried out by increasing a feed (8) associated with the corresponding card (1, 2, 3).

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a selection is made by the control (5) from the cards (1, 2, 3) in operation and a respective increase in production output is assigned to the selected cards (1, 2, 3), wherein the selection and the respective increase in production output are carried out taking into account quality specifications (15) stored in the control (5).

4. Method according to claim 3, characterized in that in order to comply with the quality specifications (15) by the control (5) in the selected cards (1, 2, 3) in addition to increasing the feed (8) at least one of the following parameters is adjusted: - Drum layout - Cleaning intensity - Nits reduction - Band formation.

5. Method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that one of the following procedures is stored in the control system (5): a) when the production output of a card (1, 2, 3) is increased, a waste quantity must be maintained; b) when the production output of a card (1, 2, 3) is increased, a sliver quality must be maintained; c) when the production output of a card (1, 2, 3) is increased, a fiber length must be maintained; d) increasing the production output of a card (1, 2, 3) which is in operation is not permitted; maintaining the production level (20) is only permitted by connecting a further card (4).

6. Device for controlling the production of cards (1, 2, 3) in operation, the device has a control system (5) and a plurality of cards (1, 2, 3) in operation with a respective production output (16), wherein a sum of the individual production outputs (16) of the cards (1, 2, 3) in operation in each case corresponds to a production level (20) predetermined in the control system (5), characterized in that in the event of a card (1, 2, 3) failing, the control system (5) provides for an increase in the production output (16) of at least one of the remaining cards (1, 2, 3) or for switching on a card (4) that is not in operation in order to maintain the production level (20).

7. Device according to claim 6, characterized in that the controller (5) comprises an input means (17) which is provided for detecting quality specifications (19) and bandwidths of quality values.

8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that quality specifications (15) and bandwidths of quality values ​​are provided individually for each card (1, 2, 3, 4).

9. Device according to at least one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the control (5) comprises an operating selector switch with which a selection of at least one of the following operating modes is provided for each card (1, 2, 3, 4): - Maintaining the waste quantity - Maintaining tape quality - Maintaining fiber length - Maintaining production output (16).

10. Device according to at least one of claims 6 to 9, characterized in that each card (1, 2, 3, 4) has one or more of the following sensors: Waste quantity recording, sliver quality measurement, fiber length measurement, production performance measurement, carding gap measurement.

11. Spinning preparation with a device according to at least one of claims 6 to 10.

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