PREPARATION DE RECIPIENT

Abstract

Device (1) for transforming products (2) of elongated shape along their axis (3), for transforming products (2) initially in the form of a blank (4) into products (2) in the form of a container (6), device comprising an input station (7), for storing a plurality of blanks (4) to be used successively, a processing station (8) where the transformation of the blank (4) into a container (6) takes place, an output station (9), for storing a plurality of containers (6), as well as a manipulator (10) for grasping the products (2) to be transformed, device characterized in that the processing station (8) comprises a cutting module (11) for the blank (4) to cut the product (2) by passing through its axis (3), a sanding module (5), as well as optionally a chamfering module (12),The manipulator (10) having a gripping head (13) and having a range of motion that allows said gripping head (13) to reach the input station (7) to retrieve the products (2) from different locations, the processing station (8) to expose the products (2) to treatment, and the output station (9) to deposit the containers (6) at different locations. The invention also covers a corresponding method.

Description

Title of the invention: PREPARATION OF CONTAINER

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of preparing containers, in particular glass containers. The invention relates more particularly to a device and a treatment method. This device and this method make it possible to obtain a container from a blank, for example a glass from a bottle.

[0002] The quantity of waste produced by current consumption leads to a need to reuse in all kinds of applications products whose primary use is no longer desired or possible. Thus, there are now solutions for manufacturing containers, i.e. glasses, for drinks, from bottles, in particular glass bottles. In essence, the transformation process then consists of cutting the bottle transversely between its base and its neck, the lower part, with the base, then becoming a container of smaller volume, typically a drinking glass.

[0003] For example, machines are known comprising a barrel on which several bottles can be processed simultaneously, along several different successive stations. The barrel is provided with a plurality of gripping heads, each of which can rotate a bottle around its axis. The rotation of the barrel exposes each product to the next stage; in other words, at each instant, several products are being processed at different stages of progress for each.

[0004] A disadvantage of this type of embodiment is that, due to the rotating barrel-based structure, the new incoming product must always be in the same place. It is therefore necessary to provide an additional means for bringing the product into the cell of the barrel, either an operator or a manipulator of the robot type or others. This increases the cost of the installation, and increases the cycle time. In addition, the cost of such an installation is significant given the plurality of cells which must each have an adequate motorization system.

[0005] There is therefore today a need to simplify and automate the production of containers from bottles, and in particular to reduce the cost, and / or to reduce the cycle time.

[0006] This objective is achieved by a system according to the invention, where a manipulator picks up the products, initially in the form of an elongated bottle, from an input station which may have a plurality of them, and passes them one by one to the various successive processing stations, until they are deposited at an output station which may accommodate several. The use of a robotic type manipulator makes it possible to search for the products in different locations, and to deposit them in different locations. In addition, As the product is never dropped, autonomy and production time are improved, while also improving the simplicity of the machine.

[0007] The invention thus relates to a device for transforming products of elongated shape along their axis, for transforming products initially in the form of a blank into products in the form of a container, a device comprising an input station, for storing a plurality of blanks to be used successively, a processing station where the transformation of the blank into a container takes place, an output station, for storing a plurality of containers, as well as a manipulator for gripping the products to be transformed.According to the invention, the processing station comprises a blank cutting module for cutting the product through its axis, a sanding module, and possibly a chamfering module, the manipulator having a gripping head and having a range of movement which allows said gripping head to reach the input station to search for the products at different locations, the processing station to expose the products to the processing, and the output station to place the containers at different locations.

[0008] The invention also relates to a method for processing products of elongated shape along an axis, to transform them from a blank shape to a container shape, method comprising the following steps: gripping a product in blank form at an input station, bringing it to a processing station, then bringing it to an output station, then releasing it there, the processing in the processing station comprising the cutting of the product by passing through its axis as well as the subsequent sanding of the edge left on the product by said cutting. According to the invention, the product is permanently held by the same manipulator from different positions in the grip at the input station, during the processing, and until the release at different positions in the output station.

[0009] The invention will be better understood by reading the following description, accompanied by the appended figures.

[0010] [Fig-1] represents a transformation device

[0011] [Fig.2] represents a product in the form of a bottle in an entry station

[0012] [Fig.3] represents a gripping head

[0013] [Fig.4] represents a gripping head which holds a product then in the form debauchery

[0014] [Fig.5] represents a treatment station

[0015] The invention therefore firstly has as an object a device for transforming products 2 of elongated shape along their axis 3, to transform products 2 initially in the form of a blank 4 into products 2 in the form of a container 6, device comprising an entry station 7, for storing a plurality of blanks 4 to be used successively, a treatment station 8 where the transformation of the blank 4 takes place in container 6, an output station 9, for storing a plurality of containers 6, as well as a manipulator 10 for gripping the products 2 to be processed.

[0016] The products 2, in their initial form, are presented as bottles with a circular base, or at least a part of such a bottle. They therefore have an elongated shape along an axis 3, with, on one side, a bottom part 21 which has a support face 22 to be able to place the bottle on a horizontal surface. At the other end of the axis 3, the product 2 bottle normally has a neck 23, which allows a consumer to drink or pour the contents. The device 1 and the method can process blank products 2 from which the neck 23 has been previously separated. The transformation device 1 only retains the portion of the product 2 bottle which has the bottom part 21, and therefore makes a cut of it, which passes through the axis 3. The product 2 in its final form of course retains the rotational symmetry around the axis 3, but is shorter than the initial product 2 blank 4 bottle, since the portion comprising the neck 23 has been eliminated.

[0017] The device 1 comprises an input station 7 which is configured to receive and store until they are processed a plurality of products 2. The products 2 are waiting there, immobile, arranged beforehand by an operator. In the input station 7, the products 2 are stored so that their bottom part 21 is accessible, for entry, as will be described. The input station 7 therefore has a plurality of reception zones, each of which can receive a product 2. These reception zones are for example distributed horizontally and vertically, to form a rack or a cabinet for receiving the products 2 to be processed.

[0018] In the processing station 8, the product 2 is cut in half, then the resulting cut slice is softened, taking into account the intended subsequent use, namely a container 6 such as a glass for holding a beverage. It is therefore important that the slice is not dangerous for the consumer. The processing station 8 only receives and processes one product 2 at a time.

[0019] The output station 9 is also configured to receive several products 2, but in their form resulting from the processing, therefore shorter than the blank product 2 4, and possibly with a flat crown, resulting from the cut, which is located opposite the support face 22 that the container 6 retains. The support face 22 and the crown are preferably parallel to each other and perpendicular to the axis 3. The output station 9 also has several reception zones, each for a container 6. As the container 6 has a flat part opposite the support face 22, the output station 9, and more precisely the reception zone for a product 2 container 6, has a horizontal support plane which can receive either the support face 22 or the flat part facing it. The reception zones of the output station 9 can be located next to each other, distributed in two perpendicular horizontal directions.

[0020] As will be described, a product 2 is entered and then processed if the previous product 2 is finalized and deposited in the output station 9.

[0021] The manipulator 10 is configured to, thanks to a gripping head 13 which it carries, search for and take a product 2 from any of its possible positions in the input station 7, bring it to the various treatments, then deposit it at any of the possible positions in the output station 9. It will be understood from the following that the cutting of the product 2 is done using in particular the movement of the manipulator 10. The manipulator 10 can be in the form of a structure with a carriage movable along a set of linear guides, or in the form of a multi-axis robot.

[0022] According to the invention, the processing station 8 comprises a module 11 for cutting the blank 4 to cut the product 2 by passing through its axis 3, a sanding module 5, as well as possibly a chamfering module 12, the manipulator 10 having a gripping head 13 and having a range of movement which allows said gripping head 13 to reach the entry station 7 to search for the products 2 at different locations, the processing station 8 to expose the products 2 to the processing, as well as the exit station 9 to deposit the containers 6 at different locations.

[0023] The treatment station 8 takes the form of a compact autonomous block, where all the stages of the treatment are carried out, and where all the tools essential to these stages are therefore located. The treatment station 8, however, obviously has a power supply, such as compressed air or electricity. The treatment station 8 has a mechanical structure, or carcass, or chassis 19, on which the necessary tools are fixed, in particular the various motors at the ends of which the discs or spindles are mounted. To guarantee optimal access, both for the manipulator 10 and for an operator having to carry out an intervention, the treatment station 8 has a volume generally of a rectangular parallelepiped, the work on the product 2 being carried out at the level of the upper surface of this volume, where the cutting and sanding discs are accessible, as will be described later.The gripping head 13 therefore moves during processing above the upper surface, with the product 2 beneath it.

[0024] The motors of the cutting module 11, of the sanding module 5 as well as of the possible chamfering module are within the limit of the volume defined by the chassis 19. It is possible to envisage that the cutting discs 16 and / or the sanding discs 18 are slightly offset above or below relative to the upper surface of the chassis 19.

[0025] Thus, in possible embodiments, the manipulator 10 is a multi-axis robot with a fixed base, having a succession of articulated arms, and at the end of which is mounted the gripping head 13.

[0026] The articulations are conventionally rotations, or even ball joints. It is preferable that the gripping head 13 is sized to receive a single product 2. At the free end of such a manipulator 10 there is a fixing platform for a tool, here used to fix the gripping head 13. The platform is advantageously movable in rotation, to cause a rotation of the gripping head 13 on itself.

[0027] According to a possible additional characteristic, the gripping head 13 has a base 14 as well as three stops which extend from said base 14, so that the product 2 can be gripped in the gripping head 13 against the base 14 and between the stops 15, the stops 15 preferably being movable to engage against the product 2.

[0028] The use of three stops 15, each of which has a general L-shape or a simple finger shape, makes it possible to create between them a single circle which will therefore form the only possible position for gripping a product 2 having a circular base. Other configurations are possible for the gripping head 13, insofar as it creates sufficient pressure surface to clamp the product 2.

[0029] The collaboration of the three stops 15 and the base 14 allows the gripping head to firmly grasp each product 2, the support face 22 coming against the base 14 and the cylindrical part from this support face 22 coming against the stops 15

[0030] In possible embodiments, the cutting module 11 comprises two rotary cutting discs 16 extending in the same cutting plane 17 but spaced apart from each other, and driven by at least one motor, preferably one motor per cutting disc 16.

[0031] These electric motors are driven to have a similar speed, oriented in the same direction. Each of the discs mounted on them approaches the rough product 2 from one of two sides which face each other. The cutting plane 17 is horizontal, and at the level of the upper part of the processing station 8. The motors are fixed, in other words the rotation axes of the discs are fixed, and it is the manipulator 10 which moves to advance the cutting of the product 2 in two.

[0032] According to a possible additional characteristic, the sanding module 5 comprises at least one rotating sanding disc 18, driven by at least one motor, so that the slice created on the product 2 after cutting can be placed against said at least one sanding disc 18 while the latter is rotating.

[0033] The sanding module 5 is located in the extension of the cutting module 11. For example, the cutting module 11 is located at one edge of the processing station 8, while the sanding module 5 is located at the opposite edge, the possible chamfering module 12 being located between them.

[0034] As already mentioned, in possible embodiments, the processing station 8 has a chassis 19 in which the cutting module 11 and the sanding module 5 are mounted next to each other, the cutting discs 16 and the sanding discs 18, possibly also their at least one drive motor, being in particular held, directly or indirectly, by said chassis 19.

[0035] This has the advantage of having a compact processing station 8, which is therefore quick to move for the manipulator 10, and easy to move if necessary.

[0036] According to a possible additional characteristic, the treatment station 8 further comprises a chamfering module 12 comprising a rotating spindle, driven by a motor, said spindle being in particular held, directly or indirectly, by said chassis 19.

[0037] The invention also relates to a method, namely a method for processing products 2 of elongated shape along an axis 3, to transform them from a blank shape 4 to a container shape 6, method comprising the following steps: gripping a product 2 in the form of a blank 4 at an input station 7, bringing it to a processing station 8, then bringing it to an output station 9, then releasing it there, the processing in the processing station 8 comprising the cutting of the product 2 by passing through its axis 3 as well as the subsequent sanding of the edge left on the product 2 by said cutting.

[0038] According to the invention, the product 2 is permanently held by the same manipulator 10 from different positions in the grip at the input station 7, during processing, and until release at different positions in the output station 9.

[0039] The manipulator 10 is therefore configured to execute a program during which it grips a product 2 in one of the possible predefined successive positions of the products 2 in the input station 7, then, at the end of the processing which amounts to positioning the product 2 at the level of corresponding tools, releases it in one of the possible predefined successive positions in the output station 9. The program may comprise detecting the presence of a product 2 in the following predefined position, in the input station 7 and / or in the output station 9, for example using a detector mounted on the gripping head 13.

[0040] In possible embodiments, the product 2 is retained by a bottom part 21 which it comprises and the opposite part along the axis 3 is presented to the cutting module 11 to be separated therefrom by cutting.

[0041] The cutting is done by moving the product 2 parallel to the cutting plane 17 and in the direction of the cutting discs 16. Thus, the cutting takes place as soon as the manipulator 10 has, by its movement, brought the product 2 into contact with the cutting discs 16. It is preferable that the approach movement is carried out at an equal distance from the two axes of rotation of the cutting discs 16, so that contact with them both is simultaneous, thus avoiding destabilizing the product 2

[0042] According to a possible additional characteristic, the product 2 is retained in a gripping head 13 having a base 14 and, extending from it, movable stops 15, the method comprising a referencing step during which the gripping head 13, gripped by a product 2, is positioned with its base horizontal under the product 2, then the stops 15 temporarily release and then resume their grip of the product 2, to allow the product 2 to descend against the base 14 in the meantime.

[0043] It is understood that the manipulator 10 first grasps the product 2 in the input station 7, where it is preferably stored with the support face 22 above the neck 23, or simply horizontally, then, with a firm grip, orients the gripping head 13 so that the product 2 ends up with a vertical axis 3, the support face 22 at the bottom. The rapid opening and closing makes it possible to guarantee that, even with an initial grip which is made without the base 14 abutting against the support face 22, the product 2 is correctly referenced for the following steps. Indeed, the height of the product 2 container 6 which is obtained depends on the distance between the cutting plane 17 and the support face 22; it is therefore necessary to guarantee and maintain contact to control this height. Preferably, the stops 15 of the gripping head 13 do not provide contact with the support face 22, which avoids unbalancing the product 2 during this rapid opening then closing.

[0044] A possible embodiment of the device will now be described.

[0045] The processing device 1 has four main elements: an input station 7, a processing station 8, an output station 9 and a manipulator 10 for moving the products 2 between these three stations.

[0046] The first element is an input station 7 which is arranged to receive a plurality of products 2 to be processed successively. The different products 2 to be processed each have a position of their own in the input station 7. Possibly, the input station 7 is in the form of a shelf, cabinet or rack, having a plurality of cells 24, each intended to receive a product 2. Each cell 24 is sufficiently large at its opening to accommodate a large product 2, and has support areas sufficiently close together to accommodate a short product 2. The cells 24 of the input station 7 can be organized in several rows, each having several cells 24. Finally, it is understood that the cell 24 can be formed only by support surfaces, each time for a product 2, without coating the product 2 completely. The cells 24 are oriented horizontally or approximately horizontally.They can be tilted to bring the product 2 with its neck 23 against a support surface in the direction of the axis 3. The receiving length of the cell 24 is such that the product 2 is not received there in its entire dimension along the axis 3, but that a part of the product 2 remains accessible, and is . is therefore outside the cell 24. The product 2 is placed in the cell 24 so that the support face 22 of the product 2 is outside the cell, which allows, as will be described later, to grip the product 2 by a bottom part 21. It is also possible to envisage that the neck 23 is outside the cell 24, then on the other side.

[0047] In a simple embodiment, the input station 7 comprises rules 25, provided with successive hollows arranged next to each other; the rules 25 being superimposed one above the other, at a distance which makes it possible to receive a product 2 between them. The rules 25 are also arranged one behind the other. The hollows of the rules 25 one above the other are adapted for the size of the product 2 at a first location, for example on the side of the support face 22, while the other rules arranged above one another but offset from the first have hollows adapted for the size of the product 2 at a second location along the axis 3, for example on the side of the neck 23. It is thus understood that a cell is obtained by at least two hollows, each in one of two rules 25 arranged one behind the other.The entry station 7 may be provided, for each cell 24, with a retainer at its end opposite its opening, which prevents the product 2 from sinking too far into the cell 24, making its support face 22, and therefore its bottom part 21, inaccessible. This retainer may, for example, allow the neck 23 to rest.

[0048] The input station 7 receives several products 2 simultaneously and forms a means for accumulating or storing a group of products 2 to be processed one after the other. The capacity of the input station 7 to receive several products 2, the capacity of the manipulator 10 to search for a product 2 at different locations of the input station 7, and, as will be described later, the capacity of the manipulator 10 to deposit the processed products 2 at different locations of an output station 9, guarantees the autonomy of the device to process a group of products 2 without intervention of an operator to load the manipulator 10 with a new product 2 each time at the same location, or to unload the manipulator 10 each time at the same location.

[0049] The second element of the device is the output station 9, which makes it possible to receive and store several products 2 at different locations after their processing. As will be further described later, the processing amounts to retaining from the product 2 only its portion which comprises the bottom part 21, which is itself held by the manipulator 10 throughout the operation. Separating this portion is done with a plane cut, which therefore leaves a plane cutting section on the product 2, this section intersecting the axis 3 of the product 2, preferably perpendicularly. This section forms the container 6 targeted by the processing. The products 2, in the form of container 6 at the end of the processing when they are received in the output station 9, therefore have a plane section opposite its support face 22, that is to say on the other side of the axis 3 with respect to this face. In the output station 9, the containers 6 are deposited and stored with their flat section resting on a flat surface, preferably stationary, the support face 22 being at the top.

[0050] In the output station, the containers 6 are placed next to each other. In other words, the output station 9 is arranged to receive a plurality of products 2 then in the form of containers 6, at different locations. Correspondingly, the manipulator 10 is capable of placing the containers 6 at different locations in the output station 9. The output station 9 may have a horizontal surface free of edges defining areas for receiving individual containers 6; but it may also possibly have reception areas which each hold a container 6, for example such as a crate, box, possibly with partitions, or a plurality of pockets, each for a container 6. An output station 9 with a partitioned crate allows the manipulator 10 to directly place each container 6 in the area intended for it and delimited by said partitions.

[0051] The third element of the device 1 is the processing station 8. The working tools of the product 2, for cutting, sanding or even for chamfering, are mounted in this fixed processing station 8, and the manipulator 10 brings the products 2 there one after the other, each time moving the product 2 from one tool to the other, to bring it there as well as for the execution of the work, until then depositing it in the output station 9, at a respective target position.

[0052] The processing station 8 comprises a structure, preferably based on linear beams, and its various modules, namely at least the cutting module 11 and the sanding module 5 are fixed, directly or not, to this structure. The whole therefore forms a compact block, which reduces the time required for the movement of the manipulator 10, but which also makes it possible to easily move the device 1 which then forms a work cell. By placing the processing station 8 between the entry station 7 and the exit station 9, the manipulator 10 is required to make a short journey, with an advantageous impact on the cycle time.

[0053] Thus, the processing station comprises a cutting module 11 and a sanding module 5.

[0054] The cutting module 11 serves to separate from the rest of the product 2 the portion which comprises the bottom part 21 which is gripped by the manipulator 10. The cutting module 11 has two cutting discs 16. These cutting discs 16 are rotating, thanks to a motor for each of them, or a single motor with a corresponding transmission. The at least one motor is fixed to the structure of the processing station 8. These cutting discs 16 face each other, and extend in the same horizontal plane, namely the cutting plane 17. Their edge makes it possible to cut the product 2 then in the form of a blank 4 when it is pushed against it. In the cutting plane 17, these cutting discs 16 have a gap between them, that is to say that their edges are separated, in part particular of a few centimeters. In the same way, when each cutting disc 16 has its motor, the two motors are distant from each other, extending generally under each of the discs, perpendicular to the cutting plane 17. This spacing makes it possible to leave a free volume for the part of the blank 4 which carries the neck 23 and which, during cutting, is located under the cutting plane 17.

[0055] During cutting, the manipulator 10 moves linearly, parallel to the cutting plane 17 and perpendicular to the direction between the centers of the two discs, the product 2 with the neck 23 under the cutting plane 17 and the support face 22, and therefore the bottom part 21, above the cutting plane 17. Once the cutting is finished, the separated part, that is to say that which is under the cutting plane 17, simply falls, for example into a collection bin provided for this purpose under the cutting discs 16, the part above the cutting plane 17 remaining taken in the gripping head 13 and brought by it into the following working areas.

[0056] The forward movement that the manipulator 10 imparts to the product 2 brings the latter against the edge of each of the two cutting discs 16, since this movement takes place approximately along the horizontal median between the two centers of the circles. Advantageously, after the execution of this linear movement over a few centimeters to begin cutting the product 2, a rotation of the product 2 around its axis 3, which is preferably perpendicular to the cutting plane 17 so that the cut on the product 2 becomes parallel to the support face 22, is carried out by the gripping head 13 and / or the manipulator 10, in possible combination with a linear advance as described.

[0057] The cutting discs 16 are arranged in the upper part of the treatment station 8 and are accessible from the top of the station. The cutting plane 17 is thus parallel to and close to the upper face of the treatment station 8.

[0058] The processing station 8 also comprises a sanding module 5, again comprising at least one sanding disc 18, also rotating. In preferred embodiments, the sanding module 5 comprises a pair of sanding discs 18 which face each other, and which extend in the same plane, possibly horizontal, or even in the extension of the cutting plane 17, which then reduces the cycle time and the geometric referencing requirements.

[0059] The at least one sanding disc 18 is driven by at least one motor, which is mounted on the structure of the treatment station 8. For a sanding module 5 comprising several sanding discs 18, it is possible to envisage a motor per disc or a motor for several discs, with an adequate drive. It is of course possible to envisage a single motor to drive both the at least one cutting disc 16 and the at least one sanding disc 18, or even, where appropriate, the spindle used for chamfering. As for the cutting discs 16, the at least one motor drive is located below the cutting or sanding disc, so that, during processing, the cutting or sanding disc is above the drive motor, and below the product 2, the latter being below the gripping head 13 which retains it at the bottom portion 21 during the cutting operation as well as during the sanding operation. The at least one sanding disc 18 is located at the upper surface of the processing station 8. The at least one sanding disc 18 and the at least one cutting disc 16 are thus accessible from the top of the processing station 8, with the manipulator 10 circulating the gripping head 13 above the processing station 8 in a generally horizontal movement.

[0060] In the case where the device 1 comprises two sanding discs 18, these are preferably oriented so that the direction between their two centers is horizontal and parallel to the direction, also horizontal, between the two cutting discs 16. The movement of the product 2 from the cutting module 11 to the sanding module 5 can therefore be done with a linear movement that is generally horizontal, and perpendicular both to the direction between the centers of the cutting discs 16 and to the direction between the centers of the sanding discs 18. The at least one cutting disc 16 and the at least one sanding disc 18 are possibly generally in the same horizontal plane.

[0061] The processing station 8 may also comprise a third module, namely a chamfering module 12, then arranged between, on the one hand, the cutting module 11 and, on the other hand, the sanding module 5. The chamfering module 12 comprises an abrasive spindle, for example of conical shape. This spindle is rotating and for this purpose is driven by a motor. The manipulator 10 moves the product 2 that it holds in its gripping head 13 until it places the edge(s) created by the previous cutting against the abrasive surface of the spindle. This operation makes it possible to make this edge(s) less sharp. As the chamfering module 12 is located between the cutting module 11 and the sanding module 5, the movement time of the manipulator 10 is shortened, which reduces the cycle time.

[0062] Finally, the fourth element of the device 1 is the manipulator 10. Preferably, the manipulator 10 is in the form of a robot having a succession of shafts or arms connected by joints. At the free end of this succession of arms is a gripping head 13 which the device 1 comprises and which makes it possible to grasp and hold a product 2 during the entire transformation operation, from the entry station 7 to the exit station 9. At the other end, the manipulator 10 has a base. This base is preferably located close to the entry station 7, the processing station 8, and the exit station 9.

[0063] The manipulator 10 is arranged so that its free end, therefore the gripping head 13, can reach the different reception areas of the entry station 7, to search for the products 2 at different locations, reach the cutting module 11, the sanding module, or even the chamfering module 12, and also reach the different reception areas of the output station 9, to be able to deposit the products 2 in different places.

[0064] For a construction in the form of a compact and autonomous production cell, none of the input station 7, the processing station 8, the output station 9 is located between another of them and the base of the manipulator 10. The latter can then have a smaller operating radius, and therefore be less expensive. In addition, this makes it possible to envisage that the device 1 includes safety protections, of the mesh type. These protections, however, leave the input station 7 at least partially accessible so that an operator can install a large number of products 2 there outside the action of the manipulator 10, or even the output station 9, so that an operator can recover, again in complete safety, the finished products 2.

[0065] The manipulator 10 has, at its free end, a fixing base for a gripping head 13. This base can be movable in rotation, and / or the gripping head 13 can be motorized for rotation. This gripping head 13 makes it possible to grip a product 2 at a time, and bring it, without ever completely releasing it, to the different stages of the transformation process.

[0066] The gripping head 13 has a base 14, creating a flat surface against which the support face 22 of a container can rest. The gripping head 13 comprises a plurality of stops 15 which extend from this base 14 and generally perpendicular to this flat surface. These stops 15 serve to come against the lateral surface of the product 2, and to clamp it when they approach each other. It is understood that at least one stop 15 can be moved parallel to the base, so that a product 2, which rests on the base 14, is clamped between the stops 15, which are preferably three in number, to define a single circle which will correspond to the section of the product 2 gripped. Preferably, all the stops 15 are movable parallel to the base 14.

[0067] The transformation process will now be described.

[0068] Several products 2 are arranged in an input station 7. At this stage, the products 2 are blanks 4, in particular in the form of a glass bottle. The product 2 then in the form of a bottle forming a blank 4 has an elongated geometry along an axis 3, and preferably has a cylindrical profile of revolution around this axis 3. The product 2 has, at its ends along this axis 3, on one side, a support face 22, closed, which allows the product 2 to rest stably on a horizontal plane surface, and, on the other side, a neck 23. Indeed, the support face 22 has at least one contact circle which comes into contact with the plane surface. The neck 23, for its part, has a drinking mouth, or neck, at the level of a neck 23, which is preferably of reduced diameter compared to the support face 22. It is understood that the product 2, has, from its bottom part 21, a circumferential circular wall parallel to the axis 3, said wall corresponding to the rotation of a profile around the axis 3. Thus, the product 2 has a bottom part 21, comprising the support face 22 as well as a cylindrical wall which is perpendicular to it and which extends from the support face 22 along the axis 3. It is at the level of this bottom part 21 that the product 2 is grasped and retained.

[0069] The products 2 are therefore located in the entry station 7 with their bottom part 8 accessible. Preferably, the entry station 7 takes the form of a rack or shelf provided with a plurality of reception zones, each intended to receive a product 2. In the entry station 7, the products 2 are preferably positioned with their axis 3 horizontal, for example each in a reception zone of the cell type, then of sufficiently large section for a large number of formats of products 2, in particular with regard to their diameter. The reception zone, which provides a horizontal support for the product 2, however leaves the bottom part 21 accessible. The reception zone possibly provides a support for the part of the product 2 at the neck 23.

[0070] It is obviously possible to envisage that the entry station receives the products 2 in reception zones which hold the products 2 with their axis 3 oblique, not horizontal, the neck 23 being lower than the support face 22 and therefore also than the bottom part 21.

[0071] In simple terms, the entry station 7 has, on the one hand, a first series of reference plates, one above the other and which have hollows or notches to receive therein each time a product 2 in its part close to the support face 22, and, on the other hand, a second series of reference plates, again one above the other and which also have hollows or notches to receive therein each time a product 2 in its part close to the neck 23. This gives an entry station 7 which can receive the products 2 at multiple locations.

[0072] In a first step, the manipulator 10 is set in motion so as to position the gripping head 13 at the bottom portion 21 of a product 2. The base 14 of the gripping head 13 is placed parallel to the bottom portion 21, in other words perpendicular to the axis 3. The stops 15, preferably three in number, are then parallel to the axis 3. They are initially sufficiently far apart so that the bottom portion 21 of the product 2 can be inserted between them, or rather so that the gripping head 13 can be moved in the direction of the axis 3 with the stops 15 around the bottom portion 21 of the product 2. The stops 15 are then brought close against the bottom portion 21 of the product 2, so that the gripping head 13 grips and holds the product 2. Holding the product 2 in the gripping head 13 grip 13 is retained from the capture in the input station 7 at one of the possible positions, during work in the processing station 8, and until delivery in the output station 9 at one of the possible positions. Preferably, the stops 15 are applied against the product 2 to clamp it, from the gripping in the input station 7, during the processing in the processing station 8, that is to say the cutting, the sanding or even the chamfering, and until the release in the output station 9, except, where appropriate and as described below, during an axial referencing step during which the stops 15 are moved away from each other to release the product 2, the latter then remaining however retained in the gripping head 13 by the support face 22 of the product 2 which comes against the base 14 of the gripping head 13.The stops 15 then delimit the horizontal movement of the product 2 within the gripping head 13 so that it remains held there, even if the stops 15 do not temporarily exert any force against the product 2 in the direction of the axis 3. As will be described further below, the product 2 is held during the entire transformation, by its bottom part 21.

[0073] Thanks to the stops 15 which exert a force against the product 2 at the level of the bottom part 21, the manipulator 10 extracts by its movement the product 2 from the entry station 7. The product 2 is held at its bottom part 21 by the gripping head 13, and this during the different stages of transformation and / or movement.

[0074] After gripping the product 2 in the input station 7 to extract it from one of the possible positions in said station, the method may comprise a referencing step which takes place as follows. The manipulator 10 moves to orient the product 2 with the gripping head 13 beneath it. Preferably, this orientation is such that the base 14 of the gripping head 13 is horizontal, with the stops 15 extending upwards from it against the product 2. At this stage, the holding of the product 2 is then reduced, without the product 2 being released. Indeed, at least one of the stops 15 moves away from the product 2, and preferably the same applies to all the stops 15. Since the axis 3 of the product 2 is vertical, the latter is positioned and retained by the gripping head 13 by the base 14; the stops 15 being at a distance from the product 2, but preferably sufficiently close to ensure, however, restraint against a lateral fall.When the product 2 is released from the stops 15 by moving away from at least one of them, given its vertical orientation, the product 2, if it is not against the base 14, will descend there under the effect of its own weight. The stops 15 are released from the product 2 for a short time which allows the product 2 to slide downwards against the base 14, then the stops 15 return to position against the product 2. Thus, the product 2 is correctly placed between the three stops 15, which are positioned in a single circle trace, and against the base 14. During the opening and closing of the stops 15, the gripping head 13 is pre . firmly immobile, that is to say that the base 14 does not move, whereas, as has been explained, at least one of the stops 15 moves horizontally to reduce the clamping force on the bottom part 21 of the product 2.

[0075] The manipulator 10 moves the product 2, holding it by the bottom part 21, until it is brought to the level of the treatment station 8. The manipulator 10 presents the product 2 in the treatment station 8 with its neck 23 under the bottom part 21 of the product 2. The axis 3 of the product 2 can be vertical or oblique.

[0076] The manipulator 10, while maintaining the bottom part 21, approaches the product 2, neck 23 at the bottom, to the cutting discs 16, in particular by advancing the product 2 between the two cutting discs 16.

[0077] The cutting discs 16 preferably rotate in the same direction and are oriented horizontally, in a cutting plane 17. They are slightly distant from each other. The manipulator 10 moves the product 2 in the cutting module 11 while holding it neck 23 at the bottom by the bottom part 21, and presents in the cutting plane 17, a section of the product 2 which is located between the bottom part 21 and the neck 23. The cutting discs 16 are positioned so that their edges are distant from each other by a distance smaller than the internal diameter of the product 2 to be cut. In particular, the space between the edges of the two cutting discs 16 is less than 5 centimeters, preferably less than 3 centimeters.

[0078] The cutting of the product 2 is done by moving the manipulator so that the gripping head 13, which holds the product 2 during cutting by its bottom part 21 taken between the stops 15, moves parallel to the cutting plane 17. In particular, it is advantageous for the movement at the level of the product 2 to be along a straight line parallel to the cutting plane 17, therefore horizontal, and perpendicular to the direction which connects the centers of the cutting discs 16 together, preferably a straight line equidistant from the two centers. Due to the circular shape of the two cutting discs 16 between which the product 2 is brought, the latter is attacked simultaneously or almost simultaneously, by the two cutting discs 16 each cutting the product 2 on one side.

[0079] Preferably, the axis 3 of the product 2 is oriented perpendicular to the cutting plane 17 during cutting, which ultimately results in a cut parallel to the support face 22 of the product 2, or, in other words, perpendicular to the axis 3. It is also possible to imagine that the manipulator is positioned so that the product 2, held in the gripping head 13 by the stops 15 pressed against it, is with its axis 3 not perpendicular to the cutting plane 17. In this case, the cut obtained will be along a plane not perpendicular to the axis 3.

[0080] Since the cutting discs 16 have a gap between their circumferences, a simple translational movement as described of the product 2 between them will not allow the neck 23 to be separated from the bottom part 21, since the product 2 would retain its material corresponding to the gap between the discs. Thus, at least from a moment after the product 2 comes into contact with the two cutting discs 16, the gripping head 13 rotates the product 2 around a direction perpendicular to the cutting plane 17. To do this, a rotation is implemented for the stops 15 as well as the base 14 in a coordinated manner, or even of the gripping head itself, in the case where the product 2 is held with its axis 3 not perpendicular to the cutting plane 17. The gripping head 13 must then be driven along a circular trajectory parallel to the cutting plane 17.

[0081] The product 2 is held by the manipulator 10 during the cutting operation within the cutting module 11, and preferably without having been released from the gripping head 13 since its grip in the input station 7 and possibly without being released until release in the output station 9. The cutting operation consists of separating the product 2 into two parts, one comprising the neck 23 and the other comprising the bottom part 21, held in the gripping head 13. As the product 2 is oriented, during cutting, with the neck 23 under the bottom part 21, the cutting ends with the part of the product 2 which comprises the neck 23 falling downwards. A recovery tray can be provided, which therefore receives this part and which is at least partially located under the cutting plane 17, possibly via a chute.At the end of the cutting operation, the gripping head 13 only holds a portion of the initial blank, but still at the level of the bottom part 21.

[0082] In possible embodiments, the cutting is carried out by first making a primer on the product 2, then by imposing a thermal shock on it which will cause the primer to develop until it breaks around the entire circumference.

[0083] During the next step, the cutting section at the level of the product 2 is polished. To do this, the gripping head 13, without releasing the product 2 between the cutting module and the sanding module, neither between the cutting and the sanding nor during, brings the product 2 into the sanding module 5, always with the same orientation, namely the gripping head above the product 2, or, in other words, the bottom part 21 at the top. The cutting section or in other words the slice obtained by the previous cutting, then forms the lowest part of the product 2.

[0084] The manipulator 10 moves to bring the product 2 into the sanding module 5 with the cutting section, created by the previous cutting, arriving against the sanding disc 18. Preferably, the sanding disc 18 extends in a horizontal plane, and the same applies to the cutting discs 16. The sanding module 5 may comprise a single sanding disc 18 or several sanding discs 18, in particular two. In such a case, the sanding discs 18 are coplanar. With a sanding module 5 which comprises two sanding discs 18, these discs are positioned so as to have a gap between their respective peripheries.

[0085] The sanding operation amounts to holding the product 2 with its edge, previously obtained by cutting, against the sanding disc 18 or at least one of them. During this operation, the product 2 is held by the gripping head 13. The gripping head 13 retains the product 2 during at least the cutting step and the sanding step, and during the associated movements, operational or transfer, preferably without ever completely releasing it, and even more preferably without ever releasing the clamping of the product 2 in the gripping head 13. During this treatment, the product 2 is permanently held by the gripping head 13, and therefore the manipulator 10, while the other products 2 are waiting.

[0086] During the sanding step, the gripping head 13 preferably creates a rotational movement of the product 2 around a direction perpendicular to the plane in which the at least one sanding disc 18 extends. In the case where the cutting is done with a product 2 oriented with its axis 3 perpendicular to the cutting plane 17, the cut obtained is perpendicular to the axis 3 of the product 2, and, during the sanding, the product 2 is simply rotated around its own axis 3. This rotation is advantageously obtained by a coordinated rotation of the stops 15 and the base 14.

[0087] Preferably, in the case where the sanding module 5 comprises two sanding discs 18 which face each other but are spaced apart, the product 2 is held against the sanding discs 18 at the center between the center of the first disc and the center of the second disc. Even more preferably, the cutting has left a cutting section perpendicular to the axis 3 of the product 2, and, during the sanding, the gripping head 13 imparts to the product 2, held with its axis 3 vertical, a rotational movement about a vertical direction. Thus, a point of the cutting section passes alternately from one sanding disc 18 to the other.

[0088] During the sanding operation, the product 2 is held by the gripping head 13 at the bottom part 21. The sanding operation makes it possible to soften the surface previously obtained by the cutting operation.

[0089] Once the sanding is finished, the manipulator 10 moves the gripping head 13 so that the product 2, which it still holds between the stops 15, arrives at the exit station 9. At this stage, after cutting and sanding, the product 2 has the shape of a container 6, that is to say it is the part of the blank 4 between the support face 22 and the cutting section created by the cutting. It is thus possible to obtain a container 6 of dimensions, volume and ergonomics corresponding to a drinking glass.

[0090] The gripping head 13, which holds the product 2 during the sanding step, holds it continuously until the product 2 arrives at the output station 9. Preferably, the gripping head 13 is above the product 2 during cutting, during sanding, during intermediate movements, as well as during the movement to the output station 9. At the output station 9, the gripping head 13 releases the product 2 then in the form of a container 6, at one of several possible positions in the output station and reachable by it, and, taking into account its orientation, i.e. the base part 21 at the top and thus the cutting edge at the bottom, the product 2 is deposited with said cutting edge arriving against and on a flat and horizontal surface. The products 2 in the form of containers 6 are deposited next to each other on a horizontal surface, with their base part 21 at the top.

[0091] The treatment method may also include a chamfering step, the purpose of which is to soften the edges created by the cutting, both for the inner edge and the outer edge. This chamfering is carried out for example using a rotating spindle, on which an abrasion means is mounted. After the cutting step, and either before or after the sanding step, the manipulator 10 moves the product 2 to the chamfering spindle. The latter has a fixed axis of rotation, so that the gripping head 13 creates the appropriate rotation of the product 2 so that the entirety of the two cutting edges, the inner and the outer, are exposed to chamfering by contact with said spindle.

[0092] Again, the manipulator 10, through the gripping head 13, holds the product 2 when it brings the product 2 and when the product 2 is exposed to the spindle.

[0093] It is understood from the above that the product 2 remains permanently in and in contact with the gripping head 13 throughout the processing, namely from the gripping at one of the positions in the input station 7 until the depositing at one of the positions in the output station 9, and therefore during the cutting, the sanding, or even, where appropriate, the chamfering. During the entire operation, the gripping head 13 therefore does not release the product 2, at least not completely, as in the case where the method also includes a referencing step described above.

[0094] It follows from the above that the processing of a large quantity of successive products 2 can be done without any intervention from an operator. Furthermore, since the product 2 is never completely released, for example to place it on a transfer table, an intermediate stock area, the cycle time for a product 2 is significantly reduced.

[0095] The invention has been presented with its constituent characteristics. Variants are possible, by different combination of all or part of several of these characteristics.

Claims

Claims

1. Device (1) for transforming products (2) of elongated shape along their axis (3), for transforming products (2) initially in the form of a blank (4) into products (2) in the form of a container (6), device comprising an input station (7), for storing a plurality of blanks (4) to be used successively, a processing station (8) where the transformation of the blank (4) into a container (6) takes place, an output station (9), for storing a plurality of containers (6), as well as a manipulator (10) for gripping the products (2) to be transformed, device characterized in that the processing station (8) comprises a module (11) for cutting the blank (4) to cut the product (2) passing through its axis (3), a sanding module (5), as well as possibly a chamfering module (12),the manipulator (10) having a gripping head (13) and having a range of movement which allows said gripping head (13) to reach the input station (7) to search for the products (2) at different locations, the processing station (8) to expose the products (2) to the processing, as well as the output station (9) to deposit the containers (6) at different locations.,

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the manipulator (10) is a multi-axis robot with a fixed base, having a succession of articulated arms, and at the end of which the gripping head (13) is mounted.

3. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the gripping head (13) has a base (14) as well as three stops which extend from said base (14), so that the product (2) can be gripped in the gripping head (13) against the base (14) and between the stops (15), the stops (15) preferably being movable to engage against the product (2).

4. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cutting module (11) comprises two rotary cutting discs (16) extending in the same cutting plane (17) but spaced from each other, and driven by at least one motor, preferably one motor per cutting disc (16).

5. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sanding module (5) comprises at least one rotating sanding disc (18), driven by at least one motor, so that the slice created on the product (2) after cutting can be placed against said at least one sanding disc (18) while the latter turned.

6. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the processing station (8) has a chassis (19) in which the cutting module (11) and the sanding module (5) are mounted next to each other, the cutting discs (16) and the sanding discs (18), possibly also their at least one drive motor, being in particular held, directly or indirectly, by said chassis (19).

7. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the treatment station (8) further comprises a chamfering module (12) comprising a rotating spindle, driven by a motor, said spindle being in particular held, directly or indirectly, by said chassis (19).

8. A method of processing products (2) of elongated shape along an axis (3), to transform them from a blank shape (4) to a container shape (6), the method comprising the following steps: gripping a product (2) in the form of a blank (4) at an input station (7), bringing it to a processing station (8), then bringing it to an output station (9), and then releasing it there, the processing in the processing station (8) comprising cutting the product (2) along its axis (3) and the subsequent sanding of the edge left on the product (2) by said cutting, characterized in that the product (2) is permanently held by the same manipulator (10) from different positions in the grip at the input station (7), during the processing, and until release at different positions in the output station (9).

9. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the product (2) is retained by a bottom part (21) which it comprises and the opposite part along the axis (3) is presented to the cutting module (11) to be separated therefrom by cutting.

10. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the product (2) is retained in a gripping head (13) having a base (14) and, extending from it, movable stops (15), the method comprising a referencing step during which the gripping head (13), gripped by a product (2), is positioned with its base horizontal under the product (2), then the stops (15) temporarily release and then resume their grip of the product (2), to allow the product (2) to descend against the base (14) in the meantime.

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