Gripper and method for gripping a tire bead ring - Patents.com

Abstract

The present invention relates to a gripper for gripping a tire bead ring being transported from a pick-up position to a placement position, the gripper having two or more engagement claws arranged at equal angular intervals around the gripper, each of the two or more engagement claws having an engagement finger for engaging the tire bead ring to be gripped, the engagement claws configured to move radially between a remote position away from the tire bead ring to be gripped and an engagement position where the engagement fingers engage the tire bead ring to be gripped, and the gripper having an ejection finger configured to eject the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper from the gripper.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a gripper for gripping a tire bead ring transferred from a pick-up position to a placement position. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method for gripping a tire bead ring transferred from a pick-up position to a placement position and a bead transfer device for transferring a tire bead ring from a pick-up position to a placement position. [Background technology]

[0002] Such grippers are known, for example, from WO 2010 / 021546, which describes an apparatus for transporting and positioning tire beads, which in particular comprises bead holding means for picking up and holding the beads, which have engaging claws arranged at equal angular intervals circumferentially on the bead holding means, which can be driven or retracted radially to respectively engage or release the beads of the tire. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] In particular, the known gripper is used to retrieve a tire bead ring from a tire bead apex drum and place the retrieved tire bead ring in a next position, such as a stack of tire bead rings. The tire bead ring is picked up by driving the engaging claws radially outward, the tire bead ring is engaged by the engaging claws, and is placed on the tire bead apex drum by driving the engaging claws radially to move the tire bead ring away from the gripper. All the engaging claws are driven simultaneously so that they move at the same time. It is important that the placement in the next position is performed centrally and evenly. In order to obtain a good adhesion between the tire bead ring and the apex, the tire bead ring is provided with a thin layer of unvulcanized rubber. Due to the thin layer of unvulcanized rubber, the tire bead ring may remain overlapped by one of the engaging claws when the engaging claws are moved inward. This results in the tire bead ring not being released from all the engaging claws at the same time, and the placement of the tire bead ring on the tire bead apex drum is not centrally performed, which is disadvantageous. Furthermore, the tire bead ring may become deformed into a non-circular shape because it remains overlapping one of the engagement claws, which may be detrimental.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to ameliorate or eliminate one or more disadvantages of the known prior art and to provide an improved gripper, or at least to provide an alternative gripper. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to a first aspect, the present invention provides a gripper for gripping a tire bead ring being transferred from a pick-up position to a placement position, said gripper comprising: two or more engagement claws arranged at equal angular intervals in a circumferential direction of the gripper, each of the two or more engagement claws having an engagement finger for engaging the tire bead ring to be gripped; the engagement pawls are configured to move radially between a remote position away from the tire bead ring with which the engagement fingers grip and an engagement position in which the engagement fingers engage the tire bead ring with which the engagement fingers grip, The gripper includes ejection fingers configured to eject the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper from the gripper.

[0006] During use of the gripper according to the invention, the engagement fingers are moved from a remote position, such as a radially inner position, to an engagement position, such as a radially outer position, to engage and grip the tire bead ring. When the gripper approaches or is at the placement position, the engagement fingers are moved radially inward to move the tire bead ring away from the gripper. Before or while the engagement fingers are moved radially inward to release the gripped tire bead ring, the ejection fingers apply an ejection force to the tire bead ring. The ejection force applied by the ejection fingers prevents the tire bead ring from remaining overlapped by one or more of the engagement fingers as the engagement fingers are moving radially inward. This is advantageous in that the tire bead ring is released from all the engagement fingers at the same time, resulting in uniform placement of the tire bead ring in the center.

[0007] In one embodiment, the ejection fingers are configured to eject the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper from the gripper in an ejection direction oriented perpendicular to the direction of movement and away from the gripper, for example, if the gripper is oriented horizontally such that the engaging jaws move horizontally, the ejection fingers are configured to eject the tire bead ring from the gripper in a vertical direction oriented downward.

[0008] In one embodiment, the gripper includes two or more ejection fingers, each of the two or more engaging claws including an ejection finger. By locating the ejection fingers on the engaging claws, the ejection fingers favor a gripped tire bead ring in a location closest to where the tire bead ring may remain overlapped.

[0009] In one embodiment, the ejection fingers are configured to move between an idle position where the ejection fingers are spaced from the tire bead ring, an ejection position where the ejection fingers abut the tire bead ring thereby applying an ejection force to the tire bead ring, and an ejected position where the ejection fingers are at least partially located in a position where the tire bead ring was located. In that embodiment, the ejection fingers are configured to move to the ejection position when the associated engagement finger is in the engagement position. According to this embodiment, the ejection fingers are moved to the ejection position before the associated engagement finger moves from the engagement position towards the remote position. In the ejection position, the ejection fingers are positioned relative to the tire bead ring such that an ejection force is applied to the tire bead ring. Due to the ejection force, there is radial friction between the ejection fingers and the tire bead ring. The inventors have surprisingly found that the ejection force applied to the tire bead ring and the associated radial friction are sufficient to prevent the tire bead ring from remaining overlapped with the engagement fingers. Therefore, the gripper according to this embodiment can simultaneously disengage the tire bead ring from all of the engaging claws.

[0010] In an alternative embodiment, the ejection fingers are configured to move to the ejection position when movement of the associated engagement finger is initiated from the engagement position to the remote position.

[0011] In one embodiment, the engagement finger is configured to be moved from the remote position to the engagement position at a first velocity and moved from the engagement position to the remote position at a second velocity, the second velocity being greater than the first velocity.

[0012] In one embodiment, each engagement claw comprises a separation finger configured to separate a gripped tire bead ring from a surface on which the tire bead ring is disposed and move between the remote position and the engagement position. In that embodiment, each separation finger comprises a tapered tip, the tapered tip being arranged to extend radially beyond the associated engagement finger when the separation finger and the associated engagement finger are in the engaged position. A separation finger having a tapered tip can, for example, prevent a gripped tire bead ring from slipping off an engagement finger while a gripper is moving the tire bead ring from a surface on which the tire bead ring was disposed.

[0013] In one embodiment, the engagement finger and the separation finger of each engagement pawl are operatively connected to each other such that movement of the separation finger from the remote position to the engagement position results in movement of the engagement finger from the remote position to the engagement position and allows the separation finger to move from the engagement position away towards the remote position independently of the engagement finger. Preferably, the gripper comprises a drive configured to move one or more of the engagement pawls between the remote position and the engagement position. In that embodiment, the drive is operatively connected to the separation finger of each of the one or more engagement pawls. An advantage of this embodiment is that a single drive is sufficient to move the engagement finger and the separation finger from the remote position to the engagement position at least for each engagement pawl, or possibly for each gripper.

[0014] In a further embodiment, the engagement finger of each engagement pawl includes a brake that is movable between an idle position that allows the engagement finger to move between the remote position and the engagement position, and a brake position that prevents the engagement finger from moving between the remote position and the engagement position. In a further embodiment, a spring is provided operatively connected between the engagement finger and the separation finger of each engagement pawl. According to this embodiment, the engagement finger can be maintained in the engagement position while the associated separation finger is already moving towards the remote position so that the tapered tip is out of the way before releasing the tire bead ring. Thereafter, when the brake of each of the engagement fingers is moved from the brake position to the idle position, each engagement finger is pulled relatively quickly against the associated separation finger by the spring provided therebetween.

[0015] In one embodiment, the ejection fingers of each engagement claw are arranged on the separation fingers such that they extend in a direction parallel to the direction of movement. In that embodiment, the ejection fingers are arranged on the separation fingers rotatably about a rotation axis perpendicular to the direction of movement. According to this embodiment, the ejection fingers function like flippers. This is advantageous since the height required to integrate the ejection fingers in the gripper is minimized.

[0016] According to a second aspect, the present invention provides a method for gripping a tire bead ring transferred from a pick-up position to a placement position by a gripper according to the first aspect of the invention, said method comprising the steps of: moving the gripper toward the pick-up position while the engagement fingers are in the remote position; moving the engagement fingers radially toward the engagement position to engage the tire bead ring; moving the gripper towards the placement position; moving the engagement fingers toward the remote position to release the gripped tire bead ring; and wherein the method further includes ejecting the tire bead ring from the gripper with the ejection fingers of each engaging claw.

[0017] In one embodiment, the ejection fingers are configured to move between an idle position in which the ejection fingers are spaced from the tire bead ring, an ejection position in which the ejection fingers abut the tire bead ring thereby applying an ejection force to the tire bead ring, and an ejected position in which the ejection fingers are at least partially located in a position where the tire bead ring was located after ejection of the tire bead ring, and ejecting the tire bead ring includes moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position and moving the ejection fingers to the ejection position, in that embodiment, the step of moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position is performed prior to the step of releasing the gripped tire bead ring.

[0018] In an alternative embodiment, the step of moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position is performed simultaneously with the step of releasing the gripped tire bead ring.

[0019] In one embodiment, when the gripper is a gripper in which the engagement finger of each engagement claw includes a brake movable between an idle position that allows the engagement finger to move between the remote position and the engaged position and a braked position that prevents the engagement finger from moving between the remote position and the engaged position, moving the engagement finger to the engaged position includes, for each engagement claw, moving the separation finger to the engaged position, thereby moving the associated engagement finger to the engaged position, and moving the brake to the brake position when the separation finger and the associated engagement finger are in the engaged position.

[0020] In one embodiment, the method further includes, for each engagement pawl, moving the separation finger from the engagement position towards the remote position when the brake of an associated engagement pawl moves to the braking position.

[0021] In one embodiment, the gripper is a gripper having a spring operatively connected between the engagement finger and the separation finger of each engagement claw, and the step of releasing the gripped tire bead ring by moving the engagement fingers toward the remote position includes the step of moving the brake to the idle position.

[0022] According to a third aspect, the present invention provides a bead transfer apparatus for transferring a tire bead ring from a pick-up location to a placement location, the bead transfer apparatus comprising: A robot arm and a gripper according to a first aspect of the invention are provided, the gripper being arranged on the robot arm such that the robot arm can move the gripper.

[0023] According to a fourth aspect, the present invention provides a computer readable medium having computer executable instructions adapted to cause a gripper according to the first aspect of the invention to perform a method according to the second aspect of the invention.

[0024] The various aspects and features described and illustrated in this specification may, to the extent possible, be applied individually. These individual aspects, in particular those aspects and features described in the accompanying dependent claims, may be the subject of divisional patent applications.

[0025] The invention will now be explained on the basis of exemplary embodiments shown in the accompanying schematic drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0026] [Figure 1]FIG. 1 shows a bead transfer apparatus for transferring a tire bead ring from a pick-up position to a placement position, the bead transfer apparatus including a gripper according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the gripper of FIG. [Diagram 3] 3A-3E illustrate the process of picking up and placing a tire bead ring by the gripper of FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] The bead transfer device 50 is configured to transfer the tire bead ring 2 from a pick-up position to a placing position, and this bead transfer device 50 with a gripper 1 according to an embodiment of the invention is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 1. The bead transfer device 50 can be used, for example, to transfer the tire bead ring 2 from a building drum to a bead separator, where the tire bead ring 2 may be picked up vertically from the building drum and placed horizontally on the bead separator.

[0028] As shown in Fig. 1, the bead transfer device 50 comprises a manipulator 51 for engaging and transporting the tire bead ring 2 from a pick-up position to a placement position. The manipulator 51 is supported by a manipulator base 52, which is fixed, for example, relative to a factory floor 53. The manipulator 51 comprises a robot arm 54 supported by the manipulator base 52 and a gripper 1 arranged at the end of the robot arm 54, in particular the side of the robot arm 54 remote from the manipulator base 52. The robot arm 54 typically provides the manipulator 51 with six degrees of freedom, thereby enabling in particular the bead transfer device 50 to pick up the tire bead ring 2 vertically and place the tire bead ring 2 horizontally, or vice versa.

[0029] A detailed side view of the gripper 1 is shown in Fig. 2. The gripper 1 has a gripper frame 10 with a gripper connector 11 for connecting the gripper 1 to a robot arm 54. The gripper connector 11 extends substantially laterally or transversely to the gripper frame 10 and defines a central axis C which extends transversely to the gripper frame 10 through the gripper connector 11. The gripper frame 10 may for example be formed by four arms (not shown) which extend radially outwards from the centre of the gripper frame 10. Such an arrangement of a gripper frame is shown for example in the applicant's WO 2010 / 021546.

[0030] In order for the gripper 1 to grip the tire bead ring 2, the gripper 1 is provided with two or more, in this example, four, engaging claws 12. The engaging claws 12 are arranged at equal angular intervals in the circumferential direction of the gripper 1, and according to the illustrated example, there is an angular interval of 90° between adjacent engaging claws 12. Furthermore, the engaging claws 12 are arranged movably on the gripper frame 10. The engaging claws 12 are mainly configured to move radially outward as viewed from the center line C in a moving direction M in order to engage with the tire bead ring 2, and to move radially inward in order to release the tire bead ring 2 from the gripper 1.

[0031] In an alternative embodiment not shown, the engagement claws 12 may be configured to move primarily radially inward, toward the direction of movement M, from and perpendicular to the centerline C, to engage the tire bead ring 2, and to move radially outward to move the tire bead ring 2 away from the gripper 1.

[0032] As shown diagrammatically in Fig. 2, each of the engagement claws 12 includes an engagement finger 13 for engaging with the tire bead ring 2 to be gripped. The engagement finger 13 is movably disposed relative to the gripper frame 10 by a first connector 14 such that the engagement finger 13 can move linearly relative to the gripper frame 10. For example, the engagement finger 13 is connected to a rail guide (not shown) of the gripper frame 10. The engagement finger 13 is connected to the first connector 14 and further includes an engagement body 15 having a radially outward engagement surface 16 for engaging with the tire bead ring 2 to be gripped by the gripper 1.

[0033] Each engagement finger 13 has a longitudinal axis parallel to the direction of movement M and includes a receiving slit 17 extending at least partially through the engagement finger 13 in a direction perpendicular to the direction of movement M and to the center line C. As clearly shown in Fig. 2, the length of the receiving slit 17 is smaller than the length of the engagement body 15 in the direction of movement M, and preferably the receiving slit 17 is located within the inner half of the engagement body 15. Furthermore, each engagement finger 13 is provided, on its side facing the trigger frame 10, with a brake 18 movable in a braking direction B parallel to the center line C between an idle position as shown in Fig. 2 and a braking position in which the brake 18 is in braking contact with the trigger frame 10.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 2, each engagement claw 12 further comprises a separation finger 25 configured to separate the gripped tire bead ring 2 from other tire bead rings 2, for example on a stack of tire bead rings 2, or from a surface on which the tire bead ring 2 rests. The separation finger 25 is movably connected to the gripper frame 10 by a second connector 26, for example connected to a rail guide, not shown. Furthermore, the separation finger 25 is operatively connected to a drive device, not shown, such as a servo motor or a drive cylinder, configured to drive the separation finger 25 radially outward or radially inward in the movement direction M. In this exemplary embodiment, the separation finger 25 is arranged next to the engagement finger 13 of the respective engagement claw 12.

[0035] Each separation finger 25 has a connecting portion 27 which, in this exemplary embodiment, is rectangular in shape when viewed from the side. The second connector 26 is arranged on the connecting portion 27, in particular on its side facing the gripper frame 10. On the side of the connecting portion 27 facing the engagement finger 13, the connecting portion 27 is provided with a connecting pin 28 which extends away from it towards the engagement finger 13. The connecting pin 28 is received in a receiving slit 17 of the adjacent engagement finger 13, such that a movement of the separation finger 25 leads to a movement of the engagement finger 13 when the connecting pin 28 abuts against one of the ends of the receiving slit 17.

[0036] In an alternative embodiment, each separation finger 25 is provided with a receiving slit 17 and each engagement finger 13 is provided with a connecting pin 28 .

[0037] Each separating finger 25 further has a separating portion 29 arranged on the connecting portion 27, in particular on its radially outward facing side. The separating portion 29 extends radially outward from the connecting portion 27 and is, at least in the exemplary embodiment, oblong. At its end facing away from the connecting portion 27, the separating portion 29 has a tapered tip 30 that can be positioned under the gripped tire bead ring 2. The separating finger 25 is intended to separate the gripped tire bead ring 2 from the surface on which it rests, for example when the tire bead ring 2 or an apex attached to the tire bead ring 2 remains attached to the surface.

[0038] The length of the separation portion 29 and the length of the receiving slit 17 are selected such that when the separation finger 25 is in the engagement position, which in this exemplary embodiment is a radially outer position, i.e. when the connecting pin 28 abuts against the radially outer end of the receiving slit 17, as shown in FIG. 2, the tapered tip 30 extends radially beyond the engagement surface 16, and when the separation finger 25 is in the remote position, which in this exemplary embodiment is a radially inner position, i.e. when the connecting pin 28 abuts against or is close to the radially inner end of the receiving slit 17, the tapered tip 30 is radially retracted so that it does not extend radially beyond the engagement surface 16.

[0039] A spring 31 is provided between and operatively connected to the separation finger 25 and the engagement finger 13 of each engagement pawl 12 .

[0040] Furthermore, each of the engagement claws 12 includes an ejection finger 35, also called a flipper, configured to eject the tire bead ring 2 gripped by the gripper 1 from the gripper 1. The ejection finger 35 is configured to eject the tire bead ring 2 in an ejection direction E perpendicular to the movement direction M of the engagement finger 13, in particular parallel to the central axis C. The ejection finger 35 comprises an elongated ejection body 36 having a first end 37 and a second end 38 opposite the first end 37 when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the ejection body 36. At its first end 37, the ejection body 36 is rotatably connected, at or near the side facing the gripper frame 10, to the separation finger 25, in particular its connecting part 27, such that the ejection finger 35 is rotatable around a rotation axis A. A movement of the separation finger 25 thus leads to a movement of the ejection finger 35. The second ends 38 of the ejection fingers 35 are configured to be in close proximity to and / or contact with the tire bead ring 2 during ejection of the tire bead ring 2 from the gripper 1. The length of the ejection body 36 is selected such that the second ends 38 of the ejection body 36 extend radially beyond the engagement surface 16 regardless of the position of the separation finger 25 relative to the engagement finger 13.

[0041] As best seen in Figure 2, a rotation piston 39, such as a hydraulic or pneumatic piston, is provided and operatively connected between the ejection finger 35 and the separating finger 25, and in particular the connecting portion 27 of the separating finger 25. The rotation piston 39 is configured to rotate the ejection finger 35 about a rotation axis A to move the ejection finger 35 from an idle position, as shown in Figure 2, to an ejection position, as shown in Figure 3D. When the ejection finger 35 is in the ejection position, the ejection finger 35 abuts the tire bead ring 2 and exerts an ejection force on the tire bead ring 2, the ejection force being directed substantially parallel to the centerline C.

[0042] In an alternative embodiment, the ejection finger 35 may be formed as an ejection piston or an ejection pusher.

[0043] The process of picking up and placing a tire bead ring 2 by the gripper 1, as shown in Fig. 2, is shown diagrammatically in Figs. 3A-3E. When the gripper 1 needs to grip a tire bead ring 2, the gripper 1 is moved to a pick-up position where the engagement claws 12 are located inside the tire bead ring 2, as shown in Fig. 3A. During this process, the engagement claws 12 are located at a radially inner position, as shown in Fig. 3A, where the engagement claws 12 are spaced apart from the tire bead ring 2.

[0044] Thereafter, the engagement claws 12, in particular their separating fingers 25, are moved, preferably at a first speed, to a radially outward position, as shown in Fig. 3B. In the illustrated exemplary embodiment, the separating fingers 25 are moved radially outward, and the engagement fingers 13 are pulled by the connecting pins 28 in the receiving slits 17. When in the radially outward position, the engagement surfaces 16 of the engagement fingers 13 engage the tire bead ring 2, and optionally the engagement claws 12 slightly stretch the tire bead ring 2 to prevent it from slipping against the engagement surfaces 16. As soon as the tire bead ring 2 is engaged and thus gripped by the engagement claws 12, the gripper 1 and thus the tire bead ring 2 can be moved to a placement position, in which the tire bead ring 2 can be placed.

[0045] It should be noted that depending on the position of the tapered tip 30 of the separation finger 25 relative to the tire bead ring 2 engaged by the engagement finger 13, the tire bead ring 2 can be separated from, for example, a tire bead ring 2 (not shown) that is directly adjacent to the tire bead ring 2.

[0046] During the steps shown in Figures 3A and 3B, the brake 18 is in the idle position.

[0047] When the gripper 1 is approximately in the deployed position or in the deployed position, the brake 18 is moved to its braking position so that it is in braking contact with the trigger frame 10, as shown diagrammatically in FIG. 3C. The separation finger 25 is then moved towards its radially inner position. Due to the brake 18 being in braking contact with the trigger frame 10, the engagement finger 13 is prevented from moving to its radially inner position and therefore remains in its radially outer position. The movement of the separation finger 25 to its radially inner position is limited by the length of the receiving slit 17. When the separation finger 25 is moved radially inwards, the tapered tip 30 of the separation finger 25 no longer extends radially beyond the engagement surface 16 of the engagement finger 13, and the spring 31 between the engagement finger 13 and the separation finger 25 is tensioned.

[0048] As a next step, as shown in Fig. 3D, each of the ejection fingers 35 is rotated about its rotation axis A by the rotating piston 39 to an ejection position. As shown in Fig. 3D, the ejection fingers 35 abut against the tire bead ring 2 engaged by the engagement fingers 13, thereby exerting an ejection force on the tire bead ring 2. It should be noted that the ejection force is not sufficient to eject the tire bead ring 2 from the engagement fingers 13.

[0049] When the ejection fingers 35 are in contact with the tire bead ring 2, the brake 18 is moved from the brake position to the idle position, which causes the engagement fingers 13 to move radially inwardly, preferably at a second speed faster than the first speed, thereby releasing the brake contact between the engagement fingers 13 and the gripper frame 10. Due to the spring 31 tensioned between the engagement fingers 13 and the separation fingers 25, the engagement fingers 13 are rapidly pulled by the spring 31 towards the separation fingers 25, thereby moving the tire bead ring 2 away from the engagement claws 12. While the engagement fingers 13 are rapidly pulled towards the separation fingers 25, the ejection fingers 35 push the tire bead ring 2 away from the gripper frame 10 and eject the tire bead ring 2. Optionally, the ejection fingers 35 are further rotated slightly towards the tapered tips 30 of the separation fingers 25, thereby moving to the ejection position.

[0050] The gripper 1, and in particular its ejection fingers 35, can then return to the pick-up position, as shown diagrammatically in FIG. 3A.

[0051] It should be understood that the above description is included to illustrate the operation of the preferred embodiment and is not meant to limit the scope of the invention. From the above discussion, many variations that are still encompassed within the scope of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 1 Gripper 2 Tire bead rings 10 Gripper Frame 11 Gripper Connector 12 Engagement claw 13 Engagement Finger 14 First Connector 15 Engagement body 16 Engagement surface 17 Receiving slit 18 Brake 25 Separation Finger 26 Second Connector 27 Connecting part 28 Connecting pin 29 Separation part 30 Tapered tip 31 Spring 35 Ejection finger 36 Excretor 37 First end 38 Second end 39 Rotating Piston 50 Bead transfer device 51 Manipulator 52 Manipulator Base 53 Factory floor 54 Robot Arm A Rotation Axis B Brake direction C center axis E Ejection direction M Movement direction

Claims

1. A gripper for gripping a tire bead ring being transferred from a pick-up position to a placement position, the gripper comprising: two or more engagement claws arranged at equal angular intervals in a circumferential direction of the gripper, each of the two or more engagement claws having an engagement finger for engaging the tire bead ring to be gripped; the engagement pawls are configured to move radially in a movement direction between a remote position away from the tire bead ring with which the engagement fingers grip and an engagement position in which the engagement fingers engage the tire bead ring with which the engagement fingers grip, The gripper includes an ejection finger configured to apply an ejection force to the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper to eject the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper from the gripper.

2. 2. The gripper of claim 1, wherein the ejection fingers are configured to eject the tire bead ring gripped by the gripper from the gripper in an ejection direction, the ejection direction being a direction away from the gripper oriented perpendicular to the direction of movement.

3. The gripper of claim 1 , wherein the gripper comprises two or more ejection fingers, each of the two or more engaging claws comprising an ejection finger.

4. 2. The gripper of claim 1, wherein the ejection fingers are configured to move between an idle position in which the ejection fingers are spaced from the tire bead ring, an ejection position in which the ejection fingers abut the tire bead ring thereby applying the ejection force to the tire bead ring, and an ejected position in which the ejection fingers are at least partially located where the tire bead ring was located.

5. The gripper of claim 4 , wherein the ejection fingers are configured to move to the ejection position when the associated engagement fingers are in the engagement position.

6. The gripper of claim 4 , wherein the ejection fingers are configured to move to the ejection position when the associated engagement fingers begin to move from the engagement position to the remote position.

7. 2. The gripper of claim 1, wherein the engagement fingers are configured to be moved from the remote position to the engagement position at a first velocity and to be moved from the engagement position to the remote position at a second velocity, the second velocity being greater than the first velocity.

8. 2. The gripper of claim 1, wherein each engagement claw comprises a separation finger configured to separate a gripped tire bead ring from a surface on which the tire bead ring is placed and move between the remote position and the engagement position.

9. 9. The gripper of claim 8, wherein each separation finger includes a tapered tip, the tapered tip being positioned to extend radially beyond an associated engagement finger when the separation finger and the associated engagement finger are in the engaged position.

10. 9. The gripper of claim 8, wherein the engagement finger and separation finger of each engagement claw are operatively connected to one another such that movement of the separation finger from the remote position to the engagement position results in movement of the engagement finger from the remote position to the engagement position and such that the separation finger can move away from the engagement position toward the remote position independent of the engagement finger.

11. The gripper of claim 1 comprising a drive configured to move one or more of the engagement claws between the remote position and the engagement position.

12. a drive configured to move one or more of the engagement pawls between the remote position and the engagement position; The gripper of claim 10 , wherein the drive portion is operatively connected to the separation finger of each of the one or more engagement claws.

13. 13. The gripper of claim 12, wherein the engagement finger of each engagement claw includes a brake movable between an idle position that allows the engagement finger to move between the remote position and the engaged position and a braked position that prevents the engagement finger from moving between the remote position and the engaged position.

14. The gripper of claim 13 , wherein a spring is operatively connected between the engagement finger and the separation finger of each engagement pawl.

15. The gripper of claim 8 , wherein the ejection finger of each engagement claw is disposed on the separation finger such that the ejection finger extends in a direction parallel to the direction of movement.

16. two or more ejection fingers, each of the two or more engagement pawls having an ejection finger; The gripper of claim 15 , wherein the ejection finger is rotatably arranged on the separation finger about an axis of rotation perpendicular to the direction of movement.

17. 10. A method for gripping a tire bead ring transferred from a pick-up location to a placement location by a gripper as claimed in claim 1, the method comprising: moving the gripper toward the pick-up position while the engagement fingers are in the remote position; moving the engagement fingers radially toward the engagement position to engage the tire bead ring; moving the gripper towards the placement position; and moving the engagement fingers toward the remote position to release the gripped tire bead ring; The method further includes applying an ejection force to a tire bead ring gripped by the gripper to eject the tire bead ring from the gripper by the ejection fingers of each engaging claw.

18. 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the ejection fingers are configured to move between an idle position in which the ejection fingers are spaced from the tire bead ring, an ejection position in which the ejection fingers abut the tire bead ring thereby applying the ejection force to the tire bead ring, and an ejected position in which, after ejection of the tire bead ring, the ejection fingers are at least partially located in a position where the tire bead ring was located, and ejecting the tire bead ring includes moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position and moving the ejection fingers to the ejection position.

19. 20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position is performed prior to the step of releasing the gripped tire bead ring.

20. 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the step of moving the ejection fingers from the idle position to the ejection position is performed simultaneously with the step of releasing the gripped tire bead ring.

21. 18. The method of claim 17, wherein when the gripper is a gripper as described in claim 13, moving the engagement fingers to the engagement position includes, for each engagement claw, moving the separation finger to the engagement position, thereby moving the associated engagement finger to the engagement position, and moving the brake to the braking position when the separation finger and the associated engagement finger are in the engagement position.

22. 22. The method of claim 21, further comprising, for each engagement pawl, moving the separation finger from the engagement position toward the remote position when the brake of an associated engagement pawl moves to the braking position.

23. 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the gripper is a gripper as described in claim 14, and wherein releasing the gripped tire bead ring by moving the engagement fingers toward the remote position includes moving the brake to the idle position.

24. 1. A bead transfer device for transferring a tire bead ring from a pick-up location to a placement location, comprising: A bead transfer apparatus comprising a robot arm and a gripper according to claim 1 , said gripper being disposed on said robot arm such that said robot arm can move said gripper.

25. 20. A computer readable medium having computer executable instructions adapted to cause the gripper of claim 1 to perform the method of claim 17.

Images