Apparatus for sampling or gripping with a deformable tool

Abstract

The device comprises a flexible sleeve (6) mounted on a rigid support (1) and lined with wafers (7) distributed in a ring around the sleeve (6). The sleeve can be retracted by an actuator (3) to return the sleeve end face (9) to the inside of the sleeve by creating a fold (14), forming a ring (17) for holding the acquired object or sample, thereby tilting the wafers inward and keeping the object or sample between the wafers (7) or inside a chamber (18).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for sampling or gripping with a deformable tool.

Background Art

[0002] There are many different types of existing sampling and gripping tools, which are mostly based on gripping by a rigid tool or by suction against the surface of the device. Such devices are often satisfactory, but they have the drawback of being generally limited to only some types of articles to be sampled. Another drawback of them is that such devices have to be made considerably more complex when gripping has to be made safe. In contrast, the present invention aims to be able to obtain objects or samples that are highly variable, such as fragile, have a very irregular surface, or are liquid, etc., using a device with high reliability and a simple configuration.

[0003] The related prior art includes Patent Document 1, which describes a gripping and holding device provided with a tool composed of a deformable thin film under the action of a jack, which grips small objects at the folding part of the thin film formed when the jack is retracted. This device is bulky.

[0004] Another document is Patent Document 2, which describes a device to which the aforementioned findings apply.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] In general form, the present invention relates to a sampling or gripping device, the device comprising a support having side walls and a rear face, and a tool attached to the support, the tool being deformable, the tool comprising a sleeve having side walls, and end faces and edges between which the side walls of the tool extend, the edge being fixed to the support and the end face extending away from the support in the deployed state of the sleeve, in the deployed state, the side walls of the support, the side walls of the sleeve, the rear face, and the end face enclose an internal volume, the device further comprising a sleeve retraction actuator for returning the end face into the internal volume and folding the side walls of the sleeve into a folded state, the tool further comprising at least one ring of a wafer attached to the sleeve and radially extending around the sleeve in the deployed state, at least one ring of the wafer being enclosed by the side walls of the sleeve in the folded state, the device further comprising means for guiding the retraction of the sleeve by the retraction actuator extending from the end face of the tool to the rear face of the support within the internal volume, characterized in that.

[0007] The support is advantageously a sheath in which the sleeve is received in a folded state.

[0008] The sleeve can be tapered so as to taper towards the end face, which facilitates its folding.

[0009] In a particular embodiment, the internal volume includes a bellows that delimits a chamber and guides the retraction of the sleeve by the retraction actuator, which constitutes the guiding means.

[0010] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the internal volume and / or the chamber is a hermetically sealed volume, and the retraction actuator is means for sucking the hermetically sealed volume.

[0011] According to another variant, the retraction actuator is a jack with a rod fixed to the end face.

[0012] The sleeve filled with wafers characterizing the present invention can be closed after being placed thereon on an object or sample to be sampled or gripped by retracting the sleeve, and the wafers are brought close to each other by tilting themselves when the folding of the sleeve reaches their levels, and the ring closes inside the tool, and thus, in the final state, delimits a compartment for accommodating the object or sample inside the support.

[0013] The wafers are advantageously flexible in order to facilitate the acquisition of the gripped objects and avoid damaging them. In the case of these flexible wafers, it is further advantageous for them to form an integrally molded structure with the sleeve.

[0014] The sleeve can be made of, for example, silicone or polyurethane together with the wafers if necessary, and the sleeve can also accommodate a main material such as these and a sheet reinforcing the main material made of, for example, Kevlar.

[0015] The ring of the wafer, or each ring, is also advantageously continuous and sealed in the folded state. In that case, it can hold a sample, which can be a liquid, in a compartment delimiting other parts of the device.

[0016] The gripping or holding of the object can also be improved if the wafer is aligned using means facilitating the acquisition of the object. This can be, for example, a magnet for facilitating the acquisition of a magnetic object or a rough surface improving the frictional engagement.

[0017] In another possible configuration, the wafer has a depression with one face facing the end face in the unfolded state in order to facilitate the collection of a liquid sample.

[0018] However, an important aspect of the present invention is that the retraction of the flexible sleeve from the deployed state is effected by means called guiding means, which are themselves retractable and are connected at both their ends to the rear face of the support and to the end face of the sleeve. Such retractable guiding means occupy a small volume in the folded state and have the property of remaining in contact with the rear face of the support in all situations, which reduces the volume of the device compared to sliding guiding means such as jack rods or pistons.

[0019] In some particular recognized embodiments where the support is in the form of a sheath, the guiding means remain housed in the sheath and are thereby protected in all situations, and the sleeve is also housed in the sheath in the folded state, with the same advantages. It is then particularly recognized that the actuator is a suction means, and advantageously for sucking the internal volume delimited by the sleeve and the support, or, if there is a hermetically sealed chamber delimited by bellows or similar guiding means, for sucking that, it is connected to the rear face of the support by a flexible conduit, and the suction generates the retraction of both the sleeve and the guiding means. The tool can be arranged independently of the suction means, perhaps by hand, when the support is, for example, a portable sheath, so that a particular hand-held device is provided.

[0020] Reference should also be made to a mechanism called a telescopic mechanism, which consists of sections that slide on or within each other and which can be used and is particularly appreciated among the guiding means. Such a mechanism has good rigidity, particularly against accidental lateral displacement of the sleeve.

[0021] The deployment and folding of the telescopic mechanism are limited only by a stop mechanism established between adjacent sections and can thus be significantly simplified.

[0022] According to some aspects of these embodiments, - The section is a concentric tube, the outer tube of which forms a sheath by being fixed to the rear surface of the support, and the inner tube of which is fixed to the end face of the tool. - The section is provided with a stop that limits the deployment of the section relative to an adjacent section. - The section is provided with a lock for stopping the deployment or folding of the section relative to an adjacent section. - Each lock includes a hole passing through the wall of the first section of the section, a movable element within the hole and having a dimension larger than the length of the hole in the length direction of the hole, and cavities dug into the second and third sections of the section, which separately reach in front of both ends of the hole during operation and each have a surface inclined to push the element into the hole.

[0023] Various aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will now be described with reference to the following figures, which show several embodiments given for purely illustrative purposes.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0024]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 13

Figure 14

Figure 15

Figure 16

Figure 17

Figure 18

Figure 19

Figure 20

Figure 21

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0025] The description relates first to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3. The embodiment of the device represented in the figures mainly consists of a support 1, a tool 2, and an actuator 3. The support 1 is a rigid part and is in the form of a cylindrical sheath that is open at the front end 4 and closed by a plate at the rear face 5. The tool 2 is probably made of a flexible material such as an elastic material and it consists of a sleeve 6 and a wafer 7. The sleeve 6 has a rear end 8 that is crimped at the front end 4 of the support 1. The sleeve 6 mainly consists of a tapered side wall that tapers from the open rear end 8 to a front end closed by an end face 9. Throughout this description, "front" and "rear" are considered to be the direction of movement of the actuator of the tool 2, which is deployed forward and folded or retracted rearward. The device is generally axially symmetric with respect to this direction and thus, it can also help to simply describe it, the tool 2 is in front of the support 1 and the actuator 3.

[0026] The wafers 7 are distributed as a group forming rings that are superimposed on the height of the sleeve 6 around the axis of the cone. These rings are five in number here, but the number is not important.

[0027] FIG. 3 shows that the wafers 7 have a trapezoidal shape that narrows outward. They are advantageously flexible like the sleeve 6 and are advantageously integrally formed together and thus made of the same base material. However, it can be reinforced, for example, by a reinforcing sheet 10 that can be placed on its inner wall if it is considered too flexible. Suitable base materials for the sleeve 6 and probably the wafers 7 are silicone, polyurethane, and if present, the reinforcing sheet 10 can be made of Kevlar®.

[0028] The support 1 and the sleeve 2 enclose an internal volume 11a that extends from the end face 9 to the rear face 5 in the deployed state shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. The actuator 3 here consists of a suction outlet 13 that is established at the rear face 5 and opens into the internal volume 11a.

[0029] In a preferred embodiment with reference to FIG. 2, the internal volume 11a includes a bellows 12 fixed to the end face 9 and the rear face 5 at both ends thereof, and the internal volume forms a chamber 11b. The suction outlet 13 then opens into the chamber 11b.

[0030]

[0029] FIGS. 4 to 6 show the device in a partially retracted state of the tool 2, and in FIGS. 7 to 9, the device is in a fully retracted state. This is achieved by sucking the volume of the chamber 11b by a device (not shown) coupled to the suction outlet 13. The end face 9 sinks into the sleeve 6 and forms a folding portion (14 in FIG. 5, 15 in FIG. 8) on the sleeve 6, thereby gradually driving the front portion of the sleeve 6. When the folding portion 14 reaches the ring of the wafer 7, the ring of the wafer is tilted and gradually closed until its ends are adjacent to each other (this is shown with respect to the ring 16 in FIGS. 4 to 6), and then the ring of the wafer 7 continues to close, and the wafer 7 becomes continuous or further overlaps by forming a flat surface, which is probably continuous and the opposite side is sealed from the outside (this is the case of the ring 17 in FIGS. 5, 8, and 9), and by forming a hermetically sealed compartment 18, the inside of the folded portion of the sleeve 6 is partitioned. In the illustrated embodiment, the sleeve 6 is almost completely accommodated within the internal volume of the support 1 and is protected by the latter in a fully folded state.

[0031] When the object 19 is to be gripped (FIG. 10), the device with the sleeve 2 in the deployed state approaches it, and while maintaining a slight pressure of the sleeve 6 against the object 19, the volume of the chamber 11b is gradually sucked. The ring of the wafer 7 is gradually closed on the object 19 (FIG. 11, representing a device in a state approximately from FIGS. 4 to 6), and the object 19 is gradually carried inside the support 1 as the sleeve 6 is folded (FIG. 12). It is then naturally held therein.

[0032] The apparatus illustrated here for gripping a solid object 19 can also be used to obtain samples of powders, liquids, or other articles, in an embodiment where the closing wafer 7 hermetically seals off the compartment 18.

[0033] Other embodiments of the invention are clearly possible. It is a matter of how the suction means constituting the retraction actuator can be replaced by a jack 20 (FIG. 13), the movable end of the jack also being fixed to the end face 9 and extending to the rear of the apparatus by passing through the rear face 5. The bellows can advantageously be held in association with the jack since it can guide the retraction of the sleeve.

[0034] The tool 2 can be manufactured by molding. An example of a molding assembly is shown in FIG. 14 and comprises an outer cylinder 21, a group of molding sectors 22, and a central core 23. The wafer 7 is molded with corresponding shaped indentations of the molding sectors 22, and the sleeve 6 is molded in the space remaining between the molding sectors 22 and the central core 23 when all are disposed in the cylinder 21. The production of the molding sectors 22 and the central core 23 can be carried out by three-dimensional printing or by molding from counter-moulds.

[0035] The wafer 7 can be improved to facilitate gripping or snagging objects or articles of several categories. They have, for example, their face oriented towards the end face 9 provided with permanent magnets 24 (FIG. 15), or provided with depressions 25 enabling liquid products to be sampled (FIG. 16).

[0036] Figures 17 and the following figures are intended to describe particularly preferred embodiments of the present invention. It is based on the use of a telescopic mechanism 26 for controlling the deployment and folding of the sleeve 6. Both of its ends are fixed to the rear surface 5 of the support 1 and the end face 9 of the sleeve 6, respectively. It consists of tubes 27 that are concentric with each other and slide in the deployment direction of the sleeve 6. Here, there are five tubes 27, and their maximum radius to minimum radius are indicated by 27a to 27e. The outer tube 27a is fixed and is an actual part of the support 1. It is fixed to the rear surface 5 by its rear end portion and forms a sheath. The three subsequent tubes 27b, 27c, and 27d are intermediate tubes, each consisting of a cylindrical wall similar to the outer tube 27a. The inner tube 27e is composed of a cylindrical wall and a front face 28 to which the front end portion 9 of the sleeve 6 is fixed at the front. Tubes 27b to 27e are movable relative to the support 1. Tubes 27a to 27e project continuously outwards from each other in the forward direction in the deployed state (Figure 18) and are accommodated inside each other in the folded state (Figure 17). In that case, they contact or almost contact the rear surface 5 of the support 1. A suction nozzle 29 that holds the end of the suction conduit (not shown) can then extend into the hollow of the 27th inner tube. As in the previous embodiment, the retraction of the sleeve 6 is performed by simultaneously sucking the gaseous content from the internal volume 11a through the hole 30 of the nozzle 29 with that of the telescopic mechanism 26. Similar to the outer tube 27a, forming the sheath of the support 1 is much longer than the others. In the folded state, a long folded length is provided for the sleeve 6 inside the sheath.

[0037] The cylindrical walls of the tubes 27 first have splines 31 oriented in the retraction direction (Figure 19). In some of them, pins 32 slide on the adjacent tubes 27 to maintain the tubes 27 at an invariant angular position (formed here by the screw shown in Figure 20). The corresponding splines 31 have stop surfaces 33 at their front end portions to stop the deployment of the corresponding pins 32 and the tubes 27 carrying them.

[0038] To ensure a step - by - step and progressive folding of the telescopic mechanism 26, an effective locking system has been proposed, the operation of which will be better understood with reference to FIGS. 20 and 21. Each of the intermediate tubes 27b, 27c, and 27d is provided with a radial hole 34 that passes through the entire thickness of its cylindrical wall and houses a locking part such as a ball 35, which is radially movable therein and has a diameter exceeding the thickness of the cylindrical wall. In the outer adjacent tube 27 (27a, 27b, or 27c), a cavity 36 is dug in a part of the spherical surface, and when the ball 35 reaches in front of the cavity 36, it can enter therein. In addition, the inner adjacent tube 27 (27c, 27d, or 27e) includes a cavity 37 in a short groove that is restricted in front by a flat surface 38 (perpendicular to the retraction direction) and in the rear by an inclined surface 39 (inclined obliquely in the radially outward direction and backward). In the deployed state, the ball 35 extends into both the hole 34 and the cavity 36, where it is immediately held by the inner tube 27, while the cavity 37 in the short groove is quite forward. When retraction begins, the inner tube 27e first moves backward alone until the cavity 37 in the short groove reaches in front of the ball 35 housed in the directly adjacent tube 27d. The ball 35 slides out of the cavity 36 and into the cavity 37 in the short groove, immediately releasing the tube 27d from the outer tube 27c so that it can move backward together with the inner tube 27e, and holding them together immediately when the ball 35 contacts the flat surface 38. The ball 35 is held in the cavity 37 in the short groove as soon as it descends from the cavity 36. The process is then continuously repeated for each of the locking systems. All the balls 35 are in the cavities 37 in the short grooves in the fully folded state of the telescopic mechanism 26 and the sleeve 6, and all are in the cavities 36 in its fully deployed state. The folding operation always starts with the inner tube 27e, the front face 28 of which is subjected to the differential pressure generated by the suction device.The deployment of the telescopic mechanism 26 is kinematically identical in the opposite directions, i.e., the inner tube 27e first drives all the intermediate tubes 27b to 27d, and the balls 35 are pushed into them by the inclined surface 39 until they continuously enter the cavities 36 of the tubes 27a to 27c immediately outside, and then the tubes 27b, 27c, 27d, and 27e stop.

[0039] This telescopic mechanism thus provides an ordered operation, great stability in both the deployed and folded states, and a certain rigidity against accidental lateral displacement of the sleeve 6 in the deployed state. Its structure is simple and robust. It can be actuated by means other than gas pressure despite the advantages provided by this means.

Explanation of Signs

[0040] 1 Support 2 Tool 3 Actuator 4 Front end 5 Rear surface 6 Sleeve 7 Wafer 8 Rear end 9 End face 10 Reinforcing sheet 11a Internal volume 11b Chamber 12 Bellows 13 Suction outlet 14 Folding part 15 Folding part 16 Ring 17 Ring 18 Compartment 19 Object 20 Jack 21 Outer cylinder 22 Forming sector 23 Central core 24 Permanent magnet 25 Depression 26 Telescopic mechanism 27 Tube 27a Outer tube 27b Tube 27c tube 27d tube 27e inner tube 28 front 29 suction nozzle 30 hole 31 spline 32 pin 33 stop surface 34 hole 35 ball 36 cavity 37 cavity 38 flat surface 39 inclined surface

Claims

1. A sampling or gripping device, comprising: a support (1) having side walls and a rear face (5); and a tool (2) attached to the support, the tool being deformable, the tool (2) comprising a sleeve (6) having side walls and an end face (9) and an edge (8) between which the side walls of the tool extend, the edge (8) being fixed to the support (1), the end face (9) extending away from the support in the deployed state of the sleeve, and in the deployed state, the side walls of the support (1), the side walls of the sleeve (6), the rear face (5), and the end face (9) enclosing an internal volume (11a) extending from the end face (9) to the rear face (5), the sampling or gripping device further comprising a sleeve retraction actuator (3) for retracting the end face (9) into the internal volume (11a) and folding the side walls of the sleeve (6) into a folded state, the tool further comprising at least one ring of a wafer (7) attached to the sleeve (6), the wafer (7) extending radially around the sleeve in the deployed state, at least one of the rings of the wafer being enclosed by the side walls of the sleeve (6) in the folded state, the sampling or gripping device further comprising retractable means (12) for guiding the retraction of the sleeve by the sleeve retraction actuator (3), the retractable means (12) extending within the internal volume (11a) by being connected at both ends to the rear face (5) of the support and the end face (9) of the sleeve (6), the sampling or gripping device, wherein in the folded state, the sleeve (6) is substantially completely received within the internal volume of the support (1) and is protected by the support (1).

2. The sampling or gripping device according to claim 1, wherein the support (1) is a sheath in which the sleeve (6) is received in the folded state, and the rear face (5) is a plate closing the sheath at the rear end of the sheath.

3. The sampling or gripping device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the guiding means is a bellows (12) partitioning a chamber (11b) contained in the internal volume (11a).

4. The chamber (11b) is hermetically sealed, and the sleeve retraction actuator (3) is means (13) for sucking the chamber (11b), the sampling or gripping device according to claim 3.

5. The guiding means is a telescopic mechanism (26) composed of sections (27) that slide on or within each other, The sections are concentric tubes, the outer tube (27a) of which forms the sheath by being fixed to the rear surface (5) of the support, and the inner tube (27e) of which is fixed to the end face (9) of the tool (2), the sampling device according to claim 2.

6. The sections (27) of the telescopic mechanism (26) are provided with stops (32, 33) that limit the deployment of the sections with respect to adjacent sections, the sampling device according to claim 5.

7. The sections are provided with locks for stopping the deployment or folding of the sections with respect to adjacent sections, the sampling device according to claim 5 or 6.

8. The locks each A hole (34) passing through the wall of the first section among the sections, A movable element (35) that is in the hole and has a dimension exceeding the length of the hole in the longitudinal direction of the hole, Hollow portions (36, 37) dug into the second and third sections among the sections, which reach separately in front of both ends of the hole during movement and each have a surface (39) inclined so as to push the element into the hole, the sampling device according to claim 7.

9. The internal volume (11a) is hermetically sealed, and the sleeve retraction actuator (3) is means (13) for sucking the internal volume (11a), the sampling or gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The sleeve includes a main material and a sheet (10) for reinforcing the main material, the sampling or gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. At least one of the rings of the wafer is continuous and is sealed in the folded state, the sampling or gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

12. The wafer carries means (24) for facilitating acquisition of an object to be sampled or gripped, the sampling or gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

13. The wafer is a recess (25) having one surface facing the end face in the deployed state, the sampling or gripping device according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

Images