Pneumatically Controllable Bellows Suction Cup for Sheet Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lifting suckers used in sheet processing machines, such as printing presses, face issues with marking sheets and inadvertently attracting multiple sheets due to simultaneous suction, especially when dealing with inclined or curved sheets.
Innovation Solution
A pneumatically controllable lifting sucker featuring a flexible suction cup enclosed by a double-walled bellows with multiple suction chambers and additional suction openings, allowing independent control of the suction cup to prevent sheet marking and selective sheet attraction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional lifting sucker with a rigid suction cup is used, then the sheet can be firmly held during lifting, but the suction cup may mark the sheet or accidentally attract multiple sheets simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The suction cup is formed from flexible material that can deform to conform to the sheet surface, enabling soft placement that avoids marking while maintaining reliable suction contact. The flexibility allows the cup to adapt to inclined or curved sheets without exerting excessive localized pressure that would cause markings.
Solution Approach 2:
The suction cup's flexibility provides dynamic adaptation to different sheet geometries (inclined or curved surfaces), allowing the cup to maintain optimal contact without rigid structural constraints. This dynamic characteristic prevents both marking and unintended attraction of underlying sheets.
2Reliability
If the suction cup is made rigid for firm sheet holding, then lifting reliability improves, but the system cannot adapt to inclined or curved sheets
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible material construction of the suction cup enables it to deform and conform to various sheet geometries including inclined and curved surfaces, providing both reliable holding and geometric adaptability simultaneously.
3Ease of operation
If a double-walled bellows structure with multiple suction chambers is used, then independent suction cup control is achieved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bellows structure is divided into multiple suction chambers that can be independently controlled, allowing separate management of the suction cup's attachment and release functions. This segmentation enables precise control over when and how the suction cup engages with the sheet.
Solution Approach 2:
The double-walled bellows structure utilizes pneumatic principles with multiple suction chambers that can be independently pressurized or evacuated, providing controlled expansion and contraction of the suction cup. This pneumatic control system enables independent operation of the suction cup without complex mechanical linkages.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables soft placement of the suction cup on sheets, avoiding markings and preventing the attraction of underlying sheets, while accommodating inclined or curved sheets, thereby improving the efficiency and precision of sheet separation in sheet processing machines.
Implementation Method 1
the tubular piston has suction nozzles for attracting a sheet from a sheet stack by suction
Implementation Method 2
a rise in a vacuum in the cylinder takes place, which leads to the piston, together with the sheet, being lifted
Data Source
AI summary
A lifting sucker for separating sheets from a sheet stack includes a suction cup formed as a double-walled bellows sucker having at least one suction chamber that can be acted on pneumatically to contract the bellows sucker. A punch and a sheet-fed rotary printing press having the lifting sucker are also provided.