Centrifugal Article Feed System for Lightweight Product Alignment

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional article feed systems often fail to effectively align and singulate lightweight articles, such as wrapped tampons, leading to damage during mass product handling due to inefficient handling and alignment processes.

Innovation Solution

A centrifugal article feed system with a rotatable bowl assembly and disk assembly that operates at different speeds, utilizing a guide wall and vertically oriented vacuum conveyor to align and singulate articles by transferring them from a disk assembly to a rotating upper rim surface and then to a tangentially aligned conveyor, minimizing damage and ensuring consistent spacing.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If conventional rotary feeders are used to singulate and orientate articles, then high throughput is achieved, but lightweight articles are not effectively aligned and singulated, leading to damage during handling

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovethroughputVSAvoidarticle handling reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system changes the operational parameters by rotating the bowl and disk assemblies at different speeds, creating relative motion that enables effective alignment and singulation of lightweight articles while maintaining high throughput. This parameter variation allows the system to handle delicate articles without damage.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Productivity

If articles are handled in mass product handling processes, then productivity is maintained, but alignment and singulation are not effective, causing damage to lightweight articles

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduct handling efficiencyVSAvoidarticle damage

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the article stream by using the guide wall to direct articles onto the rotating upper rim surface, where they are individually positioned and singulated before being transferred to the discharge conveyor. This segmentation prevents mass handling damage while maintaining productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The vertically oriented discharge conveyor acts as an intermediary device that receives articles from the rotating bowl assembly and transports them vertically to the discharge point. This intermediary mechanism ensures gentle handling and prevents damage during the transfer process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Manufacturing precision

If a guide wall and vertically oriented conveyor are used to align and singulate articles, then alignment precision is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvearticle alignment precisionVSAvoidsystem structure complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system uses curved surfaces, including the rotatable upper rim surface and the inclined disk assembly, to naturally guide and align articles through centrifugal force and geometric constraints. This curved geometry achieves precise alignment without requiring complex mechanical positioning mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

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 system improves article alignment and spacing consistency, reducing damage and jamming in downstream processes by ensuring articles are handled in a single file stream, enhancing the reliability of article transfer and packaging efficiency.

Implementation Method 1

a vertically oriented vacuum conveyor providing a conveyor transfer path that is substantially tangential to a periphery of the outer bowl at the upper rim surface

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectVacuum: Vacuum

Implementation Method 2

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectCentrifugal force: Centrifugal Force

Data Source

PatentUS10029859B2Article feed system for aligning and singulating articles

Publication Date: 2018.07.24 PROCTER & GAMBLE CO

AI summary

An article feed system for aligning and singulating incoming articles includes a rotatable upper rim surface and an article delivery device that delivers articles received by the article delivery device to the upper rim surface. A drive system is operatively connected to the disk assembly that rotates the bowl assembly and the assemblies rotate at different speeds but in the same direction. A guide wall extends upwardly above the upper rim surface that guides the articles travelling along the upper rim surface toward an exit opening in the guide wall. A vertically oriented article engaging-type conveyor is at the exit opening in the guide wall. The vertically oriented article engaging-type conveyor includes a moving article engaging surface that is exposed to the exit opening in the guide wall for receiving the articles when they exit the exit opening.