Clothing Corner Clamp Transfer for Wrinkle-Free Spreading
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing machines for spreading and loading flat clothing articles often result in folds and wrinkles due to incorrect corner attachment, limited productivity, operator safety risks, and poor visibility during manual loading, especially when handling large or small items.
Innovation Solution
A machine with independently driven spreading clamps and loading stations equipped with dual jaws and an air blowing nozzle to ensure correct corner transfer, combined with safety features like protective screens and a movable protective cover to prevent operator hazards and improve loading efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the clamps move fast to achieve high productivity, then productivity is improved, but operator safety deteriorates due to movement risks
Solution Approach 1:
The machine is divided into multiple loading stations (first loading station, second loading station, third loading station) that operate independently and simultaneously. Each station has its own clamps and control system, allowing parallel processing of multiple clothing articles without requiring sequential operations, thus maintaining high productivity while reducing the risk to operators through distributed operations.
Solution Approach 2:
A control system acts as an intermediary between the operators and the moving clamps. The control system receives signals from operators (via buttons or sensors) and automatically controls the movement of clamps, transferring corners of clothing articles between loading and spreading clamps without requiring operators to be in direct contact with moving parts during operation.
2Manufacturing precision
If the spreading clamps wait for the conveyor belt to be free, then deposit quality is improved, but productivity deteriorates due to waiting time
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the depositing function across multiple loading stations positioned at different locations along the conveyor belt. While one station is depositing an article, other stations can simultaneously prepare and spread subsequent articles, eliminating waiting time and ensuring that deposit quality is maintained without productivity loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The spreading clamps perform preliminary spreading and positioning actions at the loading stations before the articles reach the depositing point on the conveyor belt. This preliminary preparation ensures that when articles are deposited, they are already properly positioned and spread, maintaining high deposit quality without requiring the spreading clamps to wait for conveyor availability.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the machine size is increased to protect operators, then operator safety is improved, but device complexity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The machine utilizes the longitudinal dimension of the conveyor belt to distribute loading stations at different positions rather than concentrating all operations at a single location. This spatial distribution along the conveyor's length allows operators to work at separated stations with reduced exposure to moving parts, improving safety without requiring an overall increase in machine footprint or complexity.
4Ease of operation
If protection elements are removed for manual loading, then ease of operation is improved, but visibility deteriorates due to concealment
Solution Approach 1:
The protection system is segmented into multiple independent screens (access protection screen, intermediate protection screen, inner protection screen) that can be selectively positioned. The access protection screen can be opened to allow manual loading, while intermediate and inner screens remain in place to maintain visibility and provide continuous safety, allowing operators to access loading stations without complete removal of protective elements.
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 machine ensures reliable unfolding and positioning of flat clothing articles on the conveyor belt without wrinkles, enhances productivity by allowing simultaneous spreading and positioning, and improves operator safety through controlled clamp movements and clear visibility during manual loading.
Implementation Method 1
The loading support is associated to an air blowing nozzle arranged for blowing an airflow against the flat clothing article between said loading jaw and said auxiliary loading jaw
Data Source
AI summary
The machine comprises a conveyor belt (30) and loading clamps (24a) which receive contiguous corners (A1) of a flat clothing article (A) manually loaded by an operator (P) in a loading station (1) and transfer them to spreading clamps (4a). Each loading clamp (24a) has a loading jaw (51) driven by an actuator (52) and an auxiliary loading jaw (53) with yielding and recovery capacity to catch parts of the corner (A1) against opposite sides of a loading support (50), and an air blowing nozzle (55) producing an airflow capable of pushing a portion of corner (A1) released from the auxiliary loading jaw (53) and introducing it between jaws of a corresponding spreading clamp (4a) driven by an actuator (58) for catching the portion of corner (A1) previously released.