Continuous Palletizing with Adjustable Endless Conveyor
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current palletizing processes are inefficient and operate in a cycle rather than continuous mode, requiring numerous manual steps and limited automation for loading transport pallets with packaging units in rows and columns.
Innovation Solution
A palletizing device featuring an endless conveyor with two transport legs, allowing for horizontal movement and adjustable orientation, enables continuous feeding and stacking of packaging units directly onto a transport pallet, facilitating efficient row and layer formation with flexible orientation and height adjustment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional palletizing processes are used, then packaging units can be stacked on transport pallets, but the process operates in cycle operation rather than continuous operation, reducing productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous palletizing by eliminating the cyclic stop-and-go operation. The endless conveyor continuously feeds packaging units to the deposit position, and the transport pallet moves continuously through the loading area. Packaging units are deposited one after another in a continuous stream rather than being pushed as complete rows, enabling uninterrupted palletizing operation that significantly increases productivity while maintaining operational simplicity through automated continuous motion.
2Extent of automation
If packaging units are collected in rows and pushed onto intermediate floor, then complete rows can be formed, but numerous work steps are required and manual intervention is needed, increasing device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the intermediate floor and pusher mechanism from the palletizing system. Instead of collecting packaging units in rows and pushing them as complete units, the system extracts each packaging unit individually from the endless conveyor and deposits it directly onto the transport pallet at the appropriate position. This extraction approach automates the placement process, removing manual intervention requirements and simplifying the device by eliminating complex row-pushing mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The endless conveyor serves as an intermediary device that bridges the feed source and the transport pallet. It continuously presents packaging units at the deposit position in the correct sequence and orientation, enabling automated placement without requiring intermediate collection floors or manual row assembly. The conveyor acts as a mediating element that coordinates the flow of packaging units directly to their final positions on the pallet.
3Productivity
If conventional row-by-row stacking is used, then packaging units can be arranged in rows and columns, but the process requires stopping and starting, limiting productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent achieves continuous palletizing throughput by maintaining constant motion of the transport pallet through the loading area and continuous feeding of packaging units via the endless conveyor. Packaging units are deposited in continuous sequence without stopping to complete entire rows before moving to the next position. This eliminates cycle operation delays and maximizes palletizing throughput while minimizing idle time between loading operations.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the infeed device is fixed in orientation, then the structure is simpler, but it cannot handle packaging units of varying sizes and orientations, reducing adaptability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamically adjustable infeed device that can change its orientation and positioning according to the specific requirements of different packaging units. The feed device includes adjustable components that can be repositioned to accommodate varying sizes, shapes, and orientations of packaging units. This dynamic adaptability allows the system to handle diverse products efficiently while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure through modular, reconfigurable components rather than complex fixed mechanisms.
Data Source
Figure 1a
Figure 1b
Figure 1c~1d
AI summary
Disclosed is a palletizing apparatus for placing rows and/or stacks of packaged units (2) onto transport pallets (1) in at least one layer (A1) of packaged units (2), comprising a conveying device (3) for bringing the packaged units into the vicinity of the transport pallet (1), and a delivery device (5) for delivering a transport pallet (1) comprising the conveyed packaged units (2). In order to be able to palletize continually using a palletizing apparatus of said kind, the delivery device (5) comprises a continuous conveying means (5A) that includes at least two conveying strands (T1, T2, T3) used as conveying legs (T) in a horizontal arrangement, and the horizontal continuous conveying means (5A) can be moved as a whole relative to the transport pallet (1) by at least one width of a packaged unit or a partial width and/or partial height of a packaged unit in a transverse direction component relative to the direction of extension of one of the conveying legs of the continuous conveying means.