Conveyor Magazine for Automated Sausage Casing Feed
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Solution Overview
Problem
The production process of sausage-shaped products is inefficient due to the manual handling of tubular packaging casings, which is physically and mentally stressful for operators, and the need for frequent replacement of casings of varying sizes, leading to a monotonous and labor-intensive operation.
Innovation Solution
A magazine system with a conveyor mechanism that holds and conveys mandrels with packaging casings, utilizing a retaining element to automate the process, allowing robots to handle and pre-treat casings, and a conveyor belt to move casings from a loading to a delivery position, facilitating automated and efficient casing supply.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual handling of packaging casings is used, then flexibility in handling different casing sizes is maintained, but operator stress and monotony increase while productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The magazine system automatically feeds packaging casings to the filling tube without operator intervention. The conveyor mechanism and mandrel system work autonomously to present casings in the required sequence and orientation, eliminating the monotonous manual task of picking and pushing casings while maintaining continuous production capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The magazine acts as an intermediary device between the storage area and the filling tube. It buffers the supply of packaging casings, allowing the filling operation to proceed at high speed while casings are automatically transported and positioned from the magazine, decoupling the operator from the high-cycle filling process.
2Volume of moving object
If packaging casings are stored in a compact shirred form, then space utilization is improved, but handling difficulty increases due to mechanical properties
Solution Approach 1:
Packaging casings are pre-formed and stored in a compact shirred configuration on the mandrels within the magazine. This preliminary preparation allows space-efficient storage while the automated conveyor system handles the expansion and positioning of casings just before they are needed at the filling tube, eliminating manual handling of the difficult-to-manage shirred casings.
3Productivity
If high cycle rates are used in clipping machines, then productivity increases, but the need for constant operator intervention increases
Solution Approach 1:
The magazine system with its automated conveyor mechanism serves itself by automatically presenting packaging casings to the filling tube at the required rate. The system includes self-contained features such as the conveyor belt, mandrels, and retention mechanisms that work autonomously to maintain high cycle rates without requiring operator intervention for casing replacement.
Solution Approach 2:
The magazine enables continuous operation by maintaining a ready supply of packaging casings and automatically replenishing the filling tube. The conveyor system operates continuously to transport casings from storage positions to the delivery position, ensuring uninterrupted feeding at high cycle rates and eliminating downtime for manual casing changes.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3a~3b
AI summary
A magazine (18) for providing at least one tubular-shaped packaging casing (14) suitable for receiving a flowable filling material in the production of sausage-shaped products, in particular sausages, comprising: at least one mandrel (26) for holding at least one packaging casing (14), wherein the at least one mandrel (26) has a longitudinal mandrel axis (27), and wherein the at least one mandrel (26) comprises a free end (32) at a first mandrel end (30), and a conveyor (90) for holding at least one mandrel (26) in an upright position, wherein the conveyor (90) conveys the at least one mandrel (26) from a loading position to a delivery position.