Cutting Station Conveying System for Packaging Orientation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Packaging units produced in a common film composite often lose their orientation during separation, making subsequent handling and logistics processes inefficient and costly.
Innovation Solution
A complete cutting station with a conveying system that grips and moves packaging units to reduce their distance or overlap them, ensuring precise positioning and orientation, using movable conveyor elements with vacuum grippers to facilitate efficient handling and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a complete cutting tool is used to separate packaging units from the film composite, then the separation process is simplified and packaging units can be cut in a single process step, but the packaging units lose their orientation and position during separation
Solution Approach 1:
A conveying system with grippers acts as an intermediary between the cutting tool and the packaging units. The grippers hold the packaging units during the cutting process and transport them to the discharge conveyor, preventing loss of orientation and position while allowing the cutting tool to perform its separation function.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveying system with grippers performs preliminary action by securing the packaging units before the cutting process. The grippers attach to the packaging units and maintain their position and orientation throughout the separation process, preparing them for subsequent handling and discharge.
2Productivity
If packaging units are separated using conventional methods, then the separation can be achieved, but subsequent handling and logistics processes become more difficult and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The conveying system serves as an intermediary that bridges the cutting process and subsequent handling operations. By maintaining packaging unit orientation and position during separation, the system enables efficient automated handling and logistics processes without requiring additional orientation or positioning steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveying system maintains continuous control over the packaging units from the cutting process through discharge. The grippers continuously hold and transport the packaging units, ensuring uninterrupted useful action and eliminating the need for intermediate handling operations that would increase complexity and cost.
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 ensures that packaging units maintain their position and orientation during separation, allowing for more efficient handling, reduced logistics costs, and increased storage density, simplifying subsequent processes.
Implementation Method 1
The conveying system (27) comprises at least one conveyor element (28) which is provided with a respective head portion (29) for gripping on to a packaging unit (21). In the invention, the head portions (29) of at least one, but possibly of all conveying elements (28) are movable between a first position... and a second position...
Data Source
AI summary
A complete cutting station for separatingly cutting out packaging units from a film composite, the cutting station having a movable complete cutting tool configured for severing the film composite. The complete cutting station further comprises a conveying system having a plurality of conveyor elements for conveying a respective separated packaging unit, wherein each conveyor element in turn comprises a head portion for engaging with a respective packaging unit. The head portions of the conveyor elements may be movable between a first position in which the gripped packaging units are at a first distance relative to each other, and a second position in which the packaging units are at a second, smaller distance from each other or at least partially overlap in at least one spatial direction.