Facemask Tie Wrapping With Robotic Rotation for High-Throughput Production
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current facemask production lines are limited in speed, capable of producing only about 100 masks per minute, which is insufficient to meet the demand of up to 1.5 million masks per day during pandemics, due to slow manual and automated methods for wrapping head fastening ties around the facemask body.
Innovation Solution
An automated method and system using a robotic arm with a clamping device to convey and rotate facemasks, wrapping leading and trailing ties around the body in a continuous stream, with optional suction assistance to fold ties under the body, enabling high-speed wrapping and compact packaging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual or traditional automated methods are used for wrapping ties, then wrapping accuracy is maintained, but production speed is limited to about 100 masks per minute
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical wrapping systems with a robotic arm system that uses controlled motion and positioning to wrap ties. The robotic arm with clamping device automates the tying process, substituting complex mechanical wrapping mechanisms with a more flexible robotic system that achieves both high speed and accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic arm system employs dynamic control to adjust its motion parameters during the wrapping process. The system can vary speed, position, and orientation in real-time to optimize both production rate and wrapping precision, allowing the system to adapt to different mask configurations and maintain high throughput.
2Productivity
If traditional wrapping methods are used, then equipment simplicity is maintained, but throughput cannot reach the required 1.5 million masks per day
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system is designed to autonomously perform the entire wrapping sequence without continuous human intervention. The robotic arm automatically positions, clamps, and wraps the ties, then returns to its starting position for the next mask, creating a self-sustaining high-speed production cycle that maximizes throughput while minimizing operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuous productive action by eliminating idle time between wrapping operations. The robotic arm performs wrapping motions and returns to starting position in a seamless continuous cycle, ensuring that the high-speed capability is sustained throughout operation to achieve the required daily throughput.
3Productivity
If high-speed wrapping is implemented, then production demand is met, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic arm system is designed with multi-functionality to perform multiple operations (positioning, clamping, wrapping, returning) with a single integrated mechanism. This universal approach reduces the need for multiple specialized devices, thereby managing system complexity while achieving high wrapping speeds required for mass production.
Data Source
AI summary
An automated system and method wrap the fastening ties around the body of a continuous stream of facemasks in a facemask production line. The facemasks are oriented such that each facemask has a leading pair of ties and a trailing pair of ties extending from a body in a conveying direction of the production line. At a wrapping station in the production line, the body is subsequently clamped with a clamping device of an automated robotic arm. The robotic arm is driven in the conveying direction while rotating the clamping device and body relative to a rotation axis through the body to cause the leading and trailing pairs of ties to wrap around the body. The robotic arm then deposits the facemask with wrapped ties onto the conveyor.