Laundry Mangle Feed Method to Prevent Front Edge Sag and Creasing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for feeding laundry to a mangle or similar machines often result in increased sag of the front edge of laundry items, leading to wrinkles and poor ironing quality due to uncontrollable edge strip placement on storage bars or belts.
Innovation Solution
The method involves moving the storage bar vertically under the front edge and edge strip of the laundry at a distance to avoid contact with the sagging area, ensuring the storage bar does not increase the slack, and then reducing the distance to allow the edge strip to rest completely on the storage area, preventing warping and wrinkling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the deposit bar is moved under the front edge to receive the laundry item, then the laundry item can be transferred to the feed conveyor, but the residual sag of the front edge contacts the deposit bar and increases the sag, causing creases during ironing
Solution Approach 1:
The deposit bar is pre-lowered to a first position below the front edge before the spreading clamps are opened. This preliminary positioning ensures that when the laundry item is released, the sagging edge strip does not contact the deposit bar, preventing sag increase and crease formation while still enabling efficient transfer to the feed conveyor
Solution Approach 2:
The deposit bar is designed with dynamic position adjustment capability, moving between a first position (lowered below the front edge to avoid contact) and a second position (raised to receive and transfer the laundry item). This dynamic positioning allows the system to adapt to the sagging behavior of the laundry edge, maintaining flatness while ensuring productive transfer
2Shape
If the spreading clamps are opened to spread the laundry item, then the front edge can be stretched out for ironing, but the edge strip falls uncontrollably and creates creases
Solution Approach 1:
The deposit bar serves as an intermediary element between the spreading clamps and the feed conveyor. By positioning it below the front edge before clamp release, it provides a controlled receiving position that prevents uncontrolled falling of the edge strip, thereby maintaining flatness during the transition from spreading to transfer
Solution Approach 2:
The deposit bar is pre-positioned in a lowered state before the spreading clamps are opened. This preliminary action ensures that when the clamps release the laundry item, the edge strip does not fall uncontrollably but is instead received at a controlled position, preventing crease formation while achieving the desired spreading effect
Data Source
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AI summary
Laundry items (10) are spread out by a spreading device (11), thereby extending the front edge (18) of each item (10). A front edge strip (20) extending from this front edge (18) is then transferred to a discharge bar (27), which places the edge strip (20) onto a feed conveyor (12) that feeds it to a mangle. The front edge of the laundry item (11) extended by the spreading device (11) typically has some residual sag. Especially with larger laundry items (10), this can cause the discharge bar (27) to collide with the edge strip (20) as it descends, impairing the quality of the mangle. The invention provides for positioning the discharge bar (27) far enough away from the edge strip (20) before it descends, so that the edge strip does not collide with the discharge bar (27) as it descends.This allows the discharge bar (27) to take over the edge strip (20) with straight front edge (18) and thus feed the laundry item (10) to the mangle and place it into the same.