Method and apparatus for feeding items of laundry to a laundry treatment device, preferably a mangle
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing laundry treatment devices, such as mangles, face challenges with inefficient item transfer due to long movement distances of spreading clips and uncontrolled slipping of laundry, leading to ergonomically unfavorable loading conditions and increased cycle times.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that reduce the distance items of laundry are transferred to spreading clips from the center of the feed conveyor, allowing for shorter cycle times and improved ergonomics by using moveable transfer clips and a spreading device with clips that center the laundry, and a feed conveyor with inclined and adjustable loading stations to secure the laundry effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If spreading clips transfer items of laundry from outer loading stations, then all loading stations can be utilized, but the movement distance of spreading clips increases
Solution Approach 1:
Transfer clips are introduced as intermediary elements between loading stations and spreading clips. The transfer clips are movable and can be positioned at different locations, serving as a mediator that receives items from loading stations and transfers them to spreading clips, thereby reducing the movement distance of spreading clips while maintaining utilization of outer loading stations
Solution Approach 2:
The transfer clips are designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing them to dynamically adjust their position to optimize the transfer process. This dynamic positioning enables the system to reduce spreading clip movement distance while maintaining high productivity across all loading stations
2Ease of operation
If items of laundry are deposited onto the feed conveyor, then the feeding process is completed, but uncontrolled slipping occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The spread-out front transverse edge region of the item of laundry is deposited onto the feed conveyor with a wrap angle of more than 95° in advance, creating sufficient frictional engagement before the item is fully transferred. This preliminary angular engagement prevents subsequent uncontrolled slipping during the feeding process
Solution Approach 2:
The wrap angle parameter is specifically optimized to be more than 95°, which significantly increases the frictional force between the laundry and conveyor belt. This parameter change transforms the deposition process from a simple placement to a controlled engagement that prevents slipping
3Device complexity
If loading stations are positioned upstream of the spreading device, then the feeding structure is simplified, but ergonomic conditions deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The feeding system is segmented into distinct functional zones: loading stations, transfer clip operation zones, spreading device, and feed conveyor. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently, maintaining structural simplicity while improving ergonomic conditions at the loading stations through proper spatial arrangement
Data Source
AI summary
Items of laundry are fed to mangles by insertion machines, which have a spreading device with moveable spreading clips which spread out and center a front transverse edge of the item of laundry upstream of a feed conveyor. A plurality of loading stations are located upstream of the spreading device. The spreading clips retrieve an item of laundry from the loading stations, which, in the case of outer loading stations, requires long movement distances of the spreading clips, which reduces the cycle time of the insertion machine. The invention makes provision to transfer items of laundry from outer loading stations to transfer clips which move the items of laundry from the outer loading stations into the vicinity of the center of the feed conveyor, then transfer the item of laundry to the spreading clips in the center of the feed conveyor, thus reducing the travel distances of the spreading clips.