Plate Feed Roll Layout for Accurate Conveyance in Compact Width

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing plate-like material feeding devices face challenges in achieving high conveyance accuracy and capacity while maintaining a compact width, and they often require complex configurations that increase installation space and maintenance complexity.

Innovation Solution

A plate-like material feeding device is designed with a configuration that includes a lower gear, an intermediate gear, and an upper gear, where the gears are arranged to allow mechanical synchronization of the upper and lower rolls, and the drive motors are positioned on the same side to reduce the device's width and improve maintainability.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If motors are mounted on both right and left sides to increase conveyance capacity, then conveyance capacity is improved, but device width is increased and maintainability is impaired

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconveyance capacityVSAvoiddevice width
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLength of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines both drive motors on the same side (right or left side) of the upper roll, rather than distributing them on opposite sides. This merging approach allows both motors to contribute to conveyance capacity while maintaining a compact device width and improving maintainability by consolidating motor access points.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Productivity

If motors are mounted on both right and left sides to increase conveyance capacity, then conveyance capacity is improved, but device maintainability is impaired

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconveyance capacityVSAvoiddevice maintainability
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSEase of repair

Solution Approach 1:

By mounting both drive motors on the same side of the upper roll, the patent consolidates maintenance access points. This allows maintenance personnel to access both motors from a single location, significantly improving maintainability while still utilizing the combined conveyance capacity of both motors.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Manufacturing precision

If upper and lower rolls are mechanically coupled to synchronize rotation, then conveyance accuracy is improved, but device complexity is increased

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconveyance accuracyVSAvoidmechanical coupling complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediate gear as a mediator between the upper roll drive system and the lower roll drive system. This intermediate gear simplifies the mechanical coupling by providing a straightforward gear mesh connection, reducing the overall complexity compared to alternative synchronization mechanisms while maintaining high conveyance accuracy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Length of moving object

If single motor drives both upper and lower rolls, then device width is reduced, but conveyance capacity is limited

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevice widthVSAvoidconveyance capacity
Core Design Contradiction:
Length of moving objectVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the functionality of two drive motors on the same side to provide enhanced conveyance capacity. Both motors drive the upper roll simultaneously, and through the intermediate gear, this drive is transmitted to the lower roll, achieving high conveyance capacity within a compact width by eliminating the need for motors on opposite sides.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

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 proposed solution enhances conveyance accuracy and capacity while reducing the device's installation space requirements, improving maintainability, and maintaining a compact configuration, thus addressing the limitations of existing technologies.

Implementation Method 1

a lower gear (111) integrally provided on a rotation shaft of the lower roll (101); an intermediate gear (112) which is meshed with the lower gear (111), and is integrally provided on a rotation shaft of the upper roll (102); an upper gear (113) meshed with the intermediate gear (112)

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectGear meshing: Gear

Data Source

PatentEP4344801B1Plate-like material feeding device
Publication Date: 2025.01.29 AIDA ENGINEERING LTD
  • EP4344801B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4344801B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4344801B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Provided is a plate-like material feeding device (10) configured to sandwich a plate-like material (M) between a lower roll (101) rotatably supported on a device main body and an upper roll (102) which is rotatable and arranged to face the lower roll (101) in parallel thereto, so as to convey the plate-like material (M). The plate-like material feeding device includes: a lower gear (111) integrally provided on a rotation shaft of the lower roll (101); an intermediate gear (112) which is meshed with the lower gear (111), and is integrally provided on a rotation shaft of the upper roll (102); an upper gear (113) meshed with the intermediate gear (112); a lower-roll drive motor (110) which is coupled to the rotation shaft of the lower roll (101) so as to drive the rotation shaft of the lower roll (101) to rotate; and an upper-roll drive motor (130) configured to drive the upper gear (113) to rotate.