Removable Glass Forming Station With Quick-Release Couplings
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Solution Overview
Problem
In glass forming machines, a malfunction at one station necessitates shutting down adjacent stations for safety, leading to a 25% reduction in production volume due to the risk of injuries from hot glass and moving mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A station for a glass forming machine with quick-release couplings for disconnecting from supply lines, allowing it to be removed as a unit, and equipped with guide and centering rollers, adjustable bearing elements, and a clamping device for precise positioning and easy replacement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a station is permanently installed on the glass forming machine, then the station can operate stably and reliably, but when a malfunction occurs, adjacent stations must be shut down for safety, resulting in 25% reduction in production volume
Solution Approach 1:
The glass forming machine is divided into independent modular stations that can be individually removed and replaced. Each station is a self-contained unit with quick-release couplings for utilities and material flow, allowing malfunctioning stations to be isolated and replaced without affecting adjacent stations, thus maintaining productivity while ensuring safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The station design transitions from fixed permanent installation to dynamic reconfigurable positioning. Stations can be quickly disconnected, removed, and replaced using lifting mechanisms and guide rollers, enabling the system to adapt to maintenance needs without permanent downtime of other sections.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a station is permanently installed on the glass forming machine, then the station structure is stable, but the station cannot be quickly removed for maintenance, leading to extended downtime
Solution Approach 1:
The station is designed as a modular unit with standardized connection interfaces for utilities, material flow, and structural support. This segmentation allows the station to maintain structural stability during operation while enabling rapid disassembly and removal when maintenance is needed, significantly reducing downtime.
Solution Approach 2:
Quick-release couplings and standardized mounting interfaces are pre-installed on all stations, allowing maintenance personnel to quickly disconnect utilities and remove stations without extensive preparation or custom fabrication, thereby minimizing maintenance downtime.
3Productivity
If quick-release couplings are used to disconnect station connections, then the station can be rapidly removed and replaced, but the complexity of the connection system increases
Solution Approach 1:
Standardized quick-release coupling designs are used across all station connections, allowing the same coupling mechanism to handle multiple utility types (electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic, material flow). This universal approach enables rapid station replacement while actually reducing overall system complexity through standardization rather than increasing it.
4Ease of operation
If bearing elements are used to lift the station for removal, then the removal process is simplified, but additional components and adjustment mechanisms are required
Solution Approach 1:
The bearing elements are designed to automatically support the station weight when in the raised position, and the station can be manually guided onto transport devices using the bearing elements as rails. This self-supporting mechanism simplifies removal operations while minimizing the need for additional complex lifting equipment.
Data Source
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AI summary
A station (1) for a glass forming machine, in particular for an IS or ISX glass forming machine, has station-side connections (4) by means of which the station (1) can be connected to supply lines or the like on the glass forming machine side. In order to enable losses in the production quantity of the glass forming machine that occur in the event of a malfunction at the station (1) to be significantly reduced, it is proposed that all station-side connections (4) be detachable from their associated supply lines or the like by means of quick-release couplings and that the station (1) be removable from the glass forming machine as a unit.