Rotatable Gripper Wire Twisting for Round Brush Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing manufacturing processes for round brushes operate at high speeds but struggle to achieve a high cycle rate due to the complexity of bending and twisting wire with bristles, requiring efficient transfer between stations and precise gripping mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus comprising a feed station with counter-brackets and a rotatable gripper for bending and twisting wire, combined with a finishing station for further twisting and cutting bristles, utilizing a rotatable base with multiple grippers for efficient transfer and processing, including a milling cutter or knife for bristle cutting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a rotatable gripper is used to grasp and twist the wire in the feed station, then the wire can be effectively bent and bristles anchored, but the cycle rate is limited by the need to transfer the twisted wire to a finishing station
Solution Approach 1:
The manufacturing process is divided into two functional stations: a feed station for wire bending and bristle anchoring, and a finishing station for final twisting and cutting. Multiple grippers are distributed across these stations, allowing parallel operations and eliminating transfer time bottlenecks.
Solution Approach 2:
The grippers are designed with multi-functionality, serving both as grasping devices and as twisting mechanisms. The same gripper that anchors bristles also performs the twisting action, reducing the number of components needed and streamlining the process.
2Ease of operation
If the wire is bent transversely to its longitudinal direction between counter-brackets, then the wire can be properly positioned for twisting, but the bending process adds complexity to the apparatus
Solution Approach 1:
Counter-brackets serve as intermediary elements between the linear wire feed and the twisting operation. These brackets provide a controlled bending surface that transforms the wire from a linear state to a positioned state ready for twisting, simplifying the overall mechanism.
3Productivity
If multiple rotatable grippers are attached to a rotatable base for transferring wire between stations, then the transfer efficiency is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple grippers are merged onto a single rotatable base, allowing them to share common drive mechanisms and control systems. This consolidation reduces the overall complexity compared to having separate gripper systems at each station while maintaining high transfer efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for producing round brushes having bristles clamped between two wire portions of a folded wire, comprising a feed station and a subsequent finishing station, wherein in the feed station a wire is bent between two counter holders, and the feed station comprises a bristle feed device and a rotatable gripper adapted to grip the bent wire and twist it during the feed of bristles to anchor the bristles in the wire. In the finishing station, the twisted wire is held by a stationary gripper and further twisted by the rotatable gripper. The bristles are then cut on their outer side.