Sheet Web Fiber Recovery Loop for Low-Maintenance Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sheet manufacturing apparatuses face complications in fiber recovery and maintenance when large amounts of waste fiber material are involved, leading to increased user effort and raw material waste.
Innovation Solution
A sheet manufacturing apparatus with a cleaning unit that recovers residual fibers from transport belts and transports them back to the defibrator, reducing the need for manual maintenance and minimizing waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a mesh belt is used to transport the web and fibers are removed by contact with a brush roller, then the web can be transported effectively, but the recovered waste fiber material becomes complicated to maintain and causes raw material waste when the amount is large
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cleaning function from manual maintenance operations and integrates it into an automated cleaning unit with a cleaning belt that contacts the mesh belt to remove residual fibers automatically during operation, eliminating the need for complex manual maintenance
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning unit enables the system to clean itself automatically during operation. The cleaning belt moves in opposition to the mesh belt, automatically removing residual fibers from the mesh belt surface without requiring user intervention or complex maintenance procedures
2Productivity
If a mesh belt is used to transport the web and fibers are removed by contact with a brush roller, then the web can be transported effectively, but large amounts of recovered fibers lead to raw material waste
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a fiber recovery system where the cleaning unit removes residual fibers from the mesh belt and directs them through a fiber transport pipe back to the defibrator for reincorporation into the fiber slurry, transforming what would be waste into reusable material
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a closed-loop feedback mechanism where residual fibers are continuously recovered, transported back to the defibrator, and reintegrated into the production process, ensuring maximum material utilization and minimizing waste
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 apparatus effectively recovers residual fibers, reducing the need for manual maintenance and minimizing raw material waste, while maintaining efficient operation.
Implementation Method 1
a fiber transport pipe that transports the residual fibers recovered by the cleaning unit to the defibrator
Data Source
AI summary
A sheet manufacturing apparatus includes a buffer tank 13 that stores a material containing fibers; a defibrator 30 that defibrates the material supplied from the buffer tank 13 and discharges the fibers; a mixing unit 91 that mixes the fibers and a binding material binding the fibers to each other and discharges a mixture; a first transport belt 61a that transports the mixture; an accumulation unit 50 that accumulates the mixture on the first transport belt 61a to form a web W; a second transport belt 62a that comes into contact with one surface of the web W to transport the web W; processing rollers 71 and 72 that pressurize the web W; a cleaning unit 201 that removes and recovers residual fibers adhering to the first transport belt 61a; and a fiber transport pipe 22 that transports the residual fibers recovered by the cleaning unit 201 to the defibrator 30.