Stickpack Transfer Station with Sequential Hopper Unloading
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Solution Overview
Problem
The transfer of stickpacks from a packaging machine's outlet to a continuously activated conveyor system for boxing machines is inefficient, often requiring robotic devices and increased space, due to mismatched pitch distances between chute channels and conveyor housings.
Innovation Solution
A transfer station with hoppers and a conveyor system where the conveyor is positioned below the hoppers, allowing continuous activation and sequential opening of unloading hatches to align stickpacks with housings, eliminating the need for robotic devices and reducing space requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If robotic pick-and-place devices are used to transfer stickpacks, then the transfer can accommodate mismatched pitch distances, but the device complexity and space requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
A transfer station with adjustable hopper positioning acts as an intermediary between the packaging machine outlet and the conveyor system. The hopper can be positioned at different locations along the conveyor to accommodate various pitch distances, eliminating the need for complex robotic picking mechanisms while maintaining adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The transfer system is segmented into independent components: the packaging machine outlet, the adjustable hopper, and the conveyor system. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently, with the hopper serving as a flexible buffer that can be repositioned to match different pitch requirements without affecting the entire system.
2Adaptability or versatility
If robotic pick-and-place devices are used to transfer stickpacks, then the transfer can accommodate mismatched pitch distances, but the volume and maneuvering space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable hopper serves as a compact intermediary device that can be repositioned along the conveyor to accommodate different pitch distances. This eliminates the need for large-volume robotic arms and their required maneuvering space, significantly reducing the overall footprint of the transfer system.
Solution Approach 2:
The hopper positioning is made dynamic and adjustable rather than fixed. The hopper can be repositioned along the conveyor to adapt to different pitch requirements, providing the versatility of robotic systems without the associated volume and space requirements.
3Productivity
If the conveyor means is activated continuously, then the boxing machine receives continuous supply, but the coordination with intermittent hopper unloading becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The hopper unloading operates periodically, releasing stickpacks at regular intervals that correspond to the conveyor's continuous motion. This periodic unloading synchronizes with the conveyor's rhythm, allowing continuous supply to the boxing machine while maintaining simple coordination through timing-based control rather than complex real-time synchronization.
Solution Approach 2:
The conveyor maintains continuous motion and continuous supply to the boxing machine, while the hopper unloading is coordinated to occur periodically along the conveyor's path. This ensures uninterrupted productivity while simplifying the control system through rhythmic, predictable unloading cycles rather than complex intermittent coordination.
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
Enables rapid and effective transfer of stickpacks without robotic assistance, reducing overall volume and allowing for more compact placement of packaging and boxing machines.
Implementation Method 1
a conveyor means (5), made in such a way as to comprise a series of housings (51, 52, 53, 54)... continuously activating the conveyor means (5) in an advancement direction (V)
Implementation Method 2
sequentially opening, one after another, the unloading hatches (10, 20, 30, 40) of the hoppers (1, 2, 3, 4)... in such a way that the stickpack (ST) present in each hopper (1, 2, 3, 4) falls into a corresponding housing
Data Source
AI summary
Transferring stickpacks from a packaging machine to a conveyor for supply to a boxing machine entails continuously activating the conveyor in an advancement direction so that housings of the conveyor continuously transit beneath hoppers. Stickpacks fall from chute channels at an outlet of the packaging machine and collect in respective hoppers. Positions of the housings with respect to the hoppers are determined. Unloading hatches of the hoppers are sequentially opened so that the stickpacks present in the hoppers fall into respective housings beneath the hoppers during the continuous advancement of the conveyor in the advancement direction.