Suction Air Allocation in Textile Machines

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Solution Overview

Problem

Textile machines face inefficiencies in allocating suction air, leading to unproductive waiting times and increased energy consumption due to sluggish regulation of suction air strength, which limits the number of workstations that can be supplied simultaneously.

Innovation Solution

A method where suction air requests are queued and allocated based on detailed information about the planned course of suction air requirements, allowing for more efficient allocation by considering the maximum and varying needs of each workstation, and enabling more workstations to be supplied with suction air simultaneously.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the suction air system is designed to meet the maximum possible suction air demand, then sufficient suction air is available for all workstations, but the system costs increase disproportionately

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesuction air availabilityVSAvoidsystem costs
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by having workstations pre-register their suction air requirements before actually needing the air. The control system processes these advance requests and activates suction air supply in anticipation of the actual demand, rather than reacting only when the demand occurs. This allows the system to be sized for average rather than peak demand, reducing costs while maintaining reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Use of energy by stationary object

If the suction air volume is regulated precisely to the required demand, then energy consumption is reduced, but the regulation is relatively slow due to the length of the suction air ducts

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveenergy consumptionVSAvoidregulation speed
Core Design Contradiction:
Use of energy by stationary objectVSSpeed

Solution Approach 1:

The control system performs preliminary regulation by processing suction air requests in advance and activating supply before the actual workstations need the air. This anticipatory approach allows the system to reach the required pressure level beforehand, avoiding the need for rapid regulation when demand suddenly occurs, thus maintaining energy efficiency without sacrificing response speed.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically adjusts suction air supply based on registered requests from multiple workstations. The control system monitors and responds to changing demands in real-time, activating or deactivating supply to matched workstations, thereby optimizing energy consumption while adapting to varying operational conditions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

3Device complexity

If reactive control systems are used to regulate suction air volume, then system complexity is reduced, but the required suction air volume cannot be maintained

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontrol system complexityVSAvoidsuction air volume maintenance
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent transforms the reactive control system into a proactive one by introducing preliminary registration of suction air requirements. Workstations register their needs in advance, and the control system processes these requests before the actual demand occurs. This maintains relatively simple system architecture while significantly improving the ability to maintain required suction air volumes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

4Productivity

If suction air is allocated to multiple workstations simultaneously, then productivity is maximized, but the suction air system capacity is exceeded

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemachine productivityVSAvoidsuction air demand
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The control system uses preliminary registration of suction air requirements to anticipate and plan air allocation across multiple workstations. By processing requests in advance and knowing the total anticipated demand, the system can activate supply to multiple workstations simultaneously up to the system's capacity limits, maximizing productivity without exceeding available resources.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically balances suction air allocation across multiple workstations based on registered requests and current system capacity. The control system continuously monitors demand and supply conditions, adjusting allocation to maintain optimal productivity while preventing capacity overload.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP3070038B1Method, device and computer program for allocation of vacuum air to vacuum air requesting work stations of a textile machine
Publication Date: 2019.07.17 SAURER SPINNING SOLUTIONS GMBH & CO KG
  • EP3070038B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3070038B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3070038B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

Method, apparatus and computer program for allocating suction air to suction air requesting workstations of a textile machine. The invention relates to a method for allocating suction air provided by a suction air system (20) of a textile machine (5) to suction air requesting workstations (1) of the textile machine (5), wherein suction air requests (SD), the allocation of which would be expected to exceed a maximum capacity of the suction air system (20), are placed in a queue, and wherein suction air requests (SD) waiting in the queue are only allocated when their allocation is no longer expected to exceed the maximum capacity of the suction air system (20), characterized in that - the suction air requests (SD) contain information about the planned course of their suction air demand, and - the assessment,The invention assesses whether the allocation of a suction air request (SD) is likely to result in an exceedance of the maximum capacity of the suction air system (20), taking into account the planned course of the suction air demand of this suction air request (SD) as well as the suction air requests (SD) already allocated at the time of assessment. The invention also relates to a device, a control system, and a computer program for carrying out at least parts of this method.