Suction Gripper Segmented Channels for Irregular Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional suction grippers struggle to grip piece goods with uneven or recessed surfaces, such as coils in SMD pick-and-place machines, due to incomplete sealing of suction holes, leading to air leakage and failure to generate the necessary negative pressure for lifting.
Innovation Solution
The suction gripper features suction holes with a diameter of 1 to 10 mm and corresponding suction channels with a diameter of 0.1 to 0.5 mm, arranged in an intermediate plate between the suction chamber and perforated plate, ensuring that only a portion of suction holes need to be sealed for gripping, with the suction channels' smaller cross-section limiting air flow and allowing for effective negative pressure buildup through a buffer-like suction chamber.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the suction holes have a large diameter to improve cleaning ease, then dust removal becomes easier, but air leakage increases making it difficult to maintain negative pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The suction system is segmented into two distinct components: large-diameter suction holes (1-10 mm) in the perforated plate for easy cleaning and dust removal, and small-diameter suction channels (0.1-0.5 mm) in the intermediate plate for maintaining negative pressure. This segmentation allows each component to optimize its function independently.
Solution Approach 2:
The intermediate plate with narrow suction channels acts as an intermediary element between the large suction holes and the suction chamber. It mediates the conflict by allowing easy cleaning through large holes while preventing excessive air leakage through narrow channels, thus maintaining negative pressure effectively.
2Reliability
If all suction holes must lie sealingly on the piece goods surface to generate negative pressure, then gripping reliability improves, but adaptability to uneven surfaces deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The suction system is divided into suction holes for sealing contact and suction channels for pressure control. Only a portion of suction holes need to be sealed on the piece goods surface, while the narrow suction channels limit air leakage to maintain negative pressure, enabling reliable gripping on uneven surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of requiring all suction holes to be sealed on the surface, the invention achieves reliable gripping with only partial sealing (10-30% of suction holes). The narrow suction channels compensate for unsealed holes by limiting air leakage, allowing the system to function effectively with partial contact.
3Reliability
If the suction channels have a large cross-section to improve air flow, then negative pressure buildup improves, but cleaning difficulty increases due to clogging
Solution Approach 1:
The air flow path is segmented into large-diameter suction holes for dust removal and small-diameter suction channels for controlled air flow. This segmentation allows the cleaning function to be performed through large holes while the narrow channels maintain pressure control without clogging.
Solution Approach 2:
The intermediate plate with narrow suction channels serves as an intermediary that protects the suction chamber from direct exposure to dust and debris. The narrow channels limit air flow to maintain negative pressure while the separate large suction holes handle dust removal, preventing clogging.
4Speed
If the suction chamber volume is reduced to improve response speed, then gripping speed improves, but the buffer function against air leakage deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The suction chamber is designed with a volume that provides sufficient buffer capacity to compensate for air leakage through unsealed suction holes, while the narrow suction channels ensure rapid negative pressure buildup. This partial buffering approach maintains both speed and stability.
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
This design enables reliable gripping of piece goods with uneven surfaces, as only 10-20% of suction holes need to be sealed, and the suction channels' narrow diameter prevents pressure equalization, allowing the gripper to lift items effectively, even with bumps or recesses, and facilitates easy cleaning by allowing the perforated plate to be detached for dust removal.
Implementation Method 1
The suction chamber, which is closed off at the bottom by the perforated plate, is evacuated. The resulting negative pressure in the suction holes sealed by the piece goods surface causes the piece goods to be sucked in and lifted
Implementation Method 2
The suction channels, which have a smaller cross-section than the suction holes, limit the amount of air that would flow directly into the suction chamber through the open suction holes and would compensate for the negative pressure
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to a suction gripper for gripping individual items, comprising an evacuable suction chamber (4) and a perforated plate (2) that can be placed on the item (7) to be gripped, wherein the perforated plate (2) has a plurality of suction holes (8, 9, 10, 11). The object of the invention is to provide a suction gripper suitable for picking up individual items whose surface has irregularities or recesses, in particular coils for SMD pick-and-place machines. This object is achieved by the invention in that the suction holes (8, 9, 10, 11) are connected to the suction chamber (4) via gas-permeable suction channels (13, 14), wherein the suction channels (13, 14) have a smaller cross-section than the suction holes (8, 9, 10, 11).