Transversal Feeding System for Shaped Wire Netting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for producing planar electric welding wire netting with complex shapes are inefficient due to the handling of multiple steel bars of different lengths and diameters, leading to increased production costs and longer process times, especially when forming grids with perimetric shapes and internal voids.
Innovation Solution
The method employs whole, rectilinear steel bars of equal or different diameters, cut to the exact length needed, which are positioned parallel to each other on a rotating arm and then automatically transferred and cut to length, reducing handling cycles and positioning errors, and utilizing a system of grippers and transfer devices to efficiently align and weld the bars.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple cropped bar segments are handled individually to form complex shaped grids, then the grids can be formed with perimetric shapes and internal voids, but the number of handling cycles increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the complex grid formation process into distinct phases: whole bars are fed once, then automatically cropped into segments at precise positions during transfer. This allows complex shapes to be formed without handling each segment individually, resolving the contradiction between versatility and productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
Whole bars are prepared and positioned in advance on the rotating arm before the actual grid formation begins. The bars are pre-aligned and ready for automatic cropping and placement, eliminating the need for repeated handling cycles and significantly increasing production speed while maintaining the ability to form complex shapes.
2Productivity
If whole rectilinear bars are used instead of pre-cropped segments, then the number of handling cycles is reduced and productivity increases, but the complexity of positioning and cutting to exact lengths increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges the feeding, positioning, cropping, and transfer functions into an integrated automated sequence. Whole bars are fed once, positioned on the rotating arm, automatically cropped to exact lengths during transfer, and placed on the grid. This consolidation reduces handling cycles and increases productivity while the automation manages the positioning complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Manual or simple mechanical positioning and cropping operations are replaced with an automated system that uses the rotating arm's motion and integrated cutting mechanisms. This substitution handles the complexity of precise positioning and cropping automatically, allowing whole bars to be processed efficiently without increasing operational complexity.
3Manufacturing precision
If bars are handled one at a time in the desired design sequence, then complex shaped grids can be formed accurately, but the process time increases and production costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains continuous useful action by feeding whole bars once and then automatically cropping and placing segments in the correct sequence during a single continuous operation. The rotating arm enables uninterrupted transfer of cropped segments to their precise positions, maintaining manufacturing accuracy while eliminating repeated handling cycles that waste time.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotating arm provides dynamic positioning capability, allowing the system to adjust the transfer speed and positioning of cropped segments in real-time. This dynamic control ensures that segments are placed accurately in the desired design sequence while maintaining continuous operation, reducing process time without sacrificing precision.
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 approach significantly reduces the number of feeding cycles, increases productivity, and minimizes material waste, resulting in faster production times and extended mechanical device lifespan while ensuring accurate positioning for complex grid formations.
Implementation Method 1
the bars are cut or left uncut, as the case may be, without waste, and are immediately handled to be placed in a position parallel to the work plane in the welding unit
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention regards a feeding method and a relative transversal feeding device for whole steel bars or wire rods for plants for the automatic production of electric welding wire netting (5) having shaped forms. The particular characteristic consists of the transversal feeding of the automatic electro-welding unit (10) with whole rectilinear bars (3) having a length that is equal to the sum of the various cropped pieces (3.1) that are obtainable from the same bar without waste. Said bars (3) are collected longitudinally along the plant and are transferred, in a multiple manner, supported by a relative arm (6) with 90° horizontal rotation hinged on a vertical axis (7), orthogonally above the machine. Here, the bars are positioned one at a time by means of screws (13) synchronized with the dragging unit (8) and cut to length (3.1) with automatic shears (9). The cropped pieces are transferred vertically, one at a time, to a lower level by a suitable parallel transfer device, where they are then collected by a horizontal loader and positioned near the electro-welding unit (10), where an automatic loader arranges them in position on the lower electrode to be electro-welded on the longitudinal bars.