Vacuum Holding Device for Sheet Goods Transport
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing devices for transporting sheet goods, such as metal sheets, are complex and error-prone due to the need for multiple moving parts and synchronous control of air control rollers, leading to high costs and operational inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
A vacuum holding device with a suction channel that extends in the transport direction, connected to a vacuum source at the goods inlet side, featuring an intake duct with a cross-section that changes based on the position of the goods, creating a self-controlling vacuum effect without movable control elements, allowing for secure holding with low energy consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If air control rollers with grooves are used to control negative pressure sequentially, then the vacuum can be applied only where material is located, but the device requires a large number of moving parts and synchronous control, increasing complexity and cost
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the movable control elements (air control rollers with grooves) from the system and replaces them with a stationary intake channel. The sequential vacuum control function is achieved not by moving parts but by the material itself covering different sections of the stationary intake channel as it passes through, thereby eliminating the complexity of synchronous control mechanisms while maintaining accurate vacuum application.
Solution Approach 2:
The material being transported serves a dual function: it is both the object being conveyed and the control element that regulates vacuum application. As the material passes through the stationary intake channel, it automatically covers different sections, creating the sequential vacuum effect without requiring external control mechanisms. The system uses the material's own movement to control the vacuum timing and location.
2Reliability
If air control rollers are used to build up negative pressure sequentially, then vacuum can be applied only in the area where material is located, but the device becomes expensive and error-prone in operation
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the air control rollers and their synchronous control mechanism from the system, replacing them with a simple stationary intake channel. This elimination of complex control mechanisms directly reduces operational error rates while maintaining the ability to apply vacuum only where material is present.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the material's own passage through the stationary intake channel to automatically control vacuum application timing and location. This self-regulating mechanism eliminates the need for error-prone synchronous control systems while ensuring vacuum is applied only when and where material is present.
3Reliability
If a large vacuum source is used to maintain vacuum over the entire intake channel, then holding effect is strong, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies vacuum locally only at the section of the intake channel currently covered by material, rather than maintaining vacuum over the entire channel length. This localized vacuum application significantly reduces the energy required from the vacuum source while maintaining strong holding effect on the material being transported.
Solution Approach 2:
The vacuum is activated periodically only when material covers the intake channel section, rather than continuously. The stationary intake channel design with vacuum activation at the material-covered section creates a periodic vacuum action that matches the material passage, reducing overall energy consumption while maintaining effective holding during material transport.
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 solution provides a structurally simple, error-free, and energy-efficient method for transporting sheet goods, eliminating the need for expensive air control rollers and reducing operational costs while maintaining a high holding effect.
Implementation Method 1
a vacuum holding device whose vacuum acts through the transport means
Implementation Method 2
a correspondingly large drop in pressure occurs due to the small cross section
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
AI summary
The invention relates to a device (1) for transporting tabular goods (2), such as sheet metal panels (3) or the like, having a transport means (4) and a retaining device (11) retaining the product (3) on the transport means (4), said retaining device being designed as a vacuum retaining device (12), the vacuum thereof acting through the transport means (4). According to the invention, the vacuum retaining device (12) comprises at least one suction channel (19) extending in the transport direction or substantially in the transport direction and open toward the transport means (4) at least in a longitudinal segment thereof, said channel being connected at the product insertion end (21) thereof – as seen in the direction of transport – to at least one vacuum source (23), wherein an air penetration cross section (33) is present at the transport means (4) in the uncovered area of the open suction channel (19), dependent on the position of the product, and wherein a suction channel cross section (34) extending transversely, particularly at right angles, to the transport direction, if applicable dependent on the position of the product, is at most equally as large as or smaller than the corresponding air penetration cross section (33) at the product leading edge (29) of a product (2) retained and transported on the retaining device (11), at least over a partial length of the suction channel (19).