Vertical Tray Loader with Continuous Reloading for Compact Footprint
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional conveyor belt systems for loading trays in automated manufacturing or assembly environments require a large footprint and often necessitate additional mechanisms for unloading, while ensuring operator safety through shielding adds complexity and space constraints.
Innovation Solution
A vertical tray loader system with a housing, delivery and loading doors, sensors, and a controller to manage tray movement and reloading, allowing safe and efficient loading and unloading of multiple trays with a compact footprint.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Duration of action of moving object
If a conveyor belt system is used to load multiple trays, then the manufacturing line can operate for longer periods, but the system requires a large footprint
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a horizontal conveyor belt layout to a vertical stacking arrangement. Multiple trays are stacked vertically within a compact housing, with tray slots arranged in vertical columns. This dimensional change allows the system to hold multiple trays (e.g., 6-12 trays) in a small footprint while enabling continuous operation as trays are sequentially delivered from different vertical positions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If additional conveyor or mechanism is added for unloading trays, then tray delivery capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The single robotic arm at the processing location performs multiple functions: it picks trays from various vertical positions in the stack, delivers them to the processing location, and returns processed trays to appropriate slots. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate loading and unloading conveyors, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining full tray delivery capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the loading and unloading functions into a single integrated system. The robotic arm serves both to load trays from the vertical stack and to unload processed trays back into the stack. The housing and tray slot arrangement support both operations simultaneously, merging what would traditionally require separate mechanisms into one cohesive unit.
3Reliability
If processing equipment is enclosed with shielding, then operator safety is improved, but the system requires additional space for door mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented with separate openings for the loading door and delivery door, each controlled independently. The loading door provides access for operators to load trays into the vertical stack, while the delivery door controls access for the robotic arm to retrieve and return trays. This segmentation allows safety shielding to be maintained while providing necessary access points with minimal additional space requirements.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2D
Figure 3
AI summary
A vertical tray loader allows a plurality of trays to be reloaded while a tray is being processed. Tray sensors are provided in order to ensure that at least one tray slot remains empty after reloading of trays in order to allow the tray being processed to be returned to the loader.