Patent Application
20060157997
The invention relates generally to the field of automation, and in particular to manufacturing automation. More specifically, the invention relates to a pick-and-place unit used for automation on an assembly line.
The present invention is directed to an assembly for picking up, repositioning, and releasing objects. In the manufacturing industry, these assemblies are often referred to as “pick-and-place” units. The pick-and-place units enable automation of a manufacturing line by enhancing the ability of operators or replacing operators. The pick-and-place units pick up an object enabling a function to be performed on the object or enabling the object to be repositioned. Typically, some type of suction device is integrated into the pick-and-place unit so that when vacuum or suction is applied, the object is held in place by the pick-and-place unit and then the assembly can move the objects. The objects may be anything from small items, to packaging materials, to car doors.
In conventional systems, pick-and-place units may be used for packaging. In packaging, the pick-and-place unit may acquire an object and accurately place the object into a package. The pick-and-place unit may also manipulate the package so that the package may be repositioned to receive an object or the package may be repositioned for labeling.
In conventional manufacturing systems, a group of products in the manufacturing line are typically oriented so that they can be picked-up by the pick-and-place unit. The object or objects may move toward the pick-and-place unit on a conveyor belt. The pick-and-place unit may then pick up the objects and reposition the objects. Therefore, the pick-and-place unit has to be configured to match the objects on the conveyor line or the object on the conveyor line have to be oriented so that the pick-and-place unit can access the object. For example, if a pick-and-place unit has four suction subassemblies for picking up four objects, objects may be presented on the conveyor line in groups of four so that the pick-and-place unit can pick-up and reorient or reposition the objects.
However, given the need for economic efficiencies in most factories, a single conveyor line may be used for many products that require many different types of objects. As a result, a single pick-and-place unit may be implemented to work with objects positioned in a variety of different configurations. When there are a large number of product changes and object changes, the ability to change the pick-and-place unit to accommodate new object configurations quickly and accurately is valuable and leads to economic efficiencies.
In conventional pick-and-place units, it takes hours to convert the pick-and-place unit from one configuration to another. Conventional suction/vacuum designs were not easily interchanged and tool format changes could not be made. For example, swapping vacuum heads for a different format (i.e., grouping of objects) required mechanical disassembly. An alignment procedure had to be done to ensure proper object placement and bearing alignment. As a result, it was common in the manufacturing industry to set up very long runs of similarly configured objects. Operators would do everything possible to avoid changing the machine to a different format, since changing the pick-and-place unit was so inefficient.
Thus, there is a need for an assembly, such as a pick-and-place unit, that can be quickly and accurately changed to accommodate new object configurations.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above. Briefly summarized, according to one aspect of the present invention, an assembly is presented that quickly and accurately changes orientation to accommodate new object configurations.
A vacuum element for product processing, comprises a rotary cylinder having at least one cylinder passageway for receiving a vacuum, said rotary cylinder having affixed to a circumferential portion thereof a plurality of spaced product holding members, each of said spaced product holding members comprising a plurality of cavities for at least partially enclosing a single product therein and a vacuum cup passageway extending beneath said plurality of cavities and connecting to the cylinder passageway; whereby when any one of said spaced product holding members is rotated into fluid communications with said cylinder passageway, a select one of said product-holding members releasable retains the product in said plurality of cavities.
A vacuum element for product processing, comprises a rotary head having a cylinder passageway deployed therein, the rotary head having affixed to a circumferential portion thereof a product locator bar, the product locator bar further comprising a vacuum head, the vacuum head including at least one vacuum chamber therein, the vacuum head including a chamber passageway coupling the vacuum chamber to the cylinder passageway; whereby when the rotary head is rotated to a defined stop position, the chamber passageway is aligned with the cylinder passageway to provide a suction force in the vacuum chamber.
A vacuum element for product processing, comprises a rotary head having a cylinder passageway deployed therein, the rotary head having affixed to a circumferential portion thereof a plurality of product locator bars, each of the plurality of product locator bars further comprising a plurality of vacuum heads, the plurality of vacuum heads each including at least one vacuum chamber therein, wherein each of the at least one vacuum chambers is coupled to a chamber passageway providing fluid communication between each of the at least one vacuum chambers and the cylinder passageway when the rotary head is rotated to a defined stop position.
In one embodiment of the present invention, a pick-and-place unit is presented. The pick-and-place unit enables the quick changeover between formats without the use of additional tools or without having to disassemble parts. In addition, format changes may be accomplished without rerouting vacuum lines. A single and common vacuum supply is implemented. The vacuum supply is isolated to the tooling in use and is automatically switched over when the head of the pick-and-place unit is rotated. Lastly, the pick-and-place unit implemented in accordance with the teachings of the present invention does not require any alignment or calibration because of a positive stop feature. Further, the spacing for each step is fixed, which eliminates the need for adjustments or individual product tooling setups.
The present invention has the following advantages:
Quick changeover between different product formats without tools or any disassembly of parts, fasteners or re-routing of vacuum supply lines.
A single and common vacuum supply is isolated to only the tooling in use, automatically through internal porting, when the tooling is rotated to the production position.
A rotational, three position head requires no alignment after changeover due to its positive locating stop mechanism, which provides accurate repeatability regardless of rotational direction.
Product spacing is fixed and eliminates the need for adjustment of individual product tooling.
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent when taken in conjunction with the following description and drawings wherein identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical features that are common to the figures, and wherein:
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures.
The rotary head 2 also includes at least one product locator bar 3 positioned on the circumference of the rotary head 2. The product locator bar 3 includes a number of vacuum cups 9 for interfacing with objects. Using suction, the vacuum cup 9 is able to hold on to an object until the vacuum causing the suction is discontinued and the object is released. Although only one product locator bar 3 is shown in
During operation, the locating pin 1 may be pulled out of a detent stop (not shown in
The rotatable-ported cylinder 8 includes a cylinder passageway 10. The cylinder passageway 10 is in fluid communication with each vacuum cup 9 through a vacuum cup passageway 11. A vacuum insert passageway 13 provides a connection between the cylinder passageway 10 and a vacuum device (not shown). As a result, a suction force may be created across vacuum insert passageway 13, across the cylinder passageway 10, through vacuum cup passageway 11, to the vacuum cup 9. O-rings 6 enable the vacuum insert passageway 13 and the cylinder passageway 10 to interface (i.e., align) providing fluid communication between the two without communicating with any of the other cylinder passageways (not shown in
During operation, the inventive assembly presented in
The vacuum lines (i.e., 13, 10, 11) are used to create a suction force in the vacuum cups 9. The O-rings 6 seal against the rotary head 2 and allow three ports (i.e., one for each product locator bar 3) to be implemented; however, only one of them is getting vacuum and the others are sealed off. When the rotary head 2 is turned into position, the product locator bar 3 that you want to have running is the only product locator bar 3 that has vacuum on it.
The O-ring 6 seal provides a positive seal while still allowing rotational freedom of the rotary head 2. Plastic sleeve bearings 7 of
During operation, vacuum is only applied to one cylinder passageway 10 at a time. When locating pin 1 is released, the locating pin 1 is inserted into the detent stop 12. During manufacturing, the detent stop 12 is configured so that the detent stop 12 provides a positive stop that allows the cylinder passageway 10 and the vacuum cup passageway 11 to align. The O-rings 6 of
The invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment. However, it will be appreciated that variations and modifications can be effected by a person of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the invention.
