Patent Application
20240024919
The present disclosure relates to a table structure for sorting items or parts, and more particularly, an unloading table structure for sorting parts arranged in sheets and discarding sorted scrap material within the table structure.
In the metal-cutting industry, cut parts must be separated from stock sheets. Separating cut parts from stock sheets is labor intensive and time consuming, and often generates scrap material that must be discarded. Scrap material can range in size and shape depending on the cut parts and frequently accumulates on the floor as parts are removed from the stock sheets used in the cutting process. The scrap material must then be collected and removed. A further disadvantage is that cut parts can sometimes become mixed in with scrap material and mistakenly discarded.
There is a need to efficiently sort parts that are cut or stamped from stock sheets such that scrap material is easily removed and collected at a workstation. It is advantageous to have an intermediate collection or inspection tray to provide a user with a check area to confirm no parts have been erroneously sorted with scrap material. The present disclosure provides an unloading table that overcomes one or more difficulties related to sorting parts from stock sheets. The unloading table includes an elevated platform for sorting and scrap collection perimeter for efficiently removing unwanted material from the sorting area. The scrap collection perimeter optionally includes a shelf for a final sorting check to ensure parts are not mixed with scrap material.
Described herein are unloading tables having various features for aiding in sorting items while also being able to remove debris or scrap material off of the table for collection and subsequent removal. The table provides a simple, functional design that allows workers to be located at any position around the table to effectively sort through materials and easily discard sorted scrap or waste material for removal off the table into a collection chute for consolidating the scrap material for further processing.
In a first aspect, there is disclosed an unloading table for sorting items that functions to remove scrap material that can be slid off the table into a collection chute. The table includes a tabletop having a first surface, for example, an exposed sorting surface, and a second surface, opposite the second surface, for mounting onto a center structure of the table. The center structure includes a frame having members arranged to support the tabletop in a flat, horizontal plane. The table further includes a collection chute having a through passage that connects a top opening and a bottom opening thereof, and the through passage is formed by walls, one of at least has sloped wall surface. To support the tabletop, at least a portion of the center structure is positioned in the through passage of the collection chute.
In a second aspect, there is disclosed an unloading table for sorting, the table having a tabletop having a first surface and a second surface arranged in the middle of a through passage of a collection chute that surrounds the tabletop to provide a scrap removal means of an open gap between the perimeter of the tabletop and the top opening perimeter of the collection chute. Scrap material can be moved into the gap and allowed to fall through the through passage to exit through the bottom opening of the collection chute for further collection and processing. The collection chute is formed by at least four walls to define the through passage between the top opening and the bottom opening. The walls preferably include at least two walls having a sloped surface, the slope angled towards the center of the through passage to guide scrap material from the top opening to the smaller bottom opening below. The tabletop is supported by a center structure that includes a frame having a plurality of top members that provide a platform for holding the tabletop in a horizontal plane by contacting the second surface of the tabletop. The plurality of top members is joined to base members extending downward to provide a support base for the center structure to stand. The plurality of top members of the center structure are arranged to be within the top opening of the through passage of the collection chute such that the tabletop is supported and positioned within the top opening of the chute.
Any one of the above aspects (or examples of those aspects) may be provided alone or in combination with any one or more of the examples of that aspect discussed above; e.g., the first aspect may be provided alone or in combination with any one or more of the examples of the first aspect discussed above; and the second aspect may be provided alone or in combination with any one or more of the examples of the second aspect discussed above; and so-forth.
Additional features and advantages will be set forth in the detailed description which follows, and in part will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from that description or recognized by practicing the embodiments as described herein, including the detailed description which follows, and the claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary, and are intended to provide an overview or framework to understanding the nature and character of the claims.
The above and other features, examples and advantages of aspects or examples of the present disclosure are better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
The terminology as set forth herein is for the description of the embodiments only and should not be construed as limiting the invention as a whole.
Herein, when a range such as 5-25 (or 5 to 25) is given, this means preferably at least or more than 5 and, separately and independently, preferably less than or not more than 25. In an example, such a range defines independently 5 or more, and separately and independently, 25 or less.
The present disclosure relates to tables for sorting parts from stock sheets housing the cut (e.g., laser cut) or stamped parts. The formed parts need to be separated from the stock sheets, for example, a thin metal sheet, and sorted from any non-part pieces before being removed from the table and stored for future use. Features of the table are described in detail below. For the features of the table, it is noted that all structures and individual members can be attached to one another by conventional methods, for example, fastener (e.g., screw, bolt, clip) or welding. As formed, the structures can be attached together to form the table as a whole. It is preferable that the structures and individual members are permanently attached to one another to ensure structural integrity of the table during use. Any suitable material can be used to form all structures and individual members of the table, for example, metal, stainless steel, plastic, composite materials, and combinations thereof can be used.
The internal, non-part pieces or other non-essential pieces, collectively together scrap material or debris, remaining from the separated parts and stock sheet can be left on the sorting surface of the table after the desired parts have been removed. The scrap material is removed from the tabletop sorting surface before another stock sheet containing parts is positioned for sorting. The scrap material is conveniently slid off any portion of the outer perimeter edge of the sorting surface or the tabletop, either during the sorting operation and/or after all parts have been removed. That is, scrap material can be removed by sliding material off the tabletop surface or simply tossing the scrap material off the perimeter edge of the tabletop at any point of the sorting process. The tabletop forming the sorting surface is positioned on a raised center structure having a frame for supporting the tabletop in a horizontal plane. The raised center structure rises from within and is arranged within a collection chute having one or more sloped wall surfaces for guiding scrap material to an exit opening at the bottom of the chute. The raised center structure can be at a level that ensures the tabletop sorting surface is arranged above and within the outer perimeter edge of the top opening of the collection chute such that scrap material can be slid off or tossed into the gap formed between the tabletop perimeter edge and outer perimeter of the top opening of the collection chute.
A storage means, such as a collection box or dump cart can be positioned below or integrally secured to the bottom opening of the collection chute to catch falling scrap material that can be removed from the area by moving the collection box from the table. The collection box can have suitable dimensions to match the opening at the bottom of the collection chute or, alternatively, be sized such that the box opening encompasses the opening to ensure no scrap material slides out of the chute and falls to the floor. The present table and related storage means assist with productivity and housekeeping improvements since the operators can easily slide either cut parts or scraps off the edge of the tabletop and into the collection carts. To assist in moving the collection box, wheels can be fixed to the collection box such that it can be easily moved from under the collection chute when full or between sorting operations.
In some embodiments, the collection chute can include one or more shelves arranged on one of its wall surfaces. The shelf faces inward towards the center of the chute and serves to catch material that has been removed from the tabletop. The shelves are ideally positioned to cantilever outward from an inner wall surface of the collection chute, preferably at a horizontal angle parallel to the tabletop sorting surface, and at a suitable distance, for example between 4 inches to 20 inches, to catch falling scrap material, for instance, scrap material sliding down the inner wall surface of the chute. The material on the shelves can provide an operator with the ability to check that no desired parts were removed from the tabletop surface. The shelves can have an optional lip or raised end section at the edge most inward to the center of the collection chute to prevent scrap material from further sliding off the shelf and into the bottom opening of the chute. The shelves can be have a solid surface or alternatively be perforated, made of netting or wire, or the like.
The shelves can be positioned on any or all walls of the collection chute, for example, a shelf can be located on one wall, two wall, three walls, or four walls. In another example, the collection chute body between the top opening and the bottom opening can have a singular shelf positioned around the entire inner perimeter such that all walls have a shelf surface extending inward to the center of the chute. The shelves on the walls of the collection chute can be arranged at any suitable distance below the top opening of the collection chute. Preferably, the shelves are within reach of an operator that is working on sorting parts on the tabletop surface. For example, the shelves can be positioned between 8 inches and 30 inches below the perimeter of the top opening of the collection chute.
Several embodiments of the table are shown in
The center structure 10 is constructed of multiple members, wherein top members 12 form a support plane for positioning a tabletop for forming a sorting surface for processing parts cut or stamped in stock sheets. Any suitable number of top members 12 can be used, for example, 2 to 10 top members, preferably arranged in an equally spaced manner along the top opening of the chute 20. The top members 12, as shown, are metal tubes having a hollow square cross-sectional shape. The members of the center structure can have any suitable cross-sectional shape, for example, square, rectangle, circular, etc. The support plane formed by the top members 12 can create a plane for the tabletop that is positioned below, above or in parallel with the top perimeter surface 22 of the chute 20 depending on the desired level of the sorting surface. Top members 12 can be arranged at any angle so long as they form a substantially horizontal plane for the tabletop to provide a useable sorting surface. As shown, top members 12 are positioned inside, in a non-contact manner, and perpendicular to the two sloped walls 24 of the collection chute 20. The top members 12 can be alternatively arranged to extend in parallel with walls 24 depending on the placement of base members 14. By arranging the top members 12 perpendicular with the two walls having the longest length, relative to end walls 25, the base members 14 can be positioned out of the middle of the collection chute 20 and prevent the bottom opening of the chute 20 from being blocked with members of the center structure 10.
Each top member 12 is attached to one or more base members 14 to provide a desired height to the top member 12 for forming a support plane for the tabletop. The base members 14, at their top end, can be mounted on the bottom or side of the top members 12, but do not affect the support plane formed by the top members 12. The base members 13 extend downward from the top members 12 towards the floor. The bottom end of the base members 14 can be secured to a wall portion of the collection chute 20, for instance, the sloped walls 24 of the collection chute 20 or, as shown, the base members 14 can extend through openings in the walls of the chute to rest against the floor and provide a support stand for center structure 10. The openings in the walls of the collection chute are ideally sized to provide minimal gap between the base member 14 outer perimeter surface and the openings. In some instances, the base members 14 can be welded to in the openings in the walls of the chute 20 or any gap between the openings and the base members 14 can be filled to prevent scrap material from falling to the floor.
One or more additional members can be used in the center structure 10 to provide a more rigid frame or supplemental support in select sections. For instance, support members 16 as shown in
The body of collection chute 20 forms an open-top housing or top opening that surrounds center structure 10 and is designed to both catch and funnel the scrap material downward through the chute body to a central bottom opening where the scrap material is collected for disposal or further use. As shown, the body of chute 20 is formed by four walls 24, 25 that define a top opening and a bottom opening 26. The top opening has a larger diameter than the bottom opening, for example, the top opening can be 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 5 or 10 times larger than the bottom opening. In some embodiments, the top opening can have a metal lip formed around the perimeter to guide scrap material downward into the chute.
Walls 24 have a top edges that forms a portion of the top opening. Walls 24 are sloped inward towards center structure 10 and terminate at their bottom edge to define perimeter portions of bottom opening 26. Walls 24 are directed opposite one another and together form an angled funnel that guides scrap material away from the top opening and into bottom opening 26. Walls 24 can be sloped inward at any suitable angle, for example, 15 to 60 degrees, to promote scrap material sliding downward and through bottom opening 26 into a collection box (not shown). Walls 25 are adjacent both ends of walls 24 and cap the ends of the body of chute 20. Together, walls 24 and 25 form an enclosed hollow body of the chute. Walls 25 are shown as vertical, non-sloped walls and form two ends of chute 20. Alternatively, walls 25 can be sloped at any suitable angle and can be sloped at the same angle as walls 24.
In another option, the body of the chute 20 can include more than four walls to provide a non-square or rectangular shape, for instance, 6 walls or 8 walls. Any portion of the chute walls can be sloped as desired as well as the walls can have multiple sections as viewed from the top edge at the top opening to the bottom edge at the bottom opening. That is, a wall can be sloped inward at the top opening of chute 20 and then transition into another angle further down the wall surface. The walls can also have vertical and sloped sections as desired.
Chute 20 can further include a divider 28 positioned in bottom opening 26, which can divide the bottom opening into a first and second opening for feeding scrap material into one or more collection boxes below the openings. Divider 28 can be an angled piece of material having two sloped sides to direct scrap material into a first and second opening, which can be open to separate collection boxes. The sloped sides of divider 28 angle towards one another to form a peak that elevates into the body of chute 20. The peak contacts scrap material and forces the material to slide down either sloped face of the divider. As shown, divider 28 is centered in bottom opening 26, however, any suitable position along bottom opening 26 can be used for divider 28. Multiple dividers can also be arranged in bottom opening 26, for example, 2, 3 or 4 dividers can be used. Divider 28 also provides structural support for the chute body.
Further,
Lastly,
As shown in
While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 63/391,405 filed Jul. 22, 2022, the contents of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63391405 | Jul 2022 | US |
