CN107985712B

CN107985712B - Label attaching device

Info

Publication number: CN107985712B
Application number: CN201610947915.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李奇; 徐杨; 殷俊; 栾元新
Original assignee: Micro Motion Inc
Current assignee: Micro Motion Inc
Priority date: 2016-10-26
Filing date: 2016-10-26
Publication date: 2021-03-19
Anticipated expiration: 2036-10-26
Also published as: CN107985712A

Abstract

The invention provides a label attaching device which comprises an adsorption area, wherein the adsorption area can adsorb a first surface of a label so as to attach an opposite second surface of the label to a designated area.

Description

Label attaching device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a label attaching apparatus.

Background

The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

In, for example, industrial production processes, it is often necessary to attach labels embodying trademarks, specifications, warning wordings, etc. to the produced equipment (or other general objects). During label application, it is often difficult (manually) to apply the label evenly and accurately at a designated area on the device due to the thinness, flexibility and adhesive on one side of the label.

Disclosure of Invention

However, there is no effective technical means for solving the problem of deformation and wrinkling in label attachment.

It is an object of one or more embodiments of the present invention to provide a label application apparatus capable of smoothly applying a label to a designated area.

Another object of one or more embodiments of the present invention is to provide a label application apparatus capable of accurately applying a label to a designated area.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a label application device including an adsorption area capable of adsorbing a first surface of a label to apply an opposite second surface of the label to a designated area.

Preferably, the adsorption area is provided with a plurality of air holes which are uniformly distributed so as to provide negative pressure for adsorbing the label.

Preferably, the label application device further includes an adsorption member providing the adsorption area, the adsorption member being made of an elastic material.

Preferably, the label application device further comprises a label positioning member for defining a position of the label with respect to the suction area.

Preferably, the suction area is provided around the label positioning member.

Preferably, the label positioning member is movable between a first position in which it extends beyond the suction area to allow the position of the label to be defined, and a second position in which it is substantially flush with the suction area to allow the label to be applied to the designated area.

Preferably, the label positioning member is biased by a resilient element from the second position towards the first position.

Preferably, the label application apparatus further comprises a device positioning member for defining a position of the designated area with respect to the adsorption area.

Preferably, the apparatus positioning member includes an inner peripheral portion for supporting the suction member and an outer peripheral portion for engaging an apparatus providing the designated area.

Preferably, the inner circumferential portion and the outer circumferential portion are both cylindrical and concentrically arranged.

Preferably, a plurality of air holes are provided in the inner periphery for fluid communication with the plurality of air holes on the adsorbent region.

Preferably, the label application device further comprises an operating member defining a vacuum chamber in fluid communication with the plurality of air holes in the inner peripheral portion.

Preferably, the label application device further comprises a vacuum generating assembly in fluid communication with the vacuum chamber to provide the negative pressure to the suction area via the plurality of air holes in the inner periphery and the plurality of air holes on the suction area.

Preferably, activation of the vacuum generating assembly is associated with a trigger of the label application device and deactivation of the vacuum generating assembly is associated with the trigger or the label positioning member, or deactivation of the vacuum generating assembly is performed automatically within a predetermined time period after activation.

Preferably, the vacuum generating assembly is further capable of providing compressed gas to the vacuum chamber to facilitate release of the label from the suction area and/or application of the label on the designated area.

Preferably, the vacuum generating assembly comprises: a compressed gas source, a regulator, a solenoid valve, and a vacuum generator, wherein the compressed gas source is capable of supplying the compressed gas to the solenoid valve under the regulating action of the regulator, the solenoid valve is capable of in turn supplying the compressed gas to the vacuum generator to generate the negative pressure within the vacuum chamber, or the solenoid valve is capable of directly supplying the compressed gas to the vacuum chamber.

Preferably, wherein the adsorption region is in the shape of a ring.

Preferably, the adsorption region has a convex, concave or planar shape.

The label application apparatus according to one or more embodiments of the present invention has an advantage in that at least one of: the label can be uniformly and nondeformingly adsorbed, and then the adsorbed label is flatly attached to a specified area; the relative position of the adsorbed label and the designated area can be defined, so that the label can be accurately attached to the designated area; negative pressure for adsorbing the label is provided by means of compressed gas, and the compressed gas is sprayed toward the label after the label is attached, so that defects generated in the label attaching process are eliminated.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. It should be understood that the specific examples and embodiments described in this section are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

Drawings

The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way, the drawings are not to scale and some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. In the drawings:

fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a label application apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the label application apparatus shown in fig. 1;

fig. 3A to 3C are a perspective view, a side view and a bottom view, respectively, showing a label positioning part of the label application device shown in fig. 2;

fig. 4A and 4B are a perspective view and a bottom view, respectively, showing an apparatus positioning part of the label application apparatus shown in fig. 2;

fig. 5A to 5C are a perspective view, a plan view, and a sectional view, respectively, showing operation parts of the label application device shown in fig. 2; and

fig. 6 is a schematic view showing a connection relationship of parts of the label application apparatus shown in fig. 2.

It should be understood that throughout the drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features. For purposes of clarity, not all of the components in the drawings are labeled.

Detailed Description

The following description of the preferred embodiments is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention.

Fig. 1 shows a label application apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present application. The label application apparatus 1 is capable of first attracting one surface of a label (e.g., the side bearing a design or text) and then applying the label to a designated area, which may be on a relatively conspicuous outer surface of the device (or product) being produced, by placing the other surface of the label (e.g., the side bearing an adhesive) in the designated area.

Specifically, the label application device 1 includes a suction member 10, and the suction member 10 provides a suction area 12 for sucking a label. As shown in fig. 1, the suction region 12 is located on the upper surface of the suction member 10. In the present embodiment, the absorbent member 10 may be made of an elastic material, so that the absorbent member 10 can press all parts of the label on the designated area during the label attaching process, thereby preventing the label from wrinkling or bubbling due to local unevenness of the designated area.

Although in the present embodiment, the adsorption region 12 has a planar annular shape. In other embodiments, however, the suction area may be convex or concave in form, and the suction area may have any other shape, such as rectangular, triangular, circular, U-shaped, I-shaped, other polygonal shapes, and the like. It should be noted that the suction area may substantially match the shape or contour of the designated area. In addition, the suction area may have a shape that substantially matches the shape of the label, or the suction area may have a larger outer contour than the label to allow for adaptation to labels of various shapes. As shown in fig. 1, the label application apparatus further optionally includes a label positioning part 20, an apparatus positioning part 30, an operation part 40, or an operation box 50.

The respective components of the label application apparatus of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to fig. 2 to 6.

As shown in fig. 2, the suction area 12 may be provided with an air hole 14, and the air hole 14 is connected to a vacuum generating assembly of the label application apparatus 1 so as to provide a negative pressure for sucking the label to the suction area 12. Of course, in other embodiments, the air holes 14 on the suction area 12 may alternatively be connected to an external vacuum generator.

In the present embodiment, the plurality of air holes 14 are preferably uniformly distributed on the adsorption region 12, so that the label can be adsorbed more evenly without wrinkles and deformation. Of course, in other embodiments, the air holes 14 may also be replaced by annular grooves or other features.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the label application apparatus 1 further includes a label positioning member 20, and the label positioning member 20 is used to define the position of the label relative to the suction area 12 during the suction of the label.

Specifically, in the embodiment of the present application, the label positioning member 20 has a substantially cylindrical shape and is surrounded by the suction region 12 or the suction member 10. Preferably, there is a close fit between the suction area 12 and the label positioning member 20 without a gap. Upon suction of a label, as shown in fig. 1, the label positioning member 20 is positioned to extend beyond (be above) the suction area 12 (in the first position), thereby allowing, for example, a ring-shaped label to nest snugly on a portion of the label positioning member 20 above the suction area 12 to limit movement of the label relative to the suction area 12. After the label is placed on the suction area 12, the above-described negative pressure may be initially provided to suck the label on the suction area 12. Of course, in other embodiments, the label is not in the form of a complete ring, but may have an orientation protrusion to mate with an orientation recess of the label positioning member 20 to define the circumferential orientation of the label relative to the suction region 12.

In other embodiments, the tag may have any other shape and the suction area and/or the tag locating feature may have a shape that matches the tag to accommodate the suction and/or location of a correspondingly shaped tag.

In other embodiments, the label positioning member may alternatively be located at the periphery of the suction area, or on either side of the suction area.

When a label is placed on the suction area 12 and sucked by the suction area 12, the suction area 12 and the label sucked by the suction area 12 are pressed toward a designated area to which the label is to be attached, and at this time, the label positioning member 20 first contacts a device providing the designated area, and in order to enable the label to contact and be finally attached to the designated area, the label positioning member 20 can be retracted by the pressing action of the device until the label contacts the designated area, and at this time, the label positioning member 20 may be approximately flush with the suction area 12 (located at the second position). When the label application is completed, the negative pressure in the suction area 12 is removed, the label is released, and the label application device 1 is moved away from the designated area, at which point the label positioning member 20 can be re-extended beyond the suction area 12. To this end, a resilient element 22 (see fig. 3) may be provided to bias the label positioning member 20 from the second position towards the first position.

Fig. 3A to 3C show the tag-positioning member 20 according to an embodiment of the present application in detail. The label positioning member 20 is substantially cylindrical. A positioning hole 26 is provided at the central axis of the label positioning member 20 to limit its movement between a first position and a second position, which will be described in detail below. A surface (lower surface) of the tag positioning member 20 opposite to the surface (upper surface) for engaging the device is provided with a plurality of (e.g., three) mounting holes 24 to accommodate the above-described elastic member 22.

Returning to fig. 1 and 2, the label application apparatus 1 further includes a device positioning member 30 for defining a position of a designated area of the device with respect to the suction area 12, thereby ensuring that the label can be accurately applied to the designated area.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 4A and 4B, the device positioning member 30 includes a peripheral portion 34 at an outer edge, the peripheral portion 34 being engageable with a device providing a designated area, thereby defining the position of the designated area relative to the label application apparatus 1. For example, the peripheral portion 34 may be generally cylindrical such that the peripheral portion 34 nests within the apparatus to guide the application process as the label approaches the designated area.

The apparatus positioning part 30 further comprises an inner peripheral portion 32, the inner peripheral portion 32 (e.g. an upper surface thereof) supporting the sorption part 10, and the inner peripheral portion 32 having respective air holes 39 in fluid communication with the air holes 14 of the sorption part 10. The inner peripheral portion 32 may be disposed radially inward of the outer peripheral portion 34 and may be disposed concentrically with the outer peripheral portion 34 to enable a label to be centrally affixed to the device. Of course, in other embodiments, the inner and outer peripheral portions may alternatively have any other relative position.

A base plate 38 may also be provided on the inside of the inner peripheral portion 32 to form a bottomed cylindrical structure that can be used to house the label positioning member 20 described above. The bottom plate 38 may be provided with a positioning post 36 protruding toward the label positioning member 20, the positioning post 36 being insertable into the positioning hole 26 of the label positioning member 20 to guide the label positioning member 20 to slide within the inner peripheral portion 32 between the first position and the second position. The distal end of the positioning post 36 may also be fitted with a radially enlarged portion (not shown) that acts as a stop to limit the tag-positioning member 20 from sliding out of the inner peripheral portion 32.

The resilient member 22 located within the mounting hole 24 has one end abutting the bottom of the mounting hole 24 and the other end abutting the base plate 38, thereby biasing the label positioning member 20 toward the first position.

The label application apparatus 1 may further include an operation member 40, the operation member 40 being disposed on the opposite side of the device positioning member 30 from the suction area 12 and being joined to the device positioning member 30.

The operating member 40 may include a vacuum chamber 48 in the form of a recess, the vacuum chamber 48 being capable of fluid communication with the air holes 14 to ensure that a substantially uniform negative pressure is generated across the suction zone 12. In the present embodiment, the vacuum chamber 48 may be communicated to the gas hole 14 via a gas hole 39.

The vacuum chamber 48 also has air holes 47 for communicating with the vacuum generating assembly. As shown in fig. 5B, the air hole 47 is located at the bottom of the vacuum chamber 48 and penetrates the operation member 40.

In the present embodiment, the vacuum chamber 48 is provided on the side of the operation member 40 facing the apparatus positioning member 30 and covers all the air holes 39 (see fig. 4B).

Specifically, as shown in fig. 5B and 5C, the vacuum chamber 48 is located substantially at the midpoint of the operating member 40, one side being closed by the operating member 40 itself except for the air hole 47, and the other side being closed by the lower surface of the apparatus positioning member 30 after assembly (see fig. 4B), so that the vacuum chamber 48 communicates with the outside environment only via the air hole 39 and the air hole 47.

Preferably, the air hole 47 may be displaced with respect to the center of symmetry or line of symmetry of the operating member 40, for example, towards the upper right direction shown in fig. 5B, for identifying the mounting orientation of the operating member 40. Of course, the air holes 47 may be provided symmetrically with respect to the operation member 40.

Preferably, a seal groove 46 or other sealing feature may also be provided radially outward of the vacuum chamber 48 to accommodate the seal 42 to prevent outside air from entering the vacuum chamber 48 through the gap between the device positioning member 30 and the operating member 40.

In the present embodiment, the operating member 40 may further include a handle 44 (see fig. 2), and the operator can push the label application device 1 onto the apparatus providing the designated area by holding the handle 44.

As shown in fig. 4B and 5B, the apparatus positioning member 30 and the operation member 40 are provided with coupling holes (eight groups of coupling holes as shown) corresponding to each other to couple the two together by means of fasteners passing through the coupling holes.

As shown in fig. 2, the label application device 1 may further include an operation box 50, and a vacuum generation assembly to generate a vacuum, a controller 57 to control the operation of the label application device 1, a trigger 58 to receive a manual input, and/or an indicator 59 to indicate a current operation state of the label application device 1 may be further included in the operation box 50, for example, in a space defined by the housing 51 and the cover plate 52 of the operation box 50.

In the present embodiment, the vacuum generating assembly includes a compressed gas source 53, a regulator 54, a solenoid valve 55, and a vacuum generator 56. As shown in fig. 6, a compressed gas source 53 is connected to the solenoid valve 55 via a regulator 54, allowing compressed gas to be supplied to the solenoid valve 55 through

gas paths

61 and 62. The flow rate of the compressed gas may be regulated by the regulator 54. The solenoid valve 55 may selectively allow the gas path 62 to communicate only to the gas path 63 or only to the gas path 66. When the gas path 62 is only connected to the gas path 63, the compressed gas is able to flow through the gas path 63 to the ejector 56 and rapidly exit the ejector 56 along the gas path 64 in a generally linear direction (vertical as shown in fig. 6). One end of the gas path 65 communicates from a lateral direction (a transverse direction as shown in fig. 6) within the vacuum generator 56 to the gas path 64. The other end of the gas path 65 communicates to the gas hole 47 via a gas path 67. Due to the rapid exit of the compressed gas from the vacuum generator 56, a negative pressure is generated (according to bernoulli's principle) within the gas path 65, which in turn transfers the negative pressure to the gas vent 14 via the vacuum chamber 48 and the gas vent 39, thereby adsorbing the label at the adsorption area. When the label attachment is completed and the label needs to be released, the supply of the compressed gas may be stopped, and the solenoid valve 55 is switched so that the gas path 62 communicates only to the gas path 66, and the gas path 66 communicates to the gas hole 47 through the gas path 67, thereby releasing the negative pressure at the gas hole 14.

Of course, the generation and/or release of the negative pressure may also be achieved in other ways, such as directly generating the negative pressure using a vacuum pump, or releasing the negative pressure by communicating the vacuum chamber 48 with the outside atmosphere, and so forth.

The controller 57 is used to operate or deactivate the compressed gas source 53, regulator 54, solenoid valve 55, and/or vacuum generator 56 in response to sensors (not shown) or operator input. In an embodiment of the present application, the controller 57 may be electrically connected to the trigger 58, and the user generates the negative pressure by actuating the trigger 58, and the negative pressure is released when the actuation of the trigger 58 is released or after the negative pressure continues for a fixed time.

The controller 57 may also be electrically connected to an indicator 59 to indicate an operating state of the label application apparatus 1, such as a state in which negative pressure is being generated, a state in which negative pressure has been released, an energized state, and the like.

The specific operation of the label application apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present application will be described below.

First, a label is placed on the suction area 12 and a vacuum generating assembly is activated (e.g., by depressing the trigger 58) to suck the label. It is noted that labels typically have a design or text on one side and are adhered to a separate sticker by an adhesive on the other side. The suction area 12 typically sucks on one side of the label carrying the design or text, while the sticker on the other side can be removed from the label before the label is placed on the suction area 12. However, where the sticker has a shape corresponding to a label, i.e. also allowing the label to be nested on the label positioning member 20 simultaneously with the sticker, it is more advantageous to remove the sticker after it has been placed on the suction area 12 and sucked.

The label is then brought into proximity with a designated area of the apparatus to which the label is to be applied, while the label is determined to be accurately applied thereto, optionally by means of engagement or alignment of the apparatus positioning member 30 with the apparatus. During the process of the tag approaching the designated area, the tag positioning member 20 will initially contact the device and be pushed back by the device to a second position flush with the designated area. Finally, the label is pressed to the designated area by the suction area 12.

Subsequently, the negative pressure of the suction area 12 is released to release the label. The release of the negative pressure may be achieved by the user again actuating the trigger 58, by movement in response to the device-positioning member 30 returning to the second position, or automatically by timed operation of a time relay. Of course, in other embodiments of the present application, the negative pressure for adsorbing the label may be generated and released by other means, which are all considered to be within the scope of the present application.

In other preferred embodiments of the present application, the compressed gas source 53 may not be immediately turned off when the negative pressure is released, but the compressed gas source 53 may be communicated to the gas hole 14 through the

gas paths

61, 62, 66, 67, the gas hole 47, the vacuum chamber 48, the gas hole 39 by switching operation of the solenoid valve 55 so as to spray the compressed gas toward the label attached to the designated area, so that the label is more smoothly and firmly attached to the designated area.

The compressed gas described herein may include compressed air, compressed nitrogen, and the like.

The label application device according to various embodiments of the present application has at least one of the following advantages: the label attaching device can uniformly adsorb the labels before attaching the labels, so that the labels cannot deform or wrinkle, and the labels can be flatly attached to a designated area; the label positioning part of the label attaching device can ensure the positioning of the label on the adsorption area, so that the label can be attached more smoothly, and meanwhile, the label positioning part can also be used for ensuring that the label is accurately attached to the designated area by cooperating with the equipment positioning part; the label attaching device can spray compressed gas to the label after the label is attached so as to eliminate defects generated in the label attaching process as much as possible.

It should be noted that the suction effect on the label according to the embodiments of the present application is not limited to the negative pressure generated by the vacuum. In other embodiments of the present application, electrostatic action or adhesives may also be utilized to attract the label.

The label that this application said can be one side and carry the label of pattern or characters and the other side has the binder, and in this case, the label attaching device of this application can adsorb the one side that carries the pattern or characters of label to with the one side that carries the binder of label to attached to appointed area. The labels of the present application are not so limited. The label of this application can also have pattern or characters and binder on same one side, and under this condition, the label is attached to the device of this application can adsorb the one side of label not have pattern or characters and binder to be used for attaching the label to transparent appointed area.

It is to be noted that the labels described in this application are not to be understood as merely commercial labels used in industrial production to illustrate product specifications and uses, but may be construed more broadly to include any type of sticker, such as a spring festival couplet, window decoration, etc.

It is noted that the reference herein to directional terms such as front, rear, left, right, up, down, etc., is for descriptive purposes only and does not limit the orientation and direction of the embodiments of the invention in practical use.

Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail herein, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described and illustrated in detail herein, and that other variations and modifications may be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention. All such variations and modifications are intended to be within the scope of the present invention.

List of reference numerals

1 Label attaching device

10 suction element

12 adsorption zone

14 air hole

20 tag positioning member

22 elastic element

24 mounting hole

26 location holes

30 device positioning part

32 inner peripheral portion

34 outer peripheral portion

36 positioning column

38 bottom plate

39 air hole

40 operating part

42 seal

44 handle

46 seal groove

47 air hole

48 vacuum chamber

50 operation box

51 casing

52 cover plate

53 compressed gas source

54 regulator

55 solenoid valve

56 vacuum generator

57 controller

58 trigger

59 indicator

61-67 airflow paths.

Claims

1. A label application apparatus (1), said label application apparatus (1) comprising:

an adsorption area (12), the adsorption area (12) being capable of adsorbing a first surface of a label to affix an opposite second surface of the label to a designated area;

a label positioning means (20) for defining the position of the label relative to the suction area (12),

wherein the suction area (12) is arranged around the label positioning member (20); and

-device positioning means (30) for defining the position of said designated area with respect to said suction area (12),

wherein the device positioning part (30) comprises an inner peripheral portion (32), the inner peripheral portion (32) being for supporting a suction part (10), the suction part (10) providing the suction area (12).

2. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 1, wherein the suction area (12) is provided with a plurality of air holes (14) uniformly distributed to provide a negative pressure for sucking the labels.

3. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 2, wherein the suction member (10) is made of an elastic material.

4. The label application device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the label positioning member (20) is movable between a first position in which the label positioning member (20) extends beyond the suction area (12) to allow the position of the label to be defined, and a second position in which the label positioning member (20) is substantially flush with the suction area (12) to allow the label to be applied to the designated area.

5. The label application device (1) according to claim 4, wherein the label positioning member (20) is biased by a resilient element (22) from the second position towards the first position.

6. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 3, wherein the device positioning member (30) further comprises a peripheral portion (34), the peripheral portion (34) being for engaging a device providing the designated area.

7. The label application device (1) according to claim 6, wherein the inner peripheral portion (32) and the outer peripheral portion (34) are both cylindrical and concentrically arranged.

8. The label application device (1) according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of air holes (39) are provided in the inner peripheral portion (32) for fluid communication with the plurality of air holes (14) on the suction area (12).

9. The label application device (1) according to claim 8, further comprising an operating member (40), the operating member (40) defining a vacuum chamber (48), the vacuum chamber (48) being in fluid communication with the plurality of air holes (39) in the inner peripheral portion (32).

10. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 9, further comprising a vacuum generating assembly in fluid communication with the vacuum chamber (48) to provide the negative pressure to the suction area (12) via the plurality of air holes (39) in the inner peripheral portion (32) and the plurality of air holes (14) on the suction area (12).

11. The label application device (1) according to claim 10, wherein activation of the vacuum generating assembly is associated with a trigger (58) of the label application device (1), and

the closure of the vacuum generating assembly is associated with the trigger (58) or the label positioning member (20), or

The turning off of the vacuum generating assembly is performed automatically within a predetermined time period after the start-up.

12. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 10, wherein the vacuum generating assembly is further capable of providing compressed gas to the vacuum chamber (48) to facilitate release of the label from the suction area (12) and/or application of the label on the designated area.

13. The label application apparatus (1) according to claim 12, wherein the vacuum generating assembly comprises: a compressed gas source (53), a regulator (54), an electromagnetic valve (55) and a vacuum generator (56),

wherein the compressed gas source (53) is capable of supplying the compressed gas to the solenoid valve (55) under the regulating action of the regulator (54),

the solenoid valve (55) is capable of in turn supplying the compressed gas to the vacuum generator (56) to generate the negative pressure within the vacuum chamber (48), or the solenoid valve (55) is capable of directly supplying the compressed gas to the vacuum chamber (48).

14. The label application device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the suction area (12) is ring-shaped.

15. The label application device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the suction area (12) is convex, concave or planar.