EP0143568B1 - Curing apparatus with ejector mechanism - Google Patents
Curing apparatus with ejector mechanism Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP0143568B1 EP0143568B1 EP19840307576 EP84307576A EP0143568B1 EP 0143568 B1 EP0143568 B1 EP 0143568B1 EP 19840307576 EP19840307576 EP 19840307576 EP 84307576 A EP84307576 A EP 84307576A EP 0143568 B1 EP0143568 B1 EP 0143568B1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- turntable
- articles
- article
- drive
- curing
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
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Classifications
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F26—DRYING
- F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
- F26B15/00—Machines or apparatus for drying objects with progressive movement; Machines or apparatus with progressive movement for drying batches of material in compact form
- F26B15/02—Machines or apparatus for drying objects with progressive movement; Machines or apparatus with progressive movement for drying batches of material in compact form with movement in the whole or part of a circle
- F26B15/04—Machines or apparatus for drying objects with progressive movement; Machines or apparatus with progressive movement for drying batches of material in compact form with movement in the whole or part of a circle in a horizontal plane
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
- B41F—PRINTING MACHINES OR PRESSES
- B41F23/00—Devices for treating the surfaces of sheets, webs, or other articles in connection with printing
- B41F23/005—Devices for treating the surfaces of sheets, webs, or other articles in connection with printing of non-flat articles
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Specific Conveyance Elements (AREA)
- Coating Apparatus (AREA)
Description
- The invention relates to curing apparatus.
- Various articles have labels or designs printed upon their exterior surfaces with ink which may be cured by exposure to radiation. Typical of such articles are large plastic containers, such as 70 litre (5 gallon) pails or buckets and other containers including 770 litre (55 gallon) drums. Because the printed matter on such articles frequently extends around the entire circumference of the article or is located at various locations about the circumference of the article, it is desirable that the curing apparatus provide 360° exposure to radiation for each article. In the past, some types of curing apparatus have included means for gripping container necks to support them and rotate them while transporting them past a lamp. While such apparatus may be satisfactory for use with necked containers, it may not be suitable for curing ink on large articles such as buckets which do not have necks.
- In FR-A-1098620 there is disclosed curing apparatus, for curing ink on the exterior surfaces of articles by irradiating the exterior surfaces of the articles, comprising a frame; irradiating means for irradiating the exterior surfaces of the articles; a turntable supported by the frame and mounted for rotation for carrying the articles in a circular path past the irradiating means; drive means for rotating the turntable; means dividing the turntable into a plurality of article-receiving compartments; and means for spinning the articles as they are being transported past the irradiating means by the turntable within their respective compartments.
- In commercial printing operations, ultraviolet curing apparatus is commonly used in proximity to the printing equipment which deposits the ink on the articles so that the ink may be cured immediately after it is applied. However, ultraviolet radiation is very harmful to the human eye.
- According to this invention, curing apparatus set out above is characterised in that the irradiating means is a source of ultraviolet light, the turntable being mounted for rotation within a housing supported by the frame and having at least one opening to enable the articles to be inserted into or withdrawn from their respective compartments, the irradiating means being located within the housing such that the ultraviolet light therefrom is not visible through the opening or openings in the housing.
- Further, it is desirable that the curing apparatus be capable of being loaded and unloaded with minimal labor as labor expenses add significantly to the cost of the printed articles. Because the exposure time required to cure the ink on a particular article may be relatively short, it is most desirable to reduce the period of time required for loading and unloading the articles from the apparatus. Often two persons are used with one person doing the loading and another person doing the unloading. There is a continuing demand for improvements in the handling of articles to increase the efficiency of curing operations and to reduce the labor costs associated therewith.
- Thus, in another embodiment the curing apparatus has an ejector means operable automatically to eject each cured article from its compartment on the turntable.
- This invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the drawings, in which:-
- Figure 1 is a perspective view of curing apparatus in accordance with the invention, shown with portions broken away for clarity;
- Figure 2 is a sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1, taken along
line 22 and looking in the direction of the arrows; - Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1, taken along
line 33 in Figure 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows; - Figure 4 is fragmentary plan view of an ejector mechanism used to eject articles from the curing apparatus;
- Figure 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken substantially along the
line 55 in Figure 4; - Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a spin table drive of the curing apparatus of Figure 1;
- Figure 7 is a side elevational view of the spin table drive illustrated in Figure 6, shown with portions broken away;
- Figure 8 is a plan view of the turntable drive of the curing apparatus of Figure 1;
- Figure 9 is a side elevational view of the turntable drive of Figure 8; and
- Figures 10, 11 and 12 are views of an alternative turntable drive without an indexer and having a slip torque limiting feature.
- The
apparatus 10 shown in Figure 1 is for curing ink 12 (Figure 3) on exterior surfaces ofarticles 14 by irradiating the exterior surfaces of thearticles 14, and for then automatically discharging the cured ink article from the apparatus. Theapparatus 10 includes irradiating means for irradiating ink on the articles, the irradiating means comprising one or moreultraviolet lamps 16 for providing ultraviolet light at a curing station within ahousing 18. Thehousing 18 is supported by aframe 20 to shield against workers viewing the UV light as articles are loaded and unloaded onto aturntable 22. - The
turntable 22 is mounted for rotation within thehousing 18 and supports thearticles 14 from below. A worker at aloading station 17 loadsarticles 14 onto theturntable 22 through an opening 24 in thehousing 18. To prevent emission of light from theultraviolet lamp 16 to the exterior of thehousing 18 through the opening 24, an up-standing divider means 26 is mounted on theturntable 22 and divides the turntable into a plurality of sector-shaped, article-receiving compartments, each of which receives anarticle 14 and carries the article in a counterclockwise direction into and past the curing station. Herein, six compartments, each having a spin table 32 to rotate the article therein are provided on the turntable. Three compartments are available at the opening for loading and unloading. - Herein, the
articles 14 are transported byturntable 22 mounted for turning about a vertical axis from a loading station, in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Figures 1 and 2, to a curing station at which theUV lamp 16 cures the ink on the articles. At the curing station 19, the articles are rotated by spin table 32 through greater than 360° to assure that the entire peripheral surface of the article is exposed to the UV light. After the UV curing the articles are transported by the turntable to thedischarge station 15 for discharge from the turntable. - The illustrated
articles 14 are 70 litre (five gallon) pails and the usual practice is for one person to be located at theloading station 17 to place the articles onto a spin table 32 while another person located at thedischarge station 15 removes the articles from the spin table 32. With the high cost of labor, it is desired to be able to eliminate a worker at the discharge station. - A problem with providing an ejector means at the discharge station is that the
turntable 22 supports the articles from below and that thehousing 18 must cover the articles as they go to the curing station and exit from the curing station. - The cured
articles 14 are automatically discharged at thedischarge station 15 by an ejector means 35 which ejects the pail, preferably onto a conveyor which carries thearticle 14 away from theapparatus 10. The ejector means 35 and conveyor eliminate the expense of the manual labor of one person who would unload the article while another person would load the articles onto a spin table at theloading station 17. The mounting of the ejector means is preferably achieved by suspending the same from the central top wall orroof 44 of thehousing 18 at aturning axis 39 of theturntable 22 so that the ejector means does not interfer with the shielding by thehousing 18 or the movement of the turntable therebelow. - An inexpensive and simple ejector means 35 may be provided by use of a fluid actuated
cylinder 41 having a reciprocable rod orpusher 43 with a forkedend 33 that engages the cured article along the inner circumference thereof about mid-height of the article. As best seen in FIGURE 2, the pusher will extend from its retracted position, shown in full lines in FIG. 2, to its extended position, shown in dotted lines in FIG. 2, in which its forked end is adjacent anend 45 of theconveyor 37. As will be explained in greater detail hereinafter, it is preferred that the turntable be stationary and that its drive be disabled during the article discharge operation. - Turning now to a more detailed description of the ejector means 35, in its preferred form, includes a suspension means 47 for suspending the
cylinder 41 from theroof 44 of the housing. More specifically, thehousing roof 44 includes a horizontally extending, frame beam 49 (FIG. 3.) which supports a sheet metalcircular panel 51 of theroof 44. A stationary,vertical shaft 53 is fixed at its upper end tobeam 49 and is centered on theaxis 39 of theturntable 22. Acylinder mounting block 55 is secured to the lower end of theshaft 53 and has a horizontally extending bore 57 through which extends thecylinder 41. To center and stabilize themounting block 55 andcylinder 41, the lower end of the block receives the upper rotating end of a rotatingcentral hub 80 of theturntable 22. The hub end is cylindrical and is mounted for turning in abearing 59 which is secured in themounting block 55 and centered on therotational axis 39 for thehub 80 andturntable 22. Thus, the suspension means 47 is stabilized at both its upper and lower ends to assist in maintaining thepusher 43 in its travel along a horizontal path and to hold the pusher while in its fully extended state as shown in FIG. 2. - Herein, the illustrated
cylinder 41 is a hydraulic cylinder with its piston rod serving as thepusher 43. The forkedend 33 of the pusher comprises a pair ofvertical plates 61 angled from a central plate to form a V-shape to center a portion of the cylindrical sidewall of thearticle 14 therebetween. - Each of the compartments of the turntable is provided with an interior window or opening 63 in an otherwise
cylindrical wall 94 which defines the interior wall of each compartment. Thewindow 63 is of sufficient size to allow the forkedend 33 to pass therethrough to engage the article on a spin table 32. As will be explained in greater detail, radially extendingcompartment walls 96 project radially outwardly from the centralcylindrical wall 94 to define the six compartments each of which is indexed to bring itswindow 63 in its rear compartment wall into alignment with the pusher when it arrives at thedischarge station 15. - To assist in assurance of the rectilinear movement of the hydraulic cylinder rod pusher, there is provided guide means which comprises a
sliding guide rod 67, as best seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, and asliding guide block 69 both of which travel with the pusher rod. The guide means also includes a pair of stationaryparallel shafts 71 and 73 fixed at opposite ends tostationary plates cylinder 41. Theparallel shafts 71 and 73 are mounted parallel to the axis of the cylinder and to the pusher rod and are mounted in a vertical plane with thesliding guide rod 67 therebetween, as shown in FIG. 5. - The
guide rod 67 slides through a bore in thefront plate 75 attached to the front end of thecylinder 41. The rear end of the guide rod is attached to theslideable guide 69 which hasslide bearings 83 encircling thestationary shafts 71 and 73. As the guide block is pushed and pulled by theslide rod 67, thebearings 83 slide along thestationary rods 71 and 73 and stabilize and guide theslide rod 67 which is attached at its front end by abracket 31 to thepusher fork 33. Thus, the spacedparallel pusher rod 43 and theguide 67 will hold the pusher's forked end against turning and aid in preventing and binding of the pusher rod when it is experiencing turning torques from resistance of the article to sliding from the turntable onto theconveyor 37. - In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, the operation of the ejector means 35 disables the
turntable drive 28 so that the turntable remains stationary while the pusher rod is moving through thewindow 63 in therear compartment wall 94. This avoids jamming of thecompartment wall 94 against anextended pusher rod 43 as could occur if the turntable rotated while the pusher rod was extended. The turntable drive is disabled by a disabling means which comprises limit switch means operable by movement of the pusher rod from one of its limit portions. Also, to control reversal of the cylinder to retract thepusher rod 43, there is provided a forward, extendedlimit switch 85 which is secured to the forwardstationary plate 75 to be engaged and actuated by theguide block 69 when the latter is in its forward position adjacent theplate 75, as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4. Arear limit switch 87 is fastened to therear plate 77, which is fixed to the rear end of the cylinder, and this rear limit switch is actuated when the pusher has fully retracted and theguide block 69 is actuating the rear limit switch. Actuation of the limit switch by theguide block 69 enables the turntable drive means 28 to index the turntable to bring the next compartment into the discharge station. When theblock 69 travels from themicroswitch 87, it changes state and disables the turntable drive means 28. When theguide block 69 engages themicroswitch 85, it causes a reversal of movement of the hydrauliccylinder pusher rod 43. - At the curing station, each
article 14 is rotated by a spin table 32 for 360° exposure as it is carried past theultraviolet lamp 16. One spin table 32 is rotatably mounted on theturntable 22 in each compartment. Spin table drive means 34, as best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, are provided for rotating the spin tables 32 relative to theturntable 22. In the illustrated embodiment, the spin tables 32 are not connected to the spin table drive means 34 when they are in position adjacent the opening 24 in thehousing 18, so thatarticles 14 may be loaded onto or unloaded from theturntable 22 without the spin tables 32 rotating. A clutch assembly 36 (FIGS. 6 and 7) is provided to selectively associate the spin table drive means 34 with each of the spin tables 32 as the particular spin table 32 approaches theultraviolet lamp 16. - The illustrated
apparatus 10 is sized to handlearticles 14 such as buckets on the order of 30cm (twelve inches) or more in height. In another embodiment of the invention not illustrated herein, the apparatus is sized to accommodate much larger articles, such as 770 litre (55 gallon) drums. - Turning now to a more detailed description of the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, the
frame 20, as best seen in FIGURE 3, includes a plurality ofupstanding legs 38 havingadjustable feet 40 at their lower ends for leveling theapparatus 10. A plurality ofhorizontal support members 42 extend between thelegs 38 for supporting various components of theapparatus 10, as described in greater detail below. - The
housing 18 is supported by theframe 20 and includes thetop wall roof 44 having a generallycircular periphery 46 with a dependingskirt 48. Thetop wall 44 is supported by acurved side wall 50 which has alower portion 52 which extends about the circumference of theturntable 22 below the turntable, and anupper portion 54 which extends partially around the circumference of theturntable 22 above the turntable, thus defining the opening 24 which provides access to theturntable 22. In the illustrated embodiment, the opening 24 extends approximately halfway around the circumference of theside wall 50. The relatively long circumferential dimension facilitates insertion and removal of articles through the opening 24 by providing access to each spin table 32 during approximately half of its travel. A plurality of side panels 56 (FIG. I) enclose theframe 20 beneath theturntable 22. - To provide ultraviolet radiation within the
housing 18, theultraviolet lamp 16 is mounted on thecurved side wall 50 adjacent anopening 58 in theside wall 50. Thelamp 16 herein includes anelongated bulb 60 having an effective length equal to or greater than the height of the printed area being irradiated which, in this instance, is about 30cm (twelve inches). Thebulb 60 is oriented vertically and supported at its upper and lower ends 62 and 64 respectively in aholder 66 which is mounted on thestationary housing 18 adjacent the opening 24. Areflector 68 is provided to direct radiation from thebulb 60 through theopening 58 to the interior of thehousing 18. To prevent thebulb 60 from overheating during use, a blower 70 (FIG. 2) supported by theholder 66 maintains air flow about thebulb 60. Theholder 66 is preferably mounted on hinges (not shown) to pivot to an open position to expose the curing station and facilitate changing of thebulb 60. - While a single, vertically-oriented
bulb 60 is employed in the illustrated embodiment, other embodiments of the invention may include more than one bulb, or have a single bulb oriented horizontally. For example, two vertically oriented bulbs positioned end to end may be used for curing articles having greater height than the illustrated buckets, and a single horizontal bulb may be used for shorter articles. Also, two vertical bulbs positioned side by side may be preferable for articles of certain configurations. - The
turntable 22 herein includes a generally circular plate having a plurality of generallycircular openings 74 formed in it at predetermined locations to accommodate the spin tables 32. Theturntable 22 further includes aspider 76 which comprises a number of radially extendingmembers 78 joined at acentral hub 80 for supporting the spin tables 32 and the circular plate. Thehub 80 is fixed to arotatable shaft 82. Theshaft 82 extends generally vertically downward from the center of theturntable 22 and is supported by upper andlower thrust bearings horizontal support members 42. - The
hub 80 herein includes upper and lower, horizontal extendingplates radial members 78 and a stiffener means 92 which is fixed to theupper plate 88. The stiffener means 92 includes a generally cylindrical central member 93a and a plurality of generallytriangular gusset plates 93b extending radially outward therefrom and welded thereto along their vertical edges and welded to theupper pPlate 88 along their lower horizontal edges. - As noted above, emission of ultraviolet radiation from the interior of the
housing 18 is prevented by the upstanding divider means 26 which also divides the turntable into compartments. The divider means 26 herein includes the central, generally circularcylindrical wall 94 and theplanar compartment walls 96 extending radially outward from thecentral wall 94. Both thecentral wall 94 and thecompartment walls 96 are supported by the generally circular plate 72. The plate 72 is supported by an annular support 98 (FIG.3) mounted on thespider 76. - In the illustrated embodiment, six spin tables 32 are evenly spaced about the
turntable 22 and each spin table 32 is separated from the adjacent spin tables 32 on each side by one of thecompartment walls 96. Each pair ofadjacent compartment walls 96 thus defines an included angle of about 60°. This configuration provides that at least oneradial compartment wall 96 is positioned between thelamp 16 and the opening 24 at all times during operation of theapparatus 10, while also providing adequate space for six relativelylarge articles 14 such as buckets to be carried simultaneously by theturntable 22. - Referring particularly to FIGS. 8 and 9, the preferred turntable drive means 28 for indexing the turntable for intermittent movement includes a driven
sprocket 102 fixedly mounted on theturntable shaft 82, and adrive sprocket 104 connected to the drivensprocket 102 by adrive chain 106 looped around the twosprockets sprocket 104 is secured to the output shaft of a commercially available indexingdevice 91 which is a modified Geneva mechanism to give a one-sixth turn of thesprocket 104 when theindexing device 91 is operated. The illustrated indexing device is a commercially available device sold by E.W. Lancaster Company, of Chicago, Illinois. Theindexing device 91 is driven by an input pulley orsprocket 93 driven by an endless chain orbelt 95 which in turn is driven by a sprocket orpulley 97 which is attached to an output shaft of a speed reducinggear box 110 driven by anelectric motor 108. Thus, the motor drive is able to index the turn table 32 to bring one article from the curing station and to bring another article into the curing station. Thus, a curedink article 14 is discharged from thedischarge station 15 during the stationary dwell time between indexing movements of the turntable to move an article into and from the curing station. - As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, each of the spin tables 32 herein is generally circular and is supported by one of the
radial members 78 of thespider 76. Each spin table 32 is mounted on ashaft 118 extending vertically downward from its center, and each of theshafts 118 is supported in athrust bearing 120 mounted on the associatedsupport member 78. - As noted above, spin table drive means 34 and an associated
clutch assembly 36 are provided to rotate each spin table 32 as it passes theultraviolet lamp 16. Theclutch assembly 36 herein includes a continuously rotatingdrive wheel 122 for cooperation individually with a plurality of drivenwheels 124, one mounted on each of thespin table shafts 118. Each drivenwheel 124 is adapted to be rotated by engagement between itsperipheral surface 126 and theperipheral surface 128 of thedrive wheel 122. - Suitable material is disposed on the respective
peripheral surfaces drive wheel 122 is mounted on aclutch lever 130 which is pivotally supported on one of theframe members 42. - The power for the
spin table drive 34 herein is provided by a variable speed electric motor 132 (FIG. 7) acting through an associatedgearbox 134, both of which are mounted on theclutch lever 130. To avoid damaging thegearbox 134 with shock loads as thedrive wheel 122 comes to engagement with a drivenwheel 124, a belt drive 136 (FIG. 7) connects theoutput shaft 138 of thegearbox 134 to thedrive wheel shaft 140. The belt drive comprises afirst pulley 142 mounted on theoutput shaft 138, asecond pulley 144 mounted on thedrive wheel shaft 140, and a V-belt 146 interconnecting the pulleys. - Referring particularly to FIG. 6 the
clutch lever 130 and drivewheel 122 herein are positioned as illustrated in broken lines prior to engagement with one of the drivenwheels 124. As theturntable 22 rotates, one of the drivenwheels 124 comes into engagement with thedrive wheel 122. Thedrive wheel 122 rotates continuously during operation of theapparatus 10, so that the spin table 32 begins to rotate when the drivenwheel 124 moves into engagement with thedrive wheel 122. - To enable contact to be maintained between the
drive wheel 122 and the particular drivenwheel 124 as the spin table 32 travels past thelight source 16, theclutch lever 130 pivots about a vertical axle 148 (FIGS. 6 and 7) through a mountingblock 150 mounted on theframe member 42. At a predetermined location past theultraviolet lamp 16, the drivenwheel 124 moves out of engagement with thedrive wheel 122. Theclutch lever 130 is then returned to its initial position by biasing means such as the illustrated coil spring 152 (FIG. 6). To control the speed at which theclutch lever 130 is pivoted by thespring 152, damping means such as the illustratedshock absorber 154 are provided. Theshock absorber 154 herein is pivotally connected to theframe member 42 at one end and to theclutch lever 130 at the other end. Once theclutch lever 130 has returned to its initial position, thedrive wheel 122 is in position to engage the next drivenwheel 124 approaching theultraviolet lamp 16. - Operation of an ultraviolet lamp in normal atmosphere produces ozone. To prevent ozone from accumulating in the work area around the
apparatus 10, exhaust means 156 (FIG. 3) are provided for removing ozone from the interior of thehousing 18 at the curing station adjacent theultraviolet lamp 16. The exhaust means 156 may be connected to a suitable duct (not shown) having an outlet at a location remote from the work area. - If an
article 14 is not located approximately centrally upon a spin table 32, rotation of the spin table 32 may cause thearticle 14 to tip over or slide off of the spin table 32. Accordingly, it is desirable that the operator center eacharticle 14 upon its associated spin table 32. Locating devices such as pins (not shown) may be provided on the spin tables to center the article and to hold the same against movement during the spinning and curing. - It will be appreciated that under normal working conditions, it may be desirable for a worker to stop the
turntable 22 momentarily to adjust the position of anarticle 14 upon its spin table 32 or for some other reason. However, stopping theturntable 22 may result in overexposure of an article to theultraviolet lamp 16 which may cause overheating. It is undesirable to turn the lamp on and off repeatedly because this might reduce bulb life, and because there may be a warm-up time required to bring the bulb to full light-emitting capacity after it is turned off. Accordingly, to enable theturntable 22 to be stopped without overheating anarticle 14 adjacent thelamp 16, theapparatus 10 includes control means 158 for putting theapparatus 10 into a standby mode wherein theturntable 22 stops rotating, the power to theultraviolet lamp 16 is reduced, and the spin table 32 adjacent theultraviolet lamp 16 continues to rotate. - In the illustrated embodiment, the control means 158 is connected to a
foot switch 160 for putting theapparatus 10 into stand-by mode. Depression of thefoot switch 160 initiates standby mode, and release of thefoot switch 160 returns theapparatus 10 to normal condition. Additional switches and the like are mounted upon a control panel 162 attached to thehousing 18. - Turning now to a description of the operation of the present invention, an operator inserts an
article 14 through the opening 24 in thehousing 18 and placing it upon a spin table 32 as theturntable 22 rotates. It will be appreciated that during normal operation, thearticles 14 will be successively placed one by one onto the respective spin tables 32 in the respective compartments, either manually or mechanically. - The
turntable 22 is indexed intermittently to transport thearticles 14 successively past theultraviolet lamp 16. However, as noted above, it may be necessary to stop the rotation of theturntable 22 momentarily by switching theapparatus 10 to standby mode for adjustment of the position of anarticle 14 or for some other reason. - As each spin table 32 approaches the
ultraviolet lamp 16, thespin table drive 34, acting through theclutch assembly 36, commences rotation of the spin table 32. It is desirable that each spin table 32 rotate through more than 360° so that eacharticle 14 is exposed to theultraviolet lamp 16 on all sides as the turntable carries the article in one direction about the turntable axis while the article spins about the axis generally through its vertical centerline. - In addition to irradiating the articles with ultraviolet light, the
ultraviolet lamp 16 also heats the articles. Continuous exposure of a particular portion of anarticle 14 to the ultraviolet radiation may overheat that portion of thearticle 14 and damage it. To avoid such overheating while providing adequate time of exposure to the ultraviolet radiation, it may be desirable to rotate eacharticle 14 through two or three complete revolutions as it passes theultraviolet lamp 16. This enables every part of thearticle 14 to be exposed for two or three separate, relatively short time periods rather than one relatively long time period, enabling cooling to take place between exposures. Also, by providing two or three complete revolutions, a large margin of error is provided to insure that eacharticle 14 actually rotates through at least 360° while it is being transport through a 60° sector of the turntable travel. - To facilitate removal of the
articles 14 from their associated spin tables 32, as each spin table 32 reaches a predetermined location beyond theultraviolet lamp 16, theclutch assembly 36 disengages to permit the rotation of the spin table 32 to slow or stop. As each spin table compartment reaches thedischarge station 15, thearticle 14 is automatically ejected leaving the spin table compartment available for thenext article 14 to be placed therein. - Herein, after completing an indexing step, the
hydraulic cylinder 41 is actuated to extend itspusher rod 43 to bring the forked end against the inner side of the article. Continued outward movement of the pusher rod slides the bottom of the article across the spin table 32 and across the outer margin of the turntable plate 72 and onto theend 45 of thecontinuous conveyor 37, which conveys the article away, as shown in FIGURE 2. During this travel of the pusher rod, theguide block 69 had moved away from thelimit switch 87 to change its state and thus disable the turntable drive. When the block hits thelimit switch 85, thecylinder 41 reverses movement of the pusher rod to returnguide block 69 to abut thelimit switch 87 to enable the turntable drive to index the turntable once more. - In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, the
indexing drive 28 for the turntable shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 may be replaced by a continuous turntable drive, shown in FIGS 10-12. - In such instances, the curing device may be operated without having an ejector mechanism; but instead using a person to remove the cured
articles 14 from thedischarge station 14. - Referring particularly to Figures 10 and 11, the turntable drive means 28 includes a driven
pulley 102 fixedly mounted on theturntable shaft 82, and adrive pulley 104 connected to the drivenpulley 102 by a drive belt looped around the twopulleys drive belt 106 is selected to provide slack in the belt. Thedrive pulley 104 is rotated by avariable speed motor 108 acting through aspeed reducer 110. A slack adjuster for thebelt 106 comprises alever arm 112 pivotally supported at one end on abolt 113 and having belt-engagingwheel 114 on its opposite end, and means 116 for biasing thelever arm 112 toward thebelt 106 to urge thewheel 114 against thebelt 106 to urge thewheel 114 against thebelt 106, thereby taking up slack in thebelt 106. - During normal operation, the biasing force maintains enough tension on the
belt 106 to prevent slippage between thebelt 106 and therespective pulleys turntable 22 encounters resistance above a predetermined level, slippage occurs between one or both of thepulleys belt 106, which enables themotor 108 to continue turning while theturntable 22 is stopped. Thus, a slip clutch action limits the torque to prevent a hand from being seriously injured.
Claims (14)
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US548207 | 1983-11-02 | ||
US06/548,207 US4535549A (en) | 1983-11-02 | 1983-11-02 | Curing apparatus |
US663961 | 1984-10-26 | ||
US06/663,961 US4578880A (en) | 1984-10-26 | 1984-10-26 | Curing apparatus with ejector mechanism |
Publications (3)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0143568A2 EP0143568A2 (en) | 1985-06-05 |
EP0143568A3 EP0143568A3 (en) | 1986-11-26 |
EP0143568B1 true EP0143568B1 (en) | 1990-05-09 |
Family
ID=27068799
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP19840307576 Expired EP0143568B1 (en) | 1983-11-02 | 1984-11-02 | Curing apparatus with ejector mechanism |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0143568B1 (en) |
DE (1) | DE3482175D1 (en) |
Families Citing this family (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP0367867A1 (en) * | 1988-11-09 | 1990-05-16 | Classic Sanitär-Produkte Gmbh | Apparatus for heating relatively small work pieces |
JPH03233885A (en) * | 1989-11-28 | 1991-10-17 | Mita Ind Co Ltd | Heat treating unit and drying method for functional thin film using it |
JPH0651777U (en) * | 1991-12-26 | 1994-07-15 | 日空工業株式会社 | Vacuum dryer |
CN103573910B (en) * | 2012-08-10 | 2016-04-06 | 上海新跃仪表厂 | A kind of large buffering Multi-angle limit mechanism of artificial rotary table |
CN112315436B (en) * | 2020-11-16 | 2023-06-23 | 天津市康婷生物工程集团有限公司 | Household multifunctional health integrated detection device |
Family Cites Families (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
FR1098620A (en) * | 1954-01-19 | 1955-08-16 | Gallet & Cie | Improvements to dryers for large objects |
-
1984
- 1984-11-02 DE DE8484307576T patent/DE3482175D1/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1984-11-02 EP EP19840307576 patent/EP0143568B1/en not_active Expired
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
EP0143568A2 (en) | 1985-06-05 |
DE3482175D1 (en) | 1990-06-13 |
EP0143568A3 (en) | 1986-11-26 |
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