EP1589841B1 - Manipulation and treatment method and device for simultaneous transformation of pieces of textiles - Google Patents

Abstract

A device for processing a supple porous textile piece having at least one first surface and one second surface adjacent to the first surface, the process being carried out on the second surface and not on the first surface The device includes a departure area and an arrival area for placing the textile piece. The departure area is equipped with a non-porous mobile mask with a shape corresponding to the first surface. The device also includes a processing area equipped with processing means, a pick-up head with a suction plate having a shape corresponding to that of the mask. The pick-up head being moveable among the departure area, the processing area, and the arrival area.

Description

The present invention relates to a method and a device for handling and processing textile parts, including but not exclusively textile parts of the type used in lingerie, for example for the manufacture of bra.

Since the textile material is generally flexible, especially in the case of delicate and very porous textiles such as those used in lingerie, it is difficult to automate the manufacturing process: it is very difficult to a machine capable of accurately and reproducibly grasping and arranging textile parts in front of processing stations, such as cutting or sewing stations, and holding it there during processing. On the other hand, it is also difficult to solve the problems of rapid adaptation mechanisms to different sizes of the same model and to different models that can be manufactured on an automated line.

However, various methods and devices for handling textile pieces have already been proposed; most often, the handling is rather rough and is limited to displacements, unstacking, etc. ; when sometimes it offers the possibility of a complete automated processing of textile pieces, it is then relatively small pieces, fairly rigid fabric and relatively porous.

Thus, the document US 5535997 to Levi Strauss teaches to start unstacking a stack of "denim" canvas pieces with suction bowls, which allow one end of the upper part of the stack to be raised and moved on a conveyor belt. Naturally, such a method would be impossible with the light and very porous fabrics used in lingerie.

The document US 5238237 teaches to maintain porous textile pieces on a suction table and remove them by means of a needle device or a pneumatic device exerting an aspiration even greater than that of the suction table.

The documents US 5165355 and US 5040475 by Sara Lee teach a complex device for manipulating textile pieces for the manufacture of pantyhose using a pneumatic system to take a coin from a pile of coins and transport it for further processing.

The document US 4896618 Pacific Dunlop also teaches the use of suction means for gripping elastic bands of textile pieces intended to form briefs, in order to put the pieces in various clamping and extension devices which then transport the workpiece to work stations. sewing. Such a method, very specific, is suitable for a single type of clothing, requiring the presence of elastic bands suction, and moreover does not allow to be easily adapted to various sizes and shapes.

More interesting, the document US 4756261 teaches to place textile pieces in a precise orientation, to grasp and transport them while maintaining their precise orientation using a robot arm to a workstation where they are processed, for example sewn. The robot arm is equipped with a gripper head with suction plate, which applies suitable holes through a suitable vacuum (about 0.2 atmosphere) to lift and move the workpiece. But, as in the case of the document US 5535997 above mentioned, this is possible because it is in this case to lift and move pieces of canvas "denim" for pockets of shirts or pants. Such a device would be impossible to use with very porous textiles such as those used in lingerie. On the other hand, it is simply a transfer robot that serves automated product processing stations, such as sewing machines, not a robot managing all operations.

The same observations apply to the document US 4498404 which shows a perforated table connected to positive or negative pressure means, on which one can deposit textile parts, while a manipulator arm equipped with a suction pad can come to seize another piece, to deposit it on the first piece and take the two overlapping pieces to a sewing station.

All these documents therefore seem to show that the handling of textile parts by suction soles is possible as long as the textile piece is only relatively porous, as is the case with the canvases "denim", but not in the case of lingerie, made in light materials, sometimes lace, and very flexible

For these subjects, another line of research has been borrowed and is illustrated for example by the document FR 2820290 which teaches, for the purpose of cutting a piece of very flexible fabric, to temporarily stiffen it by means of a support sheet affixed, for example silicone paper, the apposition being done for example by a hot calendering. Other methods of temporary stiffening of the part have already been proposed, such as, for example, fixing with a bath of hardening product, or freezing, etc. In all cases, it is an additional and expensive step, which also doubles as a step to end the temporary stiffening. In addition, these stiffening methods are not without damaging effect on very delicate fabrics, such as lace, which can be used in lingerie and are not really suitable for this area.

In the end and for lack of satisfactory means, the manufacture of certain textile articles such as lingerie articles made of lightweight fabric therefore remains essentially manual and therefore expensive.

The object of the invention is to remedy this and to provide a method and an automated device for handling and processing textile parts particularly well suited to textiles used in lingerie and therefore also to others.

• on dispose la pièce textile sur une aire de départ,
• on amène au-dessus de la pièce textile une tête de préhension mobile à semelle aspirante,
• la tête de préhension déplace la pièce jusqu'à une aire de traitement équipée de moyens de traitement,
• on effectue le traitement de la seconde surface, la pièce étant toujours maintenue par la tête de préhension, les déplacements relatifs entre les moyens de traitement et la pièce, nécessaires pour le traitement de la seconde surface, étant obtenus par le déplacement de la tête et/ou le déplacement des moyens de traitement,
• la tête de préhension enlève la pièce textile de l'aire de traitement, la transporte sur une aire d'arrivée, et l'y dépose en référence,
• on retire la pièce textile de l'aire d'arrivée.

le procédé étant caractérisé en ce que :

• ou dispose préalablement sur l'aire de départ un masque mobile non poreux de forme correspondant à la première surface,
• on amène au-dessus de la pièce textile une tête de préhension mobile dont la semelle aspirante est de forme correspondant audit masque,
• la tête de préhension déplace la pièce et le masque jusqu'à l'aire de traitement équipée desdits moyens de traitement,
• on effectue le traitement de la seconde surface, la pièce et le masque étant toujours maintenus par la tête de préhension,
• la tête de préhension enlève la pièce textile et le masque de l'aire de traitement, les transporte sur l'aire d'arrivée, et les y dépose en référence.

The invention achieves its goal by a method for treating a porous flexible textile piece having at least a first surface and a second surface contiguous to the first surface; the treatment to be performed on the second surface and not on the first surface, the method being of the type which comprises the following steps:

• we have the textile piece on a starting area,
• above the textile part, a movable gripping head with suction sole is brought
• the gripping head moves the workpiece to a treatment area equipped with processing means,
• the treatment of the second surface is carried out, the part always being held by the gripping head, the relative displacements between the processing means and the part, necessary for the treatment of the second surface, being obtained by the displacement of the head and / or the displacement of the treatment means,
• the gripping head removes the textile piece from the treatment area, transports it to an arrival area, and deposits it with reference,
• the textile piece is removed from the arrival area.

the method being characterized in that:

• or has beforehand on the departure area a non-porous mobile mask of shape corresponding to the first surface,
• a movable gripping head is brought above the textile part, the suction sole of which is of a shape corresponding to said mask,
• the gripping head moves the workpiece and the mask to the treatment area equipped with said processing means,
• the second surface is treated, the part and the mask being always held by the gripping head,
• the gripping head removes the textile piece and the mask from the treatment area, transports them to the arrival area, and places them in reference.

Thus, thanks to the mobile mask, it is possible to seize very porous textile pieces, even in lace. The mask allows the maintenance of the first surface in cooperation with the suction of the head. The mask is not opposed to the treatment, for example cutting or sewing, which will be practiced in the second surface, adjacent to the first. By correspondence of form between the mask and the first surface, and between the midsole and the mask, it is meant that the shape of the first object is generally included, included, in the form of the second or identical thereto; thus, on the one hand, the mask does not protrude from the first surface and does not hinder the treatment that will be performed in the second surface; on the other hand, the suction pad (at least its active suction part) is applied to the textile piece, inside the mask contour, and can thus lift and transport the piece by raising the mask at the same time. time, without sucking outside the mask, "in the void".

The mask has the advantage of maximizing the maintenance of the fabric regardless of its porosity, to avoid the suction effect with the work surfaces, and to avoid dirtying the treated product.

Advantageously, the first surface is an inner surface and the second surface is a marginal surface at least partially surrounding the first surface. It is possible and advantageous for some parts to provide that the first surface consists of several disjoint parts, which will be gripped by a suction pad also consisting of disjoint parts.

Advantageously, the arrival area is the same as the departure area, or at least one area can then also serve as a departure area so that the masks left after a previous manipulation can be used for a subsequent manipulation, when of a subsequent cycle.

Naturally, the operations of arranging or removing the textile pieces on the departure area or the arrival area can be manual or mechanized, with an automatic transfer between the stations.

• une aire de départ et une aire d'arrivée pour disposer la pièce textile,
• une aire de traitement équipée de moyens de traitement,
• une tête de préhension à semelle aspirante, mobile entre l'aire de départ, l'aire de traitement et l'aire d'arrivée,

le dispositif étant caractérisé en ce que :

• l'aire de départ est équipée d'un masque mobile non poreux de forme correspondant à la première surface,
• la tête de préhension mobile a une semelle aspirante de forme correspondant audit masque.

The invention also relates, as indicated above, to a device adapted for implementing the method of the invention, namely a device for treating a porous flexible textile piece comprising at least a first surface and a second surface contiguous to the first surface, the treatment to be performed on the second surface and not on the first surface, the device being of the type which comprises:

• a departure area and an arrival area for arranging the textile piece,
• a treatment area equipped with treatment means,
• a suction-base gripping head, movable between the departure area, the treatment area and the arrival area,

the device being characterized in that:

• the departure area is equipped with a non-porous mobile mask of shape corresponding to the first surface,
• the movable gripping head has a suction sole of shape corresponding to said mask.

Advantageously, the departure area and / or the arrival area has an upper surface formed of two half-planes separated by a space, which makes it possible to dispose the textile piece with a compensating loop of the possible dimensional variations of the piece that will be caught by the gripping head.

Advantageously, the departure area and / or the arrival area consists of at least one drawer, and preferably two, which allow an operator or a machine to prepare the textile pieces outside the treatment area properly. said, which can advantageously be closed.

Advantageously, the gripping head comprises a suction pad composed of two disjoint parts.

Advantageously, the gripping head is carried by a multiaxis robot to perform all the movements necessary for the movement and treatment of the textile piece.

The device of the invention is characterized by great flexibility and adaptability to a change of treated textile part. The drawer and head can be easily modified to make them specific to a type of part being processed.

• La figure 1 est une vue schématique de côté d'une installation utilisant le dispositif de l'invention.
• La figure 2 est une vue de dessus d'un tiroir de départ du dispositif de la figure 1.
• La figure 3 est une vue de détail montrant le placement d'une ébauche de soutien-gorge sur le tiroir de la figure 2.
• La figure 4 est une vue en perspective montrant la semelle aspirante à l'extrémité du bras du robot manipulateur.
• La figure 5 est une vue en perspective de dessus de la semelle aspirante en position de prise d'une ébauche sur le tiroir de la figure 2.
• La figure 6 est un schéma en coupe simplifiée d'une ébauche placée en formant une boucle sur un tiroir.

Other advantages and characteristics of the invention will appear on reading the description which follows, with reference to the appended drawings in which:

• The figure 1 is a schematic side view of an installation using the device of the invention.
• The figure 2 is a top view of a starting drawer of the device of the figure 1 .
• The figure 3 is a detail view showing the placement of a bra blank on the drawer of the figure 2 .
• The figure 4 is a perspective view showing the suction pad at the end of the manipulator robot arm.
• The figure 5 is a perspective view from above of the midsole in the gripping position of a blank on the drawer of the figure 2 .
• The figure 6 is a schematic sectional diagram of a blank placed in a loop on a drawer.

The figure 1 schematically shows the device of the invention comprising, within an optionally closed cabin 1, a programmable six-axis robot manipulator 2 whose extremal arm 3 articulated on the wrist 5, carries the gripping head 4. The head 4 comes seek and take a draft of bra 6 arranged on a drawer 7, takes it on a work surface 8 for treatment by a treatment means 9 and returns to the same drawer 7 after treatment. The work plan can be multiple and include several successive processing stations in front of which the head 4 brings the draft bra 6. These include cutting stations, stitching, ... to cut the contour 10 from the blank 6 to the exact shape desired.

To allow loading in masked time, there is advantageously at least two drawers 7, side by side or superimposed, allowing one operator feeds one while the other is unloaded and reloaded by the robot. Each drawer 7 can take a closed position shown in solid lines on the figure 1 , in which its upper surface 11, constituting both the departure area and the arrival area of the textile pieces, is entirely inside the cabin 1 and is accessible to the robot 2, and an open position represented in dashes on the figure 1 in which its surface 11 is outside the cabin 1 and is accessible to an operator or an external loading / unloading robot. The drawer 7 is slidably mounted and can be pulled by handles 12. Its upper surface 11 consists of two main half-plates 13 symmetrical with respect to the median axis XX of the drawer 7 and separated by a space 12, itself occupied at its center by a central support beam 15. The exact position of the half-plates 13 and the central cross member can be modified on the plate according to the processed parts and fixed by means such as screws 16 on a upper frame 17 of the drawer 7.

The drawer can receive at the same time several blanks, for example three blanks 6, 6 ', 6 ", whose location is materialized on the half-plates 13, for example by a slight impression in very slight depression 19, 19', 19 ". Each impression makes it possible to accurately place a mask 18, 18 ', 18 "of the same shape made of a relatively semi-rigid and non-porous material, such as cardboard or a plastic material, which is substantially flush with the same surface as the remainder of the half-plates 13. These masks 18, 18 ', 18 "are simply deposited, without attachment, in their corresponding imprint. By semi-rigid means that the mask 18 has a certain consistency allowing it to be handled easily, and that it retains its plan aspect that allows it to slide well on the worktop 8. Rigidity is not not essential for lift the blank 6 sandwiched between the mask 18 and the midsole. On the contrary, a certain flexibility is useful for allowing the mask to be adapted to any reliefs of the blank 6, such as those corresponding to the reinforcements.

When a blank 6 bra is placed by the operator above its location on the plate 7, it comes to cover the two masks 18 provided in the location. At this stage, the blank 6 consists for example of a flat textile piece made of a flexible material, porous, elastic and retractable and which has already been provided with reinforcements 20 which will be able to serve as tracking lines for the treatment subsequent, allowing its placement in an exact predetermined orientation and the appropriate treatment with respect to that orientation. For this purpose, the cabin is equipped at the front with means 21 for projecting laser beams 22 which project on the upper surface of the open plate 7 light traces, for example the perpendicular lines 23 and 24. The line 23, coinciding with the axis XX of the slide, and the perpendicular line 24, serve as a marker for the operator to place the blank in a predetermined position relative to the reinforcements 20: the armatures are placed symmetrically with respect to the line 23 and tangent to line 24. In this position, the blank 6 covers the masks 18 by its parts 27 (constituting the first surface, untreated, the textile part) but on the one hand exceeds by a marginal portion 25 (constituting the second treated surface of the textile piece) and on the other hand has a whole central portion 26 which is not on a mask. All these parts 25 and 26, or the marginal part 25 only, can be the subject of further processing, for example cutting or sewing.

Depending on the types of parts to be treated, this central portion 26 may be left flat as shown, or fall partially in a loop in the space 14 provided between the half-planes 13 and the central bar 15. The central bar 15 can besides be absent, as shown in the diagram of the figure 6 where it can be seen that the piece 6 rests solely on the half-planes 13 and makes a loop 34 in the intermediate space 14. This loop 34 is advantageous insofar as it makes it possible to overcome the dimensional variations of the draft 6 which may be due to various causes during the manufacture of the blank and its first treatments, in particular heat treatments (for example for heat-sealing) which lead to poorly controllable dimensional differences; thanks to the loop 34, the lateral parts of the blank 6 are placed at a well-marked location of the drawer 7 and will undergo exactly the chosen treatment once they have been gripped by the gripping head 4.

The gripping head 4 of the robot comprises two symmetrical suction pads 30 carried by a central arm 31 fixed to the end of the arm 3 of the robot, so as to adjust the exact spacing by adjustable fixing means 32. The form soles 30 is substantially the same as that of the masks 18, here, a substantially elongate triangle shape. The active part of the soles 30, defined by a perimetric line of suction holes 35, has a shape which is in the form of the masks 18, 18 ', 18 ". The suction holes 35 are connected to a source suction device not represented by flexible hoses 33 which follow the movements of the robot arm 3.

The operation of the device is as follows.

In masked time, while the robot 2 processes a previous batch of blanks 6, an operator or a machine is placed on an open drawer 7 three blanks 6, 6 ', 6 "precisely with the laser lines 23, 24, above the masks 18, 18 ', 18 "accurately positioned in their fingerprints 19, 19', 19". The drawer 7 is closed again.

The robot 2 picks up the first blank 6 on the closed drawer 7 by first placing the suction pads 30 of its head 4 precisely above the masks 18 of the blank 6. The suction is then controlled (it s is here a weak suction, since there is virtually no leakage through impermeable masks that seal the suction holes 35): the blank 6 is sandwiched between the mask and the sole aspirant and can thus be taken to the various treatment stations, while continuing to be maintained by the head 4 throughout the treatment. The movements of the robot are coordinated with those of the processing means 9 to present the parts in a manner suitable to these means 9. If necessary, the robot 2 can print to the blank seized dry movements intended to give determined movements by inertia the non-maintained parts of the blank 6, in particular the marginal zones 25 outside the masks, facilitating their presentation under the processing means 7. The blank 6, still held by the gripping head 4 and the masks 18, passes to the treatment station 9. It slides easily and without dirt on the work plane 8 of the treatment station 9 with the masks 18 (selected in a material with low friction compared to the material of the worktop). Advantageously, the waste (in the event of cutting, for example) is immediately sucked up and evacuated at the treatment station 9. The robot then places the treated blank on the drawer 7 and proceeds to the next blank.

The treated blanks are removed from the drawer 7 by an operator or by another robot; the mask 18 is left in the impression or, if it is used by the removal robot, another mask is placed in the cavity of the slide 7.

The treated blanks can then undergo the following steps and final manufacturing steps, for example the thermoforming of the cups and the fastening of the straps to arrive at the finished product.

Claims (9)

1. Method for processing a supple porous textile piece (6) comprising at least one first surface (27) and one second surface (25) adjacent to the first surface (27), the processing being applied on the second surface (25) and not on the first surface (27), the method being of the type comprising the following stages:

   - The textile piece (6) is placed on a departure area (11) .

   - A mobile pick-up head (4) equipped with a suction plate (30) is moved so as to be above the textile piece (6).

   - The pick-up head (4) carries the piece (6) to a processing area (8) equipped with processing means (9) .

   - Processing is carried out on the second surface (25), the piece (6) still being held in position by the pick-up head (4), the relative movements between the processing means (9) and the piece (6), required for processing the second surface (25), being obtained by movement of the head (4) and/or movement of the processing means (9).

   - The pick-up head (4) picks up the textile piece (6) from the processing area (8), carries it to an arrival area (11) and releases it there.

   - The textile piece (6) is removed from the arrival area (11),

   the method being characterised in that:

   - A non-porous mobile mask (18) with a shape corresponding to the first surface (27) is previously placed on the departure area (11).

   - A mobile pick-up head (4) with suction plate (30) with corresponding shape to said mask (18) is moved above the textile piece (6).

   - The pick-up head (4) carries the piece (6) and the mask (18) to the processing area (8) equipped with processing means (9).

   - The second surface (25) is processed while the piece (6) and the mask (18) are still held in position by the pick-up head (4).

   - The pick-up head (4) picks up the textile piece (6) and the mask (18) from the processing area (8) and carries them to the arrival area (11), and then releases them there.
2. Method according to claim 1, characterised in that the first surface is an internal surface (27) and the second surface is a marginal surface (25) surrounding the first surface (27) at least partially.
3. Method according to either one or the other of claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the arrival area (11) is then used as departure area (11) during a later cycle.
4. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the processing is a cutting out operation.
5. Device for processing a supple porous textile piece (6) comprising at least one first surface (27) and one second surface (25) adjacent to the first surface (27), the processing being carried out on the second surface (25) and not on the first surface (27) the device being of the type comprising:

   - A departure area (11) and an arrival area (11) for placing the textile piece (6).

   - A processing area (8) equipped with processing means (9) .

   - A pick-up head (4) equipped with a suction plate (30) mobile between the departure area (11), the processing area (8) and the arrival area (11),

   the device being characterised in that:

   - The departure area (11) is equipped with a non-porous mobile mask (18) corresponding to the shape of the first surface (27),

   - The mobile pick-up head (4) has a suction plate (30) with a shape corresponding to said mask (18).
6. Device according to claim 4, characterised in that the departure area and/or arrival area (11) has an upper surface composed of two half-plates (13) separated by a space (12).
7. Device according to either one or the other of claims 4 or 5, characterised in that the departure area and/or the arrival area (11) is constituted of at least one pull-out tray (7).
8. Device according to any one of claims 4 to 6, characterised in that the pick-up head (4) comprises a suction plate (30) composed of two separated parts.
9. Device according to any one of claims 4 to 7, characterised in that the pick-up head (4) is carried by a multi-axis robot (2).

Images