ES1242845Y1 - SUPPLY MECHANISM FOR CARDBOARD SHEETS IN A BOX FORMING MACHINE - Google Patents

Abstract

1. Cardboard sheet supply mechanism of a box forming machine that comprises a motor-reducer located on a fixed base (5) in addition to a stacking area (1) for cardboard sheets (4), a forming area (3) and a conveyor line (2) destined to transport the cardboard sheets (4) captured in the stacking area (1) to transport them to the shaping area (3), where the mechanism comprises a plurality of suction cups (12 ) connected to a pneumatic system configured to create a depression when activated, where the mechanism comprises a pick-up arm (6) formed by a first section (7) and a second section (8), the second section (8) being joined, with the ability to slide, to a fixing element (9) that is attached to the fixed base (5) with the ability to rotate freely, the mechanism being characterized in that: - the first section (7) and the second section (8) are articulated at one end, - the other end of the first section (7) is solidly attached to the axis of the motor-reducer; - the other end of the second section (8) is solidly attached to a support element that incorporates the plurality of suction cups (12); so that the rotation of the motor reducer implies the capture of a cardboard sheet (4) in the stacking area (1) to be deposited on the conveyor line (2). 2. Carton sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 1, characterized in that the support element is a support shaft (10) fixed to the second section (8) by an intermediate zone that incorporates at the respective ends stringers (11) in which the suction cups (12) are located. 3. Carton sheet supply mechanism of a box forming machine, according to claim 1, characterized in that the location of the mechanism is considered so that the sheets (4) are located in an area of the conveyor line attached to the area of conformed. 4. Carton sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that the location of the suction cups (12) on the stringers (11) is adjustable. 5. Carton sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that the location of the stringers (11) on the support shaft (10) is adjustable. 6. Cardboard sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a first detector (13) that detects the final movement of the second section (8) once it has captured a sheet (4) of the stacking area (1) to change the direction of rotation of the motor reducer. 7. Carton sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a second detector (14) that detects the final movement of the second section (8) once the sheet (4) has been deposited ) on the conveyor line to cause a change in the direction of rotation of the gear motor.

Description

MECHANISM FOR SUPPLYING CARDBOARD SHEETS IN ONE MACHINE

BOX FORMER

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to a box-forming machine that incorporates a mechanism in charge of sucking cardboard sheets from a reception area, where they are stacked, to deposit them on a conveyor line and be taken to the forming area where they are transformed into boxes. The mechanism is configured to reduce the space required to a minimum and enable the machine to optimize box-making speed based on size. To do this, it is activated by a motor reducer that is attached to the motor-reducer in charge of activating the shaping male, so that the mechanism can deposit the sheets on the conveyor line flush with the shaping area.

It finds special application in the field of the machinery industry for the manufacture of cardboard boxes by folding.

TECHNICAL PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A variety of box-forming machines are known in the current state of the art where a common characteristic is based on the preparation of the box before reaching the forming area from a reception area in which the boxes are stacked in form of folded sheets.

Document ES-2660059_B1 represents a box assembly machine consisting mainly of a reception area, which incorporates a stacking area where the folded boxes are located in the form of sheets and in which the boxes are collected, and a shaping area, defined by a pressing station that is delimited by longitudinal rails for guiding the box to be shaped, where the box is given the final shape. A shaping device is responsible for carrying out the movement of the box between the reception area and the forming area and, by means of a conveyor device, is responsible for picking up a box by moving a pick-up arm that incorporates a suction cup system in the direction to the reception area, along an axis front, to subsequently move in the direction of the forming area, along a transverse axis, and deposit the box in the pressing station, where the box will be finished forming.

In this machine, the forming device incorporates a curved beam that causes the box to unfold in its return movement along the front axis, the box being sucked by the suction cup system but in an open box position. The assembly machine also incorporates two transverse folders, in charge of folding the transverse flaps of the base of the box, and a pair of longitudinal folders, separated by a distance equal to the width of the box to be formed and configured in the form of inclined sheets that interfere with the longitudinal flaps of the box to fold them as the box advances.

In this way, the shaping device positions the box, held by the suction cup system and with the four lower flaps already folded, in the shaping area to finish shaping the box with the final shape.

However, this invention has the drawback of including too many mechanisms to bring the box from the receiving area to the forming area, requiring generous dimensions of the machine.

Document ES-1127280_U describes a box forming machine that incorporates a mechanism for capturing the cardboard sheets to take them from the supply area to a conveyor line. For this, the mechanism is made up of two arms with suction cups joined by a shaft that is activated by a servomotor to be able to fold down and go from a vertical position in which the sheets are captured to a horizontal position where they are deposited on the conveyor line. The mechanism is located in the lower area of the machine, interspersed with the conveyor line, so that it does not occupy additional space.

However, this mechanism cannot be used in any machine, especially if it is not designed for it from the beginning.

The present invention describes a case assembly machine incorporating a sheet supply mechanism in which the problems mentioned above are solved. To do this, it incorporates a pick-up arm, which includes a system of suction cups to suck the boxes, with the ability to rotate, so that the sheets are captured in a vertical position as they are located in the stacking area of the reception area to be deposited on a conveyor line by which the sheets are taken to the forming area, so that the dimensions of the machine can be reduced without affecting its functionality. The mechanism is activated by a motor-reducer located flush with the motor-reducer that activates the forming male, in the upper area, in order not to interfere with other elements of the machine.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In order to achieve the objectives and avoid the aforementioned drawbacks, the present invention describes a mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine that is activated by a motor-reducer located on a fixed base, in addition to a zone stacking cardboard sheets, a forming area and a conveyor line designed to transport the captured cardboard sheets to the forming area. For this, the mechanism comprises a plurality of suction cups connected to a pneumatic system configured to create a depression when it is activated and thus be able to suck the sheets.

It is important to consider that the mechanism is located close to the forming area so that the lower edge of the sheets, as they are in the stacking area, is always attached to the end of the conveyor line, where the sheets are located. glue guns, just before passing to the forming area, leaving the other end free to accommodate larger cardboard sheets. In this way, the cycle time is reduced to a minimum, increasing the productivity of the machine.

The mechanism is configured by means of a pick-up arm formed by a first section and a second section joined in an articulated manner at one of the ends.

The first section is solidly connected at the other end to the gear motor shaft.

The second section is solidly connected at the other end to a support element to which a plurality of suction cups are attached.

In addition, the second section is connected, with the ability to slide, to a fixing element that in turn is connected to the fixed base by a shaft with the ability to rotate freely. In this way, a rotational movement of the motor reducer translates into a rotation of the first section, which causes both the rotation and the sliding of the second section with respect to the fixed base. With this configuration, the motor-reducer has a rotational movement to make the second section rotate while initially sliding with respect to the fixing element to withdraw from the conveyor line and, continuing the rotation, slide in the opposite direction to approach to the stacking area and capture a sheet of cardboard by suction. Then, the motor-reducer changes the direction of rotation so that the second section makes the reverse movement, sliding with respect to the fixing element to withdraw from the stacking area, with the sheet captured, and later slide in the opposite direction to deposit it in the conveyor line, where the cycle ends. The positions of the mechanism where the gearbox changes direction of rotation are determined by means of two detectors.

To give greater adjustment possibilities to the system, the support element of the mechanism can be a support shaft in which a pair of stringers are fixed at each of the ends, in which the plurality of suction cups are fixed.

Furthermore, the location of both the suction cups on the stringers and the stringers on the support shaft is adjustable, so that the dimension of the cardboard sheets is not a limitation for the mechanism of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

To complete the description of the invention and in order to help a better understanding of its characteristics, according to a preferred example of its embodiment, a set of drawings is attached in which, with an illustrative and non-limiting nature, they have been represented the following figures:

- Figure 1 represents a side view of the interior of a box-forming machine incorporating the mechanism of the invention on the conveyor line, the cardboard sheet stacking area and the box-forming area.

- Figure 2a represents a perspective view of the mechanism of the invention in position to capture a sheet of cardboard.

- Figure 2b represents a perspective view of the mechanism of the invention with a sheet captured in the turning process to deposit it on the conveyor line. - Figure 2c represents a perspective view of the mechanism of the invention in position to release a sheet on the conveyor line.

- Figure 3 represents a perspective view of the mechanism of the invention isolated to show its components more clearly.

Below is a list of the references used in the figures:

1. Stacking area.

2. Conveyor line.

3. Shaping area.

4. Cardboard sheet.

5. Fixed base.

6. Pick-up arm.

7. First section.

8. Second section.

9. Fixing element.

10. Support shaft.

11. Stringers.

12. Suction cups.

13. First detector.

14. Second detector.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to a cardboard sheet supply mechanism (4) that is incorporated into a box-forming machine by means of which the cardboard sheets (4) are captured in a stacking area (1) to be located on a conveyor line (2) that takes them to the shaping area (3).

Figure 1 represents a side view of the mechanism of the invention located in the box forming machine. In this figure it can be seen how the space between the stacking area (1) and the shaping area (3) has been reduced to a minimum to enable a conveyor line (2) with a linear dimension that can be as small as the dimension of the cardboard sheet of the box to be formed. In this way, the machine is dimensioned to be able to accept cardboard sheets (4) of a specified maximum size. In the case of forming boxes with cardboard sheets (4) of smaller dimensions, the lower side of the sheet (4) as it is located in the stacking area (1) is always positioned in the gluing area, located at the entrance of the the shaping area (3), the free space being in proximity to the stacking area (1). This is achieved.In this way, the production speed is always the same, regardless of the size of the cardboard sheet (4) and the path of the conveyor line (2) is optimized with respect to the length of the cardboard sheet ( 4).

Figure 2a represents the phase of collection of the cardboard sheet (4) from the stacking area (1) by the collector arm (6) of the mechanism.

Figure 2c represents the phase of depositing the cardboard sheet (4) on the conveyor line (2).

Figure 3 represents the mechanism of the invention isolated to show its components in more detail.

As shown in figure 3, the mechanism is located on a fixed base (5) that supports the motor-reducer. The mechanism is located near the shaping area (3), so that the sheets (4) can always be deposited close to it, leaving the free space for production with sheets (4) of greater dimensions in proximity to the stacking area (1).

The mechanism is configured by a pick-up arm (6) comprising a first section (7) and a second section (8) joined in an articulated manner at one of their ends.

The first section (7) is solidly connected by the free end to the shaft of the motor-reducer.

teniendo capacidad de deslizar por ella. El elemento de fijación (9) está unido a la base fija (5) mediante un eje con capacidad de rotar libremente.The second section (8) is joined by an intermediate zone to a fixing element (9) that incorporates a shape in

having the ability to slide through it. The fixing element (9) is attached to the fixed base (5) by means of a shaft with the ability to rotate freely.

A support shaft (10) is solidly connected to the free end of the second section (8) by a central area, configuring arms, in each of which a beam (11) is fixed. At least one suction cup (12) is attached to each of the beams (11). The position of the suction cups (12) on the beams (11) and of the beams (11) on the support shaft (10) can be adjusted according to needs, as well as the number of suction cups (12) and the dimensions of both the beams (11) and the support shaft (10), so that there is no limitation when it comes to capturing a cardboard sheet (4) due to its size if not for the size of the machine.

With this configuration of the pick-up arm (6), considering that the mechanism in the initial resting position is found as it has deposited a sheet (4) on the conveyor line (2), a rotating movement in an anticlockwise direction, as shown in the figure 3, of the gear motor causes the first section (7) to rotate in the same direction, which implies a rotation and also a sliding with respect to the fixing element (9) of the second section (8) to withdraw from the conveyor line (2 ). As the first section (7) continues to rotate, the second section (8) also continues to rotate to change the sliding direction and approach the stacking area to capture a cardboard sheet by suction. At this moment, the first detector (13) detects that the second section (8) has reached its limit position and causes the change in the direction of rotation of the gear motor so that the second section (8) makes the reverse movement, sliding with respect to to the fixing element (9) to withdraw from the stacking area (1), with the sheet (4) captured, and later slide in the opposite direction to deposit it on the conveyor line (2), where the second detector (14) detects the position of the second section (8) and causes the change of direction of rotation of the motor-reducer to start a new cycle. Once the cardboard sheet (4) has been deposited on the conveyor line (2), it is transferred to the forming area (3), where the process of forming the box continues while the mechanism begins a new cycle to capture the next sheet (4).

Finally, it must be borne in mind that the present invention should not be limited to the embodiment described here. Other configurations can be made by those skilled in the art in light of the present description. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims.

Claims (7)

1. - Mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine that comprises a motor-reducer located on a fixed base (5) in addition to a stacking area (1) of cardboard sheets (4), an area of forming (3) and a conveyor line (2) destined to transport the cardboard sheets (4) captured in the stacking area (1) to transport them to the forming area (3), where the mechanism comprises a plurality of suction cups ( 12) connected to a pneumatic system configured to create a depression when activated, where the mechanism comprises a pick-up arm (6) formed by a first section (7) and a second section (8), the second section (8) being joined , with the ability to slide, to a fixing element (9) that is attached to the fixed base (5) with the ability to rotate freely, the mechanism being characterized in that: - the first section (7) and the second section (8) are joined in an articulated manner at one of the ends, - the other end of the first section (7) is solidly connected to the shaft of the motor-reducer; - the other end of the second section (8) is solidly attached to a support element that incorporates the plurality of suction cups (12); so that the rotation of the motor reducer involves the capture of a cardboard sheet (4) in the stacking area (1) to be deposited on the conveyor line (2). 2. - Mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine, according to claim 1, characterized in that the support element is a support shaft (10) fixed to the second section (8) by an intermediate zone that incorporates in the ends of the respective beams (11) in which the suction cups (12) are located. 3. - Mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine, according to claim 1, characterized in that the location of the mechanism is considered so that the sheets (4) are located in an area of the conveyor line attached to the forming area. 4. Cardboard sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that the location of the suction cups (12) on the stringers (11) is adjustable. 5. Cardboard sheet supply mechanism of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that the location of the stringers (11) on the support shaft (10) is adjustable. 6. - Mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a first detector (13) that detects the final movement of the second section (8) once it has captured a sheet ( 4) from the stacking area (1) to change the direction of rotation of the motor reducer. 7. - Mechanism for supplying cardboard sheets of a box-forming machine, according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a second detector (14) that detects the final movement of the second section (8) once the sheet has been deposited ( 4) on the conveyor line to cause a change in the direction of rotation of the gear motor.