GB2260742A - Assembly apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The apparatus adds an element to each of a succession of product items advancing in a stream along a production line 10. A plurality of adder placement heads 215 are disposed in a line parallel with the stream at an adding station. A batch of product items are presented, one to each of the heads 215, for reception by the product items of the element to be added to the product items by the adder heads. The batch of treated product items are then advanced downstream out of the adding station, to make the station available to receive the next batch of product items. Electronic sensor means on each adding head 215 monitor the operation of that head. As shown, a line of component items 20 is delivered down a hopper feed track 17 and successive component items 20 are picked off the front of the track by successive pockets 34 on an endless loop component transfer belt 30. The belt 30 advances around sprockets 33, 34 to carry the filled pockets 31 to place a line of components alongside the adder heads. In the embodiment of Figures 3, 4 the downstream end of track 17 has a component lock 40, and a pocketed transfer blade 41 is located for reciprocating movement to a position in which (six) product items are carried beneath (six) placement heads 315. <IMAGE>

Description

ASSEMBLY APPARATUS This invention relates to a means for delivering product component items to an assembly station.

Within the packaging industry both intermittent motion and continuous motion product assembly lines are commonplace.

Such machines generally employ starwheels to receive components from a feed means and to deliver them to an assembly point for attachment to incomplete product items.

Such starwheel systems can achieve high output speeds but have the disadvantage that the incomplete product item, onto which the component is to be assembled, is obliged to follow the component in a rotary action around the same starwheel. This arrangement causes difficulties in, for example, providing electronic signalling means to monitor assembly.

Within the packaging industry shorter production runs with frequent changes of product item are becoming increasingly common. In order to accommodate the different sizes of component required for each different product item, the component engaging starwheels must be changed.

The greater the number and the more inaccessible the engaging parts, the longer the time taken for changeover thus increasing the loss of production time and reducing the profitability of each production run.

It is an object of the present invention to ameliorate these disadvantages.

According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus for adding an element to each of a succession of product items advancing in a stream along a production line, the apparatus comprising: i) a plurality of adder heads to be disposed in a line parallel with the stream at an adding station; ii) means to present a batch of product items, one to each of the heads, for reception by the items of the element to be added to the items by the adder heads; iii) means to advance the batch of treated product items downstream out of the adding station, to make the station available to receive the next batch of product items upstream; and iv) electronic sensor means on each adding head to monitor the operation of that head.

A number of advantages flow from the use of a line of adder heads and a batch of product items. In particular, electronic monitoring of the operation of the adder heads is simplified, because the adder heads are not rotating with a starwheel, but are instead stationary. The product items proceed downstream in successive batches (and it may well be convenient to provide each batch of product items on a common product item carrier, commonly referred to as a "puck") so that detection downstream of a fault in a product item can be traced easily to the particular one of the adder heads responsible for the fault. Cleaning and maintenance of the adder heads is facilitated by their fixed position.In particular, if the adder heads are delivering sticky liquid to a product item container, the adding station is always liable to become soiled by the liquid and it will in general be much easier to clean spilled liquid from a line of stationary heads than from a rotatory starwheel system. A machine with a line of stationary heads may also be more easily removed en bloc from the line for the purpose of remote cleaning away from the production area. Finally, changing from one product item to a different one is likely to involve fewer and cheaper changeparts with the line of stationary heads of the present invention, than with a conventional starwheel system. Furthermore, the parts to be changed in the present system can be made fully accessible, whereas the changeparts in a starwheel system are relatively inaccessible.Accordingly, not only is the cost of the changeparts reduced, but also the speed with which they can be changed, so that downtime of the production line is also minimised with the present invention.

In one embodiment of the invention, the adder heads are employed to assemble a product component onto each incomplete product item. For example, the adder heads could be responsible for introducing an outer cap onto a product item which is an uncapped liquid dispenser bottle.

Where the adder heads are used in this way, means are provided to deliver a batch of component items, one to each of the adder heads, so that each adder head can assemble one component item to one product item.

In one embodiment, the component delivery means comprises a component feeder hopper with an output device in the form of a feed track. A line of component items is delivered down the feed track to a pick-up point where successive component items are picked off the front of the track by successive pockets on an endless loop component transfer belt. The belt advances around sprockets to carry the filled pockets to place a line of components alongside the adder heads. The endless loop can advance continuously or intermittently, depending upon the mechanism of transfer of the component items from downstream of the endless loop to underneath the adder heads.

In an alternative, transfer of component items from the end of the feed track to positions underneath the adder heads can be accomplished by reciprocatory motion of a linear transfer blade which has a number of pockets corresponding to the number of adder heads. Advancement of the blade past the end of the feeder track picks off one component item into each pocket, and continued advancement in the same direction carries the pocketed component item to positions beneath or alongside the adder heads. Then, withdrawal of the blade in the reverse direction leaves the component items alongside or underneath the adder heads, and brings the blade back to its starting disposition, ready for another pass across the end of the feed track, to pick up another batch of component items.

In the conventional starwheel systems, adjustment of the assembly action at each adder head, while the machine is running, is in practice virtually impossible. With the present invention, however, the equipment of the adder heads is in a fixed location, offering much scope for adjustment and tuning during operation of the assembly line.

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is plan view of a conventional assembly station with a starwheel carrying a plurality of placement heads, for assembling a component item to each of a stream of incomplete products items; FIGURE 2 is a similar plan view of a first embodiment of assembly station in accordance with the present invention; and FIGURES 3 and 4 are similar plan views of a second embodiment of assembly station in accordance with the present invention, first showing a component item transfer blade in an initial pick-up disposition and, second, the same blade in a component item delivery disposition. Referring first to Figure 1, a production line 10 of unfinished product items delivers the items to an assembly station 11 in which there is a starwheel arrangement 12 which rotates in the direction of arrow f. Component items travel around virtually the entire circumference of the starwheel assembly 12, from an infeed product line conveyor 13 to a discharge conveyor 14 downstream of the assembly station 11.The starwheel carries a plurality of placement heads 15 distributed uniformly around the circumference of the starwheel 12, for applying a component item to each one of the incomplete product items advancing along the production line 10.

The required component items are delivered from a feed hopper 16 along a component feed track 17 in the direction of arrow g to a downstream end 18 of the track 17. At this downstream end the individual component items are picked off the front of the line of items in the track 17 by a rotatory picking sprocket 19 which has a plurality of pockets in its circumference, one to engage with each one of the successive component items 20 which is for the time being the leading one on the downstream end 18 of the track 17. The picking sprocket 19 delivers component items 20 onto the starwheel 12, one for each of the placement heads 15, so that each is pressed by one of the heads 15 onto a corresponding incomplete product item beneath the placement head in question.

Downstream of the starwheel 15 there is a further small sprocket 21 which picks assembled product items off the starwheel 12 and carries them around on the discharge conveyor 14 of the production line 10.

Turning now to Figure 2, the placement heads 215 are arranged not on the periphery of a starwheel 12 but in a line directly above the production line 10. The assembly station still has a component feed hopper 16 and delivery track 17 with downstream end 18, but the arrangements for carrying the component items 20 from there to the placement heads 21 are somewhat different. More particularly, these arrangements rely on an endless belt component conveyor 30 which has a large plurality of pockets 31 on links 32 in the form of a chain around sprockets 33 and 34 at each end of the delivery loop. The loop is advanced around the sprockets, to carry successive links 32 past the end 18 of the delivery track 17, thereby to pick successive leading component items 20 from the end of the delivery track 17.The loop advances in the direction of arrow h to carry these pick-off components around the end of sprocket 34 (within a guide rail 35), and along the length of the loop between the sprockets 33 and 34, in a line parallel to that of the production line 10. By means not shown, successive batches of six component items 20 are transferred from the six pockets 31 facing the production line 10, across the gap 34 between the loop 30 and the production line 10, into locations one beneath each of the six placement heads 215. Intermittent advancement of the incomplete product items on the production line 10 brings successive batches of six product items beneath the six placement heads 215, which then are actuated to impress the batch of six component items one onto each of the product items of the six member batch beneath the placement heads.

Obviously, the intermittent movement of the production line, placement heads and delivery loop 30 is co-ordinated so that each moves forward by one cycle each time a batch of six product items receives components 20 as shown.

In the variation shown in Figure 3, the downstream end of the delivery track 17 is provided with a component lock 40, and a pocketed transfer blade 41 is located for transverse reciprocatory movement across the downstream end 18. From the position shown in Figure 3, the lock 40 is released, and the blade 41 is driven forward in the direction of arrow j thereby to collect one product item 20 in each of the pockets 42 on the long edge of the blade 41 facing the delivery track 17. Such movement carries the blade 41 into the position shown in Figure 4, at which the point the lock 40 is once again re-applied, and transfer means, not shown, seizes the product items 20 from the position to which they have been transported by the blade 41, and carries them into positions beneath the six placement heads 3L5. Then, the blade 41 is withdrawn, along the direction of arrow k, into the initial position as shown in Figure 3.

Claims (7)

1. An apparatus for adding an element to each of a succession of product items advancing in a stream along a production line, the apparatus comprising: i) a plurality of adder heads adapted to be disposed in a line substantially parallel with the stream at an adding station; ii) means to present a batch of product items, one to each of the adder heads, for reception by the product items of the element to be added to the product items by the adder heads; iii) means to advance the batch of treated product items downstream out of the adding station, to make the station available to receive the next batch of product items upstream.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein electronic sensor means are provided on each adding head to monitor the operation of that head.

3. An apparatus as claimed in either of the preceding claims, wherein the adder heads are employed to assemble a respective product component onto each incomplete product item.

4. An apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the means to add an element comprises a component feeder hopper with an output device in the form of a feed track.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein a line of component items is delivered down the feed track to a pick-up point where successive component items are picked off the front of the track by successive pockets on an endless loop componcnt transfer belt.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein transfer of component items from the end of the feed track to positions underneath the adder heads is accomplished by reciprocatory motion of a linear transfer blade which has a plurality of pockets corresponding to the number of adder heads, whereby advancement of the blade past the end of the feeder track picks off one component item into each pocket, and carries the pocketed component item to positions beneath or alongside the adder heads, and subsequent withdrawal of the blade in the reverse direct ion leaves the component items alongside or underneath the adder heads, and brings the blade back to its starting disposition, ready for another pass across the end of the feed track, to pick up another batch of component items.

7. An apparatus for adding an element to each of a succession of product items substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 2 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.