US3856227A

US3856227A - Device for the continuous feeding of a machine with a strip unwound from successive reels

Info

Publication number: US3856227A
Application number: US00247945A
Authority: US
Inventors: J Gouy
Original assignee: Societe Nationale dExploitation Industrielle des Tabacs et Allumettes SAS
Current assignee: Societe Nationale dExploitation Industrielle des Tabacs et Allumettes SAS
Priority date: 1971-04-30
Filing date: 1972-04-27
Publication date: 1974-12-24
Anticipated expiration: 1991-12-24
Also published as: DE2220054B2; FR2135843A5; DE2220054A1; GB1392987A; IT951479B

Abstract

A device for feeding a machine with a strip unwound from successive reels of the type comprising at least one reel carrying shaft, means for maintaining at stand-by, close to the strip of the residual reel, the end of a new strip originating from the replacement reel, means for accelerating the new strip up to the moving speed of the residual strip, means for joining the residual strip to the leading end of the new strip, wherein the reel carrying shaft is provided to receive several reels and to bring in succession each reel in place of that which preceded it, the means for maintaining at stand-by the end of the new strip are provided to receive the end of the strips in the reels mounted on the reel carrying shaft and to cause said ends to advance in synchronism with the displacement of the corresponding reels, in the direction of the accelerating means and to transfer them in succession onto said accelerating means.

Description

United States Patent [191 Gouy [ Dec. 24, 1974 DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS FEEDING OF A MACHINE WITH A STRIP UNWOUND FROM SUCCESSIVE REELS [75] Inventor: Jean-Claude Gouy, Chaville, France [73] Assignee: Service DExploitation Industrielle Des Tabacs Et Des Allumettes, Paris, France 221 Filed: Apr. 27, 1912 21 App1.No.: 247,945

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Primary Examiner-Donald E. Watkins Assistant ExaminerJohn M. Jillions [5 7 ABSTRACT A device for feeding a machine with a strip unwound from successive reels of the type comprising at least one reel carrying shaft, means for maintaining at stand-by, close to the strip of the residual reel, the end of a new strip originating from the replacement reel, means for accelerating the new strip up to the moving speed of the residual strip, means for joining the residual strip to the leading end of the new strip, wherein the reel carrying shaft is provided to receive several reels and to bring in succession each reel in place of that which preceded it, the means for maintaining at stand-by the end of the new strip are provided to receive the end of the strips in the reels mounted on the reel carrying shaft and to cause said ends to advance in synchronism with the displacement of the corresponding reels, in the direction of the accelerating means and to transfer them in succession onto said accelerating means.

8 Claims 10 Drawing Figures DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS FEEDING OF A MACI-HNE WITH A STRIP UNWOUND FROM SUCCESSIVE REELS This invention relates to a device for the continuous feeding of a machine with a strip unwound from successive reels such as paper reels.

In the tobacco industry, as regards the manufacture of cigarettes, the wrapping paper for the latter is unwound from a reel. When a reel is emptied, a new reel is set into place. This method of proceeding, because of the interruption of the cigarette making machine which it causes, decreases production to a substantial extent.

Due to the increase in the hourly production of cigarette making machines, such a method could not easily be applied. Consequently, it has been suggested to provide spare paper reels, i.e., two or three reels, and when a given reel is emptied, to automatically join the driven end of the residual strip to the leading end of the spare strip. There is thus no interruption in production and, to obtain a new spare reel, the emptied reel is simply replaced with a new reel.

But the use of such a device is inherently limited by the use of high speed machines and by the fact that efforts are made to reduce human intervention to a minimum during the operation of these machines. Thus when using these manufacturing machines with two spare reels, it is necessary to remove the emptied reel and to replace with a new reel approximately every ten to twenty minutes. In order to reduce human intervention to the minimum, it is therefore necessary to provide a sufficient number of spare reels.

Such is the object of this invention which relates to a device for feeding a machine with a strip unwound from successive reels, which device is of the type comprising at least one reel carrying shaft, means for maintaining at stand-by the end of the strip of the replacement reel, means for accelerating the new strip up to the moving speed of the residual strip, means for joining the driven end of the residual strip to the leading end of the new strip, which device is characterized, on the one hand, by the fact that the reel carrying shaft is provided so as to receive several reels and to bring, in succession, each reel to the place occupied by the preceding one, and on the other hand, by the fact that the means for maintaining at stand-by the end of a new strip are provided so as to receive the end of the strips of the reels mounted on the reel carrying shaft and to cause said ends to advance, in synchronism, with the displacement of the corresponding reels, in the direction of the accelerating means and to transfer them in succession onto said accelerating means.

At least one reel carrying shaft can comprise a hollow drum mounted on a stationary frame and provided on at least two rows with movable fingers spaced by the thickness of a reel and controlled, on the one hand, so as to move together in alternate translation, of said thickness, along the axis of the drum in guide holes provided in said drum, and on the other hand so as to move radially towards the inside of the drum at the end of their forward run and towards the outside of the drum at the end of their return run.

The following description illustrates such an embodiment, in which description, which is not given by way of limitation, an example of an embodiment of the device according to the invention is shown in the appended drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an overall diagrammatic view of the device;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the reel carrying shaft and of its support;

' FIG. 3 is a sectional view along its supporting axis of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along line IVIV of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the reel carrier, along line VV of FIG. 6;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view along line VIVI of FIG. 5, with the reels removed;

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the operation of the motion reversing device;

FIG. 8 is a view to a larger scale of the zone, seen from the back, in which the cutting and junction means are located;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view along line IXIX of FIG. 8, and

FIG. 10 is a sectional view along line XX of FIG. 8.

As indicated in FIG. 1, a strip 101 unwound from a reel 102 located on a reel carrier with axis 103, after having passed on two

return rollers

104 and 105, is driven towards a utilization station, not shown.

A second reel 3a is standing by on another reel carrier with a shaft 4. Strip 2a of this reel is resting on a suction drum 9, which rotates around its axis 10, comprising a mask 111 designed to prevent the strip, upon rotation of the drum, from winding itself around the latter.

The path of strip 101, between

rollers

104 and 105, passes slightly above suction drum 9 and strip 20.

Above strip 101, and near the surface of drum 9, is located a junction knurling roller 112 mounted loosely on its axis 113. Upstream of this roller and above the plane of motion of strip 101, is fastened support 114.

The axis of knife is located on the bisector of the angle formed by the two

strips

101 and 2a, between the support 114 and drum 9. This knife 115 moves in rotation, in the direction of arrow A, around an axis 116, blade 117 describing the path 118 which is tangent to drum 9 and to the support 114.

A feeler 119 is provided to detect the end of the unwinding of the residual reel.

As indicated on FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, the knife 115 and the knurling roller are mounted on a frame 120.

In this frame 120, is housed a guide rod 121, which moves along the frame in slideways under the action of a jack 122.

On this guide rod 121 is mounted a rack 123 which catches onto a pinion 124 on which is mounted a free wheel 125. At the end of axis 126 of pinion 124 is located a chain wheel 127 connected to a wheel 128 mounted on axis 116 of knife 115.

Close to and upstream of knife 115, is located a driving roller 129 which can come in contact with strip 20 and, in its descending motion under the action of a jack 130, it applies said strip onto the surface of drum 9.

On guide rod 121 is fastened a cam 131. On this cam, is located a small roller 132 fastened to the end of an arm 133 hinged at its other end on an axis 134 housed in frame 120. A second arm 135 integral with arm 133 carries, at its end, knurling roller 112.

Finally, a jack 136 is provided to draw away laterally wheel 128 and roller 129 whose axes are mounted on one and the same arm 137.

As indicated in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, 1a, lb, 1i represent the ends of strips 2a, 2b 2i unwound from

reels

3a, 3b 3i, located side by side on one and the same reel carrying shaft 4.

The ends of the strips lie on a slide which is movable under the action of a jack 6, along a generatrix of support 7 which is fastened to a frame 8.

The reel carrying shaft 4 is provided, as indicated in FIGS. 5 and 6, with means designed to cause the reels to advance stepwise in synchronism with the motion of jack 6 so that each reel and its leading end constantly remain in the same plane.

Support 7 is provided as a hollow drum whose end opposite that which is fastened to the frame is the suction drum 9 which can be driven into rotation by shaft 10.

On the stationary part of drum 7, are provided perforations 11 connected to a suction circuit 12 which is also connected to perforations located on drum 9.

The movable slide 5 also comprises perforations 13 connected to a suction circuit 14.

The

suction networks

12 and 14 are operated in turn by means of an electrovalve 16. Jack 6 is also actuated by an electrovalve 17. The pilots of the two electrovalves 16 and 17 are connected electrically to switch 18. The latter has two positions x and y, which provides for the reversibility of the system.

As indicated in FIGS. 5 and 6, a reel carrying drum 201, with the shaft 4, is fastened to a frame 202. On this drum 201, which is hollow, are mounted radially,

cross bars

203, 204 and 205 which are movable in the

longitudinal guide holes

206, 207 and 208 provided in the drum along generatrices distributed at 120. These cross bars carry fingers 209 spaced from one another by the thickness of a reel. Between these fingers are housed

reels

3a, 3b 31'.

Cross bars

203, 204 and 205 are movable longitudinally on the drum, respectively in

guide holes

206, 207 and 208 under the action of a jack 211 located at the end of shaft 4 on which are wedged two

cams

217 and 218. The latter drive the cross bars by means of their shoulders 228.

A second jack 213, whose arm 214 is hinged on an axis 215, fastened in an eccentric manner on a disc 216, which constitutes a connecting rod-crank unit, drives shaft 4 into rotation on a given path. The base of jack 213 is connected to frame 202 through an axis 229. Shaft 4 is integral, in rotation, with disc 216 through a key 230 crossing shaft 4 in a guide hole 231 whose length is such that the longitudinal displacement of 4 has no effect whatsoever on disc 216.

This rotational movement is imparted to the cross bars through

cams

217 and 218 keyed onto shaft 4. These cams comprise

guide holes

219, 220, 221 in which are housed

pins

222, 223 and 224 of

cross bars

203, 204 and 205.

As shown in FIG. 7,

jacks

211 and 213 are fed with air under pressure through line 225 by means of

free piston distributors

226 and 227.

The distribution of air for the purpose of displacing each jack in one direction or in the other is effected under the action of pulses generated by circuits B, C, D and E, circuit B controlling the forward displacement of shaft 4 and circuit C its return rearwards, circuit D controlling the displacement of fingers 209 within the drum and circuit E their displacement towards the outside of the drum. As an example, the pulse along circuit B acts to displace the slide of distributor 226 towards the left.

These circuits are connected through relays to a program which provides suitable pulses according to a set order.

If it is desired to advance the reels towards the free end of drum 201, and for example, remove them one by one from drum 201, i.e., in order to bring them one by one on a transfer means such as a reel carrying axis, not shown, which is movable between an end position of drum 201 and a utilization station, the pulses are given in the following order, B, D, C and E, it being specified that the unit from 213 to 216 is provided so that the intervening action of circuit D will cause the rotation of

cams

217 and 218 in the direction of arrow F (FIG. 6) and of circuit E in the reverse direction.

If new reels are to be loaded onto the drum, once the reels have been discharged from it, the pulses are simply given in the following order, D, B, E and C, by inverting the relays two by two.

The device as a whole operates as follows.

At the start, ends la, 1i are arranged on drum 7, the surface of suction drum 9 being cleared and strip 101 unwinding from reel 102.

Suction circuit 12 is opened and the ends of the strips are maintained on drum 7. Suction circuit 14 is closed.

, When end la is to be transferred onto drum 9, simultaneously, through valve 16 as shown, suction circuit 12 is closed and suction circuit 14 is then opened. Ends 1a 11' of the strips are then maintained by slide 5.

Jack 6 begins to act and displaces slide 5 towards drum 9. End 1a is thus placed on the surface of drum 9.

Suction circuit 14 is then closed and suction circuit 12 is opened. Jack 6 returns slide 5 to its starting position. 7

End 1a is maintained in place, through suction on drum 9. End 1b, displaced as a result of the motion of slide 5 into the position occupied by 10 before its displacement, is maintained in it through suction acting through perforation 11. Similarly, each end of strip 1b 1i, will again be in the position occupied by the preceding end.

The corresponding reels are displaced in synchronism as this displacement of the ends of the strips is taking place.

Reel 3a is to be drawn out from drum 201 so as to bring it towards the utilization station, or, further, the mandrel is to be removed from the emptied reel 3a assuming the unwinding of this reel occurs on drum 201, the end of the latter, on which the reel is resting, being driven into rotation in this case, by any appropriate means.

For this purpose, jack 211 is actuated and causes shaft 4 to advance by one spacing, i.e., the thickness of a reel, towards the right end of FIG. 5. Disc 216 remains stationary in position.

Shaft 4 being connected to cross

bars

203, 204 and 205 through

cams

217 and 218, these move driving with them

reels

3a, 3b 3i housed in the spaces formed by fingers 209.

Since the motion effected corresponds to the thickness of a reel, reel 3a is then cleared of drum 201 and is taken up again by any appropriate means. Reel 3b then occupies the place previously occupied by reel 3a.

Jack 213 is then set into action, arm 214 moves upwards and, through axis 215, drives disc 216 into rotation, jack 213 moving into rotation around axis 229. Disc 216, keyed onto shaft 4, drives the latter into rotation as well as

cams

217 and 218 in the direction corresponding to that of arrow F of FIG. 6. The rotation which is effected corresponds to an angle equal to that of the opening angle of guide holes 219, 220 and 221.

Pins

222, 223 and 224 are driven towards the center as well as cross bars 203, 204 and 205 and fingers 209 which are integral with them. This motion acts to cause the cross bars to descend inside guide holes 206, 207 and 208 until the fingers have been moved away from the surface of drum 201.

Jack 211 is then set into action in the opposite direction in order to return shaft 4 to its starting position. The cross bars are thus returned backwards, and fingers 209 recover, on the surface of the drum, and

therefore without driving the reels, the positions which they occupied previously.

Jack 213 is then actuated in the reverse direction in order to return disc 216 to its original position. This rotation of disc 216 actuates that of shaft 4 and of

cams

217 and 218 in a direction which is the reverse of that indicated by arrow F, the latters angle of rotation being equal to that over which they had previously rotated.

Pins

222, 223 and 224 move away from the center, causing cross bars 203, 204 and 205 to rise up into guide holes 206, 207 and 208, which cross bars cause fingers 209 to come out of drum 201, these fingers taking up their place again between the reels.

The device operates as follows:

When reel 102 is almost completely unwound, which is detected by feeler 119, suction drum -9 is progressively set into motion, driving strip 2a with it. This can be obtained using a variable speed motor, relayed, through an electromagnetic connection, by the motor of the machine driving strip 101.

Jack 130 is then set into action causing driving roller 129 to descend and press strip 2a onto drum 9, this operation being effected in order to obtain a cut under the best conditions. When the moving speeds of

strips

101 and 2a are equal, i.e., when the engagement has been completed, jack 122 is set into motion pushing the guide rod towards the left (in the case of FIG. 8).

As guide rod 121 advances, rack 123, in meshing engagement with pinion 124, causes knife 115 to pivot in the direction shown by arrow A by means of chain wheel 127 and wheel 128. The end of blade 117 comes close enough to be tangent to strip 2a on drum 9 which forms an opposite part and sections it. That part of strip 2a, downstream of the sectioning point, is carried away by drum 9 and is eliminated.

That part of strip 2a, upstream of the sectioning point is maintained through suction on drum 9 and advances forwards.

As guide rod 121 pursues its advance, the small roller 132, which was supported by cam 131 falls from the latter. Arm 133 goes down and by pivoting around axis 134, arm 135, which carries knurling roller 112, goes down, pressing strip 101 onto strip 2a. Roller 112 is set into rotation around its axis 113 through friction against drum 9 and, through a series of knurling points, joins in a known manner the new strip to the old one.

During this time, knife has continued its rotation and the end of its blade 117 has come close enough to be tangent to strip 101 on the support 114 and has sectioned it. Strip 2a is now passing on return roller 105.

Guide rod 121, in a forward thrust bearing, stops and jack 122 returns it to its starting position. During this return stroke of the guide rod, knife 115 remains stationary, since pinion 124 is not set into motion clue to free wheel 125. During this stroke, small roller 132 recovers cam 131 and knurling roller 112 rises again.

Once the junction has taken place, jack simultaneously lifts up again driving roller 129.

Reel 102 is then simply ejected and reel 3a is then passed instead of the latter. A new reel is then introduced at the place previously occupied by reel 3a so that there may be a possibility for a new junction.

In order for this transfer operation to be carried out, knife 115 and driving roller 129 must be moved away from the path of strip 2a, which is effected by actuating jack 136 which, upon its withdrawal motion, drives arm 137 on which are mounted the axes of knife 115 and driving means 129.

It is of course possible, without departing from the scope of the invention to provide two knives mounted on the same axis 116 whose rotation can be controlled by a rack comprising an inactive part between two active parts. The axis does not have to be on the bisector of the dihedral angle, the knives then having different lengths so that their peripheral velocities will be different so as to be adapted to tangential cutting conditions.

Finally, when end 1i will have been transferred onto drum 9 and the corresponding reel 3i will have been emptied, the resetting of the device into operation will simply comprise reversing the suction circuits, i.e., imparting of a sucking action to slide 5 during its displacement in the direction of the frame and inactivation during the reverse displacement and arranging separately each end of the new strip both from drum 9 and on the end of slide 5 when said end is plumb with drum 9.

In normal operation, i.e., when the ends of the strips are displaced from slide 5 towards drum 9, switch 18 is at position X. The electric connection is then such that when jack 6 displaces the slide towards drum 9, the suction occurs in circuit 14 and when the jack returns to its starting position, the suction occurs in circuit 12.

Similarly, in order to set the device into operation again when all the ends have been transferred onto the suction drum, the switch is displaced to position Y. This results in inverting the operation of the electrovalve 16; thus during the motion of the slide in the direction of the drum 9, the electrovalve puts circuit 12 into suction and during the motion in the direction of the frame, circuit 14 is operating.

Similarly, as mentioned previously, the modification of the sequence of operations, through a suitable switching of the circuits of FIG. 7, makes it possible to load drum 201 with reels. To this effect, at each cycle, a reel is placed in the position represented by reel 3a until the drum is filled.

What I claim is:

l. A device for feeding a machine with a feed strip unwound from a feed reel, comprising a drum member having a free end portion and adapted to receive at least two refill reels on each of which is wound a refill strip, means for moving successively each of said refill reels and bringing said reels successively at the end portion of said drum member and at the place of the preceding reel, respectively, means for receiving the free end of each of said refill strips and maintaining said ends at standby close to said feed strip, means for accelerating one of said refill strips and making it move in synchronism with said feed strip, means for moving said ends in synchronism with said movement of said refill reels towards said accelerating means and transferring said ends successively onto said accelerating means, means for joining said feed strip to the leading end of each said refill strips successively, and means for cutting the leading end of said one refill strip.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein said drum member is a hollow drum provided with at least two longitudinal guiding holes, and said means for moving each of said reels comprises a longitudinally movable finger in each of said guiding holes, said fingers being spaced from one another a distance substantially equal to the thickness of said refill reels, means for moving said fingers in translation forwardly and rearwardly along said guiding holes, and means for moving said fingers radially inwardly inside said drum at the end of the forward translation and outwardly outside said drum at the end of the rearward translation.

3. A device according to claim 1, wherein said means for receiving the free ends of said refill strips and maintaining said ends at a standby comprise a fixed support, a movable slide on said support, means for moving said movable slide in alternate motion between a first position and a second position, means for retaining said free ends on said movable slide when said movable slide is moving from said first position to said second position, and means for retaining said free ends on said support when said movable slide is moving from said second position to said first position.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein said retaining means are suction means.

5. A device according to claim 3, wherein said support is a stationary cylindrical drum having a free end and there is provided a second drum rotatably mounted on said free end of said drum.

6. A device according to claim 1, wherein said feed reel, said refill reels, said accelerating means and said joining means are so arranged that said feed strip and said leading edge of said refill strip define an acute dihedral angle and said cutting means are arranged in said angle upstream of said joining means with reference to the general direction of movement of said feed strip and said refill strip.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein said cutting means comprise at least one rotating knife having a cutting edge describing a cylindrical path when said knife is rotated, means for rotating said knife, said accelerating means, said feed strip and said refill strip being substantially tangent to said cylindrical path, a fixed support on the opposite side of said knife relative to said feed strip and accelerating means on the opposite side of said knife relative to said refill strip.

8. A device according to claim 2 further comprising a shaft operatively connected with said means for moving said fingers in translation and by said means for moving said fingers radially, cams fixedly mounted on said shaft, and cross bars housed in said longitudinal guiding holes and operatively connected with said cams, said fingers being mounted on said cross bars.

Claims

1. A device for feeding a machine with a feed strip unwound from a feed reel, comprising a drum member having a free end portion and adapted to receive at least two refill reels on each of which is wound a refill strip, means for moving successively each of said refill reels and bringing said reels successively at the end portion of said drum member and at the place of the preceding reel, respectively, means for receiving the free end of each of said refill strips and maintaining said ends at standby close to said feed strip, means for accelerating one of said refill strips and making it move in synchronism with said feed strip, means for moving said ends in synchronism with said movement of said refill reels towards said accelerating means and transferring said ends successively onto said accelerating means, means for joining said feed strip to the leading end of each said refill strips successively, and means for cutting the leading end of said one refill strip.