WO2012160078A1

WO2012160078A1 - System for folding thin flexible elements

Info

Publication number: WO2012160078A1
Application number: PCT/EP2012/059558
Authority: WO
Inventors: Graziano Feltre; Domenico Feltre
Original assignee: Feltre Srl
Priority date: 2011-05-23
Filing date: 2012-05-23
Publication date: 2012-11-29
Also published as: BR112013029605A2; ITVI20110131A1

Abstract

The invention is a system (1) for folding hides (L) comprising a structure (1a) in which it is possible to identify: a transport surface (2) of the hides (L) to be folded; a moving frame (3) that supports the transport surface (2), slidingly associated with one pair of first section elements (4) parallel to each other and defining a direction of movement (Y) of the moving frame (3) towards a folding area (5); a fixed frame (6) positioned under the first section elements (4) comprising one pair of second section elements (6') parallel to each other and orthogonal to the first section elements (4) and one pair of third section elements (6'') parallel to each other and orthogonal to the second section elements (6'), the fixed frame (3) and the first section elements (4) delimiting the folding area (5) in which there is a folding plane (7); means (10) for folding the hides (L), comprising at least one blade (12) that revolves according to a longitudinal axis and is suited to receive, one after the other, the hides (L) to be folded coming from the transport surface (2). The revolving blade (12) is associated with the fixed frame (6) and is mechanically connected to first power means (11) suited to move the revolving blade (12) with respect to the folding plane (7) in order to modify the position in which the revolving blade (12) provides for folding each one of the hides (L) in one or more of its parts.

Description

SYSTEM FOR FOLDING THIN FLEXIBLE ELEMENTS.

DESCRIPTION

The invention concerns a system for folding thin flexible elements, particularly suited to be used for folding hides.

It is known that during the processing cycle in the tannery, when the hides leave the processing machines, they are often folded and stacked on pallets in order to facilitate handling and transport.

The folding operation is carried out by means of systems that substantially comprise a transport carriage that makes each horizontally laid hide advance and places it on a folding surface where suitable folding means make on the same one or more folds, depending on how the hide must be folded and on the size of the pallet on which it will be stacked.

Pallets come in different sizes, in fact, and therefore the hides are folded in different ways depending on their dimensions, for example at the level of one or both bellies, of the head or the spine, or at the level of both bellies and the head, or again at the level of the spine and the head, and so on.

Regarding the folding means, they comprise one or more folding blades that revolve according to an axis that is substantially parallel to the plane on which the hide lies, wherein said folding blades fold the hide at the level of the rotation axis of each blade by performing a rotation that does not exceed 180°. In order to be able to adapt the size of the hides to the size of the pallet on which they will be stacked, it is necessary to fold them in different ways and positions.

In this regard, the systems described in patent documents FR 2 850 670 and WO 2008/022248 are known, which are provided with hide folding means, in particular with blades revolving around an axis that defines a longitudinal rotation direction.

A recognized drawback posed by the folding systems of the known type, and in particular by the systems described in the cited documents, lies in that they are not provided with adjusting means allowing the operator to rapidly modify the position of the revolving folding blades and thus to modify the hide folding position.

In fact, at the moment of installation the system is configured in such a way as to make the fold/folds in a precise and clearly defined position and this position can be modified only by specialized technicians. In other words, the systems of the known type are not provided with adjusting means of any type intended to allow the user to rapidly modify the hide folding operation.

It is clear that this makes the system extremely rigid and strongly limits its uses and the possibility to adapt it to different hide folding needs.

Furthermore, due to the above, any modification is expensive, as in addition to the cost of specialized labour the user must also bear the losses deriving from lack of production resulting from the stoppage of the system.

There is also a further drawback, typical of the folding systems of the known type, resulting from the fact that it is impossible to rapidly modify the position where the fold is made.

In fact, when two or more folded hides are stacked on the pallet, depending on the way in which they have been folded, a depression is often created at the level of the area where each one of the hides is not folded on itself, and this affects the stability of the stack and may also cause problems during transport. This drawback may be eliminated by folding a hide differently from the others from time to time, in order to be able to put it in the area where there is the depression, so as to make the stack more uniform, but due to the reasons explained above this option is practically impossible in the folding systems of the known type.

The present invention has the object to overcome all the drawbacks described above that are typical of the known systems for folding thin flexible elements. In particular, it is a first object of the invention to provide a system for folding thin flexible elements, particularly hides, in which the position of the folding means can be rapidly modified.

It is another object of the invention to provide a system in which the position of the folding means can be directly modified by the operator.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a system in which said modification of the position of the folding means can be carried out by the operator through control means that are located remotely with respect to the folding means.

It is another object of the invention to provide a system in which each adjusting operation can be carried out at any moment during the processing cycle, soon after a hide has been folded and before folding the successive hide.

It is another, yet not the least object of the invention to provide a system in which said adjustments can be carried out with no need to stop the system. The objects described above are achieved by a system for folding thin flexible elements, in particular hides, whose characteristics are described in the main claim, to which the reader should refer for the sake of brevity.

Other details of the system are described in the dependent claims.

To advantage, the use of the system of the invention makes the folding operations more flexible, as it gives the user the opportunity to fold them in several different ways.

Still to advantage, the system of the invention makes it possible to make up for the presence of any depressions among the hides stacked on the pallet and thus to increase the number of stackable hides with the same stack height.

To further advantage, this also makes it possible to increase the density of the stack and thus to improve its stability during transport.

The objects and advantages described above will be highlighted in greater detail in the description of a preferred embodiment of the system that is the subject of the invention that is provided as an indicative, non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, wherein:

- Figure 1 shows an axonometric view of the system that is the subject of the invention;

- Figures 1 a and 1 b show enlarged details of the system shown in Figure 1 ;

- Figure 2 shows a detail of Figure 1 ;

- Figures 3 and 4 show enlarged details of Figure 2;

- Figures from 5 to 9 show the folding sequences according to a first folding method;

- Figures from 10 to 18 show the folding sequences according to a second hide folding method;

- Figures from 19 to 21 show the hide folding sequences according to a third folding method;

- Figures from 22 to 24 show a different type of use of the system of the invention.

The folding system of the invention is shown in its entirety in Figure 1 , where it is indicated as a whole by 1.

It is suited to fold thin flexible elements of any type, but it is used in particular in tanneries for folding hides.

It can be observed that it comprises a structure 1a in which it is possible to identify a transport surface 2 on which the hides L to be folded, coming from a loading ramp 2a, are laid in succession.

The detail Figures 1 a and 1 b show that the transport surface 2 is supported by a moving frame 3 that is slidingly associated with one pair of first section elements 4 that are parallel to each other and define a longitudinal direction of movement Y of the moving frame 3 towards a folding area indicated as a whole by 5 and positioned under the first section elements 4.

Said pair of first section elements 4 is substantially constituted by a pair of first guide rails.

Under the first section elements 4 there is a fixed frame 6 that comprises one pair of second section elements 6' that are parallel to each other and orthogonal to the first section elements 4 and one pair of third section elements 6" that are parallel to each other and orthogonal to the second section elements 6'.

Said pairs of second section elements 6' and of third section elements 6" are substantially constituted by the same number of second guide rails and third guide rails.

The second section elements 6' and the third section elements 6" are connected to each other in order to give the fixed frame 6 a quadrangular flat shape that defines a substantially horizontal plane.

Thus the first section elements 4 and the fixed frame 6 are substantially arranged on two parallel planes and the folding area 5 is located between them.

With reference to Figure 2, too, it can be observed that in the folding area 5 there are a folding plane 7 that supports each one of the hides L during the folding operation and folding means indicated as a whole by 10.

According to the invention, the folding means 10 are associated with the fixed frame 6 and are mechanically connected to first power means 11 suited to move the folding means 10 with respect to the folding plane 7 to modify the position in which said folding means 10 provide for folding each one of the hides L in one or more of its parts.

Regarding the second section elements 6', it can be observed that their ends 6'a project from the folding area 5 by a length that is at least sufficient to house the folding means 10 when these must be arranged completely outside the folding area 5. The folding means 10, in particular, comprise at least one revolving blade 12 suited to receive one after the other the hides to be folded coming from the transport surface 2, as will be described in greater detail below.

The revolving blade 12 is associated with a rotation shaft 13 that is arranged parallel to the first section elements 4 and defines a longitudinal rotation axis of said revolving blade 12.

Each end of the rotation shaft 13 rests on a carriage 14 supported by the second section elements 6' and connected to said first power means 11.

In particular, the rotation shaft 13 is connected to rotation means 25 that are supported by the corresponding carriage 14.

In the embodiment of the invention described herein, the revolving blades 12 are two and are opposite and coplanar with each other, and each carriage 14 supporting one end of the rotation shaft 13 is connected to the first power means 11 that are suited to move it along the second section elements 6'. A variant embodiment of the same solution is also possible, in which the rotation shaft 13 of the revolving blades 12 is arranged parallel to the second section elements 6' and each one of its ends is supported by a carriage 14 coupled with one of the third section elements 6".

In this way, the mutual displacement of the revolving blades 12 intended to move them near to or away from each other is carried out along said third section elements 6" according to a direction that is orthogonal to the first section elements 4.

In the embodiment of the invention described herein, with particular reference to the detail Figures 3 and 4, it is possible to observe that each carriage 14 is provided with two wheels 15 that rest on a corresponding second section element 6' and with a connection bracket 16 for connection to the first power means 11.

The first power means 11 comprise, for each carriage 14, one pair of pulleys 20 which are associated with each one of the second section elements 6' and on which a belt 21 is wound, the connection bracket 16 for connection to the corresponding carriage 14 being fixed to said belt 21.

Two pulleys 20, opposing each other since each of them belongs to one of the two opposing second section elements 6', are connected to each other by a drive shaft 28 that in turn is connected to the output shaft of a gear motor unit 22. Therefore, the rotation of the gear motor 22 causes the movement of the belts 21 and thus of the carriage 14 together with the revolving blade 12 corresponding to it along the second section elements 6'.

Consequently, in the system of the invention which, as already explained, is provided with two revolving blades 12, the operation of the first power means 11 makes it possible to move the revolving blades towards and away from each other, depending on the needs, so as to modify the position where the hide is folded.

Therefore, by adjusting the distance between the revolving blades 12 it is possible to define the folding width of each hide.

After the adjustment, the folding operation is performed by rotating the rotation shaft 13 and the revolving blade 12 associated with it through the operation of the rotation means 25.

Regarding the folding plane 7 on which the hide L is folded, it is associated with vertical displacement means that make it possible to lower it progressively as the hide stack is being formed, so that each hide being folded is always arranged at the level of the plane of the revolving blades 12.

According to a preferred yet not exclusive embodiment of the invention, the folding plane 7 can belong to a hydraulic or pneumatic lifting platform of the type known per se and available also on the market.

Furthermore, the folding plane 7 can be provided with a blade that revolves according to a vertical axis for the 360° rotation of the hide placed on it.

Regarding, finally, the frame 3 that supports the transport surface 2, it is provided with rolling means resting on the first section elements 4 and is connected to second power means 31 that make it possible to slidingly shift it along said first section elements 4, from the area where the transport surface 2 receives the hide L from the loading ramp 2a to the folding area 5 in which third power means 40, associated with the transport surface 2, place the hide L to be folded on the folding means 10.

The second power means 31 , analogously to the first power means 11 , comprise one pair of belts 32 connected to the frame 3 through a bracket and each one of them is wound on a pair of pulleys 33 associated with each one of said first section elements 4.

A gear motor unit 35 connected to two opposing pulleys 33 through a drive shaft 34 moves the belts 32 that provide for shifting the frame 3 towards or away from the folding area 5.

Regarding the transport surface 2, it is defined by a plurality of belts 36 placed side by side that are set moving by third power means 40 comprising one pair of drums 37 supported by the frame 3 on which said belts 36 are wound and a gear motor 41 coupled to one of the drums 37.

In this way, when the second power means 31 are operated, the frame 3, with the transport surface 2 associated with it, transports the hide L to the folding area 5 from which it is transferred on the revolving blades 12 through the operation of the third power means 40.

The combination of the advance motions of the frame 3 and of the transport surface 2 makes it possible to deposit on the revolving blades 12 the hide L folded according to the direction that is transversal to the advance direction Y, as will be illustrated in greater detail below.

A control panel indicated as a whole by 50 constitutes a fundamental part of the system and comprises controllers with electrically programmable logic that are connected to all the gear motors provided on the power means of the system and also to the vertical displacement means of the folding plane 7.

In this way it is possible to operate the system according to programmed or manual sequences to be chosen by the operator.

Furthermore, the system is also provided with alarm and safety sensors, not illustrated in the drawings, which are also electrically connected to the control panel 50.

In particular, there are alarm sensors that stop the system if the hide, after being folded once, should spread out again due, for example, to an edge folded with a too narrow margin or due to the excessive stiffness of the hide. In practice, the first power means 11 arrange the folding means 10 in a preselected position according to the folding method and to the final size the hide must have at the end of the folding operation.

The hides to be folded are laid on the loading ramp 2a one after the other and at the top of the ramp each one reaches the transport surface 2.

The second power means 31 make the frame 3 advance until it reaches the folding area 5 where the third power means 40 transfer the hide L from the transport surface 2 to the folding area 5 and in particular above the revolving blades 12.

The rotation of the revolving blades 12 by an angle not exceeding 180° obtained through the rotation means 25 causes the hide to be folded along the direction defined by the rotation shafts 13 based on the programming.

Different folding methods can be employed, which are described here below only by way of example with reference to the attached schematic drawings, each one of which illustrates a folding step with reference to the plan and front views of the system.

A first folding method comprises the folding sequences illustrated in Figures from 5 to 9 and includes the folding of the head Lt of a hide L already folded at the level of the spine.

The folding means are arranged with the left blade 12 housed in the projecting ends 6'a of the second section elements 6' and thus, being outside the folding area 5, the left blade 12 does not take part in the folding operation.

On the other hand, the right blade 12, which is arranged inside the folding area 5, folds the hide L according to the programmed folding position.

The frame 3, with the hide L already folded at the level of the spine and laid on the transport surface 2, is advanced until it is completely over the folding plane 7.

The frame 3 is then moved backwards as shown in Figure 6, in the direction indicated by the arrow V3, and at the same time the transport surface 2 is set moving in the direction indicated by the arrow V2, so that the hide L starts to be arranged on the folding plane 7 as shown in Figure 6, until reaching the final position visible in Figure 7, in which it is completely over the folding plane 7.

The progressive rotation of the revolving blade 12 shown in Figure 8 starts the folding of the head Lt of the hide L that is completed when the head Lt is superimposed to the hide L as shown in Figure 9.

A second folding method comprises the folding sequences illustrated in Figures from 10 to 18 and includes the following steps:

- folding the head Lt of the hide L by means of the coordinated movement of the frame 3 and the transport surface 2;

- folding both bellies Lf by means of the revolving blades 12.

For this purpose, the hide L to be folded is laid on the transport surface 2 as shown in Figure 10 and the frame 3 is advanced completely over the folding plane 7.

The frame 3 is then moved backwards as shown in Figure 1 1 in the direction indicated by the arrow V3 and at the same time the transport surface 2 is set moving in the direction indicated by the arrow V2.

The hide L starts being laid on the folding plane 7 until it reaches the configuration shown in Figure 12, in which the head Lt is still on the transport surface 2.

At this point the movement direction of the frame 3 is reversed and this is moved in the direction V'3, opposite the direction V3, until it reaches the position shown in Figure 13, in which the head Lt of the hide L is folded on the hide itself in the configuration shown in Figure 14, in which the hide L, folded at the head, is positioned over the revolving blades 12.

These are both arranged at the level of the folding area 5 at the distance D that corresponds to the final folding width of the hide.

In order to avoid the interference between the revolving blades 12, the right belly Lfd is folded first, starting as shown in Figure 15 and ending as shown in Figure 16, and the left belly Lfs is folded successively, starting as shown in Figure 17 and ending as shown in Figure 18.

At the end of the folding operation the hide assumes the configurations shown in elevation and plane view in Figure 18, where the hide L is folded with width D.

A third folding method comprises the folding sequences illustrated in Figures from 19 to 21 , including the folding of several hides in such a way as to make up for the depression that is created between them when they are stacked. Figures 19 and 20 respectively show a first hide L1 and a second hide L2 both folded with a width D at the level of the head and bellies according to the folding sequences described above, stacked on one another.

A depression A is formed in the stack and it is levelled by inserting therein a third hide L3 that is folded again at the level of the head and bellies, however arranging the revolving blades 12 nearer to each other, at the distance D1 that is shorter than D, as shown in Figure 21 , so that the third hide, once the folding operation has been completed, is entirely housed in the depression A.

Further folding sequences are however possible, which can be selected by the operator by properly moving the revolving blades 12.

The system of the invention can also be used as a simple stacker, as shown in Figures from 22 to 24, arranging the revolving blades 12 outside the folding area 5 and housed between the projecting ends 6'a of the second section elements 6', as shown in Figure 22.

In this case, the folding plane 7 becomes a simple supporting plane that receives the hides L coming from the transport surface 2 during the transfer step that is shown in Figure 23 and after the transfer, as shown in Figure 24. On the basis of the above, it is clear that the system that is the subject of the invention achieves all the set objects.

First of all, it has been shown that with the folding system of the invention the operator can rapidly modify the arrangement of the folding means, even from a remote position.

All the mechanical operations that in the folding systems of the known type must be carried out by specialized personnel are thus eliminated.

It has also been shown that the modification of the position of the folding means and, therefore, the different folding of the thin elements, in particular hides, can be carried out even between the folding of two successive hides with no need to stop the system.

Consequently, there are no production losses and the resulting costs that must be born when using the folding systems of the known type are eliminated. It has finally been shown that, since it is possible to modify as desired the way in which the hides are folded and the fold positions, the stacking operations can be optimized by filling with hides folded in different ways the depressions that are created, as is well known, in the folding systems of the known type during the stacking of folded hides, when these are all folded in the same manner.

It has thus been shown that this improves also the folding quality and allows production to be increased.

In the construction phase the system that is the subject of the invention can undergo mechanical modifications that have not been described herein or illustrated in the attached drawings.

Said changes, however, must all be considered protected by the present patent, provided that they fall within the scope of the claims expressed below. Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the protection of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

1 ) System (1 ) for folding hides (L) comprising a structure (1 a) in which it is possible to identify:

- a transport surface (2) on which said hides (L) to be folded are laid in succession;

- a moving frame (3) supporting said transport surface (2), slidingly associated with one pair of first section elements (4) parallel to each other and defining a direction of movement (Y) of said moving frame (3) towards a folding area (5);

- a fixed frame (6) positioned under said first section elements (4), comprising one pair of second section elements (6') parallel to each other and orthogonal to said first section elements (4) and one pair of third section elements (6") parallel to each other and orthogonal to said second section elements (6'), said fixed frame (6) and said first section elements (4) delimiting said folding area (5) in which there is a folding plane (7) supporting each one of said hides (L) during the folding operation;

- means (10) for folding said hides (L), comprising at least one blade (12) that revolves according to a longitudinal axis and is suited to receive, one after the other, said hides (L) to be folded coming from said transport surface (2),

characterized in that said at least one revolving blade (12) is associated with said fixed frame (6) and is mechanically connected to first power means (1 1 ) suited to move said revolving blade (12) with respect to said folding plane (7) to modify the position in which said revolving blade (12) provides for folding each one of said hides (L) in one or more of its parts.

2) System (1 ) according to claim 1 ), characterized in that said second section elements (6') and said third section elements (6") are connected to each other so as to give said fixed frame (6) a plane quadrangular shape and said at least one revolving blade (12) is associated with one of said pairs of section elements (6'; 6").

3) System (1 ) according to claim 1 ) or 2), characterized in that said revolving blade (12) is associated with a rotation shaft (13) that defines said longitudinal rotation axis and has each end resting on a carriage (14) supported by a corresponding section element of said pair of second section elements (6') and connected to said first power means (1 1 ). 4) System (1 ) according to claim 1 ), 2) or 3), characterized in that each one of said second section elements (6') has the ends (6'a) that project from the area delimited by said first section elements (4) and have a length that is at least sufficient to house said at least one revolving blade (12) in order to arrange it outside said folding area (5).

5) System (1 ) according to claim 3) or 4), characterized in that each one of said carriages (14) is provided with wheels (15) that rest on a corresponding second section element (6') and with a connection bracket (16) for connection to said first power means (1 1 ).

6) System (1 ) according to claim 5), characterized in that said first power means (1 1 ) comprise at least one pair of pulleys (20) associated with each one of said second section elements (6') on which a belt (21 ) is wound, to which belt said connection bracket (16) is fixed, at least one of said pulleys (20) being connected to the drive shaft of a gear motor unit (22).

7) System (1 ) according to any of the claims from 3) to 6), characterized in that said rotation shaft (13) of said revolving blade (12) is connected to rotation means (25) supported by the corresponding carriage (14).

8) System (1 ) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that said folding plane (7) is arranged at the level of said at least one revolving blade (12).

9) System (1 ) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that said folding plane (7) is associated with vertical displacement means suited to vary the distance of said folding plane (7) from said at least one revolving blade (12).

10) System (1 ) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that said moving frame (3) is connected to second power means (31 ) suited to slidingly move it along said first section elements (4) from a loading position, in which the hide (L) to be folded is laid on said transport surface (2), to said folding area (5) in which third power means (40) place said hide (L) to be folded on said at least one revolving blade (12).

1 1 ) System (1 ) according to claim 10), characterized in that said second power means (31 ) comprise at least one pair of pulleys (33) associated with each one of said first section elements (4) and a belt (32) wound as a ring on said pulleys (33), to which belt said moving frame (3) is connected, at least one of said pulleys (33) being connected to the drive shaft of a gear motor unit (35).

12) System (1 ) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that said transport surface (2) is defined by a plurality of belts (36) placed side by side and cooperating with third power means (40).

13) System (1 ) according to claim 12), characterized in that said third power means (40) comprise at least two drums (37) supported by said frame (3) on which said belts (36) are wound and at least one gear motor (41 ) coupled with one of said drums (37).

14) System (1 ) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises two opposing and coplanar revolving blades (12), each one of which is associated with a corresponding carriage (14).