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BR-112015027165-B1 - A device for supporting and aligning strips, specifically for strips cut on a cutting machine.

BR112015027165B1BR 112015027165 B1BR112015027165 B1BR 112015027165B1BR-112015027165-B1

Abstract

A strip support and alignment apparatus (1), particularly for strips cut on a cutting machine, the apparatus comprising: a sheet (3) that is stretched between a station (5) for feeding at least one strip and a station (7) for processing such strip, which defines a support and alignment surface (17) for the strip - first means (9) for fixing the sheet (3) to the feeding station (5), - second means (11) for fixing the sheet (3) to the processing station (7), - means (13) for winding and unwinding the sheet (3), which are adapted for winding and unwinding the sheet (3) to vary its length depending on the distance between the feeding station (5) and the processing station (7).

Inventors

  • Alessandro Corsico Piccolino

Assignees

  • COMELZ S.P.A

Dates

Publication Date
20260317
Application Date
20140611
Priority Date
20130712

Claims (7)

  1. 1. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS, SPECIFICALLY FOR STRIPS CUT ON A CUTTING MACHINE, characterized by comprising: a sheet (3) that is stretched between a station (5) for feeding at least one strip and a station (7) for processing such minimum of one strip, which defines a support and alignment surface (17) for such minimum of one strip; first means (9) for fixing such sheet (3) to such feeding station (5); second means (11) for fixing such sheet (3) to such processing station (7); means (13) for winding and unwinding such sheet (3), which are adapted for winding and unwinding such sheet (3) to vary its length depending on the distance between such feeding station (5) and such processing station (7); and means (21) for cutting such minimum of one strip; where: the sheet (3) comprises, on the surface (17), a plurality of longitudinal marking lines (19) that are parallel to the unwinding direction of such sheet (3), and are equidistant from the center of such surface (17), and are mutually equidistant for the centering and alignment of such minimum of a strip.
  2. 2. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS (1) according to claim 1, characterized by comprising means (15) for tensioning said sheet (3).
  3. 3. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS (1) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that such marking lines (19) are numerically graduated.
  4. 4. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT DEVICE (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that such marking lines (19) are colored, the pairs of marking lines (19) that are symmetrical with respect to a straight longitudinal line passing through the center of such surface (17) being of the same color.
  5. 5. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS (1) according to claim 1, characterized by such means (13) for winding and unwinding such sheet (3) comprising a knot (23) for manual winding and unwinding.
  6. 6. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS (1) according to claim 1, characterized by such means (13) for winding and unwinding such sheet (3) comprising motor means for motorized winding and unwinding of such sheet (3).
  7. 7. STRIP SUPPORT AND ALIGNMENT APPARATUS (1) according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that such sheet (3) can be fully rolled up to such means of rolling and unrolling (13) of such sheet (3).

Description

[001] The present invention relates to a strip support and alignment apparatus, particularly for strips cut on a cutting machine. [002] In the field of cutting leather and synthetic materials used in many industrial sectors, a profound revolution has been taking place for years in the technologies used to reduce time, cost and material loss related to cutting procedures, which is fundamentally important in the economics of the entire production cycle. [003] These needs, therefore, lead to the need to provide cutting machines and associated components that are able to adapt flexibly to the most complex and diverse processing needs and to be controlled or programmed by electronic systems. [004] A very critical aspect of processing hides and synthetic materials relates to the steps of feeding, centering and aligning the strips of material to be cut. [005] Currently, known types of equipment used to feed strips of unrolled material from rolls or reels to a cutting machine include the well-known “cross-lappers,” which are very complex, bulky, and extremely expensive devices. They typically comprise a fixed table that can be up to 12 meters long, through which it is possible to automatically prepare sets of layers composed of multiple segments, or cuts, of mutually overlapping strips of material, which have a programmable length and are then transferred to the conveyor belt of the cutting machine to be processed there, maintaining the same alignment provided by the “cross-lapper.” [006] Cheaper versions of such a “cross-lapper” are also known, which are equally similar in terms of volume, in manual or semi-automatic versions. Such versions have no control over the angular alignment and center of the material strip with respect to the cutting machine. In such versions, the so-called strip assemblies composed of multiple overlapping strips of material must be transferred manually from the “cross-lapper” table to the cutting machine. [007] As an alternative to “cross-lappers”, passive unwinding machines of the trestle type are also known in which several rolls of material strip are fed to the cutting machine and mounted. Such passive unwinding machines, however, do not have the possibility of precision in the angular alignment and centering of the material strip with respect to the cutting machine conveyor. Specifically, in such passive unwinding machines of the known type, uniformity in the unwinding of the material strips is not ensured, and this can lead, especially in the case of particularly wide strips, to an unwinding that is asymmetrical with respect to the two sides of the strip, i.e., with significant angular deviation which then leads to inefficient processing of the layer assembly, causing significant material losses. [008] The objective of the present invention is to provide a strip support and alignment device, specifically for strips cut on a cutting machine, that solves the technical problems described above, prevents losses and overcomes the limitations of the prior art, allowing a strip of material to be fed to a processing machine with accuracy, precision and efficiency. [009] Within this objective, the object of the present invention is to provide a strip support and alignment device that allows precise centering and angular alignment of the strip. [010] Another object of the invention is to provide a strap support and alignment device that is simple and straightforward to use and has a small volume, especially when not in use. [011] Another object of this invention is to provide a strap support and alignment device that is capable of giving the greatest guarantees of reliability and safety in use. [012] Another object of the invention is to provide a strip support and alignment device that is easy to produce and economically competitive compared to the prior art. [013] This objective, these objects and others that will become more apparent below are achieved by a strip support and alignment apparatus, specifically for strips cut on a cutting machine, characterized by comprising: - a sheet that is stretched between a station for feeding at least one strip and a station for processing such a minimum of one strip, which defines a support and alignment surface for such a minimum of one strip; - first means for fixing such sheet to such feeding station; - second means for fixing such sheet to such processing station; and - means for winding and unwinding such sheet, which are adapted to wind or unwind such sheet to vary its length depending on the distance between such feeding station and such processing station. [014] Further features and advantages will become more apparent in the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of a strip holding and alignment apparatus, specifically for strips cut on a cutting machine, illustrated by way of a non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a front perspective view of an embodiment of a strip holding and alignment