Abstract:
A preparatory device provided for arranging film roll cores in a condition ready for use for a film roll winding machine, in which the film roll cores are vertically arranged, comprises a supply device for supplying horizontally disposed film roll cores. The supply device is connected with an erecting device serving for moving a film roll core from a horizontal position into a vertical position. With the aid of a transfer device the film roll core is taken out of the erecting device and transferred to the film roll winding machine.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application corresponds to International Application No. PCT/EP02/13409, filed Nov. 28, 2002, which claims benefit of German Application Ser. No. 101 62 179.5, filed Dec. 18, 2001, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
   FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The invention relates to a preparatory device provided to arrange film roll cores in a condition ready for use as well as to a method for arranging film roll cores in a condition ready for use. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Film rolls are normally produced with the aid of winding machines by winding a film sheet off a first film roll and winding it up to a film roll core. In this connection the film sheet wound up to the first roll is normally a great deal longer than the film sheet wound up to the core. The produced film roll with a smaller diameter can then e.g. be used in suitable handling means for manually wrapping up pallets or the like. It is further possible to produce a stretched, i.e. preextended, film sheet with the aid of the winding machine. Besides the use of the produced film rolls in manually operated unroll means or the like, such film rolls are also employed in automatic pallet wrapping-up devices and the like. A device for producing film rolls comprising a prestretched film sheet is, for example, described in WO 95/13965. 
   The film roll cores are, for example, hollow tubular cardboard cores. The film roll cores must be manually inserted into existing film roll winding machines, and the ready-wound film rolls must be manually removed from the winding machine. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is an object of the invention to further automate the production process for film rolls. 
   The inventive preparatory device provided for arranging film roll cores in a condition ready for use for a film roll winding machine comprises a supply device with the aid of which the horizontally arranged film roll cores are supplied. The supply device has connected thereto an erecting device with the aid of which the horizontally arranged film roll cores are moved from their horizontal position into a vertical position. In the vertical position the film roll cores are then taken up with the aid of a transfer device and transferred to the film roll winding machine. The film roll core is then vertically arranged in the winding machine such that the film roll is wound up with the film rolls being in their vertical position. In the case of such winding machines provided for vertical arrangement of the film rolls, the film roll cores must be supplied in vertical position. Since direct vertical supply of the film roll cores involves excessive technical expenditure and difficulties, the film roll cores are, according to the invention, supplied in horizontal position via a supply device, with the film roll cores being subsequently placed into the vertical position with the aid of the erecting device. 
   With the aid of the preparatory device provided for arranging film roll cores in a condition ready for use according to the invention it is thus possible to automatically supply film roll cores to a film roll winding machine. This leads to a considerable reduction of the film roll production costs. 
   The transfer device may, for example, be a gripping arm or the like which takes up the film core with the aid of gripping pliers or the like and then moves the film core from a take-up position into a transfer position in which the film roll core is then transferred, for example, to a holder of the winding machine. The erecting device may be integrated in the transfer device which is configured, for example, as a gripping arm. For this purpose, the gripping arm is, for example, configured such that the gripping pliers, with their opening facing downwards, are guided over the horizontally arranged film roll core and can grip the latter. Then the pliers and/or the gripping arm are/is pivoted by 90° such that the film roll core is substantially vertically aligned, with the film roll core being moved into the transfer position before, after or during the 90°-pivoting process. 
   In a preferred embodiment, the erecting device comprises a receiving means for receiving one single film roll core. The receiving means is a depressed portion or a trough whose cross-section preferably substantially corresponds to the outer dimensions of the film core. Since thus only a single film roll core can be received in the receiving means, said film roll core can be easily removed from the receiving means, for example with the aid of the gripping arm. Preferably, the receiving means is connected with a pivoting means for erecting the film cores. The single film roll core located in the receiving means is thus placed into the vertical position by pivoting the receiving means by 90°. In the vertical position the film roll core can then be taken up by the transfer device, such as a gripping arm, and moved into the transfer position. 
   The supply device is preferably connected with a singling means for singling the film roll cores. The singling means may e.g. be a slider placed between two film roll cores arranged one behind the other such that always only one of the two film roll cores can be removed. Further, a slider may be provided which engages in the tubular film roll cores from the side thus always releasing only one film roll core at a time which is then preferably transported to the receiving means, e.g. by rolling over an inclined plane, such that always only one film roll core is arranged in the receiving means. 
   The invention further relates to a method for arranging film roll cores in a condition ready for use for a winding machine, in particular a winding machine provided for vertical arrangement of the film rolls. According to the invention, the film roll cores are made available in horizontal position. In the next step, a film roll core is erected out of the horizontal position and placed into a vertical position. In this vertical position the film roll core is transferred to the winding machine. Since both erecting the film roll core and transferring the film roll core are carried out automatically, this method helps to increase the degree of automation for producing film rolls. 
   The film roll cores are preferably made available via a supply device containing a plurality of film roll cores. Preferably, the film roll cores are automatically singled by a singling means such that the single film roll cores can be easily erected. 
   Particularly preferred is the use of the preparatory device according to the invention for carrying-out the inventive method. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     Hereunder the invention is explained in detail in connection with preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
       FIG. 1  shows a schematic plan view of the preparatory device according to the invention, 
       FIG. 2  shows a schematic sectional view along line II-II of  FIG. 1 , 
       FIG. 3  shows a schematic front view of the device according to the invention, and 
       FIG. 4  shows a second preferred embodiment of the supply device. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   In a supply device  10  a plurality of film roll cores  12  are arranged in a portion configured as a chute or the like, wherein the cores  12  are positioned in a mutual parallel arrangement in the supply device  10 . Here, the film roll cores  12  are horizontally arranged. The supply device  10  portion configured as a chute  14  is connected with a supply channel  16 . The dimensions of the supply channel  16  are selected such that the width of the supply channel is slightly larger than the diameter of a film roll core  12 . The film roll cores  12  are thus arranged one behind the other in transport direction, i.e. in downward direction in  FIG. 2 , in the supply channel. To ensure that the film roll cores descend, the chute and/or the hopper-shaped portion  14  comprises an inclined underside ending, in the illustrated embodiment, in the vertically aligned supply channel  16 . 
   The supply device  10  is provided with a singling means  18  arranged at the end of the supply channel  16 . The singling means  18  comprises a slider  22  connected with an actuator  20 . The slider  22  serves, on the one hand, for opening a retaining means, which is configured as a damper  24 , by pivoting about an axis  26  such that the lowermost film roll core  12  in the supply channel  16  rolls via an inclined plane  28  towards an erecting device  32 . Moreover, the slider  22  serves for retaining the following film roll core  12  in the supply channel  16 . By pulling back the slider  22  in the direction indicated by arrow  32 , i.e. to the left in  FIG. 2 , the damper  24  is closed again and the film roll core  12  retained by the slider  22  slips downwards to the place of the film roll core  12  retained by the damper  24 . To prevent the film roll cores from getting jammed, two sliders  22  ( FIG. 1 ) are provided. 
   The film roll core  12 , which rolled over the inclined plane  28 , falls into the receiving means  30 . The receiving means  30  substantially has a width which is only slightly larger than the diameter of the film roll core. The length of the receiving means  30  also substantially corresponds to the length of the film roll core. In the illustrated embodiment, the receiving means  30  has a U-shaped cross-section and is configured as a box or trough. The receiving means  30  is connected with a pivoting means  34 . The pivoting means  34  is connected with one end of the receiving means  30  such that, upon actuation of the pivoting means  34 , the trench- or trough-shaped receiving means  30  is pivoted by 90° into the position shown by dashed lines in  FIG. 2 . Thereby the film roll core  12  is erected into a vertical position. 
   The film roll core  12  vertically arranged in the receiving means  30  is then taken up by a transfer device  36 . For this purpose, the transfer device  36  comprises, in the illustrated embodiment, a telescopic gripping arm  40  provided with gripping pliers  42  and displaceable in the direction indicated by arrow  38 . For taking up the film core roll  12 , the gripping arm is horizontally displaced out of the position shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3  such that the gripping pliers  42  are inserted into a slot  41  provided in the receiving means  30  thus gripping the film roll core. Then the gripping arm  40  is retracted such that the gripping pliers  42 , together with the film roll core  12 , are placed into the position shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 . The gripping pliers  42  are thus retracted from the take-up position in which the film roll core is taken up. Subsequently the gripping arm  40  is pivoted about an axis  44 , in the illustrated embodiment by approximately 180°, such that the film roll core is transferred or moved into a transfer position in which the film roll core  12  is transferred to holders  46  ( FIG. 3 ) of a winding machine which is not shown. For receiving the film roll core  12 , the holders  46  are displaceable in the direction indicated by arrow  48 . When the gripping arm  40  is being pivoted from the position shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3  into the transfer position, the gripping arm  40  is extended again since the gripping arm must be retracted again after delivery the film roll core  12  to the winding machine, i.e. after the holders  46  have received the film roll core  12 , in order to allow a film sheet  50  ( FIG. 3 ) to be wound up to the film roll core  12 . Winding-up the film sheet  50  to the film roll core  12  is effected with the aid of a winding machine which is not shown, wherein the holders  46  form part of the winding machine. 
   The movement performed by the film roll core  12  when the gripping arm  40  is pivoted about the axis  44  in the direction indicated by arrow  52  is exemplified by the dashed line  54  in  FIG. 1 . In this connection it is assumed that the gripping pliers  42  are extended during the pivoting movement. Of course, the extending movement of the gripping pliers  42  may, for example, be performed only in part or may already be terminated at the beginning of the pivoting movement. 
   After a film sheet  50  of the desired film sheet length has been wound-up to the film roll core  12  by the winding machine, the film roll  56  must be delivered from the winding machine. This is effected by delivering the film roll  56  to a conveyor belt  58  and transporting it to a packing station or the like. To ensure a defined placing of the film roll  56  onto the conveyor belt  58  the invention provides for the upper holder  46  to be pulled upwards in the direction indicated by arrow  48 . This causes the film roll  56  to tilt. 
   To ensure that the film roll  56  tilts towards the conveyor belt  58 , the gripping arm  40  and/or the gripping pliers  42  push against the film roll immediately after it has been removed from the holder  46  such that the pulse guarantees a defined tilting of the film roll towards the conveyor belt  58 . 
   Another preferred embodiment of the supply device  10  ( FIG. 4 ) comprises partition walls  60 , 62  in the hopper-shaped portion  14 . The partition walls  60 , 62  are disposed such that the film roll cores  12  are prevented from getting jammed or wedged in the transition between the hopper-shaped portion  14  and the supply channel  16 . The inclinedly arranged partition walls  60 , 62  cause a presorting due to which the film roll cores are arranged in series at an early stage.