LAUNDRY FEEDER

Abstract: A laundry feeding machine has a conveyor in which ar­ ticles are fed after being held by a suction holding device (8) at the front of the conveyor. Simultaneously with release of the article from the suction holding device, suction is applied to a tunnel 2 enclosing the conveyor. This sucks the leading part of the article in and onto the conveyor.

Description: The invention relates to equipment for feeding laundry articles onto a conveyor system from which they are fed into subsequent processing machinery, such as ironing machines, folding machines or the like. The basic requirements for feeding flat, rectangular fabric articles such as bed sheets, pillow cases, towels etc. onto a conveyor are:-(1) a loading position in front of the conveyor where an article can be placed manually or automatically and (2) a transfer mechanism which feeds the leading edge portion of the article from the loading position and onto the conveyor leaving the loading position free and ready to receive the next article. The existing and known methods which are employed at present comprise devices which draw the article mechanically on to the conveyor or which blow the article onto the conveyor by means of air streams from pressure jets. Both of these systems have limitations of speed, complexity or quality of feeding. For example, U.S. patent specification No. 3568341 shows such a prior arrangement. The object of the invention is to provide a positive high speed transfer of the article from its loading position and onto the conveyor system and to leave the loading position free and ready to receive the next article. According to the invention there is provided a laundry feeding machine comprising a conveyor on which laundry articles are laid to be fed; a loading station at the front of the conveyor; means at the loading station for holding the article in a draped condition; an air tunnel arrangement enclosing at least the front part of the conveyor, the air tunnel arrangement being open at the front; a suction device for drawing air into the tunnel; and valve means for controlling the air flow in conjunction with release of the article by the holding means, thereby allowing the leading part of the article to be sucked inwardly and onto the conveyor. The holding means may be mechanical, but preferably comprises a grille against which the article is held by suction. Conveniently, the valve means is effective simultaneously to cut off the suction from the grille and apply it to the tunnel. Preferably the valve means comprises a pair of valves for simultaneous operation, one valve controlling suction in the tunnel and the other valve controlling suction through the grille, whereby when suction through the grille is cut off to drop the article, suction is applied to the tunnel to draw the article in. Preferably a movable air seal device is provided at the rear of the tunnel to co-operate with the conveyor to restrict the entry of air and yet allow the exit of laundry articles. The air seal device may be a roller which rests on the conveyor to form a rolling seal therewith. Alternatively the seal device may be a hinged plate movable from a raised position where it is clear of the conveyor to a sealing position where it contacts the conveyor. The plate may be movable by means of an air ram. Alternatively the plate may be spring-loaded to the raised position and is drawn down to the sealing position by suction when suction is applied to the tunnel. The suction device may comprise a suction fan coupled to a suction chamber above the conveyor, the suction chamber constituting the roof of the tunnel. Alternatively the suction device may comprise a suction fan coupled to a suction chamber beneath the conveyor, the conveyor being such as to allow the passage of air and the suction chamber constituting the floor of the tunnel. A spreader device may be provided to spread the laundry articles sideways as they are drawn by the conveyor. This may be constituted by an appropriately shaped edge of a spreading plate which engages the article as it is fed on the conveyor. Suction from the suction device may be employed to draw the trailing part of the laundry article against the spreading edge of the spreading plate. The present invention lends itself to use in multi-lane feeding, particularly where the lane configuration is adjustable. Thus, the machine may be divisible into a plurality of independent parallel feeding lanes, there being longitudinal shutter means which can be situated to divide the tunnel into parallel sub-tunnels and valve arrangements which allow independent suction cycles to be applied to the different sub-tunnels. The invention will further be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Figure 1 is part of a front elevation of a machine in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of part of the machine of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a schematic side elevation of the machine; Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an air seal device for the machine of Figures 1 to 3; Figure 5 is a side elevation of another machine in accordance with the invention; Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of another machine in accordance with the invention; Figure 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view another machine in accordance with the invention; Figure 8 is a schematic end elevation of another machine in accordance with the invention; and Figure 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the machine of Figure 8. Referring to Figures 1 to 3 the machine comprises a conveyor 1 which is arranged to pass through a tunnel like compartment 2 which has an open entrance 3 at the input end(front of the conveyor). The conveyor comprises spaced belts 4 which are arranged to pass over a deck table 5 which forms the floor of the tunnel. This compartment has a controllable and directionable air flow ducting system which incorporates a suction fan; in this example a centrifugal fan 6. When an article is positioned across the input entrance of the tunnel and the air ducts are momentarily operated, the leading edge portion of the article is rapidly drawn into the tunnel and positively placed onto the moving conveyor. The next article can then be positioned for feeding. The fan 6 establishes a partial vacuum in a suction chamber 7. Chamber 7 communicates via ports 7 a with a suction box 8 a . At the front, the suction box has a grille 8 and laundry articles to be fed are held at the loading position by suction against the grille 8. A linked set of flap valves 9 and 9 a are operated simultaneously by an air-ram 10. Valves 9 cover ports 7 a and valves 9 a cover ports 2 a in the roof of the tunnel 2. When valves 9 a are closed and valves 9 are open, suction is applied to the suction box 8 a and cut off from the tunnel 2. In this condition a laundry article is held draped at the front of the machine with the upper part before the open entrance 3 to the tunnel 2. When the air ram 10 is operated to change over the valves, suction to the suction box 8 a is cut off and applied to the tunnel 2. Simultaneously, the article is dropped from the grille 8 and sucked in to the tunnel, to be laid on the moving conveyor 1. Photo-detectors 21 and 22 are effective to sense the presence of a laundry article and control the system accordingly. When the leading part of the article passes detector 22 the air-ram 10 is reverted t o its former position so as to cut off suction from the tunnel and apply it to the suction box 8 a ready for the next article. The articles on the conveyor pass through a restricted outlet 23 from the tunnel and onto the delivery end 24 (Figure 3) of the conveyor. The upper part of the assembly, including the fan, suction chamber and tunnel is pivotally mounted on the machine at 25, so as to be capable of being swung up to give direct access to the conveyor if required. Figure 4 illustrates a method of sealing the exit end of the tunnel when required. A sealing- plate 26 is hinged at 27 and is spring-loaded by a spring 28 to an upper position 29 where it is clear of the conveyor 1. However, when suction is applied to the tunnel , the plate 26 is drawn down thereby to make contact with the conveyor and thereby reduce air intake at the exit of the tunnel. When suction is removed from the tunnel the spring 28 draws the plate back to its upper position. Figure 5 illustrates two alternatives for features of the machine. Firstly, the holding arrangement for the laundry articles is no longer a suction box and grille, but a pair of movable jaws, one of which is shown at 30. The jaws grip respective corners of the leading edge of the article and run apart on roller carriages 31 which run on a support structure 32. When the leading edge of the article is stretched the movement of the jaws is stopped. The jaws are opened to release the article by movement of a bar 33 which, when moved downwardly by an air ram, urges an opening arm fixed to the movable jaw. This opening operation is synchronised with application of suction to the tunnel 2, so that as the leading edge of the article is dropped it is sucked into the tunnel and thereby laid on the conveyor. Secondly in Figure 5 the air-seal at the tunnel exit comprises a roller 11 which rolls on the conveyor to allow laundry articles beneath it and which presents an obstruction to air entering the tunnel. Figure 6 shows an alternative suction arrangement which comprises a suction chamber 34 beneath the conveyor and constituting the floor of the tunnel instead of above the conveyor and constituting the roof of the tunnel. Ports 35 at the ends of the chamber are coupled to the suction fan and suction is controlled by flap valves 36 which cover the ports 35 and which are operated by air rams 37. Air is drawn in to the chamber 34 between the conveyor bands 4. This arrangement ensures that the laundry articles are drawn down on to the conveyor. The arrangement of Figure 6 is particularly suitable for use in conjunction with the mechanical jaw loading arrangement of Figure 5 since no holding suction box, which would require extra ducting, is required. Referring now to Figure 7 there is shown a feeding machine with a suction chamber 7, a tunnel 2, a conveyor 1 and a holding grille 8. Air ram 10 operates a flap valve 9 to allow suction to be applied alternatively to the tunnel 2 and the grille 8 so that feeding is effected as described. A sealing roller 11 is provided. In this embodiment there is a drawing plate 12 which is hinged at 13 and which is raised and lowered by an air ram 14. Beyond roller 11 there is a gap in table 5 which allows air to be drawn up through the conveyor. Plate 12 is raised to allow the passage of the leading part of the article, which is held under a roller 15 as it is conveyed forwards. The plate 12 is lowered and the rear part of the article is drawn up by the air flow around the front edge of the plate. As the article continues to be drawn forward, the plate 12 draws out creases. The front edge of the plate may be convexly curved so as to help spread the article sideways. Figures 8 and 9 of the accompanying drawings show another embodiment of the invention. This arrangement is to allow the machine to be operated in a multi-lane mode for small pieces when required. The tunnel 2 is divided longitudinally by three blades 16 (of which only one is shown in Figure 8). The blades are evenly arranged across the machine so as to divide the tunnel into four, one for each of four parallel feeding lanes. However, the blades are capable of being raised (to the position shown) and lowered between the bands 4 of the conveyor by a mechanism (not shown). The blades are movable independently so that there can be defined four equal parallel lanes (all the blades raised); two equal parallel lanes (only the centre blade raised); two unequal parallel lanes (one of the outer blades raised); three lanes (the two outer blades raised); or one wide lane (no blades raised). Each of the four sub-lanes has an identical and independently operable mechanism for drawing articles on the conveyor. The mechanism comprises a shutter 17 pivoted at 18 and movable towards and away from the grille 8 by a pneumatic ram (not shown) and a shutter 19 pivoted at 20 beneath the ports 2a. The two shutters are linked to move together so that when grille 8 is shut off ports 2a are open and vice-versa. Thin controllably directs the suction effect of the air. Thus, a laundry article held by suction against grille 8 can be released by shut-off of the grille and simultaneously drawn into the tunnel by suction of air through ports 2a. The shutters are immediately reverted to allow another article to be held and to allow the first article to pass beneath shutter 19. Roller 11 is provided to assist sealing and to hold the article as it passes beneath. By linking the mechanisms of adjacent sub-divisions of the tunnel in conjunction with lowering of the dividing blades 16, it will be seen that the combination of lanes described above can be achieved. The invention is not restricted to the details of the embodiment described with reference to the accompanying dr awings. For example, other or additional spreading and smoothing arrangements may be used. One such arrangement is a suction box located across and just below the conveyor feed and roller. The trailing part of the article is drawn into and spread by the suction box spreader after the leading portion of the article has been fed onto the conveyor. Alternatively spreading and smoothing can be effected by an elongate straight or curved suction nozzle across the top of the conveyor, the article being drawn across the lips of the nozzle by suction as it is fed forwards on the conveyor. Positive roller gripping of the leading part of the article is necessary to prevent the article being arrested by the nozzle. More than one nozzle can be provided for successive stages of smoothing. Another smoothing arrangement which may be provided consists of a suction nozzle in the mouth of which is a pair of perforated contra rotating belts which draw the article out by friction in opposite directions from a centre line. The feeding machine will generally feed the articles to an ironing machine conveyor and in order to prevent over-running it is preferred to drive the conveyor 1 of the feeding machine by an electric motor which is controlled in accordance with the ironing conveyor speed in response to a tachometer drive thereby.

Claims: A laundry feeding machine comprising a conveyor on which laundry articles are laid to be fed; a loading station at the front of the conveyor; means at the loading station for holding the article in a draped condition; characterised in that there is further provided an air tunnel arrangement (2) enclosing at least the front part of the conveyor (1), the air tunnel arrangement (2) being open at the front (3) where the article is draped; a suction device (6) for drawing air into the tunnel; and valve means (2a, 9a) controlling the air flow in the tunnel in conjunction with release of the article by the holding means (8a), thereby allowing the leading part of the article to be sucked inwardly and onto the conveyor (1). A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein the holding means comprises a suction box (8a) mounted above the conveyor with a grille (8), whereby air is drawn through the grille and a laundry article is held against the grille by suction. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 2 wherein the valve means comprises a pair of valves (9a, 7a) for a simultaneous operation, one valve controlling suction in the tunnel and the other valve controlling suction through the grille, whereby when suction through the grille is cut off to drop the article, such is applied to the tunnel to draw the article in. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein the holding means comprises a pair of movable jaws (30) arranged to grip respective corners of the leading edge of the article and move apart to stretch the article. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein a movable air-seal device (26) is provided at the rear of the tunnel to cooperate with the conveyor to restrict the entry of air and yet allow the exit of laundry articles. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein the air seal device is a roller (11) which rests on the conveyor to form a rolling seal therewith. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein the air seal device is a hinged plate (12) movable from a raised position where it is clear of the conveyor to a sealing position where it contacts the conveyor. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 7 wherein the plate (12) is movable between the two said positions by means of a controlled air ram (14). A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 7 wherein the plate (26) is spring loaded to the raised position and is drawn down to the sealing position by suction when suction is applied to the tunnel. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein the suction device comprises a suction fan (6) coupled to a suction chamber (7) above the conveyor, the suction chamber constituting the roof of the tunnel. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in any of claims 1 to 10 wherein the suction device comprises a suction fan coupled to a suction chamber (34) beneath the conveyor, the conveyor being such as to allow the passage of air and the suction chamber constituting the floor of the tunnel. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein a spreader device is provided to spread the laundry articles sideways as they are drawn by the conveyor. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 12 wherein the spreader device is constituted by an appropriately shaped edge of a spreading plate (19) which engages the article as it is fed on the conveyor. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in claim 13 wherein suction from the suction device is employed to draw the trailing part of the laundry article against the spreading edge of the spreading plate. A laundry feeding machine as claimed in any of the preceding claims which is divisible into a plurality of independent parallel feeding lanes. there being longitudinal shutter means (16) which can be situated to divide the tunnel into parallel sub-tunnels and valve arrangements which allow independent suction cycles to be applied to the different sub-tunnels.

Inventors: WEIR, HENRY JOHN
Applicants: WEIR, HENRY JOHN
Application year: 1985
Main classification: D06F67
IPC codes: D06F67