Patent DE-10026589-A1 (DE)
Title: System for the automatic alignment of fabric piecegoods at a wound roll has a sensor to register the position of a marking at the free end of the fabric with a control to manipulate the roll to bring the marking into a nominal position
IPC: D06H1/00
Filed: 2000-05-29
Abstract: To align fabric piecegoods (6), drawn from a roll (1), a marking (7) at the free end (5) is registered by a sensor (8) and the roll is manipulated accordingly so that the position of the marking is aligned with a nominal position (11) at the roll circumference. The roll is shifted by a control (12) acting on an alignment mechanism (13). For the alignment of the free end of a fabric, drawn from a wound roll, the marking can be detected without physical contact by an optical, magnetic, electrical, opto-electrical or magnetic-optical sensor system. When a length has been cut from the fabric, a new marking is applied to the free end of the material at the roll during or after cutting. The alignment mechanism rotates the fabric roll until the marking is at the nominal position. The roll is removed from the laying machine, without rotation and with the marking in the required position. An independent claim is included for a fabric laying machine, which draws lengths of material from a wound roll. A continuous belt winds and unwinds the fabric at the roll. At least one sensor to detect the position of the marking at the free end of the fabric is located at the fabric laying trolley. The control system (10) acts on the continuous belt to wind the fabric on to the roll until the end marking is at the nominal position. Preferred Features: One leg (4) of the trough (2) to hold the roll can be formed by a powered roller or a further continuous belt. The continuous belt assembly is composed of a number of separate and parallel belts, with lateral gaps between them. With two belts, the second is longer than the first to form at least one projection at the continuous belt assembly at the end away from the take-off side. The belts move along a straight path on a horizontal or slightly downward plane, with a limit stop roller to hold the fabric roll in the loading/unloading position when the belts are swung into the alignment for loading and unloading a fabric roll, and winding the roll until the end marking is alignment with the nominal position. The other side of the roll trough swings with the movements of the continuous belt assembly. The fabric roll change and transfer mechanism moves the fabric roll when the laying trolley is at an end position, using a trough structure with a number of trough components linked together by a shaft on the side away from the trolley. The trough components are in a position where there is no collision with the projecting section of the continuous belt assembly as they move past each other. The fabric roll is transferred without rotation. A second and identical transfer mechanism acts independently of the first system for the selective movement and transfer of fabric rolls. The first roll transfer unit is at the fabric laying table, and the second roll transfer system is at a roll lift structure where the rolls are stored in a magazine to move them at their levels. The roll transfer mechanism has arms of equal length, with a rod at their free ends. The swing and rotary movements are coordinated to take and deposit the selected fabric roll at an end position of the laying trolley, without allowing the rolls to rotate as they are manipulated. The marking at the end of the fabric is one or more adhesive labels. With two or three labels, the sensor registers their relative positions, to be used by the control to set the roll winding action. The circumference line is drawn through the edge of the fabric at the wound roll.