Automated glass article bundling and palletizing apparatuses and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11939175-B2
Application number	US-202217987308-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 15, 2022
Priority date	Nov 15, 2021
Publication date	Mar 26, 2024
Grant date	Mar 26, 2024

Abstract

An apparatus that forms bundles of glass articles includes a glass article infeed station including an infeed conveyor that continuously transports individual glass articles to a layer separating conveyor. The layer separating conveyor includes a conveyor belt that forms a layer of side-by-side glass articles. A robotic lift assembly is configured to place the layer of side-by-side glass articles together on a layer separation insert. The layer separation insert has side-by-side slots that each receive a single glass article of the layer of side-by-side glass articles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus that forms bundles of glass articles, the apparatus comprising:
a glass article infeed station comprising an infeed conveyor that continuously transports individual glass articles to a layer separating conveyor, the layer separating conveyor comprising a conveyor belt that forms a layer of side-by-side glass articles;
a robotic lift assembly configured to place the layer of side-by-side glass articles together on a layer separation insert, the layer separation insert having side-by-side slots that each receive a single glass article of the layer of side-by-side glass articles; and
a re-pitch station comprising adjustable article retaining regions that adjust position automatically to decrease a distance between adjacent side-by-side glass articles of the layer before the robotic lift assembly places the layer of side-by-side articles together on the layer separation insert.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the robotic lift assembly comprises an end of arm tool that includes glass pick-up devices that are arranged and configured to engage glass articles having different diameters.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the layer separating conveyor comprises the conveyor belt configured to intermittently separate layers of side-by-side glass articles from adjacent layers of side-by-side glass articles.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the robotic lift assembly is configured to stack the layers of side-by-side glass articles forming part of a bundle.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 further comprising a controller that uses a sensor to automatically detect an absence of a glass article from the layer of side-by-side glass articles.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the layer separating conveyor comprises sectioned article retaining regions that are each sized and configured to retain a single glass article spaced from adjacent glass articles.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprising a controller that uses a sensor to automatically detect multiple glass articles in a single article retaining region.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a controller that uses a sensor to automatically identify a preselected number of glass articles in the layer of side-by-side glass articles.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the robotic lift assembly is a first robotic lift assembly, the apparatus comprising a second robotic lift assembly that moves the layer of side-by-side glass articles together from the layer separating conveyor to the re-pitch station.

10. A method of handling glass articles to form bundles of the glass articles, the method comprising:
continuously transporting individual glass articles in the form of glass tubes or rods having a first outer diameter to a layer separating conveyor and forming a first layer of side-by-side glass articles on the layer separating conveyor; and
using a robotic lift assembly, placing the first layer of side-by-side glass articles together on a layer separation insert, the layer separation insert having side-by-side slots that each receive a single glass article of the first layer of side-by-side glass articles; and
automatically decreasing a distance between adjacent side-by-side glass articles of the first layer at a re-pitch station before the step of placing the first layer of side-by-side articles together on the layer separation insert.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:
continuously transporting individual glass articles in the form of tubes or rods having a second outer diameter different from the first diameter to the layer separating conveyor and forming a second layer of side-by-side glass articles on the layer separating conveyor; and
using the robotic lift assembly, placing the second layer of side-by-side glass articles together on another layer separation insert, the another layer separation insert having side-by-side slots that each receive a single glass article of the second layer of side-by-side glass articles.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising:
stacking the first layer of side-by-side glass articles having the first outer diameter on another layer of side-by-side glass articles having the first outer diameter and forming a first bundle; and
stacking the second layer of side-by-side glass articles having the second outer diameter on another layer of side-by-side glass articles having the second outer diameter forming a second bundle;
wherein the first bundle and second bundle have at least one or more of a same width, length and height.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the robotic lift assembly comprises an end of arm tool that includes glass pick-up devices that are arranged and configured to engage the glass articles of the first layer and to move the first layer of side-by-side glass articles when forming a first bundle, the glass pick-up devices arranged and configured to engage glass articles of the second layer and move the second layer of side-by-side articles when forming a second bundle.

14. The method of claim 10 further comprising the layer separating conveyor separating the first layer of side-by-side glass articles from an adjacent layer of side-by-side glass articles.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising the robotic lift assembly stacking the another layer and first layer of side-by-side glass articles and forming part of a bundle.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising wrapping a band around the bundle at a bundle wrapping station.

17. The method of claim 10 further comprising using a sensor, a controller automatically detecting an absence of a glass article from the first layer of side-by-side glass articles.

18. The method of claim 10 , wherein the layer separating conveyor comprises sectioned article retaining regions that are each sized and configured to retain a single glass article spaced from adjacent glass articles.

19. The method of claim 18 further comprising, using a sensor, a controller automatically detecting multiple glass articles in a single article retaining region.

20. The method of claim 10 further comprising, using a sensor, a controller automatically identifying a preselected number of glass articles in the first layer of side-by-side glass articles.

Assignees

• Corning Inc

Inventors

• Hess Marty Eric
• Kaelin Kevin Robert
• Parks Patrick Aaron
• Rathbun Evan Marshall
• Tenbus Gregory James

Classifications

• B65G57/24 Primary

  the layers being transferred as a whole, e.g. on pallets · CPC title

• B65B13/02

  Applying and securing binding material around articles or groups of articles, e.g. using strings, wires, strips, bands or tapes · CPC title

• B65B13/20

  Means for compressing or compacting bundles prior to bundling · CPC title

• B65B23/22

  Packaging glass ampoules, lamp bulbs, radio valves or tubes, or the like · CPC title

• B65G57/005

  by using insertions or spacers between the stacked layers · CPC title