System and method for actuating a treatment device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12059696-B2
Application number	US-202217660404-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 23, 2022
Priority date	Jun 2, 2021
Publication date	Aug 13, 2024
Grant date	Aug 13, 2024

Abstract

A device actuation system for actuating a treatment device includes a first drive gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device, a coupler rail slidably mountable to the treatment device, a second drive gear rotatably mountable to the coupler rail, and a coupler gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device and engageable with the coupler rail. In addition, the device actuation system includes a drive rail locatable between the first drive gear and the second drive gear of the gear system. The coupler gear is rotatable to move the coupler rail in a manner maintaining the second drive gear in continuous engagement with the drive rail against the first drive gear. The first drive gear and the second drive gear are rotatable in a manner causing at least one of translation and rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device actuation system for actuating a treatment device, comprising:
a gear system couplable to a treatment device, including:
a first drive gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device;
a coupler rail slidably mountable to the treatment device;
a second drive gear rotatably mountable to the coupler rail;
a coupler gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device and engageable with the coupler rail;

a drive rail locatable between the first drive gear and the second drive gear of the gear system;
the coupler gear is rotatable to move the coupler rail in a manner maintaining the second drive gear in continuous engagement with the drive rail against the first drive gear; and
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are rotatable in a manner causing at least one of translation and rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

2. The device actuation system of claim 1 , wherein the first drive gear and the second drive gear are rotatable according to one of two rotation modes, comprising:
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are synchronously rotatable at the same speed and in opposite directions to cause translation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail;
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are differentially rotatable at different speeds and in the same or opposite directions to at least cause rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

3. The device actuation system of claim 2 , wherein:
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are differentially rotatable at different speeds in a manner causing a combination of rotation and translation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

4. The device actuation system of claim 2 , wherein during differential rotation of the first drive gear and the second drive gear:
one of the first drive gear and the second drive gear is rotated; and
a remaining one of the first drive gear and the second drive gear is non-rotated.

5. The device actuation system of claim 1 , wherein:
the first drive gear, the second drive gear, and the coupler gear are independently rotatably driven respectively by a first drive gear motor, a second drive gear motor, and a coupler gear motor, under the control of a controller.

6. The device actuation system of claim 1 , wherein:
the drive rail defines a plane of rotation during actuation of the treatment device; and
the coupler gear and the coupler rail are mountable to the treatment device outside of the plane of rotation, to thereby increase an angular range of rotation of the treatment device.

7. The device actuation system of claim 1 , wherein:
the treatment device has a dispensing direction from which the treatment device dispenses a treatment, and a lateral side that is non-parallel to the dispensing direction; and
the gear system is couplable to the lateral side.

8. A treatment device support assembly for actuating a plurality of treatment devices relative to each other for treating an article surface of an article, comprising:
a plurality of device actuation systems, each configured to interconnect an adjacent pair of treatment devices, each device actuation system including:
a gear system couplable to each treatment device of the adjacent pair of treatment devices, the gear system of each treatment device including:
a first drive gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device;
a coupler rail slidably mountable to the treatment device;
a second drive gear rotatably mountable to the coupler rail;
a coupler gear rotatably mountable to the treatment device and engageable with the coupler rail;

a drive rail configured to interconnect the adjacent pair of treatment devices, and locatable between the first drive gear and the second drive gear of each treatment device of the adjacent pair of treatment devices;

wherein, for each treatment device of the adjacent pair of treatment devices:
the coupler gear is rotatable to move the coupler rail in a manner maintaining the second drive gear in continuous engagement with the drive rail against the first drive gear; and
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are rotatable in a manner causing at least one of translation and rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

9. The treatment device support assembly of claim 8 , wherein the first drive gear and the second drive gear are rotatable according to one of two rotation modes, including:
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are synchronously rotatable at the same speed and in opposite directions to cause translation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail; and
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are differentially rotatable at different speeds and in the same or opposite directions to at least cause rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

10. The treatment device support assembly of claim 9 , wherein:
the first drive gear and the second drive gear are differentially rotatable at different speeds in a manner causing a combination of rotation and translation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

11. The treatment device support assembly of claim 9 , wherein during differential rotation of the first drive gear and the second drive gear:
one of the first drive gear and the second drive gear is rotated; and
a remaining one of the first drive gear and the second drive gear is non-rotated.

12. The treatment device support assembly of claim 8 , further comprising:
a plurality of device frames respectively associated with the plurality of treatment devices, each device frame configured to support one or more device heads, and each device frame having at least one gear system coupled to the device frame.

13. The treatment device support assembly of claim 12 , wherein:
the device frame of each treatment device has a dispensing direction from which the treatment device dispenses a treatment, and a lateral side that is non-parallel to the dispensing direction; and
the gear systems respectively of the adjacent pair of treatment devices are respectively coupled to the lateral sides that generally face each other.

14. A method of actuating at least one treatment device, comprising:
rotating a first drive gear and a second drive gear engaged to opposite sides of a drive rail to cause at least one of translation and rotation of a treatment device relative to the drive rail, the first drive gear mounted to the treatment device, the second drive gear mounted to a coupler rail slidably mounted to the treatment device, the coupler rail engaged to a coupler gear mounted to the treatment device; and
rotating the coupler gear to move the coupler rail in a manner maintaining the second drive gear in continuous engagement with the drive rail.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein rotating the first drive gear and the second drive gear comprises rotating the first drive gear and the second drive gear according to one of two rotation modes, including:
synchronously rotating the first drive gear and the second drive gear at the same speed and in opposite directions to cause translation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail;
differentially rotating the first drive gear and the second drive gear at different speeds and in the same or opposite directions to at least cause rotation of the treatment device relative to the drive rail.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein differentially rotating the first drive gear and the second drive gear comprises:
differentially rotating the first drive gear

Assignees

• Boeing Co

Inventors

• Miller John Eric
• Arthur Shane Edward

Classifications

• G05B2219/45013

  Spraying, coating, painting · CPC title

• G05B19/4155

  characterised by program execution, i.e. part program or machine function execution, e.g. selection of a program · CPC title

• B05B13/0431

  with spray heads moved by robots or articulated arms, e.g. for applying liquid or other fluent material to three-dimensional [3D] surfaces · CPC title

• B64F5/10

  Manufacturing or assembling aircraft, e.g. jigs therefor · CPC title

• B41J3/4073 Primary

  Printing on three-dimensional objects not being in sheet or web form, e.g. spherical or cubic objects (B41J3/283, B41J3/286 take precedence; building up a 3D object using individual droplets from jetting heads B29C64/112) · CPC title