An article clip for article folding machines includes a body which includes opposite body front and rear ends and a body intermediate portion which extends therebetween. The body front end includes a front body pivot and the body intermediate portion includes an intermediate body pivot. The clip further includes a base jaw located at the front end and a clamping jaw located opposite the base jaw at the body front end, connected to the body via the front body pivot. The clip further includes a clamping recess formed in the body front end. The clip further includes an elongated driver configured to transfer forces from the body rear end to the clamping jaw. The driver is connected to the clamping jaw via a front floating pivot which is not connected to the body, and is connected to the intermediate body pivot via a pulling mechanism.

The invention relates to a method for positioning an empty garment hanger in an individual mounting position, comprising the steps of: picking up an empty garment hanger at a loading station with a gripping tool, reading a data signal identifying a garment that is to be hung on the garment hanger, moving the empty garment hanger to a mounting station, adjusting the position of the garment hanger in dependency of the data signal, and holding the garment hanger in the individual mounting position. The advantage of the invention is that the position where a garment is applied on a garment hanger can be adapted to the length of the operator, type of hanger and type of garment, where the position can be adjusted individually for each mounting cycle.

A buffering device in an automatic cloth feeder that includes a cloth standby section which accumulates the cloth. There is provided a cloth supply section 11 that can supply a quantity of cloth exceeding a processing quantity of feeding so as to proceed with feeding in an automatic cloth feeder 10 without congestion in the automatic cloth feeder performing a process in which the cloth is introduced to a feeding conveyor at a substantially central portion in a carrying direction, right and left trailing end portions are altered by crumpling the cloth from the right and left sides, the cloth is held in a deposition section, and the cloth is fed into a process. A cloth standby section 14 in which the cloth to be carried stands by temporarily is set at a preceding stage of a feeding conveyor 20 or at a following stage thereof.

A buffering device in an automatic cloth feeder that includes a cloth standby section which accumulates the cloth. There is provided a cloth supply section 11 that can supply a quantity of cloth exceeding a processing quantity of feeding so as to proceed with feeding in an automatic cloth feeder 10 without congestion in the automatic cloth feeder performing a process in which the cloth is introduced to a feeding conveyor at a substantially central portion in a carrying direction, right and left trailing end portions are altered by crumpling the cloth from the right and left sides, the cloth is held in a deposition section, and the cloth is fed into a process. A cloth standby section 14 in which the cloth to be carried stands by temporarily is set at a preceding stage of a feeding conveyor 20 or at a following stage thereof.

A method and apparatus that makes provision for two identical folding machines to be arranged one beside the other, and for these to be operated synchronously, so that the large operating width which is necessary for ironing large laundry items, in particular transversely, is also available for folding such laundry items. If large laundry items are to be ironed, and folded, in particular transversely, this requires ironers and folding machines with an appropriately large operating width. Such large operating widths currently cannot be realized technologically in folding machines.

For washed laundry items, such as flat laundry items, that have been separated into singles, spread out and fed to a mangle or the like, for automating these processes a method and device for pulling the singles onto a belt conveyor with a front transverse edge region transversely to the feed direction. Using a guide means in front of the belt conveyor, a front transverse edge of the laundry item is aligned at right angles to the feed direction when being pulled. Once pulled on, the laundry item is centered with respect to the track center of the following transfer conveyor by the belt conveyor. From the belt conveyor the laundry item is placed on a following transfer conveyor where the front transverse edge of the laundry item is aligned at right angles to the feed direction and a sagging of the transverse edge of the laundry item is eliminated.

Devices, systems, and methods for repositioning a deformable laundry article are described. For example, a robotic device includes a conveyor configured to transfer the deformable laundry article outside of a work volume, two or more lifters including grippers individually anchored about the perimeter of the work volume, two or more sensors disposed at fixed locations about the work volume, and a memory storing data indicative of repositioned deformable laundry articles. A controller is in operative communication with the memory, the two or more sensors, and the two or more lifters. The controller is configured to receive a signal from the sensors, identify grip points on the deformable laundry article suspended above the conveyor, instruct a lifter to grip and lift an identified grip point to the suspension height, determine whether the deformable laundry article is repositioned, and instruct the lifters to lower the repositioned deformable laundry article onto the conveyor.

An edge clamping device includes: a two-position holding device having a pair of holding chucks that hold two separate portions of a rectangular piece of cloth Y that are on or near the ridge of a fold, in a state where a right-angled triangular part S is revealed; an edge locating conveyor that is disposed under the two-position holding device and delivers the cloth Y having been released from the two-position holding device; clamping chucks disposed downstream of the edge locating conveyor in a delivery direction; and a position changing means that moves at least one of the two-position holding device, the edge locating conveyor, and the clamping chucks in a crosswise direction such that the right-angled triangular part S of the cloth Y held by the two-position holding device is located at a correct clamping position corresponding to the positions of the clamping chucks.

A method and device for supporting the isolating of pieces of laundry from a pile of laundry by means of an imaging apparatus. A further imaging apparatus serves for raising a front edge region of the piece of laundry onto the feed conveyor in an aligned manner. Furthermore, the gripping of corners or also edges, in particular the alignment thereof, can be detected by means of an imaging apparatus. The gripping and aligning of the pieces of laundry can be controlled or regulated by way of the positions and edge contours of the same which are determined by the imaging apparatuses. As a result, reliable, fully automated isolating of pieces of laundry and/or fully automated, targeted feeding of pieces of laundry to a folding machine or another such laundry subsequent handling apparatus is ensured.

A method and device for supporting the isolating of pieces of laundry from a pile of laundry by means of an imaging apparatus. A further imaging apparatus serves for raising a front edge region of the piece of laundry onto the feed conveyor in an aligned manner. Furthermore, the gripping of corners or also edges, in particular the alignment thereof, can be detected by means of an imaging apparatus. The gripping and aligning of the pieces of laundry can be controlled or regulated by way of the positions and edge contours of the same which are determined by the imaging apparatuses. As a result, reliable, fully automated isolating of pieces of laundry and/or fully automated, targeted feeding of pieces of laundry to a folding machine or another such laundry subsequent handling apparatus is ensured.