A gripper assembly for recovering a layout (22) from a sheet material (12) is presented. It comprises a vacuum gripper (26) with a gripper body (32) on which an array of air flow openings (34a, 34b) is arranged. Air flow openings (34a) associated with one or more blanks (20) of the layout (22) are selectively open and air flow openings (34b) associated to waste (28) of the sheet material (12) are selectively closed. Additionally, an apparatus for recovering a layout (22) from a sheet material (12) comprising such a gripper assembly is described. Furthermore, a method for separating a layout (22) from waste (28) of a sheet material (12) is explained.

The invention relates to a computer-implemented method for a cutting system, the cutting system at least comprising a digital cutter and a gripper for picking up cut parts.

Therein, the digital cutter is built for cutting a part of a sheet according to a cut design, the cut part having a specific pathway of its boundary line.

The gripper is built for picking up the cut part from the sheet, wherein the gripper comprises a gripper head and a movement apparatus. Thus, the gripper head is provided with a plurality of degrees of freedom of motorized movement including a variable heading angle (Ψ) and/or variable lateral position (x- and y-position) in a plane parallel to the sheet. The gripper head comprises a plurality of suction spots having known geometric arrangement, said arrangement of suction spots defining a mean grid spacing.

According to the invention, the method comprises carrying out an optimization algorithm for determining a gripping pose in which the cut part is to be gripped by the gripper head. Therein, the optimization algorithm being programmed for maximizing a number of cut-part-facing suction spots coming to lie on the cut part in the gripping pose, wherein the optimization algorithm optimizes over heading angle candidates (Ψ) for the gripping pose within a range extending consistently over at least 90° and/or lateral position candidates for the gripping pose within sub-mean-grid-spacing range

under exploitation of first input data consistently representing the complete specific pathway of the boundary line of the cut part and second input data relating to the known geometric arrangement.

The determined gripping pose will be provided as output data.

An ultrasonic cutter includes a tool holder and an ultrasonic oscillator. The tool holder has a lower circular air-out aisle defined by sleeving an inner ring and an outer ring. The inner ring has oppositely a first surface and a second surface, and the outer ring has oppositely a third surface and a fourth surface. A gap spacing the first surface from the third surface has an upper air inlet and a lower air outlet. The second surface has a lower inner inclined surface forming a first angle with the first surface. The fourth surface has an outer inclined surface forming a second angle with the third surface. The ultrasonic oscillator, disposed in a chamber of the tool holder spatially connected with the gap, is used for providing ultrasonic oscillation to a cutter. In addition, a cooling and chip diversion system for the ultrasonic cutter is also provided.

There is provided an automated bi-stable valve system. The system includes a bi-stable valve mechanism with bi-stable valves. Each of the bi-stable valves is configured to switch between a valve closed state and a valve open state. The system includes a control system coupled to the bi-stable valve mechanism and configured to operably control the bi-stable valve mechanism. The control system includes, (i) at least one traversable bridge apparatus, and (ii) a valve switch mechanism attached to the traversable bridge apparatus, and movable, via the traversable bridge apparatus, over the bi-stable valves. The valve switch mechanism is configured to switch the bi-stable valve(s) between the valve closed state and the valve open state, to allow for selective control of one or more adhesion zones on the bi-stable valve mechanism. The adhesion zone(s) correspond to adhesion area(s) on a surface of a material to be selectively picked up and placed.

A pruning system includes a cutting head comprising upper and lower cutting rings positioned along a bottom portion of one or more tubes. At least one of the cutting rings is adapted to rotate in a circular motion, while the other cutting ring may be adapted to remain stationary. A vacuum may be applied to suction target plant material, and the cutting head may be lowered toward the target plant material. As adjacent blades from the upper and lower cutting rings are separated in an open position, plant material may be collected in the opening defined by the adjacent blades of the cutting rings. As the blades converge, the opening may close, and plant material collected in the opening may be severed from the plant. System variables, such as blade orientation, vacuum speed, blade rotation speed, barrel size, and the cutting mechanisms, may be adjusted to accommodate different types of plant material. The pruning system may be installed on a vehicle and used with a vision system to remove materials from plant beds in a field.

Systems and methods are provided for inspecting a structure. One embodiment is a method for inspecting a structure. The method includes advancing a structure along a track in a process direction, aligning a Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) station at the track with an edge of the structure that was trimmed upstream of the cleaning station, imaging the edge via the Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) station, characterizing the edge based on the imaging, and advancing the structure further in the process direction via the track.

The disclosure relates to a thermoforming machine comprising a transverse cutting station. The transverse cutting station has a punching device for separating one or more film sections from a lower film and/or an upper film by means of a punching tool comprising a punch and a die. The punching device comprises a chamber configured to at least temporarily receive the film sections, and a suction device to convey the film sections out of the transverse cutting station. The suction device is fluidically connected to a compressed gas source.

A gripper, which removes blanks from a web of material lying flat, includes gripping elements which can each be actuated separately. The gripping elements are mounted independently of one another in a frame so as to be displaceable perpendicularly to a reference plane parallel to the web of material. The gripping elements are set against the web of material and actuated in a takeover position of the gripper aligned with respect to the blank by means of a control device. In addition to the gripping elements located inside the contour line, there are also other gripping elements adjacent to the blank and located outside the contour line that are set against the material web as downholders. Gripping elements within the contour line of the blank are actuated and retracted from the material web, taking along the blank, before the gripper is lifted off the material web from the takeover position.

Apparatus is described that includes a blade assembly (20) for conditioning ex vivo pericardial tissue from which fibers extend. The apparatus includes a blade head (26) that includes a blade a may (28) and a face (30) defining gaps (32) therein. The gaps are dimensioned to facilitate protrusion therethrough of fibers into the blade head, such that movement of the blade array, with respect to the face, shears the fibers. The blade assembly is configured to be used while the tissue and the blade array are submerged in a liquid (140) with the fibers facing upward, and with the face facing downward. The apparatus is configured to provide, while the blade array is submerged in the liquid, a suction force that sucks the liquid into the blade head via the gaps, and discharges a refuse liquid through a lateral exhaust hole (24). Other embodiments are also described.

The present invention relates to an electrode cutting apparatus including a separated foreign matter removal unit capable of immediately removing separated foreign matter generated at the time of electrode cutting through a blow unit and a suction unit configured to be repeatedly operated and stopped according to an electrode cutting operation in order to remove separated foreign matter generated when the electrode cutting apparatus performs electrode cutting.