A suction unit, which serves for suctioning an object according to Bernoulli's principle, includes a suction body with an adjoining suction plate, which has a front side facing away from the body, and includes at least one entry channel, through which a gaseous medium is introducible through the suction body into a deflection channel, which is delimited on one side by the suction plate and on another by a deflection head of a deflection unit or by the suctioned object, and through which the gaseous medium is guidable to the outside. The suction body is integrally or detachably connected to a suction basket whose inner side adjoins the suction plate or is spaced apart from the plate, wherein the basket encloses a receiving channel which has a channel opening dimensioned so that objects can be introduced into the channel or at least one recess on the underside of the basket.

A vacuum lifting device to facilitate the lifting and/or repositioning of an article having an external surface as set out herein comprises at least one pair of handles and a base having opposed first and second surfaces, the base having an aperture arranged through the base. The second surface is arranged is provided with a continuous sealing joint projecting downwards from the second surface defining an enclosed area which includes the aperture on the bottom surface of the base. The vacuum lifting device also comprises a suction conduit arranged to be connected to a vacuum generating member and configured to be in fluid connection with the second surface of the base through the aperture. The vacuum lifting device further comprises an extendable lifting member arranged between the at least one pair of handles and the first surface of the base, the lifting member is actuated by a lift actuating member for shifting the base in a vertical direction transferring said vacuum lifting device (10) between an extended and a compressed state. A method for using the vacuum lifting device is also disclosed.

A suction unit, which serves for suctioning an object according to Bernoulli's principle, includes a suction body with an adjoining suction plate, which has a front side facing away from the suction body, and includes at least one entry channel, through which a gaseous medium is introducible through the suction body into a deflection channel, which is delimited on one side by the front side of the suction plate and on another by a deflection head of a deflection unit or by the suctioned object, and through which the gaseous medium is guidable to the outside. The suction plate has in the center a deflection chamber which is adjoined on one side by the at least one entry channel and on another side by a plurality of suction channels which are sunk into the suction plate and extend towards the edge of the suction plate.

A gripping device (10) for sheet-shaped elements (L) comprising: at least one longitudinal bar (20) adjustable in length and provided with a plurality of suction gripping members (30) connected along a longitudinal axis (A) of the longitudinal bar (20).

A method for separating and transporting a glass sheet from a glass ribbon includes drawing the glass ribbon along a draw path in a conveyance direction, scoring the glass ribbon with a scoring device, to produce a score line across at least a portion of a width of the glass ribbon, engaging a first edge of the glass ribbon at a first position downstream of the score line in the conveyance direction with a first robotic handling device, engaging a second edge of the glass ribbon at a second position downstream of the score line in the conveyance direction with a second robotic handling device, and synchronously moving the first robotic handling device and the second robotic handling device to bend the glass ribbon about the score line and separate the glass sheet from the glass ribbon.

An apparatus for picking up and positioning an item includes a vacuum assembly capable of applying a suction force to the item. The apparatus further includes an item engaging plate positioned adjacent the vacuum assembly in a first position for engaging with and picking the item. The engaging plate is moveable to a second position by one or more actuators that reduce a suction force experienced at the engaging plate to deposit or place the item. The one or more fans may additionally be controlled to limit a suction force generated during a disengagement operation where the item is being deposited or placed.

Solar panels are prepared for installation on an array frame by initially tipping packages of palletized, bundled, vertically-oriented panels in a preparation area to form a vertical stack of horizontally oriented panel separated from the pallet and packaging material for placement on the upper supporting surface of the transport deck. The transport deck is displaced longitudinally alongside a rack of the array frame, together with a lifting machine having a lifting head on a lifting arm for transferring solar panels from a longitudinal row of stacked solar panels on the transport deck to the array frame. The lifting head may be adapted to support one panel from each of the stacks on the transport deck for simultaneous transfer from the transport deck to the array frame.

A magnetic levitation system for contactlessly holding and moving a carrier in a vacuum chamber, including a base defining a transportation track, a carrier movable above the base along the transportation track, and at least one magnetic bearing for generating a magnetic levitation force between the base and the carrier. The at least one magnetic bearing includes a first magnet unit arranged at the base and a second magnet unit arranged at the carrier. The magnetic levitation system further includes a magnetic side stabilization device for stabilizing the carrier in a lateral direction, the magnetic side stabilization device comprising a stabilization magnet unit arranged at the base, wherein at least one of the first magnet unit and the first stabilization magnet unit is arranged in a housing space of the base, the housing space being separated from an inner volume of the vacuum chamber by a separation wall.

A conveying method includes first and second pads conveying workpieces with speeds of the first and second pads being varied; circumferential velocities of the first pads and the second pads are accelerated by variable speed mechanisms; the first and second pads move and separate in a state in which a distance between the first pad and the second pad, whose speeds were increased, is increased; the circumferential velocities of the first pads and the second pads are decelerated by the variable speed mechanisms; and a first slider and a second slider, which were subjected to deceleration, overlap each other in a part in a circumferential direction, which causes the first pad and the second pad to approach each other, and the first pad and the second pad move and approach each other in this state in which the first pad and the second pad have approached each other.

A method and device in which a respective laundry piece initially is automatically gripped at a location and pulled apart. The automatic gripping of laundry pieces for feeding to an infeed machine requires a plurality of handling procedures which for reliable automation have to be coordinated. The laundry piece is subsequently reoriented such that said laundry piece can be acquired in a manner which is favorable in terms of the subsequent steps, which can take place in front of a wall that stabilizes the laundry piece. Once the laundry piece has been gripped in the region of a periphery, the laundry piece, as a function of which periphery has been gripped and by way of which alignment the laundry piece is to be fed to the infeed machine, is pulled longitudinally or transversely onto a conveyor that transports said laundry piece to the infeed machine.