An automatic replacement apparatus for a feed material includes a discharge unit discharging a feed material to the outside, a pair of feed units disposed to be adjacent to the discharge unit and having a feed roll around which the feed material is wound, and a pair of material joint units respectively provided in the pair of feed units connecting a front end of a first feed material waiting in a first feed unit, one of the pair of feed units, and an end of a second feed material being transferred from a second feed unit, the other of the pair of feed units, to the discharge unit in a butt joint manner.

The invention relates to a method for automatically splicing a first article, unwound from a first reel, to a second article wound around a second reel, the articles being flexible and in the form of webs or strips. According to the invention, the method comprises steps consisting in: positioning an adhesive tape on an end that is to be spliced belonging to the second article; automatically moving a portion of the first article to a cutting plane situated facing the end that is to be spliced belonging to the second article; holding the portion of the first article downstream of the cutting plane with respect to the first reel; cutting the first article transversely; automatically moving the end that is to be spliced belonging to the second article as far as the cutting plane; and pressing a cut end of the first article at the cutting plane against the end that is to be spliced belonging to the second article in order to stick them together using the adhesive tape.

A system and method for automatic splicing of rolls of sleeve material used in various packaging markets is provided. The system will automatically splice the prepared end of a new roll onto the expiring end of the prior roll. The system performs an automatic cut and splice operation resulting in a butt splice of the two rolls with tape applied to both sides of the splice joint. The splice can be done in-registration to provide a consistent product repeat length between expiring and new rolls.

A splicing apparatus for splicing together an engaged paper sheet with a replenishing paper sheet in a paperboard corner manufacturing system, the apparatus comprising: an engaged sheet holder for holding the engaged paper sheet; an engaged sheet cutter for cutting the engaged paper sheet to form a free engaged paper end; a replenishing sheet holder for holding the replenishing paper sheet; a replenishing sheet cutter for cutting the replenishing paper sheet to form a free replenishing paper end; a sheet end alignment device for positioning both free engaged and replenishing paper ends relative to each other and substantially aligned with each other; an adhesive tape applicator for applying an adhesive tape simultaneously to the aligned free engaged and replenishing paper ends such that the adhesive tape extends partially over the engaged and replenishing paper sheets to join the free replenishing paper end to the free engaged paper end.

A method for joining unidirectional tapes is provided. The method includes placing a plurality of unidirectional tapes by abutting without overlapping an end of one of the unidirectional tapes with an end of other one of the unidirectional tapes at a butt joint. The unidirectional tapes includes a resin material and a plurality of fibers running in a running direction. The method further includes placing a prepreg including a resin material and a plurality of short fibers over the butt joint to cover an area surrounding the butt joint such that the short fibers run in the running direction. The method further includes fusing the prepreg by applying heat such that the short fibers are fused into a matrix of the unidirectional tapes at the butt joint.

A method and system for joining strips of battery grid comprises feeding a first strip of battery grid into a processing station at a predetermined feed rate, and progressively increasing the path length of the first strip until a target path length is reached. When the end of the first strip is reached, the path length of the first strip is progressively decreased while holding the end of the first strip. The rate of decrease allows the first strip to continue to be delivered into the processing station at the predetermined feed rate. A second strip is advanced from a second feed supply to a position adjacent the end of the first strip. The adjacent ends are joined by laser welding. The decreasing of the path length is stopped, and the second strip of battery grid is fed into the processing station at the predetermined feed rate.

An electrode connecting device for connecting an end of a preceding sheet to an end of a succeeding sheet includes: an arrangement member provided with an arrangement part on which the end of the preceding sheet is located adjacent to or overlapping with the end of the succeeding sheet; and a guide member having a guide bar which is provided movable between a support position to support a side portion of the preceding sheet and a side portion of the succeeding sheet during connecting of the end of the preceding sheet to the end of the succeeding sheet and a retreat position not to interfere with movements of the preceding sheet and the succeeding sheet.

Unwinder of a thin ply product wound on a roll, of the type with automatic switching of the unwinding roll with a spare roll, said unwinder comprisinga first roll-holder assembly equipped with a first unwinding rod for a respective roll, on which the roll is adapted to be supported, and which has an axis of rotation transversal to the direction of movement of the ply unwound from the roll,a second roll-holder assembly equipped with a second unwinding rod for a respective roll, on which the roll is adapted to be supported, said second rod being parallel to said first unwinding rod of the first roll-holder assembly, said second roll-holder assembly facing said first roll-holder assembly in an unwinding zone, wherein of said two roll-holder assemblies, one assembly holds the unwinding roll and the other assembly holds the spare roll to be switched,a ply splicing assembly placed above said first and second facing roll-holder assemblies,a ply accumulation unit to allow automatic switching between a roll being unwound in one said roll-holder assembly and a spare roll provided in the other roll-holder assembly,a transversal position correction system for the side edges of the plies on the rolls present in said roll-holder assemblies.

The invention relates to a device and a method for connecting finite webs of material for the energy cell producing industry, wherein the device comprises a holding device adapted to hold the new web of material by means of negative pressure in the second guide section, as well as a backing element and a cutting element, downstream in the conveying direction of the holding device. The backing element and the cutting element are adapted to cut the stationary new web of material to produce a new leading end of the new web of material. The device also comprises an applicator for applying an adhesive strip to the new leading end of the new web of material and a ram and a cutting device, wherein the cutting device is adapted to cut the stationary running-out web of material to produce a new trailing end of the running-out web of material. The ram is adapted to press the trailing web end of the running-out web of material onto the adhesive strip and against the applicator in order to connect the new leading end of the new web of material to the new trailing end of the running-out web of material.

The present invention relates to an electrode connection apparatus including a transfer unit configured to transfer a start portion of a standby electrode roll in a state of gripping the start portion, a leading unit configured to move upwards in a state of gripping the start portion of the standby electrode roll transferred by the transfer unit, a first connection unit configured to fix the standby electrode roll transferred by the leading unit, a second connection unit configured to fix an end portion of a moving electrode roll, and a taping unit configured to connect the standby electrode roll and the moving electrode roll to each other, whereby it is possible to automatically connect the electrode rolls to each other during an electrode manufacturing process performed as a roll-to-roll process.