Method for Doffing for a Spinning Machine and a Corresponding Doffer

Abstract

A method for removing full bobbins from spindles of a ring spinning machine and for setting down empty sleeves on the spindles using a doffer is disclosed. The doffer has a beam and a rotatable gripping device that is mounted on the beam and has a sleeve gripper and a bobbin gripper, wherein the doffer is arranged next to the ring spinning machine. The beam is raised vertically and the gripping device is extended from the beam over the full bobbin. The invention also relates to a doffer having the corresponding drives.

Claims

1-15: (canceled)

16. A method for removing full bobbins from spindles on a ring spinning machine and for setting down empty sleeves on the spindles using a doffer, wherein the doffer has a beam and a rotatable gripping device mounted on the beam, the gripping device having a sleeve gripper and a bobbin gripper, and the doffer arranged next to the ring spinning machine, the method comprising the following sequential steps: (a) gripping an empty sleeve with the sleeve gripper; (b) raising of the beam vertically; (c) extending the gripping device from the beam to a position over a full bobbin on a spindle at the ring spinning machine; (d) removing the full bobbin from the spindle with the bobbin gripper, rotating the gripping device, and placing the empty sleeve on the spindle; (e) retracting the gripping device toward the beam; (f) lowering the beam vertically; and (g) setting down the full bobbin from the bobbin gripper.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein step (c) comprises a horizontal pivoting of the gripping device away from the beam, and further comprising a rotational operation of the gripping device carried out between the steps (a)-(b) and between the steps (f)-(g).

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein step (c) comprises a pivoting of the gripping device obliquely upward with an offset.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein step (d) comprises retraction of the gripping device toward the beam before the rotational operation of the gripping device, wherein the gripping device is again extended over the spindle after the rotational operation, or the rotational operation of the gripping device of step (d) takes place with the gripping device located over the spindle.

20. The method according to claim 16, wherein the bobbin gripper has a bobbin receptacle that is open at the bottom and is inverted over the bobbin for gripping the bobbin from above, and the sleeve gripper has a sleeve receptacle that is open toward the bottom and is inverted over the sleeve for gripping the sleeve from above.

21. The method according to claim 16, wherein the sleeve gripper and the bobbin gripper are operated pneumatically.

22. The method according to claim 16, wherein adjacent ones of the gripping devices on the beam are rotated with a time lag between one another.

23. The method according to claim 16, wherein the gripping device has indicators that provide a rotational position indication of the gripping device through a base body of the gripping device.

24. A doffer system configured for arrangement alongside a ring spinning machine to remove full bobbins from spindles on the ring spinning machine and to set down empty sleeves on the spindles, the doffer comprising: a doffer beam; a gripping device rotatably mounted on the beam; the gripping device further comprising a sleeve gripper and a bobbin gripper; a drive configured with the doffer beam to raise and lower the doffer beam; and a drive configured with the gripping device to extend and retract the gripping device relative to the doffer beam.

25. The doffer system according to claim 24, wherein the drive configured with the gripping device comprises one of a joint for horizontal pivoting of the gripping device away from the beam, or a joint for obliquely upward pivoting of the gripping device with an offset.

26. The doffer system according to claim 24, wherein the bobbin gripper comprises a bobbin receptacle that is open at the bottom and is inverted over the bobbin for gripping the bobbin from above, and the sleeve gripper comprises a sleeve receptacle that is open toward the bottom and is inverted over the sleeve for gripping the sleeve from above.

27. The doffer system according to claim 26, wherein the bobbin gripper and the sleeve gripper are cylindrical or conical.

28. The doffer system according to claim 26, wherein the bobbin gripper and the sleeve gripper comprise a same diameter.

29. The doffer system according to claim 24, wherein an axis of the bobbin gripper and an axis of the sleeve gripper are at an angle to one another between 4 and 20.

30. The doffer system according to claim 24, wherein an angle between an axis of rotation of the gripping device and an axis of the bobbin gripper is equal to an angle between the axis of rotation of the gripping device and an axis of the sleeve gripper.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0017] Additional advantages of the invention are described in the following exemplary embodiments in which:

[0018] FIGS. 1a-j show schematic diagrams of a first specific embodiment of views of certain phases in changing from full bobbins to empty sleeves in the method according to the invention; and

[0019] FIGS. 2a-g show schematic diagrams of another specific embodiment of views of certain phases in changing from full bobbins to empty sleeves in the method according to the invention.

[0020] Only the features that are important for the invention are shown. The same features are provided with the same reference numerals in different figures. The directions of movement are indicated with arrows.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] Reference will now be made to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are shown in the drawings. Each embodiment is provided by way of explanation of the invention, and not as a limitation of the invention. For example features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be combined with another embodiment to yield still another embodiment. It is intended that the present invention include these and other modifications and variations to the embodiments described herein.

[0022] FIG. 1 shows schematic diagrams of a first specific embodiment of views of certain phases in changing from full bobbins 7 to empty sleeves 5 on spindles 8 of a ring spinning machine according to the present method. The starting position for a changing operation according to the invention from bobbins 7 using the doffer apparatus 1 is illustrated schematically in FIG. 1a. The doffer apparatus 1 comprises a doffer beam 2 and a plurality of rotatable gripping devices 3 using two gripping elements 4.sub.1, 4.sub.2, so that a gripping device 3 is assigned to each spinning station on the ring spinning machine. The figures illustrate a gripping device 3 merely as an example, but several gripping devices 3 are arranged along the ring spinning machine. The multiple gripping devices 3 are mounted on the beam 2. Furthermore, the beam 2 can be moved in such a way that it can bring the gripping devices 3 into the positions relevant for the doffing operation in order to receive the empty sleeves 5 from the pin 6 of a conveyance system and deposit the full bobbins 7, and toward the spindles 8, in order to remove the full bobbins 7 and set down the empty sleeves. To do so, the gripping device 3 comprises as the first gripping element a sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 and, as the second gripping element, a bobbin gripper 4.sub.2. The bobbin gripper 4.sub.2 is designed for gripping the full bobbin, and the sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 is designed for gripping the empty sleeve. It is provided that the two gripping elements 4.sub.1, 4.sub.2 of the gripping device 3 can be rotated so that they mutually change positions.

[0023] The sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 and the bobbin gripper 4.sub.2 each have a sleeve receptacle that is open at the bottom and can be inverted over the bobbin 7 and/or the sleeve 5 for the purpose of gripping them. The two elements may be designed to be cylindrical or conical and may be operated pneumatically with a membrane. The diameter of the sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 and the diameter of the bobbin gripper 4.sub.2 are advantageously the same, in particular when the sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 and the bobbin gripper 4.sub.2 are designed to be essentially identical. In an advantageous specific embodiment, one axis of the bobbin gripper 4.sub.2 and one axis of sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 can be arranged at an angle to one another, which is between 4 and 20, especially preferably 15. The angle between the axis of rotation of the gripping device 3 and the axis of rotation of the bobbin gripper may also be equal to the angle between the axis of rotation and an axis of the sleeve gripper.

[0024] It is also the case that two neighboring gripping devices 3 can be rotated with a time lag between them. This is a particularly space-saving embodiment. Each gripping device 3 may then have two indicators, where the position of the rotational device is indicated through a base body.

[0025] In a first variant of the method according to the invention, the gripper beam 2 is first positioned so as to grip each of the empty sleeves 5 with a sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 of the gripping devices 3 and to lift them up from a pin 6. As can be seen in FIG. 1b, the beam 2 is raised vertically according to the invention by a drive, which is not shown in greater detail here. FIG. 1c shows that the gripping device is then rotated about an axis of rotation in order to be able to receive the full bobbin 7 in a working position with the unoccupied bobbin gripper 4.sub.2.

[0026] With the ring spinning machine shut down, the full bobbins 7 are gripped at their sleeves by the gripping elements of the gripping devices 3. The empty sleeves 5 are situated on the side of the spindles 8 facing away from the machine frame during this operation. In this method step, the gripping device 3 is extended and/or unfolded horizontally from the beam 2 (see arrow), in order to be positioned over the bobbins 7, and then is lowered (FIG. 1d). The horizontal pivoting and/or unfolding of the gripping device 3 takes place by way of articulated connections that are present between the beam 2 and the gripping device 3.

[0027] Next, the bobbin 7 is gripped and the gripper beam 2 is moved vertically upward in order to remove the bobbins 7 from the spindles 8. If the bobbins 7 are free of the spindles 8, then the gripping device 3 is rotated again by 180, so that the empty sleeves 5 enter the position flush with the spindles 8. In this process step of rotation, the gripper can be moved and/or rotated into the position in FIG. 1b and shifted back to the spindle 8 (FIG. 1e). Alternatively, the gripper 3 can rotate over the spindles 8 (not shown in the figures). The empty sleeves 5 are again placed on the spindles 8 due to a vertical downward movement of the doffing beam 2. The end of this changing phase is illustrated in FIG. 1f. As shown in FIG. 1g, the doffer beam 2 is again retracted with the full bobbins 7 (cf. arrow). At the latest at this point in time, the ring spinning machine that has been stopped can be started up again.

[0028] FIGS. 1h-j show the lowering of the doffer beam 2 and the simultaneous rotation, so that the bobbins 7 are moved out of their waiting position into their subsequent position that is flush with the pin 6. In FIGS. 1i,j the gripper elements 4.sub.2 holding the full bobbins 7 are in the position in which they are flush with the pin 6. By lowering the doffer beam 2 vertically and then releasing the gripping elements 4.sub.2, the bobbins 7 are dispensed to the pins 6. Then the doffer 1 goes back to a resting position. The operation of changing full bobbins 7 for empty sleeves 5 is thus concluded.

[0029] FIG. 2 shows schematic diagrams of a second specific embodiment of views of certain phases in changing full bobbins 7 for empty sleeves 5 on a ring spinning machine in the method according to the invention. In FIG. 2a, the starting position is diagramed schematically for an operation of changing bobbins 7 with the doffer apparatus 1 according to the invention. The doffer apparatus 1 per se corresponds to the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1, as described above, except for a second specific embodiment of setting down the gripping devices 3 over the spindles 8.

[0030] In this second variant of the method according to the invention, the gripper beam 2 is first positioned in such a way as to grip the empty sleeves 5, each with a sleeve gripper 4.sub.1 of the gripping devices 3, and to lift them up from the pin 6 (FIG. 2a). As can be seen in FIG. 2b, the beam 2 is raised vertically according to the invention by a drive, which is not shown in greater detail. FIG. 2c shows that the gripping device 3, which is slightly inclined in FIG. 2b, is now brought into position over the bobbin 7 from underneath in a lateral tilting movement, to thereby be able to receive the full bobbin 7 in a working position with the unoccupied bobbin gripper 4.sub.2. A corresponding articulated connection or a corresponding pivoting joint is present between the beam 2 and the gripping device 3. The movement is a pivoting of the gripping device 3, directed upward obliquely from the bottom with an offset contained therein.

[0031] The gripping device 3 is then tilted back and rotated into a retracted position (FIG. 2d) to then be extended again and tilted and to place the empty sleeve 5 on the spindle 8 (FIG. 2e). FIG. 2f then shows the renewed tilting back and FIG. 2g shows the full bobbin being deposited on the pin 6.

[0032] The method according to the invention and the doffer according to the invention are advantageous because they are very space-saving and do not cause the machine to be wider due to the lateral extension of the doffer. Furthermore, this is a very simple design.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

[0033] 1 Doffer, doffer apparatus [0034] 2 Doffer beam [0035] 3 Gripping device [0036] 4.sub.1 Gripping element, sleeve gripper [0037] 4.sub.2 Gripping element, bobbin gripper [0038] 5 Sleeve [0039] 6 Pin [0040] 7 Full bobbin [0041] 8 Spindle