Method for Unwinding and Splicing Reels of Articles Made of Flexible Material, and Module for Implementing the Method

The invention relates to the technical field of unwinding reels of flexible articles, such as strips or sheets of fabric, plastic film, rubber, or any other product that can be wound and unwound. More specifically, the invention concerns a method for unwinding and splicing such reels, as well as a module for implementing said method.

In the current state of the art, it is known to unwind a reel of an article made of flexible material through an unwinder designed to rotate the reel to feed a downstream machine, or to brake the reel's rotation to tension the unwound article when the downstream machine pulls and consumes said article.

When an unwinding reel is empty, it is necessary to replace it with a new reel while maintaining continuity by splicing the final end of the article from the empty reel with the initial end of the article from the new reel.

The configuration of an unwinder is restrictive and presents several drawbacks, notably related to the time required for handling the reels. Indeed, the operations of removing the empty reel and loading a full reel generate a loss of efficiency due to the downtime of the downstream machine.

Document US2009/116948 describes a method and a module for unwinding and splicing reels of flexible material articles, which does not provide full satisfaction.

One of the objectives of the invention is to address the aforementioned problems by providing a method and a module for unwinding and splicing reels of flexible material articles with optimized efficiency, meaning the shortest possible downtime between splicing a full reel with an empty reel.

To this end, a method has been developed for unwinding and splicing reels of flexible material articles, remarkable in that it comprises the following steps:

In this way, the invention provides a method for unwinding and splicing reels with downtime limited to the time needed to perform the splicing. The removal of the empty reel and the loading of a new full reel is done during the unwinding of another reel, without stopping the process.

The rotation of the rotating assembly is preferably motorized, rapid, and automatic, for example, around a vertical axis. The reels, however, are positioned to rotate around a horizontal axis, without limitation.

To further automate the method according to the invention and avoid human intervention, the method includes a step to automatically and transversely cut the article to detach it from the empty reel. Otherwise, the cutting operation may be performed by an operator, or it may not be necessary if the final end of the unwound article is not attached to the empty reel.

The splicing operation may be performed manually by an operator. To further limit human intervention, the splicing operation can also be performed automatically using an automatic splicing device, such as a splicing device using adhesive.

The operations of removing the empty reel and loading a full reel can be performed safely and away from the unwinding station.

The invention also relates to a module for unwinding and splicing reels of flexible material articles, remarkable in that it comprises a rotating assembly positioned between an unwinding station and a reloading station. The rotating assembly includes means for holding at least two reels, with the ability to rotate the reels around their axis. The rotating assembly is able to pivot, for example, by 180°, preferably around a vertical axis, to successively move the reels to the unwinding station for unwinding a full reel, and to the reloading station for removing an empty reel and loading a new full reel.

The rotating assembly can be implemented in any suitable manner, for example, by a pivoting arm around an axis, or in the form of a platform positioned horizontally below or above the reels, without limitation.

To avoid human intervention, the unwinding station includes a transverse cutting device and, preferably, an automatic splicing device, notably using adhesive.

Advantageously, the rotating assembly includes means for holding secondary reels positioned above or below the reels to allow the simultaneous unwinding of a secondary article overlaid on the main unwound article, such as a line.

With reference to, the invention concerns a method and a module () for unwinding reels () of flexible material articles, such as strips or sheets of fabric, plastic, rubber, or any other flexible element that can be unwound towards a downstream machine, not shown, which may be a cutting, printing, coating, or surface treatment machine, as is known.

The invention allows, when a reel is empty, to remove it and splice the end of a new full reel to continue the unwinding operation. The module () according to the invention comprises a rotating assembly (), illustrated as a platform, positioned between an unwinding station () and a reloading station ().

In the illustrated embodiment, the rotating assembly () pivots around a vertical axis, and the unwinding () and reloading () stations are diametrically opposed.

The rotating assembly () includes means for holding at least two reels () with the ability to rotate the reels () around their axis.

The holding means are of any suitable type well known to those skilled in the art, for example, in the form of a support frame with two flanges designed to receive the ends of the reels' mandrels (). In practice, these holding means are motorized unwinders (), either to rotate the reel to feed the downstream machine or to brake the reel's rotation to tension the unwound article when the downstream machine pulls the article.

According to the invention, the rotating assembly () is able to pivot, notably automatically by being motorized, to successively move the reels () to the unwinding station () for unwinding a full reel, and to the reloading station () for removing an empty reel and positioning a new full reel.

As described, this module () reduces downtime in the unwinding process because, when the unwound reel is empty, it is sufficient to pivot the rotating assembly () to present a new full reel for splicing and unwinding.

In practice, the method implemented comprises the following steps: A) Unwind a full reel () from the unwinding station, the full reel being positioned on the rotating assembly (); B) During the unwinding of the reel (), position a new full reel () from the reloading station () onto the rotating assembly (); C) When the unwound reel is empty, either the final end of the article detaches itself, or a step, manual or automatic, cuts the article transversely to detach it from the empty reel and pivots the rotating assembly () to move the empty reel to the reloading station () and, simultaneously, the full reel to the unwinding station; D) Splice, manually or automatically, the initial end of the article from the full reel with the final end of the article from the empty reel, and unwind the full reel from the unwinding station; E) From the reloading station (), and notably during the unwinding of the full reel, remove the empty reel and position a new full reel.

Then, repeat the process from step C) as many times as necessary.

When splicing is done automatically, the unwinding station () includes an automatic splicing device (not shown), such as an automatic splicing device using adhesive, as well as a transverse cutting device.

In the illustrated embodiment, the rotating assembly () is in the form of a platform positioned at ground level, pivoting around a vertical axis, with the reels () positioned above the platform, rotating around a horizontal axis. Other embodiments can be considered without departing from the scope of the invention, such as the platform being positioned above the reels (), resulting in a suspended assembly, minimizing floor space.

The unwinding () and reloading () stations are diametrically opposed, so the rotating assembly () must pivot 180° to move the reels () between stations.

The operations of removing the empty reel and loading a full reel can be performed manually or automatically; the key point is that they occur during the unwinding of the other reel.

If an operator performs the removal and loading operations, they are done entirely safely, away from the unwinding module ().

In the illustrated embodiment, see, the rotating assembly () also includes means for holding secondary reels (′), motorized unwinders (′), positioned above or below the primary reels (), allowing the simultaneous unwinding of a secondary article overlaid on the main unwound article, such as a liner, for example.

From the foregoing, it is clear that the invention provides a method and a module () for unwinding and splicing reels () of flexible material articles, with optimized efficiency, meaning the shortest possible downtime between splicing two reels ().