# US 10,479,035 B2 · Method for managing the production cycle of a plant in a process for building tyres for vehicle wheels > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,479,035 B2 - Document ID: US10479035B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/363,137 - Filed: 2012-11-27 - Published: 2014-11-27 - Granted: 2019-11-19 - Earliest claimed: 2011-12-14 - Assignees: Pirelli Tyre S.p.A. - Applicants: Pirelli Tyre S.P.A. - Inventors: Maurizio Marchini; Albert Berenguer - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10479035B2 ## CPC - B29D 30/0016: {Handling tyres or parts thereof, e.g. supplying, storing, conveying (B29D30/2607 takes precedence; loading and unloading vulcanizing presses B29D30/0603)} - B25J 11/00: Manipulators not otherwise provided for - B29D 30/18: Fitting the bead-rings or bead-cores; Folding the textile layers around the rings or cores - B29D 30/32: Fitting the bead-rings or bead-cores; Folding the textile layers around the rings or cores - B29D 30/48: Bead-rings or bead-cores (from wire B21F37/00); Treatment thereof prior to building the tyre - B29D 2030/0044: {Handling tyre beads, e.g., storing, transporting, transferring and supplying to the toroidal support or to the drum} - B29D: PRODUCING PARTICULAR ARTICLES FROM PLASTICS OR FROM SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE (making granules B29B9/00; making preforms B29B11/00) - B25J: MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES ({manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery A61B34/70; manipulators used in cleaning hollow articles B08B9/04}; manipulators associated with rolling mills B21B39/20; manipulators associated with forging machines B21J13/10; {manipulators associated with picking-up and placing mechanisms B23P19/007}; means for holding wheels or parts thereof B60B30/00; {vehicles with ground-engaging propulsion means, e.g. walking members B62D57/02, B62D57/032; devices for picking-up and depositing articles or materials between conveyors B65G47/90, B65G47/91; manipulators with gripping or holding means for transferring packages B65H67/065}; cranes B66C; {manipulators used in the protection or supervision of pipe-line installations F17D5/00; walking equipment adapted for nuclear steam-generators F22B37/006}; manipulators specially adapted for, or associated with, nuclear reactors G21C; {apparatus used for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor H10P72/50}) ## Abstract A method and a plant for managing the production cycle of a plant for building tires for vehicle wheels, wherein the plant provides for a storage region for anchoring annular structures and a plurality of processing stations at least one of which is associated with a forming drum, includes feeding a plurality of anchoring annular structures to the storage region, picking up the anchoring annular structures from the storage region at a predetermined picking-up position that does not change on changing of the types of the anchoring annular structures, and feeding the picked-up anchoring annular structures to the processing station associated with the forming drum. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for managing the production cycle of a plant for building a tyre for vehicle wheels: feeding a plurality of anchoring annular structures, each comprising a bead ring and a filling insert, to a basket within a storage region, wherein the basket feeds the anchoring annular structures in succession to a predetermined picking-up position in three dimensional space, said predetermined picking-up position does not change if anchoring annular structures of the plurality of anchoring annular structures have differing diameters; supporting each anchoring annular structure in the basket by a respective supporting member, each supporting member includes an abutment wall comprising a pair of coplanar fins separated from one another by a recess, wherein each anchoring annular structure is supported by the respective supporting member at a respective support portion that is defined by a single circular sector at an upper portion of the anchoring annular structure's internal circumference, and wherein an uppermost support portion of each anchoring annular structure spans a corresponding recess of its respective supporting member; picking up a first anchoring annular structure of the plurality of anchoring annular structures from its uppermost support portion by inserting a gripper into the first anchoring annular structure's corresponding recess of its respective supporting member when the first anchoring annular structure reaches the predetermined picking-up position; and carrying with said gripper the first anchoring annular structure by its uppermost support portion to a processing station associated with a forming drum. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method as claimed in claim 1, comprising: feeding each anchoring annular structure in succession to the predetermined picking-up position. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein said feeding a plurality of anchoring annular structures to said storage region comprises: arranging the anchoring annular structures in an orderly line. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method as claimed in claim 3, comprising: separating each anchoring annular structure from other anchoring annular structures at least at their respective uppermost support portions. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: feeding a second anchoring annular structure to a position previously occupied by the picked-up anchoring annular structure. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said feeding a plurality of anchoring annular structures to said storage region comprises: feeding a plurality of groups of anchoring annular structures to said storage region wherein each group of anchoring annular structures is assigned to a respective basket within the storage region, and said picking up said first anchoring annular structure from said storage region comprises picking up each anchoring annular structure of each group of anchoring annular structures from its respective basket within the storage region.