Manufacturing pickup tool
AssigneeNIKE, Inc.
InventorsAdam Montoya, Raymundo Alatorre Mercado
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vacuum powered pickup tool with mechanically moveable discrete nozzles allows for selective activation of the nozzles through the mechanical movement of the nozzles relative to a vacuum manifold. The movement of a nozzle from an inactive position where an inlet port of the nozzle is fluidly decoupled with the vacuum manifold to an active position where the inlet port is fluidly coupled with the vacuum manifold allows for independent activation of discrete nozzles of the pickup tool. Aspects also contemplate varying an associate manifold through movement of the manifolds accessible to the inlet port of the nozzle when in the active position.
Claims12
A material pickup system, the system comprising:
- a computing device;
- a vacuum source;
- a multi-axis movement device, wherein the movement device is logically coupled with the computing device;
- and
- a pickup tool logically coupled with the computing device, the pickup tool comprising:
- a base member;
- a plurality of independently activated nozzles;
- a plurality of nozzle movement mechanisms coupled to the base member, wherein each of the plurality of independently activated nozzles is coupled with a discrete nozzle movement mechanism of the plurality of nozzle movement mechanisms;
- a vacuum manifold fluidly coupled with the vacuum source, wherein each of the plurality of independently activated nozzles slidably extends through respective manifold sleeves of the vacuum manifold;
- a positive manifold;
- and
- a manifold movement mechanism, wherein the manifold movement mechanism is configured to collectively adjust a distance of the vacuum manifold and the positive manifold, relative to the base member, between a first position and a second position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.