Method and system for layered wood product production
AssigneeBoise Cascade Corporation
InventorDavid Bolton
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method and system for production of layered wood products employs local and independently operating robotic panel assembly cells including one or more veneer handling robots, one or more core handling robots, and one or more glue application robots to produce stacks of layered wood product panels locally near the pressing stations. Consequently, the stacks of layered wood product panels are independently built at, or near, the location of the pressing stations. This eliminates the need for traditional panel conveyors, traditional layered wood product panel assembly layup lines, and stack press delivery lines. This, in turn, eliminates thousands of moving parts and dozens of people from the layered wood product production process.
Claims20
A local robotic panel assembly and pressing station, the local robotic panel assembly and pressing station comprising:
- a robot panel assembly cell, the robot panel assembly cell being located at a stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the robot panel assembly cell including at least one stack of veneer sheets, a control system, and one or more robots all located at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the robot panel assembly cell producing a stack of two or more green layered wood product panels at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location;
- a pre-press, the pre-press receiving the stack of two or more green layered wood product panels from the stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the pre-press pressing the stack of green layered wood product panels to produce pre-pressed layered wood product panels;
- and
- a hot press, the hot press heating and pressing the pre-pressed layered wood product panels to produce cured layered wood product panels.
A local robotic panel assembly and pressing station, the local robotic panel assembly and pressing station comprising:
- a veneer inspection/grading system;
- a robot panel assembly cell, the robot panel assembly cell being located at a stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the robot panel assembly cell including at least one stack of veneer sheets, a control system, and one or more robots all located at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the robot panel assembly cell producing a stack of two or more green layered wood product panels at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location;
- a pre-press, the pre-press receiving the stack of two or more green layered wood product panels from the stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the pre-press pressing the stack of green layered wood product panels to produce pre-pressed layered wood product panels;
- and
- a hot press, the hot press heating and pressing the pre-pressed layered wood product panels to produce cured layered wood product panels.
A method for layered wood product production, the method comprising:
- providing one or more local robotic panel assembly and pressing stations, the one or more local robotic panel assembly and pressing stations including:
- one or more robot panel assembly cells, each of the one or more robot panel assembly cells being located at a stationary robot panel assembly cell location, each of the one or more robot panel assembly cells including at least one stack of veneer sheets, a control system, and one or more robots all located at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location, each of the one or more robot panel assembly cells producing one or more stacks of two or more green layered wood product panels at the stationary robot panel assembly cell location;
- one or more pre-presses, each of the one or more pre-presses receiving a stack of two or more green layered wood product panels from a stationary robot panel assembly cell location, the pre-press pressing a stack of green layered wood product panels of the one or more stacks of green layered wood product panels to produce pre-pressed layered wood product panels;
- and
- one or more hot presses, the one or more hot presses heating and pressing the pre-pressed layered wood product panels to produce cured layered wood product panels.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.