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US 12,029,630 B2Granted
Apparatus and method for manufacturing absorbent article
AssigneeZuiko Corporation
InventorsDaisuke Inoue, Takashi Arima
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present apparatus for manufacturing an article includes a velocity-changing device that changes velocity so that circumferential velocity of a holding pad is continuously decelerated or continuously accelerated during a period from a first start time, at which hand-over of a workpiece of a first size at an upstream position as a hand-over position on a circling path is started, to a second start time, at which hand-over of a workpiece of a second size at a downstream position as the hand-over position downstream of the upstream position on the circling path is started.
Claims19
An apparatus for manufacturing an absorbent article, the apparatus comprising:
- a holding pad that rotates along a circling path while velocity of the holding pad is changed to pick up a workpiece at a pick-up position and hand over the workpiece onto a continuous sheet at a hand-over position;
- a conveying device that conveys the continuous sheet at conveying velocity that depends on a size of a product to receive and convey the workpiece on the continuous sheet at the hand-over position, wherein the conveying device includes a transfer roll contacting with the holding pad via the continuous sheet and the workpiece;
- and
- a velocity-changing device that changes circumferential velocity of the holding pad during a period from a first start time to a second start time,
- when the size of the product is a first size, hand-over of the workpiece starts at the first start time at an upstream position, which is the hand-over position on the circling path,
- when the size of the product is a second size, hand-over of the workpiece starts at the second start time at a downstream position, which is the hand-over position downstream of the upstream position on the circling path, and
- the velocity-changing device changing the circumferential velocity of the holding pad so that the circumferential velocity is continuously decelerated or continuously accelerated during the period from the first start time to the second start time,
- a setting device comprising a moveable frame configured to change a physical position of the transfer roll, such that the physical position of the transfer roll is changeable between the upstream position and the downstream position, and
- wherein the moveable frame changing the physical position of the transfer roll results in a change in the hand-over position accordingly between the upstream position and the downstream position.
6 more elements
A method for manufacturing an absorbent article, the method comprising:
- a first conveying step of using a holding pad that rotates along a circling path while velocity of the holding pad is changed to pick up a workpiece at a pick-up position and hand over the workpiece onto a continuous sheet at a hand-over position;
- a second conveying step of using a conveying device to convey the continuous sheet at conveying velocity that depends on a size of a product to receive and convey the workpiece on the continuous sheet at the hand-over position;
- a step of setting in advance the hand-over position to be one position, depending on the size of the product,
- the one position being selected between an upstream position and a downstream position on the circling path, the downstream position being downstream of the upstream position;
- and
- a velocity-changing step in which a velocity-changing device changes circumferential velocity of the holding pad during a period from a first start time to a second start time,
- when the size of the product is a first size, hand-over of the workpiece starts at the first start time at the upstream position,
- when the size of the product is a second size, hand-over of the workpiece starts at the second start time at the downstream position, and
- in the velocity-changing step, the velocity-changing device changing the circumferential velocity of the holding pad so that the circumferential velocity is continuously decelerated or continuously accelerated during the period from the first start time to the second start time,
- wherein in the case where the circumferential velocity continuously decelerates, a deceleration ratio of the circumferential velocity at the second start time relative to the circumferential velocity at the first start time is set to be greater than 1.0, and
- wherein in the case where the circumferential velocity continuously accelerates, an acceleration ratio of the circumferential velocity at the second start time relative to the circumferential velocity at the first start time is set to be greater than 1.0.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.