US 12,599,995 B2Granted

Device or tool for gripping a liner to remove same from and install same in the shell of a mill, method for installing a liner and method for removing a liner

AssigneeMi Robotic Solutions S.A.

InventorsIgor Sebastián Elias Cabrera, Carlos Roberto Muñoz Rosas, Mario Francisco Poblete Gutiérrez

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Abstract

A device or tool that is configured for gripping a liner in order to to remove the liner, and install the liner in the shell of a mill. The device includes, a rigid structure or frame forming a support for containing the components, a coupling element that allows the device to be secured or disposed on at least one end of a manipulation device, such as a robotic manipulator, and at least one claw or pincer for holding at least one bolt by the head. The tool is designed to allow the adjustment of the relative position thereof in order to align the pincers to the positions of the holes of each liner. The at least one claw is configured to allow the at least one claw to open and close so as to adjust the size of the claw opening to the size of the bolt being gripped. The at least one pincer or claw has at least one sensor, thereby enabling mill liners to be installed and removed.

Claims11

Dependent claims

A device for gripping a liner to remove the liner from and install the liner in a shell of a mill, the device comprising:

a frame configured for storage;
a control system configured to operate and control the device;
a coupling element configured to allow the device to be secured or disposed on at least one end of a manipulation device;
and
at least one claw configured to hold at least one bolt by a head of the bolt, the device configured to allow adjustment of relative position of the device in order to align the at least one claw to a position of holes of each liner with the at least one claw configured to open and close so as to adjust the size thereof to a size of the bolt being gripped,
wherein the at least one claw has at least one sensor that is configured to determine an effective distance of the at least one claw with respect to one another and to the frame, and the at least one sensor being configured to verify whether the at least one claw is in an open or a closed position, which in turn verifies the position of the bolt with respect to the at least one claw and which verifies whether the bolt is in a correct position or axially or radially shifted in an incorrect position and
wherein the control system provides power, controls the device in communication with the manipulation device to which the control system is attached, has monitoring controls, at least one switchgear, a control panel, control cabinets, position detection panel, a human-machine interface, a hydraulic installation, inductive sensors, and an encoder.

4 more elements

A method for installing a liner by at least one device for gripping liners, comprising the following steps:

initiating a command through a computer of a control system in such a manner that the device receives information about the liner to be installed and disposition of bolts thereof, which is recorded by the computer;
moving a manipulator, in which said device is installed by the command to at least one bolt feeder;
adjusting a distance between at least one claw of the device in relation to another one of the at least one claw of the device so as to coincide with a distance between the bolts;
introducing the bolts one-by-one in the one of the at least one claw and/or the another one of the at least one claw;
detecting a correct position between the at least one claw and the another one of the at least claw by at least one sensor;
detecting the bolts and verifying that the bolts are in the correct position;
commanding closure of the at least one claw to hold one of the bolts, the manipulator continues to feed the other of the at least one claw with the bolts according to the liner that will be installed in such a manner that once all claws of the at least one claw that are required are provided with the bolts, the manipulator shifts out of a bolt feeding area and is disposed for grabbing the liner in the area of a liner feeder;
and
moving the device with the manipulator to grab the liner and inserting the bolts secured within the at least one claw and/or another one of the at least one claw through orifices of the liner and positioning the liner on the surface of a shell of a mill.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.