Gripper-bender device and modular gripper assembly

A mechanised method for bending and loading one or more slender products having two longitudinal ends into at least one package, said method implementing one or more gripper-bender devices and comprising the following steps of:

• /a/ gripping by the gripper-bender device(s) the product(s) in a rest position on a support surface, the rest position being defined by the or each product having an initial length between the two longitudinal ends thereof,
• /b/ stressing by the gripper-bender device(s) the product(s) into a curved position, the curved position being defined by the or each product having a reduced length between the two longitudinal ends thereof shorter than the initial length, and,
• /c/ depositing and inserting by the gripper-bender device(s) the product(s) in the curved position into said at least one package,
• said method further implementing a modular gripper assembly comprising a main frame comprising main rails and a plurality of gripper-bender devices slidingly mounted parallel with one another and one after another along said main rails, said gripper-bender devices regrouped into a plurality of independent gripper groups, sliding along the main rails,
• each gripper-bender device comprising
• at least one suction cup including flexible bellows, connected to at least one vacuum port for actuating a suction of the suction cup, the suction cup being configured to grasp by suction in a suction direction the product in the rest position during step /a/, and to pull by continuous suction in a retraction direction of the suction cup, collapsing the flexible bellows of the suction cup, during step /b/ by causing a movement of the product in relation to a fixed part of the gripper-bender device, and,
• at least one lower counter-bearing portion including at least one contact surface, configured to counter bear against the product during the retraction of the suction cup in a direction opposite to the direction of retraction of the suction cup on the product during step /b/, in order to place it in the curved position,
• and wherein the main frame is equipped with at least one actuator configured to slide the plurality of gripper-bender devices along the main rails:
• between a gripping position wherein the gripper-benders of said independent gripper groups are grouped in a centre of the main frame juxtaposed one after another on the main rails, and each of the two ends of the main rails is left free according to an end spacing, and
• a depositing position, wherein the gripper-benders of the gripper groups are disposed in a spaced position, said independent gripper groups being separated from one another by a group spacing and each independent gripper group having a group length,
• wherein said packages are of a package length longer than the group length and are of a package width, wherein the gripper assembly is placed in the gripping position prior to step /a/, the method comprising the following steps of:
• /a/ gripping by the plurality of gripper-bender devices the plurality of products which are uniformly distributed and moving on the support surface in the rest position,
• /b/ stressing and bending the plurality of products in the curved position by the plurality of gripper-bender devices,
• /c/ placing the modular gripper assembly in the depositing position wherein the plurality of gripper-bender devices gripping the plurality of products in the curved position is divided into a plurality of independent gripper groups, each independent gripper group being of the group length, and,
• /d/ depositing and inserting said plurality of products in the curved position gripped by each independent gripper group into each package.