Controlled environment fastener head painting device and method

A painting apparatus for applying a coating material to a member surface of at least one member having a shaft, the painting apparatus comprising:

• a housing defining a chamber;
• a pressurized air source operative to deliver temperature and humidity-controlled air to the chamber;
• at least one slide rail mountable within the housing, the slide rail having a plurality of rack positions, each one of the rack positions including an index stop, at least one of the rack positions including a no-rack stop configured to prevent the positioning of the cross beam at the no-rack stop;
• at least one rack assembly mountable within the housing at one of the rack positions and being configured to support the member, the rack assembly including:
• a panel having an upper surface and including at least one aperture, the aperture being sized and configured to receive the shaft such that the member surface is supported by the upper surface;
• a cross beam being movable along a length of the cross beam and being operative to stop at each one of the rack positions;
• a spraying device mountable on the cross beam and being configured to move along the cross beam while spraying a coating material onto the member surface;
• and
• a lifting mechanism operative to bear upwardly against the shaft such that the member surface is pushed upwardly away from the upper surface.

A painting apparatus for applying a coating material to a plurality of heads of a corresponding plurality of members, the painting apparatus comprising:

• a housing defining a chamber;
• a rack assembly removably mountable within the housing and being configured to support the members such that the heads are exposed;
• a cross beam fixedly mounted to the housing, the cross beam being positioned above the rack assembly;
• and
• a spraying device mountable on the cross beam and being configured to move along the cross beam while spraying a coating material onto the heads.

A method of applying a coating material to a member surface of a member, the method comprising the steps of:

• loading the member onto a rack assembly;
• loading the rack assembly into a housing having at least one slide rail, the slide rail having at least one rack position;
• positioning the rack assembly at the rack position;
• moving a cross beam along the slide rail toward the rack position until the cross beam is aligned with the rack assembly;
• and
• moving a spraying device along the cross beam while spraying a coating material onto the member surface.

A method of applying a coating material to a plurality of heads of a corresponding plurality of members each having a shaft, the method comprising the steps of:

• loading the members onto a panel having an upper surface and a plurality of apertures sized to receive the shafts;
• mounting the panel to a rack assembly located inside a housing, the housing having at least one slide rail, the slide rail having a plurality of rack positions, each rack position having at least one of an index stop and a no-rack stop, each rack assembly being positioned at one of the rack positions having the index stop;
• moving a cross beam along the slide rail from a home position toward a nearest one of the rack positions having one of the index stops;
• moving a spraying device along the cross beam from a first position to a second position while spraying a coating material onto the heads;
• moving the cross beam along the slide rail toward a next nearest one of the rack positions having one of the index stops;
• and
• repeating the sequence of steps of moving the spraying device along the cross beam while spraying coating material onto the heads and moving the cross beam along the slide rail toward a next nearest one of the rack positions until the cross beam encounters the no-rack stop.