Apparatus for transporting a rotor
AssigneeUniversal Balancing Limited
InventorSteve Fowler
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Provided is an apparatus capable of transporting a rotor from a first location to a second location, including: a holding device for engaging with a portion of the rotor at the first location so as to hold the rotor relative to the apparatus; a position determination device for determining the position of at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body; a positioning device for positioning or repositioning said at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body; and a movement device for moving the rotor from the first location to the second location. Also described is a method of loading a rotor into a balancing machine.
Claims29
An apparatus capable of transporting an elongate rotor from a first location to a second location, the apparatus comprising:
- a holding device capable of engaging with a portion of the rotor at the first location so as to hold the rotor relative to the apparatus;
- a position determination device capable of determining the position of at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body;
- a positioning device capable of positioning or repositioning said at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body;
- and
- a movement device capable of moving the rotor from the first location to the second location.
A method of loading an elongate rotor into a balancing machine, the method comprising:
- obtaining a balancing machine comprising:
- first and second mounting apparatus each capable of engaging with and holding respective ends of the rotor;
- and
- means for driving one or both the first and second mounting apparatus,
- collecting a rotor from a first location using a transporting apparatus, the transporting apparatus including a holding device capable of engaging with a portion of the rotor so as to hold the rotor relative to the transporting apparatus;
- determining the position of at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body;
- loading the rotor into the balancing machine;
- and
- engaging the first and second mounting apparatus of the balancing machine with respective end of the rotor,
- wherein, prior to or at the same time as the step of loading the rotor into the balancing machine, the method includes one or both of the steps of:
- positioning or repositioning said at least one component part of the rotor relative to the another component part of the rotor or the another body;
- and/or
- positioning or repositioning one of the first and second mounting apparatus of the balancing machine at a desired position which corresponds to the position of the at least one component part of the rotor.
An apparatus capable of transporting an articulated elongate rotor from a first location to a second location, the rotor including at least two rotor portions connected to each other, the apparatus comprising:
- two holding devices each capable of engaging with one of the rotor portions at the first location;
- a position determination device capable of determining the position of at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body;
- a positioning device capable of positioning or repositioning said at least one component part of the rotor relative to another component part of the rotor or another body;
- and
- a movement device capable of moving the articulated rotor from the first location to the second location.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.