Ultrasonic roll tail closure of non-woven web material method and apparatus

A method for securing a tail of a spirally wound roll of web material to interiorly adjacent wraps of the roll comprising:

• providing an ultrasonic welding assembly having a converter operably connected to a tool to oscillate the tool bi-directionally along an oscillation axis;
• providing a fixture configured to selectively move the tool into momentary contact with the outermost winding of a spirally wound roll in a manner in which the oscillation axis is tangential to the roll;
• moving by the fixture the tool into tangential contact with the outermost winding of the roll;
• and
• oscillating by the transducer the tool while in tangential contact with the outermost winding of the roll causing movement of the outermost winding of the roll relative to underlying windings and thereby friction welding the outermost winding to at least one inwardly adjacent winding layer of the web material thereby preventing unwinding of the roll.

A method of forming a spirally wound roll of web material and securing a tail end of the material to the roll to prevent unwinding of the roll, comprising the steps of:

• providing a feed path to direct nonwoven web material from a supply a winding apparatus;
• configuring the winding apparatus to form a spirally wound roll of the web material about a winding axis, the spirally wound roll having a tail end on an outermost winding of the spirally wound roll, the winding apparatus having a revolving turret carrying at least first, second, and third rotatable winding spindles about each the spirally wound rolls are formed, the turret being capable of simultaneously positioning one of the spindles in at least a winding position, an indexing position, and a stripping position and sequentially moving the spindles between the positions by revolving movement of the turret;
• providing a breaking apparatus configured to sever the web material thereby creating the tail end on a roll formed on the first spindle and a leading end,
• providing a web guide configured to direct the leading end into engagement with the second spindle to commence winding of a second roll,
• providing a tail tacking assembly operable to momentarily interact with the wound roll to secure the tail end to the roll;
• providing a control system monitor and manage operation of the turret, the winding spindles, the breaking apparatus and the feed path;
• providing a tail end detecting sensor configured to locate the tail end of the roll when the respective spindle is in the index position;
• winding by the winding apparatus a first spirally wound roll of web material on the first spindle while positioned in the winding position;
• monitoring the first spindle by the control system to determine when a desired roll size is achieved;
• repositioning by turret revolving the first spindle to the index position and the second spindle to the winding position whereupon a second roll may be spirally wound;
• actuating the breaking apparatus by the control system wherein the leading end is directed by the web guide to the second spindle whereupon winding of the second roll commences;
• determining by the tail end detecting sensor the rotational position of the tail of the first roll on the first spindle and directing by the control system rotation of the first spindle to stationarily position the tail at a desired tacking location;
• actuating the tacking system to secure the tail end to the first roll at the desired tacking location;
• repositioning by turret revolving the first spindle to the stripping position, the second spindle to the indexing position, and the third spindle to the winding position wherein a third roll may be spirally wound;
• and
• removing the first roll from the first spindle prior to moving the first spindle into the winding position.