Process and device for paralleling a transport carriage
AssigneeGenkinger Hebe- und Foerderchnik GmbH
InventorHelmut Graser
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus and process for positioning a transport carriage that supports a cloth or yarn roller in front of a weaving machine. The apparatus is provided with two non-contact sensors that are attached to spaced apart locations on the transport carriage. The transport carriage is further provided with two selectively actuatable steerable wheels. After the transport carriage is initially positioned in front of the weaving machine distance measurements are made between the non-contact sensors and fixed reference points on the weaving machine. Based on these distance measurements the wheels integral with the transport carriage are selectively actuated in order to place the transport carriage in parallel alignment with the weaving machine.
Claims17
A process for aligning a transport carriage for a cloth/yarn roller in front of a weaving machine, said process including the steps of:
- providing a transport carriage having two longitudinally spaced wheels that are steerable:
- positioning at least one of said steerable wheels of said transport carriage so that said at least one steerable wheel is aligned in a transverse direction to the weaving machine;
- measuring the distance between said transport carriage and the weaving machine with two non-contact sensors that are attached to said transport carriage at longitudinally spaced apart locations, each said non-contact sensor measuring the distance between said non-contact sensor and a separate reference surface on the weaving machine;
- and
- selectively actuating said steerable wheels of said transport carriage based on said distance measurements made by said non-contact sensors so as to position said transport carriage in parallel alignment with the weaving machine.
A transport carriage for loading and unloading a cloth/yarn roller onto and from a weaving machine, said transport carriage including:
- a carriage body having two longitudinally spaced ends;
- a beam attached to said carriage body for holding the cloth/yarn roller;
- two steerable wheels, said steerable wheels being located at longitudinally spaced locations on said carriage body;
- drive mechanism means connected to each said steerable wheel for actuating said steerable wheels;
- two non-contact distance sensor means attached to said carriage body at longitudinally spaced locations for each measuring the distance to a separate reference surface on the weaving machine and for producing distance measurement signals based on said distance measurements;
- and control circuit means connected to said non-contact distance sensor means so as to receive said distance measurement signals and connected to said drive mechanism means for controlling said drive mechanism means, wherein said control circuit means controls said drive mechanism means so as to selectively actuate said steerable wheels to cause said carriage body to become parallel aligned with the weaving machine based on said received distance measurement signals.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.