Method and apparatus for sorting rolls

Abstract

A method and an assembly is disclosed for sorting rolls of paper and paperboard web for shipment into a desired sequence based on customer orders, in which method and assembly a roll to be sortedis imported to an infeed conveyor (2), and from at least two first conveyors (3, 4, 5) is selected a suitable conveyor onto which the roll is transferred. Subsequently, the roll is transferred onto the selected conveyor so that its leading end remains at the receiving end of said selected conveyor, and the rolls are transferred onto the first conveyors (3, 4, 5) in a similar fashion so that the rolls thus placed onto the conveyors remain in a close disposition to each other so as to form a group of end-to-end abutting rolls until at least one of the first conveyors contains a roll group forming a unit load for an upender lift. Next, the rolls are transferred onto a second conveyor (6, 7, 8 or 9), and finally the rolls are removed from the system onto an outfeed conveyor (9) as roll groups forming a unit load for an upender lift so that the roll groups are taken off from the sequence of rolls resting on the conveyor being unloaded at the interface between the conveyor (6, 7, 8) being unloaded and the successive unloading conveyor (10).

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.