Extrudate transport apparatus having a free floating roller assembly
AssigneeCorning Incorporated
InventorJohn Christian Duroe
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An extrudate transport apparatus comprises a free floating roller assembly, wherein the roller assembly controls a rotational pitch of a cylindrical green ceramic extrudate as the green ceramic extrudate moves longitudinally from a first location to a second location within the extrudate transport apparatus. The free floating roller assembly has a predetermined effective weight and comprises a contact roller having a deformable outer surface for frictionally contacting an outer surface of the green ceramic extrudate in motion adjacent thereto, while maintaining a constant contact force upon said green ceramic extrudate.
Claims6
An extrudate transport apparatus for longitudinally transporting a green ceramic extrudate from an extrusion apparatus to a drying apparatus, comprising:
- a marking assembly for applying an orientation reference mark to the green ceramic extrudate as the green ceramic extrudate exits the extrusion apparatus;
- an extrudate support channel for supporting the green ceramic extrudate, the extrudate support channel having a predetermined extrudate axis;
- at least one green extrudate alignment system attached along the extrudate support channel in operable communication with an alignment system camera for confirming a location of the-orientation reference-mark;
- at least one free floating roller assembly operably attached to the at least one green ceramic extrudate alignment system for controlling the green ceramic extrudate and arranged to float freely in a substantially vertical direction with respect to the green ceramic extrudate;
- and
- a grab and drag system for transferring the green ceramic extrudate from the extrudate support channel to the drying apparatus.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.