Woodlink Ltd.

Situation Analysis:

The specification was for a chain driven live roller conveyor with a "flip/push off" device. The device was required to flip/push off random lengths of wood exiting a rip saw into a mobile cart, where the wood would accumulate and stack for ease of manual transfer to the next stage in processing. One of the main objectives for the Almac team was to ensure that there was a maintained continuous flow of material, while pieces were selected and cast aside.

The concept and design for the Automatic Rip Saw Cart Loader was developed by one of Almac's teams, Peter Sheppard (Sr. Technical Sales), Klavdia Gartsbein (Engineering), and Victor Lourenco (Fitter/Welder 2/Electircal Technician Level 4), in answer to Woodlink Ltd's needs.

Problem(s):

• The product was exiting the ripsaw at a fast rate.
• The distance between each wood piece was very minimal.
• Products had to complete a clean transfer, with minimal markings on wood.

Almac's Solutions:

The solution was to use a chain driven live roller conveyor and design an air operated retractable "flip/push off" device that was mounted under the system. When sensors detected a positioned piece of wood, the device was activated and the wood was flipped off into a mobile cart. Since the retractable fingers were situated under the conveyor, it allowed for them to reset, without disrupting the flow of traffic. This allowed for the system to handle the quick piece count and limited room between products.

The force behind the fingers was great enough to eject a piece of wood from the conveyor, yet was not hard enough to damage the selected products.

The ejected product was quickly and easily stacked into a mobile bin, where they were swiftly moved to the next stage in the process cycle.

Final Synopsis

This pneumatic device, when sensing a piece of wood in position, allowed for the selection of wood products after passing through the ripsaw, and eject it into a mobile companion cart, where they were transferred to the next processing step.

Almac's ability to deal with the issue of timing allowed for the selected pieces to be dispersed of, without disrupting the flow of material. The material handling unit, which came to be known as "The Flipper", has increased the level of efficiency, allowing Woodlink Ltd. to free up manpower for other areas of manufacturing.