Provide a means to store parts ranging in size from 5/16” to 1½” diameter And 3 ½” to 24” in length. The parts will be stacked by hand into an accumulator. The accumulator will then feed the parts to a conveyor belt, which will feed the grinder as needed.
Accumulator and 72” conveyor are mounted on a common stand, which is attached to a movable base. The movable base is designed to allow ease of movement from one grinding cell to the next. The accumulator base is attached to the movable base by means of a track and lead screw assembly system allowing the precise alignment at set-up and when the wheel wears.
Two side plates constructed of ¼” thick steel approximately 24” x 32”. The parts will rest on hardened lower rails mounted to the side plates at 15 degrees. One side plate will be stationary at the in-feed end of the conveyor. The opposite side plate will move along two shafts with linear bearings to adjust for part widths. This adjustment is made with a simple turn of a handle connected to a lead screw. No tools will be required for setup. The front part rails will move to the top or bottom of a set of angled slots to change for the different part diameters. It will only be necessary to move this when parts change in diameter. A motor driven cam mounted under the parts will rotate opposite of the direction of the parts to prevent bridging and release parts. As this cam turns a part will be able to roll under the front rail and into the lift cylinder escapement. The lift cylinder will lift the parts to the final rails leading to the 72” conveyor mounted to the accumulator stand. The lift cylinders will only escape parts when the conveyor photo-optic eye is not blocked. All logic controlled by means of a PLC.
