Corning Incorporated

Andrew Nathan Nassau

Ljerka Ukrainczyk

Michael George Shultz

Kevin Thomas Morris

Nils Paul Fornell

Kevin William Uhlig

Matthew John Towner

Thomas Achille Yorio

Tzu-Hen Hsu

Brian Keith Markham

Devin Joe Barber

An apparatus for locating a preform on a mold includes a preform handling tool and a force sensor coupled to the preform handling tool such that the force sensor is capable of sensing forces applied to the preform during handling of the preform by the preform handling tool. The apparatus includes a control device that is arranged and operable to move the preform handling tool relative to the mold. A method of locating the preform on the mold includes picking up the preform using the preform handling tool and placing the preform in a vicinity of the mold. Positions on the mold are mapped with an edge of the preform with the aid of the force sensor. The preform is paced on the mold according to the mapped positions.

Method and apparatus for locating a preform on a mold

An end-of-arm tool is described and includes an outer sheet and an inner sheet. The end-of-arm tool may be reinforced with a backing plate attached to the inner sheet and a front plate attached to the outer sheet. The end-of-arm tool may also include spacers to provide structure and rigidity to the end-of-arm tool at passages configured for the installation of workpiece interface tools, for example, spring plungers.

End-of-arm tool

Growing community of inventors

Philadelphia, PA, United States of America

Andrew Nathan Nassau