Simulation, prototyping and testing of a new gripper design to automate double chlorination of rubber gloves

Abstract

Chlorination improves rubber gloves donnability. Production of single-chlorinated gloves is fully automated. Double-chlorinated gloves are needed for medical applications. These gloves are chlorinated on both internal and external surfaces. Double-chlorinated gloves are produced with second chlorination. Gloves after the earlier chlorination were manually immersed into another chlorine tank. This manual process endangers the workers and is time-consuming. A gripper was designed to integrate double chlorination to be fully online. The gripper grasps the glove after first chlorination to proceed to second chlorine tank. The gripper has a solid stainless steel body and flexible rubber seal. It is applicable to different glove sizes, chlorine resistant, leakage proof, and heat resistant. Engineering analysis was conducted through simulation and experimental testing. Simulation results showed the solid body does not yield under load. Simulation results also showed the gripper does not experience fatigue damage after multiple working cycles. A prototype was built for experimental testing. Experimental results proved that gripper is heat resistant, grasps all glove sizes, and no seepage indication under water for all glove samples. It was concluded that the gripper justifies for a full trial production run. The project contributes to improved worker safety and productivity, leading to lower production cost.