The invention relates to the preparation of a flexible material, such as, for example, genuine leather, artificial leather, leatherette, leather cardboard, cardboard, paper, veneer, for subsequent processing, namely, to a method of preparing a flexible material for processing, as well as to a system for implementing such a method.

Currently, there are many products in the market that use flexible materials, especially, blanks from flexible materials, which require further processing to obtain a ready-to- sell product from them. Due to the rapid growth in the consumption of such goods, there is a need to optimize the technological processes of their production. Such technological processes, in particular, include both the preparation of blanks for processing, and the processing of blanks itself. Moreover, depending on the type of goods being produced, the blanks for its manufacture can be made of different materials, have different shapes and sizes. Currently existing methods and systems for preparing blanks for further processing are sector-specific and can often be used only when processing blanks made of a specific material, having a definite shape and a limited size. In addition, these solutions are aimed at ensuring the preparation of each side of the blank separately. Thus, the problem of providing a method and a system for preparing a wide range of flexible materials, especially, blanks made of such materials, which can have various shapes and sizes, for simultaneous two-side processing, remains urgent.

The publication of international application No. 2000015529 discloses a device for collecting, distributing and storing flexible laminar elements, in particular, industrial hides, at any stage of production, including a first supporting unit and a second hide handling unit, which can be installed on the supporting unit and includes two rotating cylinders and a flexible conveyor tape, the ends of which are fixed to each of said cylinders, and is configured to transport hides by laying them down on the conveyor tape with its subsequent winding on the corresponding cylinder. The USSR author's certificate No. 1541243 discloses a method of packing hide mill ends, in which a web of packing material is unwound from a roll and one or two windings are made around a pin using electrical resistance sensors, then hide mill ends are sequentially aligned on the material web during the winding process. Winding is carried out into a roll to the required diameter.

In the patent of the Russian Federation No. 2114780, a method for automated cutting of a blank sheet is disclosed, which provides for automatic positioning of a blank sheet on the surface of a support, followed by automatic positioning of a cover sheet covering the blank sheet after its positioning on a support, fixing the assembly of these sheets on the support surface, and cutting it to form coinciding boundaries of the cutout segments of the blank and the cover sheet, after which the cut-out cover segment is picked up and removed for opening the cut-out segment of the blank.

The closest analogue of the claimed method is a method for transporting leather between processing stations, described in the application for a German patent No. 3405480, including positioning the blank on a support surface.

The closest analogue of the claimed system is a unit for automated carrying out of preparatory cutting operations, described in the patent of the Russian Federation No. 2494180, including a cutting table containing a support surface.

Despite the fact that the described technical solutions refer to methods of automated cutting, assembling, handling, storing and transporting of flexible materials for the purpose of their subsequent processing, as well as to units for automated preparatory cutting operations, none of these documents describes the possibility of ensuring access to both sides of the material to be prepared for its simultaneous two-side processing. Thus, it is precisely the lack of such a possibility that is the main disadvantage of both the closest analogues of the claimed invention and the rest of the above-described solutions.

The object of the claimed invention is to develop a method for preparing flexible material for processing, that will ensure the achievement of the technical result, which consists in providing simultaneous access to both the front and the back side of an arbitrary shape material to be prepared for its two-side processing.

Also, the object of the claimed invention is to develop a system for preparing flexible material for processing, that will ensure the achievement of a technical result, which consists in providing simultaneous access to both the front and the back side of an arbitrary shape material to be prepared for its two-side processing, while the system as claimed will be characterized by execution simplicity, positioning accuracy of the material to be prepared for carrying out various technological operations therewith, and also will ensure the possibility of implementing all the necessary stages of the proposed method.

The object is achieved by a method developed for preparing flexible material for processing, the method comprising positioning the material to be prepared on a support surface, while defining the contour of the material to be prepared, covering the material to be prepared with an auxiliary material sheet, fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet along a previously defined contour, cutting the auxiliary material sheet along a closed contour located inside the contour of the material to be prepared, removing the cut-out segment of the auxiliary material, conveying the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon from the support surface to the table-frame and positioning thereof on the table-frame.

The contour of the material to be prepared positioned on the support surface is defined to determine the geometric shape of the material to be prepared, since the positioned material to be prepared may have an arbitrary shape and size. In this case, information about the contour of the material to be prepared is required when implementing further steps of the method. The essence of the step of covering the material to be prepared with an auxiliary material sheet consists in making the auxiliary material sheet spread beyond the contour of the material to be prepared, completely overlapping the side of the material to be prepared that is not in contact with the support surface, which is an important aspect for further fixing the material to be prepared along the predefined contour. In its turn, the immobility of the material to be prepared, which is realized due to the above-mentioned fixation step, is necessary in order to ensure the convenience and accuracy of the next step of the method, namely, the cutting of the auxiliary material sheet along a closed contour located inside the contour of the material to be prepared. It is obvious that the auxiliary material sheet is cut along a closed contour located inside the contour of the material to be prepared while maintaining the fixation of the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet along the contour of the material to be prepared. In other words, the contour of the cut-out segment of auxiliary material is limited by the contour of the material to be prepared, along which it is fixed on the auxiliary material sheet. That is, the auxiliary material sheet is cut without affecting the part of the auxiliary material sheet that contacts the contour of the material to be prepared, along which it is fixed on the auxiliary material sheet. As a result of cutting, a segment is formed the contour of which is aligned with the contour of the material to be prepared, while the area of the formed cut-out segment is reduced by the area of the contact region of the material to be prepared and the auxiliary material sheet, providing their mutual fixation. It is also obvious that when the cut-out segment of the auxiliary material is removed, a so-called technological hole is created to open the area of the material to be prepared that is not in contact with the support surface, which is required for the implementation of further operations for processing the material to be prepared. In this case, the size of the area to be opened of the material to be prepared is reduced by the width of the contact area of the material to be prepared and the auxiliary material sheet, which ensures their mutual fixation, thus, practically the entire surface of the material to be prepared is opened. The area not in contact with the support surface will be considered as the front side of the material to be prepared, and the area in contact with the support surface will be considered as the back side. It should be noted that it can be vice versa, it all depends on the flexible material used (whether there is a significant difference between the back side and the front side of such material), as well as on the side of the material to be prepared which is initially positioned on the support surface. This point is not fundamental, since when implementing the proposed method (regardless of the flexible material used and the side of its positioning on the support surface), as a result, two-way access to the material to be prepared is provided at the same time, however, the introduction of these concepts is necessary for further describing the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention. When positioning the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon on the table-frame, in other words, on the table, which does not have a support surface, simultaneous access to the front and back sides of the material to be prepared is provided. The auxiliary material acts as a so-called frame, which, by fixing the material to be prepared thereon, provides a rigid fixation of the material to be prepared. The rigidity required for high-quality two-side processing of the material to be prepared is provided by tensioning the auxiliary material with the material to be prepared fixed thereon on the table-frame during positioning thereof. Thus, the material to be prepared is prepared for processing both sides (for the implementation of various technological operations and other manipulations on the material to be prepared). The processing of the material prepared should be understood as executing all kinds of operations, such as treatment, improving organoleptic properties and appearance of the material, basting and marking, lowering the edge, shaping, drilling, reinforcing duplication, surface printing, dyeing, perforation, embossing, applying special polymers for providing unique properties of the material to be prepared, cutting and removing (simultaneous cutting on one side, and gripping to remove - on the other), applying liquid-printed electronics and other operations provided for next-generations. It is worth noting that flexible material (that is the material to be prepared) can be a material of any shape and size, containing one or more materials, wherein it can be used to obtain blanks or already be a blank.

The stepwise implementation of the claimed method allows for positioning the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the arbitrary shape material to be prepared fixed thereon on the table-frame, thereby providing simultaneous access to both the front and the back side of the material to be prepared for its two-side processing.

Preferably, the material to be prepared is selected from the group containing natural leather, artificial leather, leatherette, leather cardboard, cardboard, veneer. In this case, natural leather can have the form of undressed hide (or a piece of hide) of an animal. Also, preferably the auxiliary material is selected from the group containing film, paper, woven and non-woven textile materials. The auxiliary material performs the function of a frame, which, due to the characteristics inherent in the material used and the fixation of the material to be prepared thereon, provides a rigid fixation of the material to be prepared inside this frame and the rigidity required for high-quality processing of the material to be prepared.

Effectually the fixation of the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet is carried out by applying an adhesive. Adhesives are the most preferred materials for joining the above materials to be prepared and auxiliary materials. Microroughnesses filled with adhesives increase the contact area between the surfaces of the materials to be joined, thereby ensuring their reliable mutual fixation. The use of an adhesive is one of possible and not limiting examples of fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet.

In a preferred embodiment of the claimed invention, the adhesive is applied during the operation of fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet by means of a robot manipulator equipped with an adhesive application device. The adhesive application device can be mounted on the flange of the robot manipulator. The robot manipulator (manipulation robot or industrial robot) is an automatic machine (stationary or mobile), consisting of an executive device in the form of a manipulator with several degrees of freedom, and a program control unit providing motive and control functions in the production process. Such a robot may exist in stationary, suspended and portal versions. The robot manipulator is a programmable automatic device designed to carry out various types of mechanical operations. The robot manipulator can receive information about the state of the environment through a variety of different sensors. The robot manipulator is aimed at independent implementation of various actions associated with performing the operation of fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet, in particular, at application of the adhesive, and the implementation of other operations not related to the operation of fixing materials, in order to partially or completely substitute human labor. Preferably the adhesive is applied by a jet method. This method provides the most accurate application of the adhesive along the contour of the material to be prepared. Thus, the width of the contact area formed between the material to be prepared and the auxiliary material sheet can be the minimum required for their reliable mutual fixation. In this case, when cutting the auxiliary material sheet, almost all the material to be prepared will be opened (in other words, the area to be opened of the material to be prepared will be reduced only by the width of the adhesive or the width of the contact area between the material to be prepared and the auxiliary material sheet to preserve their fixation).

Also, preferably the adhesive is a glue. A strong adhesive bond is formed between the adhesive layer and the surfaces of the materials to be joined, which forms a strong adhesive seam. In this case, the glue can be based on organic and inorganic components, thereby allowing the choice of the most suitable composition for each pair of materials to be joined. The use of a glue as an adhesive is one of possible and not limiting examples of adhesives that can be applied for fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet.

Effectually the fixation of the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet is carried out by sewing, stapling, using clamping devices or double-sided tape. In some cases, depending on the chosen material to be prepared and auxiliary material, the mutual fixation of the materials can be provided by means of the above operations. In this case, fastening with staples and the use of clamping devices or double-sided tape for fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet can be performed along a closed contour, but with a certain interval between the staples, clamping devices or double-sided tape (or pieces of double-sided tape). It is also possible to use alternative variants for fixing said materials, for example, by bonding or in any other way.

In a preferred embodiment of the claimed invention, the contour of the material to be prepared is defined by means of scanning, which is characterized by simplicity, availability and high accuracy. In this case, the device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared can be such an optical scanning means as a scanner. Also, any suitable device can be used as a device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared.

It should be noted that the contour of the material to be prepared can be defined in any other way, for example, by using computer vision.

Thus, defining the contour of the material to be prepared by scanning and the use of a scanner as a device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared are nonlimiting examples of the embodiments for the invention as claimed.

In another preferred embodiment of the claimed invention, before conveying the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon to the table-frame, they are wound onto a reel. Thus, crushing or damage of the material to be prepared during transportation is excluded.

Preferably the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon is conveyed to the table-frame using a mobile robot. The mobile robot is an automatic machine that has a moving chassis with automatically controlled drives. Such robots can be wheeled, walking, and tracked. Mobile robots are easy to operate, equipped with rechargeable batteries, which ensures their autonomy. In addition, the mobile robot can be used to convey a roll of auxiliary material with the material to be prepared fixed thereon to subsequent operations of the technological process, as well as to the place of inter operational storage. The use of a mobile robot at this step allows avoiding human labour usage when implementing this step of the claimed method.

In another preferred embodiment of the claimed invention, the auxiliary material sheet is cut by means of a robot manipulator equipped with a laser cutting device. Similarly, to applying the adhesive the operation of fixing the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet is performed by means of a robot manipulator equipped with an adhesive application device. Thus, the use of this robot allows for solving the problem of performing several steps of the proposed method using one device. Preferably, the contour of the cut-out segment of the auxiliary material is aligned with the contour of the material to be prepared, while the area of the formed cut-out segment is reduced by the area of the contact region of the material to be prepared and the auxiliary material sheet, providing their mutual fixation. The described embodiment of the claimed invention is preferable in the case when it is necessary to provide access to almost the entire front part of the material to be prepared.

Also, preferably the cut-out segment has an arbitrary shape of the contour and an arbitrary size, wherein the contour of the cut-out segment is located inside the contour of the material to be prepared. This embodiment is advisable if the task is to process a specific part of the front side of the material to be prepared, thus, the shape of the cutout segment contour may be such that, after removing the cut-out segment, a technological hole of the same shape and size required for the planned processing operations should be formed, while preserving the fixation of the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet.

It is obvious that the implementation of at least a part of the claimed steps of the method can be carried out both automatically and manually.

Also, the object is achieved by a developed system for preparing flexible material for processing, comprising a cutting table containing a support surface, wherein the system comprises a device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared positioned on the support surface, means for positioning the auxiliary material sheet over the support surface and means for pressing the auxiliary material sheet against the material to be prepared; a robot manipulator configured to apply an adhesive to the material to be prepared along a predefined contour, to cut the auxiliary material sheet along a closed contour located within the contour of the material to be prepared, and remove the cut-out segment; a table-frame containing means for positioning the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon; a mobile robot configured to convey the auxiliary material sheet and to feed it to the cutting table and to convey the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon and feed it to the table-frame. To position the material to be prepared, the system provides a cutting table containing a support surface. The contour of the material to be prepared, positioned on the support surface, is defined by means of a device for defining the contour. Or, for example, the cutting table can be equipped with the necessary sensors, which will allow for defining the contour of the material to be prepared, positioned on the support surface thereof. The robot manipulator included in the system is responsible for applying adhesive along a predefined contour of the material to be prepared, cuts the auxiliary material sheet along a closed contour located inside the contour of the material to be prepared, and removes the cut-out segment. In this case, the fixation of the material to be prepared on the auxiliary material sheet is realized by means for pressing the auxiliary material sheet to the material to be prepared, included into the cutting table.

The frame-table is a table made without a support surface, that is, a table containing only a frame. The cutting table contains a means for positioning the auxiliary material sheet over the support surface of the cutting table, and the table-frame contains means for positioning the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet on the table-frame, which means ensure the positioning accuracy of the material to be prepared for carrying out various technological operations therewith. The mobile robot conveys the auxiliary material sheet and feeds it to the cutting table, as well as conveys the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon and feeds it to the table-frame, that is, it is responsible for conveying materials between the means and devices that make up the system. It is obvious that if the mobile robot is configured to feed the auxiliary material sheet to the cutting table and to feed the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon, then the cutting table and the table-frame are configured to receive and position said material. Thus, the set of essential features of the claimed system and, in particular, the presence in the system of a table-frame for positioning the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon, provide simultaneous access to both the front and the back side of the material to be prepared for its two-side processing. The rigidity required for high-quality two-side processing of the material to be prepared is provided by tensioning the auxiliary material with the material to be prepared fixed thereon on the table-frame during positioning thereof. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the system contains a reel with a prewound auxiliary material sheet thereon.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the means for positioning the auxiliary material sheet of the cutting table is configured to unwind the auxiliary material sheet from the reel and to wind it on the reel, and the means for positioning the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet of the table-frame is configured to unwind the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet from the reel along the table-frame and to wind it onto the reel.

The unwinding of the auxiliary material sheet of from the reel can be accomplished by driving a sliding panel mounted on the cutting table guide, where in turn the reel may be mounted. In this case, the free end of the auxiliary material may be fixed on another reel fixedly installed on the cutting table, or may be fixed directly on the cutting table, or the fixation can be realized in another convenient way. The unwinding of the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet along the table-frame is also carried out by driving a sliding panel mounted on the table-frame guide where the reel may be mounted. In this case, the free end of the remnant of the auxiliary material may be fixed on another reel fixedly installed on the table-frame, or may be fixed directly on the table-frame, or the fixation can be realized in another convenient way. The sliding panels of the vacuum table and the sliding panels of the table-frame may be driven by means of at least two gantry portals, one of which is installed on the cutting table, and another - on the table-frame. In addition, the sliding panels may be driven in any convenient way. It is also possible an embodiment in which the gantry portal of the cutting table may be installed on the sliding panels mounted on the cutting table guide, and the gantry portal of the table-frame may be installed on the sliding panels mounted on the table-frame guide. In this case, the reels are installed on the gantry portals driven by means of corresponding sliding panels.

Preferably the mobile robot is configured to convey the auxiliary material sheet wound on a reel and the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet wound on a reel. This ensures the convenience of conveying the auxiliary material and prevents crushing or damage of the material to the prepared. In this case, the possibility of feeding the auxiliary material sheet to the cutting table and feeding the remnant of the auxiliary material sheet with the material to be prepared fixed thereon from the mobile robot to the cutting table or the table-frame can be realized by means of a reel shifter, which moves the reel to the cutting table or to the table-frame. In this case, it is preferable that the shifter is installed both on the cutting table and on table-frame. However, an embodiment of the claimed invention is possible, wherein the shifter may be installed on the mobile robot.

Also, preferably the cutting table is a vacuum table equipped with a pneumatic system. When unwinding the auxiliary material sheet over the support surface of the vacuum table, where the material to be prepared is positioned, the pneumatic system of the vacuum table creates rarefied air under the auxiliary material sheet, while the negative air pressure presses the auxiliary material sheet against the material to be prepared, thus the material to be prepared is fixed thereon along the contour on which the adhesive has been applied.

It is effectual to use an optical scanning means as a device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the optical scanning means is a scanner, which is characterized by simplicity, availability and high measurement accuracy.

It is also preferable that the device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared is selected from the group comprising at least a digital camera, an analogue camera, a sensor for capturing and processing images, a thermal sensor (thermal probe), a pressure sensor (pressure probe), an X-ray device. It is obvious that the device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared can be one or more digital or analogue camera(s), wherein the cameras can be used in combination with specialized lighting and a projection device. It is also obvious that the device for defining the contour of the material to be prepared can be one or more of said sensors, wherein the sensor for capturing and processing images can be, for example, optical or magnetic sensor.

Preferably the robot manipulator is installed in close proximity to the cutting table.

Also, preferably the robot manipulator is equipped with a laser cutting device. The use of a robot manipulator equipped with a laser cutting device allows for cutting the auxiliary material sheet with high precision.

It is effectual to provide the robot manipulator with an adhesive application device. Thus, the adhesive is applied along the predefined contour of the material to be prepared in an automatic mode, while ensuring the adhesive application accuracy.

Also, it is effectual to equip the robot manipulator with means for removing the cutout segment of the auxiliary material. The means for removing the cut-out segment of the auxiliary material sheet may include gripping devices such as a vacuum sucker, a Bernoulli sucker, a needle gripper and a magnetic gripper.

It is obvious that the claimed system may be controlled in any convenient and suitable way. It may be controlled both in automatic and manual mode. To control the system, a control panel with a control unit may be used, which may be connected to each of the devices included in the system and is configured to receive, process and transmit signals between the devices. Commands for the control unit can be sent by the operator through the information terminal, or they can be sent with no-live operator. In this case, the control unit may also be installed in/on each of the devices that make up the system, for example, in the robot manipulator, on the vacuum table, on the tableframe, etc. However, this information is not limiting, but is provided solely as an explanation.

The claimed invention is explained using the drawings below.

Fig. 1 is a partial general view of a preferred embodiment of the system for preparing flexible material for processing (the table-frame is not shown). Fig. 2 is a partial general view of a preferred embodiment of the system for preparing flexible material for processing (the table-frame and the mobile robot are not shown).

Fig. 3 is a general view of the table-frame and the mobile robot of the system for preparing flexible material for processing.

Fig. 4 is a general view of the table-frame of the system for preparing flexible material for processing with a film stretched over and a blank of flexible material fixed thereon.

Fig. 1 shows a partial general view of a system for preparing flexible material for processing (the table-frame is not shown), including a vacuum table 1 containing a support surface 2, a scanner 3 for defining the contour of a blank 4 positioned on the support surface 2, mounted on a gantry portal 5 installed on the vacuum table 1 and having a pressing means 6, clamps 7 and a pneumatic system (not shown in the figure); a robot manipulator 8 installed in close proximity to the vacuum table 1 and equipped with a device 9 for applying glue 10 by a jet method attached to its flange 11; a mobile robot 12, which receives a reel 13 with a sheet of film 14 pre-wound thereon and a reel 15 with a free end of the sheet of film 14 fixed thereon; moving the reels 13 and 15 from the mobile robot 12 to the vacuum table 1 and the table-frame (not shown in the figure) is carried out by means of a reel shifter 16 mounted on the vacuum table 1.

Fig. 2 shows a partial general view of the system for preparing flexible material for processing (the table-frame and the mobile robot are not shown), where the elements identical to those in fig. 1, are designated by the same reference numbers. The film 14 is unwound over the blank 4, positioned on the support surface 2 of the vacuum table 1, and covers the blank 4 from above, therefore the contour of the blank 4 and the glue 10 applied along the contour of the blank 4 are shown in dashed lines in the figure. Also, in fig. 2 the cut-out segment 17 of the film 14 and the laser cutting device 18 fixed to the flange 11 of the robot manipulator 8 are shown.

Fig. 3 shows a general view of a table-frame 19 containing a gantry portal 20 with a pressing means 21 and clamps 22, and a mobile robot 12. Also, in fig. 3 the reel shifter 23 is shown mounted on the table-frame 19. Where the elements identical to those in fig. 1 and fig. 2, are indicated by the same reference numbers.

Fig. 4 shows the table-frame 19 with the remnant of the film 14 sheet stretched over and a blank 4 fixed thereon by means of the glue 10 (the contour of the blank 4 and the glue 10 are shown in dashed lines, since they are under the film 14). Where the elements identical to those in fig. 1-3, are designated by the same reference numbers.

The following is the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention.

When describing the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention, a blank is used as (flexible) material to be prepared. Correspondingly, the blank area not in contact with the support surface will be considered as the front side of the blank, and the area in contact with the support surface will be considered as the back side.

The method is carried out in automatic mode. The control over of the method implementation is carried out via an information terminal (not shown in the figure).

The blank 4 is positioned by means of a robot manipulator 8, which, using a gripping device (not shown in the figure), places the blank 4 on the support surface 2 of the vacuum table 1 and smoothes it along its entire length.

At the command sent through the information terminal, by means of the scanner 3, fixed on the gantry portal 5 of the vacuum table 1, scanning is performed and the contour of the blank is defined, while the information obtained as a result of scanning is transmitted to the control unit.

The blank 4 is covered with the film 14 as follows.

At the command from the control unit the robot manipulator 8, installed in close proximity to the vacuum table 1 and equipped with a device 9 for applying glue 10, fixed on the flange 11 of the robot manipulator 8, applies glue 10 by a jet method along a predefined contour of the blank 4. A sheet of film 14 is pre- wound on the reel 13, and then the free end of the sheet of the film 14 is fixed on the reel 15. The reels 13 and 15 are placed on a mobile robot 12 powered by a battery, and, driving it, convey to the vacuum table 1. The mobile robot 12 feeds the reels 13 and 15 to the vacuum table 1 by means of the shifter 16. The reel 15 is fixed on the vacuum table 1 by the clamps 7, and the reel 13 is held on the gantry portal 5 by the pressing means 6, and by moving the reel 13 together with the gantry portal 5, a sheet of film 14 is unwound over the surface of the blank 4 with glue 10 applied along the contour.

Then, the blank 4 is fixed on the sheet of film 14. For this purpose, the pneumatic system of the vacuum table 1 creates rarefied air under the sheet of film 14, while the negative air pressure presses the sheet of film 14 against the blank 4, which is fixed thereon along a predefined contour, with glue 10 applied thereon.

Next, a sheet of film 14 is cut. At the command from the control unit, by means of a laser cutting device 18, fixed on the flange 11 of the robot manipulator 8, a sheet of film 14 is cut along the contour of the blank, reduced inward by the width of the glue 10 layer. As a result of cutting, a segment 17 is formed, the contour of which is aligned with the contour of the blank 4, while the area of the formed cut-out segment 17 is less than the area of the blank 4 due to the presence of the contact area of the blank 4 and the sheet of film 14, which is necessary for their mutual fixation. Then, the cut-out segment 17 of the sheet of the film 14 is removed to open the front side of the blank 4.

The reel 13, held on the gantry portal 5 by the pressing device 6, is moved by driving the gantry portal 5 and the remnant of the sheet of film 14 is wound up with the blank 4 fixed thereon. In this case, the reel 15 is left fixed. At the end of the winding, the shifter 16 moves both reels 13, 15 to the mobile robot 12.

The mobile robot 12 conveys the reels 13, 15 to the table-frame 21.

Further, the reel 15 is fixed on the table-frame 21 with clamps 22, and the reel 13 is held on the gantry portal 20 by the pressing means 21. Due to the movement of the gantry portal 20, the remnant of the sheet of film 14 is unwound with the blank 4 fixed thereon with its front side open along the table-frame 21. Positioning the remnant of the sheet of film 14 with the blank 4 fixed thereon with its front side on the tableframe is the final stage, after which the blank 4 is prepared for further processing from both sides. The processing of the front side of the blank is carried out above the tableframe 21, and the processing of the back side of the blank 4 is carried out under the table-frame 21.

Thus, the developed method for preparing flexible material for processing and a system for implementing such a method ensure the achievement of a technical result, which consists in providing simultaneous access to both the front and the back side of the material to be prepared for its two-side processing, wherein the developed system is characterized by execution simplicity, positioning accuracy of the material to be prepared for carrying out various technological operations therewith.