JP3750224B2 - Bottle gripper - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a bottle gripper which is provided in a container processing apparatus such as a bottle rinser and holds a container.
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, in a bottle rinser, the containers carried into the apparatus in an upright state are gripped one by one by a bottle gripper, and the container is inverted and inverted while the bottle gripper is moved. Inject the cleaning water to clean the inside of the container, transport it in its inverted state, drain the water, and then reverse the container again with the bottle gripper to return it to the upright state. It is discharged and sent to the next process.
[0003]
Various types of bottle grippers for gripping the container as described above have been known. For example, in a bottle rinser (container cleaning device) described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Sho 62-287893 and Hei 6-262154, a main grip member that engages with and holds the mouth of the container, A bottle gripper having a movable grip member having a pressing portion that elastically contacts the mouth of the container is provided at the tip of a lever that can swing around a fulcrum.
[0004]
In the bottle gripper, the lever swings around a fulcrum, the pressing portion provided at the swinging end elastically contacts the container mouth and presses the container mouth against the holding portion of the main grip member. It is designed to grip the container. Further, when the lever swings in the reverse direction and the pressing portion moves away from the support portion of the main grip member, the held container is released.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As shown in FIG. 5, the conventional bottle grippers provided in the rinsers (bottle interior cleaning devices) described in the above publications are all located at positions where the pressing portion of the movable grip member contacts the container B (grip position). ) G ₁ , the angle θ ₁ formed by the center O _{1 of the} container B and the fulcrum P ₁ of the lever, that is, the line L ₀ connecting the grip position G ₁ of the container B and the center O _{1 of the} container B, and the grip The angle θ ₁ formed by the line L ₁ connecting the position G ₁ and the fulcrum P _{1 of the} lever is large, and usually this angle θ ₁ is 60 degrees or more. As described above, when the angle θ ₁ is large, the centrifugal force acting on the container B when the container B held by the bottle gripper is reversed (acts in the direction of the arrow C ₁ when the container B is reversed). There is a risk that the holding force to counteract will not be sufficient and the container B will fall off the bottle gripper. Incidentally, R ₁ in the figure indicates the rotation radius of the lever of the conventional bottle grippers.
[0006]
In the bottle gripper having the conventional configuration as described above, in order to prevent the container from falling off by giving a sufficient holding force against the centrifugal force acting when the container is reversed, the lever is biased to It is necessary to increase the force of the spring that acts to press the container. However, when the spring force is increased, the strength of other components must be improved, which increases the cost and increases the size of the entire apparatus.
[0007]
The present invention has been made to eliminate the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a bottle gripper capable of obtaining a sufficient holding force that can counter the centrifugal force at the time of reversal without increasing the spring force. To do.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A plurality of bottle grippers according to the present invention are provided near the outer periphery of the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and include a main grip member having a holding portion that holds the mouth portion of the container, and a lever that swings around a fulcrum. A movable grip member that presses the container mouth portion against the holding portion of the main grip member by a pressing portion provided at the swing end, grips the container, a spring that biases the movable grip member against the main grip member, and the movable A cam follower provided on the grip member; an open cam that engages with the cam follower to move the movable grip member away from the main grip member; and a reversing guide and a reversing cam rail that reverses the main grip member and the movable grip member. A rotary gripper bottle gripper that inverts and cleans the container in an inverted state, The line connecting the point where the pressing part of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container and the center of the container, the point where the pressing part of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container, and the fulcrum of the swinging lever The angle formed by the connecting line is 35 to 45 degrees .
[0009]
In the bottle gripper according to the present invention, the angle formed by the grip position where the pressing portion of the movable grip member abuts the container and the center of the container and the fulcrum of the lever is smaller than that of the conventional bottle gripper. Even when energized, it is possible to increase the force against the centrifugal force acting when the container is reversed.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. 2 to 4 are views showing a bottle gripper according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of the bottle gripper (indicated by reference numeral 2 as a whole), FIG. 3 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. It is a rear view. The bottle gripper 2 is used in a container processing apparatus such as a rotary type bottle rinser shown in FIG.
[0011]
First, the configuration of the rotary rinser will be briefly described with reference to FIG. The rotary rinser is provided with a plurality of bottle grippers 2 (not shown in FIG. 1) at equal intervals in the circumferential direction near the outer periphery of the rotating body 4, and while the rotating body 4 rotates in the direction of the arrow, Each process of washing and draining is performed while each container B supplied into the bottle rinser is held and conveyed one by one by the bottle gripper 2. A bottle conveyor 6 that continuously conveys the container B is disposed on the side of the rotating body 4 (lower side in FIG. 1). The container B that is continuously conveyed by the bottle conveyor 6 After the position is adjusted to a predetermined interval by the screw 8, the screw is supplied into the rotating body 4 by the supply side star wheel 10 and is gripped by each bottle gripper 2.
[0012]
As will be described later, each bottle gripper 2 can grasp or release the container B by opening and closing, and the bottle gripper 2 is provided on the supply side star wheel 10 in the container supply / discharge zone a. When the position is reached, it is opened by the gripper release cam 12, and after receiving the container B, when it comes off from the release cam 12, the bottle gripper 2 is closed and grips the container B. Thereafter, in the inversion zone b, the bottle gripper 2 is inverted to bring the container B upside down. In the next inner washing circulation zone c, while the bottle gripper 2 conveys the container B in an inverted state, washing is performed with the circulating washing liquid, and then washing with fresh water is performed in the finishing washing zone d. After the cleaning is completed in both the cleaning zones c and d, the container B is gripped by the bottle gripper 2, moved in the draining zone e in an inverted state, and drained after cleaning. Finally, when the bottle gripper 2 is reversed again in the re-inversion zone f to return the container B to the upright state and reaches the position of the discharge side star wheel 14 in the container supply / discharge zone a, the bottle gripper 2 is released by the release cam 12. Open and release container B. The container B is discharged onto the bottle conveyor 6 by the discharge side star wheel 14 and sent to the next process.
[0013]
As described above, the bottle gripper 2 opens or closes to hold or release the container B, and further reverses the container B so that it is inverted or returned to the upright state. A configuration for holding, releasing and inverting B will be described with reference to FIGS. On the rotating body 4, upright brackets 16 are fixed at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and a frame 20 having a U-shaped cross section constituting a main grip member 18 (fixed-side grip member) is formed on the bracket 16. It is attached. Two parallel upright support portions 16a and 16b are formed at the upper end of the bracket 16, and horizontal connecting pins 22 and 23 are press-fitted into the horizontal holes formed in the upright support portions 16a and 16b, respectively. It is fixed. Through holes formed in both leg portions 20a and 20b of the U-shaped frame 20 are fitted through bosses 24 and 25 press-fitted into the outer periphery of the connecting pins 22 and 23, respectively, and are rotatable. It is supported. An engagement pin 26 is inserted into one connecting pin 23 protruding outside the U-shaped frame 20 (the lower side in FIG. 3) to prevent the U-shaped frame 20 from falling off. Thus, since the frame 20 is attached by inserting the engagement pin 26 into only one of the two connecting pins 22 and 23, the frame 20 can be easily attached and detached, and even when the space is small, it can be attached and detached. Is possible.
[0014]
The leg portions 20a and 20b of the frame 20 are provided with notches 20c and 20d at right angles (see FIGS. 2 and 4) to form stoppers, and the end surfaces of the notches 20c and 20d are the brackets 16. The flat plate portion 20e at the center of the frame 20 is stopped in a horizontal state by abutting on the side surface. When the frame 20 is reversed (indicated by a two-dot chain line on the left side of FIG. 2), the base end side of the flat plate portion 20e hits the plane 16c between the support portions 16a and 16b of the bracket 16, and the horizontal state is reversed. Stop at.
[0015]
A substantially semicircular arc-shaped recess 20f is formed at the tip of the flat plate portion 20e of the frame 20, and a semicircular arc-shaped buffer member (holder rubber) 28 is fitted in the recess 20f (see FIG. 3). . The main grip member 18 is constituted by the frame 20 and the holder rubber 28 as a holding portion of the container B. When the bottle gripper 2 supports the container B, the holder rubber 28 is attached to the mouth portion Ba of the container B. It supports by contacting almost half a circle.
[0016]
A lever fulcrum pin 30 is attached to the flat plate portion 20e of the frame 20 so as to penetrate vertically (see FIGS. 2 and 3). Above the frame 20 of the lever fulcrum 30, the central portion of the lever 34 is swingably supported via a fulcrum boss 32. The lever 34 is curved, and a cushioning member (grip) for holding the mouth portion Ba of the container B against the holder rubber 28 attached to the frame 20 is provided at a bent portion 34b on one side of the swing end 34a. Rubber) 36 is attached. A movable grip member 38 is constituted by the lever 34 and a grip rubber 36 as a pressing portion.
[0017]
A coil spring 40 is attached below the frame 20 of the lever fulcrum 30. One end 40a of the coil spring 40 is elastically contacted with a coil spring contact portion 42 fixed to the lower surface near the tip of the lever 34, and the other end 40b is a long pin 44 fixed to the lower surface of the frame 20 (FIG. 2 to FIG. 2). The lever 34 is always urged in the counterclockwise direction of FIG. 3, that is, in the direction in which the grip rubber 36 approaches the holder rubber 28.
[0018]
A cam follower 46 for opening and closing the bottle gripper is attached to an end 34d opposite to the end 34a to which the grip rubber 36 of the lever 34 is attached. As shown in FIG. 1, the cam follower 46 is engaged with the gripper opening / closing cam 12 disposed along the outer periphery of the rotating body 4 between the discharge side star wheel 14 and the supply side star wheel 10. In this case, the lever 34 is rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. 3, that is, in the direction in which the grip rubber 36 moves away from the holder rubber 28.
[0019]
When the bottle gripper 2 provided on the rotating body 4 reaches the position of the supply-side star wheel 10 as the rotating body 4 rotates, the cam follower 46 engages with the gripper opening / closing cam 12 to move the lever 34. The bottle gripper 2 is opened by swinging to a position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. The opening Ba of the container B is inserted into the opened holder rubber 28 by the supply side star wheel 10. Thereafter, when the cam follower 46 is detached from the opening / closing cam 12 with the rotation of the rotating body 4, the lever 34 is swung to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 3, and the grip rubber 36 attached to the tip of the lever 34 is the container mouth portion. The container B is gripped by abutting against Ba and pressing against the holder rubber 28.
[0020]
In the bottle gripper 2 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, a position G ₂ where the grip rubber 36 abuts against the container B (the same position as the abutment position G ₁ of the conventional bottle gripper), and a container An angle θ ₂ formed by the center O _{1 of} B and the fulcrum P _{2 of the} lever 34, that is, a line L connecting the contact position (grip position) G _{2 of} the grip rubber 36 to the container B and the center O _{1 of the} container. _An angle θ ₂ formed by ₀ and a line L ₂ connecting the contact position G _{2 of} the grip rubber 36 with the container B and the lever fulcrum P ₂ is set to approximately 45 degrees. Incidentally, R ₂ In the figure, the present embodiment shows the radius of rotation of the bottle gripper of the lever 34.
[0021]
A reversing guide 48 is fixed to the lower end of the long pin 44 attached to the lower surface side of the flat plate portion 20e of the frame 20 (see FIGS. 2 and 4). The reversing guide 48 is formed with a recess 48 a for holding the cam rail 50 on the lower surface side, and is engaged with the reversing cam rail 50 disposed along the outer periphery of the rotating body 4.
[0022]
As shown in FIG. 1, the reversing cam rail 50 is disposed outside the rotating body 4 in the container feeding / discharging zone a in which the discharge-side star wheel 14 and the supply-side star wheel 10 are disposed. Then, it moves to the inner side of the rotating body 4 while gradually rising. In the circulation cleaning zone c, the finish cleaning zone d, and the draining zone e, they are arranged at a high position inside the rotating body 4 as they are, and in the subsequent re-inversion zone f, they are gradually lowered and transferred to the outside of the rotating body 4 again. And it connects with the part of the container supply / discharge zone a. Therefore, when the reversing guide 48 of the bottle gripper 2 moves while engaging with the cam rail 50 as the rotating body 4 rotates, the container B held in the container supply / discharge zone a is in an upright state (see FIG. 2). In the reversal zone b, the container B is inverted and turned upside down, and in the subsequent circulation cleaning zone c, finish cleaning zone d, and draining zone e, the container B is conveyed in an inverted state, and then re-inverted. In the zone f, the upright state is restored again.
[0023]
The operation of the bottle gripper 2 according to the above configuration and the bottle rinser provided with the bottle gripper 2 will be described. The container B transported by the bottle conveyor 6 is adjusted in a predetermined pitch by the timing screw 8 and then held in each pocket of the supply side star wheel 10, and the rotating body 4 is rotated by the rotation of the star wheel 10. Supplied in.
[0024]
The container B supplied into the rotating body 4 is gripped by each bottle gripper 2. The bottle gripper 2 is configured such that when the cam follower 46 provided on the lever 34 of the movable grip member 38 is pushed by the gripper releasing cam 12 disposed in the container supply / discharge zone a, the lever 34 is moved to the two-dot chain line in FIG. The grip rubber 36 is separated from the holder rubber 28 of the main grip member 18. When the bottle gripper 2 is thus opened, the container B is delivered from the supply side star wheel 10 and held by the arc-shaped holder rubber 28 of the main grip member 18.
[0025]
When the bottle gripper 2 that has received the container B rotates and the cam follower 46 is disengaged from the gripper release cam 12, the lever 34 of the movable grip member 38 is centered on the lever fulcrum 30 by the coil spring 40 in FIG. The grip rubber 36 which is rotated counterclockwise and is provided on the swing end 34 a side elastically contacts the mouth portion Ba of the container B, and presses the container mouth portion Ba toward the holder rubber 28 side of the main grip member 18. To do. The container mouth Ba is firmly held between the holder rubber 28 of the main grip member 18 and the grip rubber 36 of the movable grip member 38 by the spring force of the coil spring 40.
[0026]
As described with reference to FIG. 5, the bottle gripper 2 according to this embodiment includes the position G ₂ where the grip rubber 36 abuts the container mouth portion Ba, the center O _{1 of the} container B, and the fulcrum P _{2 of the} lever 34. Since the constituting angle θ ₂ is smaller than the constituting angle θ ₁ of the conventional bottle gripper, when the same spring force as that of the conventional configuration is applied, the force against the centrifugal force can be extremely increased.
[0027]
The force against the centrifugal force will be described with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B in comparison with a conventional bottle gripper. 6A shows the positional relationship between the center O _{1 of} the container B, the grip position G ₂ of the container B, and the swing fulcrum P ₂ of the lever 34 of the bottle gripper 2 according to the present embodiment. ) Shows the same positional relationship of the conventional bottle gripper. The bottle gripper 2 according to this embodiment has an angle θ formed by a position (grip position) G _{2 at} which the grip rubber 36 abuts the container mouth portion Ba, a center O _{1 of the} container B, and a fulcrum P _{2 of the} lever 34. ₂ is 45 degrees, and the same angle θ ₁ of the conventional bottle gripper is 60 degrees. Both of them have the same gripping forces F ₁ and F ₂ due to the spring acting on the lever of the movable grip member. Suppose that In the figure, S ₁ and S ₂ indicate the turning trajectories of the conventional lever and the lever 34 of this embodiment, respectively, and T ₁ and T ₂ indicate the contact positions G ₁ and G _{2 with} respect to the turning trajectories S ₁ and S ₂ . The tangent at G ₂ is shown.
[0028]
As described above, when the grip forces F ₁ and F ₂ by the spring 40 have the same magnitude and the configuration angles θ ₁ and θ ₂ are different, the fulcrums of the grip forces F ₁ and F ₂ are obtained. different component force f _1, the magnitude of f ₂ to P _1, P ₂ direction, the component force f ₁ as the configuration angle theta ₁ as in this embodiment is small becomes large. Accordingly, of the component forces f ₁ and f ₂ , the forces f ₁₁ and f ₂₂ that oppose the centrifugal force also increase as the configuration angle θ ₁ decreases as in the present embodiment. As in this embodiment, when the configuration angle θ _{2 is set} to 45 degrees or less, a sufficiently large force against the centrifugal force can be obtained. For example, as shown in FIG. 6C, an angle θ ₃ formed by a position G ₃ where the grip rubber 36 abuts on the container mouth portion Ba, a center O _{1 of the} container B, and a fulcrum P _{3 of the} lever 34, If the angle is set smaller than that of the above embodiment and set to 35 degrees, the component force f ₃ of the gripping force F _{3 in} the direction of the fulcrum P ₃ becomes even larger than that of the present embodiment and counters a larger centrifugal force. it is possible to obtain a force f ₃₃ to. However, if the configuration angle θ is reduced, design difficulties may occur in the arrangement of the respective components. Therefore, it is not preferable to make the angle θ too small, and it is about 45 degrees as in this embodiment. It is most preferable in practice.
[0029]
As described above, when the bottle gripper 2 that has passed the position of the gripper release cam 12 provided in the container supply / discharge zone a and grips the container B enters the next inversion zone b, the inversion guide 48 is engaged. As the cam rail 50 gradually moves upward and turns into the inside of the rotating body 4, the main grip member 18 and the movable grip member 38 holding the container B are integrally reversed, and the container B has the mouth Ba downward. It will be in an inverted state. In this state, the reversal zone b enters the circulating cleaning zone c, and the circulating cleaning liquid is sprayed by an inner cleaning nozzle (not shown), and the cleaning liquid is also sprayed to the outer surface by the outer cleaning nozzle to clean the inside and outside of the container B. Subsequently, the interior cleaning with clean water is performed in the finish cleaning zone d.
[0030]
The container B that has been cleaned is held by the bottle gripper 2 in an inverted state, and drains through the draining zone e. Thereafter, in the re-inversion zone f, the bottle gripper 2 is inverted opposite to the inversion zone b to return the container B to the original upright state and return to the container supply / discharge zone a. In this container supply / discharge zone a, the cam follower 46 on the lever 34 is pushed by the gripper release cam 12, and the lever 34 rotates clockwise in FIG. The container B is discharged onto the bottle conveyor 6 by the discharge star wheel 14 and sent to the next process.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of main grip members that are provided near the outer periphery of the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction and have a holding portion that holds the mouth portion of the container, and swing around the fulcrum. A movable grip member for holding the container by pressing the container mouth portion against the holding portion of the main grip member by a pressing portion provided at the swinging end of the lever, and a spring for biasing the movable grip member to the main grip member; A cam follower provided on the movable grip member; an open cam that engages with the cam follower to move the movable grip member away from the main grip member; a reversing guide that reverses the main grip member and the movable grip member; In a rotary gripper bottle gripper that has a cam rail and inverts and cleans the container upside down A line connecting a point where the pressing portion of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container and the center of the container, a point where the pressing portion of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container, and a fulcrum of the swinging lever By setting the angle formed by the connecting line to 35 degrees to 45 degrees , it is possible to obtain a sufficient holding force capable of opposing the centrifugal force at the time of reversal without increasing the spring force.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a rotary type rinser using a bottle gripper according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view of a bottle gripper according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the bottle gripper.
FIG. 4 is a rear view of the bottle gripper.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram comparing the positional relationship between the fulcrum of the lever of the movable grip member, the contact portion of the grip rubber with the container, and the container center for the bottle gripper according to the present embodiment and the conventional bottle gripper. .
FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining that the force against the centrifugal force at the time of reversal changes depending on the fulcrum of the lever of the movable grip member and the positional relationship between the grip rubber contact portion to the container and the container center. FIGS. 5A and 5B show the arrangement of bottle grippers according to this embodiment, FIG. 5B shows the arrangement of conventional bottle grippers, and FIG. 5C shows the arrangement of another example.
[Explanation of symbols]
2 Bottle gripper 18 Main grip member 28 Holding part (holder rubber)
30 Lever 34 for lever 34 Lever 34a Swing end 36 of lever Press part (grip rubber)
38 line mouth G ₂ pressing portion of the movable gripping member B vessels Ba vessel connecting the fulcrum of the line L ₂ contact points and the lever connecting the center point and the container to L ₀ abutment point abuts against the mouth of the container O ₁ container center P ₂ lever fulcrum θ ₂ angle

Claims (1)

A plurality of main grip members having a holding portion for holding the mouth portion of the container, and a pressing portion provided at a swinging end of a lever that swings around a fulcrum are provided near the outer periphery of the rotating body at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. A movable grip member that presses the container mouth portion against the holding portion of the main grip member to grip the container, a spring that biases the movable grip member against the main grip member, and a cam follower provided on the movable grip member; An opening cam that engages with the cam follower to move the movable grip member away from the main grip member, a reversing guide that reverses the main grip member and the movable grip member, and a reversing cam rail. In the bottle gripper of the rotary rinser that performs cleaning in the state,
A line connecting a point where the pressing portion of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container and the center of the container, a point where the pressing portion of the movable grip member abuts the mouth of the container, and a fulcrum of the swinging lever A bottle gripper characterized in that the angle formed by the connecting line is 35 to 45 degrees .

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