JP4655480B2 - Square container folding device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rectangular container folding apparatus that crushes a relatively large and hard rectangular container such as an 18-liter can and reduces the volume.

As a conventional folding or crushing device for this type of rectangular container, for example, those described in Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2 are known.
In the one described in Patent Document 1, one end of a pressing lever is pivotally attached to a base so that the lever can be pivoted up and down, and a rectangular container is placed horizontally on the front of the base and the upper and lower side surfaces are bent in a V shape. An empty can preliminarily molded at the rear part of the base (the side closer to the fulcrum of the lever than the front part) was compressed until it was flattened with the side surface not deformed into a V-shape.
The one described in Patent Document 2 is one in which one end of a pressing lever is pivotally attached to the base in the same manner as in Patent Document 1, but in this Patent Document 2, the center of the side surface is first pushed. The bottom plate portion side and the top plate portion side remaining on the left and right of the crushed and crushed center portion were crushed from the rear.

  However, the crushing device of Patent Document 1 forcibly bends the bottom plate portion and the top plate portion from the side. Therefore, it is necessary to bend the highly rigid corner portion where the body portion, the bottom plate portion, and the top plate portion are tightened. Yes, a very large force was required to crush. Moreover, since it was bent forcibly, it was partially broken, and the broken edge portion was exposed, which was dangerous.

Since the crushing device described in Patent Document 2 is also configured to force the container to be crushed, an excessive force acts on each part of the container during the crushing process, and the can material is locally broken, and the torn edge is exposed. There is a danger in work.
In addition, any of the crushing devices of Patent Documents 1 and 2 squeeze the rectangular container in a horizontal position, and if any residue remains inside, the residue spills from the opening of the lying top plate. There was also a problem that the surroundings became dirty.
JP 2000-197994 A JP 2000-107897 A

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and the object of the present invention is to deform the body without leaving the top plate and the bottom plate as they are. An object of the present invention is to provide a folding device for a rectangular container that can be folded safely with such a light force.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that the left and right side portions of the rectangular body portion of the rectangular container are folded inward in the vertical direction, and the top plate portion is one side surface of the front and rear side portions. In the folding device of the rectangular container that folds to the side and folds the bottom plate part to the other side surface side to reduce the volume,
A first side surface bend that forms a bent portion that forms a crease by bending inwardly a position spaced apart by approximately half the distance between the front and rear side surface portions upward from the lower end of one side surface of the front and rear side surface portions of the body portion Means,
A second side surface bending means for forming a bent portion that becomes a crease by bending inwardly at a position that is spaced apart from the upper end of the other side surface of the front and rear side surfaces of the body portion by a distance approximately half the distance between the front and rear side portions. When,
By compressing the body part up and down with the bottom plate support portion and the top plate pressing portion sandwiching the bottom plate portion and the top plate portion, along the bent portion formed by the first side surface bending means and the second side surface bending means. A compression means for folding,
When the bent portion is formed by the first side surface bending means, the bottom plate portion of the rectangular container is placed on the bottom plate support portion, and the front edge of the bottom plate portion is brought into contact with a stopper provided on the bottom plate support portion. In a configuration in which the rear side surface portion of the body portion is bent in contact,
When forming the bent portion by the second side surface bending means, the bottom plate support portion and the top plate pressing portion are supported by sandwiching the bottom plate portion and the top plate portion, and at the initial stage of compression by the compression means, It is configured to bend the front side,
The compression means includes a mechanism in which the top plate pressing portion is displaced in the front-rear direction following the displacement of the top plate portion in the front-rear direction with respect to the bottom plate portion generated in the compression process.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, when the front and rear side surfaces of the body portion are bent by at least one of the first side surface bending device and the second side surface bending device, the right and left side surface portions of the body portion are pushed in inwardly recessed directions. Means are provided.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the compression means includes a parallel link mechanism having two upper and lower stages for guiding the top plate pressing portion in a state where the top plate pressing portion is held in parallel to the bottom plate support portion, and a compression load applied to the top plate pressing portion by the lever action. A position of the bent portion of the top plate portion or the bottom plate portion formed on the front and rear side surfaces of the rectangular container. It is characterized in that it is set to a position that matches the above.

  According to the apparatus for folding a rectangular container according to claim 1, the left and right side surfaces are folded inward in the vertical direction, the top plate is placed on one side of the front and back sides, and the bottom plate is placed on the other side. The first side surface bending means and the second side surface bending means form a bent portion that becomes a crease in a portion corresponding to the folds of the top and bottom side portions and the bottom plate portion, and then the bottom plate is compressed by the compression means. Since it compresses across a part and a top plate part, a deformation | transformation progresses smoothly in a planar folding shape, and it can fold and crush by light force.

  In particular, the compression means is configured to follow the displacement of the top plate portion in the front-rear direction with respect to the bottom plate portion that occurs in the process of compressing the top plate pressing portion relative to the bottom plate support portion in the front-rear direction. Therefore, the shearing force does not act between the top plate pressing portion and the compression plate, and the folding can be performed more smoothly.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the front and rear side surfaces of the body portion are bent by at least one of the first side surface bending means and the second side surface bending means, the left and right side surfaces of the body portion are recessed inward by the pushing means. Thus, the folds are attached in the direction in which the left and right side portions are folded inward, and the left and right side portions can be smoothly folded inward.

  According to the invention which concerns on Claim 3, the connection part of each rocking | fluctuation link member of the upper and lower two-stage parallel link mechanism which comprises a compression mechanism is used for the top-plate part or bottom-plate part formed in the front-and-back side part of a square container. Since it matches with the position of the folding part, the top plate support will move according to the trajectory of the top plate during the folding process of the rectangular container, and the compression load can be applied in the folding direction without waste. Combined with the lever action, the folding operation can be performed more smoothly.

The present invention will be described below based on the illustrated embodiments.
1 to 6 show a folding device for a rectangular container according to an embodiment of the present invention. The device operates manually.
The target rectangular container 100 is a metal 18 liter can, as shown in FIG. 7, as shown in FIG. 7, a rectangular body portion 101 having four front and rear, left and right side surfaces, and a top plate portion that is fastened and fixed to the upper end of the body portion 101. 102 and a bottom plate portion 103 that is fastened and fixed to the lower end of the body portion 101. 7A and 7B, the front side surface (the left side surface in the figure) and the right side surface are visible. When folding, the left and right side surface portions 101A and 101B of the body portion 101 are folded inward in the vertical direction, the top plate portion 102 is folded toward the rear side surface portion 101D, and the bottom plate portion 103 is folded toward the front side surface portion 101C to reduce the volume. It becomes the composition which becomes.

  The rectangular container 100 is previously formed with a crease guiding portion that becomes a crease at the time of folding. The fold guiding portions formed on the left and right side surface portions 101A and 101B are symmetrical, and the right side surface portion 101A will be described as an example. The vertical valley fold guiding portion F1 extending in the vertical direction and the vertical valley fold guiding portion. The upper branch valley fold guiding portions F2 and F3 extending in two directions from the branch point P1 at the upper end of F1 toward the front and rear corners on the upper side of the right side surface portion 101A, and the branch point at the lower end of the vertical valley fold guiding portion F1 Lower branch valley fold guiding portions F4 and F5 extending from the P2 branching in two directions toward the front and rear corners on the lower side of the side surface portion 101A are provided.

The branch points P1 and P2 positioned at the upper and lower ends of the vertical valley fold guiding portion F1 are the top plate portion 102 of the front and rear side surface portions 101C and 101D and the center line that bisects the right side surface portion 101A to the left and right. It is shifted by a predetermined amount toward the side surface opposite to the side surface on which the bottom plate portion 103 is folded. In the example of an 18 liter can, it is effective to shift by about 5 mm.
The front side surface portion 101C has a transverse valley fold guiding portion F6 that becomes a fold when the top plate portion 102 is folded, and the rear side surface portion 101D has a lateral direction valley fold guiding portion F7 that becomes a fold when folding the bottom plate portion 103. Is provided. Further, the left and right side surface portions 101A and 101B have mountain fold guiding portions F8 and F8 that connect both ends of the transverse valley fold guiding portions F6 and F7 provided on the front and rear side surface portions 101C and 101D and the branch points P1 and P2, respectively. F9 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 8 (A), the configuration of the crease guide portion may be a concavo-convex filament Fa having a predetermined width continuously extending along the guide line L for guiding the crease (the valley fold portion is a concave stripe). In addition, the mountain fold portion may be convex), and a configuration in which a large number of dot-like uneven portions Fb are provided along the guide line L (the valley fold portion is a concave portion and the mountain fold portion is a convex portion) may be employed. If the fold guiding portion is formed in a dot shape in this way, it is possible to improve the foldability while minimizing a decrease in strength of the container itself. Further, the force required for forming the crease guiding portion can be reduced, and the molding apparatus can be reduced in size.

FIG. 8B shows a mold configuration example in which a punch is assembled to a mold for forming irregularities on each side surface portion. The mold 200 has a first mold 201 that abuts on the inner peripheral surface of the panel constituting the container, and a second mold 202 that abuts on the outer peripheral surface. It is only necessary to attach the mold 202 and provide the first mold 201 with a relief recess 204 of the punch 203. In the case of a convex shape on the outside, the punch 203 is assembled to the first mold 201 on the inner peripheral side, and the punch escape recess 204 is provided on the second mold 202 on the outer peripheral side.
When the punch 203 forms a dot-like concave or convex portion, as shown in FIG. 8C, the punch 203 has a cylindrical shape with a conical tip and forms a linearly extending concave or convex strip. In that case, a plate shape as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the folding device 1 is constructed by folding inwardly a position separated from the lower end of the rear side surface portion 101 </ b> D of the body portion 101 upward by a distance that is approximately half the distance between the front and rear side surface portions. A first side bending mechanism 2 that forms a bent portion, and a position spaced apart from the upper end of the front side surface portion 101C of the body portion 101 by a distance approximately half the distance between the front and rear side surface portions 101C and 101D, by a predetermined amount. The body 101 is moved up and down by sandwiching the bottom plate portion 103 and the top plate portion 102 by the second side bending mechanism 3 that forms a bent portion that is bent to form a fold, and the bottom plate support portion 4 and the top plate pressing portion 5. And a compression mechanism 6 that folds along a bent portion formed by the first side surface bending mechanism 2 and the second side surface bending mechanism 3 by compression.

As shown in FIG. 6, the bottom plate support portion 4 is a rectangular plate-like member on which the bottom plate portion 103 of the rectangular container 100 is placed, and is attached to the rear space between the pair of left and right base frames 7 and 7. Yes. The rectangular container 100 is placed from the rear of the base frames 7 and 7, and a stopper 41 is provided at the front end of the bottom plate support portion 4 so that the front edge of the bottom plate portion 103 of the rectangular container 1 abuts.
The top plate retainer 5 has a rectangular plate shape corresponding to the top plate 102 of the rectangular container 1 and is disposed above the bottom plate support 4.

The compression mechanism 6 applies a compressive load to the top plate presser 5 by lever action and a parallel link mechanism 8 having two upper and lower stages for guiding the top plate presser 5 in a state of being held parallel to the bottom plate support 4. And an operation lever 9.
The upper and lower two-stage parallel link mechanism 8 guides the bottom plate support portion 4 while holding the top plate pressing portion 5 in parallel. The lower link mechanism 81 connected to the bottom plate support portion 4 and the top plate presser. And an upper link mechanism 82 connected to the section.

Each has a pair of lower and upper swing link members 811 and 821 parallel to each other. The upper end of the lower swing link member 811 and the lower end of the upper swing link member 821 are rotatably connected. This corresponds to the height of the lateral valley fold guiding portion F6 of the side surface portion 101C. Each connection point 83 is pivotally connected to the intermediate connection member 85. A wheel 86 for transporting the crushing device in a folded state is attached to the rear end of the intermediate connecting member 85.
Further, in order to expand and contract the upper link mechanism 82 and the lower link mechanism 81 at a constant ratio, the upper link member 821a and the lower link member 811a that are not connected are connected by the connecting link member 84. Both ends of the connecting link member 84 are rotatably connected to the upper link member 821a and the lower link member 811a.

The operation lever 9 is integrated with the swing link member 821a behind the upper link mechanism 82, and extends upward from the swing link member 811 by a predetermined length. A grip bar 91 is connected to the upper end of the operation lever 9.
First side bending mechanism 2 to form the bent portion of the rear side portion 101 D, as shown in FIG. 2 (A), a swing arm 21 which is rotatably connected to the rear end of the base frame 7, 7, A slider 23 slidably engaged with a guide portion 22 such as a guide groove provided in the base frame 7 with a rear end rotatably connected to the swing arm 21, and a connection between the slider 23 and the swing arm 21. A first connecting link member 24, a foot lever 26 whose lower end is swingably connected to the front portion of the base frame 7, and a second connecting lever 25 that connects the foot lever 26 and the slider 23. . The stepping lever 26 is provided with a pedal 28 for applying a foot.

As shown in FIG. 4, the second side surface bending mechanism 3 is configured to operate in conjunction with the two-stage parallel link mechanism 8 of the compression mechanism 6.
That is, the first link member 31 whose one end is rotatably connected to the front end portion of the intermediate connection link member 85 of the compression mechanism 8 and the linear guide portion 32 such as a guide groove provided in the intermediate connection link member 83. A slider 33 that is movable back and forth by a predetermined length, a second link member 34 that connects the slider 33 and the first link member 31, and a connection point between the rear end of the first link member 31 and the second link member 34. 35 and a third link member 36 that connects between the front end of the top plate presser 5 and a second bent bar 37 (see FIG. 3) for forming a bent portion in the slider 33 by biting into the front side surface portion 101C of the container. (See (A)) is fixed.

Further, when the rear side surface portion 101D of the body portion 101 is bent by the first side surface bending mechanism 2, the left and right side surface portions 101A and 101B of the body portion 101 are recessed inward in conjunction with the first side surface bending mechanism 2. A pushing mechanism 10 for pushing in is provided.
The pushing mechanism 10 is provided on the base frame 7 as shown in FIGS. A guide wall 11 attached so as to face the side surface portion 101 </ b> A of the rectangular container 100, and a push rod 12 slidably inserted into a rod hole 11 a provided in the guide wall 11. In the push rod 12, the rod head 12 a projects from the container side surface of the guide wall 11, and the rod end 12 b projects from the guide wall 11 to the opposite side of the rectangular container 100.

The rod end 12b side is a passage through which the first connecting link member 24 of the first side bending mechanism 2 passes. The first connecting link member 24 moves forward when the rear side surface portion 101D is bent, and moves backward when the first connecting link member 24 is returned. Therefore, the first connecting link member 24 contacts the rod end 12b when moving forward. A tapered pushing guide portion 13 is provided so as to push in contact. The pushing guide portion 13 gradually contacts the rod end 12b when the first connecting link member 24 moves forward, gradually pushes the rod end 12b toward the container, and the rod head 12a causes the left and right side portions of the container to be recessed. It is like that. A presser guide 14 is provided outside the guide wall 11 so as to sandwich the first connecting link member 24 between the guide wall 11 and the presser guide 14 supports the pressing force by the push rod 12. .
This pushing operation is adjusted so as to be performed in conjunction with the bending operation of the first side surface bending mechanism 2, and is set so that the left and right side surfaces are automatically folded inward when the rear side surface 101D is bent. Is done.

Next, an operation method of the folding device for the rectangular container according to the present embodiment will be described.
First, the operation lever 9 is raised. Then, the parallel link mechanism 8 of the compression mechanism 6 extends vertically, and the space between the top plate pressing portion 5 and the bottom plate support portion 4 is widened, and the storage space for the rectangular container 100 is opened (see FIG. 1). Between the top plate pressing portion 5 and the bottom plate support portion 4, the rectangular container 100 is accommodated from the rear of the apparatus, and the bottom plate portion 103 is placed on the bottom plate support portion 4.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2 (A), while lowering the operation lever 9, the pedal 28 is stepped on, and the first bent bar attached to the swing arm 21 in the lateral valley fold guiding portion F7 of the rear side surface portion 101D. 27 is bitten and bent (rear chop). When a predetermined amount is bent, the foot is released and the pedal 28 is returned upward.
Next, while lowering the weight of the operation lever 9, it is lowered to the bottom, and the body 101 is folded downward by applying a compressive load to the top plate 102 of the rectangular container 100. At this initial stage of compression, as shown in FIG. 3A, the bending operation of the second side surface bending mechanism 3 starts (front chop), and the second bending bar 37 moves to the lateral valley fold guiding portion F6 of the front side surface portion 101C. The left and right side surface portions 101A and 101B are folded inward along the crease guide line and folded into a Z shape (see FIG. 3B). When the second side bending mechanism 3 for driving the second bending bar for the front chopping operation is bent by a predetermined amount, as shown in FIG. 4C, the second bending bar 3 moves forward from the bending portion by the link operation. 37 is prevented from being sandwiched between the bent portions.

  In this way, the first side surface bending mechanism 2 and the second side surface bending mechanism 3 form bent portions that become creases at portions corresponding to the folds of the top plate portion 102 and the bottom plate portion 103 of the front and rear side surface portions 101C and 101D. Then, since the compression mechanism 6 compresses the bottom plate portion 103 and the top plate portion 102, the deformation progresses smoothly into the final folded shape and can be folded with a light force such as manual operation. .

  In particular, the compression mechanism 6 is a process of compressing the top plate pressing portion 5 relative to the bottom plate support portion 4 in the front-rear direction as shown in FIG. The top plate portion 102 moves in such a manner as to follow the displacement in the front-rear direction with respect to the bottom plate portion 103, so that the contact portion between the top plate pressing portion 5 and the top plate portion 102 does not slip and can be smoothly folded.

In addition, although the metal square container was demonstrated in the said embodiment, it is applicable not only to a metal container but to a plastic container. Moreover, although the case where the square container provided with the crease guidance part was folded was demonstrated, it is possible to fold the crease guidance part even if there is no part or all of it.
As the compression mechanism, a parallel link mechanism is used, but in short, any mechanism that follows the back-and-forth movement of the top plate in the compression process may be used. For example, a mechanism that slides back and forth may be provided.
Further, the first and second side surface portion bending mechanisms on the front and rear side surfaces and the pushing mechanism on the left and right side surfaces are not limited to the present embodiment, and various configurations can be applied. For example, in the above description, the bending of the first and second side surfaces is performed sequentially, but this may be performed simultaneously.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a rectangular container folding device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention before folding. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing the first side surface bending mechanism, and FIGS. 2B and 2C are explanatory views of the pushing mechanism of the left and right side surfaces. 3A and 3B are explanatory diagrams of the folding operation of the folding device of FIG. 4A to 4C are operation explanatory views of the second side bending mechanism of FIG. FIGS. 5A to 5F are explanatory views showing the folded state of the rectangular container and the motion state of the two-stage parallel link mechanism constituting the folding mechanism. FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing the folding device of FIG. 1 with the second side bending mechanism omitted. FIG. 7 shows a rectangular container that is crushed by the folding device of the present invention. FIG. 7 (A) is a perspective view, FIG. 7 (B) is a perspective view with the front and rear side portions bent, and FIG. ) Is a plan view of the folded state. FIG. 8 is an explanatory view of the crease guiding portion of the rectangular container of FIG. 7, wherein FIG. 8 (A) is a diagram showing a configuration example of the fold guiding portion, and FIG. 8 (B) is a mold configuration example for forming the fold guiding portion. Sectional views shown in the drawings, (C) and (D) are perspective views showing a configuration example of a punch used in a mold.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Square container, 101 trunk | drum, 102 Top plate part, 103 Bottom plate part 101A Right side part 101B Left side part 101C Front side part, 101D Rear side part F1 Vertical direction valley fold induction part F2, F3 Upper branch valley fold induction part F4, F5 Lower branch valley fold guiding portion F6 Lateral valley fold guiding portion F7 Horizontal valley fold guiding portion F8, F9 Mountain fold guiding portion L Guide line, Fa concavo-convex filament, Fb Point concavo-convex portion 200 Mold, 201 First type, 202 2nd type, 203 punch 1 crushing device 2 1st side surface bending mechanism 21 rocking arm, 22 guide part, 23 slider,
24 1st connection link member, 25 2nd connection lever 26 Foot pedal lever, 27 1st bending bar, 28 Pedal 3 2nd side surface bending mechanism 31 1st link member, 32 Linear guide part, 33 Slider 34 2nd link member, 35 Connecting point, 36 Third link member 37 Second bent bar 4 Bottom plate support portion, 41 Stopper 5 Top plate pressing portion 6 Compression mechanism 8 Parallel link mechanism 81 Lower link mechanism, 82 Upper link mechanism 811, 321 Lower and upper swing links Member 83 Connection point, 84 Connection link bar, 85 Intermediate connection member, 86 Wheel 9 Operation lever 91 Grip bar 10 Push mechanism 11 Guide wall, 11a Rod hole, 12 Push rod 12a Rod head, 12b Rod end, 13 Push guide 14 Presser guide

Claims (3)

Fold left and right side parts of the rectangular body of the rectangular container inward in the vertical direction, fold the top plate part to one side of the front and back side parts, and fold the bottom plate part to the other side part In a rectangular container folding device,
A first side surface bend that forms a bent portion that forms a crease by bending inwardly a position spaced apart by approximately half the distance between the front and rear side surface portions upward from the lower end of one side surface of the front and rear side surface portions of the body portion Means,
A second side surface bending means for forming a bent portion that becomes a crease by bending inwardly at a position that is spaced apart from the upper end of the other side surface of the front and rear side surfaces of the body portion by a distance approximately half the distance between the front and rear side portions. When,
By compressing the body part up and down with the bottom plate support portion and the top plate pressing portion sandwiching the bottom plate portion and the top plate portion, along the bent portion formed by the first side surface bending means and the second side surface bending means. A compression means for folding,
When the bent portion is formed by the first side surface bending means, the bottom plate portion of the rectangular container is placed on the bottom plate support portion, and the front edge of the bottom plate portion is brought into contact with a stopper provided on the bottom plate support portion. In a configuration in which the rear side surface portion of the body portion is bent in contact,
When forming the bent portion by the second side surface bending means, the bottom plate support portion and the top plate pressing portion are supported by sandwiching the bottom plate portion and the top plate portion, and at the initial stage of compression by the compression means, It is configured to bend the front side,
The said compression means is provided with the mechanism in which a top-plate holding part displaces in the front-back direction following the shift | offset | difference of the top-plate part with respect to the baseplate part which arises in the process of compression, The folding apparatus of the square container characterized by the above-mentioned .
2. A pushing means for pushing the left and right side surfaces of the body part inwardly when the front and back side parts of the body part are bent by at least one of the first side surface bending means and the second side surface bending means. The folding device of the square container as described in 2. The compression means includes a top and bottom two-stage parallel link mechanism that guides the top plate holding portion in parallel with the bottom plate support portion, and an operation lever that applies a compressive load to the top plate holding portion by lever action. Provided, and the connecting portion between the swing link members of the two-stage parallel link mechanism of the upper and lower stages is set to a position that matches the position of the bent portion of the top plate portion or the bottom plate portion formed on the front and rear side surfaces of the rectangular container. The folding device for a rectangular container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein

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