JP5877651B2 - Boxing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a boxing device for orderly storing, for example, articles packed in a box or boxed with food such as potato chips, beans, candy, etc., inside an exterior box such as a cardboard case or a dozen box.

  An example of a conventional boxing device is described in Patent Document 1. The boxing device includes an alignment conveyor that aligns a plurality of articles, an article introduction conveyor that sequentially introduces the plurality of articles to the alignment conveyor, an extrusion plate that extrudes a plurality of articles aligned on the alignment conveyor onto a damper plate, A pushing plate that pushes a plurality of extruded articles into the exterior box when the damper plate is opened, and a control device that controls the operation of each of these devices. An article receiving position sensor that detects that an article has been introduced from the article introduction conveyor is provided at the article receiving position of the alignment conveyor.

JP 2009-143726 A

  In the boxing device described in Patent Document 1, it is possible to detect that a shortage has occurred in the articles introduced into the alignment conveyor based on the output of the article receiving position sensor. However, if an article once introduced to the alignment conveyor is subsequently ejected from the alignment conveyor, it is not possible to detect a shortage of the article. There was a risk of being housed in the exterior box as it was through the push-in plate.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a boxing device that can prevent an article that is less than the necessary number from being housed in an exterior box. .

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a boxing apparatus according to the present invention includes an article aligning apparatus that aligns and aligns a plurality of articles in a row, and an article extruding apparatus that simultaneously extrudes the aligned articles to the side of the array. A packaging device comprising: an article pushing device that pushes the plurality of extruded articles into an exterior box; and the article alignment device, the article pushing device, and a control device that controls the article pushing device. An article detection device having the same number of article detection sensors as that of the article, and detecting the presence or absence of each of the plurality of articles by each of the article detection sensors during the extrusion operation by the article extrusion apparatus, and generating an alarm An alarm generation device, and the control device alerts the alarm generation device when the number of articles detected by the article detection device is less than the required number of the plurality of articles. It executes a warning process to occur.

  In this configuration, since the presence or absence of each of the plurality of articles is individually detected by the same number of article detection sensors as the plurality of articles during the extrusion operation, even when the articles jump out of the article alignment device, A shortage of the article can be accurately detected.

  An extrusion operation detecting means for detecting the extrusion operation for each of the extrusion operations that are repeatedly executed is provided, and the control device detects the extrusion operation by the extrusion operation detecting means, and the article detection device in the extrusion operation. The alarm process may be executed when the number of articles detected by is less than the required number of the plurality of articles.

  With this configuration, it is possible to accurately detect a shortage of articles at each extrusion operation that is repeatedly performed.

  The article extruding device includes an article extruding section that applies a pressing force to the plurality of articles, a linear motion mechanism that reciprocates the article extruding section, and a standby position that detects the article extruding section located at a standby position. And the push-out motion detecting means may detect the push-out motion based on the output of the standby position sensor.

  In this configuration, since it is not necessary to provide a sensor for detecting the pushing operation separately from the standby position sensor, it is possible to prevent the configuration of the apparatus from becoming complicated.

  The article extruding device has an article extruding section that applies a pressing force to the plurality of articles, and a linear motion mechanism that reciprocates the article extruding section, and the extrusion motion detecting means is an operation of the linear motion mechanism. The extrusion operation may be detected based on the above.

  In this configuration, the pushing operation can be easily detected based on the operation of the linear motion mechanism.

  Each of the article detection sensors may be a non-contact sensor that detects each of the plurality of articles in a non-contact manner.

  In this configuration, since each of the plurality of articles can be detected in a non-contact manner, damage to the article detection sensor due to contact with the article can be prevented.

  Each of the article detection sensors may be movably provided so that a distance between them can be adjusted.

  In this configuration, since the distance between the article detection sensors can be adjusted, even when the number or size of articles is changed, it is possible to appropriately cope with the change.

  The control device executes stop processing for stopping the article alignment device, the article pushing device, and the article pushing device when the number of articles detected by the article detecting device is less than the required number of the plurality of articles. May be.

  In this configuration, since the flow of the articles can be stopped by the stop process, it is possible to secure a time for replenishing the articles to the article assembly in which the shortage occurs.

  The article extrusion device may have an extrusion path in which the plurality of articles move while being guided by a guide portion, and each of the article detection sensors may detect each of the plurality of articles in the extrusion path.

  In this configuration, since the presence or absence of a plurality of articles can be detected by each of the article detection sensors while the plurality of articles move stably while being guided by the guide portion, erroneous detection of the articles can be prevented. Can do.

  According to the present invention, during the extrusion operation, the presence or absence of each of a plurality of articles can be individually detected by the same number of article detection sensors as the plurality of articles, and the occurrence of a shortage is notified by an alarm. Can do. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the articles less than the necessary number from being accommodated in the exterior box.

It is a front view which shows the structure of the boxing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a top view which shows the structure of the boxing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the principal part of the boxing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the control apparatus in the boxing apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the control action of the control apparatus in the boxing apparatus which concerns on embodiment.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
[Overall configuration of boxing equipment]
FIG. 1 is a front view showing the configuration of the boxing device 10 according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the configuration of the boxing device 10, and FIG. 3 is the configuration of the main part of the boxing device 10. FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the control device 22 in the boxing device 10, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a control operation of the control device 22 in the boxing device 10. As indicated by the arrows in FIG. 3, the directions before, after, left, right, up, and down used in the following description coincide with the directions when the boxing device 10 is viewed from the front (FIG. 1). .

  As shown in FIG. 1, the boxing device 10 forms an article aggregate X by aligning a plurality (four in this embodiment) of articles T that are packaged or boxed with food such as potato chips, beans, and strawberries. At the same time, these articles T are automatically accommodated in an exterior box U such as a cardboard case or a dozen box with the article aggregate X as a unit.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the boxing device 10 includes an article introduction device 12 that introduces an article T from a preceding apparatus (not shown) such as a vertical pillow packaging machine, and a plurality of articles T in a row. Article aligning device 14 for aligning and aligning, article extruding device 16 for extruding an article assembly X composed of a plurality of aligned articles T, and article pushing for pushing the extruded article assembly X into the exterior box U A device 18, a frame 20 that supports these devices, a control device 22 (FIG. 1) that controls these devices in a unified manner, and an alarm generator 23 (FIG. 1) that generates an alarm when an abnormality occurs. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the frame 20 is configured by joining pipe-like or bar-like members or plate-like members to each other, and as shown in FIG. A first opening W1 through which the body X passes from top to bottom is provided. As shown in FIG. 2, an article introduction device 12 and an article alignment device 14 are provided side by side at the rear of the frame 20, and the article is pushed into a portion corresponding to the first opening W <b> 1 at the front of the frame 20. A device 18 is provided. Further, an article pushing device 16 is provided in a region extending over the article aligning device 14 and the article pushing device 18 in the upper part of the frame 20. Further, an article detection device 100 that detects the presence or absence of the article T is provided in the extrusion path R of the article T in the article extrusion device 16 or in the vicinity thereof.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the control device 22 includes a CPU 22a, a storage device 22b that stores a control program and various types of data, an input unit 22c that inputs various types of information, and a display unit 22d that displays various types of information. have. Then, a series of boxing operations are executed by the control program being executed by the CPU 22a.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the alarm generation device 23 notifies an abnormality by light, sound, image display, or the like when an abnormality occurs in the operation of the boxing device 10. The alarm generation device 23 of the present embodiment includes a lamp 23a and a buzzer 23b, and the lamp 23a and the buzzer 23b are electrically connected to the control device 22 as shown in FIG.

[Configuration of article introduction device]
As shown in FIG. 1, the article introduction apparatus 12 includes a pair of rollers 24 (the left roller 24 is not shown) spaced apart in the left-right direction and an endless belt that is spanned between the pair of rollers 24. 26 and a motor (not shown) for driving at least one of the pair of rollers 24. When a plurality of articles T are sequentially supplied to the article introduction apparatus 12 from a preceding apparatus (not shown) such as a vertical pillow packaging machine, these articles T are placed on the endless belt 26 and directed to the right. And fed to the article alignment device 14 from the right end of the endless belt 26.

[Configuration of alignment conveyor]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the article alignment device 14 aligns a plurality of articles T in a single row with the plurality of articles T standing up, and the plurality of articles T is arranged in one direction (right direction in the present embodiment). An endless track 30 having a transport surface 30a to be transported and a plurality of fins 32 provided on the transport surface 30a of the endless track 30 at intervals in the transport direction.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the endless track 30 has a first belt 34a, a second belt 34b, a third belt 34c, and a fourth belt 34d arranged in parallel with each other from the front to the rear. The surfaces of these belts 34a to 34d serve as a conveyance surface 30a. The first belt 34a and the third belt 34c are stretched between a pair of pulleys 36 (the right pulley 36 is not shown) spaced apart in the left-right direction. The four belts 34d are stretched between a pair of pulleys 38 (the right pulley 38 is not shown) provided at an interval in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 1, a first drive unit 37 is connected to at least one of the pair of pulleys 36, and a second drive unit 39 is connected to at least one of the pair of pulleys 38. . Each of the first drive unit 37 and the second drive unit 39 includes motors (stepping motors, servo motors, and the like) 37a and 39a capable of high-precision position control. As shown in FIG. Motors 37a and 39a are electrically connected to the controller 22 via drivers 37b and 39b.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the plurality of fins 32 are plate-like members that hold a plurality of articles T in a standing state. In the present embodiment, five fins 32 that hold four articles T are one. One fin group 40 is formed as a set, and a plurality of fin groups 40 are arranged on the transport surface 30a of the endless track 30 at a predetermined interval.

  In each fin group 40, the interval between adjacent fins 32 is designed to be larger than the thickness of the article T so that the article T can be accommodated in a state where the article T stands between the two fins 32. The length of each fin 32 is designed to be longer than the vertical length of the article T in the standing state so that the article T can be held in a standing state between the two fins 32.

  Assuming that a plurality of fin groups 40 arranged on the conveyance surface 30a are consecutively numbered, the fins 32 constituting the odd-numbered fin groups 40 are attached to the first belt 34a and the third belt 34c. The fins 32 that are attached and constitute the fin groups 40 with even numbers are attached to the second belt 34b and the fourth belt 34d. Therefore, the odd-numbered fin groups 40 and the even-numbered fin groups 40 can be driven separately by the first drive unit 37 and the second drive unit 39. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, with the preceding fin group 40 stopped at the article alignment position P1, the subsequent fin group 40 is stopped at the article receiving position P2, or toward the article alignment position P1. It can be moved.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the article receiving position P2 is provided with an introduction sensor 42 for detecting that the article T has been introduced into the gap G between the two fins 32. As shown in FIG. The introduction sensor 42 is electrically connected to the control device 22.

  As shown in FIG. 1, when the introduction sensor 42 detects that the article T has been introduced into the gap G located at the article receiving position P2, the motor 37a or 39a is controlled by the control device 22, and the next gap G is changed to the article G. It is positioned at the receiving position P2. Then, when the introduction sensor 42 detects that the article T has been introduced into the final gap G, as shown in FIG. 2, the fin group 40 holding the plurality of articles T moves from the article receiving position P2 to the article alignment position P1. It is moved towards.

[Configuration of article extrusion device]
As shown in FIG. 2, the article extruding device 16 simultaneously extrudes a plurality of articles T arranged in a row from the article alignment position P1 toward the side of the row (front in the present embodiment). A moving mechanism 44, an article pushing portion 46, a pair of left and right guide portions 48, and a stopper portion 50 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the linear motion mechanism 44 includes a linear rail 52 that extends in the front-rear direction, a reciprocating table 54 that is reciprocally movable with respect to the linear rail 52, and a front end portion of the linear rail 52. And a pair of pulleys 56a and 56b disposed in the vicinity of each of the rear end portions, an endless belt 58 stretched between these pulleys 56a and 56b, and a motor 60 for driving one pulley 56a. ing. As the motor 60, a stepping motor, a servo motor, or the like capable of highly accurate position control is used. As shown in FIG. 4, the motor 60 is electrically connected to the control device 22 via a driver 60b. Yes.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, at the rear end portion of the linear rail 52 or in the vicinity thereof, it is detected that the article pushing section 46 is located at the standby position P5, and the article pushing section 46 is moved from the waiting position P5. A standby position sensor 61 is provided for detecting the movement, and the standby position sensor 61 is electrically connected to the control device 22 as shown in FIG. The type of standby position sensor 61 is not particularly limited, and a contact type sensor such as a limit switch is used in addition to a non-contact type sensor such as a photoelectric sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, and a proximity sensor. May be.

  When the standby position sensor 61 detects that the article pushing portion 46 does not exist at the standby position P5, the control device 22 can determine that the pushing operation by the article pushing device 16 has started at the time of detection. In other words, in the present embodiment, the “push-out motion detection means” is configured by the standby position sensor 61 and the control device 22, and the “push-out motion detection means” detects the push-out operation based on the output of the standby position sensor 61. To do.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the reciprocating table 54 is fixed to the endless belt 58, and the article pushing portion 46 is fixed to the reciprocating table 54. When the pulley 56a is rotated forward or backward by the motor 60, the endless belt 58 is rotated forward or backward, and accordingly, the reciprocating table 54 and the article pushing portion 46 are reciprocated forward or backward. In the previous stage of the article alignment process for aligning the plurality of articles T, the article extruding portion 46 is moved rearward. Then, when the article pushing portion 46 is detected by the standby position sensor 61, the motor 60 is stopped and the article pushing portion 46 is positioned at the waiting position P5.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the article extruding unit 46 applies a pressing force to the plurality of articles T, and simultaneously supports the support arm 62 extending in the left-right direction and the plurality of articles T (that is, the article aggregate X) simultaneously. And an extrusion plate 64 to be extruded. The extrusion plate 64 has a substantially rectangular plate-shaped plate body 64a, and slits 64b are provided at positions facing the rear end surfaces of the plurality of fins 32 in the plate body 64a. As shown in FIG. 1, the upper end portion of the extrusion plate 64 is fixed to one end portion of the support arm 62, and the other end portion of the support arm 62 is fixed to the reciprocating table 54.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the pair of guide portions 48 are plate-like members that guide the article assembly X pushed forward by the article extruding portion 46 from the left and right directions in the extrusion path R. As shown in FIG. 3, the stopper portion 50 is a plate-like member that receives the article assembly X (FIG. 2) that has been pushed out by the article extruding portion 46.

[Configuration of article pushing device]
As shown in FIG. 3, the article pushing device 18 includes a shutter 66, an article holding device 68, an article pushing unit 70, an outer box transport device 72, and an opening member 74. The shutter 66 opens and closes the first opening W1 of the frame 20 (FIG. 2). The shutter 66 has a pair of left and right opening and closing plates 76 and 78 that are movably provided in the first opening W1 and the opening and closing plates 76 and 78. And a plate moving mechanism (not shown) for moving in the direction. Each of the opening and closing plates 76 and 78 is a plate-like member having a substantially square shape in plan view, and the combined size of the two opening and closing plates 76 and 78 is designed to be larger than the size of the first opening W1.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the article holding device 68 holds a plurality of articles T (that is, the article aggregate X) placed on the upper surfaces of the opening and closing plates 76 and 78, and both left and right sides of the first opening W1. And a pair of left and right holding plates 80a and 80b, and pressing devices 82a and 82b for pressing the holding plates 80a and 80b against the article assembly X from the left and right directions.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the article pushing portion 70 includes an elevating tower 86 provided on the frame 20, an elevating member 88 attached to the elevating tower 86 so as to be movable up and down, and a pushing plate 90 attached to the elevating member 88. And a lifting device (not shown) that lifts and lowers the lifting member 88. The pushing plate 90 has suction ports (not shown) for sucking each of the plurality of articles T constituting the article assembly X, and suction ports (not shown) such as a vacuum pump and a suction blower are provided in the suction ports. ) Is communicated.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the outer box transport device 72 includes an outer box lifting / lowering device 92, an outer box carrying-in device 94, and an outer box carrying-out device 96. The exterior box lifting / lowering device 92 raises the empty exterior box U to a predetermined packing position P3 located immediately below the first opening W1, and moves the exterior box U containing a plurality of articles T to a predetermined lowering position P4. And has a table 92a that supports the exterior box U and a lifting mechanism 92b that lifts and lowers the table 92a.

  The outer box carrying-in device 94 conveys the empty outer box U to the table 92a at the lowered position P4. In this embodiment, a belt conveyor driven by a motor (not shown) is used as the outer box carrying-in device 94. It is used. The outer box unloading device 96 unloads the outer box U containing a plurality of articles T from the table 92a at the lowered position P4. In this embodiment, a roller conveyor having no drive mechanism is used as the outer box unloading device. 96.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the opening member 74 forms a second opening W2 through which the article assembly X (FIG. 2) passes below the first opening W1, and the article assembly X (FIG. 2) is placed in the outer box. It is guided to U, and has a frame member (not shown) having a substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and a flexible guide member (not shown) attached to the frame member.

[Configuration of article detection apparatus]
As shown in FIG. 3, the article detection apparatus 100 detects the presence or absence of each of the plurality of articles T during the extrusion operation by the article extrusion apparatus 16, and is the same number as the plurality of articles T (in the present embodiment). 4) article detection sensors 102. The article detection sensor 102 of the present embodiment is a non-contact sensor that detects the article T in a non-contact manner, and includes a light emitting unit 102a that emits light, a reflecting unit 102b that reflects light, and a light receiving unit 102c that receives light. have. The light emitting unit 102a and the light receiving unit 102c of the article detection sensor 102 are provided above the extrusion path R in which the plurality of articles T move while being guided by the guide unit 48 (FIG. 2). Each reflection part 102b is provided in the position which opposes the light emission part 102a and the light-receiving part 102c. In the present embodiment, the light emitting unit 102a and the light receiving unit 102c are attached downward to the side surface (front side surface in the present embodiment) of the plate-like holding unit 104 disposed above the extrusion path R, and reflected. The portion 102 b is attached upward to the upper surface 106 (FIG. 2) of the extrusion path R or a predetermined portion below the upper surface 106. As shown in FIG. 4, the article detection sensor 102 (the light emitting unit 102 a and the light receiving unit 102 c) is electrically connected to the control device 22.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when each of the article detection sensors 102 is driven by the control device 22 (FIG. 4), light (indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 3) is emitted from the light emitting unit 102 a toward the extrusion path R. This light is reflected by the reflecting portion 102b and received by the light receiving portion 102c. When the article T pushed out by the article pusher 16 reaches the article detection position P6 located below the article detection sensor 102, light is blocked by the article T, and the output of the light receiving unit 102c decreases. Therefore, the control device 22 can determine that the article T exists when the output of the light receiving unit 102c falls below a predetermined threshold. Further, the number of articles T can be detected by observing the output reduction of the light receiving unit 102c for all the article detection sensors 102.

  The type of the article detection sensor 102 is not particularly limited, and a contact type sensor such as a limit switch is used in addition to a non-contact type sensor such as a photoelectric sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, and a proximity sensor. May be. When using a photoelectric sensor, in addition to the retroreflective photoelectric sensor as in the present embodiment, a reflective photoelectric sensor that reflects light on the surface of the article T, or a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit are opposed to each other. Alternatively, a transmission type photoelectric sensor arranged in the above-described manner may be used. However, from the viewpoint of preventing damage due to contact with the article T, it is desirable to use a non-contact type sensor, and from the viewpoint of preventing erroneous detection due to a decrease in the amount of light due to dirt or the like, the ultrasonic sensor and the proximity It is desirable to use a sensor. In the case of using any of these sensors, it is desirable to arrange all or part of the sensors above the extrusion path R in order to facilitate maintenance work.

The number and size of the articles T constituting the article assembly X may be changed as appropriate, and the number and positions of the driven article detection sensors 102 may be changed as appropriate according to the number and size of the articles T. Good. For example, when the number of articles T is reduced to 3, any one of the four article detection sensors 102 may be stopped. Further, when the size of each of the four articles T is changed, the distance between the article detection sensors 102 may be adjusted so as to correspond to each article T. In this case, each of the article detection sensors 102 may be provided so as to be movable so that the distance between them can be adjusted.
[Operation of boxing device]
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the control device 22 in the boxing device 10 according to the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, when the control program is executed by the CPU 22a (FIG. 4) of the control device 22 (FIG. 1), first, an article introduction process is executed in step S1, and then an article alignment process in step S3. Is executed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the article introduction process, a plurality of articles T supplied from a preceding apparatus (not shown) such as a vertical pillow packaging machine are sequentially directed toward the article alignment apparatus 14 by the article introduction apparatus 12. Be transported. On the other hand, in the article alignment process, a plurality of introduced articles T are arranged in a line to form an article aggregate X. As shown in FIG. 2, in the article alignment step, the motor 60 of the linear motion mechanism 44 is stopped, and the article pushing portion 46 is positioned at the standby position P5.

  When the alignment of the plurality of articles T is completed, the extrusion operation of the plurality of articles T by the article extrusion device 16 is started, and the aligned plurality of articles T (that is, the article aggregate X) are placed on the upper surfaces of the opening and closing plates 76 and 78. Extruded to 107 (FIG. 2). As shown in FIG. 5, when the pushing operation by the article pushing device 16 is detected by the “pushing action detecting means” in step S5, in step S7, during each pushing operation, each of the plurality of articles T is detected. Presence / absence (presence / absence of missing item) is detected by the article detection apparatus 100. In the present embodiment, the standby position sensor 61 and the control device 22 constitute an “extrusion operation detecting means”.

  In step S9, the presence or absence of each of the plurality of articles T is determined for each extrusion operation. In this embodiment, the number of articles T detected in step S7 is compared with the required number of articles T (four in this embodiment), and the detected number of articles T is the required number. It is determined as “NO (no missing item)”, and when it is less than the required number, it is determined as “YES (missing item)”.

  When it is determined “NO (no missing item)”, a normal boxing operation is executed in steps S11 to S15. That is, the article pushing process is executed in step S11, the article pushing portion 46 is returned to the origin in step S13, and the missing item detection operation by the control device 22 is reset in step S15. In step S17, it is determined whether or not to end the boxing operation. If it is determined “NO (do not end)”, the process returns to step S1, and if “YES (end)” is determined, the boxing operation is completed. Is terminated. In addition, each process of step S11-S15 is processed mutually in parallel.

  In the article pushing process in step S11, as shown in FIG. 1, each article T placed on the upper surfaces of the opening and closing plates 76 and 78 (FIG. 2) is held by the pushing plate 90. Also, the empty outer box U is transported to the packing position P3 by the outer box carrying-in device 94 and the outer box lifting / lowering device 92 of the outer box transporting device 72. When the first opening W1 (FIG. 2) is opened, the pushing plate 90 is lowered, and each article T is pushed into the exterior box U. When a predetermined number of articles T are stored in the outer box U, the outer box U is lowered to the lowered position P4 and is carried out by the outer box unloading device 96.

  As shown in FIG. 5, if “YES (absence of missing item)” is determined in step S9, an alarm process for generating an alarm in the alarm generation device 23 (FIG. 4) is executed in step S19, and the lamp 23a. At least one of the buzzer 23b is driven. In step S21, a stop process for stopping the article aligning device 14, the article pushing device 16, and the article pushing device 18 is executed. In this stopping process, the article T pushed out by the article extruding device 16 is stopped on the upper surface 107 (FIG. 2) of the opening and closing plates 76 and 78. Therefore, the operator can manually replenish the missing article T on the upper surface 107. In the stop process, the article T may be stopped on the upper surface 106 (FIG. 2) of the extrusion path R. However, in this case, since the posture of the article T may be disturbed when the extrusion operation is resumed, the article T is desirably stopped on the upper surface 107 of the open / close plates 76 and 78 as described above.

  In step S23, it is determined whether or not the boxing operation is to be resumed. If it is determined “YES (restart)”, the process proceeds to step S11, and the same process as the normal boxing operation is performed. On the other hand, if “NO (do not resume)” is determined, the process returns to step S21 and the standby state is continued. In the present embodiment, the input unit 22c (FIG. 4) has a restart switch (not shown) that is operated by an operator, and the determination of whether or not to restart the boxing operation is based on the output of the restart switch. Done.

(Other embodiments)
In the above-described embodiment, the “push-out motion detection means” is configured by the standby position sensor 61 and the control device 22, but in other embodiments, a push-out motion detection sensor (in front of the standby position sensor 61 ( The “pushing operation detecting means” may be configured by the control device 22 (not shown). In this case, when the extrusion operation detection sensor detects the article T, the control device 22 may determine that the extrusion operation is in progress.

  Further, in another embodiment, the “pushing operation detecting means” may be configured by the linear motion mechanism 44 and the control device 22. In this case, the control device 22 grasps the position of the article pushing portion 46 based on the control information of the motor (stepping motor, servo motor, etc.) constituting the linear motion mechanism 44, and the position is determined from the standby position P5. It may be determined that the extrusion operation is in progress when the predetermined position in front is reached.

  In the above-described embodiment, the missing article T is replenished in the stop processing stage (FIG. 5, step S21). In other embodiments, the article pushing stage (FIG. 5) after the stop processing stage. 5, step S11), or may be replenished at a later stage. Furthermore, it is possible to shift to the article pushing stage (FIG. 5, step S11) without executing the stop processing stage (FIG. 5, step S21) and replenish in the article pushing stage or a stage after that.

T ... Article R ... Extrusion path P5 ... Standby position U ... Outer box 10 ... Box packing device 12 ... Article introduction device 14 ... Article alignment device 16 ... Article pushing device 18 ... Article pushing device 22 ... Control device 23 ... Alarm generating device 48 ... Guide unit 61 ... Standby position sensor 100 ... Article detection device 102 ... Article detection sensor

Claims (8)

An article alignment apparatus for aligning a plurality of articles in a line;
An article extruding apparatus for simultaneously extruding the plurality of articles aligned by the article aligning apparatus to the side of a row;
An article pushing device that has a pair of opening and closing plates on which the plurality of articles pushed out by the article pushing device are placed, and that opens the opening and closing plates and pushes the plurality of articles into an exterior box;
A boxing device comprising: the article alignment device; the article extrusion device; and a control device that controls the article pushing device;
Each of the plurality of articles includes the same number of article detection sensors as the plurality of articles, and the aligned plurality of articles are pushed onto the pair of opening and closing plates by an extrusion operation by the article extrusion device . An article detection device for detecting presence or absence of each of the article detection sensors;
An alarm generating device for generating an alarm,
The boxing device, wherein the control device executes an alarm process for causing the alarm generator to generate an alarm when the number of articles detected by the article detector is less than the required number of the plurality of articles. When the number of articles detected by the article detection device is less than the required number of the plurality of articles, the control device causes the plurality of aligned articles to be opened and closed by the extrusion operation by the article extrusion device. A stop process for stopping the operations of the article alignment device, the article push-out device, and the article push-in device is executed in a state of being pushed onto the plate, and thereafter, based on the output of the restart switch operated by the operator The boxing device according to claim 1, wherein the operations of the article alignment device, the article pushing device, and the article pushing device are resumed. The article extruding device has an extrusion path in which the plurality of articles move while being guided by a guide portion,
3. The boxing device according to claim 1, wherein each of the article detection sensors is all or partly disposed above the extrusion path, and detects each of the plurality of articles moving along the extrusion path. . An extrusion operation detecting means for detecting the extrusion operation for each of the extrusion operations repeatedly executed;
The control device detects the alarm process when the extrusion operation detecting means detects the extrusion operation and the number of articles detected by the article detection device in the extrusion operation is less than the required number of the plurality of articles. The boxing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein: The article extruding device includes an article extruding section that applies a pressing force to the plurality of articles, a linear motion mechanism that reciprocates the article extruding section, and a standby position that detects the article extruding section located at a standby position. A sensor,
The boxing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the pushing operation detecting means detects the pushing operation based on an output of the standby position sensor. The article extruding apparatus has an article extruding section that applies a pressing force to the plurality of articles, and a linear motion mechanism that reciprocates the article extruding section,
The boxing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the push-out operation detecting unit detects the push-out operation based on the operation of the linear motion mechanism. The boxing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein each of the article detection sensors is a sensor that detects each of the plurality of articles in a non-contact manner. The boxing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein each of the article detection sensors is provided so as to be movable so that a distance between them can be adjusted.

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