JP6283577B2 - Article alignment device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an article alignment apparatus that widens the interval between containers such as vials that are conveyed in a line.

  Conventionally, in order to increase the tolerance of a vial, it is known to insert a vial into a resin cup and then attach a label on which information about the contents is printed on the outer peripheral surface thereof. In the step of inserting the vials into the resin cup, the length of the resin cups aligned in a line is aligned by the amount that the outer diameter of the resin cup is larger than the outer diameter of the vials. Since it is longer than the length in the alignment direction, the interval between the vials is expanded by the article alignment device so as to match the interval between the resin cups.

  As such an article alignment apparatus, a configuration described in Patent Document 1 is known. This device includes a plurality of engaging members formed with engaging portions that can be engaged with articles (prefilled syringes) that are conveyed in a row, and the plurality of engaging members are arranged along the alignment direction. Has been. Each engagement member is movable in a direction crossing the alignment direction, and is driven to move in order from the engagement member located on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the article (that is, the alignment direction) to engage with the article. . That is, for example, when three engagement members are provided, the downstream engagement member, the central engagement member, and the upstream engagement member move in this order to engage the article.

JP 2007-151727 A

  According to the configuration in which the plurality of engagement members are sequentially moved from the downstream side to the upstream side in the article conveyance direction, the time required for the alignment operation increases in proportion to the increase in the number of engagement members. Therefore, the number of engaging members increases in accordance with the number of articles to be aligned, resulting in a problem that the processing capability of the alignment operation decreases.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an article alignment apparatus that can perform the alignment operation quickly and accurately even when the interval between a large number of articles is widened.

  An article aligning device according to the present invention is arranged along an article aligning direction for supplying a plurality of articles in a state of being aligned in a row, and is arranged along the aligning direction of the articles, and moves in a direction crossing the aligning direction to engage with the articles. Alignment means having a plurality of engaging members for displacing the articles in the alignment direction, and the aligning means moves each engaging member from the engaging member facing the center of the article row to the article row. It is characterized in that the interval between the plurality of articles supplied by the article supply means is expanded by sequentially engaging the articles on the engaging members facing the articles at both ends.

  Preferably, the article supply means includes an article supply conveyor that conveys a plurality of articles in a line, an end stopper that is provided on the article supply conveyor and that engages with an article positioned at the top of the article row, The article supply means is capable of moving in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the article supply conveyor, and discharges the row of articles with the leading article engaged with the end stopper from the article supply conveyor, and is discharged by the article discharge means. And an alignment table on which the articles are transferred. The alignment means is arranged at a position facing the article discharge means across the row of articles transferred on the alignment table.

  Preferably, the article supply means further includes a pair of guide members that are arranged along the alignment direction of the articles transferred on the alignment table and are opposed to each other with the row of articles interposed therebetween. In conjunction with this, the pair of guide members are moved away from each other.

  According to the present invention, even when the interval between a large number of articles is increased, the alignment operation can be performed quickly and accurately.

It is a top view which shows the article alignment apparatus to which one Embodiment of this invention is applied. It is a side view of the article | item alignment apparatus shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows a cup conveyance apparatus and follows the III-III line | wire of FIG. It is a top view which shows operation | movement of the engaging member in a normal process. It is a top view which shows operation | movement of the engaging member in fraction processing.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the illustrated embodiments.
FIG. 1 is a plan view of an article alignment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view of the article alignment apparatus. The article alignment apparatus is held by the cup conveyance apparatus 200 by picking up the vial V from the vial conveyance apparatus 100 side, the vial conveyance apparatus 100 for conveying the vial (article) V, the cup conveyance apparatus 200 for conveying the resin cup C, and the like. And a vial insertion device 300 for insertion into the resin cup C. The vial V is filled with the contents by a filling processing device (not shown) provided on the left side of FIG. 1 and the opening is closed by a rubber stopper or the like. The vial supply conveyor (article supply conveyor) 101 It is conveyed to the alignment device. The resin cup C is conveyed to an article alignment device by a cup supply conveyor 201 from a cup housing (not shown) provided on the left side of FIG.

  In the vial transport device 100, a pusher 110 is provided on the left side (upper side in FIG. 1) in the transport direction (arrow A direction) of the vial supply conveyor 101, and an alignment table 120 and a shutter 130 are provided on the right side. The pusher 110 has a pressing plate member 111 that is parallel to the upper surface of the vial supply conveyor 101. The side surface 119 of the pressing plate member 111 extends linearly along the conveyance direction (arrow A direction) of the vial supply conveyor 101. In the illustrated example, the side surface 119 is longer than the length of the row of 20 vials V aligned in a row. Have

  The alignment table 120 is an elongated plate-like member extending along the vial supply conveyor 101 and has substantially the same length as the pressing plate member 111 of the pusher 110. The upper surface of the table 120 is at the same height as the transport surface (upper surface) of the vial supply conveyor 101. On the opposite side of the table 120 from the vial supply conveyor 101, a side stopper 121, which is a plate-like member extending in parallel to the vial supply conveyor 101 and perpendicular to the upper surface of the table 120, is provided. The shutter 130 is provided between the vial supply conveyor 101 and the table 120 and extends parallel to the vial supply conveyor 101. The shutter 130 is driven by a shutter raising / lowering cylinder 131, and the upper end portion of the shutter 130 can be raised and lowered between a protruding position higher than the upper surfaces of the vial supply conveyor 101 and the table 120 and a lowered position lower than these upper surfaces. .

  A guide bar 112 provided in the pusher 110 and extending in the vertical direction is guided by a guide rail 114 provided in a support frame 113 and is driven up and down by a pusher lifting cylinder 115. Further, the support frame 113 is supported by a pusher guide rail 116 placed on the upper surface of the base 118 so as to be able to move forward and backward, and is driven forward and backward by a pusher advance / retreat cylinder 117. In FIG. 2, the pusher guide rail 116 is not shown.

  Therefore, the pusher 110 can move up and down and can advance and retreat along the direction intersecting the alignment direction of the vials V. That is, the pusher 110, that is, the pressing plate member 111 moves forward to the side stopper 121 side of the table 120 in a state where the shutter 130 is in the lowered position, moves up and retracts to the original position, and the vial supply conveyor 101. Can be lowered to a height position approaching.

  The vial supply conveyor 101 is an endless belt conveyor and extends from a filling processing apparatus (not shown). The end of the vial supply conveyor 101 on the article alignment apparatus side is in the vicinity of the right end of the pusher 110 in FIG. An end stopper 102 is provided on the upper surface side of the end of the vial supply conveyor 101. The vial V located at the head of the row of the vials V aligned on the vial supply conveyor 101 is engaged with the end stopper 102, and the vial supply conveyor 101 is always driven, so that each vial V is adjacent to each other. Stops in a state of contact.

  The end stopper 102 is connected to the drive mechanism 103 and is normally stationary. However, the end stopper 102 is displaced along the conveyance direction of the vial supply conveyor 101 in the fraction processing described later. The height position of the upper surface of the end stopper 102 is set lower than the lower surface of the pressing plate member 111 of the pusher 110, and a recess 109 (see FIG. 4) for avoiding interference with the shutter 130 is formed on the lower surface of the end stopper 102. Is formed. Since the end stopper 102 is positioned below the pressing plate member 111, the pressing plate member 111 can advance toward the side stopper 121 without interfering with the end stopper 102.

  Conveyor guides 104 and 105 are provided in parallel to each other on both sides of the vial supply conveyor 101 in the conveying direction. The distance between the conveyor guides 104 and 105 is slightly wider than the outer diameter of the vial V, and one conveyor guide 105 continues to the shutter 130 in the protruding position. Therefore, the vials V transported by the vial supply conveyor 101 are transported in a state of being aligned in a row and supplied between the pusher 110 and the shutter 130. In the state where the pusher 110 is in the retracted position and the lowered position, the height position of the lower surface of the pressing plate member 111 is set higher than the upper surface of the conveyor guide 104 so that the conveyor guide 104 is positioned below the pressing plate member 111. It has established.

  A rotary topper 106 is provided on the pusher 110 on the filling processing apparatus side. The outer periphery of the rotary wrist 106 faces the vial supply conveyor 101, and a protrusion 107 that can engage with the vial V is formed on the outer peripheral edge of the rotary wrist 106. The rotary wrist 106 can be rotated in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1 and its peripheral speed is controlled to synchronize with the transport speed of the vial supply conveyor 101.

  A sensor 108 that counts the number of vials V conveyed by the vial supply conveyor 101 and detects whether the vial V has fallen is provided on the upstream side of the rotary topper 106 along the vial supply conveyor 101. It is done. The sensor 108 is separated from the rotary wrist 106 by a distance of at least about 20 times the diameter of the vial V, and outputs a signal to the rotary wrist 106 when detecting that 20 vials V have passed.

  The rotary stopper 106 is stopped before the sensor 108 detects 20 vials V, whereby the vial V is locked to the protrusion 107 of the rotary wrist 106, and the vial V upstream of the vial V is the vial V It stays on the supply conveyor 101. On the other hand, when the sensor 108 detects 20 vials V, the rotary wrist 106 is rotated and the 20 vials V are sent to the pusher 110 side. In other words, 20 vials V are cut out by the action of the rotary topper 106 and the sensor 108 and conveyed to the pusher 110 side. On the pusher 110 side, the 20 vials V are stopped in a state where the leading vial V is in contact with the end stopper 102.

  The pusher 110 moves in a direction crossing the conveying direction of the vial supply conveyor 101, and discharges the row of vials V in which the leading vial V is engaged with the end stopper 102 from the vial supply conveyor 101. Configure. The vials V transferred from the vial supply conveyor 101 to the table 120 by the pusher 110 are engaged with the side stoppers 121 on the table 120 and aligned. That is, the vial supply conveyor 101, the pusher 110, and the table 120 constitute an article supply unit that supplies the vials V to the cup transport device 200 in a state of being aligned in a row.

  Next, the configuration of the cup transport device 200 will be described. The cup supply conveyor 201 extends parallel to the vial supply conveyor 101, and a pair of guides 210 and 211 are provided at positions corresponding to the table 120. The cup supply conveyor 201 continuously conveys the cup C from the left side to the right side (in the direction of arrow B) in FIG. Conveyor guides 202 and 203 are provided on both sides in parallel with each other along the conveying direction of the cup supply conveyor 201. The distance between the conveyor guides 202 and 203 is equal to the outer diameter of the cup C. Therefore, the cup C is conveyed in a state of being aligned in a row and is supplied between the guides 210 and 211.

  The guide guides 210 and 211 extend along the cup supply conveyor 201 and have substantially the same length as the table 120. The guides 210 and 211 are positioned above the cup C on the cup supply conveyor 201 and do not contact the cup C. In addition, guide surfaces 212 and 213 forming a part of a conical surface along the outer shape of the vial V when viewed from above are formed at portions corresponding to the cup C of the guides 210 and 211 (see FIG. 3). In the illustrated example, there are 20 openings formed by the pair of opposing guide surfaces 212 and 213, and a cup C is disposed immediately below each opening. These cups C are aligned on the cup supply conveyor 201 in a state where the adjacent ones are in contact with each other, and the vial V is supplied to each cup C by the vial insertion device 300.

  A rotary topper 204 is provided below the one guide guide 211 and on the most downstream side in the conveying direction of the cup C. The outer periphery of the rotary wrist 204 faces the cup supply conveyor 201, and a protrusion 205 that can engage with the cup C is formed on the outer peripheral edge of the rotary wrist 204. A gear 241 is provided on the rotary shaft 240 to which the rotary wrist 204 is fixed, and the gear 241 meshes with a gear 243 of a drive shaft 242 that is erected in parallel with the rotary shaft 240. The drive shaft 242 is rotationally driven by a motor (not shown), and the rotary topper 204 rotates through gears 241 and 243.

  The rotary wrist 204 can be rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. 1, and its peripheral speed is controlled so as to be synchronized with the conveying speed of the cup supply conveyor 201. The rotary topper 204 is normally stopped. In this state, the leading cup C is locked to the protrusion 205, and the succeeding cup C is stopped. When the vial V is inserted into the cup C and discharged by the cup supply conveyor 201, the rotary topper 204 rotates and stops again when 20 vials V are discharged.

  A sensor 206 is provided on the upstream side of the guides 210 and 211. The sensor 206 is provided to detect whether the cup C exists on the cup supply conveyor 201 and whether the cup C is upright.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the guides 210 and 211 are fixed to the upper ends of the arms 214 and 215, respectively. The arms 214 and 215 are fixed to support shafts 221 and 222 provided on the base 220. The support shafts 221 and 222 extend in parallel with the conveying direction of the cup supply conveyor 201 and are rotatable around the axis. A drive arm 223 extending from the support shaft 221 to the lower surface side of the base 220 is connected to a piston 225 of a swinging cylinder 224 fixed to the lower surface of the base 220 by a stay 226. Note that the swinging cylinder for driving the guide guide 211 and the arm 215 is not shown in FIG.

  When the piston 225 of the swing cylinder 224 protrudes, the arm 214, that is, the guide guide 210 swings through the drive arm 223 and the support shaft 221, and faces the cup supply conveyor 201, and the piston 225 of the swing cylinder 224 moves backward. Then, the guide guide 210 swings backward and retracts from the cup supply conveyor 201. The guide guide 211 swings in synchronization with the guide guide 210. That is, the guides 210 and 211 can be opened and closed, and are closed when the vial V is supplied from above, as will be described later, and opened when the vial V is inserted to about half the height of the cup C. Then, after the vial V and the cup C are discharged from directly under the guides 210 and 211, they are closed again.

  A stopper 230 is provided between the guide guide 210 and the conveyor guide 202. The stopper 230 is a plate-like member having a recess (not shown) on an arc along the outer shape of the cup C, like the guide guide 210, and is related to the 20 cups C located directly under the guide guides 210 and 211. Match. The stopper 230 is swingably supported by a support shaft (not shown), and swings around an axis parallel to the transport direction of the cup supply conveyor 201. That is, the stopper 230 engages with the cup C on the cup supply conveyor 201 when positioned on the cup supply conveyor 201 side, and releases the cup C in the retracted state.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the row length of the vials V, which are sandwiched between the pusher 110 and the shutter 130 and aligned in a row, is located immediately below the guide guides 210 and 211, and is longer than the row length of the cups C aligned in a row. Also short. Therefore, before the vial V is inserted into the cup C on the cup supply conveyor 201 by the vial insertion device 300, it is necessary to enlarge the interval between the adjacent vials V. Therefore, between the side stopper 121 and the guide guide 210, That is, a plurality of engaging members 141 to 147 are arranged at positions facing the pusher 110 across the row of vials V transferred onto the table 120.

  With reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the structure of the engaging members 141-147 is demonstrated. The engaging members 141 to 147 are arranged along the alignment direction of the vials V and move in a direction crossing the alignment direction to engage the vials V. As will be described later, the engaging members 141 to 147 sequentially move from the one located at the center and engage with the vial V, thereby displacing the vial V in the alignment direction.

  Except for the seventh engagement member 147 provided on the most downstream side, the first to sixth engagement members 141 to 146 have the same shape and have four protrusions 148 that can be engaged with the vial V, Three recesses 151 are formed between the protrusions 148. In each of the engagement members 141 to 146, the distance between the centers of the two adjacent recesses 151 is aligned in a row on the vial supply conveyor 101, and is larger than the distance between the centers of the two adjacent vials V. Located directly below the guides 210 and 211 on the conveyor 201 and equal to the distance between the centers of two adjacent cups C.

  The seventh engaging member 147 located on the most downstream side has three protrusions 149 that can be engaged with the vial V, and two recesses 152 are formed between these protrusions 149. The seventh engaging member 147 has a notch 153 for avoiding interference with a side guide 160 described later. The distance between the centers of the two recesses 152 is the same as the distance between the centers of the two recesses 151 of the six engaging members 141 to 146. Therefore, in the state where 20 vials V are engaged with the recesses 151 and 152 of the engaging members 141 to 147, the distance between the centers of the vials V is between the centers of the cups C on the cup supply conveyor 201. Thus, each vial V can be smoothly inserted into each cup C.

  The engagement members 141 to 147 are located between an engagement position where the engagement members 141 protrude from the side stopper 121 on the table 120 as shown in FIG. 2 and a release position where the engagement members 141 to 147 move back from the side stopper 121 as shown in FIG. Is freely displaceable. Each of the engaging members 141 to 147 is fixed to a swing end of a swing arm 155 that extends upward from a support shaft 154 provided on the base 220, and a drive arm 156 that extends downward from the support shaft 154 includes a base 220 is coupled to a piston 158 of an engagement cylinder 157 provided below 220. The respective engagement cylinders 157 are driven independently of each other, and the respective engagement members 141 to 147 advance and retract at different timings as will be described later.

  A pair of side guides (guide members) 160 and 161 are provided at both ends of the table 120. The side guides 160 and 161 are arranged along the alignment direction of the vials V transferred from the vial supply conveyor 101 to the table 120 by the pusher 110, face each other across the row of vials V, and are positioned at both ends of the row. Engage with vial V. The side guides 160 and 161 are connected to the driving mechanisms 162 and 163, respectively. As will be described later, when the engaging members 141 to 147 are sequentially advanced and the rows of the vials V become longer, the engaging members 141 to 147 are increased. Move in a direction away from each other. Similar to the end stopper 102, the upper surface height positions of the side guides 160 and 161 are set lower than the lower surface of the pressing plate member 111 of the pusher 110 so that the pressing plate member 111 does not interfere.

  Protrusions 164 and 165 are provided on side surfaces of the side guides 160 and 161 on the vial supply conveyor 101 side, respectively. The protrusion 164 of the side guide 160 extends to the surface of the shutter 130 on the table 120 side, and the protrusion 165 of the side guide 161 extends to the surface of the shutter 130 on the vial supply conveyor 101 side. These protrusions 164 and 165 guide the vials V located at both ends of the row when the vials V are transferred from the vial supply conveyor 101 to the table 120. In particular, the protrusion 164 closes the concave portion 109 of the end stopper 102 as much as possible in a state where the shutter 130 is lowered, so that the vial V is effectively guided. That is, if the protrusion 164 is not provided, the opening of the concave portion 109 on the vial V side is relatively large, the guide to the vial V at the end becomes insufficient, and the side guide 160 can fall over the corner portion. This is prevented by the protrusion 164.

  The configuration of the vial insertion device 300 will be described with reference to FIG. The support frame 301 of the vial insertion apparatus 300 is provided so as to straddle the vial conveyance apparatus 100 and the cup conveyance apparatus 200, and a Y slider 303 is attached to a Y rail 302 extending in the horizontal direction so as to be capable of reciprocating. A Z rail 304 extending in the vertical direction is fixed to the Y slider 303, and a Z slider 305 is attached to the Z rail 304 so as to be movable up and down. A moving frame 306 is fixed to the lower end of the Z slider 305, and an air cylinder 310 and a pair of gripping claws 311 are provided on the moving frame 306. A plurality of engagement plates 312 provided at the distal end of the gripping claws 311 are placed on the table 120 and engaged with the necks N of a row of vials V spaced apart by engagement members 141 to 147 (see FIG. 20 in this example).

  The pair of gripping claws 311 can be opened and closed by a driving mechanism (not shown) to grip 20 vials V, and the moving frame 306 moves along the Y rail 302 and the Z rail 304, thereby Transfer to the guides 210 and 211 of the vial insertion device 300. The pusher 313 provided at the tip of the piston of the air cylinder 310 is close to the tip of the gripping claw 311, suppresses the top surface of the vial V held at the tip of the gripping claw 311, and the vial V The wobbling of the engaging plate 312 of 311 is prevented.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
When the sensor 108 detects on the vial supply conveyor 101 that the number of vials V retained by the rotary topper 106 has reached a predetermined number (20 in the example of FIG. 1), the rotary topper 106 rotates and 20 The vial V is conveyed to the pusher 110. Here, when the leading vial V abuts on the end stopper 102, the subsequent vial V conveyed by the vial supply conveyor 101 abuts on the preceding vial V, and the 20 vials V are adjacent to each other. Stop in contact. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4A, the vials V aligned in a row are engaged with the pusher 110 and the shutter 130, and the engaging members 141 to 147 are in a position retracted from the side stopper 121. It does not protrude on the table 120.

  Next, the shutter 130 moves down and moves below the upper surfaces of the vial supply conveyor 101 and the table 120. Then, the pusher 110 advances while pressing the side surface of the vial V, and as a result, as shown in FIG. 4B, the 20 vials V are aligned from the vial supply conveyor 101 onto the table 120. It is transferred and contacts the side stopper 121. During this time, the shutter 130 rises and protrudes from the upper surfaces of the vial supply conveyor 101 and the table 120. On the vial supply conveyor 101, 20 new vials V are cut out by the action of the rotary stopper 106 and the sensor 108.

  After the vial V comes into contact with the side stopper 121, as shown in FIG. 4B, the fourth engagement member 144 facing the center of the row of the vials V advances, and the engagement member 144 A protrusion 148 engages three vials V located in the middle of the row. As a result, the interval between the three vials V is widened, and the row of the vials V becomes longer. However, since the amount of change in the length is relatively small, the side guides 160 and 161 are not displaced, Maintain that position.

  Next, the third and fifth engagement members 143 and 145 on both sides of the fourth engagement member 144 are advanced, and on both sides of the three vials V engaged with the fourth engagement member 144. Engage with the six vials V located. As a result, the interval between the nine vials V is expanded, and the row of vials V becomes longer. Accordingly, the side guides 160 and 161 are displaced in the direction of the row of vials V according to this, and these intervals are increased. Can be spread. Similarly, the second and sixth engaging members 142, 146, the first and seventh engaging members 141, 147 are advanced in this order to engage with the corresponding vials V, and this column of the vials V is extended. Accordingly, the side guides 160 and 161 are displaced.

  At this time, on the cup supply conveyor 201, the cup C is supplied directly below the 20 circular openings defined by the guide surfaces 212 and 213 of the guide guides 210 and 211, and the stopper 230 is engaged with the cup C. ing. On the other hand, on the table 120, the moving frame 306 of the vial insertion device 300 is lowered, and the engaging plates 312 of the pair of opened gripping claws 311 are closed at positions facing the neck N of each vial V to sandwich the neck N. The pusher 313 descends and comes into contact with the top surface of the vial V. Then, the moving frame 306 rises and transfers 20 vials V along the Y rail 302 to above the guides 210 and 211 of the cup transport device 200.

  While the vial V is transferred to the guides 210 and 211 by the moving frame 306, the pusher 110 rises, moves backward toward the vial supply conveyor 101, and descends to face the shutter 130. At the same time, the next 20 vials V cut out by the rotary topper 106 are conveyed to the shutter 130 and supplied between the pusher 110 and the shutter 130.

  The moving frame 306 descends from above the guides 210 and 211, whereby each vial V is inserted into the corresponding cup C. In this insertion operation, even if the relative position of the vial V with respect to the guide guides 210 and 211 is slightly shifted, the vial V is guided by the guide surfaces 212 and 213 and smoothly guided to the cup C.

  When the lower part of the vial V is inserted into the cup C, the guides 210 and 211 are opened (the state of the broken line in FIG. 3), and are retracted to a position where they do not interfere with the gripping claws 311. When the moving frame 306 is further lowered and the vial V is inserted to the bottom of the cup C, the gripping claws 311 are opened and separated from the vial V, and the moving frame 306 is raised and returned to the vial supply conveyor 101 side. To do. On the other hand, on the cup supply conveyor 201, the stopper 230 swings and moves backward to release the cup C, and the rotary topper 204 starts to rotate. Thereby, the cup C in which the vial V is inserted is conveyed to the next step by the cup supply conveyor 201. When the 20 vials V and the cup C are discharged, the rotary topper 204 stops.

  When the next 20 cups C are supplied directly under the guides 210 and 211, the guides 210 and 211 are closed and the stopper 230 swings and engages with the cup C.

  The above operation is repeatedly executed, and 20 vials V are inserted into the cup C. However, when the number of vials V supplied from the filling processing apparatus becomes 20 or less, the vials V aligned in a row are arranged. The interval is adjusted not by the normal process shown in FIG. 4 but by the fraction process as shown in FIG. In the fraction processing, the end stopper 102 and the side guide 160 are positioned so that their upstream ends coincide with the notch 153 of the seventh engagement member 147 (see FIG. 5A), that is, the seventh engagement. The position where the concave portion 152 on the notch 153 side of the combined member 147 matches the vial V in contact with the end stopper 102 is determined as the initial position.

  When a predetermined number (eight in FIG. 5) of vials V are supplied between the pusher 110 and the shutter 130, the shutter 130 descends and moves below the upper surfaces of the vial supply conveyor 101 and the table 120. As shown in FIG. 5 (b), the pusher 110 moves forward to transfer the vial V from the vial supply conveyor 101 onto the table 120 and abut against the side stopper 121. Next, as shown in FIG. 5C, the seventh engaging member 147 moves forward, and the projection 149 of the engaging member 147 engages with the two vials V located at the end of the row. . Thereby, the interval between the two vials V is widened.

  Next, the sixth engaging member 146 and the fifth engaging member 145 are advanced in this order, and the protrusions 148 of these engaging members 146 and 145 are engaged with the vial V. As a result, the interval between the eight vials V coincides with the interval between the cups C on the cup supply conveyor 201, and the eight vials V are inserted into the cup supply conveyor 201 by the vial insertion device 300 as in the normal processing. And is inserted into the cup C.

  As described above, when the number of vials V transferred from the vial supply conveyor 101 to the cup supply conveyor 201 is, for example, about 20, and the length of the row of vials V is relatively long, the normal shown in FIG. Processing is executed. That is, by engaging with the vial V in order from the engaging member 144 facing the center of the row of vials V to the engaging members 141 and 147 facing the vials V at both ends of the row of vials V, The interval between the vials V supplied by the supply conveyor 101 is increased.

  Thus, even if there are many vials V aligned in a row on the table 120, the interval between the vials V in the center is first enlarged, and then the interval between the vials V located on both sides thereof is increased. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to quickly and accurately execute the process of widening the interval between a large number of vials.

  In the above embodiment, the article to be aligned is the vial V, but the present invention can be applied to other articles. The number of engaging members can be changed according to the purpose, and two engaging members may be advanced first.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the alignment table 120 was a stationary member, it may replace with this and may provide the belt conveyor which conveys the vial V toward the side stopper 121 from the vial supply conveyor 101. FIG. That is, this belt conveyor conveys the vial V to the side stopper 121 in synchronization with the movement of the pusher 110.

101 Vial supply conveyor (article supply conveyor)
102 End stopper 110 Pusher (goods discharge means)
111 Pressing plate member 120 Alignment table 141-147 Engaging member 148, 149 Protrusion 160, 161 Side guide V vial (article)

Claims (3)

Article supply means for supplying a plurality of articles in an aligned manner;
Alignment means having a plurality of engaging members arranged along the alignment direction of the article and moving in the direction crossing the alignment direction to engage the article to displace the article in the alignment direction;
The alignment means causes the engaging members to sequentially engage the articles from the engaging member facing the center of the article row to the engaging members facing the articles at both ends of the article row. The article alignment apparatus characterized in that the interval between a plurality of articles supplied by the article supply means is enlarged. The article supply means includes
An article supply conveyor that conveys the plurality of articles in a state of being aligned in a row;
An end stopper provided on the article supply conveyor and engaged with an article located at the top of the row of articles;
An article discharging means that is movable in a direction crossing a conveying direction of the article supply conveyor, and that discharges the row of articles in a state in which a leading article is engaged with the end stopper from the article supply conveyor;
An alignment table on which the articles discharged by the article discharging means are transferred,
The alignment means includes
The article alignment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the article alignment apparatus is arranged at a position facing the article discharge unit across a row of articles transferred on the alignment table. The article supply means includes
A pair of guide members disposed along the alignment direction of the articles transferred on the alignment table and facing each other across the row of the articles;
The article alignment apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the pair of guide members are moved in a direction away from each other in conjunction with the movement of the engagement member.

Images