JP7335693B2 - scooping device - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an apparatus for transferring an object, and more particularly to an apparatus for scooping up an object to be transferred by inserting a thin plate under the object to be transferred placed at a predetermined location.

An example of this type of device is described in US Pat. The device has two thin plates placed one above the other with a small gap between them, which are inserted under the object to be transferred. Each thin plate is configured to move integrally with a pinion gear that moves linearly back and forth by meshing with the rack and rolling. Further, the above apparatus is configured to be movable by a robot arm, and each thin plate is moved by the robot arm to a predetermined distance with respect to an object to be transferred placed on a placement surface such as a transfer conveyor. bring closer. In this state, the pinion gear is rotated by the motor to insert each thin plate under the object to be transferred. A film is wrapped around each thin plate. When each thin plate is inserted under the object to be transferred, the length is the same as the length of insertion of each thin plate under the object to be transferred. The upper film is fed from the lower side of the upper thin plate to the upper side of the upper thin plate through the tip portion. In addition, the lower film wound around the lower thin plate of the two thin plates is fed from the upper side of the lower thin plate to the lower side of the lower thin plate through the tip portion. As a result, there is no relative speed difference between the object to be transferred and the upper film and between the mounting surface and the lower film.

Japanese Patent No. 5567202

In the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, a robot arm approaches an object to be transferred, and each thin plate is inserted under the object to be transferred by a so-called rack and pinion. After the transfer object is placed on the upper thin plate, the robot arm moves the transfer object together with the rack and pinion. That is, the robot arm is used to move the entire apparatus, and the rack and pinion is used to move each thin plate back and forth with respect to the object to be transferred. Therefore, when the entire apparatus is moved by the robot arm, it becomes heavy due to the rack and pinion, and there is still room for improvement in increasing the speed of movement of the entire apparatus by the robot arm. Also, if foreign matter adheres to moving parts such as racks and pinion gears, the foreign matter may impair their smooth operation. There is a possibility that it will be mixed with the object to be loaded. Therefore, the frequency of maintenance must be increased, and there is still room for improvement in this respect.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a scooping device that can improve the line speed and that is easy to maintain.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has a transfer object and a thin plate on which the transfer object is placed, and the film is wound around the thin plate so that the film is interposed between the transfer object and the thin plate, When inserting the thin plate under the transfer object, at least a relative speed difference between the lower surface of the transfer object and the surface of the film contacting the transfer object is prevented. and a robot arm that moves in three-dimensional directions with respect to the object to be transferred; a film feeding mechanism for feeding the film to the lower side of the transfer object in synchronization with the movement of an arm; and a controller for controlling the robot arm and the film feeding mechanism, wherein the film feeding mechanism is connected to the robot. The feeder has a body fixed to an arm and a frame detachably attached to the body by a clamp, and the film is wound around the body and rotated by a motor to move the film. A roller is attached to the frame, and tension is applied to the thin plate composed of an upper thin plate stacked with a small gap and a lower thin plate stacked under the upper thin plate, and the film. and a clamp roller for sandwiching the film between the feed roller and the upper thin plate, which wraps the tip of the upper thin plate inserted under the transfer object. The upper film, which is a part of the film, is wrapped around the lower thin plate, and the tip of the lower thin plate inserted under the transfer object is wrapped around the lower thin plate . A lower film, which is a part of the film , is wrapped around the robot, and the controller advances the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate linearly toward the transfer object at a predetermined speed. At least The film is fed to the upper side of the thin plate through the tip of the thin plate to the lower side of the transfer object for a length corresponding to the insertion length for inserting the thin plate under the transfer object. and the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate are inserted under the object to be transferred in synchronism with the operation of inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate to the lower side of the object to be transferred. The upper film is moved from the lower side of the upper thin plate to the upper side through the tip portion of the upper thin plate for the same length as the insertion length for inserting the lower thin plate, and the lower film is moved to the upper side. In synchronism with the operation of moving from the upper side of the lower thin plate to the lower side through the tip of the lower thin plate and pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object, The upper film is pulled from the upper side of the upper thin plate to the lower side of the upper thin plate through the tip of the upper thin plate for the same length as the length of pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object. and control the film feeding mechanism so as to move the lower film from the lower side of the lower thin plate to the upper side of the lower thin plate through the tip of the lower thin plate. It is characterized in that it is configured to

In this invention, the upper film and the lower film are formed in a ring shape , the upper film is wound around the feed roller, and the lower film is connected to the upper film between the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate. The upper thin plate and the lower thin plate are inserted under the transfer object in synchronism with the operation of inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate under the transfer object. An operation of driving the motor to rotate the feed roller so that the upper film travels the same length as the insertion length, and pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object. In synchronism with , the motor is driven to rotate the feed roller so that the upper film travels the same length as the length of pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object. you can

In the present invention, the clamp roller may be configured so that the lower film is wound around the clamp roller, and the lower film is sandwiched between the clamp roller and the feed roller so as to rotate together with the feed roller.

In the present invention, the tip of the upper thin plate is arranged closer to the transfer object than the tip of the lower thin plate in the direction in which the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate are inserted below the transfer object. and may be bent toward the lower thin plate side.

According to this invention, the scooping-up device according to this invention is equipped with a robot arm that moves in three-dimensional directions, and moves the thin plate toward and away from the object to be transferred, and moves the thin plate under the object to be transferred. The operation of inserting the thin plate, the operation of moving the thin plate on which the object to be transferred is placed, and the like are performed by the above-described robot arm. The film feeding mechanism inserts the thin plate under the object to be transferred at least by a length corresponding to the insertion length of the thin plate to be inserted under the object to be transferred in synchronism with the operation of inserting the thin plate under the object to be transferred by the robot arm. It is configured to feed the film to the underside of the object, through the leading edge of the lamina and onto the upper side of the lamina. As described above, according to the present invention, the various operations described above are performed by one robot arm. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a special device for moving the thin plate in addition to the robot arm. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the weight of the scooping device as a whole, thereby improving the operation speed for moving the object to be transferred. In addition, the film feeding mechanism synchronizes with the operation of inserting the thin plate under the transfer object by the robot arm, and at least the same length as the insertion length for inserting the thin plate under the transfer object. Feed the film under the object. Therefore, there is no relative speed difference between the object to be transferred and the film, or the relative speed difference is minimized. As a result, it is possible to prevent or suppress the object to be transferred from being pushed or dragged by the thin plate. In other words, the object to be transferred can be scooped up and moved to a predetermined position without changing the posture of the object to be transferred. In addition, since the so-called moving parts can be reduced as much as possible, it is possible to prevent malfunctions due to foreign matter adhering to the moving parts, and foreign matter adhering to the moving parts falling down with the movement of the moving parts and transferring objects. It is possible to suppress things such as being mixed into things. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the frequency and effort of maintenance for removing foreign matter, and improve the maintainability of the apparatus as a whole.

1 is a side view schematically showing an example of a scooping device according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the scooping device according to the invention along the line AA shown in FIG. 1; FIG. It is a figure which shows the state by which the film has wound around each of each thin plate. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of the configuration of an articulated robot to which a scooping device according to the present invention is attached and peripheral devices thereof; FIG. FIG. 4A is a diagram showing an example of the operation of transferring an object to be transferred onto another object by the scooping device according to the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 3B is a diagram showing a state immediately before each thin plate is inserted under the transfer object, and FIG. 4C is a diagram showing each thin plate inserted under the transfer object; FIG. 4D is a diagram showing a state in which a scooping device is arranged above another transfer object, and FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a combined state, (f) is a diagram showing a state in which each thin plate is pulled out from between a transfer object and another transfer object, and (g) is a diagram showing a transfer object superimposed on each other. It is a figure which shows the state which separated the picking-up apparatus from the target object and another transfer target object.

Next, the present invention will be described more specifically. A scooping device according to the present invention scoops up a transfer object placed on a placement surface such as a table or a conveyor without particularly disturbing its posture or shape, and scoops up the transfer object. It is a device that superimposes the transfer object on the other transfer object or transfers it on another placement surface. Also, the scooping device according to the present invention is attached to an articulated robot that can move in three-dimensional directions. Then, according to the position and posture of the transfer object placed on the placement surface, the multi-joint robot is operated to change the position and posture, that is, the direction of the thin plate on which the transfer object is placed. It is configured. Specifically, the articulated robot moves the scooping device closer to and away from the object to be transferred, and inserts a thin plate under the object to scoop up the object to be transferred. there is Changing the position and posture of the thin plate by such an articulated robot and inserting the thin plate under the object to be transferred can be achieved by, for example, photographing the object placed on the placement surface with a camera. Then, the articulated robot is controlled based on the analysis result of the image data.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a scooping device 1 according to the present invention. The scooping device 1 shown in FIG. 1 comprises two lamellas 2,3. Films are wrapped around the thin plates 2 and 3, respectively. The pick-up device 1 feeds each film under the object to be transferred by the same length as the insertion length for inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 under the object to be transferred, thereby separating the object to be transferred and the upper thin plate 2. and the relative speed difference between the lower thin plate 3 and the mounting surface. Note that the illustration of the film is omitted in FIG. 1 for convenience of drawing. Also, the film wound around each of the thin plates 2 and 3 and the configuration for feeding each film as each of the thin plates 2 and 3 are inserted under the object to be transferred will be described later.

As an example, the upper thin plate 2 is formed in a rectangular shape. The lower thin plate 3 is rectangular like the upper thin plate 2 and is arranged below the upper thin plate 2 in the height direction of the scooping device 1 (the vertical direction in FIG. 1). The thin plates 2 and 3 are superimposed substantially parallel to each other with a slight gap in the height direction, with the tip 2a of the upper thin plate 2 protruding slightly from the tip 3a of the lower thin plate 3. . Further, the tip portion 2a of the upper thin plate 2 is bent toward the tip portion 3a of the lower thin plate 3 at a predetermined angle toward the lower thin plate 3 side. The bending angle of the tip portion 2a of the upper thin plate 2 is set to 7° or 8°, for example. This is for the purpose of making the thin plates 2 and 3 superimposed on each other thin as much as possible at the tip end so that the insertion operation can be performed smoothly. When inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 to the side, the tip 2a of the upper thin plate 2 is inserted before the tip 3a of the lower thin plate 3 is inserted.

Furthermore, each of the thin plates 2 and 3 superimposed in this manner is attached to the frame 4 in such a state that both of the tip portions 2a and 3a of the thin plates 2 and 3 protrude from the predetermined frame 4 by a predetermined length. Each of the thin plates 2 and 3 is attached to the frame 4 while being inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the mounting surface. When the bending angle of the tip portion 2a of the upper thin plate 2 is set to 7°, the inclination angles of the thin plates 2 and 3 are set to 5°, for example. That is, the sum of the bending angle and the inclination angle is set to be 12°. This is because when the thin plates 2 and 3 are inserted under the object to be transferred, the upper surface and tip 2a of the upper thin plate 2 come into contact with the side surface of the object to be transferred, thereby changing the posture of the object to be transferred. This is to prevent deterioration of the durability of the upper film due to collapsing of the upper film wrapped around the upper thin plate 2 and rubbing of the upper film due to contact between the upper film and the mounting surface.

The frame 4 rotatably holds the thin plates 2 and 3 as well as clamp rollers and tension rollers to be described later. It is detachably attached to the lower side of the body 5 of the scooping device 1 in order to easily replace the film. A frame 4 is attached to the body 5 by, for example, hook-type clamps 6 . When the body 5 and the frame 4 are unfastened by the clamp 6, the frame 4 can be removed from the body 5, the thin plates 2 and 3 can be replaced, and the film wrapped around the thin plates 2 and 3 can be removed. Exchange can be easily performed.

The body 5 described above is integrally provided under the base portion 7 of the scooping device 1 . An arm portion (hereinafter simply referred to as a robot arm) 8 of an articulated robot is attached to the upper side of the base portion 7 and to one end portion side of the base portion 7 in the length direction. A rail 9 extending in the height direction of the scooping device 1 is integrally provided at the other end of the base portion 7 opposite to the one end to which the robot arm 8 is attached in the length direction. A small gap is set between the lower end portion 9a of the rail 9 and the upper thin plate 2, as shown in FIG. This is because, when the upper film wound around the upper thin plate 2 is fed to the lower side of the object to be transferred, if the upper film is caught by the lower end 9a of the rail 9 and cannot be fed, the object to be transferred may not be able to be fed. This is to avoid the possibility that the relative speed difference between the object and the upper film becomes large, causing the object to be transferred to lose its posture and the upper film to be damaged.

A holding plate 10 is attached to the upper side of the rail 9 in the height direction of the scooping device 1. - 特許庁The pressing plate 10 contacts the transfer object placed on the upper thin plate 2 to suppress the change in the posture when the transfer object placed on the upper thin plate 2 changes its posture. It is attached to the rail 9 so as to be positioned above the object to be transferred with a predetermined gap therebetween. As described above, the pressing plate 10 needs to come into contact with the object to be transferred when the posture of the object to be transferred changes. , the lower surface of the pressing plate 10 can contact the upper portion of the object to be transferred. The attachment position of the pressing plate 10 in the vertical direction of the rail 9 can be appropriately changed according to the height of the object to be transferred. The hold-down plate 10 is configured to be attached to the rail 9 by bolts in the example shown here.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the scooping device according to the invention along line AA shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, inside the body 5, feed rollers 11 are rotatably mounted for running the film wound around the thin plates 2 and 3 along the thin plates 2 and 3, respectively. A motor case 12 is attached to one side of the body 5 in the width direction of the scooping device 1 . A servomotor 13 for driving the feed roller 11 is arranged inside the motor case 12 coaxially with the feed roller 11 . The servomotor 13 is electrically connected to a power supply (not shown) and a controller (to be described later), and is driven according to a control command signal output from the controller.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a state in which the film 14 is wrapped around each of the thin plates 2 and 3. As shown in FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 3, at least part of the film 14 is arranged so as to cover the upper surface of the upper thin plate 2 in the height direction, and the film 14 includes the tip 2a of the upper thin plate 2 and the tip 2a. The rear end portion 2b on the opposite side of the portion 2a is folded back to the lower side of the upper thin plate 2 to cover the upper thin plate 2 so as to wrap it. At least another part of the film 14 is arranged under the lower thin plate 3 so as to cover the lower surface of the lower thin plate 3, and the film 14 includes the tip portion 3a of the lower thin plate 3 and the tip portion. A rear end portion 3b on the opposite side of 3a is folded back to the upper side of the lower thin plate 3 to cover the lower thin plate 3 so as to wrap it. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the film 14 is wrapped around each of the thin plates 2 and 3 so as to form the figure "8".

In the portion of the film 14 that is between the upper thin plate 2 and the lower thin plate 3 and is obliquely bridged between the front end portion 2a of the upper thin plate 2 and the rear end portion 3b of the lower thin plate 3 One end portion 14 a of the film 14 folded back at the rear end portion 2 b of the upper thin plate 2 is adhered to the surface on the upper thin plate 2 side by an adhesive means 15 . The other end 14b of the film 14 folded back at the tip 3a of the lower thin plate 3 is adhered to the opposite surface by the adhesive means 15 in the same manner as described above. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the annular film 14 is wrapped around each of the thin plates 2 and 3 . Adhesive means 15 may be conventionally known, such as tape or adhesive. In the following description, the annular portion of the film 14 that wraps around the upper thin plate 2 will be referred to as the upper film 16 and the annular portion that will wrap around the lower thin plate 3 will be referred to as the lower film 17 . Further, the description will be made assuming that the tip portions 2a and 3a of the respective thin plates 2 and 3 are arranged on the transfer object side. The locations where the film 14 is bonded by the bonding means 15 are indicated by reference numeral "a" in FIG.

Here, the material constituting the film 14 described above will be described. Since the film 14 is moved along the thin plates 2 and 3 when it is inserted under the object to be transferred or pulled out from the underside of the object to be transferred, the thin plates 2 and 3 and the film 14 and 14 rub against each other due to a relative speed difference. Therefore, in terms of strength, it is preferable to form the film 14 from polyethylene terephthalate, which is a polyester-based resin. Forming the film 14 from a polyester-based resin is preferable in this respect as well, since it is possible to suppress sorption of the aromatic components of the food on the film 14 when the object to be transferred is food.

Further, in the example shown in FIG. 3 , the feed roller 11 is arranged on the rear end portion 2 b side of the upper thin plate 2 and inside the upper film 16 . The feed roller 11 causes the upper film 16 to run along the upper thin plate 2 , and part of the upper film 16 is wound around the feed roller 11 . A clamp roller 18 is arranged on the rear end portion 3 b side of the lower thin plate 3 and inside the lower film 17 , and a portion of the lower film 17 is wound around the clamp roller 18 . The clamp roller 18 is pressed against the feed roller 11 while sandwiching the film 14 between itself and the feed roller 11 .

Therefore, when the feed roller 11 is rotated forward by the servomotor 13 , the clamp roller 18 rotates in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the feed roller 11 . The forward rotation of the feed roller 11 extends the length of the upper film 16 from the rear end 2b of the upper thin plate 2 to the front end 2a, and the rotation of the clamp roller 18 moves the rear end 3b of the lower thin plate 3 to the same length. The lower film 17 is fed from the side to the tip portion 3a side. Also, a plurality of tension rollers 19 are rotatably attached to the frame 4 . When the films 14 are run along the thin plates 2 and 3 by the tension rollers 19, the slack of the films 16 and 17 is suppressed, and the tension of each film is set within a predetermined range. ing. The feed roller 11, the clamp roller 18, the servomotor 13 for rotating the feed roller 11, etc. correspond to the film feed mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of the configuration of the robot arm 8 to which the scooping device 1 is attached and peripheral devices. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the transfer objects W1 and W2 are conveyed by the transfer conveyor 20, and the scooping device 1 is downstream in the transfer direction of the transfer objects W1 and W2 by the transfer conveyor 20. A mounted robot arm 8 is arranged. A camera (not shown) is provided above the transport conveyor 20 . Then, the orientations and attitudes of the transfer objects W1 and W2 conveyed by the conveyer 20 are photographed by a camera, the image data obtained by the camera is analyzed by the controller 21, and the analysis result is used as a control command signal for the robot arm. 8, the servo motor 13, or the like. The transport conveyor 20 described above may be a belt conveyor. The controller 21 is composed mainly of a microcomputer, performs calculations based on pre-stored data, the above image data, etc., and outputs the calculation results to the robot arm 8, the servomotor 13, etc. as control command signals. .

Therefore, when the robot arm 8 is operated based on the control command signal, the thin plates 2 and 3 of the scooping device 1 move integrally with the robot arm 8 and the positions and attitudes of the thin plates 2 and 3 change. Specifically, the thin plates 2 and 3 are moved toward and away from one of the two transfer objects W1 and W2, for example, the transfer object W1, by the robot arm 8, The heights up to the thin plates 2 and 3 are changed, and the thin plates 2 and 3 are inserted under the transfer object W1. Further, the orientation of the thin plates 2 and 3 when inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 under the transfer object W1 is changed according to the orientation of the transfer object W1. Further, the servo motor 13 is driven in synchronism with the positional information of the transfer object W1 on the conveyor 20 and the motion of the robot arm 8, and the films 16, 17 are run along the thin plates 2, 3.

The operation of the scooping device 1 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of transferring the transfer object W1 onto another transfer object W2 by the scooping device 1 according to the present invention. First, the orientations, attitudes, positions, and the like of the transfer object W1 and the other transfer object W2 conveyed by the transfer conveyor 20 are photographed by a camera (not shown), as described above. Image data obtained by the camera is transmitted to the controller 21 and analyzed, and the analysis result is output to the robot arm 8 as a control command signal. Then, the robot arm 8 is operated based on the control command signal. When transfer objects W1 and W2 are placed on the transfer conveyor 20 in two rows, the robot arm 8 is operated so as to pick up one of the transfer objects W1 first. In the example shown in FIG. 5A, the scooping device 1 is moved above the transfer object W1 to be scooped up first.

As will be described later, when inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 under the transfer object W1, the thin plates 2 and 3 are linearly moved with respect to the transfer object W1. Therefore, as shown in (a) of FIG. 5, when the scooping device 1 is moved, the portions of the transfer object W1 into which the thin plates 2 and 3 are inserted linearly move the thin plates 2 and 3 back and forth. The orientation of the object W1 to be transferred and the orientation of the thin plates 2 and 3 are aligned so that the thin plates 2 and 3 are positioned forward in the advancing direction when the thin plates 2 and 3 are moved. In addition, in the state shown in FIG. 5(a), the object to be transferred W1 and the scooping device 1 are separated by a predetermined distance in the traveling direction.

When the scooping device 1 is moved above the transfer object W1, the scooping device 1 is lowered toward the transport conveyor 20 as shown in FIG. 5(b). Since the transfer object W1 is conveyed by the transfer conveyor 20, the scooping device 1 moves toward the transfer conveyor 20 in the transfer direction of the transfer object W1 by the transfer conveyor 20 at the same speed as the transfer conveyor 20. to descend. When the height of the scooping device 1 reaches a predetermined height, that is, when the lower end of the object W1 to be transferred and the heights of the leading ends 2a and 3a of the thin plates 2 and 3 are approximately the same height, the scooping device 1's descent is stopped. In this state, the leading ends 2a and 3a of the thin plates 2 and 3 are in contact with the conveyor 20, or there is a slight gap between the conveyor 20 and the thin plates 2 and 3.

When the descent of the scooping device 1 is stopped, in other words, when the scooping device 1 is set at the position where the operation of inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 under the transfer object W1 is started, the transfer object W1 is moved. A control command signal is output from the controller 21 to operate the robot arm 8 so as to move the thin plates 2 and 3 linearly forward toward W1 at a predetermined speed. Then, the thin plates 2 and 3 are inserted between the transfer object W1 and the transfer conveyor 20 by the robot arm 8. As shown in FIG. When the control command signal for operating the robot arm 8 is output as described above, the controller 21 outputs to the servomotor 13 a control command signal for rotating the servomotor 13 in the normal direction in synchronization therewith. As a result, the servomotor 13 is rotated forward and the feed roller 11 is rotated forward. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the feed roller 11 is rotated clockwise. At this time, the rotation of the servomotor 13 is controlled so that the upper film 16 is sent out from the feed roller 11 by the same length as the insertion length of each of the thin plates 2 and 3 . When the feed roller 11 is rotated forward as described above, the upper film 16 is fed from the lower side of the upper thin plate 2 to the upper side via the tip portion 2a.

The clamp roller 18 is pressed against the feed roller 11 and rotates together with the feed roller 11 . Therefore, as the clamp roller 18 rotates, the lower film 17 is sent out from the clamp roller 18 by the same length as the upper film 16 . The lower film 17 is fed from the upper side of the lower thin plate 3 to the lower side via the tip portion 3a. As a result, there is no relative speed difference between the transfer object W1 and the upper film 16 and between the lower film 17 and the transport conveyor 20. become smaller. The upper film 16 apparently does not move relative to the transfer object W1, and the lower film 17 also apparently does not move relative to the transport conveyor 20. - 特許庁Therefore, the thin plates 2 and 3 can be inserted under the transfer object W1 without particularly disturbing the posture of the transfer object W1. When the films 16 and 17 are fed as described above, the connecting portion a moves between the thin plates 2 and 3 toward the transfer object W1.

By inserting the thin plates 2 and 3 to the lower side of the transfer object W1 for a predetermined length, the films 16 and 17 are sent over substantially the entire lower side of the transfer object W1. , the insertion operation of the thin plates 2 and 3 by the robot arm 8 and the forward rotation of the servomotor 13 are temporarily stopped. In this state, the transfer object W1 is placed on the upper thin plate 2 with the upper film 16 interposed therebetween. FIG. 5(c) shows this state. Also, since the transport conveyor 20 is not stopped, the scooping device 1 is moving at the same speed as the transport conveyor 20 .

Next, the pick-up device 1 is separated from the conveyer 20 to stack the transfer object W1 on top of the other transfer object W2. Specifically, first, the scooping device 1 is lifted upward in the height direction of the scooping device 1 by the robot arm 8, and then, as shown in FIG. Move the scooping device 1 up. At this time, the outer shape of the transfer object W1 and the outer shape of the other transfer object W2 are aligned.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5(e), the scooping device 1 is lowered to a height where the lower thin plate 3 contacts another transfer object W2, and the height of the scooping device 1 is lowered to the height of the other transfer object W2. When the height becomes almost the same as the height of the object W2, the descent of the scooping device 1 is stopped. In this state, the transfer object W1 is stacked on top of the other transfer object W2 in the height direction with the thin plates 2 and 3 interposed therebetween. Note that even in this state, the conveyer 20 is not stopped, so the scooping device 1 is moving at the same speed as the conveyer 20 .

As described above, when the descent of the scooping device 1 is stopped, the scooping device 1 moves forward in the traveling direction of the conveyer 20 at a speed faster than the conveying speed of the transfer objects W1 and W2 by the conveyer 20. Let me. As a result, the thin plates 2 and 3 are pulled out from between the transfer objects W1 and W2, as shown in FIG. 5(f). In synchronization with the operation of pulling out the thin plates 2 and 3 from between the transfer objects W1 and W2, the controller 21 outputs a control command signal for rotating the servomotor 13 in the reverse direction, thereby rotating the servomotor 13 in the reverse direction. . Then, the upper film 16 is sent from the upper side of the upper thin plate 2 to the lower side via the tip portion 2a for the same length as the length of pulling out the thin plates 2 and 3 from between the transfer objects W1 and W2, Similarly, the lower film 17 is sent from the lower side of the lower thin plate 3 to the upper side via the tip portion 3a.

In this way, the films 16 and 17 are pulled out without causing a relative speed difference between the transfer object W1 and the upper film 16 and between the lower film 17 and the other transfer object W2. Therefore, it is possible to prevent or suppress the transfer objects W1 and W2 from being dragged by the thin plates 2 and 3 and moving, or from losing their posture. Incidentally, the connection portion a described above moves to the right in FIG. 5(f). When the above pulling operation is completed, the transfer object W1 is directly stacked on the transfer object W2, and the transfer operation is completed. Then, as shown in (g) of FIG. 5, the scooping device 1 is separated from the transfer objects W1 and W2. The stacked transfer objects W1 and W2 are gripped by tongs (not shown) or the like and conveyed to the next process such as bagging or inspection.

Therefore, according to the scooping device 1 of the present invention, the movement of the scooping device 1 toward and away from the transfer object W1 and the insertion of the thin plates 2 and 3 under the transfer object W1 are performed. The robot arm 8 can perform the operation of pulling out and the operation of moving the scooping device 1 in order to stack the transfer object W1 on top of another transfer object W2. In comparison with the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the apparatus described in Patent Document 1 is configured such that a thin plate is inserted and pulled out from the lower side of the object to be transferred by a so-called rack and pinion. Compared to the device described in Patent Document 1, the so-called rack and pinion can be eliminated, so the weight of the device as a whole can be reduced accordingly. You can increase your speed. In addition, as described above, the films 16 and 17 are fed in synchronism with the operation of inserting and pulling out the thin plates 2 and 3 from the lower side of the object W1 to be transferred, so that the objects W1 and W2 are transferred. You can scoop them up, stack them, and move them around without breaking your posture. Furthermore, since the number of movable parts is reduced, it is possible to prevent malfunction due to foreign matter adhering to the movable parts, and to prevent foreign matter adhering to the movable parts from falling and being mixed with the transfer objects W1 and W2. can. Therefore, the maintenance frequency and labor can be reduced, and the maintainability of the apparatus as a whole can be improved.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Scoop-up device 2... Upper thin plate 2a... Tip of upper thin plate 3... Lower thin plate 3a... Tip of lower thin plate 8... Articulated robot (robot arm) 11... Feed roller (film feeding mechanism) 13 --- Servo motor (film feeding mechanism) 16 -- Upper film 17 -- Lower film 18 -- Clamp roller (film feeding mechanism) W1, W2 -- Object to be transferred.

Claims (4)

The film is wrapped around the thin plate so that the film is interposed between the object to be transferred and the thin plate on which the object to be transferred is placed, and the thin plate is inserted under the object to be transferred. The film is placed under the object to be transferred so that a relative speed difference does not occur between at least the lower surface of the object to be transferred and the surface of the film that contacts the object to be transferred when the transfer object is loaded. A scooping device configured to feed,
a robot arm that moves in three-dimensional directions with respect to the transfer object;
a film feeding mechanism attached to the robot arm and feeding the film to the lower side of the object to be transferred in synchronization with movement of the robot arm;
a controller that controls the robot arm and the film feeding mechanism,
The film feeding mechanism has a body fixed to the robot arm and a frame detachably attached to the body by a clamp,
The body is provided with a feed roller around which the film is wound and which is rotated by a motor to run the film,
The frame includes a thin plate composed of an upper thin plate stacked with a small gap and a lower thin plate stacked under the upper thin plate, a tension roller for applying tension to the film, A clamp roller for sandwiching the film between the feeding roller is attached,
An upper film, which is a part of the film, is wound around the upper thin plate in a state in which a tip portion of the upper thin plate inserted under the transfer object is wrapped around the upper thin plate,
A lower film, which is a part of the film, is wrapped around the lower thin plate so as to wrap the tip of the lower thin plate inserted under the object to be transferred,
The controller is
The robot arm is operated so as to advance the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate linearly toward the transfer object at a predetermined speed, and the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate are moved under the transfer object. Insert a thin plate,
In synchronism with the operation of inserting the thin plate under the object to be transferred by the robot arm, the length corresponding to at least the insertion length for inserting the thin plate under the object to be transferred. controlling the film feeding mechanism so as to feed the film to the upper side of the thin plate through the leading edge of the thin plate to the lower side of the object to be placed;
Same as the insertion length for inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate under the transfer object in synchronism with the operation of inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate under the transfer object length, the upper film is moved from the lower side of the upper thin plate to the upper side through the tip of the upper thin plate, and the lower film is moved from the upper side of the lower thin plate to the tip of the lower thin plate In synchronism with the operation of pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object, from the lower side of the transfer object to the upper side The upper film is moved from the upper side of the upper thin plate to the lower side of the upper thin plate through the tip of the upper thin plate for the same length as the length of pulling out the thin plate and the lower thin plate, and The film feeding mechanism is controlled so as to move the lower film from the lower side of the lower thin plate through the tip of the lower thin plate to the upper side of the lower thin plate. A scooping device. A scooping device according to claim 1, comprising:
The upper film and the lower film are annularly formed ,
The upper film is wound around the feed roller, and the lower film is connected to the upper film between the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate,
Same as the insertion length for inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate under the transfer object in synchronism with the operation of inserting the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate under the transfer object driving the motor to rotate the feed roller so as to run the upper film, and
the same length as the length of pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object in synchronization with the operation of pulling out the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate from the lower side of the transfer object; A scooping device, wherein the motor is driven to rotate the feed roller so as to run the upper film. A scooping device according to claim 2, comprising:
The scooping device according to claim 1, wherein the clamp roller is wound with the lower film, sandwiches the lower film between itself and the feed roller , and rotates together with the feed roller. A scooping device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The front end portion of the upper thin plate is arranged closer to the transfer object than the front end portion of the lower thin plate in the direction in which the upper thin plate and the lower thin plate are inserted below the transfer object. A scooping device that is bent toward the lower thin plate.

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