JP7401210B2 - scooping device - Google Patents

Description

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

Patent Document 1 discloses that when scooping up and transferring a flexible material such as a sandwich (hereinafter referred to as a transfer object) conveyed by a conveyor, the transfer object is removed from both the upper and lower sides of the transfer object. A gripping device is described that is configured to grip. The device includes a thin plate that can be inserted into and removed from the lower side of the object to be transferred, and an upper guide that comes into contact with the upper surface of the object to suppress changes in the posture of the object. The upper guide has a frame and a plurality of curved strips that protrude toward the transferred object, one end of each strip is fixed to the frame, and a through hole is formed in the frame. The other end is located inside the. The upper guide is configured to be slidable in the vertical direction with respect to the thin plate. When grasping the object to be transferred, the upper guide is positioned above the object to be transferred, and the entire apparatus is lowered so that the upper guide comes into contact with the upper surface of the object to be transferred. Since each strip is curved so as to protrude toward the transfer target, the center portion of each strip comes into contact with the center portion of the upper surface of the transfer target in the width direction. As the upper guide is further lowered, the other end of each band-like body passes through the through hole due to being pushed by the object to be transferred, and each band-like body gradually becomes flat. In other words, the object to be transferred is gradually pressed from the center toward the periphery, and the entire object to be transferred is pressed against the conveyor by the upper guide. With the object to be transferred pressed against the conveyor by the upper guide in this manner, a thin plate is inserted under the object to be transferred, and then the object to be transferred is transferred.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-12156

When the object to be transferred is a flexible material such as a sandwich, if the object is pressed from the center of the sandwich toward the periphery as described in Patent Document 1, the object may be pinched by bread. There is a possibility that the ingredients in the bread may stick out or that marks from each strip may be left in the center of the surface of the bread. That is, there is a possibility that the appearance as a product may deteriorate, and there is still room for improvement.

This invention was made with attention to the above-mentioned technical problem, and when the object to be transferred is scooped up and transferred, the posture of the object to be transferred can be changed without spoiling the appearance of the object to be transferred. The object is to provide a scooping device that can suppress changes.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a presser plate that contacts the top surface of an object to be transferred placed at a predetermined location and suppresses changes in the posture of the object to be transferred; The scooping device includes a thin plate that is inserted and removed from the bottom of the transfer target while the press plate is in contact with the upper surface of the transfer target, and the press plate is configured to A recessed portion that is recessed in the thickness direction of the holding plate and forms a space between the upper surface of the transferred object and an edge portion formed around the recessed portion, on a surface facing the transferred object. , the edge portion is configured to contact the peripheral edge of the transfer target so that the recess does not press the upper surface of the transfer target, and further the remaining thickness portion of the holding plate in which the recess is formed A through hole penetrating in the thickness direction of the plate is formed, and an air supply device is provided for supplying air into the recess through the through hole when the object to be transferred is released from the holding plate. It is characterized by the fact that

The present invention has a base plate to which the presser plate is attached, the base plate is provided with a rail facing in the vertical direction, the presser plate is attached to the rail so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and the presser plate is attached to the rail so as to be movable in the vertical direction, A return spring that elastically pushes the presser plate downward of the rail may be provided between the presser plate and the rail.

According to this invention, in the process of scooping up the transfer target placed at a predetermined location, the presser plate is brought into contact with the upper surface of the transfer target. A concavity recessed in the plate thickness direction is formed on the surface of the holding plate facing the object to be transferred, and the edge formed around the recess comes into contact with the periphery of the object to be transferred. It has become. Therefore, since the center part of the object to be transferred is suppressed from being pressed by the holding plate, even if the object to be transferred is a laminate made of multiple flexible materials, the sandwiched materials will not be transferred. It is possible to suppress the object from being pushed out. In addition, even if the peripheral edge of the transferred object is pressed by the edge part and a trace of the edge is formed on the peripheral edge of the transferred object, it is less noticeable than the central part of the transferred object. Therefore, deterioration in appearance due to the formation of so-called pressing marks can be suppressed. Furthermore, since the thin plate is inserted and removed from the bottom of the transferred object while the holding plate is in contact with the top surface of the transferred object, changes in the posture or orientation of the transferred object during the scooping process can be suppressed. At the same time, it is possible to prevent situations such as hindrance to processing in subsequent steps.

Further, in this invention, when the object to be transferred is released from the holding plate, air is supplied by the air supply device into the space formed by the recess and the object to be transferred, and the air flow causes the object to be transferred to is pressed. Therefore, the object to be transferred can be quickly removed from the holding plate. In addition, since the contact between the holding plate and the transferred object is eliminated by pressing the transferred object with air, the transferred object may be particularly damaged during the process of separating the transferred object from the holding plate. Never. As a result, it is possible to provide a high-speed device with a high yield.

FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing an example of a scooping device according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a top view schematically showing an example of a presser plate 4. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA shown in FIG. 2. FIG. It is a top view which shows typically another example of the presser plate in this invention. 5 is a sectional view taken along line BB shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line CC shown in FIG. 4. FIG.

(First example)
Next, this invention will be explained in more detail. The scooping device according to the present invention is configured to scoop up an object to be transferred without changing its posture, and when scooping up an object to be transferred that is placed at a predetermined location, Equipped with a presser plate that suppresses changes in the posture of the transferred object by contacting the upper surface of the transfer plate. The object to be transferred may be, for example, a sandwich with ingredients sandwiched between pieces of bread, and the predetermined location may be a conveyor such as a belt conveyor, a table, or the like.

FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing an example of a scooping device 1 according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the scooping device 1 includes a flat base plate 2 extending in the length direction of the scooping device 1. An articulated robot (not shown) is mounted above the base plate 2 in the vertical direction of the scooping device 1. The arm part is attached. The articulated robot is configured to be movable in three dimensions, and by operating the articulated robot, the position, posture, direction, height, etc. of the scooping device 1 on a conveyor (not shown) can be changed. It is configured. Changes in the position, posture, direction, height, etc. of the scooping device 1 by the articulated robot can be made, for example, by photographing a sandwich (not shown) placed on a conveyor with a camera, and using the image data (not shown). This is done by analyzing the data using a controller and controlling the articulated robot based on the analysis results.

A rail 3 extending in the vertical direction in FIG. 1 is provided at one end of the base plate 2 in the length direction. A press plate 4 is attached to be slidable along the rail 3. When the two thin plates are inserted under the sandwich, the presser plate 4 comes into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich and lightly presses the sandwich, thereby suppressing changes in the attitude of the sandwich.

Further, a return spring 5 is provided below the rail 3 in the vertical direction to return the presser plate 4 to its original position. The return spring 5 applies elastic force to the presser plate 4 so as to pull the presser plate 4 downward in the vertical direction. In the following description, the side on which the presser plate 4 is provided in the longitudinal direction of the scooping device 1 will be referred to as the tip end side of the scooping device 1.

A linear guide (not shown) is attached to the lower side of the base plate 2 and extends in a direction parallel to the length direction of the base plate 2. A main body 6 is movably attached to the base plate 2 via the linear guide. The main body 6 includes a case 7, and a motor 8 is integrally attached to the case 7. A rotor shaft of the motor 8 extends into the case 7, and one end of a drive roller 9 is connected to this rotor shaft. The other end of the drive roller 9 extends outside the case 7, and a pinion gear 10 is attached to the other end. These motor 8, drive roller 9, and pinion gear 10 are arranged on the same axis. Further, the diameter of the drive roller 9 and the pitch circle diameter of the pinion gear 10 are set to be approximately the same diameter. At least a portion of the pinion gear 10 is covered by a gear case 11. Note that the motor 8 is configured to operate based on a control command signal from the controller described above.

Further, a side plate 12 is attached to the base plate 2. A rack 13 having teeth that mesh with the pinion gear 10 is provided on the side plate 12. Therefore, when the motor 8 is driven by the controller and the pinion gear 10 rotates together with the drive roller 9, the pinion gear 10 moves back and forth along the rack 13, and the main body 6 moves back and forth in the length direction of the scooping device 1. do.

A film unit 14 is removably attached to the lower side of the main body 6. The film unit 14 holds two thin plates 15 and 16 that are inserted into the lower side of the sandwich, and also holds a film wrapped around these thin plates 15 and 16. , is attached to the main body part 6 by a clamp 17.

The thin plates 15 and 16 are stacked on top of each other with a slight gap in the vertical direction of the scooping device 1, and the film unit Rear end portions 15B, 16B of thin plates 15, 16 are attached to 14. An annular film is wrapped around each of the thin plates 15 and 16. Each film is adhered to each other in the above-mentioned gap by a predetermined adhesive means such as tape or adhesive. In addition, in FIG. 1, each film is omitted in order to simplify the drawing. In addition, in the following description, of the two thin plates 15 and 16, the thin plate located above the lower thin plate 16 in the vertical direction is referred to as the upper thin plate 15, and the thin plate located below the upper thin plate 15 is referred to as the lower thin plate 16. It is called. The film wrapped around the upper thin plate 15 is called an upper film, and the film wrapped around the lower thin plate 16 is called a lower film.

Each film is fed into the underside of the sandwich by a length equal to the insertion length of the sheets 15, 16 into the underside of the sandwich. To explain the configuration for feeding each film to the lower side of the sandwich, a driven roller 18 rotated by a driving roller 9 is rotatably attached to the film unit 14. By attaching the film unit 14 to the main body 6, the driven roller 18 is engaged with the drive roller 9 so as to be able to transmit torque. A lower film is wound around this driven roller 18. Therefore, when the driven roller 18 of the driving roller 9 engages, the lower film is sandwiched between the rollers 9 and 18, and the lower film runs along the lower thin plate 16 as each roller 9 and 18 rotate. I am made to do so.

A free roller 19 is rotatably attached to the film unit 14 adjacent to the driven roller 18 . An upper film is wound around the free roller 19. Since the films are bonded to each other as described above, the upper film is caused to travel along the upper thin plate 15 as the lower film travels. Further, a tension roller 20 that suppresses separation of the upper film from the upper thin plate 15 is rotatably attached to the film unit 14 .

Here, the structure of the presser plate 4 mentioned above will be specifically explained. FIG. 2 is a top view schematically showing an example of the presser plate 4, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA shown in FIG. The holding plate 4 has a rectangular shape as a whole, and a recess 21 recessed in the thickness direction is formed on one side of the holding plate 4 in the thickness direction. In the example shown here, the recess 21 has a rectangular shape that follows the outer shape of the presser plate 4. A peripheral portion of the recess 21 is a so-called edge portion 22, and the edge portion 22 comes into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W. Therefore, when the edge portion 22 comes into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W, a space S that follows the three-dimensional shape of the recess 21 is formed between the sandwich W and the presser plate 4, as shown in FIG.

In the thickness direction of the presser plate 4, a residual thickness portion 23 is formed in the portion of the presser plate 4 where the recess 21 is formed, that is, in the remaining thickness portion 23 of the presser plate 4 where the recess 21 is formed. A through hole 24 is formed to penetrate through the air, and a blower 26, which corresponds to an air supply device in the present invention, is connected to the through hole 24 via an air tube 25. The blower 26 is configured to operate based on a control command signal from the controller described above to supply air to the space S described above.

The operation of the scooping device 1 having the above-described configuration will be explained. When a sandwich W is carried on the conveyor with the scooping device 1 placed above a conveyor (not shown) and at a predetermined standby position, an appropriate sensor such as a camera measures the position of the sandwich W. The orientation is obtained. The articulated robot is operated based on the acquired information, and with the orientation of the sandwich W and the orientation of the presser plate 4 matching, and the presser plate 4 positioned directly above the sandwich W, the scooping device 1 is operated. begins to descend. That is, the scooping device 1 descends while moving forward in the conveying direction at the same speed as the sandwich W. When the edge portion 22 of the presser plate 4 comes into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W, the lowering of the presser plate 4 is blocked or stopped by the sandwich W. However, since the scooping device 1 continues to descend, the presser plate 4 is moved against the rail 3. Slide upwards along the vertical direction. The peripheral edge of the sandwich W is pressed against the conveyor by a load corresponding to the weight of the presser plate 4 and the elastic force of the return spring 5. Therefore, changes in the attitude of the sandwich W are suppressed. Further, the edge portion 22 of the presser plate 4 contacts the upper surface of the sandwich W, and the recess 21 is arranged corresponding to the center portion of the sandwich W, so that the center portion of the sandwich W is particularly pressed by the presser plate 4. Not done. Therefore, the ingredients of the sandwich W can be prevented from being pushed out of the sandwich W.

When the lower thin plate 15 is lowered to approximately the same height as the conveyor, the lowering of the scooping device 1 is stopped. Further, the motor 8 is rotated in the forward rotation direction, thereby causing the drive roller 9 and the pinion gear 10 to be rotated in the forward rotation direction similarly to the motor 8. Here, the positive rotation direction means the rotation direction of the motor 8 when the thin plates 15 and 16 are brought closer to the sandwich W. Since the pinion gear 10 meshes with the rack 13, the pinion gear 10 moves along the rack 13. As a result, the main body portion 6 moves forward toward the sandwich W. Further, as the motor 8 rotates forward, the drive roller 9 rotates forward, and thereby the driven roller 18 engaged with the drive roller 9 rotates in the opposite direction to the drive roller 9. In the configuration shown in FIG. 1, the motor 8 and drive roller 9 rotate clockwise, and the driven roller 18 rotates counterclockwise. Further, the diameter of the drive roller 9 is set to be approximately the same as the pitch circle diameter of the pinion gear 10. Therefore, the tip of the upper thin plate 15 is passed from the lower side of the upper thin plate 15 to the upper side for approximately the same length as the length that the main body portion 6 moves, that is, the same length as the insertion length for inserting each of the upper thin plates 15 and 16. The upper film runs from the upper side of the lower thin plate 16 to the lower side, and the lower film runs through the tip of the lower thin plate 16.

In this way, each thin plate 15, 16 is inserted under the sandwich W, and the film wrapped around each thin plate 15, 16 is fed, and the sandwich W is transferred from the top of the conveyor onto the upper thin plate 15. be done. Further, even when the thin plates 15 and 16 are inserted under the sandwich W, the presser plate 4 is in contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W, and the sandwich W is moved by the conveyor and the upper thin plate 15 due to the above-mentioned load. It is in a state of being pressed. Therefore, even when the thin plates 15 and 16 are inserted under the sandwich W, changes in the attitude of the sandwich W are suppressed. Furthermore, since the central portion of the sandwich W is not particularly pressed by the presser plate 4, the ingredients of the sandwich W can be prevented from being pushed out to the outside of the sandwich W. Note that the amount of drive of the motor 8, the insertion length of each thin plate 15, 16, the feeding length of each film, etc. can be set based on information acquired by various sensors such as the above-mentioned camera.

Then, when the sandwich W is transferred onto the upper thin plate 15, the motor 8 is stopped. In this state, the sandwich W is held between the presser plate 4 and the upper thin plate 15, and the attitude of the sandwich W does not particularly change. Further, since the center portion of the sandwich W is not particularly pressed by the presser plate 4, the ingredients will not protrude. Next, the scooping device 1 is moved forward in the conveyance direction at the same speed as the moving speed of the sandwich W, and is once raised perpendicularly to the conveyor to a predetermined height. To explain the reason for this, when the sandwich W is repeatedly conveyed by the conveyor and transferred as described above, there is a possibility that the lower film will stick to the conveyor due to the oil and moisture of the sandwich W. This is to avoid the possibility that if the scooping device 1 is rotated with the lower film stuck to the conveyor, shearing force will be generated between the lower film and the lower thin plate 16 and the lower film will be damaged. Note that the rising height of the scooping device 1 can be determined in advance.

Thereafter, the position, posture, orientation, height, etc. of the scooping device 1 are changed, and the scooping device 1 is moved above other sandwiches, a conveyor (not shown) in the subsequent process, etc. When stacking the scooped sandwich W on top of another sandwich, the scooped sandwich W and the other sandwich W should be aligned in the same direction, and the sandwich W should be scooped up with the presser plate 4 positioned directly above the other sandwich. Device 1 is lowered. When the lower surface of the lower thin plate 16 comes into contact with the upper surface of another sandwich, the lowering of the scooping device 1 is stopped. Further, the motor 8 is rotated in the reverse direction, and the thin plates 15 and 16 are pulled out from the underside of the sandwich W. Accordingly, the upper film runs from the upper side of the upper thin plate 15 to the lower side through the tip of the upper thin plate 15, and the lower film runs from the lower side of the lower thin plate 16 to the upper side through the tip of the lower thin plate 16. do. In this way, the first scooped sandwich W is stacked on top of the other sandwiches. The presser plate 4 is still in contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W that was initially scooped up. Therefore, the stacked sandwiches W are pressed against the conveyor by the presser plate 4, and changes in the posture of the stacked sandwiches W are suppressed. Further, since the center portion of these sandwiches W is not particularly pressed by the pressing plate 4, the ingredients do not protrude.

Next, while moving the scooping device 1 forward in the conveyance direction at the same speed as the moving speed of the sandwich W, the scooping device 1 is once raised perpendicularly to the conveyor to a predetermined height. At the same time, the blower 26 is operated to inject air into the space S through the through hole 24. This is to make it easier to separate the sandwich W from the edge portion 22 by pressing the upper surface of the sandwich W with the air flow. Thereafter, the scooping device 1 is returned to a predetermined standby position. Note that the time for injecting the air flow into the above-mentioned space S, the amount of air, the speed of air injection, etc. can be determined in advance through experiments.

Therefore, in the scooping device 1 having the above configuration, the center portion of the sandwich W is not particularly pressed by the presser plate 4 pressed against the upper surface of the sandwich W during the entire process of scooping up and transferring the sandwich W. . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the ingredients from being pushed out and spoiling the appearance of the product. Further, since the peripheral edge of the sandwich W is pressed by the edge portion 22, even if a so-called pressing mark is left, it will be less noticeable than the center of the sandwich W, so that deterioration in appearance can also be suppressed. Furthermore, since changes in the attitude of the sandwich W can be suppressed, it is possible to prevent problems such as problems in processing in subsequent steps. Since the airflow supplied from the blower 26 assists in separating the sandwich W and the presser plate 4, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the sandwich W sticks to the presser plate 4. As a result, the entire device can be operated at high speed and the yield can be improved.

(Second example)
Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and may be modified as appropriate within the scope of achieving the object of the present invention. In short, the pressing plate 4 only needs to be configured to press at least a part of the peripheral edge of the sandwich W so that the ingredients are not pressed and protruded when the sandwich W is pressed. FIG. 4 is a top view schematically showing another example of the presser plate according to the present invention, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB shown in FIG. 4, and FIG. - It is a cross-sectional view along the C line. As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, a first recess 27 is formed in the center of the presser plate 4 and is recessed in the thickness direction. Furthermore, in at least one of the vertical and horizontal directions of the presser plate 4, both sides of the first recess 27 have a depth or length shorter than the first recess 27 in the thickness direction. A second recess 28 narrower in width than the first recess 27 is formed. A portion around each of the recesses 27 and 28 serves as an edge portion 22. Therefore, when the edge portion 22 of the presser plate 4 is brought into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W, the space S formed between the sandwich W and the presser plate 4 communicates with the outside.

In the configurations shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, when the presser plate 4 is brought into contact with the upper surface of the sandwich W, the edge portion 22 contacts the peripheral edge of the upper surface of the sandwich W, and the edge portion 22 contacts the periphery of the upper surface of the sandwich W, corresponding to the center portion of the sandwich W. A first recess 27 and a second recess 28 are arranged. Therefore, similarly to the first embodiment, the center portion of the sandwich W is not particularly pressed. Moreover, since the sandwich W can be pressed against a mounting surface such as a conveyor by the edge portion 22 of the presser plate 4, changes in the attitude of the sandwich W can be suppressed. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, since the second recess 27 is formed, the area of the edge portion 22 that contacts the sandwich W can be reduced compared to the first embodiment. In other words, even if pressing marks are formed, their area can be reduced, and the appearance of the sandwich W as a product can be further improved. When separating the sandwich W from the presser plate 4, the blower 26 is operated in the same way as in the first embodiment, and the air flow supplied from the blower 26 can press the sandwich W and separate it.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Scooping device, 4... Holding plate , 15... Upper thin plate (thin plate), 16... Lower thin plate (thin plate), 21, 27, 28... Recessed part, 22... Edge part, W... Sandwich (object to be transferred).

Claims (2)

a presser plate that contacts the top surface of the transfer target placed at a predetermined location to suppress changes in the posture of the transfer target; and a presser plate that contacts the top surface of the transfer target. A scooping device comprising a thin plate that is inserted and removed from the underside of the transferred object while the object is being transferred,
The holding plate includes, on a surface of the holding plate on the side of the transfer object, a recess that is recessed in the thickness direction of the holding plate and forms a space between the top surface of the transfer object and the recess. and an edge portion formed around the periphery,
The edge portion is configured to contact a peripheral edge of the transfer target so that the recess does not press the top surface of the transfer target, and further
A through hole penetrating in the plate thickness direction is formed in the remaining thickness portion of the presser plate where the recess is formed,
An air supply device is provided for supplying air into the recess through the through hole when the object to be transferred is released from the holding plate.
A scooping device characterized by: The scooping device according to claim 1 ,
a base plate to which the holding plate is attached;
The base plate is provided with a rail oriented in the vertical direction,
The presser plate is attached to the rail so as to be movable in the vertical direction,
A scooping device characterized in that a return spring that elastically pushes the presser plate downward of the rail is provided between the presser plate and the rail.

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