JP7545786B2 - Compression packaging equipment - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a compression and packaging device that compresses waste materials such as waste paper and packs them by binding them around the edges using binding wire such as wire.

A conventional compression packaging device of this type has a configuration disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1. The compression packaging device disclosed in Patent Document 1 was previously proposed by the present applicant, and has the function of filling a compression chamber (100) with waste or other packaging objects, compressing them with a pressing compression block (200), and binding the compressed packaging objects with binding wire (1) to form a block. The reference numerals in parentheses are those given in the drawings of Patent Document 1.

Conventional compression packaging devices are generally configured to produce blocks of material to be packaged of a fixed, preset length, but the compression packaging device of Patent Document 1 allows the positions of the wire extension unit (400) and the wire joining and cutting unit (500) to be moved forward and backward, making it possible to vary the compressed length of the material to be packaged and produce blocks of material to be packaged of different lengths (see Figure 19 in Patent Document 1).

However, the configuration of Patent Document 1 mentioned above requires a mechanism for moving the positions of the wire extension unit (400) and the wire joining/cutting unit (500) in the forward/backward direction, which inevitably complicates the structure.

Patent Document 1 also discloses a configuration in which a door (14) is not provided at the discharge port (101a) of the compression chamber (100), and the discharge port (101a) is always open (see paragraph "0079" in Patent Document 1). In other words, the block of objects to be packed that has been compressed and packed in the previous cycle acts as the door (14), and the objects to be packed are compressed between the block of objects to be packed and the pressing and compressing block (200). With this configuration, it is possible to bind the compressed objects to be packed at any length to produce a block.

However, this configuration requires that the block of compressed and packaged material from the previous cycle be left outside the compression chamber, and is therefore limited in that it cannot be applied in cases where the block of compressed and packaged material produced is transported away immediately after being discharged from the compression chamber.

JP 2017-171353 A JP 2010-179935 A

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide a compression packaging device that compresses the objects to be packaged using a compression door, simplifies the mechanical structure, and can bind the compressed objects to any length to produce a block.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a packing container including a compression chamber filled with an object to be packed and having a discharge port formed at a front end thereof;
A compression door that opens and closes the discharge port;
A pressing and compressing member that is movable in the compression chamber in the forward and backward directions and that compresses the objects to be packed in the compression chamber by pressing them against the compression door with its forward movement;
A bundling mechanism that bundles the objects to be packed (compressed and packed objects) compressed by the pressing and compressing members in the compression chamber with a wire;
A specification setting means for setting a target length of the object to be compressed and packaged in the compression chamber;
A detection means for detecting the length of the compressed and packed object formed in the compression chamber;
a control means for opening a compression door based on the length of the object to be compressed and packaged detected by the detection means, using the target length set by the specification setting means as a judgment criterion, and for advancing the pressing and compressing members to a position where the object to be compressed and packaged can be bound by the binding mechanism;
The present invention is characterized by comprising:

With this configuration, it is possible to bind objects to be compressed and packaged at any length to produce a block. Moreover, because the compression door receives the pressure from the objects to be compressed by the forward movement of the pressing and compressing member, there is no need to leave the block of objects to be compressed and packaged produced in the previous cycle outside the compression chamber, and it is possible to produce a block of objects to be compressed and packaged efficiently with a high degree of freedom. Furthermore, there is no need to move and adjust the binding mechanism in the forward and backward directions (i.e., the direction in which the pressing and compressing member moves forward and backward), which simplifies the mechanical structure.

Here, it is preferable that the control means is configured to open the compression door when the length of the compressed packaged object detected by the detection means reaches the target length set by the specification setting means, and to advance the pressing and compressing member to a position where the binding mechanism can bind the compressed packaged object.

The control means may also be configured to, when the target length of the compressed and packaged object set by the specification setting means is within a range of lengths that can be bound by the binding mechanism without advancing the pressing and compression members, move to a binding operation by the binding mechanism while keeping the compression door closed and without advancing the pressing and compression members.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to bind compressed and packaged objects to any length to produce a block. Moreover, since the compression door receives the pressure from the objects compressed by the forward movement of the pressing and compressing member, it is possible to produce a block of compressed objects with a high degree of freedom and efficiency. Furthermore, it is possible to simplify the mechanical structure.

FIG. 1A is a side cross-sectional view for explaining the overall structure of a compression packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a front view showing an enlarged view of a detection plate attached to a pressing compression block and a sensor provided on a fixed portion of a drive cylinder. 1 is a plan sectional view illustrating an overall structure of a compression packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view showing the leading portion of the pressing and compressing block. FIG. 4 is a front cross-sectional view showing the wire extending unit. FIG. 2 is a front cross-sectional view showing the wire extending unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view showing the wire extending unit. FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view showing the wire extending unit according to the first embodiment. 4A is an enlarged plan view showing the configuration of the wire connecting and cutting unit, and FIG. 4B is an enlarged plan view showing an upstream wire twist connecting member. FIG. 4 is a plan view for explaining the function of the wire connecting and cutting unit. 11 is a plan cross-sectional view showing the operation of discharging the packaged object packaged in the compression chamber. FIG. 11 is a plan cross-sectional view showing the operation of discharging the packaged object packaged in the compression chamber, subsequent to FIG. 10 . 12 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the operation of discharging the packaged object packaged in the compression chamber, following FIG. 11 . FIG. 2 is a front cross-sectional view showing a configuration of the wire holding unit. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control system centered around a control device. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining a control operation by a control device. FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram for explaining the control operation by the control device, following FIG. 15 . FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram for explaining the control operation by the control device, following FIG. 16 .

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1(a) is a side sectional view for explaining the overall structure of a compression packaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view of the same.
The compression packaging device of this embodiment has the function of compressing packaging objects W such as waste and binding them together with binding wire A to form a block, and is equipped with a compression chamber 100, a pressing compression block 200, a binding mechanism, and a control device 1.

[Compression chamber]
As shown in Fig. 1(a) and Fig. 2, the compression chamber 100 is formed in the internal space of a frame body 101 formed in a rectangular tubular shape by a bottom wall 10, a ceiling wall 11, a first side wall 12, and a second side wall 13. The frame body 101 (i.e., the compression chamber 100) extends in the front-rear direction, and its front end (the right end in Fig. 1(a)) serves as a discharge port 101a for the compressed and packaged packaged object W. In this embodiment, a compression door 14 is installed at this discharge port 101a. The compression door 14 is supported by a support frame 15 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and receives a driving force from a drive cylinder 16 to move upward to open the discharge port 101a, and to move downward to close the discharge port 101a.

An inlet 11a for the objects W to be packed is formed in the ceiling wall 11 of the frame 101, and a structural unit called a hopper 17 for putting the objects W to be packed is connected above this inlet 11a. The objects W to be packed are mainly, but not limited to, paper waste such as newspapers and magazines, which are called recyclable waste, and plastic waste such as PET bottles. Various types of hoppers 17 have been developed for packaging waste into a desired form, including those that are configured to put the waste in as is and those that have the function of cutting or crushing the objects W to be packed internally.

The first side wall 12 and the second side wall 13 face each other. In the first side wall 12, a plurality of first wire insertion slits 12a are formed in a region forward of the input port 11a so as to extend in the front-rear direction. In addition, in the second side wall 13, a plurality of second wire insertion slits 13a are formed so as to extend in the front-rear direction opposite the first wire insertion slits 12a. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1(a), five first wire insertion slits 12a are formed at equal intervals in the height direction, and five second wire insertion slits 13a are also formed. Note that the number of each of the wire insertion slits 12a and 13a is not limited to five, and can be arbitrarily set according to the number of binding wires A that bind the packaging object W. The compression packaging device of this embodiment is designed to bind the packaging object W with five binding wires A.
Each of these wire insertion slits 12a, 13a serves to insert the binding wire A and to enable the wire extension unit 400, described later, to extend the binding wire A and the wire holding unit to hold the binding wire A.

[Pressure compression block]
The pressing and compressing block 200 functions as a pressing and compressing member that presses the objects W to be packaged, which have been put into the compression chamber 100 from the hopper 17, against the compression door 14 to compress them.
1(a) and 2, the pressing compression block 200 receives a driving force from the block drive cylinder 20 and moves in the front-rear direction (the direction of the left and right arrows in FIG. 1(a)) within the compression chamber 100. Then, by the forward movement, the pressing compression block 200 presses forward the objects W to be packed that have been put into the compression chamber 100 from the hopper 17, compressing them between the pressing block 200 and the compression door 14.

As shown enlarged in FIG. 3, the front portion of the pressing compression block 200 is provided with a number of wire passages 21. Here, the wire passages 21 are formed at the same height as the above-mentioned wire insertion slits 12a, 13a, and in the same number. That is, in this embodiment, five wire passages 21 are formed and spaced equally apart in the height direction.

The wire passage 21 passes horizontally through the front portion of the pressing and compression block 200. The front surface of the pressing and compression block 200 is also cut out horizontally to form an opening that communicates with the wire passage 21. This opening functions as a wire removal slit 22 for removing the bundling wire A from the wire passage 21.

The objects W to be packed that are fed from the hopper 17 through the feed opening 11a of the compression chamber 100 are pressed toward the front of the compression chamber 100 by the forward movement of the pressing and compressing block 200, and are compressed between the compression door 14. At this time, the feed opening 11a is blocked by the upper surface of the pressing and compressing block 200. It is also possible to provide an opening/closing compression door at the feed opening 11a, and adjust the amount of the objects W to be packed fed into the compression chamber 100 by opening and closing the opening/closing compression door.
The forward movement of the pressing and compressing block 200 ends when the repulsive force from the compressed object W reaches a preset value, after which the pressing and compressing block 200 retreats to its original position within the compression chamber 100. When the pressing and compressing block 200 retreats, the input port 11a opens again and the object W is input into the compression chamber 100.

By repeating the forward and backward movements of the pressing and compressing block 200, the volume of the object W compressed between the pressing and compressing block 200 and the compression door 14 increases. Then, when the total length of the object W compressed between the pressing and compressing block 200 and the compression door 14 reaches a preset target value, the forward movement of the pressing and compressing block 200 is terminated, and the pressing and compressing block 200 is retreated to a preset packing position 23. This packing position 23 is set to a position slightly rearward of the position of the pressing and compressing block 200 when the target value is reached.

The packing position 23 is a work position for binding and packaging the compressed object W with the binding wire A. Therefore, the wire insertion slits 12a, 13a formed in the first side wall 12 and the second side wall 13 are open on the sides of the wire passage 21 in the pressing and compressing block 200 stopped at the packing position 23. In addition, a wire extending unit 400 and a wire connecting and cutting unit 500, which will be described later, are also installed in accordance with the packing position 23 (see FIG. 2). In the drawing, the position of the tip face of the pressing and compressing block 200 stopped at the packing position is shown as the packing position 23.

With the pressing and compressing block 200 stopped at the packing position 23, the binding wire A is wound around the back surface of the object W compressed between the pressing and compressing block 200 and the compression door 14 through the wire passage 21. Then, as the pressing and compressing block 200 is subsequently moved backward, the binding wire A in the wire passage 21 comes out of the wire passage 21 through the wire removal slit 22.

[Binding mechanism]
The binding mechanism has a function of binding, with a binding wire A, the object to be packaged (object to be compressed and packaged) W compressed by the pressing and compressing block 200 in the compression chamber 100 .
The bundling mechanism is composed of a wire supply unit consisting of a first wire supply source 301 and a second wire supply source 302, a wire extension unit 400, a wire joining/cutting unit 500, and a wire holding unit consisting of a first wire holding mechanism 601 and a second wire holding mechanism 602.

First, the wire supplying unit will be described.
2, a first wire supply source 301 that feeds out the bundling wire A to the outside of the first side wall 12 and a second wire supply source 302 that feeds out the bundling wire A to the outside of the second side wall 13 are provided on both sides of the frame 101 that constitutes the compression chamber 100. Each of these wire supply sources 301, 302 is composed of a reel around which an endless bundling wire A such as a wire is wound. Here, the first wire supply source 301 has a plurality of reels arranged in accordance with the central height positions of the first wire insertion slits 12a formed in the first side wall 12, and the bundling wire A is fed out from each reel to the outside of the first side wall 12. Similarly, the second wire supply source 302 has multiple reels arranged at the central height positions of the second wire insertion slits 13a formed in the second side wall 13, and the binding wire A is unwound from each reel to the outside of the second side wall 13.

Next, the wire extending unit 400 will be described.
4 to 7 show the wire extending unit, with FIGS. 4 and 5 being views of the device as seen from the front side (the right side of FIG. 1(a)), and FIGS. 6 and 7 being plan sectional views.
The wire extension unit 400 functions as a wire extension means for extending the binding wire A fed out from the first wire supply source 301 from the first wire insertion slit 12a in the first side wall 12, through the wire passage 21 in the pressing compression block 200, and further through the second wire insertion slit 13a in the second side wall 13 toward the outside of the second side wall 13 when the pressing compression block 200 is stopped at the packaging position 23.

Guide rails 40 are installed on the upper and lower outer portions of the first side wall 12, extending in a direction perpendicular to the first side wall 12 (i.e., the axial direction of the compression chamber 100), and the sliding support member 41 is guided by these guide rails 40 to slide freely in a direction perpendicular to the first side wall 12. The base ends of multiple (five in this embodiment) ejection rods 42 are fixed to the sliding support member 41, facing the first wire insertion slit 12a of the first side wall 12. A U-shaped wire holding member 43 is provided at the tip of each ejection rod 42. A holding roller 44 for holding the bundling wire A in a state in which it can be moved axially is attached rotatably to each tip (two locations) of the U-shaped wire holding member 43.

As shown in FIG. 6, the wire extension unit 400 configured as described above is positioned so that the wire holding member 43 provided at the tip of each ejection rod 42 faces the wire passage 21 of the pressing and compressing block 200 stopped at the packaging position 23 through the first wire insertion slit 12a in the first side wall 12.

While the pressing and compressing block 200 is repeatedly compressing the objects W to be packed that have been put into the compression chamber 100, the sliding support member 41 stops at the retracted position, and the wire holding member 43 waits at a position outside the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 6). When the compression work of the required amount of objects W to be packed is completed and the pressing and compressing block 200 stops at the packing position 23, the sliding support member 41 slides along the guide rail 40. This action moves the wire holding member 43 through the first wire insertion slit 12a of the first side wall 12, the wire passage 21 of the pressing and compressing block 200, and the second wire insertion slit 13a of the second side wall 13 to the outside of the second side wall 13 (see FIG. 7).

During this movement, the bundling wire A fed from the first wire supply source 301 first comes into contact with the holding roller 44 attached to the tip of the wire holding member 43, and is pushed outward toward the outside of the second side wall 13. Next, the bundling wire A fed from the second wire supply source 302 is held by the holding roller 44 in a state where it overlaps with the bundling wire A fed from the first wire supply source 301, and then each bundling wire A is pushed outward toward the outside of the second side wall 13 in an overlapping state.

In this way, each bundling wire A is pushed out to the overlapping holding position 45 that is preset outside the second side wall 13, and the wire holding member 43 holds the extended tip of each bundling wire A at that position. A wire joining and cutting unit 500 (described later) is provided at the overlapping holding position 45, and the extended tip of each overlapping bundling wire A is cut at that position.

Next, the wire connecting and cutting unit 500 will be described.
8 and 9 are diagrams showing the configuration of the wire connecting and cutting unit.
The wire joining and cutting unit 500 is installed outside the second side wall 13, and functions as follows with respect to each of the bundling wires A that are fed from each of the wire supply sources 301, 302, pushed and extended in an overlapping state by the wire extending unit 400, and whose extended tops are held at the overlapping holding position 45. That is, each of the bundling wires A is cut at the overlapping holding position 45, and each of the bundling wires A on the upstream side of the cut ends is twisted and joined, and each of the bundling wires A on the downstream side of the cut ends is also twisted and joined. Note that the upstream side of the bundling wires A here refers to the side closer to each of the wire supply sources 301, 302, and the downstream side refers to the side farther from each of the wire supply sources 301, 302.

The wire connecting/cutting unit 500 has multiple unit bases 501 (five in this embodiment) arranged opposite the second wire insertion slit 13a of the second side wall 13, and each unit base 501 is provided with the following components: upstream wire support means 502, downstream wire support means 503, upstream wire twist connecting member 504, and downstream wire twist connecting member 505.

The upstream wire supporting means 502 includes the following components: an upstream positioning board 50 , an upstream mounting plate 51 , and upstream wire supporting rollers 52 .
The upstream positioning plate 50 is fixed to the unit base 501 or is integral with the unit base 501. A plurality of positioning holes 53 (screw holes) are formed in the upstream positioning plate 50. In the configuration shown in Fig. 9, two rows of positioning holes 53 are formed at regular intervals in a direction perpendicular to the second side wall 13 (i.e., the axial direction of the compression chamber 100), more specifically, in a direction in which each binding wire A is pushed and extended by the wire extending unit 400.

The upstream mounting plate 51 is fixed to any position on the upstream positioning plate 50 by fastening it to any positioning hole 53 formed in the upstream positioning plate 50 using fastening members 54 such as bolts. An upstream wire support roller 52 is rotatably mounted on this upstream mounting plate 51.

The upstream wire support roller 52 is installed at an upstream support position 55 where it supports the bundled wire A fed from the second wire supply source 302 by folding it back upstream of the overlapping holding position 45. The upstream support position 55 can be moved closer to or farther away from the overlapping holding position 45 by changing the fastening position of the upstream mounting plate 51 relative to the upstream positioning board 50 (see Figures 9(a) and (b)).

The downstream wire support means 503 has the same configuration as the upstream wire support means 502 described above. That is, the downstream wire support means 503 includes the components of the downstream positioning plate 50, the downstream mounting plate 51, and the downstream wire support roller 52.

The downstream positioning plate 50 is fixed to the unit base 501 or is integral with the unit base 501. This downstream positioning plate 50 has a plurality of positioning holes 53 (screw holes) formed therein. In the configuration shown in FIG. 9, two rows of positioning holes 53 are formed at regular intervals in a direction perpendicular to the second side wall 13 (i.e., the axial direction of the compression chamber 100), more specifically, in the direction in which each bundling wire A is pushed and extended by the wire extension unit 400.

The downstream mounting plate 51 is fixed to any position on the downstream positioning plate 50 by fastening it to any positioning hole 53 formed in the downstream positioning plate 50 using fastening members 54 such as bolts. The downstream wire support roller 52 is rotatably mounted on this downstream mounting plate 51.

The downstream wire support roller 52 is installed at a downstream support position 56 where it folds back and supports the bundled wire A fed from the second wire supply source 302 downstream of the overlapping holding position 45. The downstream support position 56 can be moved closer to or farther away from the overlapping holding position 45 by changing the fastening position of the downstream mounting plate 51 relative to the downstream positioning board 50 (see Figures 9(a) and (b)).

As shown enlarged in FIG. 8(b), the upstream wire twisting joining member 504 (upstream wire twisting joining means) is rotated by a drive motor (not shown) to wind each bundling wire A around its circumferential surface upstream of the overlapping holding position 45, and as shown in FIG. 9, twists the area up to the upstream support position 55 (upstream twist joining area) to join each bundling wire A.

The downstream wire twisting joining member 505 (downstream wire twisting joining means) has the same configuration as the upstream wire twisting joining member 504 described above. That is, the downstream wire twisting joining member 505 is rotated by a drive motor (not shown) to wind each bundling wire A around its circumferential surface downstream of the overlapping holding position 45, and as shown in FIG. 9, twists the area up to the downstream support position 56 (downstream twisting joining area) to join each bundling wire A.

The wire joining and cutting unit 500 also includes a wire cutting means 506 that cuts each bundling wire A at the overlapping holding position 45. The structure of the wire cutting means 506 is already known, so a detailed description will be omitted (see, for example, FIG. 7 of Patent Document 2).

After the required amount of objects W to be packed has been compressed and the pressing and compressing block 200 has stopped at the packing position 23, the binding wires A fed from the wire supply sources 301, 302 are pushed and extended by the wire extending unit 400, and the extended tips are held at the overlapping holding position 45. Then, the wire cutting means 506 cuts the binding wires A at the overlapping holding position 45, and the upstream wire twisting and joining member 504 twists and joins the binding wires A on the upstream side of the cut ends, while the downstream wire twisting and joining member 505 twists and joins the binding wires A on the downstream side of the cut ends.

Through this series of operations, the bundling wires A twisted and connected by the downstream wire twisting connecting member 505 surround the compressed packaging object W , completing the packaging form (see FIG. 10). In addition, the bundling wires A fed from each wire supply source 301, 302 are twisted and connected by the upstream wire twisting connecting member 504 to form a single wire, and the middle part of the single wire is disposed in the wire passage 21 of the pressing and compressing block 200.

The wire joining and cutting unit 500 configured as described above makes it possible to arbitrarily change the overall circumferential length of the binding wire A surrounding the compressed packaging object W by changing the downstream support position 56 relative to the overlapping holding position 45, particularly in the downstream wire support means 503.

9(b), the downstream support position 56 approaches the overlapping holding position 45, and the downstream twisted coupling region is shortened from L1 to L2. As a result, the total circumferential length of the binding wire A surrounding the packaged object W is increased by the length of the two binding wires A in that region (i.e., twice the length of L1-L2).

9(b) to the position shown in FIG. 9(a), the downstream support position 56 moves away from the overlapping holding position 45, and the downstream twisted coupling region is lengthened from L2 to L1. As a result, the total circumferential length of the binding wire A surrounding the packaged object W is shortened by the length of the two binding wires A in that region (i.e., twice the length of L1-L2).

By changing the overall circumferential length of the binding wire A surrounding the object W to be packaged in this manner, it is possible to adjust the repulsive force that the binding wire A receives from the compressed object W to be packaged.

In this embodiment, the upstream wire support means 502 is also configured so that the upstream support position 55 can be changed with respect to the overlapping holding position 45, but the upstream support position 55 may also be configured to be fixed at one location.

[Discharge of packaged items]
10 to 12 are diagrams showing the operation of discharging the objects packed in the compression chamber.
When the wire joining and cutting unit 500 finishes cutting and twisting each binding wire A, the sliding support member 41 of the wire extension unit 400 retracts, and the wire holding member 43 returns to a position outside the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 10). In this state, the compression door 14 moves upward to open the discharge port 101a at the tip of the compression chamber 100. Next, the pressing and compressing block 200 moves forward to push out the objects W that have been packed with the binding wire A and have become a lump from the discharge port 101a (see FIG. 11).

At this time, the binding wire A which runs from the first wire supply source 301 through the wire passage 21 of the pressing and compressing block 200 to the second wire supply source 302 is in a state of being pulled by the forward movement of the pressing and compressing block 200. Therefore, in this embodiment, after the packed object W is pushed out from the discharge port 101a, the pressing and compressing block 200 is slightly moved backward to release the tension on the binding wire A (see FIG. 12).

[Wire rod holding unit]
FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the wire holding unit.
The wire holding unit is composed of a first wire holding mechanism 601 and a second wire holding mechanism 602. As shown in Fig. 2, the first wire holding mechanism 601 is disposed near the discharge port 101a in the compression chamber 100 and on the outside of the first side wall 12. The second wire holding mechanism 602 is disposed near the discharge port 101a in the compression chamber 100 and on the outside of the second side wall 13. The first wire holding mechanism 601 has a function of holding the binding wire A by hooking it onto a hook portion 61a formed at the tip of a hook member 61 shown in Fig. 13.

As described above, the operation of pulling and holding the binding wire A by the first wire holding mechanism 601 and the second wire holding mechanism 602 is performed after the packaged packaging target W is pushed out from the discharge port 101a and the pressing and compressing block 200 is slightly retracted as shown in Fig. 12 to release the tension of the binding wire A. The binding wire A released from the tension in this manner can be pulled outwardly of the first side wall 12 (second side wall 13) by the hook member 61 without requiring a large pulling force, and remains in the held position even after the pulling and holding state is released.

When the pressing and compressing block 200 is retracted while the binding wire A is being pulled and held by the hooking member 61 outwardly of the first side wall 12 (second side wall 13), the binding wire A arranged in the wire passage 21 passes through the wire removal slit 22 (see FIG. 3) and comes out of the wire passage 21. At this time, even if the binding wire A gets caught on the edge of the wire removal slit 22, the hooking member 61 is pulling and holding the binding wire A on both sides, so the binding wire A can reliably come out of the wire passage 21.

After the binding wire A arranged in the wire passage 21 has come out of the wire passage 21, the hook portion 61a is retracted from the holding position of the binding wire A, thereby releasing the holding state of the binding wire A. Even after the holding state is released in this manner, the binding wire A remains in the position where it is pulled outwardly of the first side wall 12 and the second side wall 13, and waits for the start of the compression operation of the packaged object W in the next cycle.

[Control device]
FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control system centered around a control device.
The control device 1 can be configured using a general-purpose computer, etc. The control device 1 includes an input unit 2 and a storage unit 3.
The input unit 2 can be configured with a general-purpose input device such as a keyboard, a touch panel, etc. From the input unit 2, various setting values required for the control device 1 to control each component of the compression packaging device are input.
The storage unit 3 can be configured with a storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD). Programs for controlling each component of the compression packaging device are stored in advance in the storage unit 3. Various setting values input from the input unit 2 are also stored in the storage unit 3. In addition to the storage unit 3, the control device 1 is equipped with a memory (not shown) required for executing arithmetic processing.

The control device 1 reads out the control program and various set values from the storage unit 3 and controls each component of the compression packaging device. That is, the control device 1 controls the block driving cylinder 20 to move the pressing compression block 200 forward and backward and to stop it at a preset position. The control device 1 also controls the driving cylinder 16 to open and close the compression door 14. Furthermore, the control device 1 controls the wire extension unit 400 and the wire joining and cutting unit 500 to bind the object W to be compressed and packaged with the bundling wire A. Thereafter, the control device 1 controls the block driving cylinder 20 to advance the pressing compression block 200 and discharge the bundle of the object W to be compressed and packaged from the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100. Next, the control device 1 controls the block driving cylinder 20 to move the pressing compression block 200 backward, and at an appropriate timing, the control device 1 controls the first and second wire holding mechanisms 601 and 602 to hold the bundling wire A and pull out the bundling wire A from the wire passage 21 (see FIG. 3) of the pressing compression block 200. Then, the pressing and compressing block 200 is moved back to the starting position. By controlling each of these components, blocks of the object W to be compressed and packaged are produced and sequentially discharged from the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100.

In addition, the compressing and packaging device according to this embodiment has a function of bundling the compressed packaging target objects W at any length to produce a mass.
A setting value for the target length of the object W to be compressed and packaged in the compression chamber 100 is inputted from the input unit 2, and the setting value is stored in the memory unit 3. In other words, the input unit 2 and the memory unit 3 function as a specification setting means for setting the target length of the object W to be compressed and packaged.

Returning to FIG. 1B, the inner wall of the compression chamber 100 is provided with an advance position detection sensor 4, a retreat position detection sensor 5, and a binding position detection sensor 6. A detection plate 7 is attached to the pressing and compressing block 200. Position detection slits 7a are formed at regular intervals on the detection plate 7. The advance position detection sensor 4 and the retreat position detection sensor 5 are provided opposite to the track along which the position detection slits 7a move, and as the pressing and compressing block 200 moves, each time the position detection slits 7a pass the opposing positions of the sensors 4 and 5, a detection signal is output from each of the sensors 4 and 5 to the control device 1. The control device 1 recognizes the moving position of the pressing and compressing block 200 based on the detection signal. Here, the advance position detection sensor 4 functions as a detection means for detecting the length of the compressed and packed object W formed in the compression chamber 100.
In addition, a notch 7b for detecting the binding position is formed in the detection plate 7, and the binding position detection sensor 6 is provided opposite the track along which this notch 7b for detecting the binding position moves.When the binding position detection notch 7b reaches a position opposite the binding position detection sensor 6 with the forward movement of the pressing compression block 200, a detection signal is output from the sensor 6 to the control device 1.
These sensors 4, 5, and 6 can be substituted with a single sensor capable of detecting a plurality of positions (for example, an ultrasonic sensor, a laser sensor, a rotary encoder, etc.).

15 to 18 are schematic diagrams for explaining the control operation by the control device.
Specifically, FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operation when binding objects to be compressed and packaged at a length corresponding to the distance from the front end of the compression chamber to the binding position.
The memory unit 3 stores a target length corresponding to the distance L1 from the front end of the compression chamber 100 to the binding position P as a set value. Here, the binding position P is a position where the wire extending unit 400 and the wire connecting and cutting unit 500 work together to bind the compressed package object W with the binding wire A. In other words, it is a position where the binding wire A extended by the wire extending unit 400 is connected and cut by the wire connecting and cutting unit 500. The wire passage 21 (see FIG. 3) of the pressing and compressing block 200 is positioned at this binding position P, and the binding wire A is extended through this wire passage 21.

The control device 1 controls the block drive cylinder 20 to move the pressing and compressing block 200 in the forward and backward directions, compressing the object to be packed placed in the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 15(a)). Then, when it is determined based on a detection signal from the forward position detection sensor 4 that the length of the object to be compressed and packaged W has reached the target length L1, the control device 1 controls the block drive cylinder 20 to stop the pressing and compressing block 200 at the binding position P (see FIG. 15(b)).
Next, the control device 1 controls the wire extending unit 400 and the wire joining/cutting unit 500 to bind the compressed package objects W with the binding wire A. Thereafter, the control device 1 controls the drive cylinder 16 to open the compression door 14, and controls the block drive cylinder 20 to advance the pressing and compressing block 200, thereby discharging the bound block of compressed package objects W from the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 15(c)).
Next, the block drive cylinder 20 is controlled to move the pressing and compression block 200 backward, and the first and second wire holding mechanisms 601, 602 are controlled at an appropriate timing to hold the bundling wire A and pull out the bundling wire A from the wire passage 21 (see FIG. 3) of the pressing and compression block 200. Then, the pressing and compression block 200 is moved backward to the starting position.

16 and 17 are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation when a block of material to be compressed and packaged is produced with a dimension longer than the distance from the front end of the compression chamber to the binding position.
The memory unit 3 stores a target length L2, which is longer than the distance L1 from the front end of the compression chamber 100 to the binding position P, as a set value.

The control device 1 controls the block drive cylinder 20 to move the pressing and compressing block 200 forward and backward, compressing the object W to be compressed and packaged that has been placed in the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 16(a)). Then, when it is determined based on the detection signal from the forward position detection sensor 4 that the length of the object W to be compressed and packaged has reached the target length L2, the control device 1 controls the block drive cylinder 20 to stop the forward movement of the pressing and compressing block 200 (see FIG. 16(b)).

Next, the control device 1 controls the drive cylinder 16 to open the compression door 14 and open the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100. The control device 1 then controls the block drive cylinder 20 to advance the pressing compression block 200 to the binding position P and stops it at the binding position P (see FIG. 17(a)). At this time, a part of the compressed and packed object W is discharged to the outside from the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100. Also, because the compression door 14 is open, the compression door 14 cannot withstand the pressure from the compressed and packed object W. However, there are many objects to be packed that are not elastic and maintain a compressed state, and the inventors have confirmed through experiments that for such objects to be packed, binding with the binding wire A can be performed without any problems even if the compression door 14 is not subjected to pressure.

Next, the control device 1 controls the wire extending unit 400 and the wire joining/cutting unit 500 to bind the compressed package object W with the binding wire A. Then, the control device 1 controls the block driving cylinder 20 to advance the pressing and compressing block 200, and discharges the bundled compressed package object W from the discharge port 101a of the compression chamber 100 (see FIG. 17(b)).
Thereafter, the block drive cylinder 20 is controlled to move the pressing and compression block 200 backward, and the first and second wire holding mechanisms 601, 602 are controlled at an appropriate timing to hold the bundling wire A and pull out the bundling wire A from the wire passage 21 (see FIG. 3) of the pressing and compression block 200. Then, the pressing and compression block 200 is moved backward to the starting position.

By providing the control device 1 with such a control function, it is possible to bind the compressed and packaged objects to any length and produce a block without having to change the binding position by adjusting the binding mechanism in the forward and backward directions. This simplifies the mechanical structure.

The control device 1 compares the "setting value for the target length of the compressed and packaged object" input from the input unit 2 and stored in the memory unit 3 with the distance L1 from the front end of the compression chamber 100 to the binding position P, and when the setting value corresponds to the distance L1, as shown in Figure 15, performs the binding operation while keeping the compression door 14 closed and without moving the pressing compression block 200 forward.
Here, when the "setting value of the target length of the compressed and packaged object" is a dimension close to the distance L1 and the control device 1 determines that the binding operation can be performed at the position where the pressing and compression block 200 completes compression, the binding operation is performed with the compression door 14 closed and without moving the pressing and compression block 200 forward, as shown in Figure 15.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and applications are possible as needed.

A: bundling wire, P: bundling position, W: packaging object (compressed packaging object) ,
1: control device, 2: input unit, 3: memory unit, 4: forward position detection sensor, 5: backward position detection sensor, 6: bundling position detection sensor, 7: detection plate, 7a: position detection slit, 7b: bundling position detection notch,
100: compression chamber, 101: frame, 101a: discharge port,
10: bottom wall, 11: ceiling wall, 11a: inlet, 12: first side wall, 12a: first wire insertion slit, 13: second side wall, 13a: second wire insertion slit, 14: compression door, 15: support frame, 16: drive cylinder, 17 hopper,
200: Pressing compression block,
20: block driving cylinder, 21: wire passage, 22: wire removal slit,
23: Packing position,
301: first wire rod supply source, 302: second wire rod supply source,
400: Wire extension unit,
40: guide rail, 41: sliding support member, 42: ejection rod, 43: wire rod holding member, 44: holding roller, 45: overlapping holding position,
500: wire rod joining/cutting unit, 501: unit base, 502: upstream wire rod supporting means, 503: downstream wire rod supporting means, 504: upstream wire rod twisting joining member, 505: downstream wire rod twisting joining member, 506: wire rod cutting means,
50: upstream positioning plate (downstream positioning plate), 51: upstream mounting plate (downstream mounting plate), 52: upstream wire rod support roller (downstream wire rod support roller), 53: positioning hole, 54: fastening member, 55: upstream support position, 56: downstream support position,
601: first wire holding mechanism, 602: second wire holding mechanism,
61: hook member, 61a: hook portion

Claims (1)

a compression chamber in which the object to be packed is filled and which has a discharge port at a front end;
A compression door that opens and closes the discharge port;
A pressing and compressing member that is movable in the front and rear direction within the compression chamber and compresses the packaging object filled in the compression chamber by pressing the packaging object against the compression door by a forward movement;
a binding mechanism that wraps a wire around the object to be compressed by the pressing and compressing member in the compression chamber in the front-rear direction and binds the object to be compressed and packaged with the wire;
A specification setting means for setting a target length of the object to be compressed and packaged in the compression chamber;
A detection means for detecting the length of the compressed and packed object formed in the compression chamber;
and a control means for opening the compression door and advancing the pressing and compressing member to a position where the object to be compressed and packaged can be bound by the binding mechanism based on the length of the object to be compressed and packaged detected by the detection means, using the target length set by the specification setting means as a criterion for judgment,
Furthermore, when the length of the object to be compressed and packed detected by the detection means reaches the target length set by the specification setting means, the control means opens the compression door and advances the pressing and compressing member to a position where the object to be compressed and packed can be bound by the binding mechanism,
On the other hand, when the target length of the compressed and packaged object set by the specification setting means is within a range of lengths that can be bound by the binding mechanism without advancing the pressing and compression member, the control means keeps the compression door closed and transitions to a binding operation by the binding mechanism without advancing the pressing and compression member .

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