JP7618228B2 - Conveyor - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a conveying device.

In a packaging line that packages items such as food or daily necessities, a conveying device and a packaging machine are arranged in series. The conveying device supplies items one after another to the packaging machine. The packaging machine periodically seals adjacent items in the film that is sent together with the supplied items using a horizontal seam sealing device (also called a top seal device, end seal device, or horizontal seal device) at the same cycle as the item supply cycle. This allows the items to be individually packaged.

A push conveyor (see, for example, Patent Document 1) is used as the conveying device so that the articles are periodically supplied to the packaging machine at a fixed timing. The push conveyor is equipped with an endless chain and multiple push members. The endless chain is hung on a sprocket below the article conveying lane, and a section of the endless chain is provided along the conveying lane. Multiple push members are attached to the endless chain at regular intervals. The push members in the section along the conveying lane protrude upward from below the conveying lane, and proceed toward the packaging machine by being pulled by the endless chain. The articles are pushed from behind by the push members and conveyed. Therefore, the position of the article being conveyed is determined based on the position of the front of the push member pushing it, and the article is supplied to the packaging machine at the correct timing when the front of the push member reaches the packaging machine.

Patent No. 4271983

However, if an error occurs in supplying an item to the pushing conveyor, the item will be transported while riding on the pushing member, or while being sandwiched between the pushing member and a side guide on the side of the transport lane. In such cases, the item will be transported while shifted backward in the transport direction from the front of the pushing member, and will be supplied to the packaging machine later than normal. This will cause the item to be caught by the horizontal seam sealing device of the packaging machine, resulting in the production of defective packages.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and aims to provide a conveying device that can position an article in front of a pushing member even when the article is conveyed while riding on the pushing member, or when the article is conveyed while being sandwiched between a side guide and the pushing member.

The conveying device for solving the above problems includes a conveying plate on which a plurality of articles arranged at intervals in the conveying direction are placed, a running rail extending in the conveying direction below the conveying plate, an endless rope body that is endless and has a conveying section extending in the conveying direction below the conveying plate and circulating, and a plurality of pushing members that are attached to the endless rope body at intervals along the endless rope body and can swing around an axis perpendicular to the conveying direction, and the pushing members attached to the endless rope body in the conveying section push the articles in the conveying direction by circulating the endless rope body while standing on the running rail and protruding above the conveying plate, and at least one notch is formed in the middle of the running rail for tilting the pushing member backward, which is the opposite direction to the conveying direction.

According to the above, the pushing member is attached to the endless rope so as to be able to swing, and the notch is formed in the traveling rail, so that when the pushing member traveling in an upright position on the traveling rail reaches the notch, the pushing member falls into the notch and tilts backward. Therefore, an article that has climbed up on the pushing member falls in front of the pushing member. Alternatively, an article that has been sandwiched between the pushing member and its side guide falls in front of the pushing member. Thus, the pushing member can push the article forward from behind.
The pushing member that has passed through the notch rides up onto the running rail and stands up from its backward tilted state. Therefore, the position of the article pushed forward by the pushing member is determined based on the correct position, that is, the position of the front face of the pushing member in the upright state. This makes it possible to prevent the article from being conveyed in a state where it is shifted backward from the position of the front face of the pushing member.

According to the present invention, when the pushing member passes through the notch, the pushing member tilts backward and then stands up. Even if the article is transported while riding on the pushing member before the pushing member reaches the notch, or even if the article is transported while sandwiched between the side guide and the pushing member, the backward tilt of the pushing member at the notch causes the article to be placed in front of the pushing member. Therefore, the pushing member can push the article forward from behind it.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. 1, viewed in the direction of the arrows. 2 is a side view of the inside of the conveying device in region III in FIG. 1 . 11A and 11B are explanatory diagrams of the operation of the pushing member and the elastic member of the conveying device. 11A and 11B are explanatory diagrams of the operation of the pushing member and the elastic member of the conveying device. 11A and 11B are explanatory diagrams of the operation of the pushing member and the elastic member of the conveying device. 3 is a side view of the inside of a modified transport device in region III in FIG. 1 . FIG.

The following describes the embodiments with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiments described below are subject to various technically preferable limitations, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments and illustrated examples.

1. Configuration of the conveying device (1) Overview of the conveying device Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of the conveying device 1. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a surface along the line II-II shown in Fig. 1, seen from the direction of the arrow. Fig. 3 is a side view of the inside of the conveying device 1 in the III region shown in Fig. 1. The direction from left to right in Figs. 1 and 3 is the conveying direction, and the direction from right to left is the rear, which is the opposite direction to the conveying direction. Hereinafter, the conveying direction may also be referred to as the forward direction or forward.

The conveying device 1 is installed adjacent to the packaging machine 100. The conveying device 1 conveys a plurality of items 99 arranged in a row at intervals in the horizontal conveying direction in the conveying direction, and supplies these items 99 one after another to the packaging machine 100. The packaging machine 100 individually packages the items 99 one after another with packaging film 101. The packaging machine 100 is, for example, a pillow packaging machine, a three-side seal packaging machine, or a four-side seal packaging machine. The items 99 are processed foods such as rice crackers or baked goods, but may be items other than processed foods.

The conveying device 1 includes a machine frame 10, conveying plates 11 and 12, top plates 15 and 16, an endless rope body 21, a number of sprockets 22 to 25, a motor 29, a number of pushing members 30, a guide rail 41, a running rail 42, and an elastic member 50.

(2) Machine Frame The machine frame 10 is a structure that serves as the framework of the conveying device 1.

(3) Conveying Plates The conveying plates 11 and 12 shown in Fig. 2 are horizontal strips extending in the conveying direction. The conveying plates 11 and 12 are attached to the machine frame 10 in a state in which they are spaced apart from each other in the horizontal width direction perpendicular to the conveying direction. The gap between the conveying plates 11 and 12 is a slit 13 extending in the conveying direction. The conveying plates 11 and 12 support from below a plurality of articles 99 arranged in a row in the conveying direction. These articles 99 are placed on the conveying plates 11 and 12 in a state in which they straddle the slit 13, and are each pushed forward in the conveying direction by a pushing member 30.

(4) Top Plate The top plates 15 and 16 shown in Fig. 2 are horizontal strips extending in the conveying direction. The top plates 15 and 16 are attached to the machine frame 10 on the conveying plates 11 and 12, respectively, in a state spaced apart from each other in the width direction. The side end faces 15a and 16a of the top plates 15 and 16 face each other with a gap therebetween. The gap between the side end faces 15a and 16a is located above the slit 13, and the gap between the side end faces 15a and 16a is wider than the width of the slit 13. The gap between the side end faces 15a and 16a forms a conveying lane 17 extending in the conveying direction. The side end faces 15a and 16a are side guides that guide the articles 99 on the conveying plates 11 and 12 in the conveying direction on both sides of the articles 99. In FIG. 1, the top plates 15 and 16 are omitted from the illustration so that the article 99 and the pushing member 30 are not hidden by the top plates 15 and 16.

The top plates 15 and 16 are work tables on which a worker spreads out a number of items 99. The worker supplies the items 99 spread out on the top plates 15 and 16 to the transport lane 17. The items 99 supplied to the transport lane 17 are each pushed forward in the direction of travel by the pushing members 30.

(5) Sprockets, endless rope, motor, and guide rail The sprockets 22-25 are attached to the machine frame 10 below the conveying plates 11, 12. Each of the sprockets 22-25 is rotatable while attached to the machine frame 10. The sprocket 22 is attached to the rear of the machine frame 10. The sprocket 23 is located above and in front of the sprocket 22. The sprocket 24 is located at a distance forward from the sprocket 23. The sprocket 24 is also located near the bag former of the packaging machine 100. The sprocket 25 is located below the sprocket 24.

The guide rail 41 is attached to the machine frame 10 below the conveying plates 11 and 12. The guide rail 41 extends horizontally in the conveying direction along the conveying plates 11 and 12 and the slit 13 from the sprocket 23 to the sprocket 24. The guide rail 41 supports the conveying section 21a from the sprocket 23 to the sprocket 24 from below, out of the entire circumference of the endless rope body 21.

The endless rope 21 is an endless roller chain in which multiple links are connected in series and endlessly by multiple connecting pins. The connecting pins are perpendicular to the conveying direction.

The endless rope 21 is hung between sprockets 22 to 25 below the conveying plates 11, 12. The endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a is placed on a guide rail 41 and is guided in the conveying direction along the conveying plates 11, 12 by the guide rail 41. The endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a is provided along the slit 13.
The endless rope 21 may be an endless belt with teeth, an endless belt without teeth, or an endless wire. When the endless rope 21 is an endless belt without teeth or an endless wire, pulleys are used instead of the sprockets 22 to 25.

The motor 29 is connected to the sprocket 25 and drives the sprocket 25. The motor 29 is, for example, a servo motor. The sprocket 25 driven by the motor 29 pulls the endless rope 21. This causes the endless rope 21 to circulate, and the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a travels in the conveying direction.

The installation positions of sprockets 22 and 25 may be changed as long as the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a is arranged along the conveying plates 11 and 12 and the slit 13 by winding the endless rope 21 around sprockets 23 and 24. Also, sprockets 22 and 25 do not have to be provided, and the endless rope 21 may be wound around other sprockets in addition to sprockets 22 to 25. Also, the sprocket driven by the motor 29 is not limited to sprocket 25.

(6) Traveling Rail The traveling rail 42 is attached to the machine frame 10 below the conveying plates 11, 12. The traveling rail 42 is formed integrally with the guide rail 41. The traveling rail 42 is provided in parallel to the guide rail 41. The traveling rail 42 extends horizontally in the conveying direction along the conveying plates 11, 12 and the slit 13 from the sprocket 23 to the sprocket 24.

A notch 42a is formed in the middle of the running rail 42. The notch 42a opens on the upper surface of the running rail 42. The inner surface 42b at the rear end of the notch 42a is perpendicular to the upper surface of the running rail 42 and extends from the upper surface of the running rail 42 to the lower surface of the running rail 42. The rear of the notch 42a continues to the lower surface of the running rail 42, and the bottom 42c at the front of the notch 42a slopes upward toward the front and continues to the upper surface of the running rail 42.

(7) Pushing Member Each of the multiple pushing members 30 is L-shaped. Specifically, each pushing member 30 has a pivot 31 at a corner of the L shape. These pushing members 30 are arranged at regular intervals along the endless rope body 21 and attached to the endless rope body 21. Specifically, the pivots 31 of these pushing members 30 are coaxial with the connecting pins (not shown) of the endless rope body 21 and are connected to the connecting pins, thereby attaching these pushing members 30 to the endless rope body 21. They are attached to the endless rope body 21 at regular intervals. The pushing members 30 are capable of swinging around the pivots 31, which are perpendicular to the conveying direction, relative to the endless rope body 21. The pushing members 30 have a weight 32 on one side of the L shape extending from the corner of the L shape.

The pushing member 30 attached to the endless rope 21 of the conveying section 21a is placed on the running rail 42 with the weight 32 facing backward, which is the opposite direction to the conveying direction, and with the pivot 31 facing in the conveying direction, and is guided in the conveying direction by the running rail 42. The pushing member 30 attached to the endless rope 21 of the conveying section 21a is supported by the running rail 42 from below and is kept upright by the running rail 42. The upright pushing member 30 protrudes upward from the slit 13. In addition, when the pushing member 30 is upright on the running rail 42, the center of gravity of the pushing member 30 including the weight 32 is set rearward of the pivot 31.

When the endless rope 21 circulates, the pushing member 30 rotates. The pushing member 30 attached to the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a travels in the conveying direction on the running rail 42. The pushing member 30 attached to the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a pushes the item 99 in the conveying direction from behind the item 99 with the part protruding from the slit 13.

(8) Elastic Member The elastic member 50 is a rod-shaped member made of a rubber elastic material. The elastic member 50 is provided in a cantilever shape below the conveying plates 11, 12 and above the pivot 31 of the pushing member 30 attached to the endless cord body 21 of the conveying section 21a so as to cross the path of the pushing member 30. The base of the elastic member 50 is a fixed end fixed to the machine frame 10 at the side of the path of the pushing member 30. The elastic member 50 extends from the fixed point of the base to the path of the pushing member 30 below the slit 13. The tip of the elastic member 50 is a free end that is not fixed.

The installation position of the elastic member 50 in the conveying direction is the position of the notch 42a in the conveying direction or in front of and near the notch 42a. The installation position of the elastic member 50 in the conveying direction is a location that is away forward from the inner surface 42b behind the notch 42a. It is preferable that the distance D along the conveying direction from the inner surface 42b behind the notch 42a to the elastic member 50 is equal to the length L of the pushing member 30 along the conveying direction. However, the distance D along the conveying direction from the inner surface 42b behind the notch 42a to the elastic member 50 may be longer than the length L of the pushing member 30 along the conveying direction. The length L of the pushing member 30 along the conveying direction refers to the length from the front end to the rear end of the pushing member 30 in an upright state.

2. Operation of the conveying device When the motor 29 drives the sprocket 25, the endless rope 21 is pulled by the sprocket 25. This causes the endless rope 21 to circulate, and the pushing member 30 to rotate. The pushing member 30 attached to the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a travels in the conveying direction on the traveling rail 42 in an upright position.

When the worker supplies items 99 from above the top plates 15, 16 to the conveying lane 17 while the pushing member 30 is rotating, the items 99 are pushed forward in the conveying direction by the pushing member 30 from behind, and are supplied one after another to the packaging machine 100.

The item 99 supplied to the transport lane 17 may ride up onto the top of the pushing member 30 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 4. The item 99 supplied to the transport lane 17 may also be sandwiched between the pushing member 30 and the side end surface 15a of the top plate 15 in an upright position as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2. The item 99 in this state is transported in a position shifted backward from the normal position, that is, the position in front of the pushing member 30.

With reference to Figures 4 and 5, the operation of the pushing member 30 and the elastic member 50 when the pushing member 30 passes through the notch 42a of the running rail 42 while traveling will be described.

As shown in Fig. 4, when the pushing member 30 reaches above the notch 42a, the pushing member 30 hits the elastic member 50. Then, as shown in Fig. 5, the pushing member 30 tilts backward around the pivot 31 due to the reaction force from the elastic member 50 and gravity, and a part of the pushing member 30 falls into the notch 42a and hits the bottom 42c of the notch 42a. The reason why the pushing member 30 tilts backward in this manner is because the center of gravity of the pushing member 30 is set rearward of the pivot 31.
If the traveling speed of the pushing member 30 is low, the pushing member 30 will incline backward due to gravity even if the pushing member 30 does not receive a reaction force from the elastic member 50 as shown in FIG.

If the article 99 has climbed onto the top of the pushing member 30 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 before the pushing member 30 reaches the notch 42a, the pushing member 30 tilts backward, causing the article 99 to fall from the top of the pushing member 30 onto the conveying plates 11, 12 in front of the pushing member 30 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6. Alternatively, if the article 99 is sandwiched between the pushing member 30 and the side end surface 15a of the top plate 15 in an upright state as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 3 before the pushing member 30 reaches the notch 42a, the pushing member 30 tilts backward, causing the article 99 to fall in front of the pushing member 30 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6. This allows the pushing member 30 to reliably push the article 99 forward.

When the pushing member 30 advances further after tilting backward, the elastic member 50 is pushed by the pushing member 30 and bends in the conveying direction, and then the pushing member 30 pushes the elastic member 50 aside the path of the pushing member 30. Then, the elastic member 50 returns to its original state, so that the next pushing member 30 comes into contact with the elastic member 50.

When the pushing member 30 pushes the elastic member 50 aside from the path, the pushing member 30 climbs onto the running rail 42 from the notch 42a, and the pushing member 30 swings forward with force and returns to an upright state. As the pushing member 30 stands up with force after tilting backward, the article 99 is bounced forward by the pushing member 30, so that the article 99 is reliably placed in front of the pushing member 30. The position of the article 99 pushed forward by the pushing member 30 after standing up is determined based on the correct position, that is, the position of the front of the pushing member 30 in the upright state. Therefore, any misalignment of the article 99 is eliminated.

The pushing member 30 that passes through the notch 42a pushes the item 99 along the conveying plates 11 and 12 toward the packaging machine 100.

3. Advantageous Effects (1) As described above, the conveying device 1 according to the present embodiment includes the conveying plates 11, 12 on which a plurality of articles 99 arranged at intervals in the conveying direction are placed, the running rail 42 extending in the conveying direction below the conveying plates 11, 12, the endless rope 21 that is provided endlessly and has a part of the conveying section extending in the conveying direction below the conveying plates 11, 12 and circulating, and a plurality of pushing members 30 attached to the endless rope 21 at intervals along the endless rope 21 and capable of swinging around an axis perpendicular to the conveying direction. The pushing members 30 attached to the endless rope 21 in the conveying section 21a push the articles 99 in the conveying direction by the circulation of the endless rope 21 while standing on the running rail 42 and protruding above the conveying plates 11, 12. A notch 42a is formed in the middle of the running rail 42 to tilt the pushing member 30 backward in the opposite direction to the conveying direction.
In such a conveying device 1, the pushing member 30 traveling on the traveling rail 42 in the conveying direction by the circulation of the endless rope body 21 falls into the notch 42a and tilts backward when passing through the notch 42a. Therefore, even if the article 99 is conveyed in a state in which it is riding on the pushing member 30, or even if the article 99 is conveyed in a state in which it is sandwiched between the side end surface 15a of the top plate 15 or the side end surface 16a of the top plate 16 and the pushing member 30, the article 99 is placed in front of the pushing member 30 by the backward tilt of the pushing member 30. Thus, the pushing member 30 is able to push the article 99 forward from the rear.
Furthermore, the pushing member 30 that has passed through the notch 42a rides up onto the traveling rail 42, so that the pushing member 30 stands up from its backward tilted state. Therefore, the position of the article 99 is determined based on the correct position, that is, the position of the front surface of the pushing member 30 in the upright state. Thus, the article 99 is supplied to the packaging machine 100 at the correct timing. The packaging machine 100 (specifically, the horizontal seam sealing device) can seal the packaging film 101 without biting the article 99.

(2) In the conveying device 1 according to this embodiment, the center of gravity of the pushing member 30 standing on the running rail 42 is located rearward of the pivot 31. By setting the center of gravity of the pushing member 30 in this manner, the pushing member 30 that reaches the notch 42a tilts backward due to its own weight. Therefore, even if the article 99 is conveyed in a state in which it is riding on the pushing member 30, or even if the article 99 is conveyed in a state in which it is sandwiched between the side end surface 15a of the top plate 15 or the side end surface 16a of the top plate 16 and the pushing member 30, the article 99 is placed in front of the pushing member 30 by the pushing member 30 tilting backward or standing up afterwards.

(3) In the conveying device 1 according to this embodiment, an elastically deformable elastic member 50 is fixed to the side of the path of the pushing member 30, in front of the inner surface 42b behind the notch 42a and above the pivot 31 of the pushing member 30, and the elastic member 50 extends from the fixed point into the path of the pushing member 30. With this conveying device 1, when the pushing member 30 passes through the notch 42a, it hits the elastic member 50 and receives a reaction force from the elastic member 50. Therefore, the pushing member 30 is reliably tilted backward.

(4) In the conveying device 1 according to this embodiment, the inner surface 42b behind the notch 42a rises down from the upper surface of the running rail 42 perpendicular to the upper surface of the running rail 42. Therefore, when the pushing member 30 reaches above the notch 42a, the pushing member 30 tilts backward with force. Therefore, if the article 99 has climbed onto the top of the pushing member 30, the article 99 falls in front of the pushing member 30 because it is difficult for the pushing member 30 to follow the backward tilting motion of the pushing member 30. Therefore, the pushing member 30 is able to push the article 99 forward from behind it.

(5) In the conveying device 1 according to this embodiment, the front bottom 42c of the notch 42a slopes upward toward the front and continues to the upper surface of the running rail 42, so that the rearwardly tilted pushing member 30 can easily climb up from the notch 42a onto the upper surface of the running rail 42.

4. Modification (1) In the above-described embodiment, one notch 42a is formed in the traveling rail 42. Alternatively, multiple notches 42a may be formed in the traveling rail 42 at intervals in the conveying direction. In this case, the pushing member 30 tilts backward multiple times while it travels from the sprocket 23 to the sprocket 24. In this case, multiple elastic members 50 are provided corresponding to the multiple notches 42a, respectively.

(2) The position where the notch 42a is provided may be near the bag maker of the packaging machine 100. If the notch 42a is near the bag maker of the packaging machine 100, there is a small probability that the object 99 that passes through the notch 42a will ride up onto the top of the pushing member 30. However, if the notch 42a is too close to the bag maker of the packaging machine 100, when the rearwardly tilted pushing member 30 stands up, the object 99 will be bounced off by the pushing member 30 into the bag maker of the packaging machine 100. To prevent this, even if the notch 42a is near the bag maker of the packaging machine 100, there is a distance between the notch 42a and the bag maker that allows the standing pushing member 30 to push the object 99 into the bag maker.

(3) The elastic member 50 may be a coil spring or a leaf spring.

(4) As shown in FIG. 7, a protrusion 35 may be provided on the front surface of the pushing member 30 below the upper surface of the conveying plates 11, 12. When such a protrusion 35 is provided, the protrusion 35 enters the slit 13 from below the conveying plates 11, 12 when the pushing member 30 tilts backward. Therefore, even if an item 99 is conveyed in a state where it is partially inserted into the slit 13, the item 99 is scraped out onto the conveying plates 11, 12 by the protrusion 35. Note that even if the pushing member 30 tilts backward, the protrusion 35 does not protrude above the upper surface of the conveying plates 11, 12.

(5) The elastic member 50 is not a required component. For example, if the traveling speed of the pushing member 30 is low, the conveying device 1 does not need to be provided with the elastic member 50.

Reference Signs List 1: conveying device 11, 12: conveying plate 21: endless rope body 21a: conveying section 30: pushing member 31: pivot 42: traveling rail 42a: notch 50: elastic member

Claims (4)

A conveying plate on which a plurality of articles are placed and arranged at intervals in a conveying direction;
a running rail extending in the conveying direction below the conveying plate;
an endless rope body that is endlessly provided and has a conveying section that extends in the conveying direction below the conveying plate and circulates;
a plurality of pushing members attached to the endless rope at intervals along the endless rope and swingable about an axis perpendicular to the conveying direction;
The pushing member attached to the endless rope in the conveying section pushes the article in the conveying direction by circulating the endless rope while standing on the traveling rail and protruding above the conveying plate,
At least one notch is formed in the middle of the traveling rail for tilting the pushing member backward in the opposite direction to the conveying direction ,
The bottom of the front part of the notch of the running rail is inclined upward toward the front and continues to the upper surface of the running rail.
Conveying device. The conveying device according to claim 1 , wherein the center of gravity of the pushing member standing on the traveling rail is set rearward of the shaft in a direction opposite to the conveying direction. 3. The conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the pushing member drops into the notch when passing through the notch and tilts backward in the opposite direction to the conveying direction. 4. The conveying device according to claim 1, further comprising at least one elastic member that is fixed to the side of the path of the pushing member forward from the rear end of the notch in the conveying direction and above the axis, and that extends from the fixed point into the path of the pushing member.

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