JPS6340735B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an automatic conveyance device for articles, and more specifically, the present invention relates to an automatic conveyance device for articles, and more specifically, the present invention relates to an automatic conveyance device for articles, and more specifically, the present invention relates to an automatic conveyance device for articles. For example, in the process of transporting multiple articles, foods, medicines, and other products that can be handled individually, stacked vertically as a group, the upper product is adsorbed to the required stacking position of the lower product and transferred. The present invention relates to an adsorption device.

(Prior art and problems) In general, in this type of conveying device, the product placed in a predetermined position in the conveying path is continuously transferred by the corresponding conveyor on the conveyor that is operated under automatic operation of the machine. During the process, the products are pushed forward from the conveyance path toward the target packaging line while being pushed out in a backward state.However, with conventional conveyance equipment, it is not possible to align the products during the conveyance process, and it is difficult to adjust the state and posture at the time of loading. I was still being transported.

For this reason, if there is an odd number of products stacked together as a group unit, or if the products are of different sizes, it is difficult to determine the stacking position of the upper product in relation to the lower product, so it is difficult to determine the stacking position of the upper product in relation to the lower product. On the other hand, when the upper product W2 is placed in the front or rear position, the product group is
As shown in Fig. 7a and b, the products are transported to the packaging line section by the sending device of the conveyor, and as a result, the product group remains in that state and is not subjected to packaging action (in the case of bundling) at the packaging line section. As illustrated by the broken line in the figure, the materials are packaged together in a packaging bag P made of a single band-shaped packaging sheet, or tied together with a string Y or the like.

In such a group of products to be packaged, the packaging and bundling are performed without determining the position of the upper product W2 relative to the lower product W1, resulting in a poor appearance as a packaged product. Particularly in the case shown in Fig. 7a, the upper product W2 tends to constantly move within the packaging bag P, making the packaging state unstable, leading to unforeseen situations such as the product losing its shape or being damaged depending on the contents of the product. Significant loss of value. In addition, in the case of Figure b, the detection and setting on the packaging line side is extremely difficult due to the problem of where to tie the upper product W2 with respect to the lower product W1, and bundling errors may occur. There were major problems such as how easy it was.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention has been made to solve the problems with the conventional devices described above, and eliminates the need for human intervention in the transportation process prior to packaging the product group. The automatic alignment operation ensures that the upper products are attracted and stacked in the center of the lower products, and the entire product group is aligned, making it possible for the product group to look good on the target packaging line. The purpose is to provide a suction device for an automatic conveyance device that can be packaged neatly and the suction/release position of the upper product can be adjusted depending on the product. Short-shaped occlusion plates are attached adjacently between the endless bands of the series, and sealing plates are tightly attached between the occlusion plates, and a suction device is removably attached to the occlusion plates, The intake groove of the intake dog is provided with an intake groove that opens along the carrier side of the endless band and has an adjustment dog attached to the carrier end side to adjust the expansion and contraction of the intake groove. is connected to an intake device, and the intake groove of the intake dog is rotatably provided to close the intake groove of the intake dog with the closing plate on the carrier side of the rotating process of the endless band, and the intake groove is adjusted by the adjustment dog to cause the suction. The invention resides in a suction device that is provided so that the release position of the upper product of the product group by the tool can be changed.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The conveyance device in this example is applied to a conventionally known horizontal pillow packaging machine that forms a band-shaped packaging film into a tube shape, wraps the product, and then wraps it in the shape of a pillow bag. A transport section A is installed horizontally on the machine body 1 which is fixedly held on the floor FL by bolt-shaped leg rods 2, a push-up section B is installed inside the machine body 1, and a suction device C is installed in the center of the transport section A. It is composed of.

First, the transport section A side will be explained. Reference numeral 3 denotes left and right transport frames having an L-shaped cross section and installed horizontally in the front-rear direction (horizontal direction in FIG. 1) with respect to the upper part of the machine body 1, and the upper plate portions thereof have guide grooves for the later-described delivery tool 10. 4 is formed. A conveyance path 6 is formed by laying left and right conveyance rails 5,5 facing each other on the upper plate portion of each frame 3,3. This conveyance path 6 is aligned on the same line as an extension of the packaging conveyance path of the packaging machine, and the left side in the figure is the input section for products. In addition, in this feeding section, rubber positioning pieces 7, 7 may be arranged inside the upper plate part of each transport frame 3, 3 as shown in FIG. 2, if necessary.
Moreover, the conveyance path 6 can adjust the opening interval to be wide or narrow by making the conveyance frame 3 and the conveyance rail 5 on each side movable from side to side in FIG. 3.

Reference numeral 8 denotes a constant speed conveyor installed along the longitudinal direction within the conveyor frames 3, 3, and its chain 9
An appropriate number of delivery tools 10 are arranged at appropriate intervals. Although this conveyor 8 is not shown, its main shaft side is connected to the drive section of the transport conveyor in the packaging machine and is operated in synchronization with the transport conveyor side, and in the process of continuously moving at a constant low speed in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure Locking piece 10 of the relevant delivery tool 10
a is made to protrude from the guide groove 4 to the center of the conveyance path 6 to advance the product in a backward state. It is assumed that each delivery tool 10 is detachably attached to the connecting bracket 10b using its locking piece 10a as an attachment depending on the type, size, etc. of the product, and the locking piece 10a is not shown in the drawings. For example, a plate-shaped one or a U-shaped bucket-shaped one can be prepared and replaced as necessary.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a guide rail installed horizontally on the tension side of the chain 9, which connects the connecting bracket 10 of each delivery tool 10.
b is slidably guided to stabilize the conveyance posture of the product group together with the delivery tool 10. Reference numeral 12 denotes a sorting device installed on the input section side in the middle of the conveyance path 6, which is attached to a support rod 13 and whose lower part protrudes into the conveyance path 6. A sorting device 12 is arranged in the form of a hanging curtain made of soft rubber, and the product groups are sorted. The products in the upper row are aligned at their rear ends with respect to the products in the lower row. In addition, regarding product groups, the lower row 2 is an example of bagged foods of the same size.
One group consists of an odd number of two-stage states, including one in the upper row and one in the upper row.

Next, the push-up part B side with respect to the product group will be explained. Reference numeral 15 denotes a driving main shaft supported within the body 1, which is appropriately connected to the driving section side of the packaging machine and rotated at the same speed as the main shaft side of the constant speed feed conveyor 8, although not shown. Reference numeral 17 denotes a camshaft supported within the body 1, which is connected to the drive main shaft 15 via chain wheels 16, 18 and a chain 19 having the same diameter, and is rotated in synchronization with the moving speed of the delivery tool 10. There is one cam top 20 at the end of the shaft.
A push-up cam 20 having a shape a is attached in a detachable and replaceable manner. 21 indicates a tension roller.

An elevating body 22 is provided for the above-mentioned push-up cam 20. This elevating body 22 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in the figure, the rollers 23, 23 arranged on the left and right plates 22a, 22a are fitted into the left and right guide support rails 24, 24 vertically installed inside the machine body 1, and are supported in an upright state, and are supported by springs 25. The support plate 22a is held so as to be movable up and down under downward force, and a follower 27 that makes rolling contact with the push-up cam 20 is pivotally attached to a bracket 26 at the lower end of one support plate 22a. This elevating body 22 is moved up and down for each rotation of the push-up cam 20 at a constant speed, and is normally held at the lowest position. 20a, it is set to be instantaneously raised to a predetermined position via a follower 27, and then lowered.

At the upper end of the elevating body 22, there is a push-up plate 2 for the product.
8 and 28 are removably mounted so as to face each other so as to narrow the delivery tool 10 that transfers the tension side of the constant speed feed conveyor 8. Before operation, the lifting plates 28, 28 are in a state in which hook-shaped lifting parts 28a, 28a formed at their upper ends are exposed to a lower position than the guide groove 4 of the transport frame 3 (also referred to as a pre-lifting state). ), but during operation, the lifting section 2 is moved at a timing when the group of products transferred by the sending tool 10 is transferred to a part corresponding to a predetermined position (also referred to as a lifting position).
8a and 28a are set to lift the product group to an intermediate position within the conveyance path 6.

Next, the adsorption device C side with respect to the product will be explained. Reference numeral 29 denotes left and right frame plates having a horizontal rectangular shape, which are erected on the central portions of the transport frames 3 so as to face each other via bolts 30, and between the two frame plates 29, an air intake mechanism and a suction fast feed mechanism are installed. It has a built-in mechanism.

First, regarding the intake mechanism side, both frame plates 29, 29
An intake dock 32 made of synthetic resin and having a horizontal rectangular plate shape is suspended from brackets 31, 31 in the center between the two. As shown in FIG. 4, this dog 32 is always biased downward by a bolt-shaped support rod 33 and a spring 34 to be held stably in a horizontal state, and is also raised and lowered to buffer and absorb external forces. An intake groove 35 is recessed in the longitudinal direction of the lower surface along the conveyance path 6, and an intake groove 35 is provided inside the aircraft body 1 through an intake pipe 36. It is connected to a blower 37 installed at the bottom of the.

38 is fitted into a guide elongated hole 39 formed in the longitudinal direction of the intake dog 32, and is inserted into the elongated hole 40A and the bolt 4.
The adjustment dog 38 is movably assembled via the 0B and the plate 41, and the adjustment valve portion 38a of the dog 38 is sealed and fitted within one end portion of the intake groove 35 so that the position thereof can be adjusted. This adjustment dog 3
8, the length of the intake groove 35, in other words, the movement distance from the suction start position to the suction end position of the product suction tool 56, which will be described later, can be changed and adjusted depending on the target product group. In addition, the above blower 3
7 is provided with suitable drive means.

On the other hand, regarding the suction fast-forwarding mechanism side, the frame plate 2
Main shaft 43 and slave shaft 4 supported at both ends of 9 and 29
Two transfer chains 4 between each chain wheel 44, 46 of 5
7 and 47 are positioned and hung on both outside sides of the intake dog 32 to form a rapid feed conveyor 42. This conveyor 42 is connected by a transmission chain 50 suspended between a chain wheel 49 on a main shaft 43 and a large chain wheel 48 on the drive main shaft 15, and the number of teeth of both chain wheels 48, 49 is It is designed to be continuously moved at an appropriate high speed by the constant speed conveyor 8 according to the ratio. Reference numeral 51 indicates a guide rail provided opposite to the tension side of the chain 47 in each row, and reference numerals 52 and 52 indicate tension rollers.

As a means for sealing the lower surface of the opening of the intake groove 35 of the intake dog 32, a conveyor belt is moved between the chains 47, 47 of the above-mentioned rapid feed conveyor 42 in close contact with the lower surface of the intake dog 32, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. A large number of rectangular metal closing plates 53, 53 are adjacent to each other and connected to the corresponding chain element with screws, and a large number of rectangular metal closing plates 53 are connected between adjacent portions of each of the closing plates 53. rubber sealing plate 5
4 and 54 are attached in close contact. Each sealing plate 54 has one side edge attached to the corresponding closing plate 53 with screws via the seat plate 55, and the other side edge 54a has a moderate degree of freedom. A good close contact condition is always maintained even when there is a slight fluctuation in the vertical direction. The sealing means may be a single rubber sheet or a series of bendable synthetic resin sheets.

Closing plate 53 at a required position in the above-mentioned sealing means
A rubber suction tool 56 is removably attached through a communication pipe 57. As can be seen from FIG. 4, this suction tool 56 is set to communicate with the left end and right end of the intake groove 35 as the suction start and suction end positions during the operation process of the rapid conveyor 42. The opening 56a at the lower end is formed into a bellows shape so that it can be properly suctioned and held despite vertical fluctuations of the product itself or changes in the thickness of the product. Note that the suction start position of the suction tool 56 is set to approximately the same position as the lifting position of the push-up member.

In the conveyance device of this example configured as described above, the conveyor side of the packaging machine, the constant speed conveyor 8 of the conveyance section A, and the rapid conveyor 42 of the adsorption device C are each continuously operated by the switch operation. Under this condition, the input timing (time) of the product group W is set to a predetermined time period until each of the delivery tools 10 of the constant speed feed conveyor 8 reaches the input part position of the conveyance path 6, and during this time By using the positioning pieces 7, 7 as necessary, the product group can be safely loaded into the conveyance path 6 without causing a delay in loading.

In this embodiment, the product group W introduced into the conveyance path 6 is conveyed with the lower product W1 being directly pushed by the locking piece 10a of the corresponding delivery tool 10 of the constant speed conveyor 8. When the product W2 is fed forward through the channel 6 and passes through the organizer 12, the upper product W2 is hooked to the lower edge of the aligning plate 14 and is temporarily stopped from advancing relative to the product W1. As shown in Figure 6 a, both products W1 and W2 are attached to the locking piece 1.
The alignment plate 14 is pushed open in a state where the rear ends are aligned with each other (also referred to as preliminary alignment) by abutting on 0a, and the alignment plate 14 is moved forward in a stable posture in an orderly manner. However, for this product group W, if the positioning pieces 7 are used to input the products in a preliminary alignment state, the organizer 12 is not necessary. Therefore, in implementation, either the positioning piece 7 or the organizer 12 may be used. In addition, in the forward feeding state of the product group W, the deviation between the center positions of the lower product W1 with length L1 in the conveying direction and the upper product W2 with length L2 is expressed as S. It is shown in Figure b. However, L1/2=
Assume that L2, S=L1/4.

In addition, regarding the product group forwarding operation in conveyance section A,
In the push-up portion B, the camshaft 1 is
7 is being rotated at a constant speed, the elevating body 22 and the push-up plate 20 are still in the state before being pushed up, and in the suction device C, the suction mechanism side has already started the suction operation, but the suction fast-forwarding mechanism side Under the continuous operation of the front rapid conveyor 42, the suction tool 56 is moving toward the suction start position.

Then, when the product group W in the pre-aligned state together with the delivery tool 10 reaches a predetermined position on the conveyance path 6, at the timing, the push-up section B moves the cam top of the push-up cam 20 of the cam shaft 17. The push-up plate 28 together with the elevating body 22 responds to the displacement of 20a.
It instantaneously moves up and down to a predetermined position within the conveyance path 6, lifts up the entire product group W moving at a constant speed within the conveyance path 6 with its lifting portion 28a, and immediately descends.

On the other hand, in the suction device C, as the rapid conveyor 42 moves, the suction tool 56 moves to the suction start position for the suction groove 35 of the suction dog 32, and directs its opening 56a toward the product group W side. There is. (See FIG. 4) Due to the cooperative operation of both parts B and C, the upper product W2 of the product group W is pushed up at the push-up position of the conveyance path 6 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6c. While the lower product W1 is pushed up by the lifting plate 28 and held by suction at the opening 56a of the suction tool 56, the lower product W1 is returned to the conveyance path 6 by the lowering of the lifting plate 28. The pushing up and suction operation of such product groups is carried out by the transport section A.
This is carried out while the constant speed feeding operation continues on the side, and after that, as shown in FIG.
In contrast, the upper product W2 is continuously transported at a high speed of V2 while being held by the suction tool 56 as the rapid conveyor 42 operates.

Then, in the process of conveying the two products W1 and W2 at different speeds, the lower product W1 moves away from the lifting position (adsorption start position) within a predetermined time as shown in FIG. 6e.
In contrast to the S1 minute advance, the upper product W2 is
As the suction tool 56 moves to the suction end position with respect to the intake groove 35, it is moved forward by S2 minutes, and is moved forward by a distance S' that is almost the same as the deviation S described above (although strictly speaking, it is preferable that S'>S, although it is slightly . ) minutes. Immediately after that, the suction tool 5
As soon as the product W2 moves to the non-intake position with respect to the intake dog 32 (the position where the communication pipe 57 and the intake groove 35 are not connected), the upper product W2 is released from the suction tool 56 and is moved forward at a constant speed as shown in FIG. 6f. It is dropped onto the center of the lower product W1 inside. As a result, product group W is
The conveyance path 6 is maintained in the fully aligned state in which both products exhibit the required stacked state in which they are accurately aligned at their center positions.
From there, it is quickly conveyed to the packaging line side of the packaging machine, which is operated at the same speed as the constant-speed conveyor 8.

The product group thus aligned and conveyed by the suction device C of this example is then packaged by the packaging operation on the packaging line side, and the packaging state is as shown in Figure 6g. is in one packaging bag P, and the upper product W is placed in the center of the lower product W1.
2 are neatly packaged together in a fully aligned state where they are left still.

(Effects of the Invention) The present invention includes a conveyance unit equipped with a constant-speed conveyor that forwards a group of products in which a plurality of products are stacked vertically in a conveyance path with their rear ends aligned using appropriate conveyance tools; a push-up part that pushes up the product group upwards by an elevating body that is disposed below a predetermined position of the conveyance path and can be raised and lowered toward the conveyance path by an appropriate lifting means; and a suction device equipped with suction means that sucks and releases the upper products of the product group during the process of being moved at an appropriate high speed from the constant-speed feed conveyor. Short occluding plates are attached adjacently between the two series of endless bands rotatably hung between them, and sealing plates are tightly attached between the occluding plates, and the occluding plates are The suction device is removably attached, and an intake dog has an intake groove that opens along the carrier side of the endless band, and an adjustment dog is attached to the carrier end side to seal the intake groove so that it can be expanded and contracted. The intake groove of the intake dog is arranged to be connected to the intake device, and the intake groove of the intake dog is rotatably closed by a closing plate on the carrier side of the rotating process of the endless band, and the adjustment dog is connected to the intake device. By adjusting the intake groove, the release position of the upper products of the product group by the suction tool can be changed, so that an odd number of products or a group of different lengths and short products can be released, with the upper and lower products at the rear end. In the process of forward feeding on a constant speed feed conveyor in a state where they are aligned,
The automatic alignment action based on a series of suction, rapid feeding, and release operations of the suction member, which is moved at an appropriate high speed from the conveyor, quickly reloads the products in the upper tier to the center of the products in the lower tier, without requiring any human intervention. The entire group can be matched to the required state, and
By adjusting the position of the adjustment dog, it is possible to handle products of different lengths and short lengths, increasing its versatility.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, in which Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of the conveyance device of this embodiment, Fig. 2 is a plan view of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a cross-section taken along the line - in Fig. 1. Figure 4 is a side sectional view showing the pushing up and suction parts for the product group, Figure 5 is a bottom view based on the - line in Figure 4, Figure 6 is a, b, c, d, e, f, g
7A and 7B are explanatory diagrams illustrating the conveyance state of a product group by the present embodiment apparatus in the order of each process step, and FIGS. 7a and 7b are explanatory diagrams illustrating the conveyance condition of a product group by the conventional apparatus. 32...Intake dog, 35...Intake groove, 37...
... Blower (intake device), 42 ... Rapid feed conveyor, 38 ... Adjustment dog, 43 ... Main shaft, 45
...Slave shaft, 47...Chain (endless band), 53...
...Closure plate, 54... Sealing plate, 56... Adsorption tool, W
...Product group, W1...Lower product, W2...Upper product, C...Adsorption device.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A conveyance unit equipped with a constant speed conveyor that forwards a product group in which a plurality of products are stacked up and down in a conveyance path with their rear ends aligned with each other by an appropriate conveyance device, and a conveyor disposed at a predetermined position below the conveyance path. a push-up part that pushes up the product group upwards by an elevating body that is provided so as to be movable up and down toward the conveyance path by an appropriate elevating means; In an automatic conveyance device comprising a suction device equipped with suction means that performs suction and release operations for the upper products of the product group while being moved at an appropriate high speed from a feed conveyor, the suction device is rotatably hung between two axes. A short blockage plate is attached adjacently between the two endless bands, and a sealing plate is tightly attached between the blockage plates, and a suction device is removably attached to the blockage plate. , an intake dog having an intake groove opening along the carrier side of the endless band and having an adjustment dog attached to the carrier end side for sealing the intake groove so as to be expandable and retractable; The groove is connected to the intake device, and the intake groove of the intake dog is rotatably provided to be closed by the closing plate on the carrier side of the rotating process of the endless band, and the intake groove is adjusted by the adjustment dog. A suction device characterized in that the position at which the upper products of the product group are released by the suction tool can be changed.