JPH0755701B2 - Device for taking out containers in boxes - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a container take-out device that takes out a container inserted in a packaging box and supplies it to an automated line or the like with accuracy, and particularly, inserts it in an inverted state in the packaging box. The present invention relates to a device for taking out a container in a box which is suitable for taking out the stored container.

(Prior Art) The empty container supplied to the finishing process of cosmetics, chemicals, etc. is an inverted container in order to prevent dust and other foreign matter from entering the empty container until the subsequent filling process. Etc. and is supplied from the container manufacturer.

Then, in this cardboard, a partition plate for partitioning the containers is provided to align the containers in order to prevent damage caused by contact between the inserted containers and to facilitate automation of removal.

Generally, in the automatic take-out of containers arranged by a partition plate, when the containers are inserted in an upright state, a chuck system is adopted in which a small-diameter portion of the container mouth is held by a chuck and taken out.

However, when the container is inserted into the corrugated cardboard in an inverted state as described above, the chuck method cannot be adopted because there is no space for inserting the chuck between the containers. Therefore, a suction extraction method is adopted in which the bottom surface of the container is suction-held. In the conventional suction extraction method, the container is taken out only by the suction head. Further, in this case, a plurality of suction heads are fixedly provided on a frame that moves up and down so that a plurality of containers can be taken out at the same time, and the removal processing capacity is improved.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, even though the containers in the corrugated board are arranged by the partition plate, the inner size of the partition plate is made to have some margin, so that the inserted container containers are The intervals are not constant. For this reason, when the container is taken out from the container box only by the suction method, the center of the container is not necessarily sucked, so that the container cannot be accurately placed at the predetermined position of the transfer destination. Further, when the container is conveyed only by suction, it must be conveyed at a slow speed in order to prevent the container from falling during the conveyance. Therefore, there is a drawback that the processing capacity is low.

Also, in order to increase the processing capacity, when multiple suction heads were provided, the suction heads were fixedly attached to the ascending / descending frame, so if the container dimensions or the arrangement in the cardboard box were changed, According to the adjustment of the suction head mounting pitch,
Or, the entire suction head had to be replaced.
Further, as described above, when a plurality of suction heads are fixedly attached to the frame body, when the insertion pitch interval of the container in the corrugated board and the mounting pitch interval at the transfer destination of the container are different,
It was not possible to place it correspondingly. For this reason, when the container is placed on a tray or the like having a pitch interval different from the cardboard insertion pitch, it is necessary to temporarily remove the container from the cardboard and then adjust the container interval by another means.

Moreover, in this case, since the pitch of inserting the container into the corrugated board is adjusted to the size of the container, the pitch is different depending on the size of the container, but the tray is used in an automatic machine at the place of loading, for example, a filling line. The pitch interval for placing the upper container is set to a size interval that matches the nozzle pitch of the filling lie.

For this reason, there are many cases in which the pitch intervals of the two are different, and in the conventional device, it was necessary to take out the container and adjust the pitch to the tray.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and even if the insertion pitch interval in the box of the container and the placement pitch interval at the transfer destination are different, the pick-and-place operation is performed once. In addition, after the bottom surface of the container is sucked, the body is held by a chuck and centered, so that the container can be placed with high accuracy and can be conveyed to a predetermined position at high speed. To aim.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, a device for taking out a container in a box according to the present invention is provided with a mount movably supported by a support means and a mount below the mount. An adsorption head for adsorbing the bottom surface of the container is provided at the tip, and an adsorption means for elevating and lowering the adsorption head and a clamp portion are provided within the elevating and lowering operation range of the adsorption head and directed toward the central axis of the adsorption head. And a chuck that holds the body of the container.

And, the device for taking out the container in the box provided with a plurality of container gripping means, a frame body movably supported by the supporting means,
At least two units are provided to face the frame body, one is a fixed mount and the other is a movable mount, and a space adjusting means for adjusting the horizontal space between the frame and the frame is vertically installed. A container holding means, the container holding means having a suction head for sucking the bottom surface of the container, the suction means for moving the suction head up and down, and the suction head provided in the lifting operation range of the suction head. And a chuck that holds the body of the container toward the central axis of the container.

(Operation) According to the device for taking out a container in a box according to the first aspect of the present invention, after moving the device directly above the container, the suction head is lowered by the suction means to suck the bottom surface of the container, and after sucking the container. Then, the suction means raises a predetermined stroke amount, and the container is pulled out from the box. Then, after that, the body of the container is held by a chuck, and the container is clamped from both sides. As a result, even if the suction position of the suction head deviates from the center of the container, the container can be corrected on the central axis of the suction head, and therefore the container can be accurately placed on a predetermined transfer location.

Further, in the device according to the second aspect of the present invention in which the present device has a plurality of suction heads, first, each container gripping means is adjusted to the alignment interval of the containers in the box by the interval adjusting means, and then each elevating means is lowered to move each of them. Adsorb the bottom of the container. After suctioning the containers, the suction head is pulled out by a predetermined stroke as described above, and the body of each container is held by the chuck. Then, while transporting the entire apparatus to a predetermined transfer position, each container gripping means is adjusted to the tray pitch of the mounting destination, and then the container is unloaded onto the tray. As a result, even if the pick-up pitch interval of the container and the pitch interval for placing the container on the tray are different, it is possible to deal with them in a single process, and the container can be centered by the chuck at high speed and with high transfer accuracy. Can be taken out.

(Embodiment) An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a container take-out device having three container gripping means, and (1) is a frame body movably supported by the supporting means,
A space adjusting means and a container holding means, which will be described below, are attached to the frame body (1). A robot described later may be used as this supporting means, but a corrugated box in which the container is housed and a tray to which the container is transferred are traversed above and move up and down at each position. Any mobile device will do.

Reference numeral (2) is a space adjusting means fixed below the frame body for adjusting a horizontal space between the container holding means (4) described later, and the space adjusting means (2) is a mount (3) for mounting the container holding means. ) And an air cylinder (not shown) for adjusting the horizontal gap between the mounting base (3) and the mounting base (3).

When an air cylinder is used as the drive means for adjusting the gap, stoppers (not shown) are provided so as to stop at desired positions when the air cylinder extends and contracts. Also, as another method,
When a pulse motor is used, the above-mentioned stopper is not required, and fine interval control can be performed by outputting the pulse value. In this embodiment, since the container holding means (4) is composed of three pieces, the central container holding means (4) is fixed below the space adjusting means (2), and the other container holding means (4) is fixed. The container gripping means (4) provided on the left and right sides are movable and are fixedly mounted on the mounting base (3) provided at the end of the telescopic rod of the air cylinder. The container holding means is used as a center for appropriate adjustment.

(4) is a container holding means that is fixed below the mounting table and that holds the container (B) by suction and then clamps the body of the container (13). The container holding means comprises a suction means (6) and a chuck (5). Composed.

The suction means (6) is a lifting cylinder (8) vertically installed at the center of the mounting base (3), and the lifting cylinder (8).
And a suction head (7) provided at the tip of the telescopic rod (9). The suction head (7) is connected to a known vacuum means (not shown).

The chuck (5) clamps the container (B) after suction, and includes a gripping cylinder (12) fixed below the mounting base (3) and lateral expansion and contraction of the gripping cylinder (12). The grip plate (11) is attached to the tip of the rod, and the grip plate (11) has a substantially L shape in which a V-shaped clamp portion (10) for gripping the container (B) is horizontally provided inside. It has a shape.

A cushioning material such as rubber is adhered to the V-shaped surface of the clamp part (10) so that the surface of the container (B) is not scratched during clamping. Further, since the clamp part (10) is V-shaped, the container (B) is centered when the chuck (5) is clamped even if the suction head (7) shifts the center of the container (B) and sucks. It can be done. The container take-out device is configured as described above.

Next, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of an entire system using this container take-out device as an actual bottle supply device. As a supporting means, a horizontal articulated general-purpose robot (1
5) is used.

This robot (15) has a horizontal rotation (arrow a) of the first arm (15a), a horizontal rotation b (arrow b) of the second arm (15b), and a telescopic movement (arrow c) of the robot arm (15c). , And the flange (15d) fixed to the tip of the robot arm (15c) can be horizontally rotated (arrow d). Then, the container take-out device described above is attached to the surface of the end flange (15d) of the arm (15c) of the robot (15).

This bottle supply device includes a carrier means (17) for carrying a container (B) housed in a cardboard box (16) in an inverted state to a predetermined position, and a cardboard box (16) carried to a predetermined position.
A robot (15) for taking out the inner container (B), and an operating range of the robot (15), the cardboard box (1)
And a mounting table (18) on which the container (B) taken out from 6) is mounted.

The carrying means (17) is a roller conveyor (19) for carrying the corrugated cardboard box (16), and a stopper for projecting and retracting between the rollers of the roller conveyor (19) to stop the corrugated board box (16) at a predetermined position. (23), a side surface positioning plate (21) of the cardboard box (16), and a positioning cylinder (22) for pressing the cardboard box (16) reaching the stopper (23) against the side surface positioning plate (21).

A tray (24) is placed on the upper surface of the placing table (18) to circulate on the endless conveyor to perform a certain process. The tray (24) is provided with V-shaped blocks for holding the body of the container (B) from both sides at regular intervals, so that the tray (24) can face any size of the container (B). V-shaped block (2
The interval of 3) is adjustable.

The operation of the apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5.

In FIG. 3, the state where the robot arm (15c) is right above the container (B) group to be taken out will be described. In this state, the suction head (7) is raised,
It fits in the pocket of the chuck (5). Further, the interval adjusting means (2) is in an off state, and the interval between the suction heads is set by a stopper (not shown) so as to match the alignment interval of the containers (B) in the cardboard box (16). Has been done.
Further, the chuck (5) is in an open state.

First, the lifting cylinder (8) and vacuum valve (not shown)
Is driven. When the elevating cylinder (8) is driven, the telescopic rod (9) extends downward, and when the suction head (7) attached to the tip thereof reaches the bottom surface of the container, it sucks the bottom surface of the container (Fig. 3A). When the adsorption of the container (B) is detected by the pressure sensor (not shown) provided between the adsorption head (7) and the vacuum valve, from atmospheric pressure to vacuum pressure, the lifting cylinder (8). Is turned off, and the container (B) is extracted from the cardboard box (16) by a predetermined stroke (FIG. 3B). In this embodiment, 30 mm is extracted, but this stroke amount should be such that a part of the bottom surface of the container (B) can be extracted from the corrugated cardboard (16) and the chuck (5) can clamp the body of the container (B). Good.

And the telescopic rod (9) of the lifting cylinder (8)
When it reaches a predetermined position, after confirming this with a limit switch (not shown), the grip cylinder (12) is turned off, and the clamp part (10) of the chuck (5) is directed toward the central axis of the suction head (7). The container body (B) sucked by the suction head (7) is clamped from both sides.

In this case, even if the suction position on the bottom surface of the container is slightly deviated from the center, since the clamp portion (10) of the chuck (5) has a V-shape, it is brought close to the center of the V groove of the clamp portion (10). At the same time, the clamp part (10) is attached to the suction head (7).
Since the body part of the container (B) is clamped toward the central axis of (3), it is entirely centered (Fig. 3c).

This state is shown in FIG.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the left and right chucks (5) have the same amount of movement in the holding direction, and the clamp portion (10) of the chuck (5) has a V-shape, so that when the container (B) is adsorbed. Even if there is a deviation (two-dot chain line), the deviation can be corrected (as indicated by the solid line) by the centripetal action when gripping the body of the container (B). Next, the robot arm (15c) is raised to completely remove the container (B) from the corrugated cardboard box (A), and then the container (B) of the tray (24) on the mounting table (18), which is the next step, is removed. In order to adjust to the mounting pitch, the space adjusting means (2) is driven, the movable side mounting base (3) is extended to a stopper (not shown) provided in advance at a position corresponding to the mounting pitch, and each container is gripped. Adjust the spacing of the means (4). The subsequent operation will be described with reference to FIG.

In the figure, first, when the robot arm (15c) that has adsorbed three containers (B) is transported to directly above the tray (24), the entire robot arm (15c) is lowered and the container (B) is moved.
Are inserted between the V blocks (23) provided facing each other (Fig. 5D).

Then, when the robot arm (15c) descends to a predetermined position, the arrival signal is sent to the tray (24) on the mounting table, the V block (23) is projected inward, and the robot arm (15c) sucks it. The holding container (B) is clamped (Fig. 5E).

Then, the V block (23) sends a signal indicating that the container (B) has been clamped to the controller (not shown) of the robot (15), and the robot controller sends a signal to the container take-out device, and the vacuum valve Open the vacuum suction of the suction head (7) and open the chuck (5) to release the container (B) from the clamp.

Next, the robot arm (15c) is lifted, and the robot arm (15c) is swung up right above the container (B) to be taken out next.

After that, the above-mentioned operation is repeated, and the cardboard box (16)
Transfer all the containers (B) inside to the tray (24).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the device capable of taking out three containers at the same time has been described. However, if the processing capacity permits, this device is provided only by the container gripping means without providing the space adjusting means for adjusting the space between the containers. Can also be configured. As a result, the mechanism of the device can be simplified and the weight can be reduced.

Also, in the embodiment, the chuck is fixed to move vertically, and the suction means is moved up and down. However, the invention is not limited to this, and the suction means is fixed and the chuck grip plate moves up and down. It may be configured to be possible.

(Effects of the Invention) As described in detail above, in the present invention, after the container in the box is sucked by the suction head, the lifting cylinder pulls out a predetermined stroke amount and the chuck holds the body of the container, so that the suction head is slightly displaced. Since the container can be centered by the chuck even when the container is sucked, the container can be accurately placed on the predetermined transfer position.

Therefore, it is suitable when transfer accuracy is required. or,
In an apparatus for simultaneously taking out a plurality of containers, the space between the container gripping means for adsorbing and gripping each container is adjustable by the space adjusting means, so that even if the outer diameter of the container or the arrangement in the cardboard box is changed. Also, it is possible to cope with the case where the arrangement interval of the containers in the cardboard box and the placement pitch interval at the transfer destination are different.

Therefore, it is not necessary to replace the suction head and the switching work associated therewith, the switching time can be shortened, and the operating rate of the apparatus can be improved. In addition, since switching parts are unnecessary, it is economical.

Further, since the container is gripped by the chuck after the container in the corrugated board is sucked and drawn out, the container can be conveyed at a high speed after the chuck is gripped, and the speed of the take-out process can be increased.

[Brief description of drawings]

Each drawing shows an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a container extracting device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of a bottle supply device using the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of an operation of taking out the container, FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing an operation of correcting the suction position shift when the container is gripped, and FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of an operation of delivering the container to the placement place. (1) ... frame, (2) ... spacing adjusting means, (3) ... mounting table, (4) ... container gripping means, (5) ... chuck, (6) ... sucking means, ( 7) ... Suction head, (8) ... Elevating cylinder, (12) ... Gripping cylinder, (15) ... Robot, (16) ... Cardboard box, (18) ... Mounting table, (19) ... … Roller conveyor, (22) …… Positioning cylinder, (B)… Container.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A frame body that is movably supported by a support means, and at least two frame bodies are provided to face the frame body.
One is a fixed mount and the other is a movable mount, and a space adjusting means for adjusting the horizontal interval thereof is provided, and container holding means vertically provided on the mount, respectively. Adsorption means for adsorbing a bottom surface, adsorbing means for elevating and lowering the adsorption head, and a chuck provided within the elevating and lowering operation range of the adsorption head for nipping the body of the container toward the central axis of the adsorption head. A device for taking out a container in a box, which is composed of