JP2019171332A - Sorter of empty can and waste pet bottle - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a sorter of empty can and waste pet bottles that enables the precise and efficient sorting treatment of empty cans and waste pet bottles.SOLUTION: A sorter has a plurality of pairs of photoelectronic sensors each of which is composed of a first photoelectronic sensor 9 which emits beams of strong luminous energy and a second photoelectronic sensor 10 which emits beams of weak luminous energy, and this pair of photoelectronic sensors 9, 10 are vertically arranged on a level below a transportation end of a conveyer 3 for transporting a recovery container so that directions of emission of the respective beams may be nearly in parallel with a direction of transporting the conveyer 3, while the pairs of the photoelectronic sensors 9, 10 are arranged in a plurality of arrays at predetermined intervals in a belt width direction of the conveyer 3. Further, the sorter comprises a sorting controller 21 which identifies that a PET bottle is waste when the beam of the first photoelectronic sensor 9 penetrates and the beam of the second photoelectronic sensor 10 is cut off or attenuated and outputs a pulse air jet command to air jet means 13 on a level below the pair of photoelectronic sensors 9, 10 at a predetermined timing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for selecting each of empty cans and waste plastic bottles collected in a mixed state.

  Beverage containers such as empty cans and waste plastic bottles are collected not only by municipalities but also through business routes from convenience stores, vending machines, etc. Reuse in the form. By the way, such collection containers are not necessarily separated into empty cans and waste PET bottles, and there are many cases where both are collected in a mixed state. The sorting process is performed by a sorting device or the like. The applicant has already filed a patent application for the sorting device, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-268996.

  According to the sorting apparatus described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the first irradiation is performed by irradiating light (in the orthogonal direction) above the conveyor that conveys the collection container in which empty cans and waste PET bottles are mixed. In addition, the second photoelectric sensor is provided in parallel, and an air injection means, which is a means for separating waste PET bottles, is provided on the downstream side. The first photoelectric sensor irradiates a light beam having a light quantity that is blocked by an empty can and blocked or attenuated by a waste PET bottle. The waste plastic bottle is irradiated with a light beam having a strong light intensity. When the light beam of the first photoelectric sensor is blocked or attenuated and the light beam of the second photoelectric sensor is transmitted, the recovery container that has passed on the conveyor is identified as a waste PET bottle, and the air injection means Blow away and collect separately.

JP 2009-268996 A

  However, in the above conventional apparatus, as described above, the first and second photoelectric sensors and the air injection means are arranged in parallel above the conveyor for transporting the collection container, and the light irradiation direction and air injection of each photoelectric sensor are arranged. Since the pulsed air injection direction of the means is arranged so as to be orthogonal to the conveying path of the conveyor, if the empty cans and the waste PET bottles are conveyed substantially simultaneously in a state where they are aligned in the belt width direction of the conveyor, the first As a result of both light rays from the first and second photoelectric sensors being blocked by one empty can, it may be difficult to identify each accurately. In addition, if pulsed air is ejected from the air ejecting means in the above situation, empty cans and waste PET bottles running on the conveyor may be blown together, and there is a possibility that the sorting process cannot be performed with high accuracy.

  In order to avoid the above problems, for example, an aligning means for aligning the collection containers being transported in a line above the belt of the conveyor is provided, and the plurality of collection containers are simultaneously irradiated with light beams emitted from the photoelectric sensors. In addition, it is preferable that the pulsed air ejected from the air ejecting means is not sprayed on a plurality of recovery containers at the same time. In this case, however, a reduction in the collection processing efficiency of the recovery containers is unavoidable.

  In view of the above-described points, an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for sorting empty cans / waste PET bottles capable of sorting empty cans and waste PET bottles accurately and efficiently.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for sorting empty cans / waste PET bottles, wherein each of the empty cans / waste PET bottles is separated from a collection container in which empty cans and waste PET bottles are mixed. A first photoelectric sensor that irradiates a light beam having a strong light quantity to be transmitted, and a second photoelectric sensor that irradiates a light beam having a low light quantity that is blocked or attenuated by the waste plastic bottle. A plurality of paired photoelectric sensors, and the pair of photoelectric sensors are vertically arranged so that the irradiation direction of each light beam is substantially parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor. On the other hand, each pair of photoelectric sensors is arranged in a plurality of rows at a predetermined interval in the belt width direction of the conveyor. The first photoelectric sensor is provided with an air injection nozzle of an air injection means for injecting and blowing pulse air to the cartridge to separate and irradiating the collection container falling from the conveyor end of the conveyor with light from the pair of photoelectric sensors. When the light beam of the second photoelectric sensor is transmitted and the light beam of the second photoelectric sensor is blocked or attenuated, a sorting controller is provided that outputs a pulsed air injection command to the air injection means at a predetermined timing by identifying the waste plastic bottle. It is characterized by.

  Further, in the empty can / waste plastic bottle sorting apparatus according to claim 2 according to the present invention, the transport conveyor is provided with a leveling means for leveling the collection containers being transported so as not to be stacked up and down. It is a feature.

  According to the empty can / waste PET bottle sorting apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention, the empty can is blocked by the empty can, and the waste PET bottle is blocked by the empty photoelectric can and the first photoelectric sensor that irradiates a strong light beam. , Having a plurality of a pair of photoelectric sensors composed of a second photoelectric sensor for irradiating a light beam having a weak light quantity that is blocked or attenuated by a waste plastic bottle, and the pair of photoelectric sensors are transported by a conveyor for conveying a collection container Are arranged vertically so that the irradiation direction of each light beam is substantially parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor, and the plurality of pairs of photoelectric sensors are arranged in a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals in the belt width direction of the conveyor. The lower part of each pair of photoelectric sensors is provided with an air injection nozzle of air injection means for injecting pulsed air into a waste plastic bottle and blowing it away to perform separation processing. When a light beam from the pair of photoelectric sensors irradiates the collection container that falls from the transport end of the first light beam, the light beam of the first photoelectric sensor is transmitted and the light beam of the second photoelectric sensor is blocked or attenuated, and is identified as a waste plastic bottle Since it has a sorting controller that outputs a pulsed air injection command to the air injection means at a predetermined timing, even if empty cans and waste PET bottles are conveyed in the belt width direction of the conveyor, By irradiating light beams that are substantially parallel to the transport direction from a pair of photoelectric sensors arranged in multiple rows in the belt width direction with respect to the collection containers falling from the end, there is little overlap between the collection containers, and transmission / blocking of the irradiated light beams Attenuation enables reliable identification of waste plastic bottles, and only the identified waste plastic bottles are blown away by jetting pulse air with high accuracy. One can be efficiently sorting process in the empty cans and waste PET bottles.

  According to the empty can / waste plastic bottle sorting apparatus according to claim 2 of the present invention, the transport conveyor is provided with a leveling means for leveling the collection containers being transported so as not to be stacked up and down. Therefore, it is possible to suppress a problem that a plurality of collection containers are simultaneously dropped and passed in a state where the plurality of collection containers overlap in the light beam irradiation direction of each photoelectric sensor, and each collection container can be sorted into empty cans and waste PET bottles with high accuracy.

It is a schematic block diagram of the empty can and waste PET bottle sorting apparatus according to the present invention. It is a partially cutaway perspective view of the principal part of FIG. FIG. 2 is a partially omitted arrow view of the XX cross section of FIG. 1. It is a time chart figure showing the injection timing of the pulse air of the air injection means to the detection signal of each photoelectric sensor.

  In the empty can / waste PET bottle sorting apparatus according to the present invention, the empty can is blocked by the empty can, and the waste PET bottle is blocked by the empty can and the first photoelectric sensor that irradiates a relatively strong light beam. A plurality of pairs of photoelectric sensors including a second photoelectric sensor that irradiates a relatively weak light beam that is blocked or attenuated also by a PET bottle. The pair of photoelectric sensors are arranged vertically below the transport end of the conveyor for transporting the collection container so that the irradiation direction of each light beam is substantially parallel to the transport direction of the conveyor. Sensors are arranged in a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals in the belt width direction of the conveyor.

  In addition, an air injection nozzle of an air injection means for performing separation processing by injecting pulse air into a waste PET bottle and blowing it off is provided below each pair of photoelectric sensors. Further, when the light beam of the first photoelectric sensor is transmitted through the pair of photoelectric sensors and the light beam of the second photoelectric sensor is blocked or attenuated, it is identified as a waste plastic bottle, and the air ejecting means has a predetermined timing. A sorting controller for outputting a pulse air injection command is provided.

  Thereby, even when a plurality of collection containers are dropped in the belt width direction from the conveyor transport end of the conveyor, it is possible to individually irradiate light beams from each pair of photoelectric sensors arranged immediately below each dropping position, Each collection container can be accurately identified and sorted into empty cans and waste plastic bottles.

  If the distance between each pair of photoelectric sensors adjacent in the belt width direction is approximately the same as the diameter of the collection container, preferably less than that, the collection container falling from the conveyor transfer end will fall vertically, for example. However, it is possible to prevent a problem (detection omission) that the light passes from adjacent photoelectric sensors.

  Also preferably, the conveyor is leveled so that the collection containers being transported do not pile up and down, and a flexible member such as a rubber plate is suspended on the belt transport surface in a generally warm manner. It is advisable to provide leveling means. As a result, it is possible to prevent a problem that a plurality of collection containers overlap and drop simultaneously in the light irradiation direction of each photoelectric sensor, and each collection container is individually and accurately identified as an empty can and a waste plastic bottle.・ Can be sorted.

  Thus, according to the empty can / waste PET bottle sorting apparatus of the present invention, even if a large number of collection containers are transported to the full belt width of the conveyor, each collection container can be accurately separated into empty cans and waste PET bottles. The identification / selection process can be performed, and the processing efficiency per hour can be effectively improved. Further, according to the present apparatus, if a conveyor having a wider belt width is selected and the number of the photoelectric sensors arranged in the belt width direction is appropriately increased according to the belt width, It is preferable that the sorting processing capacity of the collection container can be increased easily and freely.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an empty can / waste PET bottle sorting device that sorts empty cans such as aluminum cans and steel cans and waste PET bottles, and an input hopper for loading the various collection containers. 2 and a conveyor 3 such as a belt conveyor that conveys a collection container cut out from the charging hopper 2 is disposed below the charging hopper 2.

  On the belt conveyance surface of the conveyor 3, there is provided leveling means 4 for leveling the collection containers being conveyed so as not to be stacked up and down. The leveling means 4 includes, for example, a substantially gate-shaped frame member 5 provided so as to straddle the belt conveyance surface of the conveyor 3, and a flexible member 6 such as a rubber plate having an upper end fixed to the frame member 5. The flexible member 6 is suspended in a substantially warm manner on the belt conveying surface. When the plurality of recovery containers are stacked in a plurality of stages on the belt conveying surface, the flexible members 6 of the leveling means 4 are sequentially flattened by crushing the recovery containers stacked up and down. I try to level it out (in one stack).

  The leveling means 4 is not limited to the above structure. For example, the upper end portion of the flexible member 6 is fixed to the vicinity of the upper edge portion of the opening portion 7 of the charging hopper 2, When the collection container is cut out from the charging hopper 7, it may be flattened by the flexible member 6, and in summary, the plurality of collection containers are stacked on the belt conveyance surface of the conveyor 3. Any modification can be made without departing from the present invention as long as it does not flow down to the end.

  Further, a cover body 8 having an opening at the top and bottom is provided below the transport end of the conveyor 3, and the cover body 8 identifies whether various recovery containers falling from the transport end are empty cans or waste plastic bottles. A pair of upper and lower photoelectric sensors 9, 10 are arranged in a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals on support bodies 11, 12 provided along the belt width direction of the conveyor 3, and each pair of photoelectric sensors 9, In the lower part of 10, similarly to the above, the support 15 provided with the air injection nozzles 14 of the air injection means 13 that injects pulsed air into the waste PET bottles and blows them away for separation processing. Prepared above.

  An empty can collection box 16 and a waste plastic bottle collection box 17 are provided below the lower opening of the cover body 8. The empty can collection box 16 is disposed at a position directly below the transfer end of the conveyor 3, while the waste PET bottle collection box 17 is located at a position immediately below the transfer end of the conveyor 3 in the forward direction of the conveyor (right side of the drawing). ) At a position slightly apart from

  Of the pair of photoelectric sensors 9, 10, the first photoelectric sensor 9 on the upper side in the figure employs, for example, a transmissive photoelectric sensor (FU-80TZ manufactured by Keyence). The light emitting element 9a of the LED is arranged on one side and the light receiving element 9b is arranged on the other side of the collection container falling from the conveying end of the conveyor 3, and only the empty cans are shielded from the light emitting element 9a toward the light receiving element 9b. For example, if the collection container is a waste plastic bottle, it is irradiated with a light A having a relatively strong light quantity that can be sufficiently transmitted even if its outer peripheral surface is covered with a dense packaging film or label. If A is shielded from light by the collection container, it can be identified that the collection container is an empty can. In addition, the irradiation direction of the light ray A of the first photoelectric sensor 9 is substantially parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor 3 as shown in FIG.

  In addition, the second photoelectric sensor 10 on the lower side in the figure employs, for example, a retroreflective photoelectric sensor (LV-NH62 manufactured by Keyence), and similarly to the above, a recovery container that falls from the conveyor 3 conveyance end is used. A laser light emitting / receiving element 10a is arranged on one side and a reflecting plate 10b is arranged on the other side with the dropping path interposed therebetween, and the light emitting / receiving element 10a is shielded (blocked) by an empty can. Even a colorless and transparent waste plastic bottle from which film or labels have been removed can be irradiated with light B, which has a relatively low light intensity that causes significant attenuation, and the fall / pass of the collection container can be detected by blocking or attenuation of light B It is said. Note that the irradiation direction of the light beam B of the second photoelectric sensor 10 is also substantially parallel to the conveying direction of the conveyor 3 as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the distance between the pair of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 disposed adjacent to the supports 11 and 12 is substantially the same as the diameter of an empty can or a waste plastic bottle as a collection container. If it is the same size, preferably less than that, even if the collection container falling from the transport end of the conveyor 3 falls vertically, for example, it passes through between the light beams from the adjacent photoelectric sensors 9, 10. (Missing detection) can be prevented.

  The air injection means 13 includes an air compressor 18 for supplying compressed air, an air injection nozzle 14 for pulsed air injection provided below each of the pair of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10, and an air supply for connecting them. The air supply pipe 19 is provided with an on-off valve 20 in the middle of the air supply pipe 19. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the direction of pulse air injection from the air injection nozzle 14 is also substantially parallel to the conveyance direction of the conveyor 3, toward the waste PET bottle falling from the conveyance end of the conveyor 3. Pulse air is injected and blown off, and the waste PET bottle collection box 17 on the front side (right side in FIG. 1) is separated and collected.

  In addition, the injection pressure of the pulsed air injected from the air injection nozzle 14 is a pressure that can blow the falling waste PET bottles up to the waste PET bottle collection box 17 that is slightly separated from the position immediately below the transport end of the conveyor 3. It is good to adjust to.

  Reference numeral 21 in the figure denotes whether or not the first photoelectric sensor 9 has detected the shielding of the light beam A, and whether or not the second photoelectric sensor 10 has detected the shielding or attenuation of the light beam B. Based on each detection result, it is instantly identified whether the collection container falling from the transport end of the conveyor 3 is an empty can or a waste plastic bottle, and based on the identification result, the air supply pipe 19 of the air injection means 13 A sorting controller that controls opening and closing of the on-off valve 20 and injects pulsed air from the downstream air injection nozzle 14 at a predetermined timing to blow off only waste PET bottles and performs a separation process. The input / output unit for receiving the detection signal from the photoelectric sensor 10 and outputting the opening / closing command to the opening / closing valve 20, and the recovery container being dropped from the detection position of the second photoelectric sensor 10 to the lower air injection nozzle 14 To air injection position A setting input section for setting and inputting the number of seconds required to, and includes a storage unit for storing the setting entered time, the control unit for performing various calculations and control commands and the like.

  When the empty can / waste PET bottle sorting apparatus 1 configured as described above sorts empty cans and waste PET bottles from the collection container in which empty cans and waste PET bottles are mixed, first, the pair of photoelectric sensors 9, 10 Then, the air compressor 18 is operated and the collection container is loaded into the charging hopper 2, and then the conveyor 3 is operated to cut out the collection container from the charging hopper 2. At this time, although a plurality of collection containers may flow down in a state where they are stacked on the transport belt, they are sequentially crushed when passing through the leveling means 4 arranged in the middle of the transport path of the conveyor 3. Leveled.

  And each collection container falling from an arbitrary position in the belt width direction of the conveyor 3 transport end sequentially traverses the light beams A and B from each pair of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 disposed immediately below the respective drop positions, Each photoelectric sensor 9, 10 detects light shielding or attenuation, etc., depending on whether the falling collection container is an empty can or a waste plastic bottle.

  When the selection controller 21 receives the detection signals from the pair of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10, based on the respective detection results, as shown in Table 1 below, the collection container is either an empty can or a waste plastic bottle. Based on the identification result, the opening / closing valve 20 of the air supply pipe 19 of the air injection means 13 is controlled to open / close, and it is determined whether or not the pulse air is injected from the downstream air injection nozzle 14.

  Table 1 will be described in detail. For example, when the first photoelectric sensor 9 irradiating the light beam A having a high light amount among the pair of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 detects light shielding, it is identified as an empty can and the light amount is low. Regardless of whether or not the second photoelectric sensor 10 that irradiates the light beam B detects light shielding or attenuation (in this case, since the second photoelectric sensor 10 also detects light shielding, the detection is indicated in the table) In this case, the pulsed air is not jetted from the air jet nozzle 14 and is dropped as it is, and is collected in an empty can collection box 16 located immediately below the transport end of the transport conveyor 3. On the other hand, when the light ray A of the first photoelectric sensor 9 is transmitted (non-detection) and the second photoelectric sensor 10 detects light shielding or attenuation, it is identified as a waste plastic bottle and a predetermined timing is given from the lower air injection nozzle 14. , Pulse air is jetted, the detected waste PET bottles are blown off, and the waste PET bottle collection box 17 is separated and collected.

  The time chart of FIG. 4 represents the injection timing of the pulsed air from the air injection nozzle 14 of the air injection means 13 with respect to the detection signals of the first photoelectric sensor 9 and the second photoelectric sensor 10. When one photoelectric sensor 9 is detected (ON), it is identified as an empty can, and even if the second photoelectric sensor 10 detects, air injection from the air injection nozzle 14 is not performed, but the first photoelectric sensor 9 does not detect ( OFF, and when the second photoelectric sensor 10 detects it, it is identified as a waste plastic bottle, and at a predetermined timing set in advance (the falling plastic bottle is lower than the detection position of the second photoelectric sensor 10) The time required to drop and reach the pulsed air injection position of the injection nozzle 14 is measured in advance by a test or the like, and the timing is delayed by that time) Performing injection pulsed air from the nozzle 14.

  In this embodiment, of the pair of upper and lower photoelectric sensors 9, 10, the first photoelectric sensor 9 that irradiates the light beam A having a high light amount is placed on the upper side, and the second photoelectric sensor that irradiates the light beam B having a low light amount. The sensors 10 are arranged in the lower order, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the second photoelectric sensor 10 having a weak light quantity is arranged in the upper order, and the first photoelectric sensor 9 having a strong light quantity is arranged in the lower order. Similarly, in that case, as shown in Table 1, it is possible to instantly identify whether it is an empty can or a waste plastic bottle based on the detection result of each photoelectric sensor. An injection instruction to the air injection nozzle 14 of the air injection means 13 is determined, and an empty can and a waste plastic bottle can be accurately selected.

  In the present embodiment, the same number of the photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 (four in the present embodiment) are arranged at equal intervals, and each of the first photoelectric sensors 9 is positioned in the vertical direction. The combination of the second photoelectric sensor 10 and the second photoelectric sensor 10 constitutes a pair of photoelectric sensors for identifying whether the collection container is an empty can or a waste plastic bottle, but is not necessarily limited thereto. Depending on the type of photoelectric sensor, the ease of light diffusion, i.e., the detection range is different, and in order to prevent false detection by receiving light from adjacent photoelectric sensors, the type of photoelectric sensor to be adopted, etc. Accordingly, the number and arrangement intervals of the photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 may be appropriately adjusted. For example, four first photoelectric sensors 9 and three second photoelectric sensors are arranged, and two adjacent first sensors are arranged. A pair of photoelectric sensors may be configured by a combination of the photoelectric sensor 9 and one second photoelectric sensor 10 located in the lower part of the intermediate portion.

  At this time, the positional relationship between the first photoelectric sensor 9 and the second photoelectric sensor 10 is slightly deviated from the vertical direction. In this case as well, based on the detection results of the photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 as described above. Of course, each collection container falling from the conveyor 3 can be accurately identified and sorted into empty cans and waste PET bottles. In short, on the fall trajectory of each collection container falling from the transport end of the conveyor 3, Each photoelectric sensor 9 and 10 may be arranged so that light rays A and B from two types (a pair) of photoelectric sensors 9 and 10 having different light amounts are irradiated.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be widely used when sorting each of collection containers containing empty cans and waste PET bottles.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Empty can and waste PET bottle sorter 3 ... Conveyor 4 ... Leveling means 9 ... First photoelectric sensor 10 ... Second photoelectric sensor 13 ... Air injection means 14 ... Air injection nozzle (air injection means) 16 ... Empty can Collection box 17 ... Waste plastic bottle collection box 18 ... Air compressor (air injection means)
19 ... Air supply pipe (air injection means) 20 ... Open / close valve (air injection means)
21 ... Sorting controller A ... Light (high light intensity) B ... Light (low light intensity)

Claims (2)

  An empty can / waste PET bottle sorting device that sorts empty cans and waste PET bottles from a collection container. The first photoelectric sensor is blocked by the empty cans, and the waste PET bottles emit a strong light beam that passes through. A plurality of pairs of photoelectric sensors, each of which includes a sensor and a second photoelectric sensor that irradiates a light beam having a weak light quantity that is blocked by an empty can and blocked or attenuated by a waste plastic bottle; A pair of photoelectric sensors are arranged in the belt width direction of the conveyor while being arranged vertically so that the irradiation direction of each light beam is substantially parallel to the conveyance direction of the conveyor. A plurality of rows are arranged at intervals, and below each of the pair of photoelectric sensors, an air injection means for injecting pulsed air into a waste plastic bottle and blowing it away to perform separation processing. A jet nozzle is provided, and the collection container falling from the conveyor transport end is irradiated with light from the pair of photoelectric sensors to transmit light from the first photoelectric sensor, and light from the second photoelectric sensor is blocked or blocked. An apparatus for sorting empty cans / waste PET bottles, comprising: a sorting controller that identifies a waste PET bottle when it is attenuated and outputs a pulsed air jet command to the air jetting means at a predetermined timing.   2. The empty can / waste PET bottle sorting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said conveyor is provided with leveling means for leveling the collection containers being transported so as not to be stacked one above the other.

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