EP0290877B1 - Device for automatically collecting empties - Google Patents

Device for automatically collecting empties Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0290877B1
EP0290877B1 EP88106815A EP88106815A EP0290877B1 EP 0290877 B1 EP0290877 B1 EP 0290877B1 EP 88106815 A EP88106815 A EP 88106815A EP 88106815 A EP88106815 A EP 88106815A EP 0290877 B1 EP0290877 B1 EP 0290877B1
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
conveying
lifting assembly
driven
sensor head
sensor
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP88106815A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0290877A2 (en
EP0290877A3 (en
Inventor
Dieter Schmid
Peter Dipl.-Ing. Kasberger (Fh)
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Elektromechanische Geraetebau Te Mammendorf GmbH
Original Assignee
Lescha Maschinenfabrik GmbH and Co KG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Lescha Maschinenfabrik GmbH and Co KG filed Critical Lescha Maschinenfabrik GmbH and Co KG
Priority to AT88106815T priority Critical patent/ATE85538T1/en
Publication of EP0290877A2 publication Critical patent/EP0290877A2/en
Publication of EP0290877A3 publication Critical patent/EP0290877A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0290877B1 publication Critical patent/EP0290877B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B07—SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS; SORTING
    • B07C—POSTAL SORTING; SORTING INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES, OR BULK MATERIAL FIT TO BE SORTED PIECE-MEAL, e.g. BY PICKING
    • B07C5/00—Sorting according to a characteristic or feature of the articles or material being sorted, e.g. by control effected by devices which detect or measure such characteristic or feature; Sorting by manually actuated devices, e.g. switches
    • B07C5/04—Sorting according to size
    • B07C5/12—Sorting according to size characterised by the application to particular articles, not otherwise provided for

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a device according to the preamble of claim 1.
  • the probe consists of a support plate which can be raised and lowered and which supports tube covers arranged according to a predetermined pattern, in which mechanical buttons and light barriers assigned to them are assigned.
  • the arrangement of the pipe scoops corresponds to the placement of the bottles in a completely filled bottle crate. The result of this is that each button should feel the respectively assigned bottle in such a way that it dips into the bottle neck of the correct bottle and does not dip into a bottle. Accordingly, there are different heights of the buttons, which are detected by means of the assigned light barrier and used as information for whether a correct or incorrect bottle has been found.
  • the known arrangement is not only not universally applicable enough, but also does not work precisely enough.
  • the stroke of the support plate receiving the pipe socket itself is not detected, but rather that only the change in position of the buttons relative to the respectively assigned pipe socket is detected.
  • Another disadvantage of the known arrangement can be seen in the fact that the scanning process in the form of an overturning of the pipe nozzle over the respectively assigned bottle can only take place in the still sand of the box.
  • the measures according to the invention advantageously result in a measurement of the box height, box width and box length.
  • the stroke of the lifting unit, the stroke of the transverse lifting unit and the throughput time of a box are advantageously used for this purpose.
  • the use of these movement sequences, which are required anyway in order to achieve the desired accuracy, for measuring the box accordingly results in a particularly simple construction and nevertheless ensures high reliability and accuracy.
  • practically every bottle grid can be processed in an advantageous manner, with high accuracy being achieved due to the lowering of the probe up to the area of the bottle tops.
  • the empties receiving machine on which FIG. 1 is based contains a crate acceptance station 1 and a bottle acceptance station 2. These two stations are located one above the other on levels, with the crate acceptance station 1 forming the lower level and the bottle acceptance station 2 forming the upper level.
  • the machine frame of the empties acceptance machine shown consists of portal-like frames 3 which are connected to one another by horizontal rails 4. On these rails, drawer-like inserts are provided to form the box acceptance station 1 or bottle acceptance station 2.
  • the bottle receiving station 2 comprises a passageway 5 starting from a front-side input window, which is delimited at the bottom by two conveyor belts 6 offset laterally against one another, through which the bottles placed are drawn in, aligned in a row and guided past bottle scanning devices 7.
  • the box acceptance station 1 also comprises a flow channel 8 starting from a front-side input window, which is laterally delimited by baffles 9 and is underpinned by a transport device 10 which, at scanning devices to be described in more detail below, for identifying the boxes entered and for recognizing the degree of filling thereof Guide the boxes past.
  • the transport level of the transport device 10 is located somewhat below the lower edge of the front input window, so that a security level is obtained.
  • the transport device 10 of the box acceptance station 1 consists, as can best be seen from FIG. 2, of two sections 10a, 10b arranged one behind the other, which are driven at different speeds.
  • the front section 10b in the transport direction is driven faster than the rear section 10a in the transport direction, so that successive boxes are pulled apart.
  • the rear, slower section 10a in the direction of transport contains a longitudinal conveyor belt 11 which transports over a table. This results in a particularly low accident risk in the input area.
  • the front section 10b is designed as a roller conveyor with a plurality of rollers 12 arranged one behind the other, each of which is driven.
  • rollers 12 are provided with lateral sprockets 13 which are in engagement with a chain 14 which extends over all sprockets 13 and is driven by means of a drive unit 15.
  • a hold-down bar 16 can be provided which at least goes beyond the chain wheels which are only tangent to the chain.
  • the boxes acceptable by the box acceptance station 1 are identified by measuring their length, height and width.
  • a probe 17 which can best be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4 and which extends over the conveying device 10, is provided, which contains a plurality of buttons 18 arranged next to one another in the form of a row arranged transversely to the transport direction.
  • This is Reflection light switches that emit a beam of light and determine whether a reflected beam is coming back or not. A reflected beam comes back if the emitted light beam hits a reflective, flat surface within a fixed measuring range. This can be, for example, the upper end faces of the necks of bottles 20 contained in a box 19 transported under the probe 17.
  • the reflection light switches forming the buttons 18 generate a continuous signal when a reflection beam occurs. To facilitate signal processing, this can be queried at fixed intervals which are dependent on the speed of the transport device 10. This results in signal points that occur depending on the existing compartment division 21 in box 19 according to a certain grid.
  • the query steps can easily be specified by an incremental disk 122 shown in FIG. 2, which can be driven together with the chain 14 and is designed here as a perforated disk, which is scanned by means of an associated sensor 123.
  • a grid corresponding to the compartment division 21 of this box is placed on a signal point field thus obtained, which automatically results in the degree of filling of the box.
  • Each grid compartment, which contains at least one signal point, corresponds practically to a compartment of the box 19 filled with a bottle 20.
  • This evaluation is carried out in a computer, not shown in the drawing, which uses a printer to print out the deposit value of the returned empty packaging may be connected.
  • the entire measuring head 17 is adjusted perpendicular to the transport plane in accordance with the respective height of the box 19 which is just passing through.
  • a lifting unit 22 is assigned to the probe head 17, which, as shown in FIGS.
  • the probe 17 is readjusted from one upper starting position as each box passes through.
  • This upper starting position is defined by a stop fixed to the frame.
  • this is a diaphragm 30 which is fixed to the frame and is optically scanned by a light barrier 31 connected to the probe head 17.
  • the lifting unit 22 is activated.
  • the lifting unit 22 is activated via a light barrier 32 spanning the transport device 10 as soon as its light beam is interrupted by the box 19 passing by.
  • the activation of the lifting unit 22 is terminated as soon as the light barrier 31 accommodated on the lifting unit 22 or an adjacent light barrier 33, which is offset in terms of its height and which is further offset on the lifting unit 22, reaches the upper edge of the box 19.
  • a lower cover 34 arranged fixed to the frame is also provided to limit the maximum stroke of the lifting unit 22.
  • bearing plates 35 are provided on the slides 28, which protrude from the probe 17 against the transport direction of the transport device 10, that is to say are arranged upstream of the probe 17.
  • the means of the light barriers 31, 33 controlled tracking of the probe 17 has already ended when the box 19 arrives under the probe 17.
  • the logical connection of the light barriers 31 and 33 can be done for security reasons so that the lowered probe 17 remains in position as long as only the lower, the upper box edge scanning light barrier 33 is interrupted and the upper, the aperture 30 associated light barrier 31 is not interrupted. If a box 19 contains a protruding object, for example in the form of an oversized bottle 20a, this inevitably also leads to an interruption of the light barrier 31, as can be seen from FIG. 4. In such a case, the transport device 10 can be stopped or reversed and / or the probe 17 can be raised in order to avoid collisions with the excessively long bottle 20a. Accordingly, such a box is either ejected again or accepted without registration and accordingly without a deposit.
  • the stroke of the lifting unit 22 is used to measure the height of the box 19.
  • the measuring device provided for this purpose contains an incremental disk 36 which can be driven with the lifting unit 22 and is designed as a perforated disk and which is scanned by means of an associated sensor 37. This is controlled by means of the light barriers 31 and 33 received on the lifting unit 22 such that the counting process begins as soon as the diaphragm 30 and the light barrier 31 is released and terminated as soon as the lower light barrier 33 is interrupted by the upper edge of the box 19.
  • the incremental disk 36 is received on the shaft 25. This usually results in a sufficient number of revolutions for a reliable resolution of the stroke of the lifting unit 22.
  • the incremental disk 122 driven together with the chain 14 is used, i.e. the pulses picked up by the assigned sensor 123 are counted as long as the box 19 runs past the light barrier 32 arranged transversely to the transport direction, that is, as long as the light barrier 32 is interrupted. Accordingly, the sensor 123 is turned on and off by the light barrier 32. It would also be conceivable to detect the box length by means of the probe 17.
  • the direct scanning of the incremental disk 122 results in one Simplification of the calculation process when recording the degree of filling.
  • rollers 12 of the roller conveyor forming the section 10b of the transport device are driven by means of the chain 14, reliable, practically slip-free driving of the box 19 is ensured, which ensures a high accuracy of the length measurement.
  • the rollers 12 can be rubberized.
  • the probe head 17 is aligned with respect to the longitudinal plane m of the transport device 10, that is to say the row of probes received on the probe head 17 is constructed symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m.
  • the boxes 19 transported by the transport device 10 are accordingly aligned before they enter the effective area of the probe head 17, that is to say symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m.
  • an alignment device 38 is provided, which, as FIG. 3 clearly shows, contains two mutually opposite sliders 39 which overlap the transport device 10 and which can be designed as sections of the lateral boundaries 9 of the flow channel 8 which can be moved transversely to the transport direction.
  • the sliders 39 are fastened to arms 40 which pass between two rollers 12 and are received on an associated transverse lifting unit 41 arranged below the transport device 10.
  • each transverse stroke unit 41 comprises 2 shafts 42 which extend in the transport direction and which are provided at their ends with chain wheels 43, over which chains 44 which engage the arms 40 of the sliders 39 run.
  • a drive motor 45 is provided which is coupled to one of the shafts 42, which is connected to an adjacent shaft of the respective other transverse stroke unit by means of a spur gear train 46, which ensures exact counter-rotation.
  • the shafts 42 are mounted on cross bars 48 fastened to the longitudinal bars 47 of the section 10 b of the transport device 10.
  • the alignment device 38 is activated together with the activation of the lifting unit 22 by means of the same light barrier 32. If it should be advisable in individual cases to shut down the transport device 10 while the alignment device 38 is operating, this is readily possible.
  • the transport device 10 can be passivated by means of the light barrier 32 which activates the alignment device 38. After the box has been aligned, that is to say when the transverse lifting units 41 no longer move, the transport device 10 is restarted in this case.
  • the stroke of the transverse lifting bag units 41 is used to measure the width of the box 19.
  • an incremental disk 49 which can be driven together with the transverse lifting units 41, is provided, which, as can best be seen in FIG. 6, can be designed as a perforated disk to which a sensor 50 is assigned.
  • the starting position the cross-stroke unit 41 is defined by a light barrier 51 which is fixed to the frame and which scans an associated aperture 52 fastened to an adjacent chain 44.
  • the counting of the pulses picked up by the sensor 50 begins as soon as the light barrier 51 is released.
  • the incremental disk 49 can, as indicated by solid lines in FIG. 5, be received on one of the shafts 42 which can be driven by the motor 45.
  • the number of revolutions of the incremental disk 49 corresponds to the number of revolutions of the chain wheels 43, which generally results in a sufficiently good resolution of the measuring range.
  • the clutch 53 arranged between the motor 45 and the shaft 42 coupled to it can be designed as a slip clutch so that the motor 45 can spin after alignment.
  • a reduction gear 54 is provided between clutch 53 and motor 45.
  • the incremental disk could simply be arranged upstream of the reduction gear 54, as indicated by broken lines at 49 in FIG.
  • the clutch 54 would have to be a fixed clutch, so that the motor 45 cannot turn after alignment and, accordingly, the associated incremental disk 49a also stands still.
  • the dimensions resulting from the length, width and height measurement are used, as already indicated above, to identify the box 19. For this purpose, all common box sizes are in one computer saved.
  • the identification of the box 19 now not only enables repayment of the box deposit, but also enables the selection of the compartment grid belonging to the present box, which can also be stored in the computer.
  • This grid together with the information provided by the probe 17, allows the degree of filling of the crate to be determined, that is, the answer to the question of whether and if so how many bottles 20 the crate 19 contains and how many bottles 20 are to be remunerated in addition to the crate 19.
  • the total remuneration can be paid either in cash or in the form of a printed voucher.
  • the probe 17 is not rigidly arranged, but moves to the top of the box, also ensures that the filling of the box can also be classified, i. H. it can also be seen whether the bottles in the box belong to this box or whether they are too high or too low. In the event that the existing bottles are too high or too low, the computer can be programmed so that nothing is remunerated and the entire box is thus lost.
  • FIG. 7 shows a variant of the lifting unit 22 assigned to the probe head 17, in which the lowering takes place by utilizing the gravity of the probe head 17.
  • the probe In the present exemplary embodiment, 17 is provided with two side bearing plates 35, which receive the two light barriers 31, 33 lying one above the other. Both end shields 35 are accommodated on two parallel rockers 55 in order to achieve reliable guidance. These are supported on the one hand on the machine frame and on the other hand on the respectively associated end plate 35, so that there is practically a parallelogram guide.
  • the chains 23a are designed as finite chains, each of which is placed on an associated sprocket 24a arranged above the stroke range of the probe 17 and the downward-hanging ends of which are attached to an associated end plate 35 or counterweight 56.
  • the sprockets 24a are received on a shaft 25 which is continuous over the width of the conveying channel and which is connected directly or, as in the exemplary embodiment shown, indirectly via a chain 26 to a drive device which can contain a geared motor 57.
  • the stroke of the probe 17 starting from an upper stop 30 is detected by an incremental disk which can be driven together with the lifting unit 22 and which can either be accommodated on the shaft 25, as indicated at 36, or to achieve a large angle of rotation and thus a high one Accuracy of the gear of the gear motor 57 can be arranged, as indicated at 36a.
  • the variant of the box alignment device on which FIG. 8 is based like the alignment device on which FIGS. 3 and 5 are based, has two slides 39 which work symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m of the flow channel, here in the form of rods immersed in niches provided in the area of the lateral channel boundaries. These are accommodated on respectively assigned swivel arms 58, which are pivotably mounted with their lower ends on the crossbeams 48a which reach under the transport device. To actuate the swivel arms 58, a geared motor 45 is provided with its axis in the region of the central longitudinal plane m, on the output shaft of which a two-armed lever 59 is wedged.
  • the two-armed lever 59 engages with its mutually opposite ends on the mutually opposite heavy arms 58.
  • intermediate connecting rods 60 are provided for this. Since the opposite ends of the two-armed lever 59 are practically opposed, the desired reciprocity of the swivel arms 58 also results.
  • the starting position of the swivel arms 58 indicated by solid lines in FIG. 8 and accordingly the slide 39 is defined by stops 61 fixed to the frame. In the alignment position indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 8, both opposing slides 39 lie tight against the centrally aligned box 19. The resulting distance between the opposing slides 39 corresponds to the width of the box 19.
  • the swivel angle of the swivel arms 58 is detected, for which purpose the incremental disk 49, which can be driven together with the swivel arms 58 and can be scanned by an associated sensor 50, is used, which can also be arranged upstream of the gearbox of the geared motor 45 in order to achieve a large angle of rotation and thus high accuracy.

Abstract

In the context of a device for mechanically receiving empties in the form of bottle crates and other containers for bottles subject to a deposit, comprising a frame, at least one conveying device forming the lower limit of a conveying passage and which is adapted to move the empties past a sensing device improved functional reliability is achieved by an arrangement in which the sensing device comprises a sensing head extending over the conveying device, said sensing head being able to be raised and lowered by means of an actuator operated by the passage of an article moved by the conveying device and cooperating with a measuring device responding to its stroke, said sensing device comprising sensing elements arranged in the form of a row arranged to extend perpendicularly to the direction of conveying and arranged in relation to a fixed plane of an aligning device aligning the passing articles so as to be parallel to the conveying direction, said sensing elements being arranged to be actuated by articles under them and cooperating with a counting device.

Description

Die Erfindung betrifft eine Vorrichtung gemäß dem Oberbegriff des Anspruchs 1.The invention relates to a device according to the preamble of claim 1.

Eine Vorrichtung dieser Art ist aus der DE-OS 26 45 024 bekannt. Hierbei besteht der Tastkopf aus einer heb- und senkbar angeordneten Trägerplatte, die nach einem vorgegebenen Muster angeordnete Rohrhutzen trägt, in denen mechanische Taster und diesen zugeordnete Lichtschranken zugeordnet sind. Das Anordnungsmuster der Rohrhutzen entspricht dabei der Aufstellung der Flaschen in einem ganz gefüllten Flaschenkasten. Hieraus ergibt sich, daß jeder Taster die jeweils zugeordnete Flasche ertasten soll und zwar in der Weise, daß er bei der richtigen Flasche in deren Flaschenhals eintaucht und bei einer flaschen Flasche nicht eintaucht. Dementsprechend ergeben sich unterschiedliche Höhenlagen der Taster, die mittels der zugeordneten Lichtschranke erfaßt und als Information dafür, ob eine richtige oder falsche Flasche ertastet wurde, verwertet werden.A device of this type is known from DE-OS 26 45 024. In this case, the probe consists of a support plate which can be raised and lowered and which supports tube covers arranged according to a predetermined pattern, in which mechanical buttons and light barriers assigned to them are assigned. The arrangement of the pipe scoops corresponds to the placement of the bottles in a completely filled bottle crate. The result of this is that each button should feel the respectively assigned bottle in such a way that it dips into the bottle neck of the correct bottle and does not dip into a bottle. Accordingly, there are different heights of the buttons, which are detected by means of the assigned light barrier and used as information for whether a correct or incorrect bottle has been found.

Infolge der an den Brustdurchmessern der richtigen Flaschen zur Anlage kommenden Rohrhutzen setzt die bekannten Anordnung einen bestimmten Kasten voraus und funktioniert nur dann, wenn dieser Kasten eingegeben wird. Kästen mit unterschiedlichem Raster für die Flaschen können nicht verarbeitet werden. Mit der bekannten Anordnung läßt sich also lediglich ermitteln, wieviel richtige Flaschen in einem Kasten der richtigen Sorte vorhanden sind. Es besteht aber ein großes Bedürfnis danach, nicht nur eine Kastensorte, sondern mehrere, d.h. alle gängigen Kastensorten verarbeiten zu können. Die Anordnung nach der DE-OS 26 45 024 erweist sich dementsprechend als nicht universell genug verwendbar.As a result of the pipe scoops coming into contact with the breast diameters of the correct bottles, the known arrangement requires a certain box and only works if this box is entered. Boxes with a different grid for the bottles cannot be processed. With the known arrangement it is therefore only possible to determine how many correct bottles are available in a box of the correct type. However, there is a great need for not just one box variety, but several, i.e. to be able to process all common types of boxes. The arrangement according to DE-OS 26 45 024 proves accordingly not to be used universally enough.

Die bekannte Anordnung ist aber nicht nur nicht universell verwendbar genug, sondern arbeitet auch nicht genau genug. In diesem Zusammenhang ist davon auszugehen, daß bei der bekannten Anordnung der Hub der die Rohrhutzen aufnehmenden Trägerplaltte selbst nicht erfaßt wird, sondern daß lediglich die Lageänderung der Taster gegenüber dem jeweils zugeordneten Rohrhutzen erfaßt wird. Aus diesem Grund besteht die Gefahr, daß in dem Fall, daß ein Kasten ausschließlich falsche Flaschen, die aber unter sich alle gleich sind, enthält, die Fehlerhaftigkeit einer derartigen Kastenfüllung nicht erkannt werden kann. Ein weiterer Nachteil der bekannten Anordnung ist darin zu sehen, daß der Abtastvorgang in Form eines Überstülpens der Rohrhutzen über die jeweils zugeordnete Flasche nur im Stilltsand des Kastens erfolgen kann. Bei der bekannten Anordnung ergeben sich dementsprechend auch nur vergleichsweise geringe Stundenleistungen.The known arrangement is not only not universally applicable enough, but also does not work precisely enough. In this connection it can be assumed that in the known arrangement the stroke of the support plate receiving the pipe socket itself is not detected, but rather that only the change in position of the buttons relative to the respectively assigned pipe socket is detected. For this reason, there is a risk that if a box contains only the wrong bottles, which are all the same among themselves, the defectiveness of such a box filling cannot be recognized. Another disadvantage of the known arrangement can be seen in the fact that the scanning process in the form of an overturning of the pipe nozzle over the respectively assigned bottle can only take place in the still sand of the box. With the known Accordingly, the arrangement results in only comparatively low hourly outputs.

Hiervon ausgehend ist es daher die Aufgabe der vorliegenden Erfindung, eine Vorrichtung eingangs erwähnter Art mit einfachen und kostengünstigen Mitteln so zu verbessern, daß eine hohe Vielseitigkeit, eine hohe Genauigkeit und eine hohe Leistungsfähigkeit erreicht werden.Proceeding from this, it is therefore the object of the present invention to improve a device of the type mentioned at the outset with simple and inexpensive means in such a way that high versatility, high accuracy and high performance are achieved.

Diese Aufgabe wird mit den kennzeichnenden Maßnahmen des Anspruchs 1 gelöst.This object is achieved with the characterizing measures of claim 1.

Mit diesen Maßnahmen werden die Nachteile des gattungsgemäßen Standes der Technik vollständig beseitigt. Die erfindungsgemäßen Maßnahmen ergeben in vorteilhafter Weise eine Messung der Kastenhöhe, Kastenbreite und Kastenlänge. In vorteilhafter Weise werden hierzu der Hub des Hubaggregats, der Hub des Querhubaggregats und die Durchlaufzeit eines Kastens verwendet. Die Verwendung dieser zur Erzielung der gewünschten Genauigkeit ohnehin erforderlichen Bewegungsabläufe zur Vermessung des Kastens ergibt dementsprechend einen besonders einfachen Aufbau und gewährleistet dennoch eine hohe Zuverlässigkeit und Genauigkeit. Im Zusammenwirken der in Form einer Reihe angeordneten Taster mit der Parallelstellung der Kästen und ihrer Ausrichtung bezüglich einer Fixebene der Ausrichteinrichtung läßt sich in vorteilhafter Weise praktisch jeder Flaschenraster verarbeiten, wobei infolge der Absenkung des Tastkopfes bis in den Bereich der Flaschenoberkanten eine hohe Genauigkeit erreicht wird. Mit Hilfe der erfindungsgemäßen Maßnahmen lasen sich dementsprechend Kästen unterschiedlicher Konfiguration und mit unterschiedlichem Flaschenraster und unterschiedlicher Flaschengröße verarbeiten. Die erfindungsgemäße Anordnung besitzt dementsprechend die für den praktischen Betrieb erforderliche, hohe Vielseitigkeit bei hoher Genauigkeit. Ein weiterer Vorteil ist darin zu sehen, daß die Kastenidentifizierung und Flaschenidentifizierung praktisch während des Durchlaufbetriebes erfolgen können, was hohe Stundenleistungen gewährleistet. Hieraus ist erkennbar, daß die Erfindung die ihr gestellte Aufgabe mit einfachen und kostengünstigen Mitteln löst.With these measures, the disadvantages of the generic state of the art are completely eliminated. The measures according to the invention advantageously result in a measurement of the box height, box width and box length. The stroke of the lifting unit, the stroke of the transverse lifting unit and the throughput time of a box are advantageously used for this purpose. The use of these movement sequences, which are required anyway in order to achieve the desired accuracy, for measuring the box accordingly results in a particularly simple construction and nevertheless ensures high reliability and accuracy. In cooperation with the buttons arranged in the form of a row with the parallel position of the boxes and their alignment with respect to a fixed plane of the aligning device, practically every bottle grid can be processed in an advantageous manner, with high accuracy being achieved due to the lowering of the probe up to the area of the bottle tops. With the help of the measures according to the invention can be read accordingly Process crates of different configurations and with different bottle grids and different bottle sizes. The arrangement according to the invention accordingly has the high versatility with high accuracy required for practical operation. Another advantage can be seen in the fact that the crate identification and bottle identification can practically take place during continuous operation, which ensures high hourly outputs. From this it can be seen that the invention solves the task set with simple and inexpensive means.

Vorteilhafte Ausgestaltungen und zweckmäßige Fortbildungen der übergeordneten Maßnahmen sind in den Unteransprüchen angegeben.Advantageous refinements and appropriate further training of the higher-level measures are specified in the subclaims.

Nachstehend wird ein Ausführungsbeispiel der Erfindung anhand der Zeichnung näher erläutert.An exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing.

In der Zeichnung zeigen:

Figur 1
eine Frontans-icht einer erfindungsgemäßen Leergutrücknahmevorrichtung mit Flaschen-und Kastenannahmestation,
Figur 2
eine teilweise Seitenansicht der der Kastenannahmestation zugeordneten Transporteinrichtung von der Antriebsseite her,
Figur 3
einen Vertikalschnitt durch die Kastenannahmestation in schematischer Darstellung,
Figur 4
eine schematische Seitenansicht der Anordnung gemäß Figur 3,
Figur 5
eine von unten gesehene Ansicht der Ausrichstation der Anordnung gemäß Figur 3,
Figur 6
eine Ansicht einer Inkrementalscheibe mit zugeordnetem Sensor,
Figur 7
eine Variante des dem Tastkopf zugeordneten Hubaggregats in Figur 4 entsprechender Darstellung und
Figur 8
eine Variante der Kastenausrichteinrichtung in Figur 3 entsprechender Darstellung.
The drawing shows:
Figure 1
a front view of an empties return device according to the invention with a bottle and crate acceptance station,
Figure 2
2 shows a partial side view of the transport device assigned to the box receiving station from the drive side,
Figure 3
a vertical section through the box receiving station in a schematic representation,
Figure 4
2 shows a schematic side view of the arrangement according to FIG. 3,
Figure 5
3 shows a view of the alignment station of the arrangement according to FIG. 3, seen from below,
Figure 6
2 shows a view of an incremental disk with an associated sensor,
Figure 7
a variant of the lifting unit assigned to the probe in Figure 4 corresponding representation and
Figure 8
a variant of the box alignment device in Figure 3 corresponding representation.

Die der Figur 1 zugrundeliegende Leergutannahmemaschine enthält eine Kastenannahmestation 1 und eine Flaschenannahmestation 2. Diese beiden Stationen befinden sich etagenmäßig übereinander, wobei die Kastenannahmestation 1 die untere Etage und die Flaschenannahmestation 2 die obere Etage bildet. Das Maschinengestell der dargestellten Leergutannahmemaschine besteht aus portalartigen Rahmen 3, die durch horizontale Schienen 4 miteinander verbunden sind. Auf diesen Schienen sind zur Bildung der Kastenannahmestation 1 bzw. Flaschenannahmestation 2 vorgesehene, schubladenartige Einsätze aufgenommen.The empties receiving machine on which FIG. 1 is based contains a crate acceptance station 1 and a bottle acceptance station 2. These two stations are located one above the other on levels, with the crate acceptance station 1 forming the lower level and the bottle acceptance station 2 forming the upper level. The machine frame of the empties acceptance machine shown consists of portal-like frames 3 which are connected to one another by horizontal rails 4. On these rails, drawer-like inserts are provided to form the box acceptance station 1 or bottle acceptance station 2.

Die Flaschenannahmestation 2 umfaßt einen von einem fronseitigen Eingabefenster ausgehenden Durchlaufkanal 5, der durch zwei seitlich gegeneinander versetzte Förderbänder 6 nach unten begrenzt ist, durch welche die aufgestellten Flaschen eingezogen, in eine Reihe ausgerichtet und an Flaschenabtasteinrichtungen 7 vorbeigeführt werden. Die Kastenannahmestation 1 umfaßt ebenfalls einen von einem frontseitigen Eingabefenster ausgehenden Durchlaufkanal 8, der durch Leitbleche 9 seitlich begrenzt und von einer Tranporteinrichtung 10 unterfaßt ist, welche an weiter unten noch näher zu beschreibenden Abtasteinrichtungen zur Identivizierung der eingegebenen Kästen und zur Erkennung des Grads der Füllung dieser Kästen vorbeiführen. Die Transportebene der Transporteinrichtung 10 befindet sich etwas unterhalb der Unterkante des vorderen Eingabefensters, so daß sich eine Sicherheitsstufe ergibt.The bottle receiving station 2 comprises a passageway 5 starting from a front-side input window, which is delimited at the bottom by two conveyor belts 6 offset laterally against one another, through which the bottles placed are drawn in, aligned in a row and guided past bottle scanning devices 7. The box acceptance station 1 also comprises a flow channel 8 starting from a front-side input window, which is laterally delimited by baffles 9 and is underpinned by a transport device 10 which, at scanning devices to be described in more detail below, for identifying the boxes entered and for recognizing the degree of filling thereof Guide the boxes past. The transport level of the transport device 10 is located somewhat below the lower edge of the front input window, so that a security level is obtained.

Die Transporteinrichtung 10 der Kastenannahmestation 1 besteht, wie am besten aus Figur 2 erkennbar ist, aus zwei hintereinander angeordneten Abschnitten 10a, 10b, die mit unterschiedlicher Geschwindigkeit angetrieben werden. Der in Trasnportrichtung vordere Abschnitt 10b wird dabei schneller als der in Transportrichtung hintere Abschnitt 10a angetrieben, so daß aufeinanderfolgende Kästen auseineindergezogen werden. Der in Trasnportrichtung hintere, langsamere Abschnitt 10a enthält als Transportmittel ein über einen Tisch hinweggehendes Längsförderband 11. Dies ergibt im Eingabebereich ein besonders niedringes Unfallrisiko. Der vordere Abschnitt 10b ist im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel als Rollenbahn mit mehreren, hintereinander angeordneten Rollen 12 ausgebildet, von denen jede angetrieben wird. Hierzu sind die Rollen 12 mit seitlichen Kettenrädern 13 versehen, die im Eingriff mit einer über alle Kettenräder 13 hinweggehenden Kette 14 sind, die mittels eines Antriebsaggregats 15 angetrieben wird. Zur Gewährleistung eines zuverlässigen Eingriffs der Kette in die Kettenräder kann eine zumindest über die von der Kette lediglich tangierten Kettenräder hinweggehende Niederhalteleiste 16 vorgesehen sein.The transport device 10 of the box acceptance station 1 consists, as can best be seen from FIG. 2, of two sections 10a, 10b arranged one behind the other, which are driven at different speeds. The front section 10b in the transport direction is driven faster than the rear section 10a in the transport direction, so that successive boxes are pulled apart. The rear, slower section 10a in the direction of transport contains a longitudinal conveyor belt 11 which transports over a table. This results in a particularly low accident risk in the input area. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the front section 10b is designed as a roller conveyor with a plurality of rollers 12 arranged one behind the other, each of which is driven. For this purpose, the rollers 12 are provided with lateral sprockets 13 which are in engagement with a chain 14 which extends over all sprockets 13 and is driven by means of a drive unit 15. In order to ensure reliable engagement of the chain in the chain wheels, a hold-down bar 16 can be provided which at least goes beyond the chain wheels which are only tangent to the chain.

Die durch die Kastenannahmestation 1 annehmbaren Kästen werden durch Meßung ihrere Länge, Höhe and Breite identifiziert. Zur zusätzlichen Erkennung des Füllungsgrads der Kästen ist ein am besten aus Figuren 3 und 4 entnehmbarer, die Fördereinrichtung 10 übergreifender Tastkopf 17 vorgesehen, der mehrere, in Form einer quer zur Transportrichtung angeordneten Reihe nebeneinander aufgereihte Taster 18 enthält. Hierbei handelt es sich um Reflexionslichtschalter, die einen Lichtstrahl aussenden und feststellen, ob ein reflektierter Strahl zurückkommt oder nicht. Ein reflektierter Strahl kommt zurück, sofern der ausgesandte Lichtstrahl innerhalb eines feststehenden Meßbereichs auf eine reflektierende, ebene Fläche trifft. Hierbei kann es sich beispielsweise um die oberen Stirnseiten der Hälse von in einem unter dem Tastkopf 17 hindurchtransportierten Kasten 19 enthaltenen Flaschen 20 handeln. Die die Taster 18 bildenden Reflexionslichtschalter erzeugen beim Auftreten eines Reflexionsstrahls ein Dauersignal. Dieses kann zur Erleichterung der Signalverarbeitung in festen, von der Geschwindigkeit der Transporteinrichtung 10 abhängigen Abständen abgefragt werden. Hierbei ergeben sich somit Signalpunkte, die je nach der vorhandenen Gefacheinteilung 21 im Kasten 19 nach einem bestimmten Raster anfallen. Die Abfrageschritte können einfach durch eine in Figur 2 dargestellte, zusammen mit der Kette 14 antreibbare, hier als Lochscheibe ausgebildete Inkrementalscheibe 122 vorgegeben werden, die mittels eines zugeordneten Sensors 123 abgetastet wird.The boxes acceptable by the box acceptance station 1 are identified by measuring their length, height and width. For additional detection of the degree of filling of the boxes, a probe 17, which can best be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4 and which extends over the conveying device 10, is provided, which contains a plurality of buttons 18 arranged next to one another in the form of a row arranged transversely to the transport direction. This is Reflection light switches that emit a beam of light and determine whether a reflected beam is coming back or not. A reflected beam comes back if the emitted light beam hits a reflective, flat surface within a fixed measuring range. This can be, for example, the upper end faces of the necks of bottles 20 contained in a box 19 transported under the probe 17. The reflection light switches forming the buttons 18 generate a continuous signal when a reflection beam occurs. To facilitate signal processing, this can be queried at fixed intervals which are dependent on the speed of the transport device 10. This results in signal points that occur depending on the existing compartment division 21 in box 19 according to a certain grid. The query steps can easily be specified by an incremental disk 122 shown in FIG. 2, which can be driven together with the chain 14 and is designed here as a perforated disk, which is scanned by means of an associated sensor 123.

Auf ein so erhaltenes Signalpunktfeld wird nach Identifizierung des Kastens 19 ein der Gefacheinteilung 21 dieses Kastens entsprechendes Raster gelegt, wodurch sich automatisch der Füllungsgrad des Kastens ergibt. Jedes Rasterfach, das wenigstens einen Signalpunkt enthält, entspricht praktisch einem mit einer Flasche 20 gefüllten Gefach des Kastens 19. Diese Auswertung erfolgt in einem in der Zeichnung nicht näher dargestellten Rechner, der mit einem Drucker zum Ausdrucken des Pfandwerts der zurückgenommenen Leergüter verbunden sein kann.After identification of the box 19, a grid corresponding to the compartment division 21 of this box is placed on a signal point field thus obtained, which automatically results in the degree of filling of the box. Each grid compartment, which contains at least one signal point, corresponds practically to a compartment of the box 19 filled with a bottle 20. This evaluation is carried out in a computer, not shown in the drawing, which uses a printer to print out the deposit value of the returned empty packaging may be connected.

Sofern der eingestellte Meßbereich der die Taster 18 bildenden Reflexionslichtschalter verhältnismäßig groß ist, kann es vorkommen, daß nicht nur die in der Regel dicht unterhalb der Kastenoberkante sich befindenden Stirnseiten der Flaschenhälse, sondern auch die oberen Stirnseiten der Gefachteilungen etc. im Meßbereich liegen und dementsprechend die auftreffenden Lichtstrahlen reflektieren, was zu Verfälschungen des Ergebnisses führen kann. Aus diesem Grund is ein vergleichsweise kleiner Meßbereich der Taster 18 erwünscht. Um dennoch eine hohe Variabilität hinsichtlich der verschiedenen Kastenhöhen zu gewährleisten, wird der gesamte Meßkopf 17 entsprechend der jeweiligen Höhe des gerade durchlaufenden Kastens 19 lotrecht zur Tranportebene verstellt. Hierzu ist dem Tastkopf 17 ein Hubaggregat 22 zugeordnet, das, wie die Figuren 3 und 4 weiter zeigen, im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel aus zwei einander gegenüberliegenden Zahnriemen 23 besteht, die über übereinander angeordnete Zahnriemenscheiben 24 geführt sind, von denen jeweils eine angetrieben wird. Hierzu sind die oberen Zahnriemenscheiben 24 auf einer durchgehenden Welle 25 aufgenommen, die mittels eines Kettentriebs 26 von einem hier nicht näher dargestellten Antriebsmotor aus antreibbar ist. An den beiden Zahnriemen 23 ist jeweils, wie am besten aus Figur 4 erkennbar ist, ein auf einer stehenden Führungssäule 27 aufgenommener Schlitten 28 befestigt. Die einander gegenüberliegenden Schlitten 28 sind durch einen Träger 29 überbrückt, auf dem die Taster 18 aufgereiht sind. In der Regel genügen elf bis fünfzehn nebeneinander angeordnete Taster 18, um die Füllung aller derzeit gebräuchlichen Flaschenkästen exakt feststellen zu können.If the set measuring range of the reflection light switch forming the button 18 is relatively large, it can happen that not only the end faces of the bottle necks, which are usually located just below the top edge of the box, but also the upper end faces of the compartments etc. are in the measuring range and accordingly reflect incident light rays, which can lead to falsification of the result. For this reason, a comparatively small measuring range of the buttons 18 is desired. In order to ensure a high degree of variability with regard to the different box heights, the entire measuring head 17 is adjusted perpendicular to the transport plane in accordance with the respective height of the box 19 which is just passing through. For this purpose, a lifting unit 22 is assigned to the probe head 17, which, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, in the exemplary embodiment shown consists of two toothed belts 23 lying opposite one another, which are guided over toothed belt pulleys 24 arranged one above the other, one of which is driven. For this purpose, the upper toothed belt pulleys 24 are received on a continuous shaft 25, which can be driven by means of a chain drive 26 from a drive motor, not shown here. On the two toothed belts 23, as can best be seen in FIG. 4, a carriage 28 is attached to a standing guide column 27. The opposing slides 28 are bridged by a carrier 29 on which the buttons 18 are lined up. As a rule, eleven to are sufficient fifteen buttons 18 arranged side by side in order to be able to determine exactly the filling of all currently used bottle crates.

Der Tastkopf 17 wird beim Durchlauf jedes Kastens ausgehend von einer oberen Ausgansposition neu eingestellt. Diese obere Ausgangsposition ist durch einen gestellfest angeordneten Anschlag definiert. Im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel handelt es sich dabei, wie Figur 4 zeigt, um eine gestellfest angeordnete Blende 30, die durch eine mit dem Tastkopf 17 verbundene Lichtschranke 31 optisch abgetastet wird. Sobald ein Kasten 19 auf dem unter dem Tastkopf 17 hindurchführenden Abschnitt 10b der Transporteinrichtung 10 ankommt, wird das Hubaggregat 22 aktiviert. Die Aktivierung des Hubaggregats 22 erfolgt über eine die Transporteinrichtung 10 übergreifende Lichtschranke 32, sobald deren Lichtstrahl durch den vorbeilaufenden Kasten 19 unterbrochen wird. Die Aktivierung des Hubaggregats 22 wird beendet, sobald die auf dem Hubaggregat 22 aufgenommene Lichtschranke 31 oder eine dieser benachbarte, höhenmäßig hiergegen versetzte, weitere auf dem Hubaggregat 22 aufgenommene Lichtschranke 33 die Oberkante des Kastens 19 erreicht. Aus Sicherheitsgründen ist zur Begrenzung des maximalen Hubs des Hubaggregats 22 auch eine gestellfest angeordnete, untere Blende 34 vorgesehen. Zur Aufnahme der Elemente der Lichtschranken 31, 33 auf dem Hubaggregat 22 sind an den Schlitten 28 befestigte Lagerschilde 35 vorgesehen, die entgegen der Transportrichtung der Transporteinrichtung 10 vom Tastkopf 17 wegstehen, das heißt dem Tastkopf 17 vorgeordnet sind. Die mittels der Lichtschranken 31, 33 gesteuerte Nachführung des Tastkopfes 17 dabei bereits beendet, wenn der Kasten 19 unter den Tastkopf 17 einläuft.The probe 17 is readjusted from one upper starting position as each box passes through. This upper starting position is defined by a stop fixed to the frame. In the illustrated embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, this is a diaphragm 30 which is fixed to the frame and is optically scanned by a light barrier 31 connected to the probe head 17. As soon as a box 19 arrives on the section 10b of the transport device 10 passing under the probe 17, the lifting unit 22 is activated. The lifting unit 22 is activated via a light barrier 32 spanning the transport device 10 as soon as its light beam is interrupted by the box 19 passing by. The activation of the lifting unit 22 is terminated as soon as the light barrier 31 accommodated on the lifting unit 22 or an adjacent light barrier 33, which is offset in terms of its height and which is further offset on the lifting unit 22, reaches the upper edge of the box 19. For safety reasons, a lower cover 34 arranged fixed to the frame is also provided to limit the maximum stroke of the lifting unit 22. To accommodate the elements of the light barriers 31, 33 on the lifting unit 22, bearing plates 35 are provided on the slides 28, which protrude from the probe 17 against the transport direction of the transport device 10, that is to say are arranged upstream of the probe 17. The means of the light barriers 31, 33 controlled tracking of the probe 17 has already ended when the box 19 arrives under the probe 17.

Die logische Verknüpfung der Lichtschranken 31 und 33 kann aus Sicherheitsgründen so erfolgen, daß der abgesenkte Tastkopf 17 in Position bleibt, solange lediglich die untere, den oberen Kastenrand abtastende Lichtschranke 33 unterbrochen und die obere, der Blende 30 zugeordnete Lichtschranke 31 nicht unterbrochen ist. Sofern ein Kasten 19 eine überstehenden Gegenstand, beispielsweise in Form einer übergroßen Flasche 20a enthält, führt dies zwangläufig auch zu einer Unterbrechung der Lichtschranke 31, wie aus Figur 4 erkennbar ist. In einem derartigen Fall können die Transporteinrichtung 10 gestoppt oder umgesteuert und/oder der Tastkopf 17 angehoben werden, um Kollisionen mit der überlangen Flasche 20a zu vermeiden. Ein derartiger Kasten wird dementsprechend entweder wieder ausgeworfen oder ohne Erfassung und dementsprechend ohne Pfandvergütung angenommen.The logical connection of the light barriers 31 and 33 can be done for security reasons so that the lowered probe 17 remains in position as long as only the lower, the upper box edge scanning light barrier 33 is interrupted and the upper, the aperture 30 associated light barrier 31 is not interrupted. If a box 19 contains a protruding object, for example in the form of an oversized bottle 20a, this inevitably also leads to an interruption of the light barrier 31, as can be seen from FIG. 4. In such a case, the transport device 10 can be stopped or reversed and / or the probe 17 can be raised in order to avoid collisions with the excessively long bottle 20a. Accordingly, such a box is either ejected again or accepted without registration and accordingly without a deposit.

Der Hub des Hubaggregats 22 wird zur Messung der Höhe des Kastens 19 verwendet. Die hierzu vorgeshene Meßeinrichtung enthält, wie am besten aus Figur 3 erkennbar ist, eine mit dem Hubaggregat 22 antreibbare, als Lochscheibe ausgebildete Inkrementalscheibe 36, die mittels eines zugeordneten Sensors 37 abgetastet wird. Dieser wird mittels der auf dem Hubaggregat 22 aufgenommenen Lichtschranken 31 bzw. 33 so gesteuert, daß der Zählvorgang beginnt, sobald die Blende 30 die Lichtschranke 31 freigibt und beendet wird, sobald die untere Lichtschranke 33 durch die Oberkante des Kastens 19 unterbrochen wird. Die Inkrementalscheibe 36 ist im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel auf der Welle 25 aufgenommen. Hierbei ergibt sich in der Regel eine für eine zuverlässige Auflösung des Hubs des Hubaggregats 22 ausreichende Umdrehungszahl. Eine noch größere Auflösung läßt sich auf einfache Weise dadurch erreichen, daß die Inkrementalscheibe 36 einem im Bereich des zum Antriebsmotor führenden Antriebskettenzugs angeordneten Untersetzungsgetriebe vorgeordnet ist. Die Anzahl der vom Sensor 37 aufgenommenen Signale bildet ein Maß für den Abstand der Kastenoberkante von der Blende 30, deren Abstand von der Transportebene fest vorgegeben ist, so daß sich die Kastenhöhe ohne weiteres ermitteln läßt. Diese Signalauswertung erfolgt in einem nicht näher dargestellten Rechner, wobei die mit Hilfe der Inkrementalscheibe 36 mit zugeordnetem Sensor 37 erzeugten Signale eine digitale Signalverarbeitung ermöglichen.The stroke of the lifting unit 22 is used to measure the height of the box 19. The measuring device provided for this purpose, as can best be seen from FIG. 3, contains an incremental disk 36 which can be driven with the lifting unit 22 and is designed as a perforated disk and which is scanned by means of an associated sensor 37. This is controlled by means of the light barriers 31 and 33 received on the lifting unit 22 such that the counting process begins as soon as the diaphragm 30 and the light barrier 31 is released and terminated as soon as the lower light barrier 33 is interrupted by the upper edge of the box 19. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the incremental disk 36 is received on the shaft 25. This usually results in a sufficient number of revolutions for a reliable resolution of the stroke of the lifting unit 22. An even greater resolution can be achieved in a simple manner in that the incremental disk 36 is arranged upstream of a reduction gear arranged in the region of the drive chain hoist leading to the drive motor. The number of signals picked up by the sensor 37 forms a measure of the distance between the top edge of the box and the diaphragm 30, the distance from the transport plane of which is fixed, so that the box height can be easily determined. This signal evaluation takes place in a computer (not shown in more detail), the signals generated with the aid of the incremental disk 36 with an associated sensor 37 enabling digital signal processing.

Zur Ermittelung der Länge des Kastens 19 wird die zusammen mit der Kette 14 angetriebene Inkrementalscheibe 122 herangezogen, das heißt die vom zugeordneten Sensor 123 aufgenommenen Impulse werden gezählt, solange der Kasten 19 an der quer zur Transportrichtung angeordneten Lichtschranke 32 vorbeiläuft, das heißt solange die Lichtschranke 32 unterbrochen ist. Der Sensor 123 wird dementsprechend durch die Lichtschranke 32 auf- und abgesteuert. Es wäre auch denkbar, die Kastenlänge mittels des Tastkopfes 17 zu erfassen. Die direkte Abtastung der Inkrementalscheibe 122 ergibt demgegenüber jedoch eine Vereinfachung des Rechenvorgangs bei der Erfassung des Füllungsgrads. Da sämtliche Rollen 12 der den Abschnitt 10b der Trasnporteinrichtung bildenden Rollenbahn mittels der Kette 14 angetrieben werden, ist eine zuverlässige, praktisch schlupffreie Mitnahme des Kastens 19 sichergestellt, was eine hohe Genauigkeit der Längenmessung gewährleistet. Zur Erzielung eines besonders zuverlässigen Kastentransports können die Rollen 12 gummiert sein.In order to determine the length of the box 19, the incremental disk 122 driven together with the chain 14 is used, i.e. the pulses picked up by the assigned sensor 123 are counted as long as the box 19 runs past the light barrier 32 arranged transversely to the transport direction, that is, as long as the light barrier 32 is interrupted. Accordingly, the sensor 123 is turned on and off by the light barrier 32. It would also be conceivable to detect the box length by means of the probe 17. The direct scanning of the incremental disk 122, however, results in one Simplification of the calculation process when recording the degree of filling. Since all the rollers 12 of the roller conveyor forming the section 10b of the transport device are driven by means of the chain 14, reliable, practically slip-free driving of the box 19 is ensured, which ensures a high accuracy of the length measurement. To achieve a particularly reliable box transport, the rollers 12 can be rubberized.

Der Tastkopf 17 ist, wie aus Figur 3 erkennbar ist, bezüglich der mit Längsebene m der Transporteinrichtung 10 ausgerichtet, das heißt die auf dem Tastkopf 17 aufgenommene Tasterrreihe ist symmetrisch zur Mittellängsebene m aufgebaut. Die durch die Transporteinrichtung 10 transportierten Kästen 19 werden dementsprechend vor ihrem Einlauf in den Wirkbereich des Tastkopfes 17 entsprechend, das heißt symmetrisch zur Mittellängsebene m, ausgerichtet. Hierzu ist eine Ausrichteinrichtung 38 vorgesehen, die, wie Figur 3 anschaulich zeigt, zwei einander gegenüberliegende, die Trasnporteinrichtung 10 übergreifende Schieber 39 enthält, die als quer zur Transportrichtung bewegbare Abschnitte der seitlichen Begrenzungen 9 des Durchlaufkanals 8 ausgebildet sein können. Die Schieber 39 sind an zwischen jeweils zwei Rollen 12 hindurchgreifenden Armen 40 befestigt, die an einem zugeordneten, unterhalb der Transporteinrichtung 10 angeordneten Querhubaggregat 41 aufgenommen sind.As can be seen from FIG. 3, the probe head 17 is aligned with respect to the longitudinal plane m of the transport device 10, that is to say the row of probes received on the probe head 17 is constructed symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m. The boxes 19 transported by the transport device 10 are accordingly aligned before they enter the effective area of the probe head 17, that is to say symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m. For this purpose, an alignment device 38 is provided, which, as FIG. 3 clearly shows, contains two mutually opposite sliders 39 which overlap the transport device 10 and which can be designed as sections of the lateral boundaries 9 of the flow channel 8 which can be moved transversely to the transport direction. The sliders 39 are fastened to arms 40 which pass between two rollers 12 and are received on an associated transverse lifting unit 41 arranged below the transport device 10.

Die Querhubaggregate 41 sind, wie am besten aus Figur 5 erkennbar ist, als Riemen- oder Kettentriebe ausgebildet, die quer zur Transportrichtung der Transporteinrichtung 10 angeordnet sind. Jedes Querhubaggregat 41 umfaßt im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel 2 in Transportrichtung verlaufende Wellen 42, die an ihren Enden mit Kettenrädern 43 versehen sind, über die an den Armen 40 der Schieber 39 angreifende Ketten 44 laufen. Zum Antrieb der beiden Querhubaggregate 41 ist ein Antriebsmotor 45 vorgesehen, der mit einer der Wellen 42 gekuppelt ist, die mittels eines Stirnradvorgeleges 46, das exakte Gegenläufigkeit gewährleistet, mit einer benachbarten Welle des jeweils anderen Querhubaggregats verbunden ist. Die Wellen 42 sind auf an den Längsholmen 47 des Abschnitts 10b der Trasnporteinrichtung 10 befestigten Querholmen 48 gelagert. Die Aktivierung der Ausrichteinrichtung 38 erfolgt zusammen mit der Aktivierung des Hubaggregats 22 mittels derselben Lichtschranke 32. Sofern es im Einzelfall zweckmäßig sein sollte, die Transporteinrichtung 10 während der Tätigkeit der Ausrichteinrichtung 38 stillzusetzen, ist dies ohne weiteres möglich. Hierzu kann eine Passivierung der Trasnporteinrichtung 10 mittels der die Ausrichteinrichtung 38 aktivierenden Lichtschranke 32 erfolgen. Nach erfolgter Kastenausrichtung, das heißt wenn keine Bewegung der Querhubaggregate 41 mehr stattfindet, erfolgt in diesem Falle der erneute Anlauf der Transporteinrichtung 10.As can best be seen in FIG. 5, the transverse lifting units 41 are designed as belt or chain drives. which are arranged transversely to the transport direction of the transport device 10. In the exemplary embodiment shown, each transverse stroke unit 41 comprises 2 shafts 42 which extend in the transport direction and which are provided at their ends with chain wheels 43, over which chains 44 which engage the arms 40 of the sliders 39 run. To drive the two transverse stroke units 41, a drive motor 45 is provided which is coupled to one of the shafts 42, which is connected to an adjacent shaft of the respective other transverse stroke unit by means of a spur gear train 46, which ensures exact counter-rotation. The shafts 42 are mounted on cross bars 48 fastened to the longitudinal bars 47 of the section 10 b of the transport device 10. The alignment device 38 is activated together with the activation of the lifting unit 22 by means of the same light barrier 32. If it should be advisable in individual cases to shut down the transport device 10 while the alignment device 38 is operating, this is readily possible. For this purpose, the transport device 10 can be passivated by means of the light barrier 32 which activates the alignment device 38. After the box has been aligned, that is to say when the transverse lifting units 41 no longer move, the transport device 10 is restarted in this case.

Der Hub der Querhubbaggregate 41 wird zur Messung der Breite des Kastens 19 herangezogen. Hierzu ist eine zusammen mit den Querhubaggregaten 41 antreibbare Inkrementalscheibe 49 vorgesehen, die, wie Figur 6 am besten erkennen läßt, als Lochscheibe ausgebildet sein kann, der ein Sensor 50 zugeordnet ist. Die Ausgangsposition der Querhubaggregate 41 wird durch eine hier gestellfest angeordnete Lichtschranke 51 definiert, die eine zugeordnete, an einer benachbarten Kette 44 befestigte Blende 52 abtastet. Die Zählung der vom Sensor 50 aufgenommenen Impulse beginnt, sobald die Lichtschranke 51 freigegeben ist. Die Inkrementalscheibe 49 kann, wie in Figur 5 mit durchgezogenen Linien angedeutet ist, auf einer der mittels des Motors 45 antreibbaren Wellen 42 aufgenommen sein. Die Umdrehungszahl der Inkrementalscheibe 49 entspricht in diesem Fall der Umdrehungszahl der Kettenräder 43, was in der Regel eine ausreichend gute Auflösung des Messbereichs ergibt. Die zwischen dem Motor 45 und der hiermit gekuppelten Welle 42 angeordnete Kupplung 53 kann in diesem Falle als Rutschkupplung ausgebildet sein, so daß der Motor 45 nach erfolgter Ausrichtung durchdrehen kann. Zwischen Kupplung 53 und Motor 45 ist im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel ein Untersetzungsgetriebe 54 vorgesehen. Zur Erzielung einer um den Untersetzungsfaktor größeren Auflösung des Meßbereichs könnte die Inkrementalscheibe einfach dem Untersetzungsgetriebe 54 vorgeordnet werden, wie in Figur 5 mit gestrichelten Linien bei 49 angedeutet ist. Die Kupplung 54 müßte in diesem Falle eine Festkupplung sein, so daß der Motor 45 nach erfolgter Ausrichtung nicht durchdrehen kann und dementsprechend auch die hiermit verbundene Inkrementalscheibe 49a stillsteht.The stroke of the transverse lifting bag units 41 is used to measure the width of the box 19. For this purpose, an incremental disk 49, which can be driven together with the transverse lifting units 41, is provided, which, as can best be seen in FIG. 6, can be designed as a perforated disk to which a sensor 50 is assigned. The starting position the cross-stroke unit 41 is defined by a light barrier 51 which is fixed to the frame and which scans an associated aperture 52 fastened to an adjacent chain 44. The counting of the pulses picked up by the sensor 50 begins as soon as the light barrier 51 is released. The incremental disk 49 can, as indicated by solid lines in FIG. 5, be received on one of the shafts 42 which can be driven by the motor 45. In this case, the number of revolutions of the incremental disk 49 corresponds to the number of revolutions of the chain wheels 43, which generally results in a sufficiently good resolution of the measuring range. In this case, the clutch 53 arranged between the motor 45 and the shaft 42 coupled to it can be designed as a slip clutch so that the motor 45 can spin after alignment. In the exemplary embodiment shown, a reduction gear 54 is provided between clutch 53 and motor 45. In order to achieve a resolution of the measuring range which is larger by the reduction factor, the incremental disk could simply be arranged upstream of the reduction gear 54, as indicated by broken lines at 49 in FIG. In this case, the clutch 54 would have to be a fixed clutch, so that the motor 45 cannot turn after alignment and, accordingly, the associated incremental disk 49a also stands still.

Die aus der Längen-, Breiten- und Höhenmessung sich ergebenden Maße werden, wie weiter oben schon angedeutet wurde, zur Identifizierung des Kastens 19 verwendet. Hierzu sind in einem Rechner alle gängigen Kastengrößen gespeichert. Die Identifizierung des Kastens 19 ermöglicht nunmehr nicht nur eine Rückzahlung des Kastenpfands, sondern ermöglicht auch die Wahl des zum vorliegenden Kasten gehörenden Gefachrasters, das ebenfalls im Rechner gespreichert sein kann. Dieser Raster ermöglicht zusammen mit den vom Tastkopf 17 geleiferten Informationen die Festlegung des Füllungsgrads des Kastens, das heißt die Beantwortung der Frage, ob und gegebenenfalls wieviele Flaschen 20 der Kasten 19 enthält und wieviele Flaschen 20 dementsprechend zusätzlich zum Kasten 19 noch zu vergüten sind. Die Gesamtvergütung kann entweder in bar oder in Form eines ausgedruckten Gutscheins ausgezahlt werden.The dimensions resulting from the length, width and height measurement are used, as already indicated above, to identify the box 19. For this purpose, all common box sizes are in one computer saved. The identification of the box 19 now not only enables repayment of the box deposit, but also enables the selection of the compartment grid belonging to the present box, which can also be stored in the computer. This grid, together with the information provided by the probe 17, allows the degree of filling of the crate to be determined, that is, the answer to the question of whether and if so how many bottles 20 the crate 19 contains and how many bottles 20 are to be remunerated in addition to the crate 19. The total remuneration can be paid either in cash or in the form of a printed voucher.

Dadurch, daß der Tastkopf 17 nicht starr angeordnet ist, sondern die Kastenoberkante anfährt, ist zudem sichergestellt, daß die Füllung des Kastens auch klassifiert werden kann, d. h. es ist auch erkennbar, ob die im Kasten vorhandenen Flaschen zu diesem Kasten gehören oder eventuelle zu hoch oder zu niedrig sind. Für den Fall, daß die vorhandenen Flaschen zu hoch oder zu niedrig sind, kann der Rechner so programmiert sein, daß nichts vergütet und damit der ganze Kasten verloren ist.The fact that the probe 17 is not rigidly arranged, but moves to the top of the box, also ensures that the filling of the box can also be classified, i. H. it can also be seen whether the bottles in the box belong to this box or whether they are too high or too low. In the event that the existing bottles are too high or too low, the computer can be programmed so that nothing is remunerated and the entire box is thus lost.

Die Figur 7 zeigt eine Variante des dem Tastkopf 17 zugeordneten Hubaggregats 22, bei dem die Absenkung durch Ausnutzung der Schwerkraft des Tastkopfes 17 erfolgt. Ansonsten entspricht der Aufbau der Anordnung gemäß Figur 7 dem im Zusammenhang mit den Figuren 3 und 4 beschriebenen Ausführungsbeispiel. Nachstehend werden daher nur die Unterschiede beschrieben, wobei für gleiche Teile gleiche Bezugszeichen Verwendung finden. Der Tastkopf 17 ist im vorliegenden Ausführungsbeispiel mit zwei seitlichen, die beiden übereinanderliegenden Lichtschranken 31, 33 aufnehmenden Lagerschilden 35 versehen. Beide Lagerschilde 35 sind zur Bewerkstelligung einer zuverlässigen Führung auf zwei parallelen Schwingen 55 aufgenommen. Diese sind einerseits am Maschinengestell und andererseits am jeweils zugeordneten Lagerschild 35 gelagert, so daß sich praktisch eine Parallelogrammführung ergibt.FIG. 7 shows a variant of the lifting unit 22 assigned to the probe head 17, in which the lowering takes place by utilizing the gravity of the probe head 17. Otherwise, the structure of the arrangement according to FIG. 7 corresponds to the exemplary embodiment described in connection with FIGS. 3 and 4. Therefore, only the differences are described below, the same reference numerals being used for the same parts. The probe In the present exemplary embodiment, 17 is provided with two side bearing plates 35, which receive the two light barriers 31, 33 lying one above the other. Both end shields 35 are accommodated on two parallel rockers 55 in order to achieve reliable guidance. These are supported on the one hand on the machine frame and on the other hand on the respectively associated end plate 35, so that there is practically a parallelogram guide.

Zur Bewerkstelligung einer Hubbewegung des Tastkopfes 17 ist jeweils ein Teil der genannten Parallelogrammanordnung an antreibbaren, über Kettenräder laufenden Ketten 23a aufgenommen. Zur Erzielung eines Gewichtsausgleichs und damit zur Entlastung der Antriebsmaschine, sind an den Ketten 23a befestigte Gegengewichte 56 vorgesehen. Die Ketten 23a sind im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel als endliche Ketten ausgebildet, die jeweils auf ein zugeordnetes, oberhalb des Hubbereichs des Tastkopfes 17 angeordnetes Kettenrad 24a aufgelegt sind und deren nach unten hängende Enden an einem zugeordneten Lagerschild 35 bzw. Gegengewicht 56 befestigt sind. Die Kettenräder 24a sind auf einer über die Breite des Förderkanals durchgehenden Welle 25 aufgenommen, die direkt oder, wie im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel, indirekt über eine Kette 26 mit einer Antriebseinrichtung verbunden ist, die einen Getriebemotor 57 enthalten kann. Der Hub des Tastkopfes 17 ausgehend von einem oberen Anschlag 30 wird durch eine zusammen mit dem Hubaggregat 22 antreibbare Inkrementalscheibe erfaßt, die entweder auf der Welle 25 aufgenommen sein kann, wie bei 36 angedeutet ist, oder die zur Erzielung eines großen Drehwinkels und damit einer hohen Genauigkeit dem Getriebe des Getriebemotors 57 vorgeordnet sein kann, wie bei 36a angedeutet ist.In order to bring about a lifting movement of the probe 17, a part of the parallelogram arrangement mentioned is accommodated on drivable chains 23a running over chain wheels. In order to achieve a weight balance and thus to relieve the load on the drive machine, counterweights 56 attached to the chains 23a are provided. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the chains 23a are designed as finite chains, each of which is placed on an associated sprocket 24a arranged above the stroke range of the probe 17 and the downward-hanging ends of which are attached to an associated end plate 35 or counterweight 56. The sprockets 24a are received on a shaft 25 which is continuous over the width of the conveying channel and which is connected directly or, as in the exemplary embodiment shown, indirectly via a chain 26 to a drive device which can contain a geared motor 57. The stroke of the probe 17 starting from an upper stop 30 is detected by an incremental disk which can be driven together with the lifting unit 22 and which can either be accommodated on the shaft 25, as indicated at 36, or to achieve a large angle of rotation and thus a high one Accuracy of the gear of the gear motor 57 can be arranged, as indicated at 36a.

Die der Figur 8 zugrundeliegende Variante der Kastenausrichteinrichtung besitzt wie die den Figuren 3 und 5 zu grundeliegende Ausrichteinrichtung zwei symmetrisch zur Mittellängsebene m des Durchlaufkanals arbeitende Schieber 39, hier in Form von in im Bereich der seitlichen Kanalbegrenzungen vorgesehene Nischen eintauchenden Stangen. Diese sind auf jeweils zugeordneten Schwenkarmen 58 aufgenommen, die mit ihren unteren Enden auf die Transporteinrichtung untergreifenden Traversen 48a schwenkbar gelagert sind. Zur Betätigung der Schwenkarme 58 ist ein mit seiner Achse im Bereich der Mittellängsebene m angeordneter Getriebemotor 45 vorgesehen, auf dessen Abtriebswelle ein zweiarmiger Hebel 59 aufgekeilt ist. Der zweiarmige Hebel 59 greift mit seinen einander gegenüberliegenden Enden an den einander gegenüberliegenden Schwekarmen 58 an. Im dargestellten Ausführungsbeispiel sind hierzu zwischengeschaltete Schubstangen 60 vorgesehen. Da die einander gegenüberliegenden Enden des zweiarmigen Hebels 59 praktisch gegenläufig sind, ergibt sich auch die gewünschte Gegenläufigkeit der Schwenkarme 58. Die in Figur 8 mit durchgezogenen Linien angegebene Ausgangsposition der Schwenkarme 58 und dementsprechend der Schieber 39 ist durch gestellfeste Anschläge 61 definiert. In der in Figur 8 mit gestrichelten Linien angedeuteten Ausrichtstellung liegen beide einander gegenüberliegende Schieber 39 am mittig ausgerichteten Kasten 19 stramm an. Der dabei sich ergebende Abstand der einander gegenüberliegenden Schieber 39 entspricht der Breite des Kastens 19. Um diese zu messen, wird der Schwenkwinkel der Schwenkarme 58 erfaßt, wozu die zusammen mit den Schwenkarmen 58 antreibbare, durch einen zugeordneten Sensor 50 abtastbare Inkrementalscheibe 49 Verwendung findet, die hier zur Erzielung eines großen Drehwinkels und damit einer hohen Genauigkeit ebenfalls dem Getriebe des Getriebemotors 45 vorgeordnet sein kann.The variant of the box alignment device on which FIG. 8 is based, like the alignment device on which FIGS. 3 and 5 are based, has two slides 39 which work symmetrically to the central longitudinal plane m of the flow channel, here in the form of rods immersed in niches provided in the area of the lateral channel boundaries. These are accommodated on respectively assigned swivel arms 58, which are pivotably mounted with their lower ends on the crossbeams 48a which reach under the transport device. To actuate the swivel arms 58, a geared motor 45 is provided with its axis in the region of the central longitudinal plane m, on the output shaft of which a two-armed lever 59 is wedged. The two-armed lever 59 engages with its mutually opposite ends on the mutually opposite heavy arms 58. In the illustrated embodiment, intermediate connecting rods 60 are provided for this. Since the opposite ends of the two-armed lever 59 are practically opposed, the desired reciprocity of the swivel arms 58 also results. The starting position of the swivel arms 58 indicated by solid lines in FIG. 8 and accordingly the slide 39 is defined by stops 61 fixed to the frame. In the alignment position indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 8, both opposing slides 39 lie tight against the centrally aligned box 19. The resulting distance between the opposing slides 39 corresponds to the width of the box 19. To measure this, the swivel angle of the swivel arms 58 is detected, for which purpose the incremental disk 49, which can be driven together with the swivel arms 58 and can be scanned by an associated sensor 50, is used, which can also be arranged upstream of the gearbox of the geared motor 45 in order to achieve a large angle of rotation and thus high accuracy.

Claims (18)

  1. A device for the mechanical acceptance of returned empties in the form of bottle crates with or without bottles having a deposit thereon, comprising at least one conveying device (10) constituting the lower limit of a channel (8), and a sensor device fitted over the conveying device (10), which sensor device has a sensor head (17), which is able to be operated by a lifting assembly (22) in a manner dependent on the presence of a bottle crate (19) offered by the conveying device, in order to ascertain the degree of filling of the bottle crate and the sensor head (17) has a plurality of sensor elements (18) for sensing the degree of filling of the bottle crate and which are in cooperation with a counting device, characterized in that at least one height measuring feeler (31 and 33) is adapted to be moved with the sensor head (17), which feeler detects the top edge of the offered bottle crate (22), the lifting assembly (22) is connected with a height measuring device (36 and 37), the sensor elements (18) arranged and the sensor head (17) are arranged in a row extending transversely in relation to the direction of conveying, which row is arranged in relation to a fixed plane (m) of an aligning device (38) aligning the offered bottle crates parallel to the direction of conveying, the aligning device (38) has at least one pushing element (39) arranged above the conveying plane and laterally limiting the channel, which pushing element is able to be driven by a transverse lifting assembly (41), the transverse lifting assembly (41) is connected with a breadth measuring device (49 and 50) for ascertaining the size of the transverse stroke, a length measuring feeler (32), responding to the offered bottle crate (19) in order to operate a length measuring device (122 and 123).
  2. The device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the lifting assembly (22) has an upper starting position, which is defined by an upper abutment (30) fixed to the frame.
  3. The device as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that a lower abutment (34) is provided limiting the maximum stroke of the lifting assembly (22).
  4. The device as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, characterized in that The abutments (30 and 34) are constituted by baffles which are able to be sensed by at least one height measuring feeler (31 and 33) arranged on the lifting assembly (22) and preferably at least one photoelectric detector.
  5. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that two vertically offset photoelectric detectors (31 and 33) are arranged on the lifting assembly (22), of which the lower detector is designed in the form of height measuring feeler sensing the top edge of a bottle crate and the upper one is designed in the form of a height measuring a feeler in order to ascertain the presence of articles (20a) projecting past the top edge of the crate.
  6. The device as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that two oppositely arranged bearings (35) are provided accepting the sensor head (17) between them which bearings bear the mutually opposite elements of the photoelectric detector (31 and 33).
  7. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lifting assembly (22) has at least one traction element (23 and 23a) adapted to be driven and running over a driven guide member (24 and 24a), which element acts on the sensor head (17).
  8. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in the sensor head (17) is guided by means of at least one carriage (28) running along a guide column (27) in a straight line.
  9. The device as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that the sensor head (17) has lateral bearings (35) and each bearing (35) is pivoted on two parallel rockers (55).
  10. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the height measuring device associated with the lifting assembly (22) has an incremental disk (36) driven jointly with the lifting device (22) and designed in the form of a perforated disk, which is able to be sensed by an associated sensor means (37) which is able to be operated by means of the height measuring feeler (31 and 33) arranged on the lifting assembly (22).
  11. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the length measuring device (122 and 123) has an incremental disk (122) driven jointly with a section (10b) able to be moved through underneath the sensor head, of the conveying device (10), and the sensor means (123) in cooperation with the incremental disk (122) is able to be operated by means of the measuring feeler (32).
  12. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lifting assembly (22) and the aligning device (38) are able to be switched on by means of the length measuring feeler (32) and the length measuring feeler (32) preferably simultaneously halts the conveying device (10) until the end of the alignment operation.
  13. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the breadth measuring device (49 and 50) has an incremental disk (49 and, respectively, 49a) driven jointly with the transverse lifting assembly (41).
  14. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that aligning device has two oppositely running pushing elements, which are able to be driven by means of oppositely moving transverse lifting assemblies, which operate symmetrically to the median longitudinal plane (m) constituting the fixed plane, of the conveying device (10).
  15. The device as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that the transverse lifting assembles (41) have pivoting arms (58) bearing the pushing elements (39), which arms are connected with the mutually opposite arms of a driven first class lever (59).
  16. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sensor elements (18) arranged on the sensor head (17) and designed in the form of reflected light switches in accordance with the passage time required by the offered articles (bottles 20) provide corresponding respective continuous signals, which by means of the incremental disk (122) driven by means of the section (10b) which is able to be moved past underneath sensor head in a manner dependent on the speed of the conveying are able to be interrogated at set intervals.
  17. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the conveying device (10) has two tandem-arranged sections (10a and 10b) able to be driven at different speeds, preferably the faster one (10b) which is to the front in the direction of conveying and runs underneath the sensor head (17) being in the form of a roller conveyor with preferably rubber coated rolls driven (14) by means of a chain (14) extending over all rolls (12).
  18. The device as claimed in any one of the claims 10 through 17, characterized in that the incremental disk or, respectively, disks (122, 36, 49, 49a) are arranged on the input side of any step-down transmission (54) present on the output side of the motor (15 or, respectively, 45).
EP88106815A 1987-05-12 1988-04-27 Device for automatically collecting empties Expired - Lifetime EP0290877B1 (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AT88106815T ATE85538T1 (en) 1987-05-12 1988-04-27 DEVICE FOR THE MECHANICAL COLLECTION OF EMPTY CONTAINERS.

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
DE3715816 1987-05-12
DE3715816 1987-05-12

Publications (3)

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EP0290877A2 EP0290877A2 (en) 1988-11-17
EP0290877A3 EP0290877A3 (en) 1989-11-23
EP0290877B1 true EP0290877B1 (en) 1993-02-10

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EP88106815A Expired - Lifetime EP0290877B1 (en) 1987-05-12 1988-04-27 Device for automatically collecting empties

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US (1) US4843230A (en)
EP (1) EP0290877B1 (en)
AT (1) ATE85538T1 (en)
DE (1) DE3878302D1 (en)
NO (1) NO169939C (en)

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DE29609410U1 (en) * 1996-05-25 1996-08-14 Kern Michael Return station for reusable containers
DE102008052330A1 (en) 2008-10-20 2010-06-17 Envipco Holding N.V. Method and transport device for taking back empties, in particular bottles and cans
US8446247B2 (en) * 2009-10-21 2013-05-21 J&L Group International, Llc Safety system
CN113617686B (en) * 2021-08-13 2023-01-17 广州市稳建工程检测有限公司 Device and method for detecting structural performance of assembled reinforced concrete assembly
CN114955486B (en) * 2022-08-01 2022-09-30 徐州考拉机器人科技有限公司 Manual interaction intelligent logistics sorting equipment

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DE2645024A1 (en) * 1975-10-16 1977-04-21 Platmanufaktur Ab Crated bottle handling plant - counts returned bottles and returns paid deposits using package dimensions measuring device and registration unit (NL 19.4.77)
EP0174549A1 (en) * 1984-08-29 1986-03-19 Halton Oy Means for identifying and recording bottles and/or bottle hampers

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE19640117C2 (en) * 1996-09-28 2003-09-18 Em Geraetebau Ruecknahmesystem Device for the automatic withdrawal of trays

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
NO169939B (en) 1992-05-18
DE3878302D1 (en) 1993-03-25
NO882073L (en) 1988-11-14
NO169939C (en) 1992-08-26
US4843230A (en) 1989-06-27
ATE85538T1 (en) 1993-02-15
NO882073D0 (en) 1988-05-11
EP0290877A2 (en) 1988-11-17
EP0290877A3 (en) 1989-11-23

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