GB2119335A

GB2119335A - Device for separating articles

Info

Publication number: GB2119335A
Application number: GB08310235A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Eberhard Weckend; Werner Bohme; Wolfgang Girndt
Original assignee: Nagema VEB
Current assignee: Nagema VEB
Priority date: 1982-04-29
Filing date: 1983-04-15
Publication date: 1983-11-16
Also published as: CH660312A5; FR2525928A1; DE3308010A1; DE3308010C2; GB2119335B; FR2525928B1; DD204675A1; GB8310235D0

Abstract

In a device for separating out defective flat durable bakery items, the items travel in rows from the cooling band into a slide shaft 4, beneath which there is mounted a transverse pusher 5 of angle form acting at right angles to the oblique slideway, with a correspondingly obliquely rising bottom plate 6 at the same level with which there adjoins an inclinedly arranged transverse conveyor 2 with separator bars, which is provided at the entry with a retaining catch. The bottom plate is divided in conformity with the arriving rows into individual downwardly pivotable discharge flaps 6a which are electromechanically connected by means of an actuator member 8 each with an electro- optical measuring device 10 arranged at the exit of the slide shaft and responding to the colour features, above which device there is mounted a clamp holder 11 connected with the basic drive and extending at every working stroke into the slide shaft. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Device for separating articles The invention relates to a device for separating out articles such as defective flat durable bakery produce items, especiaiiy biscuits, which travel in rows from a cooling band into an obliquely descending slide shaft, beneath which there is mounted an angular, reciprocating, transverse pusher acting at right angles to the oblique slideway, with a correspondingly obliquely rising bottom plate, at the same level with which there adjoins a transverse conveyor arranged with inclination in the same way, with separator bars, which is provided at the entry with a retainer catch.

A device of the initially stated kind has already been proposed. With this known device the durable bakery produce items delivered in the slide shaft are fed, independently of their external deformation and development occurring in the baking process, to the stack-forming transverse conveyor. Separating out of defective pieces is possible with this device only manually by the operators.

Furthermore a device for the elimination of faults from uniformly shaped flat articles, for example biscuits; is known. This device has a movable gauge which ascertains the occurrence of an overdimensioned article, but without preventing its further conveying. This gauge sets an eliminator element in action which separates the corresponding articles out of the conveyor path. The articles are pushed off transversely of the conveying direction into an adjacent scrap channel (Fed. Ger. Pub. Sp.2,521,767).

The separating out of defective articles according to this principle is constructionally very expensive, since a separate scrap channel must be provided for each arriving row.

Finally a further device is known in which sensing means are provided which measure the thickness.

These sensing means, on sensing too thick an article, set a knocking means in action whereby these articles are put into an eccentric position on the conveyor. After the conveyor there are arranged two parallel narrow, endless straps or chains the spacing of which from one another is so great that the eccentrically arriving articles come to abut on only one strap or chain. Thus these tip off from the carrier during transport, in contrast to the accurately dimensioned articles which are conveyed further on both straps or chains (Fed. Ger. Pub. Sp. 2,703,958).

This device likewise has the disadvantage that plenty of room must be available at the sides for the tipping away of the articles. Moreover this device is suitable only for lengthy articles which arrive transversely of the conveying direction, since approximately rectangular articles cannot reliably be tipped off in this way.

The invention has the aim of reducing the constructional expense for a sorting device.

The problem of the invention consists in conducting the biscuits ascertained as defective out of the conveyed flow within the individual rows. According to the invention this is achieved in that the bottom plate is divided in accordance with the arriving rows into individual downwardly pivotable discharge flaps which are connected electro-mechanically by means of an actuator member each with an electrooptical measuring device arranged at the exit of the slide shaft and responding to the defect features, above which there is mounted a clamp holder connected with the basic drive and entering the slide shaft at every working stroke. Thus the biscuits ascertained as defective can advantageously be separated downwards out of the row, so that expensive conveyor means adjoining the cooling band and structure-enlarging secondary channels for removal can be eliminated.

The invention is explained in an example of embodiment in the drawing, wherein:- Figure 7 shows a section with discharge flap closed; Figure 2 shows the same with discharge flap opened.

The device for forming stacks of biscuits and separating out defective biscuits consists essentially of a cooling band 1 which is arranged behind a bake oven (not shown) and of a transverse conveyor 2.

The cooling band 1 is composed of a wire band la and conveyor rolls lb, of which only the rear conveyor roll it is visible in the drawing. At the rear part of this cooling band 1 a presses band 3 is provided above for securing the position of the biscuits Z to be treated. At the end the cooling band 1 has an obliquely descending slide shaft 4 reaching over the whole width. This slide shaft 4 consists of two side walls 4a, 4t,so that between these a slideway is formed of the width of the biscuits Z.

Beneath the slide shaft 4 there is mounted a reciprocating transverse pusher 5 of angle form with a bottom plate 6. The bottom plate 6 is divided in conformity with the arriving rows into individual discharge flaps 6a which can be pivoted down.

These discharge flaps 6a are mounted on a continuous, non-displaceable, pivot spindle 7 and have a radially outwardly extending actuator member 8 which is secured with its free end to an electromagnet 9. At the exit of the slide shaft 4 there is secured, beside the side wall 4b, an electro-optical measuring device 10 responding to colour features, which is connected through a conductor electrical system with amplifier and switch device (not shown) to the electro-magnet 9. Above this measuring device 10, on the side wall 4b, a clamp holder 11 is mounted on an angle lever 12 in such manner that in the effective position it extends through the side wall 4b into the free cross-section of the slide shaft 4.The drive of this clamp holder 11 is introduced from the cam gearing, which has no reference numeral, through an actuator rod 13 to the angle lever 12. The transverse pusher 5 acts at right angles to the oblique slide shaft 4 while the discharge flaps 6a, in the closed position, likewise proceed with rising inclination at right angles thereto. The forward part 5a of the transverse pusher 5 in the initial position is flush with the rear side wall 4a of the slide shaft 4.

Thus after leaving the slide shaft the biscuits Z come to abut on the pusher. The upper part, angled off at right angles, of the transverse pusher St on the other hand is of such dimensions that in the end position it covers the slide shaft 4. The transverse conveyor 2, likewise arranged at an inclination, adjoins at the same level as the discharge flaps 6a. This transverse conveyor 2 comprises separator bars 2a arranged with spacing at the width of the biscuits Z and is provided at the front with a retaining catch 14 which consists of separator sliders 14a, 1 4t acting from one above and one from beneath. The width of the transverse conveyor 2, dimensioned up to the maximum stack height, corresponds to a stack formation in each case of six biscuits.The transverse conveyor 2 is connected with a drive (not shown) by which a series forward movement of the separator bars 2a is initiated. The device is completed by a collecting hopper 15with a delivery belt 16forthe discharged biscuits Z.

The manner of operation of the device for separating out the defective biscuits is the object of the following description. The biscuits Z arriving in several rows lying side by side from the bake oven (not shown) on the cooling band 1, after leaving the cooling band 1, slide obliquely downwards into the slide shaft 4. While the cooling band 1 moves continuously the transverse conveyor 2 is driven step by step by the basic drive (not shown). At every step the transverse conveyor 2 moves further with its separator bars 2a by the width of one row.

The biscuits Z are set upright in the slide shaft 4 so that they slide in an upright position, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, past the measuring device 10 and the transverse pusher 5 situated in the initial position. If, as shown in Figure 1, the measuring device 10 has ascertained no defective formation of the biscuit sliding past, the biscuit Z is received by the closed bottom plate 6a. In such a normal case the biscuits Z are pushed off on to the transverse conveyor 2, by driving out of the transverse pusher 5. The following biscuits Z, collecting in the meantime in the slide shaft 4, rest in this position on the upper part 5b of the transverse pusher 5.Before the return of the transverse pusher 5 the retaining catch 14 comes into action, in that the separator sliders 14a, 14b apply themselves to the back of the last biscuit Z pushed off on to the transverse conveyor 2.

Then the transverse pusher 5 is moved back into its initial position. In this way the biscuits Z are progressively collected into takes from row to row in a track on the transverse conveyor 2.

The manner of operation for the separating out of defective biscuits may be seen especially from Figure 2.

When a defective biscuit Z is discharged from the cooling band into the slide shaft 4, the opticalelectric measuring device 10 responds as it passes.

The conductor system (not shown) with amplifier and switch device. Thus the discharge flap 6a is pivoted away downwards by means of the actuator member 8, so that the biscuit Z finds no hold and comes to lie in the delivery hopper 15 on the delivery belt 16. From the delivery belt 16 the defective biscuits pass into a coliecting vessel (not shown). So that now the next biscuits Z received by the slide shaft 4 does not pass the slide shaft 4 unchecked in the same way, at every working stroke the clamp holder 11 driven by the basic drive comes into effect. This clamp holder 11 presses itself against the following biscuit so that the latter is held back in the slide shaft 4. The electro-magnet 9 is then immediately switched back into its initial position so that the discharge flap 6a also returns into its closed position as illustrated in Figure 1. The following biscuits then, according to their formation, in the next working stroke are either pushed off on to the transverse conveyor or again discharged into the delivery hopper. The described operations are then correspondingly repeated. With this device it is advantageously possible automatically to separate out defective biscuits during the continuous working process.

Claims

1. A device for separating out flat articles, especially biscuits, which travel in rows from a cooling band into an obliquely descending slide shaft beneath which a reciprocating transverse pusher of angle form acting at right angles to the oblique slideway, with a correspondingly obliquely rising bottom plate is mounted at the same level with which there adjoins a transverse conveyor, arranged with inclination in the same way, with separator bars, which is provided at the entry with a retaining catch, wherein the bottom plate (6) is divided in conformity with the arriving rows into individual downwardly pivotable discharge claps (6a) which are electro-mechanically connected by means of an actuator member (8) each with an electro-optical measuring device (10) arranged atthe exit of the slide shaft (4) and responding to the colour features, above which measuring device there is mounted a clamp holder (11) extending at every working stroke into the slide shaft (4) and connected with the basic drive.

2. A device for separating out flat articles substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.