JP2001253575A - Separately conveying apparatus for flexible stacked object and separately conveying method for book therewith - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To separately convey a flexible stacked object at a high speed. SOLUTION: This separately conveying apparatus, separately conveying flexible stacked objects sequentially from the bottom, consists of a feed table which sucks the lower surface of an object on the bottom and advances to feed it to a forward carrying-out device, a lift hook which enters, from forward, between the object on the bottom and the second object from the bottom to lift up the second or upper objects from the bottom, and a vacuumer which sucks the lower surface of the object on the bottom and brings it into contact with the feed table.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a separation / transportation apparatus for a flexible stack for stacking flexible articles and separating and transporting them one by one from below, and a method for separating / transporting books using this apparatus. Things. The most preferred technical field of the present invention is the bookbinding field, which is most suitable for separating and conveying books and signatures.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With regard to bookbinding, books bound with a binder or the like are transported to the next step in a state where several books are stacked. In this case, if the next step is, for example, cutting, inspection, engraving, mounting or shipping, etc., these must be separated one by one again. Conventionally, as a separation device for this book, it was housed in a magazine, the lowermost part was sucked with a vacuum or the like, peeled off, and pulled out with an arm having a gripping function that mechanically swings. I was or,
There was also a method of pushing out the rotating drum one by one and pulling it out one by one.

[0003]

However, in the case of an arm, an object having a relatively large inertia must be moved with a stroke greater than the width of a book. The extent was limit. Also, with a drum, it was very difficult to press several sheets of paper on the outer periphery of the book so that the thick book would not peel off. The present invention is intended to solve such a problem, in which the lowermost book is sucked and sent out by a reciprocating feed table. In this case, the stroke is reduced by reducing the stroke. Reciprocating movement of

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention relates to a separation / transportation apparatus for a flexible stack for sequentially separating and transporting stacked flexible objects from the bottom. , The separation and transport device adsorbs the lower surface of the lowermost object and moves forward, and separates the feed table to be supplied to the front unloading device, and the lowermost object and the second lowermost object from the front. A flexible stack separation / conveyance device, comprising: a lift hook for entering and lifting a second or more upward, and a vacuum for adsorbing a lower surface of a bottom object and adhering to a feed table. It was done.

Further, according to the present invention, there is provided a separating / transporting apparatus for a flexible stack in which the above-mentioned flexible stack is a book, and the lowermost book of books stacked by the apparatus is moved together with a feed table. This provides a book separation and conveyance method for separating and conveying books one by one.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings by taking a book as an example. 1 and 2
FIG. 3 is a side view of a book separating and conveying apparatus showing an example of the present invention, and FIG.
FIG. 1 is a plan view. The separation / conveyance apparatus includes a magazine 2 for accommodating stacked books 1, a feed table 3 which is located below the magazine 2 and reciprocates back and forth, and which is located in front of the magazine 2. A lift hook 4 that separates and moves up and down between the bottom book 1a and the second book 1b in the magazine 2,
And a vacuum 5 which is located below the front of the magazine 2 and rises and falls.

The magazine 2 includes a front wall 6, a rear wall 7 and side walls 8, in which the books 1 are stacked and accommodated. For this reason, the arrangement of the front wall 6, the rear wall 7 and the side walls 8 is adapted to the dimensions of the book 1. The feed table 3 is provided below the magazine 2, and its front end is aligned with the position of the front wall 6 of the magazine 2. The feed table 3 is reciprocated back and forth, but in this example, a bracket 9 is attached to the lower surface, and the guide bar 1
1 is inserted and used as a movement guide. In this case, if a slide bearing or the like is used between the bracket 9 and the guide bar 11, high-speed movement can be achieved with little resistance.

On the other hand, the front end of the link 12 is pivotally connected to the bracket 9, and the rear end of the link 12 is pivotally connected to an arm 14 which rotates about a support shaft 13 which is appropriately supported. A cam arm 15 is fitted on the support shaft 13, and a cam follower 16 attached to the tip of the cam arm 15 is brought into sliding contact with a cam plate 17. Thus, when the cam plate 17 is rotated, the feed table 3 reciprocates.

The front end 18 of the feed table 3 of this embodiment is pivotally attached to the main body 19 with a horizontal pin 20. The front end 18 can be inclined downward with respect to the main body 19. It has become. In addition, this front end 18
Is narrower than the main body 19. On the other hand, a bracket 21 hangs down from the front end 18 and a cam follower 22 is attached to a lower end thereof, and the cam follower 22 is fitted in a groove cam 23 which is appropriately fixed. The shape of the groove cam 23 is set such that when the feed table 3 is at the retracted position, the front end portion 18 is inclined downward by about 3 to 15 °, and becomes horizontal when the feed table 3 reaches the advanced position.

Further, on the upper surface of the feed table 3, both the front end portion 18 and the main body portion 19 have a suction chamber 2 which is open on the upper surface.
4 and 25 are formed, and these suction chambers 24 and 25 are formed.
Is connected to the intake side or the like of the compressor by a pipe or a hose 26. Thus, if the book 1 is placed on the upper surface of the feed table 3 so as to cover the suction chambers 24 and 25, the book 1 is attracted to the feed table 3 and moves together with the feed table 3 when it moves. . In this case, since each of the suction chambers 24 and 25 is divided into several pieces and each is individually suctioned, even when the close contact by one suction chamber 24 or 25 does not work well,
Adsorption in the whole is enabled. Also, the suction chambers 24, 25
It is suitable that the suction is not always performed, but is performed only when necessary at a timing by a rotary valve or the like.

The lift hook 4 is connected to the feed table 3
It is provided at the center of the upper and magazine 2 and has a hook body 28 extending downward from a horizontal mounting shaft 27. Note that an arm 29 is also attached to the attachment shaft 27. In this case, a fixed shaft 30 appropriately supported is provided in front of the mounting shaft 27 in the left-right direction, and the arm 31 is extended therefrom to support the mounting shaft 27. A cam arm 33 provided with a cam follower 32 is attached to the fixed shaft 30, and the cam follower 32 is in sliding contact with a cam plate.

A sleeve 35 is rotatably fitted near the end of the fixed shaft 30. An arm 36 is attached to the sleeve 35, and the sleeve 35 is pivotally connected to the arm 29 of the support shaft 27 and the link 37. Is being worn. Furthermore, sleeve 3
5 has a cam arm 39 provided with a cam follower 38.
The cam follower 38 is mounted on the cam plate 4.
It is in sliding contact with 0.

As described above, if the cam plate 34 is rotated,
When the mounting shaft 27 rotates vertically around the fixed shaft 30 and another cam plate 40 is rotated at this time, the hook body 28 rotates vertically about the mounting shaft 27.
Moves along a substantially rectangular trajectory where these are combined. FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing this, but when the hook body 28 descends and moves forward (in this case, in the direction of the magazine 2), the tip ends between the bottom book 1a and the second book 1b. When the ascendant moves upward, the second 1b or more is lifted upward, and when it retreats and descends, it exits and releases it. In this case, the front wall 6 of the magazine 2 is released, and the hook body 28 is allowed to enter the inside.

The vacuumer 5 has a suction head 42 in the shape of a suction cup mounted on the upper end of a tube 41, and vertically moves around a support shaft 44 on which a holder 43 for holding a portion of the tube 41 is appropriately supported. It swings. A link 47 connects the lower end of the holder 43 and an arm 46 that rotates about a support shaft 45 that is appropriately supported similarly. A cam arm 49 to which a cam follower 48 is attached is also attached to the support shaft 45, and the cam follower 48 is in sliding contact with a cam plate 50. In addition, the pipe 41 is connected to the intake side of a compressor or the like as described above.

Accordingly, when the cam plate 50 is rotated,
Although the suction head 42 moves up and down, in the upward stroke, it rises to the extent that the lowermost book 1a is slightly pushed up and completely sucks it. In the descending stroke, it descends at least to the upper surface of the front end portion 18 and completely absorbs it. In this case, it is appropriate that the vacuum 5 is not always sucked, but is sucked only when necessary with a timing by a rotary valve or the like. The suction head 42 is arranged on the side of the front end portion 18 to avoid interference therewith, and when the feed table 3 moves forward, the holder 43 does not interfere with each other.

In addition, a take-out device 51 and a carry-out device 52 are provided in front of the feed table 3. The take-out device 51 includes an upper take-out roller 53 and a lower take-out belt 54, and pulls out the book 1 placed on the feed table 3 and pushed forward by these two. In this case, the take-out roller 53 is divided into right and left, so that even if the hook body 28 is present between the take-out roller 53 and the take-out roller 53, they do not interfere with each other. The same applies to the take-out belt 54, during which the front end 18 of the feed table 3 can enter. In addition, the carry-out device 52 includes a carry-out belt 55.

Next, the operation of the above-described separating and conveying apparatus will be described. FIG. 4 is a partial side view showing a state before starting. At this time, the magazines 1 are stored in a stacked state, and the feed table 3 is retracted (therefore, the front end 18 is (Bent downward), the lift hook 4 is lowered and retracted outside the front wall 6 of the magazine 2. It should be noted that the book 1 is accommodated in the magazine 2 such that its back is forward.

FIG. 6 is a time chart of the movement of each element described above. First, the vacuum 5 is raised and its suction head 42 is pressed against the lower surface of the lowermost book 1a. At this time, since the suction head 42 is suctioned, the suction head 42 suctions the lower surface of the lowermost book 1a. Next, the vacuum 5 descends, and the book 1 a is pulled down to the front end 18 of the feed table 3. At this time, since the suction of the suction chambers 24 and 25 has already started, the entire lower surface of the book 1a is sucked by the feed table 3. The reason why the vacuum 5 is moved up and down in spite of the intake is that the front end portion 18 of the feed table 3 is inclined downward, and the intake of the suction chamber 24 alone does not provide sufficient intake. This is to make up for what may happen. When the front portion of the book 1a is brought into close contact with the front end portion 18 in this manner, a gap 56 is formed between the book 1a and the second book 1b from the bottom.

When the vacuum 5 starts lowering, the lift hook 4 also lowers. Thereafter, the hook body 28 advances and its tip enters the above-mentioned gap 56 (at this time, a relief or the like is formed in the front wall 6 so that the hook body 28 can enter the inside as described above. ). Next, the hook body 28 rises, and lifts the front part of the entire book 1 from the second or more bottom (FIG. 2). Then, when the hook body 28 rises above the upper surface of the lowest book 1a, the feed table 3 moves forward.

When the feed table 3 moves forward, the book 1a sucked in the suction chambers 24 and 25 on the upper surface moves forward together therewith. By the way, at this time, in order for the book 1a to advance together, it is necessary to overcome friction generated between the book 1a and the second book 1b, but this is possible because the hook body 28 lifts the second or more book. In some cases, air may be blown below the second book 1b to float it. If a pin 57 or the like having a height lower than the thickness of the book 1a is planted on the upper surface of the feed table 3 immediately after the rear end of the book 1, a relief or the like through which the pin 57 can pass is formed on the rear wall 7. The pin 57 can be moved even if the suction is not sufficient.

The feed table 3 moves forward until the front end of the front end portion 18 hangs on the take-out belt 54 (the take-out belt 54 is divided into right and left, and the front end portion 18 can sufficiently enter therebetween as described above). At this time, since the front end portion 18 becomes horizontal from the downward inclination, the book 1a placed on the feed table 3 is pulled out forward by being added to the take-out roller 53 and the take-out belt 54, and then carried out by the carry-out belt 55. go.

When the book 1a is delivered to the take-out device 51, the feed table 3 moves backward. When the feed table 3 retreats, the lift hook 4 retreats and prepares for starting. still,
When the feed table 3 is attached to the take-out device 51, the suction chambers 24 and 25 do not need to be suctioned, so that the suction may be cut off.

[0023]

As described above, the present invention has been described above, that is, a flexible stack such as a book can be easily separated with a simple structure of a small number of members such as a feed table, a lift hook and a vacuum. In this case, the feed table may be lightweight, and its stroke may be very short, from the front end of the magazine to the unloading device, regardless of the length (width) of the object to be separated. Can be. For books, etc., a maximum of 8,000 times / hour is possible, which greatly contributes to efficiency improvement.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a separation and conveyance device showing an example of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of a separation / conveyance device showing an example of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a separation / conveyance device showing an example of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partial side view of a separation and conveyance device showing an example of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of the movement of a lift hook showing an example of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a time chart of the operation of the separation and conveyance device showing an example of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 book 1a bottom book 1b second book from bottom 3 feed table 4 lift hook 5 vacuum

Claims (7)

[Claims] An apparatus for separating and transporting a flexible stack, which sequentially separates and transports a stack of flexible objects from the bottom, wherein the separation and transport device is a lower surface of a lowermost object. And a feed table that feeds forward to the carry-out device on the front, a lift hook that separates from the front between the bottom one and the second one from the bottom and lifts the second or more upward,
And a vacuum for adsorbing the lower surface of the lowermost object and bringing the lower surface into close contact with the feed table. 2. The separation / transportation apparatus for flexible stacks according to claim 1, wherein a suction chamber communicating with the suction device and opening on the upper surface is formed on the upper surface of the feed table. 3. The separating / transporting apparatus for a flexible stack according to claim 2, wherein the suction chamber is divided into several parts. 4. A front end portion of the feed table is vertically rotatable with respect to the main body portion, and is inclined downward before advancement, and is rotated upward as it advances to be horizontal when it reaches the carry-out device. The separating and conveying apparatus for a flexible stack according to any one of claims 1 to 3. 5. The flexible stack according to claim 4, wherein the vacuum is movable up and down, and the vacuum is raised, the lower surface of the lowermost object is adsorbed, the vacuum is lowered, and the vacuum is brought into close contact with the front end of the feed table. Separating and conveying equipment. 6. The separating / transporting apparatus for flexible stacks according to claim 1, wherein the flexible stacks are books. 7. A method for separating and transporting a book by the flexible stacking and separating apparatus according to claim 6.