JP2001259300A - Laundry sorting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a laundry sorting apparatus capable of automatically sorting laundry, and automatically measuring an amount of each sorted laundry for judging that the amount is sufficient for one time of washing, and processing for feeding it to a laundry apparatus. SOLUTION: An ID tag, in which laundry related information is recorded, is attached to each laundry 1. The laundry information is read by readers 9, 10 by communicating with the ID tag of the laundry 1 carried on a conveyer 8, and each laundry 1 which can be washed at one time is sorted into first to third hoppers 13 to 15 based on the laundry information. In the sorting method, each laundry is dropped into the first and the second hoppers 13, 14 by a first and a second pushing devices 11, 12. Alternatingly, the laundry is dropped into the third hopper 15 from the end of the conveyer 8. An amount and a volume of each laundry 1 in the first to third hoppers 13 to 15 are detected by weight sensors and optical sensors 22a to 22c fitted to each position of specified height. When the weight or the volume reaches a specified amount, the hoppers 13 to 15 move to the laundry apparatus 6 along a guide rail, and each laundry inside is automatically fed to the laundry apparatus 6.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laundry sorting apparatus for sorting laundry into groups that can be washed simultaneously.

[0002]

For example, when clothes are washed in a laundry factory, the clothes are either washed with water or dry-cleaned. And should not be separated with washing. On the other hand, since the amount of washing that can be performed by the washing device at one time is determined, the laundry is sorted as described above, then placed on a weigher to measure the amount that can be washed at one time, and put into the washing device. .

[0003] Such sorting and weighing have heretofore been performed manually, and its inefficiency has been an important problem in the cleaning industry as a matter of improvement. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to automatically sort articles to be washed, such as clothes, into those that can be washed at the same time, and sort the sorted articles at one time. It is an object of the present invention to provide a laundry sorting apparatus that can automatically measure the amount of laundry that can be washed.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, at the time of washing, information related to washing is read from an ID tag provided on an article to be washed and automatically. Since the items can be washed at the same time, items to be washed can be efficiently sorted without manual operation. According to the second aspect of the present invention, the weight and / or bulk of the sorted articles of each group are detected by the detecting means, and when the weight and / or bulk detected by the detecting means is equal to or more than a predetermined amount, the detection is performed. Since the group of articles is sent to the washing process side, the steps from sorting of the articles to weighing to an amount corresponding to the washing capacity of the washing machine can be automatically and efficiently performed without manual operation.

[0005]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a laundry factory in the linen supply industry will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the organization of the linen supplier includes the sales department, collection and delivery department, factory department, and warehouse department. The sales department accepts rentals of uniforms from hospitals and hotels. The collection and delivery department collects uniforms from lenders and delivers washed uniforms. The factory department is responsible for washing the uniforms collected from the lender and repairing frays. The warehouse department stores the washed uniforms in a warehouse, stores new uniforms as spares, and supplies rental uniforms to the collection and delivery department.

As shown in FIG. 7, a uniform (article) 1 lent by a linen supplier to a hospital or hotel has an ID.
Tag 2 is attached. The ID tag 2 is formed in a small, thin, small-diameter coin shape or a small, thin sheet shape, and is put in a bag and sewn or adhered to clothes,
In this embodiment, the uniform 1 is attached to an inconspicuous portion.

FIG. 2 shows a laundry factory 3 constituting a factory section. In the laundry factory 3, the uniform 1 is washed between the receiving unit 4 that receives the uniform collected by the collection and delivery vehicle belonging to the collection and delivery section from the lender and the shipping unit 5 that supplies the washed uniform 1 to the warehouse section. A washing device 6, a press device 7 for pressing the washed uniform 1, and the like are provided.

The uniforms 1 carried into the receiving unit 4 are inspected one by one to see if there are any objects in the pockets and placed on the conveyor 8. Above the conveyer 8, first and second readers 9 and 10 as reading means are provided at intervals in the conveying direction to read the washing-related information from the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 conveyed by the conveyer 8. Are located.

As shown in FIG. 1, one of the left and right sides of the conveyor 8 has first and second extrusions as sorting means at positions corresponding to the first and second leaders 9 and 10. Devices 11 and 12 are arranged. On the other side of the conveyor 8 are first and second hoppers 13 and 14 serving as sorted product storage means and processing means.
Are arranged, and a third hopper 15 is disposed at the end of the conveyor 8 in the transport direction, as a sorted product storage means and a processing means.

The extruders 11 and 12 are constituted by attaching a push plate 17 to a rod 16a of an air cylinder 16, for example, and compressed air is supplied to the air cylinder 16 by controlling solenoid valves 18 and 19 shown in FIG. Then, the rod 16a advances and pushes the uniform 1 on the conveyor 8 to the first and second hoppers 13 and 14. The uniform 1 that has not been extruded by any of the first and second extruders 11 and 12 falls from the end of the conveyor 8 to the third hopper 15 and is housed therein. In this embodiment, the first hopper 13 contains the uniform 1 to be washed with detergent at room temperature, the second hopper 14 contains the uniform 1 to be washed with lukewarm water, and the third hopper 15 is dry. The uniform 1 to be cleaned is stored.

In the hoppers 13 to 15, the inner case 2 is provided.
0, and the weight of the inner case 20 and thus the weight of the uniform 1 stored in the hoppers 13 to 15 are weight sensors 21a to 21c as weight detecting means.
(See FIG. 3). Further, optical sensors 22a to 22c (see FIG. 3) are provided at predetermined height positions of the inner case 20 as bulk (volume) detecting means. The optical sensors 22a to 22c are arranged such that when the uniform 1 having a predetermined bulk or more is stored in the inner case 20, the uniform 1 having a predetermined bulk or more is placed in the hoppers 13 to 15 because light reception is blocked by the uniform 1. Detects that it has been turned on.

The first to third hoppers 13 to 15 are supported by guide rails (not shown), and can be moved along the guide rails by a self-propelled device (not shown) driven by a motor. It has become. When the hoppers 13 to 15 store a predetermined amount of the uniform 1 to be washed, the hoppers 13 to 15 are moved to a position where the internal uniform 1 can be put into the washing device 6.

In the lower openings of the hoppers 13 to 15,
A shutter 23 using an electromagnet (not shown) as a driving source is provided. The shutter 23 is normally closed, and is configured so that when the hoppers 13 and 14 move to a position where they can be put into the washing device 6, the uniform 1 in the hoppers 13 to 15 is opened to be put into the washing device 6. Have been.

The readers 9 and 10 are connected to the conveyor 8
Communicates with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 conveyed by the radio wave. Here, the electrical configuration of the ID tag 2 and the readers 9 and 10 will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 5, the ID tag 2 includes an antenna coil 24 as a communication unit for transmitting and receiving a radio signal, a resonance capacitor 25, a control IC 26, and a smoothing unit 27. Control IC
Reference numeral 26 denotes a one-chip semiconductor element constituting an MPU (microprocessor unit) 28 as a control means, a rectifier 29, a modulator / demodulator 30, an identification information storage means, and a memory section 31 as a washing-related information storage means. It was done. In this case, the memory unit 31 includes a ROM storing operation programmable and the like, and an erasable nonvolatile memory for temporary storage, for example, an EEPROM. And, in the EEPROM of the memory unit 31,
As shown in FIG. 4, in the present embodiment, in addition to the identification information (ID information) of the uniform 1, the type information such as the shape and color of the uniform 1 and the distinction between male and female, size information, and the like, information related to washing is used in this embodiment. Various types of information such as laundry type information of detergent washing with water or dry cleaning, and water temperature information of normal temperature water or lukewarm water in the case of water washing are stored.

The antenna coil 24 is connected in parallel with the resonance capacitor 25 to form a resonance circuit. When an external device including the readers 9 and 10 transmits a predetermined high frequency power radio signal, Receiving this, the rectification unit 29
To supply. The rectifying unit 29 constitutes an operation power supply circuit together with the smoothing unit 27. The rectifying unit 29 rectifies an electric power radio signal transmitted from the resonance circuit, smoothes the electric power radio signal by the smoothing unit 27, and performs a DC voltage (operating electric power) of a constant voltage. ) To MPU28
And so on.

A signal such as data transmitted from an external device is transmitted by being superimposed on a power radio signal, and the signal is demodulated by a modulation / demodulation unit 30 and supplied to an MPU 28. The MPU 28 includes a memory unit 31
Operates according to the operation program stored in the ROM of the memory unit 31, executes a process corresponding to the signal input from the modem unit 30, and stores the received data in the EEPROM 31 of the memory unit 31.
M, etc., or read data from the EEPROM and modulate it by the modulation / demodulation unit 30.
4 as a radio signal.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, the readers 9 and 10 include an MPU 32 as a control unit, a transmission unit 34 having a transmission antenna 33 as a communication unit, a reception unit 36 having a reception antenna 35 as a communication unit, and an operation unit. ROM 37 for storing programs, RAM for temporarily storing data, etc.
38 and the like.

When communicating with the ID tag 2, the MPU 32 of the readers 9, 10 first modulates the carrier signal in the transmitting section 34 and transmits it as a power radio signal from the transmitting antenna 33, and then transmits the data to be transmitted. The signal is modulated by the transmitting unit 34 so as to be superimposed on the electric power radio signal, and the transmission antenna 3
Send from 3. The radio signal transmitted from the ID tag 2 is received by the receiving antenna 35 and is received by the receiving unit 3.
In step 6, the data is demodulated and discriminated as data. And MPU3
2 stores the data demodulated by the receiving unit 36 in the RAM 38.

The first and second readers 9 and 10 are brought into a state of superimposing a multi-read command on a power radio signal and outputting the signal when the operation starts. And
The first and second readers 9 and 10 transmit the washing-related information and the like acquired from the uniform ID tag 2 to the control device 39 shown in FIG. In addition to the washing-related information from the first and second readers 9 and 10, detection signals from the weight sensors 21a to 21c and the optical sensors 22a to 22c are input to the control device 39. The multi-read command is a command for communicating with all the ID tags 2 existing in the communicable area. Then, the control device 39, based on the input signals from the readers 9, 10, the weight sensors 21a to 21c and the optical sensors 22a to 22c, controls the washing device 6, the pushing device 11
And 12 solenoid valves 18 and 19, hoppers 13 and 1
4 for controlling the self-propelled device, the shutter 23 and the like.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. here,
It is assumed that the first and second readers 9 and 10 always output the power radio signal and the multi-read command signal superimposed on the power radio signal. Also,
In this embodiment, the uniforms 1 are classified into those that are washed with water and those that are dry-cleaned, corresponding to the first to third hoppers 13 to 15, and the uniforms 1 that are washed with water are at room temperature. And those washed with lukewarm water.

When the used uniform 1 is carried into the receiving section 4, the worker of the receiving section 4 takes out the uniform 1 one by one and confirms that nothing is in the pocket. Is placed on the conveyor 8. When the uniform 1 placed on the conveyor 8 enters the communicable range of the first reader 9, the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 transmits a radio signal in response to the multi-read command transmitted from the first reader 9. Emit. Then, the first reader 9 communicates with the ID tag 2, acquires the washing-related information stored in the memory unit 31 of the ID tag 2, and transmits the washing-related information to the control device 39.

The control device 39 determines whether or not the uniform 1 is to be washed with water at normal temperature, based on the washing-related information sent from the first reader 9. In the case of the uniform 1 in which the detergent is washed with water at room temperature, the control device 39
The compressed air is supplied to the air cylinder 16 by operating the electromagnetic valve 18 of the extrusion device 11 of the first embodiment. Then, the uniform 1 on the conveyor 8 is pushed by the push plate 17 of the first extrusion device 11 and the inner case 2 of the first hopper 13 is moved from the conveyor 8.
0.

If the uniform 1 is not a detergent for washing with water at room temperature, the control device 39 does not cause the first extruding device 11 to perform the above-described extruding operation. We pass just before 11. When the uniform 1 is conveyed to the communicable range of the second reader 10, the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 emits a radio signal in response to the multi-read command transmitted from the second reader 10.
Then, the second leader 10 executes the uniform 1 as described above.
The washing-related information acquired from the ID tag 2 of the
Send to

The control device 39 determines whether or not the uniform 1 is to be washed with lukewarm water based on the washing-related information sent from the second reader 10. If the uniform 1 is to be washed with lukewarm water, the control device 39 operates the solenoid valve 19 of the second extruding device 12 to supply compressed air to the air cylinder 16. Then, the uniform 1 on the conveyor 8 is pushed by the push plate 17 of the second extruding device 12 and the second hopper 14 is moved from the conveyor 8 to the second hopper 14.
Is housed in the inner case 20.

If the uniform 1 is not to be washed with lukewarm water (in the case of dry cleaning), the control device 39 does not cause the second extruding device 12 to perform the above-described extruding operation. 1 passes in front of the second extruder 12 as it is. Then, the uniform 1 that has passed through the second extruder 12 is eventually dropped from the end of the conveyor 8 into the inner case 20 of the third hopper 15.

The amount of the uniform 1 stored in the first to third hoppers 13 to 15 depends on the weight sensors 21a to 21c and the optical sensors 22a to 22c of the respective hoppers.
22c. Then, when the weight becomes equal to or more than the predetermined weight, or when the weight becomes equal to or more than the predetermined bulk (volume), the control device 39 moves to the washing process side based on the weight detection signals of the weight sensors 21a to 21c or the light shielding signals of the optical sensors 22a to 22c. That is, in this embodiment, the self-propelled device of the hopper having a predetermined amount or more is activated, and the hopper is moved to the input port 6a of the washing device 6.

Thereafter, the hopper opens the shutter 23 based on the arrival at the inlet 6a, and throws the uniform 1 stored therein into the washing device 39. afterwards,
The control device 39 controls the hopper moved to the washing device 6 for washing detergent with water at normal temperature, washing detergent with lukewarm water,
It is determined which one is for dry cleaning, and a washing command to wash is issued to the washing device 7 under the judgment conditions. The washing device 7 performs washing by automatically charging normal-temperature water, lukewarm water, or dry cleaning chemicals into the washing tub according to the washing instruction. The washed uniform 1
After that, it is pressed by the press device 7, and is subjected to a predetermined inspection, and is conveyed from the shipping section 5 to the warehouse section.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the uniform 1 is automatically sorted into one of a detergent-washed one with room temperature water, a detergent-washed one with lukewarm water, and a dry-washed one. Sorting can be performed more efficiently than in the conventional sorting operation.

When the amount of the uniform 1 stored in the hoppers 13 to 15 exceeds a predetermined amount, the uniform amount is automatically detected, conveyed to the washing device 6, and put into the washing device 6, so that it is automatically set. The uniform 1 can be washed in an amount corresponding to the washing capacity of the washing device 6. In this case, in the present embodiment, when the weight becomes equal to or more than the predetermined weight, or when the weight becomes equal to or more than the predetermined bulk amount, the washing machine 6 is charged.
Unlike the case where only the weight is detected, the bulk of the light uniform 1 becomes too large to exceed the storage capacity of the washing device 6, or unlike the case where only the bulk is detected, the weight of the washing device 6 is changed. It is possible to eliminate the problem of exceeding the capability.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawings, but can be extended or modified as follows. In the laundry information to be written in the ID tag 2,
In addition to the type of fabric, the type of dry cleaning chemicals, the possibility of discoloration, etc., sorting into wool and cotton, sorting by dry cleaning chemicals,
It may be classified into those that may be discolored and those that do not, and the point is that the type of classification may be determined in consideration of the type of laundry information and the laundry equipment in the laundry factory. .

The pushing operation of the pushing devices 11 and 12 may be controlled by the readers 9 and 10 instead of the control device 39. Reading of washing information of ID tag 2 is 1
The transfer may be performed by a reader, and the transport route of the uniform 1 may be changed (sorted) based on the read laundry-related information. Conveying means such as a conveyor is provided below the hoppers 13 to 15. When a predetermined amount of the uniform 1 is stored in the hopper, the shutter 23 is opened (a process for putting into the washing device 6) and the uniform 1 is transferred to the conveyor. Alternatively, the uniform 1 may be transported to the washing device 6 by the conveyor. The article to be washed is not limited to the uniform 1 lent to the customer by the linen supplier.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 Process diagram of a laundry factory

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control configuration.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing recording information of an ID tag.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the ID tag.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the reader.

FIG. 7 is a front view of a uniform.

[Explanation of symbols]

In the figure, 1 is a uniform, 2 is an ID tag, 6 is a washing machine, 18 is a conveyor, 9, 10 are first and second readers, 11, 12
Are first and second extruders (sorting means), 13 to 15 are first to third hoppers, 21 is a weight sensor (detection means), 2
2 is an optical sensor (detection means), 23 is a shutter, and 39 is a control device.

Claims (2)

[Claims] Claims 1. An article to be washed, such as clothing,
A laundry tag comprising: an ID tag on which information relating to laundry is recorded; reading means for reading information related to laundry from the ID tag; and sorting means for sorting the articles based on a result of reading by the reading means. apparatus. 2. A detecting means for detecting the weight and / or bulk of each group of articles sorted by said sorting means, and detecting that the weight and / or bulk has exceeded a predetermined amount by said detecting means. 2. A processing means for performing processing for sending a group of articles to the washing process side.
A laundry sorting apparatus as described in the above.