JP2002046711A - Automatic bag fixing or removing method and automatic bag fixing or removing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic bag fixing or removing method capable of easily loading or unloading either a column-like work or a rectangular column-like workpiece into or from an elongated thin bag, and an automatic bag fixing or removing device having a simple structure and producing no defective operation. SOLUTION: There is provided a method for automatically loading or unloading either a column-like or a rectangular column-like workpiece 8 stored in an elongated bag into or out of a bag 7. This method is characterized in that a holder 1 is pushed against either the column-like or the rectangular column-like workpiece 8 through the bag 7, an abutting part of the holder 1 against the bag 7 is sucked in vacuum to cause the bag to be sucked and fixed to the extremity end of the holder 1, the holder 1 is moved downwardly along the workpiece 8, the upper part of the workpiece 8 is exposed out of the bag 7 and the exposed end is held to cause the workpiece 8 to be pulled out of the bag 7.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic bag attaching / detaching method and an automatic bag attaching / detaching machine for automatically inserting or removing a cylindrical or prismatic work from a vertically long bag.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a cylindrical or prismatic work is taken out of a vertically long and thin bag, the bag is usually gripped and slid over the surface of the work, and the top of the work is shifted by shifting the mouth of the bag downward. An operation of taking the bag out of the bag is required, but if this operation is manually performed, the operation can be extremely easily performed by delicate force adjustment of the finger. However, this operation is automatically performed by a machine, and in a state in which the outside of the bag is gripped so as to be sandwiched between finger-like gripping tools, the gripping tool is slid on the surface of the columnar or prismatic workpiece to move the upper portion of the workpiece. When trying to get out of the bag, the friction between the gripper and the bag needs to be as large as possible, and the friction between the bag and the work must be as small as possible.

Conventionally, when a work, for example, an inspection and measurement apparatus for quartz glass for an optical fiber is automatically attached and detached using an automatic handling device, the work is pulled out from a vertically long plastic bag, and after the measurement, the original plastic bag is removed. Using an automatic bag removal device. This apparatus is equipped with a gripper made of a V-shaped nail made of an aluminum plate or urethane rubber, and the workpiece is taken in and out of the plastic bag by gripping the workpiece with the gripper.

[0004]

However, if the surface of the workpiece is slid while the outside of the plastic bag is gripped by the gripping tool, the gripping tool and the bag may slip or the gripping force of the gripping tool may be strong. If too long, the chuck of the automatic handling device for pulling out the work and the work slipped, causing malfunction. Also, if it is attempted to mechanically sandwich the outside of a vertically thin bag with the above-described gripping tool,
There is a problem that the structure of the gripper becomes complicated, and as a result, the size of the device itself increases, and the device becomes expensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic bag attaching / detaching method capable of easily inserting or removing a cylindrical or prismatic work from a vertically long thin bag, and an automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus having a simple structure and causing no malfunction. It is in.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an automatic bag attaching / detaching method and an automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to the present invention comprise:
When removing a cylindrical or prismatic work from a vertically long and thin bag, instead of holding the outside of the bag mechanically as in the past, grasping the gripper while vacuum-sucking the outside of the bag. The work is moved in and out of the bag without exerting force on the work.

[0007] The automatic bag removing method of the present invention is a method for automatically taking out a cylindrical or prismatic work placed in a vertically long bag from the bag, and holding the gripping tool through the bag with the cylindrical or prismatic shape. By pressing against the workpiece, the bag is sucked to the tip of the gripper by vacuum-suctioning the contact part of the gripper with the bag,
The gripper is moved downward along the work to expose the upper portion of the work from the bag, and the exposed portion is gripped to pull out the work from the bag. When a work is taken in and out of a vertically long bag, three or more key-shaped arms are arranged in the vicinity of the automatic bag-removing device. It is preferable to carry out the process with the inlet part opened.

Further, the automatic bag attaching / detaching device of the present invention is a device for automatically taking in and out a cylindrical or prismatic work from a vertically long bag, which is brought into contact with the vertically long bag in which the work is stored and vacuum-sucked. It is characterized by having a gripper and a driving means for contacting or separating the gripper. This device can be provided with a moving means for moving the gripping tool along the work. It is also possible to provide a work holding chuck for holding the lower part of the work, and a driving means for contacting or separating the work holding chuck.

Furthermore, a moving means for moving the work holding chuck along the work may be provided. In addition,
It is sufficient that the moving means for moving along the workpiece is provided on either the gripper or the workpiece gripping chuck.
It is preferable that the gripper has a ventilation path connected to a contact surface between the vacuum suction port and the bag of the gripper and a vacuum pad attached to the contact surface with the bag. Examples of the work include quartz glass for an optical fiber or a base material thereof.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various embodiments are possible.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is an external view showing an example of an automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view thereof. In the automatic bag removing device of the present invention, the gripper 1 is pressed against the outer surface of a vertically long bag in which a work is contained by driving means, for example, a compressed air cylinder 2, and the contact portion of the gripper 1 with the bag is vacuum-sucked. Vacuum suction is performed from an intake port 4 provided in the pedestal 3 by a vacuum pump (not shown), and the gripper 1 is moved along the work while maintaining the suction state. The work can be pulled out of the bag by holding the exposed portion with a robot (not shown).

The gripper 1 has a gripper 1 through an air inlet 4.
A ventilation path 5 is provided to be in contact with the contact surface with the bag, and the vacuum suction by the gripper 1 is enabled. A vacuum pad 6 is attached to the tip of the gripper 1. Vacuum pad 6
Is provided to minimize the friction between the bag and the work surface and to maximize the friction between the gripper and the bag. When the vacuum pad 6 is gently pressed against the work surface via the bag to bring the vacuum pad 6 into a suction state, the bag is attracted to the vacuum pad 6 and friction between the vacuum pad 6 and the bag increases. On the other hand, since the bag is only lightly pressed against the work by the vacuum pad 6, the friction between the bag and the work is small. The vacuum pad 6 is desirably made of a soft material such as silicone rubber so as to conform to the surface of the work. On the other hand, the vacuum pad 6 is pushed up by the wrinkles of the bag formed by shifting the mouth of the bag downward, so that the vacuum is not broken. As such, it must be thick and strong.

The pedestal 3 has a role of supporting the vacuum pad 6, and is provided with an air passage 5 from the vacuum pad 6 to the intake port 4 through the inside of the pedestal 3. The gripper 1
The compressed air cylinder 2 is pressed against the bag in which the work is stored and is separated therefrom. Note that here, the gripper 1
Although an example in which pneumatic pressure is used to abut or separate the bag from the bag is shown, hydraulic pressure or electric power can also be used. FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 show the work 8 put in the bag 7 in the bag 7.
The operation example of the vacuum suction type gripper 1 in the case of automatically pulling out from the device is shown in order. In these figures, the gripper 1
Shows a configuration in which two units are used in opposition to the work 8. However, three or more units may be used, and one unit may be used if there is no problem in operation.

In FIG. 3, a work 8 placed in a bag 7
Is supported by the work holding chuck 9 at this lower portion. The work holding chuck 9 is brought into contact with or separated from the work 8 by a compressed air cylinder 10 for work holding chuck. Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the gripper 1 composed of the vacuum pad 6 and the pedestal 3 is moved by the compressed air cylinder 2 to the work 8.
Is pressed against the bag 7. In this case, the vacuum pad 6 is
The reason why the bag 7 is pressed against the work 8 via the bag 7 is to prevent the bag 7 from separating from the surface of the work 8.

If the bag is made of a soft and thin material,
If the opposite side sucked by the vacuum pad 6 is free,
Vacuum suction is easily broken. If the opposite side of the vacuum pad 6 is pressed against a hard object with a slight force, the vacuum suction is not easily broken. Therefore, if the work 8 is pressed from the opposite side of the work 8 with another gripping tool 1, that is, from both sides, vacuum suction becomes easier. Alternatively, the work 8 may be gripped from three directions by using three gripping tools 1. This may be preferable when the columnar work 8 has a large diameter.

Furthermore, it is better that the friction between the work 8 and the bag 7 is as small as possible.
It is desirable to minimize the force of pressing the workpiece 8 via the bag 7. In such a state, the air inside the vacuum pad 6 is sucked from the suction port 4 through the ventilation port 5 by the vacuum suction device, so that the bag 7 is sucked to the vacuum pad 6.

In such a state, as shown in FIG. 5, the gripper 1 is lowered along with the compressed air cylinder 2 along the work 8 by moving means (not shown). Or,
The work holding chuck 9 may be raised along the work 8 together with the work holding chuck compressed air cylinder 10.
At this time, the portion of the bag 7 adsorbed by the vacuum pad 6 adsorbs on the vacuum pad 6 slides on the surface of the work 8, and the upper portion of the work 8 is exposed from the bag 7. This part is gripped by a robot or a dedicated gripping device, and the workpiece gripping chuck 9 is held.
And release it from the bag.

After the work 8 is pulled out of the bag, the inside of the bag 7 adsorbed on the vacuum pad 6 is in a free state. Therefore, when the work 8 is to be put into the bag 7 again, the suction portion is broken and the suction state is easily broken, and the vacuum pad 6 cannot support the bag 7. Therefore, before pulling out the work 8 from the bag 7, the entrance of the bag 7 is pulled outward from all sides with three or more key-shaped arms so that the entrance of the bag 7 is opened and gripped. If the suction state of the tool is maintained, the work of putting the work 8 into the bag 7 again becomes easy. In FIGS. 3 to 5, the key-shaped arms are not shown.

[0019]

According to the automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus of the present invention, a cylindrical or prismatic work can be easily taken in and out of a vertically long and thin bag by adopting the above-mentioned structure, and the structure of the holding tool is simple. It is possible to reduce the size and to manufacture the device at low cost without causing inconveniences such as slipping and the bag and the contents not slipping.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view showing an example of an automatic bag removing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the automatic bag removing device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view showing an operation example of the vacuum suction type gripper of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing the operation subsequent to FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view showing an operation subsequent to that of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1. 1. Grasping tool Compressed air cylinder 3. Pedestal 4. Inlet port 5. Ventilation path 6. Vacuum pad 7. Bag 8. Work 9. Work holding chuck 10. Pneumatic cylinder for work holding chuck

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Hideo Hirasawa 2-13-1, Isobe, Annaka-shi, Gunma Shin-Etsu Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. Precision Functional Materials Laboratory F-term (reference) 3E030 AA04 DA02 DA10 3E058 AA04 BA05 CB02 3F061 AA03 CA01 CB02 CB05 CC03 DB01 DB02

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A method for automatically removing a cylindrical or prismatic work placed in a vertically long bag from a bag, wherein a gripping tool is pressed against the cylindrical or prismatic work via the bag.
By vacuum-suctioning the contact portion of the gripper with the bag, the bag is attracted to the tip of the gripper, and the gripper is moved downward along the work to expose the upper part of the work from the bag. An automatic bag attaching / detaching method, characterized in that a work is pulled out of a bag while holding a part. 2. The automatic bag attaching / detaching method according to claim 1, wherein the work is taken in and out of the vertically long bag with the entrance of the bag opened with three or more key-shaped arms. 3. An apparatus for automatically taking in and out a cylindrical or prismatic work from a vertically long bag, comprising: a gripper which abuts on a vertically long bag in which the work is placed to vacuum-evacuate; An automatic bag attaching / detaching device having a driving means for making contact or separation. 4. The automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising moving means for moving the gripping tool along the work. 5. The automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a work holding chuck for holding a lower portion of the work, and a driving unit for bringing the work holding chuck into contact with or separating from the work holding chuck. 6. The automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a moving means for moving the work holding chuck along the work. 7. The gripper has an air passage leading to a contact surface between the vacuum inlet and the bag of the gripper.
Or the automatic bag attaching / detaching device according to 4. 8. The automatic bag attaching / detaching device according to claim 3, wherein the gripper has a vacuum pad attached to a contact surface with the bag. 9. The automatic bag attaching / detaching apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the workpiece is quartz glass for an optical fiber or its base material.