JP2002302238A - Flat container supplying and aligning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a supply and aligning device capable of supplying flat containers in a desired posture without any container holder. SOLUTION: This device is provided with an ejection guide 7 to guide the container V on a turn table 5 so that the vertical direction of the container V is nearly aligned with the conveyance direction of a conveyor 6 in collaboration with the turntable 5, an introduction guide 10 to guide the container V so that the container V on the turn table 5 reaches the inlet section 8 of the ejection guide 7 in collaboration with the rotating turn table 5, a bridge canceling means 11 to widen the opening width of the inlet section 8 when the container V is got blocked in the inlet section 8 of the ejection guide 7, and an air blowing-off means 13 which is provided near the inlet section of the conveyor 6 to blow air against the container V from an oblique direction in relation to the conveyance direction.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for supplying a flat container in a device for filling medicines, foods and the like.

[0002] In this specification, a flat container refers to a cylindrical container whose horizontal cross-sectional shape has a different vertical dimension (length) and horizontal dimension (width) (for example, an oblong or rectangular shape). The vertical direction of the container refers to the major axis (length) direction of the horizontal section, and the lateral direction of the container refers to the minor axis (width) direction of the horizontal section.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a step of filling a cylindrical container with a medicine, food, or the like, a large number of containers are placed on a turntable, and the containers are placed one by one through an outlet of a discharge guide provided on the turntable. It is designed to be sent to a conveyor on the filling line. When filling the contents, the container is positioned by the stopper, and the plurality of containers are simultaneously filled. Since the container is cylindrical, the distance from the positioning stopper of the container to the center of the container and the distance between the centers of the containers are always kept constant without providing a device for keeping them constant.

[0004]

For example, a flat container is preferable as a container for nasal drops. When such a flat container is to be supplied to a filling section using a conventional cylindrical container supply line, a turntable is required. There is a problem that two containers are sent simultaneously to the entrance of the upper discharge guide and the containers are easily clogged (prone to bridging).
There has been a problem that the distance between the centers of the containers at the time of filling the medicine is not constant, and it is difficult to simultaneously fill a plurality of containers. For this reason, in the flat container supply line, the flat container is transported by placing the flat container on a container holder having a square bottom surface and an opening corresponding to the container at the top, but in this case, A line for transporting the holder and an operator who places the container on the holder are required, and there is a problem that it is difficult to secure a work space for the operator and an installation space for the holder transport line.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a flat container supply / alignment apparatus which can supply a flat container in a desired posture without requiring a container holder.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a flat container supply / alignment apparatus comprising: a turntable for placing and rotating a large number of flat containers and discharging the containers from an outlet provided at a peripheral portion thereof; A flat container supply and alignment device comprising a conveyor for transporting containers discharged from a turntable outlet, wherein a container on the turntable transports its longitudinal direction in cooperation with a rotating turntable. A discharge guide that guides the discharge so as to be substantially aligned with the conveying direction of the conveyor, an introduction guide that guides the container on the turntable in cooperation with the rotating turntable to reach the entrance of the discharge guide, Bridge release means for widening the opening width of the container at the entrance of the discharge guide when the container is clogged, and the conveyance direction provided near the start end of the conveyance conveyor And it is characterized in that it comprises an air ejecting means blowing air into the container from an oblique direction against.

[0007] The opening width of the inlet of the discharge guide is usually set to be larger than 1 time and 1.5 times or less of the maximum dimension in the lateral direction of the container. It is set to be greater than twice and less than three times the maximum dimension.

[0008] The air pressure, the air flow rate and the direction of the air ejection nozzle are fixed, and the air is always ejected. The set value of the air and the height of the container to which the air is applied are appropriately adjusted according to the shape, size, weight, and the like of the target container.

According to the flat container supply and alignment device of the present invention, when the container is clogged at the entrance of the discharge guide, the opening width of the entrance is widened, so that a bridge which is likely to occur in the case of a flat container is prevented. In addition, by blowing air obliquely to the container, the vertical direction of the flat container can be directed in a desired direction with respect to the transport direction of the transport conveyor. Therefore, when this is used in the filling device, when the contents are filled, the lateral direction of the container coincides with the transport direction, so that the distance from the positioning stopper to the container center and the distance between the container centers are always kept constant. When filling a flat container using the conventional cylindrical container filling line, there is no need to provide a line for transporting the container holder, making the device compact and easy to secure a working space. Simple and inexpensive.

At the center of the turntable at the intermediate portion of the introduction guide, a buffer that moves the container that has moved along the introduction guide to the intermediate portion from the trajectory of the introduction guide and reduces the force from the subsequent container on the same container. Preferably, a part is provided. In this case, the passing force of the subsequent container against the container at the inlet portion due to the passage of the container through the buffer portion is reduced, so that the occurrence of the bridge can be made more unlikely.

It is preferable that the apparatus further comprises a container full detection sensor for detecting that the transport conveyor is full of containers, and turntable control means for stopping the turntable by a signal from the container full detection sensor. . In this way, it is prevented in advance that the containers before and after the containers on the conveyor are obstructed due to too many containers on the conveyor and the posture of the containers does not change when air is blown.

[0012] The bridge releasing means includes, for example, a movable guide portion which forms a downstream portion of the introduction guide and whose downstream end portion defining one edge of the opening of the entrance portion is movable.
An air cylinder for moving the downstream end of the movable guide portion to change the opening width is provided. In this case, a compact bridge releasing means can be obtained.

In this case, the bridge release means further includes a container presence / absence detection sensor for detecting the presence / absence of a container entering the discharge guide from the inlet portion. Preferably, it is adapted to be unfolded. In this way, when a bridge occurs, it is automatically eliminated.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the inside refers to the center of the turntable.

FIG. 1 schematically shows a main part of a medicine filling device in which a flat container supply / alignment device according to the present invention is used. The medicine filling device comprises a container washing section (3) and a medicine filling section. A filling line (1) provided with (4) and the like, and a flat container supply alignment device for supplying the container (V) to the filling line (1).
(2).

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the flat container supply / alignment device (2) places a large number of flat containers (V) thereon and rotates the containers (V) so that the container (V) is provided at an outlet portion provided at the periphery thereof. Turntable (5) discharged from (9), and a conveyor for transporting the container (V) discharged from the outlet (9) of the turntable (5)
(6) and turntable in cooperation with turntable (5)
(5) Discharge guide (7) that guides the upper container (V) to the outlet (9)
And an introduction guide (10) for guiding the container (V) on the turntable (5) to the entrance (8) of the discharge guide (7) in cooperation with the turntable (5), and a discharge guide (7). Bridge release means (11) for widening the opening width of the container (V) when the container (V) is clogged at the entrance (8) of the entrance (8), and the entrance (8) by the introduction guide (10).
The container introduction roller (12) that feeds the containers (V) sent to the discharge guide (7) one by one into the discharge guide (7), and the transfer direction of the transfer conveyor (6) provided near the starting end of the transfer conveyor (6) An air blowing means (13) for blowing air to the container (V) from an oblique direction with respect to the container (V), and the transfer conveyor (6) provided in front of the container washing section (3) of the transfer conveyor (6) and the container (V) And a turntable control means (not shown) for stopping rotation of the turntable (5) by a signal from the container fullness detection sensor (14). ing.

The turntable (5) is of a known type, and is provided at the center thereof with a container (V) and a peripheral wall (5) of the turntable (5).
a) It has an outer feed guide (5b) for moving in the direction.

The discharge guide (7) is formed by a pair of side walls, and its entrance (8) is located inside the periphery of the turntable (5). Discharge guide (7)
The minimum value of the side wall spacing at the outlet portion (9) is substantially matched to the maximum dimension in the lateral direction of the container, and the outlet portion (9)
The guide direction at the end is substantially coincident with the transport direction of the transport conveyor (6). Therefore, container (V)
Is placed on the transport conveyor (6) with its longitudinal direction substantially coinciding with the transport direction.

The introduction guide (10) has a turntable at one end.
It has an arc shape when viewed from a plane located at the periphery of (5) and the other end near the entrance (8) of the discharge guide (7). The container (V) on the periphery of the turntable (5) gradually moves inward in contact with the arc-shaped inner surface of the introduction guide (10), and
It is guided to the entrance (8) of (7). The downstream portion of the introduction guide (10) is a movable Teflon (registered trademark) guide portion in which the downstream end defining one edge of the opening of the inlet portion (8) of the discharge guide (7) is movable. (21).

The bridge releasing means (11) includes a movable guide portion (2
1), a fixed guide portion (22) that is provided to face the movable guide portion (21) and is arcuate when viewed from a plane that defines the other edge of the opening of the entrance portion (8), and a movable guide portion. An air cylinder (23) for moving the downstream end of (21) and a container presence / absence detection sensor (24) for detecting that the container (V) has been sent into the discharge guide (7).

The distance between the downstream end of the movable guide section (21) and the end of the fixed guide section (22) is the opening width of the entrance section (8) of the discharge guide (7). When the downstream end of (21) is pushed by the tip of the rod (23a) of the air cylinder (23), the opening width of the inlet (8) is changed. The movable guide portion (21) has an elongated plate shape and elasticity, and the end other than the downstream end is fixed. Air cylinder (2
When the rod (23a) of 3) retreats, the movable guide portion (21)
It returns to its original state by its elastic force. The fixed guide portion (22) also has elasticity, and the elasticity of both guide portions (21) and (22) makes it difficult for a bridge to occur. Movable guide (2
In 1), since the container (V) is pushed in a direction in which the opening width is widened, the elastic force may be small.

In the middle of the introduction guide (10), there is an introduction guide
Container (V) that has moved to the middle along the inner surface of (10)
A buffer (15) is provided to remove the guide from the trajectory of the introduction guide (10) and reduce the force from the succeeding container (V) to the container (V). The buffer portion (15) is formed in an isosceles triangular shape that is slender when viewed from a plane, and the short side portion thereof is movable guide portion (2).
The guide (10) is located near the fixed end of (1) and one of the two long sides is substantially along the inside of the guide (10).
Is fixed inside. The container (V) that has moved along the arcuate inner surface of the introduction guide (10) from the periphery of the turntable (5) is disturbed in alignment along the buffer (15), and the subsequent container (V) ) Reduces the pushing force, which makes bridges less likely to occur. Buffer (15)
Is not limited to a triangular shape, may be circular as viewed from a plane, and may be any one that forms a discontinuous portion between the downstream portion of the buffer (15) and the introduction guide (10). The shape is arbitrary.

The air blowing means (13) is adapted to move the container (V) conveyed in the vertical direction (the direction in which the horizontal cross-sectional length direction of the flat container coincides with the container conveyance direction) by the force of air in the horizontal direction (flat container (The horizontal cross-sectional width direction and the container transport direction coincide with each other), and includes an air ejection nozzle whose ejection direction can be adjusted, an air pressure regulator, an air flow regulator, and the like. The direction of the nozzle is set so that air is blown onto the container (V) from a horizontal direction and oblique (for example, 45 °) to the transport direction. The height of the container (V) to which air is applied is appropriately set, for example, slightly below the center of gravity. As a result, the container whose vertical direction almost coincides with the transport direction (indicated by reference numeral V1 in FIG. 2) becomes oblique to the transport direction (indicated by reference numeral V2 in FIG. 2), and the container cleaning unit
When positioned by the positioning stopper of the container in (3), they are aligned in the horizontal direction (indicated by reference numeral V3 in FIG. 2), and the container washing section (3) and the drug filling section of the filling line (1).
The distance from the stopper to the center of the container and the distance between the centers of the containers in (4) are always kept constant.

The movable guide portion (21) is usually in a state in which the opening width is narrow (a state shown by a chain line in FIG. 2 and a state shown by a solid line in FIG. 3). When the container (V) is not detected for a predetermined time, the container (V) is moved to a state where the opening width is widened (a state shown by a solid line in FIG. 2 and a chain line in FIG. 3). The opening width at normal time is set slightly larger than the width of the container (V) (the maximum dimension in the horizontal direction), and the opening width at bridge prevention is larger than two and three times the width of the container (V). Is set small.

As described above, in the air cylinder (23), the rod (23a) is normally in the forward state, and the container (V) is not detected for a predetermined time by the container presence / absence detection sensor (24). In this case, the rod (23a) is set so as to repeat the retreat and the advance for a predetermined time. In this way, when the container (V) is clogged at the inlet portion (8) of the discharge guide (7), the sensor (24) detects this and automatically widens the opening to release the bridge.

Regarding the timer function of the sequencer control of the air cylinder (23) and the container presence / absence detection sensor (24), the air cylinder (23) is moving forward (the discharge guide inlet (8)
The opening width of the air cylinder is narrowed) Time is T1, air cylinder
(23) is retracted (the opening width of the discharge guide inlet (8) is wide) T2, and the container detection interval time is T
3. Assuming that the air cylinder operation repetition time is T4, for example, T1 = 1.5 s, T2 = 1.0 s, T3 = 4.0
s, T4 = 5.5 s.

According to the flat container supply and alignment device (2),
It is possible to fill a flat container using a conventional cylindrical container filling line, and the supply speed can be 30 tubes / min or more.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing a medicine filling apparatus as an example in which a flat container supply and alignment apparatus according to the present invention is used.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of a main part of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 (1) Filling line (2) Container supply alignment device (5) Turntable (6) Conveyor (7) Discharge guide (8) Inlet (10) Introductory guide (11) Bridge release means (13) Air blowing means ( 14) Container full detection sensor (15) Buffer part (21) Movable guide part (23) Air cylinder (24) Container presence detection sensor (V) Container

Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Ryoichi Ishizaki 3-4-7 Doshomachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture F-term in Fujisawa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (reference) 3E030 AA01 DA07 DA08 EA01 FA05 GA05 3E079 AB06 FF01 FF03 FG02 GG01 3F080 AA05 AA21 BA01 BA06 BC01 BC07 BC08 BD15 BE11 BF05 BF14 CC04 CC18 CC23 CC26 CC28 CE00 CG06 DA08 DA18 EA07 FB07

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A turntable for placing and rotating a large number of flat containers and discharging the containers from an outlet provided on a peripheral portion thereof, and a transport conveyor for transporting the containers discharged from the turntable outlet. A discharge guide for guiding the container on the turntable in cooperation with the rotating turntable so that the vertical direction of the container is discharged substantially in line with the transport direction of the transport conveyor. An introduction guide that guides the container on the turntable to reach the entrance of the discharge guide in cooperation with the rotating turntable, and widens the opening width of the entrance when the container is clogged at the entrance of the discharge guide. Bridge release means, and air blowing means provided near the start end of the transport conveyor and blowing air to the container from a direction oblique to the transport direction. A flat container supply / alignment device, comprising: 2. A container which has moved along the introduction guide to the middle portion of the introduction guide at a middle portion of the turntable at an intermediate portion of the introduction guide is removed from a trajectory of the introduction guide to reduce a force from a subsequent container to the same container. 2. The flat container supply and alignment device according to claim 1, further comprising a buffer portion for causing the flat container to be supplied. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a container fullness detection sensor for detecting that the transport conveyor is full of containers, and turntable control means for stopping the turntable by a signal from the container fullness detection sensor. Flat container supply alignment equipment. 4. A movable guide portion, which forms a downstream portion of the introduction guide and defines one edge of an opening of the inlet portion, wherein the downstream end portion is movable; 2. The flat container supply and alignment device according to claim 1, further comprising an air cylinder that moves the downstream end to change an opening width. 5. The bridge release means further includes a container presence / absence detection sensor for detecting the presence / absence of a container entering the discharge guide from the inlet portion, and the opening width is widened when the container cannot be detected for a predetermined time. 5. The flat container supply / alignment device according to claim 4, wherein: