JP2003246450A - Seedling culture box stacking mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stack seedling culture boxes with high alignment accuracy in a seedling culture box stacking mechanism for stacking and locking the seedling culture boxes sequentially from below. <P>SOLUTION: This seedling culture box stacking mechanism is provided with lift members 18 for lifting the seedling culture boxes w in a scoop-up manner, and elastically retreative locking claws 24 for stopping and locking the lifted seedling culture box w from both lateral side lower parts. The seedling culture box stacking mechanism is constituted to stack and lock the supplied seedling culture boxes w sequentially from below. A box lifting operation part of the lift member 18 is composed of a freely idling rotation body 21 to allow the lifted seedling culture box w to laterally roll, and the back face s1 on the seedling culture box lifting passage side of the locking claw 24 is formed as an inward inclined face. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a seedling raising box stacking mechanism used in a case where seedling raising seedlings are stacked in multiple stages for germination.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a seedling raising box stacking mechanism, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 50-32205,
Lifting the seedling raising box 1 by scooping it with the projections 9 and 9'rotatably driven, and holding the lifted seedling raising box 1 from the lower left and right sides by elastically retractable leaf spring-made locking tools 12 and 12 '. It is known that the seedling raising boxes 1 to be supplied are sequentially stacked and locked from below by locking.
In this seedling raising box stacking mechanism, the seedling raising box 1 has the protrusions 9,
When raised by 9 ', the locking tools 12, 12' in the nursery box 1
The slanted back surface of the seedlings is pressed against the back and the locking tools 12 and 12 'are rearward and outwardly deformed, and the upper stage nursery box 1 that was previously supported by locking falls and is on the nursery box 1 being lifted. As soon as the lowermost seedling raising box 1 has passed through the fasteners 12, 12 ', the fasteners 12, 12' are elastically restored and the lowermost seedling raising box 1
When the projecting pieces 9 and 9 ′ finish lifting and descend, the whole seedling raising box 1 is received and locked by the elastically restored locking tools 12 and 12 ′, and the next seedling raising box 1 Prepared for lifting. Further, the seedling raising box 1 lifted by the projecting pieces 9 and 9'is guided from the front and the left and right by the guide bodies 10 and 11 which are provided upright.

[0003]

However, in the above conventional structure, the raising seedling box 1 is the front guide body 1.
Since it is abutted against 0, the front-back direction alignment is performed well, but the distance between the left and right guide bodies 11 is
The width of the nursery box 1 is set to be slightly larger than the width of the nursery box 1 in consideration of the dimensional error of the nursery box 1. As a result, the stacking nursery boxes are left as they are in the left-right direction, and the stacking accuracy is deteriorated.
When the stacking accuracy is lowered, collapse and inclination are likely to occur when the sheets are conveyed.

Further, the rearward deformation of the locking tool causes the upper-stage seedling-growing box 1 to fall onto the raised seedling-growing box 1, and at this time, the soil and seeds in the seedling-growing box 1 are shocked. There was a risk of slippage.

Further, as soon as the lifted lowermost seedling raising box has passed through the locking device, the locking device is biased and moved back in the locking action direction to enter under the lowermost seedling growing box. However, in this case, if there is a ridge on the bottom outer surface of the seedling raising box at the bottom, the tip of the locking tool will be caught in this ridge,
It may not be possible to get under the nursery box.

The present invention has been made paying attention to such a point, and in a nursery box stacking mechanism in which the nursery boxes are sequentially stacked and locked from below, stacking with high alignment accuracy can be performed. The main purpose is to enable the stacking with a small impact, or to securely support and support the seedling raising box.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems [Structure, Action, and Effect of Invention According to Claim 1]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lift member for picking up the nursery box, and an elastically retractable locking claw for receiving and retaining the lifted nursery box from the lower left and right sides. In a seedling raising box stacking mechanism configured to sequentially stack and lock the raised seedling raising boxes from below, the box lifting action portion of the lift member is constituted by a freely rotatable rotary body, and the raised seedling raising boxes can be moved to the left and right. It is characterized in that it can be rolled and moved, and that the rear surface of the locking claw on the side of the nursery box lifting passage is formed as an inwardly inclined surface.

According to the above construction, when the seedling raising box is lifted up by the lift member, the inclined rear surface of the locking claw is pressed against the seedling raising box so that the locking claw retracts laterally outwardly and is supported first. The upper nursery box, which had been set up, rides on the raising nursery box, and as soon as the lowermost nursery box passes the locking claws, the locking claws elastically return to the bottom of the lowermost nursery box. When all of the seedling raising boxes enter and descend after finishing lifting, the whole seedling raising box is received and locked by the elastically restored locking claws to prepare for the next raising of seedling raising boxes. In this case, when the seedling raising box lifted by the lift member is pressed against the inclined back surfaces of the left and right locking claws, it is pushed toward the center of the left and right by the pressing reaction force. Here, since the box lifting action portion of the lift member is composed of a freely rotatable rotor, the seedling raising box supported and lifted by the rotor is in a state in which it can be relatively lightly moved in the left and right directions, and the left and right locks are locked. If there is a difference in the pressure reaction force from the nail, the nursery box moves laterally until the left and right pressure reaction forces are balanced. In other words, when the nursery box is lifted at the center position of the left and right locking claws, there is no difference in the pressure reaction force from the left and right locking claws, and it can be lifted as it is, but the nursery box is lifted from the center position of the left and right locking claws. If it is detached and lifted, a difference occurs in the pressure reaction force from the left and right locking claws, and the position is corrected to the center position as described above and lifted.

Therefore, according to the first aspect of the present invention, even if the nursery boxes carried into the stacking treatment site are slightly displaced in the left-right direction, the position is automatically corrected in the lifting process, and the stacked nursery boxes are stacked. It is possible to enhance the alignment accuracy in the left-right direction of the.

[Structure, Action, and Effect of the Invention According to Claim 2]

The invention according to claim 2 is provided with a lift member for lifting the nursery box so as to scoop it up, and an elastically retractable locking claw for receiving and retaining the lifted nursery box from the lower left and right sides. In the nursery box stacking mechanism configured to sequentially stack and lock the nursery boxes, the locking claws are arranged so as to face the vertical ribs formed on the left and right outer surfaces of the nursery box. Is characterized by.

According to the above structure, when the seedling raising box is lifted by the lift member, the inclined rear surface of the locking claw is pressed against the seedling raising box, and the locking claw is laterally outwardly displaced backward, and is first locked and supported. The upper nursery box, which had been installed, will ride on the raising nursery box, but in this case, the tips of the locking claws will contact the vertical ribs formed on the left and right outer surfaces of the upper nursery box. By that,
The drop of the upper seedling raising box is suppressed, and the raised seedling raising seedling is leaned onto the raised seedling raising box.

Therefore, according to the second aspect of the present invention, the seedling raising box which has been previously supported by locking can be stacked on the raised seedling raising box with less impact, and the soil and seeds in the seedling raising box are displaced or disturbed. Can be prevented.

[Structure, Action, and Effect of Invention According to Claim 3]

The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2.
In the invention, the position of the locking claw can be adjusted in the front-rear direction.

According to the above construction, even when a nursery box with different vertical rib formation positions is used, the nursery box can be locked with the locking claws in a suitable position, and even in nursery boxes with different external specifications. Good stacking process can be performed.

[Structure, Action, and Effect of Invention of Claim 4]

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lift member for picking up the nursery box, and an elastically retractable locking claw for receiving and locking the raised nursery box from the lower left and right sides. In the nursery box stacking mechanism configured to sequentially stack and lock the nursery boxes to be held, a horizontal locking surface for receiving the nursery box is provided on the upper surface of the locking claw, and the horizontal locking surface It is characterized in that an inclined locking surface is formed on the toe side so as to gently incline downward.

According to the above structure, as soon as the lowermost seedling raising box lifted by the lift member has passed through the locking claws, the locking claws are urged and moved back in the locking action direction, and the lowermost seedlings are raised. It will enter under the box, but in this case, even if there is a ridge on the bottom outer surface of the seedling raising box at the bottom, the toe side of the locking claw is an inclined locking surface that gently inclines forward and downward. In addition, the toes facilitate the smooth passage over the ridge, and the locking claws fully enter under the nursery box to receive and support the nursery box.

Therefore, according to the invention of claim 4, even if a nursery box having different specifications or a deformed nursery box is mixed in the nursery box to be treated, the locking claw is sufficiently below the lowermost nursery box. It can be inserted deeply and exerts a reliable receiving and supporting function.

[Structure, Action, and Effect of Invention According to Claim 5]

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, there is provided a swinging arm for swinging the locking claw left and right around a fulcrum below a seedling feeding position. It is provided at the upper end.

According to the above construction, since the distance from the fulcrum to the locking claw is large, the tip of the locking claw moves in an arc locus having a sufficiently large curvature, and is linear in the operating range where it is engaged with and disengaged from the nursery box. Since it moves substantially horizontally along a locus close to, the vertical displacement component when the locking claw engages and disengages becomes small.

Therefore, according to the invention of claim 5, when the next seedling raising box is stacked below the seedling raising group in which a large number of seedling raising boxes are stacked, the weight of the seedling raising box acts so that the locking claws are retracted. It can be moved lightly, and a large number of nursery boxes can be stacked smoothly from below.

[Structure, Action, and Effect of Invention According to Claim 6]

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect of the invention, the fulcrum of the swing arm is positioned immediately below the start position of the inclined locking surface.

According to the above structure, the horizontal locking surface and the inclined locking surface of the locking claw are in a state substantially along the movement path of the tip of the locking claw, and the vertical displacement component when the locking claw swings. Becomes particularly small.

Therefore, according to the invention of claim 6, the retracting movement of the locking claws under the weight of many nursery boxes can be carried out lightly, and the stacking of a large number of nursery boxes from below can be carried out more smoothly. Can be done.

[0030]

1 and 2 show the whole of a seedling raising box stacking apparatus. This nursery box stacking device
It is used in the process of stacking seedling growing seedlings in multiple stages and sending them to the budding facility. A loading and loading mechanism 2 for collectively lifting and stacking a plurality of blocks on a loading table P such as a pallet on standby and a loading table transfer device 3 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, the nursery box stacking mechanism 1
Is a carrier device 4 on which the nursery box w is placed and carried in along the longitudinal direction of the box, a lift mechanism 5 for horizontally lifting the nursery box w that has reached a predetermined stacking position, and a seedling raised to a predetermined height. The box support mechanism 6 receives and supports the box w from below. The structure of each part will be described in detail below. In the following description, the long side direction of the seedling raising box w is referred to as the front-back direction, and the short side direction is referred to as the left-right direction.

As shown in FIGS.
Is a pair of left and right chains 8 driven by the motor 7.
Is configured to run along the rail 9, and receives the seedling-raising box w that has been seeded and sent from the end of the seeding line 10 and places it in the stacking position. A pair of guide members 11, 12, 13, and 14 made of rods are vertically arranged at the front and rear of the stacking position, and on the left and right sides of the stacking position, and are attached to the apparatus frame 15, and are sequentially stacked from below at the stacking position. A stacking path L is formed to guide the multistage nursery box w from the front and rear and the left and right.

Of the guide members 11, 12, 13, 14 forming the stacking path L, the lower end of the rear guide member 12 is set to a height that does not prevent passage of the seedling raising box w to be carried in. In addition, the lower end of the front guide member 11 is set to a height that interferes with the box transport path so as to contact and support the front end of the brought-in seedling raising box w, and the left and right guide members 13, 14 are The lower end side is formed so as to spread slightly downward, and it is possible to absorb the positional deviation in the left-right direction at the time of loading. Further, the front and rear guide members 11 and 12 are fixed to a device frame 15 assembled in a tower shape so that the front and rear positions can be adjusted, and the left guide member 13 is also fixed to the device frame 15 so that the left and right positions can be adjusted. Figure 7
As shown in the figure, only the right guide member 14 is supported by the device frame 15 so as to be slidable to the left and right within a predetermined range via the support rods 14a, and is urged by the spring 16 toward the stacking path L side. Even if the width dimension of the box w is slightly different, the difference can be absorbed.

A box arrival sensor 17 for detecting that the seedling raising box w has been brought into the stacking position is provided below the back of the stacking position, and the lift mechanism 5 is activated based on the detection of the arrival of the box. It has become so. The box arrival sensor 17 senses and operates by contact with the bottom surface of the brought-in seedling raising box w, and the left and right guide members 13,
It is installed at a position farther to the lower side in the box transport direction than the front one out of the fourteen, and the seedling raising box w is carried in in a state of being inclined in a plane posture, and any of the left and right guide members 13, 14 is introduced. In the case where it is caught and stopped, the arrival of the box is not sensed, and the situation where the lift mechanism 5 is improperly activated in the state where the box is not loaded properly is prevented. .

The lift mechanism 5 is constructed by disposing rotary lift members 18 on the left and right of the stacking position. The lift member 18 is a rotary support shaft 1 that is horizontally supported in the front-rear direction.
A pair of front and rear arm members 20 are fixed to 9 and
A roller (rotating body) 21 is freely rotatably mounted on the front and rear arms of the front and rear arm members 20 so as to be horizontally and horizontally supported, and the left and right lift members 18 are moved in opposite directions by a motor 22. Synchronous and constant pitch (1 in this example)
It is designed to be rotated by 20 ° pitch.

The box support mechanisms 6 are arranged in pairs at the lower left and right sides of the lower part of the stacking path L so that the lift members 18 are sandwiched from the front and the rear. It is supported so as to be able to swing laterally around the front-rear horizontal fulcrum a at a position lower than that, and a tapered locking claw 24 protruding toward the stacking path L is attached to the upper end of this swing arm 23. It has a structure. As shown in FIG. 10, the locking claw 24 is bolt-connected to the swing arm 23 so that the position of the locking claw 24 can be adjusted in the front-rear direction and the up-down direction. The back surface s1 is inclined at about 45 ° toward the stacking path L side. Further, a horizontal locking surface s2 for supporting the box receiving is formed on the upper surface of the locking claw 24, and an inclined locking surface s3 is formed on the tip side thereof so as to be gently inclined downward. It is preferable that the fulcrum a of the swing arm 23 is set near a position directly below the position where the inclined locking surface s3 starts.

As shown in FIG. 7, springs 25 are installed on the left and right swing arms 23 facing each other, and both swing arms 23 are
Are oscillated by the same urging force toward the stacking path L side, and the abutment bolts 26 provided at the downward extension ends of the oscillating arms 23 abut the device frame 15 to oscillate. The urging and swinging limit of the moving arm 23 is restricted. By adjusting the contact bolt 26 forward and backward, it is possible to adjust the limit position of the locking claw 24 attached to the upper end of the arm to the stacking path L side.

The seedling raising box stacking mechanism 1 is configured as described above. Next, the stacking operation will be described in the order of steps based on FIGS. 11 to 14.

(1) As shown in FIG. 11, the box support mechanism 6
When the first seedling raising box w is loaded to the stacking position without the seedling raising box w being supported by the front guide member 11
It is supported in contact with and is positioned in the front-rear direction. At this time, the lift member 18 of the lift mechanism 5 is on standby at a position where one roller 21 of the lift member 5 has entered below the left and right of the box movement path.

(2) As shown in FIG. 12, when the box arrival sensor 17 confirms that the boxes have been carried into the stacking position, the motor 22 is activated and the left and right lift members 18 rotate in opposite directions. The seedling raising box w at the stacking position is driven and is horizontally lifted so that it can be picked up by the rollers 21 of the left and right lift members 18.

(3) When the seedling raising box w is lifted up, the left and right upper side edges of the left and right locking claws 24 of the box support mechanism 6 standing by at the positions where the outer edges of the raising and lowering edges of the box support mechanism 6 stand by. Is pressed against the spring 2 and the locking claw 24 is pressed against the spring 2
It is moved backward laterally against 5. In this case, if the nursery box w is at the left-right center position between the left and right locking claws 24,
The horizontal lateral components of the pressing reaction force applied to the nursery box w from the left and right locking claws 24 become the same, and the nursery box w is lifted while being positioned at the center of the left and right, but if the nursery box w is left or right. When it is eccentrically lifted, it comes into contact with the locking claw 24 in the eccentric direction first, and the pressing reaction force acts on the nursery box w. Here, since the nursery box w is received and supported by the freely rotatable roller 21 in the lift member and is lifted, the nursery box w is in a state in which it can be easily rolled and moved in the left-right direction. Immediately after receiving the lateral pressure reaction force, the seedlings are moved to the direction in which the reaction force acts, and the pressure reaction forces from the left and right locking claws 24 become equal, that is, the centers of the left and right locking claws 24. The box w is automatically repositioned.

(4) When the seedling raising box w thus positioned and lifted on the left and right sides passes through the locking claws 24,
As shown in FIG. 13, the locking claw 24 returns to the stacking path L side together with the swing arm 23, and the locking claw 24 enters below the nursery box w. After that, the lift member 18 is further rotated and detached from the seedling raising box w, and the seedling raising box w whose support by the lift member 18 is released is received and supported by the left and right engaging claws 24. In this case, since the tip end side of the locking claw 24 is formed with a slanted locking surface s3, the locking claw 24
It is possible to avoid a situation in which the toes of the toe easily slip under the seedling raising box w, and the toes are caught on the side surface of the seedling raising box w so that the toes cannot be properly entered.

(5) The next box is carried in while the seedling raising box w is being lifted, and the lift member 18 is moved by one pitch (120).
°) Once stopped, when it is confirmed that the next nursery box w has been carried into the stacking position, the lift member 18
Is driven to rotate again, and the next box lifting operation is performed as described above.

(6) When lifting the second and subsequent boxes,
As shown in FIG. 14, the locking claws 24 that receive and support the upper-layer seedling-raising box w are moved backward as the lower-layer seedling-raising box w is lifted, and the lower-layer seedling-raising box w is placed under the upper-layer seed-raising box w. w will be stacked. In this case, the fulcrum a of the swing arm 23 is set to a position lower than the box carry-in height, and is located immediately below the lateral outer end position of the seedling raising box w.
The locking claws 24 move in an arcuate locus having a large radius, and the component that lifts the upper nursery box w when extracted from the upper nursery box w is extremely small.

Here, as shown in FIG. 9, a vertical rib 27 is formed on the outer surface of the seedling raising box w for reinforcement, and the locking claw 24 is opposed to the vertical rib 27 so that the swinging arm 23 has the locking claw 24. It is installed by setting the position to. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, even if the locking claws 24 are disengaged from the bottom of the upper stage nursery box w, the locking claws 24 act on the vertical ribs 27 so that the upper layer nursery boxes w are not immediately dropped. Instead, as the locking claws 24 move backward, the intervals between the upper and lower seedling raising boxes w gradually decrease, and they can be stacked without impact.

(8) After that, by carrying out the above operations in sequence, a large number (10 in this example) of nursery boxes w can be sequentially stacked from below, and the predetermined number of stacked nursery boxes w are , And is carried out by the loading and transferring mechanism 2.

As shown in FIGS. 15 to 19, the loading / transferring mechanism 2 includes a gripping mechanism 31 for collectively lifting a predetermined number of seedling raising boxes w stacked by the seedling raising box stacking mechanism 1, and this gripping mechanism 31. , And a loading / conveying mechanism 32 that reciprocates left and right between a stacking position and a loading position separated laterally from the stacking position. The structure of each part will be described in detail below. Also in this description, the long side direction of the seedling raising box w is referred to as the front-rear direction, and the short side direction thereof is referred to as the left-right direction, as in the above description.

The loading / conveying mechanism 32 includes the apparatus frame 15
A pair of front and rear rails 3 attached to the upper end of the rail
3, a transport underframe 34 that is mounted so as to be able to travel to the left and right along the rail 33, a transport underframe driving motor 35 provided on the upper portion of the apparatus frame 15, and the like. Belt 36 wound in parallel with
The carrier frame 34 connected to the belt 36 can be reciprocated left and right by rotating the motor 35 in the forward and reverse directions.

A pair of front and rear bosses 37 are provided on the carrier frame 34, and an elevating frame 39 is connected to the lower ends of a pair of guide shafts 38 which are vertically slidably inserted through the bosses 37. The elevating frame 39 is suspended and connected to a chain 41 wound around a large-diameter sprocket 40 provided on the carrier frame 34, and the elevating frame 39 is driven by the motor 42 to drive the sprocket 40 forward and backward. It is designed to move up and down in parallel with a large stroke. And
A pair of front and rear bosses 43 are also provided on the elevating frame 39, and the guide shafts 44 are vertically slidably inserted into the bosses 43 within a certain small range and are prevented from falling by the stoppers 44a.
The gripping mechanism 31 is connected to the lower end of the.

The gripping mechanism 31 includes a support frame 51 connected to the lower end of the guide shaft 44, a support arm 52 extending downward from the front and rear ends of the support frame 51, and the support arm 5.
A pair of front and rear gripping arms 5 mounted on both left and right sides of 2
3 and the like, the stacked seedling raising boxes w are housed between the front and rear support arms 52, and are attached to the lower ends of the front and rear gripping arms 53 to project inwardly. It receives and supports the nursery box group W from below.

The front and rear support arms 52 function as a box support member for supporting the stacked seedling raising group W from the front and back, and are configured to be wide in the lateral direction. Further, the lower end portion of the support arm 52 is provided with an extension guide member 56 that is vertically slidable within a certain range and is biased downward by a spring 55, so that the extension guide member 56 in a free state is supported. It projects below the claws 54.

The gripping arm 53 has a support shaft 5 which is inserted in an upper portion of the support arm 52 so as to be rotatable around a laterally-directed fulcrum b.
7, the operation arm 58 extends upward from the gripping arm 53. This operation arm 5
8 is interlockingly connected to both ends of a drive arm 59 provided on the support frame 51 via rods 60. By rotating the drive arm 59 forward and backward by an air cylinder 61, the gripping arm 53 moves forward and backward. The support claw 54 is swung open and closed by
It is designed to be driven in and out.

In addition, front and rear sides of the support frame 51 are provided with overhanging arms 51a, and each overhanging arm 5
A guide rod 62 extends downward from the tip of the la, and the guide rods 62 are configured to receive and prevent the stacked seedling raising group W from falling down in the left-right direction.

The loading / transferring mechanism 2 is constructed as described above, and the loading operation will be described in the order of steps.

(1) While the seedling raising box stacking mechanism 1 is performing the seedling raising box stacking process, the carrier frame 34 is located above the seedling raising box stacking mechanism 1, and the gripping mechanism 31 opens the support claws 54. In the state, it is lowered to a predetermined height and stands by.
At this time, the support claw 54 is at a height position where it can enter the lowermost stage of the seedling raising box w.

(2) When it is confirmed by the counting means that the stacking of a predetermined number of sheets (10 sheets in this example) is completed, the gripping arm 53 that has been openly swung is swung closed and the seedling box group W is swung. The support claws 54 are inserted in the front and rear and the lower part.

(3) Next, the elevating frame 39 is driven and raised,
The gripping mechanism 31 that grips the nursery box group W is lifted to above the nursery box stacking mechanism 1. In this case, the tip end portion of the overhanging arm 51a of the support frame 51 in the gripping mechanism 31 is abutted against and supported by the lower ends of the four receiving members 45 provided on the movable underframe 34 via contact rubbers 46, As a result, the gripping mechanism 31 is stably held without wobbling (see FIGS. 16 and 18).

(4) When the nursery box group W is lifted, the movable underframe 34 travels to a predetermined position for loading and is stopped, and the gripping mechanism 31 is lowered.

(5) The mounting table P is waiting in advance at the loading position, and the seedling raising box group W gripped by the gripping mechanism 31 is placed on the mounting table P. In this case, the extension guide member 56 of the gripping mechanism 31 comes into contact with the mounting table P in advance, but is relatively elastically retracted as the gripping mechanism 31 descends (FIG. 2).
2]. Further, even when the nursery box group W is placed on the mounting table P, the elevating frame 39 continues to be lowered, and the supporting frame 51 which cannot be lowered due to the contact of the supporting claws 54 with the mounting table P is used. The elevating frame 39 descends. Here, a detection piece 63 made of an iron plate is erected on the support frame 51, and a proximity switch 64 for the detection piece 63 is provided on the elevating frame 39. When approaching and descending and the distance between both frames 51, 39 approaches the set value or less, the proximity switch 64 senses the detection piece 63, thereby sensing the landing of the nursery box group W and stopping the descending of the elevating frame 39. (See FIG. 21).

(6) Next, the gripping arm 53 is driven to open and the supporting claws 54 at the lower end thereof are extracted from between the seedling raising group W and the mounting table P, and the seedling raising group W is placed on the mounting table P. Reprinted. In this case, the dragging movement of the seedling raising box w accompanying the extraction of the support claws 54 is received and prevented by the wide support arm 53, and the seedling raising box group W is loaded on the mounting table P while maintaining a predetermined stacking state.

(7) When the loading of the seedling raising box group W on the mounting table P is completed, the gripping mechanism 31 is lifted up to above the transferred seedling raising box group W and to the origin position above the stacking position. The gripping mechanism 31 is returned to the original height, and the gripping mechanism 31 is lowered to the first lifting height. This completes one loading and transferring process.

(8) As shown in FIG. 4, in the second and subsequent loading steps, the loading positions on the mounting table P are different, and in this example, the first to the fourth loading positions are sequentially different in the left-right direction. Is set. Then, the loading from the fifth time to the eighth time is performed in two stages on each of the first to fourth transfer groups W that have been transferred previously. In this two-stage stacking, the extension guide member 56 provided at the lower end of the gripping arm 53 in the gripping mechanism 31 projects downward from the gripped seedling raising group W, so that the first stage seedling raising group W ( By applying the extension guide member 56 to the outer surface of 1), the second-stage nursery box group W (2) can be stacked on the first-stage nursery box group W (1) without displacement. Even in this two-stage stacking, the second-stage nursery box group W (2) held by the holding mechanism 31 is placed on the first-stage nursery box group W (1) and cannot descend. After that, the proximity switch 64 detects that the elevating frame 39 is further lowered by the set amount in the interchangeable range as described above, thereby detecting the landing of the seedling raising group W (2) and lowering the elevating frame 39. It stops and shifts to the next operation.

(9) The first to eighth loadings are carried out in the front half of the mounting table P. When this loading is completed, the mounting table P is sent forward one pitch and the latter half of the mounting table P is
In the same manner as described above, the 9th to 16th two-stage stacking transfer is performed, and two stacking eight blocks are loaded on one mounting table P. That is, in this example, a total of 160 seedling raising boxes w can be loaded and transferred onto one mounting table P.

(10) When the loading of the loading table P 16 times is completed, the fully loaded loading table P is loaded into the loading table transfer device 3
The full loading table P that has been sent out to the front unloading position by is transported to the germination facility by a forklift or the like.

An empty mounting table P is provided behind the loading position.
A mounting table supply unit 65 accommodating stacks of
The empty mounting table P taken out from the mounting table supply unit 65 is loaded and set at the loading position to prepare for the next loading. In addition,
The mounting table transfer device 3 installed from the mounting table supply unit 65 to the unloading position is configured as follows.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 23 and 24, the mounting table transfer device 3 has a structure in which three transfer chains 67 vertically driven by a motor 66 are arranged in parallel on the left and right sides. The carrier chain 6 is installed in the table supply unit 65.
A transport rail 68 is provided higher than 7, and empty mounting bases P are stacked and accommodated on the transport rail 68, and
A front support frame 69 and a rear support frame 70 that guide and support the mounting table P are provided in front of and behind the mounting table supply unit 65.

Of the three transport chains 67 arranged in parallel,
The two outer transport chains 67 are provided with locking members 71 at a constant pitch, and only the lowermost mounting bases P that are stacked and accommodated have their rear ends locked by the locking members 71 to the front. It is pushed out, moves while sliding on the transport rail 68, and is sent out from a gate formed at the lower end of the front support frame 69.

The mounting table P exiting the mounting table supply unit 65 is directly mounted on the three transport chains 67, and the load acting on the mounting table P is 3 at the loading position and the unloading position.
It is dispersedly supported by chain rails 72 that guide the book transport chain 67.

[Other Embodiments] The present invention can also be implemented in the following modes.

(1) As the rotating body provided in the box lifting action portion of the lift member 18 so as to freely rotate, in addition to using the roller 21 which can idle around the longitudinal axis as described above, You can also use a free sphere.

(2) The lift member 18 is not only rotatable about the longitudinal axis as described above, but also rotatable about the horizontal axis, and is also a linear vertical movement and a horizontal direction. It may be a combination of leaving and entering.

(3) In the above embodiment, the lift member 18
Although the locking claws 24 are arranged in front of and behind each other, the locking claws 24 are arranged between the pair of front and rear lift members 18, or the plurality of lift members 18 and the plurality of locking claws 24 are alternately arranged. The arrangement pattern of the lift member 18 and the locking claws 24 can be arbitrarily set, such as the arrangement.

[Brief description of drawings]

[Figure 1] Overall plan view of the seedling raising box stacking device

[Figure 2] Overall side view of the nursery box stacking device

FIG. 3 is a front view of a nursery box stacking mechanism and a loading section.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the flow of a nursery box.

[Figure 5] Plan view of the seedling raising box stacking mechanism

[Figure 6] Side view of the nursery box stacking mechanism

[Figure 7] Front view of the nursery box stacking mechanism

FIG. 8 is a front view of a main part showing a stacking operation.

[Figure 9] Perspective view of a nursery box

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing a locking claw mounting structure.

FIG. 11 is a front view showing the stacking operation of the nursery box stacking mechanism.

FIG. 12 is a front view showing the stacking operation of the nursery box stacking mechanism.

FIG. 13 is a front view showing the stacking operation of the nursery box stacking mechanism.

FIG. 14 is a front view showing the stacking operation of the nursery box stacking mechanism.

FIG. 15 is a side view of a loading / conveying mechanism.

FIG. 16 is a side view showing a loading / transporting mechanism in a state of holding a nursery box.

FIG. 17 is a front view of the loading / conveying mechanism.

FIG. 18 is a front view showing a loading / transporting mechanism in a state of holding a nursery box.

FIG. 19 is a plan view showing the main parts of the loading and conveying mechanism.

FIG. 20 is a side view showing a loading / conveying mechanism in a loading operation state of a nursery box.

FIG. 21 is a side view showing a loading / conveying mechanism in a loading operation state of a nursery box.

FIG. 22 is a front view showing a nursery box holding portion of the loading / transporting mechanism.

FIG. 23 is a side view of the mounting table transfer mechanism.

FIG. 24 is a front view of the mounting table transfer mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols] 18 Lift member 21 Rotating body (roller) 23 Swing arm 24 Locking claw 27 vertical ribs a fulcrum s1 back s2 Horizontal locking surface s3 inclined locking surface w Nursery box

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Masayuki Harada             64 Ishizukitamachi, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture Kubo Co., Ltd.             Ta Sakai Factory (72) Inventor Toshiaki Matsumoto             Tochigi Prefecture Utsunomiya City Hiraide Industrial Estate 44 No. 3 shares             In ceremony company Suzutec F term (reference) 2B027 NE09 TA18 TC07 TC09 TC14                       TC18 TC19                 3F029 AA09 BA14 CB03 CB13 DA24

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A lift member for lifting a nursery box so that it can be picked up, and elastically retractable locking claws for receiving and locking the raised nursery box from below the left and right sides of the nursery box. In the seedling raising box stacking mechanism configured to be sequentially stacked and locked from the above, the box lifting action portion of the lift member is configured by a freely rotatable rotor to enable the raised seedling raising box to move left and right. At the same time, the rear surface of the locking claws on the side of the nursery box lifting passage is formed into an inwardly inclined surface, whereby a nursery box stacking mechanism is provided. 2. A lift member for lifting the nursery box so that the nursery box is picked up, and elastically retractable locking claws for receiving and locking the lifted nursery box from the lower left and right sides, and the nursery box to be supplied is lowered. In a nursery box stacking mechanism configured to sequentially stack and lock the nursery box, the locking claws are arranged so as to face vertical ribs formed on the left and right outer surfaces of the nursery box. Stacking mechanism. 3. The seedling raising box stacking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the engaging claws are configured so that their positions can be adjusted in the front-rear direction. 4. A lift member for lifting a nursery box so that it can be picked up, and elastically retractable locking claws for receiving and locking the lifted nursery box from below both left and right sides, and the nursery box supplied is lowered. In the nursery box stacking mechanism configured to sequentially stack and lock from the above, a horizontal locking surface for receiving the nursery box is provided on the upper surface of the locking claw, and the toe side of this horizontal locking surface is gently loosened. A seedling raising box stacking mechanism, characterized in that an inclined locking surface is formed which is inclined downward. 5. The nursery box according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the locking claw is provided on an upper end of a swinging arm that swings left and right around a fulcrum below a feeding position of the nursery box. Stacking mechanism. 6. The seedling raising box stacking mechanism according to claim 5, wherein the fulcrum of the swing arm is positioned immediately below the starting position of the inclined locking surface.