JP2004026313A - Package pricing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a package pricing device capable of correctly specifying trays. <P>SOLUTION: The packing pricing device is provided with a packing machine 40 which packs articles placed on trays, a detection device 1 which detects the sizes of the trays on which the articles are placed, a memory means 33 having a tray master 31 which memorizes the kinds and sizes of the trays by tray and an article master 32 which memorizes at least the names of the articles and the kinds of the trays corresponding to the articles, a tray specifying means 30 which specifies the kinds of trays corresponding to the sizes of the trays from the means 33 according to the sizes of the trays detected by the device 1, a pricing device 60 which prints the information on the articles including the names of the articles on labels and attaches the labels to the articles packed by the machine 40 and controllers 24, 26 which control motions of the machine 40 according to the kinds of the trays detected by the device 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

The present invention weighs the weight of a product at a pack center or the like, and weighs the price and the like on a packaging material of the product. The present invention relates to a packaging and pricing apparatus for affixing a label on which a label or the like is printed to a packaging material of the product.

(4) In general, a weighing and rating apparatus prints a product name and a product number on a label together with a unit price, and affixes the label to the product. The content printed on this label is specified based on the product number or the like input by the operator.

However, this type of weighing device may use multiple types of trays with different dimensions. Therefore, the operator has to input not only the product No. but also the tray No., and a complicated operation is required.

In addition, the packaging and pricing device generally detects the size of the tray on which the product is placed, wraps the product together with the tray with a film, prints the price, etc. on a label, and places the label on the packaging of the product. The work of attaching the price to the material is automatically and continuously performed.

包装 Similar to the weighing and pricing equipment, this type of packaging and pricing equipment sometimes uses multiple types of trays with different dimensions. In such a case, the film is cut or the packaging timing is set according to the dimensions of the tray. Therefore, in order to control such a packaging operation, it is necessary to detect the size of the tray.

However, the content printed on the label affixed to the packaging material of the product is specified based on the product number and the tray number input by the operator, as with the weighing device described above, and the tray detected Is not used for purposes other than controlling the wrapping operation, such as film cutting or wrapping timing.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and an object of the present invention is to provide a weighing and valuing apparatus and a packaging and valuing apparatus that reduce the work burden of an operator.

In order to achieve the above object, a weighing apparatus according to a first configuration of the present invention comprises a weight detecting means for weighing a product placed on a tray, and a detecting device for detecting a size of the tray on which the product is placed. A label printer that prints information on goods on a label, a tray specifying unit that specifies the type of tray based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, and a type of tray specified by the tray specifying unit A product specifying device that specifies the product using to determine the price per unit weight of the product, the information on the product printed on the label by the pricing device, the weight measured by the weight detection means, and The price per unit weight of the product obtained by the product specifying device is included.

According to this configuration, the type of the tray is specified based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, and the product is specified using the type. Therefore, when specifying the product, the operator inputs the tray number. It is not necessary to do so, and the work load is reduced. Further, since the price per unit weight of the product can be obtained without the operator inputting the tray number, the burden on the operator can be reduced, and the weight and unit price can be printed on the label.

Here, the “information about the product” includes the product price, the product name, the product number, and the like, in addition to the product weight and the price (unit price) per unit weight.

In a preferred embodiment, the tray master further stores a tray type and a tray size for each tray, and one or more tray types are stored for each product and each tray type has a unit weight per product. Storage means having a product master storing the price of the product, wherein the tray specifying means searches the tray master to specify the type of tray based on the size of the tray, and the product specifying device stores the product master in the product master. Search to identify the product and find the price per unit weight of the product. According to this configuration, since the tray specifying means searches the tray master and specifies the type of tray, the tray can be specified without the operator inputting the tray number. In addition, since the product master in which the product specifying device searches for the product master stores the type of tray for each product, if the type of the specified tray is used, the products can be narrowed down, and the product can be specified. It will be easier. Further, since the price per unit weight of the product is obtained from the product master, the unit price can be printed on the label without the operator inputting the unit price.

The packaging and pricing device according to the second configuration of the present invention is a packaging machine for packaging the product placed on the tray, a detection device for detecting the size of the tray on which the product is placed, and printing information on the product on a label, A pricing device for attaching this label to the product packed by the packaging machine, a control device for controlling the operation of the packaging machine based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, and a detection device for detecting the label by the detection device. Tray specifying means for specifying the type of tray corresponding to the size of the tray based on the size of the specified tray.

According to this configuration, the type of the tray corresponding to the size of the tray is specified based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, and the type is specified as the product. The operator does not need to input the tray number, and the work load is reduced. Further, since the tray specifying means specifies the type of tray corresponding to the size of the tray based on the size of the tray detected by the detecting device, the size of the tray detected by the detecting device is determined by the packing machine. In addition to controlling the operation of the above, the present invention can be used for other purposes using the type of tray as input information.

In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus further includes a product specifying device that specifies a product using the type of tray specified by the tray specifying device, and the information on the product that the pricing device prints on a label is provided by the product specifying device. It is related to the specified product. According to this configuration, the product specifying device uses the tray type specified by the tray specifying means when specifying the product. Therefore, even if the operator does not input the tray No. indicating the tray type, the product can be specified. The information about the product can be printed on the label. Therefore, the size of the tray detected by the detection device is used not only for controlling the operation of the packaging machine but also for printing a label.

In a further preferred embodiment, the apparatus further comprises weight detection means for measuring the weight of the goods placed on the tray, the goods packed by the packaging machine are weighed by the weight detection means, and the pricing apparatus further comprises: The weight of the product measured by the weight detecting means is printed on a label.

In a further preferred embodiment, a tray master that stores the type and size of a tray for each tray and a product master that stores a product number or a product name and one or more types of trays for each product are further provided. The tray specifying means searches the tray master to specify the type of tray based on the size of the tray, and the product specifying device searches the product master to specify the product.

According to the weighing and packaging apparatus of the present invention, the type of the tray corresponding to the size of the tray is specified based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, and the product is used by using the type. Is specified, the operator does not need to input the tray number when specifying the product, and the work load is reduced. Further, since the price per unit weight of the product can be obtained without the operator inputting the tray number, the burden on the operator can be reduced, and the weight and unit price can be printed on the label.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 9 show a first embodiment.
This embodiment is applied to a packaging and pricing apparatus. As shown in FIG. 1, the packaging and pricing apparatus has a feed conveyor 42 at the front center of a main body 41 of a packaging machine 40. This infeed conveyor 42 has a weight detecting means 49 such as the load cell in FIG. 2 and weighs the weight of the product M placed on the tray T. A lifter 43 that receives the weighed product M and pushes it up to the upper packaging station S is provided behind the feed conveyor 42. Above the lifter 43, a packaging mechanism 50 for packaging at the packaging station S is provided. The packaging mechanism 50 packages the product M together with the tray T with the film F at the packaging station S. A sealing device 51 is disposed in front Fo of the packaging station S. The sealing device 51 heat seals the film F folded on the bottom side of the tray T. The pusher 52 pushes the packaged product M from the rear B to the front Fo, and discharges the product M onto the sealing device 51.

コ ン ソ ー ル A console box 53 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 41 of the packaging machine 40 in FIG. The console box 53 has the display 2 and the key operation unit 3, and has a microcomputer 35 (see FIG. 4) described later inside.

値 A pricing device 60 is disposed beside the console box 53. The pricing device 60 attaches a label L indicating the price and the like of the product M in FIG. 2 to the packaging of the product M and assigns a price. The labeling device 60 includes the label printer 4 and the label attaching device 61. The label printer 4 prints and issues the weight and price of the product M on the label L based on a signal from the microcomputer 35 (FIG. 4). The label attaching device 61 attaches the label L issued from the label printer 4 to the packaged product M at the packaging station S.

Next, each of the above components will be described in detail.
The feed conveyor 42 is supported on the upper part of the weight detecting means 49 in FIG. 3 and has a number of drive belts 45 spanned between a pair of pulleys 44. A slide plate 46 is provided between each of the drive belts 45, and a feed claw 45a fixed to the drive belt 45 presses the end of the tray T to feed the product M to the lifter 43 side. Therefore, the product M placed on the slide plate 46 is weighed, and then sent by the rotation of the belt drive motor 47 to the lifter 43 together with the tray T by the feed claw 45a.

上 記 The lifter 43 in FIG. 2 is disposed immediately below the packaging station S, and is vertically movable up and down by a lifting means (not shown). When the product M is carried in from the feeding conveyor 42, the lifter 43 rises and lifts the product M, and presses the product M against the lower surface of the film F held in the packaging station S.

On the other hand, the film F is supplied in advance to the packaging station S in a state where both side edges in the long side direction are sandwiched by the film transport belts 56,56. After being supplied from a film roll (not shown), the supplied film F is cut by a film cutter (not shown) according to the long side dimension L2 (FIG. 3) of the tray T as described later. The cut film F has both side edges in the front-rear direction F0 #, B sandwiched between the film transport belts 56, 56. When the product M is pushed up by the lifter 43, the cut film F comes into close contact with the upper surface of the product M. In this state, the packaging mechanism 50 wraps the product M by folding the front, rear, left, and right side edges of the film F toward the bottom surface of the tray T as described below.

The packaging mechanism 50 includes a pair of left and right folding plates 57, 57 (only one is shown in FIG. 2), a rear folding plate 58, and a round bar-shaped front folding member 59. The left and right folding plates 57 move so as to approach each other from both sides of the tray T (left and right directions in FIG. 1) and fold the left and right side edges of the film F to the bottom side of the tray T. The rear folding plate 58 moves from the rear B of the tray T to the front Fo, and folds the side edge of the rear B of the film F toward the bottom surface of the tray T. The front folding member 59 folds the side edge of the front Fo of the film F toward the bottom surface of the tray T with the discharging operation of the product M by the pusher 52 driven at a predetermined timing synchronized with the rear folding plate 58. The left and right folding plates 57, the rear folding plate 58, and the pusher 52 are driven by a forward / reverse rotation motor constituting the actuator 25 shown in FIG. 4, and the number of rotations of the motor is detected. Is done.

(2) Inside the label printer 4 in FIG. 2, a roll R of a label sheet Ls, in which a number of labels L are releasably adhered to a band-shaped mount, is disposed. While the label sheet Ls pulled out from the roll R passes between the print head 4a and the platen roller 4b, the weight and price of the product M are printed on the label L on the label sheet Ls. The label L is discharged while being peeled off from the tip side by a peeling bar (not shown). In the label sticking apparatus 61, the suction pad 62 that sucks the label L by the negative pressure descends from the position indicated by the solid line to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line, and sticks the label L to the packaged product M. Note that the suction pad 62 moves up and down by the forward and reverse rotation of the pad drive motor 63.

Next, a tray size detecting device will be described.
In FIG. 3, the tray size detecting device 1 includes a distance sensor 10. The distance sensor 10 is slidably attached to the rail 11 and moves in the long side direction L21 of the tray T via the timing belt 13 by forward and reverse rotation of the scanning motor 12 (FIG. 6). That is, as shown in FIG. 5A, the distance sensor 10 relatively moves with respect to the tray T and emits an ultrasonic wave from above (orthogonal direction Z) substantially orthogonal to the long side direction (moving direction) L21. The distance to the tray T is detected by receiving the reflected wave generated toward the tray T.

The distance sensor 10 converts the sound pressure level of the reflected wave into a voltage, and converts the distance signal k in FIG. 6 into a long side calculating unit (moving direction calculating unit (first calculating unit)) 21 and a height calculating unit (orthogonal). The direction is output to the direction calculating means (second calculating means) 22. On the other hand, the scanning motor 12 for scanning the distance sensor 10 is provided with a first rotation speed detector 17. The first rotation speed detector 17 detects the rotation of the scanning motor 12 and The first pulse signal p1 is output to the first counter 21a of the long side calculation means 21.

Receiving the distance signal k, the tray detecting means 21b built in the long side calculating means 21 receives the distance signal k, and when the voltage level of the distance signal k is equal to or more than a predetermined value Vref2, that is, the detection distance Dx ( When FIG. 5B) is equal to or less than the predetermined value, the first tray detection signal a1 is output to the first counter 21a and the height calculation means 22 of the long side calculation means 21. The predetermined value of the detection distance Dx in FIG. 5B is set to a distance D2 slightly larger than the distance to the lowest tray T. The first counter 21a in FIG. 6 counts the first pulse signal p1 from the first rotation speed detector 17 when receiving the first tray detection signal a1. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5B, the long side calculating means 21 starts the tray detection start position Ps at which the detection distance Dx becomes equal to or less than the predetermined value D2, and ends the tray detection at which the detection distance Dx becomes equal to or more than the predetermined value D2. The displacement (long side dimension) in the movement direction to the position Pe is calculated. The calculated displacement (long side dimension) in the moving direction is output to the height calculating means 22 and the tray specifying means 30 as the length signal c in FIG.

The differentiating means 22a of the height calculating means 22 starts differentiating the distance signal k from the distance sensor 10 after receiving the tray detection signal a1 from the tray detecting means 21b, and when the differential value changes abruptly, At that moment, it is determined that the edge Te of the tray T has been detected (FIG. 5A), and a tray height detection command signal b is output to the distance height converting means 22b. The reason why the edge Te in FIG. 5A can be detected in this manner is that when the distance sensor 10 approaches above the edge Te, the detection distance Dx in FIG. After that, the detection distance Dx becomes substantially constant at the edge Te portion.

When receiving the tray height detection command signal b, the distance height converting means 22b in FIG. 6 subtracts the detection distance Dx in FIG. 5B from the reference distance D1, thereby obtaining the height of the tray T. (A size in the orthogonal direction of the tray T) Ht is calculated, and the tray height signal ht in FIG. The reference distance D1 in FIG. 5B is set, for example, to the distance from the distance sensor 10 to the slide plate 46 in FIG. 5A, that is, the reference voltage Vref1 in FIG. 5B.

Further, the distance height converting means 22b in FIG. 6 subtracts the detection distance Di in FIG. 5 (b) after a certain time has passed from the reception of the tray height detection command signal b from the reference distance D1, The height Hm of the product M at the label attaching position P1 where the label is attached is calculated. The calculated height Hm is output to the lifter control device 26 as the product height signal hm in FIG. The lifter control device 26 raises the label sticking surface to a certain level by controlling the stroke of the lifter 43 in FIG. 2 based on the product height.

反射 Reflection-type photodetector 14 and reflection plate 15 (FIG. 6) are provided in the vicinity of feed conveyor 42 in FIG. The photodetector 14 is for detecting the short side dimension L1 of the tray T, as described below.

In FIG. 6, the photodetector 14 outputs a second tray detection signal a2 to the second counter 23a of the short side calculation means 23 when the light reflected from the reflection plate 15 is blocked. On the other hand, the second counter signal 23a receives the second pulse signal p2 from the second rotation speed detector 18 which detects the rotation speed of the belt drive motor 47 of the feeding conveyor 42. The second counter 23a counts the second pulse signal p2 from the second rotation speed detector 18 when receiving the second tray detection signal a2. Therefore, the short side calculating unit 23 calculates the short side dimension L1 of the tray T, and outputs the calculated short side dimension L1 to the tray specifying unit 30 as the length signal d.

Next, an apparatus for specifying a tray and a product in the packaging and pricing apparatus will be described.
In FIG. 4, the long side / height / short side calculating means 21 to 23 are built in the microcomputer 35 together with the tray specifying means 30 and the like. The microcomputer 35 has storage means 33 having a tray master 31 and a product master 32. The storage means 33 stores the product name, product number, information for specifying the tray on which the product is placed, and the content of the product in association with each other. For example, as shown in FIG. 7B, the tray master 31 stores a long side, a short side, and a height corresponding to the tray No. for each tray. On the other hand, the product master 32 (FIG. 4) stores a product number, a product name, a tray number, and a price for each product, as shown in FIG. 7C. There are cases where one to three types of trays are provided for each product, and the number of products and unit prices vary depending on the size (type) of the tray to be mounted.

4 receives the length signal c, the tray height signal ht and the length signal d from the long side / height / short side calculation means 21, 22 and 23, and outputs the tray information. The tray number is specified by comparing the information stored in the tray master 31 with the information for specifying the tray. That is, the tray specifying means 30 searches the tray master 31 of FIG. 7B based on the detection data of FIG. 7A, and specifies the tray No. The tray specifying means 30 in FIG. 4 outputs the specified tray No. to the commodity specifying means 34 and the folding control device 24 as a tray signal t.

On the other hand, the product specifying means 34 receives the tray signal t and the product number m or the product signal m for specifying the product name from the key operation unit 3 and searches for the product from the product master 32 to specify the product. . That is, the product specifying means 34 searches the product master 32 in FIG. 7C based on the product No. or product name and the specified tray No. in FIG. 7B, and finds the corresponding product No. and product name. Are displayed on the screen of the display 2 in FIG. 7E, and the label is issued by the label printer 4 in FIG.

The folding control device 24 outputs a packaging condition signal j based on the packaging condition of the specified tray T to the plurality of actuators 25, and operates the actuator 25 according to the packaging condition. Each actuator 25 operates the cutter of the film F, the left and right folding plates 57, the rear folding plate 58, and the pusher 52 in FIG. 2 according to the packaging condition signal j.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, when the tray T is placed on the feeding conveyor 42, the load is detected by the weight detecting means 49, and the distance sensor 10 directs the ultrasonic wave downward as shown in FIG. While emitting, scanning is performed in the long side direction L21. By this scanning, a distance signal k as shown in FIG. 5B is obtained, and this distance signal k is output to the long side calculating means 21 and the height calculating means 22 in FIG. The long side calculation means 21 determines the movement direction from the tray detection start position Ps where the detection distance Dx has reached the predetermined value D2 to the tray detection end position Pe where the detection distance has exceeded the predetermined value D2 in FIG. The displacement, that is, the long side dimension L2 (FIG. 5A) is calculated. On the other hand, the height calculating means 22 (FIG. 6) determines that the edge Te of the tray T has been detected when the differential value of the detection distance Dx has changed abruptly after the tray detection has started, and the detection distance Dx from the reference distance D1. Is subtracted to calculate the tray height Ht. Further, the height calculating means 22 in FIG. 6 obtains the product height Hm. The above-described long side dimension L2, tray height Ht, and product height Hm are output to the tray specifying means 30 or the lifter control device 26 as a length signal c, a tray height signal ht, and a product height signal hm.

偏差 Here, the reference distance D1 itself in FIG. However, after the distance sensor 10 is mounted, the reference distance D1 can be measured at the output level from the distance sensor 10, so that even if an error occurs in the mounting level of the distance sensor 10, a measurement error occurs in the tray height. do not do. Further, in the scanning direction L21, even if the scanning direction is slightly inclined with respect to the long side of the tray T, almost no error occurs. Therefore, even if there is some error in the mounting position or angle of the distance sensor 10, the two-dimensional size of the tray can be accurately detected.

By the way, the side wall Ta of the tray T is often inclined. In the conventional tray size detection method shown in FIG. 12, the detectors 101 to 103 are provided on the sides of the tray T, and the first photodetector 101 determines the short side dimension L1 of the tray T in the transport direction Y. In addition to the detection, the timing at which the three photodetectors 101 to 103 are shielded from light by the tray T, the angles θ1 and θ2 (of the optical axis) at which the respective photodetectors 101 to 103 are disposed, and the distance between the detectors , The long side dimension L2 of the tray T is detected. Therefore, according to this conventional tray size detection method, the middle portion of the side wall Ta of the tray T in FIG. 5A is detected, and the size of the upper surface cannot be detected. For this reason, the tray T may not be specified accurately, and furthermore, it may not be possible to calculate the accurate stroke of the packaging, the film cutting length, or the like. On the other hand, in this embodiment, the distance sensor 10 is provided above the tray T to detect the long side dimension L2 on the upper surface of the tray T, so that the tray can be specified accurately, and the packaging stroke and film cutting can be performed. The length can be calculated accurately.

After the scanning of the distance sensor 10 in FIG. 3 described above, the drive belt 45 of the feed conveyor 42 is driven to rotate, and the tray T is fed onto the rear B lifter 43 by the feed claw 45a. At this time, the light of the reflection type photodetector 14 is blocked by the tray T, and based on this, the short side calculating means 23 of FIG. 6 calculates the short side dimension L1 (FIG. 3) of the tray T, and calculates the length. The signal d is output to the tray specifying means 30. The tray specifying means 30 specifies the tray by searching the tray master 31 of FIG. 4 based on the dimensions L1, L2, Ht of the tray T. Thereafter, a product is specified as described later.

(2) After the product M is placed on the lifter 43 as shown in FIG. 2, the lifter 43 raises the product M to the packaging station S. The lift stroke of the lifter 43 is controlled by the lifter control device 26 in FIG. 6 based on the product height Hm, so that the label application surface is kept constant. Thereafter, the suction pad 62 of the label sticking apparatus 61 shown in FIG.

When the tray T is lifted to the packaging station S, the folding control device 24 in FIG. 4 controls the actuator 25 in accordance with the packaging condition corresponding to the tray No. specified by the tray specifying means 30, and each folding plate 57 in FIG. , 58 and the pusher 52 operate with a stroke corresponding to the size of the tray T. As a result, the film F is folded on the bottom surface of the tray T, and the packaged product M is discharged onto the sealing device 51.

Next, a method of specifying a product, that is, a method of specifying the content of a label to be attached will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
In FIG. 9, when the process is started in step S1, the process proceeds to step S2, where the dimensions of the tray are detected as described above, and then proceeds to step S3. In step S3, the tray master 31 shown in FIG. 7 (b) or 8 (b) is searched based on the detection data as shown in FIG. 7 (a) or 8 (a), and the tray No. is specified. Then, the process proceeds to step S4 in FIG. 9, where the product specifying means 34 in FIG. 4 determines whether or not the product No. has already been input from the key operation unit 3, and if not, the process in FIG. The process advances to step S5, and if it has already been input, the process advances to step S7.

In step S5, the product identification means 34 shown in FIG. That is, the tray No. specified by the tray master 31 in FIG. 7B is searched from the product master 32 in FIG. 7C, and the product No. and the product name in which the tray No. is registered are shown in FIG. ). When the operator looks at the display and the product and selects a product from the key operation unit 3 in step S6 in FIG. 9, the process proceeds to step S7, and the product specifying unit 34 in FIG. 4 specifies the product. Then, the process proceeds to step S8 in FIG. 9, and as shown in FIG. 7E, the product name and the product number are displayed together with the unit price. On the other hand, if the product No. has already been input in step S4 in FIG. 9, the product No. and the tray No. are specified from the product master 32 in FIG. 8C, and as shown in FIG. , Product name and product number are immediately displayed along with the unit price. This display content is printed on a label.

As described above, in this embodiment, the size of the tray is detected, the tray No. is specified, and the product master 32 is searched by using the tray No. to specify the product. Even if the user does not remember the product number or even the product number, the product can be specified, so that the product can be easily specified.

Further, in this embodiment, since the product height Hm at the label sticking position P1 in FIG. 5B can be detected, the descending stroke of the suction pad 62 in FIG. 2 can be set to an optimum value. The impact force applied to the product M is significantly reduced.

When the height Hm of the product M is detected by the infeed conveyor 42 as in this embodiment, for example, after detecting the height Hm, the entire label sticking device 61 is lowered and the stroke is reduced. It can be smaller.

Further, the size of the film F may be changed from the size of the tray T, or a stopper (not shown) behind the lifter 43 may be driven.

By the way, in the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5A, the distance sensor 10 is provided above the tray T to detect the long side dimension L2 and the height Hm, but in the present invention, FIGS. As shown in the second embodiment, the first distance sensor 10A and the second distance sensor 10B may be provided on both sides of the tray T to detect the long side dimension L2 and the short side dimension L1. In this embodiment, the long side dimension L2 of the tray T is obtained by the following equation (1).
L2 = D1- (Dx1 + Dx2) (1)
However, D1: reference distance (distance between distance sensors)
Dx1: Detection distance of first distance sensor Dx2: Detection distance of second distance sensor

In addition, in the case of the second embodiment, since the tray T is transported by the feed claw 45a in the direction of arrow B, it is not necessary to move the first and second distance sensors 10A and 10B. The height Hm of the product (FIG. 5) is detected by the photodetector when the tray T is raised by the lifter 43.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the ultrasonic distance sensor is used as the distance sensor, but the distance sensor may generate a light and detect a reflected light thereof. However, the use of an ultrasonic distance sensor has the advantages that the detection accuracy does not decrease even when the distance sensor is contaminated with meat juice or broth, and that accurate detection is possible even if the tray colors are different.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a packaging and pricing device provided with a tray size detection device according to the present invention. It is the same schematic sectional drawing. It is a schematic perspective view of a feeding conveyor. It is a schematic structure figure of a goods specification device. (A) is a side view of the size detection device, and (b) is a characteristic diagram showing the principle of detection. It is a schematic structure figure of a size detection device. It is a flowchart showing the flow of operation of goods specification. It is a flowchart showing the operation flow of goods specification. It is a flowchart of goods specification. It is a top view showing a 2nd example. It is the same side view. It is a top view which shows a prior art example.

Explanation of reference numerals

10, 10A, 10B Distance sensor 21 Long side calculating means (moving direction calculating means (first calculating means))
22 Height calculating means (orthogonal direction calculating means (second calculating means))
M Product T Tray L21 Moving direction Z Orthogonal direction Dx Detection distance D1 Reference distance Ps Tray detection start position Pe Tray detection end position

Claims (6)

Weight detection means for measuring the weight of the product placed on the tray,
A detection device for detecting the size of the tray on which the product is placed;
A label printer that prints information about the product on a label,
Tray specifying means for specifying the type of tray based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device,
A product specifying device that specifies a product by using the type of tray specified by the tray specifying means and obtains a price per unit weight of the product;
A weighing and pricing device that includes information on a product to be printed on a label by the pricing device, including a weight measured by the weight detection unit and a price per unit weight of the product determined by the product identification device. 2. A tray master according to claim 1, further comprising: a tray master for storing a tray type and a tray size for each tray; and storing one or more tray types for each product and a unit weight of the product for each tray type. Storage means having a product master storing the price of the product, wherein the tray specifying means searches the tray master to specify the type of tray based on the size of the tray, and the product specifying device stores the product master in the product master. A weighing device that searches for products and determines the price per unit weight of the product. A packaging machine for packaging products placed on trays,
A detection device for detecting the size of the tray on which the product is placed;
A device for printing information on a product on a label and attaching the label to the product packaged by the packaging machine,
A control device that controls the operation of the packaging machine based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device,
Further, based on the size of the tray detected by the detection device, a packaging and pricing device comprising tray specifying means for specifying the type of tray corresponding to the size of the tray. 4. The product specifying device according to claim 3, further comprising a product specifying device that specifies a product using the type of tray specified by the tray specifying device, wherein the information about the product that the pricing device prints on a label is provided by the product specifying device. Packaging and pricing equipment for the specified product. 5. The method according to claim 3, further comprising a weight detection unit that weighs the weight of the product placed on the tray, wherein the product packed by the packaging machine is weighed by the weight detection unit. Further, a packaging and pricing apparatus for printing on a label the weight of the product measured by the weight detecting means. 6. The storage device according to claim 4, further comprising: a tray master that stores a tray type and a tray size for each tray; and a product master that stores one or more tray types for each product. A tray specifying unit that searches the tray master to specify the type of tray from the size of the tray, and the product specifying device searches the product master to specify a product;

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