JP2008156054A - Vessel holder and star wheel type carrying device having this vessel holder - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vessel holder capable of easily installing a mechanism part required for adjusting the positions of grips by effectively utilizing a surplus space on a star wheel. <P>SOLUTION: This vessel holder is provided with a pair of grips 22A and 22B capable of holding a flange 2e of a bottle 2 by a tip claw part 22c by projecting in the same pocket 6 of the star wheel 4 in a state of being juxtaposed in the peripheral direction, and an adjusting mechanism 23 changing a position of the claw part 22c by rotating the pair of respective grips 22A and 22B around the fulcrum axis Q parallel to the rotational axis of the star wheel 4. The fulcrum axis Q is set in an area sandwiched between a plurality of pockets 6. The fulcrum axis Q of one grip 22A arranged on one side Sa in the peripheral direction, is set in an area adjacent to the pocket 6 on the other side Sb in the peripheral direction. The fulcrum axis Q of the other grip 22B arranged on the other side Sb is set in an area adjacent to the pocket 6 on one side Sa. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device for holding a container to be taken into a star wheel pocket.

  A star wheel type transport device is frequently used to transport bottle-shaped containers such as plastic bottles, but the neck of the container is paired with a pair of grips in order to securely hold the container taken in the star wheel pocket. Has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). In addition, Patent Documents 3 to 6 exist as prior art documents related to the present invention.

JP 2005-29225 A JP 2005-89182 A Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 7-15287 Japanese translation of PCT publication No. 2002-503640 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-314752 JP 2003-276838 A

  In the conventional container holding device, a fulcrum axis for adjusting the position of the grip is set in a region radially inward with respect to the star wheel pocket. However, the area radially inward of the pocket is narrow, and other mechanical parts such as the star wheel rotation mechanism are also placed there, so there is enough space for the mechanism to adjust the grip position. Difficult to do.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a container holding device capable of easily installing the mechanical parts necessary for adjusting the position of the grip by effectively utilizing the surplus space on the star wheel, and a star wheel type transport device including the same. The purpose is to do.

  The container inspection apparatus of the present invention projects into the same pocket (6) of the star wheel in a state of being arranged in the circumferential direction of the star wheel (4), and is taken into the pocket by the holding portion (22c) at the tip. A pair of grips (22A, 22B) capable of holding the flange (2e) of the neck (2d) of the container (2) and the pair of grips parallel to the rotation center line (CL) of the star wheel. An adjusting mechanism (23) that rotates around a fulcrum axis (Q) to change the position of each of the holding portions, and each fulcrum axis of the pair of grips is sandwiched between a plurality of pockets in the circumferential direction. The fulcrum axis of one grip (22A) that exists in the region and projects into the pocket on one side (Sa) in the circumferential direction is the other side (Sb) in the circumferential direction. The fulcrum axis of the other grip (22B) protruding into the pocket on the other side is located in a region adjacent to the pocket on the one side, By solving the problems, the above-described problems are solved.

  In the container inspection device of the present invention, by rotating each of the pair of grips symmetrically around the fulcrum axis, the grip holding portions are brought closer to each other in the circumferential direction in the pocket while moving toward the radially outer side. It can be moved, or the holding portions can be moved toward the center in the radial direction while being spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction within the pocket. Thereby, a holding | maintenance part can be moved to the position suitable for each container from which the diameter of a neck part differs, and a container can be hold | maintained reliably. The fulcrum axis of the grip is set in an area sandwiched between pockets, and these areas are often extra spaces where no other mechanical parts are arranged. Therefore, compared to the case where the fulcrum axis is arranged on the center side in the radial direction with respect to the pocket, it is possible to easily secure an installation space for components to be arranged on or around the fulcrum axis.

  In one form of the inspection apparatus of the present invention, with respect to a radial center line (A) connecting the rotation center of the star wheel and the center of the pocket (CP), each of the fulcrum axis and the center of the pocket are The fulcrum axis may be set so that the connecting line segment (R) is inclined at an angle (φ) of approximately 45 °. According to this aspect, as long as the grip is rotated at a relatively small angle, the grip holding portion can be moved by an approximately equal amount in the radial direction of the star wheel and the direction orthogonal thereto. Therefore, the container can be held under substantially the same condition regardless of the size of the neck.

  In said form, the said grip and the said fulcrum axis line may be arrange | positioned symmetrically on both sides of the said radial centerline. According to this, the holding part of the pair of grips is moved symmetrically in the radial direction of the star wheel and the direction perpendicular thereto, and the container flange is stably held regardless of the diameter of the neck part. Can do.

  Furthermore, an inclined portion (22d) may be provided inside each holding portion of the pair of grips such that a V-shaped groove is formed between the holding portions of the pair of grips. According to this, it is possible to secure a relatively large contact range between the grip holding portion and the flange regardless of the diameter of the neck portion, thereby more stably holding the container.

  In one form of the container holding device of the present invention, the adjustment mechanism may include positioning means (25, 26) for positioning each of the pair of grips around the fulcrum axis. According to this, the holding part of the grip can be moved to a position suitable for the diameter of the neck of the container and restrained at that position.

  Further, the positioning means includes a spring means (25) for applying a force for rotating each of the pair of grips in a direction in which the holding portions approach each other, and a center side in the radial direction from the fulcrum axis of the star wheel. A pair of positioning pins (26) that come into contact with each of the pair of grips from the outside in the circumferential direction and hold the pair of grips in place against the spring means, A cam portion (26a) having a non-circular contour around a center line of the positioning pin may be provided at a contact portion of each positioning pin with respect to the grip. According to this, by rotating the positioning pin to bring a different position of the cam portion into contact with the grip, the grip is rotated around the fulcrum axis to position the holding portion at an appropriate position according to the diameter of the neck portion. can do.

  In one form of the container holding device of the present invention, it has a plurality of grip units (21) arranged for each pocket, and each grip unit has the pair of grips (22A, 22B) and an adjusting mechanism (23). It may be provided. According to this, the container taken into each pocket of the star wheel can be held by the container holding device of the present invention.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, between the pair of grip units adjacent in the circumferential direction, the fulcrum axis line of the one grip disposed in one grip unit and the other grip disposed in the other grip unit. The common axis may be common. According to this, the parts to be arranged on or around the fulcrum axis can be shared between adjacent pockets, and the number of parts can be reduced and the associated mechanism can be simplified.

  In addition, this invention may be embodied as a star wheel type conveying apparatus provided with the container holding device mentioned above.

  In the above description, in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, reference numerals in the accompanying drawings are added in parentheses, but the present invention is not limited to the illustrated form.

  As described above, according to the container holding device of the present invention and the star wheel type transport device equipped with the container holding device, since each fulcrum axis of the pair of grips is set in the region sandwiched between the pockets, Compared with the case where the fulcrum axis is arranged on the radial center side with respect to the pocket, a mechanism that should be arranged on or around the fulcrum axis by effectively utilizing the area between the pockets, which is the extra space on the star wheel. Parts can be easily arranged.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a star wheel type transfer apparatus in which a container holding device according to one embodiment of the present invention is incorporated, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. The conveyance device 1 is provided as a part of the container inspection device. The bottle 2 formed of PET resin or the like is taken into the pockets 5 and 6 of the upper and lower two-stage star wheels 3 and 4 one by one, and the rotation center line Transport around CL. As apparent from FIG. 2, the pocket 5 of the lower star wheel 3 receives the body 2 a of the bottle 2, and the pocket 6 of the upper star wheel 4 receives the mouth 2 b of the bottle 2. A specific holding form of the bottle 2 will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 2, each of the star wheels 3 and 4 has disk-shaped wheel bodies 7 and 8. The lower wheel body 7 is connected to a drive shaft 9 for turning the star wheels 3 and 4 around the rotation center line CL, and the upper wheel body 8 is connected to the lower wheel body via a plurality of linear guides 10. 7 is connected. The guide shaft 10 a of the linear guide 10 is fixed to the lower wheel body 7, and the slider 10 b of the linear guide 10 is fixed to the upper wheel body 8. Further, a ball screw (not shown) is provided between the wheel bodies 7 and 8. By rotating the ball screw, the upper star wheel 4 moves up and down along the guide shaft 10 a of the linear guide 10. Thereby, the height of the upper star wheel 4 can be adjusted in accordance with the height of the bottle 2 to be transported. 2 indicates a state in which the upper star wheel 4 is moved to the upper end, and an imaginary line in FIG. 2 indicates a state in which the star wheel 4 is moved to the lower end.

  Wheel molds 11 and 12 are attached to the outer circumferences of the wheel bodies 7 and 8 so as to go around the wheel bodies 7 and 8. The wheel molds 11 and 12 are attached to the wheel main bodies 7 and 8 coaxially and integrally so as to be rotatable together by using fixing mechanisms 13 and 14. The pockets 5 and 6 described above are formed on the outer periphery of the wheel molds 11 and 12 at regular intervals in the circumferential direction. The upper wheel mold 12 has a configuration in which a lower plate 12b is suspended from an upper plate 12a fixed to the wheel body 8 by a connector 12c, and the pocket 6 is formed in the lower plate 12b. The lower pocket 5 is formed in a substantially semicircular shape that matches the diameter of the bottle body 2a. A belt 15 is stretched around a part of the outer periphery of the lower star wheel 3. The bottle body 2 a is sandwiched between the belt 15 and the pocket 5, and the body 2 a is held in the pocket 5. The bottom surface 2c of the bottle 2 is not supported and is opened downward. Thereby, the bottle inspection from the bottom side becomes possible.

  The upper star wheel 4 is provided with a container holding device 20. The container holding device 20 supports a flange (sometimes referred to as a support ring) 2e of the neck 2d of the bottle 2 taken into each pocket 6 from below. That is, the transport device 1 of the present embodiment supports the flange 2e of the bottle 2 taken into the pockets 5 and 6 of the star wheels 3 and 4 from the lower side with the container holding device 20 and supports the body 2a with the pocket 5 and the belt 15. The bottle 2 is held in a suspended state. There are two types of bottles 2 depending on the diameter of the neck 2d (hereinafter referred to as the neck diameter). The upper star wheel 4 includes the container holding device 20, and the bottle 2 of any neck diameter. Are also commonly used. The diameter of the body 2a is approximately the same between the two types of bottles 2. The upper pocket 6 is formed in a substantially semicircular shape similar to the lower pocket 5, and the center of curvature CP coincides with the center line of the bottle 2 sandwiched between the pocket 5 of the lower star wheel 3 and the belt 15. Is set as follows. A semi-cylindrical reflector 16 that covers the mouth 2 b of the bottle 2 is attached to the inner periphery of the pocket 6. The reflection plate 16 is provided so that the illumination light irradiated for the inspection of the bottle 2 is uniformly incident on the bottle 2.

  FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of the outer periphery of the upper star wheel 4. As is apparent from FIG. 3, the container holding device 20 includes a grip unit 21 provided for each pocket 6. FIG. 4 shows a single grip unit 21. Each grip unit 21 includes a pair of grips 22A and 22B and an adjustment mechanism 23 for adjusting the positions of the grips 22A and 22B in accordance with the neck diameters d1 and d2 of the bottle 2 (d2> d1). ing.

  5 and 6 show details of one grip 22A. The grip 22A includes a shank 22a extending substantially linearly and a base 22b formed on the proximal end side of the shank 22a. The shank 22a has a block shape, and the base 22b is formed in a flat plate shape that is flush with the upper surface of the shank 22a. The front end portion of the shank 22a is cut out from the lower surface side, whereby a claw portion 22c as a holding portion is formed at the front end portion of the grip 22A. In order to ensure a contact range with the flange 2e (see FIG. 2) of the bottle 2 at the corner portion on the inner side (lower side in FIG. 5) of the claw portion 22c, the longitudinal direction of the shank 22a (the dashed line A in FIG. An inclined portion 22d that is inclined at a predetermined angle θ ° with respect to (direction) is provided. The angle θ is set to approximately 45 °. 5 corresponds to a virtual center line connecting the wheel rotation center CL and the curvature center CP (see FIG. 3) of the pocket 6 when the grip 22A is attached to the star wheel 4. . Hereinafter, this is referred to as a radial center line of the pocket 6. Then, one side in the circumferential direction of the pocket 6 (a side indicated by an arrow Sa) and the other side (a side indicated by an arrow Sb) are respectively defined with the radial center line A as a boundary.

  The base 22b extends beyond the radial center line A of the pocket 6 to the opposite side of the shank 22a, and a pin hole 22e is formed at the tip thereof. A spring receiving portion 22f is provided at the rear end (left end in FIG. 5) of the base 22b so as to protrude downward. A spring receiving hole 22g is formed in the spring receiving portion 22f. As apparent from FIG. 4, the other grip 22 </ b> B has a shape symmetrical to the grip 22 </ b> A with respect to the radial center line A. Therefore, the same reference numerals are used for the respective portions of the grip 22B as the respective portions 22a to 22g of the grip 22A shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, and detailed description thereof is omitted. However, the base 22b of the grip 22B is formed in a flat plate shape that is flush with the lower surface of the shank 22a so as to be superposed on the base 22b of one grip 22A in the vertical direction.

  3 and 4, the adjusting mechanism 23 includes a pair of fulcrum pins 24 for rotatably mounting the grips 22 </ b> A and 22 </ b> B to the upper star wheel 4, more specifically, the lower plate 12 b of the wheel mold 12. A coil spring 25 as a spring means interposed between the spring receiving holes 22g of the grips 22A and 22B, and a positioning pin disposed on the opposite side of the coil spring 25 to hold the grips 22A and 22B in a fixed position 26. The axis (fulcrum axis) Q of the fulcrum pin 24 is parallel to the rotation center line CL of the star wheels 3 and 4 and is symmetrically arranged with respect to the radial center line A. The coil spring 25 pushes the spring receiving portions 22f of the grips 22A and 22B away from each other to bring the base 22b into contact with the cam portion 26a of the positioning pin 26. The shape of the cross section of the cam part 26a is set to an elliptical shape. Therefore, by rotating the positioning pin 26 in the range of 90 ° and selectively bringing the long diameter portion or short diameter portion of the cam portion 26a into contact with the base 22b, the grips 22A and 22B rotate around the fulcrum axis Q, Along with this, the position of the claw portion 22c changes.

  That is, when the short diameter portion of the cam portion 26a is brought into contact with the base 22b, the distance between the spring receiving portions 22f is increased as shown by the solid lines in FIGS. 3 and 4, thereby the grips 22A and 22B. The claw portions 22 c approach each other in the circumferential direction of the star wheel 4 while protruding outward in the radial direction of the star wheel 4. On the other hand, when the long diameter portion of the cam portion 26a is brought into contact with the base 22b, the distance between the spring receiving portions 22f is reduced as shown by phantom lines in FIGS. 3 and 4, thereby the grips 22A and 22B. The claw portions 22c are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the star wheel 4 while retreating inward in the radial direction of the star wheel 4. In either case, the grips 22A and 22B are not further separated in the circumferential direction due to the effect of the positioning pins 26. As is apparent from the above, the coil spring 25 and the positioning pin 26 constitute positioning means for the grips 22A and 22B.

  As shown in FIG. 3, each of the fulcrum pins 24 is arranged one by one in a region sandwiched between the pockets 6 in the circumferential direction of the upper star wheel 4. The shanks 22a of the grips 22A and 22B are attached to the plate 12b by fitting their pin holes 22e (see FIG. 5) with the fulcrum pins 24, respectively. As is apparent from the shapes of the grips 22A and 22B described above, the shanks 22a of the grips 22A and 22B pass through the reflector 16 in a state of being symmetrically arranged in the circumferential direction with the radial center line A of the pocket 6 in between. Project into the pocket 6. Thereby, when it sees from the curvature center CP of the pocket 6, the inclined part 22d of grip 22A, 22B is arrange | positioned so that the groove | channel recessed in substantially V shape may be formed. In one grip unit 21, one grip 22A protruding into the pocket 6 on one side Sa in the circumferential direction is around the fulcrum axis Q of the region adjacent to the pocket 6 on the other side Sb in the circumferential direction. The other grip 22B protruding into the pocket 6 on the other side Sb is rotatable around the fulcrum axis Q of the region adjacent to the pocket 6 on the one side Sa. That is, the fulcrum axes Q of the grips 22A and 22B are alternately set in the circumferential direction with respect to the arrangement of the shank 22a in the pocket 6.

  As is apparent from FIG. 3, the fulcrum pin 24 and the positioning pin 26 are shared between a pair of adjacent grip units 21. That is, one grip 22A of one grip unit 21 and the other grip unit 22B of the grip unit 21 adjacent to the grip unit 21 are rotatably attached to one fulcrum pin 24, respectively. Further, the positioning pins 26 are also provided so as to be in contact with the bases 22b of the grips 22A and 22B of the adjacent grip unit 21, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the positioning pin 26 protrudes above the wheel mold 12 through the upper plate 12 a of the upper star wheel 4. A lever 27 as an operation unit for rotating the positioning pin 26 is attached to the upper end of the positioning pin 26. The lever 27 shown by a solid line in FIG. 3 shows a state when the long diameter portion of the cam portion 26a is brought into contact with the base 22b of the grips 22A and 22B, and the lever 27 shown by an imaginary line in FIG. 3 shows the short diameter of the cam portion 26a. The state when the part is brought into contact with the base 22b of the grips 22A and 22B is shown.

  In the transport apparatus 1 configured as described above, the flange 2e of the bottle 2 is adjusted to the neck diameter by switching the lever 27 of the container holding device 20 according to the neck diameters d1 and d2 of the bottle 2 to be transported. Regardless of the size, the pair of grips 22A and 22B can be securely held. That is, when the neck diameter of the bottle 2 to be transported is d1, that is, when the bottle 2 of a type having a small neck diameter is transported, each lever 27 is operated to the solid line position in FIG. By bringing the long diameter portion of 26a into contact with the base 22b of the grips 22A and 22B, the claw portions 22c of the grips 22A and 22B are brought close to the pocket center CP as shown by solid lines in FIGS. On the other hand, when the bottle 2 having a large neck diameter is transported, each lever 27 is operated to the position of the imaginary line in FIG. By making contact with 22b, the claw portions 22c of the grips 22A and 22B are retracted from the pocket center CP as indicated by phantom lines in FIGS.

  By carrying out such a switching operation prior to the conveyance of the bottle 2, the claw portions 22c of the grips 22A and 22B can be placed below the flange 2e within an appropriate range (for example, 1/3 to 1/4 of the neck diameter). The bottle 2 can be held by being inserted. After the positions of the grips 22A and 22B are set according to the neck diameter (d1 or d2), the grips are synchronized with the reception of the bottle 2 to the star wheels 3 and 4 and the delivery of the bottle 2 from the star wheels 3 and 4. It is not necessary to open and close 22A and 22B. Therefore, the bottle 2 can be received and delivered easily and reliably. The structure of the counterpart device that exchanges the bottle 2 with the transport device 1 is also simplified, and the durability of these devices can be enhanced.

  Moreover, in the container holding device 20 of this embodiment, the fulcrum axis Q of the grips 22A and 22B is set in the region between the pockets 6 in the circumferential direction. In many cases, these regions are redundant spaces in which other mechanical parts are not arranged. Therefore, compared to the case where the fulcrum axis Q is set radially inward with respect to the pocket 6, the installation space for the fulcrum pin 24 can be easily secured. When the number of pockets 6 is small, the outer diameters of the star wheels 3 and 4 are also reduced, and the space left inside in the radial direction from the pockets 6 is further reduced. Even in such a case, if the fulcrum axis Q is set inside the pocket 6, it is difficult to secure a space for installing the fulcrum pin 24 and the like, and the outer diameters of the star wheels 3 and 4 are set to generate the installation space. It may be necessary to expand beyond the value appropriate for the number of pockets. On the other hand, a relatively large space remains in the region sandwiched between the pockets 6 even if the outer diameter of the star wheels 3 and 4 is small. Therefore, if the fulcrum axis Q is set in the area between the pockets 6 as in the present embodiment, the star wheel can be prevented from increasing in diameter. Even when the container holding device 20 is applied to an existing star wheel, it is easy to secure the installation space for the fulcrum pin 24, so that the modification is easy.

  Further, in the container holding device 20, the fulcrum axes Q of the grips 22A and 22B are alternately set in the circumferential direction with respect to the arrangement of the shank 22a in the pocket 6. For this reason, compared with the case where the fulcrum axis line is provided radially inward with respect to the pocket 6, the fulcrum axis line Q approaches the radially outer peripheral side as viewed from the center of curvature CP of the pocket 6 and is biased outward in the circumferential direction. Become. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 4, the angle φ formed by the line segment R connecting the center of curvature CP and each fulcrum axis Q and the radial center line A of the pocket 6 can be set to about 45 °. As a result, as long as the grips 22A and 22B are rotated between the solid line position and the imaginary line position in FIG. 4, the rotation angles of the grips 22A and 22B are very small. The portion 22c moves substantially equally in the x-axis direction parallel to the radial center line A and the y-axis direction orthogonal thereto. Therefore, the change of the inclination angle θ of the inclined portion 22d with respect to the radial center line A can be suppressed, and the bottle 2 can be held by the claw portion 22c under substantially the same conditions regardless of the size of the neck diameter.

  In the container holding device 20 of this embodiment, the material of the grips 22A and 22B is not particularly limited. However, when the grips 22A and 22B form shadows on the illumination when inspecting the bottle 2 and affect the inspection, the protruding portion in the pocket 6 is made of a material that is transparent to illumination light. It is desirable to form. For example, when the illumination light is near-infrared light in the wavelength range of 750 to 950 nm, a high molecular polyethylene resin not containing a pigment can be used, and more preferably a molecular weight of about 1 to 6 million (however, the viscosity method Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene resin (UHMW-PE) as measured by ASTM D2857 may be used. As such a resin, there is a resin provided by Sakushin Kogyo Co., Ltd. with a trade name “New Light” (trademark).

  The present invention is not limited to the above form, and can be implemented in an appropriate form. For example, in the above embodiment, the positions of the grips 22A and 22B are changed in two stages on the assumption that the bottle 2 has two types of neck diameters, but the container holding device of the present invention is not limited to such a form. If the position of the lever 27 can be held at an appropriate position between the solid line position and the imaginary line position in FIG. 3, the positions of the grips 22A and 22B can be changed in three or more stages. Furthermore, the positions of the grips 22A and 22B can be variously changed according to the cross-sectional shape of the cam portion 26a of the positioning pin 26. That is, the contour of the cam portion 26a is not limited to an elliptical shape, and can be changed as appropriate as long as it is non-circular. In the above embodiment, each positioning pin 26 is operated by the lever 27 one by one. However, a plurality of positioning pins 26 are connected by a link mechanism or the like, and the grips 22A and 22B of the plurality of grip units 21 are shared. You may operate collectively by operation of an operation part. Further, the positioning pin 26 may be driven by an actuator.

  The container holding device of the present invention is not limited to holding the bottle 2 made of PET resin, but can be used for holding various containers as long as a flange that can be held by the holding portion at the tip of the grip exists on the neck. . The star wheel type transport device is not limited to a configuration including a pair of upper and lower star wheels, and may be provided with only a single star wheel. When the lower star wheel is provided, the bottle holding form in the lower star wheel is not limited to an example in which the body part is sandwiched between the pocket and the belt, and the body part may be sandwiched by a roller or the like instead of the belt. However, it may support the bottom of the bottle. The reflector can be omitted if unnecessary. The pocket is not limited to a substantially semicircular shape, and can be appropriately modified as long as the pocket is configured as a recess capable of receiving the container.

The top view which shows the star wheel type conveying apparatus with which the container holding device which concerns on one form of this invention was applied. Sectional drawing along the II-II line of FIG. The partial enlarged view of the outer periphery of an upper star wheel. The top view of one grip unit. The top view of one grip. The side view which looked at one grip from the arrow VI direction of FIG. Sectional drawing in the position of a positioning pin.

Explanation of symbols

1 Starwheel type conveyor 2 Bottle (container)
2d neck 2e flange 3 lower star wheel 4 upper star wheel 5, 6 pocket 15 belt 16 reflector 20 container holding device 21 grip unit 22A one grip 22B other grip 22a shank 22b base 22c claw part (holding part)
22d Inclined portion 22f Spring receiving portion 23 Adjustment mechanism 24 Support point pin 25 Coil spring (positioning means)
26 Positioning pin (Positioning means)
26a Cam portion 27 Lever A Pocket radial center line CL Star wheel rotation center line (rotation center)
CP curvature center (pocket center)
Q fulcrum axis R line segment connecting fulcrum axis and pocket center Sa One side Sb The other side

Claims (9)

A pair of grips that protrude into the same pocket of the star wheel in a state aligned in the circumferential direction of the star wheel, and can hold the flange of the neck of the container taken into the pocket by the holding portion at the tip,
An adjustment mechanism for rotating each of the pair of grips around a fulcrum axis parallel to the rotation center line of the star wheel to change the position of the holding unit;
Each fulcrum axis of the pair of grips exists in a region sandwiched between a plurality of pockets in the circumferential direction, and
A fulcrum axis of one grip protruding into the pocket on one side in the circumferential direction is located in a region adjacent to the pocket on the other side in the circumferential direction, and inside the pocket on the other side. The fulcrum axis of the other grip that protrudes on the one side is located in a region adjacent to the pocket on the one side,
A container holding device.   The fulcrum so that a line segment connecting each of the fulcrum axis and the center of the pocket is inclined at an angle of about 45 ° with respect to a radial center line connecting the rotation center of the star wheel and the center of the pocket. The container holding device according to claim 1, wherein an axis is set.   The container holding device according to claim 2, wherein the grip and the fulcrum axis are symmetrically disposed across the radial center line.   The inclined portion is provided inside each holding portion of the pair of grips so that a V-shaped groove is formed between the holding portions of the pair of grips. The container holding device described in 1.   The container holding device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the adjustment mechanism includes positioning means for positioning each of the pair of grips around the fulcrum axis.   The positioning means includes a spring means for applying a force for rotating each of the pair of grips in a direction in which the holding portion approaches each other, and a circumferential center side of the fulcrum axis of the star wheel in the circumferential direction. A pair of positioning pins that contact each of the pair of grips from outside and hold each of the pair of grips in place against the spring means, and the contact of the pair of positioning pins with the grip The container holding device according to claim 5, wherein the portion is provided with a cam portion having a non-circular contour around a center line of the positioning pin.   The container according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a plurality of grip units arranged for each pocket, wherein each grip unit is provided with the pair of grips and an adjustment mechanism. Holding device.   Between a pair of grip units adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction, a fulcrum axis of the one grip arranged in one grip unit and a common axis of the other grip arranged in the other grip unit are common. The container holding device according to claim 7.   The starwheel type conveying apparatus provided with the container holding | maintenance apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-8.

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