JP2010100405A - Guide adjustment device for air conveyor device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a compact guide adjustment device for an air conveyor device adjusting a guide for guiding a conveyed object conveyed by the air conveyor device from both sides of a conveyance line. <P>SOLUTION: Guide brackets 34, 35 respectively supporting body guide rails 24, 25, 26, 27 located on both sides and guiding a body part of the conveyed object are disposed in a transverse direction orthogonally intersecting the conveyance line to slide freely, and are respectively provided with rack parts 38, 39 disposed to face in a vertical direction and overlap with each other on the conveyance line. A driving shaft 52 to which a spur gear 50 engaged to both the rack parts 38, 39 is disposed between the rack parts 38, 39, and an output shaft of an electric rotary actuator 54 is jointed to the driving shaft 52. The intervals between the body guide rails 24, 25, 26, and 27 on both sides can be adjusted by rotation of the driving shaft 52 through the rack parts 38, 39. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a guide adjusting device for an air conditioner device that adjusts a guide for guiding a conveyed product conveyed by an air conditioner device from both sides of a conveying line.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an air conditioner apparatus that transports a lightweight transported object such as an empty PET bottle with pressure air, a guide for guiding the transported object from both sides is provided in order to prevent the transported object from shaking.

  The distance between the guides provided on both sides is variable in order to accommodate a variety of sizes and shapes of conveyed items. As an apparatus for automatically adjusting the distance, an automatic guide distance adjusting device is disclosed in Patent Literature. 1 is proposed.

  The automatic guide interval adjusting device proposed by Patent Literature 1 supports a guide disposed opposite to both sides by a support arm, and a pair of screw portions screwed in opposite directions between the support arms at both ends. And a pair of screw portions threaded in the opposite direction of the drive shaft are screwed into the support arm. By rotating the drive shaft by transmitting the rotation from the electric mechanism to the drive shaft through the worm mechanism, the opposing support arms are moved in opposite directions to automatically adjust the guide interval. ing.

JP 2003-276840 A

  However, in the guide adjustment device described in Patent Document 1, the rotation transmitted from the drive source to the transmission shaft is changed by 90 degrees to the drive shaft in which a pair of screw portions threaded in opposite directions are formed at both ends. Therefore, there is a problem that a transmission mechanism such as a worm mechanism must be arranged separately from the screw portion, and cannot be made compact as a whole. In addition, since this drive shaft needs to be set to a length that matches the maximum guide interval, when the guide interval is set to be smaller than the maximum, the drive shaft is laterally moved from the support arm. There is also a problem that it protrudes in the direction, and the protruding portion is an obstacle.

  Further, the guide adjusting device described in Patent Document 1 has a problem that although the guide interval can be adjusted, the guide height cannot be adjusted.

  This invention is made | formed in view of this subject, The objective is to provide the guide adjustment apparatus for air conditioner apparatuses which can be comprised small.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a guide adjusting device for an air conditioner device that can also adjust the height of the guide.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the invention according to claim 1 is a guide adjusting device for an air conditioner device that adjusts a guide that guides a conveyed product conveyed by the air conditioner device from both sides of the conveying line.
The first guide bracket and the second guide bracket each support the guides on both sides, and the first guide bracket and the second guide bracket are slidably disposed in a lateral direction perpendicular to the transport line and transported. A first meshing portion and a second meshing portion which are arranged so as to face each other so as to overlap each other on the line, and both meshing between the first meshing portion and the second meshing portion. A drive shaft that meshes with the main portion is disposed, and a drive source that rotationally drives the drive shaft is provided. When the drive shaft is rotated by the drive source, the first engagement portion and the second engagement portion are interposed. The first guide bracket and the second guide bracket are slid laterally and in opposite directions, so that the distance between the guides on both sides can be adjusted.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the drive source according to the first aspect is an electric rotary actuator, and is arranged on the transport line.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the first guide bracket and the second guide bracket according to the first or second aspect include at least a bracket element to which a guide is fixed, and the first meshing portion or the second meshing portion. The second drive source for moving up and down the bracket element to which the guide is fixed is provided between the plurality of bracket elements.

  According to the present invention, the first meshing portion and the second meshing portion are vertically opposed so as to overlap each other on the transport line, and the drive shaft is interposed between the first meshing portion and the second meshing portion. When the drive shaft rotates, the first guide bracket and the second guide bracket slide in the lateral direction and opposite to each other via the first meshing portion and the second meshing portion. As a result, the configuration between the drive shaft, the first meshing portion, and the second meshing portion can be simplified, and the amount of protrusion of the guide adjusting device from the conveyance line in the lateral direction can be simplified. Can be reduced, and the entire apparatus can be made compact.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the drive source can be made compact by using a rotary actuator as the drive source, and the transport line of the guide adjusting device can be provided by arranging the drive source on the transport line. The amount of protrusion in the lateral direction can be reduced, and the entire apparatus can be made compact.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the height of the guide can be adjusted by moving up and down the bracket element to which the guide is fixed by the second drive source provided between the bracket elements.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications can be made.

  FIG.1 and FIG.2 is a figure showing the air conditioning bear apparatus 10 with which the guide adjustment apparatus 30 by embodiment of this invention was attached. The illustrated air conditioner bearer apparatus 10 conveys a conveyed product in a row toward a processing apparatus (not illustrated) as appropriate using a container such as an empty PET bottle as a conveyed product. The air conditioner bearer device 10 is provided along the transport line L, and includes a first frame 13 that defines a duct 12 through which pressurized air from the blower flows.

  In the cross section shown in FIG. 2, the first frame 13 has a closed cross-sectional shape in which only the central portion of the lower surface is opened to form a rail opening 13a. Further, a second frame 17 that defines an air passage 16 is attached to the first frame 13 in the rail opening 13a.

  An air blowing port 17a is appropriately formed on the wall surface of the second frame 17, so that the pressure air from the duct 12 passes through the air blowing port 17a and flows out to the air passage 16.

  Neck guide rails 18 and 19 protrude from the both sides of the rail opening 13a so as to approach each other, and the neck guide rails 18 and 19 support flanges formed on the neck portion of the container from both sides to Is prevented from falling off the transfer line.

  Below the neck guide rails 18 and 19, body guide rails 24 to 27 as guides are provided on both the left and right sides of the transport line, and the body guide rails 24 to 27 are separated from each other in the vertical direction. (Two in the illustrated example) are provided. The body guide rail 24 and the body guide rail 26 are opposed to each other across the conveyance line, and the body guide rail 25 and the body guide rail 27 are opposed to each other across the conveyance line. These body guide rails 24 to 27 can come into contact with the body of the container from both sides, and guide the container along the transport line. The guide rail portions 24a to 27a made of a soft material, the guide It consists of guide rail support parts 24b-27b which consist of a metal material which protects the rail parts 24a-27a.

  The body guide rails 24 to 27 are supported by the guide adjusting device 30 according to the present invention so that the distance and the height in the lateral direction perpendicular to the transport line can be adjusted.

  Specifically, the guide adjusting device 30 is supported by support brackets 14, 14,... 15, 15,. Guide brackets 34 and 35 are provided. The guide brackets 34 and 35 are slidable in a lateral direction perpendicular to the transport line by sliders 32 and 33 on bases 28 and 29 which are attached to the lower portions of the support brackets 14 and 15 and extend in the horizontal direction. ing. Each of the guide brackets 34 and 35 can be constituted by a single part, but in this embodiment, the guide brackets 34 and 35 are constituted by a plurality of bracket elements so that the height of the guide can be adjusted. As elements, there are lower bracket elements 36 and 37 and upper bracket elements 42 and 43, respectively.

  The lower bracket elements 36 and 37 each have a deformed U shape when viewed from the conveyance line direction. That is, one of the U-shaped lateral arm portions has long lateral arm portions 36a and 37a, and the other has short lateral arm portions 36b and 37b. The lower bracket element 36 has a long lateral arm portion 36a below the short lateral arm portion 36b, whereas the lower bracket element 37 has a long lateral arm portion 37a above the short lateral arm portion 37b. Rack portions 38 and 39 as meshing portions are provided at the end portions of the lateral arm portions 36a and 37a which are in position. The rack portions 38 and 39 are arranged to face each other vertically so as to overlap each other on the transport line.

  Lower bracket elements 36 and 37 and upper bracket elements 42 and 43 are connected up and down via air cylinders 40 and 41 as drive sources. That is, the air cylinders 40 and 41 are disposed above the short side arm portion 36b of the lower bracket element 36 and the long side arm portion 37a of the lower bracket element 37, respectively, and the piston rods 40a and 41a of the air cylinders 40 and 41 are arranged. Upper bracket elements 42 and 43 are attached to the tip.

  The body guide rails 24 and 25 are fixed to the upper bracket element 42 by clamps 44 and 45, and the body guide rails 26 and 27 are fixed to the upper bracket element 43 by clamps 46 and 47.

  A drive shaft 52 to which a spur gear 50 meshing with both is attached is disposed between the rack portions 38 and 39, and is connected to the output shaft of the electric rotary actuator 54 (FIG. 1).

  The drive shaft 52 preferably extends over two or more adjacent support brackets 14, 15 along the transport line, and the rack portion 38 of the brackets 34, 35 attached to the adjacent support brackets 14, 15. , 39 are coupled together. When the conveyance line is bent, as shown in FIG. 5, the drive shaft 52 can be composed of a plurality of shafts, and the plurality of shafts may be connected by a universal joint 56.

  In the guide adjusting device 30 configured as described above, when the type of the transported object is changed and a container having a smaller width than the container shown in FIG. 2 is transported, the electric rotary actuator 54 is driven and the drive shaft 52 is driven. Then, the spur gear 50 is rotated in a predetermined direction. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3, the long lateral arm portions 36a, 37a of the lower bracket elements 36, 37 provided with the rack portions 38, 39 engaged with the spur gear 50 have a large degree of overlapping with each other. Therefore, the guide brackets 34 and 35 move so as to approach each other. Thus, the distance between the body guide rails 24 and 25 and the body guide rails 26 and 27 is reduced, and the distance can be adjusted according to the width of the container.

  Conversely, when a container having a large lateral width is transported, the electric rotary actuator 54 is driven, and the drive shaft 52 and the spur gear 50 are rotated in opposite directions. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, the long lateral arm portions 36a, 37a of the lower bracket elements 36, 37 provided with the rack portions 38, 39 meshed with the spur gear 50 are less likely to overlap each other. Therefore, the guide brackets 34 and 35 are moved away from each other. Thus, the interval between the body guide rails 24, 25 and the body guide rails 26, 27 is increased, and the interval can be adjusted according to the lateral width of the container.

  Further, when a container having a larger height than the container shown in FIG. 2 is transported, as shown in FIG. 4, the air cylinders 40 and 41 are driven to shorten the cylinder rods 40a and 41a. Accordingly, the upper bracket elements 42 and 43 are lowered, and the height of the body guide rails 24 to 27 can be adjusted according to the height dimension of the container. Conversely, when transporting a container having a small height, the cylinder rods 40a and 41a are extended. Accordingly, the upper bracket elements 42 and 43 are raised, and the height of the body guide rails 24 to 27 can be adjusted according to the height dimension of the container.

  The distance adjustment or height adjustment described above can be operated simultaneously by simultaneously sending drive signals to all the electric rotary actuators 54 or all the air cylinders 40 and 41 arranged along the conveyance line. Can be adjusted all at once.

  As described above, the rack portions 38 and 39 always overlap each other in the range where the spur gear 50 is always meshed with each other so that the rotation direction of the rotation from the electric rotary actuator 54 is the lateral direction of the guide brackets 34 and 35. Since the mechanism for converting to the movement of can be simplified, it can be configured in a small size as a whole. When adjusting the distance, the overlapping degree of the long horizontal arm portions 36a, 37a of the lower bracket elements 36, 37 provided with the rack portions 38, 39 changes, but these horizontal arm portions 36a, 37a are always facing each other. Since the pair of guide brackets 34 and 35 are located on the inner side in the lateral direction and do not protrude outward in the lateral direction perpendicular to the container transport direction, the rack portions 38 and 39 do not get in the way.

  Also, when adjusting the height, the air cylinders 40 and 41 can be positioned inside a pair of opposing guide brackets, and do not protrude outward in the lateral direction perpendicular to the container transport direction, and are small in size. Can be configured.

  In the above embodiment, each guide bracket is composed of a lower bracket element and an upper bracket element. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the guide bracket can be composed of three or more bracket elements and are adjacent to each other. By arranging the air cylinders provided as drive sources between the upper and lower sides of the bracket element in a plurality of stages, the adjustment stroke for height adjustment can be increased.

It is a side view of a part of an air conditioner bearer to which a guide adjusting device according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached. It is the figure seen along the 2-2 line of the air-conditioning bear apparatus of FIG. FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 when the interval is adjusted with respect to the air conditioner bear device of FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 when the interval and the height are adjusted with respect to the air conditioner bear device of FIG. 2. It is a perspective view showing a guide adjustment device in case a conveyance line is bent.

Explanation of symbols

10 Air Conditioning Bear Device 24, 25, 26, 27 Body Guide Rail (Guide)
30 Guide adjusting devices 34, 35 Guide brackets 36, 37 Lower bracket elements 38, 39 Rack portion (meshing portion)
40, 41 Air cylinder (second drive source)
42, 43 Upper bracket element 52 Drive shaft 54 Electric rotary actuator (drive source)
L Transport line

Claims (3)

A guide adjusting device for an air conditioner device that adjusts a guide for guiding a conveyed product conveyed by the air conditioner device from both sides of the conveyance line,
The first guide bracket and the second guide bracket each support the guides on both sides, and the first guide bracket and the second guide bracket are slidably disposed in a lateral direction perpendicular to the transport line and transported. A first meshing portion and a second meshing portion which are arranged so as to face each other so as to overlap each other on the line, and both meshing between the first meshing portion and the second meshing portion. A drive shaft that meshes with the main portion is disposed, and a drive source that rotationally drives the drive shaft is provided. When the drive shaft is rotated by the drive source, the first engagement portion and the second engagement portion are interposed. The first guide bracket and the second guide bracket slide in the lateral direction and in the opposite directions so that the distance between the guides on both sides can be adjusted. De-regulating device.   The guide adjusting device for an air conditioner device according to claim 1, wherein the drive source is an electric rotary actuator and is disposed on the transport line.   The first guide bracket and the second guide bracket are composed of a plurality of bracket elements including at least a bracket element to which a guide is fixed and a bracket element having the first engagement portion or the second engagement portion, The air conditioner apparatus guide adjusting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a second drive source for moving up and down the bracket element to which the guide is fixed is provided between the plurality of bracket elements.

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