JP2012031454A - Article treatment method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for treating an article, in which production cost can be further reduced by downsizing components of a batch-type treatment apparatus.SOLUTION: The method for treating an article includes alternately performing: a first treatment step of depositing DLC onto third-group PET bottles PB in a first deposition unit while discharging second-group PET bottles PB onto which DLC has been deposited in a second deposition unit to a conveying path and feeding subsequent fourth-group PET bottles PB into the second deposition unit; and a second treatment step of depositing DLC onto the fourth-group PET bottles PB in the second deposition unit while discharging the third-group PET bottles PB onto which DLC has been deposited in the first deposition unit to the conveying path and feeding subsequent fifth-group PET bottles PB into the first deposition unit.

Description

  The present invention relates to, for example, a method for processing an article in which a container is transported to a processing unit that forms a barrier film on the inner surfaces of a plurality of containers, the container is discharged from the processing unit, and further transported.

  A container such as a plastic container, such as a plastic bottle, has a barrier film, for example, DLC (Diamond Like Carbon), on its inner surface to prevent permeation of oxygen from the outside and carbon dioxide from the inside (for example, carbonated drinking water). Coating such as a barrier film containing carbon as a main component or a silica film containing Si as a main component has been performed.

  As an apparatus for coating a barrier film such as carbon on the inner surface of such a container, for example, those disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3 are known. This apparatus is of a rotary type for mass production in which the number of containers for film formation per hour exceeds 15,000. The barrier film is formed in a state where the container is housed in a chamber that can be evacuated. As shown in FIG. 18, this processing apparatus includes a rotary film forming apparatus 1 having, for example, 30 chambers 120 provided on the circumference, and a container (pet bottle) is supplied from a container supply unit 101. . Then, a container is inserted into the chamber 120 opened in the chamber opening / closing unit 102, the chamber 120 is evacuated in the vacuum exhaust unit 103, and then discharged in the discharge unit 104, thereby forming a barrier film in the container, A schematic process is followed in which the container in which the barrier film is formed is discharged toward the container discharge unit 105.

  Although the rotary type processing apparatus is suitable for mass production, there is also a demand for an apparatus with a small number (processing amount) capable of forming a film per unit time in a beverage manufacturing factory. However, since the rotary type processing apparatus is expensive in the first place, it is an unrealistic choice to reduce the processing speed of the rotary type processing apparatus to reduce the production amount. Therefore, it is easily predicted that adopting a batch type processing apparatus capable of reducing the manufacturing cost is effective for an apparatus having a small amount of processing.

JP 2003-286571 A JP 2004-27271 A JP 2007-113049 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an article processing method that can further reduce the manufacturing cost by downsizing the components of the apparatus when manufacturing a batch type processing apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present inventor has studied the operation of a batch processing apparatus. For example, as shown in FIG. 19, n chambers 120 are arranged on a straight line. It is assumed that 2n containers PB are indexed from a large number of containers PB corresponding to the chamber 120 and are transported through the transport path 130 toward the chamber 120 (FIG. 19A). Here, as an example, 2n = 6. After the container PB is transported to a position corresponding to each 120 chamber to be processed (FIG. 19B), the container PB is supplied to each chamber 120, and then a series of processes including evacuation and discharge in the chamber 120 are performed. After performing the barrier film formation process (FIG. 20C), the chamber 120 is opened and the container PB is discharged toward the transport path 130. The discharged containers PB are conveyed toward the next process in a state of being aligned in a line (FIG. 20D).

  From the state in which the container PB is transported to the position corresponding to each chamber 120, the operation of supplying to the chamber 120, the operation of forming a film, and the operation of discharging from the chamber 120 to the transport path 130 are continuously performed (FIG. 21). reference).

As is apparent from FIG. 21 in the series of operations, there is a time zone in which the transport device and the transfer device are stopped. In particular, since the time required for film formation is relatively long, the time for stopping the transfer device and the transfer device also becomes long, and it can be said that this waiting time zone is wasted in terms of the efficiency of the device.
Therefore, in the present invention, the number of containers PB to be indexed is n (for example, 3), but 2n (for example, 6) chambers 120 are prepared, and n containers PB are prepared for n chambers 120. The gist is to process alternately. Then, the container PB is supplied to and discharged from the chamber 120 that has not been processed using the standby time generated by the processing. By doing so, since the number of transfer apparatuses is sufficient for the number of transfer apparatuses while maintaining the number to be processed per unit time, the transport apparatus including the transfer apparatuses can be reduced in size.

That is, according to the processing method of the present invention, the object to be processed that is conveyed on the conveyance path every predetermined number n is continuously supplied to the processing unit provided along the conveyance path, and the processing unit specifies the object to be processed. The processing procedure of performing this process, discharging the processed object to the transport path, and transferring the processed object discharged to the transport path to the next process is provided.
The processing unit in the present invention includes a first processing unit and a second processing unit. Each of the first processing unit and the second processing unit has a number of processing elements corresponding to a predetermined number n.
In the present invention, on the premise of the above processing procedure, the following first processing step and second processing step are alternately repeated.
In the first processing step, the processing object processed in the second processing unit is discharged to the transport path while the processing object is processed in the first processing unit, and the subsequent processing object is processed. Is supplied to the second processing unit.
In the second processing step, the processing object processed in the first processing unit is discharged to the transport path while the second processing unit is processing the processing object, and the subsequent processing object is discharged. The processed material is supplied to the first processing unit.

  In the article processing method of the present invention, it may be necessary to arrange the first processing unit and the second processing unit side by side in the direction in which the workpiece is conveyed. In this case, the position at which the object to be processed is started to be conveyed on the conveyance path is the position S, and the position at which the object to be processed discharged from the first processing unit or the second processing unit is transferred to the next process is the position E. , L11 is the distance to which the workpiece is transported from position S to position P1 corresponding to the first processing section, and L21 is the distance that the workpiece is transported from position S to position P2 corresponding to the second processing section. The distance that the workpiece is transported from position P1 to position E is L12, and the distance that the workpiece is transported from position P2 to position E is L22. In this case, by satisfying L11 = L22 and L12 = L21, the object to be processed is conveyed from the conveyance start position S to the position corresponding to the first processing unit (or the second processing unit), The object to be processed discharged from the second processing unit (or the first processing unit) can be transported to the transfer position E.

Further, the present application proposes processing as follows as a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
In the first processing step, while the first processing unit is processing the processing target, the subsequent processing target is transported to a position corresponding to the first processing unit. Similarly, in the second processing step, while the processing object is being processed in the second processing unit, the subsequent processing object is transported to a position corresponding to the second processing unit.
In this way, by transporting the subsequent processing object to a position where it can be supplied to the corresponding processing unit, when the preceding processing is completed, the processing target as the subsequent processing target is quickly supplied to the processing unit. be able to.

In the above case, in the first processing step, the processed object to be processed is discharged to the transport path and the subsequent processed object is supplied to the second processing unit in synchronization. Similarly, in the second processing step, it is preferable that the processed object to be processed is discharged to the transport path and the subsequent processed object is supplied to the first processing unit in a synchronized manner.
By doing so, the time required for supply and discharge of the object to be processed can be shortened.

  By adopting the processing method according to the present invention, the waiting time zone described above for the first processing unit occurs while the first processing unit is processing the object to be processed. Discharge and supply goods. In addition, while the second processing unit is processing the workpiece, the waiting time zone described above occurs for the second processing unit, and thus the first processing unit discharges and supplies the workpiece. As described above, according to the present invention, by effectively using the standby time zone, it is possible to reduce the size of the transfer device, that is, the transfer device, while maintaining the number to be processed.

It is a top view which shows the structure of the DLC film-forming apparatus (article processing apparatus) in this Embodiment. The state which the 1st group PET bottle was conveyed to the position corresponding to a 1st film-forming unit is shown. The state which the PET bottle of the 1st group was supplied to the 1st film-forming unit is shown. The state which the PET bottle of the 2nd group was conveyed to the position corresponding to a 2nd film-forming unit is shown. After the second group of PET bottles is supplied to the second film forming unit, the third group of PET bottles is conveyed to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit. A state is shown in which the first group of PET bottles is discharged from the first film forming unit and the third group of PET bottles is supplied to the first film forming unit. A state is shown in which the first group of PET bottles is conveyed toward the air cleaner and the fourth group of PET bottles is conveyed to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit. The second group of PET bottles is discharged from the second film forming unit, and the fourth group of PET bottles is supplied to the second film forming unit. The second group of PET bottles is conveyed toward the air cleaner, and the fifth group of PET bottles is conveyed to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit. The third group of PET bottles is discharged from the first film forming unit, and the fifth group of PET bottles is supplied to the first film forming unit. A state is shown in which the third group of PET bottles is conveyed toward the air cleaner and the sixth group of PET bottles is conveyed to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit. The fourth group of PET bottles is discharged from the second film forming unit, and the sixth group of PET bottles is supplied to the second film forming unit. A state is shown in which the fourth group of PET bottles is conveyed toward the air cleaner and the seventh group of PET bottles is conveyed to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit. It is a timing chart which shows the period when each of the 1st film-forming unit, the 2nd film-forming unit, the conveyance mechanism, and the bottle supply / discharge device operates in time series. It is a figure which shows the relationship of the distance from the conveyance start position S of a plastic bottle to the transfer position E. 16 is a timing chart showing a form different from FIG. It is a figure which shows the form from which the positional relationship of a conveyance path differs from a 1st film-forming unit and a 2nd film-forming unit. The structure of the conventional rotary type | mold film-forming apparatus is shown. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement of supply of a plastic bottle, film-forming, and discharge | emission with respect to the 1st film-forming unit and the 2nd film-forming unit in a batch-type film-forming apparatus. FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating operations of supplying, film forming, and discharging PET bottles with respect to the first film forming unit and the second film forming unit in the batch type film forming apparatus, and shows processing subsequent to FIG. 19. It is a figure which compares and shows the operation state of the 1st film-forming unit and the 2nd film-forming unit, and the operation state of a conveying apparatus in a batch type film-forming apparatus.

Hereinafter, an example in which the present invention is applied to an apparatus for forming a DLC film on the inner surface of a PET bottle will be described.
The DLC film forming apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 operates as follows to form a DLC film on the inner surface of a PET bottle (object to be processed) PB.
The PET bottle PB supplied from the supply conveyor 20 is transferred to the transfer mechanism (transport path) 40 by the widening transfer device 30.
The PET bottle PB transferred to the transport mechanism 40 is transported by the transport mechanism 40 toward the film forming unit (processing unit) 50.
The PET bottle PB transported to a predetermined position is supplied from the transport mechanism 40 to the film forming unit 50 by the bottle supply / discharge device 60.
The PET bottle PB supplied to the film forming unit 50 has a DLC film formed on the inner surface while being held by the film forming unit 50.
The PET bottle PB on which the DLC film is formed is discharged from the film forming unit 50 to the transport mechanism 40 by the bottle supply / discharge device 60.
The plastic bottle PB discharged to the transport mechanism 40 is transported by the transport mechanism 40 to the first reverse transfer device 70.
The PET bottle PB is discharged from the transport mechanism 40 by the first reverse transfer device 70 and supplied to the air cleaner 80 where the next processing is performed. The inside of the PET bottle PB is cleaned by blowing air inside the air cleaner 80.
The PET bottle PB that has been cleaned inside is discharged from the air cleaner 80 by the second reverse transfer device 90, transferred to the discharge conveyor 100, and further conveyed to the next process by the discharge conveyor 100.
The DLC film forming apparatus 10 includes a control unit 110 that performs the above operations.

Hereinafter, each element will be described.
[Supply conveyor 20]
A number of PET bottles PB are held on the upstream side of the supply conveyor 20, and the supply conveyor 20 continuously conveys the PET bottles PB therefrom. The supply conveyor 20 determines the number of PET bottles PB to be batch processed once from the transported PET bottles PB. In the present embodiment, three bottles are targets for batch processing, and the supply conveyor 20 includes an indexing mechanism including stoppers 21 and 22 for indexing three PET bottles PB. As shown in FIG. 1, the three plastic bottles PB are indexed while being in contact with each other.
In FIG. 1, numerals (1, 2,...) Shown in the PET bottle PB indicate the order of batch processing in which a DLC film is formed. That is, the PET bottle PB marked with 1 is first subjected to the film forming process in the film forming unit 50, and the PET bottle PB marked with 2 is subjected to the film forming process second in the film forming unit 50. . Hereinafter, the n-th PET bottle PB subjected to the film forming process is referred to as an n-th group PET bottle PB.

[Widening transfer device 30]
The widening transfer device 30 transfers (three) PET bottles PB indexed by the supply conveyor 20 to the transport mechanism 40.
The widening transfer device 30 includes three grippers 31 that hold the plastic bottle PB. The widening transfer device 30 includes a mechanism for reciprocating the gripper 31 in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the PET bottle PB is transported by the supply conveyor 20 or the transport mechanism 40. Further, the widening transfer device 30 includes a mechanism for widening or shrinking the interval between the grippers 31. Note that these mechanisms are not shown.

The widening transfer device 30 grips the three PET bottles PB indexed by the supply conveyor 20 with the gripper 31. At this time, the gap of the gripper 31 is reduced in correspondence with the three PET bottles PB being in contact with each other. The gripper 31 holding the plastic bottle PB advances toward the transport mechanism 40. If the three PET bottles PB are kept in contact with each other, they cannot be inserted into the film forming chambers 511 and 512, so that the gap between the grippers 31 is widened in the process of moving forward toward the transport mechanism 40. The PET bottle PB is transferred from the gripper 31 of the widening transfer device 30 to each gripper 411 constituting the first gripper unit 41 of the transport mechanism 40 at an extended interval. The gripper 31 of the widening transfer device 30 moves the PET bottle PB to the transport mechanism 40 and then moves back to a position where the subsequent PET bottle PB indexed by the supply conveyor 20 is gripped.
The widening transfer device 30 repeats the above operation to transfer the first group to the nth group of PET bottles PB determined by the supply conveyor 20 to the transport mechanism 40 in order of three.

[Conveying mechanism 40]
The transport mechanism 40 transports the PET bottle PB transferred from the widening transfer device 30 to the film forming unit 50, and the DLC film discharged to the transport mechanism 40 is formed and the PET bottle PB is transferred to the first reverse transfer. Transport to device 70.
The transport mechanism 40 includes a first gripper unit 41, a second gripper unit 42, a third gripper unit 43, and a fourth gripper unit 44 that hold the PET bottle PB. Each of these gripper units can grip the plastic bottle PB independently. In the following, the first gripper unit 41, the second gripper unit 42, the third gripper unit 43, and the fourth gripper unit 44 are collectively referred to as gripper units 41 to 44.
Each of the gripper units 41 to 44 includes three grippers 411, 421, 431, and 441.

  The transport mechanism 40 includes a moving mechanism that moves the gripper units 41 to 44 along the transport path of the plastic bottle PB. The moving mechanism includes a driving pulley 45 and a driven pulley 46 that are arranged at a predetermined interval, and an endless operating belt 47 that is wound around the driving pulley 45 and the driven pulley 46. By rotating the driving pulley 45 by an actuator (not shown), the loop-shaped operating belt 47 can be run.

  The gripper units 41 to 44 are fixed to the operating belt 47 so that the gripping portion faces the outside. Therefore, when the drive pulley 45 is rotated, the gripper units 41 to 44 move in synchronization with the operation belt 47. The driving pulley 45 and the driven pulley 46 are spaced from each other so that the gripper units 41 to 44 can run in parallel to the supply conveyor 20 and a film forming unit 50 described later.

  The distance between the first gripper unit 41 and the fourth gripper unit 44 and the distance between the second gripper unit 42 and the third gripper unit 43 are fixed to the operating belt 47 so as to be L11 (= L22). The distance between the first gripper unit 41 and the second gripper unit 42 and the distance between the third gripper unit 43 and the fourth gripper unit 44 are fixed to the operating belt 47 so as to be L12 (= L21). The reason why the distance between the gripper units 41 to 44 is set will be described later.

[Deposition unit 50]
The film forming unit 50 that forms a DLC film on the PET bottle PB includes a first film forming unit (first processing unit) 51 and a second film forming unit (second processing unit) 52.
The first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 basically have the same configuration, and the first film forming unit 51 includes three film forming chambers (processing elements) 511, and the second film forming unit 51 has the second structure. The film unit 52 includes three film forming chambers (processing elements) 521. The DLC film is formed in the PET bottle PB while being accommodated in these chambers.
Further, the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 are arranged in parallel to the traveling direction of the operating belt 47 of the transport mechanism 40, that is, the direction in which the PET bottle PB is transported. Hereinafter, this arrangement may be referred to as being arranged in series. The PET bottles PB are alternately supplied to the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 every n groups, and a DLC film is alternately formed.

The film forming unit 50 is inserted from the exhaust pipe side into the external electrode surrounding the PET bottle PB when the PET bottle PB is accommodated in the film forming chambers 511 and 521, and the PET bottle PB in the external electrode, and connected to the ground side. An internal electrode, gas supply means for supplying a medium gas to the internal electrode, a high-frequency power source connected to the external electrode, and the like are provided. These configurations are well known as described in Patent Documents 1 to 3. Therefore, the description here is omitted. The formation of the DLC film is generally performed by the following procedure.
(1) The plastic bottle PB is loaded into the chamber (external electrode).
(2) Vacuum is drawn in the chamber.
(3) Acetylene gas which is a raw material for the film is supplied into the PET bottle PB.
(4) Acetylene gas is turned into plasma with high frequency RF (Radio Frequency: 13.56 MHz) power, and a 10 to 30 nm thin film (DLC film) is deposited on the inner surface of the PET bottle PB.
(5) After opening the chamber to the atmosphere, the plastic bottle PB is taken out.

[Bottle supply / discharge device 60]
The bottle supply / discharge device 60 supplies the plastic bottle PB received from the gripper units 41 to 44 of the transport mechanism 40 to the film forming unit 50. The bottle supply / discharge device 60 discharges the PET bottle PB on which the DLC film received from the film forming unit 50 is formed, to the transport mechanism 40.
The bottle supply / discharge device 60 includes a first gripper unit 61 and a second gripper unit 62 that hold the plastic bottle PB. The first gripper unit 61 includes three grippers 611, and the second gripper unit 62 includes Three grippers 621 are provided. The first gripper unit 61 and the second gripper unit 62 are arranged at positions symmetrical with each other.

The bottle supply / discharge device 60 includes a base 63, and further includes a horizontal arm 64 extending from the base 63 to the left and right in the drawing, and three vertical arms 65 orthogonal to the horizontal arm 64. The vertical arm 65 can be expanded and contracted in the axial direction, and grippers 611 and 621 are attached to the tips thereof.
The base 63 can be rotated (reversed) intermittently by 180 ° in the direction of the arrow in the figure, and can be reciprocated in the transport direction of the plastic bottle PB by the transport mechanism 40. This reciprocation is performed between a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (solid line in FIG. 1) and a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52 (dotted line in FIG. 1).

In the bottle supply / discharge device 60 configured as described above, the second gripper unit 62 faces the first film forming unit 51 and the first gripper unit 61 faces the transport mechanism 40 in the case of FIG. It operates as follows.
When the PET bottle PB is supplied to the first film forming unit 51 and the PET bottle PB is received from the first film forming unit 51, the gripper 621 may reach the film forming chamber 511 of the first film forming unit 51. The vertical arm 65 is extended. In addition, when the plastic bottle PB is received from the transport mechanism 40 and the PET bottle PB after the film forming process is passed to the transport mechanism 40, the vertical arm 65 is extended so that the gripper 611 reaches the transport mechanism 40.
In addition, when the second gripper unit 62 grips the plastic bottle PB that has completed the film forming process, and the first gripper unit 61 grips the plastic bottle PB that will perform the film forming process, the base 63 is reversed. The first gripper unit 61 is opposed to the first film forming unit 51, and the second gripper unit 62 is opposed to the transport mechanism 40.
When transferring the plastic bottle PB to the second film forming unit 52, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 is moved to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52.

  Since the bottle supply / discharge device 60 includes the first gripper unit 61 and the second gripper unit 62 and is reversed, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 supplies the PET bottle PB to the first film formation unit 51 (or the second film formation unit 52) and The discharge of the plastic bottle PB to the transport mechanism 40 can be performed synchronously. Therefore, the time for supplying and discharging the PET bottle PB can be shortened. However, this is not an element that limits the present invention, and the present invention includes a form having a single gripper unit.

[First reverse transfer device 70]
The first reverse transfer device 70 transfers the PET bottle PB after the DLC film forming process is transferred from the transport mechanism 40 to the air cleaner 80 that performs the next process.
The first reverse transfer device 70 includes three grippers 71 that hold the plastic bottle PB.
The first reverse transfer device 70 also includes a base 74 and an arm 75 extending from the base 74. The arm 75 can be expanded and contracted in the axial direction, and a gripper 71 is attached to the tip thereof. The gripper 71 is attached to the arm 75 so that the interval between the grippers 71 increases or decreases.

  When receiving the plastic bottle PB from the transport mechanism 40, the first reverse transfer device 70 extends the arm 75 so that the gripper 71 reaches one of the gripper units 41 to 44 of the transport mechanism 40. At this time, the gap between the grippers 71 is widened. When the gripper 71 grips the plastic bottle PB, the arm 75 is contracted. Then, the gripper 71 is directed to the air cleaner 80 by the base portion 74 being rotated 90 ° clockwise. Subsequently, the arm 75 is extended and moved to a position where the plastic bottle PB can be passed to the air cleaner 80.

[Air cleaner 80]
The air cleaner 80 removes adhering foreign matters, mainly carbon compounds, by blowing air (air) onto the inner surface of the PET bottle PB on which the DLC film is formed.
The air cleaner 80 includes a bottle receiving stage 81, a first cleaning stage 82, a second cleaning stage 83, and a bottle discharge stage 84. In the bottle receiving stage 81, the plastic bottle PB is received from the first reverse transfer device 70. Further, at the bottle discharge stage 84, the PET bottle PB that has been cleaned is transferred to the discharge conveyor 100.
The air cleaner 80 performs cleaning in two stages of a first cleaning stage 82 and a second cleaning stage 83 in order to ensure the completeness of removing foreign substances. Each cleaning method is arbitrary, and cleaning with the same content may be repeated or cleaning with different content may be performed. Of course, the present invention allows the cleaning to be one step.

The air cleaner 80 that performs the above cleaning operation includes a first gripper unit 85, a second gripper unit 86, a third gripper unit 87, and a fourth gripper unit 88. Each of these gripper units can grip the plastic bottle PB independently. In the following description, the first gripper unit 85, the second gripper unit 86, the third gripper unit 87, and the fourth gripper unit 88 are collectively referred to as gripper units 85 to 88.
Each of the gripper units 85 to 88 includes three grippers 851, 861, 871, and 881.

The air cleaner 80 includes a base 89. The base 89 has a rectangular shape in plan view, and is provided with gripper units 85 to 88 on each side. The base 89 can be rotated intermittently by 90 ° in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The gripper units 85 to 88 are arranged with the bottle receiving stage 81, the first cleaning stage 82, the second cleaning stage 83, and the bottle discharge stage 84 at positions where the rotation stops. Therefore, as the base 89 rotates intermittently, for example, the gripper unit 85 comes in the order of the bottle receiving stage 81, the first cleaning stage 82, the second cleaning stage 83, and the bottle discharge stage 84.
In the air cleaner 80, a bottle receiving stage 81, a first cleaning stage 82, a second cleaning stage 83, and a bottle discharge stage 84 are arranged along each side of the rectangle. Therefore, the space of the air cleaner 80 occupying the DLC film forming apparatus 10 can be made smaller than arranging these stages on a straight line.

[Second reverse transfer device 90]
The second reverse transfer device 90 transfers the plastic bottle PB that has been processed by the air cleaner 80 from the air cleaner 80 to the discharge conveyor 100.
The second reverse transfer device 90 is a device that operates in the same manner as the bottle supply / discharge device 60 except that it does not move in parallel, and the first reverse gripper unit 91 and the first gripper unit 91 that are arranged in line-symmetric positions. A two-gripper unit 92 is provided. The first gripper unit 91 includes three grippers 911, and the second gripper unit 92 includes three grippers 921.
The base 93 of the first gripper unit 91 and the second gripper unit 92 can be rotated intermittently by 180 ° in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The first gripper unit 91 and the second gripper unit 92 are attached to the base 93 so as to be able to advance and retreat. When receiving the plastic bottle PB from the air cleaner 80 or when passing the plastic bottle PB to the discharge conveyor 100, the first gripper unit 91 and the second gripper unit 92 are exchanged. The first gripper unit 91 and the second gripper unit 92 are moved to a position where the movement is possible.

[Discharge conveyor 100]
The discharge conveyor 100 conveys the plastic bottle PB received from the second reverse transfer device 90 toward the next process.

[Plastic bottle PB processing procedure]
Hereinafter, the processing procedure from the formation of the DLC film on the PET bottle PB supplied from the supply conveyor 20 to the discharge to the discharge conveyor 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. This processing procedure is executed in accordance with an instruction from the control unit 110. Note that some descriptions of the film forming unit 50 (excluding the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52) are omitted in FIGS.
It is assumed that the conveyance proceeds from the state of FIG. 1 and the first group of PET bottles PB has been conveyed to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (see FIG. 2). The first group of PET bottles PB is transferred from the first gripper unit 41 stopped at a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 to the first gripper unit 61 of the bottle supply / discharge device 60. At this time, the second group of PET bottles PB is held by the second gripper unit 42, and the subsequent three third group of PET bottles PB are indexed on the supply conveyor 20.

  When the first gripper unit 61 receives the first group of plastic bottles PB, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates 180 ° clockwise and stops. Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the first gripper unit 61 toward the first film forming unit 51, and then transfers the first group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 511 of the first film forming unit 51. Supply (see FIG. 3). After the film formation chamber 511 is sealed, the DLC film formation process is started.

  After the first group of PET bottles PB is supplied to the first film forming unit 51, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52 (see FIG. 4). In synchronization with this movement, the drive pulley 45 of the transport mechanism 40 is rotated to move the second gripper unit 42 to a position corresponding to the bottle supply / discharge device 60, that is, the second film forming unit 52. Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the second group of PET bottles PB held by the second gripper unit 42. During this time, the subsequent third group of PET bottles PB is delivered from the supply conveyor 20 to the third gripper unit 43. The above operation is performed while the DLC film is formed on the first group of PET bottles PB.

Upon receiving the second group of plastic bottles PB, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates clockwise by 180 ° and stops. Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the second gripper unit 62 toward the second film forming unit 52 and then transfers the second group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 521 of the second film forming unit 52. Supply (see FIG. 5).
During this time, by operating the transport mechanism 40, the subsequent third group of PET bottles PB held by the third gripper unit 43 is transported to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51. The subsequent fourth group of PET bottles PB is delivered from the supply conveyor 20 to the fourth gripper unit 44.

After the second group of PET bottles PB are supplied to the second film forming unit 52, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (see FIG. 6).
At this point, the formation of the DLC film of the first group of plastic bottles PB is completed, and the film forming chamber 511 is opened to the atmosphere. On the other hand, the formation of the DLC film of the second group of plastic bottles PB is started.
The bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the first group of PET bottles PB from the film forming chamber 511 by the second gripper unit 62 and simultaneously receives the third group of PET bottles PB held by the third gripper unit 43. It is received by one gripper unit 61. Then, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates by 180 ° clockwise and stops.

  Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the first gripper unit 61 toward the first film forming unit 51, and then transfers the third group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 511 of the first film forming unit 51. Supply. On the other hand, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the second gripper unit 62 toward the third gripper unit 43 of the transport mechanism 40 and then passes the first group of plastic bottles PB to the third gripper unit 43. During this time, the film forming process on the second group of PET bottles PB continues.

After the third group of PET bottles PB is supplied to the first film forming unit 51 and the first group of PET bottles PB is transferred to the third gripper unit 43, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 is connected to the second film forming unit 51. It moves to a position corresponding to 52 (see FIG. 7). At the same time, by operating the transport mechanism 40, the subsequent fourth group of PET bottles PB held by the fourth gripper unit 44 is transported to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52. Then, the film forming process for the second group of PET bottles PB is completed, and the film forming process for the third group of PET bottles PB is started.
Corresponding to the above operation, the first group of PET bottles PB held by the third gripper unit 43 is carried to a position corresponding to the first reverse transfer device 70. Further, the subsequent fifth group of PET bottles PB is delivered from the supply conveyor 20 to the first gripper unit 41.

The bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the second group of PET bottles PB accommodated in the film forming chamber 521 opened to the atmosphere by the first gripper unit 61 and is simultaneously held by the fourth gripper unit 44. The fourth group of plastic bottles PB is received by the second gripper unit 62. Thereafter, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates by 180 ° clockwise and stops (see FIG. 8).
Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the second gripper unit 62 toward the second film forming unit 52, and then transfers the fourth group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 521 of the second film forming unit 52. Supply. On the other hand, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the first gripper unit 61 toward the fourth gripper unit 44 of the transport mechanism 40 and then passes the second group of plastic bottles PB to the fourth gripper unit 44. During this time, the film forming process on the third group of plastic bottles PB continues.
During this time, the first group of PET bottles PB is transferred to the air cleaner 80 via the first reverse transfer device 70.

After the fourth group of PET bottles PB is supplied to the second film forming unit 52, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (see FIG. 9).
At this point, the formation of the DLC film of the third group of plastic bottles PB is completed, and the film forming chamber 511 is opened to the atmosphere. On the other hand, the formation of the DLC film of the fourth group of plastic bottles PB is started.
The bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the third group of PET bottles PB from the film formation chamber 511 by the second gripper unit 62 and simultaneously receives the fifth group of PET bottles PB held by the first gripper unit 41. It is received by one gripper unit 61. Then, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates by 180 ° clockwise and stops.

Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the first gripper unit 61 toward the first film forming unit 51, and then transfers the fifth group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 511 of the first film forming unit 51. Supply. On the other hand, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the second gripper unit 62 toward the first gripper unit 41 of the transport mechanism 40 and then passes the third group of plastic bottles PB to the first gripper unit 41 (FIG. 10). During this time, the film forming process on the fourth group of PET bottles PB continues.
During this time, the second group of PET bottles PB are transferred to the air cleaner 80 (bottle receiving stage 81) via the first reverse transfer device 70. The first group of PET bottles PB moves to the first cleaning stage 82 and the inner surface thereof is cleaned.

After the fifth group of PET bottles PB is supplied to the first film forming unit 51 and the third group of PET bottles PB is transferred to the first gripper unit 41, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 is connected to the second film forming unit 51. It moves to a position corresponding to 52 (see FIG. 11). At the same time, by operating the transport mechanism 40, the subsequent sixth group of PET bottles PB held by the second gripper unit 42 is transported to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52. Then, the film forming process for the fourth group of plastic bottles PB is completed, and the film forming process for the fifth group of plastic bottles PB is started.
The third group of plastic bottles PB held by the first gripper unit 41 is carried to a position corresponding to the first reverse transfer device 70. The second group of PET bottles PB is moved to the first cleaning stage 82 and the inner surface is cleaned, and the first group of PET bottles PB is moved to the second cleaning stage 83 and the inner surface is cleaned.
The succeeding seventh group of PET bottles PB is delivered from the supply conveyor 20 to the third gripper unit 43.

The bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the fourth group of PET bottles PB accommodated in the film formation chamber 521 opened to the atmosphere by the first gripper unit 61 and is simultaneously held by the second gripper unit 42. The sixth group of plastic bottles PB is received by the second gripper unit 62. Thereafter, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates by 180 ° clockwise and stops (see FIG. 12).
Next, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the second gripper unit 62 toward the second film forming unit 52, and then transfers the sixth group of PET bottles PB to the film forming chamber 521 of the second film forming unit 52. Supply. On the other hand, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves the first gripper unit 61 toward the second gripper unit 42 of the transport mechanism 40 and then passes the fourth group of plastic bottles PB to the second gripper unit 42. During this time, the film forming process on the fifth group of PET bottles PB continues.
During this time, the third group of PET bottles PB is transferred to the air cleaner 80 via the first reverse transfer device 70.

After the sixth group of PET bottles PB is supplied to the second film forming unit 52, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 moves to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (see FIG. 13).
At this time, the formation of the DLC film of the fifth group of plastic bottles PB is completed, and the film forming chamber 511 is opened to the atmosphere. On the other hand, the formation of the DLC film of the sixth group of plastic bottles PB is started.
The bottle supply / discharge device 60 receives the fifth group of PET bottles PB from the film forming chamber 511 by the second gripper unit 62 and simultaneously receives the seventh group of PET bottles PB gripped by the third gripper unit 43. It is received by one gripper unit 61. Then, the bottle supply / discharge device 60 rotates by 180 ° clockwise and stops.
Further, the third group of PET bottles PB is moved to the first cleaning stage 82 and the inner surface is cleaned, and the second group of PET bottles PB is moved to the second cleaning stage 83 and the inner surface is cleaned. . The first group of PET bottles PB is moved to the bottle discharge stage 84 and then discharged to the discharge conveyor 100 by the second reverse transfer device 90.
The succeeding eighth group of PET bottles PB is delivered from the supply conveyor 20 to the fourth gripper unit 44.

[Effect of DLC film forming apparatus 10]
The DLC film forming apparatus 10 repeats the above procedure to form a DLC film on the PET bottle PB, and continuously cleans the inner surface of the PET bottle PB by blowing air. Among them, the series of operations for film formation on the PET bottle PB is compared with some of the operations of the first film formation unit 51, the second film formation unit 52, the transport mechanism 40, and the bottle supply / discharge device 60. It is shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 14, while the first film forming unit 51 performs the film forming process on the first group of plastic bottles PB, the second group of plastic bottles PB is supplied to the second film forming unit 52, In addition, the third group of plastic bottles PB is transported to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51.
When the film formation process for the first group of PET bottles PB is completed, the film formation process for the second group of PET bottles PB is started in the second film formation unit 52. At the same time, the first group of plastic bottles PB is discharged and the third group of plastic bottles PB is supplied. After that, the fourth group of PET bottles PB is transported to a position corresponding to the second film forming unit 52.
When the film forming process for the second group of plastic bottles PB is completed, the film forming process for the third group of plastic bottles PB is started in the first film forming unit 51. At the same time, the second group of plastic bottles PB is discharged and the fourth group of plastic bottles PB is supplied. After that, the fifth group of PET bottles PB is transported to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51.

Thereafter, a film forming process is performed on the subsequent plastic bottle PB in the same procedure, but as is apparent from FIG.
While the first film forming unit 51 performs the film forming process on the PET bottle PB, the second film forming unit 52 discharges and supplies the PET bottle PB. In addition, while the second film forming unit 52 performs the film forming process on the PET bottle PB, the first film forming unit 51 discharges and supplies the PET bottle PB. As described above, the DLC film forming apparatus 10 has three plastic bottles PB to be indexed, but alternately performs the film forming process alternately in the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52. Can do. Therefore, the number of processes per unit time can be made equal to the case where the six PET bottles PB are transported and film-formed at a time. In addition, the DLC film forming apparatus 10 can halve the number of grippers 611, 612... Compared with an apparatus that transports and forms a film of six PET bottles PB at a time. And low cost. The same applies to the first reverse transfer device 70, the air cleaner 80, and the second reverse transfer device 90.

In the DLC film forming apparatus 10, a first film forming unit 51 and a second film forming unit 52 are arranged in series. Therefore, the distance from the position at which the indexed plastic bottle PB starts to be transported by the transport mechanism 40 to the first film forming unit 51 or the second film forming unit 52 is different. This positional relationship is shown in FIG. 15. The transport distance from the position S at which the transport of the PET bottle PB is started to the position P1 corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 is L11, and the position from the position S to the second film forming unit 52 is corresponded. The conveyance distance to the position P2 to be performed is L21.
Next, the PET bottle PB discharged from the first film forming unit 51 and the PET bottle PB discharged from the second film forming unit 52 are transferred to the air cleaner 80 by the first reverse transfer device 70. The position of the first reverse transfer device 70 is fixed. The distance by which the PET bottle PB discharged from the first film forming unit 51 is conveyed to the first reverse transfer device 70 is L12, and the PET bottle PB discharged from the second film forming unit 52 is the first reverse transfer device 70. The distance transported up to is L22.

The gripper units 41 to 44 of the transport mechanism 40 are fixed to the operating belt 47, and the relative position with respect to the operating belt 47 is unchanged.
Under the above premise, the distances L11, L12, L21, and L22 are set in the DLC film forming apparatus 10 so as to satisfy the following relationship.
L11 = L22
L12 = L21
The distance between the first gripper unit 41 and the fourth gripper unit 44 and the distance between the second gripper unit 42 and the third gripper unit 43 are fixed to the operating belt 47 so as to be L12 (= L21). The distance between the first gripper unit 41 and the second gripper unit 42 and the distance between the third gripper unit 43 and the fourth gripper unit 44 are fixed to the operating belt 47 so as to be L11 (= L22).
By setting in this way, the transport mechanism 40 is synchronized with the transport of the plastic bottle PB from the transport start position S to the position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51 (or the second film forming unit 52). The plastic bottle PB discharged from the second film forming unit 52 (or the first film forming unit 51) can be transported to the first reverse transfer device 70.

The DLC film forming apparatus 10 has been described above as an embodiment of the present invention. However, as long as the gist of the present invention is not deviated, the configurations described in the above embodiments can be selected or changed to other configurations as appropriate.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 14, the DLC film forming apparatus 10 performs the film forming process on the second group of plastic bottles PB by the second film forming unit 52 while the first group of plastic bottles PB. Is discharged from the first film forming unit 51 and the third group of PET bottles PB is transported to a position corresponding to the first film forming unit 51. In addition, the fourth group of PET bottles PB is transferred to the second film forming unit 52. Transport to the position corresponding to. Although this form is preferable because it shortens the time required to transport and supply the PET bottle PB, the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, as shown in FIG. 16, while the second film forming unit 52 performs the film forming process on the second group of plastic bottles PB, the third group of plastic bottles PB corresponds to the first film forming unit 51. And a procedure of discharging the first group of plastic bottles PB from the first film forming unit 51 and supplying the third group of plastic bottles PB to the first film forming unit 51. it can.

Next, in the DLC film forming apparatus 10, the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 are arranged in series, but the arrangement of the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 in the present invention is arranged. Is not limited to this.
For example, as shown in FIG. 17, the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52 can be arranged to face each other with the conveyance path 130 interposed therebetween. With this arrangement, it is not necessary to set the distances L11 = L22 and L12 = L21 described above. However, in the case of the DLC film forming apparatus 10, since the area occupied by elements other than the film forming unit is large and there is a restriction in separating these elements from the film forming unit, the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 10 The film forming units 52 are arranged in series. Therefore, when there is no such restriction, the form shown in FIG. 17 can be applied.

  Further, although the DLC film forming apparatus 10 includes the first film forming unit 51 and the second film forming unit 52, the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention allows to include three or more film forming units (processing units). In the case of having three or more film forming units (processing units), while forming a film in one film forming unit (processing unit), in both or one of the other two film forming units, Supply and discharge are performed.

  In the above embodiment, the DLC film forming apparatus 10 has been described. However, the present invention is widely applied to a processing apparatus or a processing method in which an object to be processed is transported to a processing unit, and supplied to and discharged from the processing unit. The specific content of is arbitrary.

10 ... DLC film forming apparatus (article processing apparatus),
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Supply conveyor, 21, 22 ... Stopper 30 ... Widening transfer apparatus, 31 ... Gripper 40 ... Conveyance mechanism (conveyance path), 41 ... 1st gripper unit, 42 ... 2nd gripper unit, 43 ... 3rd gripper unit, 44 ... fourth gripper unit, 45 ... driving pulley, 46 ... driven pulley, 47 ... working belt,
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 50 ... Film-forming part, 51 ... 1st film-forming unit, 52 ... 2nd film-forming unit, 511, 521 ... Film-forming chamber 60 ... Bottle supply / discharge device, 61 ... 1st gripper unit, 62 ... 2nd gripper unit 611, 621 ... gripper, 63 ... base, 64 ... horizontal arm, 65 ... vertical arm 70 ... first reverse transfer device, 71 ... gripper, 74 ... base, 75 ... arm 80 ... air cleaner, 81 ... bottle receiving stage, 82 ... First cleaning stage, 83 ... Second cleaning stage, 84 ... Bottle discharge stage, 85 ... First gripper unit, 86 ... Second gripper unit, 87 ... Third gripper unit, 88 ... Fourth gripper unit, 89 ... Base 90 ... second reverse transfer device, 91 ... first gripper unit, 92 ... second gripper unit, 93 ... base, 911, 921 ... grip Pup 100 ... Discharge conveyor 110 ... Control unit

Claims (4)

Supplying an object to be processed which is conveyed on the conveying path every predetermined number n to a processing unit provided along the conveying path;
A specific process is performed on the workpiece in the processing unit,
A processing method including a processing procedure for discharging the processed object subjected to the processing to the conveyance path,
The processing unit includes a first processing unit and a second processing unit each having a number of processing elements corresponding to the predetermined number n.
While performing processing on the workpiece in the first processing unit,
A first processing step of discharging the processing object subjected to the processing in the second processing unit to the transport path and supplying the subsequent processing object to the second processing unit;
While performing the process on the object to be processed in the second processing unit,
A second processing step of discharging the processed object subjected to the processing in the first processing unit to the transport path and supplying the subsequent processed object to the first processing unit;
A method for processing an article characterized by alternately repeating the steps. The first processing unit and the second processing unit are arranged side by side in a direction in which the workpiece is conveyed,
A position where the workpiece is started to be transported in the transport path is a position S,
A position where the workpiece discharged from the first processing unit or the second processing unit is transferred for the next processing is a position E,
A distance by which the workpiece is conveyed from the position S to a position P1 corresponding to the first processing unit is L11,
A distance by which the workpiece is transported from the position S to a position P2 corresponding to the second processing unit is L21,
The distance that the object to be processed is conveyed from the position P1 to the position E is L12,
When the distance that the object to be processed is conveyed from the position P2 to the position E is L22,
L11 = L22 and L12 = L21 are satisfied,
The processing method of the articles | goods of Claim 1. In the first processing step,
While performing the process on the object to be processed in the first processing unit, transport the subsequent object to be processed to a position corresponding to the first processing unit,
In the second processing step,
While performing the process on the object to be processed in the second processing unit, the subsequent object to be processed is transported to a position corresponding to the second processing unit.
The processing method of the articles | goods of Claim 1 or 2. In the first processing step, discharging the processed object subjected to the processing to the transport path and supplying the subsequent processed object to the second processing unit are performed in synchronization.
In the second processing step, discharging the processed object subjected to the processing to the transport path and supplying the subsequent processed object to the first processing unit are performed in synchronization.
The processing method of the articles | goods of Claim 3.

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