JP2013063795A - Water droplet removal device for glass bottle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water droplet removal device for a glass bottle surely removing water droplets adhering to the inspection area of the glass bottle, by making the glass bottle rotate during a period when the glass bottles are conveyed along a circular path by a star wheel and by spraying air to the inspection area during the rotation from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of a bottle body slightly above the bottom.SOLUTION: The water droplet removal device includes: the star wheel 3 for conveying the plurality of liquid-filled glass bottles 1 along a circular path while supporting the glass bottles in a plurality of pockets 3a; a belt 16 for rotating the glass bottles which are supported by the star wheel 3, by running while being in contact with the glass bottles 1; and an air blowing unit 20 disposed at the side of the glass bottles 1 which are conveyed along the circular path by the star wheel 3 and blowing air toward the glass bottles 1. The front face 20f of the air blowing unit 20 is disposed to lie along the circular path, and a plurality of nozzles 20n for ejecting air are provided at the front face 20f of the air blowing unit 20.

Description

  The present invention is attached to a foreign substance inspection apparatus that optically inspects whether or not a foreign substance has settled or floated at the bottom or near the bottom of a glass bottle filled with a liquid such as a beverage. The present invention relates to a water drop removing device for a glass bottle that removes water drops attached to the outer surface of the glass bottle.

  Conventionally, after a glass bottle is filled with a liquid such as a beverage, it is inspected whether or not a foreign substance has precipitated or floated at the bottom or near the bottom of the bowl. Generally, in a foreign substance inspection apparatus, the inside of a glass bottle is illuminated, the transmitted light that has passed through the glass bottle is photographed by a CCD camera, and the obtained image is processed by an image processing device and is present at or near the bottom of the bottle. A foreign object is detected. In this case, the foreign matter appears as a dark shadow on a bright background in the image by the CCD camera, and the foreign matter is detected by discriminating this dark shadow. If water droplets adhere to the outer surface of the glass bottle, the water droplets appear as dark shadows in the image taken by the CCD camera, and the water droplets may be erroneously determined as foreign matters.

For this reason, as a water droplet removing device for containers, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-261595 (Patent Document 1) discloses air (compressed) along the conveyor transport path on both sides of the conveyor that transports containers on the upstream side of the inspection device. A device is disclosed in which a plurality of air nozzles for ejecting (air) are arranged, and air is blown onto a cap of a container being transported to remove water droplets.
In JP-A-9-79747 (Patent Document 2), a body wiping member and a neck wiping member made of a water-absorbing sponge belt are placed opposite to each other with a conveyor interposed therebetween, and the container is used by the conveyor. Rotate the container by holding the body part of the container with the body wiping member and the container guide, and run the neck part wiping member to remove water drops on the body part and neck part of the container. A device for removing water droplets in a container is disclosed.

JP 2007-261595 A JP-A-9-79747

  As described above, when inspecting whether or not foreign matter has settled or floated at the bottom of the glass bottle or near the bottom, if a water drop is attached to the outer surface of the glass bottle inspection area, the water drop is erroneously determined as a foreign object. There is a fear. Therefore, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, when water is removed by blowing air onto the inspection area of the container, air is blown to the inspection area from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of the upper part of the bowl. It is necessary to remove water droplets.

  On the other hand, a conveyor that transports glass bottles needs to convey a large number of glass bottles in a state where front and rear glass bottles are continuous, so that a liquid lubricant is applied to the conveyor surface of the conveyor for the purpose of reducing bottle pressure. (Conveyor slider) is sprayed to reduce the friction coefficient. Therefore, when water droplets are removed by blowing air to the inspection area from the bottom of the glass bottle conveyed by the conveyor to the lower part of the bowl, there is a problem that the conveyor slider on the conveyor conveyance surface scatters and adheres to the glass bottle. is there.

  Also, as disclosed in Patent Document 2, when water droplets are removed by pressing a wiping member against the inspection area of the container, the wiping is performed in the inspection area from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of the upper part of the bowl. It is necessary to remove the water droplets by pressing the collecting member. In this case, there is a problem that the wiping member comes into contact with not only the bottom of the glass bottle but also the conveying surface of the conveyor and wipes the conveyor slider on the conveying surface.

  As a result of repeated investigations on the conventional water droplet removing devices disclosed in the cited documents 1 and 2, etc., the present inventors have found that the inspection area of the glass bottle is the area from the bottom of the bowl to the lower part of the bowl slightly above the bottom. Therefore, the method of blowing air to the inspection area of the bottle while the glass bottle is being conveyed by the conveyor cannot solve the problem of scattering of the conveyor slider. Compared to the method that removes water droplets with a wiping member, the method that removes water droplets by blowing air can reliably remove water droplets in a shorter time, and the water droplets by blowing air We obtained knowledge that water droplets blown with air may move around the surface of the glass bottle and move to the opposite side of the nozzle when water is removed. It is.

  The present invention has been made on the basis of the above knowledge, and the glass bottle is rotated while the glass bottle is being conveyed along the circular orbit by the star wheel. During this rotation, the glass bottle is slightly above the bottom from the bottom. An object of the present invention is to provide a water drop removing device for a glass bottle that can reliably remove water droplets adhering to the inspection area of the glass bottle by blowing air onto the inspection area up to the lower part of the bottle barrel.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the water drop removing apparatus for glass bottles according to the present invention supports a plurality of glass bottles filled with liquid with a plurality of pockets provided on the outer periphery and conveys them along a circular track. A wheel, a belt that rotates while rotating in contact with the glass cage supported by the star wheel, and a glass cage that is disposed along a circular path by the star wheel. An air blow unit that blows air toward the front, wherein the front surface of the air blow unit is disposed along the circular path, and a plurality of nozzles for ejecting air are provided on the front surface of the air blow unit. And
According to the present invention, while the glass bottle is being conveyed along a circular track by the star wheel, the glass bottle is rotated by bringing the traveling belt into contact with the bottle body of the glass bottle, and the air blow is performed during the rotation. By blowing air from a plurality of nozzles of the unit toward the glass bottle, water droplets attached to the glass bottle can be removed. In this case, while the glass bottle passes through the front of the air blow unit, the glass bottle rotates only 1.2 to 1.4 times, and air is repeatedly blown to the inspection area of the glass bottle. The rotation speed (spinning speed) of the glass bottle is set to 500 rpm to 600 rpm. The amount of air blown onto one glass bottle is 0.3 to 0.4 MPa compressed air and is 2000 to 2600 L (liter). Therefore, it is possible to obtain both the effects of removing water droplets by spin (rotation) of the glass bottle and removing water droplets by air blow from the air blow unit in a short time.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the front surface of the air blow unit is a curved surface curved along the circular track.
According to the present invention, since the front surface of the air blow unit provided with a plurality of nozzles for ejecting air is formed of a curved surface curved along the circular track, the glass bottles and the nozzles conveyed along the circular track Can be kept uniform, and the pressure of the air when sprayed from each nozzle and hits the glass bottle can be kept uniform.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the plurality of nozzles are provided at intervals along the circular track and at intervals in the vertical direction.
According to the present invention, since the plurality of nozzles are provided at intervals along the circular orbit and at intervals in the vertical direction, a predetermined area of the glass bottle, for example, the bottom of the glass bottle The air can be repeatedly blown to the area from the bottom to the upper part of the lower case. Therefore, water droplets adhering to a predetermined area of the glass bottle can be reliably removed.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the center line of each nozzle is directed obliquely downward while being directed toward the rotation center of the star wheel.
According to the present invention, when the glass bottle transported by the star wheel passes through the front surface of the nozzle, the air ejected from each nozzle can be applied from the direction orthogonal to the front surface of the circular glass cup. For this reason, water droplets adhering to the glass bottle can be reliably removed. Moreover, since air can be ejected diagonally downward from each nozzle, a downward force can be applied to the water droplets adhering to the glass bottle, and the water droplets can be removed quickly.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the air blow unit includes a space in which the plurality of nozzles communicate with each other, and the space is connected to a compressed air source.
According to the present invention, air can be ejected from each nozzle by supplying air from the compressed air source to the space of the air blow unit.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, each of the nozzles blows air to an area from a bottom portion of the rotating glass bottle to a lower portion of the upper drum body.
According to the present invention, by blowing air to the area from the bottom of the rotating glass bottle to the lower part of the upper bowl body, the water drops are removed by spin (rotation) of the glass bottle and by the air blow from the air blow unit. Both effects can be obtained in a short time. Therefore, water droplets adhering to the area from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of the bowl above the bottom can be reliably removed.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, there is provided a support roller disposed on both sides of each pocket of the star wheel and supporting the rod body of the glass bottle.
According to the present invention, the glass bottle can be smoothly rotated by supporting the bottle body portion of the glass bottle with the support roller.

In a preferred aspect of the present invention, an arc-shaped support rail is provided along the circular track to support the bottom surface of the glass bottle.
According to the present invention, since the bottom surface of the glass bottle conveyed along the circular track is supported by the arc-shaped support rail, the glass bottle can be reliably conveyed.

A foreign matter inspection apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a water droplet removing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8 and a plurality of glass bottles filled with a liquid disposed on an outer peripheral portion of the water droplet removing apparatus. An inspection rotor which is supported by a plurality of pockets and is conveyed along a circular track, and an illumination and a camera which are arranged so as to sandwich a glass bottle which is conveyed along the circular track by the inspection rotor. And an inspection station for illuminating and photographing an area from the bottom of the glass bowl to the lower part of the bowl above the bottom.
According to the present invention, after reliably removing water droplets adhering to the glass bottle, while the glass bottle is being transported along the circular path by the inspection rotor, the bottom of the glass bottle at the inspection station is located above the bottom. You can illuminate and shoot the area up to the lower part of the torso. Therefore, it is possible to drastically reduce the useless spring that eliminates good defects caused by water droplet adhesion as defective defects.

The present invention has the following effects.
(1) The glass bottle is rotated while the glass bottle is being conveyed along the circular track by the star wheel. During this rotation, the air blow unit is placed in the inspection area from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of the upper barrel. By spraying air (compressed air), water droplets adhering to the inspection area of the glass bottle can be removed. Therefore, it is possible to obtain both the effects of removing water droplets by spin (rotation) of the glass bottle and removing water droplets by air blow from the air blow unit in a short time.
(2) Since the glass bottle is transported along a circular track by a star wheel and air is blown to the inspection area of the bottle during transportation, the problem that the conveyor slider scatters and adheres to the glass bottle can be solved. it can. Therefore, it is possible to drastically reduce the useless spring that eliminates good defects as defective defects.
(3) Since it is possible to obtain both the effects of removing water droplets by spin (rotation) of the glass bottle and removing water droplets by air blow from the air blow unit in a short time, the flow rate of the supply air can be reduced.
(4) While rotating the glass bottle, air is blown to remove water droplets adhering to the glass bottle. Therefore, the water droplets blown around the glass bottle move around the surface of the glass bottle to the opposite side of the nozzle. The problem of water droplets remaining can be solved.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the entire configuration of a foreign matter inspection apparatus provided with a water drop removing device for glass bottles according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a configuration of a water wheel removing star wheel. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of a water wheel removing star wheel. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state in which the glass bottle is supported by the support roller provided in the pocket of the star wheel main body and the support rail and is in contact with the spinning timing belt. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between the glass bottle held by the water drop removing star wheel and the air blow unit, FIG. 5 (a) is a plan view, and FIG. 5 (b) is a diagram of FIG. 5 (a). It is a VV sectional view.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a water drop removing device for glass bottles according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the entire configuration of a foreign matter inspection apparatus provided with a water drop removing device for glass bottles according to the present invention. A glass bottle 1 to be inspected is filled with a beverage such as sake or shochu. As shown in FIG. 1, the foreign matter inspection apparatus is for an entrance conveyor 2 that carries in a glass bottle 1 to be inspected, and a water drop removing apparatus that receives the glass bowl 1 from the entrance conveyor 2 and removes water droplets attached to the glass bowl 1. Downstream of the star wheel 3, the inspection rotor 4 that is an inspection unit for inspecting the bottom of the glass bottle 1 delivered from the water drop removing star wheel 3, and the glass bottle 1 delivered from the inspection rotor 4 A transfer star wheel 5 that transfers to the side, and an exit conveyor 6 that receives the glass bottle 1 from the transfer star wheel 5 and conveys it downstream. A screw 7 is provided in parallel with the entrance conveyor 2, and a screw 8 is provided in parallel with the exit conveyor 6.

  In the glass bottle inspection apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the glass bottle 1 to be inspected is carried into the apparatus by the entrance conveyor 2, and a fixed interval is formed by the screw 7 and is sequentially delivered to the water drop removing star wheel 3. . While the glass bottle 1 is being transported along the circular path by the water drop removing star wheel 3, water drops attached to the area from the bottom of the glass bottle 1 to the lower part of the upper part of the bottle barrel are removed. Thereafter, the glass bottle 1 is transferred from the water drop removing star wheel 3 to the inspection rotor 4 and is imaged at the inspection station IS while being conveyed along the circular path by the inspection rotor 4. Inspection of foreign matter that has settled or floated on the bottom of the pot is performed. The glass bottle 1 that has been inspected in the inspection rotor 4 is transferred to the transfer star wheel 5 and transferred downstream by the transfer star wheel 5. Then, the glass bottle 1 is transferred from the transfer star wheel 5 to the outlet conveyor 6, and while being conveyed by the outlet conveyor 6, a fixed interval is formed by the screw 8 and is conveyed to the next process.

  2 and 3 are views showing the configuration of a water wheel removing star wheel, in which FIG. 2 is a plan view and FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the water drop removing star wheel 3 includes a star wheel main body 12 made of a substantially annular member attached to the lower surface of a disk-shaped support plate 11. A large number of pockets (concave portions) 3 a into which the side surfaces of the glass bottle 1 are fitted are formed on the outer periphery of the star wheel main body 12. Further, on both side portions of each pocket 3a, resin support rollers 13 and 13 are provided which form a pair for supporting both side surfaces of the barrel portion of the glass bottle 1. Since two support rollers 13 provided on both sides of each pocket 3a are provided at intervals in the vertical direction of the glass bottle 1, the glass bottle 1 is supported by the four support rollers 13. It has become. Further, the water drop removing star wheel 3 includes an arc-shaped support rail 14 for supporting the bottom surface of the glass bottle 1 arranged along the circular path, and comes into contact with the bottle body portion of the glass bottle 1 to contact the glass bottle. And an arcuate guide 15 for supporting one rod body portion.

  As shown in FIG. 2, an endless spinning timing belt 16 is disposed outside the star wheel main body 12 in the radial direction. The spinning timing belt 16 is supported by a plurality of pulleys 17. Of the plurality of pulleys 17, one pulley is connected to a motor 18 (see FIG. 3), and the spinning timing belt 16 travels by driving the motor 18. Since the spinning timing belt 16 travels while being in contact with the barrel portion of the glass cage 1, the glass cage 1 rotates while being supported by the support roller 13.

  FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state in which the glass basket 1 is supported by the support rollers 13 and 13 provided in the pocket 3 a of the star wheel main body 12 and the support rail 14 and is in contact with the spin timing belt 16. In FIG. 4, the arcuate guide 15 is not shown. As shown in FIG. 4, the star wheel body 12 is rotated in the direction of arrow A in the state where the glass barrel 1 is supported by the support rollers 13 and 13 and the bottom surface is supported by the support rail 14. Thus, the glass bottle 1 slides on the support rail 14 and is conveyed along a circular track. During the conveyance, the timing belt 16 for spinning running in the direction of the arrow B comes into contact with the barrel portion of the glass bottle 1 so that the glass bottle 1 rotates.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an air blow unit 20 for blowing air (compressed air) to the glass bottle 1 is installed in a region where the spinning timing belt 16 is disposed. The air blow unit 20 is disposed on the outer side in the radial direction of the water drop removing star wheel 3 and along the circular path of the water drop removing star wheel 3. A space 20 </ b> S for supplying air (compressed air) is formed inside the air blow unit 20, and the front surface 20 f of the air blow unit 20 has a curved surface curved along the circular orbit of the water drop removing star wheel 3. ing. The space 20S is connected to a compressed air source (not shown). A large number of holes 20 h are formed in the front surface 20 f of the air blow unit 20 so as to go toward the center of the water droplet removal star wheel 3 and obliquely downward. These holes 20h communicate with the space 20S, and constitute a nozzle 20n for blowing air (compressed air) to the area from the bottom of the glass bottle 1 to the lower part of the upper part of the bowl.

FIG. 5 is a view showing the relationship between the glass bottle 1 held by the water drop removing star wheel 3 and the air blow unit 20, FIG. 5 (a) is a plan view, and FIG. It is VV sectional view taken on the line of a).
As shown in FIG. 5A, the front surface 20f of the air blow unit 20 has a large number of holes 20h provided at predetermined intervals in the direction along the circular orbit of the water drop removing star wheel 3. . Center line C _L of the hole 20h is toward the rotation center 3o water drop removal star wheel 3.
As shown in FIG. 5B, the front surface 20f of the air blow unit 20 has a plurality of holes 20h provided at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction. Center line _{C L} of the hole 20h is obliquely downward.
As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, each hole 20h communicates with a space 20S filled with air (compressed air), and is slightly above the bottom from the bottom 1a of the glass bottle 1. The nozzle 20n for spraying air (compressed air) to the area AE between the lower part 1b of the rod body is comprised.

  In the water drop removing star wheel 3 configured as shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the glass bottle 1 is supported by the support rollers 13 and 13 and the arcuate guide 15, and the bottom of the glass bottle 1 is supported by the support rail 14. Is supported. In this state, when the water drop removing star wheel 3 rotates in the direction of arrow A, the glass bottle 1 slides on the support rail 14 and is conveyed along a circular track. During the conveyance, the spinning timing belt 16 traveling in the direction of arrow B comes into contact with the rod body of the glass rod 1, and the glass rod 1 rotates. When the glass bottle 1 is conveyed along a circular track while rotating and reaches the front of the air blow unit 20, air (compressed air) from a large number of nozzles 20 n in the air blow unit 20 is sent from the bottom 1 a to the bottom 1 a of the glass bottle 1. It will be sprayed to the inspection area AE up to the upper lower part 1b of the upper case.

  In this case, while the glass bottle 1 passes in front of the air blow unit 20, the glass bottle 1 rotates only 1.2 to 1.4 times, and air repeatedly enters the inspection area AE of the glass bottle 1. Is sprayed. The rotation speed (spinning speed) of the glass bottle 1 is set to 500 rpm to 600 rpm. The amount of air blown to one glass bottle 1 is 2000 to 2600 L (liter) with compressed air of 0.3 to 0.4 MPa. As described above, the glass bottle 1 is rotated by air (compressed air) from a large number of nozzles 20n of the air blow unit 20 while rotating, so that water droplets are removed by spinning (automatic rotation) of the glass bottle 1 and air drops from the air blow unit 20 are blown by air. It is possible to obtain both effects of removal in a short time. Therefore, it is possible to reliably remove water droplets attached to the inspection area AE from the bottom 1a of the glass bottle 1 to the lower part 1b of the bowl body slightly above the bottom 1a.

  The glass bottle 1 from which water droplets have been removed is transferred from the water drop removing star wheel 3 to the inspection rotor 4 and is conveyed along the circular path by the inspection rotor 4 while the glass bottle 1 is in the inspection station IS. The inspection area AE is inspected. As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of CCD cameras 30 are arranged in the inspection station IS, and illumination (not shown) is arranged on the opposite side of the CCD camera 30 with the glass bottle 1 interposed therebetween. As a result, the light from the illumination passes through the inspection area of the glass bottle 1 and the transmitted light is picked up by the CCD camera 30, and foreign matter that precipitates or floats on the bottom or near the bottom of the glass bottle 1 is detected.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described so far, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that the present invention may be implemented in various different forms within the scope of the technical idea.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Glass jar 1a Bottom 1b Lower part of ridge 2 Entrance conveyor 3 Water wheel removal star wheel 3a Pocket (concave part)
3o Rotation center 4 Inspection rotor 5 Transfer star wheel 6 Exit conveyor 7, 8 Screw 11 Support plate 12 Star wheel body 13 Support roller 14 Support rail 15 Arc-shaped guide 16 Spinning timing belt 17 Pulley 18 Motor 20 Air blow unit 20f Front 20h hole 20n nozzle 20S space 30 CCD camera C _L centerline IS inspection station

Claims (9)

A star wheel that supports a plurality of glass bottles filled with liquid in a plurality of pockets provided on the outer periphery and conveys them along a circular path;
A belt that runs while contacting the glass bottle supported by the star wheel and rotates the glass bottle;
It is arranged on the side of the glass bottle that is conveyed along the circular track by the star wheel, and includes an air blow unit that blows air toward the glass bottle,
The front surface of the air blow unit is disposed along the circular orbit, and a plurality of nozzles for ejecting air are provided on the front surface of the air blow unit.   The apparatus for removing water droplets from a glass bottle according to claim 1, wherein the front surface of the air blow unit comprises a curved surface curved along the circular orbit.   3. The water drop removing device for glass bottles according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of nozzles are provided at intervals along the circular orbit and at intervals in the vertical direction.   4. The water drop removing device for glass bottles according to claim 1, wherein the center line of each nozzle is directed obliquely downward while being directed toward the rotation center of the star wheel. 5. .   5. The glass bottle according to claim 1, wherein the air blow unit includes a space in which the plurality of nozzles communicate with each other, and the space is connected to a compressed air source. Water drop remover.   The water droplet removal of the glass bottle according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein each nozzle blows air to an area from a bottom part of the rotating glass bottle to a lower part of the bottle body above the bottom part. apparatus.   The water droplet removal of the glass bottle according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a support roller disposed on both sides of each pocket of the star wheel and supporting the bottle body part of the glass bottle. apparatus.   The water drop removing device for a glass bottle according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising an arc-shaped support rail arranged along the circular track to support a bottom surface of the glass bottle. . A water droplet removal apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A rotor for inspection which is arranged at a subsequent stage of the water drop removing device and supports a plurality of glass bottles filled with liquid by a plurality of pockets provided on the outer peripheral portion, and conveys along a circular track;
Illuminating an area from the bottom of the glass bottle to the lower part of the upper case body by illuminating the glass bottle conveyed along the circular track by the inspection rotor and the camera. A foreign matter inspection apparatus comprising an inspection station for photographing.

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