JP2019011167A - Powder conveying apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problems in which it is extremely difficult to individually separate and drop a powdery conveyed object having extremely small particle diameters, a transport (dropping) trajectory is remarkably unstable, and it takes time to complete transfer of the whole amount.SOLUTION: A powder conveying apparatus 1 includes: a conveying unit 2, having an inner hollow, capable of blowing out air toward the outside through a hole which passes through the inside and outside of the inner hollow on a surface on the conveyed object side, in which a downstream end is inclined downward with respect to an upstream end in a conveying direction of the conveyed object; a porous plate 3, provided on an upper surface of the conveying unit 2, having numerous ejection holes with diameters smaller than a particle size of the conveyed object formed thereon, and being made replaceable for the conveying unit 2 according to a particle diameter of the conveyed object; and a control unit 10 for determining an amount of air ejection and an angle of tilt of the conveying unit 2 based on the weight of the conveyed object and the particle diameter of the conveyed object.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a powder conveying apparatus that prevents adhesion of powder-like conveyed objects, stabilizes a single-layered posture, and can convey the powder on a stable track.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an appearance inspection apparatus that inspects the entire surface of conductive fine particles (hereinafter referred to as a conveyed product) in which the surface of spherical resin fine particles is subjected to metal plating. The appearance inspection apparatus of Patent Document 1 is configured to drop a conveyed object one by one at intervals, pick up the conveyed object in the middle of dropping using a plurality of cameras, and perform image processing to determine. .

  When the object to be subjected to the appearance inspection is very fine and easily damaged externally as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the image pickup posture is changed by bringing some means into contact with the object so that it can be imaged by the camera, It is necessary to prevent the object from being touched or impacted by being rubbed against the members of various devices, so the method of imaging the object being conveyed with the camera is ideal. I can say that.

  By the way, although there is no specific description of the particle size of the conveyed product handled in Patent Document 1, for example, if the conveyed item generally has a particle size larger than 100 μm, the conveyed items are dispersed by their own weight proportional to the particle size. It is easy, even if there are a large number of transported objects, the transported objects hardly adhere to each other and fall.

  However, when handling a conveyed product having a particle size of about 100 μm or less, there is an exception (generally, there is an exception). It is very difficult to drop the conveyed items one by one at intervals, and the conveyed items may overlap each other and the appearance inspection may not be performed individually.

  In addition, since the conveyed product having an extremely small particle size with a particle size of approximately 100 μm or less is no longer in the form of powder (powder), the above-mentioned tendency indicates that the conveyed items are attached to each other and have an individual appearance. It is extremely difficult to inspect the transported material, and it is also difficult to individually separate the transported material that has adhered. There was a problem that it took a long time.

  In particular, in the appearance inspection apparatus as disclosed in Patent Document 1, if the objects to be transported adhere as described above, for example, depending on how they are overlapped, they may be imaged as different shapes, and foreign objects may be captured by the camera between the objects to be conveyed. If it overlaps with the shadow (behind the conveyed object with respect to the camera), there is a problem that the presence of this foreign object cannot be grasped.

  Also, with the transport method that drops (individually) powder-like transported objects into the free open space, the trajectory is extremely unstable because the transported objects are extremely light, and the camera is out of the imaging area due to the influence of outside air. May fall, do not land on the target site, and may even soar.

JP 2003-279494 A

  The problem to be solved is that the powder-like transported object falls in a free open space, and the powder-like transported object tends to adhere to each other, and the adhered transported object can be separated individually. It is very difficult, and the dropping trajectory is extremely unstable, and it takes time to complete the transfer of the entire amount.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is a powder conveyance device that conveys a powder-like conveyance object in a single layer, and has a hole that penetrates the inside and outside of the surface on the side where the conveyance object is conveyed in a hollow interior Air can be blown out to the outside via the transport section, and a transport section disposed with the downstream end inclined downward with respect to the upstream end in the transport direction of the transported object, and provided on the upper surface of the transport section A porous plate having a smaller number of ejection holes having a diameter smaller than the particle size of the conveyed product and being replaceable with respect to the conveying unit according to the particle size of the conveyed item, and the weight of the conveyed item and the conveyed item And a control unit that determines the amount of air ejection and the angle of inclination of the transport unit based on the particle size.

  In the present invention having the above-described configuration, instead of “dropping” the conveyed object “individually”, the conveying portion (hole) inclined downward from the upstream end toward the downstream end is disposed through the ejection hole of the porous plate. Air is blown out so that the transported object transported in parallel across the entire width direction with respect to the upstream / downstream transporting direction of the transporting part of the transporting part is slightly lifted, so that the following effects can be obtained. Can do.

  By adopting the above-described configuration, the powder conveying apparatus of the present invention can be separated by air entering between the adhered conveyed objects, and can be conveyed in a state of being separated individually. Moreover, since the powder conveying apparatus of the present invention conveys the conveyed material in parallel across the entire width direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the conveying unit (porous plate) in a state of being separated individually, The time required can be considerably shortened.

  Furthermore, in the powder conveyance device of the present invention, the control unit controls the air ejection amount based on the weight of the conveyance object and the particle size of the conveyance object, so that the conveyance object floats on the conveyance path and is in the air. It is possible to prevent the posture from becoming unstable such as soaring or finely moving, and the trajectory in the transport direction from becoming unstable, and by controlling the inclination angle, As a result, the conveyance speed can be appropriately controlled.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the external appearance inspection apparatus which employ | adopted the powder conveying apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the AA sectional view taken on the line of FIG.

  In the present invention, it is very difficult to individually separate and drop a transported object of approximately 100 μm or less, the transport (falling) trajectory is extremely unstable, and the entire amount of transport is completed. It is possible to blow out air to the outside through a hole penetrating the inside and outside of the surface on the side where the conveyed product is conveyed with a hollow inside, and in the conveying direction of the conveyed item. Conveying unit arranged with the downstream end inclined downward with respect to the upstream end, and an infinite number of ejection holes having a diameter smaller than the particle size of the conveyed product are formed on the upper surface of the conveying unit, and the particles of the conveyed product A porous plate that is replaceable with respect to the conveying unit according to the diameter, and a control unit that determines an air ejection amount and an inclination angle of the conveying unit based on the weight of the conveyed item and the particle size of the conveyed item; It was solved by preparing.

  The present invention also provides a camera for imaging at least the upper surface of a conveyance object being conveyed, provided in the middle of a conveyance path in the conveyance unit, and an image for determining the presence or absence of a foreign object or a foreign conveyance object based on an image captured by the camera. By providing the processing unit in the above-described configuration, it is possible to easily determine foreign matters in a large amount of powder-like transported goods, and whether abnormal shapes or abnormal transport materials are mixed.

  Further, according to the present invention, in the above-described configuration, a nozzle having a small diameter and capable of sucking and exhausting in order to individually pick up a conveyance object in the conveyance path in the conveyance unit, and conveyance of the nozzle at least orthogonal to the conveyance direction Provided with a pickup mechanism having a nozzle moving part supported so as to be movable in the width direction of the part, and a shutter mechanism that enables ejection and stop of air in the width direction of the conveying part corresponding to the position where the pickup mechanism is provided It may be provided, and by doing so, the conveyed product can be temporarily stopped and individually transferred to another place.

  Hereinafter, the powder conveying apparatus of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. Reference numeral 1 denotes a powder conveying apparatus according to the present invention that conveys a powder-like conveyed product having a particle size of approximately 100 μm or less in a single layer and has the following configuration. In this example, the present invention is applied to an appearance inspection apparatus that detects foreign matters mixed in a powder-like conveyed product and irregularly shaped conveyed products, and discharges these conveyed items when foreign materials or irregularly shaped conveyed items exist. Indicates the state.

  Reference numeral 2 denotes a transport unit serving as a base for transporting a transported object. The transport unit 2 is formed with a plurality of air holes 2a that are hollow inside and penetrate the inside and outside of the surface on the side where the transported object is transported. That is, the transport unit 2 is configured to fill the inside of the air adjusted and supplied via the pump 2A and blow out the air toward the outside via the air hole 2A.

  Moreover, the conveyance part 2 is arrange | positioned by the conveyance part inclination mechanism 2B by adjusting and inclining below toward the downstream end from the upstream end of a conveyed product conveyance direction. Further, guide plates 2b are provided at both ends in the width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyance surface in the conveyance unit 2 so that the conveyed product does not spill from the conveyance surface.

  Reference numeral 3 denotes a porous plate provided on the upper surface of the transport unit 2 and formed with countless ejection holes 3a having a diameter smaller than the particle size of the transported object. This porous plate 3 is configured so that it can be replaced with one having a different diameter or different color of the ejection hole 3a with respect to the conveying portion 2 in accordance with the particle size of the conveyed item and the color of the conveyed item. .

  4 is an inspection camera that, for example, is provided above the conveyance unit 2 in the middle of the conveyance path and images the width direction of the conveyance unit 2 in order to detect whether foreign matters or irregularly shaped conveyance objects are mixed in this example. It is. In this example, reference numeral 5 denotes a position confirmation camera for obtaining the position of the foreign matter or the irregularly shaped transported object in the width direction of the transport unit 2 when the foreign matter or the irregularly shaped transported material is mixed in the transport path.

  In this example, in the present example, when foreign substances or irregularly shaped conveyed objects are mixed in the conveying path, the conveyor 4 is provided in the downstream portion of the camera 4 and the camera 5 in order to remove the conveyed objects. Pickup mechanism.

  In this example, the pickup mechanism 6 includes, for example, a screw shaft 6a spanned across the width direction of the transport unit 2, a motor 6b that rotates (stepping) the screw shaft 6a, and the screw shaft 6a is screwed. The nozzle 6c has a fine diameter. In this example, the nozzle 6c is provided with a nozzle moving portion 6A that can be expanded and shortened in the vertical direction, for example, and can be sucked and exhausted from the nozzle 6c.

  Reference numeral 7 denotes a shutter mechanism that temporarily stops the conveyance in order to assist the pickup mechanism 6 in picking up the object to be removed. In the shutter mechanism 7, the movable plate for opening and closing the air hole 2 a corresponding to the pickup position of the transported object of the pickup mechanism 6 contacts the inner surface of the transport unit 2 where the air hole 2 a is formed. Is closed and spaced apart to open the air hole 2a.

  Reference numeral 8 denotes a hopper for moving a conveyed product provided above the upstream end of the conveying unit 2 onto the conveying unit 2. The hopper 8 is provided with a dispersion plate 8 a at the discharge opening, whereby the conveyed product discharged from the hopper 8 can be evenly distributed over the entire width direction of the conveying unit 2. In addition, although 9 is a transfer tray provided in the position beyond the downstream end of the conveyance part 2, even if this is the next conveyance path | route (for example, the structure connected to the next powder conveyance apparatus 1). Good.

  Reference numeral 10 denotes a control unit. In this example, the control unit 10 determines an air ejection amount based on the weight of the conveyed product and the particle size of the conveyed product, and controls an air ejection amount adjusting unit 10A that controls the pump 2A. And an inclination angle adjusting unit 10B for controlling the conveying unit inclination mechanism 2B by determining the inclination angle of the conveying unit 2.

  Here, the air ejection amount adjusting unit 10A, for example, based on the number (unit quantity) obtained by dividing the volume by the particle size, the weight and the particle size obtained by dividing the weight for the volume by the number. Accordingly, the air injection amount (pressure) is set so that the conveyed product does not rise or slightly move on the porous plate 3 and slightly floats on the porous plate 3 (to the extent that it moves by gravity due to the inclination of the conveying unit 2). ) To adjust.

  The inclination angle adjusting unit 10B increases the moving speed of the transported object in the floating state close to 90 °, or reduces the moving speed of the transported object in the floating state close to 0 °. This is for adjusting the moving speed of the conveyed product by the gradient of 2 slopes.

  Further, in this example, the control unit 10 performs image processing on the imaging data of the inspection camera 4 and determines whether or not a foreign object or an irregularly shaped conveyance object is mixed in the conveyed object. When there is a foreign object or an irregularly shaped conveyance object by the foreign object / variant shape determination unit 10C, the position is obtained from the image data of the position confirmation camera 5 and the position information is sent to the pip-up mechanism 6. The pip-up position instruction unit 10D It has.

  Further, in the case of this example, the control unit 10 controls the shutter mechanism 7 to close the air hole 2a to temporarily operate the pickup mechanism 6 when foreign matters or irregularly shaped conveyed objects are mixed. Shutter opening / closing unit 10E for stopping the movement of the conveyed product (opening the air hole 2a after the operation of the pickup mechanism 6), and the movement of the nozzle unit 6A and the nozzle in the pickup mechanism 6 for removing foreign matters and irregular shaped conveyed items And a pick-up instruction unit 10F for controlling the expansion / contraction and intake / exhaust.

  In the powder conveyance device 1 of the present invention having the above-described configuration, when the powder-like conveyance object moves from the hopper 8 onto the porous plate 3 with the determined air ejection amount and the conveyance unit 2 inclined, It moves to the whole width direction of the conveyance part 2 (porous plate 3) in the state which floated slightly by the ejection of air, and was made into a single layer without the conveyance thing adhering by the ejection of air. In this state, the conveyed product moves from upstream to downstream at a speed determined by the inclination of the conveyance unit 2.

  For example, when the inspection object 4 is imaged when the objects to be conveyed adhere to each other, there is a possibility that the object is determined to be an irregularly shaped object depending on the degree of adhesion. If foreign matter adheres to the surface, the foreign matter may not be imaged by the inspection camera 4 (hidden by the upper transported object). This possibility is reduced since the adhesion of slag can be prevented.

  Moreover, the powder conveying apparatus 1 of the present invention adjusts the inclination angle of the conveying unit 2 without adjusting the amount of air jetted so that the powdery conveying object does not rise or slightly move. Thus, it is possible to maintain the stable posture and maintain a stable conveyance path, and convey each single-layered conveyance object in a plurality of rows in the width direction at an appropriate speed. .

  The powder conveying apparatus 1 of the present invention having the above-described effects is suitable for use in an appearance inspection apparatus that detects the entry of foreign matters or irregularly shaped conveyed objects as in this example. The powder conveying apparatus 1 is dispersed from the hopper 8 and is on the porous plate 3. In this case, the transported objects which are separated into individual layers and moved individually move downstream by their own weight due to the inclination of the transport unit 2 and the ejection of air.

  In this example, the inspection camera 4 sequentially captures a predetermined number of rows in the transport direction of the transport object being transported, and a foreign object / anomaly determination unit 10C performs image processing to capture data other than a transport object having a predetermined shape or color. For example, it is determined whether or not there is a foreign object or an irregularly conveyed product. That is, in the powder conveying apparatus 1 of the present invention, the conveyed product is made into a single layer and separated into individual pieces, and is conveyed in a stable posture. Therefore, the presence / absence of such foreign matter or irregularly shaped conveyed product is accurately determined. be able to.

  When the foreign object / abnormal shape determination unit 10C determines that there is a foreign object or an irregularly shaped conveyed product, a signal to that effect is sent to the pickup position instruction unit 10D, and the pickup position instruction unit 10D operates the position confirmation camera 5 The pick-up position instructing unit 10D accurately calculates the position where a foreign object or an irregularly shaped object is present, and sends a signal to the pick-up instructing unit 10F and the shutter opening / closing unit 10E.

  In the control unit 10, it is programmed in advance that the foreign object or the irregularly shaped conveyed product passes through the imaging point of the position confirmation camera 5 and the foreign object or the irregularly shaped conveyed product reaches the position of the pickup mechanism after a predetermined time elapses. After the predetermined time has elapsed, the shutter opening / closing unit 10E closes the shutter and temporarily stops the ejection of air. Remove irregularly shaped or unconformed items.

  The pickup mechanism 6 rotates the screw shaft 6a by the rotation of the motor 6b, and the rotation of the screw shaft 6a causes the nozzle moving unit 6A to move in the width direction of the transport unit 2, so that the nozzle moves at a predetermined position in the width direction of the transport unit 2. 6c is aspirated to suck in foreign objects and irregularly shaped conveyed materials, and in this state, the screw shaft 6a is rotated again by the motor 6b to move the nozzle moving portion 6A to the discharge portion 6d position, and the nozzle at the position of the discharge portion 6d. 6c is evacuated to discharge foreign matters or irregularly shaped conveyed products to the discharge portion 6d.

  After completing the pickup (removal) of the conveyed product at the position instructed by the pickup position instruction unit 10D in the series of operations, the shutter opening / closing unit 10E opens the shutter and resumes conveyance. In the case of this example, an appropriate transported object from which foreign matters or irregular shapes have been removed moves to the transfer tray 9 to be transported to the next operation.

  Thus, if the powder conveying apparatus 1 of this invention is employ | adopted, while being able to adjust a conveyance speed, a conveyance thing is made into a single layer and isolate | separated separately, and the stable attitude | position in the stable attitude | position Therefore, the possibility that the pick-up position fluctuates is reduced, so that only foreign matters and irregularly shaped conveyed items can be removed without waste.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Powder conveying apparatus 2 Conveying part 2A Pump 2B Conveying part inclination mechanism 2a Air hole 3 Porous plate 3a Ejection hole 4 Inspection camera 6 Pickup mechanism 7 Shutter mechanism 10 Control part 10A Air quantity adjustment part 10B Inclination angle adjustment part

Claims (3)

  A powder conveying device that conveys a powder-like conveyance object in a single layer, and blows air outward through a hole that penetrates the inside and outside of the surface on the side where the conveyance object is conveyed in a hollow interior. And a transport unit disposed with the downstream end inclined downward with respect to the upstream end in the transport direction of the transported product, and provided on the upper surface of the transport unit, and having a diameter smaller than the particle size of the transported product. A porous plate in which innumerable ejection holes are formed and replaceable with respect to the conveyance unit according to the particle size of the conveyance object, and the air ejection amount and the conveyance unit based on the weight and particle size of the conveyance object And a control unit for determining an inclination angle of the powder.   A camera for imaging at least the upper surface of a conveyance object being conveyed provided in the conveyance path in the conveyance unit, and an image processing unit for determining the presence or absence of a foreign object or an irregularly shaped conveyance object based on a captured image of the camera The powder conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:   In the middle of the conveyance path in the conveyance unit, a nozzle that is made to have a fine diameter and can be sucked and exhausted in order to individually pick up a conveyance object, and a nozzle that supports the nozzle so as to be movable at least in the width direction of the conveyance unit perpendicular to the conveyance direction 2. A pickup mechanism having a moving part is provided, and a shutter mechanism is provided that enables ejection and stop of air in the width direction of the conveying part corresponding to the position where the pickup mechanism is provided. 2. The powder conveying apparatus according to 2.

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