JP2019132616A - Combinational weighing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To substantially uniformly convey an object to be weighed on a top cone of a distribution feeder to a linear feeder.SOLUTION: The combinational weighing apparatus includes a dispersion feeder 6 and a plurality of linear feeders 7. The dispersion feeder vibrates the top cone 13 to radially disperse and convey objects to be weighed. The linear feeders respectively convey the objects to be weighed from the top cone 13 toward the outside. Leveling members 50 are spaced apart in opposition to inclined surfaces of the top cone 13 in the dispersion feeder 6. The leveling members are driven around a center p of the dispersion feeder 6.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a combination weigher that measures various objects to be weighed such as vegetables and other foods by a predetermined amount.

  In general, in a combination weigher, an object to be weighed is supplied to a dispersion feeder at the upper center of the combination weigher, and the object to be weighed is conveyed outwardly by the dispersion feeder and arranged radially around the dispersion feeder. It is further vibrated and conveyed outward by a plurality of linear feeders, and supplied to each supply hopper arranged corresponding to each linear feeder. Each supply hopper discharges an object to be measured to each corresponding weighing hopper, and the weight of the object to be measured is measured by each weighing hopper. Based on the weighed weight of the weighing hopper, a combination calculation is performed to select an appropriate combination that is a combination of weighing hoppers in which the weight of the weighing object falls within a predetermined weight range. The object to be weighed is discharged from the weighing hopper of the appropriate combination of selected quantities, and is put into the lower packaging device or the like through the collecting chute.

  In such a combination weigher, it is desired that an appropriate amount of objects to be weighed is supplied to each weighing hopper. However, depending on the type of objects to be weighed, the objects to be weighed may be tangled into a lump and linearly distributed from the dispersion feeder. May be sent to the feeder. When such a lump is supplied to the weighing hopper via the supply hopper, an appropriate amount combination of the weighing hopper in which the weight of the object to be weighed is within the predetermined weight range is difficult to be realized, the measuring speed is reduced, and the combination accuracy is reduced. Decreases and the yield deteriorates.

  Accordingly, various means have been proposed for equalizing the conveyance of the objects to be weighed on the linear feeder. For example, in Patent Document 1, the top cone in the dispersion feeder is driven to rotate, and a loosening member made of a bar is radially attached to the outer periphery of the top cone and extended above the linear feeder to rotate the top cone. Thus, the objects to be weighed on the top cone are dispersed and moved outward by centrifugal force, and the loosening member is rotated together with the top cone to loosen the objects to be weighed on the linear feeder.

JP-A-2006-217720

  In the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, the loosening member attached to the outer periphery of the top cone of the dispersion feeder is rotated together with the top cone, so that it is effective for loosening the object to be weighed on the linear feeder. In some cases, it was not sufficient to send the objects to be weighed evenly to the linear feeder.

  When the object to be weighed is an object to be weighed, such as cut vegetables such as shredded cabbage or sprout, which is easy to get tangled, the object to be weighed supplied to the center of the dispersion feeder is piled up on the top cone of the dispersion feeder. In some cases, the objects to be weighed up are difficult to unravel, and the objects to be weighed in the mountain are unevenly collapsed in the circumferential direction and are sent out in a state where they are easily entangled in some linear feeders.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to enable an object to be weighed on a top cone of a dispersion feeder to be conveyed substantially evenly to a linear feeder.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows.

(1) The combination weigher according to the present invention is arranged around a dispersion feeder that disperses and conveys the objects to be weighed supplied to the top cone by vibrating the top cone, A combination weigher comprising a plurality of linear feeders that respectively convey the objects to be weighed from the top cone toward the outside,
A leveling member facing the inclined surface of the top cone in the dispersion feeder with a space therebetween, and a drive mechanism for rotating the leveling member around the center of the dispersion feeder.

  According to the present invention, the object to be weighed supplied from above is subjected to a leveling action by the leveling member that rotates while moving outward along the inclined surface of the substantially conical (conical) top cone. Therefore, the object to be weighed up on the top cone is broken and loosened at the bottom of the mountain, and distributed over the entire circumference of the top cone without rising up the mountain, To the linear feeder.

  (2) In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the drive mechanism includes a rotation ring that rotates concentrically with the center of the dispersion feeder, and the leveling member is connected to the rotation ring.

  According to this embodiment, it is possible to attach an arbitrary number of leveling members to arbitrary positions in the circumferential direction of the rotating ring.

  (3) In another embodiment of the present invention, the drive mechanism includes a guide ring fixedly disposed concentrically with the rotating ring, and the rotating ring has idle rollers at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction. The guide ring guides the rotation of the rotating ring through the plurality of idle rollers.

  According to this embodiment, the leveling member can be driven to rotate around the center of the dispersion feeder without providing a support shaft or the like at the center of rotation of the rotation ring. The leveling member can be swiveled while ensuring a large supply path for the objects to be weighed to the dispersion feeder on the center side of the feeder.

  (4) In still another embodiment of the present invention, the drive mechanism includes a drive gear coupled to a drive motor, and the rotating ring has a gear on an outer periphery thereof, and the gear of the rotating ring But what about the drive gear? They are linked to each other.

  The gear of the rotating ring may be directly meshed with the drive gear or indirectly meshed with the drive gear.

  According to this embodiment, the rotation ring can be easily rotated by the drive motor disposed at one place in the circumferential direction.

  (5) In one embodiment of the present invention, the leveling member has an extending portion that extends to the outer peripheral side of the top cone so as to face the inclined surface of the top cone of the dispersion feeder.

  According to this embodiment, an object to be weighed up in a mountain shape on the top cone is swung by the extending portion extending to the outer peripheral side of the top cone so as to face the inclined surface of the top cone, thereby The portion to be broken is loosened and loosened to prevent the object to be weighed up, and can be conveyed to the outer peripheral side of the top cone.

  (6) In another embodiment of the present invention, the extending portion of the leveling member has at least one protrusion protruding toward the inclined surface of the top cone, and the tip of the protrusion is , Opposite the inclined surface of the top cone.

  Since the extension part of the leveling member extends over a certain distance to the outer peripheral side of the top cone while facing the inclined surface of the top cone, the extension part is too close to the inclined surface of the top cone. And the burden of the load concerning a to-be-measured object becomes large by the extending part which turns.

  According to this embodiment, since the extending portion has the protruding portion that protrudes toward the inclined surface of the top cone, the extending portion that extends to the outer peripheral side of the top cone is formed on the inclined surface of the top cone. The object to be weighed can be leveled by the protrusions without being excessively close.

  (7) In still another embodiment of the present invention, the top cone of the dispersion feeder has a steeply inclined cone part on the center side and a gently inclined cone part on the outer peripheral side, and the leveling member A protrusion part faces the inclined surface of the gently inclined cone part.

  According to this embodiment, the object to be weighed supplied from above the center of the top cone quickly slides downward along the steeply inclined surface of the steeply inclined cone portion, so that the gently inclined cone portion is not entangled. To reach.

  In the gently inclined cone part, the downward force of the object to be weighed down is reduced, so the object to be weighed tries to rise up in a mountain with the vicinity of the gently inclined cone part as a skirt, but it turns. The protruding part of the leveling member smoothes and leveles the hem so that the object to be weighed is unraveled, and the object to be weighed does not rise like a mountain, and the linear feeder extends outward from the entire circumference of the top cone. Sent out. Further, in the gently inclined cone portion, the moving speed of the object to be measured is decreased, so that the leveling action by the leveling member can be sufficiently given to the object to be measured.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the objects to be weighed supplied to the dispersion feeder are prevented from rising in a mountain shape, and the objects to be weighed are conveyed substantially evenly to the linear feeder around the dispersion feeder. Can do.

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal front view showing a schematic configuration of a combination weigher according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of the combination weigher of FIG. FIG. 3 is a side view of the combination weigher of FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view of the combination weigher of FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view of the leveling device. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the leveling device. FIG. 9 is a side view of the leveling member.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a longitudinal front view showing a schematic configuration of the combination weigher, FIG. 2 is a front view of the combination weigher, FIG. 3 is a side view of the combination weigher, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of the combination weigher. Has been.

  The combination weigher of this embodiment, for example, measures and discharges various objects to be weighed, such as vegetables and confectionery, by a predetermined amount, and supports the objects to be weighed supported on the frame 1. It is used in a production line that is put into a packaging device (not shown) installed below and packed in a bag.

  On the upper surface of the frame 1, there is provided a hollow base 2 having a large central portion that is vertically opened and opened and whose planar shape is formed in a U-shape. A center base 3 is supported via legs 4.

  At the center of the upper portion of the center base 3, a dispersion feeder 6 is provided that disperses the objects to be weighed dropped from the end of the supply conveyor 5 in a radial manner by vibration. Around the dispersion feeder 6, a large number of linear feeders 7 that radially convey the object to be weighed and conveyed outwardly by vibration are arranged radially.

  Furthermore, a supply hopper 8 that temporarily stores and discharges the objects to be weighed from the respective linear feeders 7, and a weighing hopper 9 for weighing the objects to be weighed discharged from each of the supply hoppers 8, Is arranged. The combination weighing of the objects to be weighed is performed by a series of weighing units (14 stations in this example) including the linear feeder 7, the supply hopper 8, and the weighing hopper 9.

  Below each weighing hopper 9, a collecting chute 10 that collects the objects to be weighed discharged from the weighing hopper 9 is provided. As shown in FIG. 1, a collective funnel 11 that collects objects to be weighed down from the collective chute 10 below the center of the center base 3 is disposed at the lower end of the collective chute 10. Further, a collecting hopper 12 is provided below the collecting funnel 11 for temporarily receiving and storing the objects to be weighed collected by the collecting funnel 11 and discharging them based on a discharging command from a lower packaging device (not shown). Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the dispersion feeder 6 includes a two-stage tapered cone-shaped top cone 13 having a steeply inclined cone portion 13 a on the center side and a gently inclined cone portion 13 b on the outer peripheral side, and vibrates this. And an electromagnetic excitation mechanism 14 to be driven. The vibration mechanism 14 is installed at the center of the frame plate 15 provided in the center base 3. The vibration mechanism 14 is supported on the frame plate 15 via a weight sensor 16, and the weight sensor 16 detects the weight of the object to be weighed on the dispersion feeder 6. Based on the detected weight of the object to be weighed on the dispersion feeder 6, the supply conveyor 5 is on / off controlled so that the object to be weighed within the set range is always supplied onto the dispersion feeder 6. It has become.

  The linear feeder 7 includes a trough-shaped trough (feeder pan) 20 heading inward and outward, and an electromagnetic vibration mechanism 21 that vibrates and drives the trough. The vibration mechanism 21 of each linear feeder 7 is installed on the frame plate 15 so as to surround the vibration mechanism 14 of the dispersion feeder 6.

  On the outer peripheral portion of the center base 3, there is a drive unit 22 incorporating a drive mechanism for opening and closing the supply hopper 8 and the weighing hopper 9, a weight sensor for measuring the weight of an object to be weighed in the weighing hopper 9, and the like. It is arranged. A supply hopper 8 and a weighing hopper 9 are detachably mounted and supported by a hook method at an outer exposed portion of the drive unit 22. The gates of the supply hopper 8 and the weighing hopper 9 are interlocked and connected to the drive unit 22 by a pin engagement method, and the pin engagement portion is engaged and disengaged when the hopper is detached.

  Note that a supply funnel 23 is provided above the center of the dispersion feeder 6 to suppress the spread of the objects to be weighed dropped from the end exit of the supply conveyor 5 and lead it to the center of the dispersion feeder 6. The supply funnel 23 is connected and supported by a column 31 that supports a leveling device 30 described later.

  In this embodiment, a leveling device is provided so that the objects to be weighed supplied to the central portion of the dispersion feeder 6 are leveled so as not to rise in a mountain and can be transported to the linear feeder 7 substantially evenly. 30 is mounted on four struts 31 erected from the center base 3.

  FIG. 5 shows a plan view of the leveling device 30, FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the leveling device 30.

  A support arm 32 is attached horizontally to the upper part of each support 31, and a ring frame 33 is connected and supported across the tip of these support arms 32. The ring frame 33 is configured by connecting an upper ring frame 34 and a lower ring frame 35 that are arranged to face each other with a certain vertical interval by spacers 36 at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction. In addition, a gap between the upper ring frame 34 and the lower ring frame 35 is covered from the outside by a strip-like cover 37 welded across the upper ring frame 34 and the lower ring frame 35.

  A flat rotating ring 38 is provided between the upper ring frame 34 and the lower ring frame 35. A slide member 39 made of a hard synthetic resin material having excellent slipperiness is connected to the lower surfaces of a plurality of circumferential locations (six locations in this example) of the rotating ring 38, and the slide member 39 is connected to the lower ring frame 35. Is slidably mounted on the upper surface.

  Further, idle rollers 40 that rotate about the longitudinal axis are mounted on the upper surfaces of a plurality of circumferential locations (three locations in this example) of the rotating ring 38, and the inner periphery is formed on the upper surface of the upper ring frame 34. A guide ring 41 formed concentrically with the center p of the dispersion feeder is connected. The three idle rollers 40 are guided to roll on the inner periphery of the guide ring 41, so that the rotation ring 38 rotates around the center p of the dispersion feeder 6 along the upper surface of the lower ring frame 35. Supported as possible.

  A part of the ring frame 33 in the circumferential direction protrudes outward, and a drive unit 42 for driving the rotating ring 38 is provided here. In the drive unit 42, a support plate 44 is horizontally connected and fixed to the projecting portion 35 a of the lower ring frame 35 via a plurality of stays 43, and is rotated on the upper surface of the support plate 44 about the vertical axis. A drive motor 45 with a reduction gear is connected and supported. A rotation shaft 45a of the drive motor 45 protrudes downward through the support plate 44, and a drive gear 46 is connected to the rotation shaft 45a. The drive gear 46 and a gear 47 formed on the outer periphery of the rotating ring 38 are meshed with each other via an intermediate gear 48 that is pivotally supported on the upper surface of the projecting portion 35a. Thus, the rotation ring 38 is driven to rotate around the center p of the dispersion feeder 6 by the rotation operation of the drive motor 45.

  A box-shaped cover 49 that covers the drive motor 45 is attached to the protrusion 34 a of the upper ring frame 34.

  The leveling member 50 is bolted in a cantilevered manner toward the center p of the dispersion feeder 6 on the upper surfaces of a plurality of circumferential positions (three in this example) of the rotational ring 38 that is rotationally driven as described above. Yes. The leveling member 50 is formed by refracting a stainless steel plate having a thickness of, for example, several mm by laser cutting or the like.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the leveling member 50 includes a wide and flat connecting portion 50a for connecting a bolt to the upper surface of the rotating ring 38, an arm portion 50b extending inward from the connecting portion 50a, An extending portion 50c that is bent and bent from the distal end portion of the arm portion 50b, and two projecting portions 50d and 50d that protrude toward the top cone 13 from the extending portion 50c are provided.

  The extending part 50 c is an outward cantilever extending toward the outer peripheral side of the top cone 13 so as to face the inclined surfaces of the cone parts 13 a and 13 b of the top cone 13 in the dispersion feeder 6. The two protrusions 50d and 50d have different distances from the center p of the dispersion feeder, and protrude in an obliquely downward direction parallel to each other, which is a direction close to the inclined surface of the top cone 13 from the extending part 50c. The intervals between the tips of the protrusions 50d and 50d and the inclined surface of the gently inclined cone portion 13b in the top cone 13 are set to be constant. This interval may be set according to the type of the object to be weighed. When the object to be weighed is a shredded cabbage or the like, it is set to about 5 mm to 10 mm, for example.

  In this embodiment, a rotation ring 38 to which the leveling member 50 is connected, a guide ring 41 that guides the rotation of the rotation ring 38, a ring frame 33 that supports them, and a drive that drives the rotation ring 38. A drive mechanism for turning the leveling member 50 is constituted by the portion 42 and the like.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a scraper 51 is attached to the upper surface of the support arm 32 in a cantilever shape toward the center p of the dispersion feeder 6. The scraper 51 can receive and loosen the object to be weighed that has moved together with the leveling member 50.

  In the combination weigher of this embodiment, the object to be weighed dropped from the end of the supply conveyor 5 is guided by the supply funnel 23 and dropped to the central portion of the dispersion feeder 6, and the object to be weighed is vibrated. Are distributed and transported radially and are subjected to a leveling action by the leveling device 30.

  Above the steeply inclined cone portion 13a near the center p of the dispersion feeder 6, there is no member that hinders the supply of the object to be weighed. As a result, the object to be weighed supplied from above does not collide with the member and be supplied to the dispersion feeder 6 in a biased manner.

  The object to be weighed supplied to the center portion of the top cone 13 in the dispersion feeder 6 slides downward along the steeply inclined surface of the steeply inclined cone portion 13a and moves to the gently inclined cone portion 13b.

In the gently inclined corn portion 13b, for example, cut vegetables such as shredded cabbage and elongate objects that tend to get tangled like sprout are going to rise up in a mountain,
By the leveling member 50 that moves in a swivel manner, the skirt portion of the mountain is broken, and is loosened and leveled so that it does not become a mountain. As a result, it is possible to prevent the objects to be weighed up in a mountain shape on the top cone 13 of the dispersion feeder 6 from collapsing unevenly in the circumferential direction and being conveyed to a part of the linear feeders 7. it can. That is, the object to be weighed can be conveyed to the linear feeder 7 substantially uniformly over the entire circumference of the top cone 13. At this time, in the gently inclined cone portion 13b, the moving speed of the object to be measured is decreased, and the leveling action by the leveling member 50 can be sufficiently given to the object to be measured.

  In addition, the turning speed of the leveling member 50 can be arbitrarily set according to the type of the object to be weighed. For an object to be weighed such as a shredded cabbage, for example, it can be swung about 10 times per minute. preferable.

  Further, by adjusting the mounting height of the support arm 32 with respect to the support 31, the working height of the leveling member 50 with respect to the top cone 13 of the dispersion feeder 6 can be changed and adjusted.

  The object to be weighed sent from the dispersion feeder 6 to the linear feeder 7 is conveyed by vibration, supplied to the supply hopper 8 and temporarily stored, and then supplied to the weighing hopper 9 and weighed. Based on the weighed weight of the weighing hopper 9, a combination calculation is performed, and the combined weight, which is the total weight of various combinations of the weights of the weighing hopper 9, is within the predetermined weight range. Select an appropriate combination that is a combination. The objects to be weighed are discharged from the weighing hopper 9 of the selected appropriate amount combination, temporarily stored in the collecting hopper 12 via the collecting chute 10 and the collecting funnel 11, and in response to the discharging instruction from the packaging device, Discharge the sample and put it in the packaging equipment.

  According to this embodiment, since the objects to be weighed can be transported from the dispersion feeder 6 to the respective linear feeders 7 approximately evenly, the objects to be weighed are supplied approximately evenly to the respective weighing hoppers 9 via the respective supply hoppers 8. I can do it. As a result, an excessive amount of objects to be weighed is supplied to some weighing hoppers 9, and it becomes difficult to establish an appropriate amount combination of the weighing hoppers 9 by the combination calculation, so that the weighing speed is lowered or the combination accuracy is lowered. Can be prevented.

[Other Embodiments]
The present invention can also be implemented in the following forms.

  (1) The shape of the leveling member 50 can be appropriately set according to the object to be weighed. For example, the bar-shaped leveling member 50 that is long in the radial direction of the top cone 13 is parallel to the inclined surface of the top cone 13. It may be arranged and swung.

  The number of the protrusions 50d of the leveling member 50 is not limited to the above two, but may be three or more, and the protrusions 50d may be omitted.

  (2) The driving of the rotating ring 38 is not limited to gear driving. For example, the rotating ring 38 includes a concentric large-diameter pulley, and the motor-driven small-diameter driving pulley and the large-diameter pulley It is also possible to wind the rotating ring 38 by a winding method by winding a timing belt or the like.

  (3) By adjusting shims of various thicknesses between the connecting portion 50a of the leveling member 50 and the upper surface of the rotating ring 38, the working height of the plurality of leveling members 50 can be individually adjusted. Can do.

  (4) In addition to continuously rotating the leveling member 50 in a fixed direction, for example, depending on the type of the object to be weighed, the leveling member 50 may be rotated reversely at a fixed cycle. Further, the leveling member 50 may be intermittently rotated.

  (5) In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, the slide member 39 is connected to the lower surface of the rotation ring 38, and the slide member 39 is moved on the lower ring frame 35 as the rotation ring 38 rotates. Is slidably moved, so that the slidable contact surface of the slide member 39 is worn. As another embodiment of the present invention, instead of the slide member 39, for example, a rolling member such as a wheel or a ball roller may be connected to the lower surface of the rotating ring 38 and rolled. Alternatively, the idler roller 40 shown in FIG. 6 is elongated in the axial direction (vertical direction in FIG. 6), and a tapered idler roller having a tapered portion whose upper part has a large diameter is formed on the upper part thereof, while the guide By thickening the ring 41 and chamfering the upper end portion on the inner peripheral side thereof into a tapered shape so as to engage with the tapered surface of the tapered idler roller from below, the tapered idler roller is guided to the guide ring. Therefore, the slide member 39 may be omitted.

6 Dispersing feeder 7 Linear feeder 8 Feeding hopper 9 Weighing hopper 13 Top cone 13a Steeply inclined cone portion 13b Slowly inclined cone portion 30 Leveling device 38 Rotating ring 40 Swivel roller 41 Guide ring 46 Drive gear 47 Gear 51 Scraper

Claims (7)

A dispersion feeder that distributes and conveys the objects to be weighed supplied on the top cone by vibrating the top cone, and is disposed around the dispersion feeder so that the objects to be weighed from the top cone are moved outward. A combination weigher comprising a plurality of linear feeders each transported toward the
A leveling member facing the inclined surface of the top cone in the dispersion feeder with a space therebetween;
A drive mechanism for rotating the leveling member around the center of the dispersion feeder;
A combination weigher comprising: The drive mechanism includes a rotation ring that rotates concentrically with the center of the dispersion feeder,
The leveling member is connected to the rotating ring;
The combination weigher according to claim 1. The drive mechanism includes a guide ring fixedly disposed concentrically with the rotating ring,
The rotating ring has idle rollers at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction,
The guide ring guides the rotation of the rotating ring through the plurality of idle rollers.
The combination weigher according to claim 2. The drive mechanism includes a drive gear coupled to a drive motor;
The rotating ring has a gear on its outer periphery,
Is the gear of the rotating ring the drive gear? Linked,
The combination weigher according to claim 2 or 3. The leveling member has an extending portion that extends to the outer peripheral side of the top cone facing the inclined surface of the top cone of the dispersion feeder.
The combination weigher according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The extension part of the leveling member has at least one protrusion part protruding toward the inclined surface of the top cone,
The tip of the protrusion is opposed to the inclined surface of the top cone.
The combination weigher according to claim 5. The top cone of the dispersion feeder has a steeply inclined cone part on the center side and a gently inclined cone part on the outer peripheral side,
The protruding portion of the leveling member faces the inclined surface of the gently inclined cone portion;
The combination weigher according to claim 6.

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