JP2020070148A - Conveyance apparatus and conveyance method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a conveyance apparatus and a conveyance method, capable of facilitating handling of granular materials to be conveyed even when changing them to another type of granular material with different thickness or diameter, and capable of conveying granular materials while aligning them at predetermined interval in the conveyance direction.SOLUTION: A suction drum 30 includes a plurality of suction holes 301 opened in a direction parallel to an axis O extending horizontally at an outer-peripheral surface and a first ring 331 adjacent to the opening side of the plurality of suction holes 301. A plurality of granular materials are sucked and retained at the plurality of suction holes 301 one by one. By rotating the suction drum 30 around the axis O, the plurality of granular materials are conveyed. The first ring 331 is detachably mounted on an outer-peripheral surface 321 of a mobile drum 32. Thus, the granular material conveyed can be easily handled even when changing the granular material to another type of granular material with different thickness or diameter, and such granular materials are conveyed while aligning them at predetermined intervals in the conveyance direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to a carrying device and a carrying method for carrying a plurality of granular materials.

  Characters and codes for identifying products are printed on tablets, which are pharmaceutical products. In addition, marks and illustrations may be printed on tablets such as Ramune. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a printing apparatus that prints an image on a granular material such as tablets and tablet confectionery by an inkjet method. Particularly, in recent years, the types of tablets have been diversified due to the popularization of generic drugs. Therefore, in order to make the tablets easy to identify, a technique of printing an image clearly on the tablets by an inkjet method has attracted attention.

  In this type of printing device, a large number of tablets are poured into a loading hopper. The printing device arranges the poured tablets one by one at predetermined intervals in the transport direction. Then, printing is performed on the plurality of tablets that are conveyed in an aligned state. Further, not only the printing apparatus, but also an inspection apparatus for inspecting tablets and a packaging apparatus for packaging tablets need to transport a plurality of tablets while aligning them at a predetermined interval in the transportation direction. ..

  A mechanism for transporting a plurality of tablets while aligning them at a predetermined interval in the transport direction is described in Patent Document 1, for example.

JP 2005-247397 A

  The device of Patent Document 1 has a rotary drum (22) having a plurality of storage recesses (23) formed therein, a supply chute (35) for supplying tablets to the rotary drum obliquely from above, and a tablet in the storage recess (23). And a state correcting means (39) for correcting the housed state (see the summary of Patent Document 1, FIG. 1 and the like). Conventionally, such a complicated mechanism has been required to align a plurality of tablets at a predetermined interval in the transport direction.

  In particular, in recent years, the types of tablets have been diversified, and various types of tablets having different thicknesses or diameters have been introduced. Therefore, in order to deal with each type of many types of tablets, when trying to replace the device that aligns the tablets at a predetermined interval in the transport direction with one that matches the thickness or diameter of each type of tablet, Large-scale work is required each time.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can easily cope with the case where the transported granular material is changed to another type of granular material having a different thickness or diameter, and these granular materials are aligned at a predetermined interval in the transportation direction. An object of the present invention is to provide a carrying device and a carrying method capable of carrying while carrying.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first invention of the present application is a transporting device for transporting a plurality of granular materials, wherein the transporting device rotates about a horizontally extending shaft and has a plurality of outer peripheral surfaces opened in a direction parallel to the shaft. And a suction drum for moving the particles in the transport direction by rotating while holding the particles one by one in the suction holes. The suction drum extends horizontally. A movable drum that rotates about an axis, and a first ring and a second ring that are respectively arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum, and the plurality of particulate matters contact the outer peripheral surface of the first ring. The second ring has the plurality of suction holes that are adjacent to one side in the axial direction of the first ring and open to the other side in the axial direction, and at least the first ring has at least the first ring of the movable drum. Removably attached to the outer peripheral surface It is.

  A second invention of the present application is the transporting device of the first invention, wherein the second ring is detachably attached to an outer peripheral surface of the movable drum.

  3rd invention of this application is a conveyance apparatus of 1st invention or 2nd invention, Comprising: The said adsorption | suction drum is a plurality of said 1st ring arrange | positioned mutually at the axial direction at the outer peripheral surface of the said movable drum mutually. And a plurality of second rings that are adjacent to one axial side of each of the plurality of first rings, and the plurality of particles contact the outer peripheral surface of each of the plurality of first rings. In addition, the plurality of second rings are sucked and held by the plurality of suction holes, respectively.

  A fourth invention of the present application is the transport apparatus according to any one of the first invention to the third invention, wherein the suction drums have different thicknesses or widths, and the suction drums are replaceable with each other. It has several said 1st rings removably attached to an outer peripheral surface.

  5th invention of this application is a conveyance apparatus of 2nd invention, Comprising: The said suction drum differs in the installation space | interval of the conveyance direction of these some suction holes mutually, and mutually replace | exchanges the outer peripheral surface of the said movable drum. A plurality of second rings removably attached to the.

  A sixth invention of the present application is the transfer device according to any one of the first to fifth inventions, wherein the suction drum is fixed to a frame of the transfer device, and It further has a fixed drum of a cylindrical shape or a cylindrical shape arranged inside in the radial direction.

  A seventh invention of the present application is the transport apparatus according to any one of the first invention to the sixth invention, wherein the granular material is a circular front surface and a back surface, and a circle along a peripheral portion of the front surface and the back surface. An outer peripheral surface of the first ring contacts the front surface or the back surface, and the suction hole holds the side surface by suction.

  An eighth invention of the present application is the transporting device according to the seventh invention, wherein the suction holes hold the granular material while positioning the granular material by contacting two positions on the side surface of the granular material.

  A ninth invention of the present application is the transporting device according to any one of the first invention to the eighth invention, wherein the suction holes are circular or rectangular.

  A tenth invention of the present application is the transport device according to any one of the first to ninth inventions, wherein a plurality of the granular materials are transported while being placed on the upstream side of the transport path with respect to the suction drum. Further comprising a transport conveyor, wherein the plurality of suction holes, by adsorbing and holding the particulate matter transported by the transport conveyor one by one, at a predetermined interval in the transport direction. Align.

  An eleventh invention of the present application is the transfer device according to the tenth invention, wherein the particulate matter that has not been adsorbed in the suction holes and has fallen from the transfer conveyor is collected, and is provided on the upstream side of the transfer path with respect to the transfer conveyor. It further comprises a re-supplying mechanism.

  A twelfth invention of the present application is the transport apparatus according to any one of the first invention to the eleventh invention, wherein the granular material is a tablet.

  A thirteenth invention of the present application is a transporting method for transporting a plurality of granular materials by means of a suction drum rotating about a horizontally extending shaft, wherein a) an opening is made in a direction parallel to the shaft on an outer peripheral surface of the suction drum. Adsorbing and holding the granular materials one by one in the adsorbing holes, b) moving the granular material in the conveying direction by rotating the adsorption drum about the shaft, and c) Of the suction drum, a first ring removably attached to the outer peripheral surface of a movable drum that rotates around a horizontally extending axis and adjacent to the opening side of the plurality of suction holes is provided with a thickness of the granular material or And a step of replacing it according to the diameter.

  According to the first invention to the thirteenth invention of the present application, the suction drum has a plurality of suction holes opened in a direction parallel to an axis extending horizontally on the outer peripheral surface and a first suction hole adjacent to the opening side of the plurality of suction holes. With a ring. The plurality of granular materials are adsorbed and held one by one in the plurality of adsorption holes. Then, the suction drum is rotated about the shaft to convey the plurality of granular materials. Further, the first ring is detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum. With this, it is possible to easily cope with the case where the transported granular material is changed to another type of granular material having a different thickness or diameter, and these granular materials are aligned at predetermined intervals in the transportation direction. Can be transported.

  In particular, according to the second invention or the fifth invention of the present application, it is possible to easily deal with the case where the transported granular material is changed to another type of granular material having a different shape or diameter, and these granular materials are treated. It is possible to convey the sheets while aligning them at a predetermined interval in the conveying direction.

  In particular, according to the seventh invention or the eighth invention of the present application, it is easy to maintain the position of the particulate matter with respect to the adsorption hole constant. Thereby, the intervals in the transport direction of the plurality of granular materials can be accurately set to the predetermined intervals.

  In particular, according to the eleventh invention of the present application, it is possible to increase the arrival rate of the particulate matter at the destination.

It is a side view and a top view of a tablet. It is the figure which showed the structure of the tablet printing apparatus. It is a partial perspective view of a suction conveyor. It is a bottom view of a head. It is a block diagram showing a connection between a control unit and each unit in the tablet printing apparatus. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view seen from the width direction near the suction drum. FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first transfer position as seen from the downstream side in the transport direction of the transport belt and the suction drum. It is an exploded perspective view of a suction drum. It is a partial perspective view near the suction hole of the suction drum. It is the figure which showed the structure of the tablet printing apparatus which concerns on a modification.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the direction in which a plurality of granular materials is transported is referred to as the “transport direction”, the direction that is vertical and horizontal to the transport direction is the “width direction”, and the direction that is the transport direction and the width direction. This direction is called the "thickness direction".

<1. About granules>
First, the "particulate matter" to be conveyed will be described. FIG. 1 is a side view and a plan view of four types of tablets 9 as an example of “granular material”. As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet 9 has a circular front surface 9a and a rear surface 9b including a perfect circle or an ellipse, and an annular side surface 9c along the peripheral portions of the front surface 9a and the rear surface 9b. The front surface 9a and the back surface 9b of the tablet 9 may be curved surfaces having bulges or flat surfaces like the four kinds of tablets 9 in FIG. Although not shown, grooves such as score lines may be formed on the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b.

  The tablets 9 may be plain tablets (naked tablets) or coated tablets such as sugar-coated tablets and film-coated tablets (FC tablets). Moreover, the tablet 9 may be a capsule including a hard capsule and a soft capsule. Further, the “granular material” in the present invention is not limited to a tablet as a medicine, but may be a tablet as a health food or a tablet confectionery such as ramune. In the present embodiment, a plurality of types of tablets 9 having different thicknesses (see thickness 93 in the Z-axis direction in FIG. 1) and diameters (see diameter 94 in the X-axis direction or diameter 95 in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 1) are included. It is assumed that "granular material" is transported by type.

<2. Overall structure of tablet printing device>
Next, the tablet printing apparatus 1 including the carrying device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the tablet printing apparatus 1. This tablet printing apparatus 1 is an apparatus for printing images such as a product name, a product code, a company name, and a logo mark on the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b of each tablet 9 while conveying a plurality of tablets 9 which are granular materials. is there. As shown in FIG. 2, the tablet printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a feeder 10, a transfer conveyor 20, a suction drum 30, a suction conveyor 40, a first camera 50, a printing unit 60, a second camera 70, a drying mechanism 80, The carry-out mechanism 90 and the control unit 100 are provided.

  The feeder 10 is a mechanism for loading the plurality of tablets 9 loaded into the tablet printing apparatus 1 into the transport conveyor 20. The feeder 10 is composed of, for example, a feeding hopper, a rotary feeder, a vibration feeder, and the like. The plurality of tablets 9 loaded into the tablet printing apparatus 1 are conveyed to the conveyor 20 while being divided into a plurality of rows by these mechanisms. Specifically, a plurality of rows of tablets 9 arranged in the transport direction are formed in the width direction. Then, the plurality of tablets 9 arranged in a plurality of rows in the width direction are supplied to the conveyor 20. In FIG. 2, only one row of tablets 9 is shown.

  The transport conveyor 20 is a mechanism that horizontally transports the tablets 9 between the feeder 10 and the suction drum 30 in the transport path of the tablets 9. The transport conveyor 20 has a pair of pulleys 21 and an annular transport belt 22 that spans between the pair of pulleys 21. One of the pair of pulleys 21 is rotated by the power obtained from the first motor M1. As a result, the conveyor belt 22 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The other of the pair of pulleys 21 is driven to rotate as the conveyor belt 22 rotates.

  The plurality of tablets 9 supplied from the feeder 10 are placed on the upper surface of the transport belt 22 and move in the transport direction together with the transport belt 22. At this time, the tablets 9 have been aligned in a plurality of rows in the width direction by the feeder 10 described above, but the intervals in the transport direction of the tablets 9 in each row are non-uniform. The plurality of tablets 9 are conveyed in a state in which they are in close contact with each other in the conveying direction or at a slight interval.

  The suction drum 30 is located on the downstream side of the transport path with respect to the transport conveyor 20, and is a mechanism for transferring the tablets 9 from the transport conveyor 20 to the suction conveyor 40. The suction drum 30 has a substantially cylindrical outer peripheral surface centered on a rotation axis O extending horizontally in the width direction. A second motor M2 is connected to the suction drum 30 as indicated by a broken line in FIG. When the second motor M2 is driven, the suction drum 30 rotates about the rotation axis O. On the outer peripheral surface of the suction drum 30, a plurality of suction holes 301 are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction (that is, the transport direction). Further, the plurality of suction holes 301 are divided into a plurality of width direction positions corresponding to the respective rows of the plurality of tablets 9 arranged in the width direction (for each of a plurality of conveyance rows), and are provided at intervals in the conveyance direction. There is. Each suction hole 301 opens in the width direction (horizontal direction) parallel to the rotation axis O.

  When the suction drum 30 rotates, the plurality of suction holes 301 have an annular shape including a first delivery position P1 close to the upper surface of the conveyor belt 22 and a second delivery position P2 close to the surface of the suction belt 42 described later. Move along the route. In the present embodiment, the first delivery position P1 is located directly below the rotation axis O of the suction drum 30. Then, the second delivery position P2 is located in the vicinity of just above the rotation axis O of the suction drum 30 (a little upstream in the transport direction from just above). The first delivery position P1 and the second delivery position P2 are separated by about 170 ° about the rotation axis O. However, the positional relationship between the first delivery position P1 and the second delivery position P2 is not limited to this.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a first suction mechanism 302 is connected to the suction drum 30. When the first suction mechanism 302 is operated, gas is sucked out from the internal space S of the suction drum 30 located in the angular range between the first delivery position P1 and the second delivery position P2. As a result, the internal space S has a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The tablets 9 that have been transported by the transport conveyor 20 and have reached the first delivery position P1 are sucked and held in the suction holes 301 of the suction drum 30 by this negative pressure. At this time, the suction hole 301 sucks and holds the side surface 9c of the tablet 9. In addition, the plurality of tablets 9 are suction-held one by one in each suction hole 301. As a result, the interval between the tablets 9 in the transport direction becomes a predetermined interval corresponding to the interval between the suction holes 301. That is, the plurality of tablets 9 can be aligned at a predetermined interval in the carrying direction as well as in the width direction.

  While being sucked and held in the suction holes 301, the tablets 9 are conveyed in the direction of the arrow (conveying direction) in FIG. 2 from the first delivery position P1 to the second delivery position P2 by the rotation of the adsorption drum 30. Then, when the suction holes 301 pass through the second delivery position P2, the suction of the tablets 9 is released by deviating from the angular range of the internal space S kept at the negative pressure. As a result, the tablets 9 are transferred from the suction drum 30 to the suction conveyor 40.

  A more detailed structure of the suction drum 30 will be described later.

  The suction conveyor 40 is a mechanism that conveys a plurality of tablets 9 while suction-holding them. The suction conveyor 40 includes a pair of pulleys 41 and a ring-shaped suction belt 42 spanned between the pair of pulleys 41. One of the pair of pulleys 41 is rotated by the power obtained from the third motor M3. As a result, the suction belt 42 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The other of the pair of pulleys 41 is driven to rotate as the suction belt 42 rotates.

  FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view of the suction conveyor 40. As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of suction holes 421 are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the suction belt 42. The plurality of suction holes 421 are arranged at equal intervals in the carrying direction and the width direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the suction conveyor 40 has a second suction mechanism 43 that sucks gas from the space inside the suction belt 42. When the second suction mechanism 43 is operated, the space inside the suction belt 42 has a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 are suction-held one by one in the suction holes 421 by the negative pressure. Each suction hole 421 sucks and holds the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b of the tablet 9.

  In this way, the plurality of tablets 9 are held on the surface of the suction belt 42 in an aligned state in the transport direction and the width direction. Then, the suction conveyor 40 conveys the plurality of tablets 9 by rotating the suction belt 42. Below the four heads 61 described below, the plurality of tablets 9 are transported in the horizontal direction.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the suction conveyor 40 has a blow mechanism 44. The blow mechanism 44 is provided inside the suction belt 42 and at a position opposed to a carry-out chute 91 described later via the suction belt 42. The blow mechanism 44 blows the gas only to the suction holes 421 facing the carry-out chute 91 among the plurality of suction holes 421 of the suction belt 42. Then, the adsorption hole 421 has a positive pressure higher than the atmospheric pressure. As a result, the suction of the tablets 9 in the suction holes 421 is released, and the tablets 9 are transferred from the suction belt 42 through the discharge chute 91 to the discharge conveyor.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the feeder 10, the transfer conveyor 20, the suction drum 30, and the suction conveyor 40 constitute a transfer device that transfers a plurality of tablets 9.

  The first camera 50 is a processing unit for photographing the tablet 9 before printing. The first camera 50 is located downstream of the above-described second delivery position P2 in the transport path and upstream of the printing unit 60 in the transport path. For the first camera 50, for example, a line sensor in which image pickup devices such as CCD and CMOS are arranged in the width direction is used. The first camera 50 photographs the plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the suction belt 42. The image acquired by shooting is transmitted from the first camera 50 to the control unit 100 described later. The control unit 100 detects the presence or absence of the tablet 9 in each suction hole 421, the position of the tablet 9, and the posture of the tablet 9 based on the image obtained from the first camera 50. Further, the control unit 100 also inspects whether or not each tablet 9 has a defect such as a chip based on the image obtained from the first camera 50.

  The printing unit 60 is a processing unit that prints on the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b of the tablet 9 conveyed by the suction belt 42 by an inkjet method. As shown in FIG. 2, the printing unit 60 of this embodiment has four heads 61. The four heads 61 are located above the suction belt 42 and are arranged in a line along the transport direction of the tablets 9. The four heads 61 eject ink droplets of different colors (for example, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black colors) toward the tablet 9. Then, a multicolor image is recorded on the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b of the tablet 9 by superposing the single color images formed by these respective colors. As the ink ejected from each head 61, an edible ink produced from a raw material approved by the Japanese Pharmacopoeia, Food Sanitation Law, etc. is used.

  FIG. 4 is a bottom view of one head 61. In FIG. 4, the suction belt 42 and the plurality of tablets 9 held by the suction belt 42 are shown by a chain double-dashed line. As shown enlarged in FIG. 4, a plurality of nozzles 611 capable of ejecting ink droplets are provided on the lower surface of the head 61. In the present embodiment, the plurality of nozzles 611 are two-dimensionally arranged on the lower surface of the head 61 in the transport direction and the width direction. The nozzles 611 are arranged with their positions displaced in the width direction. By thus arranging the plurality of nozzles 611 two-dimensionally, the positions of the respective nozzles 611 in the width direction can be brought close to each other. However, the plurality of nozzles 611 may be arranged in a line along the width direction.

  As a method of ejecting ink droplets from the nozzle 611, for example, a so-called piezo method is used in which a piezoelectric element, which is a piezoelectric element, is deformed by applying a voltage to pressurize and eject the ink in the nozzle 611. However, the ink droplet ejection method may be a so-called thermal method in which the heater is energized to thermally expand the ink in the nozzle 611 to eject the ink.

  The second camera 70 is a processing unit for photographing the tablet 9 after printing. The second camera 70 is located downstream of the printing unit 60 in the transport path and upstream of the drying mechanism 80 in the transport path. For the second camera 70, for example, a line sensor in which image pickup devices such as CCD and CMOS are arranged in the width direction is used. The second camera 70 photographs the plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the suction belt 42. The image obtained by shooting is transmitted from the second camera 70 to the control unit 100 described later. The control unit 100 inspects the quality of the image printed on the tablet 9 based on the image obtained from the second camera 70.

  The drying mechanism 80 is a mechanism for drying the ink attached to the tablets 9. The drying mechanism 80 is located downstream of the second camera 70 in the transport path and upstream of the carry-out chute 91 described below in the transport path. As the drying mechanism 80, for example, a hot air supply mechanism that blows heated gas (hot air) toward the tablets 9 conveyed by the suction belt 42 is used. The ink attached to the tablets 9 is dried by hot air and fixed on the front surface 9a or the back surface 9b of the tablets 9.

  The carry-out mechanism 90 is a mechanism for carrying out the plurality of tablets 9 from the suction conveyor 40 to the outside of the tablet printing apparatus 1. The carry-out mechanism 90 has a carry-out chute 91 shown in FIG. 2 and a carry-out conveyor (not shown). The carry-out chute 91 is located downstream of the drying mechanism 80 in the transport path. When the tablet 9 sucked in the suction hole 421 reaches a position facing the carry-out chute 91, the blow mechanism 44 releases the suction of the tablet 9. As a result, the tablets 9 drop from the suction holes 421 of the suction belt 42 through the discharge chute 91 and onto the upper surface of the discharge conveyor. Then, the dropped tablets 9 are carried out of the tablet printing apparatus 1 by the carry-out conveyor.

  The control unit 100 is a unit for controlling the operation of each unit in the tablet printing apparatus 1. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the connection between the control unit 100 and each unit in the tablet printing apparatus 1. As conceptually shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 100 is configured by a computer having a processor 101 such as a CPU, a memory 102 such as a RAM, and a storage unit 103 such as a hard disk drive. A computer program CP for executing print processing is installed in the storage unit 103.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 100 includes the feeder 10, the transfer conveyor 20 (including the first motor M1), the suction drum 30 (including the second motor M2 and the first suction mechanism 302), and the suction described above. The conveyor 40 (including the third motor M3, the second suction mechanism 43, and the blow mechanism 44), the first camera 50, the printing unit 60 (including four heads 61), the second camera 70, the drying mechanism 80, and the carry-out. The mechanism 90 is connected to each other by wire or wirelessly so as to be communicable. The control unit 100 temporarily reads the computer program CP and data stored in the storage unit 103 into the memory 102, and the processor 101 performs arithmetic processing based on the computer program CP to control the operation of each of the above units. To do. As a result, the transportation of the plurality of tablets 9 and the printing process for each tablet 9 proceed.

<3. Detailed structure of suction drum>
Next, the detailed configuration of the above-described suction drum 30 will be described. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the suction drum 30 as seen from the width direction. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the first delivery position P1 as viewed from the downstream side of the transport belt 22 and the suction drum 30 in the transport direction. FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the suction drum 30. FIG. 9 is a partial perspective view near the suction hole 301 of the suction drum 30. In FIG. 6, only one row of tablets 9 is shown. Further, in FIG. 7, only one first ring 331 described below and one second ring 332 described below corresponding to one row of tablets 9 are shown.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the suction drum 30 of the present embodiment includes a fixed drum 31, a movable drum 32, a ring member 33, two pressing plates 34, and a fixing bolt 35.

  The fixed drum 31 is a cylindrical drum arranged inside the movable drum 32 in the radial direction. The fixed drum 31 is formed of, for example, metal such as stainless steel. The fixed drum 31 is fixed to the frame body of the tablet printing apparatus 1 including the transport device. Therefore, the fixed drum 31 is kept non-rotating even when the second motor M2 shown in FIG. 2 is driven. A recess 312 is provided in a portion of the outer peripheral surface 311 of the fixed drum 31 between the first delivery position P1 and the second delivery position P2. When the first suction mechanism 302 shown in FIG. 2 is operated, the internal space S of the recess 312 has a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The fixed drum 31 may have a cylindrical shape.

  The movable drum 32 is a cylindrical drum arranged outside the fixed drum 31 in the radial direction through a bearing (not shown). The movable drum 32 is formed of, for example, a metal such as stainless steel. The movable drum 32 is connected to the output shaft of the second motor M2. Therefore, when the second motor M2 is driven, the movable drum 32 rotates about the rotation axis O. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the movable drum 32 is provided with a plurality of through holes 320. The plurality of through holes 320 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction around the rotation axis O. Each through hole 320 penetrates the movable drum 32 in the radial direction.

  The ring member 33 is made of resin, for example. As shown in FIG. 8, the ring member 33 includes a plurality of first rings 331 and a plurality of second rings 332. The plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 are annular members arranged on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32, respectively. The plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 are fixed to the movable drum 32 such that they cannot rotate relative to each other. Therefore, when the second motor M2 is driven, the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 together with the movable drum 32 also rotate about the rotation axis O.

  The plurality of first rings 331 are arranged on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32 at equal intervals in the rotation axis O direction (width direction). In addition, the plurality of first rings 331 are arranged separately at a plurality of width direction positions corresponding to each row of the plurality of tablets 9 arranged in the width direction. The plurality of second rings 332 are adjacent to one side (the upper left side in FIG. 8) of each of the plurality of first rings 331 in the rotation axis O direction. That is, the first ring 331 and the second ring 332 are provided in the same number as the number of rows of the plurality of tablets 9 arranged in the width direction, and are alternately arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum 32 in the rotation axis O direction. Note that, in FIG. 8, only the two first rings 331 and the two second rings 332 are simplified and illustrated. The width of the movable drum 32 in the rotation axis O direction is substantially equal to the total value of the widths of the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, a plurality of notches 330 are provided on the other side of the second ring 332 in the rotation axis O direction (on the side of the first ring 331). The plurality of notches 330 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction around the rotation axis O. Each notch 330 cuts out while penetrating the second ring 332 in the radial direction. The radially inner end of the notch 330 communicates with the through hole 320 of the movable drum 32.

  In the present embodiment, the opening of the notch 330 on the other side (the first ring 331 side) in the rotation axis O direction serves as the suction hole 301. As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, each suction hole 301 opens in the direction of the rotation axis O (width direction). The shape of the suction hole 301 is, for example, a rectangular shape that is long in the transport direction. However, the shape of the suction holes 301 may be another shape such as a circular shape (a perfect circular shape or an elliptical shape).

  The tablets 9 transported to the first delivery position P1 by the transport conveyor 20 are attracted to the suction holes 301 by the negative pressure generated in the suction holes 301 from the internal space S via the through holes 320 and the notches 330. Then, the side surface 9c of the tablet 9 is adsorbed by the adsorption hole 301. In addition, the plurality of tablets 9 are suction-held one by one in the plurality of suction holes 301 respectively provided in the plurality of second rings 332. Then, by driving the second motor M2 (moving mechanism), the suction holes 301 and the tablets 9 held in the suction holes 301 move in the transport direction from the first delivery position P1 to the second delivery position P2. As a result, the plurality of tablets 9 are aligned in the transport direction at intervals according to the position of the suction holes 301.

  Further, the outer peripheral surface 333 of the first ring 331 expands into a cylindrical shape centering on the rotation axis O. When the tablet 9 is adsorbed by the adsorption hole 301, the front surface 9 a or the back surface 9 b of the tablet 9 contacts the outer peripheral surface 333 of the first ring 331. That is, the plurality of tablets 9 contact the outer peripheral surface 333 of each of the plurality of first rings 331. As a result, the front surface 9a and the back surface 9b of the tablet 9 are prevented from being inclined, and the tablet 9 is corrected to a posture along the outer peripheral surface 333 of the first ring 331. As a result, the postures of the plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the suction drum 30 can be made uniform.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the width W of the first ring 331 is preferably larger than the diameter of the tablet 9 (see the diameter 94 in the X-axis direction or the diameter 95 in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 1). Further, the difference D between the outer diameter of the second ring 332 and the outer diameter of the first ring 331 is preferably larger than the thickness of the tablet 9 (see the thickness 93 in the Z-axis direction in FIG. 1). As a result, the tablet 9 can be held more stably in the suction hole 301.

  In this way, the suction drum 30 of the present embodiment conveys the tablets 9 while suction-holding the respective side surfaces 9c of the plurality of tablets 9. This makes it possible to convey the plurality of tablets 9 aligned in the width direction while aligning them at a predetermined interval in the conveying direction without providing a complicated cutting mechanism. In particular, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, both ends 301e of the suction hole 301 in the transport direction come into contact with two side surfaces 9c of the tablet 9 in the circumferential direction. Thereby, the tablet 9 can be accurately positioned with respect to the suction hole 301. Specifically, each tablet 9 is held while being positioned such that the central portion of the suction hole 301 in the transport direction and the center of the tablet 9 are aligned. As a result, the interval in the transport direction of the plurality of tablets 9 can be accurately set to the predetermined interval.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the plurality of first rings 331 used in the suction drum 30 are different from each other in thickness or width and are exchanged with each other in addition to those already arranged on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. A plurality of possible first rings 331 are prepared. Then, the plurality of first rings 331 are detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. As a result, the tablets 9 to be conveyed are different in thickness (see thickness 93 in the Z-axis direction in FIG. 1) or diameter (see diameter 94 in the X-axis direction or diameter 95 in the Y-axis direction in FIG. 1) of another type. Even when changing to the tablet 9, it is possible to easily cope with it by selecting an optimum first ring 331 that matches the thickness and diameter of the tablet 9 and disposing it on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. For example, when changing to tablets 9 having a small thickness, by attaching a plurality of first rings 331 having a large thickness to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32, cutting of the tablets 9 from the conveyor 20 to the suction conveyor 40 is performed. It is possible to stably carry out the delivery of the tablets 9. As a result, regardless of the type of the tablets 9, the plurality of tablets 9 can be transported while being aligned in the transport direction at a predetermined interval.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as the plurality of second rings 332 used in the suction drum 30, other than those already arranged on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32, the rotation axes O of the plurality of suction holes 301 are centered. A plurality of second rings 332 having different installation intervals in the circumferential direction (conveying direction) and capable of being exchanged with each other are prepared. Then, the plurality of second rings 332 are detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. As a result, even when the transported tablet 9 is changed to another type of tablet 9 having a different shape or diameter, the optimum second ring 332 that matches the shape or diameter of the tablet 9 is selected and the movable drum 32 of the movable drum 32 is selected. By arranging it on the outer peripheral surface 321, it is possible to easily cope with it. For example, when changing to a tablet 9 having an elliptical surface 9a and a back surface 9b having a long major axis, a plurality of second rings 332 with a long installation interval of a plurality of suction holes 301 are attached to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. As a result, it is possible to stably perform cutting of the tablets 9 from the transport conveyor 20 to delivery of the tablets 9 to the suction conveyor 40. As a result, regardless of the type of the tablets 9, the plurality of tablets 9 can be transported while being aligned in the transport direction at a predetermined interval.

  When replacing the plurality of first rings 331 with those having different widths, the plurality of second rings 332 should also be replaced with those having different widths in accordance with the widths of the plurality of first rings 331 after replacement. Is desirable. Thereby, even after exchanging the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332, these can be arranged at a plurality of width direction positions corresponding to the rows of the plurality of tablets 9 arranged in the width direction.

  Here, a method of detachably attaching the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32 will be described. As shown in FIG. 8, the suction drum 30 has two pressing plates 34 and fixing bolts 35 (two in this embodiment). The pressing plate 34 is an annular plate member. The inner diameter of each pressing plate 34 is substantially equal to the outer diameter of the movable drum 32. The outer diameter of each pressing plate 34 is larger than the outer diameter of the first ring 331 and the outer diameter of the second ring 332. Further, the inner diameters of the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 are all the same and substantially the same as the outer diameter of the movable drum 32. Further, each ring member 33 has a through hole 334 (two in the present embodiment) penetrating the first ring 331 and the second ring 332 in the rotation axis O direction. Each pressing plate 34 has a through hole 340 (two in this embodiment) penetrating in the direction of the rotation axis O. When fixing the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32, the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 are formed on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. Is clamped from both sides in the direction of the rotation axis O using the two pressing plates 34, and is bolted with the fixing bolt 35 via the through holes 334 and 340.

  When the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 are replaced, the fixing bolts 35 are unbolted and the two pressing plates 34 are removed from the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. This makes it possible to easily replace the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 arranged on the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. Then, the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 can be detachably attached as necessary by fixing again using the two pressing plates 34 and the fixing bolts 35. The method of detachably attaching the plurality of first rings 331 and the plurality of second rings 332 to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32 is not limited to this.

  The suction drum 30 of the present invention may have a configuration in which at least one of the first ring 331 and the second ring 332 is detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32. That is, the transport method in the tablet printing apparatus 1 includes: a) a step of sucking and holding the tablets 9 one by one in a plurality of suction holes 301 opened on the outer peripheral surface of the suction drum 30 in a direction parallel to the rotation axis O; b) a step of moving the tablets 9 in the transport direction by rotating the suction drum 30 about the rotation axis O, and c) an outer peripheral surface 321 of the movable drum 32 of the suction drum 30, which rotates about the rotation axis O. And a step of replacing the first ring 331 that is detachably attached to and adjacent to the opening side of the plurality of suction holes 301 according to the thickness or diameter of the tablet 9.

<4. Modification>
Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the configuration of the tablet printing apparatus 1 according to a modification. The tablet printing apparatus 1 of FIG. 10 includes a collecting mechanism 11 in addition to the configuration of FIG. 2 described above. The collecting mechanism 11 collects the tablets 9 that have fallen from the end portion of the conveyor 20 on the downstream side in the conveying direction, and supplies the tablets 9 again to the feeder 10. If such a recovery mechanism 11 is provided, some of the plurality of tablets 9 transported by the transport conveyor 20 are not adsorbed to the suction holes 301 and fall from the downstream end of the transport conveyor 20 in the transport direction. However, the tablet 9 can be returned to the transport path again. Therefore, the arrival rate of the tablets 9 to the second delivery position P2 can be increased.

  In the above-described embodiment, the print unit 60 is provided with the four heads 61. However, the number of heads 61 included in the printing unit 60 may be one to three, or may be five or more.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the tablet 9 is printed on one of the front surface 9a and the back surface 9b. However, a configuration may be adopted in which two devices from the suction conveyor 40 to the drying mechanism 80 are arranged in series in the tablet printing device 1 to print on both the front surface 9a and the back surface 9b of the tablet 9.

  Moreover, in the above-described embodiment, the tablet printing apparatus 1 that prints an image on the tablet 9 has been described. However, the conveying device of the present invention may be used for an inspection device that inspects the tablets 9 and a packaging device that packages the tablets 9.

  Further, the detailed configuration of the inside of the device may be different from the drawings of the present application. Further, the respective elements appearing in the above-described embodiments and modified examples may be appropriately combined as long as no contradiction occurs.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Tablet printing device 9 Tablets 9a Front surface 9b Back surface 9c Side surface 10 Feeder 11 Collection mechanism 20 Conveyor conveyor 21 Pulley 22 Conveyor belt 30 Adsorption drum 31 Fixed drum 32 Movable drum 33 Ring member 34 Press plate 35 Fixing bolt 40 Adsorption conveyor 41 Pulley 42 Adsorption Belt 43 Second suction mechanism 44 Blow mechanism 50 First camera 60 Printing unit 61 Head 70 Second camera 80 Drying mechanism 90 Outgoing mechanism 93 (Tablet) thickness 94 (Tablet) diameter 95 (Tablet) diameter 100 Control unit 301 Adsorption hole 302 First suction mechanism 311 Outer peripheral surface (of fixed drum) 312 Recessed portion (of fixed drum) 320 Through hole (of movable drum) 321 Outer peripheral surface of (movable drum) 330 Notch 331 First ring 332 Second ring 333 Outer peripheral surface (of first ring) 334 Through hole (for ring member) 340 Through hole (for pressing plate) M1 First motor M2 Second motor M3 Third motor O Rotating shaft P1 First delivery position P2 Second delivery position S Internal space

Claims (13)

A transport device for transporting a plurality of granular materials,
By rotating around a horizontally extending axis and having a plurality of adsorption holes on the outer peripheral surface that are opened in a direction parallel to the axis, the adsorption holes are rotated while adsorbing and holding the granular materials one by one. Having a suction drum for moving the granular material in the conveying direction,
The suction drum is
A movable drum that rotates around an axis that extends horizontally,
A first ring and a second ring respectively arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum;
Have
The plurality of particles contact the outer peripheral surface of the first ring,
The second ring is adjacent to the one side in the axial direction of the first ring, and has the plurality of suction holes opened to the other side in the axial direction,
At least the first ring is a transfer device detachably attached to an outer peripheral surface of the movable drum. The transport device according to claim 1, wherein the second ring is detachably attached to an outer peripheral surface of the movable drum. The transport device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein
The suction drum is
A plurality of first rings arranged at equal intervals in the axial direction on the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum;
A plurality of the second rings that are adjacent to one axial side of each of the plurality of first rings;
Have
The transport device, wherein the plurality of granular materials are in contact with the outer peripheral surfaces of the plurality of first rings and are suction-held by the plurality of suction holes of the plurality of second rings. The transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The suction drum is
A conveying device having a plurality of the first rings that have different thicknesses or widths and are detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum so as to be exchangeable with each other. The transport device according to claim 2, wherein
The suction drum is
A conveying device having a plurality of the second rings, wherein the plurality of suction holes have different installation intervals in the conveying direction and are detachably attached to the outer peripheral surface of the movable drum so as to be replaceable with each other. The transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein:
The suction drum is
The conveyance device further comprising a cylindrical or columnar fixed drum that is fixed to the frame of the conveyance device and is arranged radially inside the movable drum. The transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein:
The granular material is
Circular front and back,
An annular side surface along the peripheral portion of the front surface and the back surface,
Have
The outer peripheral surface of the first ring contacts the front surface or the back surface,
The said suction hole is a conveyance apparatus which adsorbs-holds the said side surface. The transport device according to claim 7, wherein
The conveying device holds the particulate matter while positioning it by contacting the suction holes with two locations on the side surface of the particulate matter. The transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein:
The conveyance device, wherein the suction holes have a circular shape or a rectangular shape. The transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
On the upstream side of the transfer path with respect to the suction drum, further provided with a transfer conveyor for transferring while mounting the plurality of granular materials,
The plurality of suction holes is a transporting device that attracts and holds the particulate matter transported by the transport conveyor one by one to align the plurality of particulate matter at a predetermined interval in the transport direction. The transport device according to claim 10, wherein
The transport device further comprising a recovery mechanism that recovers the particulate matter that has not fallen from the suction holes and has fallen from the transport conveyor, and resupplies the particulate matter to the upstream side of the transport path with respect to the transport conveyor. The transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein:
The conveying device, wherein the granular material is a tablet. A transport method for transporting a plurality of granular materials by a suction drum rotating about a horizontally extending axis,
a) a step of adsorbing and holding the particulate matter one by one in a plurality of adsorption holes opened in a direction parallel to the axis on the outer peripheral surface of the adsorption drum,
b) moving the particulate matter in the transport direction by rotating the suction drum about the axis;
c) Among the suction drums, a first ring removably attached to the outer peripheral surface of a movable drum that rotates around a horizontally extending shaft and that is adjacent to the opening side of the plurality of suction holes is the granular material. And the process of replacing according to the thickness or diameter of
A method of transporting.

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