JP2020152558A - Tray handling device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a tray handling device capable of handling a tray for food distribution which is already spread.SOLUTION: A tray handling device, for handling a tray where recessed parts for fitting food products are arranged on a top face, comprises: a tray receiving part where the trays in a state in which the food products are fitted in the recessed parts are stacked; a tray discharge part where the trays in which the food products fitted in the recessed parts are taken out are stacked; a tray push-up mechanism which is provided on the lower side of the tray discharge part and pushes up the tray from the lower side to stack the tray from the lower side at the tray discharge part; and a carrying mechanism for carrying the tray. In the tray handling device, the carrying mechanism can includes: a first carrying path for carrying the trays stacked on the tray receiving part one by one from the tray receiving part to a food product taking-out area where an operation for taking out the food product fitted in the recessed part from the tray is performed; and a second carrying path for carrying the tray, where the food product fitted in the recessed part is taken out, from the food product taking-out area to the tray push-up mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a tray handling device that handles a tray in which food such as raw eggs is set.

In recent years, the development of an apparatus for automatically cooking foods such as raw eggs has been promoted (see, for example, Patent Document 1-2).

Japanese Patent No. 4382725 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2008-11713

In a food processing facility that cooks a large amount of food, various devices that perform processing such as heating while transporting the food by a transport device are used when cooking various foods such as raw eggs. Therefore, in such a food processing facility, it may be necessary to take out the food such as raw eggs set in advance in the tray to facilitate the handling of the food from the tray and transfer it to the automatic machine.

In the past, such transfer work was mainly done manually, but it has become possible to secure manpower due to the recent decrease in the working population, shortening of working hours due to work style reforms, efficiency improvement, etc. It's getting harder. Therefore, in recent years, the introduction of an automatic machine that takes out food from the tray and transfers it to equipment that performs processing such as heating has been considered, but such trays are designed on the assumption that they will be handled by human hands. In many cases, it may not be suitable for automatic machines that handle trays. Moreover, since it is not easy to change the tray of the form that has already become widespread in the food distribution system, it is not easy to change the tray to one suitable for handling by an automatic machine.

Therefore, the present application discloses a tray handling device capable of handling a tray for food distribution that has already become widespread.

In order to solve the above problems, in the present invention, the trays are pushed up from below in the tray discharge section and stacked, and the transport mechanism responsible for transporting from the tray receiving section to the tray discharging section is a food taking-out area from the tray receiving section. A first transport path to the tray and a second transport path from the food removal area to the tray discharge section are formed.

More specifically, the present invention is a tray handling device that handles a tray in which recesses for fitting food are arranged on the upper surface, and is fitted in a tray receiving portion in which trays in which food is fitted in the recess are stacked and in the recess. A tray discharge section for stacking trays from which food has been taken out, and a tray push-up mechanism provided below the tray discharge section for pushing up the tray from below and stacking the tray on the tray discharge section from below. The tray is provided with a transport mechanism for transporting the tray, and the transport mechanism brings the trays stacked in the tray receiving portion to the food taking-out area where the work of removing the food fitted in the recess is performed from the tray receiving portion. It is a tray handling device capable of forming a first transport path for transporting one by one and a second transport path for transporting the tray from which the food fitted in the recess is taken out from the food take-out area to the tray pushing mechanism. ..

With the above-mentioned tray handling device, the trays in which the food is set can be automatically stacked on the tray discharge unit, so that the man-hours of the worker in charge of cooking the food can be significantly reduced. The tray handling device described above handles trays with a device configuration having a basic structure that hardly depends on the form of the tray, such as transporting and pushing up, so that the basic structure is easy to handle various types of trays, and each part has a basic structure. By adjusting the dimensions, it is possible to easily handle a wide variety of trays for food distribution that are already in widespread use.

When the trays are stacked with food fitted in the recesses, the trays are stacked so that the front-back and left-right directions in the top view are staggered by a predetermined relative angle, and when the trays are stacked with food not fitted in the recesses. Is designed so that it can be stacked in the same front, back, left, and right directions when viewed from the top, and the tray push-up mechanism has a rotary push-up operation that pushes up the tray by rotating it by a predetermined relative angle, and a non-push up without rotating the tray. The rotary push-up operation may be alternately performed. With such a tray handling device, the trays stacked in the tray receiving section in a state in which the front, rear, left, and right directions in the top view are staggered can be stacked in the tray discharging section in the same direction.

Further, the transport mechanism is an extension of the transport path formed by the first belt conveyor forming the tray receiving portion, the second belt conveyor installed below the first belt conveyor, and the first belt conveyor. By changing the inclination angles of the third belt conveyor forming the food removal area on the third belt conveyor and the third belt conveyor, one end of the transport path of the third belt conveyor is positioned at the end of the first belt conveyor. It has a tilt angle changing means for changing the state of the third belt conveyor so as to be either the first state to be used or the second state located at the start end of the second belt conveyor, and the tray is provided. When transporting from the tray receiving portion to the food removal area, the third belt conveyor is set to the first state, so that the first conveyor belt and the third belt conveyor form a first transport path, and the tray is loaded. When transporting from the food take-out area to the tray pushing mechanism, the third belt conveyor is put into the second state, so that the third belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor form a second transport path. You may. If the transport mechanism is formed of a belt conveyor, basically any form of tray can be handled by simply adjusting the dimensions of the belt to the outer dimensions of the tray.

Further, the tray discharging portion may be formed next to the start end of the first belt conveyor forming the tray receiving portion. In such a tray handling device, since the tray discharge part is arranged next to the tray receiving part, both the work of placing the tray on the tray receiving part and the work of taking out the tray from the tray discharging part can be easily performed. Can be done.

Further, the tray receiving portion is provided with an elevating means for raising and lowering the second tray from the bottom among the trays stacked in the first transport path while being supported by support members that are taken in and out from both sides of the first transport path. May be done. With such a tray handling device, it is possible to process the stacked trays in order from the bottom.

The tray handling device described above is relatively easy to handle a wide variety of trays for food distribution that are already in widespread use.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the tray handling device according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is an internal structural diagram of the tray handling device 1. FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view when the tray handling device is cut along the line indicated by reference numeral AA in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view when the tray handling device is cut along the line indicated by reference numeral BB in FIG. FIG. 5 is a first diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device. FIG. 6 is a second diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device. FIG. 7 is a third diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device. FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of the tray handling device according to the modified example.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described. The embodiments shown below are one aspect of the present invention and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Each of the embodiments and modifications shown below is suitable for, for example, a foodstuff factory that mass-produces boiled eggs, soft-boiled eggs, and hot spring eggs, and a cooking facility that manufactures a large amount of lunch boxes and food supplies.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the tray handling device 1 according to the embodiment. The tray handling device 1 is a device that handles trays in which recesses for fitting food are arranged on the upper surface, and as shown in FIG. 1, a tray receiving portion R1 on which trays in which food is fitted in the recesses are stacked, and a recess. It has a food take-out area R2 for taking out the food fitted in the tray from the tray, and a tray discharge portion R3 for stacking the trays from which the food fit in the recess is taken out. The tray handling device 1 is provided with a plurality of belt conveyors (an example of the “conveying mechanism” referred to in the present application), and the tray moves from the tray receiving section R1 to the tray discharging section R3 via the food taking-out area R2. Be transported. The tray discharge portion R3 is formed next to the start end of the belt conveyor forming the tray receiving portion R1. As shown in FIG. 1, the tray handling device 1 has, for example, a robot 15 that picks up raw eggs set in the tray from the tray, and two rows of transport paths on which the raw eggs picked up by the robot 15 are placed. It is preferable to install it in the vicinity of the cooking apparatus 16.

FIG. 2 is an internal structural diagram of the tray handling device 1. Further, FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view when the tray handling device 1 is cut along the line indicated by reference numerals AA in FIG. Further, FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view when the tray handling device 1 is cut along the line indicated by reference numerals BB in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the tray handling device 1 is provided with a control panel 2. The control panel 2 is a control panel for controlling the tray handling device 1 and its peripheral devices, and is provided with a touch panel and switches. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the control panel 2 has a first belt conveyor 3 forming the tray receiving portion R1, a third belt conveyor 4 forming the food taking-out area R2, and a tray receiving portion R1 below. A second belt conveyor 5 to be installed is provided. The first belt conveyor 3, the third belt conveyor 4, and the second belt conveyor 5 are all belt conveyors that convey articles by moving an endless belt with a motor. Motors are provided in each of the first belt conveyor 3, the third belt conveyor 4, and the second belt conveyor 5, and can be operated independently of each other. The first belt conveyor 3, the third belt conveyor 4, and the second belt conveyor 5 are all controlled by a control device built in the control panel 2. Although FIGS. 1 and 2 show that the control panel 2 is integrally formed as a part of the tray handling device 1, the tray handling device 1 is not limited to such a form. In the tray handling device 1, the control panel 2 and other parts may be separate bodies.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, on both sides of the transport path of the first belt conveyor 3, claw-in / out units 8 that are lifted and lowered by a lifting unit 6 (an example of the “lifting means” in the present application) are provided. Has been done. The claw insertion / removal unit 8 is a mechanism for electrically inserting / removing the claw 7 (an example of the “support member” referred to in the present application) on the transport surface of the first belt conveyor 3. The two claw insertion / removal units 8 provided on both sides of the first belt conveyor 3 in the transport direction project the claws 7 in the directions facing each other, so that the food is placed on the transport surface of the first belt conveyor 3. Support the tray from both sides. Further, the two claw insertion / removal units 8 release the support of the tray by returning the claws 7 protruding in the directions facing each other to their original positions. The claw insertion / removal unit 8 is fixed to the support plate 9 and is moved up and down to the elevating unit 6 via the support plate 9.

The third belt conveyor 4 is a belt conveyor that forms the food take-out area R2 on the extension of the transport path formed by the first belt conveyor 3. An air cylinder 10 (an example of the "tilt angle changing means" in the present application) that inclines the conveyor itself so that the transport surface is inclined toward the second belt conveyor 5 is attached to the third belt conveyor 4. Further, the third belt conveyor 4 is rotatably attached around a rotation axis near the opposite end of the first belt conveyor 3, and when the air cylinder 10 expands and contracts, the rotation axis is centered. Moves. Therefore, when the air cylinder 10 is extended, the free end of the third belt conveyor 4 (the end on the first belt conveyor 3 side) is in the first state where it is located at the end of the first belt conveyor 3. Further, when the air cylinder 10 contracts, the free end of the third belt conveyor 4 is in the second state where it is located at the start end of the second belt conveyor 5. When the third belt conveyor 4 is in the first state, the transport path formed by the first belt conveyor 3 and the third belt conveyor 4 corresponds to an example of the "first transport path" referred to in the present application. .. Further, when the third belt conveyor 4 is in the second state, the transport path formed by the third belt conveyor 4 and the second belt conveyor 5 corresponds to an example of the "second transport path" referred to in the present application. It will be.

The second belt conveyor 5 is a belt conveyor installed under the first belt conveyor 3. Here, as can be seen from FIGS. 3 and 4, the first belt conveyor 3 and the third belt conveyor 4 have one belt having a wide width, whereas the second belt conveyor 5 has a width. It has two narrow belts in parallel. The two belts forming the second belt conveyor 5 are provided in parallel at intervals.

The second belt conveyor 5 is a belt conveyor that forms a part of a transport path from the food take-out area R2 to the tray discharge portion R3. A rotary elevating unit 11 (an example of the "tray pushing mechanism" in the present application) for pushing up and stacking food trays from the lower side is provided on the lower side of the tray discharging unit R3. Since the rotary elevating unit 11 has a motor for raising and lowering the tray pushing member 12 and a motor for rotating the tray pushing member 12, the tray conveyed to the tray discharging portion R3 by the second belt conveyor 5 is trayed. The push-up member 12 can push up or rotate the pushed-up tray. The second belt conveyor 5 is formed of two belt conveyors arranged in parallel at intervals so that the rotary elevating unit 11 provided in the tray discharge portion R3 can push up the tray with the tray pushing member 12. Has been done. Since the second belt conveyor 5 is formed of two belt conveyors arranged in parallel at intervals in this way, the tray pushing member 12 provided in the tray discharging portion R3 is moved up and down by the rotary elevating unit 11. At that time, the tray pushing member 12 can pass between the two belt conveyors of the second belt conveyor 5.

The tray discharge unit R3 is provided with a stopper 13 for preventing the food tray pushed up by the rotary elevating unit 11 from falling down. As shown in FIG. 4, two stoppers 13 are provided on the tray discharge portion R3, and protrude into the tray discharge portion R3 in a direction facing each other. Then, the stopper 13 retracts when it is pushed up by the rotary elevating unit 11 and comes into contact with a tray that moves from bottom to top, and does not retract when a tray that moves from top to bottom comes into contact. Therefore, the stopper 13 allows only one-sided movement of the tray from the bottom to the top by pushing up the rotary elevating unit 11 and prevents the tray from falling down.

Hereinafter, the operation realized in the tray handling device 1 will be described. FIG. 5 is a first diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device 1. Further, FIG. 6 is a second diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device 1. Further, FIG. 7 is a third diagram showing the movement of the tray handling device 1. The operation realized in the tray handling device 1 is automatically performed by the control device built in the control panel 2. The control device of the tray handling device 1 may determine the timing of the following operations using various sensors such as optical sensors provided in each part of the tray handling device 1, or each motor may be predetermined by a predetermined value. The following operation may be realized by moving according to the amount of operation of. Hereinafter, the operation realized in the tray handling device 1 will be described with reference to the diagrams shown in FIGS. 5 to 7.

Here, a case where the tray handling device 1 handles the tray on which the raw egg is placed will be described as an example. In a food processing facility that cooks a large amount of raw eggs, an automatic cooking device that heats the raw eggs while transporting them by a transport device may be used when heating the raw eggs. Therefore, in such a food processing facility, it may be necessary to take out the raw egg set in the tray in order to facilitate the handling of the raw egg from the tray and transfer it to an automatic cooking device. The tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment can be used to reduce the man-hours for such a transfer operation. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a robot 15 that automatically takes out raw eggs from a tray. In addition to the cooking device 16, most of the work of boiling a large amount of raw eggs in the cooking device 16 can be automated.

When using the tray handling device 1, first, the food tray 14 is stacked on the tray receiving portion R1. The food tray 14 has recesses on which raw eggs are fitted vertically and horizontally, and the raw eggs are carried into the food processing facility in a state where the raw eggs are set in each recess. Note that FIG. 5 shows a food tray 14 provided with recesses for fitting raw eggs in 6 rows and 5 columns. This is an example of a "predetermined relative angle" referred to in the present application, in which the food trays 14 are stacked with the raw eggs fitted in the recesses, and the food trays 14 are oriented by 90 degrees in the front-back and left-right directions when viewed from above. The design of the food tray 14 is taken into consideration so that the center of gravity of the food tray 14 in the stacked state does not become unbalanced and the food tray 14 does not fall down by stacking only (there is). Therefore, the food trays 14 stacked on the tray receiving portion R1 are stacked alternately in the front-rear, left-right directions of the top view by 90 degrees, so that the food trays in which the raw eggs are removed from each recess. When stacking 14, it is necessary to change the orientation so that the orientations are not staggered. Therefore, the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment stacks the food tray 14 from which the raw egg has been removed on the tray discharging unit R3 in a state where the front, back, left, and right directions are aligned in the top view by performing the following operations. ..

That is, as shown in FIG. 5A, when the tray handling device 1 starts operating with the food trays 14 stacked on the tray receiving portion R1, the claws 7 are placed on the transport surface of the first belt conveyor 3. The elevating unit 6 is operated in a state of protruding into the belt, and the claw insertion / removal unit 8 is raised. Then, as shown in FIG. 5B, the food tray 14 above the second stage from the bottom among the plurality of food trays 14 stacked on the tray receiving portion R1 is lifted in a state of being supported by the claws 7. It is separated from the food tray 14 at the bottom. Then, the tray handling device 1 operates the first belt conveyor 3 and the third belt conveyor 4 in this state. Then, as shown in FIG. 5C, the bottommost food tray 14 in the tray receiving portion R1 moves from the tray receiving portion R1 to the food taking-out area R2.

As shown in FIG. 5D, the raw egg of the food tray 14 that has moved to the food removal area R2 is picked up from the food tray 14 by the robot 15 provided in the vicinity of the food removal area R2. Then, while the raw egg is being picked up from the food tray 14 in the food removal area R2, the tray handling device 1 lowers the claw insertion / removal unit 8 by the elevating unit 6 and lowers the claw insertion / removal unit 8 supported by the claw 7. It is lowered onto the transport surface of the first belt conveyor 3 and the protruding claws 7 are returned to their original positions.

After the raw egg is picked up from the food tray 14 in the food take-out area R2, the tray handling device 1 contracts the air cylinder 10 to make the third belt conveyor 4 the second belt, as shown in FIG. 6 (E). Tilt towards the conveyor 5. That is, the state of the third belt conveyor 4 is changed from the first state to the second state. Then, the third belt conveyor 4 and the second belt conveyor 5 are operated to convey the food tray 14 from which the raw eggs have been removed from the food removal area R2 to the tray discharge unit R3. Further, the tray handling device 1 is stacked on the tray receiving portion R1 by operating the elevating unit 6 in a state where the claws 7 are projected onto the transport surface of the first belt conveyor 3 to raise the claw insertion / removal unit 8. Lift the food tray 14 above the second stage from the bottom among the plurality of food trays 14.

Then, when the food tray 14 conveyed from the food take-out area R2 to the tray discharge unit R3 arrives at the tray discharge unit R3, the tray handling device 1 has an air cylinder 10 as shown in FIG. 6 (F). Is extended to return the third belt conveyor 4 to a flat state. Then, the tray handling device 1 operates the first belt conveyor 3 and the third belt conveyor 4 to move the food tray 14 of the tray receiving portion R1 from the tray receiving portion R1 to the food taking-out area R2. Further, as shown in FIG. 6 (G), the tray handling device 1 operates the rotary elevating unit 11 while the raw egg of the food tray 14 moved to the food take-out area R2 is picked up by the robot 15. The tray pushing member 12 pushes up the food tray 14 of the tray discharging portion R3. This push-up operation corresponds to an example of the "non-rotational push-up operation" referred to in the present application. The food tray 14 pushed upward in the tray discharge portion R3 is in a state of being placed on the stopper 13 as shown in FIG. 6H even after the rotary elevating unit 11 lowers the tray pushing member 12. Is held at. Then, the tray handling device 1 contracts the air cylinder 10 and tilts the third belt conveyor 4 toward the second belt conveyor 5 to operate the third belt conveyor 4 and the second belt conveyor 5, and the food take-out area R2 The food tray 14 from which the raw eggs are picked up is conveyed from the food extraction area R2 to the tray discharge unit R3.

When the food tray 14 conveyed from the food removal area R2 to the tray discharge unit R3 arrives at the tray discharge unit R3, the tray handling device 1 extends the air cylinder 10 as shown in FIG. 7 (I). Then, the transport surface of the third belt conveyor 4 is returned to a flat state. Then, the tray handling device 1 operates the first belt conveyor 3 and the third belt conveyor 4 to move the food tray 14 of the tray receiving portion R1 to the food taking-out area R2. Further, as shown in FIG. 7J, the tray handling device 1 operates the rotary elevating unit 11 while the raw egg of the food tray 14 moved to the food take-out area R2 is picked up by the robot 15. The tray pushing member 12 pushes up the food tray 14 of the tray discharging portion R3. At this timing, unlike the timing shown in FIG. 6 (G), the directions of the food tray 14 pushed up by the tray discharge portion R3 in the front-rear, front-rear, left-right directions are different by 90 degrees. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7 (K), the tray handling device 1 has a tray at a timing when the food tray 14 comes into contact with the tray pushing member 12 at the tray discharging unit R3 and is slightly separated from the second belt conveyor 5. The push-up member 12 is rotated by the rotary elevating unit 11 by 90 degrees. Then, the tray handling device 1 pushes up the food tray 14 by the rotary elevating unit 11 and holds the food tray 14 on the stopper 13 as shown in FIG. 7 (L). This push-up operation accompanied by rotation corresponds to an example of the "rotational push-up operation" referred to in the present application. Then, the tray handling device 1 again performs the operations shown in FIGS. 6 (F) and after. As a result, the tray handling device 1 alternately performs the non-rotary push-up operation and the rotary push-up operation.

In the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment, when the raw egg is cooked, the food tray 14 in which the raw egg is set can be automatically stacked on the tray discharge unit R3, so that the raw egg is in charge of heating. The man-hours of the worker can be significantly reduced. Further, in the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment, the food trays 14 stacked on the tray receiving portion R1 in a state in which the front-back and left-right directions in the top view are staggered by 90 degrees are discharged in the same direction. Since the used food trays 14 can be stacked in the section R3, the used food trays 14 can be easily returned to another business operator in the same orientation.

Further, since the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment can handle the food tray 14 of the form already widely used in the raw egg distribution system without changing, the food tray 14 can be handled by the automatic machine. There is no need to change it to one that conforms to. That is, the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment has a device configuration of a belt conveyor and a tray pushing member having a basic structure that hardly depends on the form of the tray. Therefore, the tray has a rectangular shape in a general top view. If so, basically any form of tray can be handled. With the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment, basically any form of tray can be handled by simply adjusting the dimensions of the belt to the outer dimensions of the tray.

Further, in the tray handling device 1 of the present embodiment, the tray discharging portion R3 is formed next to the start end of the first belt conveyor 3 forming the tray receiving portion R1. The operator can easily perform both the work of placing the food tray 14 on the tray receiving unit R1 and the work of taking out the food tray 14 from the tray discharging unit R3.

The tray handling device 1 is not limited to the above form. The tray handling device 1 may, for example, handle a tray on which foods other than raw eggs are placed. Further, in the tray handling device 1, for example, the movement of the third belt conveyor 4 and the installation position of the second belt conveyor 5 are different, so that the tray discharging portion R3 is formed at a position away from the tray receiving portion R1. You may. Further, in the tray handling device 1, the transport mechanism may be formed by a mechanism other than the belt conveyor such as a chain conveyor. Further, the tray handling device 1 is not limited to the food tray 14 provided with recesses in 6 rows and 5 columns, and may handle trays of other forms. Further, the tray handling device 1 is not limited to a form in which each part is moved by an electric motor, and for example, each part may be moved by externally supplied compressed air or the like.

Further, the tray handling device 1 may increase the length of the transport path of the first belt conveyor 3 so that a plurality of piles of food trays 14 can be placed on the tray receiving portion R1. FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of the tray handling device according to the modified example. As shown in FIG. 8, for example, the tray handling device 1 appropriately changes the length of the transport path of the first belt conveyor 3 so that a plurality of piles of food trays 14 can be placed on the tray receiving portion R1. You may.

1 ... Tray handling device 2 ... Control panel 3 ... 1st belt conveyor 4 ... 3rd belt conveyor 5 ... 2nd belt conveyor 6 ... Lifting unit 7 ... Claw 8 ... Claw loading / unloading unit 9 ... Support plate 10 ・ ・ Air cylinder 11 ・ ・ Rotating elevating unit 12 ・ ・ Tray push-up member 13 ・ ・ Stopper 14 ・ ・ Food tray 15 ・ ・ Robot 16 ・ ・ Cooking device R1 ・ ・ Tray receiving part R2 ・ ・ Food removal area R3 ... Tray discharge section

Claims (5)

A tray handling device that handles trays in which recesses for food are arranged on the upper surface.
A tray receiving portion on which the trays in which the food is fitted in a recess are stacked,
A tray discharge section on which the tray from which the food is taken out, which is fitted in the recess, is stacked,
A tray pushing mechanism provided on the lower side of the tray discharging part, which pushes up the tray from the lower side and stacks the tray on the tray discharging part from the lower side.
A transport mechanism for transporting the tray is provided.
The transport mechanism
A first transport path for transporting the trays stacked in the tray receiving portion one by one from the tray receiving portion to a food removal area where the work of removing the food fitted in the recess is performed from the tray. When,
It is possible to form a second transport path for transporting the tray from which the food fitted in the recess has been taken out from the food removal area to the tray pushing mechanism.
Tray handling device. When the trays are stacked with the foods fitted in the recesses, the trays are stacked so that the front-back and left-right directions in the top view are staggered by a predetermined relative angle, and the foods are not fitted in the recesses. When stacked, it is designed so that the front, back, left, and right orientations of the top view are the same.
The tray pushing mechanism alternately performs a rotary pushing operation of rotating the tray by a predetermined relative angle and pushing it up, and a non-rotating pushing operation of pushing the tray without rotating it.
The tray handling device according to claim 1. The transport mechanism
A first belt conveyor forming the tray receiving portion and
A second belt conveyor installed under the first belt conveyor and
A third belt conveyor that forms the food take-out area on an extension of the transport path formed by the first belt conveyor, and
By changing the inclination angle of the third belt conveyor, one end of the transport path of the third belt conveyor is located at the end of the first belt conveyor, and the first state and the second belt conveyor are located. It has an inclination angle changing means for changing the state of the third belt conveyor so as to be in any of the second states located at the starting end of the above.
When the tray is transported from the tray receiving portion to the food taking-out area, the third belt conveyor is brought into the first state, and the first belt conveyor and the third belt conveyor are used to bring the tray to the first state. Form the transport path of 1
When the tray is conveyed from the food taking-out area to the tray pushing mechanism, the third belt conveyor is brought into the second state, and the third belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor are used for the third belt conveyor. Form 2 transport paths,
The tray handling device according to claim 1 or 2. The tray discharge portion is formed next to the start end of the first belt conveyor forming the tray receiving portion.
The tray handling device according to claim 3. A means for raising and lowering the tray receiving portion while supporting the second tray from the bottom of the trays stacked on the first transport path with support members that are taken in and out from both sides of the first transport path. Is provided,
The tray handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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