JP2022161054A - Method and device for handling lidded returnable case - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a method and a device for handling a lidded returnable case, which can move the lidded returnable case on which lids of various different end shapes are placed with the lids on.SOLUTION: A lidded returnable case with a flanged lid is gripped and moved with a lid on by a handling device attached to a robot arm. The handling device 10 provided with pressing pads 29 and liftable left and right forks 25 is moved above the center of the lidded returnable case. The left and right pressing pads 29 are opened wide outside the lids to touch the inner and upper surfaces of a flange 4 of a lid 3. The forks 25 are lowered outside the lid, claws 37 included in the forks are inserted into the lower surface of a flange 2 of the returnable case 1, and the lidded returnable case is gripped with the lid on and moved.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for handling a returnable container with a lid, which can move the returnable container with the lid attached.

In order to handle a box with a closed top surface, such as a cardboard box, using a robot arm, a handling device that sucks the top surface of the box with a suction pad is widely used, as disclosed in Patent Document 1. However, resin boxes, which are often used as returnable boxes for parts in production factories, have open tops, so the tops cannot be sucked. Therefore, manual handling is common. However, when the returnable boxes are heavy and stacked in multiple layers, it is not easy to handle them manually.

Therefore, as shown in Patent Document 2, a device has been developed that uses a robot hand to handle a returnable box with an open top. This device is equipped with a hanger that rotates vertically around a horizontal axis. By driving the hanger under the flange of the returnable box, one side of the box is lifted, pulled horizontally and shifted, and the gap on the other side is used. Then, the hanger on the opposite side is driven into the lower side of the flange of the returnable box, and a method of conveying is adopted. However, the device of Patent Document 2 can only be used when the shape and dimensions of the flange of the returnable container to be handled are constant.

However, as shown in FIG. 1, the shape of the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 used for physical distribution in the factory is various, such as a first-stage flange, a second-stage flange, a three-stage flange, and a flange whose tip overhangs downward. Yes, but the bottom flange position is different.

A returnable container with a lid, which is a returnable container 1 covered with a lid, is also widely used for physical distribution in production plants. As shown in FIG. 2, a rising flange 4 is formed at the end of each lid 3, but the width and shape of the flange 4 are various. Such a returnable box with a lid, which is a returnable box 1 with various flange shapes covered with various lids 3 with different flange shapes, can be handled by the device of Patent Document 2 in which the hanger has a constant transfer height. It is not possible. Moreover, the lid 3 of the returnable container 1 is simply placed thereon and not fixed unlike the lid of a corrugated cardboard box. Therefore, returnable boxes with lids have also been handled exclusively by hand up to now.

JP 2014-176926 A JP-A-6-206634

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-described conventional problems, and to provide a lidded returnable container that can be moved by a robot while being covered with various lids having different end flange shapes. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for handling a tote box.

A method for handling a returnable container with a lid according to the present invention, which has been devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, is to grip and move a returnable container attached with a lid with a flange by a handling device attached to a robot arm. A handling method for a returnable container with a lid, in which a handling device provided with a holding pad and vertically movable forks on the left and right sides is moved above the center of the returnable container with a cover, and the left and right holding pads are extended outside the lid. Open it to make contact with the inner surface and upper surface of the flange of the lid, lower the fork on the outside of the lid, and insert the claws built into the fork into the lower surface of the flange of the returnable box with the lid attached. It is characterized in that it is gripped and moved by a handling device.

It is preferable to photograph the coordinates of the returnable container with lid and the shape of its flange with a camera, and control the moving position of the handling device and the lowering amount of the fork. If there is no gap between adjacent returnable boxes with lids, hold one side of the returnable lidded box with a fork and press pad on one side and lift only one side to remove the part that is stuck to the lower box. It can be removed and pulled outward in the direction of the lifted one side, and then the other side of the lidded tote can be gripped by the opposite side of the holding pad and fork, lifted and moved.

Further, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the handling device for returnable containers with lids of the present invention is attached to a robot arm so that a returnable container with a lid attached with a flange is gripped and moved with the lid attached. A returnable box handling device comprising: a main body connected to a robot arm; a pair of sliders that expand and contract horizontally with respect to the main body; a holding pad and a liftable fork provided on each slider; It is characterized by comprising push-out means for pressing the pad against the inner surface of the flange of the lid, and a claw housed inside the fork and protruding inside the lowered fork.

It is preferable that the claw of the fork be horizontally rotated by a vertical shaft built in the fork.

According to the present invention, returnable containers with lids covered with various lids having different end flange shapes can be moved by a robot arm with the lids attached. Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to handle lidded tote boxes that are stacked without gaps between adjacent lidded tote boxes.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing various shapes of the flange of the tote. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which various flange-shaped lids are placed on the tote box. FIG. 4 is a center cut end view of the lid and tote; 1 is an overall view of a system; FIG. It is a front view of a handling device. It is a left view of a handling device. 4 is an enlarged front view of a main part; FIG. It is a top view of a pressing pad portion. It is a perspective view which shows the drive mechanism of a pressing pad. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which a claw protrudes from a fork; FIG. 4 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of a main part showing a handling step; It is explanatory drawing of a depalletizing process.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below.
(Structure of returnable box with lid)
First, referring to FIG. 3, a lidded returnable container to be handled will be described. FIG. 3A is a center cut end view of the lid 3, and FIG. 3B is a center cut end view of the returnable container 1. FIG. The returnable box 1 has an outwardly projecting flange 2 at its upper end and a lower flange 5 at its bottom. A projection 6 for stacking is formed on the bottom surface. The projection 6 is sized to fit inside the flange 2, and is intended to prevent lateral slippage when the returnable containers 1 without lids are directly piled up. Also, the projection 6 is inserted into the inside of the flange 2 even on the returnable box with a lid on which the lid is present, so that lateral slippage can be prevented. A flange 4 is formed upward around the lid 3, and a small protrusion 7 is formed downward to fit inside the flange 3 of the returnable container 1. - 特許庁In FIG. 3, the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 is of the one-stage type, and the flange 4 of the lid 3 is of the type shown in FIG.

FIG. 3C is a center cut end view showing a state in which the returnable container 1 is covered with the lid 3 to form a returnable container with a lid. As shown in the figure, the small protrusion 7 of the lid 3 fits inside the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 to prevent the lid 3 from slipping laterally. Since the periphery of the lid 3 is surrounded by the flange 4, the central portion of the lid 3 is in a depressed state. (D) of FIG. 3 is a center cut end view showing a state in which returnable containers with lids are stacked. In this state, the lower flange 5 of the upper returnable container with lid rests on the flange 4 of the lid 3 of the lower returnable container with lid, and the projection 6 of the upper returnable container with lid rests on the flange 4 of the lower returnable container with lid. inside the flange 4 of the lid 3 of the . With such a structure, returnable containers with lids can be stacked in multiple layers. In the present invention, as shown in (D) of FIG. 3, multi-tiered returnable containers with lids are handled with the lids still attached.

(handling device)
FIG. 4 is an overall view of the system. A handling device 10 of the present invention is attached to the tip of a robot arm 11 of a multi-axis robot. The returnable containers with lids are stacked in multiple layers on a pallet 12, and a 3D vision 13, which is a combination of multiple cameras, photographs the returnable containers with lids from multiple directions. The coordinates of the box and the type of the flange 2 of the returnable box 1 are calculated and recognized.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the handling device, and FIG. 6 is its left side view. A body 15 is attached to the tip of the robot arm 11, and a horizontal substrate 16 is attached to the lower surface of the body 15. FIG. In the following description, the left-right direction on the page of FIG. 5 is called the left-right direction, and the left-right direction on the page of FIG. 6 is called the front-back direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the substrate 16 is integrally formed in the left-right direction, but separated in the front-rear direction, and each is attached to the lower surface of the main body 15 .

Linear guides 17 extending in the left-right direction are attached to the lower surfaces of the two front and rear substrates 16, respectively. Two left and right slider blocks 18 are mounted on the linear guide 17 , and a vertically extending slider 19 is fixed to each slider block 18 . Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a servomotor 20 is mounted on the left end of the front board 16 to rotate a ball screw 21 . This ball screw 21 has an equal pitch, but the thread direction is reversed in the middle, with one side being a right-handed thread and the other a left-handed thread. , are screwed into the left and right portions of the ball screw 21 . Therefore, when the servomotor 20 is rotated in a specific direction, the slider 19 expands left and right away from the center by the same distance.

A vertical substrate 23 extending vertically is fixed to the slider 19, and vertical linear guides 24 are provided at the left and right ends thereof. A fork 25 is supported by these linear guides 24 , and the fork 25 can be raised and lowered by an elevating mechanism 26 provided on each of the left and right vertical substrates 23 .

As shown in FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, a horizontal slide plate 28 is supported by a small linear guide 27 at the lower end of the vertical substrate 23, and a pressing pad 29 is fixed to the end thereof. The pressing pad 29 has an L-shaped cross section and has a vertical surface 30 and a horizontal surface 31 . As shown in FIG. 7, the pressing pad 29 is a member for contacting the inner surface and the upper surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 .

This horizontal slide plate 28 is driven by a pressing means. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the pressing means is a cam mechanism in this embodiment. That is, a grooved cam 32 is provided on the opposite side of the horizontal slide plate 28 to the pressing pad 29, and the vertical substrate 23 is provided with a feed screw 34 for driving the cam roller 33 in the front-back direction and a drive motor 35 therefor. there is Therefore, the horizontal slide plate 28 is moved by this cam mechanism, and the pressing pad 29 can be strongly pressed against the inner surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 . This cam mechanism is provided on the inner side bracket 39 of the vertical board 23 as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the fork 25 is a flat hollow body with a narrow width in the left-right direction and a wide width in the front-rear direction. ing. A claw 37 is attached to the lower end of the vertical shaft 36 and a rotation mechanism 38 is provided to the upper end of the vertical shaft 36 . The rotation mechanism 38 rotates the front and rear vertical shafts 36 by 90 degrees in opposite directions to rotate the front and rear claws 37 in the horizontal direction. The pawl 37 is housed inside the fork 25, but as shown in FIG.

In addition, a sensor 40 for detecting the upper surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 is attached to the vertical substrate 23, as shown in FIGS.

(handling method)
A method of handling stacked returnable containers with lids by the above-described handling device will be described below.
First, the 3D vision 13 shown in FIG. 4 photographs the returnable container with lid from multiple directions, the computer performs image processing, and the coordinates of the returnable container with lid and the type of the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 are calculated and recognized. . Also, the order in which the stacked returnable boxes with lids are to be moved is calculated. According to this calculation result, the robot arm 11 moves the handling device 10 above the center of the lidded returnable container to be handled. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the direction of the handling device 10 is determined so that the center of the two long sides of the lidded returnable container can be gripped by the pressing pad 29 . As a result, the expansion/contraction movement width of the slider 19 can be reduced, and the size of the handling device 10 can be reduced. If the two short sides of the returnable container with a lid are to be gripped by the pressing pad 29, the expansion/contraction movement width of the slider 19 must be increased, resulting in an increase in the size of the handling device 10 and an increase in its weight. is unfavorable because the load on

Next, the robot arm 11 lowers the handling device 10 toward the lidded returnable box, and the pressing pad 29 is brought into contact with the upper surface of the lid 3 . This state is shown in FIG. 11(A). Since the coordinates of the returnable container with lid are recognized in advance, the necessary lowering amount should be known, but it is preferable to lower the container while detecting the upper surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 with the sensor 40 . The reason why the sensor 40 is used in this way is that if the lid 3 is transparent, the 3D vision 13 cannot accurately detect the top surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3, and the top surface of the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 is erroneously read. This is because there is a risk of it being lost.

Next, the ball screw 21 is rotated by the servomotor 20, and the vertical substrate 23 is moved outward to the left and right. Since the fork 25 and the pressing pad 29 are attached to the vertical substrate 23, they also move outward, and the vertical surface 30 of the pressing pad 29 abuts against the inner surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3, resulting in the state shown in FIG. 11(B). As shown, the horizontal surface 31 of the pressing pad 29 is brought into contact with the upper surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 .

Next, the fork 25 is lowered outside the lid 3 as shown in FIG. 11(C). The amount of lowering of the fork 25 differs depending on the type of the flange 2 of the returnable container 1, but since the computer recognizes the number of steps of the flange 2, the fork 25 is lowered to the lower side of the lowest flange 2, and then the fork 25 is lowered as shown in FIG. As shown, the pawl 37 is rotated in the horizontal plane and inserted into the lower surface of the lowermost flange 2 . Since the claws 37 are horizontally rotated in this manner, no load is applied to the claws 37, and the box can be rotated smoothly, and the weight of the box can be supported in the thrust direction of rotation. This state is shown in (D) of FIG.

Here, the device for detecting the position and shape of the box from the top of this system detects three-dimensional coordinates with the 3D vision 13 and starts its operation. This 3D vision 13 is often detected directly above the pile of loaded returnable boxes. Therefore, it may be difficult to distinguish the first, second, and third stages of the returnable container flange 2 from above as shown in FIG. In this case, the fork 25 is lowered to the lowering position of the 3-step flange which requires the lowest lowering dimension. Then, the fork 25 is lifted by inserting the pawl 37 inside. Regardless of the number of steps of the flange 2, if the nail touches the lower part of the flange 2 and cuts it to the point where it is supported, the rising motor stops working and the current value changes greatly. With this changed signal, it is recognized that the lower part of the flange 2 has been touched, and the completion is applied.

In the state of FIG. 11(D), the central portion of the long side of the returnable container with lid is sandwiched between the pressing pad 29 and the fork 25, and the claw 37 is inserted into the lower surface of the flange 2 of the returnable container 1. As shown in FIG. From this state, the pressing pad 29 is further strongly pressed against the flange 4 of the lid 3 by the cam mechanism, and the lid 3 is securely held and lifted without rattling. When the claw 37 comes into contact with the flange 2 of the returnable container 1, the load required for lifting increases, so it can be confirmed that the flange 2 is gripped by the change in the load current of the motor. If it cannot be confirmed, there is a risk of malfunction, so the device is stopped and a warning is issued.

If there is sufficient clearance on the left and right sides of the returnable container with lid to be handled, the above operation is performed simultaneously on both sides of the long side of the returnable container with lid, and the handling device 10 moves both sides of the returnable container with lid with the lid. Since it can be chucked as it is, it can be lifted by the robot arm 11 and moved to an arbitrary position.

However, as shown in FIG. 4, lidded returnable boxes are often stacked with almost no gap between adjacent lidded returnable boxes. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 12, first, one side of the returnable box with lid is chucked on the side where the side is open, and only one side is tilted and lifted by the operation of the robot to prevent the lower portion from slipping sideways. Remove part 6 of box 1 upwards. After that, a gap is formed between the adjacent returnable container with a lid by shifting it toward the opened side in the direction of the gripped one side. A fork 25 is inserted into the gap and the opposite side is chucked. In this manner, the two opposite sides can be chucked and moved to any position by the robot arm 11 .

Even in the case of a stacked state in which simple toteable boxes 1 without lids are piled up, they can be transported by this gripping device. The pressing pad 29 fixes the inner surface and the upper surface of the flange 4 of the lid 3 when the lid is attached. When there is no lid, the upper surface of the flange 2 of the returnable container and the side surface of the returnable container 1 about 10 mm inside are fixed from the inside. The returnable box 1 is not filled with products up to the top surface in order to stack the next box on top, and the products are always stored under a flange 2 on the top surface of about 20 mm. The fork 25 is inserted into the outer side of the returnable container 1 and is inserted under the flange 2 of the returnable container 1 to lift it up. In other words, even from a pile of boxes that include a mixture of returnable boxes with lids and returnable boxes without lids, the gripping device of the present invention can be used for general transportation by changing the positions of the forks and pressing pads with external signals. is possible.

Although the process of depalletizing stacked returnable containers with lids has been described above, it is also possible to palletize returnable containers with lids by reversing the procedure.

The advantages of the present invention are summarized as follows.
(1) It is possible to chuck and move lidded returnable boxes covered with various lids having different end flange shapes.
(2) The same handling device can be used even when the sizes of returnable containers with lids are different, and waste time for exchanging heads can be reduced.
(3) By chucking opposite long sides of the returnable container with lid, the size and weight of the handling device can be reduced, and the load on the robot can be reduced, thereby reducing the equipment cost.
(4) It can be used for both depalletizing and palletizing of returnable containers with lids.
(5) It can be gripped and transported even in the state of a simple tote box without a lid, so it can be used for general purposes even from a pile of tote boxes that contain a mixture of tote boxes with lids and without lids. Transport is possible with one gripping device.

1 Returnable Box 2 Flange 3 Lid 4 Flange 5 Lower Flange 6 Stacking Protrusion 7 Small Protrusion 10 Handling Device 11 Robot Arm 12 Pallet 13 3D Vision 15 Main Body 16 Substrate 17 Linear Guide 18 Slider Block 19 Slider 20 Servo Motor 21 Ball Screw 22 Nut 23 Vertical substrate 24 Linear guide 25 Fork 26 Lifting mechanism 27 Small linear guide 28 Horizontal slide plate 29 Pressing pad 30 Vertical surface 31 Horizontal surface 32 Groove cam 33 Cam roller 34 Feed screw 35 Drive motor 36 Vertical shaft 37 Claw 38 Rotation mechanism 39 Inner surface side bracket 40 sensor

Claims (5)

A method for handling a returnable container with a lid, in which a returnable container attached with a lid with a flange is gripped and moved by a handling device attached to a robot arm with the lid attached, the method comprising:
A handling device equipped with pressing pads and vertically movable forks on the left and right sides is moved above the center of the returnable box with lid, and the pressing pads on the left and right sides are expanded to the outside of the lid to contact the inner surface and top surface of the flange of the lid. let
A lid characterized by lowering the fork outside the lid, inserting the claws built into the fork into the underside of the flange of the returnable box to grip the returnable box with the lid while it is still attached, and moving the returnable box with the lid by means of a handling device. How to handle a companion box. 2. The method for handling a returnable container with a lid according to claim 1, wherein the coordinates of the returnable container with a lid and the shape of its flange are photographed by a camera to control the moving position of the handling device and the lowering amount of the fork. One side of the returnable box with lid is gripped by the holding pad and fork on one side, and only one side is lifted to remove the box from the bottom, pulled outward, and then the returnable box with lid is held by the holding pad and fork on the opposite side. 2. The method for handling a returnable container with a lid according to claim 1, wherein the opposite side of the container is grasped, lifted and moved. A handling device for a returnable container with a lid, which is attached to a robot arm and grips and moves a returnable container attached with a flanged lid with the lid still attached,
a main body connected to a robot arm;
a pair of sliders that are horizontally moved to expand or contract with respect to the main body;
a pressing pad provided on each slider and a liftable fork;
pushing means for pressing the hold down pad against the inner surface of the flange of the lid;
A handling device for a returnable container with a lid, characterized by comprising a claw housed inside a fork and projecting inside the lowered fork. 5. A handling device for a returnable container with a lid according to claim 4, wherein the claw of the fork is horizontally rotated by a vertical shaft built in the fork.

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