JP2023037374A - Granular material movement device and granular material conveyance apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technique capable of reducing the number of components for rotating an inclined drum.SOLUTION: A tablet printer 1 comprises: an inclined drum 71; a suction pipe 51; and a rotary motor 71M. The inclined drum 71 has an outer side surface 710 being a conical surface with a center axis C1 as a center and having a suction hole 711 for suctioning a tablet 9. The suction pipe 51 connects the suction hole 711 to a negative pressure source. The rotary motor 71M rotates the inclined drum 71 with the center axis C1 as a center. The rotary motor 71M is a hollow motor having a through hole 61 with the center axis C1 as a center. The suction pipe 51 is arranged in the through hole 61 of the rotary motor 71M.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a granular material moving device and a granular material conveying device.

2. Description of the Related Art A printing apparatus is known that prints an image on the surface of a granular material such as a tablet, which is a medicine, or tablet confectionery such as soda pop. For example, Patent Literatures 1 and 2 disclose a printing device that prints on the front and back of a tablet using an inkjet method.

The printing apparatus of Patent Document 1 includes an upstream transport section (3), a downstream transport section (4), a first printing section (201), and a second printing section (202). there is The tablet (T) is printed by the first printing unit (201) while being conveyed by the conveying unit (3). Then, the tablet (T) is transferred from the conveying section (3) to the conveying section (4) while being turned upside down. Then, the tablet (T) is printed by the second printing unit (202) while being conveyed by the conveying unit (4). As a result, printing is performed on the front and back surfaces of the tablet (T).

Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-200002 discloses a granular material conveying apparatus including a conveying mechanism for conveying granular materials and a reversing mechanism for reversing the granular materials. The reversing mechanism has a conical first tilting drum and a second tilting drum. The first tilting drum rotates while sucking the granular material (9) conveyed at the first position (W1) in the width direction of the conveying mechanism to the first suction holes (711) connected to the negative pressure source. , to the second inclined drum (72). The second tilting drum (72) rotates while sucking the granular material (9) received from the first suction hole (711) to the second suction hole (721) to move it to the second position in the width direction of the conveying mechanism. (W2).

JP 2015-223323 A JP 2020-069084 A

In Patent Document 2, a suction pipe is arranged inside the tilted drum in order to cause the suction holes of the tilted drum to absorb the particulate matter. Various parts such as bearings and gears for transmitting the power of the motor to the tilting drum are sometimes used in order to rotate the tilting drum with respect to the suction pipe while connecting the suction holes to the suction pipe. When the number of parts for rotating the tilt drum increases in this way, the amount of work required for assembly and maintenance of the apparatus increases. In addition, when the number of parts increases, the variation between apparatuses due to the machining accuracy and assembly accuracy of the parts increases. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the number of parts required to rotate the tilt drum.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique capable of reducing the number of parts for rotating the tilting drum.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a first aspect is a granular object moving device for moving a granular object while adsorbing it, the device comprising: a conical surface centered on a predetermined central axis; a suction pipe connecting the suction holes to a negative pressure source; and a rotary motor for rotating the inclined drum about the central axis, wherein the rotary motor It is a hollow motor having a through hole centering on a central axis, and the suction pipe is arranged in the through hole of the rotary motor.

A second aspect is the granular object moving apparatus of the first aspect, wherein the rotor of the rotary motor and the tilting drum rotate together about the central axis.

A third aspect is the particulate object moving apparatus of the first aspect or the second aspect, wherein a closing portion for intermittently closing the suction holes rotated by the rotary motor is provided on the suction pipe side with respect to the suction holes. and an air cutting member having an air cutoff member, wherein the suction holes move to a position overlapping with the closing portion and a position not overlapping with the closing portion by rotating the inclined drum, and the suction holes are separated from the closing portion. When not overlapping, the suction holes communicate with the suction pipe.

A fourth aspect is a granular object conveying apparatus, comprising: a conveying mechanism for holding a plurality of granular objects arranged in a width direction and conveying them in a predetermined conveying direction; a reversing mechanism for reversing the front and back of the granular material and moving the position of the granular material in the width direction, wherein the reversing mechanism is the first granular material according to any one of the first to third aspects; An object moving device and a second granular object moving device according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the inclined drum of the second granular object moving device moves the first granular object Adjacent to the inclined drum of the moving device in the width direction, the first granular object moving device attracts the granular objects at the first position on the conveying path of the conveying mechanism to the suction holes, The inclined drum is rotated to move the granular material to the delivery position, and the second granular material moving device moves the granular material placed at the delivery position by the first granular material moving device to the suction hole. , the inclined drum is rotated to move the granular material to a second position on the conveying path of the conveying mechanism.

According to the particulate object moving apparatus of the first to third aspects, since the hollow motor is applied as the power source for rotating the tilting drum, parts such as bearings and gears for rotating the tilting drum with respect to the suction pipe are provided. can be reduced. Therefore, the number of parts for rotating the tilt drum can be reduced.

According to the particulate matter moving device of the third aspect, the adsorption of the particulate matter in the adsorption holes can be released by overlapping the closing portion of the air cutting member with the adsorption holes.

According to the granular material conveying apparatus of the fourth aspect, the granular material can be turned inside out.

1 is a schematic side view of a tablet printing device according to an embodiment; FIG. FIG. 2 is a top view of the tablet printing apparatus shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the tablet printing apparatus shown in FIG. 1; 4 is a partial perspective view of the transport mechanism; FIG. It is a bottom view of a head. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a conveying mechanism and a reversing section as seen from the direction of an outlined arrow VI in FIG. 1; It is a top view of an inversion part. It is a block diagram showing the connection between the control unit and each element in the tablet printing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the flow of the printing process in a tablet printing apparatus. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of a pair of moving units cut along a plane passing through each central axis; FIG. It is a perspective view which shows an air cutting member. It is a top view of an air cutting member. It is a bottom view of an air cutting member. 13 is a view showing a cross section of the air cutting member at a position along line AA shown in FIG. 12; FIG.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the constituent elements described in this embodiment are merely examples, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention only to them. In the drawings, for ease of understanding, the dimensions and numbers of each part may be exaggerated or simplified as necessary.

<1. embodiment>
<1.1. Overall configuration of tablet printing device>
FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a tablet printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a top view of the tablet printing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the tablet printing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

The tablet printing apparatus 1 is a device that prints images such as a product name, a product code, a company name, and a logo mark on both front and back surfaces of each tablet 9 while conveying a plurality of tablets 9 that are granules. The tablet 9 may be an uncoated tablet (uncoated tablet), a coated tablet such as a sugar-coated tablet or a film-coated tablet (FC tablet), or a capsule. Moreover, the tablet 9 may be a medicine or a health food. In addition, the object to be printed by the tablet printing apparatus 1 is not limited to the tablet 9, and may be tablet confectionery such as soda pop.

In the following description, in the tablet printing apparatus 1, the direction in which the tablet 9 is conveyed is called "conveyance direction." A direction perpendicular to the conveying direction and along the holding surface 220 of the conveying belt 22 is referred to as a “width direction”.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet printing apparatus 1 includes a loading mechanism 10, a conveying mechanism 20, a printing unit 30, a first camera 40, a second camera 50, a drying mechanism 60, a reversing unit 70, An unloading mechanism 80 and a control unit 90 are provided.

The carry-in mechanism 10 is a mechanism that conveys the plurality of tablets 9 input to the tablet printing apparatus 1 to the conveying mechanism 20 . The carrying-in mechanism 10 has an alignment mechanism (not shown) composed of a vibrating feeder, a rotary feeder, a chute, etc., and a carrying-in drum 11 . The plurality of tablets 9 are aligned in multiple rows (three rows in this embodiment) by the alignment mechanism and supplied to the outer peripheral surface of the carry-in drum 11 . The loading drum 11 rotates while sucking and holding the aligned tablets 9 separated one by one on the outer peripheral surface. As a result, the tablets 9 in each row are arranged at regular intervals in the conveying direction. Further, the tablets 9 held by the loading drum 11 are conveyed in an arc by the rotation of the loading drum 11 and transferred to the conveying mechanism 20 .

The conveying mechanism 20 conveys the plurality of tablets 9 along the annular conveying path while holding the plurality of tablets 9 . The transport mechanism 20 has a pair of pulleys 21 and a transport belt 22 stretched over the pair of pulleys 21 . One of the pair of pulleys 21 is rotated by power obtained from a transport motor 23 . As a result, the conveyor belt 22 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. At this time, the other of the pair of pulleys 21 is driven to rotate as the conveyor belt 22 rotates.

4 is a partial perspective view of the transport mechanism 20. FIG. As shown in FIG. 4 , a plurality of suction holes 221 are provided on a holding surface 220 that is the outer peripheral surface of the conveying belt 22 . The plurality of suction holes 221 are arranged at regular intervals in the transport direction and width direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 1 , the transport mechanism 20 has a suction mechanism 24 that sucks gas from the space inside the transport belt 22 . When the suction mechanism 24 is operated, the space inside the conveying belt 22 becomes a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 are adsorbed and held in the adsorption holes 221 by the negative pressure.

As shown in FIG. 1, the transport mechanism 20 has three first blow mechanisms B1 and one second blow mechanism B2. The first blow mechanism B<b>1 is arranged inside the conveyor belt 22 . The first blow mechanism B<b>1 faces the inclined drums 71 , 73 , 75 via the conveyor belt 22 . The three first blow mechanisms B<b>1 blow gas only to the suction holes 221 facing the inclined drums 71 , 73 , 75 among the plurality of suction holes 221 of the conveyor belt 22 . Then, the suction hole 221 becomes a positive pressure higher than the atmospheric pressure. By blowing the gas, the adsorption of the tablets 9 in the adsorption holes 221 is released, and the tablets 9 are transferred from the conveying belt 22 to the inclined drums 71, 73 and 75, respectively.

The second blow mechanism B2 is arranged inside the conveying belt 22 . The second blow mechanism B2 faces a carry-out chute 81, which will be described later, via the transport belt 22. As shown in FIG. The second blow mechanism B<b>2 blows gas only to the suction holes 221 facing the carry-out chute 81 among the plurality of suction holes 221 of the conveyor belt 22 . By blowing this gas, the suction holes 221 are brought to a positive pressure higher than the atmospheric pressure. Then, the adsorption of the tablets 9 by the adsorption holes 221 is released, and the tablets 9 fall from the conveying belt 22 to the carry-out chute 81 .

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the holding surface 220 of the conveyor belt 22 has a first area A1 for holding tablets 9 before being inverted by an inverting section 70 described later, and a second area A1 for holding tablets 9 after being inverted. A2. The first area A1 and the second area A2 are adjacent to each other in the width direction. A plurality of suction holes 221 are provided in three rows in the width direction in each of the first area A1 and the second area A2. The tablet 9 carried in by the carrying-in mechanism 10 described above is sucked and held in the suction holes 221 of the first area A1. A plurality of tablets 9 printed on both sides are delivered to the carry-out mechanism 80 through the suction holes 221 in the second area A2.

The printing unit 30 is a processing unit that prints on the surface of the tablet 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 22 by an inkjet method. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the printing section 30 has four heads 31 . The four heads 31 are positioned above the transport belt 22 and arranged in a row along the transport direction of the tablets 9 . Each head 31 extends in the width direction across both the first area A1 and the second area A2 of the conveyor belt 22 . The four heads 31 eject ink droplets of different colors (eg, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) toward the surface of the tablet 9 . Then, a multicolor image is recorded on the surface of the tablet 9 by superimposing monochromatic images formed by these colors. The ink ejected from each head 31 is edible ink manufactured from raw materials approved by the Japanese Pharmacopoeia, the Food Sanitation Law, and the like. Below the four heads 31 , the tablet 9 is transported horizontally by the transport mechanism 20 .

5 is a bottom view of the head 31. FIG. In FIG. 5, the conveyor belt 22 and the plurality of tablets 9 held by the conveyor belt 22 are indicated by two-dot chain lines. As shown in FIG. 5, the head 31 has an ejection surface 310 which is the lower surface. A plurality of nozzles 311 capable of ejecting ink droplets are arranged on the ejection surface 310 . Specifically, a plurality of nozzles 311 are two-dimensionally arranged in the transport direction and the width direction on the ejection surface 310 . The nozzles 311 are arranged with their positions shifted in the width direction. By arranging the plurality of nozzles 311 two-dimensionally in this manner, the positions of the nozzles 311 in the width direction can be brought closer to each other. However, the plurality of nozzles 311 may be arranged in a row along the width direction.

As a method for ejecting ink droplets from the nozzles 311, for example, a so-called piezo method is used in which ink in the nozzles 311 is pressurized and ejected by applying a voltage to the piezoelectric element to deform it. However, the method of ejecting the ink droplets may be a so-called thermal method in which the heater is energized to heat and expand the ink in the nozzle 311 to eject the ink droplets.

The first camera 40 photographs the surface of the tablet 9 before printing. The first camera 40 is positioned downstream of the transport path from the carry-in drum 11 and positioned upstream of the transport path from the four heads 31 . Also, the first camera 40 extends in the width direction across both the first area A1 and the second area A2. For the first camera 40, for example, a line sensor in which imaging elements such as CCD and CMOS are arranged in the width direction is used. A first camera 40 photographs a plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 22 . The captured image is transmitted from the first camera 40 to the control unit 90, which will be described later. Based on the image obtained from the first camera 40 , the control unit 90 detects the presence or absence of the tablet 9 in each suction hole 221 , the position of the tablet 9 and the orientation of the tablet 9 . Based on the image obtained from the first camera 40, the control unit 90 also inspects each tablet 9 for defects such as chipping.

The second camera 50 photographs the surface of the tablet 9 after printing. The second camera 50 is positioned downstream of the transport path from the four heads 31 and is positioned upstream of the transport path from the drying mechanism 60 . The second camera 50 extends in the width direction across both the first area A1 and the second area A2. For the second camera 50, for example, a line sensor in which imaging elements such as CCD and CMOS are arranged in the width direction is used. A second camera 50 photographs a plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 22 . An image obtained by photographing is transmitted from the second camera 50 to the control unit 90, which will be described later. The control unit 90 inspects the quality of the image printed on the surface of the tablet 9 based on the image obtained from the second camera 50 .

The drying mechanism 60 is a mechanism for drying ink adhering to the surface of the tablet 9 . The drying mechanism 60 is located downstream of the second camera 50 in the transport path, and upstream of the transport path from the reversing section 70 and the carry-out chute 81, which will be described later. Moreover, the drying mechanism 60 extends in the width direction across both the first area A1 and the second area A2. For the drying mechanism 60, for example, a hot air supply mechanism that blows heated gas (hot air) toward the tablets 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 22 is used. The ink adhering to the surface of the tablet 9 is dried by hot air and fixed to the surface of the tablet 9 .

The tablet printing apparatus 1 has four processing units: a printing unit 30 , a first camera 40 , a second camera 50 and a drying mechanism 60 . Each processing unit performs predetermined processing, that is, printing, photographing, and drying, on the surface of tablet 9 at each processing position on the transport path in transport mechanism 20 .

The reversing unit 70 is a mechanism that reverses the front and back of the tablet 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 22 and moves the tablet 9 from the first area A1 to the second area A2. The reversing section 70 is positioned downstream of the conveying path with respect to a carry-out chute 81 to be described later, and is positioned upstream of the conveying path with respect to the carry-in drum 11 .

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the conveying mechanism 20 and the reversing section 70 viewed from the direction of the outline arrow VI in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 6, the reversing section 70 of this embodiment has six moving units M1, M2, M3, M4, M5 and M6. The moving units M1-M6 have tilting drums 71, 72, 73, 74, 75 and 76, respectively.

In this embodiment, the moving unit M1 corresponds to the "first granular material moving device", and the moving unit M2 corresponds to the "second granular material moving device". Also, the pair of moving units M1 and M2 corresponds to a "reversing mechanism" for reversing the front and back of the tablet 9, which is a granular material.

The inclined drums 71 and 72 are arranged adjacent to each other in the width direction. The inclined drums 73, 74 are arranged adjacent to each other in the width direction. The inclined drums 73 and 74 are arranged away from the inclined drums 71 and 72 on the downstream side in the transport direction. The inclined drums 75, 76 are arranged adjacent to each other in the width direction. The inclined drums 75 and 76 are arranged away from the inclined drums 73 and 74 on the downstream side in the transport direction.

In the following description, the position at which the inclined drums 71 and 72 are provided on the conveying path of the conveying mechanism 20 is referred to as a "first reversing position", and the position at which the inclined drums 73 and 74 are provided as a "second reversing position". The positions at which the inclined drums 75 and 76 are provided are respectively referred to as "third reversing positions".

The inclined drum 71 has an outer surface 710 which is a cone-shaped conical surface centered on the central axis C1 inclined with respect to the width direction. A portion of the outer surface 710 faces the first area A1 of the conveyor belt 22 with a small gap therebetween. Also, the tilt drum 71 is fixed to the output shaft of the rotary motor 71M. When the rotary motor 71M is driven, the tilt drum 71 rotates about the central axis C1.

The inclined drum 72 has an outer surface 720 which is a cone-shaped pyramidal surface centered on the central axis C2 inclined with respect to the width direction. The inclined drums 71 and 72 are arranged adjacent to each other in the width direction so that their tops face each other. A portion of the outer surface 720 faces the second area A2 of the conveyor belt 22 with a small gap therebetween. Another portion of the outer side surface 720 faces the outer side surface 710 with a small gap therebetween. Also, the tilt drum 72 is fixed to the output shaft of the rotary motor 72M. When the rotary motor 72M is driven, the tilt drum 72 rotates around the central axis C2.

When viewed in the conveying direction of the conveying mechanism 20, the vertical angle of the inclined drum 71 and the vertical angle of the inclined drum 72 are both 90°. Further, the inclination angle of the central axis C1 with respect to the holding surface 220 is 45°. Further, the inclination angle of the central axis C2 with respect to the holding surface 220 is 45°. Therefore, the outer surfaces 710 , 720 face each other at 90° to the holding surface 220 . Also, the inclined drums 71 and 72 have the same shape, structure and size. Therefore, the inclined drums 71 and 72 may be shared as parts. Thereby, the manufacturing cost of the tablet printing apparatus 1 can be reduced.

The tilting drums 73 and 74 have the same structure as the tilting drums 71 and 72 and are arranged adjacently like the tilting drums 71 and 72 . However, the inclined drums 73 and 74 are arranged at a second delivery position that is separated downstream of the conveying path from the first delivery position where the inclined drums 71 and 72 are arranged. In addition, the inclined drums 73 and 74 are arranged at positions shifted in the width direction from the inclined drums 71 and 72 by one width-direction arrangement interval of the tablets 9 . The tilting drum 73 is fixed to the output shaft of the rotary motor 73M, and the tilting drum 74 is fixed to the output shaft of the rotary motor 74M.

The tilting drums 75 and 76 also have the same structure as the tilting drums 71 and 72 and are arranged adjacently like the tilting drums 71 and 72 . However, the tilted drums 75 and 76 are arranged at a third transfer position that is separated downstream of the conveying path from the second transfer position where the tilted drums 73 and 74 are arranged. In addition, the inclined drums 75 and 76 are arranged at positions shifted in the width direction from the inclined drums 73 and 74 by one width-direction arrangement interval of the tablets 9 . The tilting drum 75 is fixed to the output shaft of the rotary motor 75M, and the tilting drum 76 is fixed to the output shaft of the sixth rotary motor 76M.

FIG. 7 is a top view of the reversing section 70. FIG. In FIG. 7, the trajectory of the tablet 9 is indicated by a dashed arrow. After being held in the suction holes 221 at the first position W1 in the width direction of the transport belt 22, the tablets 9 are transferred to the inclined drum 71 from the transport belt 22 when transported to the first reversing position. The tilted drum 71 rotates while sucking and holding the tablets 9 received from the conveying belt 22 in the suction holes 711 of the outer surface 710 and delivers them to the tilted drum 72 . After that, the inclined drum 72 rotates while sucking and holding the tablets 9 received from the inclined drum 71 in the suction holes 721 of the outer surface 720, and delivers them to the suction holes 221 at the second position W2 in the width direction of the conveying belt 22. . As a result, the tablet 9 moves in the width direction from the first position W1 in the first area A1 to the second position W2 in the second area A2, and the tablet 9 is turned upside down.

Like the inclined drums 71 and 72, the inclined drums 73 and 74 move from the third position W3 in the first area A1 to the fourth position W4 in the second area A2 in the width direction of the tablet 9 in the conveying path. is moved, and the front and back of the tablet 9 are reversed. Like the inclined drums 71 and 72, the inclined drums 75 and 76 move from the fifth position W5 in the first area A1 to the sixth position W6 in the second area A2 in the width direction of the tablet 9 in the conveying path. is moved, and the front and back of the tablet 9 are reversed.

Returning to FIG. 1 , the carry-out mechanism 80 is a mechanism for carrying out a plurality of tablets 9 from the transport mechanism 20 to the outside of the tablet printing apparatus 1 . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the carry-out mechanism 80 has a carry-out chute 81 and a carry-out conveyor (not shown). The carry-out chute 81 is positioned downstream of the transport path with respect to the drying mechanism 60 and upstream of the transport path with respect to the reversing section 70 . The carry-out chute 81 faces the second area A2 of the conveyor belt 22 . When the tablets 9 adsorbed to the adsorption holes 221 in the second area A2 reach the position of the carry-out chute 81, the adsorption of the tablets 9 is released by the second blow mechanism B2. As a result, the tablets 9 fall from the second area A2 of the conveyor belt 22 to the upper surface of the discharge conveyor through the discharge chute 81 . Then, the dropped tablets 9 are carried out of the tablet printing apparatus 1 by the carry-out conveyor.

The control unit 90 controls the operation of each element within the tablet printing apparatus 1 . FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing connections between the control unit 90 and each element in the tablet printing apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. The control unit 90 is configured by a computer having a processor 91 such as a CPU, a memory 92 such as a RAM, and a storage unit 93 such as a hard disk drive. A computer program CP for executing the conveying process and the printing process in the tablet printing apparatus 1 is installed in the storage unit 93 .

As shown in FIG. 8, the controller 90 controls the loading mechanism 10 (including the alignment mechanism and the loading drum 11), the transport mechanism 20 (the transport motor 23, the suction mechanism 24, the first blow mechanism B1 and the second blow mechanism B1). mechanism B2), printing unit 30 (including four heads 31), first camera 40, second camera 50, drying mechanism 60, reversing unit 70 (rotating motors 71M to 76M and negative including a pressure source) and the unloading mechanism 80 are communicably connected. The processor 91 temporarily reads the computer program CP and data stored in the storage unit 93 to the memory 92 . Then, the processor 91 performs arithmetic processing based on the computer program CP. Thereby, the control unit 90 controls the operation of each element in the tablet printing apparatus 1 . Thereby, in the tablet printing apparatus 1, the conveying process and the printing process of the plurality of tablets 9 proceed.

<About the flow of processing>
Next, processing performed on one tablet 9 in the tablet printing apparatus 1 will be described. Note that the tablet printing apparatus 1 processes a plurality of tablets 9 while sequentially conveying them. Therefore, in the tablet printing apparatus 1, each process for the plurality of tablets 9 is performed in parallel.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the flow of printing processing in the tablet printing apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. When the tablet 9 is put into the tablet printing apparatus 1, the loading mechanism 10 first loads the tablet 9 into the transport mechanism 20 (step S1). The tablets 9 carried into the transport mechanism 20 are adsorbed and held in the adsorption holes 221 in the first area A1 of the transport belt 22 . The tablets 9 are conveyed along the annular conveying path as the conveying belt 22 rotates.

Hereinafter, when the tablet 9 is held in the suction holes 221 of the first region A1, the surface facing the outside of the tablet 9 will be referred to as the “first surface”, and the surface of the tablet 9 that is absorbed by the suction holes 221 will be referred to as the “second surface”. ”. The “first side” and the “second side” are irrelevant to the original front and back surfaces of the tablet 9 . For example, when the tablet 9 has a dividing line only on one side, among the plurality of tablets 9 held in the first area A1, the tablet 9 having the dividing line is the first side and the side without the dividing line is the first side. The tablet 9 which becomes one side may be mixed.

When the tablet 9 reaches below the first camera 40 , the first camera 40 photographs the first surface of the tablet 9 . Thereby, the image data of the first surface of the tablet 9 is acquired. The acquired image data is transmitted from the first camera 40 to the control section 90 . Also, the control unit 90 performs a pre-printing inspection of the first surface based on the image data received from the first camera 40 (step S2). Specifically, the presence or absence of the tablet 9 in the suction hole 221, the front and back sides of the tablet 9, the rotational posture of the tablet 9 around the vertical axis, the positional deviation of the tablet 9 with respect to the suction hole 221, the presence or absence of a shape defect of the tablet 9, etc. are inspected. be done.

Next, when the tablet 9 reaches below the printing unit 30 , the four heads 31 eject ink droplets toward the first surface of the tablet 9 . Thereby, printing is performed on the first surface of the tablet 9 . As a result, an image is printed on the first surface of tablet 9 (step S3). At this time, the control unit 90 adjusts the image to be printed on each tablet 9 based on the inspection result of step S2 described above. For example, from the image for the front side and the image for the back side, an appropriate image is selected according to the front and back sides of each tablet 9, and the selected image is rotated according to the rotational posture of each tablet 9. A print signal is input to the head 31 based on the adjusted image. As a result, an image suitable for the first surface of each tablet 9 is printed in an appropriate orientation.

When the tablet 9 reaches below the second camera 50 , the second camera 50 photographs the first surface of the tablet 9 . Thereby, the image data of the first surface of the tablet 9 is obtained. The acquired image data is transmitted from the second camera 50 to the control section 90 . The control unit 90 also performs a post-printing inspection of the first surface based on the image data received from the second camera 50 (step S4). Specifically, for example, the control unit 90 compares the image data received from the second camera 50 and the data of the normal image prepared in advance, so that the image printed on the first surface of each tablet 9 is displayed. Determine whether the image is normal.

When the tablet 9 reaches the position of the drying mechanism 60 , the drying mechanism 60 blows hot air toward the first surface of the tablet 9 . As a result, the ink adhering to the first surface of the tablet 9 is dried and fixed on the first surface (step S5).

After that, when the tablet 9 reaches the first to third reversing positions, the reversing unit 70 moves the position of the tablet 9 in the width direction and reverses the front and back of the tablet 9 (step S6). Specifically, the tablet 9 conveyed at the first position W1 in the width direction is moved to the second position W2 in the width direction by the inclined drums 71 and 72 . The tablet 9 conveyed at the third position W3 in the width direction is moved to the fourth position W4 in the width direction by the inclined drums 73 and 74 . The tablet 9 conveyed at the fifth position W5 in the width direction is moved to the sixth position W6 in the width direction by the inclined drums 75 and 76 . As a result, the plurality of tablets 9 move from the suction holes 221 in the first area A1 of the conveying mechanism 20 to the suction holes 221 in the second area A2. At this time, the tablet 9 is sucked and held by the suction holes 221 in the second area A2 with the second surface facing outward.

When tablet 9 reaches below first camera 40 , first camera 40 photographs the second surface of tablet 9 . Thereby, the image data of the second surface of the tablet 9 is acquired. The acquired image data is transmitted from the first camera 40 to the control section 90 . Further, the control unit 90 performs a pre-printing inspection of the second surface based on the image data received from the first camera 40 (step S7). Specifically, the presence or absence of the tablet 9 in the suction hole 221, the front and back sides of the tablet 9, the rotational posture of the tablet 9 around the vertical axis, the positional deviation of the tablet 9 with respect to the suction hole 221, the presence or absence of a shape defect of the tablet 9, etc. are inspected. be done.

Next, when the tablet 9 reaches below the printing unit 30 , the four heads 31 eject ink droplets toward the second surface of the tablet 9 . Thereby, printing is performed on the second surface of the tablet 9 . As a result, an image is printed on the second surface of tablet 9 (step S8). At this time, the control unit 90 adjusts the image to be printed on each tablet 9 based on the inspection result of step S7 described above. For example, from the image for the front side and the image for the back side, an appropriate image is selected according to the front and back sides of each tablet 9, and the selected image is rotated according to the rotational posture of each tablet 9. A print signal is input to the head 31 based on the adjusted image. As a result, an image suitable for the second surface of each tablet 9 is printed in an appropriate posture.

When the tablet 9 reaches below the second camera 50 , the second camera 50 photographs the second surface of the tablet 9 . Thereby, the image data of the second surface of the tablet 9 is obtained. The acquired image data is transmitted from the second camera 50 to the control section 90 . The control unit 90 also performs a post-printing inspection of the second surface based on the image data received from the second camera 50 (step S9). Specifically, for example, the control unit 90 compares the image data received from the second camera 50 and the data of the normal image prepared in advance, so that the image data printed on the second surface of each tablet 9 is displayed. Determine whether the image is normal.

When the tablet 9 reaches the position of the drying mechanism 60 , the drying mechanism 60 blows hot air toward the second surface of the tablet 9 . As a result, the ink adhering to the second surface of the tablet 9 is dried and fixed on the second surface (step S10).

When the tablets 9 reach the position of the carry-out chute 81, the tablets 9 fall from the conveyor belt 22 through the carry-out chute 81 to the carry-out conveyor. Then, the tablet 9 is carried out to the outside of the tablet printing apparatus 1 by the carry-out conveyor (step S11).

As described above, the tablet printing apparatus 1 conveys the tablets 9 along the annular conveying path. A reversing unit 70 for reversing the front and back of the tablet 9 and moving the position of the tablet 9 in the width direction is provided in a part of the conveying path. Therefore, each process of photographing by the first camera 40, printing by the printing unit 30, photographing by the second camera 50, and drying by the drying mechanism 60 is performed on both sides of the tablet 9 at the same position in the conveying direction. can. Therefore, the number of parts of the tablet printing apparatus 1 can be reduced as compared with the case where these processes for the first surface and these processes for the second surface are performed at separate positions. Moreover, the tablet printing apparatus 1 can be miniaturized.

In addition, a pair of tilted drums is used to realize the reversal of the tablet 9 and the movement in the width direction. According to this mechanism, the tablet 9 can be turned upside down and moved in the width direction without changing the position in the conveying direction. Therefore, the length in the transport direction required for the reversing section 70 can be suppressed. Thereby, the tablet printing apparatus 1 can be made more compact.

<Configuration for Realizing Adsorption and Release of Adsorption of Tablets>
Next, a configuration for realizing adsorption and release of adsorption of the tablets 9 to the inclined drums 71 to 76 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 14. FIG.

FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of the pair of moving units M1 and M2 cut along a plane passing through the central axes C1 and C2. The mobile unit M2 has almost the same configuration as the mobile unit M1. Therefore, the configuration of the mobile unit M1 will be mainly described below, and the description of the configuration of the mobile unit M2 will be omitted as appropriate.

As shown in FIG. 10, the moving unit M1 includes a suction pipe 51, an air cutting member 53, and a pressing member 55 in addition to an inclined drum 71 and a rotary motor 71M. The moving unit M1 also includes a housing 57 that accommodates the rotary motor 71M, the suction pipe 51, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 10, the rotary motor 71M is a hollow motor having a through hole 61 centered on the central axis C1. The rotary motor 71M has a rotor 63 that rotates about the central axis C1 and a stator 65 that is fixed to the housing 57. As shown in FIG. The rotor 63 is located closer to the inclined drum 71 than the stator 65 is. The tilting drum 71 is fixed to the rotor 63 . Therefore, the rotor 63 and the tilting drum 71 rotate together about the central axis C1. Also, the rotor 63 rotates around the suction pipe 51 . A suction pipe 51 is arranged in the through hole 61 of the rotary motor 71M. The suction pipe 51 is fixed to the housing 57 and cannot rotate.

11 is a perspective view showing the air cutting member 53. FIG. 12 is a top view of the air cutting member 53. FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the air cutting member 53. FIG. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the air cutting member 53 along line AA shown in FIG.

The air cutting member 53 is a member for switching between a state in which the suction holes 711 suck air and a state in which the suction holes 711 stop sucking air. As shown in FIG. 10 , the air cutting member 53 is arranged on the suction pipe 51 side with respect to the inclined drum 71 . Further, the air cutting member 53 is arranged inside the inclined drum 71 (on the side closer to the central axis C1).

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 14, the air cutting member 53 is composed of a base portion 531 and a contact portion 533 which are connected to each other along the central axis C1. The base portion 531 is arranged on the suction pipe 51 side, and the contact portion 533 is arranged on the inclined drum 71 side. The base portion 531 is cylindrical. The contact portion 533 is formed in a substantially truncated cone shape whose outer diameter gradually decreases toward the inclined drum 71 side.

As shown in FIG. 10, the outer surface of the contact portion 533 forms a conical surface having a shape corresponding to the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 (the surface opposite to the outer surface 710). The outer surface of the contact portion 533 is inclined at the same angle as the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 with respect to the central axis C1. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10, the outer surface of the contact portion 533 can contact the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 without any gap. The contact portion 533 has a closing portion 534 . The closing portion 534 is a portion that closes the suction holes 711 of the inclined drum 71 .

The contact portion 533 has an opening 535 on its outer surface. The opening 535 forms one opening of a communication hole 537 to be described later. As shown in FIG. 12, the opening formed by the opening 535 has a substantially arcuate shape with a central angle of about 180° in the circumferential direction (rotational direction about the central axis C1).

The air cutting member 53 has a communication hole 537 . The communication hole 537 is a through hole passing through the base portion 531 and the contact portion 533 . One end of the communication hole 537 is connected to an opening 535 on the outer surface of the contact portion 533 . The other end of the communication hole 537 is open at the end of the base portion 531 on the suction pipe 51 side. Thus, the air cutting member 53 is a hollow member having a communication hole 537, which is a through hole, formed inside. When the suction hole 711 overlaps the opening of the opening 535 while the inclined drum 71 is rotating, the suction hole 711 communicates with the suction pipe 51 through the communication hole 537 . That is, the suction hole 711 communicates with the suction pipe 51 when the suction hole 711 does not overlap the closing portion 534 .

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 12, the closing portion 534 and the opening portion 535 are on the same circumference around the central axis C1 and arranged at different positions in the circumferential direction. In other words, the closing portion 534 and the opening of the communication hole 537 are arranged at different positions in the circumferential direction. When the rotary motor 71M rotates the tilt drum 71 around the central axis C1, the suction hole 711 of the tilt drum 71 is moved to a position overlapping the closing portion 534 and a position overlapping the opening of the opening portion 535 (communication hole 537). move alternately. In other words, the suction hole 711 alternately moves between a position overlapping the closing portion 534 and a position not overlapping the closing portion 534 .

As shown in FIG. 10 , when the suction hole 711 overlaps the communication hole 537 of the air cutting member 53 , the suction hole 711 communicates with the suction pipe 51 through the communication hole 537 . This enables the adsorption hole 711 to adsorb the tablet 9 . Also, when the suction hole 711 of the inclined drum 71 overlaps with the closing portion 534 of the air cutting member 53 , the connection between the suction hole 711 and the suction pipe 51 is blocked by the closing portion 534 . Thus, the closing part 534 intermittently closes the suction holes 711 by intermittently overlapping the rotating suction holes 711 . By closing the suction hole 711 with the closing portion 534, the suction of the tablet 9 in the suction hole 711 is released.

As shown in FIGS. 11 to 14, the air cutting member 53 has an engaging recess 539. As shown in FIGS. The engagement recess 539 forms a hole recessed toward the inclined drum 71 at the end face of the base portion 531 on the suction pipe 51 side. The engaging recess 539 has a cylindrical shape extending along the central axis C1. A detent pin 517 , which will be described later, is inserted into the engaging recess 539 . Rotation of the air cutting member 53 is suppressed by the engagement of the detent pin 517 with the engaging recess 539 . The engaging recess 539 is an example of an engaging portion.

<Suction piping>
As shown in FIG. 10 , the suction pipe 51 has a pipe body portion 511 , a flange portion 513 and a relay member 515 . The pipe main body 511 has a cylindrical shape centered on the central axis C1. The end of the piping body 511 opposite to the inclined drum 71 is connected to a negative pressure source (not shown) such as a vacuum pump. Since the pipe main body 511 is connected to the negative pressure source, the pressure inside the pipe main body 511 is kept at a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure.

The flange portion 513 protrudes radially outward (in a direction away from the central axis C1) over the entire circumference from the peripheral edge portion of the end portion of the pipe body portion 511 on the inclined drum 71 side. The flange portion 513 has an annular shape.

The relay member 515 is attached to the flange portion 513 . The relay member 515 includes an annular plate portion 521 having an annular plate shape centered on the central axis C1, an annular inner wall portion 522 rising from the inner edge portion of the annular plate portion 521 toward the inclined drum 71, It has an outer wall portion 523 that rises from the outer edge portion of the ring plate portion 521 toward the pipe main body portion 511 . The flange portion 513 is press-fit inside the outer wall portion 523 of the relay member 515 . The inner wall portion 522 of the relay member 515 is inserted into the opening (communication hole 537 ) of the base portion 531 of the air cutting member 53 . Therefore, the air cutting member 53 is connected to the tip of the suction pipe 51 on the inclined drum 71 side.

As shown in FIG. 10 , the relay member 515 has a detent pin 517 . The detent pin 517 is fixed on the surface of the annular plate portion 521 facing the inclined drum 71 side. The detent pin 517 extends linearly toward the inclined drum 71 along the central axis C1. As described above, the anti-rotation pin 517 is inserted into the engaging recess 539 of the air blowing member 53 so that the air blowing member 53 is non-rotatably engaged with the suction pipe 51 . As a result, the rotation of the air cutting member 53 together with the inclined drum 71 is suppressed. That is, the rotary motor 71M can rotate the inclined drum 71 with respect to the air cutting member 53 around the central axis C1.

It should be noted that it is not essential that the anti-rotation pin 517 extends parallel to the central axis C1, and the anti-rotation pin 517 may extend in a direction intersecting the central axis C1. Further, it is not essential that the detent pin 517 is fixed to the relay member 515 of the suction pipe 51, and the detent pin 517 is directly fixed to a non-rotatable member other than the suction pipe 51 (for example, the housing 57). may be Also, the air cutting member 52 may have a detent pin, and the suction pipe may have an engaging recess 539 (engaging portion).

<Pressing member>
The pressing member 55 is a member that presses the air cutting member 53 toward the inclined drum 71 side. The pressing member 55 is preferably an elastic member that is elastically deformable in the axial direction of the central axis C1. In the example shown in FIG. 10, the pressing member 55 is a leaf spring having an annular shape centered on the central axis C1, and is a wave washer that alternately forms smooth wavy unevenness along the circumferential direction. As shown in FIG. 10 , the pressing member 55 is arranged between the suction pipe 51 and the air cutting member 53 . Specifically, the inner wall portion 522 of the relay member 515 is inserted inside the pressing member 55 . The pressing member 55 is arranged between the annular plate portion 521 of the relay member 515 and the base portion 531 of the air cutting member 53 .

By configuring the pressing member 55 with an elastic member such as a leaf spring, the air cutting member 53 can be pressed against the inclined drum 71 with an appropriate pressing force. Note that the pressing member 55 may be a plate spring having a shape different from that of the wave washer. Moreover, the pressing member 55 is not limited to a leaf spring, and may be, for example, a helical spring.

The pressing member 55 presses the air cutting member 53 toward the inclined drum 71 . Then, the outer surface of the closing portion 534 of the air cutting member 53 is pressed against the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 . That is, the outer surface of the air cutting member 53 is always in contact with the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 . Thereby, a gap (clearance) between the inner surface of the inclined drum 71 and the outer surface of the air cutting member 53 can be eliminated. Therefore, when the suction hole 711 overlaps the outer surface of the closing portion 534, the suction of air in the suction hole 711 can be almost completely stopped. Therefore, adsorption of the tablet 9 in the adsorption hole 711 can be properly released. In this way, since the suction of the tablet 9 in the suction hole 711 can be effectively released, the delivery of the tablet 9 can be performed appropriately. That is, it is possible to improve the accuracy of conveying the tablet 9 by the moving unit M1.

For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the closing portion 534 of the air cutting member 53 in the moving unit M1 faces the opening 535 of the air cutting member 53 in the moving unit M2. Therefore, when the tablet 9 moves from the inclined drum 71 of the moving unit M1 to the delivery position P1 where it is transferred to the inclined drum 72 of the moving unit M2, the adsorption of the tablet 9 in the adsorption hole 711 of the moving unit M1 is released, and the moving unit M1 releases the tablet 9. The tablet 9 is adsorbed to the adsorption hole 721 of M2. At this time, in the moving unit M1, the air cutting member 53 is pressed against the inclined drum 71, so that the adsorption can be properly released. Therefore, delivery of the tablet 9 from the suction hole 711 of the inclined drum 71 to the suction hole 721 of the inclined drum 72 can be performed with high accuracy.

Further, by keeping the outer surface of the closing portion 534 of the air cutting member 53 in constant contact with the inner surface of the inclined drum 71, it is possible to suppress variations in conveying accuracy among the moving units M1 to M6. In addition, it is possible to suppress variations in the position of the air cutting member 53 with respect to the inclined drum 71 during assembly. Therefore, even when the moving unit M1 is once disassembled and reassembled, the reproducibility of the position of the air cutting member 53 with respect to the inclined drum 71 can be improved. Further, since the adjustment of the position of the air cutting member 53 with respect to the inclined drum 71 can be omitted, the work speed for assembling the moving unit M1 can be improved.

The air cutting member 53 is preferably made of resin. By making the air cutting member 53 made of resin, even if the air cutting member 53 slides against the inclined drum 71, it is possible to suppress the generation of dust, thereby reducing the occurrence of printing defects. Also, the air cutting member 53 is more preferably made of polyoxymethylene (POM), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), or polyetheretherketone (PEEK). By forming the air cutting member 53 from such a material, the sliding of the air cutting member 53 with respect to the inclined drum 71 can be improved, so that generation of dust can be greatly reduced.

It is conceivable to use a non-hollow motor instead of a hollow motor as the rotating motor 71M (power source) for rotating the tilting drum 71 . If a solid motor is applied, bearings for rotatably connecting the tilting drum 71 to the suction line 51 and gears for transmitting the power of the solid motor to the tilting drum 71 may be provided. It is conceivable to use a non-hollow motor instead of a hollow motor as the rotating motor 71M (power source) for rotating the tilting drum 71 . However, when a solid motor is applied, a bearing for rotatably connecting the tilting drum 71 to the suction pipe 51 and a gear for transmitting power of the solid motor to the tilting drum 71 are required.

In contrast, if a hollow motor is applied to the rotary motor 71M as in the present embodiment, the suction pipe 51 can be arranged inside the through hole 61 of the rotary motor 71M. Therefore, the tilt drum 71 can be directly fixed to the rotor 63 of the rotary motor 71M. Therefore, the number of parts (bearings, gears, etc.) required for rotating the tilting drum 71 can be reduced as compared with the case where a solid motor is applied. Therefore, it is possible to suppress variations in the movement unit M1 due to component accuracy and assembly accuracy. Also, the amount of work required for assembling and adjusting the moving unit M1 can be reduced. Therefore, the assembly work speed and the adjustment work speed of the moving unit M1 can be improved.

<2. Variation>
Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above, and various modifications are possible.

For example, in the above embodiment, the inclined drums 71-76 have conical sides. However, the side surfaces of the inclined drums 71 to 76 may have a polygonal pyramid shape such as a square pyramid shape, a hexagonal pyramid shape, an octagonal pyramid shape, or the like.

In the above embodiment, the case where the tablet 9 is conveyed along the annular conveying path has been described. However, in the granular material conveying apparatus of the present invention, while conveying the granular material along the non-circular conveying path, the granular material is reversed in a part of the conveying path, and the position of the granular material in the width direction is moved. can be anything.

Although the present invention has been described in detail, the above description is, in all aspects, illustrative and not intended to limit the present invention. It is understood that numerous variations not illustrated can be envisioned without departing from the scope of the invention. Each configuration described in each of the above embodiments and modifications can be appropriately combined or omitted as long as they do not contradict each other.

Reference Signs List 1 tablet printing device 20 conveying mechanism 51 suction pipe 53 air cutting member 534 closing portion 537 communication hole 539 engaging recess (engaging portion)
55 pressing member 61 through hole 70 reversing part 71, 72 inclined drum 710, 720 outer surface 711, 721 suction hole 71M, 72M rotary motor 9 tablet C1, C2 central shaft M1, M2 moving unit (particulate object moving device)

Claims (4)

A granular object moving device that moves a granular object while adsorbing it,
an inclined drum having a conical surface centered on a predetermined central axis and an outer surface having suction holes for sucking the particulate matter;
a suction pipe that connects the suction hole to a negative pressure source;
a rotary motor that rotates the tilt drum about the central axis;
with
The rotary motor is a hollow motor having a through hole centered on the central axis,
A granular object moving device, wherein the suction pipe is arranged in the through hole of the rotary motor. The particulate matter moving device according to claim 1,
A particulate moving device, wherein the rotor of the rotary motor and the tilting drum rotate together about the central axis. The granular object moving device according to claim 1 or 2,
an air cutting member having a closing portion that intermittently closes the suction hole rotated by the rotary motor on the side of the suction pipe with respect to the suction hole;
further comprising
By rotating the inclined drum, the suction hole moves to a position overlapping the closing portion and a position not overlapping the closing portion,
The particulate matter moving device, wherein the suction hole communicates with the suction pipe when the suction hole does not overlap the closing portion. A granular material conveying device,
a transport mechanism that transports a plurality of granular materials in a predetermined transport direction while holding them in a state of being arranged in the width direction;
a reversing mechanism that reverses the front and back of the granular material at a reversing position on the conveying path of the conveying mechanism and moves the position of the granular material in the width direction;
with
The reversing mechanism is
a first particulate matter moving device according to any one of claims 1 to 3;
a second particulate matter moving device according to any one of claims 1 to 3;
has
the inclined drum of the second granular object moving device is adjacent to the inclined drum of the first granular object moving device in the width direction;
The first granular material moving device attracts the granular material at a first position on the conveying path of the conveying mechanism to the suction holes, and rotates the inclined drum to move the granular material to a delivery position. move,
The second granular object moving device attracts the granular objects placed at the delivery position by the first granular object moving device to the suction holes, and rotates the inclined drum to move the granular objects. A granular object conveying device for moving the conveying mechanism to a second position on the conveying path.

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