JP2023118309A - Takeout mechanism, box, movement mechanism, conveying mechanism, takeout method, and conveying method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a takeout mechanism 13 that stores in a box 1 objects to be stored such as a sheet-like product 17, does not open and close like a shutter when taking out the objects 17 to be stored from the box 1, and therefore does not need a movable part.SOLUTION: A takeout mechanism 13 that takes out a stored objects 17 stored in a box 1, in which the box has such a shape that a top surface 3 of the box 1 is opened so that the stored object 17 can be taken in and out and a bottom surface 7 and side surfaces 5a, 5b and 5c have shapes in which the stored object 17 cannot be taken in and out, comprises: support members 15a, 15b and 15c which are arranged on the lower side of the stored object 17 stored in the box 1 and can support the stored object 17 from below; and changing means 19a and 19b which can change a relative positional relation in a vertical direction between the support members 15a, 15b and 15c and the box 1, where the changing means 19a and 19b can change positions of the support members 15a, 15b and 15c supporting the stored object 17 from below to positions upper than the top surface 3 of the box 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a take-out mechanism, a box, a moving mechanism, a transport mechanism, a take-out method, and a transport method, and more particularly to a take-out mechanism and the like for taking out objects contained in a box.

There is a technique in which a sheet-shaped product is placed in a box, moved to the top of a belt conveyor, the shutter at the bottom of the box is opened, and the sheet-shaped product is naturally dropped on the conveying surface of the belt conveyor and conveyed (Patent document 1). Here, some shutters open and close horizontally as shown in FIG. 7A, and some shutters open and close in an arc with the edge surface of the shutter as a rotation axis with hinges as shown in FIG. 7B. (Refer to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 of Patent Document 1). Although a complicated mechanism such as a spring and a stopper is actually employed, it is omitted in this figure.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-251809

However, the conventional box technology has the problem that it is necessary to provide an internal movable part to move the bottom shutter.

The presence of this movable part inevitably creates a gap in order to allow the parts to move smoothly, and during transportation, the shutter part vibrates within this gap, causing a problem of loud noise. occurs. This problem plagues workers and health and safety managers.

In addition, because the box has moving parts, problems with the operation of the shutter occur periodically, and the production line is often stopped, and it is necessary to have extra boxes in stock and to send the boxes for repair. There was also a problem in terms of operating costs.

Furthermore, when the shutter is opened, the sheet-like product naturally falls due to gravity. Also, in the case of stacking a plurality of sheets, there is also the problem that the stack eventually collapses.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a take-out mechanism that does not require opening and closing such as a shutter and does not require a movable part when storing items such as sheet-like products in a box and taking out the items from the box. . Another object of the present invention is to provide a take-out mechanism which stores a contained item such as a sheet product in a box and prevents the contained item from naturally falling when the contained item is taken out of the box.

A first aspect of the present invention is a take-out mechanism for taking out a contained object contained in a box, wherein the box has an open top surface so that the contained object can be taken in and out, and the bottom surface and the It has a shape that makes it impossible to put things in and out,
A support member arranged below an object contained in the box and capable of supporting the object from below, and capable of changing a relative positional relationship between the support member and the box in the vertical direction. changing means, and the changing means can change the support member that supports the contents from below to a position above the top surface of the box. Here, the stored item may be a single item or a plurality of items. Moreover, the stored object may be in the form of a sheet or may be three-dimensional. A three-dimensional object is not limited to a rectangular parallelepiped, and may be a spherical object having a curved surface as long as it can be supported by a support member.

By such taking out, the contents are taken in and out only from the open top surface of the box.

In a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, a part of the side surface of the box has a side notch penetrating to the inside side in the vertical direction between the bottom side and the top side. formed, said modifying means being capable of moving said support member along said side notch. Here, the support member may be arranged below the content that is inserted into the bottom surface side of the side notch and stored in the box.

As a result, the support member moves along the side notch from the bottom surface side toward the top surface side, so that the top surface can be positioned below the support member, and the contents supported by the support member from below are Taken out of the box.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, a bottom notch is formed on the bottom surface of the box as an extension of the side notch, and the bottom notch penetrates to the inside. , the support member passes through the bottom notch and is disposed under the container.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect, the number of the support members is m (m≧2), the number of the side cutouts and the bottom cutouts is m or more, and each of the support members passes through any of the side notches and any of the bottom notches. If there is only one support member, a width that can be supported is required, but if there are multiple support members, planar support is possible by contact support at multiple points, so each width is A small one will suffice. As a result, for example, the supporting members can be arranged in a comb shape, and the notches can be in the shape of slits. Furthermore, the number of support members and the number of side and bottom cutouts are not necessarily the same. In addition, the number of side cutouts and the number of bottom cutouts need not necessarily be the same number.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the second to fourth aspects, the changing means controls the downward movement of the box with respect to the support member that is stationary in the vertical direction.

In this manner, since the stored items are taken out from the box while the support member is kept stationary, the stored items do not have to fall naturally.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fifth aspects, the stored object is in the form of n (n≧1) sheets.

A seventh aspect of the present invention is a box capable of accommodating the contents taken out by the take-out mechanism according to any one of the first to sixth aspects.

An eighth aspect of the present invention is a moving mechanism for moving the support member of the take-out mechanism according to the fifth aspect, wherein the support member takes out the stored object at a position higher than the box in the vertical direction. The support member is moved from a state in which the object is supported by a force to a desired position while the object is being supported.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the eighth aspect, the supporting member is moved in the vertical direction and/or the horizontal direction to a position for placing the contained object on the transport surface of transportable transport means. .

A tenth aspect of the present invention is a conveying mechanism comprising: the conveying means according to the ninth aspect is a belt conveyor, the belt conveyor, and a roller conveyor provided upstream of the belt conveyor, , the moving mechanism according to the ninth aspect, the supporting member is passed between the belt conveyor and the roller conveyor, the supporting member is positioned below the conveying surface in the vertical direction, and the The stored object supported by the support member is brought into contact with the roller conveyor to be transported to the belt conveyor side, and the stored object is placed on the transport surface of the belt conveyor so that the stored object can be transported. .

An eleventh aspect of the present invention is a take-out method for taking out a contained item contained in a box, wherein the box has an open top surface so that the contained item can be taken in and out, and the bottom and side surfaces are A support member having a shape that prevents the contents from being put in and taken out, and a support member arranged below the contents housed in the box and capable of supporting the contents from below by a changing means, and the box. It is possible to change the relative positional relationship in the vertical direction, and the changing means changes the support member that supports the contents from below to a position above the top surface of the box, thereby changing the position of the box. The contents are taken out from the box while being supported by the support members without releasing the bottom and side surfaces of the box using a movable part.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, the content taken out by the taking-out method according to the eleventh aspect is placed on the carrying surface of the carrying means by moving the supporting member downward from the carrying surface. It is a conveying method of conveying to the downstream side.

According to the invention of the present application, since the support member is used and the contents are taken out from the box by changing the relative positional relationship between the support member and the box in the vertical direction, the shutter is opened when the contents are taken out of the box. Since such opening and closing is not performed, movable parts are not required, and problems caused by the presence of movable parts can be avoided. And if the contents are not allowed to fall free, they are not exposed to the problems that arise when the contents are allowed to fall free. Not limited to retrieval, by utilizing the support member that supports the contents from below, it is possible to transport the contents in the box even if there is no box, even if subsequent transportation is required. become.

It is a figure showing the whole system containing the taking-out mechanism concerning an embodiment of the invention. 3 is an example of a box from which contents are taken out by the take-out mechanism shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between a support member for taking out the contents contained in the box of FIG. 2, the box, and the contents; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing changes in the relative positional relationship between the support member and the box in the vertical direction in the relationship shown in FIG. 3 , and shows a state in which a contained object is taken out of the box without allowing the box to fall naturally. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a moving mechanism for horizontally moving and vertically moving the supporting member shown in FIG. 4 from the state in which the supporting member supports the sheet product; In the state shown in FIG. 5, in which the support member is moved onto the conveying process line by the horizontal movement mechanism and lowered by the vertical movement mechanism, the sheet-like product is placed on the roller conveyor for conveyance by the belt conveyor. It is a figure which shows. 1 is a diagram showing a conventional technique; FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire system including a take-out mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows an example of a box from which contents are taken out by the take-out mechanism shown in FIG. Fig. 2(A) is an example in which a slit is formed by a notch that penetrates to the inside on the bottom side, and Fig. 2(B) is an example in which a slit is formed by a groove from the inside without penetrating to the inside on the bottom side. is. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between a support member for taking out the contents contained in the box of FIG. 2, the box, and the contents. 3(A) is a plan view seen from above, and FIG. 3(B) is a cross-sectional view seen from the direction of arrow II in FIG. 3(A). FIG. 4 is a diagram showing changes in the relative positional relationship between the support member and the box in the vertical direction in the relationship shown in FIG. is. FIG. 4(A) is a diagram showing a state before the contents housed in the box are taken out, and FIG. 4(B) is a diagram showing a state after the contents housed in the box are taken out. .

Referring to FIG. 1, in this system, first, the contents 17 to be contained in the box 1 are supplied from the previous process, and the contents 17 are put into the box 1 to be accumulated. A box 1 containing an object 17 is conveyed downstream. An example of the container 17 is a sheet product. When conveyed to the take-out mechanism 13 , the contents 17 are taken out from the box 1 . The take-out mechanism 13 supports the contents 17 from the bottom side of the box 1 by means of the support members 15, and lowers the box 1 while maintaining a stationary state at that height, thereby lifting the support members 15 to the top of the box 1. The contained object 17 is taken out by making the relative positional relationship higher than the surface (see also FIGS. 3 and 4). The lowered boxes are returned upstream by the empty box circulating conveyor 6 and returned to the position where the next stacking and loading are performed by the empty box lifting mechanism 8 . The supporting member 15 is moved to the conveying surface of the belt conveyor 31 by the moving mechanism 23, and the contained object 17 supported by the supporting member 15 is placed thereon and conveyed to a downstream process. The moving mechanism 23 includes a horizontal moving mechanism 25 and a vertical moving mechanism 27, which will be described later. As will be described later, the role of the roller conveyor 29 is also important for placement on the conveying surface of the belt conveyor 31 .

Referring to FIG. 2(A), the box 1 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole, but the top surface 3 is open so that a plurality of sheet-shaped products can be accommodated in a stacked state. and The four side surfaces 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d and the bottom surface 7 of the box 1 are plate-shaped. 9b, 9c are formed, and the bottom surface 7 is formed with bottom notches 11a, 11b, 11c penetrating to the inside of the box 1 in a state in which the side notches 9a, 9b, 9c are extended. That is, three slits are formed in the bottom surface 7 by bottom surface notches 11a, 11b, and 11c, and three slits are formed in the side surface 5d by side surface notches 9a, 9b, and 9c. Although a plurality of these slits are used here, they may be one. Here, when there is one support member, a width that can be supported is required. A small one will suffice.

Referring to FIG. 3, take-out mechanism 13 includes three comb-like support members 15a, 15b, and 15c. Support members 15a, 15b, 15c correspond to side cutouts 9a, 9b, 9c and bottom cutouts 11a, 11b, 11c of box 1, respectively, and support member 15a can pass through side cutouts 9a and bottom cutouts 11a. , the support member 15b can pass through the side notch 9b and the bottom notch 11b, and the support member 15c can pass through the side notch 9c and the bottom notch 11c.

A plurality of boxes 1 are sequentially conveyed by the belt conveyor 18 toward the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c. The support members 15a, 15b, and 15c are just inserted into the bottom notches 11a, 11b, and 11c of the box 1 after passing the belt conveyor 18, and a plurality of sheets, which are examples of the contents, are piled up and stacked. It is placed under the sheet product 17 . As a result, the sheet product 17 is basically supported from below by the inner side of the bottom surface 7 and is prevented from shifting laterally by the side surfaces 5a, 5b, and 5c of the box 1 in the same manner as in the conveying state by the belt conveyor 18 until then. At the same time, the situation is such that support by the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c is also possible. Strictly speaking, the supporting members 15a, 15b, 15c and the sheet product 17 are not in contact with each other at this stage.

In FIG. 2(A), the bottom cutouts 11a, 11b, 11c penetrate from the bottom to the inside, but the support members 15a, 15b, 15c can be inserted inside as shown in FIG. A groove may be used, and penetration is not necessarily required.

Referring to FIG. 4, take-out mechanism 13 includes crosspiece conveyor belts 19a and 19b having a function of lowering box 1. As shown in FIG. The crosspiece conveyor belts 19a and 19b are an example of a changing means. The crosspiece conveyor belt 19a is provided with outward crosspieces 21a at regular intervals, and the crosspiece conveyor belt 19b is provided with outward crosspieces 21b at 21a. The corresponding positions are provided at regular intervals. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4(A), the box 1 is supported by the crosspieces 21a and 21b facing each other when the box 1 has passed the belt conveyor 18 of FIG. Further, the crosspiece conveyor belts 19a and 19b are controlled so that the opposing belt portions move downward by a constant amount in a constant time. Then, as shown in FIG. 4(B), the box 1 does not fall naturally due to its own weight, but descends while its vertical position is controlled, and the top surface 3 of the box 1 is positioned below the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c. (See also Fig. 3(B)). By performing such operations, the sheet product 17 is taken out from the box 1 while being supported by the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c. The box 1 reaching the bottom becomes an empty box and is conveyed by the empty box circulating conveyor 6 shown in FIG. As it rises, the sheet-like products 17 are accumulated, thrown in, accommodated, and conveyed downstream by the box conveyer 18 . Such loop processing is performed.

5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining a moving mechanism for horizontally moving and vertically moving the support member from the state in which the support member shown in FIG. 4 is supporting the sheet product. FIG. 5A is a diagram for explaining a horizontal movement mechanism of the movement mechanism, and FIG. 5B is a diagram for explaining a vertical movement mechanism of the movement mechanism. FIG. 6 shows the state shown in FIG. 5, in which the support member is moved onto the conveying process line by the horizontal movement mechanism and lowered by the vertical movement mechanism. It is a figure which shows the state put on a conveyor. FIG. 6(A) corresponds to FIG. 5(A), FIG. 6(B) corresponds to FIG. 5(B), and FIG. .

5, the moving mechanism 23 horizontally moves the support members 15a, 15b, 15c in order to move the sheet product 17 taken out by the support members 15a, 15b, 15c to the next step. A moving mechanism 25 and a vertical moving mechanism 27 for moving the support members 15a, 15b, 15c in the vertical direction are provided. Here, the next process is, for example, a packaging process, and an example is moving to a position on the flow line of the transfer line for the downstream process.

The horizontal movement mechanism 25 is a mechanism for horizontally sliding the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c as shown in FIG. 5(A) (see also FIG. 6(A)). On the line, it moves above the position of the roller conveyor 29, which will be described later (see FIG. 5(B)). For the purpose of reducing noise, the technology used in the horizontal mechanism 25 is preferably a method of using equipment such as an electric cylinder that produces less noise than a pneumatic cylinder system that stops movement by colliding a piston and a cylinder. In addition, the sheet product 17 is given motion such as acceleration or deceleration during horizontal movement. Therefore, the inertia may cause the sheet product 17 to move from its original position on the support members 15a, 15b, 15c. In order to prevent this, the contact surfaces of the support members 15a, 15b, 15c and the sheet-like product 17 are provided with fine serrated or sandpaper-like unevenness to increase the coefficient of friction and prevent misalignment. is preferred. From these points of view as well, the use of an electric cylinder allows the acceleration and deceleration to be set more gently than in the case of using a pneumatic cylinder. Another effect also occurs.

The vertical movement mechanism 27 is a mechanism for vertically moving the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c as shown in FIG. 5(B) (see also FIG. 6(B)). The support members 15a, 15b, and 15c that have moved onto the flow line of the process transfer line turn downward. Then, the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c pass through the roller conveyor 29. As shown in FIG. Here, if the descending speed is set to an acceleration of 1 G or more, the sheet-like product 17 will float off the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c. Therefore, it is preferable to lower the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c at a controlled speed so as not to disturb the posture of the sheet product 17 when it is lowered.

6 (especially FIG. 6(B)), when support members 15a, 15b, and 15c pass through the running surface of roller conveyor 29 and descend, as a result, sheet-like product 17 is placed on the conveying surface of roller conveyor 29. Transfers are carried out while being left behind. By the motion of the roller conveyor 29 and the belt conveyors 31a and 31b, the sheet product 17 is sent from the rotating roller conveyor 29 to the belt conveyor 31b. The sheet-like product 17 is further conveyed to the downstream process by the belt conveyor 31b. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6(C), when the sheet product 17 is moved to the belt conveyor 31b, the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c ascend the roller conveyor 29 and pass through. Here, when it is confirmed by detecting means such as a sensor that the sheet product 17 has passed the roller conveyor 29, the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c are preferably moved upward. After being lifted, the support members 15a, 15b, and 15c return to the positions shown in FIG. 3, and the next sheet product 17 is taken out, waiting for the next box to be supplied. Since no sheet product 17 is placed on the supporting members 15a, 15b, 15c at this time, it is preferable to perform the lifting and the subsequent advancing at the maximum possible speed in order to shorten the tact time of the apparatus.

In the above embodiment, the supporting member was kept stationary when the contents were taken out of the box, but it may be moved, and the relative positional relationship between the supporting member and the box in the vertical direction is determined by the support. It is sufficient that the member moves from the lower side of the contents housed in the box to a position higher than the top surface of the box.

As described above, by eliminating the moving parts of the box, even if the box were to be moved violently or overstepped on a conveyor during transfer, the box itself would not make any noise. It reduces noise and provides a comfortable working environment for workers. Similarly, the elimination of moving parts eliminates the downtime caused by failures in the moving parts of the box and the resulting line stoppage. Furthermore, since the sheet-shaped product does not fall naturally, it is possible to stably supply the product to the post-process.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Box, 3... Top surface, 5a, 5b, 5c... Side surface, 7... Bottom surface, 9a, 9b, 9c... Side notch, 11a, 11b, 11c... Bottom surface Notch 13 Take-out mechanism 15, 15a, 15b, 15c Support member 17 Sheet product 19a, 19b Conveyor belt with crosspiece 21a, 21b Crosspiece 23 ... moving mechanism, 25 ... horizontal movement mechanism, 27 ... vertical movement mechanism, 29 ... roller conveyor, 31, 31a, 31b ... belt conveyor

Claims (12)

In the take-out mechanism for taking out the contents housed in the box,
The box has a top surface that is open so that the contents can be put in and taken out, and the bottom and side surfaces have a shape that makes it impossible to put in and take out the contents,
a support member arranged below the contents housed in the box and capable of supporting the contents from below;
a change means capable of changing the relative positional relationship between the support member and the box in the vertical direction,
A take-out mechanism in which the change means is capable of changing a support member that supports the contents from below to a position above the top surface of the box. A side notch penetrating to the inside is formed in a part of the side surface of the box between the bottom side and the top side in the vertical direction,
2. The ejection mechanism according to claim 1, wherein said altering means is capable of moving said support member along said side notch. A bottom cutout is formed on the bottom surface of the box as an extension of the side cutout, and the bottom cutout penetrates to the inside,
3. The ejection mechanism according to claim 2, wherein said support member passes through said bottom notch and is arranged below said container. The number of the support members is m (m≧2), and the number of the side cutouts and the bottom cutouts is m or more,
4. The ejection mechanism of claim 3, wherein each of said support members passes through one of said side cutouts and one of said bottom cutouts. 5. The take-out mechanism according to claim 2, wherein said changing means controls the downward movement of said box with respect to said support member which is stationary in the vertical direction. 6. The take-out mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the contained objects are in the form of n (n≥1) sheets. A box capable of accommodating the contents taken out by the take-out mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 6. A moving mechanism for moving the support member of the take-out mechanism according to claim 5,
A movement mechanism for moving the support member from a state in which the support member picks up and supports the stored object at a position higher than the box in the vertical direction to a desired position while supporting the stored object. . 9. The movement mechanism according to claim 8, wherein said support member is vertically and/or horizontally moved to a position for placing said contained object on a conveying surface of conveying means capable of conveying. The conveying means according to claim 9 is a belt conveyor,
A transport mechanism comprising the belt conveyor and a roller conveyor provided upstream of the belt conveyor,
By the moving mechanism according to claim 9, the supporting member is passed between the belt conveyor and the roller conveyor, and the supporting member is positioned below the conveying surface in the vertical direction,
A conveying mechanism capable of contacting the roller conveyor and conveying the contained object supported by the support member to the belt conveyor side, placing the contained object on the conveying surface of the belt conveyor, and conveying the contained object. . A take-out method for taking out an item stored in a box,
The box has a top surface that is open so that the contents can be put in and taken out, and the bottom and side surfaces have a shape that makes it impossible to put in and take out the contents,
By means of the changing means, it is possible to change the relative positional relationship in the vertical direction between the box and a supporting member arranged below the contents contained in the box and capable of supporting the contents from below. can be,
The changing means changes the support member that supports the contents from below to a position above the top surface of the box, so that neither the bottom surface nor the side surface of the box is released using a movable part. 1. A method of taking out the contents from the box while the contents are supported by the supporting member. 12. The carrying method of claim 11, wherein the stored object taken out by the taking-out method according to claim 11 is placed on the carrying surface of the carrying means by moving the supporting member downward from the carrying surface, and carried downstream.