JP2024017596A - Carriage - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the transfer of a container within a carriage for conveying the container in which used tableware is stored.

SOLUTION: A carriage that conveys containers for storing used tableware comprises a drive shelf, a receiving part, and a push-out unit. The drive shelf comprises a pair of endless circulation moving bodies arranged at positions separated in a horizontal direction, and a pair of support units that are provided at the pair of circulation moving bodies, respectively. and support the containers. The drive shelf is lowered according to movement of the circulation moving bodies, while supporting the containers by the pair of support units. The receiving parts are arranged between the pair of circulation moving bodies and receive the lowered containers from the pair of support units. The push-out unit pushes out the containers placed on the receiving part in a direction perpendicular to the lowering direction of the containers and moves them to the outside of the receiving part.

SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

COPYRIGHT: (C)2024,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a trolley, and particularly to a trolley on which containers for storing used tableware are mounted in multiple stages.

2. Description of the Related Art E-type circulating conveyors used in large conveyor belt sushi restaurants and the like are known (for example, Patent Document 1). The E-type circulating conveyor has a plurality of overhanging paths that extend from the kitchen area toward the audience seating area, and customer seats are provided on both sides of the overhanging paths. In the kitchen area of a store that uses an E-type circulation conveyor, a lower table conveyor is installed in the space below the circulation conveyor along the partition wall from the customer seating area. The lowering conveyor reaches the washing area. In the partition wall between the kitchen area and the audience seating area, a slot that is opened and closed by an electric door is provided in an area located between the overhanging paths.

The method for collecting used tableware at such stores is that the store staff first pushes a trolley carrying multiple bus boxes around the customer seats, collects the customers' used tableware from the tables, and places them in the bus box. put in. Next, the clerk carries the trolley near the input slot in the bulkhead and presses the button on the input slot to open the electric door. Next, the clerk takes out the bus box from the trolley and places the bus box on the lowering conveyor through the input port. The clerk then presses the button again to close the electric door. As a result, the lowering conveyor is activated, and the bath box is transported to the washing area by the lowering conveyor.

JP2005-289547A

Stores that use an E-type circulating conveyor like the one disclosed in Patent Document 1 collect tableware using a hand-held trolley equipped with a bath box, but the weight of the bus box that houses the tableware is large. , the work of transferring the bus boxes from the trolley to the lowering conveyor becomes a burden to store staff. Further, the lowered tray conveyor is sometimes provided below the circulating conveyor in the kitchen area, and the input port of the partition wall is provided at a low position corresponding to the lowered tray conveyor located at such a low position. Therefore, the store clerk has to perform the work of transferring the bus box half-heartedly.

The present invention is a trolley for transporting containers containing used tableware, and includes a drive shelf, a receiving section, and an extrusion unit. The driving shelf includes a pair of endless circulation moving bodies arranged at horizontally distant positions, and a pair of support units that are respectively provided on the pair of circulation movement bodies and support containers. Then, the drive shelf lowers the container while supporting the container with the pair of support units in accordance with the movement of the circulation moving body.

The receiving part is arranged between the pair of circulation moving bodies and receives the container that has descended from the pair of support units. The extrusion unit pushes out the container placed on the receiving part in a direction perpendicular to the downward direction of the container to move it to the outside of the receiving part.

The pair of support units can support the container at each of a plurality of positions in the vertical direction. The support unit can be configured with a fixed plate fixed to the circulation moving body and a rotary plate rotatably attached to the fixed plate. Here, when the support unit moves in the region supporting the container, the rotary plate rotates in a direction away from the fixed plate to support the container. Further, when the support unit moves in an area where the container is not supported, the rotary plate rotates to a position overlapping the fixed plate due to contact with the guide. The rotary plate can be provided with a roller that rotates along the guide.

The extrusion unit can be configured with a linear guide that extends in the extrusion direction of the container, a slider that moves along the linear guide, a drive section that drives the slider, and an extrusion section that moves together with the slider and contacts the container. . A fixed shelf for storing empty containers can be arranged adjacent to the drive shelf, and the slider and the extruder can be located below the fixed shelf when the pushing unit is before pushing out the containers.

The input port into which the container pushed out by the extrusion unit is loaded has a door that opens and closes the input port, a switch that operates the door from the closed state to the open state, and a slider that converts the linear movement of the slider into the movement that activates the switch. A conversion mechanism may be provided. Here, the truck can be provided with a suction section that suctions the slider and causes it to move in a straight line. On the other hand, the truck can be provided with a sensor that detects the open/closed state of the door by emitting detection light to the door and receiving the detection light reflected by the door. Here, when the door is in the open state, the extrusion unit can be driven.

According to the present invention, by simply placing a container containing used tableware on the drive shelf, the container can be easily transferred by lowering the container with the drive shelf and pushing the container out with the extrusion unit. can.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the tableware recovery system. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the truck seen from the rear side. FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing the positional relationship of each element in the storage space and the positional relationship of each element on the front side of the truck. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the truck seen from the front. It is a principle diagram of a seating confirmation sensor. It is a front view showing the structure of a drive shelf. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the support unit. It is an explanatory view of opening and closing operation of a support unit by the action of a guide. It is a top view of a slide guide and an extrusion unit. It is a front view of an extrusion unit. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the state of the extrusion unit during operation. FIG. 3 is a side view schematically showing how the trolley transfers the bus box to the lowering conveyor.

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a tableware recovery system 100.
Although the tableware collection system 100 is applied to a large conveyor belt sushi restaurant in this embodiment, it may be applied to other industries or stores of other sizes. In the tableware collection system 100, for example, the trolley 1 is used in a conventional store having a circulating conveyor 91, a customer seat 92, a table 93, a lowering conveyor 94, and a partition wall 95, and the input port 8 of the partition wall 95 has a A seating confirmation sensor S4 (FIG. 5), which will be described later, is assembled.

Inside the store, a partition wall 95 separates a customer seating area A1 having customer seats 92 and tables 93 from a kitchen area A2 where food and drinks are prepared and placed on a circulating conveyor 91.

The circulation conveyor 91 is, for example, an E-shaped circulation conveyor equipped with a crescent chain that circulates a crescent-shaped top plate, and includes a plurality of overhanging paths 911 extending from the kitchen area A2 toward the audience seating area A1. Audience seats 92 and tables 93 are provided on both sides of each overhanging route 911. In the E-type circulating conveyor, the proximal end portion of the overhanging path 911 connects within the kitchen area A2. The circulation type conveyor 91 is loaded with tableware (plates, etc.) on which food such as sushi is placed in the kitchen area A2, and the tableware with the food and drink placed thereon is conveyed along each of the overhanging paths 911 along the customer seats 92. It is circulated over the route of the circulating conveyor 91 while being conveyed. Customers can take out tableware loaded with food and drink from the circulating conveyor 91 and eat and drink.

The lowering conveyor 94 is a belt conveyor, and is provided along the partition wall 95 in the kitchen area A2. The lowering conveyor 94 extends outward from the overhanging paths 911 on both sides of the circulating conveyor 91, and reaches the washing area 96 through the space below the circulating conveyor 91 in the kitchen area A2. The lowering conveyor 94 is provided at a low position so as to pass below the circulating conveyor 91.

A passage P is formed between the audience seats 92 provided along one overhanging route 911 and the audience seats 92 provided along the other overhanging route 911. In the partition wall 95, an input port 8 penetrating through the partition wall 95 is provided in a region facing the passage P. The input port 8 is opened and closed by an electric door 81.

The trolley 1 has a bus box B mounted on its upper part. The clerk collects the eating and drinking utensils from the table 93 and puts them into the bus box B. The tableware includes tableware taken out by customers from the circulating conveyor 91, beer bottles carried to customers by store staff, cups, tea cups, chopsticks, spoons, etc. that are placed and used in the store.

The trolley 1 can load bus boxes B for storing tableware in multiple stages in the vertical direction of the trolley 1. When the clerk moves the trolley 1 to a specified position relative to the input port 8, the trolley 1 mechanically loads all the bus boxes B containing tableware in order through the input port 8 onto the lower tray conveyor 94. , and automatically transferred. In this way, the trolley 1 of the present embodiment can mechanize the transfer work of the bus box B, thereby reducing the load on store staff.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the truck 1 seen from the rear side.
There are casters 71 at each corner of the bottom of the truck 1, and a handle 72 is provided at one end side of the truck 1. The clerk can hold the handle 72 and push the trolley 1 to move it. Hereinafter, the front-rear direction of the truck 1 connecting one end side (rear side) of the truck 1 where the handle 72 is located and the other end side (front side) of the truck 1 will be referred to as the X axis in each figure. Further, hereinafter, the left-right direction will be described as the left-right direction when looking at the front side from the rear side of the trolley 1, and will be described as the Y axis in each figure. Below, the vertical direction of the truck 1 will be described as the Z axis.

The trolley 1 includes a drive shelf 2 and a fixed shelf 3 that accommodate bus boxes B (containers) in multiple stages in the vertical direction (Z direction). Although the driving shelves 2 and the fixed shelves 3 are assumed to have three stages in this embodiment, they may have two stages, four or more stages, or the number of stages may be different from each other. The driving shelf 2 is located on the front side of the truck 1, and the fixed shelf 3 is located on the rear side of the driving shelf 2. The bus box B is, for example, box-shaped with an upward opening and rectangular in plan view. The accommodating portions of each stage of the drive shelf 2 and the fixed shelf 3 are long in the left and right directions, and accommodate the bus box B in a posture along the left and right sides.

In the driving shelf 2, a support unit 21 (the upper stage is shown in FIG. 2) that supports the bottom of each stage of bus boxes B is located inside the exterior 73 of the trolley 1. On the front side of the upper end surface of the exterior 73 of the truck 1, there is an opening 731 that is long from side to side. The upper part of the bus box B placed on the upper stage of the drive shelf 2 is exposed to the outside of the trolley 1 through the opening 731. The bus box B can be placed on the upper stage of the drive shelf 2 from above through the opening 731.

In the fixed shelf 3, the support part 31 that supports the bottom of each stage of the bus box B is located inside the exterior 73. The upper support part 31 of the fixed shelf 3 and the upper support unit 21 of the drive shelf 2 are at the same height. On the rear side of the upper end surface of the exterior 73, there is an opening 732 that is long from side to side. The upper part of the bus box B placed on the upper stage of the fixed shelf 3 is exposed to the outside of the trolley 1 through the opening 732. The bath box B can be taken out upward from the upper stage of the fixed shelf 3 through the opening 732.

The clerk puts the used tableware collected from the table 93 into the bath box B on the upper level of the fixed shelf 3, and when the bath box B is full, lifts the bath box B and moves it to the upper level of the drive shelf 2. I can do it.

The rear end surface of the exterior 73 has an opening 733 extending from the lower support portion 31 of the fixed shelf 3 to the upper end surface of the exterior 73. Through the opening 733, the bus box B can be taken in and out of each stage of the fixed shelf 3, including the upper stage, as shown by arrows in FIG. After moving the bus box B on the upper stage of the fixed shelf 3 to the drive shelf 2, the clerk can move the bus box B from the lower stage of the fixed shelf 3 to the upper stage. A housing space V1 is formed below the lower supporting portion 31 of the fixed shelf 3.

FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing the positional relationship of each element in the accommodation space V1 and the positional relationship of each element on the front side of the trolley 1. The functions of each element will be described later.
Part of a pair of linear guides 51 is arranged in the center of the accommodation space V1 in the Y direction, each linear guide 51 extends in the front-rear direction (X direction), and one end of each linear guide 51 is located in the accommodation space V1. It extends to near the rear end of the space V1. A part of the roller chain RC3 that drives the slider 52 is arranged between the pair of linear guides 51, and the roller chain RC3 also extends to the vicinity of the rear end of the accommodation space V1. The rear portions of a pair of slide guides (receiving portions) 4 are arranged along the front-rear direction (X direction) on both left and right sides of the front portion of the linear guide 51 in the accommodation space V1. The housing space V1 includes a motor M1, a power source 79, and a board 78. The power source 79 is, for example, a secondary battery, and supplies power to each part of the truck 1. A memory 781 and a processor 782 that reads programs in the memory 781 and performs various controls related to the trolley 1 are mounted on the board 78 .

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the truck 1 seen from the front side.
The trolley 1 includes the above-mentioned slide guide 4 and an extrusion unit 5. The slide guide 4 supports the bottom of the bus box B at the lower stage of the drive shelf 2. The bus box B placed on the upper stage of the drive shelf 2 is lowered onto the slide guide 4 before being transferred to the lowering conveyor 94. The front end surface of the exterior 73 has an opening 734 extending from the height of the slide guide 4 to above the height of the bath box B. The pushing unit 5 pushes out the bus box B on the slide guide 4 to the front of the truck 1 through the opening 734. Thereby, the trolley 1 can push the bus box B to the lower tray conveyor 94 located at the back of the input port 8 of the partition wall 95.

At the front end of the trolley 1, there is a sensor operating section (suction section) S1 that operates a seating confirmation sensor S4 provided in the input port 8. In this embodiment, the sensor actuating part S1 is a magnet, and is located at the upper part and on both left and right sides of the front end of the truck 1 (only one is shown in FIG. 4). The sensor actuating part S1 may be located on the back side of the exterior 73, or may be exposed to the outside. At the front end of the cart 1, there is an opening/closing confirmation sensor S2 that detects the opening/closing state of the electric door 81 of the input port 8. In this embodiment, the opening/closing confirmation sensors S2 are provided on both left and right sides (only one is shown in FIG. 4) of the front end of the trolley 1, but the invention is not limited to this, and only one opening/closing confirmation sensor S2 is provided. But that's fine. The opening/closing confirmation sensor S2 is, for example, a reflective optical sensor. In this embodiment, in the electric door 81, a reflective plate is attached to the irradiation area of the light emitted by each opening/closing confirmation sensor S2. The opening/closing confirmation sensor S2 emits light toward the electric door 81, receives reflected light from the reflector, and detects opening/closing of the electric door 81 based on the intensity of the received light.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the principle of the seating confirmation sensor S4.
The seating confirmation sensor S4 is installed at the input port 8, and when the truck 1 is at a prescribed position relative to the input port 8, the sensor actuating section S1 of the truck 1 operates the seating confirmation sensor S4. In this embodiment, the position where the front end of the truck 1 hits the partition wall 95 etc. around the input port 8 is the specified position of the truck 1. The electric door 81 of the input slot 8 is opened by the sensor actuator S1 actuating the seating confirmation sensor S4. In this embodiment, a pair of seating confirmation sensors S4 are provided in the input port 8 corresponding to the pair of sensor actuators S1 of the trolley 1, and the pair of sensor actuators S1 actuate the pair of seating confirmation sensors S4, respectively. By doing so, the electric door 81 is opened.

The seating confirmation sensor S4 is integrated with a miniature slider 82 made of a ferromagnetic material such as iron and held so as to be slidable, a spring 83 that urges the miniature slider 82 away from the sensor actuating part S1, and the miniature slider 82. The sensor includes a dog 84 that moves upward and tilts upward toward the side away from the sensor actuating section S1. The seating confirmation sensor S4 includes an actuator 86 that includes a roller 85 that contacts a dog 84 and whose movement is regulated in the vertical direction (Z direction), and a switch 87 that detects upward movement of the actuator 86 by more than a specified amount. .

When the cart 1 stops at the specified position, the miniature slider 82 is drawn toward the sensor actuating portion S1 by the magnetic force of the sensor actuating portion S1 of the cart 1, and the dog 84 is also drawn. As a result, the roller 85 moves along the dog 84, the actuator 86 moves upward, and the switch 87 is switched from off to on. When the switch 87 is turned on, the electric door 81 opens. When the trolley 1 leaves the input port 8 with the electric door 81 open, the suction force on the miniature slider 82 by the sensor actuating section S1 disappears, and the miniature slider 82 receives the biasing force of the spring 83 and moves to the initial position. do. At this time, the roller 85 moves downward along the dog 84, thereby switching the switch 87 from on to off. When the pair of switches 87 are both turned off, the electric door 81 is closed.

FIG. 6 is a front view showing the structure of the drive shelf 2.

The drive shelf 2 has a pair of circulation drive mechanisms 20 that are separated in the horizontal direction (Y direction). Each circulation drive mechanism 20 includes a roller chain (circulation moving body) RC2 and a plurality of (five in this embodiment) support units 21 fixed to the roller chain RC2. The plurality of support units 21 are arranged at equal intervals with respect to the roller chain RC2. The support unit 21 fixed to one roller chain RC2 and the support unit 21 fixed to the other roller chain RC2 are located in the same horizontal plane, and the bus box B is supported by these support units 21. be done. By moving the roller chain RC2, the support unit 21 can be moved from the upper position P1 to the lower position P3. Each roller chain RC2 has an outgoing path that moves the support unit 21 downward in an open support attitude that supports the bus box B, and a return path that moves the support unit 21 upward in a closed state.

The drive shelf 2 can move the pair of support units 21 that support the bus box B in the order of an upper position P1, a middle position P2, and a lower position P3 by driving a pair of roller chains RC2 synchronously. The drive shelf 2 can hold the bus box B in multiple stages by stopping the driving of the pair of roller chains RC2 and stopping the pair of support units 21 that support the bus box B at different positions P1 and P2.

The slide guide 4 is located above the lower position P3 and between the pair of support units 21 that support the bus box B. Thereby, when the pair of support units 21 supporting the bus box B are lowered from the middle position P2 to the lower position P3, the bus box B is transferred from the pair of support units 21 to the slide guide 4. Each stage (upper stage, middle stage, and lower stage) of the drive shelf 2 is provided with a container confirmation sensor S3 such as an optical type that detects the presence or absence of the bus box B. The structure of the drive shelf 2 will be specifically explained below.

As shown in FIG. 3, one set of roller chains RC2 is provided on each of the left and right sides of the truck 1. One set of roller chains RC2 are arranged apart from each other in the front-rear direction (X direction), which is the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. One set of roller chains RC2 is wound around driven pulleys 221 and 222 arranged at the upper and lower parts of the drive shelf 2, respectively, and arranged in a posture along the up-down direction (Z direction). The lower driven pulley 222 and the driving gear 223 coaxial with the driven pulley 222 are located below the slide guide 4, and their shafts are rotatably held by the frame 74 (FIG. 3) of the truck 1. A guide 23 is provided between the roller chain RC2 and the exterior 73.

A roller chain RC1 is arranged below the slide guide 4 so as to extend horizontally. The roller chain RC1 is wound around a driving pulley 224 arranged on the left side of FIG. 6 and a driven pulley 225 arranged on the right side of FIG. Drive pulley 224 is rotatable together with drive gear 226, and drive gear 226 is connected to motor M1. The drive gear 226 meshes with a transmission gear 227, and the transmission gear 227 meshes with a drive gear 223 disposed on the left side of FIG. The driven pulley 225 is rotatable together with the transmission gear 228, and the transmission gear 228 meshes with the drive gear 223 located on the right side in FIG. The transmission gears 227 and 228 are cantilevered by support members 2271 and 2281 (FIG. 3).

The driving force of the motor M1 is transmitted to the left roller chain RC2 in FIG. 6 via a drive gear 226, a transmission gear 227, a drive gear 223, and a driven pulley 222. The driving force of the motor M1 is transmitted to the roller chain RC2 on the right side of FIG. , is driven in synchronization with the roller chain RC2 on the left side of FIG.

7(A) is an enlarged plan view showing the support unit 21 in a supporting posture in the circulation drive mechanism 20 on the right side of FIG. 6, and FIG. 7(B) is a side view of the support unit 21. Note that FIG. 7(A) also shows one set of roller chains RC2, and FIG. 7(B) omits the roller chains RC2.

The support unit 21 includes a fixed plate 211, a rotating plate 212, and a spring-loaded hinge 213. The fixed plate 211 is a plate-shaped member extending vertically, and is fixed to one set of roller chains RC2. A plate-shaped attachment portion 2111 that is orthogonal to the fixing plate 211 is provided at the lower end of the fixing plate 211 and at the center of the fixing plate 211 in the front-rear direction (X direction). Furthermore, stoppers 2112 are provided at the lower end of the fixing plate 211 and at both ends of the fixing plate 211 in the front-rear direction (X direction), and are perpendicular to the fixing plate 211.

The rotating plate 212 is a plate-shaped member that is long in the front-rear direction (X direction), and supports a part of the bottom of the bus box B (one end of the bus box B in the left-right direction (Y direction)). A pair of anti-slip parts 2121 for supporting the bottom of the bath box B without slipping are formed on the rotary plate 212 with a gap in the front-rear direction (X direction). A support plate 2122 is provided on the lower surface of the rotating plate 212, and two rollers 2123 are rotatably held on the support plate 2122. Note that the roller 2123 can be omitted.

The spring-loaded hinge 213 has a rotating shaft 2131 that extends in the front-rear direction (X direction), and a region located on one side of the rotating shaft 2131 is attached to the bottom surface of the mounting portion 2111 and On the other hand, the region located on the other side is attached to the bottom surface of the rotary plate 212. Thereby, the spring-loaded hinge 213 connects the rotating plate 212 and the fixed plate 211, and the rotating plate 212 is rotatable with respect to the fixed plate 211. The spring-loaded hinge 213 biases the rotary plate 212 in a direction away from the fixed plate 211 by a spring (not shown). The attitude of the rotary plate 212 relative to the rotation plate 212 is maintained.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the opening/closing operation of the support unit 21 due to the action of the guide 23.

The guide 23 includes an attitude changing section 231, a vertical section 232, and an upper curved section 233. Attitude changing section 231 forms an entry path for support unit 21 at the lower part of roller chain RC2, and the distance between roller chain RC2 and attitude changing section 231 becomes narrower as it moves downward. When the roller chain RC2 moves in the direction of the arrow D1 shown in FIG. 8, the rollers 2123 of the support unit 21 move while contacting the posture changing part 231, and the rotary plate 212 rotates in a direction approaching the fixed plate 211 ( Arrow D2 shown in FIG. 8). Thereby, the support unit 21 changes from the open state to the closed state.

The vertical portion 232 extends along the roller chain RC2 from the bottom to the top of the roller chain RC2 and is spaced from the roller chain RC2 by a distance that maintains the support unit 21 in a closed state. That is, when the support unit 21 moves along the vertical section 232, all the rollers 2123 of the support unit 21 rotate along the vertical section 232, and the support unit 21 closes between the roller chain RC2 and the vertical section 232. maintained in condition. The vertical portion 232 guides the support unit 21 to the top of the roller chain RC2 in a closed state.

Upper curved portion 233 is curved along the upper portion of roller chain RC2. While the support unit 21 is moving on the upper curved portion 233, the rollers 2123 of the support unit 21 are in contact with the upper curved portion 233, and the support unit 21 is maintained in the closed state. When the support unit 21 passes through the upper curved portion 233, the rotating plate 212 rotates away from the fixed plate 211 due to the urging force of the spring of the spring-loaded hinge 213, and the support unit 21 changes from the closed state to the open state. (arrow D3 shown in FIG. 8). Here, as described above, the support unit 21 is maintained in the open state by a portion of the support plate 2122 coming into contact with the stopper 2112.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the slide guide 4 and the extrusion unit 5.

There are a pair of slide guides 4, each having an L-shape in cross section (see FIG. 10), and are separated in the left-right direction of the truck 1 (vertical direction in FIG. 9). The slide guide 4 is located on the front side of the cart 1 (the right side in FIG. 9), extends in the front-rear direction (the left-right direction in FIG. 9), and extends to the front end of the exterior 73 (the right end in FIG. 9).

The extrusion unit 5 includes a linear guide 51, a slider 52, a drive section 53, and an extrusion section 54. There is a pair of linear guides 51, which are located inside the pair of slide guides 4 in the left-right direction of the truck 1 (vertical direction in FIG. 9). The linear guide 51 extends in the front-rear direction (left-right direction in FIG. 9) to the vicinity of the front-rear end (left-right end in FIG. 9) of the exterior 73. The slider 52 is guided in the front-rear direction (left-right direction in FIG. 9) by the linear guide 51. Both ends of the slider 52 in the Y direction are engaged with the upper end of the linear guide 51. The slider 52 is driven from the home position on the rear end side of the linear guide 51 (the position shown in FIG. 9) to the front end of the linear guide 51.

The drive unit 53 includes a roller chain RC3 that drives the slider 52 in the longitudinal direction (X direction) of the truck 1, and the slider 52 is fixed to a part of the roller chain RC3. The roller chain RC3 is arranged along the front-rear direction (X direction) up to the vicinity of the front and rear ends of the exterior 73.

The extrusion part 54 is a part that extends forward from the slider 52, comes into contact with the bus box B, and runs on the slide guide 4. The extrusion section 54 includes a plate-shaped extrusion section main body 541 that is long in the left and right directions (up and down in FIG. 9), running rollers 542 located at both left and right ends of the extrusion section main body 541 and running on the slide guide 4, a slider 52, and an extrusion section. It includes a connecting bar 543 that connects to the main body 541.

FIG. 10 is a front view of the extrusion unit 5.

The drive section 53 includes a motor M2 that drives the roller chain RC3. Here, the slide guide 4 and the linear guide 51 are attached to the frame 74 of the trolley 1 using a bracket (not shown), and are installed at a position floating above the bottom surface of the exterior 73. A roller chain RC3 and a motor M2 are installed below the slide guide 4 and linear guide 51. The roller chain RC3 is wound around a plurality of tension gears 531, and is arranged at a position where it does not interfere with the roller chain RC1 extending in the left-right direction (Y direction) of the drive shelf 2 (see FIG. 12).

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the state of the extrusion unit 5 after operation.

By driving the roller chain RC3 with the motor M2, the slider 52 can be moved to the front end (the right end in FIG. 11) on the linear guide 51. By driving the motor M2 in the opposite direction, the slider 52 can be returned to the home position (the position shown in FIG. 9).

The process of transferring the bus box B to the lowering conveyor 94 by the processor 782 will be described below.

When collecting tableware, the bus boxes B are stored in all the fixed shelves 3 of the trolley 1, and all the drive shelves 2 are left empty. Referring to FIG. 1, the clerk holds the handle 72 of the trolley 1, pushes the trolley 1 with the drive shelf 2 facing forward, and goes around the tables 93 of customers who have finished their meals. The clerk collects the tableware from the table 93 and places it in the bath box B on the upper stage of the fixed shelf 3. When the bus box B is full of tableware, the store clerk moves the bus box B to the upper position P1 of the drive shelf 2 on the front side of the trolley 1. Note that an empty bath box B may be arranged at the upper position P1 of the drive shelf 2, and the recovered tableware may be placed in this bath box B.

Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the processor 782 of the trolley 1 monitors the presence or absence of the bus box B at each stage of the drive shelf 2 using the container confirmation sensor S3. When the processor 782 detects that the bus box B is housed in the upper stage of the drive shelf 2, the processor 782 drives the motor M1 to move the pair of support units 21 that support the bus box B downward. When the bath box B is moved from the upper position P1 to the middle position P2, the upper position P1 becomes vacant, so another bath box B containing tableware can be placed in this upper position P1. This allows the collection of utensils to continue. After the bath box B at the upper position P1 is filled with tableware, the motor M1 is driven to move the pair of support units 21 that support the bath box B downward, as described above.

In addition, in the above description, each time the bus box B is placed at the upper stage position P1, the bus box B is moved to the lower stage, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the bus box B is placed at the upper position P1, but the bus box B is not placed at the middle position P2 and the slide guide 4, the bus box B is moved from the upper position P1 to the slide guide 4 by driving the motor M1. Box B can also be moved.

When the bus boxes B containing the tableware are arranged in all the stages of the drive shelves 2, the clerk pushes the trolley 1 to proceed along the passage P and moves the trolley 1 to a prescribed position close to the input slot 8.

FIG. 12 is a side view schematically showing how the trolley 1 transfers the bus box B to the lowering conveyor 94. As shown in FIG. 12, the heights of the slide guide 4, the bottom surface of the input port 8, and the conveyance surface of the lower tray conveyor 94 are approximately the same.

When the cart 1 is positioned at a prescribed position close to the input port 8, a pair of sensor actuators S1 installed on the cart 1 activate a pair of seating confirmation sensors S4 installed in the input port 8. The electric door 81 opens by activating the pair of seating confirmation sensors S4. Note that in this embodiment, a pair of seating confirmation sensors S4 and a pair of sensor actuators S1 are used, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, one seating confirmation sensor S4 and one sensor actuator S1 may be used. It's fine just by itself.

When the processor 782 detects that the electric door 81 is open via the pair of opening/closing confirmation sensors S2, the processor 782 pushes out the bus box B on the slide guide 4 to the lower tray conveyor 94 at the back of the input port 8 using the pushing unit 5. . Specifically, the processor 782 drives the motor M2 to move the roller chain RC3 in the direction of the arrow D4 in FIG. (the position shown in FIG. 11). At the home position, the slider 52 and the extrusion part 54 are located below the fixed shelf 3. When the slider 52 is at the home position, the extrusion section body 541 connected to the slider 52 by the connecting bar 543 is located on the slide guide 4 and immediately behind the rear end of the bath box B.

The push-out section main body 541 travels forward on the slide guide 4 while being pushed by the slider 52, hits the rear end of the bus box B, and pushes the bus box B forward. When the slider 52 moves to the front end of the truck 1, the extrusion section main body 541 can be positioned in front of the truck 1 by an amount corresponding to the connecting bar 543. Therefore, the pusher main body 541 can push the bus box B on the slide guide 4 forward of the trolley 1 through the opening 734 (FIG. 4), and further push it out beyond the input port 8 to the lowering conveyor 94.

The processor 782 moves the slider 52 to the front end of the cart 1 as described above, transfers the bus box B to the lower tray conveyor 94, and then reversely rotates the motor M2 to return the slider 52 to its home position. When the bus box B is located at the middle position P2 or the upper position P1 of the drive shelf 2, the processor 782 moves the bus box B onto the slide guide 4 by driving the motor M1. Thereafter, the slider 52 can be moved as described above to push the bus box B to the lower tray conveyor 94.

In this embodiment, when the store clerk simply parks the trolley 1 at a specified position close to the input port 8 while pushing the trolley 1, the electric door 81 automatically opens, and all the bus boxes B loaded on the trolley 1 are sequentially moved to the trolley. 1 to the lowered tray conveyor 94. After all the bus boxes B have been transferred from the trolley 1, the clerk moves the trolley 1 away from the input port 8, and the electric door 81 is automatically closed. Therefore, in this embodiment, the burden on the store staff associated with the work of transferring the bus box B to the lowering conveyor 94 can be significantly reduced.

Note that although roller chains RC1 to RC3 are used in this embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and an endless circulating member (circulating moving body) may be used. For example, an endless belt can be used as the circulating body.

Note that the trolley 1 may move by itself to a predetermined position close to the input port 8 and automatically leave the input port 8 after completing the transfer of the bus boxes B to be loaded on the drive shelf 2. Further, the trolley 1 may move around each table 93 by itself, and the tableware may be stored in a bus box B placed on the trolley 1 by a customer or a staff member. The lowering operation of the bath box B on the drive shelf 2 may be performed manually by operating a button or the like without using the container confirmation sensor S3.

1: Dolly, 2: Drive shelf, 3: Fixed shelf, 4: Slide guide (receiving part), 5: Extrusion unit, 8: Inlet, 21: Support unit, 52: Slider, 53: Drive unit, 54: Extrusion Part, 81: Electric door (door), 82 to 86: (conversion mechanism), 87: Switch, 211: Fixed plate, 212: Rotating plate, 2123: Roller, B: Bath box (container), RC2: Roller chain ( Circulating moving body), S1: Sensor operation part (adsorption part), S2: Opening/closing confirmation sensor (sensor)

Claims (8)

A trolley for transporting containers containing used tableware,
A pair of endless circulating moving bodies arranged at horizontally separated positions, and a pair of support units respectively provided on the pair of circulating moving bodies and supporting the containers, a drive shelf that lowers the container while supporting it by the pair of support units as the container moves;
a receiving part that is disposed between the pair of circulating moving bodies and receives the descended container from the pair of supporting units;
an extrusion unit that pushes out the container placed on the receiving part in a direction perpendicular to the downward direction of the container and moves it to the outside of the receiving part;
A trolley characterized by comprising: The trolley according to claim 1, wherein the pair of support units are capable of supporting the container at each of a plurality of positions in the vertical direction. The support unit includes a fixed plate fixed to the circulation moving body and a rotary plate rotatably attached to the fixed plate,
When the support unit moves in a region supporting the container, the rotating plate rotates in a direction away from the fixed plate to support the container,
The trolley according to claim 1, wherein when the support unit moves in an area where the container is not supported, the rotary plate rotates to a position overlapping the fixed plate due to contact with a guide. The trolley according to claim 3, wherein the rotary plate is provided with a roller that rotates along the guide. The extrusion unit is
a linear guide extending in the extrusion direction of the container;
a slider that moves along the linear guide;
a drive unit that drives the slider;
The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising an extrusion portion that moves together with the slider and contacts the container. a fixed shelf disposed adjacent to the driving shelf and accommodating the empty container;
The trolley according to claim 5, wherein when the extrusion unit is before extruding the container, the slider and the extrusion part are located below the fixed shelf. The input port into which the container pushed out by the extrusion unit is loaded includes a door for opening and closing the input port, a switch for operating the door from a closed state to an open state, and a switch for controlling linear movement of a slider. A conversion mechanism is provided that converts the motion into an actuating motion.
2. The truck according to claim 1, wherein the truck has a suction portion that sucks the slider and causes it to move in a straight line. a sensor that detects the open/closed state of the door by emitting detection light to the door and receiving the detection light reflected by the door;
The trolley according to claim 7, wherein the extrusion unit is driven when the door is in an open state.