JP2024066626A - Labeling Equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a labeling device that can reduce manufacturing costs and prevent labeling defects. [Solution] A labeling device 1 that affixes a label 20 to a container 10, the label 20 having a middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23, the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 extending from the middle portion 21 on both sides, the device includes a conveying section 3 that conveys the container 10, a first labeling section 5 that affixes the middle portion 21 of the label 20 to the container 10 held in a holder 30 of the conveying section 3, and a second labeling section 7 that further affixes the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 to the container 10 with the middle portion 21 of the label 20 affixed by the first labeling section 5. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to label application device technology.

2. Description of the Related Art Various techniques are known in the art relating to labeling devices for attaching labels to containers.
A known labeling device has a configuration in which, with a label attached to a container, the container is rotated (revolved) on a rotary table or the like while the container itself rotates to attach the label to the container (see Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-171633

However, the labeling device requires complex control to control the speed of the rotary drum in accordance with the container outer circumferential speed, which is the sum of the rotation speed of the rotary table (rotating body) that transports the containers and the rotation speed of the containers rotating relative to the rotating body, resulting in high manufacturing costs. In addition, with simplified labeling devices, labels are attached to containers by rotating and transporting the containers with the edge of the label attached to them, which can result in poor label attachment.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide a label application device that can reduce the manufacturing costs of the device and prevent the occurrence of defective label application.

The problem that the present invention aims to solve is as described above, and the means for solving this problem will be explained next.

That is, the labeling device according to the present invention is a labeling device that affixes a label to a container, the label having a midway portion, one side portion, and the other side portion, the one side portion and the other side portion extending on both sides from the midway portion, and the labeling device is equipped with a conveying section that holds the container in a holder and conveys the container from the upstream side to the downstream side, a first labeling section that affixes the midway portion of the label to the container held in the holder of the conveying section, and a second labeling section that further affixes the one side portion and the other side portion of the label to the container held in the holder of the conveying section and with the midway portion of the label affixed in the first labeling section.

The labeling device according to the present invention includes a photographing unit and a control unit, and the photographing unit photographs the middle part, the one side part, and the other side part of the label and the container after the middle part of the label has been affixed to the container but before the one side part and the other side part of the label have been affixed to the container, and transmits the photographed information relating to the middle part, the one side part, and the other side part of the label and information relating to the container to the control unit, and the control unit determines whether the relative positional relationship of the label affixed to the container with respect to the container is correct based on the information relating to the middle part, the one side part, and the other side part of the label and information relating to the container transmitted from the photographing unit.

In addition, the labeling device according to the present invention is configured so that the main body of the container, which is the part of the container to which the label is attached, is substantially rectangular.

In addition, in the labeling device according to the present invention, the holder of the conveying unit is provided with a deflection prevention means for preventing the one side or the other side of the label from deflecting downward after the middle portion of the label has been attached to the container and before the one side and the other side of the label have been attached to the container.

The present invention has the following advantages.
That is, according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the manufacturing cost of the device and also to prevent the occurrence of defective label attachment.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a label sticking device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the label application device. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a holder, a container, and a label in a conveying section of the labeling apparatus. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state in which a middle portion of a label is affixed to a container placed in a holder of a conveying unit of the labeling device. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state in which a middle portion, one side portion, and the other side portion of a label are affixed to a container placed in a holder of a conveying section of the labeling device.

Next, the labeling device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 5. Note that the white arrows in the figures indicate the conveying direction of the container 10 in the labeling device 1.

The labelling device 1 affixes a label 20 to a container 10 .
An example of the container 10 used in this embodiment is a container that stores liquid or the like. The container 10 is configured in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. Note that the container 10 is not limited to a container that stores liquid, and may store a solid (powder, etc.) or a mixture of liquid and solid (slurry, etc.), and the container shape is not limited to a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and may be other shapes such as a cylindrical shape. The container 10 is not particularly limited, but in this embodiment, it includes a main body 11 and a cap body 12.

The main body 11 of the container 10 is a semi-transparent case formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The main body 11 has an opening on one side in the longitudinal direction, a bottom on the other side in the longitudinal direction, and a space for storing liquid formed inside. The four side surfaces of the main body 11 connected to the bottom are formed of a pair of narrow surfaces 11a and a pair of wide surfaces 11b. The pair of wide surfaces 11b are arranged to face each other, and the pair of narrow surfaces 11a are arranged to face each other. The width of the narrow surface 11a of the main body 11 is narrower than the width of the wide surface 11b.
The cap body 12 of the container 10 is configured to be detachably attached to the opening of the main body 11. The cap body 12 has a gripping portion 12a that is gripped by an operator when attaching or detaching the cap body 12 to or from the main body 11. When the cap body 12 is attached to the main body 11, the gripping portion 12a is positioned so as to protrude outward from the opening of the main body 11.

The label 20 attached to the container 10 is a label sticker, and is attached to the main body 11 of the container 10 .
On the front side of the label 20, various information such as a control number and date and time is displayed by characters, designs, or predetermined code information (e.g., a barcode or a QR code (registered trademark)). On the back side of the label 20, an adhesive is provided for attaching the label 20 to the main body 11 of the container 10.
Before being attached to the main body 11 of the container 10, the labels 20 are attached in a row at a constant pitch to a strip-shaped backing wound around a label roll (not shown). The strip-shaped backing on which the labels 20 are arranged is wound around the label roll in a roll and placed in the label payout unit 4.

The labeling device 1 includes a container feeding section 2, a transport section 3, a label feeding section 4, a first labeling section 5, a photographing section 6, a second labeling section 7, a container removal section 8, and a control section 9. In the labeling device 1, the first labeling section 5 performs a first stage of the operation of attaching the label 20 to the container 10, resulting in a state in which a portion of the label 20 is attached to the container 10. The second labeling section 7 then performs a second stage of the operation of attaching the label 20 to the container 10, resulting in the first labeling section 5 attaching another portion of the label 20 to the container 10 from the state in which a portion of the label 20 is attached to the container 10. In this way, the second labeling section 7 attaches the entire label 20, and finally the label 20 is attached to the container 10.

The control unit 9 is electrically connected to each of the container payout unit 2, the transport unit 3, the label payout unit 4, the first label application unit 5, the photography unit 6, the second label application unit 7, and the container removal unit 8, and controls various operations of the label application device 1 (the container payout unit 2, the transport unit 3, the label payout unit 4, the first label application unit 5, the photography unit 6, the second label application unit 7, and the container removal unit 8). The control unit 9 also performs calculations, etc. based on various information, and stores various information in a storage device.

The conveying unit 3 conveys a plurality of containers 10 from the upstream side to the downstream side (from the container feeding unit 2 side to the container removal unit 8 side). The conveying unit 3 is disposed downstream of the container feeding unit 2 and upstream of the container removal unit 8. The conveying unit 3 includes an endless belt 3a, an upstream pulley 3b, a downstream pulley 3c, and a plurality of holders 30, 30.... The conveying unit 3 is configured by hanging the belt 3a on the upstream pulley 3b and the downstream pulley 3c. The holder 30 maintains the state of the containers 10 conveyed by the conveying unit 3 in a predetermined state (the position of the containers 10, the interval between the containers 10, the orientation of the containers 10, etc.), and is fixed to the conveying surface of the belt 3a. The plurality of holders 30, 30... are disposed at equal intervals along the conveying direction of the conveying unit 3.
The conveying unit 3 is configured to be capable of transmitting power from a driving device (not shown) such as a motor to the upstream pulley 3b or the downstream pulley 3c, and conveys the container 10 held in the holder 30 from the upstream side to the downstream side by driving the driving device. The conveying unit 3 is set to be controlled by the control unit 9 so as to repeatedly stop and start the conveying operation at a predetermined timing.
The container 10 is held and transported in a holder 30 fixed to the upper surface of the belt 3a, and is held in the holder 30 so that the longitudinal direction of the main body 11 faces a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the transport section 3 (the downstream side in the transport direction is the front side, and the upstream side in the transport direction is the rear side) (left and right direction when viewed from the upstream side in the transport direction), one narrow surface 11a of the pair of narrow surfaces 11a, 11a of the main body 11 is located vertically below and the other narrow surface 11a is located vertically above, and one wide surface 11b of the pair of wide surfaces 11b, 11b of the main body 11 is located at the front and the other wide surface 11b is located at the rear.

Here, the label 20 in this embodiment is configured to be approximately rectangular and has a middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23. The middle portion 21 of the label 20 is configured to be rectangular and is configured as a portion that is attached to the narrow surface 11a on the vertical upper side of the main body 11 of the container 10. The one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are configured to extend from the middle portion 21 to both sides (front and rear), respectively. The one side portion 22 of the label 20 is configured to be rectangular and connected to the middle portion 21 of the label 20. The one side portion 22 of the label 20 is configured as a portion that is attached to the wide surface 11b on the front side of the main body 11 of the container 10. The other side portion 23 of the label 20 is configured to be rectangular and connected to the middle portion 21 of the label 20. The other side portion 23 of the label 20 is configured as a portion that is attached to the wide surface 11b on the rear side of the main body 11 of the container 10. However, the shape of the label 20 can be determined appropriately to fit the container 10 and is not limited.

The container payout unit 2 is disposed upstream of the upstream pulley 3b of the conveying unit 3, and multiple containers 10, 10... (multiple containers 10, 10... before the label 20 is affixed) are stocked. The control unit 9 stops the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 in a position protruding behind the upstream pulley 3b, and pays out containers 10 one by one from the containers 10, 10... stocked in the container payout unit 2, and pushes the container 10 out with the wide surface 11b of the container 10 horizontally into the holder 30 protruding behind the upstream pulley 3b (horizontal state), and holds it in the holder 30. When one container 10 is held in the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3, the conveying operation of the conveying unit 3 begins.

The label payout unit 4 is disposed above the belt 3a of the conveyor unit 3. A label roll is disposed in the label payout unit 4, on which a strip-shaped backing on which a large number of labels 20 are arranged at a fixed pitch is wound. The label payout unit 4 automatically pays out the labels 20 arranged on the strip-shaped backing wound around the label roll, one by one.

The first label application unit 5 is disposed above the belt 3a of the transport unit 3. The first label application unit 5 is disposed downstream of the label pay-out unit 4 in the transport direction of the strip-shaped backing paper unwound from the label roll.
The first label application unit 5 includes a suction pad (not shown) and is configured to be able to suction the label 20. The conveying operation of the conveying unit 3 is temporarily stopped with the container 10 (narrow surface 11a of the body 11 of the container 10) to which the label 20 is to be applied and held by the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 positioned below the first label application unit 5. At this timing, the first label application unit 5 moves downward with the label 20 peeled off from the backing paper and adsorbed thereto, and applies the middle portion 21 of the label 20 (a part of the label 20) to the upper narrow surface 11a of the body 11 of the container 10 held by the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3.

The photographing unit 6 is a camera device that acquires image information, and is disposed above the belt 3a of the conveying unit 3. The photographing unit 6 is disposed downstream of the first labeling unit 5 and upstream of the second labeling unit 7 in the conveying direction of the container 10. The photographing unit 6 photographs the label 20 affixed to the container 10 and the container 10 held in the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3. Information on the photographed label 20 and container 10 is transmitted from the photographing unit 6 to the control unit 9. However, in a configuration in which the suction pads and the like do not interfere with the photographing (such as the suction pads being retracted from the first labeling unit 5), the photographing unit 6 may be disposed vertically above the first labeling unit 5. In other words, the position of the photographing unit 6 is not particularly limited as long as it can photograph a state in which a part of the label 20 is affixed to the container 10 (for example, a state in which the label 20 is affixed to the narrow surface 11a on the vertical upper side).

The second label application unit 7 is disposed above the belt 3a of the conveying unit 3. The second label application unit 7 is disposed downstream of the photographing unit 6 in the conveying direction of the container 10. The second label application unit 7 further applies one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 (the entire label 20) to the main body 11 of the container 10 that is held by the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 and has a middle portion 21 of the label 20 (part of the label 20) applied thereto.
The second label application unit 7 includes a first roller 71 and a second roller 72. The first roller 71 of the second label application unit 7 is disposed upstream of the second roller 72. The conveying operation of the conveying unit 3 is temporarily stopped when the front end (the wide surface 11b on the downstream side in the conveying direction) of the main body 11 of the container 10 held by the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 is positioned below the rear end (the roll width end on the upstream side in the conveying direction) of the first roller 71 of the second label application unit 7, or when the rear end (the wide surface 11b on the upstream side in the conveying direction) of the main body 11 of the container 10 is positioned below the front end (the roll width end on the downstream side in the conveying direction) of the second roller 72 of the second label application unit 7. The first roller 71 of the second label application unit 7 moves downward toward the container 10 having the middle portion 21 of the label 20 (a part of the label 20) attached to the narrow surface 11a, folding the boundary portion between the middle portion 21 and one side portion 22 of the label 20, and attaching the one side portion 22 of the label 20 to the front wide surface 11b of the main body 11 of the container 10. The second roller 72 of the second label application unit 7 moves downward toward the container 10 having the middle portion 21 and one side portion 22 of the label 20 (a part of the label 20) attached to the narrow surface 11a and the front wide surface 11b, and folding the boundary portion between the middle portion 21 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20, and attaching the other side portion 23 of the label 20 to the rear wide surface 11b of the main body 11 of the container 10.
In this manner, the entire label 20 is attached to the container 10, and the label 20 is finally attached to the container 10. However, although the present embodiment has been described as a form in which the label 20 is attached to each surface of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped container 10, it is also possible to attach, for example, a part of the middle portion 21 of the label 20 to the apex (or a position including the range before and after the apex) of the cylindrical container 10, and similarly attach one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 (the entire label 20) to the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical container.

It is also possible to use a configuration in which the first roller 71 of the second label attachment unit 7 attaches the other side 23 of the label 20 to the wide surface 11b of the rear side (downstream side in the conveying direction) of the main body 11 of the container 10, and the second roller 72 attaches one side 22 of the label 20 to the wide surface 11b of the front side (upstream side in the conveying direction) of the main body 11 of the container 10. The second label attachment unit 7 may also be configured with a single roller, and for example, one roller may be configured to be movable back and forth in the conveying direction, and one side 22 and the other side 23 of the label 20 may be attached to the container 10 by the single roller. Also, instead of a roller, a sponge, brush, etc. may be moved up and down to press and attach the label 20, and the attachment means is not particularly limited.

The container removal unit 8 is disposed downstream of the downstream pulley 3c of the conveying unit 3. The container removal unit 8 operates a cylinder (not shown) to remove the containers 10 with the labels 20 affixed thereto, which are being conveyed by the conveying unit 3, one by one.
The conveying operation of conveying unit 3 is temporarily stopped at a position where holder 30 of conveying unit 3 protrudes (horizontal state) from belt 3a in front of downstream pulley 3c (downstream in the conveying direction). At this timing, container removal unit 8 operates a chuck portion (not shown) or the like with a cylinder (not shown) toward the upstream side in the conveying direction to grip container 10, and then moves downstream in the conveying direction and removes container 10, with wide surface 11b of container 10 held horizontally by holder 30 of conveying unit 3, in a pulling manner. When one container 10 is removed from holder 30 of conveying unit 3 by container removal unit 8, conveying operation of conveying unit 3 is started.

As described above, in the first label application unit 5, the middle portion 21 of the label 20 is applied to the container 10 held in the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3, and in the second label application unit 7, one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are further applied to the container 10 held in the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 and with the middle portion 21 of the label 20 applied thereto. This makes it possible to apply the label 20 to the container 10 with a simpler configuration than a configuration in which the label 20 is applied to the container 10 by controlling the speed of the rotary drum in accordance with the peripheral speed of the container rotating relative to the rotor, and also makes it possible to apply labels to containers other than cylindrical containers (for example, rectangular containers) (the container shape is not limited), and the cost of manufacturing the device can be reduced. As described above, the first label application section 5 applies the middle portion 21 of the label 20 to the container 10, and the second label application section 7 applies one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 to the container 10 with the middle portion 21 of the label 20 applied thereto. This makes it possible to prevent poor application of the label 20 compared to applying the label 20 to the container 10 by rotating and transporting the container 10 with the end of the label 20 applied thereto.

As described above, even if the portion of the container 10 to which the label 20 is affixed (the main body 11 of the container 10) is configured in an approximately rectangular parallelepiped shape, by attaching the middle portion 21 of the label 20 to the container 10 at the first label attachment section 5 and attaching one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 to the container 10 at the second label attachment section 7, it is possible to more reliably attach a single label 20 across three consecutive faces (one narrow face 11a and a pair of wide faces 11b, 11b of the main body 11) that constitute the approximately rectangular parallelepiped main body 11.

The control unit 9 and the photographing unit 6 constitute the inspection device. The inspection device inspects the information written on the label 20 affixed to the container 10 by the labeling device 1, whether the information written on the label 20 matches the information about the container 10, the state of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 by the labeling device 1, or the state of the container 10 to which the label 20 is affixed by the labeling device 1. However, the inspection contents are not particularly limited and may be determined appropriately according to the purpose of use.

The photographing unit 6 is disposed so as to face the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 in a state in which the middle portion 21 has been attached to the container 10 by the first label attachment unit 5. The photographing unit 6 photographs the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 attached to the container 10 from above the container 10 and the label 20, and the container 10 held in the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3, in a state in which the middle portion 21 of the label 20 has been attached to the container 10 by the first label attachment unit 5, i.e., before the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are attached to the container 10 by the second label attachment unit 7. The photographing unit 6 transmits information about the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 that have been photographed, and information about the container 10, to the control unit 9.

The control unit 9 transmits to the control unit 9 information relating to the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23 of the photographed label 20, as well as information relating to the container 10, sent from the photographing unit 6, and performs calculations in combination with information such as pre-set specifications to generate specified information.
Based on the information regarding the label 20 and the container 10 transmitted from the photographing unit 6, the control unit 9 judges, for example, the relative positional relationship of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 with respect to the container 10, for example, the relative positional relationship between the label 20 and the container 10 in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, whether the lengths (the lengths affixed to the wide surface 11b) of the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 extending on both sides of the middle portion 21 affixed to the container 10 are correct, whether the shape of the label 20 is correct, whether information such as letters displayed on the surface of the label 20 is correct, whether there is dirt on the surface of the label 20, and whether the information regarding the container 10 displayed on the surface of the label 20 matches information regarding the container 10, for example, the type, shape, color, etc. of the main body 11 and the cap body 12.
Information regarding whether the relative positional relationship of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 with respect to the container 10, as determined by the control unit 9, is correct or not, is stored in a memory device of the control unit 9 and is also transmitted to the outside (for example, an electronic computer connected to the label application device 1).
The control unit 9 can be configured to stop the transport operation of the container 10 by the transport unit 3 when it determines that the inspection result does not meet the inspection standard, for example, because the relative positional relationship of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 with respect to the container 10 is incorrect, the shape of the label 20 is incorrect, the information such as characters displayed on the surface of the label 20 is incorrect, the surface of the label 20 is dirty, or the information about the container 10 displayed on the surface of the label 20 does not match the type, shape, color, etc. of the main body 11 and cap body 12 of the container 10. In addition, an alarm can be output according to the range of the inspection standard to call attention.

As described above, in the inspection device, the photographing unit 6 photographs the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and other side portion 23 of the label 20 and the container 10 after the middle portion 21 of the label 20 has been affixed to the container 10 but before the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 have been affixed to the container 10, and transmits information about the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and other side portion 23 of the label 20 that has been photographed and information about the container 10 to the control unit 9. The control unit 9 determines whether the relative positional relationship of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 with respect to the container 10 is correct or not based on the information about the middle portion 21, one side portion 22, and other side portion 23 of the label 20 and information about the container 10 transmitted from the photographing unit 6, thereby more reliably preventing the occurrence of improper attachment of the label 20 or improper combination of the label 20 and the container 10.

The holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 is provided to stand on the conveying surface of the belt 3a, and includes a cutout portion 31, a first support portion 32, a second support portion 33, and a plurality (four) of deflection prevention means 34, 34, 34, 34.
The holder 30 is a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped member whose longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the transport direction of the container 10, and in the direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the container 10 (longitudinal direction), it is at least longer than the longitudinal length of the label 20 to be affixed to the container 10, and in the transport direction of the container 10 (direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction), the entire width of the rectangular parallelepiped-shaped member is cut out and configured as a cutout portion 31.
The first support portion 32 supports the container 10 by disposing the gripping portion 12a of the cap body 12 of the container 10. The first support portion 32 is configured with a slit cut out on the right surface of the notch portion 31 as viewed from the upstream side in the transport direction of the container 10, the slit having a width approximately the same as (slightly larger than) the width of the gripping portion 12a of the cap body 12 in the transport direction.
The second support portion 33 supports the container 10 by placing the bottom of the main body 11 of the cap body 12 of the container 10 on it. The second support portion 33 is configured as a slit cut into the left surface of the cutout portion 31 when viewed from the upstream side in the transport direction of the container 10, the slit having a width approximately the same as (slightly larger than) the width of the narrow surface 11a of the main body 11 in the transport direction, and is disposed so as to face the first support portion 32 in the longitudinal direction.
When the container 10 is placed in the holder 30, at least the narrow surface 11a and the pair of wide surfaces 11b, 11b on the vertical upper surface of the body 11 of the container 10 are positioned within the notch 31 and are exposed so that the label 20 can be affixed. In the process of holding and transporting the container 10 with the holder 30 and attaching the label 20 to the container 10, the container 10 is firmly held by the holder 30, a part (midway portion 21) of the label 20 is affixed to the vertical upper surface of the container 10 being transported, and one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 extending on both sides can be affixed to each surface of the container 10 (the outer peripheral surface in the case of a cylindrical container), so long as the shape, etc. of the holder 30 is not particularly limited and may be designed appropriately according to the shape of the container 10 and the size, etc. of the label.

The deflection prevention means 34 of the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 prevents one side 22 or the other side 23, or both, of the label 20 from deflecting downward when the middle portion 21 of the label 20 is affixed to the container 10 by the first label application unit 5, i.e., before the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are affixed to the container 10 by the second label application unit 7.
The deflection prevention means 34 is a member formed by bending a flat plate into an L-shape, and is provided on the side surfaces in the front-rear direction (upstream side and downstream side) of the holder 30 in the conveying direction. Two deflection prevention means 34 are provided on each of the upstream side surface and downstream side surface of the holder 30 in the conveying direction of the container 10.
The deflection prevention means 34 on the downstream side of the conveying direction of the container 10 in the holder 30 is arranged on the left and right of the notch 31 as viewed from the upstream side of the conveying direction of the container 10, and is configured to protrude downstream in the conveying direction of the container 10. The deflection prevention means 34 on the upstream side of the conveying direction of the container 10 in the holder 30 is arranged on the left and right of the notch 31 as viewed from the upstream side of the conveying direction of the container 10, and is configured to protrude upstream in the conveying direction of the container 10. The deflection prevention means 34 protrudes upstream or downstream, or both, in the conveying direction of the container 10 at approximately the same height as the surface (upper narrow surface 11a of the main body 11) of the vertical upper end of the main body 11 of the container 10 arranged in the holder 30. The deflection prevention means 34 is attached protruding upstream or downstream in the transport direction of the container 10 at a position approximately the same height as the label 20 (mid-way portion 21 of the label 20) affixed to the main body 11 of the container 10 placed in the holder 30, and has the role of supporting one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 at the same height as the mid-way portion 21 (with the label 20 in a horizontal state).
The two deflection prevention means 34 on the downstream side of the holder 30 in the conveying direction of the container 10 support the left and right edge portions (corners) of the one side portion 22 of the label 20 from below, respectively, thereby preventing the one side portion 22 of the label 20 from deflecting downward. The two deflection prevention means 34 on the upstream side of the holder 30 in the conveying direction of the container 10 support the left and right edge portions (corners) of the other side portion 23 of the label 20 from below, respectively, thereby preventing the other side portion 23 of the label 20 from deflecting downward. However, when photographing with the photographing unit 6, it is sufficient to support the label 20 in a stable state without interfering with photographing, and is not limited to supporting it at the same height (supporting it in a horizontal state).
Specifically, some of the four corners of the label 20 are supported from below. By supporting the four corners in this manner, the first roller 71 and the second roller 72 of the second label application unit 7 are lowered to fold the boundary portion between the middle portion 21 and one side portion 22 of the label 20, and when the label 20 is applied to the wide surface 11b, the label 20 can be supported without interfering with the first roller 71 and the second roller 72. However, the support member of the deflection prevention means 34 (corresponding to the member folded into an L shape) may be biased by a spring or the like to a position approximately at the same height as the label 20, so that even if it interferes with the first roller 71 and the second roller 72, it may be configured to move downward. The configuration is not particularly limited.

Instead of this configuration, the deflection prevention means 34 can be configured, for example, as a rod-shaped member. The deflection prevention means 34 can also be configured to prevent the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 from deflecting downward, for example, by blowing air from below the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20. The deflection prevention means 34 can also be configured to have one each on the upstream side and downstream side of the transport direction of the container 10.

As described above, the holder 30 of the conveying unit 3 includes a deflection prevention means 34 for preventing the one side 22 or the other side 23 of the label 20 from deflecting downward in a state in which the middle portion 21 of the label 20 is affixed to the container 10 by the first label affixing unit 5, i.e., in a state before the one side portion 22 and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are affixed to the container 10 by the second label affixing unit 7, so that the middle portion 21, the one side portion 22, and the other side portion 23 of the label 20 are stabilized in a substantially horizontal state, and even if an image is taken with the camera device of the photographing unit 6 of the state before the label 20 is affixed to each surface of the container 10 (the entire circumferential surface in the case of a cylindrical container, or more than half of the circumferential surface but less than the entire circumference, etc.), the inspection accuracy of the label 20 affixed to the container 10 and the state of the container 10 by the inspection device in the label affixing device 1 can be improved. In addition, since the label 20 is photographed before being affixed to each surface of the container 10, inspection can be performed with one camera device, and the configuration of the label affixing device 1 can be simplified.
For example, the labels 20 wound closer to the core of a label roll around which a strip-shaped backing paper with the labels 20 arranged at a constant pitch is wound are more likely to develop a curved curl and bend downward; however, even in such a case, the bending prevention means 34 can prevent one side 22 or the other side 23 or both of the labels 20 from bending downward, thereby preventing inspection errors.

As described above, the deflection prevention means 34 are arranged in pairs on each of the upstream and downstream faces of the holder 30 in the transport direction of the container 10, and are configured to protrude upstream and downstream in the transport direction of the container 10, thereby making it possible to realize a simple configuration that prevents one side 22 or the other side 23 of the label 20 from deflecting downward.
Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, which is merely an example, and it is of course possible to embody various other forms without departing from the gist of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the description of the claims, and further includes the equivalent meanings described in the claims, and all modifications within the scope of the claims.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Label application device 2 Container payout section 3 Conveying section 3a Belt 3b Upstream pulley 3c Downstream pulley 4 Label payout section 5 First label application section 6 Photography section 7 Second label application section 8 Container removal section 9 Control section 10 Container 11 Main body 11a Narrow surface 11b Wide surface 12 Cap body 20 Label 21 Midway section 22 One side section 23 Other side section 30 Holder 31 Cutout section 32 First support section 33 Second support section 34 Deflection prevention means 71 First roller 72 Second roller

Claims (4)

A labeling device for attaching labels to containers, comprising:
The label has a middle portion, one side portion, and another side portion, the one side portion and the other side portion extending from the middle portion on both sides,
a conveying unit that holds the container by a holder and conveys the container from an upstream side to a downstream side;
a first label application unit that applies the intermediate portion of the label to the container held by the holder of the conveying unit;
a second label application unit that further applies the one side portion and the other side portion of the label to the container that is held in the holder of the conveying unit and has the middle portion of the label applied to it in the first label application unit. The imaging unit and the control unit are provided.
the photographing unit photographs the middle portion, the one side portion, and the other side portion of the label and the container after the middle portion of the label has been affixed to the container and before the one side portion and the other side portion of the label have been affixed to the container, and transmits information about the middle portion, the one side portion, and the other side portion of the label that have been photographed and information about the container to the control unit;
2. The label application device of claim 1, wherein the control unit determines whether a relative positional relationship of the label affixed to the container with respect to the container is correct based on information regarding the middle portion, the one side portion, and the other side portion of the label transmitted from the photographing unit and information regarding the container. The labeling device according to claim 2, wherein the body of the container, which is the part of the container to which the label is attached, is configured in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The labeling device according to claim 3, wherein the holder of the conveying unit is provided with a deflection prevention means for preventing the one side or the other side of the label from deflecting downward after the middle portion of the label has been attached to the container and before the one side and the other side of the label have been attached to the container.

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