JP2516126B2 - Control system in automatic labeling equipment - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic labeling device for sticking a label having a trademark, a price, a manufacturing date, etc. to an article which is continuously conveyed, and more particularly to a printing content to be printed on the label. Labels with different printing contents can be changed accurately and promptly on multiple types of continuously conveyed items while automatically changing the label attaching position according to the shape of conveyed items while automatically switching in connection with the attaching operation. The present invention relates to a control method in an automatic labeling device capable of automatically applying and changing the applying position.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in an automatic labeling device for sticking a label having a product name, a trademark, and a display of quality contents on a product or its packaging, etc. to a continuously conveyed product, a label sticking mechanism is used for a label stuck on a mount. Each time the article is peeled off at the peeling section and the article on the carrier is conveyed to the label attaching position, the peeled label is repeatedly attached to the article.
However, in the labeling device having the above-described configuration, when the size and shape of the conveyed article are different, it is necessary to change the label sticking position for the article on the conveyance body each time, and conventionally the type of the conveyed article is changed. Since the carrier position was stopped every time and the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism was adjusted manually, especially in recent years when a variety of small-quantity production systems are becoming established, frequent adjustment work of the above-mentioned sticking position is required. In addition, it is necessary to manually switch the setting of the label print content that differs for each product type, which not only reduces the production efficiency but also causes the label to fly on the mount and the so-called label omission. In the current situation, it is not possible to properly carry out the defect processing in the case of occurrence of

Therefore, the applicant sets in advance the position data of the label sticking mechanism corresponding to articles of different shapes and the print data containing the print contents and the number of prints of the label in the control unit, and the control unit The label sticking position of the label sticking mechanism can be automatically adjusted by controlling from, and even if there is missing tooth of the label stuck to the mount,
We proposed an automatic labeling device that can appropriately attach labels to articles. (Japanese Patent Application No. 59-28340)

However, the structure of the conventional automatic labeling device is not limited to the above-mentioned proposal, and it is inevitable that the label printing mechanism for printing desired print contents on the label and the label sticking mechanism are arranged at a predetermined distance. Therefore, in the configuration proposed above, for example, when the article A to which the label a ′ of the print data a is attached and the article B to which the label b ′ of the print data b is attached are continuously conveyed, the label a ′
When the printing of the print data b is started after the specified number of sheets have been printed, the printed label a'existing between the label printing mechanism and the label sticking mechanism is in a non-sticking state. Position adjustment cannot be moved to the position of the article B. Therefore, if the number of prints of the print data a is set in anticipation of the number of labels a ′ existing between the label printing mechanism and the label sticking mechanism, Label sticking is likely to occur due to missing teeth on the label or the difference in the number of conveyed items A and B. Especially in the case of a bar code printed label, the distinction between the label a'and the label b'is visually observed. Since it is not possible, it is impossible to promptly find a mistake in labeling, which causes a serious production defect.

[Problems to be Solved by the Present Invention]

The present invention was devised in the course of research and development in order to solve the conventional drawbacks in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a label printing mechanism and a label sticking mechanism. Of the number of labels existing in the label, the content of the print data to be printed on the label is automatically switched in tandem with the label pasting operation without setting the number of prints included in the print data, and the print content from the preceding label is changed. Immediately before switching to a different subsequent label, the label sticking position of the label sticking mechanism can be automatically changed according to the shape of the article to which the succeeding label is stuck, and labels with different print contents can be easily distinguished. The automatic labeling device is capable of accurately and quickly attaching labels with different print contents to multiple types of articles that are continuously conveyed. It is intended to provide a method.

[Means for Solving the Problems]

In order to solve the problems, the technical means adopted by the present invention are a label printing mechanism for printing a desired print content on a label stuck on a strip mount, and a label sticking mechanism for sticking a printed label on an article. And a transport mechanism that continuously transports the article to a predetermined label sticking position, an adjusting mechanism that adjusts the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism according to the shape of the transported article, and a control unit that controls each mechanism. In the automatic labeling apparatus, the control section includes an input means for collectively inputting position data for moving the label sticking mechanism to an appropriate sticking position and print data for driving the label printing mechanism, and the label sticking mechanism is unmarked. In addition to a detection mechanism that detects character labels, non-printing data is added to the end of the print data, and printing is performed by sending the non-printing data to the label printing mechanism. Switching the contents of over data, and is characterized in that it has configured to switch the pasting position of the label applying mechanism in the detection of non-print label.

[0007]

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to accurately and promptly apply the print labels having different contents to the continuously conveyed articles having different shapes, and it is possible to improve the label application efficiency.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The configuration of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to an embodiment shown in the drawings. 1 to 5, reference numeral 1 denotes an automatic labeling device, and the automatic labeling device 1
Is composed of a label sticking mechanism 2 and a conveying mechanism 3 which is horizontally installed below the sticking mechanism 2, and a belt-like mount 5 on which labels 4, 4 ... Are continuously stuck is rolled on one side of the label sticking mechanism 2. The take-up reel 6 wound in a circular shape is pivotally supported, and a control unit 7 is provided on the article loading side of the transport mechanism 3. Further, in the main body of the label sticking mechanism 2, the label printing mechanism 8 for printing the product name, trademark, manufacturing date, etc. on the labels 4, 4, ... A label peeling unit 9 is provided, and the mount 5 is sent to the label peeling unit 9 via the label accumulating unit 10 arranged between the label printing mechanism 8 and the label peeling unit 9, and the labels 4, 4 ,. After peeling at the tip of the label peeling portion 9, the take-up reel 1 pivotally supported on the other side of the label attaching mechanism 2
It is configured so that the mount 5 is wound around the base 1. Reference numeral 12 is a support frame on which the automatic labeling device 1 is mounted.

The support frame 12 is provided with an adjusting mechanism 13 having the label attaching mechanism 2 arranged on the upper surface thereof, and the adjusting mechanism 13 moves up and down in conjunction with the rotational drive of the pulse control motor 13a. And the crossbars 15a and 15b by rotating the pulse control motor 13b.
It is composed of a slider 16 which moves the label sticking mechanism 2 in the horizontal direction via the label sticking mechanism 2, and when the label sticking mechanism 2 moves up and down and moves toward and away from the carrier 3a, the labels 4, 4 ... The sticking position is adjusted. Reference numerals 17 and 17 denote detection sensors for detecting that the article on the conveyance body 3a has been conveyed to a position facing the label peeling section 9 of the conveyance mechanism 3.
Each time an article is detected by the above, the take-up reel 11 is rotated by a take-up drive motor (not shown), and the labels 4, 4, ... The label 4 is peeled off one by one, and the label 4 is attached to the article by the pressing roller 18 protruding in front of the label peeling section 9. At the base end side of the peeling plate 9a, a detection mechanism including a photomicrosensor is provided. 9b
Are attached to detect the jumps of the labels 4, 4, ... On the mount 5, non-printing, and the like.

On the other hand, the control section 7 is provided with an operation panel 20 on the base 19 facing the article conveying side, and the label sticking mechanism 2, the conveying mechanism 3 and the adjustment are performed by the switching control operation of the operation panel 20. The drive and stop operation of each mechanism of the mechanism 13 is controlled. On the operation panel 20, a main power SW 21, a start SW 22, a stop SW 23, a preparation SW 24, a restart SW 25, an end SW 26 and a set SW 27 are arranged, and the number of labels corresponding to the number of articles is preset. Counter 2
8 and a switch panel 29 are provided, and the press SW groups 29a, 29a ... Of the switch panel 29 and the mode switching operation of the mode SW 30 are selected and switched, and the print data of the label print content corresponding to the type of the article and the shape of the article are provided. Is configured to collectively input the position data of the label attachment corresponding to. In addition, 7a is the operation of the automatic labeling device 1,
It is an indicator light for displaying a stop.

In the above configuration, the setting data A (print data a and position data X ₁ ,
Y ₁ ) Setting data B (print data b and position data X ₂ ,
The case where the labels are attached to the articles C and D that are continuously conveyed under the condition of Y ₂ ) will be described based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 6 to 8. First, after operating the switch panel 29 of the operation panel 20 to input the setting data A and the setting data B, the set SW 27 and the mode SW are set.
When 30 is continuously turned on, the setting data A and B are set in a control processing unit (not shown), and the slider 16 of the adjusting mechanism 13 and the lifting shaft 14 label the article C based on the position data X ₁ and Y ₁ , respectively. The horizontal position and the vertical position corresponding to the shape of the surface and the height of the article are automatically adjusted. Then, when the preparation SW is turned on, the print content a
Of the label data is sent to the label printing mechanism 8, and the label printing mechanism 8 prints on the labels 4, 4, ... 4 are sent to the label peeling unit 9 via the label accumulating unit 10. During this time, the label sticking mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 are in an operation stop state.

When the first printed label 4 on the mount 5 reaches the peeling position of the label peeling portion 9, the start SW is turned on.
Then, the driving of the label sticking mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 is started, and the peeled label 4 is stuck by the pressing roller 18 for each article C transported to the label sticking position, and the printing of the labels 4, 4, ... The feeding operation is also continuously performed, and this repeated labeling operation is performed by the operation panel 20.
The number of sheets is counted by the number counter 28. And label 4,
When the number of sheets to be attached of 4 ... Reaches the specified number, the indicator light 7a of the control unit 7 is turned on to notify the end of the predetermined label attachment. Here, the character display portion 7b provided on one side of the number counter 28
The message “Do you want to issue an additional label?” Is displayed on the screen, and if additional labels are issued due to a defective sticking or non-sticking of the label on the article C, the number counter 28 is turned on at this point. Set again and restart S
By turning on W25, the label printing of the setting data A is performed for the additional number of sheets, and the conveyance of the article C and the label sticking operation are continued.

Next, when the transportation of the additional number of articles and the labeling operation are completed, the indicator light 7 of the control section 7 is restarted.
"a" lights up, and the message "Is an additional label issued?" is displayed again on the character display portion 7b. Here, when the set SW 27 is turned on, the sending of the setting data A to the article C is completed, the setting data B is put into a standby state, and the driving of the label sticking mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 is once stopped, and printing is performed in this state. The non-printing data having an empty content is sent to the label printing mechanism 8 and the non-printing label is added to the end of the labels 4, 4, .... Here, the slider 16 and the elevating shaft 14 of the adjusting mechanism 13 still hold the label sticking position of the article C based on the position data X ₁ and Y ₁ in the setting data A, and in this state, the mode SW 30 When the mode number is selected and the setting data B is sent out after turning on, the setting data B is transmitted from the control processing unit (not shown) to the label sticking mechanism 2 and the adjusting mechanism 13, and at the same time, the label sticking mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 are sent. Are restarted, and the labels 4, 4, ... With the print contents of the setting data A remaining between the label printing mechanism 8 and the label peeling unit 9,
It is subsequently attached to the remaining article C including the additional portion to be transported.

Next, the labels 4, 4 ... Attached to the article C.
When the non-printed label reaches the label peeling section 9 after the last label application is finished, the non-printed label is detected by the detection mechanism 9a of the label peeling section 9, and this blank label detection signal is sent via the control processing section. While being sent to the adjusting mechanism 13, the driving of the label sticking mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 is once stopped. At this time, the adjusting mechanism 13 receiving the blank label detection signal, the slider 16 and the lifting shaft 14 based on the position data X ₂ and Y ₂ included in the setting data B.
And the label attaching mechanism 2 is moved horizontally and vertically from the label attaching position of the article C to the label attaching position of the article D.

After that, when the restart SW 25 is turned on, the conveyance of the article D is started, and like the article C, the continuous conveyance and the labeling are continuously performed.
Then, after the label printing mechanism 8 finishes printing the last label 4, the non-printed data whose print content is empty is sent to the label printing mechanism 8 and the non-printed label is placed at the end of the labels 4, 4 ,. When the non-printed label is added and detected by the photomicrosensor 9a of the label peeling unit 9, the operation of the label attaching mechanism 2 and the transport mechanism 3 is stopped.
Then, after confirming the presence or absence of the additional label issuance, when the end SW 26 of the operation panel 20 is turned on, the contents of the setting data A and B set in the control processing unit (not shown) are released, and then the stop SW 23 is turned on. As a result, all control operations of the automatic labeling device 1 are stopped.

Therefore, when articles of different types are continuously conveyed in each group, the label sticking position and the print content can be automatically switched according to the shape, and the label sticking efficiency can be improved. Therefore, it is possible to carry out smooth article transportation and proper label sticking operation.

[0017]

In summary, according to the present invention, the label printing mechanism for printing desired print contents on the label attached to the strip-shaped mount, the label attaching mechanism for attaching the printed label to the article, and the article are provided in a predetermined manner. In the automatic labeling device consisting of a transport mechanism for continuously transporting to the label sticking position, an adjusting mechanism for adjusting the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism corresponding to the shape of the article to be transported, and a control unit for controlling each mechanism, The control unit is provided with input means for collectively inputting position data for moving the label sticking mechanism to an appropriate sticking position and print data for driving the label printing mechanism, and detection for detecting a non-printed label in the label sticking mechanism. Along with the mechanism, non-print data is added to the end of the above print data,
The non-printing data is sent to the label printing mechanism to switch the contents of the printing data, and the non-printing label is detected to switch the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism. The troublesome adjustment work of manually stopping the body and manually adjusting the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism is eliminated, and the content of the print data to be printed on the label is automatically switched in association with the label sticking operation, and from the preceding label. Immediately before switching to a subsequent label with a different print content, the label attachment position of the label attachment mechanism can be automatically changed according to the shape of the article to which the subsequent label is attached, making it a production method for high-mix low-volume production. It is possible to improve production efficiency while responding flexibly, and to improve label production when label skipping on the backing paper or so-called label missing occurs. It is possible to properly perform additional issuing without delay, and it is possible to eliminate the complicated preparatory work of setting the number of labels to be printed in anticipation of the number of labels existing between the label printing mechanism and the label sticking mechanism, It is very useful because it can prevent problems such as printing mistakes of labels, excess and deficiency of the number of sheets, and can easily distinguish labels with different print contents by inserting non-printed labels. It has a novel effect.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall front view of an automatic labeling device.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 3 is a left side view of the above.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the above left side view with part omitted.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged side view of a main part of a label peeling part.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a control flow.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a control flow following FIG.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a control flow following FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Automatic Labeling Device 2 Labeling Mechanism 3 Transport Mechanism 4 Label 5 Mount 7 Control Section 8 Label Printing Mechanism 13 Adjusting Mechanism X ₁ , X ₂ Position Data Y ₁ , Y ₂ Position Data a, b Print Data

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A label printing mechanism for printing desired print contents on a label attached to a strip-shaped mount, a label attaching mechanism for attaching the printed label to an article, and an article being continuously conveyed to a predetermined label attaching position. In an automatic labeling device comprising a transport mechanism, an adjustment mechanism for adjusting the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism according to the shape of the article to be carried, and a control unit for controlling each mechanism, the above-mentioned control unit is provided with a label sticking device. The label attaching mechanism is provided with an input means for collectively inputting position data for moving the mechanism to an appropriate attaching position and print data for driving the label printing mechanism, and the label attaching mechanism is provided with a detecting mechanism for detecting an unprinted label, and The non-printing data is added to the end of the print data, the content of the print data is switched by sending the non-printing data to the label printing mechanism, and the non-printing label is detected. A control method for an automatic labeling device, which is configured to switch the sticking position of the label sticking mechanism.