JP2670747B2 - Liquefied gas filling equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquefied gas filling apparatus which is preferably used for filling liquefied propane gas, liquefied natural gas or the like into a container, and particularly, the container is a good product before the liquefied gas is filled. The present invention relates to a liquefied gas filling device for inspecting whether a product is defective or defective.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a container for filling a liquefied gas serving as a household or commercial fuel, a carry-in conveyor for carrying the container toward a filling station, and a plurality of containers provided at the filling station are provided. A filling device including a filling machine that fills each container loaded with liquefied gas by a conveyor and an unloading conveyor that carries out each container filled with liquefied gas from each filling machine from a filling station is, for example, It is known from, for example, 60-78798 (Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI No. 3-48079).

In this type of prior art, when an empty container (actually residual gas is left) is carried into the filling station by the carry-in conveyor, the nozzles of the respective filling machines are sequentially introduced into the filling port of the container. While fitting, the valve of each container is opened and closed through a valve handle or the like to fill each container with liquefied gas, and the filled containers are directed to a shipping yard or the like by a carry-out conveyor. I try to carry it out.

[0004] Further, in this type of container, management information unique to the container (for example, the effective period of filling the container, tare weight, name of the store, various kinds of identification information, etc.) is obtained from a bar code label or the like in which the information is written in advance. Is attached. And
When filling the container with liquefied gas, a worker manually brings a reader such as a bar code reader into proximity with or in contact with the marked portion of the container to read the management information unique to the container from this sign, and thereby the defective product. After discriminating between the non-defective container and the non-defective container, the filling operation is performed only on the non-defective container based on the read information.

In this case, information corresponding to the management information is registered in advance in a host computer or the like of a liquefied gas filling factory, and for a good container, the container is filled from the management information read by the reading device. The filling amount of the liquefied gas to be calculated and the like are calculated, and the fixed filling is performed, and the occurrence of overfilling and the like is prevented.

[0006]

By the way, in the above-mentioned prior art, since the work of reading the specific management information from the container to be filled with the liquefied gas is manually performed, the whole filling work of the liquefied gas is automated. In order to save labor, this reading work is a big obstacle.

That is, when the container conveyed to the filling factory by a truck or the like is placed on the carry-in conveyor, the container is oriented (orientated) in an arbitrary direction toward the filling station by the carry-in means. Since it is carried in, even if an attempt is made to read the unique management information from the mark on the container in the middle of the carrying-in means, the position (direction) of the mark attached to the container and the position of the reading device often do not match, and the operator Must move the reading device to the position of the sign while reading information, and it takes a lot of labor and time to detect whether the container is a good product or a defective product, and workability is reduced. The problem is that it gets very bad.

Further, among the containers carried in toward the filling station by the carry-in conveyor, there may be a mixture of containers to which the above-mentioned marker is not attached, containers not registered in the host computer, or containers whose filling effective period has expired. There is. As a result, when these defective containers are detected via the reading device in the middle of the carry-in conveyor,
The worker must manually discharge the defective container from the carry-in conveyor, which requires time and effort to discharge the container, which also causes a problem of poor workability.

In particular, in the case of the rotary filling device, when a defective container is discharged from the carry-in conveyor, it becomes impossible to continuously supply the container from the carry-in conveyor to each of the filling machines provided in the filling station, and the rotating machine is rotated. There is a problem that a filling machine that does not perform the filling work is generated during one rotation of the table, and the filling efficiency is reduced.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art. The present invention can easily inspect whether a container in the process of being carried in is a good product or a defective product, and can read the container information and the like. (EN) A liquefied gas filling device that can be automatically performed and can automatically discharge a defective container from a carry-in means, which makes the entire liquefied gas filling work more efficient and greatly improves workability. Is intended.

[0011]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the structure adopted by the invention of claim 1 conveys a container filled with liquefied gas and the container toward a filling station. Between the carrying-in means, an inspection means which is provided in the middle of the carrying-in means and inspects whether the container conveyed by the carrying-in means is a good product or a defective product, and between the inspection means and the filling station. position is provided in the middle of the carry section, and a sorting means for performing sorting of the container based on the inspection result by the inspection unit, the inspection
Means is provided in the middle of the carrying-in means,
Position by temporarily stopping the container being transported
Positioning mechanism to determine and position determination by the positioning mechanism
Whether the above-mentioned container is a good product or a defective product
And a detector for moving the detector back and forth with respect to the container
An advancing / retreating mechanism for causing the detector to be a container by the advancing / retreating mechanism.
Swirl the detector around the container with the
Consists of a turning mechanism for wound, carrying the sorting means is discharged toward the inspected vessel as defective by the pre-Symbol inspection means defective discharge path from the carry means, container good is toward the filling station It has a structure that allows it to be performed.

[0012] The invention employs the configuration described in 請 Motomeko 2,
A container to be filled with liquefied gas and a filling station
Loading means for transporting to the
And the container conveyed by the carry-in means is good.
Inspection means for inspecting whether the product is defective or defective.
In the liquefied gas filling device, the inspection means is
It is provided in the middle of the loading means and is transported by the loading means.
Positioning to temporarily stop and position the container
Mechanism and the container positioned by the positioning mechanism.
Detection to inspect whether the container is good or bad
And a forward / backward mechanism for moving the detector forward / backward with respect to the container
And the advancing / retreating mechanism advances the detector toward the container.
Swivel machine that swivels the detector around the container in the closed state
The advancing / retreating mechanism is attached to the container.
Fit to the valve handle on the center axis of the valve handle
And a position on the carrying means by the positioning mechanism.
Move the fitting head up and down with respect to the designated container.
Lifting means for moving, and the fitting head is moved by the lifting means
When lowered toward the valve handle of the container, the fitting
Center the mating head on the central axis of the valve handle.
Characterized by being configured with a centering means for
I have .

Further, the structure adopted by the invention according to claim 3 is adopted.
It consists of a container filled with liquefied gas and a filling stage for the container.
And a way of the carrying-in means for carrying it toward the
The container which is provided inside and is conveyed by the carrying means.
Inspection means to inspect whether the container is a good product or a defective product
In the liquefied gas filling device comprising:
Provided in the middle of the loading means and transported by the loading means
Temporarily stop and position the incoming container
Positioning mechanism and the positioning by the positioning mechanism
To inspect whether the container is good or bad
A detector for moving the detector forward and backward with respect to the container.
With the retracting mechanism and the advancing / retracting mechanism, the detector is aimed at the container.
Swirl the detector around the container in the advanced position
It consists of a turning mechanism, and the advancing and retracting mechanism is attached to the container.
On the central axis of the valve handle
On the carrying-in means by the mating head and the positioning mechanism
The fitting head up and down with respect to the container positioned at
Elevating means for raising and lowering, and fitting head by the elevating means
Is lowered toward the valve handle of the container,
Center the mating head on the central axis of the valve handle.
Centering means for
In the middle of the loading means, the inspection means and the filling station are
Located on the basis of the inspection result by the inspection means.
And a sorting means for sorting the containers is provided.
Means for inspecting the defective product by the inspection means.
The container from the loading means to the defective product discharge path,
The product container is loaded to the filling station.
The feature is that it is configured to allow.

Furthermore, in the invention described in claim 4, wherein
The filling station has a rotary table and the rotary table.
And is rotated by the carry-in means arranged at a predetermined interval on the package.
Fill liquefied gas into a good container carried on the table.
Liquefied gas is provided by each of the filling machines.
Each container filled with is transferred from the rotary table to the unloading means.
Therefore, it is configured to be carried out to the downstream side .

Then, as in the invention described in claim 5,
It is preferable that the container is provided with a mark for displaying management information, and the detector is constituted by a reading device for inspecting whether the container is a good product or a defective product by reading the management information from the sign.

[0016]

With the above construction, in the invention described in claim 1,
Positioning mechanism provided with inspection means in the middle of loading means, detection
By constructing a vessel, an advancing / retreating mechanism and a turning mechanism,
When the container to be filled with the liquefied gas is conveyed by the carry-in means, the positioning mechanism operates to temporarily position this container.
And the advance / retreat mechanism operates to position the detector.
Automatically advance to the filled container. And this state
The detector is equipped with a turning mechanism so as to make one round around the container in a stationary state.
By turning the container, the container is arbitrary on the loading means.
Even if the container is oriented in the direction of, it can be surely determined whether this container is a good product or a defective product, and the container can be inspected automatically.
It can be done dynamically. Further, the sorting means middle provided the loading means located between the inspection means and the filling station, the containers to be defective in the inspection unit toward the defective discharge path from the carry means real By allowing the non-defective containers to be carried in toward the filling station, the liquefied gas filling operation at the filling station can be continuously performed.

Also , as in the invention according to claim 2, the inspection
Positioning mechanism with detection means provided in the middle of loading means, detection
And a reciprocating mechanism.
Is equipped with a mating head, lifting means and centering means.
The container to be filled with the liquefied gas
, The positioning mechanism operates and this container
Can be temporarily positioned, and
When lowering the fitting head of the retracting mechanism with the lifting means,
Centering shaft of valve handle
While centering it up, fit it over the valve handle.
The lid can be automatically fitted, and the mating head is centered in this state.
Then, the detector is swung around the container by the swivel mechanism.
Can be made. This allows the container to be placed on the loading means
This container is good even if the
It is possible to reliably determine whether the product is defective or defective .

Furthermore, in the invention described in claim 3, wherein
Similar to the invention described in claim 2, positioning on the carrying-in means
Or at reliably discriminated container is defective or non-defective
On the ∎ You can, located between the testing means and the filling station
The sorting means provided in the middle of the carrying-in means,
A container that has been determined to be defective by the inspection means is defective from the carry-in means.
Can be immediately discharged to the product discharge path. And good quality
For the container to be delivered to the filling station
By permitting, filling of the liquefied gas at the filling station
The filling work can be carried out continuously.

Further, as in the invention according to claim 4, charge
A rotary table and multiple filling machines are provided on the filling station
By doing so, it is sequentially loaded onto the turntable by the loading means.
Continuously fill liquefied gas into good containers coming in
The filled container can be carried out from the rotary table.
Can it to continuously carried out by stages.

Further, according to the invention of claim 5, if the container is provided with a mark for displaying management information, the reading device as the detector is rotated around the container, The reading device can be reliably faced to the marker on the container, and whether the container is a good product or a defective product can be automatically inspected based on the management information.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In the drawings, 1, 1, ... Denote cylinders serving as containers for liquefied gas filling, and each cylinder 1 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 1 and the like, it is composed of a cylinder for 50 kg, which is formed as a cylindrical closed container, and a valve 2 for opening and closing a filling port (not shown) and the like is provided on the upper end side thereof. Further, a valve handle 2A is attached to the valve 2 so as to be located on the central axis OO thereof.
By rotating A, the valve 2 opens the filling port,
It will come to close. Then, the liquefied gas is filled in the cylinder 1 by the filling machine 6 described later with the filling port opened, and when the filling is completed, the valve 2 is returned to the closed state again via the valve handle 2A.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a carry-in conveyor as a carry-in means for carrying in each of the cylinders 1 to be filled with liquefied gas. The carry-in conveyor 3 is composed of a chain conveyor or the like. As illustrated in FIG. The cylinders 1 are erected by 3A, ... And are conveyed in the direction of arrow A toward a filling station 4 described later.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a liquefied gas filling station provided adjacent to the downstream end side of the carry-in conveyor 3, and the filling station 4 surrounds the circumference of the rotation center O, for example, in the direction of arrow B as shown in FIG. A large-diameter rotary table 5 that rotates at a constant speed, and a rotary table 5 that is suspended from above the rotary table 5 via a chain (not shown) or the like so that the rotary table 5 can be lifted and lowered.
, And eight filling machines that move around the rotation center O in synchronism with each other to constitute a so-called rotary automatic filling machine. The number of the filling machines 6 provided on the rotary table 5 may be, for example, 4, 10, 12 or 14 or the like.

Here, each of the filling machines 6 is first processed by the applicant.
The liquefied gas automatic filling device proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 4-225241 (hereinafter referred to as prior art) is used, and the cylinder 1
The valve 2 is provided with a valve opening / closing head for opening and closing the valve 2 via the valve handle 2A and a filling nozzle (not shown) fitted in the filling port. Every time each cylinder 1 is carried onto the rotary table 5 by the carry-in conveyor 3, each filling machine 6 fits a filling nozzle into the filling port of each cylinder 1, and in this state, the valve 2 of the cylinder 1 is inserted. The liquefied gas is automatically filled into the cylinder 1 while the valve is opened and closed by the valve opening and closing head, and after the quantitative filling is completed, the valve 2 is closed by the valve opening and closing head, and then the filling nozzle is closed.
Each of the cylinders 1 after being removed from the filling port of the above is filled out from the rotary table 5 to the below-described carry-out conveyor 7 by a carry-out robot (not shown).

Reference numeral 7 denotes a carry-out conveyor as a carry-out means for carrying each cylinder 1 after being filled with the liquefied gas to the downstream side. The carry-out conveyor 7 is composed of a chain conveyor or the like like the carry-in conveyor 3, and is a liquefied gas. After the completion of the filling of (1), each cylinder 1 is carried out in the upright state in the direction of arrow C.

.. are upper, lower, left, and right stopper arms which constitute a positioning mechanism provided on the way of the carry-in conveyor 3, and each stopper arm 8 is as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. The base end side is rotatably attached to the left and right sides of the carry-in conveyor 3 via the holders 8A and the like, and the tip end side extends obliquely toward the upstream side of the carry-in conveyor 3 with respect to the carrying direction of the carry-in conveyor 3. The left and right are symmetrically arranged. Then, the tip end side of each stopper arm 8 is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 1 at a predetermined inspection position to position the cylinder 1 on the center line of the carry-in conveyor 3 while temporarily stopping it.

Further, each stopper arm 8 is rotated in the directions of arrows D and D in FIG. 3 by an air cylinder (not shown), and a cylinder which has been inspected by the inspection device 10 to be described later as a good product or a defective product is completed. 1 is allowed to be transported to the downstream side by the carry-in conveyor 3. When one cylinder 1 is conveyed to the downstream side of each stopper arm 8 after the completion of the inspection, each stopper arm 8 returns to the position shown in FIG. 3 again, and the next cylinder 1 is loaded on the carry-in conveyor 3. It is positioned at the inspection position and waits at this position until the inspection process described later is completed.

Reference numerals 9 and 9 denote other stopper arms provided upstream of the stopper arms 8 and provided in the middle of the carry-in conveyor 3. The stopper arms 9 have the same structure as the stopper arms 8. The carry-in conveyor 3 so that each cylinder 1 can be individually inspected by the inspection device 10.
Thus, each cylinder 1 is conveyed to the position of each stop arm 8 on the downstream side at intervals of one by one.

[0030] 10 shows the inspection apparatus as an inspection means placed position to the middle of the input conveyor 3 to the downstream side of each Sutoppaa arm 9, the stopper arm 8 of the inspection apparatus 10 as the positioning mechanism, described later Reader 35,
The advance / retreat mechanism 38, the weighing scale 45, and the like are used to read the management information and the like of the cylinder 1 before filling the liquefied gas, which is positioned at the inspection position by each stopper arm 8, and to check the weight of the cylinder 1 before filling. Measure the cylinder 1
The host computer (not shown) calculates the filling amount of the liquefied gas to be filled by the filling machine 6.

Reference numeral 11 denotes a column provided adjacent to the carry-in conveyor 3, and the column 11 is made of a plate material or the like which is erected upward from the side surface of the carry-in conveyor 3 as shown in FIG. An air type elevating cylinder 12, an elevating guide rod 13, a cam plate 39 to be described later, and the like are attached to and extended in the vertical direction. The lift cylinder 1 has a lift guide 1 having a substantially square block shape.
4 is provided, and the elevating guide 14 is regulated by the guide rod 13 when it is moved up and down by the elevating cylinder 12 so as to be displaced (positional shift) to the front, rear, left, right and the like.

Reference numerals 15 and 15 denote a pair of upper and lower slide arms slidably provided on the elevating guide 14, and each of the slide arms 15 extends in the front-rear direction along the carrying direction of the carry-in conveyor 3 (direction of arrow A). , And a cam holder 16 formed of a substantially rectangular block is fixed to the base end side of the cam holder 16 via set screws 17, 17 ,. A cam roller 19 is rotatably provided on the cam holder 16 via a bracket 18, and the cam roller 19 is guided along a cam groove 39A of a cam plate 39, which will be described later, so that each slide arm 15 is moved to the position shown in FIG. , And slide it in the direction of arrow E in FIG. Further, a slider 20 having a substantially rectangular block shape is provided on the tip side of each of the slide arms 15 so as to have a pair of front and rear springs 21,
The slider 20 is slidably provided via
Is constantly urged by each spring 21 toward the neutral position.

Reference numerals 22 and 22 denote a pair of front and rear support arms whose base end side is fixed to the slider 20 and whose front end side is a free end, and each support arm 22 is conveyed by the carry-in conveyor 3 as shown in FIG. It extends in the left-right direction orthogonal to the direction (direction of arrow A), and slidably supports the lifting head 23.

As shown in FIG. 3, the elevating head 23 is provided with a support plate 24 formed of a substantially rectangular flat plate, and is provided on the support plate 24, and each support arm 22 is slidably inserted. And a pair of sliding blocks 25, 25, and centering springs 26, 26, ... Are arranged between the sliding blocks 25 and the support arms 22. Then, the springs 26 are used for the lifting head 2
3 is allowed to displace in the left-right direction of the carry-in conveyor 3 together with a fitting head 27, which will be described later, within a certain range.
Each of the springs 21 on the side of the lifting head 23 (fitting head 2
7) is configured to allow displacement in the front-back direction within a certain range.

Reference numeral 27 denotes a fitting head which is fitted to the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1, and the fitting head 27 slides on the support plate 24 of the elevating head 23 via a sliding cylinder 28 as shown in FIG. It is mounted so that it can be removed, and the upper end side is a retaining portion 27A for the sliding cylinder 28. Also, the fitting head 2
The lower end side of 7 is a cap-shaped head portion 27B hanging from the sliding cylinder 28, and the inner peripheral surface of the head portion 27B is formed as a tapered surface 27C that gradually expands downward.

The fitting head 27 has a head portion 27.
B is deeply fitted onto the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1 via the tapered surface 27C, whereby each stopper arm 8
The cylinder 1 positioned at the inspection position is reliably prevented from falling down during the inspection. Further, a buffer spring 29 is arranged between the head portion 27B of the fitting head 27 and the sliding cylinder 28, and the buffer spring 29 serves as the fitting head 27.
When the head portion 27B of the above is fitted to the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1, the fitting head 27 is allowed to be displaced upward relative to the sliding cylinder 28, and the impact at this time is mitigated. There is.

A driven gear 30 is located below the support plate 24 and is rotatably provided on the outer peripheral side of the sliding cylinder 28 via a bearing 31. A fixed gear 32 is fixed to the lower surface of the driven gear 30. A turning ring is shown. The turning ring 32 is rotationally driven by an air motor 33 described later via a driven gear 30, and a turning mechanism for turning the reading device 35 around the fitting head 27 is configured together with the air motor 33 and the like. .

Reference numeral 33 is an air motor provided on the support plate 24, and 34 is located below the support plate 24.
3 shows a drive gear rotationally driven by the drive gear 34, which meshes with the driven gear 30 to slightly reduce the rotation of the air motor 33 and transmit the rotation to the driven gear 30. In this case, for example, the air motor 33 drives the drive gear 33 with a rotation angle of about 270 degrees, whereby the driven gear 30 is driven with a rotation angle of about 360 degrees, and the reading device 3
Swirl 5 around the cylinder 1 to make one round.

Reference numeral 35 denotes a reading device as a detector mounted on the lower surface of the swivel ring 32 via a mounting bracket 36. The reading device 35 is constituted by a bar code reader or the like, and the fitting head 27 is shown in FIG. When the cylinder 1 descends in the direction of the arrow F in FIG. 4 and is fitted into the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1, it comes to face the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 1 on the upper end side. Then, the reading device 35 keeps the cylinder 1 in this state.
The control information of the cylinder 1 is read from the marker 37 when the vehicle turns around the circumference of the cylinder 1 and faces the marker 37 of the cylinder 1.

Here, the sign 37 is composed of a bar code label or the like in which management information unique to the cylinder 1 (for example, the effective filling period of each cylinder 1, the tare weight, the name of the store, and various identification information) is written in advance. The marker 37 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 1 on the upper end side by manual work or the like. And
The reading device 35 makes the marker 3 while making one round around the cylinder 1.
The management information peculiar to each cylinder 1 is read from 7, and a host computer (not shown) in the liquefied gas filling factory discriminates whether the cylinder 1 is a good product or a defective product.

Reference numeral 38 denotes an advancing / retreating mechanism for advancing / retreating the reading device 35 with respect to the cylinder 1. The advancing / retreating mechanism 38 is used for the elevating cylinder 12, the elevating guide 14, and each slide arm 1.
5, slider 20, support arms 22, lift head 23
And the fitting head 27 and the like, and the driven gear 3
0, swivel ring 32, air motor 33 and drive gear 3
A turning mechanism is constituted by 4 and the like. The elevating cylinder 12 includes an elevating guide 14 and each of the slide arms 1.
5, the slider 20, the support arms 22, the elevating head 23 and the like constitute an elevating means for elevating the fitting head 27 up and down with respect to the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 2.

Reference numeral 39 denotes a cam plate fixedly provided on the column 11 and extending in the vertical direction. The cam plate 39 shown in FIG.
A cam groove 39A is provided as shown in FIG.
A is not only the cylinder 1 for 50 kg but also the cylinder 101 for 20 kg or the cylinder 201 for 10 kg, for example, the fitting head 27 is automatically attached to the valve handles 2A, 102A, 202A of the valves 2, 102, 202, respectively. It is formed with a predetermined cam shape so as to be fitted with each other.

The cam plate 39 constitutes the centering means of the advancing / retreating mechanism 38 together with the springs 21, 26, etc., and when the fitting head 27 is lowered in the direction of arrow F in FIG. The central head OO of the valve handle 2A and the central axis O1 of the valve handle 102A
O1 and the central axis of the valve handle 202A O2-O2
Etc. are designed to be automatically centered.

Reference numeral 40 denotes a deceleration sensor suspended from the slider 20 via a rod 41. The deceleration sensor 40
Is composed of a limit switch and the like, and is attached to the lower end side of the rod 41 via a rotary shaft 42 and the like as shown in FIG. Then, when the fitting head 27 is lowered in the arrow F direction, the deceleration sensor 40 causes the cylinder 1 (101, 20) to move.
1) It comes into contact with the upper end surface of 1) and rotates in the direction of the arrow G, and at this time, the speed of the lifting cylinder 12 is reduced to reduce the speed of the fitting head 27.
Is lowered toward the valve handle 2A (102A, 202A) at a slow speed.

Reference numeral 43 is a sliding block 25 of the lifting head 23.
A stop sensor attached via a bracket 44 is shown above, and the stop sensor 43 is composed of a limit switch or the like that outputs a stop signal when the retaining portion 27A of the fitting head 27 contacts. Then, the elevating head 23 is lowered downward by the elevating cylinder 12, and the fitting head 27 moves the valve head 2A (102A, 202A).
5A and is slidably displaced in the direction of the arrow H in FIG.
By contacting with 3, the lifting cylinder 12 is stopped, and the fitting head 27 causes the valve handle 2A (102A, 102A,
202A) is temporarily held in the fitted state.

45 is disposed below the carry-in conveyor 3,
2 shows a weighing scale forming a part of the inspection device 10. The weighing scale 45 is, as shown in FIG. 2, each cylinder 1 (101, 201) positioned at an inspection position by each stopper arm 8.
Is temporarily placed, the cylinders 1 (10
1, 201) is weighed. Then, in the host computer, in order to prevent occurrence of overfilling or the like, liquefaction to be filled in the cylinder 1 (101, 201) at this time based on the management information from the reading device 35 and the measured weight from the weighing scale 45. Calculate the amount of gas filling, etc.

Reference numeral 46 denotes a flow dividing guide as a sorting means provided between the filling station 4 and each stopper arm 8 and provided in the middle of the carry-in conveyor 3. The flow dividing guide 46 is, as shown in FIG. A guide arm 48, one end of which is rotatably connected to the frame of the carry-in conveyor 3 via a connecting pin 47, and the other end of which is a free end and is formed in an arc shape, and a tip end thereof is an intermediate portion of the guide arm 48. The air cylinder 49 is rotatably attached to the frame of the carry-in conveyor 3 via a bracket (not shown) or the like.

Here, the air cylinder 49 of the flow dividing guide 46 is supplied with air from the outside to select the guide arm 48 between the standby position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1 and the discharge position shown by the phantom line. To rotate. Then, the cylinder 1 (101, 101, which is determined by the reading device 35 as a non-defective product)
201) is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46, the diversion guide 46 sets the guide arm 48 to the standby position so that the cylinder 1 (101, 201) is directed toward the filling station 4. Allowed to be loaded in the direction. Further, when the cylinder 1 (101, 201) determined to be defective by the reading device 35 is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46, the diversion guide 46 rotates the guide arm 48 to the diversion position, Cylinder 1 (101,
201) is discharged from the carry-in conveyor 3 onto the diversion conveyor 50 in the direction of the arrow J.

Further, reference numeral 51 denotes a discharge conveyor which constitutes a defective product discharge path arranged between the carry-in conveyor 3 and the carry-out conveyor 7, and the discharge conveyor 51 is a diversion guide 46.
The defective cylinder 1 (101, 201) discharged onto the shunt conveyor 50 is discharged in the direction of arrow K in FIG.

The liquefied gas filling apparatus according to the present embodiment has the above-mentioned structure, and its operation will be described below, taking as an example the case of filling the liquefied gas into the cylinder 1 for 50 kg.

First, an empty cylinder 1 to be filled with liquefied gas
When is transferred to the inspection position by the carry-in conveyor 3, the cylinder 1 is positioned so as to come into contact with the tips of the stopper arms 8 and be centered on the carry-in conveyor 3. When the cylinder 1 is positioned at the inspection position, the lifting cylinder 12 causes the lifting head 23 (fitting head 27) to move the lifting guide 14 and the slide arms 1.
2 and the like in the direction of arrow F in FIG.

At this time, the cam holder 16 is guided to the cam groove 39A of the cam plate 39 through the cam roller 19 and the like, so that each slide arm 15 moves in the direction of arrow E in FIG. By sliding, the fitting head 27 is automatically aligned with the central axis OO of the valve handle 2A. Then, the head portion 2 of the fitting head 27
When 7B starts to be fitted into the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1, the head portion 27B is brought into sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface of the valve handle 2A through the tapered surface 27C, and each spring 2
While the lifting head 23 (fitting head 27) is centered to the front, rear, left, and right via 1 and 26, the fitting head 2
The head portion 27B of No. 7 is deeply fitted on the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1.

In this case, the fitting head 27 (the lifting head 2
3) is lowered from the highest position as shown in FIG. 4, the lifting cylinder 12 moves the fitting head 2 at a relatively high speed.
7 (elevating head 23) is lowered. When the deceleration sensor 40 comes into contact with the upper end surface of the cylinder 1 or the like and rotates in the direction of the arrow G in the middle of this, a deceleration signal is output from the deceleration sensor 40, so that the lifting cylinder 12 can The descending speed of is automatically reduced, and the fitting head 27 is descended toward the valve handle 2A at a slow speed.

Next, when the head portion 27B of the fitting head 27 is fitted to the valve handle 2A, the fitting head 27 resists the buffer spring 29 and slides in the direction of arrow H in FIG.
The inside is relatively displaced, and at this time, in the buffer spring 29, the head portion 27B of the fitting head 27 is the valve handle 2 of the cylinder 1.
The impact when fitting to A is mitigated. Then, when the retaining portion 27A of the fitting head 27 comes into contact with the stop sensor 43, the lifting cylinder 12 is automatically stopped by a stop signal from the stop sensor 43, and the fitting head 27 is fitted to the valve handle 2A. While maintaining this state, the stopper arm 8 and the cylinder 1 are prevented from falling over.

Next, in this state, the air motor 33 is driven and the orbiting ring 32 is rotated via the drive gear 34 and the driven gear 30, whereby the reading device 35 causes the cylinder 1 to center around the fitting head 27. It turns so as to go around the circumference of. When the reading device 35 faces the marker 37 of the cylinder 1 during the turning, the reader 37
Then, the management information of the cylinder 1 is automatically read, and the host computer of the filling factory discriminates whether the cylinder 1 is a good product or a defective product.

That is, in each of the cylinders 1 carried by the carry-in conveyor 3 toward the filling station 4, the marker 37 has not been stuck yet, or the marker 37 has been stuck, but is attached to the host computer of the filling factory. May be unregistered, or the cylinder 1 or the like whose filling effective period has already passed may be mixed, and such a cylinder 1 is determined as a defective product by the host computer.

Further, each cylinder 1 positioned at the inspection position by each stopper arm 8 is temporarily placed on the weight scale 45 and its weight is measured. Then, in the host computer, in order to prevent the occurrence of overfilling or the like, the filling amount of the liquefied gas to be filled in the cylinder 1 at this time is based on the management information from the reading device 35 and the measured weight from the weighing scale 45. To be calculated. At this time, when it is determined that the cylinder 1 is already full and the cylinder 1 is sufficiently filled with the liquefied gas, the cylinder 1 is treated as a part of defective products.

Thus, when the inspection process is completed, the elevating cylinder 12 operates again to elevate the elevating head 23 (fitting head 27) to the highest position shown in FIG.
By rotating each stopper arm 8 in the directions indicated by arrows D and D in FIG. 3, the cylinder 1 after completion of the inspection is conveyed to the downstream side in the direction indicated by arrow A by the carry-in conveyor 3. Then, when the next cylinder 1 is conveyed to the downstream side of each stopper arm 8, each stopper arm 8 returns to the position shown in FIG. 3 again, and the next cylinder 1 is moved to the inspection position on the carry-in conveyor 3. Position and wait in this position until the inspection process is complete.

Next, when the cylinder 1 determined to be defective by the reading device 35 is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46, the guide arm 48 of the diversion guide 46 advances to the diversion position on the carry-in conveyor 3. Then, the cylinder 1 is discharged from the carry-in conveyor 3 onto the diversion conveyor 50 in the arrow J direction, and then the defective cylinder 1 is automatically discharged in the arrow K direction in FIG. To be done. Then, on the downstream side of the discharge conveyor 51, a treatment (for example, a treatment such as sticking a marker 37 or the like) according to the content of the defect of each cylinder 1 that is sequentially discharged is performed and then returned to the carry-in conveyor 3 again. . Further, the cylinder 1 which has already been filled up and has been determined to be defective is moved to the carry-out conveyor 7 side.

On the other hand, when the cylinder 1 determined to be non-defective by the reading device 35 is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46, the guide arm 48 of the diversion guide 46 retracts to the standby position, so that the cylinder 1 Are allowed to be loaded in the direction of arrow A toward the filling station 4. Then, each of the non-defective cylinders 1 carried on the rotary table 5 of the filling station 4 is automatically quantitatively filled with the liquefied gas by each filling machine 6, and each of the cylinders 1 after the filling is completed is turned on from the rotary table 5. It is carried out on the carry-out conveyor 7 by a carry-out robot or the like, and is carried in an upright state in the direction of arrow C toward a shipping yard (not shown) in the filling factory.

Thus, according to the present embodiment, when the cylinders 1 are individually positioned at the inspection position by the stopper arms 8 provided on the way of the carry-in conveyor 3, the lift cylinders 12 raise and lower the guides 14. While the head 23 and the fitting head 27 are lowered downward, the head portion 27B of the fitting head 27 is fitted to the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1, and the cylinder 1 is held in the upright state at the inspection position and the air motor Drive gear 34, driven gear 3 by 33
The reading device 35 is swung so as to make one turn around the cylinder 1 via the 0 and the swivel ring 32, and the cylinder 1 is rotated.
Since the management information of the cylinder 1 is read by the reading device 35 from the mark 37, the following operational effects can be obtained.

That is, even when the cylinders 1 are oriented in an arbitrary direction on the carry-in conveyor 3 and are conveyed to and positioned at the inspection position, the reading device 35 is set to the cylinder 1.
While making one revolution around the
With this, the management information of the cylinder 1 can be immediately read at this time, and it can be accurately inspected (determined) whether the cylinder 1 is a good product or a defective product.

Further, since the flow dividing guide 46 is provided in the middle of the carry-in conveyor 3 between the filling station 4 and each stopper arm 8, the cylinder 1 detected as a defective product by the reading device 35 or the like may be removed. When it is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46, the guide arm 48 of the diversion guide 46 is advanced onto the carry-in conveyor 3, and the cylinder 1 is immediately moved from the carry-in conveyor 3 toward the diversion conveyor 50 and the discharge conveyor 51. Can be discharged.

Then, the good cylinder 1 is diverted to the diversion guide 46.
When it is transported to the position of, the guide arm 48 of the diversion guide 46 is retracted from above the carry-in conveyor 3,
Only non-defective cylinders 1 can be loaded to the filling station 4, and in each filling station 4, each filling machine 6 is loaded for each non-defective cylinder 1 sequentially loaded on the rotary table 5.
Thus, the liquefied gas can be continuously filled, and the cylinders 1 after the fixed amount filling can be continuously carried out from the rotary table 5 toward the carry-out conveyor 7, so that the liquefied gas filling work can be continuously carried out.

Further, when lowering the raising / lowering head 23 and the fitting head 27 by the raising / lowering cylinder 12 toward the valve handle 2A of each cylinder 1 positioned at the inspection position by each stopper arm 8, it is relatively quick at first. When the fitting head 27 (lifting head 23) is lowered at a speed and the deceleration sensor 40 contacts the upper end surface of the cylinder 1 or the like and rotates in the direction of arrow G in FIG. Is automatically decelerated and the fitting head 27 is lowered toward the valve handle 2A at a slow speed while
The head portion 27B of the valve handle 2A is fitted to the valve handle 2A.
It can be slowly fitted to A, and the shock at this time can be effectively alleviated together with the buffer spring 29, and it is necessary for lowering the fitting head 27 (elevating head 23) from the raised position to the fitted position. Time can be shortened to the necessary minimum.

The fitting head 27 (elevating head 23)
2 is moved from the raised position to the fitted position, the cam holder 16 is guided along the cam groove 39A of the cam plate 39 via the cam roller 19 or the like, so that each slide arm 15 is moved relative to the elevating guide 14 in FIG. Slide in the direction of the arrow E to move the fitting head 27 to the valve handle 2A.
(102A, 202A) central axis O-O (O1-O1,
O2 -O2)
Even when, for example, the cylinder 101 for 20 kg or the cylinder 201 for 10 kg is mixed and conveyed by the carry-in conveyor 3 in addition to each cylinder 1 for 50 kg, the head portion 27B of the fitting head 27 is moved to the cylinder 1 ( 101,
201) valve handle 2A (102A, 202A)
Can be securely fitted.

Further, a slider 20 is provided slidably in the front-rear direction on each tip end of each slide arm 15 through each centering spring 21, and each support arm extending from the slider 20 onto the carry-in conveyor 3 is provided. An elevating head 23 is slidably provided in the left-right direction on each of 22 through centering springs 26, and each elevating head 23 displaces the elevating head 23 together with the fitting head 27 in the left-right direction of the conveyor 3. Allowing within a certain range, each spring 21 on the slider 20 side is
3 (fitting head 27) is allowed to be displaced in the front-back direction within a certain range.

As a result, the head portion 27 of the fitting head 27 is
B is the valve handle 2A of the cylinder 1 (101, 201)
(102A, 202A) begins to fit, the head portion 27
B is connected to the valve handle 2A (10
2A, 202A) when slidingly contacting the outer peripheral surface of the fitting head 2 while moving the elevating head 23 (fitting head 27) forward, rearward, left, and right through the springs 21 and 26, respectively.
7 can be reliably centered on the valve handle 2A (102A, 202A), and the head portion 27 of the fitting head 27
B is the valve handle 2A of cylinder 1 (101, 201).
(102A, 202A) can be smoothly and deeply fitted.

Furthermore, the weight of each cylinder 1 positioned at the inspection position by each stopper arm 8 is measured by the weight scale 4
The reading device 3
Based on the management information from 5 and the measured weight from the weighing scale 45, the filling amount of liquefied gas to be filled in each cylinder 1 (101, 201) can be accurately calculated by the host computer, and overfilling, etc. Can be effectively prevented.

At this time, the cylinder 1 (101, 2
01) is already full and the cylinder 1 (101,
When it is determined that the liquefied gas is sufficiently filled in (201), this cylinder 1 (101, 201) can be treated as a part of the defective product, and the cylinder 1 (101, 101) in a full tank state can be treated.
201) can be reliably prevented from being loaded into the filling station 4, and the efficiency of the filling operation can be improved.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, each of the cylinders 1 (101, 20) is located at an intermediate position (inspection position) of the carry-in conveyor 3.
1) While temporarily stopping and positioning 1), the inspection device 1
By automatically operating the cylinder 1, the cylinder 1 (1
(01, 201) is a good product or a defective product, and it is possible to automatically perform a reading operation for reading the management information from each cylinder 1 (101, 201).

Then, each defective cylinder 1 (101, 2)
01) is conveyed to the position of the diversion guide 46,
By operating the diversion guide 46, it is possible to automatically discharge from the carry-in conveyor 3 to the discharge conveyor 51 side.
The defective cylinders 1 (101, 201) are no longer carried into the filling station 4, and each of the good cylinders 1
The (101, 201) can be continuously filled with the liquefied gas, the entire filling work can be made efficient, and the workability can be significantly improved.

In the above embodiment, the cylinder 1 (10
1, 201) and a label 37 such as a bar code label is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the upper end side, and the reading device 35 reads it to determine whether the cylinder 1 (101, 201) is a good product or a defective product. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 1 (101, 201) or the valve handle 2A (102A, 202A).
The management information may be imprinted on the upper end surface or the like, or a micro-memory capable of reading and writing data may be provided so that the management information unique to the cylinder 1 (101, 201) can be read through them. Good.

Further, an element piece composed of an IC element or the like capable of transmitting and receiving radio waves is attached to or attached to the outer peripheral surface of the lower end side of the cylinder 1 (101, 201) to attach the cylinder 1 (10
The management information unique to the cylinder 1 (101, 201) may be read by applying radio waves to the microchip from an inspection device or the like as an inspection means during the loading of (1, 201). And especially in this case, the cylinder 1
It is possible to determine whether the cylinder 1 (101, 201) is a good product or a defective product by simply passing the (101, 201) in front of the inspection device or the like without positioning it at the inspection position in the middle of the carry-in conveyor 3. It is possible to determine.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the linearly extending carry-in conveyor 3 has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the carry-in conveyor 3 may be appropriately curved and curved. Of course, the carry-out conveyor 7 and the discharge conveyor 51 may be appropriately curved and formed in a curved shape. The carry-in conveyor 3 and the carry-out conveyor 7 may be configured by combining a plurality of conveyors.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the rotary automatic filling machine in which the eight filling machines 6 are arranged on the rotary table 5 of the filling station 4 has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a configuration in which a plurality of filling machines such as 6, 12 and 16 are arranged on the rotary table 5 may be adopted.

[0077]

As described in detail above, according to the first aspect of the invention , the positioning mechanism and the detecting mechanism are provided in the middle of the carrying-in means for carrying the container filled with the liquefied gas toward the filling station.
Can, the inspection means comprising a forward and reverse mechanism and the turning mechanism is provided
The Rukoto, because the container is examined whether a defective or non-defective, and configured to perform sorting of the containers in the sorting means based on the inspection result of the inspection means, contents to be filled with a liquefied gas
When the container is transported, the positioning mechanism operates and
The device can be temporarily positioned and the advancing / retreating mechanism is activated.
The detector can be automatically advanced toward this container.
Yes, in this state, the detector goes around the container once.
By rotating the container, the container can be
This container is a good product even when oriented in the
Whether the product is defective or defective
Can be Then, when a defective container is conveyed to the position of the sorting means, the defective container can be automatically discharged from the carry-in means toward the defective discharge path, and only the good container is carried into the filling station. be able to. Therefore, it is possible to easily inspect whether the container in the process of being imported is a good product or a defective product, and it is possible to automatically perform the reading work of the container information and the like, and the container of the defective product is automatically transferred from the carrying-in means. The gas can be discharged, and the entire liquefied gas filling operation can be made efficient, and the workability can be greatly improved.

[0078] In the invention described in claim 2, test hand
A positioning mechanism, a detector, and a
The reciprocating mechanism and the turning mechanism, and
Structure by the fitting head, lifting means and centering means.
Since it is configured,
The fitting head is lowered to the positioned container by the lifting means.
When lowering, move the fitting head with the centering means.
Can be centered on the central axis of the handle and
The mating head is automatically fitted on the valve handle.
In the state, the detector is swiveled around the fitting head.
Structure allows swivel around container, making container inspection more efficient
Can be done on a regular basis .

[0079] Further, in the invention described in claim 3, wherein
It is possible to obtain the same effect as the invention described in claim 2.
The containers are sorted based on the inspection results of the inspection means above.
Since it is configured to include a sorting means,
When the defective container is conveyed to the position, the defective container is
Can be automatically discharged from the carry-in means to the defective product discharge path.
And only carry good containers into the filling station.
Can be. Therefore, the container can be inspected efficiently.
And the efficiency of the entire liquefied gas filling operation can be improved.
The work of can Rukoto greatly improved.

Further, as in the invention described in claim 4,
Set up a rotating table and multiple filling machines at the filling station.
By loading, the carrying-in means sequentially carries it onto the rotary table.
Liquefied gas is continuously filled into the good containers
It is possible to carry out the filled container from the turntable.
The liquefied gas filling work can be carried out continuously by stages.
Can be significantly improved in efficiency .

Further, as in the invention described in claim 5, if the container is provided with a mark for displaying management information, the reading device as the detector is swung around the container, The reading device can be reliably faced to the label of the container, and whether the container is a good product or a defective product can be automatically inspected based on the management information, and the reading operation of the container information can be performed accurately. Can be done.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall view showing a liquefied gas filling apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view of each stopper arm, the inspection device, and the like in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken in the direction of arrows III-III in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a left side view of FIG. 2 showing an enlargement of a reading device, an advancing / retreating mechanism and the like of the inspection device.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken in the direction of arrows VV in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 101, 201 cylinder (container) 2, 102, 202 valve 2A, 102A, 202A valve handle 3 carry-in conveyor (carry-in means) 4 filling station 5 rotary table 6 filling machine 7 carry-out conveyor (carry-out means) 8 stopper arm (positioning) 10) Inspection device 12 Lifting cylinder (lifting means) 14 Lifting guide 15 Slide arm 20 Slider 21, 26 Spring 23 Lifting head 27 Fitting head 28 Sliding cylinder 29 Buffer spring 30 Driven gear 32 Slewing ring 33 Air motor (swinging means) 34 drive gear 35 reader (detector) 37 sign 38 advancing / retreating mechanism 39 cam plate (centering means) 46 diversion guide (sorting means) 50 diversion conveyor 51 discharge conveyor (defective product discharge path)

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A container filled with a liquefied gas, a carrying-in means for carrying the container toward a filling station, and a container provided in the middle of the carrying-in means and carried by the carrying-in means are non-defective products. An inspection means for inspecting whether there is a defective product or not, and a container disposed between the inspection means and the filling station and provided in the middle of the carry-in means, and sorting the containers based on the inspection result by the inspection means. Sorting means for performing , the inspection means is provided in the middle of the carry-in means,
Temporarily stop the container conveyed by the input means.
And a positioning mechanism for positioning
The positioned container is a good product or a defective product.
A detector for inspecting
The forward / backward mechanism for moving forward and backward, and the detection by the forward / backward mechanism
With the detector advanced toward the container, attach the detector to the container.
Consists of a pivoting mechanism for pivoting around said sorting means is discharged toward the defective discharge path from the carry means tested containers as a defective product by the pre-Symbol inspection means, container good is toward the filling station A liquefied gas filling device configured to allow it to be carried in. 2. A container filled with liquefied gas, and the container
Carry-in means for carrying to the filling station and the carry-in
It is provided in the middle of the means and is carried by the carry-in means.
The inspection to check whether the container is good or bad
In the liquefied gas filling device provided with an inspection means, the inspection means is provided in the middle of the carry-in means,
The container conveyed by the loading means is temporarily stopped.
And a positioning mechanism for positioning
The positioned container is a good product or a defective product.
A detector for inspecting
The forward / backward mechanism for moving forward and backward, and the detection by the forward / backward mechanism
With the detector advanced toward the container, attach the detector to the container.
And a reciprocating mechanism, wherein the advancing / retreating mechanism is a valve handle attached to the container.
Mating head that fits on the valve handle on the central axis of
And the container positioned on the loading means by the positioning mechanism.
Means for raising and lowering the fitting head with respect to the container
When the valve thus fitting head elevating means of the container
When lowered toward the handle, the mating head is
Centering centered on the central axis of the handle
And a liquefied gas filling device. 3. A container filled with liquefied gas, and the container
Carry-in means for carrying to the filling station and the carry-in
It is provided in the middle of the means and is carried by the carry-in means.
The inspection to check whether the container is good or bad
In the liquefied gas filling device provided with an inspection means, the inspection means is provided in the middle of the carry-in means,
Temporarily stop the container conveyed by the input means.
And a positioning mechanism for positioning
The positioned container is a good product or a defective product.
A detector for inspecting
The forward / backward mechanism for moving forward and backward, and the detection by the forward / backward mechanism
With the detector advanced toward the container, attach the detector to the container.
And a reciprocating mechanism, wherein the advancing / retreating mechanism is a valve handle attached to the container.
Fitting head fitted to the valve handle on the central axis of
And the container positioned on the loading means by the positioning mechanism.
Means for raising and lowering the fitting head with respect to the container
And the fitting head causes the valve of the container
When the fitting head is lowered toward the handle,
Centering centered on the central axis of the handle
It consists of a ring means, further, in the middle of the carry section, filled with the test means
Located between the station and the inspection means
A sorting means is provided to sort the containers based on the results.
The sorting means is inspected as defective by the inspection means.
Direct the inspected container from the carry-in means to the defective product discharge path
Discharge and transfer good containers to the filling station.
A liquefied gas filling device characterized by being configured to allow entry . 4. A rotating table is provided at the filling station.
And at a predetermined interval on the rotary table,
A container of non-defective product that has been loaded onto the rotary table by the loading means.
A plurality of filling machines for filling the liquefied gas are installed in the
Each container filled with liquefied gas by the machine
Liquefied gas filling device according to claim 1, 2 or 3 comprising a structure you out to the downstream side by the discharge means from the table. 5. A reading device for inspecting whether the container is a non-defective product or a defective product by providing the container with a label for displaying management information, and the detector reading the management information from the label. The liquefied gas filling device according to claim 1, 2, 3, or 4 , which is configured.