JP3486082B2 - Label sticking device and product processing device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a label sticking device and a product processing device provided with the label sticking device, and more particularly to a label sticking position / posture.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Supermarket foods, etc., are placed on a tray (packing container) and packaged in a film together with the tray, and a label indicating the net weight or price of the product is attached to the film. ing. Currently, as the position of attaching the label to the tray, in addition to "lower right" shown in FIG. 8A, there are four positions of "upper right", "lower left", and "upper left".
There are types. Further, the sticking postures for sticking the label L to the substantially rectangular tray T include “vertical sticking” shown in FIG. 8B and “horizontal sticking” shown in FIG. 8C. Therefore, there are a total of eight label attachment conditions.

[0003]

By the way, when displaying the products in the store, if the sizes (types) of the trays T are different even for the same product, as shown in FIGS. The attachment conditions for L are changed. Further, when the same tray T has different products, as shown in FIGS. 8B and 8C, the label L
The attachment conditions of are changed. Therefore, when the label L is attached to a product by an automatic machine, the attachment condition of the label L is input and set each time when the size of the tray T changes. As described above, it is not only troublesome and burdensome for the operator to perform the input setting each time, but there is a case where an error occurs in the sticking state of the label as a result of inputting the sticking condition by mistake.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to reduce the burden on the operator in the automatic application of labels and to prevent label errors from occurring in the label application apparatus and product processing. It is to provide a device.

[0005]

To SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To achieve the above object, the present first invention is a label sticking apparatus for sticking a label in or on the wrapped item packaging, each kind of goods
Set multiple types of packaging containers to be used for storage in the storage section
Not only can it be registered, but the type of product and packaging
Once you decide which one, the position and posture of the label will be decided.
The types of products and packaging containers
Products that can be set and registered in the storage unit and specified or specified
And the sticking conditions are read out according to the type of the packaging container, and the label is stuck according to the read sticking conditions. On the other hand, the second invention is a packaging
Label affixing labels to products that are inside or packaged
The packaging volume that the device will use for each type of product
Multiple types of vessels can be set and registered in the storage unit,
Once the type of packaging container is determined, the label on the packaging container
The sticking position and the sticking posture of the label to the packaging container are decided.
For each type of packaging container,
Bell attachment position and label attachment to packaging container
The pasting conditions that determine the force can be set and registered in the storage unit, and the
According to the type of packaging container specified or specified,
The conditions are read from the storage unit, and the read pasting conditions
It is characterized in that a label is attached according to
It

[0006]

According to the present invention, the sticking conditions such as the attaching position and attached posture of the label which is previously set and registered, since it can be read from the types of packaging containers, example, packaging <br/> instrumentation container By inputting or detecting and specifying the type, the label can be attached according to a predetermined attaching condition.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG.
7 to FIG. 7. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show a weighing and packaging pricing device which is an example of a product processing device. First, the weighing and packaging mechanism of the device will be described.

In FIG. 2, 100 is a weighing conveyor, 2
00 is a packaging device. The weighing conveyor 100 includes a weight detector 101 such as a load cell for weighing the tare weight of the product M, and a plurality of pulleys 102, 102 supported on the weight detector 101. It has a drive belt 103. A claw-shaped protrusion 104 that pushes the end of the tray (packaging container) T and sends the product M to the packaging device 200 side is fixed to each of these drive belts 103. Therefore, after the weight of the placed product M is measured, the product T placed on the transfer surface 105 slides on the tray T.
Is sent to the elevator mechanism 201.

The elevator mechanism 201 is arranged immediately below the packaging station S, and has an elevating means 208.
It can be moved up and down. When the merchandise M is supplied from the weighing conveyor 100, the elevator mechanism 201 rises and lifts the merchandise M to the packaging station S.

On the other hand, prior to the packaging operation, the stretched film F is transferred to the packaging station S by the transfer mechanism 20.
2,202. This film F
When the product M is pushed up, is attached to the upper surface of the product M. In this state, the film folding mechanism 203 includes the pair of left and right folding plates 204, 204 and the rear folding plate 205 of FIG.
And a round bar-shaped front folding member 206 and a pusher 207.
By (FIG. 1), the front, rear, left, and right side edges of the film F are folded into the bottom surface of the tray T to package the product M.

In FIG. 1, inside the main body frame 20,
A plurality of film rolls Fr having different widths F2 (FIG. 3) are housed, and one of the film rolls Fr is stored.
The film F can be unwound to the packaging station S by selecting r. A label sticking machine 13 is arranged above the packaging station S. The label sticking machine 13 sticks the label L issued from the label printer 12 of FIG. 2 on the surface of the film F at the packaging station S. The label printer 12 and the label sticking machine 13 in FIG. 1 are movably supported in the left-right direction X and the depth direction Y in FIG. 2 by an upper support frame 21, and the sticking head 13a is swiveled around a vertical axis. It is supported freely, and as is well known, the label L can be attached according to a predetermined attaching position and attaching posture.

In FIG. 2, an ultrasonic range finder 1 and a CCD camera (imaging device) are provided above the weighing conveyor 100.
Two are provided. The ultrasonic range finder 1 transmits an ultrasonic pulse of a predetermined frequency downward, receives the reflected waves from the product M and the tray T, and depending on the time until the reception, the products M and The shortest distance to the tray T is calculated and output to the microcomputer (microcomputer) 3 in FIG. The microcomputer 3, the ultrasonic distance meter 1 and the CCD
The camera 2 constitutes a size information detection unit (detection unit) that detects size information of the tray T. The CCD camera 2 includes a tray T placed on a predetermined area on the weighing conveyor 100 at a predetermined angle from a predetermined upper position, as shown in FIG.
Imaging is performed as in (a), and luminance information (imaging information) is output.

In FIG. 4, in addition to the ultrasonic range finder 1 and the CCD camera 2 described above, the microcomputer 3 has a measuring means 106, a touch screen (input operation means) 10 and a stroke key section via an interface (not shown). (Input operation means) 11, a label printer 12, a weighing and packaging price controller 14, etc. are connected. The microcomputer 3
Includes a CPU 4 and a memory 5. The CPU
4 includes an image processing unit 40, a size correction unit 41, and a tray specifying unit 42. On the other hand, the memory 5 includes a product information storage unit 50 and a packaging attachment state storage unit 51.

FIG. 6A shows the product information storage unit 50.
Corresponding to the call number of the product, one or more pseudo tray numbers (packing attachment state numbers) are stored in addition to the product name and unit price for each product. The product name and unit price information are used as label printing information.

On the other hand, in the packaging and pasting state storage section 51 of FIG. 6B, a tray having a tray width (long side dimension) W and a depth (rectangle side dimension) D is provided for each pseudo tray number. The size (corresponding to the type of tray) and the processing contents of various products are stored. As the processing content, the tray weight for tare, the label attachment position and the label attachment posture are stored. That is, for each of the above pseudo tray numbers, the pasting conditions that determine the pasting position and posture of the label, and the pasting state in which the type (size) of the tray that is planned to be used for the product is one set A large number of sets can be registered in the section 51.

As described above, the pseudo tray number is stored for each call number (type) of the product in the product information storage unit 50 of FIG. 6 (a), while the packaging sticker of FIG. 6 (b) is attached. The state storage unit 51 stores the size (type) of the tray, the sticking position, and the posture for each pseudo tray number. Therefore, if both the product call number (type of product) and the size (type) of the tray are determined, the types and attachment positions and orientations of the products and trays are set in advance so that the label attachment position and orientation are uniquely determined. This means that the settings can be registered in the memory 5.

As the pasting position, in addition to the concept of "lower right", "upper right", etc., reference positions Cy and Cx shown in FIG.
Distances Dy and Wx from the label L to the label L are stored in the packaging attachment state storage unit 51 of FIG. 6B. The information in the product information storage unit 50 and the packaging attachment state storage unit 51 is the touch screen 10 and the stroke key unit 11.
(Fig. 1) is input and set, but the distance D
y and Wx are calculated by the CPU 4 of FIG. 4 according to a predetermined arithmetic expression based on the size of the tray and the sticking position and posture.

The image processing means 40 is the CCD camera 2
The apparent planar edge position of the tray T is detected based on the brightness information input from the above, and the apparent size of the tray T is calculated from the edge position. To do. An image of the weighing conveyor 100 in which the tray T is not placed is stored in advance in the first image storage section 52 of the memory 5, while the second image storage section 53 of FIG. An image with the tray T placed is stored. The image processing means 40 of FIG. 4 obtains the position of the edge Te on the tray T from the change in the brightness of the first and second image storage units 52 and 53.

On the other hand, in the image pickup area A of the CCD camera 2 of FIG. 5A, the first and second reference lines C1 and C2 are arranged vertically and horizontally.
Are set, and both the reference lines C1 and C2 and the imaging area A are set.
The apparent size of the tray T is calculated based on the distance between the intersection point O _N with the end of the tray T and the intersection point P _N of the reference lines C1 and C2 and the edge Te. For example, the apparent width Wa of the tray T is calculated by the following equation (1). _{Wa = Wo- (W 1 + W} 2) ... (1)

Next, a method for obtaining the actual size of the tray T from the apparent size of the tray T will be described. As shown in FIG. 5B, when an image of a tray having a height H is taken and an attempt is made to measure the planar dimension W of the tray T, the apparent dimension Wa becomes the measured value. Here, the planar dimension W of the actual tray T and the apparent dimension Wa are expressed by the following equation (2). Wa: W = Ha: (Ha-H) (2) However, Ha-H: Distance (height) from the image pickup device to the edge Te of the tray Ha: Distance (height) from the image pickup device to the transport surface 105 From the above formula (2), the actual size W of the tray T is as follows (3)
It is represented by a formula. W = Wa · (Ha−H) / Ha (3) Therefore, by knowing the distance (Ha−H) from the imaging device to the edge Te of the tray, the actual size of the tray can be known.

The dimension correcting means 41 (FIG. 4) is
According to the equation (3), the apparent size (width) Wa of the tray T in FIG. 5 (b) is corrected by the height (Ha-H) to the tray to obtain the sizes W and D of the tray.

The tray specifying means 42 (FIG. 4) has the sizes (measured values) W and D of the tray T obtained by the detection and calculation, and the tray registered values (measured values) W (D) stored in FIG. 6B. Width and depth) and identify the tray type by the following procedure. First, the tray specifying means 42 of FIG.
Reads out the pseudo tray number corresponding to the product call number of FIG. 6A input from the stroke key unit 11 from the product information storage unit 50, and further, the packaging attachment state storage unit 51.
The depth D and width W of the tray of the relevant pseudo tray No. is read from the tray, and the width W of the tray of each read pseudo tray No.
For depth and depth D, the measured value and the set registered value are compared, and the absolute value ΔW of the difference for the width W and the absolute value ΔD of the difference for the depth D are obtained. Subsequently, the tray specifying means 42 sets the tray having the smallest sum of the absolute values ΔW + ΔD as a candidate to be specified.

Next, the tray specifying means 42 determines whether or not the absolute values ΔW and ΔD are both within a predetermined measurement error range (threshold value) ΔA set in advance, and both of them are in the measurement error range ΔA. If it is within the range, it is determined that the imaged tray is that of the pseudo tray number. On the other hand, the tray specifying means 42 does not specify the tray when one or both of the absolute values ΔW and ΔD are larger than the predetermined measurement error range ΔA. When the pseudo tray No. is specified, the CPU 4 reads out the processing content of the product of the pseudo tray No. from the packaging and pasting state storage unit 51 of FIG. Output processing conditions.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a schematic structure of the label sticking machine 13. In FIG. 7A, the label sticking machine 13
Holds the label L printed by the print head 12a of the label printer 12 by the sticking head 13a adsorbing it with a negative pressure. The sticking head 13a reciprocates between the issuing position of the label L and the sticking level for sticking the label L on the film of the product at the lower packaging station S (FIG. 2) by an elevator mechanism (not shown). The pasting head 1
As shown in FIG. 7 (b), 3a rotates left and right around the vertical axis by a predetermined angle by a turning mechanism (not shown) while descending, so that the label L is attached to the product according to the set sticking posture. Stick it on the film. The label sticking machine 13 of FIG. 1 sticks the label L at the set sticking position by moving in the left-right direction X and the depth direction Y of FIG. Incidentally, as for the detailed structure of the label sticking machine 13, for example, the one disclosed in JP-A-63-272649 can be adopted.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. First, set the registration mode in advance and call the product N
o., product name, unit price, pseudo tray number to be used, etc. are set and registered from the touch screen 10 and the stroke key unit 11 for each product. Also, each pseudo tray N
For each o, the depth and width of the tray, the weight of the tray, the sticking position, the sticking posture, and the like are set and registered from the touch screen 10, the stroke key unit 11, and the like.

On the other hand, when packaging a product, first, the packaging mode is set. Next, after the operator inputs (designates) the call number of the product to be packed, the tray T on which the product M is placed is placed on the weighing conveyor 100, and the weighing means 106 in FIG. The output is converted into weight and output to the microcomputer 3. The microcomputer 3 fetches the brightness information from the CCD camera 2 and the height information from the ultrasonic rangefinder 1 when the weight signal becomes stable.

Thereafter, the CPU 4 detects the edge Te of the tray based on the above-mentioned method, obtains the apparent size of the tray from the edge Te, corrects the apparent size with the height information, and then the width of the tray. Find W and depth D, and
Specify the pseudo tray number. The microcomputer 3 subtracts the tray weight of the specified pseudo tray No. from the tare weighted weighing value to obtain the net weight, and outputs the net weight to the touch screen 10 and the label printer 12. The label printer 12 prints the net weight and the product name on the label and issues the label.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 3 reads the sticking position and sticking posture from the packing sticking state storage unit 51 of FIG. 6 for the specified pseudo tray No., and outputs the relevant information to the weighing and packing price controller 14 (FIG. 4). ) Is output. The weighing and packaging price controller 14 (FIG. 4) controls the actuator so that the label attachment state becomes the attachment position and orientation read from the packaging attachment state storage unit 51, and the issue of FIG. The label L is stuck by the label sticking machine 13 onto the film of the product.

As described above, according to this apparatus, even if trays having different sizes are used for one product, the product is called.
By simply entering the No., the label can be attached according to the specified position and posture. Therefore, the burden on the operator is lightened, and the sticking position and posture are not erroneous.

By the way, the tray to be used is decided in advance to some extent according to the type of product (name of product, etc.). Here, in the above-described embodiment, first, a tray is selected from the types of trays corresponding to the product call number, and the tray is specified. Therefore, since the tray candidates specified by the product call number are narrowed down in advance, the tray can be specified accurately and quickly. As a result, accurate pasting conditions can be read out quickly.

In the above embodiment, the ultrasonic rangefinder 1
I used the CCD camera 2 to detect the size of the tray.
The present invention does not limit the mechanism for detecting the size of the tray. For example, while the tray T moves on the carry-in conveyor, the depth of the tray T may be calculated from the time when the light of the photoelectric detector is shielded and the transport speed. Further, when the centering device for centering the tray is provided, or when the pusher for pushing the tray from the rear side is provided, the size of the tray may be detected from the stroke of the centering device or the pusher. Also, regarding the height of the tray, a large number of photoelectric detectors may be arranged vertically and detected. Furthermore, the apparent planar dimensions and area (information about the dimensions) of the tray captured by the piezoelectric sensor or CCD camera without directly detecting the actual dimensions of the width W and the depth D are registered. The pseudo tray number may be specified by comparing with the above, and the pre-registered sticking position and posture may be read from the specified pseudo tray number of the packing sticking state storage unit 51.

The tray may be specified by detecting the weight of the tray instead of the appearance of the tray, or by inputting (designating) the tray number itself which is different from the pseudo tray number.
It may be done. On the other hand, although the call number of the product is input for the product, the product may be specified by detecting the appearance of the product (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-2575).
No. 24).

In the above embodiment, the label L is attached to the film F of the product M in the package shown in FIG. 2, but the present invention may attach the label L to the film F of the packaged product. That is, in the above-described embodiment, the stretch packaging is performed after the weighing, but the present invention is also applied to the case where the weighing is performed after the stretch packaging. For example, the present invention can be applied to a package weighing and pricing device in which a carry-in conveyor is provided upstream of the weighing conveyor and a label sticking machine is provided on the conveyor downstream of the weighing conveyor.

In the above embodiment, the case where the packaging container is a tray or a tray and a film has been described. However, when the product is contained in a packaging container made of, for example, a synthetic resin bag used for vacuum packing. Are also included in the scope of the present invention.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention,
A pasting position and affixed orientation preset registered labels
Which sticking condition, it is possible to read from the types of packaging containers, example, by detecting particular to not enter the type of bets laser, can be labeled according to a predetermined sticking condition. Therefore, the troublesome work of inputting and setting the sticking condition each time the size of the tray is changed is unnecessary, and the sticking state is not erroneously generated.

Further, if the detecting means for detecting the packaging container is provided so as to specify the packaging container, it is not necessary to input the type of the packaging container, so that the sticking operation becomes simpler and the packaging container becomes easier. Are easier to identify than products and are less prone to error.

Further, when the packaging containers are specified, if the packaging containers are preferentially selected and specified from the types of the packaging containers according to the type of product, the packaging can be carried out from all the packaging container types. It is possible to specify the packaging container more accurately and quickly than to specify the container. Therefore, the pasting conditions can be read out more quickly and accurately.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a weighing and packaging pricing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the same schematic mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a packaging method.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a weighing and packaging pricing device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a method of calculating the width and depth of a tray from apparent dimensions.

FIG. 6 is a table showing an example of storage contents of product information and a packaging attachment state storage unit.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic mechanism of a label sticking machine.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which a label is attached.

[Explanation of symbols]

T: Tray (packaging container) L: Label M: Product W: Width of tray D: Depth of tray H: Height of tray 1, 2, 3: detection means 42: Identification means 5: Memory (storage unit)

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A label sticking device for sticking a label to a packaged or already packaged product, wherein a plurality of types of packaging containers to be used for each product type can be set and registered in a storage unit, and the product and When both types of packaging containers are determined, the types and packaging conditions of products and packaging containers can be set and registered in the storage unit in advance so that the label sticking position and sticking posture can be determined. A label sticking apparatus configured to read the sticking conditions according to the type and to stick a label according to the read sticking conditions. 2. A label sticking device for sticking a label to a product being packaged or already packaged, stores the type of packaging container to be used for each type of product.
It is possible to register and set multiple items in the section, and when the type of packaging container is decided,
The sticking position and the sticking posture of the label to the packaging container are decided.
For each type of packaging container,
Bell attachment position and label attachment to packaging container
It is possible to set and register the sticking condition that determines the force in the storage unit, read the sticking condition from the storage unit according to the type of the designated or specified packaging container , and stick the label according to the read sticking condition. Labeling device. 3. The method of claim 1 or 2, as a sticking condition of the label, the sticking position of the label with respect to the attaching position and packaging container of labels for packaging containers
A label sticking device stored in the storage unit . 4. The registration information according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , further comprising a detection means for detecting information for identifying the packaging container, and the registration information set and registered for each packaging container. And a detection device that compares the detected information with the detected information to specify the type of the packaging container. 5. The label sticking device according to claim 4 , wherein the specifying means, when specifying the packaging container, preferentially selects and specifies the packaging container from the types of the packaging container according to the type of product. . 6. A product processing device comprising the label sticking device according to claim 1. Description: