JP3505215B2 - Automatic piping connection device for switching station - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pipe automatic connecting device in a pipe switching station. More specifically, for example, the present invention relates to a pipe automatic connection device in a pipe switching station for switching a line used in a batch production system to transfer raw materials, final products, intermediate products and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in batch production systems, fluids such as raw materials and products (final or intermediate) are mainly transferred by a fixed pipe and a valve switching operation transfer system. For example, in a food and beverage manufacturing plant, when an intermediate product is transferred from a plurality of tank groups in one process to a plurality of tank groups in another process according to a desired purpose, a fixed header piping group Is installed and the line is switched, that is, the valve is switched. In this way, in the switching system based on the configuration of the header and the valve, the loss of the raw materials and products remaining in the pipe becomes a problem. For example, in the food manufacturing industry, cleaning is performed each time for the purpose of preventing contamination or the like caused by the decay of the intermediate product remaining in the pipe. This cleaning is performed by disassembling and moving the manufacturing equipment and allowing the portion in contact with the product to act on the cleaning liquid with the piping equipment fixed. A so-called cleaning in place (hereinafter abbreviated as CIP) method is generally used,
For this reason, a valve having a complicated structure is used as a switching valve for switching product transfer and cleaning.

Further, these valves need to be easily disassembled in order to have sanitary properties, but this type of valve is expensive because it is made of stainless steel that does not corrode. Since there are many, it was one of the main items to be improved when considering the upgrade and upgrade of facilities.

As a switching system for solving such a situation, the authors of the present invention are Japanese Patent Application Nos. 4-212252, 4-125812, 4-315207, and 5-5.
-214034 is proposed. In these systems, a fixed valve block is not constructed as in the conventional system, but a system in which necessary lines can be connected when necessary. That is, in Japanese Patent Application No. 5-214034, one side is a unit A side and the other side is a unit B side as shown in FIG. It is composed of a moving body on the unit B side that moves in a direction perpendicular to. A pipe connection joint is incorporated in each moving body, and this pipe connection joint is further connected to the line through a pipe element. Each moving body is moved to a predetermined position by a driving device and arranged so as to face each other in accordance with a combination instruction. With such a configuration, the piping elements on the unit A side and the unit B side are moved to arbitrary positions by the moving body, and then connected to form a flow path. Therefore, a switching operation between the lines is realized by such an operation between the lines connected to the units A and B.

In Japanese Patent Application No. 5-214034, a unit A for holding a plurality of moving bodies in parallel with each other in a reciprocating manner, and a plurality of moving bodies reciprocating in parallel with each other in a direction perpendicular to the above direction. Units B that are freely held are arranged in parallel to face each other, and a pipe group including flexible pipes as pipe elements is connected to the moving bodies of the units A and B, respectively. The moving bodies of the respective units are moved and positioned so as to face each other, and the joints incorporated in the respective moving bodies are automatically joined to each other to switch the pipes. However, in actual implementation of equipment, there may be a large difference in the number of lines on the unit A side and the unit B side. In such a case, the method described above may cause a problem. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, there is a large difference in the number of lines from 20 on the unit A side to 40 on the unit B side. For example, Japanese Patent Application No. 5-
Even if such an example is realized by the method proposed in 214034, the size of the unit becomes a very elongated shape in plan view and becomes as shown in the entire perspective view shown in FIG. That is, the length of the side on the unit A side and the length on the side of the unit B are significantly different from each other, which causes a restriction on the layout.

[0006]

As described above, if a system such as the one in Japanese Patent Application No. 5-214034 is used as the switching system, it becomes possible to flexibly cope with the type switching. In the case of a configuration in which there is a large difference in the number of lines between the unit B side and the unit B side, the moving distance of the moving body on one side becomes long, and the time required to move to a predetermined position and connect becomes long,
Eventually, the time required for switching increases. For this reason, it is not possible to deal with a place where switching frequency is high. Furthermore, the long travel distance makes it impossible to use standard commercially available mechanical parts. Further, the mechanical structural member becomes long and it becomes necessary to deal with deformation such as bending. Further, as described above, the occupied space of the entire unit is large and the unit is flat, so that the space space is easily restricted.

The present invention provides a switching station which does not require a space space and does not cause a problem of bending even when there is a large difference in the number of lines between the units, and which allows flexible pipe rearrangement.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An automatic pipe connecting apparatus for a switching station according to the present invention has a pipe group (A) having a small number of pipes and a pipe group (B) having a large number of pipes, and the pipe group In the automatic pipe connecting device of the switching station for switching the connection between the pipe of (A) and the pipe of the pipe group (B), the pipe group (B) is divided into approximately two parts, the pipe group (BI), and the pipe group (BII). ), The same number of moving body cells as the pipes of the pipe group (A) are arranged adjacent to each other in the lateral direction with their longitudinal directions parallel to each other to form one plane to form a unit A,
The same number of moving body cells as the pipes of the pipe group (BI) are arranged adjacent to each other so that the longitudinal direction thereof is parallel to the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the moving body cells of the unit A. Unit BI forming a plane and the pipe group (BII)
Units BII in which the same number of mobile cells as the pipes are arranged adjacent to each other in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the mobile cells parallel to the longitudinal direction of the mobile cells of the unit A to form another plane. And are arranged facing each other so as to be parallel to each other with the unit A sandwiched therebetween, and each mobile unit cell of the unit A includes a mobile unit cell of the mobile unit cell along the one plane. A moving body is provided so as to be capable of reciprocating in the longitudinal direction, and each moving body cell of the units BI and BII includes
A movable body is provided along each of the other planes so as to be capable of reciprocating in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the movable body cell of the unit A, and each of the movable body cells includes:
A moving device for moving the moving body to position it at an arbitrary position in the longitudinal direction is provided, and a joint with an internal valve is provided in the moving bodies of the unit BI and the unit BII. The moving body is provided with a joint with an internal valve and an automatic connecting device for connecting to the respective joints of the moving bodies of the unit BI and the unit BII.
Connected to only one of the moving bodies, the joint inside each moving body is connected to the end (each unit end) of the moving body cell to which the moving body belongs via a flexible pipe, The ends of the piping group (A) and the piping group (BI, BII) are connected to the ends of the unit A, the unit BI, and BII, respectively, and the unit BI or BII of the piping group (A) and the piping group (B) is connected. It is characterized in that the connection with either one is made by the arrangement and combination of the moving bodies between the units.

The connection between the joints of the moving body is performed by an automatic joint connecting device provided in the moving body of the unit A,
Unit A and unit BI joint connection, unit A
And unit BII are selectively connected.

Various flexible pipes can be used. As a typical example, there is a general flexible hose, and the material may be selected in consideration of the properties of the fluid flowing inside, usage conditions (pressure, temperature, etc.) and safety. For example, a hose made of rubber, a product made of a combogit having a composite structure by laminating dozens of sheets of various materials, and a wire spiral reinforced inside and outside thereof. Especially, the one that is reinforced by wire spiral with the convoyit structure can be used even if the pressure is high.
It also has excellent flexibility. Further, it is also possible to make an articulated pipe using a swivel joint as a universal joint. As a result, it is possible to obtain shape stability that a flexible hose does not have, and it can be used for high pressure. Further, a telescopic double pipe joint can also be used.

The moving device comprises one or more guide means for guiding the movement of the moving body, a positioning means for the moving body, and a driving device. The female screw is laid on the side wall of the moving body, and the female screw is screwed into the female screw. A matching male screw shaft and a motor or timing belt for rotating the male screw shaft may be used.

[0012]

The pipes of the unit A and the units BI and BII in the automatic pipe connecting apparatus of the present invention can be connected by the following procedure. A moving body of both units, which is a unit of the unit A, is moved to a predetermined position and positioned so that the moving bodies of the two units to be joined face each other, and are opposed to each other with a fixed interval. The joints contained in are joined together to establish a route for a given fluid. Then, the connection between the pipe groups can be completed by repeating the above-mentioned operation according to a desired combination of pipes.

Further, the joint used in the movable body can be used if it is joined in a male-female relationship and has an inner valve.

When the transfer to the next process or the switching of the brand of the product is determined by performing so-called production management, the transfer sequence of the tank contents is determined accordingly.
Transfer order, route determination, valve operation order are determined,
The combination at the pipe switching station is determined. These are performed by the combination management computer.

Next, system information for managing the movement and connection of the mobile body is transmitted. This includes managing the moving direction, moving distance, and the like of the moving body based on the information, and confirming that the moving body is connected more reliably.

In these management systems, this device is easy to be unitized and is highly expandable. Therefore, the management system is desired to have a distributed system configuration.

The above object can be achieved by implementing the above means.

[0018]

1 is an external perspective view of an embodiment of an automatic pipe connecting apparatus according to the present invention. 2 and 3 are explanatory views of the automatic pipe connecting apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an overall explanatory view, and FIG. 3 is a piping connection mechanism diagram.

The present invention, as shown in FIG.
A unit A in which 5 moves in one axis direction (Y axis direction) is arranged in the center, and a movable body 22 is arranged in an axis direction (X axis direction) perpendicular to the unit A.
A unit BI and a unit BII in which 5, 325 move are configured to sandwich the unit A, and each unit may be provided horizontally so as to have a vertical positional relationship as shown in FIG. Each unit may be provided vertically (not shown). Unless otherwise specified below,
It is an explanation when each unit is provided horizontally. The entire switching station is represented, for example, as in FIG. The unit A side on which the moving body moves only in the Y-axis direction has a pipe group (A) which is a plurality of lines connected to predetermined raw materials, intermediate products, and cleaning solutions, and the number of pipes is, for example, A1 to A20. There are 20 connections. The unit B that moves only in the X-axis direction, that is, the BI and BII sides, has a pipe group (B) that is, for example, a plurality of lines connected to the pipes of a predetermined tank, and the number is, for example, BI1 to BI2.
0 and BII1 to BII20 are two units BI and B
It is divided into II and each has 20 connection ports. Unit B
The unit I and the unit BII face each other so as to sandwich the unit A.

Flexible piping, which is a piping element in the unit A, the unit BI, and the unit BII, is a flexible hose, and is horizontally U in each moving body cell of the unit.
It is installed in a letter shape.

As shown in FIG. 2, the unit A is provided with a driving section 122 for driving the moving body 125 which is a hose end moving section for each hose 124. At the tip of the drive unit 122,
A screw shaft 123 is provided, and a moving body (hose end moving portion) 125 is screwed to the screw shaft 123. A motor or the like is used for the drive unit 122, for example. A guide 121 is provided for linearly guiding the moving body 125. One mobile unit cell 120 is configured with such a structure. These moving body cells are arranged in a line in the X-axis direction by the number of hoses to form one unit A of the switching station. One end of the hose 124 is fixed to the side end (side end of the unit A) of the moving body cell to which the hose belongs, and the other end is connected to a joint of the moving body.

The other unit BI, BII is the unit A
It is installed so that the unit A is sandwiched between the upper and lower parts. Driving units 222 and 322 for driving the moving bodies 225 and 325, which are hose end moving units, are provided for the respective hoses 224 and 324 of the units BI and BII. The screw shaft 223 is arranged in a direction (X-axis direction) perpendicular to the moving axis (Y-axis) of the moving body of the unit A.
323 is provided. Like the unit A side, drive units 222 and 322 are provided on the screw shaft. Screw shaft 223
Moving bodies 225 and 325 are provided on 323 respectively by screwing. Guides 221 and 321 are provided for linear guidance of the moving bodies 225 and 325, respectively.
With this structure, one mobile cell 220, 320 in the units BI and BII is configured. These mobile cells are arranged in a line in the Y-axis direction by the number of hoses, and the unit B of each switching station is arranged.
Units BI and BII. Each of the hoses 224 and 324 has one end at a side end (unit B) of the moving body cell.
I, BII side ends) and the other ends are movable bodies 225, 32.
It is similar to the unit A connected to the joint of No. 5.

Each hose has a U-shape inside the moving body cell and is installed in parallel with each other. One end of the hose is fixed to a side end of the unit and the other end is connected to the moving body. Since they only move, they do not get intertwined with each other. On the unit A side, the moving body 125 moves only in the Y-axis direction, while on the other hand, in the units BI and BII, the moving bodies 225, 32.
Since 5 moves only in the X-axis direction, the hoses in each unit are not entangled with each other. In this way, by reducing the freedom of movement of the hose, eliminating entanglement,
It is possible to automate the hose connection at the hose station, which was difficult to automate.

The moving mechanism of the moving body used in the moving body cell is, for example, a servo motor, a screw shaft (ball screw,
It is a well-known technology of the present automation technology, which is composed of a trapezoidal screw and the like) and a position detection mechanism. With the motor and position detection and feedback mechanism,
The moving body screwed onto the screw can be accurately positioned. Of course, the timing belt may be used instead of the screw shaft.

For linear movement, a screw portion and a guide portion for converting rotational movement into linear movement are required. These are respectively screw shafts 123 in FIG.
(223, 323) and the guide 121 (221, 32)
1). In addition to the moving mechanism by electric energy, positioning by air energy, specifically, an air cylinder may be performed. Unit A in which moving body cells having a moving body and a moving body positioning mechanism are arranged in a line,
Install the unit BI and the unit BII at appropriate intervals in the vertical direction, and move the moving bodies of the unit A and the units BI and BII to be connected according to the desired combination so as to face each other at the same position. You can

FIG. 3 shows the unit A and the units BI and BII.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a joint connection mechanism of FIG. In FIG. 3 (which is a view I-II of the moving body in FIG. 2), the inside of the moving body 125 of the unit A will be described first. Moving body 125
Are supported by the support plate 155 as a whole. This support plate is linearly guided and supported by the guide 121. The side wall of the support plate 155 has a female screw portion, and a male screw of the screw shaft 123 is screwed therein. Since there are many commercially available linear guides 121, they can be appropriately selected depending on the application.

With this structure, the moving body 125 of the unit A and the moving body 225 of the unit BI are made to face each other, and then the joint 140 (upper) on the upper side of the moving body 125 and the joint 240 of the moving body 225 are connected. To be done. Then, the moving body 125 of the unit A and the moving body 325 of the unit BII side are made to face each other. Next, the joint 141 (lower) on the lower side of the moving body 125 and the joint 340 of the moving body 325 are connected.

Further, cylinders 160, 161 are supported on the support plate 155 as driving means for connecting joints. The cylinders 160 and 161 are connected to the moving body joint 240 of the unit BI and the joint 140 (upper) above the moving body 125.
It is intended to connect and connect with the moving body joint 340 of the unit BII and the joint 141 (bottom) under the moving body 125.
It is for connecting and connecting and.

The joint 240 and the unit A on the unit BI side
When attempting to connect the side joint 140, there is no connection between the joint 340 of the unit BII and the joint 141 of the unit A side. For this reason, a double-acting double rod type cylinder is used as this cylinder, but a single-acting cylinder having a spring urged to separate when air pressure does not act may be used.

The point is that while the moving body 125 on the unit A side and the moving body 225 on the unit BI are connected, the connection with the moving body 325 on the unit BII side is not made. This can prevent cross contamination between fluids.

These joints 140 and 141 of the moving body 125 on the unit A side are provided in support plates 150 and 151 which are connected to the rod end of the cylinder. It may be freely fitted so as to absorb misalignment during connection. Further, when the amount of misalignment absorption of the joint itself is large, it is possible to reduce the size without providing such an externally installed misalignment absorption mechanism.

The joints 140 and 141 are connected to the connecting pipe 130,
It is connected to other joints 180 and 181 via 131. Flexible piping such as a flexible hose is also used for this connecting pipe. The joints 180 and 181 are joints 14
It is attached in the opposite direction to 0 and 141. There are support plates 168 and 169 for the attachment, and the misalignment absorption mechanism and the like are also the above-mentioned joints 140 and 240 and the joint 1.
This is the same as the connection between 41 and 340. This joint 180,
181 is connected and coupled to a take-out joint block 185 composed of joints 182 and 184. This joint block 1
85 is attached to the support plate 155, and the joint 18
An intermediate portion connecting the 2,184 is connected to the hose 124 of the moving body 125. Cylinders 165 and 166 are provided to connect the joints 180 and 181 to the joints 182 and 184 of the extraction joint block.
The cylinders 165 and 166 are spring-loaded single-acting cylinders in the illustrated example, but may be double-rod double-acting cylinders like the cylinders 160 and 161.

One end of the hose 124 connected to the central portion of the take-out joint block 185 extends in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing, and the other end is fixed to the fixed end of the unit A. Mobile units 225 and 3 on the units BI and BII side
Similarly to the Japanese Patent Application No. 5-214034, the moving body 225 is provided with a slide portion 250, the side wall thereof is provided with a female screw portion, and the screw shaft 223 is screwed into the female screw portion 223. A joint with an inner valve is provided below the slide portion 250. In addition, the hose 224 is U-shaped from the fixed end of the unit BI, and
It is connected to the joint 240 via 50, and is further connected to the joint 240 via a flexible connecting pipe 230. The connection pipe 230 may be a fixed pipe.
The moving body 325 on the unit BII side has the same structure.

When connecting the piping group (A) and the piping group (BI), first, the piping connected to the connection ports A1 to A20 is BI.
When connecting to the pipes connected to 1 to BI 20, it is sufficient to connect between the unit A and the unit BI.
The procedure is as follows. For example, the hose 12 connected to one of the connection ports A1 to A20 belonging to the pipe group A
4 and the hose 224 connected to one of the connection ports BI1 to BI20 belonging to the pipe group BI are connected by positioning the moving body 125 of the unit A at a predetermined position in the Y-axis direction, and then moving the unit BI. The body 225 is positioned in the X-axis direction and positioned at a position facing the moving body 125 of the unit A. A joint 240 with an inner valve, to which the connection pipe 230 on the unit BI side is connected, and a joint 140 on the unit A side, to which the connection pipe 130 is connected, are connected. In this way, the joint 240 and the joint 140 are connected. Next, in the unit A side, the BI side flow passage joints 180 and 182 are connected to form a flow passage. With the above, the connection of the joint is completed, and the hose 224 on the unit BI side and the hose 1 on the unit A side.
24 is connected to the unit A for supplying raw materials of a tank (not shown) connected to the end of the hose 224 on the unit BI side.
Can be transferred to the side tank. The joint has a male and female internal valve, for example, and is automatically returned by a spring so that it does not drip even when disconnected. There are various types of joints, and they are appropriately selected according to the intended use. Joints 240 and 140 and joints 180 and 182 each form a unit. First, the joint 240 and the joint 14
In order for 0 to be connected, cylinders 160 and 161 fixed and supported by a support plate 155 inside the moving body 125 on the unit A side pushes up the joint 140 provided on the upper support plate 150 to the unit BI side. Then, the surfaces of the joints are brought into contact with each other and joined. This allows the joint 240
The inner valve 11 is pushed up, and a flow path is formed so that the fluid flows. That is, from the hose 224 on the unit BI side, the connection pipe 230, the joints 240 and 140, the connection pipe 130.
Are connected. Next, the joint 180 connected to the connecting pipe 130 is connected to one joint 182 of the joint block 185 by the operation of the cylinders 165 and 166. A flexible hose 124 is provided at the center of the block 185.
Since it is connected to, a flow path connecting the unit BI and the unit A can be formed.

Although many cylinders are commercially available,
For example, there is a double-acting cylinder rod type that can be driven up and down by a driving method using air, but the invention is not limited to this, and a spring type normally open type cylinder or the like may be used.

Next, the pipes A1 to A20 and the pipes BII1 to BII
The connection with 20 can be achieved by performing a procedure similar to that described above between unit A and unit BII. In this case, the male and female joints are attached upside down when connecting the unit A and the unit BI. The situation of the number of pipes on the unit A side and the unit B side is opposite to the above description (that is, the A side is more than the B side).
If so, it is better to reverse the arrangement of units A and B.
In this way, since the joint is provided with the inner valve that can be automatically returned by the spring, liquid leakage at the time of disconnection can be prevented, and the flow path can be formed without using a special actuator for opening and closing.

With such a configuration, for example, when connecting between the unit A and the unit BI,
Since no connection is made between unit BII and unit A, there is no possibility of intermixing.

Regarding the cleaning, it is desired that the cleaning work is carried out in the state of being installed from the viewpoint of CIP. As a cleaning method for this purpose, a cleaning line is provided on each unit side so that cleaning can be performed individually as needed. Further, in order to simultaneously clean all the connection devices (including hoses) in each unit, it is possible to solve the problem by providing a header.

The cleaning method for the entire line is as described above for the line CI.
Although the P method may be used, the coupling portion used for connection may need to be particularly washed. In this case, a unit for specifically cleaning the coupling portion may be provided, and when cleaning is required, the moving body may be moved to the cleaning unit for cleaning. The cleaning unit may be provided so that both the coupling part can be cleaned and sterilized, and by switching the cleaning shower and the sterilization shower, CIP (cleaning), SIP
For example, Japanese Patent Application No. 5-214034 proposes that both (sterilization) can be performed completely.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the flexible pipe is a commonly used flexible hose. Although the cost is low when using a hose, the sanitary property becomes low when the hose wall has irregularities. In another embodiment of the present invention, when the flexible pipe is a multi-joint pipe constituted by using a universal joint and a swivel joint, the inner surface is smooth and the sanitary property is high, and the flexible pipe is flexible like a flexible hose. It is possible to increase the sex. Of course, in a flexible hose, if the hose wall is smooth and pressure resistance is sufficient, it can be used.

In still another embodiment of the present invention, a sleeve structure constituted by combining expandable double pipe joints can be used as the flexible pipe. A stainless steel pipe used in the food industry having a smooth inner surface may be used.

[0042]

As described above, according to the present invention, the pipe group (A) is connected to the unit A, and the pipe group (B) having a larger number of pipes than the pipe group (A) is divided into two units, the unit BI and the unit. Since it is connected to BII and the unit A is sandwiched between the unit BI and the unit BII, the following effects are obtained.

1. Even if there is a large difference in the number of pipes on the side of the pipe group (A) and the side of the pipe group (B), if the ratio of the number of pipes is close to 2, the planar shape of the unit does not become long and slender, and especially when space is used. Higher efficiency.

2. Since the lengths of the moving body cells of the unit A and the unit B are substantially equal to each other, the moving time of the moving body can be made uniform and the switching time can be shortened. Therefore, even if the switching frequency is high, it is possible to deal with the situation.

3. Since the line is physically cut off, there is no mixing between different varieties.

4. It is easy to unitize, easy to combine, and expandable.

5. The number of valves for switching is reduced.

6. It will be easier to procure mechanical parts, etc., and can be manufactured at low cost.

7. You can see if the line is connected.

8. The hoses do not get entangled.

9. Easy to clean and sterilize.

10. There is little concern about the accumulation of liquid in the hose.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an automatic pipe connecting device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view of an automatic pipe connecting device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an example of a piping connection function diagram used in the automatic piping connection device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of a conventional automatic pipe connecting device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a pipe connection state of a conventional automatic pipe connection device.

FIG. 6 is an overall perspective view of a conventional automatic pipe connecting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

(A) Pipe group A (B) Pipe group B (BI) Pipe group BI (BII) Pipe group BII A unit A B unit B BI unit BI BII unit BII A1 to A20 unit A pipe connection port BI1 to BI20 unit BI pipe Connection ports BII1 to BII20 Unit BII piping connection ports 120, 220, 320 Mobile body cells 121, 221, 321 Guides 122, 222, 322 Drive parts 123, 223, 323 Screw shafts 124, 224, 324 Flexible hoses (flexible piping ) 125,225,325 Moving body 130,131 Connection pipe 140 Unit A upper joint 141 Unit A lower joint 150, 151, 155 Support plate 160, 161, 165, 166 Cylinder 180, 181 Joint 250 Slide part

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) F17D 1/00-5/08

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pipe group (A) including a plurality of pipes and a pipe group (B) having a larger number of pipes than the pipe group (A) are arranged, and the pipes of the pipe group (A) and the pipe group (B) are arranged. ), In the automatic pipe connecting device of the switching station for switching the connection with the pipe, the pipe group (B) is divided into two pipe groups (BI) and (BII), and the pipe group (A) Number of moving cells (120)
A unit A formed by arranging them in the same plane so that their longitudinal directions are parallel and adjacent to each other in the lateral direction, and the same number of moving body cells (22) as the pipes of the pipe group (BI).
0) is a unit BI formed by arranging the same in the same plane so that the longitudinal direction thereof is parallel to and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the moving body cells of the unit A, and the pipe group (BII). ) The same number of mobile cells (32
0) is a unit BII formed by arranging them on the same plane in parallel with each other in the longitudinal direction parallel to the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the moving body cells of the unit A, and at a constant interval. Are placed so as to face each other so that the respective planes are parallel to each other with the unit A interposed therebetween. Each moving body cell (120) of the unit A has a reciprocating motion in the longitudinal direction of the moving body cell. A mobile body (125) is provided so that the mobile cells (220, 3) of the units BI and BII can be installed.
20) includes movable bodies (225, 3) that can reciprocate in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the movable body cells of the unit A.
25) is provided, and each of the moving body cells is provided with a moving device that moves the moving body and positions it at an arbitrary position in the longitudinal direction, and the moving bodies of the unit BI and the unit BII are provided. (22
5, 325) are provided with inner valve joints (240, 340), and each movable body of the unit A is connected to each joint of the unit BI and unit BII joints with an inner valve (240). 1
40, 141) and an automatic connection device are attached,
At the time of connection, the joint of the moving body of the unit A is connected to only one of the joints of the moving bodies of the unit BI and the unit BII, and the flexible pipes (124, 22) are connected to the joint inside each moving body.
4, 324) is connected to one end, and the other end is connected to the pipe connection port of each unit at the end of the moving body cell belonging to the moving body in the longitudinal direction. ) And the ends of the pipe group (BI, BII) are connected to the pipe connection ports of the unit A and the units BI and BII, respectively, and the connection of the pipe group (A) and the pipe group (B) is moved between the units. An automatic piping connection device for a switching station, which is performed by body arrangement and combination. 2. The automatic connecting device for a joint provided in the moving body (125) of the unit A includes a connection between the joint (240) and the joint (140) of the unit BI and a unit BII.
Drive means (160, 161) for selectively performing either one of the connection between the joint (340) and the joint (141)
To the joint block (185) to which one end of the flexible pipe (124) is connected.
Connection means (1) for connecting the joints (180, 181) connected to the connection pipe (41, 41) via the connection pipes (130, 131).
65, 166), and an automatic pipe connecting device for a switching station according to claim 1. 3. The automatic pipe connecting device for a switching station according to claim 1, wherein the flexible pipe is a flexible hose. 4. The automatic pipe connecting device for a switching station according to claim 1, wherein the flexible pipe is a pipe using a swivel joint. 5. The automatic pipe connecting device for a switching station according to claim 1, wherein the flexible pipe is a pipe using an expandable double pipe joint.