JP3519681B2 - Sorting machine - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sorting machine that sorts and collects sorting objects based on the identification result of an identification device, for example, sorting objects that are plastic waste such as trays and films. It is related to a sorting machine that sorts and collects by material. In particular, the present invention relates to a sorting machine which can obtain an accurate identification result and can sort and collect sorting objects accurately.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a sorter of this type, for example, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2000-108126. Hereinafter, this sorter will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9 . This example describes an example in which the object to be sorted is a plastic waste such as a tray or a film.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 is a belt conveyor device as a conveying device. The belt 2 as a carrier of the belt conveyor device 1 is provided with a plurality of ventilation holes 3 as ventilation portions arranged in a matrix and arranged over the entire belt 2. By this belt conveyor device 1, sorting objects 4 which are plastic wastes such as trays and films are conveyed from the supply section to the collection section in the direction of the solid line arrow. Incidentally, the supply unit includes an upstream end of the belt conveyor 1 (tail pulley side) upper surface, i.e., located in the vicinity of the white arrow is applied in FIG. The collection unit is arranged on the downstream end side (head pulley side) or the lower surface side of the belt conveyor device 1.

An air suction port 5 is provided on the downstream end side of the belt conveyor device 1. This air suction port 5
A vacuum device (not shown) as a suction device is connected to the. By driving the vacuum device, the portion up to the downstream end from the supply portion of the belt conveyor 1 in (in FIG. 6, part grid is applied), so that the air is shown by the broken line arrows in FIG. 6 Then, the air is sucked from the outer side to the inner side of the belt 2 through the many ventilation holes 3.
As a result, the sorting target 4 is conveyed from the supply unit to the recovery unit while being sucked by the belt 2.

On the upstream side of the collecting section and on the upper surface on the downstream end side of the belt conveyor device 1, in this example, 4
The platform identification devices 6 are installed in the width direction of the belt 2 (see FIGS. 6 to 8 ) or alternately (see FIG. 9 ).
The identification device 6 irradiates the selection target 4 with near infrared rays,
This is a so-called near infrared reflection type in which the material of the sorting target 4 is identified based on the reflected light from the sorting target 4.

A sorting device (not shown) is provided in the collecting section.
Are arranged. This sorting device is the identification device 6 described above.
On the basis of the identification result, the sorting objects 4 are sorted in the collecting section by material in this example under predetermined identification conditions.

Next, the operation of the sorting machine will be described. First, the objects to be sorted 4 are supplied to the supply section of the belt conveyor device 1 as shown by the white arrows. Then, the sorting target 4 is conveyed from the supply unit to the collection unit in the direction of the solid line arrow by the belt conveyor device 1. When the sorting object 4 reaches the suction portion provided with the lattice, it is sucked onto the belt 2 by the suction action of the suction device. The sorting object 4 adsorbed on the belt 2 passes through the identifying device 6 to identify the material of the sorting object 4. The sorting target 4 whose material has been identified is sorted by the sorting device by the sorting device and collected.

[0008]

However, in the conventional sorting machine, since the ventilation holes 3 are provided over the entire belt 2, the sorting object 4 is adsorbed on any part of the belt 2. Become. For this reason, the sorting objects 4 overlap each other (see the part surrounded by the solid line circle), and the identifiable range of the identification device 6 (the range in which the identification device 6 can identify the material of the selection object 4) a It is easy to be located in the range (indistinguishable range) b or c other than the above (see the part surrounded by the broken line circle).

In the conventional sorting machine, when the sorting objects 4 made of different materials are overlapped with each other, the discriminating device 6 cannot obtain an accurate discrimination result, and moreover, the discriminating section of the discriminated material shows the same material. The sorting objects 4 of different materials are sorted and collected. Further, when sorting objects 4 of different materials are located side by side in the width direction of the belt 2 in the identifiable range a and the unidentifiable ranges b and c, a material different from the identified material is collected in the recovery part of the identified material. The objects 4 to be sorted will be sorted and collected. Therefore, it becomes difficult to accurately sort and collect the sorting target 4 according to the material.

Here, one specific example of the identifiable range a and the unidentifiable ranges b and c will be described. When the width d of the belt 2 is about 800 mm, if four identification devices 6 are installed in the width direction of the belt 2, the pitch e of the identifiable range a of the four identification devices 6 is about 200 mm.
Becomes If the discriminable range a of the four discriminating devices 6 is substantially circular with a diameter of about 20 to 50 mm, one unidentifiable range b (range between the discriminable ranges a) is about 1.
50 to 180 mm, and the other indistinguishable range c (range between the identifiable range a and the side edge of the belt 2) is about 7
It becomes 5 to 90 mm.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a sorting machine which can obtain an accurate identification result and can sort and collect sorting objects accurately.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 provides a plurality of carriages in the width direction.
The identification device of the table is arranged, and the ventilation part is
On multiple lines that pass the identifiable range of the identification device of
In addition, they are arranged intermittently and alternately .

As a result, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the objects to be sorted are adsorbed intermittently and alternately on a plurality of defined lines of the carrier via the ventilation part. The objects to be sorted are less likely to overlap with each other, and the objects to be sorted are less likely to be located in the unidentifiable range of the identification device. For this reason, defects due to overlapping of sorting objects of different materials,
In addition, there is no problem due to the sorting objects of different materials being positioned side by side in the width direction of the carrier in the identifiable range and the unidentifiable range. As a result, an accurate identification result can be obtained, and the objects to be sorted can be accurately sorted and collected.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, means for preventing the objects to be sorted from contacting a portion other than the predetermined width of the line of the carrier is provided on the side of the feeder of the carrier. It is characterized by

As a result, in the invention according to claim 2, only the objects to be sorted which come into contact with the portion of the line of the carrier having the predetermined width are adsorbed to the carrier. As a result, only the sorting target that is adsorbed to the transporter is transported to the identification device, so that a more accurate identification result can be obtained, and the sorting target can be sorted and collected accurately.

The invention according to claim 3 is air injection means for injecting air to the upstream side of the identification device.
Thus, air injection means for returning the sorting target, which has not been adsorbed to the carrier via the ventilation section, to the upstream side by the air injection is provided.

As a result, in the invention according to the third aspect, the objects to be sorted which are not adsorbed on the carrier are returned to the upstream side by the air jetting means. As a result, only the sorting target that is adsorbed by the transporter is reliably transported to the identifying device, so that a more accurate identification result can be obtained, and the sorting target can be sorted and collected accurately.

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter will be described an example of embodiment of the sorter according to the present invention with reference to FIGS. The sorting machine is not limited to this embodiment.

(Description of Configuration of First Embodiment) FIGS. 1 to 5 show a first embodiment of a sorting machine according to the present invention.
Indicates. This example describes an example in which the object to be sorted is a plastic waste such as a tray or a film. In the figure, the same symbols as those in FIGS. 6 to 9 indicate the same components.

In the figure, L is a line that passes through substantially the center of the discriminable range a of the discriminating device 6. This line L
Is almost parallel to the conveying direction of the belt conveyor device 1 (the direction of the solid arrow in the figure). The identification device 6 is shown in FIG.
Thus, in this example, the four identification devices 6 are the belts 2
It is installed in the width direction. As a result, four identification devices
The line L passing through almost the center of the identifiable range a of 6 is
In this example, there are four.

As shown in FIG. 4, a large number of ventilation portions 7 (portions surrounded by a chain double-dashed line in FIG. 4) are intermittently staggered (staggered) on the four lines L. Are arranged in.

As shown in FIG. 5, the ventilation part 7 is composed of a large number of, for example, small circular ventilation holes 8, that is, a group of ventilation holes 8 arranged alternately (staggered). This vent 8
Has a diameter of about 10 mm. The pitch f between the vent holes 8 is about 50 mm.

On the supply side of the belt conveyor device 1, the object 4 to be sorted comes into contact with the portion of the belt 2 other than the predetermined width (about 75 mm in this example) of the line L.
Is provided. This contact prevention means 9 has a width of about 1
It is made of, for example, a vinyl chloride sheet of 25 mm and a thickness of about 10 mm. Contact prevention means 9 of the three sheets
One end of is on the upstream end side of the belt conveyor device 1,
It is fixed to the fixed bar 10. Further, the three contact preventing means 9 are placed on the conveying surface (belt surface) of the belt 2 on which the sorting object 4 is adsorbed.

The upstream side of the identification device 6 of the belt conveyor device 1 is an air injection device for injecting air to the upstream side.
A stage, the air injection nozzle 11 as an air injection means for returning the sorted object 4 that is not absorbed on the belt 2 through the vent portion 7 on the upstream side, is provided. The three nozzles 11 are connected to an air supply source (not shown) via an air supply passage (not shown).

At the downstream end side and the lower surface side of the belt conveyor device 1, a collecting section is arranged. The recovery unit includes, for example, a first recovery box 12 for recovering the sorting object 4 not adsorbed on the belt 2, a second recovery box 13 for recovering the sorting object 4 made of PS (polystyrene), and a material. Is a third collection box 14 for collecting the PVC (polyvinyl chloride) sorting target 4, a fourth collection box 15 for collecting the other plastic waste sorting target 4, and a sorting target other than the sorting target 4. And a fifth collection box 16 for collecting the objects (objects other than the objects to be sorted and recovered). The type of sorting and collection can be arbitrarily selected from 2 to 6 types according to needs.

Sorting devices 20 are respectively located on the lower surface side of the belt conveyor device 1 corresponding to the second collection box 13, the third collection box 14, and the fourth collection box 15. As shown by the solid line arrow in FIG. 1, this sorting device 20 ejects air before and after the sorting target 4 to separate the sorting target 4 from the belt 2 and to the collecting box 13,
The nozzles 14 and 15 collect the nozzles. The sorting device 20 is connected to the identification device 6.

(Explanation of Operation of First Embodiment) The sorting machine according to the first embodiment is configured as described above, and its operation will be described below.

First, the objects to be sorted 4 are supplied to the supply section of the belt conveyor device 1 as shown by the outline arrows. Then, the sorting target 4 placed on the contact prevention unit 9 remains on the contact prevention unit 9 without being conveyed. On the other hand, the sorting object 4 placed on the belt 2 is the belt conveyor device 1
Thus, it is conveyed from the supply unit to the recovery unit in the direction of the solid line arrow.

When the object to be sorted 4 placed on the belt 2 reaches the suction portion provided with the grid, the suction action of the suction device causes the air to pass through the ventilation portion 7 and intermittently onto the line L of the belt 2. And they are adsorbed alternately.

Here, if there is a sorting object 4 that is not adsorbed on the belt 2 outside the line L of the belt 2, the sorting object 4 not adsorbed on the belt 2 is the nozzle 1
The air injected from 1 returns to the upstream side (the direction opposite to the solid arrow).

Then, the sorting object 4 adsorbed on the belt 2 is passed through the identifying device 6 to identify the material of the sorting object 4. The sorting object 4 whose material is identified is sorted by the sorting device 20 into the second collecting box 13, the third collecting box 14, and the fourth collecting box 15 and collected by the collecting unit 20.

In the sorting operation, the belt 2
If there is a sorting object 4 that is not adsorbed on the belt 2, the sorting object 4 that is not adsorbed on the belt 2 is, at its turning point on the downstream end side of the belt conveyor device 1, due to its own weight,
It is collected in the first collection box 12. Items other than the sorting target 4 are collected in the fifth collection box 16 by their own weight in the non-suction part (the part other than the suction part provided with the lattice) on the lower surface side of the belt conveyor device 1. .

(Explanation of Effect of First Embodiment) As described above, in the sorting machine according to the first embodiment, the sorting objects 4 are the four defined belts 2 through the ventilation part 7.
Since the objects L to be sorted are intermittently and alternately adsorbed on the line L, the objects 4 to be sorted are less likely to overlap with each other, and the objects 4 to be sorted are less likely to be located in the unidentifiable range of the identifying device 6.

As a result, the sorting machine according to the first embodiment has a problem due to the sorting objects 4 of different materials overlapping each other, and the sorting objects 4 of different materials are in the identifiable range a and the unidentifiable range. Moreover, there is no problem due to the fact that they are located side by side in the width direction of the belt 2. As a result, an accurate identification result can be obtained, and the sorting objects 4 can be sorted accurately and collected.

In particular, in the sorting machine according to the first embodiment, the contact prevention means 9 is provided on the side of the feeding section of the belt conveyor device 1.
Is provided, only the sorting target 4 contacting the portion of the line L of the belt 2 having the predetermined width is adsorbed to the belt 2. As a result, only the sorting object 4 adsorbed on the belt 2 is conveyed to the identifying device 6, so that a more accurate identification result can be obtained and the sorting object 4 can be sorted and collected accurately. .

Further, in the sorting machine according to the first embodiment, since the nozzle 11 for injecting air to the upstream side is provided on the upstream side of the identification device 6, the air blown from the nozzle 11 is ejected. As a result, the sorting object 4 not adsorbed on the belt 2 is returned to the upstream side. As a result, since only the sorting object 4 adsorbed on the belt 2 is reliably conveyed to the identification device 6, a more accurate identification result can be obtained.
Moreover, the sorting target 4 can be accurately sorted and collected.

In the first embodiment, the above-mentioned 3
The sheet contact prevention means 9 and the three nozzles 11 are provided between the four lines L. In the present invention, the contact prevention means 9 and the nozzle 11 may be provided between the outer line L and the side edge of the belt conveyor device 1 as shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIGS. 2 and 3. good. In this case, since the sorting target 4 not adsorbed to the belt 2 can be eliminated between the outer line L and the side edge of the belt conveyor device 1, a more accurate identification result can be obtained, and Therefore, the sorting target 4 can be accurately sorted and collected.

Further, in the first embodiment, since the vent 7 is intermittently and alternately arranged on four lines L, when ejecting the air from the nozzles of the sorting device 20, next The line L has little effect on the sorting object 4. That is, there is little risk that the sorting target 4 on the adjacent line L is erroneously collected.

(Examples Other Than Embodiments) In the above-mentioned embodiment, an example in which the number of identification devices 6 is four has been described, but in the present invention, the number of identification devices 6 is two, three, or five or more. It may be. Further, in the above embodiment, the four identification devices 6 are the belts 2.
Although they are arranged in one row in the width direction, they may be arranged alternately in the present invention. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the sorting object 4 is a plastic waste such as a tray or a film, but in the present invention, even if the sorting target other than the plastic waste is accurate, Different identification results can be obtained, and the objects to be sorted can be accurately sorted and collected. Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the predetermined identification condition is the plastic material, but in the present invention, other identification conditions, such as large and small size, shape, and color, may be used.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the ventilation portions arranged in a plurality of lines L intermittently and in a staggered manner form a group of small circular ventilation holes 8 in a staggered manner. It is provided. However, in the present invention, as the ventilation portions which are intermittently and alternately arranged on the plurality of lines L, a single long hole provided long along the transport direction may be used. Moreover, when the ventilation part is an elongated hole, a thread made of, for example, tungsten is woven into the belt, and a plurality of objects are stretched in the lateral direction of the elongated hole to prevent the objects to be sorted from being drawn into the elongated hole. You can

In the above embodiment, the horizontal belt conveyor device 1 is used. However, in the present invention, a portion of the belt conveyor device on the upstream side of the identification device may have an upward slope.

[0042]

As is apparent from the above, in the sorting machine according to the present invention (claim 1), a large number of ventilation portions are arranged on a line passing through the discriminable range of the discrimination device. Therefore, the object to be sorted is adsorbed on the determined line of the carrier via the ventilation part. As a result,
In the sorting machine according to the present invention, the objects to be sorted are less likely to overlap, and the objects to be sorted are less likely to be located in the unidentifiable range of the identification device, so that the objects to be sorted of different materials overlap each other, In addition, there is no problem due to the sorting objects of different materials being positioned side by side in the width direction of the carrier in the identifiable range and the unidentifiable range. As a result, the sorting machine according to the present invention can obtain an accurate identification result and can sort and collect the sorting objects accurately.

Further, in the sorting machine according to the present invention (claim 2), a means for preventing the sorting object from coming into contact with a portion other than the predetermined width of the line of the transporter is provided on the supply section side of the transporting device. Since it is provided, only the sorting target that comes into contact with the portion of the line of the carrier having the predetermined width is adsorbed to the carrier. As a result, according to the sorting machine of the present invention, since only the sorting object adsorbed on the transporting body is transported to the identifying device, a more accurate identification result is obtained, and the sorting object is accurately sorted. It can be sorted and collected.

Further, the sorting machine according to the present invention (claim 3) injects air on the upstream side of the identification device and on the upstream side.
Since the air ejecting means is provided with the air ejecting means for returning the sorting target which has not been adsorbed to the carrier through the ventilation portion to the upstream side by the air ejection, the air ejecting means adsorbs to the carrier. The unsorted objects to be sorted are returned to the upstream side. As a result, according to the sorting machine according to the present invention, only the sorting object that is adsorbed to the transport body is reliably transported to the identification device, so that a more accurate identification result can be obtained, and the sorting object can be obtained. Can be accurately sorted and collected.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a first embodiment of a sorting machine of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view (plan view) taken along the arrow II in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a partial plan view of a belt conveyor device showing an arrangement example of ventilation parts.

FIG. 5 is a partial plan view of a ventilation part showing an arrangement example of ventilation holes.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a conventional sorting machine.

FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view of the same.

FIG. 8 is likewise a partial plan view.

FIG. 9 is a partial perspective view of the same.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Belt conveyor device (transport device) 2 belts (transporter) 4 Objects to be sorted 5 Air suction port 6 Identification device 7 Ventilation section 8 small circular vents 9 Contact prevention means 10 fixed bar 11 nozzles (air injection means) 12 First collection box 13 Second collection box 14 Third Collection Box 15 4th collection box 16 5th collection box 20 Sorting device a Identification range of identification device f Small circular ventilation hole pitch L line

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Norihiko Ono 12 Nishiki-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama City Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.Yokohama Works (72) Inventor Takeshi Shiraishi 12 Nishiki-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama City Yokohama Co., Ltd. (56) Reference References JP 10-277497 (JP, A) JP 7-136592 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B07C 5/00-5/38 B65G 47 / 22-47/32 B65G 15/58

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A transport device for transporting a sorting object from a supply part to a recovery part by a transport body provided with a large number of ventilation parts, and the supply part by sucking air through the ventilation part. A suction device for adsorbing the sorting target object supplied to the carrier, an identifying device for identifying the sorting object transported in a state of being sucked by the carrier, and an identification result of the identifying device, A sorting device that sorts objects to be sorted in the collecting section under predetermined identification conditions, wherein a plurality of the identifying devices are arranged in the width direction of the carrier.
Therefore , the ventilation part limits the identifiable range of the plurality of identification devices.
Intermittently and staggered on multiple passing lines
Sorting machine characterized by being arranged . 2. A means for preventing an object to be sorted from coming into contact with a portion of the carrier other than a predetermined width of the line is provided on the side of the supply unit of the carrier. The sorting machine according to claim 1 . 3. The upstream side of the identification device is air
An air injecting means for injecting air to the side , wherein air injecting means for returning the sorting target not adsorbed to the carrier via the ventilation part to the upstream side by the air injection is provided. The sorting machine according to claim 1 or 2, which is characterized.