JP3672983B2 - Container transport machine - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a container transporter that takes out a boxed container and supplies it to a predetermined position, or a container transporter that boxes a container, and particularly handles one stack of containers stacked in a columnar shape as one stack. Used for container transporters.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When a container is supplied to a machine that requires a large amount of containers, such as a filling machine that fills containers with food by a flow operation, the containers are stacked in a column shape in a container storage section called a cup hopper on the machine side. From here, the containers are taken out in order. Accordingly, containers supplied to this type of machine are handled as one stack by stacking, for example, 50 pieces in a columnar shape, and this stack is boxed and shipped in units of several dozens.
[0003]
Box-packed container stacks are packed in a staggered manner in order to prevent the stack from collapsing during transportation and to minimize the storage space for the boxes. Moreover, even if the height of one container is several centimeters, when 50 are stacked, the height reaches 40-60 centimeters. When the containers packed in a box in this state are supplied to the cup hopper in stack units, only a few containers can be taken out at most when the container stack is pinched with fingers from the top of the box. Therefore, at the site, the boxes were carefully laid and the entire stack of containers was slid out of the box so that the stack did not collapse, and then manually supplied to the cup hopper one stack at a time.
[0004]
However, when the entire stack of containers is taken out of the box, the container may roll out like an avalanche from the box, and careful work is required. In addition, while one stack of containers is being supplied to the cup hopper, the remaining stack of containers may fall over or fall down.
[0005]
Next, considering the case of packing a stack of containers, the containers are counted by a counter on the container manufacturing apparatus side and automatically stacked. However, the boxing operation is not automated and is performed manually. This is a simple operation that simply tilts the box opening to the side and arranges the stack of containers in order, but if there is no room for the inner space of the box, hold both ends of the container stack and hold the box. Can not be lined up and packed into a box as a container stack is pushed in. In particular, the last row of stuffing operation becomes very difficult. However, since the excessive packing must not damage the appearance of the container that affects the commercial value, a very careful packing operation is required, and the efficiency of the operation decreases as the boxing operation proceeds to the subsequent stage.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
If the container stack can be gripped using a small gap, even if the container stack is tightly packed, the container stack can be sequentially taken out of the box. There is no need to remove everything from the box. Further, when the container stack is boxed, the boxing operation can be reliably performed without damaging the other container stack.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problems, the container transporter of the present invention supports a container gripping tool that grips a container stack formed by stacking columns of circular containers in a circular shape and supports the container gripping tool. In addition, in a container transporter comprising an articulated arm member that imparts a desired three-dimensional motion to the container gripper and a control means that controls the movement of the arm member, the container gripper is capable of reciprocating rotation. A pair of elongated pieces each having a proximal end pivotally supported, and a pair provided on the lower end side of the pair of elongated pieces so as to protrude to the rotation center side of the pair of elongated pieces to support the container stack. The pair of elongated pieces each have an arcuate cross section similar to the outer peripheral surface of the container stack, and the pair of elongated pieces reciprocate along the outer peripheral surface of the container stack. Move When gripping the serial container stack is one that is configured to pivot forward to a position axisymmetric with respect to the center line of the container stack.
[0008]
In the present invention, it is preferable that the lower ends of the pair of strips each having an arcuate cross section similar to the outer peripheral surface of the container stack are rounded. Further, in the present invention, the pair of elongated pieces are pivotally supported on a base shaft attached to the arm member so as to be reciprocally rotatable, and the container gripper is mounted on the base so as to reciprocate. It is preferable that a rod is provided and a pair of connecting rods that transmit the reciprocating motion of the rod to the pair of elongated pieces, respectively, and the pair of elongated pieces are reciprocally rotated by the reciprocating motion of the rod. .
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a container transporter according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0010]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a use state of the container transport machine 1 according to this embodiment. Arranged in the central portion of this figure is a container transporter 1, which includes a container gripping tool 2, an articulated arm member 3 that supports the container gripping tool 2 at its tip, and an illustration. The control means for controlling the movement of the arm member is omitted. The container 4 handled by the container transporter 1 has a circular cross section, and an annular step 4a (FIG. 3) is formed on the outer peripheral surface, and can be stacked in a columnar shape.
[0011]
As shown in FIG. 2, the container gripping tool 2 includes two elongated pieces 7 and 8 having a circular cross section similar to the outer peripheral surface of the container 4 as side members. These elongated pieces 7 and 8 are pivotally supported so as to be rotatable along the outer peripheral surface of the container 4, and grip the container 4 by moving to a line-symmetrical position with respect to the center line of the container 4. In addition, tongue-like pieces 9 and 10 which are horizontal members are formed at the lower ends of these elongated pieces 7 and 8 so as to protrude to the center side of these rotations, respectively. Engage with.
[0012]
The arm member 3 is centered on a base 11 fixed to the floor, a turntable 12 that can turn left and right on the base 11 around the first axis L1 in the vertical direction, and a second axis L2 in the horizontal direction. A first arm 13 whose lower end is pivotally supported by the turntable 12 and rotatable up and down, and one end of which is pivotally supported by the upper end of the first arm 13 and centering on a horizontal third axis L3. A second arm 14 that can be pivoted up and down, and a base end of which is pivotally supported by the other end of the second arm 14 and pivots about a fourth axis L4 that extends in the axial direction of the second arm 14 A possible third arm 15 and a fourth arm 16 that is arranged at the tip of the third arm 15 and is rotatable about a fifth axis L5 extending in a direction perpendicular to the fourth axis L4. The base end of the fourth arm 16 is pivotally supported by the fourth arm 16 about the sixth axis L6 extending in the axial direction. With 5 of an arm 17, the vessel gripper 2 is detachably attached to the fifth arm 17. Accordingly, the container gripping tool 2 can perform a desired three-dimensional movement within the reach of the arm member 3 by controlling the six axes, and the container gripping tool 2 can be replaced according to the type of the container 4 and the like. Is possible.
[0013]
The container transporter 1 is a container packed in the box 21, such as the size of the box 21 that stores the container 4, the size of the container 4, the number of stacks of the containers 4, and the arrangement of the stacks of the containers 4. The information necessary for taking out the stack of 4 and the position information about the transport of the stack of containers 4 are controlled by a control means (not shown) inputted in advance. Note that the position information of the box 21 is defined by the positioning means 22, and it is only necessary to bring the box 21 into contact with the positioning means 22. Therefore, the container transporter 1 can take out the stack of the containers 4 in order from the box 21 without the means for aligning the positions of the container gripping tool 2 and the stack of the containers 4.
[0014]
The container carrier 1 takes out the stack of the containers 4 from the box 21 and then supplies the stack of the containers 4 to the cup hopper 26 of the device 25 such as a filling machine. The box 21 is inclined toward the container transporter 1 so that the stack of containers 4 does not fall down. Moreover, since the container gripping tool 2 of the container transporter 1 is a pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8, it can be inserted even in a slight gap. When the stack of containers 4 is packed in a staggered manner in the box 21 as described above, a relatively large gap is formed in the upper left corner of the box 21 and the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 can be easily inserted. 21 in order from the stack of containers 4 in the upper left.
[0015]
In FIG. 1, the operation of the container transporter 1 that takes out the stack of the containers 4 from the box 21 and supplies the stack to the apparatus 25 such as a filling machine is shown. It is also possible to take out the stacks and pack them in order. Also, a plurality of types of containers can be transported by one container transporter 1 in correspondence with devices such as a plurality of types of filling machines. For example, the box containing the container for the strawberry jam and the box containing the container for the marmalade are positioned separately, and from each box, each container is used for the filling machine for the strawberry jam and for the marmalade. It can be selectively supplied to the filling machine.
[0016]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the container gripping tool 2 of the container transport machine 1 of this embodiment. The pair of elongate pieces 7 and 8 is provided with tongue-like pieces 9 and 10 that are pivotally supported on the shaft of the base 31 attached to the fifth arm 17 so that the base end sides thereof are pivotable and project toward the pivot center. Each is provided at the lower end. The lower end is rounded to resemble the tip of the scoop so that it can be easily inserted into the gap.
[0017]
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a gripping state of the stack of containers 4 by the container gripping tool 2. As shown, the pair of strips 7 and 8 are configured such that the length corresponds to the height of the stack of containers 4, and the stack of containers 4 is held between the pair of strips 7 and 8. The tongues 9 and 10 of the pair of elongate pieces 7 and 8 are engaged with the step 4a of the container 4 at the bottom of the stack.
[0018]
FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a pair of strip driving mechanism. The reciprocating motion of the rod 33 of the air cylinder 32 (see FIG. 2) attached to the base is transmitted to the respective elongated pieces 7 and 8 by a pair of connecting rods 34 and 35. FIG. 4A shows a state in which the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 are brought closer to the left side of the center of rotation in this figure due to the contraction operation of the rod 33. As described above, the elongated pieces 7 and 8 have an arcuate cross section, and in this embodiment, the arc angle is formed at 80 °, and the arc angle on the opposite side is 180 ° or more when moved to one side. Therefore, the container can be easily grasped even from the lateral direction. FIG. 4B shows a state in which the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 are rotated to a line-symmetrical position with respect to the rotation center by the extending operation of the rod 33. In this state, the container is held between the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8.
[0019]
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining the gripping operation of the container 4 by the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8. The gripping operation of the container 4 by the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 is ideally performed at a position where the rotation center C1 of the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 and the center C2 of the container 4 coincide with each other. As shown in FIG. 5A, the rotation center C1 of the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 and the center C2 of the container 4 may be displaced. However, by appropriately setting the dimensions and arc angles of the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8, the rotation center C1 of the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 and the center C2 of the container 4 remain displaced as described below. However, the gripping operation of the container 4 by the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 can be reliably performed.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 5B, when the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 are rotated, the side ends of these elongated pieces 7 and 8 come into contact with the outer periphery of the container 4. At this time, if the side ends of these strips 7 and 8 are configured to come into contact with the outer periphery of the container 4 at a position exceeding half of the container 4, the subsequent rotation of these strips 7 and 8 causes the container to rotate. 4 slides inside these strips 7,8. FIG. 5C shows a state in which the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 have been rotated. As is clear from this figure, since the distance between the side ends of the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8 is smaller than the diameter of the container 4, the container 4 is securely held inside the pair of elongated pieces 7 and 8.
[0021]
As mentioned above, although one Example of this invention was described, this invention can take not only this Example described and illustrated but various aspects. For example, in this embodiment, an articulated arm member controlled by 6 axes is used, but when more complicated three-dimensional motion is required, an arm member capable of controlling 7 axes or more is used. Also good. On the other hand, when the requirement is satisfied by a more simplified three-dimensional motion, an arm member that operates with control of five axes or less may be used.
[0022]
In addition, although an air cylinder is used to drive the container gripping tool, a solenoid plunger or a motor may be used. Furthermore, if the length of the container gripper can be adjusted, the container gripper need not be replaced when the number of stacked containers is changed.
[0023]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the container gripper can be given a desired three-dimensional movement by the articulated arm member whose movement is controlled by the control means, so that the container stack can be automatically and accurately repeated. . Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the number of workers and manage the product hygienically.
[0024]
In addition, since the container gripper includes a pair of elongated pieces that reciprocally rotate along the outer peripheral surface of the container stack, the container can be used even in a container stack packed in a box or a container stack in a narrow place. The container stack can be reliably gripped without being damaged, and for this reason, the container stack can be taken out of the box, the container stack can be packed, or the container stack can be transported to various apparatuses and places.
[0025]
Moreover, even if several tens of containers are stacked as one stack, the container stack can be gripped as it is from above or from the side by the pair of elongated pieces, so that the conveyance efficiency is high.
[0026]
Furthermore, according to the second aspect of the present invention, the pair of elongated pieces can be easily inserted into the gap.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a use state of a container transporter according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a container gripping tool of the container transporter shown in FIG.
3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a container gripping state by the container gripping tool shown in FIG.
4 is a schematic diagram of a drive mechanism for a pair of elongated pieces of the container gripping tool shown in FIG. 2. FIG.
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a container gripping operation by a pair of elongated pieces of the container gripping tool illustrated in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container conveyance machine 2 Container holding tool 3 Arm member 4 Container 7 Elongate piece 8 Elongate piece 9 Tongue piece 10 Tongue piece 31 Base 33 Rod 34 Connecting rod 35 Connecting rod

Claims (3)

A container gripping tool for gripping a container stack formed by stacking circularly shaped containers having a circular cross section; and
An articulated arm member that supports the container gripping tool and imparts a desired three-dimensional motion to the container gripping tool;
In the container transport machine comprising the control means for controlling the movement of the arm member,
The container gripping tool includes a pair of elongated pieces pivotally supported on the base end side so as to be capable of reciprocating rotation, and the pair of elongated pieces projecting toward the rotation center of the pair of elongated pieces to support the container stack. A pair of tongue-like pieces respectively provided on the lower end side of the elongated piece,
Each of the pair of elongated pieces has an arcuate cross section similar to the outer peripheral surface of the container stack,
The pair of elongated strips reciprocally rotate along the outer peripheral surface of the container stack, and when the container stack is gripped, the container transporter rotates in a line-symmetric position with respect to the center line of the container stack.   2. The container transporter according to claim 1, wherein lower ends of the pair of strips each having an arcuate cross section similar to the outer peripheral surface of the container stack are rounded. The pair of elongated pieces are pivotally supported so as to be reciprocally rotatable on base shafts attached to the arm members,
The container gripping tool includes a rod provided on the base so as to reciprocate, and a pair of connecting rods that transmit the reciprocating motion of the rod to the pair of elongated pieces, respectively.
The container transporter according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pair of elongated pieces reciprocally rotate by the reciprocating movement of the rod.

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