JP3878084B2 - Belt conveying device and belt conveying system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a belt conveyance device and a belt conveyance system for conveying a predetermined conveyance body to a predetermined position by a conveyance belt.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, in a predetermined manufacturing apparatus and processing apparatus, when an intermediate product, a processed product, and a final product are transported to a predetermined position, a belt transport apparatus that transports by a transport belt is often used. This belt conveying device suspends the conveying belt on the belt driving roller, and it is desired that the tension of the conveying belt is made constant when the position of the belt driving roller is changed.
[0003]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, in a sheet processing device or a booklet processing apparatus, the transport between a paper feed and a paper discharge of a processing machine is often performed by a transport belt suspended on at least two belt drive rollers. For example, a sheet or the like is transported by being placed on a transport belt, or the sheet or the like is transported by being held by two transport belts. By the way, the height of the paper supply device, the processing machine, and the like may differ depending on the type and the manufacturer of the device, and in such a case, the conveyance belt is provided with an inclination.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, if the belt drive roller is moved up and down to incline the conveyor belt, the tension state of the conveyor belt changes and it becomes difficult to make the tension constant, and efficient conveyance cannot be performed. There is. Conventionally, there is a method of adjusting the tension using the biasing force of the spring in the continuous paper supply, but even if this is applied to the tension adjustment of the conveying belt, the biasing force applied to the belt is not enough depending on the degree of expansion and contraction of the spring. There is a problem that a constant tension cannot be maintained differently and efficient conveyance cannot be performed.
[0005]
Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a belt conveyance device and a belt conveyance system that maintain the tension of the conveyance belt and improve the conveyance efficiency.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in the invention of claim 1, a belt conveying device that conveys a predetermined conveying body to a predetermined conveying destination by a conveying belt, wherein at least two belt driving rollers for suspending the conveying belt are provided. Roller moving means for moving the belt driving roller in either the vertical direction or the horizontal direction , belt driving means for driving the conveying belt by rotating at least the belt driving roller, and conveying the belt driving roller to the belt driving roller. Tension adjusting means for adjusting the tension of the conveyor belt when the belt is suspended, and a biasing member provided on the tension adjusting means from a predetermined support member, and the support member to maintain the length of the biasing member And tension control means for making the tension adjusting means suitable for the conveyor belt.
[0007]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the belt transport system includes a transport body supply means for supplying a predetermined transport body, a transport body receiving means for receiving the supplied transport body, the transport body supply means, and the transport body receiving means. A predetermined number of the belt conveying devices according to claim 1 and a conveying unit configured to convey the conveying member supplied from the conveying member supply unit to the conveying member receiving unit. .
[0008]
In the inventions of claims 3 and 4, "the conveying means is arranged in a predetermined number so that the belt conveying device places and conveys the conveying body",
“The conveying means is configured such that a predetermined number of the two-stage belt conveying devices are arranged so that the belt conveying devices are arranged in two upper and lower stages to hold and convey the conveying body”.
[0009]
Thus, a biasing member is provided from the support member to the tension adjusting means for adjusting the tension of the conveyor belt with respect to the conveyor belt suspended by at least two movable belt drive rollers. By moving the support member to maintain the length, the tension of the conveyor belt by the tension adjusting means is optimized. That is, even if the belt driving roller is moved and the tension of the conveyor belt changes, the length of the biasing member is maintained, so that the tension of the conveyor belt can be maintained, and the tension of the conveyor belt by the tension roller is maintained. It is made appropriate to improve the conveyance efficiency.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a configuration diagram of a belt conveyance device according to the present invention. FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating the principle of the belt conveyance device, and FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a tension control unit. In FIG. 1A, the belt conveying device 11 has a configuration in which a conveying belt 16 is suspended between belt driving rollers 12 and 13 and a tension roller 14. The belt driving rollers 12 and 13 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0011]
As shown in FIG. 1B, the tension roller 14 is rotatably provided in bearings 15A and 15B such as bearings, and the tension roller 14 and the bearings 15A and 15B constitute tension adjusting means. . The bearings 15A and 15B are provided with biasing members 18A and 18B such as coil springs, and the biasing members 18A and 18B are attached to a predetermined support member 17 via a position sensor 19. The position sensor 19 detects the length of the urging members 18A and 18B, and the detection signal is sent to a motor controller described later.
[0012]
The support member 17 is moved up and down by the movable motor 20. As an example, a pinion 21 is attached to the tip of the rotating shaft of the movable motor 20 and is engaged with the pinion 21. The rack 22 is provided in a vertical direction and has one end fixed to the support member 17. The support member 17 is moved up and down. The rotation of the movable motor 20 is controlled by a motor controller 23, and the motor controller 23 controls the amount of rotation of the movable motor 20 based on a detection signal from the position sensor 19. That is, the support member 17, the urging members 18A and 18B, the position sensor 19, the movable motor 20, the pinion 21, the rack 22 and the motor controller 23 constitute a tension control means. The tension roller 14 is moved up and down by the rack and pinion method, but other mechanical methods may be used instead.
[0013]
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation principle of the belt driving roller in FIG. FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram showing an example of roller moving means and belt driving means for moving each roller in the vertical direction, and FIG. 2B is a conceptual diagram of belt driving by the belt driving means. 2A and 2B, each of the belt driving rollers 12 and 13 is rotatable with respect to the movable shafts 12A and 13A, for example, by a bearing or the like. That is, the conveyance angle of the conveyance body described later is determined by the angle of the conveyance belt 16 by the angle between the belt drive rollers 12 and 13, and the tension of the conveyance belt 16 suspended between the belt drive rollers 12 and 13 is determined. The tension roller 14 is suitable.
[0014]
As described above, when an angle is provided between the belt driving rollers 12 and 13, each roller is moved and moved in the vertical direction. For example, the belt drive roller 12 is moved up and down by a movable motor 31A, and although not shown, the belt drive roller 13 is also moved up and down by a movable motor 32A. That is, a pinion 41A is attached to the tip of the rotating shaft of the movable motor 31A, and engages with the pinion 41A. The belt driving roller is provided by a rack 43A provided in the vertical direction and having one end fixed to the operating shaft 12A. 12 is moved up and down.
[0015]
Although not shown, the belt drive roller 13 is similarly moved up and down by the movable motor 32A, the pinion 42A, and the rack 44A. These movable motors 31A, 32A, pinions 41A, 42A and racks 44A, 45A constitute roller movable means.
[0016]
The roller moving means may be other mechanical methods instead of the rack and pinion method as described above, and may be manually moved up and down by appropriately providing a lever and a lock mechanism, for example. It is good.
[0017]
On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the drive belt 53 is suspended between the belt drive rollers 12 and 13, the tension roller 14, and the rotation shaft 52 </ b> A (52 </ b> B) of the belt drive motor 51. That is, by rotating the belt drive motor 51, the belt drive rollers 12, 13 and the tension roller 14 are rotated, and the conveying belt 16 suspended from these is rotated. The driving belt 53 can also rotate the conveying belt 16 by being suspended only at least by the belt driving rollers 12 and 13.
[0018]
Next, FIG. 3 shows an explanatory diagram of belt tension adjustment in the belt conveyance device of FIGS. 1 and 2. In FIG. 3A, the belt drive rollers 12 and 13 are in a horizontal state, and the conveyance portion of the conveyance belt 16 is also in a horizontal state accordingly. At this time, the tension roller 14 is pressed by the urging force from the urging member 18A (18B) whose length is maintained at the predetermined length (L) by the position sensor 19, and the conveying belt 16 is appropriately stretched. ing.
[0019]
Therefore, in order to set the conveying portion of the conveying belt 16 to a predetermined angle (inclining to the right), for example, the belt driving roller 12 is left as it is, and the belt driving roller 13 is moved upward by a predetermined amount so that the conveying portion becomes a predetermined angle. Then, the tension roller 14 is raised by the conveyor belt 16, and the urging member 18A (18B) is compressed by that amount, and the length becomes, for example, “L1”.
[0020]
The length “L1” of the biasing member 18A (18B) is detected by the position sensor 19, and the motor controller 23 sets the biasing member 18A (18B) to the initial length “L” based on the detection signal. Then, the movable motor 20 is rotated by a rotational drive amount that raises the support member 17 (the amount of increase “L-L1”). That is, when the urging member 18A (18B) has the initial length “L”, an urging force corresponding to the length “L” is applied to the tension roller 14, thereby tensioning the conveyor belt 16 at the beginning. It is the same as the tension.
[0021]
Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, for example, the belt driving roller 12 is left as it is to drive the belt so that the conveying portion of the conveying belt 16 has a predetermined angle (inclined to the right) from the initial state of FIG. When the roller 13 is lowered downward by a predetermined amount so that the conveying portion has a predetermined angle, the tension roller 14 is lowered by the conveying belt 16, and the urging member 18A (18B) is extended by the amount corresponding to the lowered amount. Becomes “L2”, for example.
[0022]
The length “L2” of the biasing member 18A (18B) is detected by the position sensor 19, and the motor controller 23 sets the biasing member 18A (18B) to the initial length “L” based on the detection signal. Then, the movable motor 20 is rotated by a rotational drive amount that lowers the support member 17 (lowering amount “L2-L”). That is, when the urging member 18A (18B) has the initial length “L”, an urging force corresponding to the length “L” is applied to the tension roller 14, thereby tensioning the conveyor belt 16 at the beginning. It is the same as the tension.
[0023]
Next, FIGS. 4 and 5 are schematic explanatory views of an example single-piece sheet conveyance processing system to which the belt conveyance device according to the present invention is applied. In FIG. 4, the single-piece sheet conveyance processing system 61 </ b> A includes a sheet supply device 63 that is a conveyance body supply unit that supplies a sheet 62 that is a conveyance body. On this sheet supply device 63, a predetermined number of sheet (sheet-fed paper) groups 62A which are conveying members are stacked, and the sheet 62 is supplied sheet by sheet by a supply roller 64. In this case, for example, when one sheet 62 is supplied, the remaining sheet group 62A is raised to make the supply position constant. On the other hand, a processing device 65 such as a folding device that is a transport body receiving means for processing the sheet 62 is provided. The processing device 65 includes a transport unit 65A and a processing unit 65B as appropriate.
[0024]
Between the sheet supply device 63 and the processing device 65, one belt conveyance device 11 shown in FIG. 1A is disposed as a conveyance means. In this case, assuming that the supply position of the sheet 62 in the sheet supply device 63 and the sheet receiving position of the conveyance unit 65A in the processing device 65 are the same height, the conveyance portion of the conveyance belt 15 of each belt conveyance device 11 is horizontal. The belt driving rollers 12 and 13 are also set in a horizontal position. The conveyor belt 16 is in a suitable tension state by the tension roller 14. Accordingly, the sheets 62 sequentially supplied from the sheet supply device 63 by the supply roller 64 are placed on the conveyance belt 16 by the belt conveyance device 11 and sequentially conveyed, and are discharged onto the conveyance unit 65 of the processing device 65. Thus, the predetermined processing is performed by the processing unit 65B of the processing device 65.
[0025]
In FIG. 5, when the height of the conveyance unit 66 </ b> A of the processing device 66 is higher than the height of the sheet supply device 63, the single-piece sheet conveyance processing system 61 </ b> B uses, for example, the belt driving roller 12 of the belt conveyance device 11. 63, the belt drive roller 13 is moved upward so that the conveyance portion is at a predetermined angle so that the conveyance portion of the conveyance belt 16 is at a predetermined angle up to the height of the conveyance portion 66A. By raising the fixed amount and raising the support member 17 accordingly, the tension of the conveyor belt 16 is set to the initially set tension.
[0026]
That is, in order to convey the sheet 62 from the supply position of the sheet supply device 63 to the conveyance unit 66A of the processing device 66, even if the belt driving roller 13 is raised, the tension of the conveyance belt 16 is initially set (biasing members 18A and 18B). (The original length) can be in a suitable state. The sheet 62 supplied from the sheet supply device 63 is placed on the belt conveyance device 11 and conveyed, and is discharged onto a conveyance unit 66A of the processing device 66.
[0027]
FIG. 5 shows the case where the sheet 62 is conveyed in the right upward direction, but the same applies to the case where the sheet 62 is conveyed in the right downward direction. Further, the conveyor belt 16 can be rotated in the reverse direction. Furthermore, although the case where one belt conveying device 11 is disposed between the sheet supply device 63 and the processing device 66 has been described in the above example, the number can be increased or decreased depending on the distance between these devices or the conveying trajectory. It can be done.
[0028]
In this way, even when the belt driving roller 13 is moved and the tension of the conveyor belt 16 changes, the length of the biasing members 18A and 18B is maintained, so that the tension of the conveyor belt 16 can be maintained. The tension of the conveyor belt 16 by the roller 14 is optimized, and the efficiency of conveyance can be improved.
[0029]
By the way, although the said sheet | seat (sheet-fed paper) was shown as the conveyance body 62, even if it is a booklet, IC card, IC form (state before being made into an IC card), a film, a card, a plastic product, etc. It can be applied, and is applied by providing a transport body supply device that supplies these transport bodies as the system, and a system that includes a printing device, a stacker, or the like that performs predetermined processing or stacking at a discharge destination. It is something that can be done.
[0030]
Next, FIG. 6 shows an explanatory diagram of another configuration in the single-piece sheet conveyance processing system. 6A shows the conveyance state of the belt conveyance device corresponding to FIG. 4, and FIG. 6B shows the conveyance state of the belt conveyance device corresponding to FIG. The belt conveyance device shown in FIG. 6A is configured by the belt conveyance mechanism (belt conveyance device 11) of FIG. 4 with the conveyance portions of the conveyance belt 16 facing each other at a predetermined interval (the interval of the thickness of the sheet 62). This is disposed between the sheet supply device 63 and the processing device 66. Here, the upper and lower belt conveyors 11 are constituted by the same elements, and are given the same reference numerals.
[0031]
Each of the belt conveying devices 11 and 11 is in a suitable tension state by the tension rollers 14 and 14 being urged by a constant urging force from the urging members 18A and 18B (18A and 18B). . That is, in the example of FIG. 4, the sheet 62 supplied from the sheet supply device 63 is conveyed while being held by the conveyance belts 14 and 14 of the belt conveyance devices 11 and 11, and is conveyed to the conveyance unit 64 </ b> A of the processing device 64. It is what is discharged.
[0032]
In the belt conveyance device shown in FIG. 6B, the belt conveyance mechanism (belt conveyance device 11) in FIG. 5 causes the conveyance portions of the conveyance belt 16 to face each other at a predetermined interval (the thickness interval of the sheet 62). This is configured between the sheet supply device 63 and the processing device 66. Here, the upper and lower belt conveyors 11 are constituted by the same elements, and are given the same reference numerals.
[0033]
In this case, each of the belt conveying devices 11 and 11 is configured to raise the belt driving rollers 13 and 13 of the belt conveying devices 11 and 11 shown in FIG. , 14 is urged by a constant urging force from the urging members 18A, 18B (18A, 18B), thereby providing a suitable tension state. In other words, in the example of FIG. 5, the sheet 62 supplied from the sheet supply device 63 is held between the conveyance belts 14 and 14 of the belt conveyance devices 11 and 11 and is positioned higher than the sheet supply position of the processing device 66. It conveys to the conveyance part 66A.
[0034]
As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the belt driving rollers 13 and 13 are moved in the same manner as described above even when the conveyance body is held by the conveyance belts 16 and 16 and conveyed. The tension of the urging members 18A and 18B (18A and 18B) is maintained even if the tension of the belts 16 and 16 changes, so that the tension of the conveyor belts 16 and 16 can be maintained. The tension of the belts 16 and 16 can be optimized and the conveyance efficiency can be improved.
[0035]
Next, FIG. 7 shows an explanatory diagram of another configuration in the belt conveyance device according to the present invention. The basic configuration of the belt conveyance device 11 shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C is the same as that of the belt conveyance device 11 in FIG. 1A, but the belt drive rollers 12 and 13 (any one may be used). The tension roller 14 (support member 17, urging members 18A and 18B and position sensor 19) can be moved in the vertical direction. The horizontal movement of the belt drive rollers 12 and 13 in this case may be arranged to move the rack and pinion system shown in FIG. 2A in the horizontal direction, for example.
[0036]
That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 7B, when the belt driving roller 12 is moved in the horizontal direction, the tension roller 14 is raised by the conveyor belt 16, and the urging member 18A (18B) is compressed by that amount. Is done. Then, as shown in FIG. 7C, the length of the biasing member 18A (18B) is detected by the position sensor 19, and based on the detection signal, the motor controller 23 initially moves the biasing member 18A (18B). When the movable motor 20 is rotated by a rotational drive amount that raises the support member 17 so that the length of the urging member 18 becomes longer, the urging member 18A (18B) becomes the initial length, and the urging force corresponding to this is applied to the tension roller 14. Will be added.
[0037]
As a result, the initial tension of the conveyor belt 16 can be maintained. This is the same when the belt drive roller 12 is horizontally moved in the direction in which the urging members 18A and 18B are extended, and the same is true when the belt drive roller 13 is horizontally moved.
[0038]
The above configuration is particularly effective when the distance between the sheet supply device 63 and the processing devices 65 and 66 changes due to a problem in the installation space in the single-piece sheet conveyance processing systems 61A and 61B shown in FIGS. . The belt driving rollers 12 and 13 may perform both the horizontal movement as described above and the vertical movement as shown in FIGS. Moreover, even if it is a case where it conveys a conveyance body as shown in FIG. 6, it can apply.
[0039]
By the way, in the said embodiment, although the case where the length change of biasing member 18A, 18B by the movement of the belt drive rollers 12 and 13 was detected by the position sensor 19 was shown, the change of said biasing member 18A, 18B is shown. For example, it can be realized by detecting with a pressure sensor. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where two belt drive rollers are used in addition to the tension roller in configuring the belt conveyance device 11 has been described, but it is needless to say that the belt conveyance device 11 may be configured by three or more belt drive rollers. It is.
[0040]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, an urging member attached to the support member is provided for the tension adjusting means for adjusting the tension of the conveyor belt with respect to the conveyor belt suspended by at least two movable belt drive rollers. By moving the support member to maintain the length of the urging member, the tension of the conveyor belt is maintained, and the tension of the conveyor belt by the tension roller is always optimized, thereby improving the conveyance efficiency. Is.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a belt conveyance device according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an operation principle of the belt driving roller in FIG.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of belt tension adjustment in the belt conveyance device of FIGS. 1 and 2;
FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view (1) of an example single-piece sheet conveyance processing system to which a belt conveyance device according to the present invention is applied.
FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory diagram (2) of an example single-piece sheet conveyance processing system to which the belt conveyance device according to the present invention is applied.
FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of another configuration in the single-piece sheet conveyance processing system.
FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of another configuration of the belt conveyance device according to the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Belt conveying apparatus 12, 13 Belt drive roller 14 Tension roller 15 Bearing 16 Conveying belt 17 Support member 18 Biasing member 19 Position sensor 20, 31, 32 Movable motor 61 Single piece sheet conveying processing system

Claims (4)

A belt transport device that transports a predetermined transport body to a predetermined transport destination by a transport belt,
At least two belt drive rollers for suspending the conveyor belt;
Roller moving means for moving the belt driving roller in either the vertical direction or the horizontal direction;
Belt driving means for driving at least the belt driving roller to drive the conveying belt;
Tension adjusting means for adjusting the tension of the conveyor belt when the conveyor belt is suspended from the belt driving roller;
A tension member is provided on the tension adjusting means from a predetermined support member, and the tension member is moved to maintain the length of the biasing member so that the tension adjusting means is properly tensioned to the conveyor belt. Control means;
A belt conveyance device comprising: A carrier supply means for supplying a predetermined carrier;
A carrier receiving means for receiving the supplied carrier;
A predetermined number of belt conveyance devices according to claim 1 are arranged between the conveyance body supply means and the conveyance body reception means, and the conveyance body supplied from the conveyance body supply means is used as the conveyance body reception means. Conveying means for conveying;
A belt conveyance system comprising: 3. The belt conveyance system according to claim 2, wherein a predetermined number of the conveyance means are arranged so that the belt conveyance device places and conveys the conveyance body. 3. The belt conveying system according to claim 2, wherein the conveying means includes a predetermined number of the two-stage belt conveying devices so that the belt conveying devices are arranged in two upper and lower stages and the conveying body is held and conveyed. A belt conveyance system characterized by being arranged.

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