JP4464246B2 - Crop cleaning equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus for cleaning long-root vegetables, root vegetables, leaf vegetables, and crops such as fruits.

As a conventional crop cleaning apparatus, there is an apparatus for cleaning a crop by rotating the long brush while placing the crop between a plurality of long brushes and moving the crop in the axial direction of the long brush. (For example, see patent literature)
Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-75534 ([0002], [0006] and [0007], [FIG. 1])

By the way, in the cleaning device described in Patent Document 1, since the agricultural product moves on the long brush, and the long brush scrubs off the adhering matter such as mud and soil of the agricultural product, the long brush is selected. Is very important.
In other words, a long brush with stiff hair has a high function of scrubbing deposits, and therefore shortens the scraping time by increasing the movement speed of crops or shortening the long brush. Therefore, it is possible to clean the crops reliably and quickly, but on the contrary, there is a high possibility that the crops will be damaged by the hardness of the hair.
On the other hand, long brushes with soft and soft hair will greatly reduce the possibility of damaging the crops, but because the function of scrubbing off the deposits is low, the movement speed of the crops may be reduced or long. The length of scrubbing has to be extended by lengthening the brush, and the rapid cleaning of the crops is lacking.
In addition, in a cleaning device using a long brush, rotation of the long brush and rotation of the crop using contact resistance between the long brush, the crop surface, and the long brush can be applied to all surfaces of the crop. A long brush is in contact.
However, in this method, the contact resistance force with the long brush becomes strong or weak due to the difference in the surface shape and surface roughness of each crop, so that the rotation becomes unstable for each crop and uneven washing may occur. The nature is great.
In other words, there is a limit to the conventional cleaning apparatus using a long brush to satisfy the cleaning function and cleaning time of the deposits, as well as the protection of agricultural products.

  An object of the present invention is to satisfy all of the cleaning function and cleaning time for deposits, as well as the protection of crops, and an object of the present invention is to provide a crop cleaning apparatus that solves this problem.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention employs technical means for cleaning crops without using a long brush.
Specifically, at least, a conveyor provided with a plurality of placement units on which the crops are placed in the transport direction, a rotating means for rotating the crops on the placement unit, and a washing for washing the rotating crops with washing water and means, the placement state of the placing part the crop, and a switching means for switching to the release state for releasing the mounting of the crop, the placement section is along the width direction of the conveyor, a plurality of space portions crop to be placed is a size that does not pass are formed in parallel form, a portion other than the space portion, it as a support portion for supporting the crop, said rotating means, said during cleaning is configured to crops to rotate while spaced from the mounting portion, the switching means, the mounting portion vertically pivotably supported, in the mounted state of the crop of the mounting portion, the mounting section Placement holding provided in The guide portion provided along the transport direction supports and holds the placement state. In the release state, the guide portion releases the support of the placement holding portion, and the placement portion The crop is taken out of the conveyor (claim 1).

Examples of the cleaning means using the cleaning water include one that sprays the cleaning water from the top and bottom of the crop (claim 2).
Moreover, as a structure of the washing | cleaning means for further improving washing | cleaning efficiency, what sprays washing water as a substantially fan shape (Claim 3) is mentioned.
If the angle of the substantially sector shape is less than 25 degrees, depending on the crop, the spray of washing water may concentrate on a part of the crop, and the crop may be damaged or cannot be sprayed on the entire crop.
In addition, when the angle exceeds 65 degrees, depending on the crop, the washing water spray width becomes wider than the crop width, and a part of the washing water is jetted to a portion other than the crop, resulting in wasted water.
Therefore, in the present invention, the opening angle of the substantially fan shape is set to 25 degrees to 65 degrees (claim 4).
Examples of the structure for spraying the cleaning water include a nozzle and a pump for jetting the cleaning water vigorously.

As a specific configuration of the rotating means, there is one that enters and exits the space portion, and rotates the agricultural product while being separated from the placement portion by a roller protruding upward from the space portion in the state (Claim 5). It is done.
In order to more surely clean the entire crop evenly, it is preferable that the rotation direction of the roller is a direction intersecting the conveyance direction (Claim 6).

As another cleaning means using the cleaning water, for example, a crop is submerged in the cleaning water in the water tank together with the conveyor, and in the water tank, cleaning is performed by the jetting power of jetting bubbles to the crop (Claim 7). Can be mentioned.
Examples of the rotating means in this case include a means for rotating by using the jetting power of the bubbles and the buoyancy of the crops in water (claim 8).

In order to use the work space widely, the conveyor may be configured to include conveyance in the vertical direction (Claim 9).

According to the present invention, the crop is placed and transported on the placement unit, and is washed only with washing water on the placement unit, and the crop is rotated while being separated from the placement unit. There is no damage caused by contact resistance or rubbing of the brush, and furthermore, it can be reliably washed regardless of the surface shape and roughness of the crop. Further, since the switching means switches from the mounted state at the time of washing the crop to the released state after the washing, the picking up of the washed crop is automatically performed. Therefore, since the washed crop is automatically taken in, it can be expected to save labor in the cleaning work of the crop.

Further, according to the invention of claim 2, since the washing water is sprayed from the top and bottom of the crop, it is effective in improving the quickness and certainty of washing.
Furthermore, according to the invention of claim 3, since the cleaning water is jetted in a substantially fan shape, efficient cleaning can be expected.
Moreover, according to the invention of Claim 4, it can wash | clean reliably and more efficiently irrespective of the kind and magnitude | size of agricultural products.

According to the invention of claim 5, the crop conveyed by the roller protruding from the space is lifted away from the placement portion, and the roller is rotated by the weight of the lifted crop, and the rotation causes the crop. Rotates.
And a roller escapes from a space part, rotating crops, and mounts crops in a mounting part.
That is, since the contact resistance force which is rubbed against a mounting part or a roller does not act on the rotating crops, the crops can be prevented from being damaged.
Therefore, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of crop grade deterioration due to scratches, and furthermore, the entire crop can be washed evenly.
Further, according to the invention of claim 6, since the rotation direction of the roller is a direction intersecting with the conveyance direction, when the lifted crop is rotated by the rotation of the roller, the direction intersecting with the conveyance direction. The part which faced the space part of agricultural products in the mounting state before rotation faces the support part, and the position shifted so that the part which faced the support part faces the space part.
In other words, before the crop is rotated, the portion hidden by the support portion is exposed in the space portion, so that the cleaning water can be brought into contact with the portion.
Therefore, it is possible to more reliably clean the entire crop evenly.

Further, according to the invention of claim 7, by immersing the entire crop in the washing water in the aquarium, the adhering deposits are floated from the surface of the crop by the washing water, and further, bubbles are blown out in the aquarium. Cleaning can be performed by removing the deposits that have floated and have not been lifted.
Furthermore, according to invention of Claim 8, the gravity which acts by the buoyancy in an aquarium becomes small, and it can be made to rotate apart from a mounting part by the jetting force of the said bubble in this state.

Further, according to the ninth aspect of the invention, since the conveyor includes transport in the vertical direction, the total length in the transport direction of the cleaning device can be shortened when the transport distance is the same as that of the conveyor formed only in the planar direction. .
Therefore, since the cleaning device can be made compact without deteriorating the cleaning function, a limited work space can be used effectively.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a crop cleaning apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a crop cleaning apparatus A of the present invention, a conveyor B provided with a plurality of placement units 1 on which a crop C is placed, a plurality of rollers 2 (rotating means) for rotating the crop C, and transportation of the crop. When the crop C is a long root vegetable from the upstream side in the direction, a cutter part A1 that cuts the leaves and the neck of the gun (the tip part of the long root vegetable), and a cleaning part 3 that cleans the crop C with cleaning water (cleaning Means), a recycling device 3A for reusing the washing water used in the washing unit 3 for washing in the rough washing unit 31 described later in the washing unit 3, and a measuring unit 4 for measuring the grade of the crop C, It is comprised from the switching means 5 which switches the mounting part 1 from the mounting state of the crop C to the cancellation | release state.

The conveyor B is configured by a placement unit 1 and a chain D that is positioned on both sides of the placement unit 1 and is wound endlessly while supporting the placement unit 1.
Further, the conveyor B has a portion (hereinafter referred to as a “main cleaning conveyor portion”, which is denoted by a reference sign B2) corresponding to a main cleaning portion 33 to be described later in the cleaning portion 3 at a higher position than the other portions. A part corresponding to the pre-cleaning part 32 (hereinafter referred to as “pre-cleaning conveyor part” and denoted by reference numeral B1) continuous upstream of the part corresponding to the cleaning part 33 is transported upward, and also on the downstream side. A part corresponding to the continuous main finishing cleaning section 34 (hereinafter referred to as “main finishing cleaning conveyor section” and denoted by reference numeral B3) is transported downward.
That is, since the parts of the preliminary cleaning conveyor part B1 to the final finishing cleaning conveyor part B3 in the conveyor B are configured to have a substantially convex shape, the transport distance of the conveyor B necessary for cleaning the crop C is secured. Thus, the overall length in the carrying direction can be shortened.

As shown in FIG. 4, the mounting portion 1 is formed in a substantially comb-like shape, and a portion alternately arranged with the space portion 11 in the comb-teeth shape is used as a support portion 12 for the crop C, and the base of the support portion 12 is arranged. The end is integrally supported by the support rod 1A.
The support rod 1A is rotatably supported across the chain D on the upstream and downstream sides in the transport direction.
The space 11 has a width that prevents the crop C from falling off and does not come into contact with the roller 2, with the open side facing the upstream side in the conveying direction of the conveyor B.
The support portion 12 is as shown in FIGS. It is curved so as to protrude downward, and is formed in a shape that can be supported so that the crop C to be placed does not fall.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the roller 2 is rotatably supported in a state where a fixed position is held below a main cleaning conveyor B <b> 2 described later.
The fixed position of the roller 2 is a position where the space portion 11 moves in and out of the space portion 11 that is moved by the carrying operation of the mounting portion 1, and the lowest position of the support portion 12 in the way the space portion 11 passes the roller 2. Is a position protruding upward.
In addition, a plurality of rollers 2 (four in the drawing) are supported in parallel in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the placement unit 1, and one row of roller rows 2 </ b> A, 2 </ b> B, 2 </ b> C is conveyed by the placement unit 1. A plurality of rows (three rows in the drawing) are provided along the direction.
The rotation direction of the roller 2 is set to a direction that intersects the conveyance direction of the placement unit 1.
More specifically, the rotation direction of the roller 2 is the same for each of the roller rows 2A, 2B, 2C, and the rotation direction of the rollers 2 of the adjacent roller rows 2A, 2B, 2C is the reverse direction.
Note that the roller 2 may be provided with a slip stopper made of a soft material. (Not shown)

According to the mounting part 1 and the roller 2 as described above, the roller 2 enters the space part 11 by the carrying operation of the conveyor B, and is placed on the support part 12 by protruding upward from the space part 11. The crop C is lifted and separated from the support portion 12.
Then, the roller 2 is rotated by the weight of the lifted crop C, and the crop is rotated by the rotation.
Moreover, since the roller 2 rotates in a direction intersecting with the carrying direction of the placement unit 1, when the crop C is lifted and rotated, the roller 2 moves in a direction intersecting with the carrying direction.
Furthermore, since the rotation direction of the roller 2 of adjacent roller row | line | column 2A, 2B, 2C is reverse direction, the crop C is moved to a conveyance direction in zigzag form.
Therefore, washing water can be made to act on the entire surface of the crop C.

As described above, the cleaning unit 3 includes the rough cleaning unit 31, the preliminary cleaning unit 32, the main cleaning unit 33, and the main finishing cleaning unit 34.
The coarse cleaning unit 31 is located on the most upstream side in the cleaning unit, and sprays cleaning water from the upper part of the crop C by the nozzle N1, thereby giving moisture to the attached deposits and floating from the crop C. Cleaning is performed to such an extent that dust or the like is allowed to flow.
The pre-cleaning unit 32 sprays cleaning water from the front and back of the pre-cleaning conveyor unit B1 toward the agricultural products by the nozzle N2, and the attached matter floated by the rough cleaning unit 31 and the attachment not lifted by the rough cleaning unit 31. The kimono is washed while floating.
The main cleaning unit 33 is configured to inject cleaning water from the front and back sides of the main cleaning conveyor B2 toward the crops by using a nozzle N3, thereby cleaning almost all the deposits.
The main finishing cleaning section 34 sprays cleaning water from the front and back of the main finishing cleaning conveyor B3 to the crop C by the nozzle N4, and includes cleaning that includes deposits that may remain on the crop C or the placement section 1. The water is washed away.

The nozzles N1 to N4 are all supported so as to be able to swing (not shown) at the time of spraying, so that the washing water can be sprayed on the agricultural products as averagely as possible.
The spraying forces of the nozzles N1 to N4 are the weakest in the rough cleaning unit 31, the strongest in the main cleaning unit 33, and then the precleaning unit 32 and the final cleaning unit 34 are stronger than the rough cleaning unit 31, It is weaker than 33.
Further, the nozzles N1 to N4 have a structure in which the cleaning water is ejected in a substantially fan shape, and have a configuration in which the opening angle of the substantially fan shape can be adjusted between 25 degrees and 65 degrees.
The adjustment of the opening angle is determined in accordance with, for example, the type and size of the crop C, the distance from the tip (injection port) of the nozzles N1 to N4 to the crop C, and each condition such as the injection pressure.
For example, when the crop C is long, when the opening angle of the nozzle N3 is 65 degrees, the spray pressure is 14 MPa, and the distance is 200 mm, the surface can be cleaned cleanly and efficiently without being scratched.
Similarly, when the crop C was long, when the opening angle of the nozzle N3 was 25 degrees, the injection pressure was 14 MPa, and the distance was 300 mm, the surface could be cleaned cleanly and efficiently without being damaged.
The spray pressure is set in each of the rough cleaning unit, the preliminary cleaning unit, and the final cleaning unit.
In addition, even if the distance from the tip of the nozzle to the crop is less than 200 mm or more than 300 mm, by changing the spray pressure or the opening angle of the nozzle, clean and efficient cleaning can be performed without damaging the surface of the crop. Although it seems possible, when considering the design freedom (size, number of parts used, etc.) of the cleaning device of the present embodiment, it is preferable that the distance is 200 mm to 300 mm.

Here, as in this embodiment, the cleaning unit 3 is divided into the rough cleaning unit 31, the preliminary cleaning unit 32, the main cleaning unit 33, and the final finishing cleaning unit 34, and the reason why the injection force is increased or decreased is as follows. explain.
In the cleaning of the agricultural department, if the washing water is sprayed with a constant strong spraying force from the beginning to the end, the deposits can be cleaned in a short time, but if the spraying force is increased, the spraying momentum will depend on the crop. May have a negative effect of breaking or peeling.
On the other hand, in the case of washing while increasing the injection force stepwise as in this embodiment, the deposit is washed in a state in which the deposit gradually floats and is easily removed. Even if the spraying force of the main cleaning part 33 having the strongest cleaning power is made weaker than that using the strong spraying force from the beginning to the end, the certainty of cleaning the deposits can be maintained, and the crop C is adversely affected. Is not given.
However, even in the method of cleaning crops by spraying washing water with a constant spraying force from the beginning to the end, if the cleaning distance is increased, the deposits can be reliably washed even if the spraying force is lowered. I think that the.
In this case, it is necessary to extend the transport distance of the conveyor, but if the extended length is added to the length in the vertical direction of the substantially convex portion exemplified in the present embodiment, the total length of the conveyor in the transport direction is increased. A crop cleaning apparatus can be configured without lengthening.

The recycle apparatus 3A has a water tank part 31A located immediately below a portion extending from the pre-cleaning part 32 to the final finishing cleaning part 34, a hose 32A communicating the water tank part 31A and the nozzle N1, and water collected in the water tank part 31A. The pump 33A is supplied to N1 and injected.
The water stored in the water tank section 31A is the cleaning water sprayed by the preliminary cleaning section 32 to the final finishing cleaning section 34, and the cleaning water after cleaning the crop C is received by the water tank section 31A, and this water is received by the pump 33A. It is sprayed from the nozzle N1 and used as cleaning water for the rough cleaning section 31.
According to the recycling apparatus 3A, the used cleaning water of the preliminary cleaning unit 32 to the final finishing cleaning unit 34 that uses the most water can be reused without waste.
Note that the cleaning water used in the rough cleaning section may also be returned to the water tank section and reused.
Further, since the washed water after use contains deposits, for example, a filter may be disposed in the water tank to remove the deposits.

The measuring means 4 detects the grade of the crop C, and detects the load cell portion 41 for measuring the weight of the crop portion B, the size and shape of the crop C, and scratches on the surface, as well as the internal “nest”. A camera unit 42 is provided.
The result measured by the measuring unit 4 is input as data to a control unit (not shown), and the control unit controls the crop C to be classified for each grade based on the input data.

Note that the sorting of the crops is, for example, provided with a sorting device controlled by the control means in succession to the cleaning device of the present invention, and the sorting device removes the crops discharged from the cleaning device by the control of the control means. It is possible to sort by grade (not shown).
According to this sorting structure, control is performed so as to sort the crops according to the grades of the crops. Therefore, all the sorting and fetching operations of the crops are automated, and further speeding up and labor saving of the crop cleaning operations can be expected.

Further, a plurality of positions for switching from the placement state of the crop in the switching means 5 to the release state are set for each grade, and the output from the control means is released from the placement state at the switching position set for each crop grade. You may make it switch to a state and discharge crops (not shown).
According to this sorting structure, since the control is performed so that the crops are sorted according to the grades of the crops, all the sorting and uptake operations of the crops are automated, and further speeding up and labor saving of the cleaning of the crops can be expected. Since the cleaning and sorting of the crops can be performed only by the cleaning device, it greatly contributes to the cost reduction in a series of crop harvesting operations.

Furthermore, a posting unit that can visually recognize the output of the control means may be provided, and the worker himself / herself may sort the crops according to the contents shown in the posting unit (not shown).
According to this sorting structure, the sorting worker can sort by class based on the measurement result.
Accordingly, another location Washed crops, and without work sorting by another task, it is possible to perform the grade sorting work crop in sequential flow of crop cleaning operation, rapid crop Scrubbing Can be expected.

The switching means 5 includes a placement holding portion 51 that holds the placement state of the crop C in the placement portion 1 and a guide portion 52 that guides while holding the placement state of the placement holding portion 51.
The mounting holder 51 includes three holding rollers 5A, 5B, and 5C that hold the horizontal movement state and the vertical movement state of the mounting portion 1, and are supported so as to rotate integrally with the support rod 1A. .
The holding rollers 5 </ b> A, 5 </ b> B, 5 </ b> C are provided so as to protrude in the radial direction 3 from the rotation center of the mounting holding unit 51, and the holding rollers 5 </ b> A, 5 </ b> B, 5 </ b> C come into contact with the guide unit 52. The mounting state is maintained.
Further, the contact of the holding rollers 5A, 5B, and 5C with respect to the guide portion 52 is switched between the horizontal movement state and the vertical movement state of the mounting portion 1.
The guide part 52 is provided on the upper surface side (conveyance side) of the conveyor B.

  The guide part 52 includes a rail-shaped first guide part 53 along the horizontally moving conveyor part B4 from the most upstream part in the conveying direction of the conveyor B to the base end part of the preliminary cleaning conveyor part B1, and a rail along the preliminary cleaning conveyor part B1. -Shaped second guide part 54 (see FIG. 2), rail-shaped third guide part 55 along the main cleaning conveyor part B2, and a roller supported on the downstream side in the transport direction from the placement holding part 1 of the chain D And a rail-shaped fifth guide portion 57 along the take-in conveyor portion B5 from the terminal end portion of the final finishing cleaning conveyor portion B3 to the most downstream portion in the transport direction of the conveyor B.

The first guide part 53 is formed in an arc shape so that the rear end part 531 is along the sprocket C1 on the most upstream side in the transport direction of the conveyor part B, and the front end from the rear end part 531 along the horizontally moving conveyor part B4. The part 532 is located in the vicinity of the base end part B21 of the preliminary cleaning conveyor part B2.
The front end portion 532 is formed in a somewhat arc shape toward the preliminary cleaning conveyor portion B1.
The second guide portion 54 has a rear end portion 541 positioned below the front end portion 532 of the first guide portion 53 and is formed in an arc shape toward the preliminary cleaning conveyor portion B1. It is made to reach the front-end | tip part 542 along washing | cleaning conveyor part B1.
The front end 542 is formed in an arc shape toward the main cleaning conveyor B2.
The third guide portion 55 has a rear end portion 551 that is positioned above the front end portion 542 of the second guide portion 54 and is formed in an arc shape toward the main cleaning conveyor portion B2, and the main cleaning portion starts from the rear end portion 541. It is made to reach the front-end | tip part 552 along the conveyor part B2.
The front end portion 552 is formed in an arc shape toward the main finishing cleaning conveyor portion B3.
The number of the fourth guide portions 56 is the same as the number of the placement holding portions, and the holding guide rollers 5B are held in the range of the main finishing cleaning conveyor portion B3.
The fifth guide portion 57 has a rear end portion 571 formed in an arc shape from the terminal end portion B31 of the final finishing washing conveyor portion B3 toward the intake conveyor portion, and the front end along the intake conveyor portion B5 from the rear end portion 571 It reaches the part 572.
Further, the middle part of the fifth guide part 57 is lowered to a lower part 573 so as to reach the tip part 572 as it is, and the holding of the holding roller 5B by the fourth guide part 56 is released in the low part 573. It is like that.
Further, when the placement holding portion 51 passes through the tip portion 572, the holding of the guide portion 52 with respect to the placement holding portion 51 is all released, and the crop C is discharged out of the apparatus.

The holding state of the guide portion 52 with respect to the placement holding portion 51 will be described in detail.
First, the placement holding part 51 in the horizontal transfer conveyor part B4 is rotated in the placement release direction of the crop C of the supporting rod 1A (drawing) when the holding roller 5A comes into contact with the back side of the first guide part 53. The counterclockwise direction) is prevented, and the mounted state of the crop C is maintained. (See Figure 2)

The movement of the mounting and holding unit 51 from the horizontally moving conveyor unit B4 to the preliminary cleaning conveyor unit B4 is performed by the second guide unit 54 in a state where the holding roller 5A is in contact with the back surface side of the front end part 532 of the first guide unit 53. The holding roller 5 </ b> B comes into contact with the surface side of the rear end portion 541. (See Figure 2)
The holding roller 5 </ b> B escapes from the first guide portion 53 at the same time as the holding roller 5 </ b> B extends from the arc portion to the linear portion at the rear end portion 541 of the second guide portion 54. (See Figure 2)
At this time, the placing and holding unit 51 in the pre-cleaning conveyor unit B1 is placed in the form of placing the holding roller 5B on the surface side of the second guide unit 54, so that the crop C of the support rod 1A is placed in the direction of releasing the placing. Rotation (counterclockwise on the drawing) is prevented and the mounted state of the crop C is maintained.

The movement of the mounting and holding unit 51 from the preliminary cleaning conveyor unit B1 to the main cleaning conveyor unit B2 is performed by the third guide unit 55 in a state in which the holding roller 5B is in contact with the surface side of the front end portion 542 of the second guide unit 54. The holding roller 5 </ b> A contacts the back side of the rear end 551. (See Figure 3)
The holding roller 5 </ b> B escapes from the second guide portion 54 at the same time as the holding roller 5 </ b> A extends from the arc portion at the rear end portion 551 of the third guide portion 55 to the linear portion. (See Figure 3)
At this time, the placement holding unit 51 in the main cleaning conveyor B2 rotates in the placement release direction of the crop C of the support rod 1A (on the drawing) by the holding roller 5A coming into contact with the back side of the third guide unit 55. Counterclockwise) to prevent the crop C from being placed.

As for the movement of the mounting and holding unit 51 from the main cleaning conveyor unit B2 to the final finishing cleaning conveyor unit B3, the holding roller 5B escapes from the arc portion at the tip portion 552 of the third guide unit 55, and the holding roller 5B is fourth. It contacts the upper side of the guide part 56. (See Figure 5)
That is, the fourth guide portion 56 supports the holding roller 5B from below, thereby preventing the rotation of the support C 1A in the direction of releasing the placement of the crop C (counterclockwise in the drawing) and holding the placement state of the crop C. To do.

The placement holding unit 51 is moved from the main finishing conveyor unit B3 to the take-in conveyor unit B5 in a state where the fourth guide unit holds the holding roller 5B, and the holding roller 5C moves the rear end 571 of the fifth guide unit 57. Touch the arc part of. (See Figure 6)
When the holding roller 5C reaches from the arc portion at the rear end portion 571 of the fifth guide portion 57 to the straight portion, the holding roller 5B moves to the lower portion 573 of the fifth guide portion 57, and the third guide portion. At the same time as the holding at 55 is released, the holding of the holding roller 5B by the lower portion 573 is started, and further, the holding at the fifth guide portion 57 with respect to the holding roller 5C is released. (See Figure 6)
At this time, the placement holding part 51 in the main cleaning conveyor part B2 is placed on the surface side of the low part 573 in the fifth guide part 57 by placing the holding roller 5B on the surface of the lower part 573 in the fifth guide part 57. Rotation in the placement release direction (counterclockwise on the drawing) is prevented and the placement state of the crop C is maintained.

In order to release the placement state of the crop C, the holding roller 5B passes through the leading end 572 of the take-in conveyor B5, and at the same time, the holding of the low portion 573 with respect to the holding roller 5B is released, and the support rod 1A is placed on the placement of the crop C. Rotate in the release direction (counterclockwise on the drawing).
And the mounting part 1 rotates with rotation of the support rod 1A, and the crop C is discharged | emitted out of an apparatus. (See Figure 6)
In a state in which the placement unit 1 has discharged the crop C, the tip is directed downward so that the support unit 12 is suspended from the chain D, and the conveyor unit B moves as it is to the most upstream side in the transport direction.
And when the mounting holding part 51 reaches the rear end part 531 of the first guide part 53 on the most upstream side in the transport direction of the conveyor part B, the holding roller 5 </ b> A comes into contact with the back side of the rear end part 531.
Then, by moving along the arc portion of the rear end 531, the support rod 1 </ b> A rotates (clockwise in the drawing) in the crop placement direction, and the placement portion 1 becomes the crop placement state again. .

Next, the cleaning state of the crop C using the crop cleaning apparatus A will be described.
First, the crop C is placed on the support portion 12 of the placement portion 1 located on the most upstream side of the horizontal transfer conveyor portion B4.
The mounted crop C is conveyed as it is by the horizontally moving conveyor unit B4, and leaves and gun necks are cut by the cutter unit A1 in the middle. After cutting, the crop C is coarsened by washing water sprayed from the nozzle N1 in the rough washing unit 31. Washed.
The coarsely-cleaned crop C moves from the horizontal transfer conveyor unit B4 to the preliminary cleaning conveyor unit B1, and is preliminarily cleaned by the cleaning water sprayed from the nozzle N2 in the preliminary cleaning unit 32 while being transported by the preliminary cleaning conveyor unit B1. Is done.
The pre-cleaned crop C moves from the pre-cleaning conveyor B1 to the main cleaning conveyor B2, where the crop C is lifted by the roller rows 2A, 2B, and 2C and intersects the transport direction. In the main cleaning section 33, the cleaning water is sprayed from the nozzle N <b> 3 while being moved in a zigzag state alternately.
The main-cleaned crop C moves from the main cleaning conveyor B2 to the main finishing cleaning conveyor B3, and is cleaned by the cleaning water sprayed from the nozzle N4 in the main finishing cleaning unit 34. To finish all washing.
The crop C, which has been washed, moves from the finishing conveyor section B3 to the intake conveyor section B5 and is conveyed by the intake conveyor section B5, and the grade is detected by the measuring means 4 along the way. Discharged outside.
The placement unit 1 that has discharged the crop C returns to the horizontal transfer conveyor unit B4 again, and places and transports the crop C.

As another embodiment of the crop cleaning apparatus of the present invention, the one shown in FIG. 7 can be exemplified.
The crop cleaning apparatus A ′ of the present embodiment is configured such that the preliminary cleaning conveyor section B1 to the final finishing conveyor section B3 face downward in the direction opposite to the crop cleaning apparatus A in the above-described embodiment.
The cleaning unit 3 ′ includes a water tank 6 for submerging the downward portion and a bubble ejection unit 7 that ejects bubbles toward the crop C in the water tank.
Further, the rotating means for rotating the crop C is configured to rotate using the jetting power of the bubbles and the buoyancy of the crop in water.
In addition, the crop holding of the mounting unit 1 in the transport direction of the crop cleaning apparatus A ′ is performed by a guide unit (not shown) and a mounting holding unit (not shown) having substantially the same configuration as the configuration exemplified in the above embodiment. ) 51.

The cleaning state of the crop C by the crop cleaning apparatus A ′ of the present embodiment will be described.
The crop C placed on the support part 12 in the placement part 1 is from the pre-cleaning conveyor part B1 submerged in the water tank by the same cutter part (not shown) as in the above embodiment to the final finishing conveyor part B3. In this range, the water tank 6 is submerged in the water tank 6, and the water tank 6 is cleaned by the bubble force from the bubble ejection portion 7.
The cleaned crop C moves to the intake conveyor unit B5 and is transported by the intake conveyor unit B5, and the grade is detected by the same measuring means (not shown) as in the above embodiment, and the grade is detected. After that, it is discharged out of the apparatus.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments, and can be implemented with configurations within a range that does not deviate from the contents described in the respective claims.

Schematic which shows an example of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. The principal part enlarged view of FIG. The principal part enlarged view of FIG. The principal part enlarged plan view of FIG. The principal part enlarged view of FIG. The principal part enlarged view of FIG. The schematic which shows the other example of the washing | cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

A: Agricultural crop cleaning device B: Conveyor C: Crop crop D: Chain 1: Placement section 11: Space section 12: Support section 1A: Support trough 2: Roller 2A: Roller array 2B: Roller array 2C: Roller array 3: Cleaning section 31: Rough cleaning unit 32: Preliminary cleaning unit 33: Main cleaning unit 34: Final finishing cleaning unit 5: Switching means 51: Placement holding unit 52: Guide unit 5A: Holding roller 5B: Holding roller 5C: Holding roller A ': Agricultural crop cleaning device 3 ': cleaning section 6: water tank 7: bubble ejection section

Claims (9)

In crops cleaning apparatus for cleaning while moving the crop, at least, a conveyor including a plurality of mounting portion in which the crop is placed in the conveying direction, a rotation means for rotating the crop on the mounting section, the rotation Washing means for washing the crop to be washed with washing water, and a switching means for switching the placement section to a placement state of the crop and a release state to release the placement of the crop ,
The placement section is along the width direction of the conveyor, a plurality of spaces to be large enough to the crop does not pass is formed in parallel form, a portion other than the space portion, for supporting the crop support The rotating means is configured to rotate the crop while being separated from the placement section at the time of washing, and the switching means supports the placement section so as to be rotatable up and down. In the placement state of the crop in the placement portion, the placement holding portion provided in the placement portion is supported by the guide portion provided along the transport direction so as to hold the placement state and released. In the state, the guide cleaning unit releases the support of the placement holding unit and takes out the crop from the placement unit to the outside of the conveyor .   The crop cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning means sprays cleaning water from above and below the crop.   The crop cleaning apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cleaning means sprays the cleaning water in a substantially fan shape.   The crop cleaning apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the opening angle of the substantially sector shape is 25 degrees to 65 degrees.   The said rotating means moves in and out of the space part, and rotates the farm products while being separated from the placement part by a roller protruding upward from the space part in the state of entering. 4. The crop cleaning apparatus according to any one of 4 above.   The crop cleaning apparatus according to claim 5, wherein a rotation direction of the roller is a direction intersecting with a conveyance direction.   2. The crop cleaning according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning means submerses the crop together with the conveyor in the cleaning water in the water tank, and in the water tank, the cleaning is performed by the jetting power of jetting bubbles to the crop. apparatus.   The crop cleaning apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the rotating means is configured to rotate using the jetting power of the bubbles and the buoyancy of the crop in water.   The agricultural product washing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the conveyor includes vertical conveyance.

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