JP4515468B2 - Accumulator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an accumulating apparatus for accumulating objects placed flat on a conveying surface in an inclined state or an upright state.

  When packing packages such as snacks and noodles, or packing packages such as retort packs into outer boxes such as cardboard boxes, the packages that are sequentially transported in a flat state on the conveyor from the manufacturing process are collected in a certain number. There is a need to. Conventionally, as an apparatus for performing this kind of stacking operation, for example, a device described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-17134 (for example, Patent Document 1) is known.

As shown in FIG. 12, this apparatus includes a slide conveyor 6 that carries and transports packaging bags W side by side in a plurality of rows, and another conveyor 25 that is orthogonal to the slide conveyor 6. The front end of the slide conveyor 6 is slid in the conveying direction, and the packaging bags W arranged side by side in a row are grouped together on the other conveyor 25 and sequentially distributed to any number of one or more rows. The packaging bags W on the conveyor 25 are transferred to the same number of stacking conveyors 30 as the conveyor 25. Each stacking conveyor 30 is moved intermittently by a distance shorter than the length of the packaging bag each time one packaging bag W is transferred, and the packaging bags are stacked partially overlapping each other on the stacking conveyor 30.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-17134

  However, the apparatus described in Patent Document 1 requires a plurality of conveyors, which increases the size of the apparatus. In addition, each time one packaging bag falls from the speed-up conveyor 28, the packaging bag 30 is driven by the accumulation conveyor 30 for a distance shorter than the length of the packaging bag, and the subsequent packaging bag is placed on the previous packaging bag. Therefore, the accumulation conveyor must be intermittently driven in order to keep the timing. For this reason, high-speed processing becomes difficult, and the tact time is prolonged. Further, since the package is allowed to fall freely, the posture of the packaging bag is likely to be disturbed after dropping, and it is difficult to stably accumulate the packaging bag at a high density.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a stacking apparatus that is compact and capable of high-speed processing and can stack packages stably at high density.

In order to achieve the above object, the stacking apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a transport mechanism for transporting an object to be stacked, and arranged at a fixed pitch at a plurality of locations along the transport direction, and protrudes / retreats with respect to the transport surface. And a pusher having a stopper surface that locks the front end of the subsequent stacking object, and each pusher disposed in the transport direction is retracted with respect to the transport surface. In the state of being placed , on each of the pushers, the stacking objects placed flat on the transport surface are arranged one by one, and the stacking objects are pushed up by each of the pushers and converted into an inclined posture. The object to be accumulated is accumulated by reducing the pitch by synchronous movement of directions.

  With such a configuration, the objects to be accumulated can be accumulated with a single transport mechanism, so that the apparatus can be made more compact than a conventional apparatus that accumulates using a plurality of conveyors. Further, since the accumulation target is not dropped by its own weight during accumulation, it is possible to prevent the posture of the accumulation target 1 from being disturbed due to free fall. Furthermore, since the transport mechanism need not be intermittently driven and can be continuously driven, high-speed processing is possible and tact time can be shortened. In addition, since the pusher is synchronously moved after the conversion to the inclined posture of the conveyance object by pushing out the pusher to reduce the arrangement pitch, it is possible to accumulate at high density.

  It is desirable for the transport mechanism to have a plurality of rotationally driven belt members spaced apart in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. This not only allows movement of the pushers in the pitch reduction direction, but also allows adjacent pushers to be partially overlapped in the transport direction, which is particularly effective in reducing the transport direction in size. It becomes.

  In addition, it is desirable to move the pusher in the direction in which the arrangement pitch is reduced in a state where the accumulation object is lifted from the conveyance surface by the pusher. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the accumulation target object held by the pusher from sliding on the conveying surface, and it is possible to prevent the accumulation target object from being damaged by the sliding.

  According to the present invention, tact time can be shortened when accumulating objects to be accumulated. In addition, since the apparatus can be stably integrated at a high density and the apparatus is compact, it is possible to increase the degree of freedom of the installation location.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of an integrated device according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the stacking device S is disposed adjacent to the downstream of the supply conveyor 2 that transports the stacking object 1 continuously carried out from the manufacturing process or the like. As an accumulation target, in the present embodiment, a package 1 such as a bag of food or a retort pack is illustrated. By accumulating a predetermined number of packages 1 placed flat on the supply conveyor 2 by the accumulating device S, it can be used for convenience such as a subsequent boxing operation. In the following embodiment, the stacking operation is performed at two locations, so that five packages 1 can be made into one group of stacks (stacked packages 1), and two groups of stacks can be obtained simultaneously. The apparatus S will be described as an example.

  This stacking device S drives the packaging 1 in the horizontal direction, the pusher 4 installed in a plurality of locations along the carrying direction of the carrying mechanism 3, and the pusher 4 in the vertical and horizontal directions. The drive mechanism 5 is a main component.

  The transport mechanism 3 includes a plurality of endless belt members 31, a pair of pulleys 32 that drive the belt members 31, and a tensioner 33 that applies tension to the belt member 31. For example, a rope-shaped member is used as the belt member 31. By driving a motor (not shown) connected to the pulley 32 on the downstream side in the conveying direction, each belt member 31 is driven in the same direction as the supply conveyor 2, and the package 1 on the conveying surface 34 is transferred in the direction of the arrow. The As shown in the plan view of FIG. 2, the belt members 31 are spaced apart in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction (hereinafter referred to as “width direction”). In the present embodiment, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 3, six belt members 31 are used, of which two belt members 31a located at the center in the width direction are disposed close to each other. Also, two left and right belt members 31b and 31c located on the outer side are arranged with a gap (width direction gap) with respect to the inner belt member. The conveying surface 34 formed on the upper surface of each belt member 31 is horizontal, and in order to maintain this level, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the upper belt member 31 forming the conveying surface 34 is It is supported by a support member 35 (not shown in FIGS. 1 and 3) arranged over the entire length below.

  As shown in FIG. 2, guide members 9 are arranged on both sides in the width direction of the transport mechanism 3. The guide member 9 guides the package 1 conveyed to the conveyance mechanism 3 in the conveyance direction, and stabilizes the posture of the package 1 by this guiding action. The interval between the two guide members 9 can be changed with an appropriate structure, so that it is possible to cope with the case where the width direction dimension of the package 1 is changed.

  In this embodiment, the pusher 4 is installed in ten places along the conveyance direction. As shown in FIG. 3, each pusher 4 is composed of two integrated members 41 arranged in the width direction. Each accumulating member 41 includes an L-shaped base portion 42 in a side view and a resin-made accumulating guide 43 provided with a guide surface 43a that is inclined downward in the conveying direction. The rear surface 44 extending in the vertical direction of the base portion 42 functions as a stopper surface that locks the front end portion of the subsequent package 1 and restricts the front slip thereof. The front end of the base portion 42 extends forward beyond the guide surface 43 a, and the upper surface of the extended portion serves as a support surface 45 that supports the package 1. The shape and configuration of the stacking member 41 are arbitrary as long as they have the stopper surface 44 and the support surface 45, and are not limited to the above examples.

  There are two types of pushers 4, a narrow type in which the interval in the width direction between the two integrated members 41 is narrowed and a wide type in which the interval in the width direction is widened. As shown in FIG. 2, narrow pushers 4 and wide pushers 4 are alternately arranged along the transport direction. Each accumulating member 4 is accommodated in a gap in the width direction provided between the belt members 31, but is accommodated in a gap in the width direction that is different from the accumulating member 41 that is widened and the accumulated member 41 that is narrowed. Accordingly, it is possible to arrange the adjacent pushers 4 so as to partially overlap each other by the region L in the transport direction, and the stacking device S can be made compact in the transport direction. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, among the six belt members 31, the accumulation member 41 of the wide pusher 4 is disposed in the gap in the width direction between the outermost belt member 31 c and the inner belt member 31 b. And the accumulating member 41 of the narrow pusher 4 is housed in the gap in the width direction between the belt member 31b and the belt member 31a inside the belt member 31b.

  In the following description, among the ten pushers 4, the pusher at the most downstream portion of the transport mechanism 3 is referred to as a first-stage pusher 4a, and the second-stage pusher 4b, Three-stage pusher 4c,... Tenth-stage pusher 4j.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a first stopper 11 is disposed in front of the first stage pusher 4a. As shown in FIG. 4, the first stopper 11 has two rod shapes, and a gap in the width direction between the belt members 31 (in this embodiment, between the outer belt member 31c and the inner belt member 31b). In the width direction gap). The first stopper 11 is driven up and down by a stopper elevating mechanism 10 made of, for example, an air cylinder. The upper end of the first stopper 11 reciprocates between a protruding position where the upper end protrudes from the conveying surface 34 and a standby position where the upper end retreats below the conveying surface 34. It is movable. The air cylinder 10 is fixed to the base member 13. A shaft member 14 having both ends fixed to the frame of the apparatus passes through two places separated in the width direction of the base member 13, and the base member 13 is slidably supported by the shaft member 14 via a slide bearing 15. (See FIG. 6). As a result, the base member 13, the air cylinder 10, and the first stopper 11 are guided by the shaft member 14 and are slidable in the horizontal direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, two rod-shaped second stoppers 12 are mounted behind the fifth-stage pusher 4e. The second stopper 12 is fixed to the stopper surface 44 of the stacking member 41 via the spacer 16 and can be moved up and down in synchronization with the fifth-stage pusher 4e. The second stopper 12 is disposed in the gap in the width direction between the belt members 31 in the same manner as the first stopper 10.

  A distance P1 between the rear end of the first stopper 11 and the stopper surface 44 of the first stage pusher 4a is a distance P2 between the rear end of the second stopper 12 and the stopper surface 44 of the sixth stage pusher 4f. And these distances P1, P2 are between adjacent pushers 4a and 4b, between 4b and 4c, between 4c and 4d, between 4d and 4e, between 4f and 4g, between 4g and 4h, between 4h and 4i, It is equal to the arrangement pitch P between 4i and 4j.

  Sensors 8 are arranged above the pushers 4a to 4j. The sensor 8 senses whether the package 1 conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 3 has passed through the pushers 4a to 4j. The installation position of the sensor 8 is arbitrary as long as the arrival of the package 1 can be recognized, and can be arranged on the side of the conveyance mechanism 3 in addition to the arrangement above the conveyance mechanism 3 as illustrated.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the regulating members 16 are disposed on both sides in the width direction above the pushers 4 a to 4 j. This regulating member 16 regulates a situation in which the package 1 pushed up by the pushers 4a to 4j jumps up, and its usefulness increases particularly when the package 1 is lightweight. The restricting member 16 has a bar shape arranged in a row over the pushers 4a to 4j. The restricting member 16 is pushed up by the pushers 4a to 4j and has an upper end (indicated by a two-dot chain line) in an inclined posture. It is arranged close to (shown). When the restriction member 16 is driven by the cylinder 17, the restriction member 16 can reciprocate between a region immediately above the package 1 and a position retracted from the region directly above (shown by a two-dot chain line).

  The drive mechanism 5 includes a lift mechanism 51 that lifts and lowers the pushers 4a to 4j independently, and a horizontal drive mechanism 52 that drives each pusher except the fifth-stage pusher 4e in the horizontal direction.

  Among these, the raising / lowering mechanism 51 is comprised with the air cylinder provided individually in each pusher 4a-4j, for example. As shown in FIG. 5, the piston rod 51 a of each air cylinder 51 is fixed to the accumulation member 41 of each pusher 4 a to 4 j, whereby each pusher 4 a to 4 j has a protruding position that protrudes entirely on the conveying surface 34, It is possible to reciprocate between the upper end and the standby position where the upper end retreats below the conveying surface 34. In addition, when each pusher 4a-4j exists in a protrusion position, as shown in FIG.8 and FIG.9, the clearance gap (delta) is formed between the support surface 45 and the conveyance surface 34 of each pusher 4a-4j.

  Each air cylinder 51 is fixed to a base member 53 through which the shaft member 14 penetrates at two places in the width direction. Except for the base member 53 corresponding to the fifth pusher 4 e, each base member 53 is slidably supported by the shaft member 14 via the sliding bearing 15. On the other hand, the base member 53 corresponding to the fifth-stage pusher 4e is fixed to the frame of the apparatus via a bracket 54 (see FIG. 1). Accordingly, each pusher except the fifth pusher 4e is guided by the shaft member 14, and can slide in the horizontal direction integrally with the corresponding base member 53 and air cylinder 51. The position of the fifth stage pusher 4e and the second stopper 12 fixed to the pusher 4e is unchanged.

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the horizontal drive mechanism 52 includes a belt transmission device 57 including a pulley 55 and a belt 56, and two link mechanisms 58a and 58b. The base member 13 of the first stopper 11 is connected to one of the tension side belt and the slack side belt of the belt transmission device via the bracket 60, and the tenth stage pusher 4 j is connected to the other side via the bracket 61. The base member 53 is connected. As shown in FIG. 7A, the two link mechanisms 58a and 58b are each configured in a pantograph type having a plurality of stages. One link mechanism 58 a (shown by a solid line) is arranged on one side in the width direction of the base member 53, and the other link mechanism 58 b (shown by a two-dot chain line) is arranged on the other side in the width direction of the base member 53. The pivots O provided at one ends of the link mechanisms 58a and 58b are fixed to the base member 53 of the fifth-stage pusher 4e, respectively. The remaining pivots of one link mechanism 58a are fixed to the base member 13 of the first stopper 11 and the base members 53 of the first to fourth pushers 4a to 4d, respectively, and the remaining pivot of the other link mechanism 58b. Are fixed to the base members 53 of the sixth to tenth pushers 4f to 4j, respectively.

  In the horizontal drive mechanism 52 having the above configuration, for example, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the pulley 55 located upstream in the transport direction is driven in the direction of the arrow by a servo motor (not shown), the power of the belt 56 is It is transmitted to the base member 13 of the first stopper 11 and the base member 53 of the tenth-stage pusher 4j via 60, 61. With this power, the first stopper 11 and the tenth-stage pusher 4j start a horizontal slide toward the fifth-stage pusher 4e. This power is transmitted to the base members 53 of the first-stage pusher 4a to the ninth-stage pusher 4i via the link mechanisms 58a and 58b, and the first-stage to fourth-stage pushers 4a to 4d, and the sixth The stage to ninth stage pushers 4f to 4i slide horizontally toward the fifth stage pusher 4e at the fixed position. From the above, the first stopper 11, the first to fourth stage pushers 4a to 4d, and the sixth to tenth stage pushers 4f to 4j can be synchronously moved in the direction in which the arrangement pitch P is reduced. It becomes possible. If the motor of the belt transmission device 57 is reversed, the first stopper 11, the first to fourth stage pushers 4a to 4d, and the sixth to tenth stage pushers 4f to 4j are synchronized in the reverse direction. Slide horizontally to return to the initial position.

  Hereinafter, an integration procedure by the integration apparatus according to the present invention will be described.

  First, from the initial state shown in FIG. 1, the first stopper 11 is raised by the stopper lifting mechanism 10 and disposed at the protruding position on the transport surface 34. In this state, the package 1 continuously supplied in a flat state to the upstream supply conveyor 2 is sequentially transferred to the transport mechanism 3 and is transported in the direction of the arrow by the transport mechanism 3. As shown in FIG. 8, the leading package 1 is locked by the first stopper 11 when it is transported to the downstream end of the transport mechanism 3. The sensor 8 arranged on the first-stage pusher 4a detects the arrival of the package 1, and the air cylinder 51 of the first-stage pusher 4a is extended by the detection signal from the sensor 8 to project the pusher 4a. Stick out into position. Thereby, as for package 1, the front end part is supported by support surface 45 of pusher 4a, and the rear end part is pushed up by pusher 4a, and is changed into an inclined posture. At this time, as shown in FIG. 5, since the package 1 is restricted from further upward movement by the regulating member 16, even if the pusher 4a is pushed up at a high speed, the package 1 jumps up due to its inertia. The position and posture of the package 1 are not disturbed.

  When the first-stage pusher 4a reaches the protruding position, the second package 1 '(shown by a two-dot chain line) following the stopper surface 44 is locked. Therefore, if the sensor 8 arranged on the second-stage pusher 4a detects the arrival of the package 1, and the air cylinder 51 of the second-stage pusher 4b is extended by this detection signal, the second package 1 'can be converted into an inclined posture.

  Thereafter, the same process is sequentially performed by the third-stage pusher 4c, the fourth-stage pusher 4d, and the fifth-stage pusher 4e, and the package 1 held by each of the pushers 4c to 4e is sequentially converted into an inclined posture. When the fifth-stage pusher 4 e reaches the protruding position, the subsequent package 1 is locked by the second stopper 12. When the sensor 8 arranged on the sixth-stage pusher 4f detects the arrival of the package 1, the air cylinder 51 of the sixth-stage pusher 4f extends to convert the package 1 into an inclined posture. Thereafter, similar processes are performed in the order of the seventh-stage pusher 4g, the eighth-stage pusher 4h, the ninth-stage pusher 4i, and the tenth-stage pusher 4j. By passing through the above process, as shown in FIG. 9, the package 1 of the inclination attitude | position is accommodated in each pusher 4a-4j.

  Next, the belt transmission device 57 of the horizontal drive mechanism 52 is rotationally driven to reduce the pantograph type link mechanisms 58a and 58b as shown in FIG. 7B. As a result, each pusher (except for the fifth-stage pusher 4e) and the first stopper 11 move synchronously toward the fifth-stage pusher 4e, and the arrangement pitch (not only the pitch P between adjacent pushers but also the first The pitch P1 between the stopper 11 and the first stage pusher 4a and the pitch P2 between the second stopper 12 and the sixth stage pusher 6f are also reduced). Thereby, as shown in FIG. 10, the inclination | tilt angle of the package 1 increases and it integrates | stacks at high density. At this time, since the guide surface 43a of the accumulation guide 43 of the accumulation member 41 is in close contact with the surface of the package 1, the inclined posture of the package 1 can be stably maintained.

  In addition to accumulating the package 1 in an inclined state as described above, if the package can be self-supported, the package pitch can be made self-supporting by further reducing the arrangement pitch P (including P1 and P2) between the pushers. It is also possible to accumulate in a stacked state.

  By removing the package 1 accumulated in the above procedure from the pushers 4a to 4j, the air cylinder 51 and the horizontal drive mechanism 52 are reversely driven to return the pushers 4a to 4j to the standby position. Thus, the next accumulation operation can be performed. In this case, the first stopper 11 does not need to be returned to the standby position and can be held at the protruding position.

  The package 1 held by each of the pushers 4a to 4j waits on the belt member 31 until the reduction process of the arrangement pitch P is completed, but the pushers 4a to 4j at the protruding positions as described above. Since there is a gap δ between the support surface 45 and the transport surface 34, the waiting package 1 does not come into contact with the belt member 31, and the package 1 is damaged by sliding with the belt member 31. Can be prevented. In order to avoid this damage, it is not necessary to stop the transport mechanism 3 intermittently, and the transport mechanism 3 can be continuously operated, which is effective in reducing the tact time.

  For example, when boxing is performed after the packaging 1 is collected, the regulating member 16 is retracted from the region directly above the packaging 1, and the suction mechanism 72 having the suction nozzle 71 is lowered as shown in FIG. Each package 1 collected in this manner is adsorbed, and the adsorbing mechanism 72 is raised and slid horizontally. Two cardboard boxes 74 and 75 are arranged on a cardboard box conveyance line 73 arranged close to the stacking device S, and the suction mechanism 72 is lowered to form two groups of stacks (first to fifth pushers). The held package and the package held by the sixth to tenth pushers are accommodated in one box. If necessary, the suction mechanism 72 is returned to the stacking device S again, and the newly collected package 1 is sucked and accommodated in the boxes 74 and 75, whereby a plurality of packages 1 are stored in the boxes 74 and 75. Can also be accommodated.

  In addition to boxing, for example, when a predetermined number of packages are bundled with a string or the like, the collected packages can be taken out from the stacking apparatus S and transferred to the binding machine as they are, so that the packages can be securely bound. As a means for transferring the accumulated package 1 to the outside of the accumulation device S, any mechanism can be adopted. In addition to the suction mechanism 72 as described above, for example, a mechanism for clamping and transferring the accumulated package 1 Etc. can also be used.

  As described above, according to the present invention, packages can be collected by one transport mechanism 3, so that the apparatus can be made more compact than a conventional apparatus that stacks using a plurality of conveyors. In particular, if the pushers 4a to 4j are arranged so as to partially overlap in the transport direction as described above, it becomes more effective by making the transport direction compact.

  Further, since the package 1 is not dropped by its own weight during the accumulation, it is possible to prevent the posture of the package 1 from being disturbed after the free fall and perform a stable accumulation operation. Further, since the transport mechanism 3 does not need to be intermittently driven and can be continuously driven, high-speed processing is possible and tact time can be shortened. In addition, since the pusher is horizontally slid synchronously after the conversion to the inclined posture of the package by pushing out the pusher, and the arrangement pitch P of the pusher is thereby reduced, it is possible to accumulate at high density. is there. In addition, by driving the belt transmission device and adjusting the arrangement pitches P, P1, and P2 in the initial state (the state shown in FIG. 1), it is possible to easily cope with changing the package 1 to a different size. It becomes.

  In the above description, the case where two groups of aggregates are obtained by collecting the package 1 in two places is illustrated, but the stacking operation is performed in one place or three or more places, and one group or three groups. It can also comprise so that the above integration bodies may be obtained. For example, when obtaining one group of aggregates, the accumulation device S is provided with only the first-stage pusher 4a to the fifth-stage pusher 4e, and the sixth-stage pusher is omitted. In this case, the second stopper 11 is also unnecessary. In addition, the number of packages included in one group of aggregates is arbitrary, and the aggregates can be constituted by four or less or six or more packages 1. In this case, this can be dealt with by increasing or decreasing the number of pushers according to the number of packages. When packing a plurality of packages 1 in a single box 74, 75, as shown in FIG. 13, the number (for example, four) of the first package 1 and the second or third package 1 are shown. It is also possible to make the number of (3) different. In this case, in the step of reducing the arrangement pitch P, the integration density can be changed by making the reduction width of the pitch P different from the reduction width in the other stages.

  Moreover, in the above description, food packaging items such as retort packs and bag-packed items are illustrated as the accumulation target object, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the accumulation of general articles including non-packaging items. Can be widely used for work.

It is a side view of the integrated device concerning this invention. It is a top view of the said integrated device. It is a perspective view which expands and shows a pusher. It is a front view of a 1st stopper. It is a front view of a pusher. (A) A figure is a top view which shows the horizontal drive mechanism of a pusher, (b) A figure is a side view which shows a belt transmission. It is a side view which shows a link mechanism, (a) A figure shows an expansion | extension state, (b) A figure shows a reduction state. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of an integrated device. It is a side view explaining operation | movement of an integrated device. It is a side view which shows the package after arrangement | positioning pitch reduction. It is a side view which shows a boxing process. It is a perspective view which shows a prior art example. It is sectional drawing which shows the package packed in the box.

Explanation of symbols

1 Collection object (packaging)
2 Feeding conveyor 3 Transport mechanism 4, 4a to 4j Pusher 5 Drive mechanism 8 Sensor 9 Guide member 10 Stopper lifting mechanism 11 First stopper 12 Second stopper 13 Base member 14 Shaft member 15 Sliding bearings 31, 31a, 31b, 31c Belt member 41 accumulating member 42 base 43 accumulating guide 44 stopper surface 45 support surface 51 air cylinder 53 base member 57 belt transmission devices 58a and 58b link mechanism 60 bracket 61 bracket 71 adsorption nozzle 72 adsorption mechanism

Claims (3)

A transport mechanism for transporting an accumulation target;
A stopper that locks the front end of the subsequent stacking object that is arranged at a fixed pitch at multiple locations along the transport direction, can be projected and retracted from the transport surface, and can be moved synchronously in the transport direction. A pusher with a surface,
With each pusher disposed in the transport direction being retracted from the transport surface, one stacking object placed flat on the transport surface is placed on each pusher, and the stacking object is collected by each pusher. An accumulating apparatus for accumulating objects to be accumulated by pushing down an object and converting it into an inclined posture and then reducing the pitch by synchronous movement in the conveying direction of each pusher . The stacking apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the transport mechanism includes a plurality of rotationally driven belt members that are spaced apart in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. The stacking apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the pusher is moved in the direction of decreasing the arrangement pitch in a state where the stacking target is levitated from the conveyance surface by the pusher.

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