JP5295700B2 - Article conveying device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To discharge articles with various dimensions and shapes in a substantially fixed lot size while charging them in flexible attitudes; and to align/discharge the articles so as to make their centers of gravity high. <P>SOLUTION: In an article conveyance device 10 comprising a plurality of fixed floors 20, a floor surface 21A of a floor-height fixed floor 20A arranged on the most downstream side is made to be higher than floor surfaces 21 of other fixed floors 20, and a floor surface 31A of a steep moving floor 30A arranged on the downstream of the floor-height fixed floor 20A is made to be steeper than floor surfaces 31 of other moving floors 30. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an article conveying apparatus.

  As an article conveying device, as described in Patent Document 1, each piece of a plurality of fixed floors is sequentially arranged toward the downstream side in the carrying direction, and each piece of the plurality of moving beds is placed on the side in the carrying direction with respect to each fixed bed. In addition to placing them adjacent to each other, the moving floors are simultaneously moved up and down with respect to the floors of the fixed floors that are adjacent to each other. In addition, there is a structure in which the floor surface of each moving floor is inclined so as to form a downward gradient toward the downstream side in the transport direction.

In this article transport apparatus, the fixed floor and the moving floor are alternately arranged adjacent to each other along the transport direction, and the floor surface of each fixed floor and the floor surface of each mobile floor are directed downstream in the transport direction. Regardless of the size and shape of the article and the loading posture, all articles are placed on the floor of the fixed floor, pushed up by the floor of the movable floor, and the articles are moved to the movable floor. The conveyance force resulting from the inclination of the floor surface is applied. The article to which the conveying force is applied is transferred to the floor surface of the fixed floor on the downstream side by the lowering of the moving floor, and the conveying operation of sliding further downstream on the slope of the floor surface of the fixed floor is repeated. A certain amount is discharged.
JP2008-150143

  However, in the article conveying apparatus described in Patent Document 1, when the article is pushed up by the floor surface of the moving floor and given a conveying force to the downstream side, and transferred to the floor surface of the fixed floor, The article is given an alignment action that rolls so that its center of gravity is lower. As a result, when the article to be transported is, for example, a cap with a ceiling surface, the caps are aligned and discharged so that the top surface side (center of gravity side) is lower. In order to supply the cap to the cap tightening machine, when the top surface of the cap needs to face upward, it is necessary to provide a cap upside down device.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to discharge articles of various sizes and shapes in a free posture while discharging them in a generally constant amount and aligning them so that the center of gravity of the articles is higher.

The invention of claim 1 arranges each of the plurality of fixed floors in order toward the downstream side in the conveying direction, arranges each of the plurality of moving floors adjacent to each fixed floor on the side in the conveying direction, The moving floor is moved up and down at the same time to position the upper and lower floors of the fixed floor adjacent to each other, and the floor of each fixed floor is inclined downwardly toward the downstream side in the transport direction. The floor of each moving floor is also an article conveying device that is inclined so as to form a downward slope toward the downstream side in the conveying direction, and the moving floor arranged at the most downstream is the floor of another moving floor. The fixed floor disposed on the upstream side adjacent to the steeply inclined moving floor is higher than the floor surface of the other fixed floors. It is designed as a fixed floor .

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the article conveying device 10 has a direction from one end side to the other end side of the gantry 11 as an article conveying direction, and an inlet chute 12 is provided on one end side thereof, and is conveyed to the back surface of the inlet chute 12. It is equipped with a vibrator 13 for increasing power. The inlet chute may be provided with an automatic supply device as shown in FIG.

  The article conveyance device 10 supports a plurality of fixed floors 20 on a support member 14 provided on the gantry 11. The article conveying apparatus 10 has a downward gradient (an angle θ with respect to the horizontal: 5 to 35 degrees, for example) (downward arrangement) with the individual floor surfaces 21 of the plurality of fixed floors 20 facing each other downstream in the conveying direction (FIG. 4). It is arranged to make. At this time, the floor surface 21 of each fixed floor 20 itself is a slope inclined so as to form a downward slope toward the downstream side in the transport direction. The fixed floor 20 may be equipped with a vibrator to increase the conveying force.

  The article conveying device 10 connects the left and right side guide plates 16 to the lifting drive device 15 supported on the gantry 11, and can freely slide the slide portion 18 fixed to the side guide plate 16 on the slide shaft 17 supported on the gantry 11. Is fitted. Further, an impact relaxation damper 19 is interposed between the gantry 11 and the slide portion 18. The left and right side guide plates 16 are arranged on both sides of the entrance chute 12 and the fixed floor 20 in the width direction, and are provided with a plurality of movable floors 30 interposed therebetween. Each of the plurality of moving floors 30 is arranged adjacent to each fixed floor 20 on the side in the transport direction (in the present embodiment, on the side on the upstream side). The fixed floor 20 and the movable floor 30 are alternately arranged along the transport direction through a certain gap. The article conveying apparatus 10 repeats the raising / lowering operation of the side guide plate 16 and the moving floor 30 by the raising / lowering driving device 15 (the moving floor 30 is directly connected to the raising / lowering driving device 15 and the side guide plate 16 does not necessarily have to be raised / lowered. Absent). That is, the raising / lowering operation of positioning each moving floor 30 at the same time (FIG. 4 (A)) and lower (FIG. 4 (B)) with respect to the floor 21 of the fixed floor 20 to which the floor 31 is adjacent is repeated.

  The floor surface 31 of each moving floor 30 protrudes above the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 at the upper level and immerses below the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 at the lower level. “Immersion” in the present invention means that the moving floor 30 is located below the fixed floor 20. Specifically, the entire moving floor 30 is completely located below the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20. Of course, the case where the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 stops at substantially the same position as the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 is also included. The floor surfaces 31 of the respective movable floors 30 positioned at the upper level are arranged so as to form a downward gradient (angle θ with respect to the horizontal, for example, 5 to 35 degrees) toward the downstream side in the transport direction. At this time, the floor surface 31 of each moving floor 30 is itself a slope inclined so as to form a downward slope toward the downstream side in the transport direction (FIG. 4).

  It is preferable that the angle θ (θ1) for the moving floor arrangement is substantially the same as the angle θ (θ2) for the fixed floor arrangement because the article behavior at the time of article conveyance is stable. The value of θ is appropriately adjusted depending on the friction state between the article and the fixed floor 20 or the movable floor 30. As an example, articles such as resin caps such as polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, and ABS, and metal caps such as aluminum, (a) metals such as stainless steel and aluminum whose surface is finished by general machining Fixed floor 20 and moving floor 30 made of resin, (b) Fixed floor 20 and moving floor 30 made of resin such as polyacetal and polyvinyl chloride whose surface is finished by general machining, (c) Furthermore, on these surfaces The angle θ in the case of transporting on the fixed floor 20 or the movable floor 30 to which a tape material with good slipping property is applied is preferably 8 to 25 degrees, more preferably 12 to 20 degrees. If the angle θ1 for the moving floor arrangement is different from the angle θ2 for the fixed floor arrangement, the movement behavior in the upstream and downstream can be changed.

  FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the moving floor arrangement and the fixed floor arrangement with respect to the horizontal angle θ, the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 with respect to the horizontal angle α, and the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 with respect to the horizontal angle β.

  The angle α of the fixed floor 20 with respect to the horizontal of the floor surface 21 is set to be approximately −5 to +15 degrees, which is approximately equal to or slightly larger than the angle θ1 with respect to the moving floor arrangement. This is because the articles are slowly and stably conveyed on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 to the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 downstream. Even if the article does not slip by itself, it is pushed and conveyed by another article from upstream. Next, the angle [beta] with respect to the level of the floor 31 of the movable floor 30 is set to a large value of about +5 to +25 degrees with respect to the angle [alpha] with respect to the level of the floor 21 of the fixed floor 20. This is because the articles are reliably conveyed to the floor surface 21 of the fixed bed 20 downstream while the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 is protruding.

  When the article is to be transported particularly smoothly, the angle α of the floor 21 of the fixed floor 20 with respect to the horizontal is set to be approximately the same as the angle θ1 for the moving floor arrangement. Furthermore, the angle β with respect to the horizontal of the floor 31 of the moving floor 30 is also set to be approximately the same as the angle θ1 for the moving floor arrangement. This is because when the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 is immersed, the articles are smoothly transported to the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 downstream without being rattled. Therefore, the immersion position of the movable floor 30 is such that the floor surface 31 of the movable floor 30 does not immerse into the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20, and the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 and the floor surface 31 of the movable floor 30 are approximately straight. It is preferable that the position where the relationship can be established or the position (not shown) where the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 is slightly immersed about 0.5 to 3 mm.

  The elevating drive device 15 can use an electric cylinder capable of changing and controlling the elevating speed and elevating stroke. The elevating drive device 15 may be a mechanism that converts the rotation of the electric motor into a linear motion, a pneumatic cylinder, or the like.

  In such an article conveying apparatus 10, the floor surfaces 21 of the plurality of fixed floors 20 are arranged so as to have a downward slope, and the floor surfaces 31 of the plurality of movable floors 30 are also downwardly inclined. The articles 1 having a smaller size than the pitch p of the adjacent moving beds 30 and the articles 1 having a larger size are conveyed by repeating the raising and lowering operations of the respective moving beds 30. That is, when the floor 31 of the moving floor 30 pushes up the article 1 on the floor 21 of the fixed floor 20 due to the rising of the moving floor 30, the inclination of the floor 31 itself of the moving floor 30 moves downstream in the article 1. The conveyance force of is given. The article 1 to which the conveyance force is applied is transferred onto the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 that has a downward gradient along the downstream conveyance direction due to the lowering of the moving floor 30, and the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 itself. Are further slid on the slopes of the floor surfaces 21 of the fixed floor 20 having a downward slope along the transport direction, and are transported downstream. In the process of sliding on the slope of the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20, even if it is caught on the fixed floor 20 on the downstream side, it is pushed up from the fixed floor 20 by the next rising of the moving floor 30 and is conveyed downstream.

  Accordingly, in the article transporting apparatus 10, the fixed floor 20 and the moving floor 30 are alternately arranged adjacent to each other along the transport direction, and the floor surfaces 21 and 31 are inclined downward toward the downstream side in the transport direction. Regardless of the size and shape of the article 1 and the throwing posture, any article 1 is placed on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 and pushed up by the floor surface 31 of the movable floor 30. ) Can be carried out and discharged almost at a constant rate.

  However, the article transporting apparatus 10 has the following configuration in order to enable the article 1 to be aligned and discharged so that the center of gravity of the article 1 is located at the top.

  The article transporting apparatus 10 uses the floor surface 21A of the floor height fixed floor 20A disposed on the most downstream side (the position closest to the most downstream position or the most downstream position) among the plurality of fixed floors 20 as another fixed floor 20. It is higher than the floor surface 21 (K1 in FIG. 5). A floor height fixed floor 20A with respect to a line connecting the vertices of the floor surfaces 21 of the fixed floors 20 to each other along an angle θ (θ2) with respect to the horizontal of the downward slope formed by the individual floor surfaces 21 of the plurality of fixed floors 20. Let K1 be the height formed by the apex of the floor surface 21A. K1 is preferably 1.0 to 0.2 times the minimum dimension a of the article 1, more preferably 0.3 to 0.8 times the target dimension a of the article 1. By setting K1 within this range, as will be described later, the floor surface 21A of the fixed floor height fixed floor 20A makes the article 1 have sufficient reversal force to turn its top surface upstream. On the other hand, if K1 is larger than this range, the moving distance of the moving bed 30 increases, the dead time increases and productivity decreases.

  The article conveying apparatus 10 has a steeply inclined floor surface 31A of a steeply inclined moving floor 30A disposed downstream of the fixed floor height 20A than the angle β of the other moving floor 30 with respect to the horizontal (β1 in FIG. 5). ). An angle of the floor surface 31A of the steeply moving floor 30A with respect to the horizontal is β1.

  β1 is preferably +15 to 45 degrees of an angle β of the floor 31 of the moving floor 30 with respect to the horizontal, more preferably +20 to 35 degrees of β. If β1 is larger than this range, the moving distance of the moving bed 30 is increased, the dead time is increased, and the productivity is lowered. If β1 is smaller than this range, as will be described later, the effect of the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A pushing out the article 1 in the horizontal direction cannot be obtained sufficiently.

  The article transporting apparatus 10 determines the ascending / descending range of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A with respect to the floor height fixed floor 20A as follows (FIG. 6). The rising height Ha (FIG. 6A) of the apex (highest position) of the floor surface 31A of the steeply moving floor 30A with respect to the lowest position of the floor surface 21A of the floor height fixed floor 20A is preferably the minimum of the bottom surface of the article 1. 0.3 to 2.0 times the value, more preferably 0.5 to 1.5 times the minimum value of the bottom surface of the article 1. When Ha is larger than this range, the moving distance of the moving bed 30 increases, the dead time increases, and the productivity decreases. If Ha is smaller than this range, as will be described later, it becomes difficult to reliably stop the article 1 by the steeply inclined moving floor 30A, and the possibility that the scheduled upside down operation cannot be imparted to the article 1 increases. The descending height Hb (FIG. 6 (B)) with respect to the lowest position of the floor surface 21A of the floor height fixed floor 20A where the apex (highest position) of the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is preferably 0 to 8 mm, more preferably. Is 0 to 4 mm. If Hb is smaller than this range, that is, a negative value, the steeply inclined moving floor 30A does not fall below the floor height fixed floor 20A when descending, and the article 1 is caught by the steeply inclined moving floor 30A and cannot advance. By setting Hb below the upper limit of this range, it is possible to prevent the article 1 from falling and becoming unstable when the article 1 moves toward the steeply moving floor 30A, and causing the article 1 to rotate unscheduled. it can.

  In the article transporting apparatus 10, the floor surface length X of the movable floor 30 is preferably 0.3 to 1.9 times, more preferably 0.4 to 1.5 times the minimum dimension a of the article 1. By setting X to the above preferred value, it is possible to prevent two or more articles 1 from being arranged in series on the moving floor 30 and to prevent the articles 1 from being turned upside down. When performing, it becomes possible for the moving floor 30 to reliably transmit the force for successfully inverting the article 1 to the article 1.

  The article 1 to be conveyed by the article conveying apparatus 10 is, for example, a circular cap shown in FIG. 8 or an elliptical cap shown in FIG. 9, and both caps have a center of gravity on the top surface side. The minimum dimension a of the circular cap is the height h. In the elliptical cap shown in FIG. 9, since the elliptical minor axis e is smaller than the height, the minimum dimension a of the elliptical cap is the elliptical minor axis e.

  Hereafter, the conveyance process of the articles | goods 1 (a circular cap or an elliptical cap etc.) by the article conveyance apparatus 10 is demonstrated (FIGS. 10-17, FIG. 20). The article 1 in FIGS. 10 to 19 is a cross-sectional view so that its orientation can be seen, FIG. 8 (cross-sectional view) corresponds to a circular cap, and FIG. 9 (cross-section) shows a cross-section along an elliptical short axis for an elliptical cap. The figure (b)) corresponds. 10 (A), 12 (A), 14 (A), and 16 (A) are timings when the moving floors 30 and 30A are lowered and start rising, and FIG. FIGS. 10 (C), 12 (B), 14 (B), and 16 (B) are the ascending acceleration processes of the moving beds 30 and 30A, and FIGS. 10 (D) and 12 (C). 14 (C) and 16 (C) are the ascending and decelerating processes of the moving beds 30 and 30A. FIGS. 11 (A), 13 (A), 15 (A), and 17 are as follows. Both are the completion of the rising of the moving floors 30 and 30A and the start timing of lowering, and FIGS. 11B, 13B, and 15B are all descending acceleration processes, and FIG. FIG. 13C and FIG. 15C are both descending and decelerating processes.

(1) Descent completion of moving floors 30 and 30A, start timing of rising (FIG. 10 (A), FIG. 20 (A))
The article 1 with the top surface (center of gravity side) facing upward is on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30.

(2) Ascending acceleration process of moving beds 30 and 30A (FIGS. 10B and 10C)
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 rises as the moving floor 30 rises (FIG. 10B). The floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 applies an upward force to the article 1 on the downstream side.

  When the article 1 on the floor 31 of the moving floor 30 rises beyond the top of the floor 21 of the fixed floor 20 on the downstream side, the center of gravity of the article 1 is on the top, that is, the upper side. In order to stabilize the posture, rotation is started downstream with the vertex of the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 as the rotation center (FIG. 10C).

(3) Ascending and decelerating process of moving floor 30, 30A (Fig. 10 (D))
The article 1 continues to rotate on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20.

(4) Completion of raising and lowering of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIGS. 11A and 20B)
When the article 1 is rotated (reversed) on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 until the top surface is directed downward, the top surface on the center of gravity side is on the lower side, the posture is stabilized and the rotation is finished, and the downstream movement Stop by hitting the side of the floor 30.

  The reversing operation of the article 1 described in (1) to (4) above may be performed on the further upstream side of the article conveying apparatus 10.

(5) Lowering acceleration process of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIG. 11 (B))
When the moving floor 30 descends, the article 1 on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 hits the side surface of the downstream moving floor 30 and stops.

(6) Lowering and decelerating process of moving floor 30, 30A (FIG. 11 (C))
When the moving floor 30 is further lowered and the side surface of the downstream moving floor 30 on which the article 1 on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 has hit is lost, the article 1 moves onto the floor surface 31 of the downstream moving floor 30. Moving.

(7) Moving bed 30, 30A descending completion, ascent start timing (FIG. 12 (A), FIG. 20 (A))
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 stops by hitting the side surface of the fixed floor 20 on the downstream side.

(8) Ascending acceleration process of moving beds 30 and 30A (FIG. 12B)
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 rises as the moving floor 30 rises. The floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 applies an upward force to the article 1 on the downstream side.

  Preferably, the raising of the moving beds 30 and 30A is temporarily stopped in this process. Since the posture of the article 1 is stabilized by temporarily stopping the ascent of the moving floors 30 and 30A, the article 1 can maintain the posture more stably in the next step.

(9) Ascending and decelerating process of moving floor 30, 30A (FIG. 12C)
When the article 1 raised by the moving floor 30 exceeds the top of the floor surface 21 of the fixed bed 20 on the downstream side, the article 1 has the center of gravity on the lower side, that is, the lower side. Move to the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20.

(10) Completion of raising and lowering of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIGS. 13A and 20B)
The article 1 slides on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 and stops by hitting the side surface of the moving floor 30 on the downstream side.

(11) Lowering acceleration process of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIG. 13B)
The article 1 on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 hits the side surface of the moving floor 30 that is descending on the downstream side and stops.

(12) Lowering and decelerating process of moving floor 30 and 30A (FIG. 13C)
When the moving floor 30 is further lowered and the side surface of the downstream moving floor 30 on which the article 1 on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 has hit is lost, the article 1 moves onto the floor surface 31 of the downstream moving floor 30. Moving.

(13) Moving bed 30, 30A descending completion, ascent start timing (FIG. 14 (A), FIG. 20 (A))
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 stops by hitting the upstream side surface of the downstream floor height fixed floor 20A.

(14) Ascending acceleration process of moving beds 30 and 30A (FIG. 14B)
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 rises as the moving floor 30 rises. The floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30 applies an upward force to the article 1 on the downstream side.

  Compared to the above (8), the floor height fixed floor 20A with which the article 1 is in contact is higher than the other fixed floors 20, so that when the moving floor 30 is lifted, the article 1 has a side surface on the upstream side of the floor height fixed floor 20A. The contact point with the floor height fixed floor 20A is positioned on a straight line that substantially matches the direction of the force applied from the moving floor 30. As a result, the contact point between the article 1 and the floor height fixed floor 20 </ b> A becomes a resistance against the downstream upward force applied to the article 1 by the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30, and the article 1 has the downstream upward force. A rotational force based on the force acts.

  In this way, the article 1 exists on the floor 31 of the moving floor 30 that is in the ascending process of the moving floor 30 and is disposed upstream of the fixed floor height floor 20A, and a part of the article 1 is fixed to the floor height. When the rising of the moving floor 30 is temporarily stopped when coming into contact with the upstream side surface of the floor 20A, the resistance at the contact point between the article 1 and the floor height fixed floor 20A increases from the dynamic friction state to the static friction state, The contact is likely to be the center of rotation, and a strong rotational force acts on the article 1.

(15) Ascending and decelerating process of moving floor 30 and 30A (FIG. 14C)
When the article 1 raised by the moving floor 30 exceeds the top of the floor surface 21A of the floor height fixed floor 20A on the downstream side, the resistance to the rotational force acting on the article 1 is released, and the article 1 is fixed to the floor height fixed floor. It rotates around the vertex of the floor surface 21A of 20A.

(16) Completion of raising and lowering of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIGS. 15A and 20B)
Although the article 1 rotates, it is a movement that lifts the top surface side with the center of gravity upward, and does not reach a position where the top surface completely faces downward.

(17) Lowering acceleration process of moving floors 30 and 30A (FIG. 15B)
The article 1 on the floor surface 21A of the floor height fixed floor 20A rotates to a position where the top surface faces the upstream side, and stops by hitting the upstream side surface of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A that is descending on the downstream side.

(18) Lowering and decelerating process of moving floor 30 and 30A (FIG. 15C)
When the steeply inclined moving floor 30A further descends and the side surface of the downstream steeply inclined moving floor 30A on which the article 1 on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor height fixed floor 20A has hit is lost, the article 1 remains in the downstream position in its posture. Move to the floor 31 of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A.

(19) Descent completion of moving floor 30, 30A, start timing of rising (FIG. 16 (A), FIG. 20 (A))
The article 1 on the floor surface 31 of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A hits the side surface of the fixed floor 20 on the downstream side and stops. Since the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is steeply inclined, the article 1 brings its bottom surface closer to the horizontal plane than the normal stop posture (FIG. 18A) on the floor surface 31 of the moving floor 30. That is, an angle a (FIG. 16A) formed by the bottom surface of the article 1 with respect to the horizontal plane on the floor surface 31A of the steeply moving floor 30A is an angle b formed with respect to the horizontal plane on the floor surface 31 of the movable floor 30. It is smaller than (FIG. 18A).

(20) Ascending acceleration process of moving beds 30 and 30A (FIG. 16B)
When the steeply inclined moving floor 30A rises and pushes up the article 1, the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is steeply inclined, so that the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is directed upward on the downstream side. The force makes the horizontal component larger. Moreover, since the angle a is small as described above, in other words, since the bottom surface of the article 1 is close to a horizontal plane, the rotational force applied to the article 1 when the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is pushed up becomes small. Thereby, when the article 1 reaches the top of the floor surface 21 of the downstream fixed floor 20, the article 1 is stably pushed out in the downstream horizontal direction.

  As described above, when the article 1 is present on the floor surface 31A of the steeply inclined moving floor 30A in the ascending process of the moving floor 30, if the ascent of the moving floor 30A is temporarily stopped, the article 1 is temporarily stopped and stabilized. Therefore, the article 1 is pushed out more stably.

(21) Ascending / decelerating process of moving floor 30, 30A (FIG. 16C)
When the article 1 lifted by the steeply moving floor 30A exceeds the apex of the floor surface 21 of the downstream fixed floor 20, the article 1 is aligned in a posture with the bottom face down and the top face up, and fixed downstream. It moves onto the floor surface 21 of the floor 20. Since the bottom surface of the article 1 is made closer to the horizontal plane in the above (19), the bottom surface can be lowered.

  When the steeply inclined moving floor 30A is not adopted in the above (19) and (20) (FIG. 18B), the article 1 is the downstream side with the bottom face down and the top face up in the above (21). Some of them move onto the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20, and are simply pushed up by the moving floor 30, and move on the floor surface 21 of the downstream fixed floor 20 with the top surface facing the upstream side. Some are just moving.

(22) Lifting completion of moving floors 30 and 30A, descending start timing (FIGS. 17 and 20B)
The article 1 moves on the floor surface 21 of the fixed floor 20 with the bottom face down and the top face up (alignment posture with the center of gravity of the article 1 at the top), and is lowered via a discharge chute (not shown). It is discharged into the process. The final fixed floor 20 may be a discharge chute.

  In the article conveying apparatus 10, as shown in FIG. 19A, a gap P1 between the floor height fixed floor 20A and the moving floor 30 disposed upstream thereof is disposed upstream of the other fixed floor 20 and upstream thereof. It can be made wider than the gap P 0 with the moving floor 30. A preferable range of P1 is 5 to 40% of the height h of the article 1, more preferably 10 to 25% of the height h of the article 1. According to this, the distance L formed by the contact point between the article 1 and the floor height fixed floor 20A and the contact point between the article 1 and the moving floor 30 that pushes up the article 1, that is, the center of rotation of the article 1 and the article. Since the action point distance of the force for rotation becomes longer, even if the article 1 moves slightly upward and downward while the article 1 is being lifted in the above (15), L is sufficiently rotated by having a sufficient distance. A moment is generated, and a strong rotational force can be applied to the article 1. Therefore, the posture can be changed so that the article 1 is stably rotated and the top surface of the article 1 is directed upstream.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 19B, when the gap between the fixed floor height floor 20A and the movable floor 30 arranged upstream thereof is set to P0 narrower than P1, the article 1 is being lifted while the article 1 is being lifted. If the article 1 moves downstream and upward before the rotation of L, L does not have a sufficient distance and cannot generate a large rotational moment, making it difficult to rotate the article 1 and the article 1. May move without changing posture.

  The article conveying apparatus 10A shown in FIG. 21 is leveled with the individual floor surfaces 21 of the plurality of fixed floors 20 toward the downstream side in the conveying direction as compared with the article conveying apparatus 10 shown in FIGS. The arrangement (horizontal direction arrangement) is different from each other only in that the individual floor surfaces 31 of the plurality of moving floors 30 are arranged horizontally toward the downstream side in the conveyance direction.

  Similarly to the article transport apparatus 10, the article transport apparatus 10 </ b> A has a fixed floor height floor 20 </ b> A and a steeply inclined moving floor 30 </ b> A. (A)), (2) Ascending acceleration process of moving beds 30, 30A (FIG. 22B), (3) Ascending deceleration process of moving beds 30, 30A (FIG. 22C), (4) Moving bed 30 and 30A ascending completion, descending start timing (FIG. 23A), (5) moving bed 30, 30A descending acceleration process (FIG. 23B), (6) moving bed 30, 30A descending deceleration process (FIG. 23 (C)) is repeatedly carried out to transfer the articles 1 of various sizes and shapes in a free posture while discharging the articles 1 in a substantially fixed amount, and the center of gravity of the articles 1 is placed at the top. Dispose in line.

  FIG. 24 shows an article alignment and supply apparatus 100 using the article conveying apparatus 10 of the present invention. This article alignment supply apparatus 100 is used to supply a cap to a cap fastening machine or to supply various articles to an automatic assembly machine.

  A hopper 101 with an automatic supply device, which is accompanied by an automatic supply device 101A capable of supplying a certain amount of articles, is provided upstream of the article conveyance device 10. In the hopper 101 with the automatic supply device, if the article presence / absence detection unit 101B continues to have no article for a certain period of time, this is detected by the article presence / absence detection sensor 101C, and the automatic supply apparatus 101A operates according to the command. The article is sent to the article presence / absence detecting unit 101B and further supplied to the article conveying apparatus 10. As the automatic supply device, a conveyor device that operates for a certain period of time by air or electric drive is used. Note that the hopper 101 with an automatic supply device may be a hopper having a simple inclined plate or a vibrator provided with the hopper.

  The article conveying device 10 conveys an article such as a cap and the article aligning section S (the fixed floor 20 and the moving floor 30 described above) that faces the center of gravity downward, and the article upside down that performs the upside down of the article on the downstream side thereof. Part T (the above-described floor height fixed floor 20A, steeply inclined moving floor 30A), an article chute 102 and an article delivery conveyor device 103 are installed on the discharge side of the article upside down part T, and the article delivery conveyor device 103 includes A defective product discharge return device 104 is attached. The article transporting apparatus 10 has the delivery direction of the article delivery conveyor device 103 orthogonal to the delivery direction of the article upside down part T, but the delivery direction of the article upside down part T and the delivery direction of the article delivery conveyor apparatus 103 are arranged. In the same direction, these may be aggregated in one column or in a plurality of columns.

  As described above, the article transporting apparatus 10 aligns the articles in a certain alignment posture (for example, the posture with the top side of the cap as the upper position), and discharges the articles to the article dispensing conveyor device 103 via the article chute 102.

  The article dispensing conveyor device 103 is provided on the discharge side of the article upside down portion T, and is configured by a belt conveyor 103A that is arranged orthogonal to the discharge direction of the article upside down portion T. The belt conveyor 103A is driven by the drive unit 103B and includes an article position regulation guide 103C and a final transition plate 103D. The belt conveyor 103 can be switched in the forward and reverse directions, and can discharge articles in the left and right directions. When the article is a cap, it is aligned in a posture with the top side of the cap as the upper position. Therefore, when performing the cap tightening operation in the next step, an apparatus for turning the article upside down is unnecessary.

  The defective product discharge return device 104 includes a defective product detection sensor 104A, a defective product discharge device 104B, a defective product discharge chute 104C, and a conveyor 104D with a return bar. The defective product detection sensor 104 </ b> A detects whether or not the posture of the article being conveyed by, for example, the belt conveyor 103 </ b> A of the article dispensing conveyor device 103 is in the target alignment posture. The defective product detection sensor 104A can be constituted by, for example, a laser height detector, but an image sensor or the like can also be used. The defective product discharge device 104B discharges the articles recognized as defective in alignment by the defective product detection sensor 104A to a defective product discharge chute 104C having a downward slope provided on the side of the article delivery conveyor device 103. The defective product discharge device 104B can be constituted by a high-pressure air blowing device, but a mechanical device such as an air cylinder can also be used. The defective article discharged to the defective product discharge chute 104C is further slid down, transferred upward by a conveyor 104D with a return bar operated by the drive unit 104E, and returned to the hopper 101 with an automatic supply device by a dropping plate 104F. It is. The return conveyor 104D may be replaced with an air transportation device.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the moving floor of the article conveying apparatus is immersed. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which the moving floor of the article transporting device protrudes. FIG. 3 is a front view showing the article conveying apparatus. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the moving up and down operation of the moving floor. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the floor surface height of the fixed floor height and the floor surface angle of the steeply moving floor. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the up and down range of the steeply moving floor with respect to the fixed floor height. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the floor surface length of the moving floor. FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing a circular cap. FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing an elliptical cap. FIG. 10 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 11 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 12 is a side view illustrating the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 13 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 14 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 15 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 16 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 17 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 18 is a side view illustrating a cap conveyance state by an article conveyance device that does not use a steeply inclined moving floor. FIG. 19 is a side view and a schematic view showing the influence of the gap between the fixed floor height floor and the moving floor arranged upstream thereof on the transporting operation of the cap. FIG. 20 is a schematic view showing the cap aligning action by the article conveying device. FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing a horizontally arranged article conveying apparatus. FIG. 22 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 23 is a side view showing the conveying operation of the article conveying device. FIG. 24 is a perspective view showing an article alignment and supply apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Article 10 Article conveyance apparatus 15 Elevating drive apparatus 20 Fixed floor 20A Floor height fixed floor 21, 21A Floor surface 30 Moving floor 30A Steeply inclined moving floor 31, 31A Floor surface

Claims (4)

Arranging each of the fixed beds in turn toward the downstream side in the transport direction,
Each moving floor is placed adjacent to each fixed floor on the side of the conveyance direction, and the moving floor is repeatedly moved up and down to position the moving floor at the upper and lower positions with respect to the fixed fixed floor. ,
The floor surface of each fixed floor is inclined so as to form a downward gradient toward the downstream side in the conveyance direction, and the floor surface of each movable floor is also inclined so as to form a downward gradient toward the downstream side in the conveyance direction. An article conveying device comprising:
The moving floor arranged on the most downstream side is a steeply inclined moving floor that is steeper than the floor surface of the other moving floors ,
An article transporting apparatus in which a fixed floor disposed on the upstream side adjacent to the steeply moving floor among the plurality of fixed floors is a floor height fixed floor higher than a floor surface of another fixed floor . The article conveying apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a gap between the fixed floor height and the movable floor arranged upstream thereof is wider than a gap between the other fixed floor and the movable floor arranged upstream thereof. . Wherein a rising course of moving bed, wherein when the article steeper moving bed of the floor on the presence, product transport apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 pause an increase in moving bed. In the ascending process of the moving floor, when an article exists on the floor surface of the moving floor arranged upstream of the fixed floor height floor, and a part of the article touches the upstream side surface of the fixed floor height floor the article conveying device according to claim 1 or 2 pause an increase in moving bed.

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