JP5508321B2 - Flexible container unloading device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a flexible container loading device.

  In order to transport the powder, a bag-type large-capacity container called a flexible container is used. The flexible container has an outer bag formed of a strong woven fabric, and a belt for lifting the flexible container with a crane or the like is sewn on the outer bag. Since the outer bag is breathable, there is a waterproof and moisture-proof inner bag made of a non-breathable and non-breathable film such as polyethylene or vinyl resin inside the outer bag. It is housed in an inner bag.

When emptying the flexible container and transferring the powder to another container, it is desirable to use a suction type air transporter (vacuum conveyor) in order to prevent generation of dust.
When a flexible container is manually emptied using a suction type air transporter, a hand-held suction nozzle is used. The worker connects the suction nozzle to the suction-type pneumatic transporter via the suction pipe, inserts the tip of the suction nozzle into the opened inner bag of the flexible container, sucks the powder out of the flexible container by vacuum, and transfers it to the destination container. And air transport.

  When the suction progresses and the content of the flexible container decreases, the inner bag made of the synthetic resin film tends to stick to the suction nozzle, so that it becomes difficult to completely suck the powder remaining on the bottom of the inner bag. A suction prevention guard is provided at the tip of the suction nozzle.However, if the inner bag is attracted to the nozzle, the worker stops the suction, pulls the suction nozzle away from the inner bag, and then performs the suction. I have to resume.

In the prior art, proposals for automating the emptying of flexible containers have been made.
However, once the middle bag is attracted to the suction nozzle during or at the end of suction, the middle bag cannot be peeled off from the suction nozzle unless it is manually handled.

An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus capable of automatically unloading a flexible container.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an unloading device capable of automatically sucking the entire amount of powder in a flexible container.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a load emptying device in which a waterproof and moisture-proof inner bag made of a synthetic resin film or the like does not stick to a suction nozzle.

  The present invention provides an apparatus for emptying a flexible container, the apparatus comprising: a nozzle body connectable to a suction transport pipe of a suction type air transporter; and the airtight and slidable to the nozzle body A nozzle unit for sucking powder in the flexible container, and a sliding container head fixed to the nozzle body, wherein the inner bag of the flexible container is provided with the sliding nozzle head. A shielding member that surrounds the lower end of the sliding nozzle head so as to prevent adsorption to a suction port provided at the lower end of the sliding nozzle head, and has a lower opening through which the lower end of the sliding nozzle head can enter and exit; First elevating means for elevating and lowering the nozzle body in the vertical direction; and sliding to bring the lower end of the sliding nozzle head into and out of the lower opening of the shielding member Second elevating means for elevating and lowering the nozzle head with respect to the nozzle body; and control means for controlling the first and second elevating means; And a control means for gradually lowering the nozzle body while allowing the lower end to enter and exit from the lower opening of the shielding member.

Thus, according to the present invention, since the shielding member surrounds the suction port of the sliding nozzle head, the inner bag of the flexible container is prevented from approaching and sucking the suction port. Also, even if the inner bag is sucked, the sliding nozzle head enters and exits from the lower opening of the shielding member. Therefore, the inner bag sucked to the suction port moves from the suction port as the sliding nozzle head moves backward. Torn off.
Accordingly, it is possible to automate the emptying of the cargo and to suck the powder in the flexible container to the end without substantially manual intervention.

  In a preferred embodiment, the unloading device further includes a lifting means that acts on the upper edge of the flexible container, and the upper edge of the flexible container decreases as the amount of residual powder in the flexible container decreases with suction. As a result, the residual powder is collected in the central portion of the flexible container.

In a simple embodiment, the lifting means comprises a counterweight so that a lifting force equal to the weight of the counterweight acts on the lifting belt of the flexible container.
In this way, power for lifting the flexible container is not necessary, and the load evacuation device can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  If the counterweight is composed of a plurality of weights, the total weight of the counterweight can be easily adjusted according to the weight of the flexible container.

In a preferred embodiment, the unloading device further includes a shut-off valve that controls the suction of the powder, a pressure sensor that detects the pressure in the suction pipe of the suction type air transporter, and a position sensor that detects the position of the nozzle unit. The control device is configured such that when the nozzle unit approaches the lower limit position and the pressure in the suction pipe becomes high vacuum, the inner bag of the flexible container is sucked into the suction port of the sliding nozzle head. Therefore, the powder suction is stopped, the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head are raised, and then the suction is resumed.
In this way, the sticking of the flexible container inner bag to the nozzle head can be reliably eliminated.

In another preferred embodiment, the load emptying device further includes a vibration device for exciting the flexible container, and the control device is configured to reduce the pressure in the suction pipe to a low vacuum even though the nozzle unit is not lowered. When it happens, it is considered that rat holes or bridges are generated in the powder in the flexible container, and the flexible container is vibrated after raising the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head.
In this way, rat holes and bridges generated in the powder in the flexible container can be collapsed, and the entire amount of powder in the flexible container can be sucked.

  As another rathole countermeasure, the load emptying device further includes means for increasing the lifting force of the lifting means, and the control device reduces the pressure in the suction pipe to a low vacuum even though the nozzle unit is not lowered. It is assumed that rat holes are generated in the powder in the flexible container, and after raising the nozzle body and sliding nozzle head, the lifting force of the flexible container is increased, and the rat holes and bridges are Collapse.

In yet another embodiment, the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head are each formed in a double tube structure, and the nozzle unit is a controllable second unit for supplying secondary air to the suction port of the sliding nozzle head. The control device has a secondary air supply passage, and when the pressure in the suction pipe becomes high vacuum, the suction pipe of the air transporter is considered to be blocked with powder, stops the powder suction, After raising the sliding nozzle head, the amount of secondary air flowing through the secondary air supply passage is increased.
According to this embodiment, when the nozzle unit sucks a high concentration powder / air mixture for some reason and the suction transport pipe is blocked with powder, the blockage is eliminated by increasing the amount of secondary air. can do.

In another preferred embodiment, the unloading device further comprises a funnel-shaped container platform.
According to this embodiment, as the suction of the powder progresses and the powder in the flexible container decreases, the flexible container slides toward the bottom along the recess of the funnel-shaped container mounting table, and the powder naturally Since it gathers in the center of a flexible container, a load emptying apparatus can be simplified and manufacturing cost can be reduced.

In another preferred embodiment, an air-permeable diaphragm made of a microporous material is provided outside the shielding member of the load-carrying device, and an air-filled chamber to which compressed air is supplied is provided between the diaphragm and the shielding member. Is formed.
According to this embodiment, since the powder can be fluidized by aeration of the powder in the flexible container through the air permeable diaphragm, the powder having poor fluidity can also be easily sucked. .
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the description of the following examples.

It is a perspective view which shows the place which attracts | sucks the powder in a flexible container using the unloading apparatus of this invention and a conventional suction type pneumatic transport machine, and transfers it to a destination container. FIG. 2 is a side view of the load clearance device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view of the nozzle unit shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in which the sliding nozzle head is removed from the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head lifting cylinder is removed from the nozzle unit support arm. 4A shows the ascending / retreating position of the sliding nozzle head of the nozzle unit shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and FIG. 4B shows the descending position. 5A is an enlarged sectional view taken along the arrow 5a-5a in FIG. 3, and FIG. 5B is an enlarged sectional view taken along the arrow 5b-5b in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the main routine of control of the unloading apparatus shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the interruption routine of control of the unloading apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing still another two types of interrupt routines for controlling the unloading apparatus shown in FIG. 1. FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the different operation | movement position of the unloading apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the different operation position of the nozzle unit of the load evacuation apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the continuation of the operation position shown in FIG. FIG. 13 is a side view showing a variation of the shielding member shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, and the right part of FIG. It is a typical side view which shows the modified form of the unloading apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 1 shows a state where a powder 16 in a flexible container 14 is sucked and transferred to a transport destination container 18 by using the unloading device 10 of the present invention and a conventional suction-type pneumatic transporter 12. 2 is a side view of the load emptying device 10.
Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the unloading device 10 includes a machine base 20 and an upright machine frame 22, and the machine frame 22 includes a lifting device 26 for lifting and lowering the nozzle unit 24, and a flexible container. A lifting device 28 for lifting 14 is incorporated.

In the illustrated embodiment, the nozzle unit elevating device 26 includes, for example, a slider 32 guided so as to be movable up and down by a pair of left and right guide rails 30, a cylinder (air or hydraulic type) 34 for raising and lowering the slider 32, and a cylinder output. The nozzle 36 can be composed of a shaft 36, a horizontal arm 38 extending forward from the slider 32, and a vertical arm 40 depending from the horizontal arm 38. The nozzle unit 24 uses, for example, a pair of upper and lower clamp members 42 (FIG. 2). And can be detachably fixed to the vertical arm 40. The cylinder 34 moves up and down the nozzle unit 24 by being controlled by a control device 44 attached to the machine casing 22. Of course, a lead screw mechanism or other lifting means may be used instead of the lifting cylinder 34.
Although not shown, a plurality of limit switches for detecting the position of the slider 32 are provided along the rail 30, and the control device 44 detects the vertical position of the nozzle unit 24 based on their outputs.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the nozzle unit 24 includes a vertically long nozzle body 46 and a sliding nozzle head 48 that is slidably fitted to the nozzle body 46.
As shown in FIG. 5, the nozzle body 46 and the sliding nozzle head 48 are each formed in a double tube structure.
The nozzle body 46 includes an inner tube 50 and an outer tube 52 as shown in FIG. The inner pipe 50 is connected to the inlet pipe 51 of the suction type pneumatic transport machine 12 through the suction transport pipe 49 as shown in FIG.
A secondary air supply passage 54 is formed between the inner tube 50 and the outer tube 52, and the upper end of the secondary air supply passage 54 is closed by a secondary air joint 56 fixed to the upper end of the outer tube 52. Has been.
A hose joint 58 is attached to the secondary air joint 56, and a secondary air introduction pipe having an electromagnetic flow control valve 60 is connected to the hose joint 58. The flow regulating valve 60 is controlled by the controller 44 to adjust the flow rate of the secondary air introduced into the secondary air supply passage 54.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the sliding nozzle head 48 also has a double tube structure composed of an inner tube 62 and an outer tube 64, and a secondary tube is interposed between the inner tube 62 and the outer tube 64. An air supply passage 66 is formed. The outer diameters of the inner tube 62 and the outer tube 64 of the sliding nozzle head 48 are set slightly smaller than the inner diameters of the inner tube 50 and the outer tube 52 of the nozzle body 46, respectively, and are shown in FIGS. As described above, the sliding nozzle head 48 is slidably fitted inside the nozzle body 46.
The nozzle body 46 and the sliding nozzle head 48 are sealed with each other by a seal ring (not shown). When the sliding nozzle head 48 is fitted to the lower portion of the sluice body 46 as shown in FIG. The inner passage of the inner tube 50 and the inner passage of the inner tube 62 of the sliding nozzle head 48 communicate with each other, and the secondary air supply passage 54 of the nozzle body 46 and the secondary air supply passage 66 of the sliding nozzle head 48 Are in communication with each other.

  5B, the lower end of the inner tube 62 of the sliding nozzle head 48 opens downward, and the secondary air coming from the powder in the flexible container 14 and the secondary air supply passage 66 is obtained. It acts as a suction port 68 for sucking the mixture. At the lower end of the inner tube 62 of the sliding nozzle head head 48, a spacer and anti-sucking guard 70 is fixed by crossing two metal rods curved in a substantially C shape at right angles. 64 is positioned with respect to each other, and the inner bag of the flexible container 14 is prevented from adhering to the suction port 68.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, a sliding nozzle is provided below the nozzle body 46 in order to prevent the inner bag (not shown) of the flexible container 14 from sucking the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head 48. A hollow shielding member 72 surrounding the head 48 is fixed.
In this embodiment, the shielding member 72 includes a circular perforated top plate 74 formed of a stainless steel plate or the like, a cylindrical side plate 76, and an inverted conical truncated bottom plate 78 (reference numbers are attached only to FIG. 3). It is) and is formed. A circular lower opening 80 is formed at the center of the bottom plate 78 to allow the sliding nozzle head head 48 to enter and exit as described later with reference to FIG.
In order to detect that the shielding member 72 has settled on the powder in the flexible container 14, a powder level sensor 81 (FIG. 1) such as a capacitance sensor or a proximity sensor is attached to the shielding member 72. The output signal is sent to the control device 44.

The sliding nozzle head 48 slidably fitted to the nozzle body 46 is fixed to the lower end of the vertical arm 40 of the nozzle unit elevating device 26 by bolting or the like as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The nozzle body 46 is moved up and down by a sliding nozzle head lifting / lowering device composed of a hydraulic cylinder 82 controlled by the above.
An L-shaped bracket 86 is fixed to the output rod 84 of the hydraulic cylinder 82, and the sliding nozzle head 48 is fixed to the bracket 86 with bolts or the like.
Therefore, when the sliding nozzle head 48 is moved up and down by expanding and contracting the hydraulic cylinder 82 as shown by the arrow 88 in FIG. 3, the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head is shielded as shown in FIG. It will protrude downward from the lower opening 80 of the member 72, or it will be drawn into the inside of the shielding member 72 as shown in FIG.

In the simplest embodiment, the lifting device 28 for lifting the flexible container 14 includes a pair of left and right wires 90 (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2), and each wire as shown in FIGS. 90, and a counterweight 96 (shown by a broken line in FIG. 2) connected to the other end of each wire. The belt 94 is tensioned by the load of the counterweight 96. Each wire 90 is passed through a pulley 100 supported by a pair of left and right horizontal arms 98 extending forward from the machine casing 22.
In order to be able to adjust the tension acting on the belt 94, the counterweight 96 can be composed of a plurality of separable weights. If the weight is set so that the total weight of the counterweight 96 is smaller than the total weight of the flexible container full of powder, as will be described later, as the amount of residual powder in the flexible container decreases as a result of suction. The upper edge of the container is gradually deflated and the residual powder is collected in the center of the flexible container.
Although not shown, the machine frame 22 is provided with a plurality of limit switches for detecting the vertical position of the counterweight 96, and the control device 44 determines the vertical position of the counterweight 96 and thus the suspension rod 92 based on the outputs thereof. It comes to detect.
Instead of the counterweight 96, the flexible container 14 may be lifted by a spring, a hydraulic / pneumatic cylinder, or an electric motor. Further, when the flexible container does not include the lifting belt 94, the wire 90 can be connected to the upper edge of the flexible container, for example, at four locations using a clamp device.

Next, the mode of use and operation of the load emptying device 10 will be described.
The upper end of the inner pipe 50 of the nozzle body 46 of the nozzle unit 24 is connected to the inlet pipe 51 of the suction type air transport machine 12 through the suction transport pipe 49 as shown in FIG. The generated negative pressure or vacuum acts on the nozzle unit 24 to suck the powder in the flexible container into the air transporter 12, and the solid-gas separated powder in the air transporter 12 is dropped into the transport destination hopper 18. Is done. As the suction type air transporter 12, it is preferable to use a continuous suction type air transporter having a double damper structure described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-189475.
The suction transport pipe 49 is provided with a pressure sensor 104, which detects a pressure (negative pressure) in the transport pipe and sends a pressure signal to the control device 44. The negative pressure applied to the nozzle unit 24 by the blower 102 can be controlled to be turned on / off by the electromagnetic shut-off valve 106 controlled by the control device 44.

  The loading of the flexible container and the setting of the unloading device 10 can be performed manually. The operator operates the control device 44 to bring the nozzle body 46 and the sliding nozzle head 48 of the nozzle unit 24 to the upper limit position in advance, and then forklifts the pallet 103 on which the flexible container 14 containing the powder is placed. And the like are carried in and placed under the nozzle unit 24. Next, when the worker hooks the lifting rod 92 of the lifting device 28 on the lifting belt 94 of the flexible container 14, tension is applied to the belt 94 by the action of the counterweight 96 and the wire 90. However, since the total weight of the counterweight 96 is set to be smaller than the total weight of the flexible container, the flexible container 14 remains on the pallet 103.

  6 to 11 are also referred to, and FIG. 6 shows a main routine of control by the control device 44. As shown in FIG. 9 (a), when the container is ready for emptying and the operator presses the emptying start button of the control device 44 (step S101 in FIG. 6), the nozzle unit 24 has the lower end of the shielding member 72 at the lower end. It is lowered (S102) until it reaches the bottom of the powder surface in the flexible container 14 (FIGS. 10A and 10B). When it is detected based on the output of the powder level sensor 81 that the shielding member 72 has settled on the powder level of the container, the control device 44 starts suction by opening the shut-off valve 106 (FIG. 1) (FIG. 6 step S103).

Next, the control device 44 commands the sliding nozzle head lifting / lowering device 82 to bring it to the lower limit position by moving the sliding nozzle head 48 forward (down), for example, by 3 pitches at a slow speed (S104). With this forward movement of the sliding nozzle head 48, the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head 48 sucks out the powder while protruding from the lower opening 80 of the shielding member 72 and entering the powder (FIG. 10C). ). At that time, as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 10C, secondary air is supplied to the suction port 68 from the secondary air supply passages 54 and 66 of the nozzle unit, and a mixture of the powder and the secondary air is formed. It is sucked into the air transporter 12.
Next, the control device 44 raises and lowers the nozzle unit elevating device 26 and the sliding nozzle head so as to lower the nozzle body 46 by, for example, 1 pitch while returning the sliding nozzle head 48 to the upper limit position by retracting, for example, 3 pitches. The device 82 is commanded (S105). As a result, with the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head retracted to the inside of the shielding member 72, the shielding member 72 is lowered by one pitch and brought to the position shown in FIG.
By repeating steps S104 and S105 until the nozzle body 46 reaches the lower limit position (S106), the suction of the powder and the lowering of the nozzle body 46 are repeated (FIGS. 11 (e, f)).

As the amount of residual powder in the flexible container 14 decreases with suction, the diagonally upward tension (indicated by the arrow 108 in FIG. 9B) acting on the upper edge of the flexible container 14 from the belt 94 inward in the horizontal direction. Due to the component force, the upper edge of the flexible container 14 is squeezed as shown in FIGS. 9 (b) and 11 (f, g), so that the residual powder is shown in these drawings as the suction proceeds. In the middle of the flexible container 14.
As the forward and backward movement of the sliding nozzle head 48, the forward movement of the nozzle body 46, and the suction of the powder further progress, the nozzle unit 24 and the shielding member 72 approach the lower limit position shown in FIG.

  As a result of the smooth suction of the powder, the nozzle body 46 and the counterweight 96 are shown in FIG. 9C based on a signal from a limit switch that the controller 44 detects the positions of the slider 32 and the counterweight 96. (S106), and based on the signal from the pressure sensor 104, the negative pressure in the transport pipe 49 is continuously higher than the minus (−) 1000 mm water column for 10 seconds continuously ( That is, when it is detected that the pressure is close to the atmospheric pressure (S107), it is considered that the powder in the flexible container 14 is exhausted and only air is sucked, and the control device 44 ends the suction (S108).

Thus, according to the present invention, since the shielding member 72 surrounds the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head 48, the inner bag of the flexible container 14 is prevented from approaching the suction port 68, and therefore, It is prevented from sticking. Further, even if the inner bag is sucked, the sliding nozzle head 48 is periodically withdrawn from the lower opening 80 of the shielding member 72, so that the inner bag sucked to the suction port 68 is removed from the sliding nozzle head 48. It is peeled off from the suction port 68 with the retreat movement.
Accordingly, it is possible to automate the emptying of the cargo and to suck the powder in the flexible container to the end without substantially manual intervention.

Thorough prevention of sticking As described above, the shielding member 72 that surrounds the lower end of the sliding nozzle head 48 is provided, and the sliding nozzle head 48 is made to enter and exit the lower opening 80 of the shielding member 72. However, it is desirable to take measures to more reliably eliminate sticking of the inner bag.
The flowchart of FIG. 7 shows an interrupt routine for reliably eliminating the sticking in the event that the inner bag of the flexible container sticks to the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head 48.
Referring to FIG. 7, the control device 44 monitors whether the nozzle body 46 is at the lower limit position based on the output signal of the limit switch that detects the position of the slider 32 (S201). As long as the nozzle body 46 does not reach the lower limit position, the process returns to “2” of the main routine of FIG.
When it is detected that the nozzle body 46 has reached the lower limit position (S201), the negative pressure in the transport pipe 49 is continuously checked, for example, for 10 seconds to check whether it is higher than the minus (−) 5000 mm water column. If the vacuum is higher than the −5000 mm water column (S202), it is considered that the inner bag is attracted to the suction port 68 of the sliding nozzle head 48, and the suction is stopped (S203).
Next, the control device 44 raises the nozzle body 46 by several pitches and retracts the sliding nozzle head 48 to the upper limit position (S204) to retract the sliding nozzle head 48 from the lower opening 80 of the shielding member 72. Thus, the inner bag attracted to the suction port 68 is peeled off. Then, the suction is resumed (S205).
Next, the control device 44 checks whether or not the negative pressure in the transport pipe is continuously lower than the −2000 mm water column (higher vacuum), for example, for 10 seconds (S206). If the negative pressure is lower than the −2000 mm water column, It is considered that the inner bag is still sucked to the suction port 68, and steps S203 to S205 are repeated. When the pressure in the pipe recovers to -2000 mm water column or more, it is considered that the sticking has been eliminated, and the process returns to “2” of the main routine of FIG.
In this way, the suction of the inner bag is surely resolved at the end of suction when the residual powder in the flexible container has decreased, so that the entire amount of powder in the flexible container can be sucked without manual intervention. Can do.

In the case where the anti- rathole powder has poor fluidity, when the nozzle unit 24 is lowered while sucking the powder, a rathole or a bridge is formed in the powder in the flexible container, and the powder positioned on the upper side. May fall and not come to the center of the flexible container.
As a countermeasure, the control device 44 checks whether or not ratholes are generated in the powder in the flexible container in the interrupt routine shown in the flowchart of FIG. 8A (step S301). This indicates, for example, that the negative pressure in the transport pipe 49 is small and powder is not sucked (that is, air is sucked exclusively), but the counterweight 96 is at the lower limit position or This can be done by determining whether it is not near the lower limit position.
If it is determined that a rathole has occurred, the controller 44 returns the nozzle body 46 and the sliding nozzle head 48 to the upper limit position (S302), and then turns on a vibration device (not shown) connected to the pallet 103. By actuating, the container on the pallet 103 is vibrated (S303), and the rat hole is collapsed. Instead of the vibration device, the rat hole may be collapsed by temporarily increasing the lifting force of the lifting wire 90 with a motor (not shown) or the like. If the rat hole is collapsed, the flow returns to “2” in the flowchart of FIG. 6 and the suction is continued.

When the nozzle unit 24 sucks in a high-concentration powder / air mixture for some reason, the suction transport pipe 49 may be blocked with powder. The flowchart of FIG. 8B shows an interrupt routine for dealing with such a situation. Referring to this flowchart, when it is detected that the negative pressure in the transport pipe 49 is continuously lower than the −5000 mm water column (that is, higher vacuum) for 10 seconds, for example, (S401), the controller 44 transports. Assuming that the tube 49 is closed with powder, the suction is stopped by closing the shutoff valve 106 (FIG. 1) (S402). Next, the control device 44 raises the nozzle body 46 by several pitches so that the nozzle does not suck the powder, retreats the sliding nozzle head 48 to the upper limit position (S403), restarts the suction and performs the secondary operation. The opening degree of the air flow control valve 60 (FIG. 5) is increased to increase the amount of secondary air (S404), the flow returns to “2” in the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the suction is continued. When the amount of secondary air is increased in this way, the powder / air mixing ratio is reduced, so that the blockage of the transport pipe 49 is eliminated.

FIG. 12 shows a variation of the shielding member 72 shown in FIGS.
In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the shielding member 72 is formed in a bowl shape by welding a number of metal bars instead of the metal plate. Therefore, it is suitable when the powder has poor fluidity.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 12 (c), a microporous air-permeable diaphragm 110 is provided outside the side plate 76 and the bottom plate 78 (FIG. 3) of the shielding member 72, and the microporous diaphragm 110 and A closed air filled chamber 112 is formed between the side plate 76 and the bottom plate 78. A compressed air introduction pipe 114 is communicated with the air filling chamber 112, and compressed air is supplied from a compressed air source (not shown) such as a compressor. In this embodiment, since the powder can be fluidized by aeration of the powder in the flexible container 14 through the air permeable diaphragm 110, it is suitable for sucking powder having poor fluidity. .

FIG. 13 shows a variation of the unloading device shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the unloading apparatus 10 includes a funnel-shaped container mounting table 120, and the flexible container 14 is mounted on the funnel-shaped mounting table 120.
Accordingly, as shown in FIGS. 13A, 13B, and 13C, the flexible container 14 has a funnel-shaped container mounting table 120 as the suction of the powder proceeds and the amount of powder in the container 14 decreases. Since it slides toward the bottom along the funnel-shaped inner surface, the container lifting device 28 shown in FIG. 1 can be omitted, and a simple belt-hanging post 122 can be used, thereby reducing the cost of the device.

  Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to them, and various modifications and changes can be made. For example, the forward and backward movement of the sliding nozzle head is not limited to the above-described example. The configuration, material, and geometric shape of the shielding member 72 can be changed as appropriate. An electric motor can be used as a drive source for the nozzle unit lifting device. An existing traveling hoist device on the factory ceiling may be used for lifting the container.

10: Unloading device 12: Suction-type pneumatic transport device 14: Flexible container 16: Powder 18: Destination container 24: Nozzle unit 26: Nozzle unit lifting device (first lifting means)
28: Container lifting device 34: Cylinder for raising and lowering nozzle unit 40: Vertical arm 44: Control device 46: Nozzle body 48: Sliding nozzle head 49: Suction transport pipe 50: Inner pipe 52: Outer pipe 54: Secondary air supply passage 68: Suction port of sliding nozzle head 72: Shielding member 80: Lower opening of shielding member 82: Sliding nozzle head lifting device (second lifting means)
94: Lifting belt 96: Balance weight 104: Pressure sensor


Patent Applicant YMS Co., Ltd. Attorney Hiroshi Ito

Claims (11)

Flexible container unloading device:
In a flexible container, comprising: a nozzle body connectable to a suction transport pipe of a suction type air transporter; and a sliding nozzle head fitted to a lower portion of the nozzle body so as to be airtight and slidable with respect to the nozzle body A nozzle unit for sucking powder of
A shielding member that is fixed to the nozzle body and surrounds the lower end of the sliding nozzle head to prevent the inner bag of the flexible container from being adsorbed by a suction port provided at the lower end of the sliding nozzle head; The lower end of the sliding nozzle head has a lower opening that allows access;
First elevating means for elevating the nozzle body in the vertical direction;
Second elevating means for elevating and lowering the sliding nozzle head relative to the nozzle body so as to allow the lower end of the sliding nozzle head to enter and exit from the lower opening of the shielding member;
Control means for controlling the first and second lifting and lowering means, and at the time of powder suction, the lower end of the sliding nozzle head is moved into and out of the lower opening of the shielding member while moving the nozzle body. Control means for gradually lowering;
A flexible container unloading device characterized by comprising: The unloading device further includes lifting means acting on the upper edge of the flexible container, and the upper edge of the flexible container is gradually shrunk as the amount of residual powder in the flexible container decreases, so that the residual powder is flexible. 2. A loading and unloading device according to claim 1, characterized in that it is collected in the central part of the container. The load lifting device according to claim 2, wherein the lifting means acts on a lifting belt of a flexible container. The load lifting device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the lifting means includes a counterweight, and a lifting force equal to the weight of the counterweight is applied to the flexible container. The load balancing device according to claim 4, wherein the counterweight is composed of a plurality of weights, and the weight can be adjusted. The unloading device further includes a shut-off valve that controls the suction of the powder, a pressure sensor that detects the pressure in the suction pipe of the suction-type pneumatic transporter, and a position sensor that detects the position of the nozzle unit. ,
When the nozzle unit approaches a lower limit position and the pressure in the suction pipe becomes high vacuum, the inner bag of the flexible container is sucked to the suction port of the sliding nozzle head. 6. The loading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the suction of powder is stopped and the suction is resumed after raising the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head. The load emptying device further includes a vibration device for exciting the flexible container,
The control device regards that the nozzle hole is generated in the powder in the flexible container when the pressure in the suction pipe becomes a low vacuum even though the nozzle unit is not lowered, and the nozzle 7. The load emptying device according to claim 6, wherein the flexible container is vibrated after raising the main body and the sliding nozzle head. The unloading device further comprises means for increasing the lifting force of the lifting means,
The control device regards that the nozzle hole is generated in the powder in the flexible container when the pressure in the suction pipe becomes a low vacuum even though the nozzle unit is not lowered, and the nozzle 7. The load evacuation apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the lifting force of the flexible container is increased after raising the main body and the sliding nozzle head. The nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head are each formed in a double tube structure, and the nozzle unit has a controllable secondary air supply passage for supplying secondary air to the suction port of the sliding nozzle head. And
When the pressure in the suction pipe becomes a high vacuum, the control device considers that the suction pipe of the pneumatic transport machine is blocked with powder, stops the powder suction, and the nozzle body and the sliding nozzle head 9. The load evacuation apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the secondary air flowing through the secondary air supply passage is increased after the air is raised. The unloading device further includes a funnel-shaped container mounting table, and the flexible container moves toward the bottom along the funnel-shaped recess of the container mounting table as the powder in the flexible container decreases as the powder is sucked. The load emptying device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the powder falls and gathers in the center of the flexible container. An air permeable diaphragm made of a microporous material is provided outside the shielding member of the load evacuation device, and the compressed air is supplied to the air-filled chamber between the diaphragm and the shielding member, whereby the powder in the flexible container is reduced. The load emptying device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized by being fluidized.

Images