JP5865151B2 - Fruit and vegetable sorter - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a fruit and vegetable sorting device that conveys fruits, vegetables, and the like and sorts them according to the characteristics of fruit and vegetables, such as size.

A tomato fruit sorting machine as a conventional fruit and vegetable sorting device includes a pair of left and right first transport bodies, and a second transport body that is fixed to the first transport body and on which tomatoes (fruit vegetables) can be placed and fruit vegetables can be sent out. And a characteristic measuring unit that optically and automatically measures the quality (characteristic) and size (characteristic) of the fruit vegetables. Then, based on the quality and size of the fruit vegetables measured by the characteristic measurement unit, the second carrier sends out the fruit vegetables to the left or right side of the traveling direction of the first carrier and delivers them to the receiving unit, so that the fruits and vegetables are delivered. Sort by grade and size.

  In such a fruit sorter, the quality and size of fruit vegetables are optically automatically measured by the characteristic measurement unit, so that there is a problem that defects in appearance (scratches, colors, shapes, etc.) cannot be found completely. there were. Such an appearance defect may be surely found by visual inspection by an operator. Therefore, as shown in Patent Document 1, a technique for determining the quality of fruit vegetables by using a combination of determination by automatic engineering measurement in a characteristic measurement unit and determination by visual observation by an operator is disclosed. According to this document, two input units are arranged side by side on the side where the second carrier sends out fruit vegetables and adjacent to the second carrier. Then, the operator visually determines the fruit and vegetables placed on the second transport body, and inputs the determination results using the two input units.

JP 2011-37550 A

  However, in Patent Document 1, the input unit is configured separately from the second transport body, and it is necessary to include another transport body that transports the input unit so as to run in parallel with the second transport body. For this reason, there is a problem that the configuration of the fruit sorting machine is complicated, and control that matches the speeds of the transport body that transports the input unit and the first transport body that transports the second transport body is required. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a fruit vegetable sorting apparatus that can reliably sort fruit vegetables without complicating the configuration.

Therefore a first aspect of the present invention, a first carrier of the left and right pair,
A plurality of second transport bodies fixed to the first transport body and provided with a transport belt for placing fruit vegetables;
A characteristic measuring unit for optically measuring the characteristics of the fruit vegetables;
With classifying the fruit vegetables into a plurality of groups based on the first information of said measured fruiting at the characteristic measuring section, and a control unit which Ru comprising a determination unit,
And a plurality of receiving portions for receiving the pre-Symbol fruit vegetables in each group,
In fruit vegetable sorting apparatus passes to the receiving unit turned out before Symbol fruit vegetables to the left or right side of the traveling direction of the first carrier by previous Ki搬 feed belt moves,
The second information of the fruit vegetables which are classified into groups by the eye view of the work's, is inputted to the determination section by the input section provided in the second carrier,
The determination unit compares the first information with the second information, and selects the second information when the first information is different from the second information, and the control unit selects the selected information. In a position based on the second information, the second transport body is configured to control to send the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit,
The input unit is disposed on the opposite side to the side on which the fruit vegetables are sent out and above the conveyor belt ,
The input unit includes two flat surfaces formed in an L shape in a side view, and the two flat surfaces include a first flat surface and a second flat surface,
The operator comes into contact with the switch and the input unit is rotated by pressing the first planar surface, said second information by operating the switch, wherein Rukoto is input to the determination unit .

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to the first aspect, each of the second transport bodies includes a plurality of the input units.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the input unit by operating the, and wherein the contact to Rukoto to the switch, which is arranged close to.

The invention according to claim 4 is the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the magnet is provided in the vicinity of the switch, while the input part is provided with a metal adsorption part.
When the input unit comes into contact with the switch, the attracting unit is attracted to the magnet .

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the input section is supported by a support shaft so as to be rotatable with respect to the second transport body,
On the inside of the side surface of the fruit vegetable sorting device, provided with a push-back unit for pushing back the input unit,
When the input unit is pressed,
After the said 2nd conveyance body sends out the said fruit vegetables to the said receiving part, the said pushing back part pushes back the said 2nd flat surface of the said input part, and the said input part is separated from the said switch, It is characterized by the above-mentioned .

The invention according to claim 6 is the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second carrier is
The main body,
A set of rollers rotatably attached to both ends of the main body,
An extrusion unit attached on the conveyor belt wound around the set of rollers, and supporting the fruit vegetables from the rear side when feeding the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit;
The extruding portion is arranged so as to follow an arcuate outline of the fruit vegetable in plan view .

The invention according to claim 7 is the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to claim 6 , further comprising a positioning portion on the upper side of the main body portion so as to cover the conveyor belt,
The positioning part is provided on the side where the fruit vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part,
The positioning portion includes a recess;
The recess, along the contour of the in plan view fruit vegetables, and features a Rukoto is formed in front of the set of extrusion.

The invention according to claim 8 is a pair of left and right first transport bodies;
A plurality of second transport bodies fixed to the first transport body and provided with a transport belt for placing fruit vegetables;
A characteristic measuring unit for optically measuring the characteristics of the fruit vegetables;
The fruit vegetables are classified into a plurality of groups based on the first information of the fruit vegetables measured by the characteristic measurement unit, and a control unit including a determination unit;
A plurality of receiving units for receiving the fruit vegetables for each group;
In the fruit vegetable sorting device that delivers the fruit vegetables to the left side or the right side of the traveling direction of the first conveyance body and delivers it to the receiving unit by moving the conveyance belt,
Second information of the fruit vegetables classified into groups by the visual inspection of the operator is input to the determination unit by the input unit provided in the second transport body,
The determination unit compares the first information with the second information, and selects the second information when the first information is different from the second information, and the control unit selects the selected information. In a position based on the second information, the second transport body is configured to control to send the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit,
The input unit is disposed on the opposite side to the side on which the fruit vegetables are sent out and above the conveyor belt,
The second carrier is
The main body,
A set of rollers rotatably attached to both ends of the main body,
An extrusion unit attached on the conveyor belt wound around the set of rollers, and supporting the fruit vegetables from the rear side when feeding the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit;
Arrange the extruded part so as to follow the arcuate contour of the fruit vegetables in plan view,
A positioning part is provided on the upper side of the main body so as to cover the conveyor belt,
The positioning part is provided on the side where the fruit vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part,
The positioning portion includes a recess;
The recess, along the contour of the in plan view fruit vegetables, and characterized in that it is formed toward front of the set of extrusion.

The invention according to claim 9, in fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to any one of claims 6 to 8, Bei give a support portion on an upper surface of the main body portion,
The support portion, so as to be perpendicular to the center line of said body portion extending in the feeding direction of the fruit vegetables, and is formed in a symmetrical from the center line toward the opposite sides,
The support part is formed to be higher from the center line toward both sides.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to the ninth aspect, a plurality of the support portions are arranged at regular intervals.

  The invention according to claim 11 is the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the support portion is formed so that a side close to the receiving portion is lowered.

According to the invention described in claim 1, a first carrier of the left and right pair, is secured to the first carrier, and a plurality of second carrier comprising a conveyor belt for placing the fruit vegetables, of the fruit vegetables a characteristic measurement unit for measuring a characteristic optically, with classifying the fruit vegetables into a plurality of groups based on the first information of said measured fruiting at the characteristic measuring section, and a control unit which Ru comprising a determination unit, and a plurality of receiving portions for receiving the pre-Symbol fruit vegetables in each group, before Ki搬 send a pre-Symbol fruit vegetables by the belt moves to said receiving unit turned out to the left or right in the traveling direction of the first conveying member in fruit vegetable sorting apparatus passing, the second information of the fruit vegetables which are classified into groups by the eye view of the work's, is inputted to the determination section by the input section provided in the second carrier, wherein the determination unit , Comparing the first information and the second information, When the first information is different from the second information, the second information is selected, and the control unit is configured to position the fruit vegetables in the position based on the selected second information. is configured to control to deliver to the receiving unit, the input unit, a side opposite to the side to be fed with the fruit vegetables, and is disposed above the conveyor belt, wherein the input unit L in a side view Two flat surfaces formed in a letter shape, the two flat surfaces are composed of a first flat surface and a second flat surface, and when the operator presses the first flat surface, the input unit rotation and contact with the switch, the second information are entered to the determination unit by operating the switch.

As a result, characteristics of fruit vegetables that could not be found completely in the first information obtained by optically automatic measurement by the characteristic measurement unit, such as defects in appearance (scratches, colors, shapes, etc.) Can be found by visual inspection of the operator, and the grouping of the fruit vegetables is performed independently and compared with the first information optically automatically determined as the second information, so that the fruit vegetables are more reliably classified into groups. Can do. Therefore, it is possible to provide a fruit vegetable sorting apparatus that can reliably sort fruit vegetables based on the characteristics of the fruit vegetables. In addition, the input unit is configured integrally with the second carrier, and the configuration of the fruit vegetable sorting device is not complicated. Also, a problem that occurs when the input unit is configured separately from the second transport body, that is, control for matching the speeds of the transport body that transports the input section and the first transport body that transports the second transport body. This also eliminates the need for. As a result, it is possible to provide a fruit vegetable sorting apparatus that can reliably separate fruit vegetables without complicating the configuration. Further, by adopting a configuration in which the input unit can be rotated, it is possible to reliably contact the switch with a simple operation.

  According to invention of Claim 2, each said 2nd conveyance body is equipped with two or more said input parts, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

According to the invention described in claim 3, by operating the input section can input the second information in closely spaced contact with the switch to Runode, simple configuration.

According to the invention of claim 4, the magnet is provided in the vicinity of the switch, while the input portion is provided with a metal suction portion, and when the input portion comes into contact with the switch, the suction portion is Since the magnet is attracted to the magnet, the state where the input unit is in contact with the switch can be reliably held. In addition, this can be realized with a simple configuration. Thus, depression of the switch is reliably performed, Ru can send the second information accurately to the determination unit.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the input unit is supported by the support shaft so as to be rotatable with respect to the second transport body, and a push for pushing the input unit back to the inner side surface of the fruit vegetable sorting device. When the input unit is pressed down when the input unit is pressed, the push-back unit pushes back the second flat surface of the input unit after the second transporter sends the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit. Release the input from the switch .

Thereby, it is not necessary to separately provide a mechanism for separating the input unit from the switch in the input unit, and an input unit having a simple configuration can be obtained. In particular, when the second carrier is relatively small, by a simple configuration an input unit, that a easy to manufacture the second carrier.

According to the invention described in claim 6, the second transport body is wound around the main body portion, the one set of rollers rotatably attached to both side ends of the main body portion, and the one set of rollers. And an extruding part that supports the fruit vegetables in an auxiliary manner from the rear when the fruit vegetables are sent to the receiving part, and the extruding part has an arcuate outline of the fruit vegetables in plan view. Arrange along .

As a result, when the fruit vegetables are round in plan view (for example, tomatoes, apples, persimmons, etc.), when the fruit vegetables are sent from the second carrier toward the receiving part, the fruit vegetables to be falling behind the movement of the conveyor belt by the inertia, the extrusion unit is Ru can be reliably supported from the rear.

According to the invention described in claim 7, a positioning part is provided on the upper side of the main body part so as to cover the transport belt, and the positioning part is provided on the side where the fruit vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part, Further, the positioning portion includes a recess, and the recess is formed along the contour of the fruit vegetable in a plan view and in front of the one set of extrusion portions, so that the fruit vegetable has a round shape in a plan view ( For example, in the case of tomatoes, apples, strawberries, etc., the concave portions of the positioning part serve as a guideline for placing the fruit vegetables on the conveyor belt, which makes it easier to place them. Further, on the upper side of the main body portion, by providing the positioning portion so as to straddle the conveyor belt, as compared with the case of providing the positioning portion adjacent to the body portion, Ru can be shortened extension of the second carrier .

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, a pair of left and right first transport bodies, a plurality of second transport bodies that are fixed to the first transport body and have a transport belt on which fruit vegetables are placed, and characteristics of the fruit vegetables A characteristic measurement unit that optically measures the fruit vegetables, a control unit that classifies the fruit vegetables into a plurality of groups based on the first information of the fruit vegetables measured by the characteristic measurement unit, and includes a determination unit; and the group A plurality of receiving units that receive the fruit vegetables each time, and the fruit and vegetable sorting device that delivers the fruit vegetables to the left or right side in the traveling direction of the first conveyance body and delivers the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit by moving the conveyance belt The second information of the fruit vegetables classified into groups by the visual observation of the operator is input to the determination unit by an input unit provided in the second transport body, and the determination unit includes the first information and the second information. Compare with previous When the first information is different from the second information, the second information is selected, and the control unit is configured to position the fruit vegetables in the position based on the selected second information. It is configured to control to send out to the receiving unit, the input unit is disposed on the side opposite to the side from which the fruit vegetables are sent out and above the transport belt, and the second transport body is a main body A pair of rollers rotatably attached to both side ends of the main body, and the belt attached to the conveyor belt wound around the pair of rollers, and when sending the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit An extruding part that supports the fruit vegetables from behind, and the extruding part is arranged along the arcuate outline of the fruit vegetables in plan view, and is disposed above the main body so as to cover the conveyor belt. A positioning portion, wherein the positioning portion Provided on the side where the fruit and vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part, the positioning part further includes a recess, and the recess follows the outline of the fruit and vegetables in a plan view, and Ru is formed in front.

As a result, when the fruit vegetables are round in plan view (for example, tomatoes, apples, strawberries, etc.)
When this fruit vegetable is sent out from the second carrier toward the receiving part, on the conveyor belt that has started to move,
The fruit vegetable is about to fall over the conveyor belt movement due to inertia.
Can be supported more reliably. Further , when the fruit vegetables are round in plan view (for example, tomatoes, apples, persimmons, etc.), the concave portions of the positioning portion serve as a guide for placing the fruit vegetables on the conveyor belt, and are easy to place. Further, by providing the positioning unit on the upper side of the main body so as to straddle the transport belt, the extension of the second transport body can be shortened as compared with the case where the positioning unit is provided adjacent to the main body.

According to the invention described in claim 9, Bei give a support portion on an upper surface of the main body portion, said support portion so as to be perpendicular to the center line of said body portion extending in the feeding direction of the fruit vegetables, and the The support part is formed so as to be higher from the center line toward both sides while being formed symmetrically from the center line toward both sides.

  For this reason, it becomes easy to mount fruit vegetables on the centerline of the main-body part of a 2nd conveyance body. Therefore, the balance is good when the fruit vegetables are transported by the second transport body. Furthermore, when the center line of the conveyor belt is aligned with the center line of the main body, the fruit vegetables are easily placed in the center of the conveyor belt, and when the vegetables are sent out to the receiving section, the vegetables are stably conveyed on the conveyor belt. It does not fall on the second carrier, and further, it does not fall from the second carrier.

  According to invention of Claim 10, since the said support part is multiply arranged by a fixed space | interval, a support part can be comprised lightweight.

  According to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, since the support portion is formed so that the side close to the receiving portion is lowered, when the fruit vegetables are sent from the conveyor belt to the receiving portion, the support portion is disposed between the fruit vegetables and the receiving portion. The height difference can be reduced.

It is a top view of the fruit selection machine as an example of the fruit vegetable selection apparatus of this invention. It is the partially expanded sectional view. (A) of a 2nd conveyance body is a top view, (b) is a schematic bottom view. (A) of the 2nd conveyance body is an A arrow sectional view of Drawing 3 (a), and (b) is a rear view. (A) is a perspective view of an input part, (b) is the side view seen from the inside, (c) is a partial bottom view. (A) is a top view of the switch body vicinity, (b) is a side view of (a). It is an enlarged plan view near the input unit. It is a control block diagram of the principal part. (A) is a plan view of the vicinity of the guide rail and the switching unit, (b) is a rear view of the guide rail, and (c) is a rear view of the switching unit. It is a figure which shows the relationship between an input part and a pushing-back part. (A) is a front view of a pushback part, (b) is a top view of a pushback part. It is a top view near the guide rail and return part with which the delivery side of a fruit selection machine is equipped. It is a figure which mounts a tomato on a 2nd conveyance body, and shows the state which the conveyance belt bent. (A) is a side view which shows the state which the input part is not rotating, (b) is a side view which shows the state which the input part rotated and the switch was turned ON. (A) is a top view which shows the state which the 2nd conveyance body mounted the tomato, (b) is a top view which shows the state after the 2nd conveyance body sent out the tomato to the receiving part. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement in which a pushback part pushes back an input part, (a) is a figure which shows the state which the input part contact | abutted to the pushback part, (b) is input from the state of (a) It is a figure which shows the state in which the part is pushed back. It is a figure which shows another example of the support body with which the fruit vegetable sorting apparatus of this invention is equipped, (a) is a top view of a 2nd conveyance body, (b) is A arrow sectional drawing of (a).

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a fruit selection machine 1 as an example of a fruit vegetable sorting apparatus of the present invention, which sorts tomatoes (fruit vegetables) T based on quality (characteristics of fruit vegetables) and size (characteristics of fruit vegetables), and FIG. 1 is a partially enlarged sectional view of FIG. 1 (note that a support bracket 29 described later is omitted in FIG. 2). The quality means a grade, and is classified into four levels of A, B, C, and D according to the degree of scratches on the surface of the tomato T. In addition, A is a case without a damage | wound, and the quantity of a damage | wound increases in order of B, C, D. The size indicates the size of the tomato T, and is classified into seven levels of 3L, 2L, L, M, S, 2S, and 3S. In addition, although it classify | categorizes and classifies for each grade about each grade, suppose that the tomato T of the grade D is not classified for every size. Therefore, since the sizes 3L, 2L, L, M, S, 2S, and 3S are classified for the grades A, B, and C, respectively, 21 sorts can be performed. In addition to this, grade D that is not classified by size is added to sort into 22 groups.

  The fruit selector 1 is formed in an annular shape along a vertical plane, is fixed to a pair of rotatable left and right first transport bodies 15 and 15, the first transport body 15, places a tomato T, and is fed out. Based on the quality and size of the tomato T measured by the second camera 20, the measurement camera (characteristic measuring unit) CA that optically measures the quality and size of the tomato T, and the measurement camera CA Fruit vegetable classification unit (control unit) that classifies the tomatoes into a plurality of groups, a plurality of receiving conveyors (receiving units) 50A and 50B that are arranged for each group and receive the tomatoes T classified into the group, A control unit that manages and controls the operation of the second carrier 20 is provided. In this example, since the tomatoes T are classified into 22 groups as described above, 22 or more receiving conveyors 50A and 50B are arranged, but only two are illustrated in FIG.

  The second transport body 20 sends the tomato T to the left of the traveling direction J of the first transport body 15 (in this example, it is the left side, but may be the right side) and delivers it to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B. And receiving conveyor 50A, 50B conveys tomato T in the arrow K direction.

  The pair of left and right first transport bodies 15 and 15 is formed of an endless belt such as a chain and is provided with a sprocket (gear) provided at the front end and the rear end in the traveling direction J (the exit side and the entry side of the fruit selector 1), respectively. Rotated around. The front end or rear end sprocket is connected to an engine or the like to form a driving body. The 2nd conveyance body 20 is fixed to the 1st conveyance body 15 via the attachment members 61 and 62 (In FIG. 2, the 2nd conveyance body 20 attached to the lower end of the attachment members 61 and 61 in the lower part is abbreviate | omitted. ing).

  Since the 1st conveyance body 15 is extended and arranged in the front-back direction (traveling direction J) of the fruit selection machine 1 so that a loop may be drawn on a vertical surface, in FIG. The first transport body 15 on the lower stage moves in the opposite direction (in this example, the upper stage moves toward the rear side of the drawing and the lower stage moves toward the front side of the drawing). For this reason, the 2nd conveyance body 20 attached to the upper 1st conveyance body 15 and the 2nd conveyance body 20 attached to the lower 1st conveyance body 15 are each conveyed in a reverse direction. The tomato T is placed on the upper second transport body 20, and the lower second transport body 20 is transported to the entrance side of the fruit selector 1 in an upside down state.

  Both the 1st conveyance body 15 and the 2nd conveyance body 20 are arrange | positioned inside a pair of side plates 10 and 10 of the fruit selection machine 1. FIG.

  Reference numeral 30 denotes a guide bar for moving the conveyor belt 23 to send out the tomato T toward the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B by moving from left to right in FIG. Details of the guide rod 30 will be described later.

The fruit selector 1 optically measures the “placement zone P” where the tomato T is placed on the second transport body 20 from the entry side to the exit side of the line, and the quality and size with the measurement camera CA. “Measuring zone Q”, “Visual judgment input zone R” in which the operator visually determines the quality and inputs manually, “Sorting” sent to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B to sort the individual tomatoes T based on the quality and size Zone S ".

  Next, the detail of the 2nd conveyance body 20 is demonstrated using FIG.3, 4, referring FIG. The second transport body 20 is hung between a pair of rollers 22, 22 and a pair of rollers 22, 22 that are passively rotatably attached to both ends of the body 21. Consists of a conveyor belt 23 and the like. The conveyor belt 23 is for placing the tomato T and sending it out. Further, on the conveyor belt 23, there are fixed extrusion portions 28 and 28 for supporting the tomato T from the rear side when the tomato T is sent to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B. The pushing portion 28 is arranged along the outline of the arc-shaped tomato T in a plan view (in FIG. 3A).

  The conveyor belt 23 and the extruding portions 28 and 28 are made of resin. The extruded portion 28 is formed in a prismatic shape and is made of an elastic material so as not to damage the tomato T. The conveyor belt 23 is formed in a rectangular sheet shape, and both ends in the longitudinal direction are hung between the rollers 22 and 22 and then connected by a connecting member 35 below the main body portion 21. The connecting member 35 includes an upper member 35A and a lower member 35B. After the both ends of the conveyor belt 23 are overlapped with a certain width, the overlapped portions are sandwiched between the upper member 35A and the lower member 35B from above and below, and the upper member 35A and the lower member 35B are tightened with the bolts BT. In this way, an endless conveyance belt 23 is formed. The transport belt 23 is arranged so that the center in the width direction of the transport belt 23 is positioned on the center line CL of the second transport body 20.

  Note that a through hole is formed in a substantially central portion of the connecting member 35 so that the guide rod 30 is passed therethrough. A hook portion 30 </ b> A is formed at the upper end of the guide rod 30, and a guide rail 36 that fits into the hook portion 30 </ b> A is attached to the back side of the main body portion 21. The guide rail 36 is disposed along the longitudinal direction of the transport belt 23 and on the center line CL of the second transport body 20. When the guide rod 30 moves by being guided by a guide rail, which will be described later, the guide rail 36 plays a role of reliably moving the guide rod 30 along the longitudinal direction of the transport belt 23. The guide rod 30 does not need to be fixed to the connecting member 35 and the conveyor belt 23, but moves together with them.

  The guide bar 30 is for moving the conveyor belt 23. As the guide bar 30 moves, the connecting member 35 and the conveyor belt 23 also move. Further, auxiliary members 37, 37 are fixed on the back side of the main body 21. The auxiliary member 37 is for preventing the vertical swing when the transport belt 23 moves, and is provided between the transport belt 23 with a certain gap. Further, the auxiliary member 37 is provided with a certain gap so as not to contact the connecting member 35. Since the conveyor belt 23 has a two-stage structure with the rollers 22 and 22 interposed therebetween, the direction of movement on the lower stage side where the guide rod 30 is attached is opposite to the direction of movement on the upper stage side where the tomato T is placed. .

  The extruding portions 28 are fixed on the conveyor belt 23 so as to have a square shape in plan view. The fixing method depends on an adhesive or the like. The extruding portions 28 are arranged symmetrically with respect to the center line CL.

  A plurality of support portions 27 are provided on the upper surface of the main body portion 21. The support portion 27 is formed so as to be orthogonal to the feeding direction of the tomato T (that is, to the center line CL) and symmetrically toward the both sides from the center line CL. The support portion 27 is formed in a right triangle plate shape, and is fixed to the upper surface of the main body portion 21 (with the plate upright) so as to be symmetric with respect to the center line CL. The support portion 27 is formed so as to become higher from the center line CL toward both sides. A plurality of pairs of support portions 27 arranged symmetrically with respect to the center line CL are arranged at a constant interval in the delivery direction of the tomato T.

  The transport belt 23 is disposed on the support portion 27. When the tomato T is not placed, the transport belt 23 is disposed horizontally so as to contact only the corner at the upper end of the hypotenuse of the support portion 27 as shown in FIG. When the tomato T is placed, the conveyor belt 23 is lowered by the weight of the tomato T and comes into contact with the hypotenuse of the support portion 27. Since the support portions 27 are formed so as to be lowered toward the center line CL, when the tomato T is placed on the transport belt 23, the lower portion of the round tomato T is stably held near the center line CL. The Therefore, the tomato T can be prevented from rolling in the width direction of the transport belt 23 even when the second transport body 20 is moving in the traveling direction J.

The pair of support portions 27A and 27A on the side closest to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B are formed shorter than the other support portions 27. This is because when the transport belt 23 sends out the tomato T to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B, the step between the support portion 27A and the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B is reduced so that the tomato T is not damaged by the drop. It is.

  Also, two input sections 24A and 24B are provided on the second transport body 20 near the rollers 22 on the side opposite to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B (that is, the input sections 24A and 24B are provided on the side where the tomato T is sent out). And the upper side of the conveyor belt 23). The input units 24A and 24B are arranged side by side along the traveling direction J of the second transport body 20. The input parts 24A and 24B are made of plastic and are rotatable with respect to the support shaft 25. The support shaft 25 is fixed to a pair of support brackets 29 and 29 provided so as to rise upward from the main body 21.

  A positioning portion 26 is attached to the upper side of the main body portion 21. The positioning unit 26 is provided on the side where the tomato T is sent out from the input units 24A and 24B (that is, the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B). The positioning unit 26 is disposed so as to cover the conveyor belt 23 from above with a certain distance. The positioning portion 26 is formed in a portal shape, and both leg portions thereof are attached to the end of the main body portion 21. The positioning unit 26 includes a recess 26A. The recess 26A is formed in an arc shape so as to follow the outline of the tomato T in plan view. The recess 26A is formed to be slightly in front of the pair of pushing portions 28, 28 in plan view. The concave portion 26 </ b> A serves as a guideline for positioning the tomato T on the transport belt 23 and for supporting the tomato T from the rear so that the tomato T does not roll when the tomato T is placed on the transport belt 23. .

  Two brackets 31 formed of a band-shaped metal plate are provided on the lower side of the main body 21. The bracket 31 is attached so as to cover the main body portion 21 formed in a substantially gate shape in a sectional view from below. Each bracket 31 is attached near the roller 22, that is, near both ends of the main body 21. The upper end of a metal plate attachment member 61 is attached to each bracket 31 with a bolt. The two attachment members 61, 61 are attached by bolts so that the attachment member 62 made of a belt-like metal plate is passed to the lower ends of the two attachment members 61, 61. Both ends of the mounting member 62 are fixed to the first carrier 15 by bolts.

  As shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, the input unit 24B includes two flat surfaces formed in a substantially L shape in a side view, a first flat surface 24B1, a second flat surface 24B2, and And a pair of side surfaces 24B3 and 24B3. A through hole 24B4 is formed in the side surface 24B3, and the support shaft 25 is passed through the through hole 24B4. Further, the suction part ST1 and the contact part ST2 are fixed with bolts inside the side surface 24B3 on the support bracket 29 side. The suction portion ST1 is formed of a metal prism, while the contact portion ST2 is formed of a plastic prism, and both the suction portion ST1 and the contact portion ST2 are provided with through holes for passing bolts. The input unit 24A has the same shape. However, in the input part 24A, the suction part ST1 and the contact part ST2 are provided on the side surface opposite to the input part 24B.

  As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the switch SW is arranged in the vicinity of the input unit 24B. (In this figure, the input unit 24B is shown, but the input unit 24A is also the same. , And a switch SW are provided close to each other). The switch SW is disposed in the switch body 72. The switch body 72 is formed by dropping one corner at the top of the rectangular parallelepiped to form a contact surface 72A. A switch SW is provided at the approximate center of the contact surface 72A so as to be able to appear and retract. The contact surface 72A is provided with permanent magnets MG, MG embedded so that one surface thereof is exposed with the switch SW interposed therebetween. The switch body 72 is fixed on the mounting portion 71. The mounting portion 71 is formed by bending a metal plate twice in a staircase shape. The lower portion includes a through hole and is fixed to the main body portion 21 with a bolt (see FIG. 7). In addition, a switch body 72 is fixed to the upper stage of the placement portion 71. When the input part 24B is rotated, the attracting part ST1 comes into contact with the abutting surface 72A, pushes the switch SW to turn it on, and attracts it to the permanent magnet MG. The input unit 24B is urged by a coil spring (not shown) or the like so that the contact part ST2 contacts the back surface of the switch body 72 (the same applies to the input part 24A). The state in which the contact portion ST2 is in contact with the back surface of the switch body 72 is a normal state, and at this time, the switch SW is turned off.

  FIG. 8 shows a control block diagram of the main part. The control unit CT classifies the tomatoes T into 22 groups based on the quality and size of the tomatoes T measured by the measurement camera CA, and controls the operations of the first carrier 15 and the second carrier 20. The control unit CT further includes a determination unit.

In the measurement zone Q, the tomato T placed on the second carrier 20 is automatically and optically measured for quality and size by the measurement camera CA, and this optical measurement value (first information) is the control unit. Sent to CT. Thereafter, in the visual judgment input zone R, the operator visually determines the quality of the tomato T (here, only the quality), and classifies the tomato T into one of four groups. And the visual measurement value (2nd information) is input using input part 24A, 24B. An example of the input method is as follows. (1) When the quality is A, both the input units 24A and 24B are pressed to turn on both switches SW. (2) When the quality is B, only the input unit 24A is pressed to turn on the corresponding switch SW, and the corresponding switch SW is turned off without pressing the input unit 24B. (3) When the quality is C, only the input unit 24B is pressed to turn on the corresponding switch SW, and the corresponding switch SW is turned off without pressing the input unit 24A. (4) When the quality is D, the two switches SW are both turned OFF without pressing both the input units 24A and 24B. Information on ON / OFF of the two switches SW and SW is transmitted as second information to the control unit CT, and the above determination unit compares the first information with the second information for determination (in the determination unit). The determination method will be described later). The control unit CT turns on and off a stepping motor that drives a switching unit 81 described later.

  9A to 9C show a configuration around the switching unit 81. FIG. When the second transport body 20 is transported by the first transport body 15, the guide rod 30 is guided by the guide rail 80. And the switch part 81 is provided in the position corresponding to each receiving conveyor 50A, 50B. The switching unit 81 is provided with the tip of the rotation shaft 82 fixed at the center. The rear end side of the rotating shaft 82 is connected to a stepping motor. Control part CT is comprised so that tomato T may be sent to a desired receiving conveyor by operating this stepping motor. Reference numeral 83 denotes an auxiliary transport unit, which includes two pulleys 83A and 83B and a belt 83C wound around these pulleys. One of the pulleys 83A and 83B is driven to rotate by a motor, and the belt 83C is always rotating. Reference numeral 80X denotes a guide rail for moving the guide rod 30 moved by the switching unit 81.

  Reference numeral 10 </ b> B is a bottom plate 10 </ b> B spanned between the pair of side plates 10 and 10. The guide rails 80 and 80X and the switching unit 81 are disposed on the bottom plate 10B. The bottom plate 10 </ b> B is disposed substantially horizontally between the upper first transport body 15 and the second transport body 20. At this time, the bottom plate 10B is appropriately arranged so as not to contact the mounting members 61 and 62.

Next, a mechanism for returning the pressed input units 24A and 24B to the original will be described with reference to FIGS. The second transport body 20 sent to the lower stage by the sprocket arranged on the exit side of the fruit selection machine 1 is based on the input parts 24A and 24B pressed by the push-back part 90 provided inside the side plate (side face) 10. Return (turn switch SW OFF). The push-back unit 90 includes a guide plate 91 and a pair of leg portions 92 and 92. The guide plate 91 includes a tapered portion 91 </ b> A disposed slightly oblique to the side plate 10 and a parallel portion 91 </ b> B disposed substantially parallel to the side plate 10. A leg 92 is fixed to the guide plate 91, and the leg 92 is attached to the back side of the side plate 10 with a bolt. The tapered portion 91A of the guide plate 91, an input section 24A of the second carrier 20 which has moved, against the second flat surface 24B2 of 24B comes, the input unit 24A, the input unit 24A by 24B is pushed back gradually, Release 24B from switch SW. The parallel portion 91B serves to support the input portions 24A and 24B pushed back for a certain period of time (when the input portions 24A and 24B are not pushed in, the tapered portion 91A Does not touch).

  FIG. 12 illustrates a mechanism for returning the guide rod 30 of the second transport body 20 that has sent out the tomato T to its original position. The guide rail 80X and the return portion 85 are disposed on the bottom plate 10B. The bottom plate 10 </ b> B is disposed substantially horizontally between the upper first transport body 15 and the second transport body 20. At this time, the bottom plate 10B is disposed so as not to contact the mounting members 61 and 62. The return unit 85 is disposed in front of the sprocket disposed on the exit side of the fruit selector 1 and between the first transport body 15 and the second transport body 20 in the upper stage.

  A method for selecting the tomato T with the fruit sorting machine 1 configured as described above and feeding it to the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in the placement zone P, an operator places the tomato T on the transport belt 23 of the second transport body 20 so that the rear portion thereof contacts the recess 26A. At this time, the concave portion 26 </ b> A of the positioning portion 26 is formed in an arc shape so as to follow the outline of the tomato T in a plan view, so that it becomes a guideline for the operator to place the tomato T on the transport belt 23. is there. When the tomato T is placed on the transport belt 23, the transport belt 23 bends downward toward the center line CL so that the transport belt 23 follows the support portion 27 due to the weight of the tomato T (FIG. 13). For this reason, the tomato T is stably placed on the second transport body 20.

When the second carrier 20 on which the tomato T is placed reaches the measurement zone Q, the quality and size of the tomato T are optically measured by the measurement camera CA. This optical measurement value (first information) is transmitted to the control unit CT. Note that the tomato T whose quality and size are measured by the measurement camera CA is tracked in real time to which position on the fruit selection machine 1 the second transport body 20 on which the tomato T is placed, so that the control unit It is grasped by CT as position information of tomato T.

  Next, when the second transport body 20 on which the tomato T whose optical measurement value is transmitted to the control unit CT is placed reaches the visual determination input zone R, the operator arranged in this zone visually observes the tomato T. Judging the quality of The operator appropriately presses the input units 24A and 24B according to the quality. In this example, it is assumed that only the input unit 24B is pressed (that is, the quality is C). FIG. 14A shows a state in which the input unit 24B is pressed against the urging force of the coil spring before the input unit 24B is pressed. When the input unit 24B is pressed, the suction unit ST1 presses the switch SW. At the same time, the attracting part ST1 is attracted to the permanent magnet MG, and the state where the switch SW is pressed is maintained. The state in which the input unit 24A is pressed is the same as in FIG.

  As described above, there are four input methods using the two input units 24A and 24B. The visual measurement value (second information) of the visual quality by the ON / OFF of the two switches SW is transmitted to the control unit CT and held.

In the determination part with which control part CT is equipped, it determines with the following procedures. First, the quality of the tomato T (that is, the optical measurement value) obtained by the measurement camera CA that has already been transmitted and held to the control unit CT is compared with the quality of the tomato T obtained by the visual measurement value. When the optical measurement value and the visual measurement value are different, the visual measurement value is selected to obtain the final quality of the tomato T. When the optical measurement value and the visual measurement value are the same, the final quality of the tomato T is obtained regardless of whether the optical measurement value or the visual measurement value is selected.

  The control unit CT instructs to send the tomato T to the receiving conveyor (in the corresponding group among the 22 groups) according to the quality of the final tomato T and the size of the optical measurement value (here, A receiving conveyor 50A).

  When approaching the receiving conveyor 50A corresponding to the group to which the tomato T to be placed belongs, the switching unit 81 corresponding to the receiving conveyor 50A rotates from the state shown in FIG. The rod 30 is guided by this and moves in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction J of the second conveyance body 20 to move the conveyance belt 23. Thereby, the tomato T placed on the conveyor belt 23 is sent out to the receiving conveyor 50A (FIG. 15B). In addition, when the conveyance belt 23 starts to move, the tomato T may be inclined relatively backward in the moving direction of the conveyance belt 23 due to inertia. In such a case, the positioning part 26 supports the upper part of the tomato T auxiliary from back. In addition, when the tomato T cannot smoothly move from the conveyor belt 23 to the receiving conveyor 50A, the pushing portion 28 supports the lower portion of the tomato T from the rear. At this time, since the pushing portion 28 is formed so as to follow the outline of the tomato T, when the tomato T is tilted backward when the transfer belt 23 is transferred to the receiving conveyor 50A, the tomato T is reliably supported from the rear. be able to.

  Thus, the guide rod 30 of the second transport body 20 that has sent out the tomato T is guided to the guide rail 80X. When approaching the sprocket on the exit side of the fruit selection machine 1, the guide bar 30 moves away from the guide rail 80X to the return portion 85 and moves to the original position (position before placing the tomato T). And after rotating downward by a sprocket, the 2nd flat surface 24B2 of the input part 24B contact | abuts to the taper part 91A of the guide plate 91 attached to the side plate 10 of the fruit selection machine 1 (FIG. 16 (a)). Since the taper portion 91A is arranged so as to gradually go inward of the side plate 10 in the traveling direction of the second transport body 20, the second flat surface 24B2 (and therefore the input portion 24B) is counterclockwise in the drawing. Rotate around. When the second flat surface 24B2 starts to rotate against the attractive force between the attracting part ST1 and the permanent magnet MG, the attracting part ST1 moves away from the contact surface 72A, and the second flat surface 24B2 is applied by the biasing force of the coil spring. Gradually becomes vertical (FIG. 16B). When the contact portion ST2 contacts the back surface of the switch body 72, the rotation of the input portion 24B stops.

FIGS. 17A and 17B show another example of the present invention. In this example, the shape of the support portion 27 ′ provided in the second transport body 20 is different. Other configurations and operations are the same as in the above example. The support portion 27 ′ in this example is a plate-like member whose upper side is formed in an arc shape. Then, the support portion 27 ', in the direction Cartesian the center line CL on the upper surface of the main body portion 21 of the second carrier 20, and is arranged such that the center line CL and the right and left equidistant. A plurality of such support portions 27 ′ (four in this example) are provided at regular intervals. And support part 27A 'in the side closest to receiving conveyor 50A, 50B is formed shorter than other support part 27'. As a result, the drop between the conveyor belt 23 and the receiving conveyors 50A and 50B is reduced so that the tomato T is not damaged.

  In addition, like support part 27 and support part 27 ', it is not limited to arrange | positioning with a fixed space | interval, You may provide continuously.

  In the above example, 22 or more receiving conveyors 50A and 50B are arranged, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, among the tomatoes T classified into 22 groups, a group having a small quantity may be discharged (sent out) to the same receiving conveyor so that the number of receiving conveyors may be less than 22. In this case, it is important that the plurality of groups of tomatoes T to be sent to the receiving conveyor can be visually identified when the operator packs the boxes. For example, a group of quality A and size 3L and a group of quality A and size 2S are sent out to the same receiving conveyor. In this way, the number of receiving conveyors can be reduced, and the space for the fruit selection machine 1 can be reduced.

  Further, the number of input units 24A and 24B provided in the second transport body 20 is not limited to two, and may be one or three or more. The number can be increased or decreased appropriately according to the number.

  Furthermore, in the above-described example, the positioning portion 26 is attached to the main body portion 21 of the second transport body 20 and disposed so as to straddle the transport belt 23. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the positioning portion is You may comprise so that it may attach to the conveyance belt 23. FIG. In this case, the extruding unit 28 fixed to the conveyor belt 23 is not necessary.

  In the above example, tomato was mentioned as an example of fruit vegetables, but the present invention is not limited to this, and may be other crops such as oranges and melons.

1 Fruit sorting machine (fruit vegetable sorting device)
10 Side plate (side of fruit vegetable sorting device)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 1st conveyance body 20 2nd conveyance body 21 Main body part 22 Roller 23 Conveyance belt 24A, 24B Input part 24B1 1st flat surface 24B2 2nd flat surface 25 Support shaft 28 Extrusion part 26 Positioning part 26A Concave part 27 Support part 50A, 50B Receiving conveyor (receiving section)
90 Push-back part CA measurement camera (characteristic measurement part)
CL Center line of main unit CT control unit MG Permanent magnet (magnet)
ST1 Adsorption part SW switch T Tomato (fruit vegetables)

Claims (11)

A first carrier left right pair,
A plurality of second transport bodies fixed to the first transport body and provided with a transport belt for placing fruit vegetables;
A characteristic measuring unit for optically measuring the characteristics of the fruit vegetables;
With classifying the fruit vegetables into a plurality of groups based on the first information of said measured fruiting at the characteristic measuring section, and a control unit which Ru comprising a determination unit,
And a plurality of receiving portions for receiving the pre-Symbol fruit vegetables in each group,
In fruit vegetable sorting apparatus passes to the receiving unit turned out before Symbol fruit vegetables to the left or right side of the traveling direction of the first carrier by previous Ki搬 feed belt moves,
The second information of the fruit vegetables which are classified into groups by the eye view of the work's, is inputted to the determination section by the input section provided in the second carrier,
The determination unit compares the first information with the second information, and selects the second information when the first information is different from the second information, and the control unit selects the selected information. In a position based on the second information, the second transport body is configured to control to send the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit,
The input unit is disposed on the opposite side to the side on which the fruit vegetables are sent out and above the conveyor belt ,
The input unit includes two flat surfaces formed in an L shape in a side view, and the two flat surfaces include a first flat surface and a second flat surface,
The operator comes into contact with the switch and the input unit is rotated by pressing the first planar surface, said second information by operating the switch, wherein Rukoto is input to the determination unit , Fruit vegetable sorting device.   The fruit vegetable sorting device according to claim 1, wherein each of the second transport bodies includes a plurality of the input units. The input unit by operating the, and wherein the contact to Rukoto the switch disposed in proximity to, fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. While providing a magnet near the switch, the input unit includes a metal adsorption unit,
The fruit vegetable sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein when the input unit comes into contact with the switch, the attracting unit is attracted to the magnet. The input unit is supported by a support shaft so as to be rotatable with respect to the second transport body ,
On the inside of the side surface of the fruit vegetable sorting device, provided with a push-back unit for pushing back the input unit,
When the input unit is pressed,
The input unit is separated from the switch by the push-back unit pushing back the second flat surface of the input unit after the second transport body sends the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit. Item 5. A vegetable vegetable sorting apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 4 . Before Symbol the second carrier is,
The main body,
A set of rollers rotatably attached to both ends of the main body,
Said set of wound roller mounted on said conveyor belts, e Bei and extrusion portion supporting the fruit vegetables behind the supplementarily when feeding the fruit vegetables in the receiving portion,
6. The fruit vegetable sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the extruding part is disposed so as to follow an arcuate outline of the fruit vegetable in plan view. A positioning part is provided on the upper side of the main body so as to cover the conveyor belt,
The positioning part is provided on the side where the fruit vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part,
The positioning portion includes a recess;
The recess, along the contour of the in plan view fruit vegetables, and characterized in that it is formed toward front of the set of extrusion, fruit vegetable sorting apparatus according to claim 6. A pair of left and right first transport bodies;
A plurality of second transport bodies fixed to the first transport body and provided with a transport belt for placing fruit vegetables;
A characteristic measuring unit for optically measuring the characteristics of the fruit vegetables;
The fruit vegetables are classified into a plurality of groups based on the first information of the fruit vegetables measured by the characteristic measurement unit, and a control unit including a determination unit;
A plurality of receiving units for receiving the fruit vegetables for each group;
In the fruit vegetable sorting device that delivers the fruit vegetables to the left side or the right side of the traveling direction of the first conveyance body and delivers it to the receiving unit by moving the conveyance belt,
Second information of the fruit vegetables classified into groups by the visual inspection of the operator is input to the determination unit by the input unit provided in the second transport body,
The determination unit compares the first information with the second information, and selects the second information when the first information is different from the second information, and the control unit selects the selected information. In a position based on the second information, the second transport body is configured to control to send the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit,
The input unit is disposed on the opposite side to the side on which the fruit vegetables are sent out and above the conveyor belt,
The second carrier is
The main body,
A set of rollers rotatably attached to both ends of the main body,
An extrusion unit attached on the conveyor belt wound around the set of rollers, and supporting the fruit vegetables from the rear side when feeding the fruit vegetables to the receiving unit;
Arrange the extruded part so as to follow the arcuate contour of the fruit vegetables in plan view,
A positioning part is provided on the upper side of the main body so as to cover the conveyor belt,
The positioning part is provided on the side where the fruit vegetables are sent out with respect to the input part,
The positioning portion includes a recess;
The recess, along the contour of the in plan view fruit vegetables, and characterized in that it is formed toward front of the set of extrusion, fruit vegetable sorting apparatus. Bei give a support portion on an upper surface of the main body portion,
The support portion, so as to be perpendicular to the center line of said body portion extending in the feeding direction of the fruit vegetables, and is formed in a symmetrical from the center line toward the opposite sides,
The fruit vegetable sorting device according to any one of claims 6 to 8 , wherein the support portion is formed to be higher from the center line toward both sides.   The fruit vegetable sorting device according to claim 9, wherein a plurality of the support parts are arranged at regular intervals.   The fruit vegetable sorting device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the support part is formed so that a side close to the receiving part is lowered.

Images