JP6285141B2 - Carton handling equipment and handling method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a carton handling facility and handling method using a robot apparatus.

  Cartons are widely used in various industrial fields as packaging materials because they are inexpensive and easy to handle, and have a high protection function for contained articles.

  By the way, this carton is sold in a state of being folded flat in consideration of its transportability, storage property, and the like during distribution as a packaging material.

  Therefore, when acquiring this carton, storing the goods in it and distributing it to the general market, first, the carton folded flat is opened to form a rectangular tube-like shape with both upper and lower sides opened. It is necessary to go through a plurality of carton forming steps in which the lower surface side of the rectangular tubular carton is sealed to obtain an empty box carton.

  Further, the empty carton is transferred to an article storage step, where a required article is stored, and then the upper surface side that is open is sealed to complete the packing operation. Then, the cartons that have been packed are sequentially loaded onto the pallet and sent to the transportation process.

  Thus, since a carton needs to go through a number of processes from opening to packing and transporting when it is used, in order to improve the work efficiency as a whole of these series of work processes, It is effective to consolidate the work in a centralized manner, and a carton handling method using a handling robot apparatus has been proposed as one of methods for realizing this (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2000-313522 A

  By the way, the handling method shown by patent document 1 has installed one handling robot apparatus in the work space where the conveyance conveyor, the printing apparatus, the banding machine, and the pallet are arranged, and has been conveyed by the conveyance conveyor. The packing box in a packed state is sucked and held by the handling robot device, transferred from the conveyor side to the printing device side, and printed by the print head of the printing device. Further, after the printing is completed, the packaging box is transferred to a banding machine by the handling robot device, and after the band is hung on the packaging box, the packaging box is transferred to the pallet.

  According to this method, the handling robot device is configured to transfer the packing box from the transfer conveyor to the printing device, and from the printing device to the pallet through the banding machine, which means that the packaging work is more efficient. Although certain effects are recognized in this respect, other essential work processes are considered here, i.e., the opening operation of the packaging box and the sealing operation for each of the upper and lower surfaces of the packaging box. Therefore, it is difficult to say that it is sufficient in terms of improving the efficiency of the entire packing operation using the carton.

  For such a problem, for example, in the handling method described in Patent Document 1, it is conceivable to further add a packing box opening process and a packing box sealing process on both upper and lower surfaces.

  However, in the handling method described above, the clamp head mounted on the tip of the robot arm of the handling robot device is configured to adsorb one surface of the packing box and hold the two surfaces facing each other. The operation in a state where the packaging box is held by the number of holding points for the box is limited. For this reason, it is difficult to perform the operation related to the opening operation of the packing box or the sealing work on both the upper and lower surfaces, which requires a complicated movement, not a simple transfer operation, with the packing box held in the clamp head. As a result, it is difficult to additionally incorporate the boxing operation of the packaging box and the sealing operation of the upper and lower surfaces of the packaging box into the method using the handling robot device.

  Furthermore, as described above, the structure in which one surface of the packing box is adsorbed by the clamp head and the two opposing surfaces are sandwiched and held has the following problems.

  (A) When the size of the packaging box is changed, there is no problem on the suction holding side, but depending on the size of the packaging box, the two opposing surfaces cannot be sandwiched and held depending on the size of the packing box. It is difficult to respond to changes in the size of the packaging box.

  (B) Since the three surfaces of the packing box are the holding surfaces, when the packing boxes are sequentially stacked on the pallet in a state where the packing box is held by the clamp head, the holding surfaces of the packing boxes related to the packing are Any one of them always faces one of the other packing boxes that has been previously stacked, and in this facing part, either the suction member of the clamp head or one of the two clamping members is present. Packing boxes cannot be packed without any gaps.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made mainly for the purpose of efficiently performing work related to the handling of cartons in the handling equipment and handling method of cartons using a robot apparatus.

  In the present invention, the following configuration is adopted as a specific means for solving such a problem.

The carton handling facility according to the first invention of the present application includes a clean work area with high cleanliness and a normal work area that does not require much cleanliness, and the clean work area has an article storage section for storing articles in the carton. In the normal work area, the carton supply device that sequentially supplies the cartons folded in a flat shape, the carton bottom surface sealing device that seals the bottom surface of the opened carton, and the carton in which articles are stored of the carton top sealing device for sealing an upper surface, while one-machine robot apparatus provided with a handling unit having both Okoshihako function of holding function and the carton the carton to the distal end of the robot arm are provided, the cleaning between the working area and the normal working area, to carry the carton Okoshihako is and the lower surface is sealed in the normal working area to the article storage portion of the cleaning work area A carton unloading device, a carton article is accommodated in the article accommodating portion carton loading apparatus for loading into the normal working area provided, the robot apparatus, and holding the cartons supplied from the carton feeder The container is opened and transferred to the carton lower surface sealing device , and the carton whose lower surface is sealed in the carton lower surface sealing device is held by the handling unit and transferred to the carton unloading device, An article is stored in the article storage unit, and the carton loaded into the normal work area by the carton loading device is held and transferred to the carton top surface sealing device.

  Here, the carton bottom surface sealing device or the carton top surface sealing device is formed by folding and sealing the protruding piece-like flaps respectively present on the front and back and left and right edges of the bottom surface or top surface of the carton. It constitutes the bottom wall or top wall.

  The carton holding function of the handling unit is a function of holding both a flat carton before opening and a three-dimensional carton after opening.

  Further, the lifting function of the handling unit is a function of raising each surface of the held flat carton and making it three-dimensional.

On the other hand, the carton carry-out device and the carton carry-in device include a process for storing articles in a carton that requires work in a clean work area, as in the case where food is stored in a carton and transported, and cleanliness, for example. This is necessary when the carton packing process (including processes before and after the article storage) performed in a work area that is not so required is performed in another work area. Therefore, when it is not necessary to divide the work area, the carton carrying device and the carton carrying-in device are not provided, and the articles are stored in the carton whose bottom surface is sealed by the carton bottom surface sealing device. In addition, the upper surface may be sealed.

  The carton carry-out device and the carton carry-in device do not necessarily have to be provided as individual transfer devices. For example, the carton carry-out device and the carton carry-in device can be configured as one continuous conveyor device or one robot device having a transfer function. It is.

The second invention of the present application is characterized in that, in the carton handling facility according to the first invention, the handling unit of the robot device is configured to adsorb and hold two adjacent surfaces of the carton. .

  Here, the “two adjacent surfaces of a carton” are two surfaces adjacent in a planar shape when the carton is flat, and a predetermined crossing angle (in a three-dimensional carton after being opened) Eventually, two surfaces that are adjacent to each other at approximately 90 °, for example, two adjacent side surfaces, a bottom surface and a side surface, and a top surface and a side surface.

  In addition, when holding a heavy carton in which articles are stored by the handling unit, in addition to the structure that adsorbs and holds two adjacent surfaces of the carton, the bottom surface of the carton is supported. A support member may be provided. Such a support member has a suitable shape such as a plate shape, a rod shape, or a claw shape, and preferably has a function of moving in and out of the handling unit as necessary.

In the third invention of the present application, the carton handling facility according to the first invention includes a measuring device for measuring the weight of the carton in which the article is stored.

  Here, there is no limitation on the function and structure of the measuring device, and the point is that it is only necessary to measure the weight of the carton in a state where the article is accommodated.

In the fourth invention of the present application, in the carton handling facility according to the third invention, the measuring device is provided on the robot arm side of the robot device or on the floor side where the robot device is installed. It is a feature.

  Here, the robot arm side is a wide concept including not only the robot arm itself but also the handling unit attached to the tip of the robot arm and an intermediate portion between the robot arm and the handling unit.

The measuring device can be provided on the floor side where the robot device is installed . As a measuring mode in this case, for example, a carton in which a measuring device is installed on the floor surface and an article is accommodated is used. It is conceivable to temporarily release the holding action by the handling unit and place the carton on the upper surface of the measuring device, and measure the weight of the carton in this placed state.

The fifth invention of the present application is characterized in that, in the carton handling facility according to the first invention, an information appending device for appending required information to the carton whose upper surface is sealed is provided.

  Here, as the information appending device, a printing device that directly prints the required information on the carton, or a pasting device that sticks a sticker that describes the required information on the carton can be considered.

The carton handling method according to the sixth invention of the present application is a single machine equipped with a handling unit having both a carton holding function and a carton lifting function at the tip of the robot arm in a normal work area where much cleanliness is not required. The robot unit is used to hold a carton folded in a flat shape supplied from the carton supply device by the handling unit, and the carton is opened and transferred to the carton lower surface sealing device to seal the lower surface. After stopping, it is transferred to the carton unloading device, and unloaded to the article storage unit provided in the clean work area with high cleanliness by the carton unloading device,
Holding the carton in which the article is stored in the article storage unit and being carried into the normal work area by the carton carrying-in device by the handling unit and transferring it to the carton top surface sealing device to seal the top surface thereof. It is a feature.

The seventh invention of the present application is characterized in that, in the carton handling method according to the sixth invention, the weight of the carton is measured after an article is stored in the carton.

The eighth invention of the present application is characterized in that, in the carton handling method according to the sixth invention, after the article is stored in the carton, necessary information is added to the carton.

  In the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(A) According to the carton handling facility according to the first invention of the present application and the carton handling method according to the sixth invention, the essential work on the carton packing, that is, the carton opening work, the carton bottom sealing Since all of the stopping work, the sealing work on the upper surface of the carton after the article is accommodated, and the transferring work of the carton between these work processes can be centrally performed by one robot device, the work efficiency is remarkably improved. It is possible to improve the packaging cost of articles using cartons. In addition, since the handling facility of the carton can be configured more compactly, the factory space can be effectively used by reducing the area occupied by the handling facility, or the installation cost of the handling facility can be reduced.

In addition, the robot device holds the carton whose bottom surface is sealed by the handling unit and transfers the carton from the carton bottom surface sealing device to the carton unloading device, and also holds the carton containing articles. Is transferred from the carton carry-in device to the carton top surface sealing device, for example, in a carton packaging where work in a clean area is not required so much for hygiene reasons such as in a food manufacturing factory. Each of the above-mentioned work and the work of storing articles in a carton that requires work in the clean area are performed in separate work areas, and the carton is transferred between these work areas by the carton unloading device and the carton carry-in device. Even in such a case, the effect described in the above (a) can be surely obtained, and as a result, the cart of the present invention can be obtained. Handling equipment and expansion and popularization of the application range of the handling of is promoted.

(B) According to the carton handling facility according to the second invention of the present application, in addition to the effect described in the above (a ) , the following specific effect can be obtained. That is, in the present invention, the handling unit of the robot apparatus is configured to adsorb and hold two adjacent surfaces of the carton. For example, as in the invention described in Patent Document 1, The number of holding points for the carton is reduced as compared with a configuration in which one surface of the packing box is adsorbed by the clamp head of the robot apparatus and the two opposite surfaces are sandwiched and held.

  Therefore, the degree of freedom of operation of the handling unit in the state where the carton is held is improved by the amount of the holding points of the handling unit with respect to the carton. It is possible to perform an operation related to a carton opening work and a sealing work on both upper and lower surfaces, which require a complicated operation instead of an operation, and an improvement in work efficiency related to the carton packing operation is promoted.

Furthermore, due to the configuration that adsorbs and holds two adjacent surfaces of the carton, for example,
(A) Even if the size of the carton used is changed, the carton can be held without any trouble by changing the suction position of each of the handling units on the two adjacent surfaces of the carton. It is easy to respond to changes in the size of
(B) Since the two adjacent surfaces of the carton serve as the holding surface, for example, when the packed carton is stacked on the pallet with the handling unit, the surfaces other than the two holding surfaces of the carton related to the packing Can be packed with no gaps in contact with the surface of other cartons that have been previously stacked,
Etc. are obtained.

(C) According to the carton handling facility according to the third invention of the present application or the carton handling method according to the seventh invention, in addition to the effect described in (a ) above, the following specific effects Is obtained. That is, in this invention, since the measuring device for measuring the weight of the carton in which the article is stored is provided, by comparing the weight value acquired by the measurement with the weight of the empty carton held in advance, It is possible to detect an occlusion of an article in the carton or an excess or deficiency of the quantity of the accommodated article. Reliability is improved.

(D) According to the carton handling facility according to the fourth invention of the present application, in addition to the effect described in the above (c) , the following specific effects can be obtained. That is, according to the present invention, when the measuring device is provided on the robot arm side of the robot device, a predetermined movement trajectory originally assumed for the carton by the robot arm (that is, a movement trajectory related to the carton packing operation). ), The weight can be measured while the robot apparatus is transported along the head).

  Further, when the measuring device is provided on the floor surface side, for example, the holding action by the handling unit on the carton in which the article is accommodated is temporarily released, and the carton is installed on the floor surface. It is placed on the upper surface of the device, and the weight of the carton is measured in this placed state. In such a measurement mode, a dynamic factor associated with the operation of the robot arm with respect to the measuring device and the carton. Since the influence of (for example, acceleration) is reliably eliminated, more accurate weight measurement is realized.

  Further, by providing the measuring device on the floor side, the weight of the robot arm side is reduced and the structure is simplified, and the operation of the robot arm is compared with the case where the measuring device is provided on the robot arm side. Control can be facilitated, and thus the cost of the robot apparatus can be reduced.

(E) According to the carton handling facility according to the fifth invention of the present application or the carton handling method according to the eighth invention, in addition to the effects described in (a ) above, the following specific effects Is obtained. That is, in the present invention, since the carton having the upper surface sealed is provided with an information appending device for appending required information, information appending is performed in a series of carton packing operations. The work efficiency can be improved compared to the case where it is separated from the handling equipment and performed separately.

It is a perspective view which shows the whole structure of the handling equipment of the carton which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the handling equipment of the carton shown in FIG. It is holding state explanatory drawing of the flat carton by the handling unit of the robot apparatus shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the 2nd unit in the handling unit shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a state in which a carton is being held by the handling unit of the robot apparatus shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the 2nd unit in the handling unit shown in FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a holding state of a carton in a boxing completion state by the handling unit of the robot apparatus shown in FIG. It is an enlarged view of the 2nd unit in the handling unit shown in FIG. It is a preset state figure of the handling unit with respect to the carton in which the articles | goods were accommodated. It is a holding | maintenance figure with respect to one surface of the two adjacent surfaces of the carton by the said handling unit. It is a holding | maintenance figure with respect to two surfaces adjacent to the carton by the said handling unit. It is a state figure of taking out the carton from the carton supply device by the robot device. It is the state figure which hold | maintained the flat carton by the handling unit of the robot apparatus. It is a state diagram in the middle of the opening of the carton by the handling unit. It is the state figure which the opening of the carton was completed. It is a state figure of the sealing operation | work of the front-and-rear flap on a carton lower surface side. It is a state figure of the sealing operation | work of the right-and-left flap of a carton lower surface side. It is a state figure of the tape sticking operation | work to the sealing part of a carton lower surface side. It is the state figure which the tape sticking operation | work to the sealing part of a carton lower surface side was completed.

  1 and 2 show an entire system of carton handling equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention. This carton handling facility is provided by the partition wall 103 in the normal work area 102 of the factory space partitioned into a clean work area 101 that requires cleanliness and a normal work area 102 that does not require so much cleanliness. Yes. The clean work area 101 and the normal work area 102 communicate with each other through an opening 104 provided in the partition wall 103.

  The handling equipment opens the carton C folded flat and seals the lower surface to form a box-like carton C having an open upper surface, which is an article storage provided on the cleaning work area 101 side. The carton C is transported to a part (not shown), the carton C containing the article returned from the article containing part is received, the upper surface of the carton C is sealed, and predetermined information is displayed on the surface. Above, it is used for a series of packing operations of sequentially loading onto the pallet 8, and the carton supply device 2, the carton bottom surface sealing device 3, and the carton unloading device 4 are arranged around the robot device 1 described later. A carton carry-in device 5, a carton top surface sealing device 6, a printing device 7 (corresponding to “information appending device” in claims) and a pallet 8 are arranged. Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the robot apparatus 1 will be described in detail.

"Robot device 1"
(1) Overall Configuration The robot apparatus 1 is a central facility of the handling facility, and is a main body 10 that is installed on the floor surface and can be swung and undulated, and a undulation is provided on the distal end side of the main body 10. As shown in FIG. 3, an arm head 11A that can be fully swiveled around the axis of the robot arm 11 is provided at the tip of the robot arm 11. An attachment mounting base 11B is attached to the arm head 11A so as to be swingable and turnable around the support shaft 11Aa and to be fully rotatable.

  Furthermore, the following handling unit 12 is attached to the attachment mount 11B via a measuring device 9 having a load cell 9a. Accordingly, the handling unit 12 can move in three axial directions and can take a free posture by the operation of the robot arm 11, the arm head 11A, and the attachment mount 11B.

(2) Handling unit 12
(2-a) The function of the handling unit 12 The handling unit 12 has both a function for raising the carton C and a holding function, holds the carton C folded in a flat shape as will be described later, and raises it. The carton C is basically removed except for the period from when the carton C is transferred to the carton carry-out device 4 to when the carton C carried from the carton carry-in device 5 is held. Keep holding.

  Then, along with the operation of the robot arm 11, the carton C is transferred from the carton supply device 2 to the carton bottom surface sealing device 3 and the carton carry-out device 4, and the carton carry-in device 5 uses the carton. After holding C, it is further transferred from the carton carry-in device 5 to the carton top surface sealing device 6, the printing device 7 and the pallet 8.

  Further, the handling unit 12 is not limited to transferring the carton C between the devices as described above, and by appropriately controlling the position, posture, etc. of the handling unit 12 during the transfer, The sealing device 3 performs a sealing operation on the lower surface of the carton C, the carton upper surface sealing device 6 performs the sealing operation on the upper surface of the carton C, and the printing device 7 performs the sealing operation on the carton C. The printing work is executed.

(2-b) Configuration of Handling Unit 12 The handling unit 12 is configured by connecting a first unit 12A and a second unit 12B.

(2-b-1) First unit 12A
As shown in FIG. 3, the first unit 12 </ b> A includes a base frame 15 connected to the attachment mount 11 </ b> B of the robot arm 11 via the measuring device 9. A support member 20 is fixed to the base frame 15, and a plurality of support columns 19 project from the support member 20 toward the front. A flat support plate 18 is attached to the front ends of the plurality of columns 19.

  The support plate 18 is formed with a total of six holes in two rows arranged in a predetermined pitch. Further, suction holes 13 and ejectors 14 attached to the support member 20 are disposed in the holes of the support plate 18, respectively. In this case, the position of the suction pad 13 in the protruding direction is set relatively so that the front end surface of the suction pad 13 is substantially flush with the front surface of the support plate 18. Accordingly, when a negative pressure suction action is exerted on the suction pad 13 by the high-pressure air from the ejector 14, the carton C disposed on the front side of the support plate 18 is sucked by the suction pad 13 and the support plate 18. Is sucked and held by the suction pad 13.

  Further, an air cylinder 16 is disposed in the first unit 12A. The air cylinder 16 is used for the swing drive of the second unit 12B described below, and is attached to a portion near one end of the support member 20 so that the rod end can be swung sideways. It has been. Further, at one end side of the first unit 12A and at a position appropriately separated from the back surface of the support plate 18 toward the air cylinder 16, an end portion 21a of the second unit 12B described below is attached to the first unit 12A. A connection pin 30 for connection is provided.

(2-b-2) Second unit 12B
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the second unit 12B has a base frame whose one end 21a is connected to the one end side of the base frame 15 of the first unit 12A by the connecting pin 30 so as to be relatively rotatable. 21 is provided. A guide rail 23 is attached to the base frame 21, and a support member 24 is slidably attached to the guide rail 23 via a slider 17.

  In addition, a flat support plate 22 is fixed to the support member 24 via a plurality of support columns 29. The support plate 22 is formed with a total of four holes in two rows arranged at a predetermined pitch.

  Further, a suction pad 26 and an ejector 27 are attached to the support member 24 via springs 28 so as to be able to move forward and backward, so as to correspond to the respective holes of the support plate 22. When the spring 28 is in a free length, the suction pad 26 has a front end surface of the suction pad 26 that is substantially flush with the front surface of the support plate 22 as shown in FIG. The position of the suction pad 26 is referred to as a “reference position”, while an external force in a direction in which the suction pad 26 projects forward on the front end surface of the suction pad 26 (ie, the suction pad 26 and the suction pad). When the negative pressure suction force acting between the second surface C2 of the carton C facing the front side of the carton C is applied, the spring 28 is contracted and protrudes forward from the reference position, as shown in FIG. As shown, the front end surface of the suction pad 26 is configured to be held at a position protruding from the front surface of the support plate 22.

  Further, as described above, the support member 24 is slidable along the guide rail 23 via the slider 17. In order to drive the support member 24, the base frame 21 and the above-described support member 24 can be driven. An air cylinder 25 is mounted between the support members 24 substantially in parallel with the guide rails 23, and the support members 24 are moved along the guide rails 23 by the expansion and contraction of the air cylinders 25 as shown in FIG. The position is moved between the “advance position” approaching the connection pin 30 and the “retreat position” away from the connection pin 30 as shown in FIG.

  In addition, since the support plate 22 and the support column 29 are attached to the support member 24 as described above, in addition to the suction pads 26, the ejectors 27, and the springs 28, these members are described above. Since the support member 24 moves integrally with the support member 24, the support member 24 and the members that move integrally with the support member 24 are collectively referred to as a “sliding body 32”.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the second unit 12 </ b> B configured as described above has one end 21 a of the base frame 21 connected to the one end 15 a of the base frame 15 of the first unit 12 </ b> A by a connecting pin 30. The rod end of the air cylinder 16 provided on the first unit 12A side is connected to a cylinder pin at a position that is connected to the base frame 21 so as to be rotatable relative to the mounting position of the connection pin 30 of the base frame 21. 31 are connected.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the operation of the air cylinder 16 causes the support plate 18 on the first unit 12A side and the support plate 22 on the second unit 12B side to be flush with each other. As shown in FIG. 7, the position of the support unit 18 on the first unit 12 </ b> A side and the second position as shown in FIG. The posture can be changed between positions where the support plate 22 on the unit 12B side extends in a substantially orthogonal state (hereinafter, the posture of the handling unit 12 in this case is referred to as “orthogonal posture”). FIG. 5 shows a transient state of the posture changing operation between the “planar posture” and the “orthogonal posture”.

(2-c) Operational operation of the handling unit 12 As the operational operation of the handling unit 12, as shown in FIG. 3, a carton C folded in a flat shape accommodated in a carton supply device 2 described later is adsorbed. Hold the “flat carton holding operation”, hold the held flat carton C as shown in FIG. 5, and hold the opened carton C as shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 9 to 10, the “initial holding operation” is performed, and, as in the case of holding the carton C in which the article is stored, the held carton C once released is held again. Holding operation ". Hereinafter, these operation operations will be described.

  The lower surface sealing operation in the carton lower surface sealing device 3 and the carton transferring operation to the carton unloading device 4 described later are performed in the carton holding form by the “initial holding operation”. Further, a sealing operation in the carton top surface sealing device 6 described later, a printing operation in the printing device 7 and a stacking operation on the pallet 8 are performed in the carton holding form by the “re-holding operation”.

(2-c-1) Flat Carton Holding Operation The carton C is stocked in the carton supply device 2 in a state of being folded flat, and the handling unit 12 of the robot device 1 from the carton supply device 2 One by one is taken out sequentially. The holding operation of the carton C when the carton C is taken out from the carton supply device 2 is a “flat carton holding operation”.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the “flat carton holding operation” is performed in a state where the attitude of the handling unit 12 is set to a “planar attitude”. In this case, the sliding body 32 on the second unit 12B side is set to the “advance position”.

  The support plate 18 of the first unit 12A and the support plate 22 of the second unit 12B of the handling unit 12 thus set in posture and position are accommodated on the carton supply device 2 side, respectively. Press against the surface of the flat carton C (see FIGS. 3, 4 and 12).

  In this case, the accuracy of the operation position of the handling unit 12 is extremely high (for example, about ± 5 mm), and the handling unit 12 operates based on a preset operation locus, so that two adjacent surfaces of the carton C are adjacent to each other. An intermediate bending point Ca (corresponding to a bending ridge line between two adjacent surfaces when the flat carton C is opened) passes through the axis of the connecting pin 30. The handling unit 12 is positioned with respect to the carton C so as to be positioned substantially on a straight line L extending in a direction of 45 ° with respect to the surface direction of the support plate 18.

  With the handling unit 12 pressed against the carton C in this way, suction force is generated on each of the suction pad 13 on the first unit 12A side and the suction pad 26 on the second unit 12B side. Then, on the first unit 12A side, the first surface C1 of the carton C is adsorbed by the suction force of the suction pad 13, and the first surface C1 is in contact with the support plate 18. Adsorbed and held.

  On the other hand, on the second unit 12B side, if the support plate 22 and the second surface C2 of the carton C are in contact with each other, the second surface C2 is attracted by the suction pad 26 at the reference position. Thus, it is sucked and held in contact with the support plate 22.

  However, for example, when the second surface C2 is not parallel to the front end surface of the suction pad 26 at the reference position but is inclined and separated due to deformation of the second surface C2, etc., the suction pad 26 is drawn forward from the reference position by the suction force acting between the second surface C2 and protrudes forward from the support plate 22, and the second surface C2 is projected in the protruding state. Hold by adsorption.

  That is, when the front end surface of the suction pad 26 is flush with the support plate 22 as a reference position, when a force to pull the suction pad 26 forward is applied to the suction pad 26, the spring 28 is contracted to reduce the spring 28. By adopting a configuration that protrudes forward from the reference position, the second unit 12B is pressed against the second surface C2 of the carton C, for example, by deformation of the second surface C2 or the like. Even when the suction pad 26 does not contact the second surface C2 and the second pad C2 is not reliably held by the suction pad 26, the suction pad 26 moves forward. It protrudes and can contact | abut to the said 2nd surface C2, and this can be adsorbed-held, and the favorable adsorbing-holding performance with respect to the said carton C in the 2nd unit 12B side is ensured.

  In this way, by appropriately operating the robot arm 11 with the carton C being sucked and held on both the first unit 12A side and the second unit 12B side of the handling unit 12, the carton C is It can be taken out from the carton supply device 2 (see FIG. 13).

(2-c-2) Carton hoisting operation The “carton hoisting operation” is performed subsequent to the “flat carton holding operation”. That is, in the holding state of the flat carton C shown in FIG. 3, the air cylinder 16 is extended to tilt the second unit 12 </ b> B forward about the connecting pin 30. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the first plate C1 of the carton C supported by the support plate 18 of the first unit 12A is supported by the support plate 22 of the second unit 12B. The second surface C2 is bent from the bending point Ca portion and gradually becomes three-dimensional (see FIGS. 5 and 14).

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, as the second unit 12B is tilted, the suction pad 26 gradually follows the second surface C2 while holding the second surface C2. It protrudes forward, the edge of the support plate 22 far from the connecting pin 30 contacts the second surface C2, and the second surface C2 is tilted and displaced while being pushed up by the edge.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the tilting displacement of the second surface C2 of the carton C by the second unit 12B of the handling unit 12 causes the handling unit 12 to be in an “orthogonal posture”, and the carton C The process continues until the first surface C1 and the second surface C2 of C are in an orthogonal state, and at this point, the opening operation of the carton C is completed.

  By the way, in such a carton hoisting operation by tilting the second unit 12B, if the second unit 12B is simply tilted, the second surface C2 of the carton C is accurately moved from the bending point Ca. Can not be bent.

  That is, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the carton C is held by the first unit 12A and the second unit 12B of the handling unit 12 in the “planar posture”, the carton C is folded. The bending point Ca is shifted in the direction of 45 degrees obliquely from the connecting pin 30. On the other hand, the second surface C2 of the carton C is sucked and held by the suction pad 26 of the second unit 12B, and the positional relationship between them is fixed.

  Therefore, in such a state, when the second unit 12B tilts forward with the connecting pin 30 as the center, the distance between the bending point Ca and the suction pad 26 is increased with the progress of the tilt. As a result, the end portion of the second surface C2 is pressed against the first surface C1 side to cause crushing deformation and cannot be properly bent at the bending point Ca. become.

  In order to avoid such a situation and realize an appropriate bending at the bending point Ca, the second surface C2 of the carton C is sucked and held as the second unit 12B tilts. The suction pad 26 is allowed to move away from the connecting pin 30, that is, the sliding body 32 provided with the suction pad 26 is moved from the “advance position” side to the “retraction position” side. It is necessary to allow.

  However, the force for moving the sliding body 32 from the “advance position” side to the “retreat position” side in this way is due to the decrease in the distance between the bending point Ca and the suction pad 26. This is due to the reaction force of the pressing force applied to C1. For this reason, if the movement of the sliding body 32 due to such a reaction force is freely performed without any restriction, for example, the second surface C2 of the carton C due to excessive movement toward the “retreat position” side, for example. In addition, the first surface C1 is also drawn toward the second unit 12B at the same time, and the bending point Ca is greatly deformed in an arc shape, so that proper bending at the bending point Ca cannot be realized. Can be.

  On the other hand, if the movement of the sliding body 32 toward the “retracted position” is excessively restricted, the second surface C2 is crushed and deformed as described above, which is also not preferable.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, paying attention to the operation of the air cylinder 25 that drives the sliding body 32, the air cylinder 25 is used to move the sliding body 32 in accordance with the tilting of the second unit 12B. A restrictive action is given.

  That is, the air cylinder 25 moves the sliding body 32 on the base frame 21 by its expansion / contraction operation, and the original use mode thereof is a carton C in which articles are stored as will be described later. In the case of holding by suction, the first unit 12A is moved to the sliding body 32 side without moving the carton C held via the sliding body 32 to the second unit 12B side. The air pressure is applied to the first surface C1 (see FIGS. 9 to 11), and the operating pressure of the air cylinder 25 at that time is set to a normal pressure (about 0.5 MPa).

  However, when the operating force of the air cylinder 25 is used as a restricting force for the movement of the sliding body 32 from the “advance position” side to the “retreat position” side as described above, the operation pressure is normally used. The pressure is set to a low pressure lower than the pressure (for example, about one fifth of the normal pressure). Then, when the second unit 12B is tilted during the carton C opening operation, the air cylinder 25 is operated to the reduction side at a low pressure.

  Then, as the second unit 12B tilts, the sliding body 32 receives a reaction force from the bending point Ca side of the carton C and forcibly moves from the “advance position” side to the “retraction position” side. In this case, the air cylinder 25 is forcibly extended by the moving force of the sliding body 32 against the operating force even though the air cylinder 25 is in a reduction operating state. That is, the sliding body 32 is always urged toward the “advance position” side (that is, toward the bending point Ca side) with a small force (that is, the reduction operating force of the air cylinder 25). Will be moved to.

  As a result, the second surface C2 of the carton C is not substantially crushed or greatly deformed in an arc shape, and is substantially orthogonal to the first surface C1 at the bending point Ca. It will be bent.

(2-c-3) Initial Holding Operation “Initial holding operation” is performed following the “carton opening operation”. That is, the two adjacent surfaces C1 and C2 of the carton C opened as shown in FIG. 7 are held in a state of being adsorbed and held by the first unit 12A and the second unit 12B of the handling unit 12, Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 15 to 19, this is an operation accompanying the lower surface sealing operation in the carton lower surface sealing device 3.

  Here, the configuration of the carton bottom surface sealing device 3 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the carton bottom surface sealing device 3 includes a front and rear flap bent portion 41 formed of a bent rod body whose front end portion extends and bends upward on a base 40. A left and right flap bent portion 42 in which a pair of left and right bent rods having both front and rear end portions bent in a lateral direction are arranged in parallel so that both ends are Y-shaped, and the left and right flap bent portions The tape applicator 43 is arranged on the lower side so as to overlap with the latter half of 42.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 15, after moving the carton C held by the handling unit 12 of the robot apparatus 1 to a position above the carton bottom surface sealing apparatus 3, first, as shown in FIG. In addition, the front and rear flaps 44 and 45 of the carton C are pressed against the front and rear flap bent portions 41 of the carton lower surface sealing device 3 by operating the robot device 1, and the carton C is bent by the front and rear flaps. The front and rear flaps 44 and 45 are folded by sliding from the front side to the rear side of the part 41.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the left and right flaps 46 are folded by moving the carton C toward the left and right flap bent portion 42 and sliding it forward. In the second half of the folding operation of the left and right flaps, as shown in FIG. 19, the flaps folded by the tape applicator 43 are sealed, whereby an empty carton C having an open upper end is obtained.

  When the sealing of the lower surface of the carton C is completed, the empty carton C is transferred onto the carton carry-out device 4 by the transfer operation of the robot device 1 and sent to the article accommodation step by the carton carry-out device 4. The above is the “initial holding operation” of the robot apparatus 1.

(2-c-4) Re-holding operation As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the “re-holding operation” is performed by the carton carry-in device 5 after the article is stored in the article storing step. After holding the heavy carton C in which the article has been stored by the handling unit 12 of the robot apparatus 1 and transferring it to the carton upper surface sealing device 6, the upper surface of the carton C is sealed here. Further, it is a series of operations from transferring to the printing device 7 to printing required information, and further stacking the cartons C on the pallet 8 as necessary.

  The carton upper surface sealing device 6 is formed by forming the carton lower surface sealing device 3 upside down, and is provided on a tall base 60 with front and rear flap bent portions 61, left and right flap bent portions 62, and a tape. Since it is configured to include the sticking device 63 and its operation conforms to the operation in the carton bottom surface sealing device 3, this is used and the description thereof is omitted here.

  The printing device 7 includes, for example, an ink jet type print head 71, and passes the carton C held by the handling unit 12 of the robot device 1 through the front side of the print head 71 at a constant speed. As a result, the required information is printed on the planned printing portion of the carton C.

  Since the premise in each of these operations is the operation of re-holding the placed carton C by the handling unit 12 of the robot apparatus 1, the re-holding operation of the carton C by the handling unit 12 will be described below. Will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the carton C in the mounted state is held by the handling unit 12 while the handling unit 12 is set in an “orthogonal posture”, and the sliding body 32 is placed on the second unit 12B side. This is performed with the "reverse position" set.

  First, as shown in FIG. 9, the handling unit 12 set in the “orthogonal posture” is arranged close to each other so as to correspond to each of the two adjacent surfaces C1 and C2 of the carton C.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the support plate 22 and the suction pad 26 of the second unit 12B are pressed against the second surface C2 of the carton C, and a suction action is generated on each suction pad 26. The second surface C2 is sucked and held by the suction pad 26.

  In this case, for example, even if the front end surface of the suction pad 26 is not parallel to the second surface C2 of the carton C, the suction is held at the reference position via the spring 28 as described above. The pad 26 receives a suction force acting between the second surface C2 and protrudes forward, so that the suction pad 26 reliably contacts and holds the second surface C2. Can do.

  In addition, since the suction holding to the second surface C2 of the carton C by the suction pad 26 is performed without moving the carton C, even if the carton C is a heavy carton after storing the article, The carton C can be reliably sucked and held by the suction pad 26 without being affected by the weight.

  As a synergistic effect, the second surface C2 of the carton C is securely held by the suction pad 26 of the second unit 12B, and the reliability is ensured.

  Next, in the state shown in FIG. 10, the entire handling unit 12 is moved forward by the robot arm 11 (that is, the direction approaching the first surface C <b> 1 of the carton C). At the same time, the air cylinder 25 on the second unit 12B side is contracted to move the sliding body 32 including the suction pad 26 from the “retreat position” side to the “advance position” side. The form is a relative movement of the sliding body 32 and the base frame 21, and when viewed from the sliding body 32 side, the base frame 21 and the first unit 12A connected to the base frame 21 are integrated. It can be said that it was drawn to the sliding body 32 side.

  As a result, the movement amount of the second unit 12B accompanying the forward movement of the entire handling unit 12 is absorbed by the movement of the sliding body 32 from the “retreat position” side to the “advance position” side, 2 No change in the suction holding state of the second surface C2 of the carton C by the suction pad 26 on the unit 12B side, that is, unnecessary force is applied to the suction portion, or together with the suction pad 26 Without moving the carton C, the support plate 18 and the suction pad 13 of the first unit 12A are brought into contact with the first surface C1 of the carton C, and the first surface C1 is moved by the suction pad 13. Adsorption can be held. Thus, the re-holding operation for the carton C is completed.

  In this way, the entire handling unit 12 is moved to the carton C side by the operation of the robot arm 11, and at the same time, the air cylinder 25 is reduced to move the sliding body 32 from the “retreat position” side to the “advance position”. By moving to the side, the suction pad 13 of the first unit 12A is brought into contact with the first surface C1 of the carton C while maintaining the position without moving the carton C. In particular, in the case where the carton C is a heavy object in which an article is accommodated as in this embodiment, the effect becomes remarkable.

  As described above, the suction holding on the second unit 12B side, that is, the second surface C2 of the carton C and the front end surface of the suction pad 26 of the second unit 12B are not necessarily parallel. Then, the suction holding on the second unit 12B side with high reliability that the second pad C2 can be accurately sucked by the suction pad 26 by the forward action of the suction pad 26 from the reference position is executed. Thereafter, the handling unit 12 moves the first unit 12A toward the first surface C1 of the carton C, and sucks and holds the first unit 12A by the suction pad 13. The carton C can be reliably adsorbed and held.

"Other"
In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the measuring device 9 is disposed between the attachment mounting base 11 </ b> B of the robot device 1 and the handling unit 12. Therefore, for example, after the top surface sealing operation in the carton top surface sealing device 6 is completed, the weight of the carton C can be measured in a series of packing operations while the carton C is held. For example, the workability is very good as compared with the case where the weight is measured by moving the carton C to a separate measuring device.

  In addition, since the weight of the carton C is measured in a series of packing operations, for example, the weight value acquired by measurement is compared with the weight of the empty carton C that is held in advance. In the packing process, it is possible to detect the leakage of stored items or the excess or deficiency of the stored items in the packing process, and take appropriate measures such as the elimination of the carton C, thereby improving operational reliability. To do.

  The handling equipment and handling method of the carton according to the present invention are used in an industrial field in which a carton is used as a packing material and an article is accommodated and packed in this.

1 ·· Robot device 2 ·· Carton supply device 3 ·· Carton bottom surface sealing device 4 · · Carton unloading device 5 · · Carton loading device 6 · · Carton top surface sealing device 7 · · Printing device 8 · · Pallet 9 ·・ Measurement device 11 ・ ・ Robot arm 12 ・ ・ Handling unit C ・ ・ Carton

Claims (8)

A clean work area with high cleanliness and a normal work area that does not require much cleanliness,
The cleaning work area is provided with an article storage unit for storing articles in a carton,
In the normal work area, a carton supply device for sequentially supplying flattened cartons, a carton bottom surface sealing device for sealing the bottom surface of the carton that has been opened, and the top surface of the carton in which articles are stored. While a carton top surface sealing device to be sealed and a robot device provided with a handling unit having both the carton holding function and the carton lifting function at the tip of the robot arm ,
A carton unloading device for unloading the carton that is opened in the normal work area and whose bottom surface is sealed between the clean work area and the normal work area to the article storage part in the clean work area, and the article storage part A carton carrying device for carrying the carton containing the article into the normal work area is provided,
The robot apparatus holds the carton supplied from the carton supply apparatus and opens the carton and transfers it to the carton bottom surface sealing apparatus.
The carton whose lower surface is sealed in the carton lower surface sealing device is held by the handling unit and transferred to the carton carry-out device, while the article is stored in the article storage unit and the normal work area is moved by the carton carry-in device. A carton handling facility configured to hold a carton loaded into the carton and transfer it to the carton top surface sealing device. Oite to claim 1,
The handling equipment of the carton, wherein the handling unit of the robot apparatus is configured to suck and hold two adjacent surfaces of the carton. Oite to claim 1,
A carton handling facility comprising a measuring device for measuring the weight of a carton containing articles. In claim 3 ,
The carton handling facility, wherein the measuring device is provided on the robot arm side of the robot device or on the floor side where the robot device is installed . Oite to claim 1,
A carton handling facility comprising an information appending device for appending required information to the carton whose upper surface is sealed. In a normal work area where cleanliness is not required, a single robot apparatus having a handling unit having both a carton holding function and a carton lifting function at the tip of the robot arm is used, and the carton supply device is used by the handling unit. Holding the carton folded in a flat shape supplied from the container, opening the carton, transferring it to the carton bottom surface sealing device and sealing the bottom surface, then transporting it to the carton unloading device, While carrying out to the article storage unit provided in the clean work area with high cleanliness by the carry-out device,
Holding the carton in which the article is stored in the article storage unit and being carried into the normal work area by the carton carrying-in device by the handling unit and transferring it to the carton top surface sealing device to seal the top surface thereof. How to handle the carton. In claim 6 ,
A method of handling a carton, wherein the weight of the carton is measured after the article is stored in the carton. In claim 6 ,
A method for handling a carton, wherein after the article is stored in the carton, necessary information is added to the carton.

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