JP6502415B2 - Egg container transfer device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for transferring an egg container, for example, an apparatus for transferring a container having an uneven lid along an egg shape.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a filling device for packaging containers. In this filling device, a plurality of suction cups are disposed in the lifting and lowering unit which is a short-axis robot, and the suction cups vacuum-adsorb the lid of the flat surface of the packaging container to transfer and pack it. The suction cup is positioned so as to hold one side of the long side of the packaging container, and when the packaging container is lifted, the packaging container is inclined but can be held by the suction cup having elasticity. Moreover, even if it is a lid which is convex according to the shape of an egg, it is described that suction is possible if the suction cup is positioned.

JP, 2015-196522, A

  However, in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to accurately position the suction cup with respect to the convex lid. On the other hand, the size of chicken eggs is, for example, from MS to LL, and there are many types according to them, such as container size, ie, convex interval, convex size, and shape of convex top surface. That is, in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to position the suction cups in accordance with the size of the packed chicken eggs.

  In recent years, the egg production plant has been increased in scale and automated, and a device for processing a large amount of egg has also been required to speed up and cope with various varieties. On the other hand, in an apparatus for box-packing a container filled with chicken eggs, at present, a flat portion of the upper surface of the container transports a large container by suction cups, or a mechanism that requires positioning of suction cups for each egg size as in Patent Document 1 There is no choice but to respond.

  Then, an object of this invention is to provide the transfer apparatus of the egg container which can respond also to the container of a plurality of shapes, for example, the container of a flat lid and the convex lid of a different size.

The egg container transfer device according to the present invention is
An adsorption unit having at least two adsorption pads for one egg container;
Suction means connected to the suction unit;
A transfer mechanism to which the suction unit is attached;
A suction control unit that controls the suction unit when suction processing is performed by the egg container and the suction unit;
A main control unit that controls the movement of the transfer mechanism;
The suction pad is
The inside of the tube is a bellows-like cylinder which is penetrated for air suction, and
It is characterized in that the outer diameter of the bellows cylindrical or tip lip is smaller than the longitudinal length of the bellows cylindrical.

In the present invention, the outer diameter (Φ) of the bellows cylindrical or tip lip with respect to the cylindrical longitudinal length (L) 1 may be less than 1, for example, L: Φ = 1: 0.1-0. Preferably from 1: 0.3 to 0.9, more preferably from 0.4 to 0.8. By making the longitudinal direction length (L) of the bellows cylindrical shape longer than the outer diameter of the bellows cylindrical shape or the tip lip, it can be deformed corresponding to the convex curved surface of the top surface of the egg container.
Also, in other words, the longitudinal length (L) of the tubular is 1.1 times to 3.0 times, 1.2 times to 2.5 times the outer diameter (Φ) of the bellows tubular. It may be 1.3 times to 2.0 times.
In the present invention, the outer diameter of the bellows-like cylindrical shape may be constant in the longitudinal direction, may be as large as a trumpet like the tip lip, and may be smaller as it is.
In the present invention, the outer diameter (Φ) of the bellows cylindrical shape may be an average value of a plurality of steps of the bellows, or may be a maximum value or a minimum value.

In the present invention, the bellows may be 1.5-step bellows to 6.5-step bellows.
The bellows-like outer diameter (Φ) is, for example, 20 mm to 40 mm.
The bellows-like longitudinal length (L) is, for example, 30 mm to 80 mm.
Bellows tubular position of the thickness (T2), the thickness of the end lip (T1) may be the same or may be thinner towards the thickness of the end lip (T 1). By reducing the thickness (T 1 ) of the tip lip, adsorption to the curved surface is improved.
The tip lip may be thinner as it goes to the tip. Thereby, contact can be suitably followed to a convex curve and a convex side. The thickness (T2) of the bellows cylindrical position is, for example, 0.2 mm to 2 mm, and the thickness (T1) of the tip lip is, for example, 0.1 mm to 1 mm.

In the present invention, the egg container has a lid and a receiving portion, and the lid may be flat, or may be a convex convex lid along the shape of an egg.
The tip lip of the suction pad preferably has a diameter equal to or smaller than that of the convex flat portion of the lid of the egg container.
Generally, the egg container contains 4 pieces (2 × 2 when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the container), 6 pieces (2 × 3 in width), 10 pieces (2 × 5 in width) There is a size. Furthermore, egg containers generally differ in their container size depending on the size of the egg.
In the present invention, among the plurality of sizes of egg containers, the pitch (SP1) of the vertical convex portion of the convex lid of the smallest size egg container, the pitch (SP2) of the horizontal convex portion, and the maximum size of the egg container The pitch (P1) of the suction pads in the longitudinal direction corresponding to the egg container and the suction pad in the lateral direction based on the pitch (LP1) of the vertical convex portions and the pitch (LP2) of the horizontal convex portions of the convex lid Set the pitch (P2). For example, the average of the pitches of the convex portions of the minimum size egg container and the maximum size egg container is set to the vertical and horizontal pitches of the suction pad. For example, it can be set as follows.
P1 = (LP1 + SP1) / 2
P2 = (LP2 + SP2) / 2

In the present invention, the suction portion is an elastic member. The elastic member is made of, for example, nitrile rubber, silicone rubber, elastomer, natural rubber, markless rubber, valcoran, other synthetic rubbers, and the like.
In the present invention, the hardness of the elastic member is 30 to 60 (A / S). The hardness is measured according to the measuring method of JIS K 6253.

In the present invention, the theoretical lift force W [N] can be obtained from the suction pressure P of the suction pad (= pressure of the vacuum pump [kPa]) and the contact area S [cm ² ] of the suction pad. The contact area S [cm ² ] of the suction pad is the sum of multiple contact areas S [cm ² ]. If the material of the suction pad is an elastic body, the outer diameter may be different between the state before suction and the state where suction is made. May seek area from the diameter φd of the suction pad in the state before the suction ^{S (S = π × d 2} /4), the area S in diameter φD of the suction pad after adsorption ^{(S = π × D 2/} 4) You may ask for Generally, the relationship of φ d> φ D is established. n is the number of suction pads. The theoretical lift force [N] can be obtained by the following equation. t is a coefficient, for example, 0.1.
Theoretical lift force W = P x S x n x t
The pump pressure at the time of actual operation is the product of the above P and the safety factor. The safety factor is in the range of 2 to 8, preferably in the range of 3 to 6 in consideration of vertical conveyance, swing conveyance, and speed change.
For example, if the weight per egg size LL is 70 g or more and less than 76 g, and 10 containers, it is assumed to be 750 g. Since the gravity W applied to the 1 egg container is 0.75 kgf, the lift force is 7.35 N. When this is transferred by suction, when the diameter d of the suction pad before suction is 2 cm and the number n of pads is 6, the pump pressure P can be obtained as follows.
P = 7. 35 / (3. 14 x 6 x 0.1) = 3.9 kPa
Assuming that three egg containers are sucked at the same time, and further assuming that the safety factor is 5, the setting of the pump pressure during actual operation can be set to 58.5 kPa.

  In the present invention, the suction pressure of the suction means (pressure P of the vacuum pump) is determined by the weight of plural types of egg containers (including eggs), the convex and concave shapes and curved shapes of plural types of container top surfaces, and plural types of top surfaces It can be set according to the shape of the boundary (edge) with the side surface. Furthermore, it can be set according to the shape (for example, a bellows shape) of the suction pad, its material, its hardness, and the number of suction pads. For example, when the suction means is a vacuum pump, the value measured by the pressure gauge of the vacuum pump is in the range of -20 kPa to 100 kPa. "-" Shows that it is a negative pressure.

In the present invention, the shape of the suction pad, its material and hardness are the weight of a plurality of types of egg containers (including eggs), the uneven shape and curved shape of a plurality of types of container top surfaces, and the boundary between a plurality of types of top surfaces and side surfaces It can be set according to the shape of the edge).
In addition, the contact size of the tip lip where the suction pad and the container are in contact, the external size of the suction pad, the number thereof, and the distance between adjacent suction pads are multiple types of egg containers (including eggs), and various types of containers It can be set in accordance with the uneven shape and curved surface shape of the surface, and the shape of boundaries (edges) between a plurality of types of top surfaces and side surfaces.
Therefore, even if the suction pad is disposed not only at the convex flat portion of the container top surface but also at a position corresponding to the convex side surface, the suction pad is appropriately deformed and the container surface (curved surface, stepped surface, etc.) The egg container can be preferably contacted and adsorbed and transported.

In the present invention, the eggs stored in the egg container may be, for example, hen eggs or eggs.
In the present invention, at least two suction pads are disposed for one egg container, but three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten suction pads are disposed for one egg container. It may be done. A number of suction pads may be arranged to correspond to the convex number of the lid of the egg container.

In the present invention, the suction means is one or more vacuum generators. As a vacuum generator, a vacuum ejector, a vacuum pump, a vacuum blower etc. are mentioned, for example. It is the structure where a vacuum generator and each suction pad are connected. A foreign substance removal filter may be incorporated in the suction pad.
In the present invention, the transfer mechanism may be an elevating mechanism, a rotation mechanism, a short axis robot or a multi-axis robot.

Another inventive egg container packaging system is
The above-mentioned egg container transfer device;
An egg container transport conveyor for transporting the egg containers;
A transport case transport conveyor for transporting a transport case for accommodating a plurality of egg containers;
The egg container transfer device is
The lid of the egg container is adsorbed by the adsorption section of the egg container transfer device from the upper side of the one or more egg containers transported by the egg container transport conveyor, and the egg container is transported to the inside of the transport case Configuration.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an egg container transfer apparatus which can cope with a plurality of shaped containers, for example, flat lids and containers with different sizes of convex lids regardless of the size of the egg containers. In addition, the egg container packing system equipped with the egg container transfer device eliminates setup change of the transfer device (suction cup alignment) accompanying egg container size change, greatly improves packing efficiency, and increases working time Can be shortened.

FIG. 2 shows an egg container transfer device. It is a general view of a suction pad. It is a schematic diagram which shows arrangement | positioning of a suction pad. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of an adsorption | suction state. It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of an adsorption | suction state. It is a figure which shows the egg container boxed state. It is a figure which shows the egg container boxed state. It is a figure which shows the egg container boxed state.

(Embodiment 1)
An egg container packaging system 10 including an egg container transfer device 16 will be described with reference to the drawings.
The egg container packaging system 10 supplies and conveys an egg container 12 with an egg container transfer device 16a (two in the present embodiment, but one or three or more may be used) having an adsorbing portion 16b. An egg container transport conveyor 13, a transport case transport conveyor (inlet conveyor 14, outlet conveyor 15) for transporting a transport case 11 for storing a plurality of egg containers 12, a transport case transport conveyor (14, 15) to a transport case 11 And a transport device 1 for delivering the transport case 11 after housing the egg container 12.
The egg container transfer device 16a is a predetermined one or more of the three or more egg containers 12 transported from the egg container transport conveyor 13 by the adsorbing portion 16b (a plurality of adsorption pads 200) from above. The lid 12 a at the position is adsorbed, and the egg container 12 is transferred to the inside of the transport case 11 standing by on the transport device 1. In addition, the egg container packaging system 10 is provided with a rack 17 that supports the transfer device 1 and the egg container transfer device 16.

  The transport case transport conveyor includes an inlet conveyor 14 that transports the transport case 11 toward the transport device 1 from the upstream, and an exit conveyor 15 that transports the transport case 11 downstream from the transport device 1.

  The first direction D1 and the second direction D2 are each a horizontal direction (lateral direction), and the first direction D1 is a direction orthogonal to the second direction D2. The third direction D3 is a vertical direction (vertical direction), and is a direction orthogonal to the first direction D1 and the second direction D2, respectively.

The transport apparatus 1 includes a stop unit 2 that stops the plurality of transport cases 11 in parallel in the first direction D1 and stops the first transport unit 3 disposed upstream with respect to the stop unit 2 and the stop unit 2. And a second transport unit 4 disposed on the downstream side. In the present embodiment, the stop unit 2 stops the two transport cases 11 in parallel in the first direction D1. When the transport case 11 is at the stop 2, the filling operation of the egg container 12 is performed. In addition, one, three or more transportation cases 11 may be arranged in parallel in the first direction D1 and stopped.
In the present embodiment, the conveyance device 1 is configured by a roller conveyor, but is not limited to this.

The egg container transport conveyor 13 includes a conveyor belt 13a for transporting the egg containers 12 in the first direction D1, and a stop device 13b for stopping the egg containers 12 on the conveyor belt 13a. The egg container transport conveyor 13 sequentially transports the egg containers 12 in the first direction D1 while allowing the stop device 13b to stop the egg containers 12 as needed, thereby creating a gap between the egg containers 12,12. Do.
When the egg container transport conveyor 13 alternately performs the operation of suctioning two egg containers and the operation of suctioning three egg containers, the two egg containers and the three egg containers are held at the suction standby position downstream of the conveyor. And can be alternately transported to the suction standby position.

  The egg container 12 is, for example, a container in which a chicken egg is housed. In the present embodiment, the shapes, materials, and intervals of the plurality of suction portions 16b correspond to a plurality of types of egg containers having different outer sizes (in particular, convex shapes on the top surface and egg containers having different intervals (pitch) of the convex shapes). doing. Details will be described later.

  The transport case 11 is, for example, a box whose upper side is opened, and in the present embodiment, is a box formed of plastic or cardboard. The object 11 has a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction, and is formed in, for example, a rectangular shape in a plan view (a third direction D3 view). In this embodiment, it is a transport case of one common size corresponding to a plurality of types of egg containers having different outer sizes (in particular, an egg container having a convex shape on the top surface and an interval (pitch) of the convex shapes different). It may also be a shipping case sized to the size of the egg container. The control unit 100 determines the arrangement of the egg container to be packed in the transport case according to the size of the transport case 11, the size of the egg container 12, and the specification of the shipping product, and controls the operation of the egg container transfer device 16a.

(Egg container transfer device)
The egg container transfer device 16 includes two robots 16a and 16a having six degrees of freedom, and suction units 16b and 16b disposed at the tip of each robot 16a for suctioning a plurality of egg containers 12. Then, the adsorbing portion 16b simultaneously adsorbs the egg container 12 at the suction standby position of the egg container transport conveyor 13, and the robot 16a operates, whereby the plurality of egg containers 12 are stopped on the stop portion 2 of the transport device 1. Being transported inside the shipping case 11.

The suction unit 16b will be described.
In the present embodiment, the suction unit 16 b includes six bellows suction pads 200 for one 10-piece egg container. The bellows suction pad 200 shown in FIG. 2A has 4.5 steps, and the outer diameter (Φ) of the bellows cylindrical portion 201 and the tip lip 202 is 20 mm, and the longitudinal length (L) of the bellows cylinder is 28 mm. It is. The bellows suction pad 200 is made of silicone rubber having a hardness of 40 (A / S), the thickness (T2) of the bellows cylindrical 201 is 0.6 mm to 1 mm, and the thickness (T1) of the tip lip 202 is 0.1 mm. It is ~ 0.5 mm. The upper portion of the suction pad 200 is connected to a vacuum pump (not shown) by a tube 300.

The distance between the plurality of suction pads 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 2B. In the present embodiment, it is set that the egg adsorbs and transfers the MS-LL sized convex lid egg container 12. The pitch (SP1) of the longitudinal convex portion 12a of the convex lid of the MS egg container 12 (MS) and the pitch (SP2) of the lateral convex portion 12a, and the longitudinal convex portion of the convex lid of the LL egg container The pitch (P1) of the suction pads in the longitudinal direction corresponding to the egg container and the pitch (P2) of the suction pads in the lateral direction are set from the pitch (LP1) of 12a and the pitch (LP2) of the horizontal convex portions 12a. . Here, the average of the pitches of the convex portions of the MS egg container and the LL egg container is set to the pitch of the suction pad.
P1 = (LP1 + SP1) / 2
P2 = (LP2 + SP2) / 2
Further, as shown in FIG. 2B, the pitch (SP3) between adjacent convex portions 12a of MS egg containers adjacent in parallel in the longitudinal direction and the adjacent convex shapes of LL egg containers adjacent in parallel in the container longitudinal direction The average of the pitch (LP3) between the parts 12a is determined, and the pitch (P3) of the suction pad corresponding to the egg container adjacent in parallel to the container longitudinal direction is set.
P3 = (LP3 + SP3) / 2

  FIGS. 3A and 3B show a state where suction is performed by the suction pad 200 when three egg containers 12 (MS size) are placed parallel to the longitudinal direction of the container in the layout setting of the suction pad 200 of FIG. 2B. As shown in FIG. 3A, the left and right tip lips 202 contact and adsorb the top surface and the side surface of the convex portion 12a. Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, in the left and right egg containers 12 (MS), the front end lip 202 contacts and adsorbs the top surface and the side surface of the convex portion 12a. The point of contact with the side surface is indicated by reference numeral 202a. As described above, the suction pad 200 is preferably contactable and suctionable not only on a flat surface but also on a curved surface, an edge or the like.

(How to pack an egg container into a shipping case)
In the present embodiment, a method of packing an egg container in a transport case (for example, cardboard) will be described. FIGS. 4A-4C show both a boxed state viewed from the top of the transport case (top view) and a see through the inside of the transport case from the side (bottom view) .

  FIG. 4A is 2 × 3 (total) so that the lateral direction (longitudinal direction) and longitudinal direction (shorter direction) of the egg container are aligned with the x direction (longitudinal direction) and y direction (shorter direction) of the transport case. Pack in the arrangement of 6). In terms of sides, the first and second tiers are stacked in the same way. In this case, the egg container transfer device 1 simultaneously sucks three egg containers, packs them into the transport case 11, and packs the next three egg containers next to it. The egg container transfer device 16 loads the egg containers in the same manner in the next stage. A suction control unit (not shown) controls suction to a vacuum pump (not shown) during adsorption / desorption processing of the egg container. Further, the main control unit (not shown) controls the multi-axis robot 16a which is a transfer mechanism.

  FIG. 4B aligns the y direction (transverse direction) of the transport case with the lateral direction (longitudinal direction) of the egg container to pack four egg containers in the x direction. There is a gap (smaller than the egg container) in the transport case. This occurs when using a common shipping case (if the shipping case and the egg container do not fit). In terms of aspect, when packing the next stage, the positions of the gaps are staggered between the lower stage and the upper stage. In this case, the egg container transfer device 16 sucks the two egg containers simultaneously, aligns them on one side of the transport case in the y direction, and packs the next two side by side. In the next stage, the egg container transfer device 16 sucks the two egg containers simultaneously, aligns them with the other side of the transport case in the y direction, and packs the next two side by side. By doing this, lateral movement (movement in the direction of the gap) of the egg container in the transport case can be suppressed, and egg breakage and the like during transportation can be suppressed.

In FIG. 4C, the y direction (short side direction) of the transport case is aligned with the longitudinal direction (short side direction) of the egg container to pack three egg containers, and then the two egg containers are rotated 90 degrees. pack. A gap is created on both sides in the lateral direction of two egg containers packed later. This too happens because of the use of a common shipping case. In terms of side, when the next stage is packed, the lower and upper stages alternate between the three container packing position and the two container packing position. In this case, the egg container transfer device 16 sucks the three egg containers simultaneously, aligns the lateral end faces of the three egg containers with one side of the transport case in the x direction, and rotates the next two egg containers by 90 degrees. Put them side by side. In the next stage, the egg container transfer device 16 simultaneously sucks the three egg containers, aligns the lateral end faces of the three egg containers with the other side of the transport case in the x direction, and 90 of the next two egg containers. Rotate it and pack it side by side. By doing this, lateral movement (movement in the direction of the gap) of the egg container in the transport case can be suppressed, and egg breakage and the like during transportation can be suppressed.
Suction ON / OFF is controlled so that three egg containers and two egg containers can be alternately suctioned. The plurality of suction pads 200 are connected to a vacuum pump by a tube 300, and adsorption and desorption are individually controlled in each of the suction pads 200.

  In the present embodiment, the main control unit of the egg container transfer device 16 configured by a multi-axis robot moves the suction unit 16b by the minimum movement amount (or the absorption amount between the suction position of the egg container 12 and the removal position of the transport case 11). By controlling so as to move at the optimum movement amount), it is possible to shorten the total operation time of movement to the suction position, egg container suction, egg container transfer, transport case packing.

(Another embodiment)
Although the multi-axis robot is used in the present embodiment, the invention is not limited thereto. The suction unit (suction pad 200) may be attached to a device capable of vertical, horizontal, and rotational movement as a transfer device.

(Example)
In the above-mentioned egg container transfer device, transfer of the egg container was performed under the following conditions.
As a vacuum pump, a dry pump (manufactured by Orion KRF25A-V-01B) is used.
As the suction pad, the hardness is made of silicone rubber of 40 degrees (A40 / S).
The suction pad uses a 4.5-step bellows pad.
The outer diameter of the bellows of the suction pad and the diameter of the pad (the tip lip) are 20 mm.
The cylindrical longitudinal direction is 28 mm.
As shown in FIG. 2B, the number of suction pads is 6 for a 10-piece egg container (2 × 5 when viewed in the longitudinal direction).
With the above settings, it was confirmed that all of the six different sized egg containers could be aspirated and transferred. Moreover, the vacuum pump pressure at that time was as follows.
Flat pack: -66.3 kPa
MS pack: -65.6kPa
M pack: -65.3kPa
L pack: -64.8 kPa
LL pack: -64.3kPa
MIX pack: -64.7 kPa
The pump pressure was determined from the theoretical lift force W (= P × S × n × 0.1), and the result was substantially identical to the value (58.5 kPa) where the safety factor was 5.

12 egg container 200 suction pad 201 bellows cylindrical portion 202 tip lip

Claims (4)

An adsorption unit having at least two adsorption pads for one egg container;
Suction means connected to the suction unit;
A transfer mechanism to which the suction unit is attached;
A suction control unit that controls the suction unit when suction processing is performed by the egg container and the suction unit;
A main control unit that controls the movement of the transfer mechanism;
The suction pad is
The inside of the tube is a bellows-like cylinder which is penetrated for air suction, and
From the bellows cylindrical longitudinal length, the outer diameter of the bellows cylindrical or tip lip rather small,
Among the plurality of sizes of egg containers, the egg container is provided with a convex lid having a convex portion that forms unevenness along the egg shape, and the pitch (SP1) of the vertical convex portions of the convex lid of the minimum sized egg container Egg container based on the pitch (SP2) of the horizontal convex portion and the pitch (LP1) of the vertical convex portion of the convex lid of the largest size egg container and the pitch of the horizontal convex portion (LP2) The pitch (P1) of the vertical suction pad and the pitch (P2) of the horizontal suction pad corresponding to
Egg container transfer device. When a plurality of egg containers are suctioned simultaneously, the pitch (SP3) between adjacent convex portions of the convex lids of the smallest sized egg containers adjacent in parallel in the container longitudinal direction and the maximum adjacent in parallel in the container longitudinal direction The pitch (P3) of the suction pads corresponding to the adjacent egg containers parallel to the longitudinal direction of the container is set based on the pitch (LP3) of the adjacent convex portions of the convex lids of the size egg container, The egg container transfer device according to claim 1 .   The egg container transfer device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the adsorption portion is an elastic member, and the hardness is 30 to 60 (A / S). An egg container transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ;
An egg container transport conveyor for transporting the egg containers;
A transport case transport conveyor for transporting a transport case for accommodating a plurality of egg containers;
The egg container transfer device is
The lid of the egg container is adsorbed by the adsorption section of the egg container transfer device from the upper side of the one or more egg containers transported by the egg container transport conveyor, and the egg container is transported to the inside of the transport case An egg container packaging system comprising:

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