JP6521292B2 - Case packer and control method of case packer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a case packer for packing a plurality of containers in a case and a control method of the case packer .

  Conventionally, a case packer for packing a plurality of containers such as bottles in a case holds the head portion of the container aligned at a predetermined position on the transport device with the gripping portion of the gripper device and stands by at a lower fixed position The container is lowered into the case, introduced into the case, and boxed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  When the number of containers is large, as shown in FIG. 10, a plurality of containers B (16 × 5 rows = 80) for a plurality of cases (not shown, for example, 4 cases capable of containing 20) At the same time, a case packer 101 that can be packed into a case from above the transport device 2 is used. The case packer 101 aligns the plurality of containers B on the conveyor unit 9 using the stopper 114 and a guide (not shown) provided on the conveyance device 2, and then the gripper unit 103 having a plurality of gripping units 7. Can be used to transport four containers B at the same time.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 58-37588

By the way, for example, about a beer bottle, the bottle which performed thickness reduction in order to aim at weight reduction of a container is increasing. Also, as an alternative to beer bottles made of glass, containers made of plastic such as PET are also known. The plastic bottle is deformed by being pressed.
That is, even with containers of the same volume, containers having a diameter different from the diameter of a conventional beer bottle are beginning to flow. This causes the case packer to handle containers having a diameter different from that of conventional containers.

  However, when the container B for four cases is gripped using the case packer 101 shown in FIG. 10, the container B gripped at the most upstream side in the transport direction T when the diameter of the container B varies. There is a problem that the position of (1) deviates from the allowable range of the position at which the gripping portion 7 of the gripper unit 103 can grip.

Here, when the diameter of the container is D and the number of containers required to be gripped at the same time is N, the distance A2 between the center position of the most upstream container B and the center position of the most downstream container B is It can be calculated by A2 = D × (N−1). Assuming that the dimensional error of the diameter D of the container is ± 1 mm, in the case of the case packer 101 holding 16 pieces, the position of the container B on the most upstream side is calculated to be shifted by about 15 mm at the maximum.
The gripper unit 103 can not grip the sixteen containers B when the gripper 7 constituting the gripper unit 103 has the ability to absorb an error of 2 mm.

The present invention prevents the relative position of the container gripped by the gripper device from falling outside the allowable range of the gripping portion constituting the gripper device due to the dimensional difference of the diameter of the container, and prevents the gripper from being unable to grip the container It is an object of the present invention to provide a case packer and a control method of the case packer that can be performed.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the case packer has a plurality of grippers juxtaposed in the transport direction, and a plurality of gripper devices mutually spaced apart in the transport direction, and a plurality of gripper devices. A transport unit that transports the containers in a row in the transport direction in a state in which the containers are in contact with each other, and a sorting unit that sorts the container group from the plurality of containers transported by the transport device. And a stopper main body capable of being in a retracted state for retracting from the transport path; and a driving unit for operating the stopper main body along a direction orthogonal to the transport direction to bring the projection state and the retracted state; with the relative positional relationship is sorted to fall within the allowable range with respect to the relative positional relationship of the plurality of gripping portions sorting of the plurality of container constituting the container groups, wherein the sorting unit, before The plurality of containers are formed such that the container group is formed between a damming portion that temporarily blocks the plurality of containers transported by the transport device on the transport device and the damming portion. A separating part and an arranging part for arranging the plurality of container groups in the transport direction at the same interval as that of the gripper device, and the blocking part is brought into the projecting state and the separating part is In the retracted state, after arranging the plurality of containers between the blocking portion and the dividing portion, the separation portion is set in the protruding state to separate the container group from the plurality of containers, and the arrangement portion is formed. while with the protruded state, the damming portion as the retracted state, the container group is conveyed by the conveying device arranged beneath the gripper device, the plurality of containers groups, the plurality of containers Characterized by packing by introducing a plurality of case having a plurality of accommodating portions corresponding to the group.

  According to such a configuration, by dividing the plurality of containers into the plurality of container groups, the relative position with respect to the gripping portion constituting the gripper device is out of the allowable range of the gripper device due to the dimensional difference of the diameter of the containers. The gripper device can prevent the container from being gripped.

Moreover , it becomes easy to hold a plurality of container groups with a plurality of gripper devices .
According to a second aspect of the present invention, a method of controlling a case packer includes: a plurality of gripper devices having a plurality of gripping portions juxtaposed in the transport direction and spaced from each other in the transport direction; A transport device for transporting a plurality of containers in a row in the transport direction with the containers in contact with each other, a projecting state inserted into the transport path, a stopper main body capable of being retracted from the transport path, and the stopper main body; A drive unit configured to operate along a direction orthogonal to the transport direction to bring the projecting state and the retracted state, and is a sorting unit that sorts container groups from the plurality of containers transported by the transport device. And the container group is formed between a damming portion that temporarily blocks the plurality of containers being transported by the transport device on the transport device, and the damming portion. A control method of a case packer comprising: a sorting section having a delimiting section for dividing the plurality of containers; and an arranging section for arranging the plurality of container groups in the transport direction at the same interval as the interval of the gripper device And the plurality of containers transported by the transfer device are aligned between the blocking portion and the dividing portion while the blocking portion is in the protruding state and the dividing portion is in the retracted state. An aligning step, and a separating step of separating the container group from the plurality of containers with the dividing portion in the protruding state after the aligning step, and after the separating step, setting the placement portion in the protruding state; And disposing the container group transported by the transport device immediately below the gripper device, with the blocking unit in the retracted state, and the container group is configured. Sorting is performed so that the relative positional relationship of the plurality of containers falls within the allowable range with respect to the relative positional relationship of the plurality of holding units, and the plurality of container groups correspond to the plurality of container groups. It is characterized in that it is introduced into a plurality of cases having boxing.

  According to the present invention, by dividing the plurality of containers into the plurality of container groups, the relative position with respect to the gripper device becomes out of the allowable range of the gripper device due to the dimensional difference of the container diameter, and the containers are gripped by the gripper device It can prevent that it can not do.

It is a side view of case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is A arrow line view of FIG. 1, and is the side view seen from the conveyance direction of the case packer of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of a case and a bottle. It is a side view explaining an operation of a case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view explaining an operation of a case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view explaining an operation of a case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view explaining an operation of a case packer of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of case packer of a modification of an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view of the conventional case packer.

Hereinafter, a case packer 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the case packer 1 of this embodiment transports a plurality of containers B in a row in the transport direction T (in this embodiment, five rows in the paper surface depth direction) An apparatus 2, a sorting apparatus 4 for sorting a plurality of containers B into a plurality of container groups G, and a gripper unit 3 for gripping and conveying the plurality of containers B (container groups G) transported by the transport device 2; There is.

  The case packer 1 is a device for storing (boxing) a plurality of containers B transported by the transport device 2 in the case 20 by a predetermined number (20 in the present embodiment) using the gripper unit 3. The case packer 1 of the present embodiment has the ability to simultaneously transport and store four sets of container groups G (20 containers × 4, a total of 80 containers) in four cases 20. The number of containers B constituting the container group G is not limited to this. Also, the number of cases 20 that can be accommodated simultaneously is not limited to this.

  Here, the container B is, for example, a cylindrical (bottomed cylindrical) glass bottle (bottle) for containing a beverage, and has a shape in which the opening narrows in the upward direction. Hereinafter, the tapered opening of the container B is referred to as a head H. The material and shape of the container B are not limited to this, and containers made of plastic (resin, mainly PET) and those having a polygonal cross-sectional shape orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the container are also included. In addition, even containers of the same volume also include containers of different wall thicknesses. The case packer 1 of this embodiment can process containers B with different diameters D.

  The case 20 (plastic case) is a box-like (rectangular parallelepiped) case 20 which is open at the top and has a plurality of storage portions 22. As shown in FIG. 4, the case 20 has a partition plate 21 for aligning the containers B in a 4 × 5 matrix (lattice). That is, by inserting the container B from above the case 20, the container B can be accommodated in the case 20 in an aligned state. Moreover, if it is 20 containers B arranged corresponding to case 20, it can be accommodated at once from the top. The accommodation portion 22 having a rectangular shape in a plan view and formed by the partition plate 21 is formed such that the length of one side is slightly larger than the diameter D of the container B.

  In the case 20 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the container B is arranged in four rows in the first horizontal direction (n = 4), and five rows in the direction orthogonal to the first direction (m = 5) Although it is possible to accommodate 20 containers B (n × m = 20) in a grid form, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the numerical values of n and m can be changed as appropriate.

The transport device 2 has a conveyor unit 9 having a placement surface 10 on which the container B is placed, and a pair of guides 11 (not shown in FIG. 1) having guide surfaces 12 orthogonal to the placement surface 10. ing. The transport device 2 of the present embodiment transports the containers B in a state in which the outer peripheral surfaces are in contact with each other in a row in five lines in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction T.
The conveyor unit 9 moves the placement surface 10 (upper surface) in the transport direction T by a chain conveyor method. As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of (five in this embodiment) chains 9 a of the conveyor unit 9 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction T. A predetermined gap is formed between the adjacent chain 9a and the chain 9a. 1 and 2, the plurality of chains 9a are not drawn, and the chains 9a of the conveyor unit 9 are drawn as one.

  The guides 11 are disposed along the transport direction T, and the distance between the guide surfaces 12 of the pair of guides 11 can be changed according to the diameter D of the container B and the shape of the case 20. If the case 20 is a 4 × 5 grid, it can be set to four times or five times the diameter D of the plurality of containers B transported by the transport device 2. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, by setting the distance between the guides 11 to a distance slightly larger than five times the diameter D of the containers B, the containers B to be transported are aligned in five rows.

  The gripper unit 3 is composed of a plurality of gripper devices 6. The gripper devices 6 are arranged at an interval (X1) in the transport direction T from each other. The relative positions of the gripper devices 6 are fixed by the frame 8. The gripper unit 3 can be moved using, for example, a robot arm. The gripper unit 3 can move in the vertical direction V at a gripping position P1 shown by a solid line in FIG. 1 and a storage position P2 shown by a two-dot chain line. In addition, movement in the horizontal direction L is possible between the gripping position P1 and the housing position P2.

The gripper device 6 has a plurality of (in this embodiment, twenty) gripping portions 7 arranged in parallel in the transport direction T. The grips 7 are arranged in a 4 × 5 grid when viewed from above. That is, the plurality of gripping portions 7 are arranged in a predetermined 4 × 5 grid-like relative positional relationship.
The arrangement of the gripping portions 7 corresponds to the arrangement of the accommodation portion 22 of the case 20 (the arrangement of the container B accommodated in the case 20). That is, the arrangement viewed from above the plurality of containers B gripped by the plurality of gripping portions 7 of the gripper device 6 is substantially the same as the arrangement of the containers B housed in the lattice shape in the case 20. The spacing in the transport direction T of the gripping portion 7 and the spacing in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction T are substantially the same as the diameter D of the container B.

The gripper 7 (gripper) can grip the head H of the container B from above. The gripping portion 7 has, for example, a holding cylinder that holds the head H of the container B, and a clip that is interposed between the holding cylinder and the head H and that is deformed by the introduction of compressed air. Can be adopted. The clip is formed of, for example, a flexible material such as rubber. The holding unit 7 can hold the head H of the container B by introducing compressed air into the holder in a state where the holding cylinder is placed on the head H of the container B and expanding the holder.
The gripping portion 7 can grip the head H of the container B disposed immediately below the gripping portion 7, but there is an allowable range in which the gripping can be performed even if the position of the container B is slightly shifted. For example, the gripping portion 7 of the present embodiment can grip the container B even when the center of the container B deviates within a radius of 2 mm with respect to a predetermined point immediately below the gripping portion 7.

The sorting device 4 includes a plurality of stoppers 14 that stop the flow of the plurality of containers B flowing on the transport device 2 (or make the flow velocity of the containers B slower than the transport velocity of the transport device 2).
The stopper 14 has a plurality of stopper main bodies 15 for stopping the flow of the container B while operating the conveyance device 2 by inserting the stopper 14 onto the conveyance path of the container B, and a plurality of driving parts 16 for driving the stopper main body 15 ing. Hereinafter, in the stopper 14, a state in which the stopper main body 15 is inserted into the transport path is referred to as a projecting state, and a state in which the stopper main body 15 is retracted to a position not inhibiting the transport of the container B is referred to as a retracted state. The stopper main body 15 and the drive part 16 are provided five corresponding to the number of rows of the container B (five rows in the present embodiment).

As shown in FIG. 3, the stopper main body 15 is formed by a pair of rod-like members spaced apart at an interval slightly smaller than the diameter of the container B. The stopper body 15 can stop the container B by causing the stopper body 15 to project from the mounting surface 10 of the conveyor unit 9. It is not necessary to stop the container B completely by the stopper 14 as long as the relative velocity with respect to the stopper main body 15 can be made zero. That is, it is not necessary to make the absolute velocity 0 by the stopper 14.
The drive part 16 just moves the stopper main body 15 in the vertical direction, and for example, a hydraulic cylinder can be adopted.
As described above, a gap is formed between the chains 9a of the conveyor unit 9, and the stopper body 15 of the stopper 14 is inserted into the gap.

  The stoppers 14 have a plurality of (four in the present embodiment) arrangement stoppers 17 (17a, 17b, 17c, 17d) arranged corresponding to the plurality of gripper devices 6, and the conveyance direction T with respect to the arrangement stoppers 17 It is comprised from the damming stopper 18 arrange | positioned upstream, and the division | segmentation stopper 19 arrange | positioned with respect to the damming stopper 18 at the conveyance direction T upstream side.

  The blocking stopper 18 is disposed on the upstream side in the transport direction T of the plurality of placement stoppers 17. The blocking stopper 18 temporarily stops and aligns the plurality of containers B flowing from the upstream side in the transport direction T. Specifically, the five containers B on the most downstream side are aligned when the outer peripheral surface of the container B contacts the damming stopper 18, and containers B after the five containers B are also aligned in the same manner. That is, the plurality of containers B are aligned in five rows by the blocking stopper 18 and the guide 11. The blocking stopper 18 functions as a blocking unit for temporarily blocking the plurality of containers B transported by the transport device 2 on the transport device 2.

The separation stopper 19 is disposed upstream of the damming stopper 18 in the transport direction T. The distance between the stopper main body 15 of the damming stopper 18 and the stopper main body 15 of the dividing stopper 19 is the standard diameter D of the container B and the number of containers B constituting the container group G (arrangement of the storage portion 22 of the case 20 Configuration). The separation stopper 19 functions as a separation part for dividing the plurality of containers B such that the container group G is formed with the damming stopper 18.
The case packer 1 of the present embodiment has a specification for sorting a plurality of containers B arranged in five rows by the transport device 4 into four in the transport direction T. Therefore, the stopper body 15 of the blocking stopper 18 and the partitioning stopper 19 The distance to the stopper body 15 is set to 4 × D + α. α is a predetermined distance.

  The detent stopper 19 is inserted between the containers B in a state where the plurality of containers B are aligned in five rows on the placement surface 10 of the conveying device 2 by the blocking stopper 18, thereby the detent stopper 18 and the delimiter stopper Between 20 and 19, 20 containers B (container group G) can be made independent of the plurality of other containers B.

The number of containers B in the transport direction T of the container groups G sorted by the sorting device 4 (the number of container groups G gripped using the gripper device 6) can also be determined by the configuration of the case 20 as described above But can be changed as appropriate. That is, it can be suitably changed according to the performance of the gripper device 6 and the gripping portion 7 and the dimensional error of the container B.
The sorting device 4 according to the present embodiment sorts the plurality of containers B such that the plurality of containers B constituting the container group G have a 4 × 5 grid relative positional relationship.

Here, an example of a method of determining the number of containers B in the transport direction T of the container group G sorted by the sorting device 4 will be described. The sorting device 4 sets the plurality of containers B in the container group G such that the relative positional relationship of the plurality of containers B constituting the container group G falls within the allowable range with respect to the relative positional relationship of the gripping unit 7. Sort out.
Assuming that the diameter of the container B is D and the number of containers B simultaneously gripped by the gripper device 6 is N, the value of A1 shown in FIG. 1, that is, the container farthest from the center of the container group G from the center of the container group G The distance to the center of B is calculated by A1 = D × (N−1) / 2.
For example, in the case of a container B having a diameter D of 77 mm and a dimensional error of the diameter D of 1 mm, the value of A1 will fluctuate in the range of ± 1.5 mm with N = 4. If the allowable range of the gripping portion 7 constituting the gripper device 6 has an ability of absorbing an error of 2 mm, that is, 2 mm, it can be gripped without any problem. Conversely, if the tolerance of the gripping portion 7 is 1 mm, that is, if the 1 mm container B has a position where it can not be gripped, the number of containers B to be gripped at the same time needs to be reduced.

  The plurality of arrangement stoppers 17 are arranged at positions corresponding to the four gripper devices 6 constituting the gripper unit 3. The placement stopper 17 functions as a placement unit for placing the plurality of container groups G in the transport direction T at the same interval as the interval X1 of the gripper device 6. That is, the distance X2 between the arrangement stoppers 17 shown in FIG. 1 and the distance X1 between the gripper devices 6 are arranged to be the same. The arrangement stopper 17 includes a first arrangement stopper 17a on the downstream side most in the conveyance direction T, a second arrangement stopper 17b provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction T with respect to the first arrangement stopper 17a, and a second arrangement stopper 17b. On the other hand, the third arrangement stopper 17 c provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction T and the fourth arrangement stopper 17 d on the most upstream side in the conveyance direction T are configured.

Next, the operation of the case packer 1 of the present embodiment will be described.
FIG. 5 shows a state in which the plurality of containers B transported from the upstream side in the transport direction T are blocked using the blocking stopper 18 and then 20 containers B are made independent using the separation stopper 19 FIG.
First, the damming stopper 18 is in the protruding state, and the separation stopper 19 is in the retracted state (in FIG. 5, the separation stopper 19 is drawn in the protruding state). Further, the plurality of placement stoppers 17 are in the retracted state except for the first placement stopper 17 a on the downstream side of the transport direction T most.

In this state, the plurality of containers B are transported from the upstream side in the transport direction T. Thereby, the plurality of containers B are blocked by the blocking stopper 18 and aligned in five rows by the guides 11.
Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the separation stopper 19 is brought into a projecting state. As a result, 20 containers B are arranged in a 4 × 5 matrix between the blocking stopper 18 and the dividing stopper 19. That is, twenty container groups G are separated from the plurality of containers B.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the damming stopper 18 is retracted. Thereby, the independent container group G is transported to the downstream side in the transport direction T. The container group G is disposed immediately below the gripper device 6 on the most downstream side in the transport direction T by the first placement stopper 17 a on the most downstream side in the transport direction T.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 7, the second arrangement stopper 17b next to the first arrangement stopper 17a on the most downstream side in the transport direction T is made to be in a projecting state, and sorting by the blocking stopper 18 and the dividing stopper 19 is performed. . As a result, the subsequent container group G is disposed directly below the gripper device 6.

  As shown in FIG. 8, by repeating the sorting operation and the arranging operation, four sets of container groups G are arranged at positions corresponding to the four gripper devices 6. That is, by moving the gripper device 6 downward from this state, it is possible to simultaneously grip the containers B for four cases.

  Next, the four sets of container groups G arranged by the arrangement stopper 17 are gripped by moving the gripper device 6 to the gripping position P1 and lowering it. The gripped container group G is moved to the storage position P2 and stored in the case 20 by lowering the gripper unit 3. A front metal 24 is provided above the case 20, and the front metal 24 guides the body of the container B. Subsequently, the holding part 7 releases the holding of the head H of the container B, and the container B is introduced into the housing part 22 of the case 20 and boxed.

  According to the above embodiment, by dividing the plurality of containers B into the plurality of container groups G, the relative position with respect to the gripper device 6 is out of the allowable range of the gripper device 6 due to the dimensional difference of the diameter D of the containers B. The gripper device 6 can prevent the container B from being unable to be gripped.

  In addition, the sorting device 4 has the arrangement stoppers 17 for arranging the plurality of container groups G in the transport direction T at the same interval as the distance between the gripper devices 6 to hold the plurality of container groups G with the plurality of gripper devices 6 It becomes easy to do.

In the above embodiment, the container group G is stopped using the disposition stopper 17. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, using the arrangement stopper 17 by conveying the plurality of container groups G at intervals corresponding to the interval X1 of the gripper devices 6 and gripping the container group G in the transport state while using the gripper devices 6 Instead, it becomes possible to hold a plurality of container groups G.
Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the structure which accommodates the container B in four case 20 of the same shape was shown, the shape of case 20 does not need to be the same. For example, cases 20 capable of accommodating different numbers of pieces may be disposed below the accommodation position P2, and the gripper unit 3 may be mounted with the gripper devices 6 having different numbers of gripping portions 7 corresponding to the respective cases 20.

Next, a case packer 1B according to a modification of the above embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIG. 9, the case packer 1 </ b> B of the modified example is configured such that the stopper 14 that constitutes the sorting device 4 </ b> B can move along the transport direction T. That is, the sorting device 4B of the present modified example includes the stopper moving device 26 that moves the stopper 14 in the direction along the transport direction T. The stopper moving device 26 moves the stopper 14 by a chain conveyor method as in the transfer device 2.

By moving the stopper 14 at a speed slower than the transport speed of the containers B, the case packer 1B of this modification can move the container group G after sorting in the transport direction T. By moving the gripper unit 3 (not shown) at the same moving speed as the container group G, the moved container group G can be gripped and transported.
According to the above-mentioned modification, more efficient packing work becomes possible by carrying out packing while moving container group G after sorting.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, various modifications can be made without departing from the technical concept of the present invention.
For example, although the gripper device 6 grips the head H of the container B using the container B having the head H in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the can may be adsorbed by an adsorption device.

1, 1 B Case packer 2 Transport device 3 Gripper unit 4, 4 B Sorting device (sorting unit)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 6 gripper apparatus 7 grip part 8 frame 9 conveyor part 10 mounting surface 11 guide 12 guide surface 14 stopper 15 stopper main body 16 drive part 17 (17a, 17b, 17c, 17d) arrangement stopper (arrangement part)
18 Stopper (Stopper)
19 Separator (Separator)
20 case 21 partition plate 22 accommodation section 24 first metal B container C container interval D diameter G container group H head L horizontal direction P1 grasping position P2 accommodation position T conveyance direction V vertical direction

Claims (2)

A plurality of gripper devices having a plurality of gripping portions juxtaposed in the transport direction and spaced from each other in the transport direction;
A conveying device that conveys a plurality of containers in a row in the conveying direction while being in contact with each other;
A sorting unit for sorting a group of containers from the plurality of containers transported by the transport device, wherein the stopper main body can be in a projecting state inserted into a transport path, and can be in a retracted state retracted from the transport path; The drive unit configured to move along a direction orthogonal to the transport direction to set the protrusion state and the retraction state, and the relative positional relationship of a plurality of containers constituting the container group is that of the plurality of grips And a sorting unit for sorting the relative positional relationship so as to be within an allowable range,
The sorting unit
A damming portion for temporarily damming the plurality of containers transported by the transport device on the transport device;
A delimiting portion that separates the plurality of containers so that the container group is formed between the damming portions;
An arranging unit for arranging the plurality of container groups in the transport direction at the same interval as the interval of the gripper device;
After the plurality of containers are aligned between the blocking portion and the dividing portion while the blocking portion is in the protruding state and the dividing portion is in the retracted state, the dividing portion is in the protruding state Separating a group of containers from the plurality of containers;
The container group transported by the transport device is disposed directly below the gripper device, with the placement portion in the protruding state and the blocking portion in the retracted state.
A case packer for introducing and packing the plurality of container groups into a plurality of cases having a plurality of accommodating portions corresponding to the plurality of container groups. A plurality of gripper devices having a plurality of gripping portions juxtaposed in the transport direction and spaced from each other in the transport direction;
A conveying device that conveys a plurality of containers in a row in the conveying direction while being in contact with each other;
A protruding state inserted into the conveyance path, and a stopper main body which can be in a retracted state retracted from the conveyance path, and a drive for operating the stopper main body along a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction to make the protruding state and the retracted state A sorting unit for sorting a group of containers from the plurality of containers transported by the transport device;
A damming portion for temporarily damming the plurality of containers transported by the transport device on the transport device;
A delimiting portion that separates the plurality of containers so that the container group is formed between the damming portions;
A control method of a case packer comprising: a sorting unit having an arrangement unit for arranging the plurality of container groups in the transport direction at the same interval as the interval of the gripper device;
Aligning the plurality of containers transported by the transfer device between the blocking portion and the dividing portion, with the blocking portion in the protruding state and the dividing portion in the retracted state; ,
Separating the container group from the plurality of containers with the dividing portion in the protruding state after the alignment step;
Placing the container group transported by the transport device immediately below the gripper device with the placement portion in the protruding state and the blocking portion in the retracted state after the separation step; Have
Sorting is performed so that the relative positional relationship of the plurality of containers constituting the container group falls within the allowable range with respect to the relative positional relationship of the plurality of gripping portions, and the plurality of container groups are divided into the plurality of container groups A control method of a case packer introduced into a plurality of cases having a plurality of corresponding accommodating portions and boxed.

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