JP6827281B2 - Cloth thrower and cloth deployer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cloth throwing machine and a cloth deploying device. More specifically, a cloth loading machine for loading washed sheets, wrapping cloth (two-sheet cloth duvet cover), pillowcase, towel, tablecloth, etc. into a cloth unfolding device, and the cloth. The present invention relates to a cloth deploying device equipped with a class thrower.

Sheets are used in large quantities in hotels and hospitals. Used sheets are washed and ironed at the laundry factory and used again at hotels and hospitals. At the laundry factory, after washing cloth such as sheets, ironing with a roll ironer or folding with a cloth folding device is performed. In order to supply the cloth to these processing devices, it is necessary to deploy the cloth in advance. When a worker performs the work of unfolding the cloth, a great deal of time and labor is required for the work. Therefore, in recent years, this work has been performed using a cloth unfolding device.

The cloth unfolding device described in Patent Document 1 is roughly configured as follows.
When the worker attaches the corner of the square cloth to the mounting chuck, the mounting chuck moves and hands the corner that was gripped to the traverse chuck. As the traversing chuck traverses, the edge of the square cloth is placed on the belt conveyor in a linearly extended state. The belt conveyor is driven forward to hang the square cloth on the front surface of the device, and the extension chuck grabs both ends of the square cloth in the width direction and pulls it to hang it. By this operation, the square cloth is expanded into a quadrangle. After the square cloth in this state is pulled into the apparatus, it is discharged toward the subsequent processing apparatus.

In the conventional cloth unfolding device, if the square cloth attached to the mounting chuck is caught on a pile of washed square cloth or stepped on by a worker, the square cloth is moved as the mounting chuck moves. Excessive load may be applied to the class and the square cloth may be damaged.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2011-30743

In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a cloth throwing machine and a cloth deploying device capable of suppressing damage to cloth.

The cloth loading machine of the first invention has a loading chuck that grips cloth, an elevator that raises and lowers the loading chuck, a chuck base that is fixed to the elevating portion of the elevator, and can swivel in the vertical direction on the chuck base. It is characterized by including a swivel arm which is supported by the swivel arm and has the input chuck fixed to the tip end portion, and an abnormality detection unit which detects that a force for swiveling the swivel arm downward is applied to the swivel arm .
The cloth throwing machine of the second invention is characterized in that, in the first invention, the cloth throwing machine includes an air cylinder that swivels the swivel arm, and the abnormality detecting unit has a stretch sensor that detects the expansion and contraction of the air cylinder.
Cloth turned machine of the third invention, in the first invention, comprising a servo motor for pivoting the pivot arm, the abnormality detection unit, characterized by having a current sensor for detecting an increase in current flowing to the servo motor And.
The cloth loading machine of the fourth invention is provided with a loading chuck for gripping cloth, an elevator for raising and lowering the loading chuck, a chuck base fixed to an elevating portion of the elevating machine, and a chuck base capable of moving up and down. is a slider that supports the turned chucks, and biasing means for biasing upward the slider relative to the chuck base, abnormalities before Symbol slider detects that it has moved downwardly relative to the chuck base It is characterized by including a detection unit .
The cloth deploying device of the fifth invention is characterized by including the cloth throwing machine of the first, second, third or fourth invention.

According to the first invention, when the charging chuck rises while the cloth is caught on something, a downward overload is applied to the loading chuck, and a force for turning the swivel arm downward acts. When the abnormality detection unit detects this, the abnormality can be detected. Damage to the cloth can be suppressed by performing a resolution operation when an abnormality is detected.
According to the second invention, by detecting the expansion and contraction of the air cylinder by the expansion / contraction sensor, it is possible to detect that a force for rotating the swing arm downward is applied.
According to the third invention, by detecting an increase in the current flowing through the servomotor by the current sensor, it is possible to detect that a force for turning downward is applied to the turning arm.
According to the fourth invention, when the loading chuck rises while the cloth is caught on something, a downward overload is applied to the loading chuck, and the slider moves downward with respect to the chuck base. When the abnormality detection unit detects this, the abnormality can be detected.
According to the fifth invention, it is possible to detect an abnormality in which the throwing chuck rises while the cloth is caught on something, so that damage to the cloth can be suppressed.

It is a front view of the cloth unfolding apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a right side view of the cloth unfolding device. It is a top view of the cloth unfolding device. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. It is a front view of the cloth throwing machine which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is the right side view of the cloth throwing machine. It is an enlarged right side view of the vicinity of the loading chuck of the cloth loading machine. It is explanatory drawing of the basic operation of the cloth throwing machine. It is explanatory drawing of the abnormality detection operation of the cloth throwing machine. It is a block diagram of the abnormality detection part of the cloth throwing machine. It is a flowchart of the control of the elimination operation of the cloth throwing machine. It is an enlarged front view of the vicinity of the loading chuck of the cloth loading machine according to the second embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram of the abnormality detection part of the cloth throwing machine. It is an enlarged front view of the vicinity of the loading chuck of the cloth loading machine according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XV-XV in FIG. It is a block diagram of the abnormality detection part of the cloth throwing machine.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[First Embodiment]
(Cloth unfolding device)
The cloth unfolding device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention covers a large square cloth Y such as washed sheets, a wrapping cloth (a duvet cover of two pieces of cloth), a pillowcase, a towel, and a tablecloth. It is a device for deploying and supplying to the next process device such as a roll ironer. In the present specification, the front-back, left-right, and up-down directions of the cloth deploying device 1 are defined as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4.

Next, the basic configuration of the cloth deploying device 1 will be described together with the operation.
As shown in FIG. 1, two cloth throwing machines 10 are provided at both left and right ends on the front surface of the cloth deploying device 1. The cloth throwing machine 10 includes a throwing chuck 11 that grips the corners of the cloth Y. The loading chuck 11 moves up and down between a lowering position where the worker grips the cloth Y by the loading chuck 11 and an ascending position where the cloth Y is raised to the uppermost end.

As shown in FIG. 2, the relay chuck 41 is arranged at the raised position of the charging chuck 11. When the loading chuck 11 holding the cloth Y rises to the raised position, the cloth Y is delivered to the relay chuck 41.

An elevating chuck 42 is arranged on the side of the cloth deploying device 1. The relay chuck 41 that has received the cloth Y from the charging chuck 11 moves to the ascending position of the elevating chuck 42, and delivers the cloth Y to the elevating chuck 42. The elevating chuck 42 that has received the cloth Y descends, and delivers the cloth Y to the traversing chucks 43L and 43R.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the cloth deploying device 1 includes two traversing chucks 43L and 43R. The traversing chucks 43L and 43R can move in the left-right direction above the loading conveyor 51. By traversing the traversing chucks 43L and 43R holding the cloth Y above the loading conveyor 51, the rear edge of the cloth Y is linearly extended and mounted on the loading conveyor 51.

The cloth Y thrown into the cloth throwing machine 10 on the right side of the device is gripped by the transverse chuck 43R on the right side and pulled in to the left. The cloth Y thrown into the cloth throwing machine 10 on the left side of the device is gripped by the traverse chuck 43L on the left side and pulled in to the right.

A pair of extension chucks 44L and 44R that can move in the left-right direction are provided in front of the loading conveyor 51. The loading conveyor 51 is driven to move the edging cloth Y forward and hang it on the front surface of the apparatus. Then, both corners of the edge of the cloth Y are sandwiched by the extension chucks 44L and 44R. Then, the cloth Y is hung in a state of being unfolded in a square shape.

As shown in FIG. 4, a shaping duct 61 and a blower 62 connected to the shaping duct 61 are provided in the lower part of the cloth deploying device 1. While the corners of the cloth Y are sandwiched between the extension chucks 44L and 44R, the upper edge of the cloth Y is sandwiched between the vacuum box 52 and the contact plate 53, and the lower portion of the cloth Y is held by the shaping duct 61. Suck inside. As a result, the cloth Y is wrinkled.

After removing the wrinkles, the upper edge of the cloth Y is sucked into the vacuum box 52, and the vacuum box 52 is moved rearward to transfer the upper edge of the cloth Y to the vacuum conveyor 54. The cloth Y is sent backward by driving the vacuum conveyor 54 and the discharge conveyor 55. As a result, the cloth Y developed in a square shape can be supplied to the next process apparatus.

(Cloth thrower)
Next, the cloth throwing machine 10 which is a characteristic part of this embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the cloth loading machine 10 includes a pair of loading chucks 11 for gripping the cloth Y and an elevator 12 for raising and lowering the loading chuck 11. The elevator 12 has a main body portion 12a, an elevator portion 12b, and a servomotor 12c. By driving the servomotor 12c, the elevating part 12b can be moved up and down along the main body part 12a. A chuck base 13 that supports the loading chuck 11 is fixed to the elevating portion 12b.

As shown in FIG. 7, a horizontally arranged rotating shaft 14 is pivotally supported on the chuck base 13. The base end portion of the swivel arm 15 is fixed to the rotating shaft 14, and the swivel arm 15 can swivel in the vertical direction as the rotating shaft 14 rotates. A charging chuck 11 is fixed to the tip of the swivel arm 15. Two swivel arms 15 are provided at both ends of the rotating shaft 14, and a charging chuck 11 is fixed to each of them.

Further, the base end portion of the drive arm 16 is fixed to the rotating shaft 14. The tip of the drive arm 16 is rotatably connected to the tip of the piston rod of the air cylinder 17. The cylinder tube of the air cylinder 17 is rotatably supported by the chuck base 13. By expanding and contracting the air cylinder 17, the swivel arm 15 and the closing chuck 11 can be swiveled.

A magnetic proximity switch 18 is attached to the cylinder tube of the air cylinder 17. The magnetic proximity switch 18 detects the expansion and contraction of the air cylinder 17 by detecting the magnetism of the magnet charged in the piston rod. The magnetic proximity switch 18 corresponds to the "expansion / contraction sensor" described in the claims. As the expansion / contraction sensor, a sensor having any configuration may be used as long as it can detect the expansion / contraction of the air cylinder 17.

In the present embodiment, when the air cylinder 17 is contracted, the swivel arm 15 swivels downward, and when the air cylinder 17 is extended, the swivel arm 15 swivels upward. Instead of this, the swivel arm 15 may be configured to swing upward when the air cylinder 17 is contracted, and the swivel arm 15 may be swiveled downward when the air cylinder 17 is extended.

Next, the basic operation of the cloth throwing machine 10 will be described with reference to FIG.
(I) First, the charging chuck 11 is located at a descending position and is in a state of being swiveled downward. In this state, the worker manually grips the corner portion of the cloth Y by the loading chuck 11. Here, since the loading chuck 11 is swiveled downward, it is easy for the operator to visually recognize the cloth Y, and the cloth Y is easily gripped. Therefore, it is easy for the worker to put in the cloth Y.

(II) When the cloth Y is gripped by the charging chuck 11, the air cylinder 17 is extended and the charging chuck 11 is swiveled upward. (III) In this state, the charging chuck 11 rises and the cloth Y is suspended. When the charging chuck 11 rises to the raised position, the cloth Y is delivered to the relay chuck 41.

The cloth Y held by the loading chuck 11 may be caught in a pile of washed cloth or may be stepped on by an operator. In this case, the cloth Y may be pulled by raising the charging chuck 11, and the cloth Y may be damaged due to an excessive load. The cloth throwing machine 10 of the present embodiment includes an abnormality detecting unit 31 for detecting such an abnormality.

(Anomaly detection unit)
As shown in FIG. 10, the abnormality detection unit 31 includes a magnetic proximity switch 18 of an air cylinder 17 and a control device 20. The detection result of the magnetic proximity switch 18 is input to the control device 20. The control device 20 is a computer composed of a CPU, a memory, and the like. The control device 20 has a function of controlling the operation of the cloth throwing machine 10 in addition to the abnormality detection function described later. Specifically, the control device 20 controls the operations of the elevator 12 and the air cylinder 17 to realize the above-mentioned basic operation.

As shown in FIG. 9, when (IV) cloth Y is caught on a pile of washed cloth and the loading chuck 11 is raised, the cloth Y is pulled. When the throw-in chuck 11 is pulled by the cloth Y, a downward overload is applied to the throw-in chuck 11, and a force for turning it downward acts on the swivel arm 15. Here, the “overload” means a large load that exceeds the normal load applied to the charging chuck 11 due to the weight of the cloth Y.

(V) When the closing chuck 11 is further raised from this state, the swivel arm 15 swivels downward and the air cylinder 17 contracts. The abnormality detection unit 31 detects the contraction of the air cylinder 17 by the magnetic proximity switch 18 to detect that a force for turning the air cylinder 17 downward acts on the swivel arm 15, that is, a downward overload applied to the charging chuck 11. To do. Based on this detection, it is possible to detect an abnormality in which the throwing chuck 11 rises while the cloth Y is caught by something.

In the basic operation of the cloth throwing machine 10, the air cylinder 17 is extended and the swivel arm 15 is swiveling upward in the process of raising the throwing chuck 11. When the control device 20 detects the contraction of the air cylinder 17 in the ascending process in which the air cylinder 17 should be extended, it determines that an abnormality has occurred.

If the swivel arm 15 is configured to swivel downward when the air cylinder 17 is extended, the control device 20 determines that an abnormality has occurred when the air cylinder 17 is extended.

When an abnormality is detected, the cloth throwing machine 10 performs the following elimination operation.
As shown in FIG. 11, when the abnormality detection unit 31 detects an abnormality (step S01), the control device 20 decelerates the ascending speed of the closing chuck 11 (step S02). If the abnormality is still detected after that (step S03), the ascending chuck 11 is stopped after a lapse of a predetermined time from the start of deceleration (step S04). If the abnormality remains detected even after a lapse of a predetermined time from the stop (step S05), the closing chuck 11 is lowered (step S06). When the charging chuck 11 is lowered to the lowered position, the worker removes the cloth Y and the like.

If no abnormality is detected in step S03, the control device 20 raises the closing chuck 11 again at a normal speed (step S07). If the worker is stepping on the cloth Y, the worker can notice it and immediately dismiss the leg. In such a case, since the charging chuck 11 is continuously raised, the charging chuck 11 is not lowered unnecessarily, and the work efficiency is improved.

If no abnormality is detected in step S05, the control device 20 restarts the ascending of the closing chuck 11 (step S07). If the cloth Y is caught in something, the worker may be able to resolve it immediately. In such a case, since the charging chuck 11 is restarted to be raised, the charging chuck 11 is not lowered unnecessarily, and the work efficiency is improved.

In this way, damage to the cloth Y can be suppressed by performing the elimination operation when an abnormality is detected. Further, depending on the situation after the abnormality is detected, the closing chuck 11 is continuously raised as much as possible, so that the work efficiency is improved.

The elimination operation is not limited to the above mode. In all cases where an abnormality is detected, the closing chuck 11 may be stopped and lowered. Further, when an abnormality is detected, the charging chuck 11 may be opened and the cloth Y may be automatically discharged.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, the cloth throwing machine 10 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The cloth throwing machine 10 of the first embodiment has a configuration in which an air cylinder 17 is used as an actuator for turning the swivel arm 15, but a servomotor 19 may be used instead of the air cylinder 17.

As shown in FIG. 12, the cloth throwing machine 10 of the present embodiment has a configuration in which the rotating shaft 14 is rotated by driving the servomotor 19. A swivel arm 15 to which the charging chuck 11 is fixed is fixed to the rotating shaft 14. Therefore, the swivel arm 15 and the closing chuck 11 can be swiveled by driving the servomotor 19.

As shown in FIG. 13, the abnormality detection unit 32 of this embodiment includes a driver 19a of the servomotor 19 and a control device 20. The driver 19a is a device that supplies electric power to the servomotor 19 and controls the drive of the servomotor 19. The driver 19a also controls the current supplied to the servomotor 19. The driver 19a can output the value of the current supplied to the servomotor 19, and the current value is input to the control device 20.

The driver 19a corresponds to the "current sensor" described in the claims. The current sensor is not particularly limited as long as it can detect the current flowing through the servomotor 19, and may be a device having other functions such as the driver 19a, or a sensor that directly detects the current flowing through the servomotor 19.

When the loading chuck 11 rises while the cloth Y is caught by something, a downward overload is applied to the loading chuck 11, and a force for turning it downward acts on the swivel arm 15. The driver 19a increases the current supplied to the servomotor 19 so as to maintain the rotation angle of the servomotor 19, and generates a torque that opposes the force that swivels the swivel arm 15 downward. The control device 20 determines that an abnormality has occurred when the current value input from the driver 19a increases. In this way, the abnormality detection unit 32 detects an increase in the current flowing through the servomotor 19 to detect that a force for turning downward is applied to the turning arm 15, thereby detecting an abnormality.

[Third Embodiment]
Next, the cloth throwing machine 10 according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the cloth throwing machine 10 of the present embodiment includes a chuck base 13 fixed to the elevating portion 12b of the elevator 12. The chuck base 13 is provided with a slider 22 via a linear guide 21. The linear guide 21 is arranged so that the slider 22 can be moved up and down with respect to the chuck base 13.

A rotation shaft 14 is pivotally supported by the slider 22. A swivel arm 15 to which the charging chuck 11 is fixed is fixed to the rotating shaft 14. That is, the charging chuck 11 is supported on the slider 22 side.

The slider 22 is provided with an actuator (not shown) for rotating the rotating shaft 14. As the actuator, an air cylinder 17 as in the first embodiment, a servomotor 19 as in the second embodiment, or the like can be used. The charging chuck 11 may be fixed to the slider 22 so as not to rotate.

A first arm 23 is provided at the lower part of the chuck base 13, and a second arm 24 is provided at the upper part of the slider 22. The first arm 23 and the second arm 24 are arranged at opposite positions. Further, a spring 25 is provided between the first arm 23 and the second arm 24. The spring 25 urges the slider 22 upward with respect to the chuck base 13. The spring 25 corresponds to the "urging means" described in the claims. The urging means is not limited to the spring 25, and various members can be adopted.

A limit switch 26 is fixed to the first arm 23. The contacts of the limit switch 26 are arranged toward the second arm 24. When the slider 22 moves downward with respect to the chuck base 13, the second arm 24 approaches the first arm 23, and the contact of the limit switch 26 is pushed. Therefore, the limit switch 26 can detect that the slider 22 has moved downward with respect to the chuck base 13.

As shown in FIG. 16, the abnormality detection unit 33 of the present embodiment includes a limit switch 26 and a control device 20. The detection result of the limit switch 26 is input to the control device 20.

If the loading chuck 11 rises while the cloth Y is caught in something, a downward overload is applied to the loading chuck 11 and the slider 22 moves downward with respect to the chuck base 13. When the abnormality detection unit 33 detects this, the abnormality is detected.

[Other Embodiments]
The number of the cloth throwing machines 10 provided in the cloth deploying device 1 is not limited to two, and may be one or three or more. In addition to being provided in the cloth unfolding device 1, the cloth loading machine 10 can be used in any device that involves loading the cloth Y. For example, the cloth loading machine 10 may be used as a cloth transporting device for transporting the cloth Y from the supply position set in the linen facility to the discharge position. In this case, the cloth loading machine 10 is arranged at the supply position of the cloth transport device, and the processing device such as the cloth deploying device is arranged at the discharge position.

1 Cloth unfolding device 10 Cloth loading machine 11 Loading chuck 12 Lifting machine 13 Chuck base 14 Rotating shaft 15 Swing arm 16 Drive arm 17 Air cylinder 18 Magnetic proximity switch 19 Servo motor 20 Control device 22 Slider 25 Spring 26 Limit switch 31 to 33 Abnormality detector

Claims (5)

A throw-in chuck that grips cloth and
An elevator that raises and lowers the input chuck and
A chuck base fixed to the elevating part of the elevator and
A swivel arm that is supported by the chuck base so as to be swivel in the vertical direction and the input chuck is fixed to the tip portion.
A cloth throwing machine including an abnormality detection unit that detects that a force for turning the swivel arm downward is applied to the swivel arm . An air cylinder that swivels the swivel arm is provided.
The abnormality detecting unit, cloth-on machine according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a telescopic sensor to detect the expansion and contraction of the air cylinder. A servomotor that swivels the swivel arm is provided.
The abnormality detecting unit, cloth-on machine according to claim 1, characterized in that it has a current sensor for detecting the increase in the current flowing through the servomotor. A throw-in chuck that grips cloth and
An elevator that raises and lowers the input chuck and
A chuck base fixed to the elevating part of the elevator and
A slider that is vertically movable on the chuck base and supports the input chuck,
An urging means for urging the slider upward with respect to the chuck base ,
Before Symbol slider cloth turned machine you wherein <br/> that and a fault detection unit for detecting that it has moved downwardly relative to the chuck base. A cloth deploying device comprising the cloth throwing machine according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 .

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