JP7039920B2 - Goods processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to, for example, an article processing device for storing and delivering a solid mass article in a container.

In the conventional cup noodle production line, the noodle mass from the transport conveyor is transferred to a rotatable table (article inversion body 81), the noodle mass on the table is covered with a container, and this container is inverted together with the table. There is known an article processing device for accommodating a noodle mass in a container and delivering the container containing the noodle mass to a downstream transport conveyor (see Patent Document 1). Recesses (concave surfaces 81A and 81B) for positioning the noodle mass are provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the table, and the trailing edge of the noodle mass is pushed by a pusher (hooking member 75) that reciprocates in the horizontal direction, and the noodle mass is pushed from the conveyor to the table. Will be reprinted in. The noodle mass is initially accelerated by a pusher that pushes the trailing edge, and when the pusher begins to decelerate, it slides on the table due to its own inertia, fits into the recess, collides with the inner peripheral surface of the recess, and is stopped and positioned.

Japanese Patent No. 5318068

In order to increase the processing capacity of the line in the configuration of Patent Document 1, it is necessary to increase the supply speed of the noodle mass to the table, and for this, it is also necessary to increase the moving speed of the noodle mass from the conveyor to the table by the pusher. .. However, if the moving speed of the noodle mass by the pusher is increased, the impact when the noodle mass collides with the inner peripheral surface of the recess also increases, and the possibility of damaging the noodle mass increases.

An object of the present invention is to provide an article processing apparatus capable of suppressing an impact applied to an article while increasing the processing capacity.

The article processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention has a first transport means for transporting articles, a rotating body arranged downstream of the first transport means, and a rotating body for receiving the articles, and supplying the articles to the rotating body. The rotating body is provided with an article supplying means, a container supplying means for covering the article on the rotating body with a container from above, and a reversing means for reversing the rotating body, and the rotating body is covered with a container on the article on the rotating body. In the article processing device for accommodating the article in the container by inverting and delivering the container to the second downstream transport means, the article supply means is arranged so as to be able to move forward and backward in the rearward in the transport direction of the article. A pusher that engages with the rear end of the article to move the article, a guide that is arranged so as to be able to move forward and backward in the front of the transport direction of the article, and a guide that engages with the front end of the article that is moved by the pusher, and the pusher that moves forward and backward. A pusher moving means for moving and a guide moving means for moving the guide forward and backward are provided, and the pusher moving means and the guide moving means are respectively servo motors, and a control means for controlling these servo motors is provided.
The control means controls to accelerate and then decelerate the pusher, and by synchronizing the guide with the speed of the pusher before the pusher performs the deceleration operation, the front end of the article moved by the pusher. Is characterized in that the article is stopped on the rotating body while being supported by the retracting guide.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an article processing apparatus capable of suppressing an impact applied to an article while increasing the processing capacity.

It is a side view which shows the structure of the article processing apparatus of the cup noodle production line which is one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the structure and operation of the container holding mechanism provided on the reversing box. It is a side view for demonstrating the operation of an article processing apparatus. It is a side view for demonstrating the operation of an article processing apparatus. It is a side view for demonstrating the operation of an article processing apparatus.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing a configuration of an article processing apparatus of a cup noodle production line according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the article processing apparatus 10 of the cup noodle production line of the present embodiment, articles such as noodle lumps N are conveyed and supplied in multiple rows by a first conveyor (first conveyor) 12, and articles are conveyed downstream of the conveyor 12. The noodle mass N is delivered to the rotatable inversion box (rotating body) 16 by the supply device (article supply means) 14. The noodle mass N delivered to the inversion box 16 is covered with the container C from above by the container supply device (container supply means) 18, and the inversion box 16 is inverted (with the noodle mass N covered with the container C). (Rotated 180 °). As a result, the container C is upright and the noodle mass N is housed in the container C, and then the container C in which the noodle mass N is housed and upright is placed on the second conveyor (second transport) by the container delivery device 19. Means) Handed over to 20. Downstream of the second conveyor 20, other fillings such as cup noodle ingredients and powdered soup are further charged into the container C.

Endless chains 12C over which the engaging bars 12B are bridged are arranged on both sides of the first conveyor 12. A transport plate 12P is horizontally arranged between the endless chains 12C along the endless chain 12C, and the noodle mass N is conveyed on the transport plate 12P. That is, the trailing edge of the noodle mass N placed on the transport plate 12P is pushed by the engaging bar 12B, slides on the transport plate 12P, and is transported to the downstream side.

The transfer plate 15 is arranged adjacent to the downstream end of the transport plate 12P at the same height, and the reversing box 16 is arranged adjacent to the end of the transfer plate 15 at the same height. The noodle mass N that has reached the vicinity of the downstream end of the first conveyor 12 is then transferred onto the reversing box 16 by the article supply device 14 via the transfer plate 15.

The article supply device 14 includes a pusher moving device (pusher moving means) 22 arranged above the first conveyor 12 on the downstream side, and a guide moving device (pusher moving means) 22 arranged above the pusher moving device 22 on the downstream side of the reversing box 16. A guide moving means) 24 is provided. The pusher moving device 22 moves faster than the endless chain 12C, engages with the trailing edge of the noodle mass N in each row on the transport plate 12P, and pushes the noodle mass N toward the inversion box 16. A pusher 22P is provided. On the other hand, the guide moving device 24 is provided with a plurality of guides 24G that engage with the leading edge of the noodle mass N to decelerate the noodle mass N in each row.

The pusher moving device (pusher moving means) 22 includes a nut 22N screwed into a ball screw 22B rotated by a servomotor 22M and a rotary actuator 22R provided on the nut 22N, and the pusher 22P has a base end portion thereof. It is attached to the rotary actuator 22R. That is, the pusher 22P can move forward and backward in the transport direction of the noodle mass N by the rotation of the servomotor 22M, and its tip (downstream end) can swing up and down by the rotation of the rotary actuator 22R. be.

On the other hand, the guide moving device 24 includes a nut 24N screwed into the ball screw 24B rotated by the servomotor 24M and a rotary actuator 24R provided on the nut 24N, and the guide 24G has a rotary actuator 24R at its base end. Attached to. That is, the guide 24G can move forward and backward in the transport direction of the noodle mass N by the rotation of the servomotor 24M, and its tip (downstream end) can swing up and down by the rotation of the rotary actuator 24R. be.

The reversing box 16 is rotatable around a rotation shaft 16A and, in this embodiment, is rotated in units of 180 °. The bottom of the noodle mass N transferred from the first conveyor 12 via the transfer plate 15 by the article supply device 14 is accommodated on the two facing surfaces of the inversion box 16, and the noodle mass on the inversion box 16 is accommodated. Positioning recesses 16R for positioning N are provided for each number of rows of noodle lumps N to be conveyed.

A container supply device 18 is arranged above the reversing box 16. The container supply device 18 attracts and holds the magazine 18C that holds the stacked containers C and the bottom surface of the container C held by the magazine 18C, inverts the held container C, and then places the container C in the inversion box 16. A supply arm 18A to be placed on the noodle mass N is provided.

A container delivery device 19 is arranged below the first conveyor 12 and the reversing box 16, and a second conveyor 20 is arranged below the container delivery device 19. The container delivery device 19 is a device held in the reversing box 16 for delivering the container C containing the noodle mass N to the retainer 20R provided on the second conveyor 20, and is an opening / closing device for gripping each container C. It is equipped with an arm 19A.

The opening / closing arm 19A can be raised / lowered by the arm raising / lowering mechanism 19E, and can be inserted into the holes provided in the retainer 20R of the second conveyor 20 by grasping and lowering each of the containers C held in the reversing box 16. Is. A container lowering mechanism 20E is provided at the delivery position of the container C of the second conveyor 20, and the container lowering mechanism 20E is arranged so as to support the bottom surface of the container C inserted into the hole of the retainer 20R. The container C has a truncated cone shape, the inner diameter of the hole of the retainer 20R is slightly smaller than the maximum outer diameter of the container C, and when the container C is lowered by the container lowering mechanism 20E, the side surface of the container C becomes the retainer 20R. Fit. The container C covered with the noodle mass N on the inversion box 16 is held on the inversion box 16 even when the inversion box 16 is inverted by the container holding mechanism 26 described below.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the configuration and operation of the container holding mechanism 26 provided on the reversing box 16. The container holding mechanism 26 is provided on each surface of the reversing box 16 provided with the positioning recess 16R, and is provided on two opposing surfaces in the present embodiment.

In the container holding mechanism 26, for example, support arms 26A pivotally supported by the pivot shaft 26P are provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the reversing box 16 for the number of rows of noodle lumps N + 1. The support arm 26A is arranged so as to sandwich each of the containers C placed on the reversing box 16 in between, and is rotatable around the pivot shaft 26P. Further, for example, an arc-shaped arc portion 26C is provided on the side pieces opposite to each other at both ends of the support arm 26A.

By rotating the support arm 26A around the pivot shaft 26P, the arc portions 26C at both ends can be engaged with the two containers C placed on the left and right sides of each support arm 26A. An outer peripheral edge portion CE that slightly protrudes outward is formed on the peripheral edge of the upper end opening of the container C, and when the support arm 26A is engaged with the container C, each container C has support arms on both sides. The side surface adjacent to the outer peripheral edge portion CE is gripped from both sides by the arc portion 26C of the 26A and fixed on the reversing box 16. That is, the support arm 26A has an engaged state in which the arc portion 26C shown in FIG. 2A engages with the container C and is held on the reversing box 16, and an arc from the container C shown in FIG. 2B. It is possible to switch between the release state in which the portion 26C is separated and connected.

The drive mechanism of the support arm 26A is arranged in the reversing box 16 under the upper and lower surfaces of the reversing box 16 as shown by a broken line in FIGS. 2A and 2B. One end of a lever 28A that can rotate around the pivot shaft 26P is attached to each of the pivot shafts 26P, and the support arm 26A rotates around the pivot shaft 26P integrally with the lever 28A. The other end of the lever 28A is pivotally supported by a link bar 28B extending in the longitudinal direction (rotational shaft 16A direction) of the reversing box 16.

One end of the link bar 28B is pivotally supported by one arm of the operating lever 28L that rotates about the pivot shaft 28P, and a spring 28S as an urging member is attached to the tip of the arm. Further, in the operating lever 28L, a roller 28R that can be engaged with the pusher 30 is provided at the tip of the arm on the opposite side of the pivot shaft 28P.

The spring 28S urges the operating lever 28L clockwise in FIG. 2, and when the pusher 30 is pulled in, that is, when the pusher 30 and the roller 28R are separated from each other, the operating lever 28L is clocked by the urging force of the spring 28S. Rotated around, the link bar 28B is moved to the right side of the drawing. As a result, each support arm 26A is rotated clockwise, and the arc portions 26C at both ends of all the support arms 26A except the support arms 26A at both ends on the reversing box 16 are pressed against the side surfaces of the left and right containers C to engage. The state (FIG. 2 (a)) is reached.

On the other hand, when the pusher 30 is pushed out, the roller 28R is pushed to the right by the pusher 30, and the operating lever 28L is rotated counterclockwise against the urging force of the spring 28S. As a result, the link bar 28B is moved to the left side of the drawing, each support arm 26A is rotated counterclockwise, and the arc portions 26C of the support arm 26A are separated from the left and right side surfaces and released (FIG. 2B). It becomes.

Next, the operation of the article processing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. 3 to 5 are schematic side views showing changes in time series of the article processing apparatus 10.

FIG. 3A shows a state in which the first noodle mass N is conveyed in multiple rows on the first conveyor 12. FIG. 3A shows a state in which the leading edge of the leading noodle mass N reaches substantially the downstream end of the first conveyor 12. At this time, the pusher 22P is located on the upstream side of the first conveyor 12 in the transport direction, and its tip is maintained in a lifted state. On the other hand, the guide 24G is located on the downstream side of the first conveyor 12 in the transport direction, and its tip is maintained in a lifted state.

In FIG. 3B, the rotary actuators 22R and 24R are driven, the tips of the pusher 22P and the guide 24G are lowered, and the pusher 22P is moved to the downstream side of the first conveyor 12 by the drive of the servomotor 22M. , The state after the guide 24G is moved to the upstream side of the first conveyor 12 by the drive of the servomotor 24M is shown. The pusher 22P overtakes the engaging bar 12B engaged with the trailing edge of the leading noodle mass N, abuts on the trailing edge of the leading noodle mass N, and pushes the leading noodle mass N to the transfer plate 15. Further, the servomotor 24M is inverted, and the guide 24G is moved in the transport direction of the first conveyor 12 with its tip slightly downstream from the leading edge of the leading noodle mass N.

After that, the noodle mass N pushed by the accelerating / moving pusher 22P and moving in the transport direction catches up with the guide 24G, and as shown in FIG. 4C, the leading edge of the noodle mass N abuts on the guide 24G. The pusher 22P and the guide 24G are moved in the transport direction (downstream side) at the same synchronized speed. That is, the leading noodle mass N is supported in a state of being sandwiched between the pusher 22P and the guide 24G, and is further accelerated and moved. Then, the pusher 22P and the guide 24G are gradually decelerated from the point where the noodle mass N is substantially transferred from the transfer plate 15 to the reversing box 16, and the noodle mass N stops at the point where the noodle mass N fits into the positioning recess 16R on the reversing box 16. As a result, the noodle mass N is stopped and positioned without colliding with the inner peripheral wall of the positioning recess 16R, and is accommodated therein. FIG. 4D shows a state in which the noodle mass N is housed in the positioning recess 16R and the pusher 22P and the guide 24G are stopped.

When the noodle mass N is housed in the positioning recess 16R, the rotary actuators 22R and 24R are driven, and the tips of the pusher 22P and the guide 24G are lifted to a height that does not interfere with the noodle mass N. Then, both are returned to the position shown in FIG. 3A by the servomotors 22M and 24M. That is, the pusher 22P is moved to the upstream side and the guide 24G is moved to the downstream side, and the state shown in FIG. 5 (e) is obtained. Further, at this time, the bottom surface of the container C held by the magazine 18C is adsorbed by the supply arm 18A of the container supply device 18, and is inverted so as to cover the noodle mass N placed in the inversion box 16. ..

FIG. 5 (f) shows a state in which the container C is covered with the noodle mass on the inversion box 16 by the supply arm 18A of the container supply device 18. After that, the container C on the reversing box 16 is held in the reversing box 16 by the container holding mechanism 26, and the reversing box 16 is rotated 180 ° around the rotation shaft 16A to stand upright, and the noodle mass N is a container. It falls into C. Further, in parallel with this, the pusher 22P and the guide 24G operate in the same manner as described in FIG. 3A, and transfer the next noodle mass N from the first conveyor 12 to the reversing box 16. To start. After that, the container supply device 18 repeats the operations of FIGS. 3A to 5F.

The container C held on the lower surface of the reversing box 16 by the container holding mechanism 26 is then held by the opening / closing arm 19A of the container delivery device 19 (see FIG. 1), and is held by the support arm 26A of the container holding mechanism 26. C will be released. That is, the container C in which the noodle mass N is housed is delivered from the reversing box 16 to the container delivery device 19. The opening / closing arm 19A is lowered by the arm elevating mechanism 19E, and the container C is inserted into each hole of the retainer 20R of the second transfer conveyor 20 at the container receiving position. When the bottom surface of the container C to be lowered is placed on the pedestal of the container lowering mechanism 20E, the opening / closing arm 19A is opened and the container C is handed over to the container lowering mechanism 20E.

The container lowering mechanism 20E that has received the container C lowers the pedestal, and the container C is fitted into the hole of the retainer 20R of the second conveyor 20. During this time, the second conveyor 20 is stopped and is driven when the charging of the container C into the retainer 20R is completed, the next empty retainer 20R is moved to the container receiving position, and the delivery of the next container C is carried out. Will be done.

As described above, according to the article processing apparatus of the present embodiment, the acceleration and deceleration of the noodle mass are controlled by the pushers and guides of the article supply apparatus arranged before and after the noodle mass, so that the noodle mass can be increased while the processing capacity is increased. The impact applied to the lump can be reduced and its damage can be prevented.

In the present embodiment, only the upper and lower surfaces of the inversion box are used as the placing portion of the noodle mass (article), but only one surface or three or more surfaces can be used as the placing portion. The operations of the first transfer conveyor, the article supply device, the reversing box, the container supply device, the container holding mechanism, the container delivery device, and the second transfer conveyor are synchronized by a control unit (not shown), and the above series of operations are repeated. The drive mechanism of the pusher moving device and the guide moving device controls the acceleration / deceleration of the article supply by arranging and moving the pusher and the guide in front of and behind the noodle mass (article) as in the present embodiment, and controls the acceleration / deceleration of the noodle mass (article). The present embodiment is not limited to the configuration as long as it can suppress the impact applied to the article).

Further, in the present embodiment, control is performed to accelerate the pusher and then decelerate it, and the guide is synchronized with the speed of the pusher during the acceleration operation of the pusher. The deceleration may be controlled so that the guide is synchronized with the speed of the pusher during the constant speed operation of the pusher.

10 Article processing equipment 12 First conveyor (first conveyor)
14 Goods supply device (goods supply means)
16 Inverting box (rotating body)
18 Container supply device (container supply means)
19 Container delivery device 19A Open / close arm 19E Arm elevating mechanism 20 Second conveyor (second conveyor)
20E Container lowering mechanism 20R retainer 22 Pusher moving device (pusher moving means)
22P pusher 24 guide moving device (guide moving means)
24G Guide C Container N Noodle mass (article)

Claims (1)

The first transport means for transporting goods,
A rotating body arranged downstream of the first transport means and receiving an article,
An article supply means for supplying the article to the rotating body, and
A container supply means for covering the article on the rotating body with a container from above,
A reversing means for reversing the rotating body is provided.
In an article processing device in which an article is accommodated in a container by inverting the article in a state where the article on the rotating body is covered with a container, and the container is delivered to a second transport means downstream.
The article supply means
A pusher that is arranged so that it can move forward and backward in the rearward direction of the article, and that engages with the rear end of the article to move the article.
A guide that is arranged so that it can move forward and backward in the transport direction of the article and that engages with the front end of the article that is moved by the pusher.
The pusher moving means for moving the pusher forward and backward,
A guide moving means for moving the guide forward and backward is provided.
The pusher moving means and the guide moving means are respectively servomotors, and control means for controlling these servomotors are provided.
The control means controls to accelerate and then decelerate the pusher, and synchronizes the guide with the speed of the pusher before the pusher decelerates.
An article processing device comprising stopping an article on a rotating body while supporting the front end of the article moved by the pusher by the retracting guide.

Images