JP7142826B2 - Sorter for granules - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a sorter for granules.

A grain sorter comprising a grain size sorter and an optical sorter is known (for example, Patent Document 1 below). In such a sorter, grains are sorted into non-defective products and defective products according to the grain size in the grain size sorter. Grains sorted as non-defective grains in the particle size sorter are supplied to the optical sorter. In an optical sorter, grain is optically sorted into good and bad grains. The defective products from the particle size sorter and the defective products from the optical sorter are discharged out of the machine through different outlets. Containers (for example, bags) are installed at these outlets, and when the containers become full of defective products, workers replace the containers with new ones.

JP 2010-142678 A

However, in such a sorting machine, if, for example, the operator concentrates on bagging and weighing non-defective products and neglects to check the status of storage of containers for defective products, the flow of defective products is hindered. As a result, sorting failures and overload stoppage of the conveying section may occur. Such a problem is not limited to grain sorters, but is common to granular material sorters having a particle size sorting function and an optical sorting function.

For this reason, there is a demand for a sorter for granular materials that can reduce the trouble of checking the storage status of containers for defective products.

The present invention has been made to solve at least part of the above problems, and can be implemented, for example, as the following modes.

According to a first aspect of the invention, a sorter for particulates is provided. This sorting machine includes a particle size sorting section for sorting the granular materials into first non-defective items and first defective items according to the particle size of the granular materials, and a second non-defective item and a second non-defective item by dividing the first non-defective items into second non-defective items. and an optical sorting unit that optically sorts the products into non-defective products. The sorting machine is configured to be able to discharge the first defective products and the second defective products from the same outlet to the outside of the machine.

According to this sorter, it is possible to discharge the first defective products from the particle size sorting section and the second defective products from the optical sorting section to the outside of the machine through the same outlet. For this reason, the worker only needs to check the storage status of the defective container for only one discharge port, which reduces the trouble of checking.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the sorting machine has a first discharge port for discharging the first defective products to the outside of the machine, and a second defective product to the outside of the machine. and a second outlet for discharging. The same outlet is either the first outlet or the second outlet. The sorting machine further includes a first route for discharging the first defective product and the second defective product from the same discharge port, and a first route for discharging the first defective product and the second defective product from the same discharge port. and a second path for discharging defective products from the first outlet and for discharging second defective products from the second outlet. According to this aspect, the discharge route for the first defective product and the second defective product can be switched between the first route and the second route depending on the situation. For example, if the discharge route is set to the first route, the effects of the first mode can be obtained. On the other hand, if the discharge route is set to the second route, the sorting accuracy of the optical sorting unit can be improved by individually visually confirming the second defective products from the optical sorting unit without mixing them with the first defective products. can be confirmed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the same outlet is the outlet provided at a relatively higher position than the first outlet and the second outlet. be. According to this form, it is possible to secure a large storage height of the container provided for the same discharge port, and thus a large storage capacity. In other words, by providing a container with a large storage capacity, it is possible to lengthen the time before the container is filled with the first rejects and the second rejects. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the frequency of confirmation of the storage status of containers for defective products, further reducing the labor for confirmation.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the sorting machine comprises a conveying device for conveying the first defective products upward to the first discharge port. The same outlet is the first outlet. If the ejection path is set to the first path, the second defective product is guided to the conveying device. According to this form, the first discharge port used as the same discharge port can be provided at a desired high position. Therefore, the effect of the third mode can be further enhanced.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in the second aspect, the same outlet is the first outlet. When processing grain as granules, the amount of first rejects is generally greater than the amount of second rejects. According to this aspect, since the relatively small amount of the second defective products is conveyed to the first discharge port, the relatively large amount of the first defective products is conveyed to the second discharge port. The transportation equipment can be made more compact than when

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the second to fifth aspects, the sorter includes a control section that controls the switching valve. The control unit controls the switching valve so that the discharge route becomes the second route for a predetermined time after the start of the optical sorting unit, and after the predetermined time passes, the discharge route changes from the second route to the first route. Control the switching valve so that it can be switched to According to this aspect, the worker can confirm the sorting accuracy of the optical sorting section when starting the sorter, as in the second aspect. After that, by setting the discharge route to the first route, it is possible to reduce the trouble of confirming the storage status of the containers for defective products.

It is a block diagram showing a schematic structure of a sorting machine according to one embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view of a sorter according to a first embodiment of the invention; FIG. Figure 3 is a perspective view of the sorter of Figure 2; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the sorter of Figure 2; It is a cross-sectional view of a particle size sorting section.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a sorting machine 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view of the sorter 10. FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the sorter 10. FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the sorter 10. As shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the particle size sorting section 20 provided in the sorter 10. As shown in FIG. The sorter 10 is used for sorting grains (eg, rice) in this embodiment, but may be used for sorting any granular material.

As shown in FIG. 1, the sorter 10 includes a particle size sorting unit 20, a first outlet 21, a conveying device 22, an optical sorting unit 30, a second outlet 31, and a switching valve 40. , a tank 50 , a weighing unit 60 and a control unit 70 . In the sorting machine 10 , grains are first put into the particle size sorting section 20 .

The grain size sorting unit 20 sorts the grain into a first good product and a first defective product according to the grain size. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the particle size sorting unit 20 includes an inlet 23, a sorting net tube 24, and a rotor 25 having blades. The grain thrown into the inlet 23 is supplied between the rotating body 25 and the sorting net cylinder 24 . The grain receives centrifugal force radially outward due to the rotation of the rotating body 25 . At this time, grains having a grain size smaller than the mesh of the sorting net tube 24 pass through the mesh and are sorted out as first defective products. Grain that does not pass through the mesh is sorted out as the first good product.

After the first defective products drop downward outside the sorting net tube 24, they are guided to the conveying device 22 as shown in FIG. The conveying device 22 is, in this embodiment, a vertical screw conveyor as shown in FIG. The conveying device 22 conveys the first defective product upward to the first discharge port 21 (see FIG. 2). Thus, the first defective products are discharged from the first discharge port 21 and stored in a container installed below the first discharge port 21 . If the conveying device 22 is installed as in this embodiment, the position of the first discharge port 21 can be raised, and as a result, a large storage height for the first defective products can be secured. When processing grain in the sorter 10, the number of first rejects can be relatively high (eg, 10% of the input amount), but by ensuring a large storage height, the number of first rejects can be reduced. It is possible to reduce the frequency of confirmation of containers for

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, the first non-defective products are supplied to the optical sorting section 30 . In this embodiment, the optical sorting section 30 is of a so-called chute type and includes a chute 33 . As shown in FIG. 4, the grains fed by the rotary valve 32 onto the chute 33 are flowed down the chute 33, and when they drop from the chute 33, they are divided into second non-defective grains and second defective grains. selectively selected.

Specifically, the optical sorting section 30 includes a detection section and an ejector nozzle. The detector irradiates visible light and near-infrared rays to the grains that have fallen from the chute 33, and detects reflected light or transmitted light from the grains. Based on the image obtained from the detected light, the detection unit determines whether the sorting target is a non-defective product or a defective product for each grain of grain. The grain determined to be defective is changed in trajectory by the air ejected from the ejector nozzle and guided to the defective discharge trough. On the other hand, grains determined to be good grains are guided to the good grain discharge trough without changing the trajectory.

As shown in FIG. 1, the second non-defective products guided to the non-defective product discharge gutter are stored in the tank 50 . Then, the second non-defective product in the tank 50 is appropriately cut out, weighed by the weighing unit 60, and then carried out. As shown in FIG. 3, the weighing unit 60 includes a base portion 61 having a load cell, two rod portions 62 extending upward from the base portion 61 in parallel, and a bag for packing the second non-defective product. and an engaging portion 63 that can be engaged with. After a predetermined amount of the second non-defective product is cut out from the tank 50 into the bag engaged with the engaging portion 63, weighing is performed.

As shown in FIG. 1, the second defective product guided to the defective product discharge gutter is supplied to the switching valve 40 . The switching valve 40 switches the discharge destination of the second defective product between the second discharge port 31 (see FIG. 2) and the conveying device 22 . When the second discharge port 31 is set as the discharge destination of the second defective products, the first defective products are discharged from the first discharge port 21 as described above. The first defective product and the second defective product from the optical sorting unit 30 are separated from the other outlets (that is, the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 31), as in the conventional configuration. , respectively. On the other hand, when the conveying device 22 is set as the discharge destination of the second defective products, the first and second defective products are both discharged from the same outlet (that is, the first outlet 21). (Hereinafter, the outlet commonly used for the first defective product and the second defective product will also be referred to as the common outlet). In this manner, the switching valve 40 provides a first defective product and a second defective product discharge route (hereinafter simply referred to as a discharge route) for the first defective product and the second defective product in the same discharge route. A first route for discharging from an exit (i.e., first discharge port 21), and a first defective product for discharging from the first discharge port 21 and a second defective product for discharging from the second discharge port 31. and a second path to

Control of the switching valve 40 is performed by the controller 70 . Basically, the control unit 70 is configured so that the discharge route is the first route, that is, both the first defective products and the second defective products are discharged from the first discharge port 21. It controls the switching valve 40 . Therefore, the operator only needs to confirm the storage status of the container installed for the first discharge port 21 out of the first discharge port 21 and the second discharge port 31, thus reducing the trouble of confirmation. can be mitigated.

However, when the optical sorting unit 30 is started (at the start of operation or at the time of restarting operation after a temporary stop), it may be desired to check the sorting accuracy of the optical sorting unit 30 alone. For this reason, in the present embodiment, the control unit 70 controls the switching valve 40 so that the discharge route becomes the second route for a predetermined time after the optical sorting unit 30 is started. That is, the first defective products from the particle size sorting section 20 are discharged from the first outlet 21 and the second defective products from the optical sorting section 30 are discharged from the second outlet 31 . Then, after a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the control unit 70 controls the switching valve 40 so that the discharge route is switched from the second route to the first route. The control of the switching valve 40 does not necessarily have to be performed automatically, and instead may be performed by an operator operating a manual switch at desired timing. In this case, the manual switch may be installed near the second outlet 31 . This is convenient because the operator can operate the switching valve 40 at a place where the second defective product discharged from the second discharge port 31 can be visually confirmed.

In the sorter 10 described above, the first discharge port 21 is provided at a relatively higher position than the second discharge port 31, as shown in FIG. When the discharge route is set to the first route, the first discharge port 21 is used as a common discharge port. According to such a configuration, it is possible to ensure a large storage height of the container provided for the first discharge port 21 and, in turn, a large storage capacity. As a result, it takes longer for the container to be filled with the first defective products and the second defective products, so that the frequency of confirming the storage status of the container can be reduced.

In particular, in the present embodiment, since the particle size sorting unit 20 includes the conveying device 22 that conveys the first defective product upward to the second discharge port 31, the first discharge port 21 is desired. can be installed at a high position. Therefore, by installing a large container for the first discharge port 21, it is possible to reduce the frequency of confirming the storage state of the container. Moreover, since a large space can be secured under the first discharge port 21, the degree of freedom of the container to be installed is increased. Moreover, since the conveying device 22 originally provided in the particle size sorting section 20 is used, additional equipment for conveying the second defective product to a high position is not required. Furthermore, it is also possible to install a scale similar to the weighing unit 60 described above for the first discharge port 21 to weigh the first defective product and the second defective product.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above-described embodiments of the present invention are intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified and improved without departing from its spirit, and the present invention includes equivalents thereof. In addition, within the range where at least part of the above problems can be solved or where at least part of the effect is achieved, the components described in the claims and the specification can be combined or omitted. .

For example, when the second outlet 31 is located higher than the first outlet 21, the second outlet 31 can be used as a common outlet instead of the first outlet 21. good. Of course, the relatively lower one of the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 31 may be used as the common outlet. Alternatively, the first outlet 21 may be used as a common outlet regardless of the installation heights of the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 31 . When grains are sorted by the sorter 10, the quantity of the first defective products is generally larger than the quantity of the second defective products. 2 defective products are transported to the first discharge port 21, compared to the case of transporting a relatively large amount of the first defective products to the second discharge port 31, the transport facility can be made compact. can. Alternatively, the sorting machine 10 may not have the switching valve 40 . In this case, only one of the first outlet 21 and the second outlet 31 may be provided as the sole outlet for the first and second defective products.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Sorting machine 20... Particle size sorting part 21... 1st discharge port 22... Conveying device 23... Input port 24... Sorting mesh cylinder 25... Rotating body 30... Optical sorting part 31... Second discharge port 32... Rotary valve 33... Chute 40... Switching valve 50... Tank 60... Measuring part 61... Base part 62... Rod part 63... Engagement part 70... Control part

Claims (5)

A sorter for granular material, comprising:
a particle size sorting unit for sorting the granular material into a first non-defective product and a first defective product according to the particle size of the granular material;
an optical sorting unit that optically sorts the first non-defective products into second non-defective products and second defective products ;
a first discharge port for discharging the first defective product to the outside of the machine;
a second discharge port for discharging the second defective product to the outside of the machine;
with
configured so that the first defective product and the second defective product can be discharged from the same discharge port to the outside of the machine ,
the same outlet is either the first outlet or the second outlet;
The sorting machine further comprises a first defective product discharge path for discharging the first defective product and the second defective product through the same discharge port for discharging the first defective product and the second defective product. and a second route for discharging the first defective products from the first discharge port and discharging the second defective products from the second discharge port. Prepare
Sorting machine. A sorter according to claim 1 ,
The same discharge port is a discharge port provided at a relatively higher position than the first discharge port and the second discharge port. A sorter according to claim 1 ,
A conveying device for conveying the first defective product upward to the first discharge port,
The same outlet is the first outlet,
When the discharge route is set to the first route, the second defective product is guided to the conveying device. Sorter. A sorter according to claim 1 ,
The same outlet is the first outlet. Sorter. The sorting machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
A control unit that controls the switching valve,
The control unit
controlling the switching valve so that the discharge route becomes the second route for a predetermined time from the start of the optical sorting unit;
The sorter that controls the switching valve so that the discharge route is switched from the second route to the first route after the predetermined time has elapsed.

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