JP7201896B2 - Processing system for nesting containers - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a processing system for nesting containers, and more particularly, processing of nesting containers that can be switched between a nesting state in which the containers are nested to reduce the volume and a stacking state in which the containers are stacked to increase the volume. Regarding the system.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in convenience stores, for example, nesting containers are used to carry in and transport articles. Nesting containers can be switched between a nesting state in which containers are nested to reduce bulk and a stacking state in which containers are stacked to increase bulk.
Also, conventionally, a device for stacking nesting containers has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 2).

JP-A-2002-46743 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-104551

By the way, when stacking nesting containers in a nested state using the apparatus of Patent Document 2, it is necessary to change the orientation of the containers alternately. If the container is rejected by , the containers with the same vertical orientation at the stacking position will continue, so stacking in a nested state is not possible. Therefore, it is necessary to reject a plurality of normal containers following the defective container on the conveying route, resulting in a problem of inefficiency. Furthermore, there is also the problem that the management of the rejected containers becomes complicated.

In view of the above-described circumstances, the present invention provides a transport device that alternately transports a predetermined number of nesting containers with different 180° orientations along the transport direction, and a transport device that is provided in the transport path of the transport device to determine the quality of each nesting container. an inspection device for inspecting the container, a reject device provided downstream of the inspection device for rejecting from the transport device a nesting container determined to be defective by the inspection device, and a transport downstream of the reject device A feeding device is provided on the path and feeds a nesting container oriented in the same direction as the rejected nesting container to a position on the conveying device where the defective product was placed .

According to such a configuration, when a defective nesting container occurs and is rejected from the path of the conveying device, it is replaced with the rejected defective nesting container. A nesting container having the same orientation as the rejected nesting container can be supplied to the position of the transport device. Therefore, even if a defective nesting container is rejected from the conveying route, there is no need to reject a following normal nesting container from the conveying route. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the nesting containers from being unnecessarily rejected from the conveying route, and efficiently utilize the nesting containers.

1 is an overall plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the main part taken along line II-II of FIG. 1; 3A and 3B are views showing processing steps by the reject device and the supply device of FIG. 2; FIG.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the illustrated embodiments. In FIG. It is a cleaning system that cleans.
The nesting container 2 (hereinafter simply referred to as "container 2") to be processed in this embodiment is used for carrying in and transporting goods, for example, in a convenience store, and becomes dirty in the course of repeated use. It should be cleaned when necessary. Therefore, in this embodiment, the containers 2 are washed by the washing device 4 while being conveyed by the conveyer 3, and the adhered substances such as old labels attached to the containers 2 are peeled off.
The container 2 is formed in a rectangular box shape with a mesh-like bottom and an open top, and is designed to be used with the opening facing upward. In addition, when the containers 2 are stacked with the openings facing upward, the lower portion of the upper container 2 is nested inside the lower container 2, resulting in a nesting state in which the overall volume is reduced. , and a stacking state in which the containers 2 on the upper side do not enter the lower side and are stacked to increase the volume.
The structure of the container 2 is known, for example, from Patent Literature 1, Patent Literature 2, and the like. In this embodiment, by stacking the containers 2 stacked from above in the same direction as the containers 2 on the lower side, the upper and lower containers 2 are stacked without being nested, and on the other hand, they are stacked from the upper side. By rotating the container 2 by 180° in the horizontal plane with respect to the container 2 on the lower side and stacking them in different directions, a nested state is obtained.
By stacking a plurality of containers 2 in a nested state, the bulkiness as a whole is reduced and space is saved, so the plurality of containers 2 are stored in a store or a warehouse in this nested state. On the other hand, when transporting the containers 2 containing articles, the containers 2 are stacked in a plurality of stages so as to be in a stacking state, and the containers 2 in this state are transported together.

The processing system 1 of this embodiment includes a transport conveyor 3 for carrying the container 2 thereon and transporting it toward the downstream side. , an inlet reversing device 7, a washing device 4, an outlet reversing device 8, an inspection device 9, a rejecting device 11, a feeding device 12 and a stacking device 13 are arranged.
The conveying conveyor 3 for conveying the container 2 is composed of a plurality of conveyors 3A arranged in series so as to be adjacent to each other along the conveying direction. , are driven in the same direction by the control device 5 . Further, the control device 5 allows each conveyor 3A to run at different speeds as required. The speed at which the transport conveyor 3 is running is input to the controller 5 via an encoder (not shown).

The upstream end of the conveyer 3 serves as a carry-in port 3a, and the downstream end of the conveyer 3 serves as a carry-out port 3b. For example, after a trolley on which 2 groups of 3 rows of containers in a 6-tiered nesting state are placed is brought to a position adjacent to the loading port 3a by an on-site worker, 2 groups of 3 rows of containers on the trolley are , and are fed onto the conveyer 3 serving as the carry-in port 3a in a state of being aligned in the conveying direction.
The 2 groups of containers supplied to the carry-in port 3a, each of which has 6 rows and 3 rows, are conveyed by the conveying conveyor 3 to the position of the step removing device 6 on the adjacent downstream side. It is designed to be supported on the upper side of the transport conveyor 3 . After that, the step removing device 6 sequentially takes out the lowermost containers 2 in the three rows of containers 2 and places them on the transport conveyor 3 . As a result, three containers 2 for one layer in the same direction are placed on the transport conveyor 3 in a single vertical row.
Since the transport conveyor 3 is running downstream at a predetermined speed, the first three containers 2 taken out of one layer are transferred to the adjacent downstream side, and are then transferred to the next lowest layer in the de-stacking device 6. , are taken out and placed on the transport conveyor 3 .
In this way, the de-tiering device 6 sequentially removes the bottom three containers 2 from a group of three rows of containers 2 held on the upper side of the transport conveyor 3, and places them on the lower transport conveyor 3. It is designed to be placed. As a result, every three containers 2 with their openings directed upward and in the same direction are alternately placed on the transport conveyor 3 along the transport direction.
That is, three containers 2 oriented in the same direction and three containers 2 oriented 180° different from the three containers 2 are alternately placed in a vertical row on the transport conveyor 3 by the unstacking device 6. It is conveyed toward the entrance reversing device 7 on the downstream side in this state.
In this embodiment, the de-tiering device 6 temporarily holds the three rows of containers 2 above the conveyer 3, and simultaneously takes out and conveys the three containers 2 downward from the bottom layer side. Although it is arranged to be placed on the conveyor 3, the unstacking device 6 holds containers 2 in one, two, or four or more rows on the upper side of the transport conveyor 3, and holds the containers 2 in one layer in the same direction. may be alternately placed on the transport conveyor 3 .

A cleaning device 4 is arranged in a cleaning area downstream of the step dismantling device 6 , and an inlet reversing device 7 is arranged adjacent to and upstream of the cleaning device 4 . An exit reversing device 8 is arranged at the position.
When the containers 2 are transported in a vertical line to the entrance reversing device 7 by the transport conveyor 3, the containers 2 are reversed by the entrance reversing device 7 so that the opening faces downward. The container 2 is carried into the washing device 4 in the reversed state. By inverting each container 2 by the entrance inverting device 7, the foreign matters and the like that have entered each container 2 fall downward.
In the cleaning device 4, a plurality of cleaning nozzles for injecting high-pressure cleaning water are arranged, and the above-mentioned plurality of cleaning nozzles are directed toward the container 2 that is turned over and is transported by the transport conveyor 3 with the opening facing down. High-pressure cleaning water is jetted from the jet nozzle. As a result, the entire inside and outside of the container 2 on the conveyer 3 is cleaned, and the old labels and the like adhering to the container 2 are peeled off.
Further, a blower for blowing air onto the container 2 is arranged in a downstream region in the cleaning device 4. By blowing air from the blower toward the container 2 after the cleaning water has been sprayed, each The container 2 is drained and dried.
After being cleaned by the cleaning device 4 , the container 2 is conveyed by the transport conveyor 3 to the exit reversing device 8 on the adjacent downstream side. When the container 2 is carried into the outlet reversing device 8, the container 2 is reversed by the outlet reversing device 8 so that the opening faces upward. As a result, the container 2 is returned to the same state as when it was placed on the conveyer 3 by the unstacking device 6, and is conveyed downstream in that state.

On the downstream side of the exit reversing device 8, there are an inspection device 9 for inspecting the quality of the containers 2, a reject device 11 for pushing out defective containers 2 from the conveyor 3 to the side, and a Feeding devices 12 for refilling containers 2 oriented in the same direction as the containers 2 are arranged one after the other.
The inspection device 9 inspects the quality of the container 2 carried into the inspection device 9 by the transport conveyor 3 . Specifically, whether or not any residue or dirt remains in the container 2, whether or not the container 2 is damaged or deformed, and whether or not the two-dimensional (QR) code of the container 2 can be read is checked. It is to be inspected. Also, the inspection device 9 can detect the orientation of the container 2 carried in to the position of the inspection device 9 . The direction of the container 2 is not limited to being detected by the inspection device 9 , and may be managed by providing a separate sensor or the like before and after the inspection device 9 or by a control number provided on the container 2 .
A photoelectric sensor S1 is arranged on the adjacent upstream side of the inspection device 9 with the transport conveyor 3 interposed therebetween, and the container 2 transported by the transport conveyor 3 is detected by the photoelectric sensor S1. When the container 2 transported by the transport conveyor 3 is detected by the photoelectric sensor S1, the detection signal is transmitted to the control device 5. As shown in FIG.
When the container 2 is determined to be defective after being inspected by the inspection device 9 , the fact that the container 2 is defective and the direction of the container 2 are transmitted from the inspection device 9 to the control device 5 . Based on the signal from the photoelectric sensor S1, the control device 5 identifies the defective container 2 on the conveyor 3, and identifies the defective container 2 via the detection signal of the encoder interlocked with the conveyor 3. position on the conveyer 3 is recognized.
A reject device 11 is arranged adjacently downstream of the inspection device 9 , and a photoelectric sensor S<b>2 for detecting the container 2 on the transport conveyor 3 is arranged at the position of the reject device 11 .
When the container 2 inspected by the inspection device 9 and determined to be defective is transported to the position of the reject device 11 , it is detected by the photoelectric sensor S 2 and the detection signal is transmitted to the control device 5 . Then, the control device 5 activates the reject device 11 so that the defective container 2 is pushed out from the transport conveyor 3 to the side by the reject device 11 . A collection unit 15 is provided on one side of the conveyer 3 where the reject device 11 is arranged, and the defective containers 2 pushed out from the conveyer 3 are stacked on the collection unit 15. and collected.
Here, based on the signal from the inspection device 9, the control device 5 determines the direction of the defective container 2 pushed out by the reject device 11 and the conveying conveyor 3 on which the defective container 2 was placed. It recognizes the upper position PX.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the reject device 11 is disposed above the conveyor 3 and is movable between a lowered position where it contacts the container 2 on the conveyor 3 and a raised position where it does not contact. and a push-out member 17 disposed on one side of the conveyer 3 opposite to the collecting section 15 and capable of advancing and retreating in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction.
The stopper 16 is attached to a first cylinder 18 arranged vertically downward, and the pushing member 17 is connected to a second cylinder 19 arranged horizontally perpendicular to the conveying direction. The operation of the first cylinder 18 and the second cylinder 19 is controlled by the control device 5. When the first cylinder 18 and the second cylinder 19 are not operated, the stopper 16 is positioned above the conveyor 3. The pushing member 17 is stopped at the raised position where it does not come into contact with the container 2, and the push-out member 17 is stopped at the retracted position out of the conveyor 3.
Then, after the inspection signal is transmitted from the inspection device 9 that the specific container 2 (container marked with x) is defective, the control device 5 detects the defective container 2 by the photoelectric sensor S2. Then, the first cylinder 18 is operated first, and then the second cylinder 19 is operated.
As a result, the stopper 16 is lowered to the lowered position, so that the defective container 2 comes into contact with the stopper 16 and is stopped at that position. After that, the pushing member 17 is advanced from the retracted position to the forward end, so that the defective container 2 is pushed sideways from the transport conveyor 3 by the pushing member 17 and is collected by the collecting section 15 . .
After that, the first cylinder 18 returns to the raised position, so the stopper 16 also returns to the raised position where it does not come into contact with the container 2, and the second cylinder 19 also returns to the retracted end, so that the push-out member 17 is also lifted from above the conveyor 3. Return to the retreated position.
In this way, the container 2 determined to be defective is pushed out from the conveyor 3 by the stopper 16 of the reject device 11 and the pushing member 17, and is collected by the collecting unit 15 (Fig. 3(A) to 3(D)).
When the defective container 2 is pushed out from the conveyer 3 by the reject device 11, the position PX of the conveyer 3 where the defective container 2 was placed becomes empty. The position PX of the conveyer 3 where the defective product was placed is replenished and supplied with the container 2 facing the same direction as the defective container 2 by the supply device 12 on the adjacent downstream side.

The supply device 12 includes a first stocker 21 and a second stocker 22 arranged side by side along the conveying direction above the conveyer 3, and a photoelectric sensor S3 arranged below the respective stockers 21 and 22. , S4.
Both stockers 21 and 22 have the same configuration, but the first stocker 21 can hold a plurality of tiers of containers 2 facing the same direction in a stacking state, and the second stocker 22 has a first stacker. A plurality of stages of containers 2 in the stocker 21 facing in the opposite direction to the containers 2 can be held in a stacking state.
The first stocker 21 has two pairs of left and right guide members 23 arranged in the vertical direction, a total of four guide members 23 . 25, 25 and a pair of lower stoppers 26, 26 are arranged horizontally.
The upper stoppers 25, 25 are moved forward and backward by cylinders 28, 28, and the lower stoppers 26, 26 are moved forward and backward by cylinders 29, 29. It's like The operation of the cylinder 28 for the upper stopper 25 and the cylinder 29 for the lower stopper 26 is controlled by the control device 5 .
In a state where the upper stoppers 25, 25 are retracted and the lower stoppers 26, 26 are advanced, when the stacked containers 2 are accommodated in the four guide members 23 from the upper side, the bottom layer 25 is moved forward. Since the protruding outer peripheral edge of the container 2 which becomes the bottom is supported by the lower stoppers 26 , 26 , the plural stages of the container 2 are held inside the guide member 23 . Immediately after this, the cylinders 28, 28 are synchronously operated to advance the upper stoppers 25, 25, so that the outer peripheral edge of the container 2, which is the second stage from the bottom, is supported from below by the upper stoppers 25, 25. (See FIG. 2).
The second stocker 22 is configured in the same manner as the first stocker 21 described above, and like the first stocker 21 , a plurality of stacked containers 2 are accommodated in the guide member 23 of the second stocker 22 . With the upper stoppers 25, 25 and the lower stoppers 26, 26 advanced, a plurality of containers 2 are held in the guide member 23 in a stacked state.
The orientation of the containers 2 held in the stacking state by the first stocker 21 and the orientation of the containers 2 held in the stacking state by the second stocker 22 are opposite to each other on the horizontal plane.

Photoelectric sensors S3 and S4 are arranged below the first stocker 21 and the second stocker 22 with the transport conveyor 3 interposed therebetween. These photoelectric sensors S3 and S4 detect the position PX of the transport conveyor 3 where the defective container 2 is rejected, that is, the position on the transport conveyor 3 where there is no container 2. FIG.
When the defective container 2 is pushed out by the reject device 11, the direction of the defective container 2 is recognized by the control device 5 from the signal from the inspection device 9, and the defective container 2 is detected by the control device 5. The position PX on the transport conveyor 3 where the container 2 was placed is also recognized by the control device 5 .
After the defective container 2 is pushed out from the transport conveyor 3 by the reject device 11, the defective container 2 is placed on the transport conveyor 3 in the same orientation as the container 2 in the first stocker 21. When the position PX of the transport conveyor 3 where the defective product was placed moves below the first stocker 21, the position PX is detected by the photoelectric sensor S3, and the detection signal is controlled. It is transmitted to the device 5 . Then, the control device 5 causes the cylinders 29, 29 of the first stocker 21 to retract the lower stoppers 26, 26, so that the lowest container 2 in the first stocker 21 drops onto the conveyor 3 by its own weight and is placed thereon. (see FIG. 3). That is, the empty position PX on the transport conveyor 3 is replenished with containers 2 facing the same direction as the containers 2 discharged as defective products.
Immediately after the lower stoppers 26, 26 of the first stocker 21 are retracted, the lower stoppers 26, 26 are advanced again, while the upper stoppers 25, 25 are retracted. 2 is dropped by one step, and the container 2, which was the second step from the bottom until then, is supported by the lower stoppers 26, 26 as the lowest container. After that, the upper stoppers 25, 25 are moved forward, so that the outer periphery of the container 2, which has newly become the second stage from the bottom layer, is supported by the upper stoppers 25, 25.

On the other hand, when the direction of the defective container 2 is the same as the direction of the container 2 held by the second stocker 22, the position PX of the transport conveyor 3 on which the defective product was placed is below the second stocker 22. , the position PX of the transport conveyor 3 is detected by the photoelectric sensor S4 and a detection signal is transmitted to the control device 5 . Then, the controller 5 causes the cylinders 29, 29 of the second stocker 22 to retract the lower stoppers 26, 26 from the state shown in FIG. It is dropped and placed on top. That is, the container 2 facing the same direction as the container 2 discharged as a defective product is replenished and supplied onto the empty position PX of the transport conveyor 3 .
Also in this second stocker 22, immediately after the lower stoppers 26, 26 are retracted, the lower stoppers 26, 26 are advanced again, while the upper stoppers 25, 25 are retracted. The plurality of stacked containers 2 are dropped by one step, and the container 2 that has been in the second row from the bottom until then is supported by the lower stoppers 26 and 26 as the lowest container 2 . After that, the upper stoppers 25, 25 are moved forward, so that the outer peripheral edge of the container 2 in the second stage from the bottom is supported by the upper stoppers 25, 25. As shown in FIG.
In this way, a plurality of stages of containers 2 held in different orientations in each of the stockers 21 and 22 are loaded with defective containers 2 on the transport conveyor 3 of the lowest container 2 of each of the stockers 21 and 22. It is replenished on the position PX where it was placed in the same direction as the container 2 of the defective product.
As described above, in this embodiment, the reject device 11 pushes out the defective containers 2 from the conveyor 3. After that, the reject device 11 pushes the defective containers 2 out of the conveyor 3. The position PX is replenished by the feeding device 12 with a container 2 of the same orientation to replace the defective container 2 which has been extruded.
Since the supply device 12 is arranged, three containers 2 facing the same direction and three containers 2 facing the opposite direction alternately along the conveying direction on the conveying conveyor 3 on the downstream side. In this state, each container 2 is conveyed to the stacking device 13 on the downstream side.

As shown in FIG. 1, on the downstream side of the supply device 12, a stacking device 13 is arranged for stacking three containers 2 in the same direction in a nested state by alternately stacking them. .
The stacking device 13 has a function opposite to the function of the destacking device 6 described above, and sequentially changes the directions of three containers 2 conveyed by the conveying conveyor 3 in the same direction. By stacking the containers, two groups of three rows of containers are stacked in a nesting state.
The stacking device 13 holds three containers 2 for one layer in a predetermined number of stages (for example, six stages) in a nesting state on the upper side of the transport conveyor 3, and then stacks two groups of containers in three groups of these six stages on the downstream side. are placed on the transport conveyor 3. These three groups of containers 2 are placed on a carriage (not shown) from an outlet 3b, which is the conveying end of the conveyer 3 (see FIG. 1).
In other words, three groups of two groups of containers stacked in six layers in a nested state are placed on the cart, and then the worker at the site moves the cart on which the three groups of two groups of containers are placed to a desired position. It is designed to be moved.

As described above, in this embodiment, when a defective container 2 is pushed out from the conveying conveyor 3 by the rejecting device 11, the defective container 2 is rejected by the supplying device 12 arranged adjacently downstream. Instead of a good container 2, a container 2 with the same orientation can be replenished on the transport conveyor 3.
Therefore, even if a defective container 2 is pushed out from the transport conveyor 3, there is no need to reject the following normal containers 2 from the transport conveyor 3. - 特許庁
Therefore, when a defective container 2 is removed from the conveyer 3, it is possible to omit troublesome work such as rejection of the subsequent normal container 2 from the conveyer 3, as compared with the conventional art. and the container 2 after cleaning can be efficiently used. In addition, since there is no change in the number of containers 2 to be carried in and the number of containers 2 to be carried out, management of the containers 2 on the transport conveyor 3 becomes easier than in the conventional case.

In the above embodiment, only one reject device 11 is arranged on the conveying route, but a plurality of reject devices may be arranged depending on the cause of the defect of the container 2. FIG.
The supply device 12 is configured to hold the containers 2 in a stacking state in a single stocker, and to rotate the stocker by a predetermined angle by a rotation mechanism so that the containers 2 are oriented in the same direction as the rejected containers 2 . The containers 2 in the stocker may be replenished to the transport conveyor 3 after the containers 2 are oriented in the same direction.
Furthermore, although the above-described embodiment exemplifies the case where the present invention is applied to the processing system provided with the cleaning device 4, it is not limited to this.

1. Nesting container processing system 2. Nesting container 3. Transfer conveyor (conveying device) 4. Cleaning device 9. Inspection device 11. Reject device 12.. Supply device

Claims (3)

A transport device that alternately transports a predetermined number of nesting containers with different 180° orientations along the transport direction, an inspection device that is provided in the transport path of the transport device and inspects the quality of each nesting container, and the inspection device. a rejecting device provided on the downstream side of the inspection device for rejecting from the conveying device a nesting container determined to be defective by the inspection device; and a rejecting nesting device provided on the conveying path downstream of the rejecting device. A processing system for nesting containers, comprising: a feeding device for feeding a nesting container oriented in the same direction as the container to a position on the conveying device where the defective product was placed . The supply device comprises a first stocker for stocking nesting containers aligned in one direction and a second stocker for stocking nesting containers aligned in the other direction,
A nesting container oriented in the same direction as the rejected nesting container is supplied from the first stocker or the second stocker to the position on the conveying device where the defective nesting container was placed . 10. The processing system for nesting containers according to claim 1. A cleaning device for cleaning the nesting container transported by the transport device is arranged upstream of the inspection device in the transport path of the transport device,
3. The nesting container processing system according to claim 1, wherein the inspection device inspects the quality of the nesting containers after being cleaned by the cleaning device.

Images