JP7294293B2 - Goods transport equipment - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an article conveying facility that conveys articles by article group containing at least one article.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2011-32020 discloses a conveying device (1) having an accumulating conveyor (2) and a merging line (3) (reference numerals in parentheses in the background art .). The accumulating conveyor (2) is a straight belt conveyor that conveys the articles (W) in a horizontal conveying direction. In addition, a plurality of merging lines (3) are arranged along the conveying direction of the collecting conveyor (2) in such a form that they intersect substantially at right angles from one side of the collecting conveyor (2). Articles (W) are supplied from the respective merging lines (2) to the accumulation conveyor (2), and the articles (W) are conveyed by the accumulation conveyor (2).

The accumulating conveyor (2) is provided with crosspieces adjacent to each other at equal intervals in the conveying direction. Due to this crosspiece, the articles (W) supplied from the merging line (3) to the accumulating conveyor (3) are shifted in the direction along the conveying direction, and the articles (W) supplied from different merging lines (3) to the accumulating conveyor (2) are prevented. Contact between the articles (W), etc., is suppressed. That is, the area between the crosspieces adjacent to each other in the transport direction is set as the transport area (Z) for the article (W).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2011-32020

By installing partitioning members such as crosspieces on the conveyor as described above, it is possible to suppress the displacement of the articles and the contact between the articles to some extent. However, the objects to be conveyed are not limited to shapes that are relatively difficult to roll, such as rectangular parallelepiped shapes, but there are also shapes that roll easily, such as columnar shapes. Such a rollable article may roll and move in an unintended direction due to its own movement for the supply or contact with other articles when it is supplied to the conveyor. Even when the partitioning material is installed on the conveyor, depending on the shape of the partitioning material, it may roll over the partitioning material and move. Moreover, it has been even more difficult to restrict the movement of such rollable articles when the conveyor is not provided with such dividers.

In view of the above background, even if the articles conveyed by the conveyor include articles having a shape that is easy to roll, there is a technique that can reduce the movement of the articles by rolling on the conveying surface of the conveyor. Offer is desired.

In view of the above, an article conveying facility for conveying the articles for each article group including at least one article includes a conveying conveyor that conveys the articles along the conveying direction and a conveying conveyor that conveys the articles in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction in plan view. an article supply device that supplies the articles onto the conveying surface of the conveyer from one side in the width direction for each article group in the width direction; a control device that controls the conveyer and the article supply device; wherein the article group includes the article having a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape and the non-rolling article that is the article that rolls less easily than the article, and the rolling article that is the article that rolls more easily than the non-rolling article. If so, the control device causes the article supply device to supply the articles included in one article group to one unit conveying area set on the conveying surface. An article is fed to the transfer conveyor and then the non-rolling article is fed to the transfer conveyor.

When a plurality of articles are supplied from the article supply device to the conveyer, there is a possibility that the articles will come into contact with each other on the conveyer. For example, when the non-rolling article is supplied in a state in which the non-rolling article is previously supplied and placed on the conveyer, the rolling article being moved by the supply comes into contact with the non-rolling article, The rolling article may roll in an unexpected direction on the conveying surface of the conveyer. However, according to this configuration, since the rolling article is supplied to the conveyer first, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the rolling article contacts the non-rolling article and rolls on the conveying surface. . There is a possibility that a non-rolling object supplied later comes into contact with a rolling object that has been supplied and placed on the transfer conveyor first, but in many cases the rolling object is already stationary at this time. Therefore, it is less likely to move greatly even when a non-rolling object comes into contact with it. In addition, since the non-rolling article rolls less easily than the rolling article, even if the non-rolling article comes into contact with the rolling article, the placement position of the non-rolling article is prevented from being greatly displaced. That is, according to this configuration, even if the articles to be conveyed by the conveyor include articles having a shape that easily rolls, it is possible to suppress the movement of the articles by rolling on the conveying surface of the conveyor. .

Further features and advantages of the article handling facility will become apparent from the following description of exemplary and non-limiting embodiments, which are explained with reference to the drawings.

Perspective view of article transport equipment Plan view of article transport equipment The perspective view which shows typically a part of multistage sorting apparatus Side view of article transport equipment Control block diagram of article transport equipment A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing the area setting on the conveying surface and the conveying state in each phase of article conveying A diagram showing an example of conditions for setting the unit transfer area and the gap area FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between the formation interval of the unit transfer areas and the arrangement interval of the supply ports; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a conveying state when supplying a group of articles including rolling articles and non-rolling articles to the first conveyor; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a conveying state when supplying a group of articles including rolling articles and non-rolling articles to the first conveyor; FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a conveying state when supplying a group of articles including rolling articles and non-rolling articles to the first conveyor;

An embodiment of an article transport facility will be described below with reference to the drawings, taking as an example a form applied to a sorting system (sorting system). The article conveying equipment conveys articles in groups of articles each containing at least one article, and includes a conveying conveyor for conveying articles along the conveying direction, and an article supply device for supplying articles onto the conveying surface of the conveying conveyor. and a control device for controlling the transport conveyor and the article supply device.

As shown in FIG. 1, the article conveying equipment PS is provided, for example, in a physical distribution facility owned by a mail-order business operator, and for example, selects a desired article from among a plurality of articles G stored in an automated warehouse (not shown). The goods G are sorted and delivered. In this case, in the automated warehouse, a plurality of articles G are stored in containers by type. Then, the plurality of articles G stored in the containers by type are automatically carried out from the automated warehouse and separated into individual articles G in an article disassembling section (not shown). After that, each of the plurality of articles G is individually transported. The "goods G" include, for example, various commodities such as foodstuffs and daily necessities, or in-process goods used in the production lines of factories, etc. The goods G to be sorted include various items. be

The article conveying equipment PS receives the multi-stage sorting device 7 and the articles G from the multi-stage sorting device 7, and conveys the received articles G along the first direction X, which is the direction away from the multi-stage sorting device 7. An unloading conveyor 8 and a second direction Y (conveying direction) that receives an article G from the unloading conveyor 8 and intersects (perpendicularly in the illustrated example) the first direction X (width direction) in plan view. and an article conveying device 100 that conveys the article. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the article conveying equipment PS of this example receives the articles G from the article conveying apparatus 100 via the carry-in device 6 for conveying the articles G to the multi-stage sorting device 7 and the transfer device 5. and an unloading device 9 for unloading. The transfer device 5 is configured as an automatic loading machine that receives the articles G supplied from the article conveying device 100 and automatically loads the articles G into the container C installed on the unloading device 9 .

As will be described later, the article conveying apparatus 100 includes a first conveyor 1, a second conveyor 2 and an intermediate conveyor 3 in this embodiment. In a broad sense, the article transport device 100 corresponds to a transport conveyor, and in a narrow sense, the first conveyor 1 corresponds to a transport conveyor. In the following description, the first conveyor 1 will be described as a transport conveyor. Also, the carry-in device 6 , the multistage sorting device 7 , and the carry-out conveyor 8 correspond to the article supply device 4 . Further, the transfer device 5 is provided downstream of the transport conveyor (the first conveyor 1, the article transport device 100), and is provided for each of at least one article group Gg (FIGS. 2, 4, 6 to 11, etc.). It corresponds to a supplied device to which the article G is handed over.

The carry-in device 6 sequentially carries the articles G that have been carried out from the automated warehouse in a state in which they are stored in containers according to their types and that have been individually separated in the article separating section, into the multistage sorting device 7 . In the example shown in FIG. 2, the loading device 6 is constructed as a conveyor. As shown in FIG. 5, the carry-in device 6 is controlled by a carry-in control unit 65 via a general control device Ct that controls the entire article transport equipment PS.

The multistage sorting device 7 is a device for sorting the articles G brought in from the carry-in device 6 . As shown in FIG. 3, the multistage sorting apparatus 7 has a plurality of frontages 71 with different heights in the vertical direction, and sorts the articles G into any one of the frontages 71 and discharges them. In the illustrated example, the multi-stage sorting apparatus 7 has a plurality of frontages 71 arranged in an orthogonal grid pattern with a plurality of stages and a plurality of rows. Further, as shown in FIG. 5 , the multistage sorting device 7 includes an article discrimination section 77 and a sorting control section 75 .

The multistage sorting device 7 sorts the articles G into any of the plurality of frontages 71 based on the order information. In this example, the multistage sorting device 7 sorts the articles G by discharging the articles G from a specific frontage 71 determined based on the order information and delivering them to the unloading conveyor 8 . The order information here means, for example, an order (picking order) specifying the type and quantity of the goods G to be shipped (either a single type or a combination of multiple types). is information indicating Then, the multistage sorting apparatus 7 sorts the articles G by discharging one or more articles G specified by each order to different openings 71 for each order.

Although detailed illustration is omitted, the multistage sorting device 7 sorts the articles G based on the determination result of the article determination unit 77 for determining the articles G. FIG. For example, the article discriminating section 77 has a camera that captures an image of the article G, and is configured to discriminate the article G by performing image recognition processing on image data acquired by this camera. However, without being limited to such a configuration, for example, an IC tag, barcode, or the like (storage unit) for storing product information is attached to the product G, and the product determination unit 77 stores the product information. A reader (reading unit) for reading may be provided, and the article G may be determined based on the article information read by the reader.

The articles G to be conveyed by the article conveying equipment PS include articles of various shapes. On the conveyor (for example, the first conveyor 1) constituting the article conveying apparatus 100, the handling of these articles G can be made different depending on whether the article G has a shape that makes it difficult to roll or a case that it easily rolls and moves. may be desirable. Therefore, for example, the article G is divided into an article G having a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape and a non-rolling article Gs, which is an article G that rolls less easily than the article G, and a rolling article Gc, which is an article G that rolls more easily than the non-rolling article Gs. (See FIGS. 14 to 16). The multistage sorting device 7 can determine whether each article G is a non-rolling article Gs or a rolling article Gc based on the judgment by the camera or the article information read by the reader.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the multistage sorting device 7 includes rails 72 and a plurality of carriages 73 that move along the rails 72 . The rail 72 has a horizontal portion provided along the horizontal direction (second direction Y) for each of a plurality of stages in which the frontage 71 is provided. The transport carriage 73 is configured to travel along the horizontal portion of the rail 72, thereby transporting the article G in the second direction Y. As shown in FIG. Also, the rail 72 may have upper and lower portions that extend vertically and that connect horizontal portions that are arranged every multiple stages. In this case, the carriage 73 is configured to move up and down along the upper and lower portions of the rails 72, so that it can move to each of the horizontal portions arranged for each of multiple stages. In this case, the number of carriages 73 is not limited to the number of steps in which the frontage 71 is provided. For this reason, for example, it is possible to arrange a number of carriages 73 that is smaller or larger than the number of stages on which the frontage 71 is provided. In the example shown in FIG. 3, eight carriages 73 are arranged with respect to the eight-step frontage 71 .

In this embodiment, each of the carriages 73 includes a discharge conveyor 74 that supports the article G from below and discharges the article G from the frontage 71 . The discharge conveyor 74 moves the articles G in the first direction X from the traveling path of the carriage 73 . The sorting control unit 75 drives and controls the transport carriage 73 and discharge conveyor 74 .

The carry-out conveyor 8 is a device for conveying the articles G sorted by the multistage sorting device 7 . As shown in FIG. 5, the carry-out conveyor 8 is driven and controlled by a carry-out conveyor control section 85 . In the present embodiment, the carry-out conveyor 8 is provided corresponding to each of the multi-stage frontages 71, and temporarily stores the articles G discharged from the frontage 71 by the multi-stage sorting device 7. It is configured to convey the article G in the first direction X. In this embodiment, a plurality of unloading conveyors 8 are arranged side by side in the second direction Y so as to correspond to the frontages 71 of the plurality of rows in each of the plurality of stages.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the carry-out conveyor 8 conveys the articles G in units of article groups Gg, which are a collection of a plurality of articles G for each order, and discharges them to the first conveyor 1 of the article conveying apparatus 100 . The number of articles G constituting one article group Gg differs for each order. For example, depending on the order, one article G may constitute one article group Gg. As described above, the article supply device 4 including the carry-out conveyor 8 supplies the first article group Gg with each article group Gg from one side in the width direction (first direction X) orthogonal to the conveying direction (second direction Y) in a plan view. Articles G are supplied onto the first conveying surface F1 of the conveyor 1 . As shown in FIG. 2 , a plurality of supply ports 81 for supplying articles G from the unloading conveyor 8 to the first conveyor 1 are arranged along the second direction Y. As shown in FIG.

The article conveying device 100 is a device for conveying articles G. As shown in FIG. The article conveying apparatus 100 conveys the articles G (article group Gg) discharged from the unloading conveyor 8 along the conveying direction (second direction Y) in the article conveying equipment PS, and transports the articles G (the group of articles Gg) discharged from the unloading conveyor 8 to the unloading apparatus via the transfer device 5. Hand over to 9.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the article conveying apparatus 100 includes a first conveyor 1 and a second conveyor 2 for conveying articles G, respectively. The article conveying device 100 further comprises an intermediate conveyor 3 arranged between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 in the second direction Y. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the first conveyor 1, the second conveyor 2, and the intermediate conveyor 3 are controlled by a first conveyor control section 15, a second conveyor control section 25, and an intermediate conveyor control section, respectively, via an integrated control device Ct. 35 is driven and controlled.

In this embodiment, the first conveyor 1 is configured by a belt conveyor having pulleys and a belt wound around the pulleys, and a first conveying surface F1 is formed on the upper surface of the belt. The belt is driven by rotating a pulley by an actuator such as a motor controlled by the first conveyor control section 15 .

As shown in FIG. 4, the first conveyor 1 includes a first side wall portion S1 arranged adjacent to the first conveying surface F1 in the first direction X. As shown in FIG. The first side wall portion S1 is arranged along the second direction Y so as to protrude upward from the first transport surface F1. The first side wall portion S1 can prevent the article G being conveyed on the first conveying surface F1 from falling outside in the first direction X from the first conveying surface F1. In other words, the first side wall portion S1 can appropriately guide the article G being conveyed on the first conveying surface F1 in the second direction Y (conveying direction). In this example, the first side wall portion S1 is also configured as a conveyor, and the article G is transported along the second direction Y (transport direction) by both the first transport surface F1 and the first side wall portion S1. be.

As shown in FIG. 1 and the like, in this embodiment, the first conveyor 1 includes an elevating mechanism 11 that elevates the first conveying surface F1. The lifting mechanism 11 is also driven and controlled by the first conveyor control section 15 . By lifting the first conveyor 1 by the lifting mechanism 11, as shown in FIG. 4, the first conveying surface F1 can be arranged at a height corresponding to each of the unloading conveyors 8 provided over a plurality of stages. can. As a result, the first conveyor 1 can receive the article G from any of the carry-out conveyors 8 in the plurality of stages. In this example, as shown in FIG. 1, the elevating mechanism 11 includes a mast 111 that vertically supports the first transport surface support section 10, and an elevation drive section 110 that vertically drives the first transport surface support section 10. I have.

Although detailed description is omitted, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the second conveyor 2 is arranged downstream of the first conveyor 1 in the conveying direction (first side Y1 in the second direction). The second conveyor 2 is arranged at a different height from the first conveying surface F1, and has a conveying surface that conveys the articles G placed thereon, and drives the conveying surface independently of the first conveyor 1. It has a drive mechanism that Similar to the first conveyor 1, the second conveyor 2 is composed of a belt conveyor having pulleys and a belt wound around the pulleys, and a conveying surface is formed on the upper surface of the belt. The belt is driven by rotating pulleys by an actuator such as a motor controlled by the second conveyor control section 25 .

In addition, the intermediate conveyor 3 is located between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2, that is, downstream of the first conveyor 1 in the conveying direction (second direction first side Y1) and further than the second conveyor 2 in the conveying direction. It is arranged on the upstream side (the second side Y2 in the second direction). The intermediate conveyor 3 is arranged at different heights with respect to the conveying surfaces of the first conveying surface F1 and the second conveyor 2, and has a conveying surface for conveying the articles G placed thereon, A driving mechanism for driving the conveying surface independently of the conveyor 2 is provided. Similar to the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2, the intermediate conveyor 3 is composed of a belt conveyor having pulleys and a belt wound around the pulleys, and a conveying surface is formed on the upper surface of the belt. The belt is driven by rotating pulleys by an actuator such as a motor controlled by the intermediate conveyor control section 35 .

As shown in FIG. 4, the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1 is inclined in the first direction X with respect to the horizontal plane (for example, 10° to 20°). As a result, the article G conveyed by the first conveyor 1 can be conveyed in a state of being moved toward the first side wall portion S1 on the first conveying surface F1. In this example, the angle of the second direction Y with respect to the horizontal plane of the first transport surface F1 is set to 0°.

Further, the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2 has a height in the vertical direction lower than that of the first conveying surface F1, and an angle of the first direction X with respect to the horizontal surface is larger than the angle of the first direction X with respect to the horizontal surface of the first conveying surface F1. is also a small angle (0° in this embodiment). That is, the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2 is arranged along the horizontal plane. Thereby, the article G can be conveyed along the horizontal plane. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an unloading device is provided downstream of the second conveyor 2 in the conveying direction (first side Y1 in the second direction) to carry out articles G in units of article groups Gg for each order. A transfer device 5 (automatic loading machine) for loading into 9 is provided. In this example, the angle of the second direction Y with respect to the horizontal plane of the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2 is set to 0°.

The conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3 is disposed between the first conveying surface F1 and the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2 in the vertical direction, and the angle of the first direction X with respect to the horizontal plane is the first angle of the first conveying surface F1 with respect to the horizontal surface. It is inclined at an intermediate angle between the angle of the direction X and the angle of the first direction X with respect to the horizontal plane of the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2 . With such a configuration, it is possible to shorten the distance in the vertical direction when the articles G move from one conveying surface to another between the plurality of conveyors. Therefore, according to the article conveying apparatus 100, the impact when articles are moved between a plurality of conveyors having conveying surfaces having different inclination angles in the first direction X with respect to the horizontal plane and different heights in the vertical direction can be reduced. is possible. In this example, the angle of the second direction Y with respect to the horizontal plane of the conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3 is set to 0°.

The transfer device 5 includes a box-shaped main body 50 having an open bottom and an inlet 56 to which the articles G are supplied from the article conveying device 100 is formed on the second side Y2 in the second direction. The transfer device 5 is arranged such that the bottom portion of the main body 50 is positioned above the unloading device 9 installed below the article conveying device 100 . The carry-out device 9 transports containers C containing articles G in units of article groups Gg sorted by the multistage sorting device 7 . In this embodiment, empty containers C are sequentially conveyed from the second side Y2 in the second direction from the transfer device 5 toward the first side Y1 in the second direction. Housed in a container C. Then, the container C containing the articles G is conveyed by the article group Gg from the transfer device 5 toward the first side Y1 in the second direction.

Although a detailed description of the structure is omitted, the transfer device 5 is designed to reduce the impact when transferring the article G to the container C on the carry-out device 9 positioned below the conveying surface of the second conveyor 2. is configured with a transfer mechanism. The transfer mechanism is controlled by a transfer control section 55 as shown in FIG. In addition, as shown in FIG. controlled.

As described above, when conveying each group of articles Gg sorted and supplied by the article supply device 4 and providing them to the unloading device 9 via the transfer device 5 as a device to be supplied, the article conveying device 100 is used. In (in particular, the first conveyor 1), it is preferable that the articles G belonging to different article groups Gg are conveyed without being mixed. As one countermeasure, it is conceivable to provide partitioning members such as crosspieces on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1 to physically partition the first conveying surface F1. However, it is generally not easy to move the partition member attached to the first conveying surface F1, and the partition is fixed. may decline. In this embodiment, the article G can be conveyed appropriately by setting the area on the first conveying surface F1 without using partitioning materials or the like.

Specifically, the integrated control device Ct that controls the first conveyor 1 and the article supply device 4 divides the first conveying surface F1 in the conveying direction (second direction Y) into unit conveying areas E, and A gap region B sandwiched between two adjacent unit transport regions E is set on the first transport surface F1. Then, the integrated control device Ct causes the article supply device 4 to supply the articles G included in one article group Gg to one unit transport area E. FIG. By setting the unit transport areas E, the articles G can be placed in the respective unit transport areas E for each item group Gg and the articles G can be appropriately transported. In addition, since the gap area B is set between the unit transport areas E adjacent in the transport direction, contact between the articles G included in different article groups Gg is suppressed.

6 to 11 show transport states in each phase of area setting and article transport on the first transport surface F1. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, with respect to the first conveyor 1 in which the unit conveying area E and the gap area B are set on the first conveying surface F1, the central portion Ec in the conveying direction of the unit conveying area E is the target. As a result, the article G is supplied from the article supply device 4 . At this time, the first conveyor 1 is moving at the first speed V1 or is stopped.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the integrated control device Ct causes the article supply device 4 to supply the articles G while conveying the articles G in the second direction Y by the first conveyor 1 . Further, as described above with reference to FIG. 2, a plurality of supply ports 81 are provided along the second direction Y to supply the articles G from the carry-out conveyor 8 constituting the article supply device 4 to the first conveyor 1. there is Therefore, the articles G may be supplied in parallel to the unit transport regions E at a plurality of locations using the supply ports 81 at a plurality of locations. As a matter of course, when the article G is supplied from any of the supply ports 81, the integrated control device Ct causes the article G to be supplied to the unit transport area E where the article G is not placed.

7 and 8, the central control device Ct causes the carry-out conveyor 8 to supply the articles G to the center Ec of the unit transport area E in the second direction Y as the target. As a result, the article G can be properly placed in the unit transport area E. As shown in FIG. However, as long as the article G can be placed in the unit transport area E, it does not prevent the article G from being supplied targeting a location outside the central portion Ec.

When the unit conveying area E and the gap area B are formed and the article G is supplied to the unit conveying area E, the integrated control device Ct stops the conveying of the article G by the first conveyor 1 and 1 The conveying surface F1 is raised and lowered to a height corresponding to the conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3. Specifically, when the supply port 81 from which the article G was last supplied is positioned below the conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3, the first conveyor 1 is lifted, and the supply port 81 from which the article G was finally supplied is located below the conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3. When the port 81 is positioned above the conveying surface of the intermediate conveyor 3, the first conveyor 1 is lowered. FIG. 9 shows a state where the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1 is positioned at a height where the article G can be conveyed to the transfer device 5 via the intermediate conveyor 3 and the second conveyor 2. FIG.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, the integrated control device Ct drives the first conveyor 1 at a second speed V2 faster than the first speed V1, and at a speed higher than the first conveyor 1, the intermediate conveyors 3 and The second conveyor 2 is driven. At this time, the integrated control device Ct moves the first conveyor 1 to the first side Y1 in the second direction by the length of one window corresponding to the combined area of one unit conveying area E and one gap area B. and temporarily stop the first conveyor 1 after the movement (FIG. 11). 9 and 11 show the state where the first conveyor 1 is stopped, and FIG. 10 shows the state where the first conveyor 1 is moving at the second speed V2. 10 and 11 are repeated to receive the articles G from the article conveying apparatus 100 to the unloading apparatus 9 via the transfer apparatus 5. Passed. In other words, the integrated control device Ct causes the first conveyor 1 to repeat driving in the second direction Y and stopping for each unit transport area E, so that the first conveyor 1 (article transporting device 100) moves from the first conveyor 1 (article transporting device 100) to the supplied device. The article G is handed over to the transfer device 5 as the .

6 to 11, the examples in which a plurality of articles G constituting one article group Gg are supplied from one common supply port 81 to one unit transport area E are described. Indicated. However, a plurality of articles G constituting one article group Gg may be supplied to one unit conveying area E from a plurality of different supply ports 81 .

As described above, the second speed V2 is faster than the first speed V1. The first speed V1 is the speed at which the articles G are supplied to the first conveyor 1 from the unloading conveyor 8 (article supply device 4). That is, the first speed V1 can be said to be the speed during supply of the article G by the article supply device 4 . On the other hand, the second speed V2 is the speed after the articles G are supplied to the first conveyor 1, and the second speed V2 is the speed while the articles G are not being supplied. That is, the integrated control device Ct reduces the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1 in the second direction Y while the article G is being supplied by the article supply device 4 compared to when the article G is not being supplied. As a result, the movement of the articles G due to rolling or slipping on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1 during the supply of the articles G by the article supply device 4 is suppressed to a minimum, and the articles G are appropriately distributed within the unit conveying area E. can be placed and the article G can be conveyed. As a matter of course, when the second speed V2 is sufficiently low that the articles G do not roll or slide on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1, the first speed V1 and the first The two speeds V2 may be the same.

The length in the second direction Y of the window formed by the unit transport area E and the gap area B is preferably variable rather than fixed. At this time, if the length in the second direction Y of at least one of the unit transport area E and the gap area B is variable, the length of the window in the second direction Y can be changed. Although either can be made variable, by making the unit transport area E variable, the length of the window in the second direction Y can be flexibly set according to the goods G to be transported or the goods group Gg. be able to.

For example, the overall control device Ct can variably set the length of the unit transport area E in the second direction Y according to the size of the articles G included in the article group Gg. When the length of the unit transport area E in the transport direction is set according to the size of the article G, the article G can be transported in a state where the article G is properly placed in the unit transport area E. For example, if the size of the article G is too large relative to the unit transport area E, the article G protrudes from the unit transport area E, increasing the possibility of interference with the article G placed in the adjacent unit transport area E. do. Also, if the size of the article G is too small relative to the unit transport area E, a wasted space is generated in the unit transport area E, and the transport efficiency is reduced. By variably setting the unit transport area E according to the size of the article G, occurrence of these problems is suppressed.

Further, for example, the integrated control device Ct can variably set the length of the unit transport area E in the second direction Y according to the transport speed of the article G by the first conveyor 1 . When the length of the unit conveying area E in the second direction Y is set according to the conveying speed of the conveyer, the first conveyor 1 is moved, and the article G is properly placed in the unit conveying area E. G can be transported.

Naturally, the integrated control device Ct adjusts the length of the unit conveying area E in the second direction Y to both the size of the articles G included in the article group Gg and the conveying speed of the articles G by the first conveyor 1. It may be variably set accordingly. Moreover, of course, the length of the unit conveying area E in the second direction Y is variable based on conditions other than the size of the articles G included in the article group Gg and the conveying speed of the articles G by the first conveyor 1. may be set. Although no improvement in transport efficiency can be expected, the length of the unit transport area E in the second direction Y is neither variable nor fixed.

Conditions for setting the lengths of the unit transport area E and the gap area B in the second direction Y will be described below with reference to FIG. 12 . The length of the unit transport area E in the second direction Y is, for example, the size of the articles G included in the article group Gg to be supplied, and the size of the plurality of articles G when the article group Gg includes a plurality of articles G. It is set based on the amount of spread in the second direction Y and the amount of movement of the article G due to the change in the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1 . The amount of spread and the amount of movement are affected by the speed at which the article G is conveyed by the first conveyor 1 . Therefore, setting the unit transport area E based on the amount of spread and setting the unit transport area E based on the amount of movement are equivalent to setting the unit transport area E based on the transport speed of the article G by the first conveyor 1. included in setting E.

As described above, it is preferable that the article G to be transported is appropriately accommodated in the unit transport area E and placed on the first transport surface F1. Therefore, if the size of the article G is included in the setting conditions for the length of the unit conveying area E in the second direction Y, the article G is conveyed in a state where the article G is properly placed in the unit conveying area E. be able to. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, it is preferable that the unit transport area E includes a first transport area Ye1 based on the size of the article G. As shown in FIG. Here, when the posture (orientation, etc.) after the article G is supplied onto the first conveying surface F1 is fixed or can be predicted, the dimension of the article G in the second direction Y in the posture after the supply is preferably used as the "size of the article G" here. Also, it is preferable to use the maximum dimension (the dimension of the longest portion) of the article G as the "size of the article G". The configuration using the maximum size of the article G is particularly suitable when the posture of the article G after being supplied onto the first conveying surface F1 cannot be predicted. Alternatively, it is also suitable to use the volume of the article G as "the size of the article G". In addition, when a plurality of articles G are included in the article group Gg, it is preferable to use, for example, the sum of any of the above "sizes of the articles G" for the plurality of articles G.

Further, when a plurality of articles G are included in the article group Gg, as shown in FIGS. It spreads out in the direction Y and is placed. By including the amount of spread of the plurality of articles G in the second direction Y in the setting conditions of the unit transfer area E, the plurality of articles G can be appropriately placed in the unit transfer area E. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, it is preferable that the unit transport area E includes a second transport area Ye2 based on the amount of spread of the plurality of articles G. As shown in FIG. In addition, the second conveying area Ye2 is located at two locations, a first side Y1 in the second direction (downstream side in the conveying direction) and a second side Y2 in the second direction (upstream side in the conveying direction) with respect to the first conveying area Ye1. set separately. The spread amount of the plurality of articles G in the second direction Y can be predicted based on indicators such as the conveying speed of the articles G by the first conveyor 1, the shape of each article G, the weight of each article G, and the like. Therefore, in this embodiment, the central control device Ct is configured to be able to refer to a spread amount map that defines the relationship between these indices and the spread amount. Then, based on the article information acquired by the article discriminating section 77 and the like, information on the control state of the first conveyor 1, and the like, the overall control device Ct refers to the spread amount map, and determines the number of articles G in the second direction Y. Find the amount of spread.

Further, as described above, the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1 may be set to, for example, the first speed V1 and the second speed V2, which are different speeds. Further, as described above with reference to FIGS. 9 to 11, when the article G is transferred from the article conveying apparatus 100 to the carry-out apparatus 9 via the transfer apparatus 5, the first conveyor 1 is stopped and conveyed. and repeat. The first conveyor 1 decelerates and accelerates between the first speed V1 and the second speed V2 and between stop and transport. At this time, an inertial force acts on the article G placed on the first conveyor 1, and the article G rolls or slides on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1, and the placement position may shift. have a nature. By including the amount of movement of the article G due to the change in the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1 in the setting conditions of the unit conveying area E, the article G can be properly conveyed within the unit conveying area E even when the placement position of the article G deviates. The article G can be transported in a state of being placed. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12, it is preferable that the unit transport area E includes a third transport area Ye3 based on the movement amount of the article G due to the transport speed change. Note that, similarly to the second conveying region Ye2, the third conveying region Ye3 also has a second direction first side Y1 (conveying direction downstream side) and a second direction second side Y2 (conveying direction side) with respect to the first conveying region Ye1. upstream) are set separately. The amount of movement of the articles G due to the change in the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1 can be predicted based on indicators such as the acceleration during the change in conveying speed, the shape of each article G, the weight of each article G, and the like. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the central control device Ct is configured to be able to refer to a movement amount map that defines the relationship between these indices and movement amounts. Then, based on the article information acquired by the article discrimination section 77 and the like, information on the control state of the first conveyor 1, and the like, the overall control device Ct refers to the movement amount map, and determines the article by changing the conveying speed of the first conveyor 1. Calculate the amount of movement of G.

Note that the unit transport area E may not include all of the first transport area Ye1, the second transport area Ye2, and the third transport area Ye3. The unit transport area E may be set to include at least one of them.

In addition, the length of the gap region B in the second direction Y is, for example, a deceleration distance that the first conveyor 1 moves when decelerating the first conveyor 1, and an idle running distance that the first conveyor 1 moves due to a control delay. and the error of a sensor such as an encoder that detects the amount of movement of the first conveyor 1 .

As described above, the integrated control device Ct causes the first conveyor 1 to repeat driving in the second direction Y and stopping for each unit transport area E, thereby The article G is handed over to the transfer device 5 as a device to be supplied. Since the first conveyor 1 also moves when the first conveyor 1 decelerates, the gap area B preferably includes a first gap area Yb1 based on the deceleration distance. Of course, the deceleration distance may be the length in the second direction Y of the first gap region Yb1. Here, the deceleration distance can be obtained based on the acceleration when decelerating the first conveyor 1 and the speed before deceleration.

Further, even if the general control unit Ct or the first conveyor control unit 15 instructs deceleration, a control delay occurs before the first conveyor 1 actually starts decelerating. During this control delay period, the first conveyor 1 moves without deceleration. Therefore, it is preferable that the gap area B includes the second gap area Yb2 based on the free running distance. As with the first gap region Yb1, the idling distance may be the length in the second direction Y of the second gap region Yb2. Here, the length of the control delay period can be obtained experimentally. Also, the free running distance can be obtained based on the speed of the first conveyor 1 before deceleration and the length of the control delay period.

Further, the first conveyor 1 is feedback-controlled based on the detection result of a sensor such as an encoder that detects the amount of movement of the first conveyor 1 . This sensor error leads to an error in the amount of movement of the first conveyor 1 . Therefore, it is preferable that the gap area B includes a third gap area Yb3 based on the error of the sensor that detects the amount of movement of the first conveyor 1 . Here, the sensor error can be obtained from the specifications of the sensor, or obtained experimentally.

By the way, as described above, a plurality of supply ports 81 for supplying the articles G from the unloading conveyor 8 to the first conveyor 1 are provided along the second direction Y. As shown in FIG. Therefore, the articles G may be supplied in parallel to the unit transport regions E at a plurality of locations using the supply ports 81 at a plurality of locations. At this time, as shown in FIG. 13, a first interval P1, which is an interval in the second direction Y in which one window is formed by one unit transport region E and one gap region B, and It is preferable to match the second interval P2, which is the arrangement interval in the second direction Y of the supply ports 81 that supply the articles G to the unit conveying area E. When the first interval P1 and the second interval P2 match, the articles G can be efficiently supplied from the article supply device 4 to the first conveyor 1. As shown in FIG. When the length of the gap area B in the second direction Y is a fixed value, the interval in the second direction Y at which one window is formed matches the interval in the second direction Y of the unit transport area E. do. Therefore, in this case, the first interval P1 can also be said to be the interval in the second direction Y in which the unit transport areas E are set.

In addition, in FIG. 13, in order to facilitate the explanation, an example is illustrated in which the first intervals P1 are all the same and the second intervals P2 are all the same. However, when the unit transport area E is variable, the first interval P1 becomes a different interval. In this case, the first interval P1 and the second interval P2 can be synchronized by making the second interval P2 different according to the different first interval P1.

As described above, by setting the unit conveying area E and the gap area B, the article groups Gg to be placed in the adjacent unit conveying areas E are not mixed with each other, and the first conveyor is appropriately conveyed. 1, and the articles G are appropriately handed over to the transfer device 5 for each article group Gg.

By the way, as described above, the articles G to be conveyed are divided into non-rolling articles Gs, which are articles G having a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape and articles G that roll less easily than the non-rolling articles Gs, and articles that roll more easily than the non-rolling articles Gs. 14 to 16). When a plurality of articles G are supplied from the article supply device 4 to the first conveyor 1, the articles G may come into contact with each other on the first conveyor. For example, when the non-rolling object Gs is first supplied to and placed on the first conveyor 1 and the rolling object Gc is supplied, the rolling object Gc being moved by the supply becomes the non-rolling object. There is a possibility that the rolling object Gc contacts Gs and rolls on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1 in an unexpected direction. Therefore, the integrated control device Ct is configured so that the article group Gg includes the rolling article Gc and the non-rolling article Gs, and the article group Gg is included in one unit conveying area E set on the first conveying surface F1. Specify the supply order of the goods G when the goods G to be supplied are to be supplied. Specifically, the integrated control device Ct causes the article supply device 4 to first supply the rolling article Gc to the first conveyor 1 and then to supply the non-rolling article Gs to the first conveyor 1 .

In this way, by supplying the rolling object Gc to the first conveyor 1 first, the possibility that the rolling object Gc contacts the non-rolling object Gs and rolls on the first conveying surface F1 is reduced. can be reduced. In this case, there is a possibility that the non-rolling object Gs supplied later comes into contact with the rolling object Gc that is first supplied and placed on the first conveyor 1, but at this time the rolling object has already Since it is stationary in many cases, it rarely moves greatly even when it comes in contact with a non-rolling object. In addition, since the non-rolling object Gs rolls less easily than the rolling object Gc, even if the non-rolling object Gs comes into contact with the rolling object, the placement position of the non-rolling object Gs is prevented from deviating significantly.

The rolling object Gc includes, for example, a columnar shape, a spherical shape, a conical shape, a polygonal columnar shape with hexagonal columns or more, a polyhedral shape with 10 sides or more, and a polygonal pyramid shape with hexagonal pyramids or more. Since the articles G of these shapes roll relatively easily, by treating them as rolling articles Gc, it is possible to reduce the possibility of causing a large positional deviation when they are supplied to the first conveyor 1 .

14 to 16 show an example of the conveying state when supplying the first conveyor 1 with an article group Gg including rolling articles Gc and non-rolling articles Gs. 14 and 15 show the same phases as in FIG. 6, which show the transport states in each phase of area setting on the first transport surface F1 and article transport, and FIG. 16 shows the same phases as in FIG. The integrated control device Ct controls the article supply device 4 (the multistage sorting device 7 and the discharge conveyor 8) so that the rolling articles Gc are supplied to the first conveyor 1 first, and the articles G on the discharge conveyor 8 are controlled. specify the order of As shown in FIG. 14, in the article supply device 4, the rolling articles Gc are arranged closest to the first conveyor 1 side, and as shown in FIG. When it is fed, it is supplied to the first conveyor 1 before the non-rolling article Gs.

By the way, as described above, a plurality of articles G constituting one article group Gg may be supplied to one unit transport area E from a plurality of different supply ports 81 . For example, as shown in FIG. 15, a discharge conveyor 8 on which rolling articles Gc are arranged and a discharge conveyor 8 on which non-rolling articles Gs are arranged are provided independently. Articles G may be supplied to one unit conveying area E in common. In this case, although the number of unloading conveyors 8 to be used increases, there is no need to consider the alignment of the articles G on one unloading conveyor 8, so control in the article supply device 4 becomes easier. That is, among the plurality of article supply devices 4, the article supply device 4 holding the rolling article Gc first supplies the article G to the unit conveying area E, and then holds the non-rolling article Gs. Control may be performed so that the articles G are supplied from the article supply device 4 to the same unit conveying area E. FIG.

6 to 11, also in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. The article supply device 4 is caused to supply the article G while the operation is being performed. By supplying the articles G to the first conveyor 1 while driving the first conveyor 1, the articles G supplied first from the article supply device 4 and the articles G supplied later are aligned in the conveying direction (second direction). Since they are supplied to positions shifted from Y), the possibility of them coming into contact is reduced. Therefore, rolling of the rolling object Gc due to contact between the objects G is also suppressed. Further, as described above, when a plurality of article groups Gg are to be supplied to different positions in the second direction Y on the first conveyor 1, basically, the upstream side in the conveying direction (second A non-rolling article Gs of another article group Gg exists on the second side Y2 in the direction, and a non-rolling article Gs of the same article group Gg is present on the downstream side in the conveying direction (first side Y1 in the second direction) of the rolling article Gc. There will be animal goods Gs. That is, the non-rolling articles Gs are arranged on both sides in the conveying direction with respect to the rolling article Gc. As a result, even when the rolling article Gc rolls and moves in the conveying direction, the movement range can be limited. Of course, this does not prevent the articles G from being supplied from the article supply device 4 to the stopped first conveyor 1 .

As described above, the integrated control device Ct controls the article supply device 4 (the multistage sorting device 7 and the carry-out conveyor 8) so that the rolling article Gc is supplied to the first conveyor 1 first. Further, as described above, the multistage sorting device 7 sorts the articles G into a plurality of frontages 71 based on the order information. When the article group Gg defined by the order information includes the rolling article Gc and the non-rolling article Gs, the order of supply is controlled so that the rolling article Gc is first supplied to the first conveyor 1. . As a result, even if the non-rolling article Gs and the rolling article Gc are included in the same article group Gg, the rolling article Gc does not come into contact with the non-rolling article Gs when the articles are supplied to the first conveyor 1. is suppressed from rolling on the first conveyor 1. Since defects during transportation are reduced, it becomes easier to mix rolling items Gc and non-rolling items Gs in an item group Gg defined by one piece of order information, thereby improving the transportation efficiency of the article transportation equipment PS. be able to.

In the above description, the order information includes information on the type and quantity of the goods G to be shipped. animal goods Gs) may be included. When the order information includes such an attribute of the article G, the article supply device 4 determines whether the article G is a rolling article Gc or a non-rolling article Gs based on the order information. be able to.

In this case, it is possible to determine in advance whether or not the item group Gg includes the rolling item Gc based on the order information. can be predetermined. Therefore, the article group Gg including the rolling article Gc can be supplied to the conveyor in an appropriate order without lowering the conveying efficiency.

Of course, the order information does not have to include such attribute information. As described above, the multistage sorting device 7 determines whether each article G is a non-rolling article Gs or a rolling article Gc based on the camera's determination or the article information read by the reader. be able to. Then, the multistage sorting device 7 may discharge the articles G to the carry-out conveyor 8 so that the rolling articles Gc are first supplied to the first conveyor 1 based on the determination result.

By the way, among the rolling items Gc, there are an item G that rolls relatively easily and an item G that rolls relatively hard. According to experiments by the inventors, it has been found that, for example, a cylindrical container rolls more easily than a cylindrical container such as a PET bottle. For this reason, the central control device Ct preferably causes the first conveyor 1 to supply rolling objects Gc, which are relatively easy to roll, first. In other words, the integrated control device Ct should control the article supply device 4 (the multistage sorting device 7 and the carry-out conveyor 8) so that the rolling article Gc, which rolls relatively easily, is first supplied to the first conveyor 1. .

The relative ease of rolling in the rolling object Gc can be indexed in advance by experiments. For example, the attribute information included in the order information described above is not limited to information for distinguishing whether the item is a rolling item Gc or a non-rolling item Gs. rolling index) may be included. For example, the rollability index of the article G, which rolls most easily, is the largest numerical value in the range ("10", "100", etc., or "F (decimal "15": the same applies hereinafter)" in hexadecimal), "7F (127)", "FF (255)", etc. may be used), and the rollability index of the article G, which is the least likely to roll, can be set to the smallest numerical value (for example, "0") in the range. At this time, if the non-rolling object Gs is also given a rollability index and its value is set to "0", it is possible to distinguish between the rolling object Gc and the non-rolling object Gs in the attribute information. There is no need to set the information separately.

The multistage sorting device 7 sorts the articles G into a plurality of frontages 71 based on the order information so that the rolling articles Gc, which are relatively easy to roll, are supplied first to the first conveyor 1 based on the rolling ease index. to control the supply order. As a result, even if rolling items Gc with different rolling easiness are included in the same article group Gg, the rolling items Gc that roll more easily can roll on the first conveyor 1 when the articles are supplied to the first conveyor 1. can be reduced.

Moreover, the rolling object Gc may roll easily not only depending on the rolling easiness of the individual rolling object Gc, but also depending on the relationship with the object G supplied to the first conveyor 1 immediately before. For example, when a cylindrical PET bottle is supplied after a plastic box with rounded corners, the PET bottle comes into contact with the corners of the plastic bottle and easily rolls over. Compared to such a plastic box and a PET bottle, it is generally considered that the PET bottle has a higher rollability index. It will be supplied to the first conveyor 1 . Therefore, the possibility of the PET bottles rolling on the first conveyor 1 can be reduced. However, such combinations can also occur between other rolling objects Gc.

A combination of articles G that makes it easier for articles G to be supplied later to roll in this way can be obtained in advance through experiments or the like. When the article group Gg includes such a combination of articles G, instead of continuously supplying the articles G to the first conveyor 1, another article G is placed between these articles G. It is preferable to sandwich and supply to the first conveyor 1 . That is, the rolling items Gc are supplied to the first conveyor 1 before the non-rolling items Gs, and the rolling items Gc that are easier to roll are supplied to the first conveyor 1 first. Regardless of the basic order of supply, another article G is supplied to the first conveyor 1 between the two articles G so as to eliminate the combination of the two articles G that tend to roll when continuously supplied. It is preferred that This other item G may be a rolling item Gc or a non-rolling item Gs.

[Other embodiments]
Other embodiments will be described below. The configuration of each embodiment described below is not limited to being applied alone, and can be applied in combination with the configuration of other embodiments as long as there is no contradiction.

(1) In the above description, an example has been described in which the unit transport area E and the gap area B are set on the first conveyor 1 without using partitioning materials or the like. However, a dividing member may be provided on the first conveying surface F1 of the first conveyor 1, and regions corresponding to the unit conveying regions E and the gap regions B may be divided by the dividing member.

(2) In the above description, the first conveyor 1, the second conveyor 2, and the intermediate conveyor 3 are illustrated and described as a belt conveyor having pulleys and a belt wound around the pulleys. . However, without being limited to such a form, at least one of the first conveyor 1, the second conveyor 2, and the intermediate conveyor 3 is configured by a conveyor other than a belt conveyor, such as a roller conveyor or a chain conveyor. can be When the first conveyor 1 is configured by a roller conveyor, the first conveying surface F1 is a virtual surface that connects the upper ends of each of the plurality of rollers that configure the roller conveyor. Similarly, when each of the above conveyors is configured by a chain conveyor, the first conveying plane F1 is a virtual plane that connects the upper surfaces of each of the plurality of chains that constitute the chain conveyor. The unit transport area E and the gap area B are set on such a virtual first transport surface F1.

[Outline of embodiment]
An overview of the article transport equipment described above will be briefly described below.

As one aspect, an article conveying facility for conveying the articles for each article group including at least one article includes a conveying conveyor for conveying the articles along the conveying direction and a conveying conveyor for conveying the articles along the conveying direction in a plan view. an article supply device that supplies the articles onto the conveying surface of the conveyer from one side in the width direction for each article group in the width direction; a control device that controls the conveyer and the article supply device; wherein the article group includes the article having a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape and the non-rolling article that is the article that rolls less easily than the article, and the rolling article that is the article that rolls more easily than the non-rolling article. If so, the control device causes the article supply device to supply the articles included in one article group to one unit conveying area set on the conveying surface. An article is fed to the transfer conveyor and then the non-rolling article is fed to the transfer conveyor.

When a plurality of articles are supplied from the article supply device to the conveyer, there is a possibility that the articles will come into contact with each other on the conveyer. For example, when the non-rolling article is supplied in a state in which the non-rolling article is previously supplied and placed on the conveyer, the rolling article being moved by the supply comes into contact with the non-rolling article, The rolling article may roll in an unexpected direction on the conveying surface of the conveyer. However, according to this configuration, since the rolling article is supplied to the conveyer first, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the rolling article contacts the non-rolling article and rolls on the conveying surface. . There is a possibility that a non-rolling object supplied later comes into contact with a rolling object that has been supplied and placed on the transfer conveyor first, but in many cases the rolling object is already stationary at this time. Therefore, it is less likely to move greatly even when a non-rolling object comes into contact with it. In addition, since the non-rolling article rolls less easily than the rolling article, even if the non-rolling article comes into contact with the rolling article, the placement position of the non-rolling article is prevented from being greatly displaced. That is, according to this configuration, even if the articles to be conveyed by the conveyor include articles having a shape that easily rolls, it is possible to suppress the movement of the articles by rolling on the conveying surface of the conveyor. .

Further, it is preferable that the control device causes the article supply device to supply the article while causing the transfer conveyor to convey the article in the conveying direction.

Since the articles are supplied to the conveyer while driving the conveyer, the articles that are first supplied from the article supply device and the articles that are subsequently supplied are supplied at different positions in the conveying direction. , the possibility of them coming into contact is reduced. Therefore, rolling of the rolling parts due to contact between articles is also suppressed. Further, when a plurality of article groups are supplied to different positions in the conveying direction on the conveyer, basically, non-rolling articles of another article group exist on the upstream side in the conveying direction with respect to the rolling articles, A non-rolling article of the same article group exists on the downstream side in the conveying direction with respect to the rolling article. That is, the non-rolling articles are arranged on both sides of the rolling article in the conveying direction. As a result, even when the rolling article rolls and moves in the conveying direction, the movement range can be limited.

Moreover, it is preferable that the rolling object includes a cylindrical shape, a spherical shape, a conical shape, a polygonal columnar shape with hexagonal prisms or more, a polyhedral shape with 10 sides or more, and a polygonal pyramid shape with hexagonal pyramids or more.

Since articles of these shapes tend to roll relatively easily, treating them as rolling parts can reduce the possibility of significant misalignment when fed to the transfer conveyor.

The article supply device supplies the articles for each of the article groups based on the order information. It is preferable if the product is included.

According to this configuration, even if the non-rolling article and the rolling article are included in the same article group, when the article is supplied to the conveying conveyor, the rolling article comes into contact with the non-rolling article, causing the article to move on the conveyer. rolling is suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to mix rolling and non-rolling articles in one article group to improve the transport efficiency.

Further, the article supply device supplies the articles for each of the article groups based on the order information, and the article group defined by one piece of the order information includes the rolling article and the non-rolling article. When an item is included, it is preferable that whether the item included in the item group is the rolling item or the non-rolling item is determined based on the order information.

Since it is possible to determine in advance whether or not a rolling item is included in the item group based on the order information, it is possible to determine in advance the order in which a plurality of items included in the item group are supplied to the transport conveyor. Therefore, a group of articles including rolling articles can be supplied to the conveyor in an appropriate order without lowering the conveying efficiency.

Moreover, it is preferable that the control device firstly supplies the article, which is relatively easy to roll, to the conveyer among the rolling articles.

Among rolling objects, the easiness of rolling differs depending on the object. If the rolling objects that roll relatively easily are supplied to the conveyer after the rolling objects that roll relatively hard, there is a possibility that the rolling objects that roll relatively easily will roll on the conveyer. becomes higher. Among the rolling items, the items that roll relatively easily are supplied to the conveyer first, thereby reducing the possibility that the rolling items will roll on the conveyer.

1: First conveyor (transport conveyor)
4: Article supply device B: Gap area Ct: Integrated control device (control device)
E: unit transport area F1: first transport surface (transport surface of transport conveyor)
G: Article Gc: Rolling article Gg: Article group Gs: Non-rolling article PS: Article conveying equipment X: First direction (width direction)
Y: second direction (conveyance direction)

Claims (6)

An article conveying facility for conveying an article for each article group containing at least one article,
a conveyer conveying the article along a conveying direction;
an article supply device for supplying the articles from one side in the width direction onto the conveying surface of the conveyer for each article group, with the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction in plan view as the width direction;
a control device that controls the transport conveyor and the article supply device,
When the article group includes the article having a rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, the non-rolling article that is the article that rolls less easily than the article, and the rolling article that is the article that rolls more easily than the non-rolling article. In addition, when causing the article supply device to supply the articles included in one article group to one unit conveying area set on the conveying surface, the control device first supplies the rolling articles to the An article conveying facility that feeds a conveying conveyor and then feeds said non-rolling articles onto said conveying conveyor. 2. The article conveying facility according to claim 1, wherein said control device causes said article supply device to supply said articles while causing said conveyer to convey said articles in said conveying direction. 3. The article conveying equipment according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the rolling article includes a cylindrical shape, a spherical shape, a conical shape, a polygonal prism shape with a hexagonal prism or more, a polyhedral shape with a decahedron or more, and a polygonal pyramid shape with a hexagonal pyramid or more. . The article supply device supplies the article for each article group based on order information,
4. The article transport facility according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said article group defined by one piece of said order information includes said rolling article and said non-rolling article. 5. The article conveying facility according to claim 4, wherein whether said article included in said article group is said rolling article or said non-rolling article is determined based on said order information. 6. The article conveying facility according to claim 5, wherein said control device first supplies said articles, which are relatively easy to roll, among said rolling articles to said conveyer.

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