JP7491499B2 - Transfer device and transfer method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a transport device and method for transporting unstable items whose shapes are difficult to determine (hereinafter referred to as shapeless items), such as cloth products, such as futons, sheets, curtains, carpets, clothing, linen, and towels, or paper products and plastic sheets.

At logistics facilities, items to be shipped are transported by conveyor and then loaded onto transportation means such as carts in an orderly manner. For this purpose, a transfer device is used that grasps the items coming off the conveyor and transfers them onto a cart or the like.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses the technical concept of an article transfer device that can appropriately handle many types of articles with different dimensions, adsorbs the top surface of the target article to be transferred, suspends the target article, and moves it to the transfer destination.

According to the method of Patent Document 1, by providing a suction unit that is equipped with multiple suction blocks each having at least one suction pad, with at least one of the suction blocks being movable along the horizontal direction, and a control device that moves the suction block in accordance with the size of at least the top surface of the target item, it is possible to transfer the target part appropriately.

However, while the suction pad method can suction and transport box-shaped items, it is difficult to suction irregular items such as cloth products, as the items are strongly sucked into the suction holes and suitable suction for transport is difficult, and there was a demand for a device that can transfer such irregular items.

JP 2013-169640 A

The present invention aims to solve the problems of the conventional technology and provide a transfer device and method capable of transferring irregularly shaped items such as fabric products.

The transfer device of the present invention is a transfer device that transfers a source fabric product to a destination, and is characterized by having a placement section (21) provided in the transfer section and a pressing mechanism (22) that presses down the irregular products placed on the placement section.

The irregular product is preferably a fabric product.

The transfer device preferably includes a control unit that controls the transfer unit and the pressing mechanism, and the control unit controls the pressing mechanism to position the plate unit in a prepared position above the irregular product and in a non-prepared state where it is returned to the transfer unit, and also controls the plate unit to switch between a pressed state and a non-pressed state by moving the plate unit in a vertical direction facing the placement unit while the plate unit is in the prepared position, sandwiching the irregular product therebetween.

It is preferable that the placement section is provided with an anti-slip surface, and that the tip of the placement section is raised when the robot rotates and moves, so that the fabric product does not easily fall off.

The transfer method of the present invention preferably includes the steps of placing the cloth product to be transferred on a placement section provided on a transfer section provided on a robot arm, pressing the cloth product on the placement section with a pressing mechanism provided on the transfer section, and rotating the robot arm to transfer the irregular product on the placement section to a destination.

The pressing step preferably includes a step of extending a pressing mechanism and lowering a pressing plate, and the transferring step preferably includes a step of raising the tip of the placement unit, rotating the robot, returning the raised tip of the placement unit, transporting the irregular product to above the transfer destination, raising the pressing plate, returning the pressing mechanism, and extending the push-out unit from the transfer unit and retracting the transfer unit to pull out the placement unit.

The transfer device and transfer method of the present invention can grip irregularly shaped items such as fabric products transported from a conveyor and reliably transfer them to a trolley.

1 is a perspective view of a logistics system including a transfer device for irregular objects according to an embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a perspective view of a transfer device for irregularly shaped articles according to an embodiment of the present invention; 1A is a plan view of the mounting portion, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the operation of the device for transferring irregular articles. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the operation of the device for transferring irregular articles. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the operation of the device for transferring irregular articles. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the operation of the device for transferring irregular articles.

The following is a detailed explanation of the transfer device of the present invention, using an embodiment shown in the drawings of a transfer device that transfers cloth products, which are an example of amorphous products. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a logistics system equipped with a device for transporting irregular items according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Fabric products (irregularly shaped products) W are transported on the roller conveyor 10 in the direction of the arrow in the figure. The fabric products W are supplied automatically from an automated warehouse, or are placed on the roller conveyor 10 and supplied by hand or by a robot.

A pusher 11 is provided at the end of the roller conveyor 10 in the direction of travel. The pusher 11 is located outside the roller conveyor 10 when in standby mode, and has a push plate 12 that moves forward and backward perpendicular to the direction of travel of the roller conveyor 10, and a pressing means (not shown) consisting of an air cylinder or the like that drives the push plate 12.

The transfer device A according to the present invention is disposed at the end of the roller conveyor 10. The transfer device A is disposed to the side of the roller conveyor 10 so as to receive the fabric product W pushed out by the pusher 12 on the roller conveyor 10 and transfer it to the cart 3. The transfer device is attached to the tip of the robot arm 2 which is rotatably provided on the robot body 1.

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the main parts of a transfer device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Transfer device A includes a placement section 21 for irregular products provided at the bottom of main body 20, a presser mechanism 22 for fabric products, and a pusher mechanism 23 for fabric products. The details of these mechanisms are described below.

As shown in FIG. 3, the placement section 21 consists of three forks that extend substantially horizontally, namely, the central fork 25a and the side forks 25b and 25c. The side forks 25b and 25c have a receiving plate 40 at the top, and a non-slip groove 41 is formed on the upper surface of the receiving plate 40. The side forks 25b and 25c can be moved in the width direction of the placement section 21 to change the width dimension, so that the fabric product can be placed at the optimal width even if the width dimension changes.

As shown in FIG. 2, the presser mechanism 22 presses and fixes the fabric product W onto the placement section 21, and is located at the center above the placement section 21.

4 and 5 show the details of the pressing mechanism 22. The pressing mechanism 22 includes an air cylinder 27 fixed to the front end of a rack plate 26 that reciprocates back and forth, and a pressing plate (plate portion) 28 fixed to the piston rod of the air cylinder 27. A guide rod 30 facing in the vertical direction is inserted into the pressing plate 28 so as to be freely movable, and a round pressing pad 31 is fixed to the lower end of the guide rod 30. A coil spring 32 is installed between the pressing plate 28 and the pressing pad 31. A pinion gear 37 meshes with a rack gear 26a on the side of the rack plate 26, and by rotating the pinion gear 37 with a motor (not shown), the rack plate 26 moves back and forth, thereby moving the air cylinder 27 back and forth.

In Figures 2 and 5, push-out mechanisms 23 are provided on both sides of the presser mechanism 22. The push-out mechanism 23 has a push-out plate 36 attached to the front of a push-out frame 35 that moves back and forth. The push-out frame 35 moves back and forth by a well-known linear movement mechanism, such as a rack and pinion mechanism, an air cylinder mechanism, or an electric mechanism.

Next, the operation of the above-mentioned transport device will be described.
In FIGS. 1 and 2 , the bundled fabric products W conveyed from the roller conveyor 10 are pushed by the pusher 12 toward the waiting transfer device A and received on the placement portion 22 .

Next, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the rotation of the pinion 37 causes the pressing mechanism 22 to move forward via the rack plate 26.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the air cylinder 27 of the pressing mechanism 22 advances, and the extrusion pad 31 is positioned above the fabric product W.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7, the piston rod of the air cylinder 27 protrudes, and the pressure pad 31 descends via the pressure plate 28 and guide rod 30 to contact the fabric product W. The pressure plate 28 then descends while compressing the coil spring 32, causing the pressure pad 31 to elastically press against the fabric product W. As a result, the fabric product W is fixed on the placement section 21 and stably held.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8, the robot arm 2 lifts the housing 20 and rotates.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the placement unit 21 is brought adjacent to the dolly 3, which is the transport means. Then, the pressure applied by the pressing mechanism 22 is released and moved backward, and then the pushing mechanism 23 is moved forward to push the fabric product W out of the placement unit 21 and load it onto the dolly 3. By repeating the above operations, the fabric products are piled up on the dolly.

As described above, in the transfer device and method of this embodiment, the presser mechanism 22 can press the fabric product against the placement section 21 and transfer it to the cart 3, making it possible to automatically transfer not only fabric products but also irregularly shaped products such as paper products and plastic sheets, which were previously difficult to transfer.

2 Robot arm 3 Cart 10 Roller conveyor 20 Main body 21 Placement section 22 Pressing mechanism 23 Pushing mechanism 25a, 25b Fork 26 Rack plate 27 Air cylinder 28 Pressing plate (plate section)
30 Guide rod 31 Press pad 32 Coil spring 40 Receiving plate 41 Groove W Fabric product (irregular shape product)

Claims (6)

A transfer device that transfers an irregular shaped object from a transfer source to a transfer destination,
A placement section (21) on which the irregular object is placed ;
A pressing mechanism (22) for pressing the irregular article placed on the placement section,
The pressure mechanism (22) comprises an air cylinder (27), a pressure plate (28) fixed to the piston rod of the air cylinder, a coil spring (32) attached to the pressure plate, and a pressure pad (31) attached to the side of the coil spring facing the pressure plate.
A transfer device characterized in that The transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that the irregular product is a fabric product. The transfer device is equipped with a control unit that controls the pressing mechanism, and the control unit controls the pressing mechanism to position the pressing plate in a preparation position where it is above an irregular product and in a non-preparation state where it is not above an irregular product , and controls the pressing plate to switch between a pressing state and a non-pressing state by moving the pressing plate in an upward and downward direction opposite the placement section, sandwiching the irregular product, when the pressing plate is in the preparation position. 3. The transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the placement portion is provided with an anti-slip surface. A method for transferring irregular products, which are placed on a conveyor and supplied, by a robot having a transfer device attached to its tip, the method comprising the steps of: a placement section on which the irregular products are placed, a pressing mechanism that presses and fixes the irregular products against the placement section, and a push-out mechanism that pushes the irregular products out of the placement section by moving forward; the pressing mechanism comprising an air cylinder, a pressing plate fixed to a piston rod of the air cylinder, a coil spring attached to the pressing plate, and a pressing pad attached to the coil spring on a side opposite the pressing plate,
placing the irregular shaped object to be transferred on the placement unit provided on the transfer device provided on a robot arm of the robot ;
a step of pressing the irregular-shaped article on the placement section with the pressing mechanism provided in the transfer device ;
and rotating the robot arm to transfer the irregular object on the placement section to a destination. the pressing step includes a step of extending the presser mechanism and lowering the presser pad ;
The transfer method according to claim 5 , characterized in that the transferring step includes the steps of rotating the robot , carrying the irregular product above the destination, raising the pressure pad , returning the pressure mechanism, and extending the push-out mechanism from the transfer device to pull out the placement section.

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