JPH061528A - Folding up device for towel and the like - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To remove dust adhering to both the surfaces of a towel placed on a carrying belt on the way of a towel carrying process and to fold it up into quarters for delivering it. CONSTITUTION:Endless carrying belts 12, 15 and 18 are arranged above and below, and a dust catching mechanism 3 is adjacently installed above the belt 12, and folding up arms 20, 21 are severally arranged in front and in rear, and a delivering mechanism 4 is connected to the terminal of the belt 18. A towel placed on the belt 12 is wound by the absorbing rollers 30, 31 of the dust catching mechanism 3 to remove the dust on both its surfaces, and then returned onto the belt 12, and when the towel hangs down as much as about its half from the terminal (at the position of a pulley 11), the towel is pressed into a space between the belts 12, 15 by the tip of the folding up arm 20 to be folded up into a half. Next, when the towel hangs clown as much as about its half from the terminal of the belt 15, the towel is pressed into a space between the belts 15, 18 by the tip of the folding up arm 21 to be folded up into quarters, and carried to the delivering mechanism 4 as it is. The above folded up towel arriving at the delivering mechanism 4 falls to a fixed position and is stacked.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention In the present invention, towels, sheets, handkerchiefs, diapers and other cloths (in the present invention, these are called towels) are placed on a conveyor belt in an unfolded state. The present invention relates to a folding device for automatically folding and collecting during conveyance by a conveyor belt, and a dust removing device particularly suitable for the folding device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a towel folding device of this type, a folding device for four-fold folding, which is found in, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 57-9840 is known. According to this folding device, the towels spread and placed on the conveyor are folded in four while being conveyed by the conveyor and automatically discharged. There was a problem.

The most difficult task in folding towels is to remove dust such as hair, thread waste and dust adhering to the surface of towels, but no consideration has been given to this point. Garbage removal must be done manually. Since the folding guide plate 7 (see the same publication) in the publication only rotates about the fulcrum 8,
There is a concern that the towels of various thicknesses will be folded into four at a stretch and pushed securely between the two belts. The relationship between the transportation path for folded towels and the like and the opening / closing device (that is, the discharge part) is not sufficiently disclosed.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and is an apparatus for removing dust adhering to both surfaces of towels before folding and during transportation. To provide a folding device for towels that can automatically and surely fold and discharge the towels sent out on the conveyor belt in an unfolded state. Is another purpose.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, a folding device for towels according to the present invention is stretched over an endless first conveyor belt stretched over pulleys located at both ends and a pulley situated at both ends. An endless second conveyor belt that is installed substantially parallel to the first conveyor belt and that rotates in a direction opposite to the first conveyor belt, and a second conveyor belt that is stretched over pulleys located at both ends. An endless third conveyor belt that is installed substantially parallel to the lower side and rotates in a direction opposite to the second conveyor belt, and is disposed near the outside of the end of the first conveyor belt and the start of the second conveyor belt. A first folding arm capable of penetrating into the gap between the two belts and a second folding arm arranged near the outer end of the end of the second conveyor belt and the beginning of the third conveyor belt and capable of penetrating into the gap between the two belts. Be equipped with a folding arm And butterflies.

Further, as a preferred embodiment of the above-mentioned towel folding device, a towel discharging device is connected to the end of the third conveyor belt and installed below the second conveying device, and the discharging device receives towels. A pair of discharge plates is provided, and the pair of discharge plates can be opened and closed.

Further, the present invention is also directed to a dust removing device itself for removing dust on both surfaces of towels conveyed on the conveyor belt, which dust removing device is provided on the conveyor belt.
A first suction roller arranged at a predetermined distance from the upper surface of the conveyor belt and rotating in a direction opposite to the direction of the conveyor belt, and a first suction roller arranged at a predetermined distance near the first suction roller and the same as the conveyor belt. A second guide roller that rotates in a direction, a first guide that peels the towels from the first suction roller and sends the towels to the second suction roller, and a second guide that peels the towels from the second suction roller and returns them to the conveyor belt. It is characterized by having a guide.

The dust removing device will be described more specifically. The first and second suction rollers have one or more grooves on the periphery, and the first guide is housed in the groove of the first suction roller. The second guide is composed of a tooth-shaped portion of the plow and a portion surrounding the outer periphery of the second suction roller with a space therebetween.
It is characterized in that it is composed of a portion that is housed in the groove of the suction roller and a portion that descends in the transport direction of the transport belt. The dust removing device is particularly suitable for a folding device for towels of the type related to the present invention,
The present invention can be applied to a folding device for other types of towels, and can also be used as a simple dust removing device for towels.

[0009]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the examples shown in FIGS. First, FIG. 1 shows a front view of a towel folding device according to this embodiment. The folding device 1 is roughly divided into a folding mechanism 2, a dust removing mechanism 3, a discharging mechanism 4, and a control system.

The folding mechanism 2 is stretched between the start end pulley 10 and the end pulley 11 and is extended between the start end pulley 13 and the end pulley 14 and an endless first conveyor belt 12 that rotates in the direction of arrow A. An endless second conveyor belt 15 which rotates in the opposite direction to the first conveyor belt 12 and an endless second conveyor belt which is stretched between the start end pulley 16 and the end pulley 17 and rotates in the opposite direction to the second conveyor belt 15. Three
A conveyor belt 18 is provided. The conveyor belts 12, 15 and 18 are installed substantially parallel to each other and have the same rotation speed. Then, by adjusting the position of each pulley in the height direction, a folded towel can be sandwiched between the lower surface of the first conveyor belt 12 and the upper surface of the second conveyor belt 15, and the lower surface of the second conveyor belt 15 can be conveyed. And the third conveyor belt 18
The four-folded towel can be sandwiched between the upper surfaces of the rollers to be conveyed, and the distance between the end pulley 11 and the start end pulley 13 and between the end pulley 14 and the start end pulley 16 in the height direction is particularly equal to the folding arm described later. The tip is made slightly wider so that it can easily enter (see FIGS. 2 to 6). The positions of the pulleys and the conveyor belt in the height direction are appropriately determined by the thickness of the towel and the like, and are adjustable.

The starting pulley 13 of the second conveyor belt 15
Is installed at a position slightly inward (right side in FIG. 1) below the terminal pulley 11 of the first conveyor belt 12 by a predetermined distance.
The start end pulley 16 of the third conveyor belt 18 is installed at a position slightly inside (left side in FIG. 1) of the end pulley 14 of the second conveyor belt 15 by a predetermined distance. The tip rushes in and the towel is folded in two or four.

In this embodiment, each conveyor belt is composed of a large number of narrow belts stretched over the respective pulleys at equal intervals (see FIG. 4), but one wide belt is used. You can also do it. The material of each conveyor belt may be vinyl chloride, rubber, cloth, or the like.

Further, the main folding mechanism 2 includes a first folding arm 20 disposed near the outside of the end pulley 11 of the first conveyor belt 12 and the start end pulley 13 of the second conveyor belt 15, and the second conveyor belt 15. The second folding arm 21 arranged near the outer side of the end pulley 14 and the start pulley 16 of the third conveyor belt 18. The first folding arm 20 is rotatable about a shaft 22 and is driven by excitation of a first solenoid 24 via a spring 23. Similarly, the second folding arm 21 has a shaft 25
Is rotatable about the center of the axis and is driven by the excitation of the second solenoid 27 via the wire 26. First, second
The tips 20a and 21a of the folding arms 20 and 21 are
It is a plate-shaped (see FIG. 4) or plow tooth-shaped member having substantially the same width as the entire width of the conveyor belt, and is a solenoid 24 or 2
When 7 is excited, it penetrates through the openings formed by the pulleys 11 and 13 and 14 and 16 to fold the towel.

As shown in detail in FIGS. 7 and 8, the dust removing mechanism 3 includes a first suction roller 30 and a second suction roller 31 arranged on the first conveyor belt 12, and a first suction roller 30. It is composed of a first guide 32 for peeling off the towel and sending it to the second suction roller 31, and a second guide 33 for peeling off the towel from the second suction roller 31 and returning it onto the first conveyor belt 12.

The first suction roller 30 is the first conveyor belt 1.
2 The towels are placed at a distance from the top,
The first conveyor belt 12 rotates at the same speed in the opposite direction (indicated by arrow B). The second suction roller 31 is the first suction roller 30.
Is arranged at a distance that does not hinder the delivery of towels, and is at the same speed as that of the first suction roller 30.
Rotate in the same direction as 2 (indicated by arrow C). Both suction rollers 30 and 31 have substantially the same width as the entire width of the first conveyor belt 12, and have a plurality of narrow grooves 3 at equal intervals around them.
4 and 35.

The first guide 32 is a member having a shape in which two arcs are connected when viewed from the side, and is composed of a tooth-shaped portion 32a of the plow and a plate-shaped portion 32b. Most of the tooth-shaped portion 32a of the plow is formed. Is housed in the groove 34 of the first suction roller 30, and the plate-shaped portion 32b surrounds the outer circumference of the second suction roller 31 at a predetermined interval. The second guide 33 is a member that includes a substantially semicircular portion 33a and a substantially tangentially extending portion 33b when viewed from the side surface. The extended portion 33b is housed in the groove 35 of the roller 31 and has a plate shape and is gently lowered in the transport direction of the first transport belt 12.

The material of the suction roller 30 or 31 according to the present invention may be any material as long as it can suck and remove dust adhering to the surface of towels. For example, a commercially available adhesive roll or a soft rubber adsorption rubber roll having innumerable small holes on the surface can be suitably used. If the adsorption force deteriorates due to use, wash it to recover the adsorption force. Replace with a new one.

The discharge mechanism 4 is schematically shown in FIG. 1 and detailed in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, a pair of plate-shaped discharge plates 40 and 41 is provided which is connected to the end of the third conveyor belt 18 and is disposed below and adjacent to the second conveyor belt. Discharge plate 4
0 and 41 rotate about a shaft 42 as a fulcrum and can be opened / closed between a solid line position (closed) and an imaginary line position (open) in FIG. 9. The opening / closing mechanism includes a discharge solenoid 43 and a solenoid 43. And a discharge plate 40 and 4 sandwiching the arm 45, which is connected to the
It is composed of a weight 46 attached to the side opposite to 1, and a wire 48 connected to the weight 46 from the tip of the arm 45 via a plurality of pulleys 47. By adopting such a structure, a large opening / closing operation of the discharge plates 40 and 41 is allowed even with a short stroke of the discharge solenoid 43.

When the discharge solenoid 43 is in the excited state, the arm 45 is pulled, the wire 48 pulls the weight 46 downward, and the discharge plates 40 and 41 remain in the solid line position. On the other hand, when the excitation of the discharge solenoid 43 is released, the discharge plates 40 and 41 immediately open to the virtual line position due to their own weight.

The control system in this embodiment operates the first folding arm 20 to fold the towel in two at a timing according to the type (length) of the towel, and then activates the second folding arm 21. Fold it in four and finally eject it at a predetermined position. When it detects that a towel has been loaded into the towel folding machine 1, the main switch is turned on to drive each drive part and all the towel is ejected. And a control system for stopping the driving of each driving portion by turning off the main switch when it is detected that the next towel is not loaded. In this embodiment, photoelectric switches 50 to 53 (FIG. 1) are used as detection switches required for the above control,
The mirrors facing the photoelectric switches 50 to 53 are provided in the gaps between the conveyor belts (as described above, each conveyor belt is composed of a large number of narrow belts stretched around the pulleys at equal intervals). Placed in. The detection switch may be any switch that can detect passage of the towel.

Now, a procedure for folding a towel using the towel folding machine 1 having the above construction will be described below. First, when the towel in the spread state is loaded into the towel folding machine 1 from the loading section 60 (FIG. 1), the towel blocks the light of the photoelectric switch 50, whereby the main switch of the towel folding machine 1 is turned on, and each Conveyor belts 12, 1
5, 18 and the suction rollers 30, 31 start rotating at a constant speed, and the solenoid 43 is excited to cause the discharge plate 4 to rotate.
0, 41 are brought to the closed position.

The inserted towel T (see FIG. 7) has a first
The conveyor belt 12 is conveyed toward the dust removing mechanism 3,
Since it enters the space with the first suction roller 30 and is appropriately clamped, its upper surface Ta is suctioned by the first suction roller 30 and rises together. At a position (a position indicated by an arrow Ra) where the towel T is left over a quarter turn while being attracted to the attraction roller 30,
The first guide 32 comes out from the groove 33 of the first suction roller to
The towel T is curved toward the suction roller 31, so that the towel T is peeled off from the surface of the first suction roller 30. At this time, dust attached to the upper surface Ta of the towel remains adsorbed on the surface of the first adsorption roller 30.

The towel T peeled off from the surface of the first suction roller 30 has the lower surface Tb of the first guide 3 curved.
By 2 it is pressed against the surface of the second suction roller 31 and sucked. At a position where the towel T has been attracted to the suction roller 31 about a half turn (position shown by arrow Rb), the second guide 33 comes out of the groove 34 of the second suction roller and gently moves in the traveling direction of the first conveyor belt 12. Is going down, so
The towel T is peeled off from the surface of the second suction roller 31. At this time, dust attached to the lower surface Tb of the towel remains adsorbed on the surface of the second adsorption roller 31.

In this way, the towel T from which dusts attached to both upper and lower surfaces are removed is returned to the first conveyor belt 12 along the second guide 33. Next, when the towel interrupts the photoelectric switch 51 on the first conveyor belt 12, a first folding timer (not shown) is started, and the first solenoid 24 is excited after a predetermined time to cause the first folding arm 20. To drive. The timing during this time will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Towel T reaching the end of the first conveyor belt 12 is described.
2 gradually hangs down as shown in FIG. 2, and the first folding timer excites the first solenoid 24 at the timing when the substantially central position of the towel T reaches the position facing the tip 20a of the first folding arm 20, and the first solenoid 24 is excited, as shown in FIG. As shown, the tip 20a of the folding arm projects into the gap between the pulleys 11 and 13,
Double-fold the towel T. Here, the first solenoid 2
4 interposed between the first folding arm 20 and the first folding arm 20
3 is the first solenoid 24 on the thin towel T before folding.
The purpose of this is to alleviate the shock caused by the sudden operation of. In order to ensure that the towel T hangs down as shown in FIG. 2, a guide for directing the towel T downward can be provided around the terminal pulley 11.

However, the tip 20a of the first folding arm that has entered the gap between the pulleys 11 and 13 immediately retreats when the excitation of the first solenoid 24 is released (the excitation duration is also set by the first folding timer). Then, the folded towel T is directly drawn between the first conveyor belt 12 and the second conveyor belt 15, and is conveyed to the four-fold position while being sandwiched.

Next, when the folded towel T blocks the photoelectric switch 52, a second folding timer (not shown) is started, and the second solenoid 27 is excited after a predetermined time to cause the second folding arm 21. To drive. The timing during this period will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, and the second conveyor belt 1 will be described.
The double-fold towel T that has reached the end of 5 hangs down gradually as shown in FIG. 5, and the second-fold timer is reached at the timing when the substantially central position of the double-fold towel T reaches the position facing the tip 21a of the second folding arm 21. Is the second solenoid 27
6, the tip 21a of the second folding arm rushes into the gap between the pulleys 14 and 16, and the towel T is folded in four layers as shown in FIG. Also here, in order to ensure that the towel T hangs down as shown in FIG. 5, it is preferable to provide a guide around the terminal pulley 14 to direct the towel T downward.

The tip 21a of the second folding arm that has entered the gap between the pulleys 14 and 16 immediately retreats and is folded when the excitation of the second solenoid 27 is released (the excitation duration is also set by the second folding timer). Towel T
Is the second conveyor belt 15 and the third conveyor belt 18 as they are.
The sheet is drawn in between and is conveyed in the direction of the discharge mechanism 4 while being sandwiched.

The towel T folded in four is the photoelectric switch 5
When 3 is interrupted, a discharge timer (not shown) is started, the discharge solenoid 43 is deenergized after a predetermined time, and the discharge plates 40 and 41, which are horizontally held in the closed position (solid line position in FIG. 9), are released. The towel T on the plate is opened downward (position of imaginary line) by its own weight, and falls on a towel receiver (not shown). The timing is such that the four-fold towel T moves from the end of the third conveyor belt 18 to the discharge plates 40 and 41.
It is assumed that the sheet is transferred to the upper side and is subsequently dragged by the lower surface of the second conveyor belt 15 to reach the substantially central position on the plate. After the towel T is discharged, the discharge solenoid 43 is excited again (the excitation cancellation duration is also set by the discharge timer), and the discharge plates 40 and 41 return to the closed position.

The set times of the above three timers, in particular, the time until the first and second folding timers are started to excite the first and second solenoids 24 and 27, and the discharge timer is started to excite the discharge solenoid 43. It is necessary to set the time until the release is different according to the length of the towel to be folded, but in the towel folding device 1 of the present embodiment, each timer corresponding to a plurality of types of lengths is used. The set time is set and stored in the built-in sequencer so that it can be selected by the digital switch on the control panel according to the length of the towel. Needless to say, the set contents can be changed or corrected on the control panel as appropriate.

By the way, the above steps are repeated as long as the towel is continuously charged into the towel folding device 1.
When all the photoelectric switches 50 to 53 do not detect the towel for a certain period of time, it is determined that all the loaded towels are discharged and there is no newly loaded towel, the main switch is turned off, and the main switch is turned off. The operation of the device will stop automatically.

The towel folding device according to this embodiment is
It has the configuration and functions described above, and has the following special effects. The dust removing mechanism can automatically adsorb and remove dust adhering to both surfaces of the towel.
Since the tip of the folding arm penetrates deeply into the gap between the pulleys, there is little risk of folding failure. Since all moving parts are motor and solenoid driven, it can be installed anywhere where there is a commercial power source, no pneumatic cylinder is required, and the entire device can be made compact. It is possible to fold towels of various lengths, and moreover, it is possible only by switching the digital switch. Has automatic start and stop functions.

[0032]

Since the towel folding device according to the present invention is constructed as described above, the spread towels can be automatically automatically folded into four, and there is no fear of folding failure. rare. In particular, when equipped with a dust removing mechanism, it has a special effect that dust adhering to both surfaces of towels can be automatically removed during transportation. Also, this dust removal mechanism
When applied to any type of folding device or used alone, it has the desired effect.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a towel folding device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of a main part of the half-folding mechanism, showing a state before the operation of the first folding arm.

FIG. 3 likewise shows a state when the first folding arm is in operation.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of the half-folding mechanism, showing a state before actuation of the first folding arm by a solid line and a state during actuation by a virtual line.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of a main part of the four-fold mechanism, showing a state before the operation of the second folding arm.

FIG. 6 is a view showing how the second folding arm is operated.

7 is a cross-sectional view of the dust removing mechanism (a cross-sectional view taken along the line II of FIG. 8).

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a main part of the discharge mechanism, showing a closed position of the discharge plate by a solid line and an open position thereof by an imaginary line.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Towel Folding Device 2 Folding Mechanism 3 Dust Removal Mechanism 4 Ejection Mechanism 12 First Conveyor Belt 15 Second Conveyor Belt 18 Third Conveyor Belt 20 First Folding Arm 21 Second Folding Arm 24, 27, 43 Solenoid 30 First Adsorption Roller 31 second suction roller 32 first guide 33 second guide 34, 35 suction roller groove 40, 41 discharge plate 42 rotating shaft 46 weight 50, 51, 52, 53 photoelectric switch

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An endless first conveyor belt stretched over pulleys located at both ends, and a first conveyor belt stretched over pulleys located at both ends and arranged substantially in parallel below the first conveyor belt. Endless second rotating in the opposite direction to the conveyor belt
A conveyor belt, an endless third conveyor belt which is stretched over pulleys located at both ends, is installed substantially parallel to the second conveyor belt, and rotates in a direction opposite to the second conveyor belt; A first folding arm disposed near the end of the first conveyor belt and the outside of the beginning of the second conveyor belt and capable of entering the gap between both belts; the end of the second conveyor belt and the third conveyor belt. A folding device for towels, comprising a second folding arm arranged near the outside of the starting end and capable of entering a gap between both belts. 2. A towel discharging device is installed at the end of the third conveyor belt and is installed below the second conveyor, and the discharging device includes a pair of discharging plates for receiving towels. The folding device for towels according to claim 1, wherein the discharge plate can be opened and closed. 3. A towel folding device that unfolds towels on a conveyor belt and automatically folds the towels during transportation, in a proper position on the conveyor belt before reaching the first folding position. A folding device for towels, which is equipped with a dust removing device for removing dust adhering to both sides of the. 4. A dust removing device, which is disposed on the conveyor belt at a predetermined distance from the upper surface of the conveyor belt, and which rotates in the opposite direction to the conveyor belt, and a first adsorption roller of the first adsorption roller. A second guide roller disposed in the vicinity with a predetermined interval and rotating in the same direction as the conveyor belt; a first guide for peeling towels from the first suction roller and sending the towels to the second suction roller; The folding device for towels according to claim 3, further comprising a second guide that peels off the towels from the suction roller and returns the towels onto the conveyor belt. 5. A towel folding device comprises an endless first conveyor belt stretched on pulleys located at both ends,
An endless second conveyor belt that is stretched over pulleys located at both ends and that is installed substantially parallel to the first conveyor belt and that rotates in the opposite direction to the first conveyor belt, and pulleys located at both ends. An endless third conveyor belt which is stretched and installed substantially parallel to the lower side of the second conveyor belt and which rotates in a direction opposite to the second conveyor belt, an end of the first conveyor belt and the second conveyor. A first folding arm which is arranged near the outside of the starting end of the belt and is capable of plunging into the gap between both belts;
The second folding arm is provided near the outer end of the end of the second conveyor belt and the start end of the third conveyor belt, and is provided with a second folding arm capable of protruding into a gap between the two belts. Device for folding towels. 6. A first suction roller which is disposed on the transport belt at a predetermined distance from the upper surface of the transport belt and rotates in a direction opposite to the direction of the transport belt, and a predetermined distance near the first suction roller. A second guide roller disposed at a predetermined position and rotating in the same direction as the conveyor belt, a first guide for peeling the towels from the first suction roller and sending the towels to the second suction roller, and a towel for the second suction roller. A device for removing dust from towels, comprising a second guide for peeling off the paper and returning it to the conveyor belt. 7. The first and second suction rollers have one or more grooves on the periphery, and the first guide has a tooth-like portion of the plow housed in the groove of the first suction roller and the second suction roller. The second guide is composed of a part surrounding a part of the outer periphery of the second suction roller with a space, and the second guide is composed of a part accommodated in the groove of the second suction roller and a part descending in the transport direction of the transport belt. The dust removing device for towels according to claim 6.