JPH06278851A - Valve device for vacuum attraction of object transporting machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make attracted transport of an object using a device of simple configuration simply surely and with possibility of changing the direction of the object with high accuracy. CONSTITUTION:A plurality of object grasping devices 4 installed at a certain spacing between two conveyors and driven circulatively are configured each with an attractor for attracting object installed at the bottom of an elevation rod which elevates/sinks and revolves in association with the movement of the grasping device. Vacuum sources are connected with a valve mechanism 9 which is installed in the middle of the circulating path 3 for the grasping devices 4, and valves are furnished for positioning the objects so as to be mating with the respective grasping devices 4. The valves are connected through respective hoses H with the attractors of grasping devices 4, and a valve opening/ closing operation means is furnished which opens and closes the valves in association with the attraction and release of the object performed by the attractor. The object is transported and transferred between the conveyors while its direction is changed through appropriate combination of the opening/closing operation of the valve and the elevating/sinking and revolving motions of the attractor.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an article adsorbing and transferring machine for adsorbing an article and transferring it to a predetermined position by providing a valve between a vacuum source to each adsorber and the adsorber so that the article can be efficiently opened and closed. The present invention relates to a valve device that adsorbs and releases articles.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When an article is adsorbed by a vacuum and transferred from one conveyor to another conveyor while changing its direction and transferred, the article being transferred is brought into contact with a stopper or the like or turned. This is done using a table, etc.

[0003]

Since the adsorbed article is once opened, the direction is changed, and then the adsorbed article is adsorbed again, the apparatus becomes large and complicated, and the direction cannot be controlled with high accuracy. There is.

It is an object of the present invention to simply and surely transfer an article by a simple device while changing its direction with high accuracy.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to achieve the above-mentioned object, and by moving a plurality of article grasping devices arranged at regular intervals between two conveyors and circulated and driven, respectively. In an article adsorbing and transporting machine having an adsorbing device for adsorbing an article at the lower end of an elevating and lowering rod that moves up and down and turns, a vacuum source is connected to each valve mechanism arranged at the central position of the circulation path of the article grasping device. , And a valve corresponding to each article grasping device is provided, and each valve and the suction device of the article grasping device are connected via a hose,
In addition, it is equipped with a valve opening / closing means for opening / closing the valve in accordance with the suction / adsorption opening of the product by the suction device, and by changing the direction of the product by a combination of the opening / closing operation of this valve and the raising / lowering / swinging motion of the suction device. The gist is that it is designed to transfer and transfer between conveyors.

[0006]

A plurality of article grasping devices are arranged so as to be arranged between two conveying means (conveyors) for transferring articles and arranged at regular intervals between both conveying means so as to be circularly driven. Each article grasping device is composed of an elevating rod that is moved up and down by a cam, a guide, etc. provided on the circulation path side, and an adsorber that adsorbs articles by a vacuum provided at the lower end of the elevating rod. As a result, each article grasping device lowers the adsorber that has risen in the outward path of the circulation path connecting the other conveyor from one conveyor onto the conveyor, and after closing the valve connected to the vacuum source to adsorb the article, the During the moving process, while holding the suction of the article, it is raised again, after changing the direction of the article by the guide, it is lowered again on the other conveyor, and the valve is disconnected from the vacuum source to release the suction of the article. Transfer to this conveyor side. After that, when the article grasping device transfers on the return path side, the valve is closed to block the vacuum to the suction device, and the article grasping device is rotated by the cam and the guide again in the direction opposite to the upward movement to return to the original state. Eggplant This allows the article grasping device to combine the circulation transfer between both conveyors and the opening / closing operation of the valve to ensure the adsorption of the article even with the use of a small-capacity vacuum source, and the direction of the article from one conveyor to the other can be accurately determined. It can be reliably transferred by changing to.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A valve device for advanced adsorption in an adsorption transfer device for articles according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the illustrated embodiment.
In the figure, reference numerals 1 and 2 denote rotating bodies opposed to each other with a required spacing, and a cord 3 such as an endless belt or a chain is stretched between the rotating bodies 1 and 2 to determine one rotating body 1 in advance. It is rotationally driven at a constant speed and, if necessary, at a variable speed. The rotating bodies 1 and 2 are supported on the main body frame F of the transfer device via bearings M and M via supporting shafts 1S and 2S that vertically penetrate the rotating bodies 1 and 2.

Item grasping devices 4, 4 ... Are projectingly provided at predetermined intervals over the entire length of the rope 3, and the article grasping devices 4 are all driven at the same speed by the drive of the rotating body 1 through the cord 3. Is driven to circulate between the rotors 1 and 2 along the cord,
During this circulation drive, when the article grasping device 4 shifts from the predetermined fixed point A to the other fixed point B on the outward path, in order to adsorb the article, the predetermined setting step is moved up and down and only a predetermined angle is turned. Then, the article is sucked and transferred, and the direction is changed to the point B,
Further, when the return path from the point B to the point A is shifted, the grasping device is moved up and down and turned backward again to return.

As shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4, the article grasping device 4 is provided in a box-shaped main body 41 slidably supported by a guide rail 5 disposed between opposed rotating bodies 1 and 2. It supports one elevating rod 42 by penetrating in the up-down direction, sliding up and down, and pivoting. An adsorber mounting frame 43 is attached to the lower end of the elevating rod 42, and 1 or 2 is attached to the mounting frame 43. Two or more adsorbers 44 are attached, a swivel lever 45 projecting in a T shape in three different directions is fixed to this mounting frame 43, and a roller or roller 46 is rotatably supported at each tip of this swivel lever 45. At the same time, a cam follower 47 is provided at an intermediate portion of the elevating rod 42, and the cam follower 47 is provided in the cam groove 6M of the ascending / descending operation cam 6 arranged along the operation locus between the rotating bodies 1 and 2. After fitting, further attach the fixing pin 48 to the upper end of the lifting rod 42. Projecting from the horizontal direction, the fixing pin 48
Is inserted into the groove of the turning restriction guide tube 49 provided on the upper portion of the main body 41.

The guide rail 5 is arranged between the rotating bodies 1 and 2 facing each other, and along the movement locus of the article grasping device.
The tip of the guide rail 5 on the outer peripheral edge side is inserted into the main body 41 of the article grasping device, and the shoe 40 provided on the top surface of the main body of the guide rail 5 can be slidably brought into contact with the top surface of the guide rail. Attach the lifting operation cam 6 integrally,
When the suction device as shown in FIG. 6 moves on the outer peripheral side surface of the cam 6, a stepped cam groove 6M is formed so that the elevating rod 42 moves up or down at a set position. When the cam follower 47 inserted into the 6M moves in the cam groove, the cam follower 47 moves up and down according to the shape of the cam groove.

The turning regulation guide cylinder 49 is cylindrical and has two or three or more vertical grooves 49M in accordance with the predetermined turning angle of the elevating rod in the circumferential direction, for example, four grooves every 90 degrees in the embodiment. And the fixing pins 48, 48 in the horizontal direction can be fitted into the two guide grooves 49M, and the upper ends of the grooves 49M are open, so that the fixing pins of the lifting rod when it is most raised. Is formed so as to be out of the groove 49M.

A turning lever 45 provided at the lower end of the lifting rod 42.
As shown in FIG. 4, a T-shaped projection is provided in the horizontal direction, and the rollers 46 are rotatably supported at the respective tips, and any one of the three rollers 46 is brought into contact with the turning guide 7. The turning guide 7 turns the lifting rod 42 in a predetermined angle and direction, and the turning guide 7 raises and lowers the raising and lowering rod for normal rotation 7a on the forward side of the grasping device 4 and the same for reverse rotation 7b on the return route side. Rod 42
At the height position where the roller 46 abuts, and at the position where the elevating rod turns in the circling direction.

A mounting frame 43 provided at the lower end of the lifting rod 42
1 or 2 or more suction devices 44 for sucking articles by a vacuum are provided in the vacuum chamber. The vacuum chamber operates through a hose H joined to the upper end of the lifting rod 42 from the mounting frame through the lifting rod 42. Eggplant

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the forward and reverse rotation swivel guides 7 are arranged at predetermined positions on the orbit of the grasping device, and the inclined guide surface is formed by the operation of the grasping device. When the rollers 46 come into contact with each other and the rollers do not move along the guide surface, the tilted guide surface causes the turning lever 45 and the elevating rod 42 to turn only through the set angle, and the forward rotation and the reverse rotation are performed. The operation is the same except that the inclination direction and the arrangement are different.

An auxiliary guide piece 41G is projectingly provided on the main body 41 so that each article grasping device 4 operating along the guide rail 5 moves while maintaining an accurate posture, and this auxiliary guide piece 41G is arranged below the guide rail. The auxiliary guide rail 8 may be slidably abutted and supported.

The stepped cam groove 6M provided on the elevating operation cam 6 over the entire length of the outer peripheral surface thereof has a low position such that the adsorber of the elevating rod 42 sucks and releases articles. At the time when the article is sucked and held from the position C, and after the article is released, the elevating rod moves to the intermediate position B which is an intermediate position, and when the elevating rod is raised to the highest position, the high position A and its cam are moved. The grooves provided on the outer peripheral side surface are different in position, and the inclined portion and the horizontal portion are continuously stepped from each high position A to the middle position B and the low position C. Between the high position A and the low position C of the cam groove 6M is a lifting rod 4
There are two lifting strokes that can be moved up and down, which are predetermined.

1, 2 at an intermediate position between the rotating bodies 1 and 2.
As shown in FIG. 3, a valve mechanism 9 is provided, the valve mechanism 9 is rotated in synchronization with the transfer speed of the article grasping device 4, and each valve of the valve mechanism is connected by a hose to the tip of a lifting rod and a vacuum source. Make sure that the hoses are not intertwined with each other.

In this valve mechanism 9, a valve mounting board 92 is integrally provided on a shaft 91 rotatably supported by a frame F,
Along the outer circumference of the valve mounting board 92, the same number of valves 93, 9 as the number of the article grasping devices 4 are arranged at regular intervals in the circumferential direction.
3 are arranged, connected to a vacuum source via a rotary joint through the shaft 91, and connected to the upper end of the lifting rod of each article grasping device from each valve 93 via a flexible hose H. It

The valve 93 comprises a valve sleeve 93S fitted and fixed in the valve mounting board 92, and a valve body 93V slidably fitted in the valve sleeve 93S. An orifice 01 connected to the vacuum source side at a different position in the longitudinal direction and an orifice 02 connected to the adsorber side via the hose lifting rod.
And an air passage 03 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the valve body so that the orifices 01 and 02 are electrically connected or shut off by sliding of the valve body.
By moving V at a predetermined position, the valve 9
3 is opened and closed.

The flexible hose H is connected to the orifice 02 side of each valve via the hose holder 94 provided at the upper end of the shaft 91 from the upper end of the lifting rod 42 of each article grasping device, and the orifice 01 side. Is connected to the connection port provided on the shaft 91 by another hose, and each hose H is configured to bend or expand or contract as the article grasping device 4 moves.

The opening / closing operation of the valve 93 is performed by sliding the valve main body 93V in the vertical direction when the adsorber 43 reaches a predetermined position, and the upper or lower end of the valve main body 93V is fixed at a fixed position. Guide 93 to contact and press
G is provided on the main body frame F and facing the valve mounting board 92, or a magnetic hammer 93M for hitting the valve main body at a fixed position is provided, or by using this guide and the magnetic hammer together.

Therefore, in the device constructed as described above,
Conveyor C arranged in series with conveyor C1
In the case of transferring the article G to the No. 2 by changing the direction thereof by 90 degrees and transferring the article G, the operation will be described with reference to FIG. When the device is started by driving the rotating body 1, each article grasping device 4 supported by the chain is transferred along an endless operation trajectory between the rotating bodies 1 and 2. At this time, the lifting rod 42 of the grasping device, which was in the standby position with the valve 93 closed, descended from the middle position B along the cam groove shape by the cam follower 47 fitted in the cam groove of the cam 6 and moved to the low position. Become C. This C
The suction device 44 at the lower end of the lifting rod lowered to the position is opened with the valve 93, is connected to the vacuum source, and can be adsorbed, and is pressed against the upper surface of the article G on the conveyor C1 and the vacuum acts to adsorb the article. It After that, the valve 93 is opened until the article is adsorbed and released, and the article is held in the adsorber 44 in the adsorbed state.

By the movement after the adsorption of the article, the elevating rod 42 is raised to the middle position in accordance with the shape of the cam groove, the article is adsorbed, floated up from the conveyor C1, and transferred onto the conveyor C2. The article G sucked and transferred during this process is
In order to convert to 0 degree, the lifting rod is raised to the high position A through the cam follower by the cam groove, the fixing pin is disengaged from the groove of the guide cylinder, and the lifting rod 42 can be swung. If it moves further in this state, the roller 46 will rotate on the turning guide 7a for forward rotation.
One of them abuts, and the roller, the turning lever 45, and the lifting rod 42 are turned 90 degrees along the guide 7a. At the position where the roller 46 is disengaged from the turning guide 7a, the elevating rod is lowered along the cam groove, and the fixing pin 4 is inserted into the groove 49M of the guide cylinder 49.
8 is reinserted, the turning of the lifting rod is restricted, and it descends to the middle position. In this state, it moves onto the conveyor C2.

When the elevator C reaches the predetermined position of the conveyor C2 and is guided to the cam groove and the elevating rod 42 descends to the low position C via the cam follower, the valve 93 is closed and the suction device is shut off from the vacuum source. As the vacuum of the suction device is turned off, the articles G adsorbed to the suction device are transferred from the suction device side to the conveyor C2.

After that, the valve is kept closed until the article is sucked by the suction device again, and the grasping device is guided by the guide rail and moves on the return path. When this article is transferred to the conveyor C2 side, the lifting rod is moved up by the guide groove and the cam follower to the middle position, and is raised to the high position A before reaching the backward rotation swivel guide 7b. , The fixing pin is pulled out from the groove of the guide tube so that it can be turned.

In this state, when the roller 46 moves while coming into contact with the reverse rotation swivel guide 7b, the grasping device is reversely rotated, returns to the original direction, and advances to the standby position. After this reverse turn,
The elevating rod is for lowering it to the middle position and transferring it.

In this way, by circulating each grasping device along the guide rail and opening and closing the suction valve in accordance with this, the article G on the conveyor C1 is combined with the lifting and revolving of the suction device. The direction is changed by the above, and they are sequentially transferred onto the conveyor C2.

[0028]

The vacuum suction valve device in the article suction and transfer device of the present invention moves up and down and turns a plurality of article grasping devices which are arranged at regular intervals between two conveyors and are cyclically driven. In an article adsorbing and transporting machine having an adsorbing device for adsorbing articles at the lower end of a lifting rod, a vacuum source is connected to a valve mechanism arranged at the central position of the circulation path of the article grasping device, and each article is conveyed. Is equipped with a valve corresponding to the grasping device, and each valve and the suction device of the grasping device are connected via a hose, and the valve is opened / closed to open / close the valve in accordance with suction / adsorption release of the product by the suction device. Equipped with operating means, the combination of opening / closing operation of this valve and lifting / turning operation of the adsorber
Since the articles are transferred and transferred between the conveyors by changing the direction thereof, there is an advantage that the articles can be transferred and transferred with high accuracy by a simple method.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional front view showing an embodiment of an article transfer device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of an article grasping device.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a turning guide portion.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation sequence.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1, 2 rotating body 3 rope 4 article grasping device 41 main body 42 lifting rod 44 adsorber 45 swing lever 46 roller 47 cam follow 5 guide rail 6 cam 7 swing guide 9 valve mechanism 92 valve mounting board 93 valve H hose

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of article grasping devices, which are arranged at regular intervals between two conveyors and are circulated and driven, respectively, and an adsorbing device for adsorbing an article to a lower end of an elevating and lowering rod which is moved up and down by the movement thereof. In the article adsorption transfer machine, a vacuum source is connected to each valve mechanism arranged at the central position of the circulation path of the article grasping apparatus, and a valve corresponding to each article grasping apparatus is provided. It is connected to the suction device of the article grasping device via a hose, and is equipped with valve opening / closing operation means for opening / closing the valve in accordance with the suction / adsorption opening of the product by the suction device. An article transfer device characterized by changing the direction of an article and transferring / transferring it between conveyors in combination with a turning operation.