JPH08301247A - Commodity-packaging device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a commodity-packaging device which handles a large quantity of commodities in one cycle and sharply cuts costs. CONSTITUTION: A commodity-packaging device 4 comprises: a scalar robot 5 comprising a first arm 52 and second arm 54 which are turnable in a horizontal plane by means of a first servo motor 51 and second servo motor 53; and an arm mechanism 6 comprising a first arm member 62 and second arm member 64 which are arranged in the direction of the side of the scalar robot, have the same arm length as the first arm 52 and the second arm 54, respectively, and are supported by shafts so that they are free to turn in a horizontal plane. In this case, at the front ends of the second arm 54 and second arm member 64 are freely turnable, vertical shafts 56 and 66, respectively, one end of a chuck base 7 with a plurality of chucks 9 attached to it is joined to the underside of the vertical shaft 56 and the other end to the underside of the vertical shaft 66, and also the first arm 52 and first arm member 62 are connected by means of a link (connecting mechanism) 15.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a product packaging device for filling a container with products supplied by a conveying means in a product packaging line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a product packaging line in which cup products such as cup noodles, bottle products such as bottled juice, and package products such as cigarettes are successively supplied by a belt conveyor, the products on the belt conveyor are corrugated. SCARA (Selectively Complian) has been used as a product packaging device for filling containers such as boxes.
t Assembly RobotArm) Robot is adopted.

The SCARA robot is generally a kind of articulated robot, and includes a first arm which can be swung in a horizontal plane by a first servomotor, and a first arm which is provided at the tip of the first arm and which is similarly moved in the horizontal plane by a second servomotor. It has a rotatable second arm, and a chuck for adsorbing and holding a product is attached to the tip of the second arm.

When packaging products, the chucks moved above the conveyor suck the products on the conveyor,
Then, the first and second servomotors are driven to rotate the first and second arms, and the chuck is moved above the container. From this state, by releasing the holding state of the chuck, the product is filled in the container.

Since such a SCARA robot has a wide movable range and can be operated at high speed, it is widely used in a product packaging line. On the other hand, in a product packaging line where a large number of products are transported, there is a request to process a plurality of products at the time of filling one product.

Therefore, it is conceivable to increase the number of chucks of the SCARA robot. However, since the SCARA robot has a certain limit of load capacity, one SCARA robot can process many products at one time. Absent. Therefore, conventionally, for example, two SCARA robots are arranged side by side in the product transport direction to increase the number of products to be filled in a unit time.

However, in the above-mentioned conventional configuration, two SCARA robots are required, which is very expensive.

The present invention has been made in view of such conventional circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a product packaging apparatus capable of not only processing a large number of products per unit time but also significantly reducing the cost. To do.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a product packaging apparatus for filling a container with a product supplied by a conveying means, wherein a first drive motor moves a horizontal plane. A second arm that can swivel and a vertical shaft that is provided at the tip of the first arm and that is rotatably supported at the tip and that can swivel in a horizontal plane by a second drive motor. A first arm having the same arm length as the first arm and pivotally supported in a horizontal plane on the side of the multi-joint robot. Member and the first arm member, which has the same arm length as the second arm and is provided at the tip end of the first arm member, and has a vertical shaft rotatably supported at the tip end thereof, and is rotatable in a horizontal plane. The second pivot An arm mechanism composed of a chuck member and a chuck base to which a plurality of chucks for adsorbing and holding the products conveyed by the conveying means are attached are arranged in the product conveying direction, and each of the chuck bases is arranged. The end portions are respectively attached to the lower portions of the vertical axes of the multi-joint robot and the arm mechanism, and the corresponding portions of the first arm and the first arm member are respectively attached to the first arm and the first arm. It is characterized in that the members are connected by the first connecting mechanism so that the members interlock.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product packaging apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein both ends of the first connecting mechanism are rotatably supported by the first arm and the first arm member. It is characterized by being composed of links.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product packaging apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the first connecting mechanism is provided at a rotary shaft end of the first drive motor and a turning shaft end of the first arm member, respectively. It is characterized in that it is composed of attached pulleys and a belt wound between the pulleys.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a product packaging apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein portions of the second arm and the second arm member respectively corresponding to each other are provided in the second arm and the second arm.
It is characterized in that the arm members are connected by the second connecting mechanism so as to interlock with each other.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product packaging apparatus according to the fourth aspect, wherein both ends of the second connecting mechanism are rotatably supported by the second arm and the second arm member. It is characterized by being composed of links.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the product packaging apparatus according to the fourth aspect, wherein the second connecting mechanism is provided at a rotary shaft end of the second drive motor and a turning shaft end of the second arm member, respectively. It is characterized in that it is composed of attached pulleys and a belt wound between the pulleys.

[0015]

When operating the product packaging apparatus according to the present invention, the first and second drive motors of the articulated robot are driven to rotate the first and second arms. At this time, the first
Since the arm and the first arm member of the arm mechanism having the same arm length as that of the arm are connected by the first connecting mechanism,
The first arm member makes a similar turning motion in association with the movement of the first arm.

Since the second arm and the second arm member of the arm mechanism having the same arm length as that of the second arm are connected by the chuck base, the second arm member is connected via the chuck base. A similar turning motion is performed in conjunction with the movement of the second arm. That is, in this case, each arm member of the arm mechanism moves exactly the same as each corresponding arm of the articulated robot.

Therefore, the first and second articulated robots
By driving and controlling the drive motor of (1), the chuck base moves between the transport means and the container, and the product chucked by the chuck base is filled in the container.

In this case, since a plurality of chucks are attached to the chuck base, a plurality of products can be adsorbed and held by one chucking operation, whereby many products can be filled in one cycle. It becomes possible to process. Moreover, in this case, since the product packaging device is configured by one articulated robot and the arm mechanism, the cost can be significantly reduced as compared with the case of using two articulated robots.

According to the second aspect of the invention, since the first connecting mechanism is composed of a link, the structure of the entire device can be simplified.

According to the third aspect of the invention, since the first connecting mechanism is composed of the pulley and the belt, the turning angle of the first arm and the first arm member can be made larger than that of the link. .

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the corresponding portions of the second arm and the second arm member of the arm mechanism having the same arm length as that of the second arm are coupled by the second coupling mechanism, At the time of driving the second drive motor, the second arm member makes a similar turning motion in association with the movement of the second arm via the second connecting mechanism.

In this case, the second arm and the second arm are provided by the second connecting mechanism provided separately from the chuck base.
Since the arm members are connected, it is possible to increase the turning angle of the second arm and the second arm member.

According to the invention of claim 5, since the second connecting mechanism is constituted by a link, the structure of the entire apparatus can be simplified as in the case of the invention of claim 2.

In the sixth aspect of the invention, since the second connecting mechanism is composed of the pulley and the belt, the turning angle of the second arm and the second arm member can be made larger than that of the link. .

[0025]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 and 2 are views for explaining a product packaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a product packaging line in which the device of the present embodiment is adopted, and FIG. It is a figure.

In these figures, a belt conveyor 2 for supplying the products 10 to be packaged at a predetermined pitch is arranged in the product packaging line 1. Belt conveyor 2
In the vicinity of the downstream end side (left side in the drawing) in the conveyance direction, the container 3 filled with the product 10 is arranged. The container 3 is formed with a plurality of (three vertical and horizontal three rows in this case) recesses 3a for storing the products 10. The pitch of each product 10 on the belt conveyor 2 is appropriately set according to the interval between the adjacent recesses 3 a of the container 3.

On the opposite side of the belt conveyor 2 from the container arrangement side, a product packaging device 4 for filling the container 3 with the products 10 on the belt conveyor 2 is provided. The product packaging device 4 is composed of a SCARA robot 5 and an arm mechanism 6 arranged on the side of the SCARA robot 5.

The SCARA robot 5 includes a first arm 52 which is swiveled in a horizontal plane by a first servomotor 51 arranged on a base 41, and a second servomotor 53 which is provided at the tip of the first arm 52. It is composed of a second arm 54 that is driven to rotate inside. The first arm 52 is integrally formed with a lever 55 extending to the back side (back side in FIG. 1). An upper end of a vertical shaft 56 is rotatably supported on a lower portion of the tip of the second arm 54.

The arm mechanism 6 has the same arm length as the first arm 52, and is supported on the base 41 by a vertical shaft 61 corresponding to the rotation shaft of the first servomotor 51 so as to be freely rotatable in a horizontal plane. First arm member 62
And a second arm member 6 having the same arm length as the second arm 54 and rotatably supported in a horizontal plane by a vertical shaft 63 provided at the tip of the first arm member 62.
And 4. The first arm member 62 includes
A lever 65 extending to the back side is integrally formed. A vertical shaft 66 is provided below the tip of the second arm member 64.
The upper end of is rotatably supported.

Below the second arm 54 and the second arm member 64, a plate-shaped chuck base 7 extending in the conveying direction of the belt conveyor 2 (left-right direction in the drawing) is arranged. A vertical shaft 56, is provided near each end of the chuck base 7.
The lower end of 66 is fixed. A plurality of (six in this case) through holes are formed in the chuck base 7 in the longitudinal direction thereof, and air cylinders 8 are mounted in the respective through holes. Piston rod 8a of each air cylinder 8
Extends below the chuck base 7, and a chuck (suction pad) 9 for sucking and holding the product 10 is provided at the lower end of each piston rod 8a.

Each of the levers 55 and 65 of the first arm 52 and the first arm member 62 has a link (coupling mechanism) 15
Are connected by. At both ends of the link 15, the pins 1 planted in the corresponding portions of the levers 55 and 65, respectively.
6 and 17 are inserted therethrough, and the respective ends of the link 15 are rotatable around the respective pins 16 and 17. As a result, the first arm member 62 moves along with the movement of the first arm 52.

The rotary shaft of the second servo motor 53 extends downward, and a pulley 45 is attached to the shaft end thereof. Similarly, the vertical shaft 63 extends downward, and the pulley 46 is attached to the shaft end thereof. A timing belt 47 is wound around each of the pulleys 45 and 46. Therefore, by driving the second servo motor 53, the second arm member 64 moves in conjunction with the movement of the second arm 54.

As described above, since the second arm 54 and the second arm member 64 are connected by the chuck base 7, the connecting mechanism composed of the pulleys 45, 46 and the timing belt 47 is used. Although it can be omitted, when the turning angle of the second arm 54 and the second arm member 64 becomes large as in the present embodiment, such a connection separate from the chuck base 7 is performed. It is preferable that the mechanism is provided in order to smooth the movement of the second arm 54 and the second arm member 64.

Next, the product packaging operation according to the above configuration will be described. When the belt conveyor 2 is driven, each product 10 on the belt conveyor 2 is given a predetermined pitch by an intermittent feeding device (not shown) and moves to the product packaging device 4 side. At this time, the chuck base 7 is arranged above the belt conveyor 2 and is in a standby state (see the solid line in FIG. 2).

The top product 10 on the belt conveyor 2 is
When the container 3 comes to a position facing the recess 3a at the left end of FIG. 2 (see FIG. 2), the air cylinders 8 of the chuck base 7 are simultaneously driven to lower the piston rods 8a, and the chucks at the tips of the piston rods. 9 corresponding products 10
Abut the upper surface of.

Immediately after each chuck 9 comes into contact with each product 10, the first and second servomotors 51 and 53 are driven to rotate the first and second arms 52 and 54.
The chuck base 7 is translated downstream of the belt conveyer 2 in the conveying direction in synchronization with the conveying speed of the belt conveyer 2 by a predetermined distance (for example, a distance of about two products) (see a chain line in FIG. 2).

At this time, the first arm 52 and the first arm member 62 correspond to the levers 55 and 65 and the link 15 respectively.
Corresponding parts are connected via the first arm member 62 and the first arm member 62 has the same arm length as the first arm 52. Therefore, when the first arm 52 pivots, the lever 5
The first arm member 62 makes a turning motion in association with the movement of the first arm 52 via the links 5, 15, and the link 15.

On the other hand, when the second servomotor 53 is driven, its rotational force is transmitted to the vertical shaft 63 of the arm mechanism 6 via the pulleys 45 and 46 and the timing belt 47. Also, the second arm member 64 has the same arm length as the second arm 54, and therefore the second arm member 64
By driving the servo motor 53, the second arm 54 turns, and at the same time, the second arm member 64 makes a turning motion in conjunction with the movement of the second arm 54.

In this way, the first and second servomotors 5
The arm mechanism 6 moves in the same manner as the SCARA robot 5 and the chuck base 7 moves only by controlling the driving of the armatures 1, 53. In addition, each chuck 9 is a product 10
Since the chuck base 7 is moved to the downstream side in the conveying direction of the belt conveyor 2 immediately after it comes into contact with the
It is possible to prevent the products from colliding with each other and being in a state of being pressed against each other. Further, the suction operation by each chuck 9 is continued even during the parallel movement of the chuck base 7, whereby a sufficient suction time can be earned during the parallel movement, and the product 10 is bulky. Even heavy or heavy objects can be reliably adsorbed.

Next, each air cylinder 8 is driven to raise each piston rod 8a to move the product 10 adsorbed by each chuck 9 above the belt conveyor 2 (FIG. 1).
reference). From this state, the second servo motor 53 is driven to rotate the second arm 54 and the second arm member 64, and the chuck base 7 is moved above the container 3 (see the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 2).

Next, the air cylinders 8 of the chuck base 7 are driven to lower the piston rods 8a, and the product 10 sucked and held by the chucks 9 is held in the recesses 3 of the container 3.
Put in a. Thereafter, the piston rods 8a are raised and the first and second servomotors 51 and 53 are driven to drive the arms 52 and 54 and the arm members 6 respectively.
2, 64 are moved to a position above the belt conveyor 2.
Hereinafter, by repeating such an operation, the product 10 is filled in the container 3 and the product packaging operation is completed.

As described above, in this embodiment, since the plurality of chucks 9 are attached to the chuck base 7, a plurality of products can be adsorbed and held by one chucking operation.
This makes it possible to fill many products in one cycle.

Moreover, in this case, since the product packaging apparatus 4 is composed of the one SCARA robot 5 and the arm mechanism 6, it is not necessary to use two SCARA robots, and the cost can be greatly reduced. Furthermore, since the same operation as when using two SCARA robots can be achieved by one SCARA robot, only one SCARA robot needs to be driven and controlled, and the control can be simplified.

In the above embodiment, the SCARA robot 5 is used.
Although the link 15 is used as an example of a connecting mechanism that connects the first arm 52 of the first arm 52 to the first arm member 62 of the arm mechanism 6, the application of the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the pulley 1 attached to the end of the rotary shaft 51a of the first servomotor 51.
8, a pulley 19 attached to the end of the vertical shaft 61 of the first arm member 62, and a timing belt 20 wound between the pulleys 18 and 19 are used as a connecting mechanism. Good. In addition, in FIG.
The same reference numerals as in FIG.

In this case, when the first servomotor 51 is driven, the first arm 52 turns, and the rotational force of the servomotor 51 is transmitted through the pulleys 18 and 19 and the timing belt 20 to the first arm 52. It is transmitted to the arm member 62, whereby the first arm member 62 turns in conjunction with the first arm 52.

In addition, the second arm 5 of the SCARA robot 5
4 and the second arm member 64 of the arm mechanism 6 are not limited to the mechanism including the pulleys 45 and 46 and the timing belt 47 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. Alternatively, a mechanism similar to the coupling mechanism including the link 15 that couples the first arm 52 and the first arm member 62 may be adopted.

[0048]

As described above, in the product packaging apparatus according to the present invention, the corresponding portions of the first arm of the articulated robot and the first arm member of the arm mechanism are connected by the first connecting mechanism. At the same time, each end of the chuck base to which multiple chucks are attached is supported by each vertical axis of the articulated robot and arm mechanism, so not only can many products be processed per unit time, but the cost can also be significantly increased. There is an effect that can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a product packaging line in which a product packaging apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is adopted.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the apparatus of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a product packaging line in which a product packaging apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention is adopted.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Product Packaging Line 2 Belt Conveyor (Conveyor) 3 Container 4 Product Packaging Device 5 SCARA Robot (Multi-joint Robot) 51 First Servo Motor 52 First Arm 53 Second Servo Motor 54 Second Arm 56 Vertical Axis 6 Arm Mechanism 62 First Arm Member 64 Second Arm Member 66 Vertical Axis 7 Chuck Base 9 Chuck 10 Product 15 Link (Coupling Mechanism) 18, 19 Pulley (Coupling Mechanism) 20 Timing Belt (Coupling Mechanism) 45, 46 Pulley (Connecting mechanism) 47 Timing belt (Connecting mechanism)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A product packaging apparatus for filling a container with a product supplied by a conveying means, wherein a first drive motor is capable of rotating in a horizontal plane, and a tip of the first arm. Is installed in
A multi-joint robot having a vertical shaft rotatably supported at its tip and including a second arm that can be swung in a horizontal plane by a second drive motor is provided. A first arm member having the same arm length as the first arm and pivotally supported in a horizontal plane, and the second arm provided at the tip of the first arm member. An arm mechanism having the same arm length, having a vertically supported rotatably supported vertical shaft at its tip, and a second arm member pivotally supported in a horizontal plane is provided, A chuck base to which a plurality of chucks for adsorbing and holding the product conveyed by the means is attached is arranged in the product conveying direction, and each end of the chuck base is provided in each of the articulated robot and the arm mechanism. The first arm and the first arm member are connected to each other by a first connecting mechanism so that the first arm and the first arm member work together so that the first arm and the first arm member work together. A product packaging device characterized by the above. 2. The first connecting mechanism is composed of a link, both ends of which are rotatably supported by the first arm and the first arm member. The described product packaging device. 3. The first connecting mechanism is wound around the pulleys attached to the rotary shaft end of the first drive motor and the rotary shaft end of the first arm member, and between the pulleys. The product packaging device according to claim 1, wherein the product packaging device comprises a belt. 4. A portion corresponding to each of the second arm and the second arm member is coupled by a second coupling mechanism so that the second arm and the second arm member are interlocked with each other. The product packaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 5. The second coupling mechanism is composed of links, both ends of which are rotatably supported by the second arm and the second arm member. The described product packaging device. 6. The second coupling mechanism is wound around the pulleys attached to the rotary shaft end of the second drive motor and the turning shaft end of the second arm member, and between the pulleys. The product packaging device according to claim 4, wherein the product packaging device comprises a belt.