JPS61265689A - Counting device of piled up commodities - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent occurrence of a counting error even when the thickness of each commodity is different by permitting a pair of detectors to count piled up commodities in parallel, comparing counted results of both detectors and outputting the counted results only when they are equal. CONSTITUTION:The piled up commodities whose number is measured are placed on a base stand, and a supporting rail is placed approximately in parallel with the stand so as to hold the commodities placed on the stand. A pair of detectors 1 and 1A are movably installed along the supporting rail. A counter 4 counts outputs arising when the detectors 1 and 1A move from one end to the other onn the supporting rail, and a comparator 4 compares the counted value of the counter when the detectors 1 and 1A reach the other end. As a result, responding the occurrence of a coincidence signal, a comulative counter 12 cumulates either one of the counted values, and obtains the counted value of the piled up commodities.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a counting device for laminated articles, and in particular to a counting device for counting stacked articles, particularly envelopes, postcards, various cards, and similar articles stacked in large numbers. The present invention relates to a counting device for laminated articles that can accurately count the number of these articles.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, in order to automatically count the number of articles such as envelopes, postcards, and various cards that are stacked or arranged side by side (hereinafter simply referred to as stacked articles), a light emitting element and a light receiving element have been used. An automatic counting device is known that uses a detector equipped with a detector to detect reflected light from a laminated article or transmitted light thereof.

However, such conventional techniques have the disadvantage that if the thickness of the stacked individual articles differs, counting errors tend to occur, or the thickness of the articles that can be counted is limited.

That is, for example, since envelopes and postcards often have different thicknesses, there are many counting errors, making it virtually impossible to put them to practical use in post offices and the like.

(Objective) The present invention has been made in order to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks, and its object is to provide a counting device for laminated articles that does not cause counting errors even if the thickness of each individual article is different. There is a particular thing.

(Means and operations for solving the problem) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention counts Wi layer articles 6 in parallel with a pair of detectors, and compares the counting results of both detectors. However, the system is characterized in that it outputs the counting results only when the two match, and further accumulates them as necessary, and displays an error message when the two do not match.

(Example" The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of its main parts. Note that in these figures, the same reference numerals represent the same or equivalent parts.

As shown in FIG. 1, the stacked articles 6 whose number is to be detected are arranged and placed on the base 5.

In this case, the laminated articles 6 do not need to be arranged at equal intervals, nor do the individual articles need to have the same thickness (width in the lateral direction in the figure).

A support rail 7 is arranged substantially parallel to the base 5, and the first and second detectors 1 and 1A are movably supported on the support rail 7.

The first and second detectors 1 and 1A each include a light emitting element 40 and a light receiving element 42, and are driven by a motor 24 in the left or right direction.

The left end limit switch 16 and the right end limit switch 20 are the first and second detectors 1 .

1A is biased (closed) when it reaches the left or right end of the support rail 7, that is, when it reaches either end beyond the range where the laminated article 6 is placed on the base 5. .

The counter main body 100 responds to the open/close states of the start switch 33, the left end limit switch 16, and the right end limit switch 20, and operates the motor 2 according to the logic shown in FIG.
energize 4.

As described later with reference to FIG. 2, the counter main body 100 drives the first and second detectors 1.1A from one end of the support rail 7 to the other end, and
The count outputs of the detectors 1 and 1A are processed, and a predetermined display is displayed on the error display 28, count display 30, and cumulative total display 13 according to the results and settings.

Next, with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 2 and the time chart of FIG. 3, the structure of the counter main body 100 and the operation of the present invention will be described in detail.

In this figure, the operation timing of each part is controlled by the sequence controller 1 to roller 15, but since such control is well known, in the following operation explanation, only the particularly necessary control signal lines and timing signal lines will be omitted. , illustration is omitted.

First, it is assumed that the power switch 35 is off, the motor 24 is stopped, and the first and second detectors 1 and 1A contact the left end limit switch 16 and are stopped. In this state, the left end limit switch 16 is on, and the right end limit switch 20 and start switch 33 are off. Here, when the power switch 35 is turned on at time tl (FIG. 3), initial settings of each part are performed.

That is, for example, the counter 4, reversible counter 9, and comparator 10 are reset, and the total counter 12 and total display 13 are also reset as necessary.

Subsequently, at time t2, when the start switch 33 is turned on, the counter 4 is reset, and the reversible counter 9 loads the count value at that time into the cumulative counter 12, and then - That is, it is reset after the cumulative operation is completed.

However, when the start switch 33 is opened immediately after the power switch 35 is turned on, the reversible counter 9 has been reset and its count value is O, so no actual cumulative operation is performed.

The sequence controller 15 controls the start/stop and rotation direction of the motor 24, the reversible counter 9, and the fourth gate 1 using the logic (procedures) shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.
1. Controls the cumulative operation by the cumulative counter 12, oscillator 25, etc.

In FIG. 4, in step S1, the start switch 33
When it is detected that the left end limit switch 16 is turned on, it is determined in step S2 whether the left end limit switch 16 is turned on.

Here, as described above, it is assumed that the left end limit switch 16 is on and the right end limit switch 20 is off, so the determination in step S2 is established.

In step S3, the right rotation relay 19 is energized, and the motor 2
Rotate 4 to the right.

As a result, the first and second detectors 1 and 1A
It is driven to the right in the figure. In step S5, whether or not the right end limit switch 20 is turned on - that is,
It is detected whether the first and second detectors 1.degree. 1A have reached the right end, and when they are turned on, the right rotation relay 19 is deenergized and the motor 24 is stopped in step S7.

With the above control, the first and second detectors 1 and 1
A moves on the support rail 7 from the left end to the right end, and one counting operation is completed.

As is clear, steps 86 to S9 in FIG. 4 are performed when the start switch 33 is turned on and, contrary to the above, the first and second detectors 1.1A are at the right end in FIG. , is a processing procedure for controlling starting and stopping of the motor 24. This will be easily understood without requiring any special explanation.

As described above, the first and second detectors 1 and 1A have a light emitting element 40 and a light receiving element 42, and emitted from the light emitting element 40 is reflected by the laminated article 6 (or transmitted through the laminated article 6). The presence of the article is detected by detecting the light (exposed) by the light receiving element 42.

That is, article detection in the present invention is performed based on the intensity difference between the reflected light from the article itself and the reflected light from the gap between adjacent articles. The same applies when using transmitted light.

As the first and second detectors 1.1A move in the right direction, the pulsed electrical analog signals generated from the light receiving element 42 are shaped by the first and second waveform shapers 2.2A to become pulse signals. The signal is supplied to the counter 4 and the reversible counter 9 via the first to third gates 3A and 8 inserted in the respective paths and the OR circuit 27.

The first and second gates 3 and 3A are for preventing noise from entering the counter 4 and the reversible counter 9, and for making these counting operations accurate.

Each of the gates is opened after a scheduled time delay after starting the motor 24 by a control signal (not shown) from the sequence controller 15 in response to the input signal of the start switch 33, and the first and second waveform shaping 62 Allows pulses to pass from .2A to counter 4 and reversible counter 9.

As clearly shown in the time chart of FIG. 3 and as will be well understood from the explanation below, the start of the counting operation in response to the activation of the motor 24 is the loading of the count value of the reversible counter 9 to the cumulative counter 12 ( In other words, it is necessary to perform the process after the cumulative total is completed.

This means that the motor 2 will start when the start switch 33 is opened.
4, or after the motor 24 is started and the first and second detectors 1.1
This can be achieved by a method such as providing a necessary time delay until A reaches the position where the detection operation of the laminated article 6 is actually performed.

As the first and second detectors 1.1A move to the right, when the presence of the laminated article 6 is detected, pulse signals are sequentially supplied to the counter 4 and the reversible counter 9 for counting.

When the first and second detectors 1, 1A complete the detection of the stacked article 6 and reach the right end of the support rail 7, the right end limit switch 20 is closed. Note that at this time, as is clear, the left end limit switch 16 is open.

As a result, the motor 24 is stopped, as can be seen from the flowchart in FIG.

When the sequence controller 15 detects that the right end limit switch 20 is closed (step 553 in FIG. 5), the sequence controller 15 compares each count value of the counter 4 and the reversible counter 9 with the comparator 10 (step 555).
).

At the same time, the count value of the counter 4 is displayed on the count display 30 (step 554 in FIG. 5).

When the two counts do not match, the comparator 10 does not generate the match signal C8, so the output of the inverter 26 becomes 01.
'', and an error is displayed on the error display 28 (
Step S56 in FIG. 5).

On the other hand, when both count values match, the comparator 10 generates a match signal C8, which is supplied to the fourth gate 11 and the sequence controller 15.

When the fourth gate 11 is opened by the coincidence signal C8, the output pulse (for example, 50 KHz) of the oscillator 25 is supplied to the cumulative counter 12 and the third gate 8.

At this time, the sequence controller 15 controls the third
As gate 8 is closed, reversible counter 9 is switched to subtraction mode (step 557 in FIG. 5).

When the number of pulses supplied from the oscillator 25 to the cumulative counter 12 via the fourth gate 11 becomes equal to the count value of the reversible counter 9, the reversible counter 9 generates a carry signal CC (step 858 in FIG. 5). ). The carry signal CC is supplied to the fourth gate 11 and the sequence controller 15.

As a result, the third gate 8 and the fourth gate 11 are closed, and the cumulative operation is completed. On the other hand, the sequence controller 15 switches the reversible counter 9 to addition mode. Further, if necessary, the counter 4 is reset (step 859 in FIG. 5).

At time [3 (Fig. 3), start switch 3 is turned on again.
3 is operated, the sequence controller 15 resets the counter 4 and the reversible counter 9, and
The motor 24 is rotated in the left direction (step S8 in FIG. 4).
, see S9).

Furthermore, in the same manner as described above, the first to third gates 3.3A
, 8 are opened, and the stacked articles 6 are counted when the first and second detectors 1.degree. 1A move to the left. Then, when the first and second detectors 1° 1A reach the left end of the support rail 7, the left end limit switch 16 is closed.

In response to the opening of the left end limit switch 16, the same subtraction by the reversible counter 9 and the cumulative calculation by the cumulative counter 12 as described above are performed.

The processing procedure of the sequence controller 15 for the above-mentioned cumulative calculation is shown in the flowchart of FIG. The contents of the flowchart can be easily understood from the above description without any special explanation.

(Modifications) The present invention can be implemented with various modifications as described below.

(1) Start the motor 24 by pressing the start switch 33
This may be done in response to the carry signal CC from the reversible counter 9, rather than in response to the opening of the reversible counter 9.

(2) The cumulative operation of the cumulative counter 12 (that is, the supply of addition pulses to the cumulative counter 12 and the supply of subtraction pulses to the reversible counter 9) is not activated by the coincidence signal C8 from the comparator 10, but by other means. This may be done at any appropriate timing and means (for example, by opening the start switch 33 immediately after counting ends or by manual operation).

(At least one of the first and second gates 3.3A may be omitted.

(a) The third gate 8 can also be omitted.

(5) The counter 4, reversible counter 9, and total counter 12 can be reset manually at any timing.

(6) At the same time as the error is displayed by the output signal of the inverter 26, the same signal automatically causes the motor 24 to be driven in the reverse direction and the first and second detectors 1 and 1A to re-execute the counting operation.

(7) A slit is provided in front of at least one of the light emitting element 40 and the light receiving element 42 to limit the angle of incidence of light to the light receiving element 42 to υ to improve detection accuracy.

8) Resetting the reversible counter 9 after the initial setting can be omitted.

(9) Display normal operation using the coincidence signal C8.

(Effects of the Invention) As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the following effects are achieved.

(7) Count 8IFII items 6 in parallel with a pair of rain detectors, and only when the counting results of the rain detectors match,
Since the counting results are output, errors in counting can be almost completely prevented.

■ Skillfully utilizes the reversible counter 9 to subtract the counted value of the reversible counter 9 one by one, and at the same time adds the same number to the cumulative counter 12, and when the counted value of the reversible counter 9 reaches O, performs the cumulative operation. Since it stops, accumulation can be done with a simple configuration.

(3) By performing the accumulation using high-frequency pulses, the time required for the accumulation operation can be shortened. (4) Since counting can be performed on both the forward and return paths of the first and second detectors 1 and 1A, Work efficiency can be increased.

(5) If a pair of counting results do not match, an error signal can be used to automatically drive the motor 24 in the reverse direction and re-execute the counting operation of the first and M2 detectors 1 and 1A. It is possible to significantly reduce the ratio of

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of its main parts, FIG. 3 is a time chart showing the operation of the present invention, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are sequence diagrams. 3 is a flowchart showing the logic or control means of the controller. 1°°・1st detector, 1A...2nd detector, 2...
First waveform shaper, 2A...Second waveform shaper, 4...
Counter, 5... Base, 6... Laminated article, 7...
Support rail, 9... Reversible counter, 10... Comparator, 12... Cumulative counter, 13... Cumulative total display, 15... Sequence controller, 16... Left end limit switch, 2o... Right end limit switch, 24... Motor, 25... Oscillator, 28... Error indicator, 30... Counting display, 33... Start switch, 35... Power switch, 1oo... The patent attorney who represents the main body of the calculation, Michihito Hiraki, and 1 other famous book 3r! zJ Figure 4! Figure 45

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) a base for placing the laminated articles whose number is to be measured; a support rail disposed substantially parallel to the base so as to sandwich the laminated articles thereon; and the support. a pair of detectors driven along the rails; means for setting both ends of a drive range of the detectors; a counter that counts each output; a comparator that compares each count value of the counter when the pair of detectors reaches the other end; and in response to generation of a coincidence signal from the comparator, either one 1. A counting device for laminated articles, comprising: a cumulative counter that accumulates counted values. (2) The stacked article counting device according to claim 1, wherein the means for setting both ends of the drive range of the detector is a limit switch. (3) a base for placing the laminated articles whose number is to be measured; a support rail arranged substantially parallel to the base so as to sandwich the laminated article thereon; and the support rails. a pair of detectors driven along the support rail; means for setting opposite ends of the drive range of the detector; and means for setting each end of the drive range of the detector; a counter and a reversible counter that count the output of the detector, a comparator that compares the counts of the counter and the reversible counter when the pair of detectors reach the other end, and a comparator that responds to generation of a coincidence signal from the comparator. means for supplying the output pulses of the oscillator to a reversible counter and setting the reversible counter to a subtraction mode; The invention further comprises means for stopping the supply of the scheduled frequency output pulses of the oscillator to the reversible counter in response to the count value of the oscillator decreasing to zero. A counting device for laminated articles according to item 1. (4) The counting device for laminated articles according to claim 3, wherein the scheduled frequency is a high frequency.