JPS6222841B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to an automatic noodle ball packaging device for arranging noodle balls sent out from a noodle ball shaping machine into storage boxes.

[Conventional technology and problems]

In order to automatically manufacture noodles such as udon and soba by mechanization, each process such as manufacturing noodle dough, manufacturing noodle strips, forming noodle balls by cutting and rolling noodle strings, and packing noodle balls into boxes is required. However, especially when packing noodle balls into boxes, it is difficult to automate the process with machines because the noodle balls must be lined up and put into the box in a predetermined number, and the shape retention of the noodle balls is poor. .

By the way, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-90004, a conventional automatic boxing device for noodle balls is such that bucket containers whose lower ends can be opened and closed are attached to an endless running body at regular intervals, and the noodle strings are placed inside the bucket containers. When the bucket containing the noodle balls faces the box waiting in a fixed position, the noodle balls are pushed down by the push-down body that can be raised and lowered, and the bottom plate of the bucket is forcibly pushed open. There is one in which noodle balls are dropped and stored in a box directly below.

However, as described above, since the boxing device drops the noodle balls from inside the bucket into the box, there is a problem in that the noodle balls are deformed due to impact.

[Purpose of the invention]

This invention was made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides an automatic noodle ball packaging device that can arrange noodle balls into storage boxes without causing the noodle balls to lose their shape. There is a particular thing.

[Means for solving problems]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an intermittent transport mechanism that supports a box for storing noodle balls and transports the box at a pitch equal to the spacing at which the noodle balls are lined up;
A pusher that simultaneously pushes out a plurality of noodle balls toward a box on the intermittent conveyance mechanism, and a pusher that is arranged so as to be able to rise and fall freely at the tip of the pusher directly above the conveyor mechanism, and becomes horizontal in the raised position and is an extension of the pusher. It receives the noodle balls pushed out from the pusher on the top surface, moves down while supporting the noodle balls, and then rotates at the lowered position to stop the noodle balls.The noodle balls are slid into the box, and the noodle balls are thrown in first at the bottom end. A loading plate that presses and shapes the noodle balls forward in the intermittent conveying direction, rises while hanging down, and returns to the horizontal position at the raised position, and a loading plate that lifts and lowers to a position directly above the intermittent conveying mechanism and forward in the rotation direction. It consists of a vertical guide plate that is arranged so as to be freely movable and moves up and down in synchronization with the input plate, and whose vertical stroke is set larger than that of the input plate.

[Effect]

The pusher pushes out multiple noodle balls onto the loading plate waiting horizontally in front of it, and the loading plate that receives the noodle balls descends horizontally toward the box waiting directly below, and rotates in this lowered position. The noodle balls are supplied into the box by sliding the noodle balls down.

The input plate rotates at its lower end to push forward the noodle balls that were introduced first so that the noodle balls before and after do not overlap, and the guide plate descends first in synchronization with the descent of the input plate, so that the noodle balls are Position the front of the slide.

The input plate rises in an upright position and returns to the horizontal position at the elevated position, and the guide plate also returns to the elevated position to prepare for receiving the next noodle ball and to feed the box by one pitch.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained based on embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an automatic noodle making device, which includes a noodle ball forming machine 1 that cuts a noodle strip into noodle strings, cuts the noodle strings into a predetermined length, and rolls them; a noodle ball supply section 3 that pushes the noodle balls A sent out onto the conveyor 2 in the lateral direction; a pusher mechanism 4 that pushes out the group of noodle balls A pushed forward of the noodle ball supply section 3 further forward; It is composed of an automatic box packing device 5 disposed at the tip of the pusher mechanism 4, an empty box supply section 6 disposed at one end of the automatic box packing device 5, and a box stacking section 7 disposed at the other end.

First, the noodle ball shaping machine 1 forms noodle balls A by stacking noodle strings cut into a predetermined length, for example, in four, and conveys the noodle balls A by a conveyor 2 that runs intermittently. There is.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the noodle ball supply unit 3 arranges a slide plate 8 extending in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the conveyor 2 on the side of the conveyor 2, and A pusher plate 10 is attached to the piston rod of a cylinder 9 arranged along the longitudinal direction, and as the cylinder 9 expands and contracts, the pusher plate 10 is moved back and forth from the top of the conveyor 2 to the top of the slide plate 8 by a constant stroke, and the solid line in FIG. When the conveyor 2 moves forward from the position indicated by the dashed line in the figure,
The upper noodle ball A is pushed out onto the slide plate 8.

The operation of the cylinder 9 is carried out by a signal from a limit switch that detects the intermittent running of the conveyor 2, and the noodle balls A are successively pushed out through repeated forward and backward movements several times, and a plurality of noodle balls A are lined up in a line on the slide plate 8. .

The number of times the pusher plate 10 moves back and forth, that is, the number of noodle balls A in series on the slide plate 8, may be counted by a limit switch, and the number of noodle balls A in series can be counted by any number depending on the size of the box and the number of boxes packed. can be set to

The pusher mechanism 4 is for pushing a predetermined number of noodle balls A lined up in a row on the slide plate 8 onto the automatic box packing device 5 waiting at the tip of the slide plate 8, as shown in FIG. A head 13 is attached to the piston rod 12 of the cylinder 11 arranged parallel to the longitudinal direction of the slide plate 8, and a rotatable pusher plate 14 that hangs down under its own weight at all times and this plate 14 are attached to the head 13. A stopper 15 is installed to prevent the head from rotating backward when moving forward in the direction of arrow X in Fig. 2, and the head 1 is
3, a protruding shaft 16 is provided in the retracted position shown by the solid line in FIG. , moves forward and backward every time the noodle ball supply section 3 counts a predetermined number of noodle balls.

The automatic box packing device 5 includes an intermittent transport mechanism 17 that is disposed at the tip of the slide plate 8, supports a box B for storing noodle balls, and sends the box B in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the slide plate 8. , an input plate that is movable up and down at the tip of the slide plate 8 at a position directly above the intermittent conveyance mechanism 17, receives the group A of noodle balls pushed out from the slide plate 8, descends, and throws them into the box B waiting directly below. 18, a guide plate 19 that moves up and down in synchronization with this plate 18, and a lifting mechanism 20 that moves both plates 18 and 19 up and down.

As shown in FIG. 4, the intermittent transport mechanism 17 supports the box B in a slidable manner by a pair of guide rails 22 provided on a frame 21, and a cylinder 23 disposed at the lower part between the guide rails 22. A pin 25 that abuts and engages the rear end of the box B is erected at the tip of the piston rod 24 to allow the box B to slide along the guide rail 22 when the cylinder 23 contracts.
As shown in FIG. 11, limit switches S ₁ to S ₆ are moved along the movement line of the head 26 on which the pin 25 is set up.
are arranged so that the interval can be adjusted, and each time the head comes into contact with the switch, the contraction of the cylinder 23 stops and the box B
movement becomes intermittent.

The arrangement intervals of the limit switches S ₁ to S ₆ are set to the parallel interval of the noodle balls A arranged in the box B, so that the box B moves intermittently directly under the input plate 18 each time it receives the noodle balls A. A switch _S9 is provided on the rear end side of the guide rail 22 to detect the retraction of the pin 25.

The above-mentioned input plate 18 and guide plate 19
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the elevating mechanism 20 for vertically moving the
Guide shaft 2 supported by bearing 27 of frame 21
It is formed by arranging a lifting platform 30 which is guided by a lifting shaft 8 and whose vertical movement is synchronized by an lifting shaft 29.

Although the drive source for this lifting shaft 29 is omitted from the illustration,
In addition to using a cylinder, a structure that is linked to a crankshaft rotated by a motor may be adopted.

Lifting platform 3 located on the left side of Figures 5 and 6
0, a slide head 33 slides along an upper and lower guide shaft 32 installed between a pair of support pieces 31.
The sliding head 33 is given forward and backward movement by a cylinder 34, and a crank 36 is attached to the tip of a rotary shaft 35 which is rotatably held by the head 33.
The input plate 18 is fixed to a shaft 37 that protrudes toward.

On the other hand, a horizontal rack 38 is fixed on the lifting platform 30, and a pinion 39 that meshes with this rack 38 is attached to the rear end of the rotating shaft 35. When the slide head 33 is moved by the cylinder 34, the rack 38
and the pinion 39, the input plate 18 is
It rotates around the rotating shaft 35 in a range from a horizontal state to a vertical state, and at the same time, horizontal movement is added.

When the input plate 18 is in the raised position, it becomes horizontal as shown in FIG. 4 due to the expansion of the cylinder 34, and as shown in FIGS. It is adapted to receive noodle balls A group extruded from the plate 8.

Furthermore, when the input plate 18 reaches the lowered position, the cylinder 34 contracts as shown in FIG.
Performing a combined movement of 90° rotation and horizontal movement, the group A of noodle balls that were being supported are thrown into the box B that stops directly below, and after being thrown in, it rises vertically, and the cylinder 34 extends at the raised position. Return to horizontal.

The charging plate 18 swings due to the combination of rotation and horizontal movement when the noodle balls are loaded, and as shown in FIG. The lower end is pressed forward to shape the shape of the noodle balls A so that the noodle balls do not overlap each other.

The guide plate 19, which moves up and down in synchronization with the input plate 18, stands up at the end of the input plate 18 on the downward movement side, as shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure and Fig. 6, it can be raised and lowered freely along the guide shaft 41 on the horizontal plate 40 installed between the lifting platforms 30 on both sides, and when it is in the raised position, the lower end is higher than the box B, and when it is in the lowered position. At this time, the lower part enters into box B as shown in Fig. 7.

The vertical movement of this guide plate 19 is accelerated using a rack and pinion so that the vertical movement of the guide plate 19 is greater than the vertical stroke of the input plate 18.

As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the speed increasing mechanism has a horizontal plate 40.
A large-diameter pinion 43 and a small-diameter pinion 44 are attached to the horizontal shaft 42 provided above, a rack 45 fixed to the frame 21 is engaged with the large-diameter pinion 43, and a rack is engaged with the small-diameter pinion 44 on the guide plate 19. 46 is fixed, and when the guide plate 19 is lowered by the elevating mechanism 20, the racks 45,
46 and pinions 43 and 44 for increased speed feeding,
Before the input plate 18 rolls, the guide plate 19 enters the box A and regulates the rear position of the noodle balls A to be thrown in as shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, thereby preventing the noodle balls A from becoming deformed. It serves to prevent this.

The empty box supply unit 6 disposed on the left side of the intermittent conveyance mechanism 17 in FIG. 3 is for taking out the stacked boxes B one by one and supplying them onto the guide rail 22, as shown in FIGS. shows its structure.

A box B for arranging and storing the noodle balls A is formed into a rectangular planar shape, and has flanges C projecting from the top of both longitudinal ends.

A total of four elevating shafts 47 supported by bearings 46 of the frame 21 are erected at front and rear positions on both sides of the guide rail 22, and the elevating shafts 47 on both sides of the guide rail 22 are connected by connecting rods 48. A crank 50 of a shaft 49 which is connected and driven by a motor is connected to the connecting rod 48 by a link 51, so as to give vertical movement to the elevating shaft 47.

A pawl 52 is pivotally fixed to the upper end of each lifting shaft 47 so as to be able to swing freely around a pivot 53, and the pawls 52 on both sides
A support plate 54 for receiving the flange C is fixed between the
A guide 55 for raising and lowering the claw 52 is provided on the frame 21 at a position close to one of the claws 52.

When the front and rear support plates 54 are at the highest position, as shown in FIG.
Engage and lift flange C at B',
A space larger than that for one box B is secured between the lowest box B' and the guide rail 22, and when the lowered position is reached, the stacked boxes B are left on the guide rail 22 and moved from the rail 22. It also has a lifting stroke located downward.

The guide 55 guides a trochanter 56 mounted at a position above the pivot 53 of the pawl 52 using rails 57 and 58 when the pawl 52 moves up and down.

13 to 16 show the relationship between the movement of the guide 55 and the pawl 52. When the pawl 52 is at the highest position, the first rail 57 and the second rail 58 move as shown in FIG. Holding the trochanter 56, the support plate 5
4 is in a horizontal state and supports box B.

When the lowermost box B' is placed on the guide rail 22 during the descent of the claw 52, the trochanter 56 is guided outward by the lower bent portion 57a provided on the first rail 57, and the claw 52 is pivoted. 53, and the support plate 54 moves away from the flange C and descends as shown by the dashed line in FIG.

From the lowered position to the middle of the ascent, the second rail 58 rises while falling outward along the second rail 58, as shown by the dashed line in FIG.
The trochanter 56 is guided inward at the upper bent portion 58a of the box 8, the claw 52 stands up, the support plate 54 engages the flange C of the second box from the bottom, and the bottom box is moved as shown in FIG. Lift it up leaving behind.

In this way, each time the front and rear support plates 54 move up and down, the lowest empty box is fed onto the guide rail 22 of the intermittent transport mechanism 17.

The box stacking section 7 disposed on the right side of the intermittent conveyance mechanism 17 in FIG.
A belt conveyor 59 receives the box B sent out in step 7 after being filled with noodles, and the conveyor 59 is activated by detecting by movement of the head 26 that the box B is about one-third of the total on the conveyor 59. a limit switch S ₇ (see Figures 3 and 12), and a limit switch S ₈ that detects when the box B sent by the conveyor 59 has reached a fixed position and stops the conveyor 59.
(See Figure 3), a lifter 60 that is placed directly below box B that is stopped at a fixed position, and that pushes box B to a predetermined height position when lifted; and a box that holds box B that has been pushed up to the raised position. It is composed of a fixed arm 61.

The lifter 60 is arranged so as to be able to rise and fall freely so as to push up the lower four corners of the box B. Although not shown, the lifter 60 is equipped with a crank and a rod 6 rotated by a motor (not shown).
2 and a connecting rod 63 to provide vertical movement.

As shown in FIGS. 17 to 20, the box fixing arm 6
1 is attached to a shaft 64 horizontally arranged at the front and rear of the box B, and is always kept in a horizontal state by a tension spring 65 and a stopper 66.

The surface of the box fixing arm 61 facing the box B is an inclined surface 61
Box B, which is formed at point A and passes upward, is pushed outward by flange C as shown in FIG. 19, and returns to the horizontal position when flange C passes. Therefore, when the box B is lowered after the flange C passes between the arms 61, the box B is held in the raised position and only the lifter 60 is lowered, as shown in FIG. 20, so that the boxes B are stacked in order from the bottom. Become.

The boxing device of this invention has the above-mentioned configuration, and the noodle balls are rounded by the noodle forming machine 1 and transferred to the intermittent conveyor 2.
The noodle balls A sent out to the fixed position are successively pushed out one by one laterally onto the slide plate 8 by the noodle ball supply section 3, and by repeating this operation several times, the noodle balls that follow are used to replace the previous noodle balls. When you push the buttons in order to line up in a line and count the preset number of noodle balls, the pusher mechanism 4
The cylinder 11 operates and pushes out the aligned group A of noodle balls onto the input plate 18 which is waiting in the raised position in a horizontal state.

The pusher plate 14 that has pushed out the noodle balls A returns to the rear end position by the extension of the cylinder 11 and prepares for the next extrusion, and when the limit switch detects that the pusher plate 14 is in the middle of its return movement, the automatic cartoning device 5 is activated. The motor starts, and the lifting mechanism 20 moves downward to move the input plate 18 and guide plate 1.
9 descends towards Box B, which is waiting directly below.

When the input plate 18 reaches the lower limit position and approaches the box B as shown in FIG. 7, the guide plate 19 descends at a higher speed than the input plate 18.
The lower half of the box has entered box B.

When the charging plate 18 supporting the group A of noodle balls reaches the lower limit position, the motor of the lifting mechanism 20 is stopped by the detection of the limit switch, and at the same time the cylinder 34 is contracted and the rack 38 and pinion 39 act to lower the loading plate 18. rotates 90 degrees while moving horizontally, from the horizontal state shown in FIG. 7 to the vertical state shown in FIG.

When the loading plate 18 rotates vertically, a timer is activated by a signal detected by a limit switch attached to the rotating part of the lifting mechanism 20, and when the set time has elapsed, the motor is activated and the lifting mechanism 20 is activated.
Then, the input plate 18 is pushed up to the upper limit position in the vertical state and stopped.

Since both the input plate 18 and the guide plate 19 rise vertically, the noodle balls A group placed in the box B do not lose their shape.

When the input plate 18 reaches the upper limit position, the cylinder 34 is extended by detection by the limit switch, and the input plate 18 returns to the horizontal position, preparing for the next supply of noodle balls.

When the input plate 18 reaches the upper limit position, the intermittent conveyance mechanism 17 supporting the box B moves by one pitch, and the box B is moved so that its empty space is directly below the input plate 18.

In this way, when a predetermined number of noodle balls A are supplied onto the input plate 18, each part repeats the above operation, and the noodle balls A group are sequentially lined up and input into the box B, and the full box B is As shown in FIG. 3, the boxes are pushed up and stacked by the box stacking section 7, and new empty boxes B are supplied from the empty box supply section 6 to the automatic box packing device 5.

〔effect〕

As described above, the present invention has the above configuration and has the following effects.

(1) The loading plate that receives the noodle balls in the raised position can be raised and lowered, and in the lowered position, it can be rotated and dropped to deposit the noodle balls into the box, allowing automatic noodle making. This makes it possible to realize this and reduce manufacturing costs by saving labor.

(2) Since the loading plate rises while hanging down and is equipped with a guide plate that moves up and down in synchronization with the loading plate, noodles can be loaded without causing deformation.

(3) Since a plurality of noodle balls can be fed side by side on the input plate, the efficiency of boxing work can be improved.

(4) Since noodle balls can be packed into boxes automatically, hygiene during noodle production can be improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a plan view of the automatic noodle making device, and Figure 2 is the top view of the automatic noodle making device.
Vertical side view along the arrow in the figure, Figure 3 is the 1st
Figure 4 is an enlarged longitudinal front view of the automatic box packing device shown above,
Figure 5 is a plan view of the same as above, Figure 6 is a longitudinal side view of the same,
Figures 7 and 8 are vertical sectional front views showing the noodle loading state in the same as above, Figures 9 and 10 are vertical sectional views seen from the back side of the noodle loading state, and Figure 11 is the empty box supply section. Vertical front view, Figure 12 is the same vertical side view, Figure 13
14, 15, and 16 are operation explanatory diagrams showing empty box supply, FIG. 17 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the box stacking section, and FIG. 18 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the same.
FIG. 19 and FIG. 20 are operation explanatory diagrams showing the operating state of the same as above. 1 is a noodle ball forming machine, 2 is a conveyor, 3 is a noodle ball supply section, 4 is a pusher mechanism, 5 is an automatic box packing device,
6 is an empty box supply section, 7 is a box stacking section, 8 is a slide plate, 17 is an intermittent conveyance mechanism, 18 is an input plate,
19 is a guide plate, and 20 is a lifting mechanism.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An intermittent transport mechanism that supports a box for storing noodle balls and transports the box at a pitch equal to the spacing at which the noodle balls are lined up;
A pusher that simultaneously pushes out a plurality of noodle balls toward a box on the intermittent conveyance mechanism, and a pusher that is arranged so as to be able to rise and fall freely at the tip of the pusher directly above the conveyor mechanism, and becomes horizontal in the raised position and is an extension of the pusher. It receives the noodle balls pushed out from the pusher on the upper surface, moves down while supporting the noodle balls, and slides down into the box that rotates at the lowered position and stops the noodle balls, and the lower end is thrown in first. A charging plate that presses and shapes the noodle balls forward in the direction of intermittent conveyance, rises while hanging down, and returns to the horizontal position at the raised position; This automatic noodle ball boxing device is composed of a vertical guide plate that is arranged to be able to move up and down freely, moves up and down in synchronization with the input plate, and has a vertical guide plate that has a larger lifting stroke than the input plate.