JPS62296293A - Can material discrimination for empty can recovery machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] 3. Detailed Description of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention collects empty cans of canned products such as canned coffee, canned juice, and canned beer by sorting them according to the material of the can. The present invention relates to a method for determining can material in an empty can collection machine.

(Background of the Invention) Empty can collection machines for collecting empty cans of canned coffee, canned juice, canned beer, etc. have been proposed in the past. However, in the past, these empty cans were collected without sorting out their materials, so when reusing empty cans, the material must be sorted each time, for example, iron cans and aluminum cans. I had to. For this reason, there was a problem in that the number of processing steps for the collected empty cans increased and the efficiency was poor. Therefore, it is conceivable that the empty can collection machine distinguishes the material and collects the cans separately according to the material.

However, conventional sensors not only generally have a complicated structure, but also have a problem in that it is difficult to accurately determine the material of an empty can while it is being moved, resulting in a decrease in determination accuracy.

(Purpose of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has a simple structure and a method for determining the material of empty cans with high accuracy when the material of empty cans is discriminated, sorted, and collected in an empty can collection machine. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for determining can material of an empty can collecting machine, which can determine the material of an empty can.

(Structure of the Invention) According to the present invention, this purpose is to press empty cans inputted from the input port using a press device.

In empty can collection machines that sort and collect cans by material,
This is achieved by a method for determining the material of an empty can in an empty can collecting machine, which is characterized in that the amount of work required for the pressing device to complete pressing is calculated, and the material of the empty can is determined based on the magnitude of the amount of work.

(Principle) Generally, when pressing empty aluminum cans and iron Fe, there is a gap between the stroke S and the pressing force P as shown in Fig. 3 (
The relationships a) and (b) arise. In other words, in the case of an A1 can, it can be pressed with a smaller pressing force than in the case of an Fe can, and therefore, the amount of work required to complete the press, which is the product of the pressing force and the stroke, is E = IP - dS (as shown in Fig. 3). (corresponding to the area of the shaded area) is smaller than that for Fe cans.The present invention focuses on this difference in the amount of work and, for example, distinguishes a can with a small amount of work as an A1 can, and a can with a large amount of work. It is identified as an Fe can.

If the press device is configured with an electric motor, the torque detected from the motor current can be used as the pressing force P, and the rotation angle detected from a rotation detector such as a rotary encoder can be used as the stroke S. can.

(Embodiment) FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of an empty can collecting machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a cylindrical empty can, and this empty can lO is inputted from an input port 12.

This input port 12 has a loading door 1 that opens and closes using the lower edge as a fulcrum.
4 is installed. This input door 14 holds the empty can lO in its open position, and drops it into the can passage 16 in its closed position. Reference numeral 18 denotes a control circuit which controls the entire apparatus based on detection signals from each part.

After the loaded empty can lO is judged by the can discriminating means 20 comprising a limit switch as to whether it is an empty can of a predetermined shape and size (step 100), it is sent to the seal detecting section 22, where the presence or absence of a seal is detected. (step 102),
In this embodiment, in order to improve the collection rate of empty cans, only empty cans with seals are collected according to a so-called deposit method. In other words, the deposit method means that a fixed amount, for example, 10 yen, is added as a deposit to the list price of the canned product, a sticker is affixed to the can as a mark, and the deposit is paid for the empty can with the sticker affixed. This is a method of refunding. 24 is a foreign matter sorting means, and when a non-standard empty can 10, a stone, a piece of wood, etc. is thrown into the can discriminating section 20,
If the seal detection unit 22 determines that the empty can 10 is without a seal, the empty can 10 is discharged as foreign matter to the discharge port 26 (step 104).

If the empty can meets the specifications and has a seal, and there is no foreign object such as a stone or piece of wood, the coin dispensing device 28 dispenses the predetermined deposit to the dispensing port 30 (step 106), and the empty can 10 is The can is sent through the can passage 16 to the press means 32 and is pressed (step 1).
08).

The press means 32 is configured such that an eccentric cam 32B rotated by a motor 32A pushes out a pusher 32C. Reference numeral 34 denotes a weight sensor consisting of a swinging lever 34A, which holds the empty can 10 in the press position if it is a proper empty can 10 that is not filled with foreign objects such as stones, and presses the pin 34B at the center if the empty can is heavier than specified. The proper empty can 10 captured by the zero weight sensor 34, which is swung clockwise in the figure and dropped, is detected by the press sensor 36, and the motor 32A is activated to start pressing. When the empty can is properly pressed, it passes between the tip of the lever 34A of the weight sensor 34 and the inner wall of the can passage 16 and falls. Note that the rotation angle of the motor 32A is detected by an encoder 32D.

The control circuit 18 calculates the pressing force P during pressing from the current of the motor 32A, and the stroke S from the output of the encoder 32D.
is detected, and based on these, the amount of work E required for pressing is integrated (step 110), and if the amount of work E required to complete the press is above a certain value, it is determined that it is an iron can,
If it is below a certain value, it is determined that it is an aluminum can, and this signal is sent to the belt conveyor 38.

The conveyor 38 is rotated forward and backward by a motor 38A based on the output of the control circuit 18. For example, for iron cans, the conveyor 38 is rotated clockwise and transferred to the collection box 40A on the right (step 1).
12), and the aluminum cans are rotated counterclockwise and guided to the collection box 40B on the left (step 114). Note that can passing sensors 42A and 42B are installed near the entrance of each collection box 4OA and 40B, and as well as confirming the final drop of a can (step 116), the output of the sensors 42A and 42B is continuous. Step 118 to detect whether the collection boxes 4OA and 40B are full.
), the operation is stopped (step 120).

As a method of calculating the amount of work E, the following methods are possible depending on the type of press motor.

(1) In the case of a DC motor In a series-wound motor, the current I is proportional to the torque, and the voltage V is proportional to the rotational speed N, so the amount of work E can be determined using these currents and voltage (2). When controlling the motor speed to a constant value, the torque is approximately proportional to the current, so the current can be integrated during the press (or per unit time); and when controlling the motor voltage to a constant value, Since speed is almost inversely proportional to torque, it is possible to measure the time required for pressing and determine its size.

(2) In the case of a synchronous motor or an AC motor, a method similar to that used for controlling the speed of a DC motor to a constant value can be used.

(3) In the case of an induction motor, if the frequency of the input voltage is constant, the slip rate S is approximately proportional to the torque T, so it is sufficient to find the difference between the speed No at no load and the speed Ns during pressing and integrate it. , since the absolute values of the speeds No and Ns themselves are large (N o / N
s”=1), rotation speed N is a constant, T=
c (No Ns); Calculation can be performed assuming that C is a constant.

The above embodiment uses a deposit method, but 1
In the present invention, when collecting empty cans without using the deposit method, the seal detection section 22, coin dispensing device 28, dispensing port 30, etc. are of course unnecessary, and steps 102 and 106 in FIG. The operation is also unnecessary.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the present invention determines the amount of work required for pressing by the press device and determines the material of the empty can based on the magnitude of this amount of work, thereby eliminating the need for a sensor such as a special metal sensor. This simplifies the configuration. Furthermore, since determining the amount of work involves integrating the work during pressing, accuracy is improved because it is not affected by minute fluctuations in torque or rotational speed during pressing.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing an overview of the operation of the embodiment, and Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the stroke and pressing force of the press to explain the present invention in detail. FIG. 10...Empty can, 18...Control device, 32...Press device.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] In an empty can collection machine that sorts and collects cans by material after empty cans inputted from an input port are pressed by a press device, the amount of work required for the press device to complete pressing is calculated, and the amount of work is calculated. A method for determining the material of an empty can for an empty can collection machine, characterized in that the material of the empty can is determined based on the amount of work.