JPS6253234B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for cleaning pallets loaded primarily with food containers such as bottles, cans, barrels, etc.

As shown in Fig. 9, this type of pallet a is manufactured by covering the outer periphery of the metal aggregate with a plastic material and molding it in one step, which tends to increase the weight of the pallet a. It has a large number of holes (b) to make it easier to place items on top, a drainage ditch for water that collects in the holes, etc., and a fork insertion port (c) when using a forklift. When these pallets are stored in a warehouse or factory, foreign matter such as dust and insects may become clogged or adhered to these holes B, fork insertion ports, etc., and these may fly up when pallet A is moved. Not only does this degrade the working environment as it scatters, but it is also unfavorable from a sanitary standpoint as it adheres to the product.

Conventionally, the pallets have been cleaned manually, washed with water, or vacuumed and discharged using air, but it is not easy to process pallets that weigh approximately 30 to 40 kg using manual methods. Also, cleaning with water or air requires larger equipment,
Moreover, the cleaning is mainly limited to the surface of the pallet, and it is difficult to completely remove substances adhering to the holes and the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the current situation, and the first invention aims to provide a cleaning method that does not cause such inconveniences. A pallet is dropped from a high position with its side surfaces substantially perpendicular to apply several impact forces to the pallet, and the impact forces release impurities and dust that have adhered to the pallet. Next, the pallet after falling is shaken off from both sides in a pendulum shape to shake off impurities and dust.Next, the pallet surface is cleaned with a brush while the pallet is being conveyed and coated.

The object of the second invention and the third invention is to obtain an apparatus for carrying out the method of the first invention, and the second invention is equipped with a large number of recesses and holes waiting at a high position. a guide path for guiding a flat plate-shaped pallet so that its placement surface is substantially vertical and allowing it to fall freely; a pallet support that is retractable into the guide path at the bottom of the guide path; A conveyor that receives the pallet that falls from the pallet support due to the backward movement of the pallet support and conveys it out of the guideway, and a conveyor that acts on both sides of the pallet that has fallen onto the conveyor to remove the pallet. A rocking body that swings in a pendulum shape on a conveyor, a lifter that carries the pallet upward by the conveyor, and a lifter that carries the pallet upward by the conveyor and the lifter. The patent includes a brush cleaning device that contacts the upper and lower surfaces.

A third invention provides a guide path for guiding a flat pallet with a large number of recesses and holes waiting at a high position so that its placement surface becomes substantially vertical and allowing it to fall freely; At the bottom of the guide path, there is provided a pallet support that can freely move in and out of the guide path, and a conveyor that receives the pallets that fall from the pallet support as the pallet support moves backward and conveys them out of the guide path. a swinging body that acts on both sides of the pallet that has fallen onto the conveyor and swings the pallet in a pendulum shape on the conveyor; and a lifter that carries the pallet transported by the conveyor upward. A brush cleaning device that contacts both sides, both end surfaces, and the upper and lower surfaces of the pallet is provided on the conveyor and the lifter, and a lifter that carries the pallet upward is provided at the tip of the conveyor. The present invention is characterized in that an inverter is provided which can be switched between a vertical position and a horizontal position facing the front surface of the lifter at the upward movement position of the pallet.

An example of implementing the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

This device consists of a loading section 1 for loading pallets, a cleaning section 2 for cleaning the loaded pallets a, and an unloading section 3 for transporting the cleaned pallets a.
These are arranged in a U-shape when viewed from above. To explain this in more detail below, the carry-in section 1 includes a chain conveyor 4 that stacks and feeds a predetermined number of pallets a, and a hydraulic lifter that lifts the pallets a fed by the chain conveyor 4 to a certain height position. 5, and a kicker 7 that feeds the pallets a pushed up by the lifter 5 one by one onto a chain conveyor 6 in front of the cleaning unit 2, and the chain conveyor 6 sequentially removes the pallets one by one.
The pallet a is fed into the container.

As shown in detail in FIGS. 2 and 5, the cleaning section 2 includes a guide path 8 formed between guides 8a for guiding and dropping the pallet a carried by the chain conveyor 6 into an upright state, and the guide path. a support 10 that receives the pallet a that has fallen within the pallet 8 and applies an impact to it; a conveyor 9 that transports the pallet a in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the pallet a;
Also, a rocking body 13 that provides rocking motion to the pallet a supported on the conveyor 9, and a conveyor 9.
and a brush device 11 for cleaning the surface of the pallet a conveyed by the pallet a.

To explain this in more detail, the guide 8a constituting the guide path 8 is provided with a pair of left and right metal rods whose upper ends are fixed to the machine frame 12 and facing each other in the front and back. The transport conveyor 9 is provided on the lower surface of the falling path 8, and the transport conveyor 9 is constructed by connecting a group of durable rubber rollers 9a to a chain 9b. Furthermore, the support body 10 is connected to the upper surface 10d of the conveyor 9 and the air cylinder 10c.
The L-shaped arm 1 is provided so as to be freely retractable in the guideway 8.
The rocking body 13 has a roller 13b in the middle of a pair of left and right rocking arms 13a whose lower ends are freely rockingly supported on the machine frame 12. When attached, the swing arm 13a is moved forward and backward in conjunction with the air cylinder 13c, thereby imparting a pendulum-like swing to the pallet a.

The brush device 11 includes a pair of left and right rotating brush rolls 11a and 11b provided so as to be in contact with both sides of the pallet a conveyed by the conveyor 9.
and a rotating brush roll 11c that contacts the lower surface of the pallet a conveyed by the conveyor 9.
Following the conveyor 9, a lifter 14 lifts the pallet a in the vertical direction, and a rotary brush roll 11d contacts one side end of the pallet a to be coated. It consists of an upper surface and a rotating brush roll 11e that contacts the other end of the pallet a carried up by the lifter 14.

The conveying section 3 is constructed by the lifter 14, an inverter 15 provided above the lifter, and a belt conveyor 16 that transports the pallet a, which has been turned down horizontally by the inverter 15, forward. The transported pallet a is transferred to the third lifter 17
It consists of a discharge device 18 that drops and discharges upward, and the third lifter 17.

To explain this in more detail, the lifter 14 consists of a chain conveyor 14b that moves in the vertical direction and is equipped with a support claw 14a that supports the lower end of the pallet a, and a guide rod 14c that faces the front surface of the chain conveyor 14b. A transport path 14d for the pallet a is formed between the reversing element 15 and the reversing element 15 above the reversing element 15.

The inverter 15 is an arm rod 15 made of a pair of left and right angle members whose roots are swingably supported on the machine frame 12.
a, 15a are interlocked with an air cylinder 15b so that they can be freely switched between an upright position and a horizontal position.

The discharge device 18 includes a group of left and right rollers 18a that support both sides of the pallet a and tilt toward the front as a whole, a support body 18b that supports this, a shaft 18c that swingably supports this, and the shaft 18c.
via the link 18d, and the roller group 18a
and an air cylinder 18e that starts swinging to both sides.

Reference numeral 19 designates an unloading chain conveyor for transporting the pallet a unloaded by the third lifter 17 to the unloading section 21, and 20 represents a receiving bucket provided on the underside of the conveyor 9 for collecting dust, foreign matter, etc.

Next, the operation of this device will be explained according to the operation diagrams shown in FIGS. 5 to 7.

A predetermined number of stacked pallets a are supplied onto a chain conveyor 4 using a forklift or the like. Then, the limit switch Ls ₁ is closed, a timer (not shown) is activated, and a few seconds later a motor (not shown) is activated to drive the chain conveyor 4, thereby feeding the pallet a to a predetermined position.

This closes the limit switch _Ls2 , stops the motor that drives the chain conveyor 4, and switches the valve interposed in the hydraulic circuit that drives the lifter 5 to move the lifter 5 upward.

Next, when the topmost pallet of the loaded pallet a touches the limit switch Ls-4 installed at the top, a solenoid valve (not shown) is switched and the lifter 5
At the same time, the motor (not shown) for driving the kicker 7 is activated to operate the kicker 7,
Furthermore, the descending port feed chain conveyor 6 begins to operate, and the air cylinder 10c advances the anti-vibration rubber 10b at the tip of the L-shaped arm 10a into the transfer path 8.
The electromagnetic valve SVO-2 interposed between is energized and energized to cause the support body 10 to protrude into the guide path 8.

For this reason, the loaded pallets a on the lifter 5 are sent from the topmost one onto the chain conveyor 6 by the kicker 7, transported by the chain conveyor 6 to the guide path 8, guided by the guide 8a, and loaded under its own weight. Fall from an upright position.

In addition, the limit switch Ls of the kicker 7 and the chain conveyor 6 is installed at the return position of the kicker 7.
-5 close and stop.

During the fall, it is stopped by the upper surface 10b of the anti-vibration rubber at the tip of the L-shaped arm 10a of the support 10, and receives the first impact.

Then, by operation of a timer (not shown)
When SVO-2 is demagnetized, air cylinder 10
acts to move the support 10 backward.

Therefore, pallet a is placed on top surface 1 of conveyor 9.
It falls onto the support 10 configured at 0d and receives a second impact, and these two impacts liberate dust and the like adhering to the holes, drainage ditches, etc. of the pallet a.

When the pallet a falls onto the conveyor 9 and the limit switch Ls-8 is closed, the solenoid valve interposed in the air cylinder 13c is activated.
SVO-3 is excited to move the swinging arm 13a forward and backward.

The left and right air cylinders 13c operate in opposite directions, and in combination with a timer, are set so that the pallet a is swung a predetermined number of times. After the swinging arm 13a is operated by the air cylinder 13c to swing the pallet a by a predetermined rotation, a timer (not shown) is activated to drive the conveyor 9. Therefore, the pallet a placed on the conveyor 9 moves forward. The brush roll 11 is rotating at the same time as the power is turned on during the conveyance process.
A to 11e contact the upper and lower surfaces and both side surfaces of the pallet a to wipe each surface.

When it is carried to the tip position by the conveyor 9, it is pushed by the pallet a and closes the limit switch Ls-6, and accordingly the motor that drives the conveyor 9 is stopped and the lifter 14 is activated. , further move the lifter 5 upward,
The picker 7 and chain conveyor 6 are driven to send out the next pallet a to the guide path 8, and the lifter 14 pushes up the cleaned pallet a.

When the pallet is pushed up to a predetermined raised position by the lifter 14, the limit switch is activated.
When Ls ₇ closes, the lifter 14 stops and the solenoid valve SVO- interposed in the air cylinder 15b operates the inverter 15.
5 is energized, the pallet A is horizontally laid down with the pallet placed on the inverter 15, and the pallet a is transferred onto the carry-out conveyor 16, which sends it onto the discharge device 18.

When delivered onto the discharge device 18, this closes the limit switch Ls ₉ , and the air cylinder 18e operates the discharge device 18 accordingly, causing the frame body 18b to expand and expand inward. At the same time, the solenoid valve SVO-5 interposed in the air cylinder 15b that operates the reversor 15 is demagnetized.
Therefore, the inverter 15 returns to the upright state.
The lifter 1 located on the lower surface of this discharge device 18
7 moves upward at the same time as the power is turned on, contacts the limit switch Ls-10 in the upward movement position, and waits to stop.

Then, from the discharge device 18, this lifter 17
When the pallet a is dropped and discharged, the phototube PH-1 installed on the side senses this and moves the lifter 17 downward, and at the same time restores the frame 18a constituting the discharge device 18 to its original position. Then, by the downward movement of the lifter 17, the phototube PH-2 position provided below the phototube PH-1 is moved to the pallet a.
When it passes, the lifter 17 stops.

A predetermined number of pallets are stacked on the lifter 17 by repeating this downward movement and stopping operation.

When a predetermined number of sheets are stacked, that is, when the lifter 17 descends by a predetermined distance, the lifter 17
touches limit switch Ls-11. The lifter 17 moves further down, and then the limit switch
It descends until it touches Ls-12 and stops.

When the lifter 17 is lowered, the lifter 17
Conveyor chain 1 transports pallets a loaded on conveyor chain 1.
Upon completion of the delivery, the limit switch Ls-13 is closed to operate the conveyor chain 19, thereby transporting the paper to the take-out section 21.

When the pallet is carried out, the pallet a touches the limit switch Ls-14 and closes it.

Therefore, when the limit switch Ls-14 closes, the conveyor chain 19 stops and the lifter 17 moves upward again, causing the limit switch to close.
Touch Ls-10 and stop.

This operation is repeated to perform cleaning sequentially and continuously. In this way, according to the first invention, an impact force is applied to the pallet due to the fall to release foreign matter, dust, etc. adhering to the pallet, and then rocking is applied to the pallet to discharge the foreign matter, dust, etc. This makes it easy to remove impurities, dust, etc.
Next, by cleaning the pallet surface with a brush roll, it can be completely cleaned. In particular, by applying impact force in multiple stages, it is possible to ensure the release of dust, etc. Since the pallet is dropped so that the loading surface is approximately vertical, the impact pressure receiving area of the pallet is made relatively small, and the impact is applied to the pallet as large as possible, thereby removing foreign matter that adheres to the pallet. Since it is possible to effectively release the foreign matter and to give it a swing at the falling position, the released foreign matter can be immediately discharged to the outside, and then it is transported by the conveyor that constitutes the support body. Since the brush is cleaned in the process of cleaning, an apparatus that is efficient and automatically cleaned as a whole can be obtained, and in particular, the support body can be moved in and out of the guide path by the upper surface of the conveyor and the fluid cylinder. By forming it on the upper surface of the cushioning material at the tip of the L-shaped arm, it is possible to apply two impacts to the pallet: the upper surface of the cushioning material at the tip of the L-shaped arm and the upper surface of the conveyor, thereby reducing the amount of contaminants that adhere to the pallet. Provided with a lifter that can reliably release objects and that moves vertically following the conveyor constituting the support;
During the pallet transport process by these conveyors and lifters, the brush roll is brought into contact with the surface of the pallet to clean it.
The surface can be cleaned during the transportation process, and in particular, the pallets are carried up by a lifter, so there is no inconvenience such as the pallets that have been wiped with a brush roll being exposed again to floating foreign matter dust. In this case, the pallet lifted by the lifter can be turned horizontally by the inverter and sent out, which makes it possible to downsize the entire device and further reduce the work of stacking the pallets. It has the effect of making it easier.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one example of carrying out the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view, FIG. 2 is a side view thereof, FIG. 3 is a side view on the opposite side, and FIG. 4 is a front view of a part of FIG. 3. Figure, 5th
The figure is a perspective view of the cleaning section, FIGS. 6 to 8 are diagrams explaining the operation, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the pallet. 8... Guide path, 9... Support, 10... Support, 11... Brush cleaning device, 11a to 11e
... Rotating brush roll, 13 ... Rocking body, 14 ...
...Lifter, 15...Inverter.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A flat pallet with many depressions and holes is dropped from a high position with its mounting surface substantially perpendicular, and the pallet is subjected to several impact forces. Then, the pallet after falling is swung in a pendulum shape from both sides to shake off the impurities and dust. A method for cleaning a pallet, which comprises cleaning the surface of the pallet with a brush during the conveying and coating of the pallet. 2. A guide path that guides a flat pallet with a large number of depressions and holes waiting at a high position so that its placement surface is approximately vertical and allows it to fall freely, and a lower part of the guide path. a pallet support that can freely appear and retract within the guideway; a conveyor that receives the pallet that falls from the pallet support due to the backward movement of the pallet support and conveys the same to the outside of the guideway; A swinging body that acts on both sides of a pallet that has fallen onto the top and swings the pallet in a pendulum-like manner on a conveyor, a lifter that carries the pallet transferred upward by the conveyor, and these conveyors and lifters. This pallet cleaning device is patented in that it is provided with a brush cleaning device that comes into contact with both sides, both end surfaces, and the top and bottom surfaces of the pallet while it is being conveyed and coated. 3. A guide path that guides a flat pallet with many depressions and holes waiting at a high position so that its placement surface is approximately vertical and allows it to fall freely, and a guide path that allows the pallet to fall freely. , a pallet support that can freely move in and out of the guideway, a conveyor that receives the pallet that falls from the pallet support due to the backward movement of the pallet support and conveys it out of the guideway, and a conveyor on the conveyor. A swinging body that acts on both sides of a pallet that has fallen to swing the pallet in a pendulum shape on a conveyor; a lifter that carries the pallet upwards after being transferred by the conveyor; and a lifter that carries the pallet upward by the conveyor. A brush cleaning device is provided on the conveyor coater to contact both side surfaces, both end surfaces, and the upper and lower surfaces of the pallet, and a lifter is provided at the tip of the conveyor to carry the pallet upward, and a lifter is provided at the tip of the conveyor to carry the pallet upward. A pallet cleaning device characterized in that an inverter is provided which can be freely switched between an upright position and a horizontal position facing the front of the lifter.