KR102215474B1 - Articles transport device - Google Patents

Abstract

(assignment)
The present invention provides an article conveying apparatus capable of changing the interval between continuously conveyed articles at a desired position, without affecting the position or dimensions of other articles.
(Solution)
In the transfer control from the first conveyor 11 to the second conveyor 12, the first conveyor 11 and the second conveyor 12 are operated at a first driving speed V1, and the first connection part C1 ) At a predetermined speed toward the rear in the conveyance direction of the article A, and then a predetermined number of articles A are transferred from the first conveyor 11 to the second conveyor 12 and loaded. In the separation control, the first conveyor 11 is operated at a first driving speed (V1), and the second conveyor 12 is operated at a second driving speed (V2) higher than the first driving speed (V1). Also, the first connection part C1 is moved forward in the conveying direction of the article A at the same speed as the first driving speed V1. Accordingly, a predetermined number of articles transferred to and loaded onto the second conveyor 12 are separated from subsequent articles. Transfer control and separation control are alternately repeated to reciprocate the first connection portion C1 in the movable range R1.

Description

Goods transport device{ARTICLES TRANSPORT DEVICE}

The present invention relates to an article conveying apparatus capable of expanding the conveyance interval of articles to be conveyed continuously.

In the case of carrying out a plurality of processes while conveying an article, there are cases in which it is necessary to change the conveyance interval of the article due to differences in the handling unit or processing cycle of the article in each process. As a method of increasing the conveyance interval, there is known a configuration in which an article is transferred from a belt conveyor with a low conveyance speed to a belt conveyor with a high conveyance speed to increase the conveyance interval. For example, in the conveyance interval adjusting device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the same configuration is employed in order to expand the conveyance interval of the pastry sheet. However, since the sheet-shaped pastry is very soft, if you simply try to increase the conveyance interval of the pastry sheet by using a belt conveyor with different conveying speeds, the pastry sheet during transfer across both belt conveyors will be transferred at both ends. Because is different from each other, it will increase.

Therefore, in the conveyance interval adjusting device of Patent Document 1, the downstream end of the conveying (upstream) belt conveyor driven at a relatively slow conveying speed, and the receiving (downstream) driven at a relatively high conveying speed Side) The upstream side end of the belt conveyor is coped with the same problem by integrally moving the pastry toward the upstream side while the rice cakes are transferred between these belt conveyors and loaded. In other words, by shortening the time it takes to transfer each pastry cake, the height that occurs in the pastry cake is reduced.

: Japanese Patent No. 4224155

However, in the configuration of Patent Literature 1, the time taken for transferring each article to be conveyed can be shortened, but since the conveying speeds of both belt conveyors are different even in the meantime, the elongation of the pastry can not be zero none. In addition, when using the same configuration and dividing, for example, articles continuously conveyed at regular intervals into groups consisting of a predetermined number, the intervals between each article in the group are enlarged.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an article conveying apparatus capable of changing the interval between continuously conveyed articles at a desired position without affecting the position or dimensions of other articles.

The article conveying apparatus of the present invention includes a first conveyor for conveying a plurality of articles, a second conveyor for receiving and conveying articles discharged from a first conveyor disposed on an upstream side with a connecting portion therebetween, and a connecting portion for conveying articles. An article transport apparatus comprising: a connecting unit moving means for moving back and forth along a direction; and a control unit for controlling a driving speed of the first and second conveyors and a moving speed of the connecting unit, wherein the control means comprises: a first conveyor and a second conveyor Is operated at a first driving speed and the connection part is moved backward at a predetermined speed in the conveying direction of the article, thereby transferring a predetermined number of articles from the first conveyor to the second conveyor, and the first conveyor. The transfer is carried out by operating at the first driving speed, driving the second conveyor at a second driving speed higher than the first driving speed, and moving the connecting part forward at the same speed as the first driving speed toward the front in the conveying direction of the article. It is characterized by alternately repeating the separation control for separating a predetermined number of articles transferred and loaded onto the second conveyor under control from subsequent articles.

It is preferable that the article conveyance device further includes a third conveyor connected downstream of the second conveyor, and at this time, the control means is transferred to the second conveyor by, for example, a separate control performed immediately before, Separation control is carried out only during the time the goods of the are transferred to the third conveyor and loaded.

In addition, the downstream end of the third conveyor can be moved forward and backward in the conveying direction of the article, and the control means allows the third conveyor to be moved from the second conveyor to the third conveyor before being loaded. After driving at the second driving speed, and after a predetermined number of articles are transferred to and loaded onto the third conveyor, the third conveyor is operated at a third driving speed higher than the second driving speed. When the position of the downstream end is reached, the third conveyor is stopped, and in that state, the downstream end of the third conveyor is retracted toward the rear of the conveying direction of the article, thereby moving a predetermined number of articles from the head to the downstream side of the third conveyor It may be configured to discharge from the end.

Advantageous Effects of Invention According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an article conveying apparatus capable of changing the interval between continuously conveyed articles at a desired position, without affecting the positions or dimensions of other articles.

Fig. 1 is a side view schematically showing the overall configuration of an article conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an arrangement of articles and respective conveyors when separation control and article discharging to a tray are performed.
Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an arrangement of articles and respective conveyors at a point in time when discharging of articles to a tray is finished during separation control.
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the arrangement of articles and respective conveyors in a state in which articles are transferred from the second conveyor to the third conveyor during separation control.
Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the arrangement of articles and respective conveyors immediately after the end of the separation control and immediately after transfer of articles from the second conveyor to the third conveyor is completed.
6 is a diagram showing an arrangement of articles and respective conveyors when transfer control is performed.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 is a side view showing a simplified overall configuration of an article conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The article conveying apparatus 10 of this embodiment includes, for example, a first conveyor 11, a second conveyor 12 and a third conveyor 13. The first, second, and third conveyors (11, 12, 13) are arranged in one row from the upstream side to the downstream side in this order, and the conveying surfaces are all at the same level. maintain. In the present embodiment, the conveyed article (A) is, for example, a fish sausage, which is arranged vertically in the conveying direction, in close contact with each other, and continuously upstream of the fish sausage manufacturing apparatus (not shown in the drawing). It is supplied to the first conveyor 11 from).

The article A that is continuously conveyed while in close contact with the first conveyor 11 is transferred from the first conveyor 11 to the second conveyor 12 by repetition of transfer control and separation control described later. It is separated by a predetermined number. That is, in the second conveyor 12, a predetermined number of articles A are separated from the row of articles A of the first conveyor 11 as a group. In this group, the goods A are kept in close contact with each other, and a predetermined conveyance interval is provided between the groups. The article A transferred from the second conveyor 12 to the third conveyor is supplied to a tray 14 disposed below the downstream side of the third conveyor 13 in groups as described below. And piled up on the tray 14.

The first to third conveyors 11 to 13 are belt conveyors, and the conveying belt 11B of the first conveyor 11 includes a pair of snap rollers 15A, 15B) is driven across the driving pulley (16). The driving pulley 16 is rotated clockwise in the drawing by a driving motor 17, and the conveying belt 11B delivered from the driving pulley 16 through the delivery-side snap roller 15A is 1 A fixed pulley 18 that defines an upstream end of the conveyor 11, and a transfer that defines a downstream end of the first conveyor 11 It spans horizontally between the movable pulley 19 and constitutes a conveyance surface. The conveyance belt 11B is then returned to the motive pulley 16 via a side snap roller 15B received via an adjustment movable pulley 20 and a fixed pulley 21.

On the other hand, the conveyance belt 12B of the second conveyor 12 is driven across the motive pulley 23 by a pair of snap rollers 22A and 22B. The driving pulley 23 is rotated clockwise in the drawing by the drive motor 24, and the conveying belt 12B is sent out from the driving pulley 23 through the sending-side snap roller 22A, so that the fixed pulley 25 It spans through the movable pulley 26 for adjustment. Thereafter, the conveyance belt 12B is between the movable pulley 27 for transfer, which defines the upstream end of the second conveyor, and the fixed pulley 28, which defines the downstream end of the second conveyor 12. It spans horizontally to constitute a conveyance surface The conveyance belt 12B is then returned to the motive pulley 23 via the receiving side snap roller 22B.

The movable pulley 19 for transfer of the first conveyor 11 and the movable pulley 27 for transfer of the second conveyor 12 are arranged in close proximity and parallel, so that the first connection between the first and second conveyors Construct (C1). Further, the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer can be integrally moved in the front and rear directions along the conveyance direction by the transfer mechanism (connection part moving means) 29 for transfer. In addition, the movable pulleys 20 and 26 for adjustment are interlocked with the movement of the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer by the adjustment pulley moving mechanisms 30 and 31, and the movable pulley 19 and the movable pulley for adjustment are interlocked. It is moved so that the interval of 20 and the interval between the movable pulley 27 for transfer and the movable pulley 26 for adjustment are kept constant. That is, even if the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer are moved, the entire travel path of the transport belts 11B and 12B is adjusted to be kept constant, so that the tension applied to the transport belts 11B and 12B during driving is maintained constant. . Further, the first connection portion C1 constituted of the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer repeats a reciprocating motion within the movable range R1 as described later.

In addition, the conveyance belt 13B of the third conveyor 13 is driven by a pair of snap rollers 32A and 32B across the driving pulley 33. The driving pulley 33 is rotated clockwise in the drawing by the driving motor 34, and the conveying belt 13B is delivered from the driving pulley 33 through the delivery-side snap roller 32A, and the third conveyor 13 It spans the rear movable pulley 36 defining the downstream end of the third conveyor 13 through the fixed pulley 35 defining the upstream end of ). That is, the conveyance belt 13B is horizontally spanned between the fixed pulley 35 and the rear end movable pulley 36 to constitute a conveyance surface. The conveyance belt 13B is then returned to the driving pulley 33 via the movable pulley 37 for adjustment, the fixed pulley 38, and the receiving side snap roller 32B.

The fixed pulley 35 defining the upstream end of the third conveyor 13 is arranged in parallel and close to the fixed pulley 28 defining the downstream end of the second conveyor 12, It constitutes a fixed second connection part C2 between the three conveyors. Meanwhile, the rear movable pulley 36 defining the downstream end of the third conveyor 13 can be moved back and forth in the conveyance direction by the rear pulley moving mechanism 39. The rear end movable pulley 36 is integrally provided with a plate-shaped guide 40 extending downwardly obliquely in the conveying direction. The article A conveyed on the third conveyor 13 slides off the guide 40 when it reaches the rear movable pulley 36 and is sequentially discharged to the tray 14. At this time, the rear end movable pulley 36 is moved back and forth toward the upstream side in the conveying direction, as will be described later, so that the article A is uniformly arranged on the tray 14 along the conveying direction.

The rear-stage movable pulley 36 repeats a reciprocating motion within the movable range R2, as described later. At this time, the adjustment movable pulley 37 is interlocked with the movement of the rear movable pulley 36 by the adjustment pulley moving mechanism 41, so that the distance between the rear movable pulley 36 and the adjustment movable pulley 37 is kept constant. As far as possible. That is, even if the rear movable pulley 36 is moved, the length of the entire travel path of the transport belt 13B is kept constant, so that the tension applied to the transport belt 13B during travel is kept constant.

Further, in the article conveying device 10, the drive motors 17, 24, 34, the adjustment pulley moving mechanisms 30, 31, 41, the transfer pulley moving mechanism 29, and the rear pulley moving mechanism 39 The driving of each is controlled by a control unit 42.

Next, with reference to Figs. 1 to 6, the conveying operation of the present embodiment controlled by the control unit 42 will be described. 1 to 6 show the arrangement of the article A on the conveyor over one cycle of the conveying operation and the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer constituting the first connection portion C1 in the present embodiment. The arrangement of the rear end movable pulley 36 defining the rear end of the three conveyor 13 is shown in order. Here, Figs. 1 to 5 correspond to the start to end of the separation control, and Figs. 5, 6, and 1 correspond to the start to end of the transfer control. In Figs. 2 to 6, the drive motors 17, 24 and 34, the moving mechanisms 29 to 31, 39 and 41, and the control unit 42 are omitted.

In Fig. 1, the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer constituting the first connection portion C1 are located at the most upstream side of the movable range R1, and the rear end movable pulley of the third conveyor 13 A state in which 36 is located on the most downstream side (downstream end position) of the movable range R2 is shown. That is, in Fig. 1, the transfer control between the first and second conveyors 11 and 12 of the article A by the movable pulleys 19 and 27 for transfer is ended, and the separation control between the articles A The state just before the start of is shown. At this time, the group of articles A separated by the previous separation control has been moved to just before the downstream end of the third conveyor 13 as shown in FIG. 1.

In the state of Fig. 1, the transfer belts 11B and 12B of the first and second conveyors 11 and 12 are all driven at the first driving speed V1, and the transfer that constitutes the first connection portion C1. The movement of the movable pulleys 19 and 27 is stopped (the speed is zero). That is, the article A, which is continuously in close contact with the first conveyor 11 and conveyed at the first driving speed V1, is operated first while being in close contact with the second conveyor 12 through the first connection part C1. It is conveyed at speed (V1). And it is conveyed at the first driving speed V1 while maintaining a continuous and close contact state even on the second conveyor 12. Further, at this time, the driving of the third conveyor 13 is stopped.

Fig. 2 shows a state in which separation control has started from the state of Fig. 1. During the separation control, the first conveyor 11 continues to drive at the first operating speed V1, and the transfer movable pulleys 19 and 27 constituting the first connection portion C1 are on the downstream side (transfer). Direction) is moved forward at the first driving speed V1, and the second conveyor 12 is driven at a second driving speed V2 that is faster than the first driving speed V1. On the other hand, in the third conveyor 13, while the state in which the running of the conveyance belt 13B is stopped is maintained, the rear end movable pulley 36 is moved backward at a predetermined speed toward the upstream side in the conveying direction.

That is, during the separation control, the movable pulley 19 (first connection portion C1) for transfer is moved to the downstream side at the same speed as the conveyance speed of the first conveyor 11, so that the article A is transferred to the first conveyor 11 ) Is not transferred to the second conveyor 12. And since the second conveyor 12 is driven at a second driving speed V2 that is faster than the first driving speed V1 of the first conveyor 11, the second conveyor 12 is The group of articles A, which has been transferred to, is separated from the article A on the first conveyor 11 at a speed of relative speed V2-V1.

In addition, in the third conveyor 13, since the rear end movable pulley 36 defining the rear end is retracted to the upstream side, the article A at the rear end on the downstream side loses support by the conveying belt 13B, and thus guides (40) It rolls off and is sequentially discharged to the tray 14.

Fig. 3 shows that the separation control continues from the state of Fig. 2, and the head of the group of articles A separated by the second conveyor 12 reaches just before the second connection part C2, and the third conveyor ( It shows a state in which the rear end movable pulley 36 of 13) has reached the uppermost side of the movable range R2. As shown in Fig. 3, the article A on the second conveyor 12 is further separated from the article A on the first conveyor 11 than in the state shown in Fig. 2, so that the conveyance interval between the two is wider. . And the head of the group of articles A on the second conveyor 12 is in a state just before the transfer to the third conveyor 13 starts. In the state of Fig. 3, the tip of the guide 40 reaches the upstream end of the tray 14, and all the articles A on the third conveyor 13 are discharged to the tray 14. At this time, on the tray 14, the articles A are uniformly adhered and arranged over the whole.

When the state of Fig. 3 is reached, the operation of the first and second conveyors 11 and 12, the movement of the first connection part C1, and the position of the rear movable pulley 36 remain the same, and the second operation speed V2 ), the third conveyor 13 starts immediately. That is, the article A on the second conveyor 12 that has reached the second connection part C2 is from the second conveyor 12 driven at the second driving speed V2 to the second conveyor 13 above the second conveyor. It is transferred to the driving speed V2, and thereafter the state of Fig. 4 is reached. In addition, since the operating speeds of the second and third conveyors 12 and 13 are both V2, the group of articles A is not further separated by transfer through the second connection portion C2. In addition, the tray 14 of FIG. 3 filled with the article A is discharged during the transition from FIG. 3 to the state of FIG. 4, and is replaced with a new empty tray 14.

In Fig. 5, while the first joint portion C1 has reached the downstream end of the movable range R1, all groups of the articles A that have been conveyed on the second conveyor 12 up to that time are the third conveyor ( It is transferred to 13) and there is no article A on the second conveyor 12. In this state, the separation control is transferred to the transfer control, and the operating speed of the second conveyor 12 is transferred to the same first operating speed V1 as the first conveyor 11, and the first connection part ( In C1), the movement in the conveyance direction at the first driving speed V1 is stopped, and the movement in the reverse direction at the speed Vn (retreat movement to the upstream side) is transferred. In addition, at this time, the operating speed of the third conveyor 13 is transferred to a third operating speed (V3) that is faster than the second operating speed (V2), and the transport direction downstream of the rear end movable pulley 36 of the third conveyor 13 The forward movement towards the side begins.

Fig. 6 shows a state in the middle of the transfer control starting from the state in Fig. 5. The first connection part C1 is moving backward in the conveying direction upstream at a speed Vn, and the first and second conveyors 11 and 12 are driven at a first driving speed V1. That is, the article A that is continuously in close contact on the first conveyor 11 and conveyed at the speed V1 is sequentially transferred to the second conveyor 12 in the same state as it is. In addition, at this time, the third conveyor 13 is driven at the third driving speed V3 by loading the group of articles A separated by the previous separation control, and the rear movable pulley 36 of the third conveyor 13 ) Is returned to the most downstream side of the movable range R2, that is, to the downstream end position of FIG.

The retraction speed Vn of the first connection portion C1 is appropriately set corresponding to the number of articles A to be separated by the separation control. In this embodiment, when the first connection portion C1 reaches the most upstream side of the movable range R1 shown in Fig. 1 at the retraction speed Vn, the second conveyor 12 has a predetermined number of items to be separated. (A) has been transferred, so transfer control is immediately transferred to separate control. Then, the first connection portion C1 is advanced in the downstream direction at the first driving speed V1, and the operations of Figs. 1 to 5 are repeated. Accordingly, in Fig. 6, a group of articles A on the third conveyor 13 is discharged to the tray 14, and a predetermined number of articles A constituting the following group by the second conveyor 12 It is separated from the article A on the first conveyor 11.

In addition, in this embodiment, the switching timing of the reciprocating movement of the first connection portion is controlled by a timer in accordance with the progress of discharging the article from the third conveyor 13. In addition, since the operating speeds V1 and V2 are appropriately increased or decreased according to the fluctuation of the supply amount of goods per unit time from the article manufacturing apparatus on the upstream side, they are not always constant during operation.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the first conveyor and the second conveyor are driven at the same speed when performing transfer control in which an article is transferred from the first conveyor to the second conveyor, the first and second conveyors The distance between the articles does not change. In addition, after carrying out the transfer control, the first connection part is moved forward in the conveying direction at the same speed as the first conveyor, and the second conveyor is driven at a higher speed than the first conveyor, so that the article does not span conveyors with different speeds. , By using the difference in speed of the conveyor, the goods can be separated at the desired location. And during the transfer control, it is possible to repeat the transfer control and the separation control by retreating the first connection portion in the reverse direction of the transfer direction, and while separating the items continuously conveyed from the upstream side into groups sequentially. , It is possible to prevent the expansion of the distance between items in the group. That is, it is possible to change the spacing of continuously conveyed articles at a desired position, without affecting the positions or dimensions of other articles.

In addition, in this embodiment, since the article is discharged to the tray by stopping the drive of the third conveyor and moving the rear end movable pulley of the third conveyor back, the speed in the conveying direction of the discharged article is reduced. So the items are prevented from being thrown out of the tray.

In this embodiment, the transfer control is not performed until the predetermined number of articles transferred and loaded onto the second conveyor by the separation control performed immediately before are transferred to and loaded onto the third conveyor. Therefore, the third conveyor is restricted to the operating speed of the second conveyor only while the goods are being transferred from the second conveyor to the third conveyor, and for other periods, it can be operated independently from the second conveyor I can. Further, in the present embodiment, since the transfer control using the first connection is started immediately after the transfer of the article from the second conveyor to the third conveyor is completed, the time taken for separation is further shortened.

In addition, in this embodiment, the use of separating continuously conveyed articles into groups has been described as an example, but as in Patent Document 1, the article conveying apparatus of this embodiment can also be used for the purpose of changing the conveyance interval of articles. In that case, since unnecessary force such as a tensile force does not act on the articles spanning the first and second conveyors, elongation of conveyed articles such as rice cakes can be completely prevented.

Further, in this embodiment, all the conveying surfaces of the first to third conveyors are set to the same level, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, it is also possible to set the conveying surface of the downstream conveyor to be lower than the conveying surface of the upstream conveyor. It is possible.

Further, in this embodiment, articles (fish sausages) having the same length or diameter and the same shape are used as conveyed articles, and these are divided into groups consisting of a predetermined number, but the present invention is not limited to this, for example, It can also be used for grouping of returned items. Also, in this case, since the shape of each item is different, the number of items included in each group is uneven.

Further, in the present embodiment, the timing of switching of the reciprocating movement of the first connecting portion is timer controlled in accordance with the progress of discharging the article from the third conveyor. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, it is possible to switch control of the reciprocating movement of the first connection by detecting the position of the work or the number of articles by a sensor, and a motor that drives the conveyance belt. The control may be transferred by detecting the number of rotations.

10: Goods transport device
11: 1st conveyor
12: second conveyor
13: 3rd conveyor
11B, 12B, 13B: conveyance belt
14: tray
15A, 15B, 22A, 22B, 32A: Snap roller
16, 23, 33: Wondong pulley
17, 24, 34: drive motor
18, 21, 25, 28, 35, 38: fixed pulley
19, 27: movable pulley for transfer and loading
20, 26, 37: movable pulley for adjustment
29: pulley moving mechanism for transfer
30, 31, 41: adjustment pulley moving mechanism
36: rear movable pulley
39: rear pulley moving mechanism
42: control unit
A: Goods (fish sausage)
C1: first connection
C2: second connection
R1, R2: range of motion

Claims (3)

A first conveyor that continuously conveys a plurality of articles in close contact with each other ;
A second conveyor for receiving and conveying the article discharged from the first conveyor disposed on an upstream side with a connection part therebetween;
A connecting portion moving means for moving the connecting portion back and forth along the conveying direction of the article;
Control means for controlling the driving speed of the first and second conveyors and the moving speed of the connecting part
In the article conveyance device provided (物品搬送裝置),
The control means,
By driving the first conveyor and the second conveyor at a first driving speed, and moving the connecting portion backward at a predetermined speed toward the rear in the conveyance direction of the article, a predetermined number of times are carried out from the first conveyor to the second conveyor. With transfer control to transfer goods,
The first conveyor is operated at a first driving speed, the second conveyor is operated at a second driving speed that is higher than the first driving speed, and the connecting part is carried out at the same speed as the first driving speed. By moving forward toward the front, by alternately repeating the separation control for separating the predetermined number of articles transferred and loaded onto the second conveyor by the transfer control from subsequent articles ,
On the second conveyor, a predetermined number of articles are separated from the row of articles of the first conveyor as a group, and a close contact state between articles is maintained within the group, and a predetermined number between the groups is maintained. To give the return interval of
Goods transport device, characterized in that.
The method of claim 1,
And a third conveyor connected to the downstream of the second conveyor,
The control means,
The separation control is performed only during the time between the predetermined number of articles transferred and loaded onto the second conveyor by the separation control performed immediately before being transferred to the third conveyor and loaded.
Goods transport device, characterized in that.
The method of claim 2,
So that the downstream end of the third conveyor can be moved forward and backward in the conveying direction of the article,
The control means,
The third conveyor is operated at the second driving speed between the predetermined number of articles being transferred from the second conveyor to the third conveyor and loaded,
After the predetermined number of articles are transferred to the third conveyor and loaded, the third conveyor is driven at a third driving speed higher than the second driving speed,
When the predetermined number of articles reaches the position of the downstream end of the third conveyor, the third conveyor is stopped, and in that state, the downstream end of the third conveyor faces rearward in the conveying direction of the article. By moving backward, discharging the predetermined number of articles from the downstream end of the third conveyor in order from the head
Goods transport device, characterized in that.

Images