US20140048172A1 - Particulate material supplying apparatus - Google Patents
Particulate material supplying apparatus Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20140048172A1 US20140048172A1 US13/968,715 US201313968715A US2014048172A1 US 20140048172 A1 US20140048172 A1 US 20140048172A1 US 201313968715 A US201313968715 A US 201313968715A US 2014048172 A1 US2014048172 A1 US 2014048172A1
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- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- particulate material
- discharge
- gutter
- hopper
- supplying apparatus
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G65/00—Loading or unloading
- B65G65/30—Methods or devices for filling or emptying bunkers, hoppers, tanks, or like containers, of interest apart from their use in particular chemical or physical processes or their application in particular machines, e.g. not covered by a single other subclass
- B65G65/34—Emptying devices
- B65G65/40—Devices for emptying otherwise than from the top
- B65G65/48—Devices for emptying otherwise than from the top using other rotating means, e.g. rotating pressure sluices in pneumatic systems
- B65G65/489—Devices for emptying otherwise than from the top using other rotating means, e.g. rotating pressure sluices in pneumatic systems in the form of rotating tubular chutes
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B37/00—Supplying or feeding fluent-solid, plastic, or liquid material, or loose masses of small articles, to be packaged
- B65B37/04—Supplying or feeding fluent-solid, plastic, or liquid material, or loose masses of small articles, to be packaged by vibratory feeders
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B01—PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR APPARATUS IN GENERAL
- B01F—MIXING, e.g. DISSOLVING, EMULSIFYING OR DISPERSING
- B01F35/00—Accessories for mixers; Auxiliary operations or auxiliary devices; Parts or details of general application
- B01F35/71—Feed mechanisms
- B01F35/717—Feed mechanisms characterised by the means for feeding the components to the mixer
- B01F35/71785—Feed mechanisms characterised by the means for feeding the components to the mixer using slides or vibrating tables
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B1/00—Packaging fluent solid material, e.g. powders, granular or loose fibrous material, loose masses of small articles, in individual containers or receptacles, e.g. bags, sacks, boxes, cartons, cans, or jars
- B65B1/30—Devices or methods for controlling or determining the quantity or quality or the material fed or filled
- B65B1/32—Devices or methods for controlling or determining the quantity or quality or the material fed or filled by weighing
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B37/00—Supplying or feeding fluent-solid, plastic, or liquid material, or loose masses of small articles, to be packaged
- B65B37/08—Supplying or feeding fluent-solid, plastic, or liquid material, or loose masses of small articles, to be packaged by rotary feeders
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
- B65B37/00—Supplying or feeding fluent-solid, plastic, or liquid material, or loose masses of small articles, to be packaged
- B65B37/16—Separating measured quantities from supply
- B65B37/18—Separating measured quantities from supply by weighing
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G27/00—Jigging conveyors
- B65G27/04—Load carriers other than helical or spiral channels or conduits
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G47/00—Article or material-handling devices associated with conveyors; Methods employing such devices
- B65G47/34—Devices for discharging articles or materials from conveyor
- B65G47/46—Devices for discharging articles or materials from conveyor and distributing, e.g. automatically, to desired points
- B65G47/50—Devices for discharging articles or materials from conveyor and distributing, e.g. automatically, to desired points according to destination signals stored in separate systems
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G69/00—Auxiliary measures taken, or devices used, in connection with loading or unloading
- B65G69/10—Obtaining an average product from stored bulk material
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01G—WEIGHING
- G01G13/00—Weighing apparatus with automatic feed or discharge for weighing-out batches of material
- G01G13/16—Means for automatically discharging weigh receptacles under control of the weighing mechanism
Definitions
- the present invention relates to the technical field of automatic packaging machines that automatically package a material (contents) in a film bag (packaging material).
- the present invention relates to a particulate material supplying apparatus that is capable of supplying a specified amount of a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles to an automatic packaging machine.
- Existing automatic packaging machines automatically package a particulate material (contents) as follows: the material is temporarily stored in a hopper of the automatic packaging machine, the material is weighed and divided into portions having predetermined weights while bags are being formed, the portions of the material are put into the bags through openings in the bags, the openings are sealed (heat sealed), and the bags are separated into individual packages.
- Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-226845 describes an existing particulate material supplying apparatus for weighing a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles, such as seeds of plants and ingredients of processed foods, and for supplying the particulate material to an automatic packaging machine.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus has the following structure. A material is discharged from a discharge portion of a hopper; the material is continuously dispensed through a dispensing pipe, which is inclined downward and rotated by rotation means in one direction, into a receiving member; and the material is weighed by a weighing scale. When the weight of the material reaches a predetermined value, opening/closing means opens a cover of the receiving member, and the weighed material is discharged.
- the Publication states that, with such a structure, the weighed object (material) can be dispensed accurately in predetermined amounts, and therefore it is possible to prevent an increase in cost and man-hours for disposal of erroneously packaged products, which may occur when the material is packaged in excessively large or small amounts.
- such an existing particulate material supplying apparatus has the following problem. That is, because a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is dispensed by means of rotation in one direction and the downward inclination of the dispensing pipe, the apparatus cannot sufficiently loosen the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled. Therefore, the particulate material is dispensed in a state in which its particles are clustered or entangled, so that the dispensed amount varies.
- the present invention provides a particulate material supplying apparatus that is capable of supplying a particulate material whose particles tend to cluster together or become entangled, which is difficult to dispense by using existing particulate material supplying apparatuses, to an automatic packaging machine in a predetermined amount.
- a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper; a feeder that transports the dispensed particulate material to a weighing scale; the weighing scale that receives and weighs the transported particulate material; a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls a dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a transporting operation of the feeder, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter.
- the discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section.
- the controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeder by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
- the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are sufficiently loosened, because the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter, haying an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, performs a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated. That is, when the discharge gutter swings by switching its rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened.
- a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a plurality of discharge gutters that extend diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispense the particulate material in the hopper; a plurality of feeders that transport the dispensed particulate material to a plurality of weighing scales; the plurality of weighing scales that receive and weigh the transported particulate material; a plurality of supply shutters that receive the weighed particulate material and feed the particulate material to a collective utter; a collective shutter that receives the particulate material fed from the supply shutters and collectively feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls dispensing operations of the discharge gutters, transporting operations of the feeders, weighing operations of the weighing scales, feeding operations of the supply shutters, and a collective feeding operation of the collective shutter.
- the discharge gutters each include an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section.
- the controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeders by causing each of the discharge gutters to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the openings in the inclined gutter portions face upward.
- the controller controls the weighing scales so that the weighing scales receive the particulate material transported by the feeders and perform the weighing operations until a weight of the transported particulate material reaches a reference value determined for each of the weighing scales.
- the controller controls the supply shutters so that the supply shutters feed the particulate material to the collective shutter at release timings determined for the supply shutters.
- the controller controls the collective shutter so that the collective shutter collectively feeds the particulate material to the machine in the next process step at a predetermined feed timing after a total weight of the particulate material fed from the supply shutters has reached a predetermined weight of material to be packed into a package bag.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (2) With the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (2), the following effect can be obtained in addition to that of the apparatus described in (1) because the apparatus includes the discharge gutters, the feeders, the weighing scales, and the supply shutters, which are parallelly arranged in rows and are operated simultaneously, and the weighed particulate material fed from the plurality of rows are collectively fed to a machine in the next process step, the time required for supplying the material can be reduced in accordance with the number of rows.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus may further include a discharge member that is disposed in the hopper and connected to the discharge gutter and that first dispenses the particulate material.
- the discharge member is provided with a stirring bar that stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the discharge gutter performs the swinging motion.
- the stirring bar of the discharge member of the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (3) stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the discharge gutter performs the swinging motion, a larger amount of particulate material can be smoothly dispensed from the hopper to the discharge gutter.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus may further include a material regulation bar that extends into the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter through the opening, the material regulation bar being supported by a base of the particulate material supplying apparatus in such a way that a vertical position thereof is adjustable.
- the material regulation bar levels off the particulate material in the discharge gutter and stirs the particulate material.
- the material regulation bar of the discharge gutter particulate material supplying apparatus described in (4) levels off the particulate material in the discharge gutter and stirs the particulate material. Therefore, the particles of particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled can be more efficiently loosened.
- the feeder may include a trough that receives the dispensed. particulate material from the discharge gutter and transports the particulate material and a vibrator that vibrates the trough to provide means for transporting the particulate material.
- the trough includes at least one stepped portion that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough.
- the stepped portion of the trough of the feeder described in (5) accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough. Therefore, gaps formed between particles of the particulate material when the particles were loosened can be substantially eliminated.
- a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper; a weighing scale that receives and weighs the dispensed particulate material; a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter.
- the discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section.
- the controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the weighing scale by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
- the particles of a particulate material. that tend to cluster together or become entangled are sufficiently loosened, because the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter, having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, performs a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated. Moreover, because the feeder is omitted, the particulate material supplying apparatus can be reduced in size and cost.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus has the following advantages.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus can supply an accurate amount of particulate material whose particles tend to cluster together or become entangled, which is difficult to dispense using existing technologies, to an automatic packaging machine by sufficiently loosening the particles of the particulate material.
- the particulate material supplying apparatus can be manufactured at low cost. Moreover, in the case where the particulate material supplying apparatus includes plural supply mechanisms that are parallelly arranged, the particulate material can be supplied at high speed. Therefore, the particulate material supplying apparatus can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high speed.
- FIG. 1 is a. front view of a single-row particulate. material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 2 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus
- FIG. 3 is a front view of a multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 4 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus
- FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view of a discharge gutter of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a home position (initial state);
- FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus in a rightward (forward) rotated position;
- FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus in a leftward (backward) rotated position;
- FIG. 8 is a schematic front view illustrating a discharge member, provided with a stirring bar, of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a home position (initial state);
- FIG. 9 is a schematic front view illustrating the discharge member, provided with the stirring bar, of the discharge gutter in a rightward (forward) rotated position;
- FIG. 10 is a schematic side view of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, further including a material regulation bar disposed in the discharge gutter;
- FIG. 11 is en enlarged view illustrating a. discharge member and a discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 12 illustrates examples of the cross-sectional shape of a discharge member according to an embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 13 illustrates examples of the outer shape of a discharge member according to an embodiment of the present invention
- FIG. 14 is a front view of a single-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 15 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to the other embodiment.
- FIG. 16 is a front view of a multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 17 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to the other embodiment.
- FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a feeder of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIGS. 19A to 19D illustrate an operation of the feeder.
- FIG. 1 is a from view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 1 .
- FIG. 2 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 1 .
- the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 1 includes a hopper 10 , an inclination adjustment base 11 , a discharge member 13 , and a discharge gutter 14 .
- the hopper 10 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles.
- the inclination adjustment base 11 supports the hopper 10 in such a way that the inclination of the hopper 10 is adjustable.
- the discharge member 13 (not illustrated in FIG. 1 , see FIG. 2 ), which is disposed in a lower region inside the hopper 10 , first dispenses the particulate material in the hopper 10 .
- the discharge gutter 14 moves together with the discharge member 13 and transports the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in the hopper 10 .
- the discharge gutter 14 includes an inclined gutter portion having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof.
- the discharge gutter 14 is connected to the discharge member 13 through a connection member 12 .
- a gutter-side transmission gear 15 is fitted onto the discharge gutter 14 .
- a motor-side transmission gear 16 is attached to a driving motor 17 , which rotates the discharge gutter 14 to a predetermined angle.
- the transmission gears 15 and 16 mesh with each other.
- a feeder 18 is disposed directly below an outlet of the inclined gutter portion the discharge gutter 14 .
- the feeder 18 transports the particulate material, which has been received from the discharge gutter 14 , rightward in FIG. 2 by means of vibration while diffusing the particulate material.
- a supply shutter 19 is disposed directly below an outlet of the feeder 19 .
- the supply shutter 19 is connected to a weighing scale 20 so that the weighing scale 20 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into the supply shutter 19 .
- the members described above are mounted on a base 23 .
- a controller 21 and an operation panel 22 are disposed under the base 23 .
- the controller 21 performs various control operations of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 .
- the operation panel 22 is used to perform various input/output operations on the controller 21 .
- a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles (not shown) is stored in the hopper 10 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 10 is compressed in a lower region inside the hopper 10 due to gravity.
- the motion of the discharge gutter 14 will be described.
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 (described above) is fitted onto a base portion of the discharge gutter 14 .
- the motor-side transmission gear 16 meshes with the gutter-side transmission gear 15 , so that the rotational force of the driving motor 17 is transmitted to the discharge gutter 14 .
- the driving motor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 leftward (counterclockwise) in FIG. 1
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates the discharge gutter 14 rightward (clockwise) (hereinafter referred to as “forward”).
- the driving motor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 15 rightward
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates the discharge gutter 14 leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”).
- the driving motor 17 rotates leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotates rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the leftward. and rightward rotations.
- the discharge gutter 14 which is connected to the driving motor 17 through gears, rotates forward to a predetermined angle, then rotates backward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion.
- the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of the discharge gutter 14 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the opening.
- the rotational speeds of the discharge gutter 14 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angle of the discharge gutter 14 which is adjusted using the inclination adjustment base 11 , are factors that determine the loosening effect due to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angle of the discharge gutter 14 and higher the rotational speed of the discharge gutter 14 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened.
- the smaller the inclination angle of the discharge gutter 14 the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases.
- the discharge member 13 which is connected to the discharge gutter 14 through the connection member 12 , performs a swinging motion (forward and backward rotations) in the hopper 10 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 10 is dispensed to the discharge gutter 14 .
- the discharge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion in forward and backward directions as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to the discharge gutter 14 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material is supplied to the feeder 18 .
- the feeder 18 further diffuses the particulate, material received from the discharge gutter 14 and causes the particulate material to gradually fall into the supply shutter 19 by means of vibration.
- the supply shutter 19 is connected to the weighing scale 20 .
- the outlet of the supply shutter 19 is opened (not shown), and an accurately weighed amount of particulate material is supplied to a machine in the next process step.
- the controller 21 of the particulate material supplying apparatus controls the overall operations of the apparatus 1 , including the dispensing operation of the discharge gutter 14 , the transport operation of the feeder 18 , the weighing operation of the weighing scale 20 , and the feeding operation of the supply shutter 19 .
- Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from the controller 21 through the operation panel 22 .
- FIG. 3 is a front view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 .
- FIG. 4 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 .
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 includes a hopper 30 , an inclination adjustment base 31 , discharge members 33 , and discharge gutters 34 .
- the hopper 30 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles.
- the inclination adjustment base 31 supports the hopper 30 in such a way that the inclination of the hopper 30 is adjustable.
- the discharge members 33 which are disposed in lower regions inside the hopper 30 , first dispense the particulate material in the hopper 30 .
- the discharge gutters 34 move together with the discharge members 33 and transport the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in the hopper 30 .
- the discharge gutters 34 include inclined gutter portions each having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Base portions of the discharge gutters 34 are connected to the discharge members 33 through connection members 32 . Gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto the discharge gutters 34 . Motor-side transmission gears 36 are attached. to driving motors 37 that rotate the discharge gutters 34 . The transmission gears 35 and 36 mesh with each other.
- Feeders 38 are disposed directly below outlets of inclined gutter portions of the discharge gutters 34 .
- the feeders 38 transport the particulate material, which has been received from the discharge gutters 34 , by means of vibration while diffusing the particulate material.
- Supply shutters 39 are disposed directly below outlets of the feeders 38 .
- the supply shutters 39 are connected to weighing scales 40 so the weighing scales 40 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into the supply shutters 39 .
- a collective shutter 44 is disposed directly below outlets of the supply shutters 39 .
- the collective shutter 44 receives the particulate material from each of the supply shutters 39 and collectively feeds the particulate material to the next process step at a predetermined timing.
- the members described above are mounted on a base 43 .
- a controller 41 and an operation panel 42 are disposed under the base 43 .
- the controller 41 performs various control operations of the particulate material supplying apparatus 3 .
- the operation panel 42 is used to perform various input/output operations on the controller 41 .
- a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is stored in the hopper 30 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 30 is compressed in a lower region inside the hopper 30 due to gravity.
- the motion of the discharge gutters 34 will be described.
- the gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto the discharge gutters 34 .
- the motor-side transmission gears 36 mesh with the gutter-side transmission gears 35 , so that the rotational forces of the driving motors 37 are transmitted to the discharge gutters 34 .
- the driving motors 37 rotate leftward in FIG. 3
- the discharge gutters 34 rotate rightward (hereinafter referred to as “forward”).
- the driving motors 37 rotate rightward
- the discharge gutters 34 rotate leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”).
- the driving motors 37 rotate leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotate rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the leftward and rightward rotations.
- the discharge gutters 34 which are connected to the driving motors 37 through gears, rotate forward to a predetermined angle, then rotate backward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutters 24 each perform a swinging motion.
- a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened.
- the inclined gutter portions of the discharge gutters 34 each have an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of the discharge gutters 34 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the openings.
- the rotational speeds of the discharge gutters 34 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angles of the discharge gutters 34 which are adjusted using the inclination adjustment base 31 , are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angles of the discharge gutters 34 and higher the rotational speeds of the discharge gutters 34 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angles of the discharge gutters 34 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases.
- the discharge members 33 which are connected to the discharge gutters 34 through the connection members 32 , each perform a swinging motion in the hopper 30 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 30 is dispensed to the discharge gutters 34 .
- the discharge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to the discharge gutters 34 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material is supplied to the feeders 38 .
- the feeders 38 further diffuse the particulate material received from the discharge gutters 34 and cause the particulate material to gradually fall into the supply shutters 39 by means of vibration.
- the supply shutters 39 are connected to the weighing scales 40 .
- the weighing scales 40 continue weighing the particulate material until the weights of the particulate material reach predetermined reference values. After the weights of the particulate material have reached the reference values, at release, timings determined for the supply shutters 39 , the outlets of the supply shutters 39 are opened and the weighed particulate material is supplied to the collective shutter 44 .
- the collective shutter 44 collectively feeds the particulate material, which has been accurately weighed, to a machine in the next process step.
- the controller 41 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 3 controls the overall operations of the apparatus 3 , including the dispensing operations of the discharge gutters 34 , the transport operations of the feeders 38 , the weighing operations of the weighing scales 40 , the feeding operations of the supply shutters 39 , and the collective feeding operation of the collective shutter 44 .
- Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from the controller 41 through the operation panel 47 .
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 feeds the particulate material in the amount that is the sum of the particulate material discharged from the plural discharge gutters 34 , so that the time required for the amount of the particulate material to reach a predetermined amount needed in the next process step is considerably reduced.
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 can supply the particulate material in the amount needed in the next process step within a time that is a fraction of that of the single-row particulate material. supplying apparatus 1 . Therefore, the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high. speed.
- FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 according to an embodiment of the present invention in a home position (initial state).
- FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 in a rightward (forward) rotated position.
- FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 in a leftward (backward) rotated position.
- a particulate material 50 has been dispensed in the discharge gutter 14 or 34 in the home position (initial state) before performing a swinging motion. At this time, the particles of the particulate material, which have just been dispensed, are partially clustered or entangled.
- the discharge gutter 14 or 34 is rotated rightward (forward) to a predetermined angle by the driving motor 17 or 37 , which is connected to the discharge gutter 14 or 34 through gears. At this time, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 is applied to the particulate material 50 in the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the discharge gutter 14 or 34 is rotated leftward (backward) to a predetermined angle by the driving motor 17 or 37 , which is connected to the discharge gutter 14 or 34 through gears. At this time, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 is applied to the particulate material 50 in the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the discharge gutter 14 or 34 performs a swinging motion. Every time the discharge gutter 14 or 34 changes the rotation direction during the swinging motion, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the transported particulate material 50 . As a result, the particles of the particulate material 50 , which tend to cluster together or become entangled, are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened.
- the particulate material 50 examples include seaweed flakes, tea leaves, ingredients of processed foods (dried meat, dried vegetable), toppings for boiled rice, and seeds of plants, particulate snack foods, drugs, and screws.
- the controller 21 or 41 of the particulate material supplying apparatuses 1 or 3 controls the swinging motion of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 by appropriately and freely changing the rotation angle and the rotational speed. of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the swinging motion may be controlled by changing the rotation angle and the rotational speed during the swinging motion, instead of setting the rotation angle and the rotational speed at constant values.
- a stirring force applied to the particulate material varies, so that the particles of the particulate material can be loosened in a more complex way.
- FIG. 8 is a schematic front view illustrating the discharge member 13 or 33 , provided with a stirring bar 60 , of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 in the home position (initial state).
- FIG. 9 is a schematic front view illustrating the discharge member 13 or 33 , provided with the stirring bar 60 , of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 in a rightward (forward) rotated position.
- FIG. 8 illustrates the discharge gutter 14 or 34 in the home position (initial state) before performing a swinging motion.
- the discharge member 13 or 33 which is disposed in a lower region inside the hopper 10 or 30 , is attached to the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the discharge member 13 or 33 performs a swinging motion in the hopper 10 or 30 so as to dispense the particulate material in the hopper 10 or 30 to the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the discharge member 13 or 33 is provided with the stirring bar 60 that stirs the particulate material in corporation with the swinging motion of the hopper 10 or 30 .
- the stirring bar 50 which is attached to the hopper 10 or 30 , also rotates rightward (forward) to a predetermined angle.
- the stirring bar 60 actively stirs the particulate material in the hopper 10 or 30 , so that a larger amount of particulate material is dispensed from the hopper 10 or 30 to the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- FIG. 10 is a schematic side view of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 , further including a material regulation bar 70 disposed in the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the particulate material 50 dispensed from the hopper 10 or 30 , is transported from the left side to the right side in FIG. 10 .
- the particulate material 50 is transported due to the inclination of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 (as illustrated in FIG. 10 ) and the swinging motion of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the material regulation bar 70 which is supported by the base of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 , is inserted through the opening in the upper surface of the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- the material regulation bar 70 levels off the particulate material 50 in the discharge gutter 14 or 34 and stirs the particulate material 50 .
- the particulate material 50 becomes a particulate material 51 , which has a uniform height. Accordingly, the particles of the particulate material having a property of more easily clustering together or becoming entangled can be loosened more efficiently, and the variation in the amount of the particulate material supplied to the discharge gutter and beyond can be reduced.
- a base portion of the material regulation bar 70 is attached to a vertical adjuster 71 so that the height of the material regulation bar 70 can be adjusted. With the vertical adjuster 71 , the degree to which the particles of the particulate material are loosened and the height of the particulate material 51 , which has been leveled off, can be adjusted.
- FIG. 11 is an enlarged view illustrating the discharge member 13 or 33 and the discharge gutter 14 or 34 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 or 3 .
- FIG. 12 illustrates examples (1) to (4) of the cross-sectional shape of the discharge member 13 or 33 .
- FIG. 13 illustrates examples (1) to (9) of the shape of the discharge member 13 or 33 .
- FIG. 11 illustrates the hopper 10 or 30 , in which a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is stored; the discharge member 33 , which is disposed in a over region inside the hopper 10 or 30 and which first dispenses the particulate material in the hopper 10 or 30 ; and the discharge gutter 14 or 34 , which moves together with the discharge member 13 or 33 and transports the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in the hopper 10 or 30 .
- the discharge gutter 14 or 34 includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in the upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section.
- the discharge gutter 14 or 34 is connected to the discharge member 13 or 33 through the connection member 12 or 32 .
- a sectional view of the discharge member 13 or 33 taken along line A-A is illustrated on the left side of the discharge gutter 14 or 34
- a sectional view of the discharge member 13 or 33 taken along line B-B is illustrated on the right side of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 .
- FIG. 12 illustrates examples (1) to (4) of the cross-sectional shape of the discharge member 13 or 33 .
- FIG. 13 illustrates examples (1) to (9) of the cuter shape of the discharge member 13 or 33 .
- the shape of the discharge member 13 or 33 may be modified in various ways in accordance with the property of the particulate material.
- a discharging member having a protrusion for breaking clusters of the particles is selected. Examples of such discharge members are (2), (3), and (4) in FIG. 12 ; and (2), (3), (5), (6), (8), and (9) in FIG. 13 .
- a discharge member having a simple shape with which entanglement with the particles can be avoided is selected. Examples of such discharge members are (1) FIGS. 12 ; and (1), (4), and (7) in FIG. 13 .
- FIG. 14 is a front view of a single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 according to another embodiment of the present invention.
- FIG. 15 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 .
- FIG. 16 is a front view of a multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 according to another embodiment of the present. invention.
- FIG. 17 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 .
- the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus. 4 does not include the feeder 18 , which is included in the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 .
- Other components of the apparatus 4 are the same as those of the apparatus 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 .
- the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 includes a hopper 10 , an inclination adjustment base 11 , a discharge member 13 , and a discharge gutter 14 .
- the hopper 10 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles.
- the inclination adjustment base 11 supports the hopper 10 in such a way that the inclination of the hopper 10 is adjustable.
- the discharge member 13 (not illustrated in FIG. 14 , see FIG.
- the discharge gutter 14 moves together with the discharge member 13 and transports the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in the hopper 10 .
- the discharge gutter 14 includes an inclined gutter portion having a substantially U-shaped Cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof.
- the discharge gutter 14 is connected to the discharge member 13 through a connection member 12 .
- a gutter-side transmission gear 15 is fitted onto the discharge gutter 14 .
- a motor-side transmission gear 16 is attached to a driving motor 17 that rotates the discharge gutter 14 to a predetermined angle.
- the transmission gears 15 and 16 mesh with each other.
- a supply shutter 19 is disposed directly below an outlet of the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter 14 .
- the supply shutter 19 is connected to the weighing scale 20 so that the weighing scale 20 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into the supply shutter 19 .
- the members described above are mounted on a base 23 .
- a controller 21 and an operation panel 22 are disposed under the base 23 .
- the controller 21 performs various control operations of the particulate material supplying apparatus 4 .
- the operation panel 22 is used to perform various input/output operations on the controller 21 .
- a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles (not shown) is stored in the hopper 10 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 10 is compressed in a lower region inside the hopper 10 due to gravity.
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 (described above) is fitted into a base portion of the discharge gutter 14 .
- the motor-side transmission gear 15 meshes with the gutter-side transmission gear 15 , so that the rotational. force of the driving motor 17 is transmitted to the discharge gutter 14 .
- the driving motor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 leftward (counterclockwise) in FIG. 1
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates the discharge gutter 14 rightward (clockwise) (hereinafter referred to as “forward”).
- the driving motor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 rightward
- the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates the discharge gutter 14 leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”).
- the driving motor 17 rotates leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotates rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutter 14 which is connected to the driving motor 17 through gears, rotates forward to a predetermined angle, then rotates backward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion.
- the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of the discharge gutter 14 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the opening.
- the rotational speeds of the discharge gutter 14 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angle of the discharge gutter 14 which is adjusted using the inclination adjustment base 11 , are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angle of the discharge gutter 14 and higher the rotational speed of the discharge gutter 14 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angle of the discharge gutter 14 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases.
- the discharge member 13 which is connected to the discharge gutter 14 through the connection member 12 , performs a swinging motion (forward and backward rotations) in the hopper 10 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 10 is dispensed to the discharge gutter 14 .
- the discharge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion in forward and backward directions as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to the discharge gutter 14 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material gradually falls into the supply shutter 19 .
- the supply shutter 19 is connected to the weighing scale 20 .
- the outlet of the supply shutter 19 is opened (not shown), and an accurately weighed. amount of particulate material is supplied to a machine in the next process step.
- the controller 21 of the particulate material supplying apparatus 1 controls the overall operations of the apparatus 1 , including the dispensing operation of the discharge gutter 14 , the weighing operation of the weighing scale 20 , and the feeding operation of the supply shutter 19 .
- Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from the controller 21 through the operation panel 22 .
- the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 loosens the particles of the particulate material to a smaller degree, because the feeder 18 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 is omitted. Therefore, the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 may be used for a particulate material whose particles are less sticky and can be easily separated from each other by only the swinging motion of the discharge gutter 14 . Because the feeder la illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 is omitted, the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus 4 can be reduced in size and cost.
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 does not include the feeders 38 , which are included in the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 3 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 .
- Other components of the apparatus 5 are the same as those of the apparatus 3 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 .
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 includes a hopper 30 , an inclination adjustment base 31 , discharge members 33 , and discharge gutters 34 .
- the hopper 30 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles.
- the inclination adjustment base 31 supports the hopper 30 in such a way that the inclination of the hopper 30 is adjustable.
- the discharge members 33 which are disposed in lower regions inside the hopper 30 , first dispense the particulate material in the hopper 30 .
- the discharge gutters 34 move together with the discharge members 33 and transport the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in the hopper 30 .
- the discharge gutters 34 include inclined gutter portions each having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Base portions of the discharge gutters 34 are connected to the discharge members 33 through connection members 32 . Gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto the discharge gutters 34 . Motor-side transmission gears 36 are attached to driving motors 37 that rotate the discharge gutters 34 . The transmission gears 35 and 36 mesh with each other.
- Supply shutters 39 are disposed directly below outlets of the inclined putter portions of the discharge gutters 34 .
- the supply shutters 39 are connected to weighing scales 40 so that the weighing scales 40 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into the supply shutters 39 .
- a collective shutter 44 is disposed directly below the outlets of the supply shutters 39 .
- the collective shutter 44 receives she particulate material from each of the supply shutters 39 and collectively feeds the particulate material to the next process step at a predetermined timing.
- the members described above are mounted on a base 43 .
- a controller 41 and an operation panel 42 are disposed under the base 43 .
- the controller 41 performs various control operations of the particulate material supplying apparatus 5 .
- the operation panel 42 is used to perform various input/output operations on the controller 41 .
- FIGS. 16 and 17 An operation of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 , which is illustrated in FIGS. 16 and 17 , will be described. Except for the motion of the feeders 38 , the members of the multi-row particulate material. supplying apparatus 5 according to the embodiment of the present invention move in the same way those of the apparatus 3 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 .
- a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is stored in the hopper 30 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 30 is compressed in a lower region inside the hopper 30 due to gravity.
- the motion of the discharge gutters 34 will be described.
- the gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto the discharge gutters 34 .
- the motor-side transmission gears 36 mesh with the gutter-side transmission gears 35 , so that the rotational forces of the driving motors 37 are transmitted to the discharge gutters 34 .
- the driving motors 37 rotate leftward in FIG. 16
- the discharge gutters 34 rotate rightward (hereinafter referred to as “forward”).
- the driving motors 37 rotate rightward
- the discharge gutters 34 rotate leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”).
- the driving motors 37 rotate leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotate rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutters 34 which are connected to the driving motors 37 through gears, rotate forward to a predetermined angle, then rotate backward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations.
- the discharge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion.
- a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened.
- the inclined gutter portions of the discharge gutters 34 each have an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of the discharge gutters 34 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the openings.
- the rotational speeds of the discharge gutters 34 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angles of the discharge gutters 34 which are adjusted using the inclination adjustment base 31 , are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angles of the discharge gutters 34 and higher the rotational speeds of the discharge gutters 34 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angles of the discharge gutters 34 , the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases.
- the discharge members 33 which are connected to the discharge gutters 34 through the connection members 32 , each perform a swinging motion in the hopper 30 .
- the particulate material in the hopper 30 is dispensed to the discharge gutters 34 .
- the discharge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to the discharge gutters 34 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material gradually falls into the supply shutters 39 due to a vibration effect.
- the supply shutters 39 are connected to the weighing scales 40 .
- the weighing scales 40 continue weighing the particulate material until the weights of the particulate material reach predetermined reference values. After the weights of the particulate material have reached the reference values, at release timings determined for the supply shutters 39 , the outlets of the supply shutters 39 are opened and the weighed particulate material is supplied. to the collective shutter 44 .
- the collective shutter 44 collectively feeds the particulate material that has been accurately weighed to a machine in the next process step.
- the controller 41 of the particulate material. supplying apparatus 5 controls the overall operations of the apparatus 5 , including the dispensing operations of the discharge gutters 34 , the weighing operations of the weighing scales 40 , the feeding operations of the supply shutters 39 , and the collective feeding operation of the collective shutter 44 .
- Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from the controller 41 through the operation panel 42 .
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 illustrated in FIGS. 16 and 17 feeds the particulate material in the amount that is the sum of the particulate material discharged from the plural discharge gutters 34 , so that the time required for the amount of the particulate material to reach a predetermined amount needed in the next process step is considerably reduced.
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 can supply the particulate material in the amount needed in the next process step within a time that is a fraction of that of the single-row particulate material. supplying apparatus 4 . Therefore, the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high speed.
- the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 loosens the particles of the particulate material to a smaller degree, because the feeders 38 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 are omitted. Therefore, the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 may be used for a particulate material whose particles are less sticky and can be easily separate from each other by only the swinging motion of the discharge gutters 34 . Because the feeders 38 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 are omitted, the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus 5 can be reduced in size and cost.
- a portion of the feeder 18 or 38 illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 that receives the particulate material fallen from the discharge gutter 14 or 34 will be referred to as a “trough”.
- the trough has a gutter-like shape having a substantially V-shaped cross section.
- a bottom portion of the trough, which extends linearly, has a function of loosening the particles of the particulate material fallen from the discharge gutter 14 or 34 while transporting the particulate material at a constant speed.
- the trough has a function of arranging the particles of the loosened particulate material on the bottom portion of the trough so that the particles of the particulate material that have been separated from each other can regularly fall onto a device in the next step (the supply shutter 19 or 39 in FIGS. 1 to 4 ) from the outlet of the trough. If there were gaps between the particles of the particulate material arranged on the bottom portion of the trough and the particles fall from the outlet of the trough, the following problems would occur. That is, when weighing the particulate material using a device in the next step (the supply shutter 19 or 39 in FIGS. 1 to 4 ), an idle time occurs due to the presence of the gaps and the time required for weighing varies. As a result, an error in the measured weight may occur or the weighing speed of the particulate material supplying apparatus may decrease.
- the length of the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter 14 or 34 or the length of the trough of the feeder 18 or 38 is made sufficiently large, so that the particles of the particulate material, which have been separated from each other, can be arranged without gaps therebetween and the particles can smoothly and continuously fall into the supply shutter 19 or 39 that is used to weigh the particulate material.
- the length of the trough of the feeder 18 or 38 is not increased. Instead, a stepped portion is formed on the bottom portion of the trough so that gaps between the particles of the particulate material that have been separated from each other can be substantially eliminated and the particles can be arranged without gaps therebetween.
- FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the feeder 18 or 38 of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
- FIGS. 19A to 19C illustrate an operation of the feeder 18 or 38 of a particulate material supplying apparatus.
- the feeder 18 or 38 of the particulate material supplying apparatus includes a trough 80 , a trough outlet 81 , a first bottom portion 90 , a stepped portion 91 , and a second bottom portion 92 .
- the trough 80 receives the particulate material fallen from a discharge putter. After the particles of the particulate material have been loosened. and arranged, the particulate material is fed to a device in the next step (the supply shutter 19 or 39 in FIGS.
- the first bottom portion 90 first receives the particulate material from the discharge gutter.
- the stepped portion 91 is formed in a transport. path of the particulate material along the trough. After the particles of the particulate material have been loosened and arranged, that particles are located on the second bottom portion 92 .
- the feeder 18 or 38 further includes a base 82 , coil springs 33 , an electromagnet 86 , and plate springs 84 and 85 .
- the base 82 is a base of a vibrator that vibrates the body of the trough in such a way that the particulate material. received by the trough is moved in the transport direction.
- the coil springs 83 absorb vibration of the vibrator so that the body of the particulate material supplying apparatus might not be affected by the vibration.
- the electromagnet 86 repeats an operation of attracting and releasing the body of the trough so as to move the trough in such a way that the particulate material is moved in the transport direction.
- the plate springs 84 and 85 connect the trough 30 and the base 82 of the vibrator to each other and, by being warped as the electromagnet 86 repeats the operation of attracting and releasing the body of the trough, contributes to generation of vibration for transporting the particulate material.
- the feeder 18 or 38 includes the trough 80 and the vibrator.
- the trough 80 receives the particulate material dispensed from a discharge gutter and transports the particulate material.
- the vibrator provides a means of transporting the particulate material by vibrating the trough 80 .
- the vibrator includes the base 82 , the coil springs 83 for absorbing vibration, the plate springs 84 and 85 for contributing to the vibration for transportation, and the electromagnet 86 .
- the trough 30 includes at least one stepped portion 91 that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough in order to substantially eliminate gaps between the particles of the particulate material, which were generated when the particles were loosened.
- FIG. 19A illustrates particles 52 and 53 of a particulate material, which have entered the trough 80 from the left end of the trough 80 and are being transported along the upper surface of the first bottom portion 90 , seen the left side.
- the vibrator vibrates the trough 80 with a predetermined amplitude. Due to the vibration and the downward inclination of the feeder 18 or 38 in the transport direction, the particles 52 and 53 are moved toward the outlet 81 at a transportation speed that depends on the amplitude of the vibration. Then, the particles 52 and 53 fall from the outlet 51 at the right end of the trough 80 to a device in the next step (the supply shutter 19 or 39 in FIGS. 1 to 4 ). While the particles 52 and 53 are being transported along the first bottom portion 90 as illustrated in FIG. 19A , there is a gap H between the particles 52 and 53 .
- FIG. 19B is a cross-sectional view of the trough 80 taken along line X-X of FIG. 19A , illustrating the positional relationship among the trough 80 , the first bottom portion 90 , the stepped portion 91 , the second bottom portion 92 , and the particle 53 .
- the particle 52 (not shown) and the particle 53 are moving along the first bottom portion 90 and about to pass the stepped portion 91 .
- FIG. 190 illustrates the particles 52 and 53 on the trough 80 at a time when only the particle 53 has passed the stepped portion 91 , seen from the left side.
- the particle 52 is still located on the first bottom portion 90 , and only the particle 53 has passed the stepped portion 91 and moved to the second bottom portion 92 .
- the particle 53 was accelerated in accordance with the inclination angle of the stepped portion 91 .
- the particle 53 is located at the tail end of the row of particles that are being transported along the second bottom portion 92 . In this state, there still remains a gap H′ between the particles 52 and 53 .
- FIG. 19D illustrates the particles 52 and 53 on the trough 80 at a time when both the particles 52 and 53 have passed the stepped portion 91 , seen from the left side.
- the particle 52 has passed the stepped portion 91 and is moving along the second bottom portion 92 .
- the particle 52 was accelerated in accordance with the inclination angle of the stepped portion 91 .
- the particle 52 is in contact with the particle 53 transported along the second bottom portion 92 .
- the length of the trough of the feeder 18 or 38 is not increased. Instead, a stepped portion is formed on the bottom portion of the trough so that gaps between the particles of the particulate material that have been separated can be substantially eliminated and the particles can be arranged without gaps therebetween.
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Abstract
A particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material, a discharge gutter that dispenses the particulate material, a feeder that transports the particulate material to a weighing scale, the weighing scale that weighs the particulate material, a supply shutter that feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing, and a controller that controls the operations of these devices. The discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and a substantially U-shaped cross section. The controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeder by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
Description
- 1. Field of the Invention
- The present invention relates to the technical field of automatic packaging machines that automatically package a material (contents) in a film bag (packaging material). In particular, the present invention relates to a particulate material supplying apparatus that is capable of supplying a specified amount of a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles to an automatic packaging machine.
- 2. Description of the Related Art
- Existing automatic packaging machines automatically package a particulate material (contents) as follows: the material is temporarily stored in a hopper of the automatic packaging machine, the material is weighed and divided into portions having predetermined weights while bags are being formed, the portions of the material are put into the bags through openings in the bags, the openings are sealed (heat sealed), and the bags are separated into individual packages.
- Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-226845 describes an existing particulate material supplying apparatus for weighing a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles, such as seeds of plants and ingredients of processed foods, and for supplying the particulate material to an automatic packaging machine. The particulate material supplying apparatus has the following structure. A material is discharged from a discharge portion of a hopper; the material is continuously dispensed through a dispensing pipe, which is inclined downward and rotated by rotation means in one direction, into a receiving member; and the material is weighed by a weighing scale. When the weight of the material reaches a predetermined value, opening/closing means opens a cover of the receiving member, and the weighed material is discharged. The Publication states that, with such a structure, the weighed object (material) can be dispensed accurately in predetermined amounts, and therefore it is possible to prevent an increase in cost and man-hours for disposal of erroneously packaged products, which may occur when the material is packaged in excessively large or small amounts.
- However, such an existing particulate material supplying apparatus has the following problem. That is, because a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is dispensed by means of rotation in one direction and the downward inclination of the dispensing pipe, the apparatus cannot sufficiently loosen the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled. Therefore, the particulate material is dispensed in a state in which its particles are clustered or entangled, so that the dispensed amount varies.
- The present invention provides a particulate material supplying apparatus that is capable of supplying a particulate material whose particles tend to cluster together or become entangled, which is difficult to dispense by using existing particulate material supplying apparatuses, to an automatic packaging machine in a predetermined amount.
- (1) According to a first aspect of the present invention, a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper; a feeder that transports the dispensed particulate material to a weighing scale; the weighing scale that receives and weighs the transported particulate material; a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls a dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a transporting operation of the feeder, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter. The discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section. The controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeder by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
- With the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (1), the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are sufficiently loosened, because the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter, haying an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, performs a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated. That is, when the discharge gutter swings by switching its rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened.
- (2) According to a second aspect of the present invention, a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a plurality of discharge gutters that extend diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispense the particulate material in the hopper; a plurality of feeders that transport the dispensed particulate material to a plurality of weighing scales; the plurality of weighing scales that receive and weigh the transported particulate material; a plurality of supply shutters that receive the weighed particulate material and feed the particulate material to a collective utter; a collective shutter that receives the particulate material fed from the supply shutters and collectively feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls dispensing operations of the discharge gutters, transporting operations of the feeders, weighing operations of the weighing scales, feeding operations of the supply shutters, and a collective feeding operation of the collective shutter. The discharge gutters each include an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section. The controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeders by causing each of the discharge gutters to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the openings in the inclined gutter portions face upward. The controller controls the weighing scales so that the weighing scales receive the particulate material transported by the feeders and perform the weighing operations until a weight of the transported particulate material reaches a reference value determined for each of the weighing scales. The controller controls the supply shutters so that the supply shutters feed the particulate material to the collective shutter at release timings determined for the supply shutters. The controller controls the collective shutter so that the collective shutter collectively feeds the particulate material to the machine in the next process step at a predetermined feed timing after a total weight of the particulate material fed from the supply shutters has reached a predetermined weight of material to be packed into a package bag.
- With the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (2), the following effect can be obtained in addition to that of the apparatus described in (1) because the apparatus includes the discharge gutters, the feeders, the weighing scales, and the supply shutters, which are parallelly arranged in rows and are operated simultaneously, and the weighed particulate material fed from the plurality of rows are collectively fed to a machine in the next process step, the time required for supplying the material can be reduced in accordance with the number of rows.
- (3) The particulate material supplying apparatus may further include a discharge member that is disposed in the hopper and connected to the discharge gutter and that first dispenses the particulate material. The discharge member is provided with a stirring bar that stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the discharge gutter performs the swinging motion.
- Because the stirring bar of the discharge member of the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (3) stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the discharge gutter performs the swinging motion, a larger amount of particulate material can be smoothly dispensed from the hopper to the discharge gutter.
- (4) The particulate material supplying apparatus may further include a material regulation bar that extends into the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter through the opening, the material regulation bar being supported by a base of the particulate material supplying apparatus in such a way that a vertical position thereof is adjustable. The material regulation bar levels off the particulate material in the discharge gutter and stirs the particulate material.
- The material regulation bar of the discharge gutter particulate material supplying apparatus described in (4) levels off the particulate material in the discharge gutter and stirs the particulate material. Therefore, the particles of particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled can be more efficiently loosened.
- (5) In the particulate material supplying apparatus, the feeder may include a trough that receives the dispensed. particulate material from the discharge gutter and transports the particulate material and a vibrator that vibrates the trough to provide means for transporting the particulate material. The trough includes at least one stepped portion that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough.
- The stepped portion of the trough of the feeder described in (5) accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough. Therefore, gaps formed between particles of the particulate material when the particles were loosened can be substantially eliminated.
- (6) According to a third aspect of the present invention, a particulate material supplying apparatus includes a hopper that stores a particulate material; a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper; a weighing scale that receives and weighs the dispensed particulate material; a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and a controller that controls dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter. The discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section. The controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the weighing scale by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
- With the particulate material supplying apparatus described in (6), the particles of a particulate material. that tend to cluster together or become entangled are sufficiently loosened, because the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter, having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, performs a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated. Moreover, because the feeder is omitted, the particulate material supplying apparatus can be reduced in size and cost.
- As described above, the particulate material supplying apparatus according to the present invention has the following advantages.
- (1) The particulate material supplying apparatus can supply an accurate amount of particulate material whose particles tend to cluster together or become entangled, which is difficult to dispense using existing technologies, to an automatic packaging machine by sufficiently loosening the particles of the particulate material.
- (2) Because of a simple structure, the particulate material supplying apparatus can be manufactured at low cost. Moreover, in the case where the particulate material supplying apparatus includes plural supply mechanisms that are parallelly arranged, the particulate material can be supplied at high speed. Therefore, the particulate material supplying apparatus can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high speed.
-
FIG. 1 is a. front view of a single-row particulate. material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 2 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus; -
FIG. 3 is a front view of a multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 4 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus; -
FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view of a discharge gutter of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a home position (initial state); -
FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus in a rightward (forward) rotated position; -
FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus in a leftward (backward) rotated position; -
FIG. 8 is a schematic front view illustrating a discharge member, provided with a stirring bar, of the discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a home position (initial state); -
FIG. 9 is a schematic front view illustrating the discharge member, provided with the stirring bar, of the discharge gutter in a rightward (forward) rotated position; -
FIG. 10 is a schematic side view of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, further including a material regulation bar disposed in the discharge gutter; -
FIG. 11 is en enlarged view illustrating a. discharge member and a discharge gutter of the particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 12 illustrates examples of the cross-sectional shape of a discharge member according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 13 illustrates examples of the outer shape of a discharge member according to an embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 14 is a front view of a single-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 15 is a left side view of the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to the other embodiment; -
FIG. 16 is a front view of a multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention; -
FIG. 17 is a left side view of the multi-row particulate material supplying apparatus according to the other embodiment; -
FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a feeder of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; and -
FIGS. 19A to 19D illustrate an operation of the feeder. - Hereinafter, embodiments of a particulate material supplying apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, the structure of a single-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.FIG. 1 is a from view of the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1.FIG. 2 is a left side view of the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1. Referring toFIGS. 1 and 2 , the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1 includes ahopper 10, aninclination adjustment base 11, adischarge member 13, and adischarge gutter 14. Thehopper 10 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles. Theinclination adjustment base 11 supports thehopper 10 in such a way that the inclination of thehopper 10 is adjustable. The discharge member 13 (not illustrated inFIG. 1 , seeFIG. 2 ), which is disposed in a lower region inside thehopper 10, first dispenses the particulate material in thehopper 10. Thedischarge gutter 14 moves together with thedischarge member 13 and transports the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in thehopper 10. - The
discharge gutter 14 includes an inclined gutter portion having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Thedischarge gutter 14 is connected to thedischarge member 13 through aconnection member 12. A gutter-side transmission gear 15 is fitted onto thedischarge gutter 14. A motor-side transmission gear 16 is attached to a drivingmotor 17, which rotates thedischarge gutter 14 to a predetermined angle. The transmission gears 15 and 16 mesh with each other. - A
feeder 18 is disposed directly below an outlet of the inclined gutter portion thedischarge gutter 14. Thefeeder 18 transports the particulate material, which has been received from thedischarge gutter 14, rightward inFIG. 2 by means of vibration while diffusing the particulate material. Asupply shutter 19 is disposed directly below an outlet of thefeeder 19. Thesupply shutter 19 is connected to a weighingscale 20 so that the weighingscale 20 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into thesupply shutter 19. The members described above are mounted on abase 23. Acontroller 21 and anoperation panel 22 are disposed under thebase 23. Thecontroller 21 performs various control operations of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1. Theoperation panel 22 is used to perform various input/output operations on thecontroller 21. - An operation of the single-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 1, which is illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 , will be described. - (1) A particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles (not shown) is stored in the
hopper 10. The particulate material in thehopper 10 is compressed in a lower region inside thehopper 10 due to gravity. - (2). The motion of the
discharge gutter 14 will be described. The gutter-side transmission gear 15 (described above) is fitted onto a base portion of thedischarge gutter 14. The motor-side transmission gear 16 meshes with the gutter-side transmission gear 15, so that the rotational force of the drivingmotor 17 is transmitted to thedischarge gutter 14. When the drivingmotor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 leftward (counterclockwise) inFIG. 1 , the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates thedischarge gutter 14 rightward (clockwise) (hereinafter referred to as “forward”). When the drivingmotor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 15 rightward, the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates thedischarge gutter 14 leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”). Under the control of thecontroller 21, the drivingmotor 17 rotates leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotates rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the leftward. and rightward rotations. Likewise, thedischarge gutter 14, which is connected to the drivingmotor 17 through gears, rotates forward to a predetermined angle, then rotates backward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations. Thus, thedischarge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion. As a result, when thedischarge gutter 14 swings by switching its rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened. - (3) Because the inclined gutter portion of the
discharge gutter 14 has an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of thedischarge gutter 14 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the opening. In addition to the rotation angle of thedischarge gutter 14, the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutter 14 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angle of thedischarge gutter 14, which is adjusted using theinclination adjustment base 11, are factors that determine the loosening effect due to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angle of thedischarge gutter 14 and higher the rotational speed of thedischarge gutter 14, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angle of thedischarge gutter 14, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases. - (4) As the
discharge gutter 14 moves, thedischarge member 13, which is connected to thedischarge gutter 14 through theconnection member 12, performs a swinging motion (forward and backward rotations) in thehopper 10. Thus, the particulate material in thehopper 10 is dispensed to thedischarge gutter 14. As thedischarge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion in forward and backward directions as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to thedischarge gutter 14 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material is supplied to thefeeder 18. - (5) The
feeder 18 further diffuses the particulate, material received from thedischarge gutter 14 and causes the particulate material to gradually fall into thesupply shutter 19 by means of vibration. - (6) The
supply shutter 19 is connected to the weighingscale 20. When the weight of the particulate material becomes a predetermined value, the outlet of thesupply shutter 19 is opened (not shown), and an accurately weighed amount of particulate material is supplied to a machine in the next process step. - (7) The
controller 21 of the particulate material supplying apparatus controls the overall operations of theapparatus 1, including the dispensing operation of thedischarge gutter 14, the transport operation of thefeeder 18, the weighing operation of the weighingscale 20, and the feeding operation of thesupply shutter 19. Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from thecontroller 21 through theoperation panel 22. - Next, the structure of a multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 3 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.FIG. 3 is a front view of the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3.FIG. 4 is a left side view of the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3. - Referring to
FIGS. 3 and 4 , the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3 includes ahopper 30, aninclination adjustment base 31,discharge members 33, and dischargegutters 34. Thehopper 30 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles. Theinclination adjustment base 31 supports thehopper 30 in such a way that the inclination of thehopper 30 is adjustable. Thedischarge members 33, which are disposed in lower regions inside thehopper 30, first dispense the particulate material in thehopper 30. Thedischarge gutters 34 move together with thedischarge members 33 and transport the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in thehopper 30. - The
discharge gutters 34 include inclined gutter portions each having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Base portions of thedischarge gutters 34 are connected to thedischarge members 33 throughconnection members 32. Gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto thedischarge gutters 34. Motor-side transmission gears 36 are attached. to drivingmotors 37 that rotate thedischarge gutters 34. The transmission gears 35 and 36 mesh with each other. -
Feeders 38 are disposed directly below outlets of inclined gutter portions of thedischarge gutters 34. Thefeeders 38 transport the particulate material, which has been received from thedischarge gutters 34, by means of vibration while diffusing the particulate material. -
Supply shutters 39 are disposed directly below outlets of thefeeders 38. Thesupply shutters 39 are connected to weighingscales 40 so the weighingscales 40 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into thesupply shutters 39. - A
collective shutter 44 is disposed directly below outlets of thesupply shutters 39. Thecollective shutter 44 receives the particulate material from each of thesupply shutters 39 and collectively feeds the particulate material to the next process step at a predetermined timing. - The members described above are mounted on a
base 43. Acontroller 41 and anoperation panel 42 are disposed under thebase 43. Thecontroller 41 performs various control operations of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3. Theoperation panel 42 is used to perform various input/output operations on thecontroller 41. - An operation of the multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 3, which is illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 , will be described. - (1) A particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is stored in the
hopper 30. The particulate material in thehopper 30 is compressed in a lower region inside thehopper 30 due to gravity. - (2) The motion of the
discharge gutters 34 will be described. The gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto thedischarge gutters 34. The motor-side transmission gears 36 mesh with the gutter-side transmission gears 35, so that the rotational forces of the drivingmotors 37 are transmitted to thedischarge gutters 34. When the drivingmotors 37 rotate leftward inFIG. 3 , thedischarge gutters 34 rotate rightward (hereinafter referred to as “forward”). When the drivingmotors 37 rotate rightward, thedischarge gutters 34 rotate leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”). Under the control of thecontroller 41, the drivingmotors 37 rotate leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotate rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the leftward and rightward rotations. Likewise, thedischarge gutters 34, which are connected to the drivingmotors 37 through gears, rotate forward to a predetermined angle, then rotate backward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations. Thus, the discharge gutters 24 each perform a swinging motion. As a result, when thedischarge gutters 34 swing by switching the rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened. - (3) Because the inclined gutter portions of the
discharge gutters 34 each have an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the openings. In addition to the rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34, the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutters 34 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angles of thedischarge gutters 34, which are adjusted using theinclination adjustment base 31, are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34 and higher the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutters 34, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angles of thedischarge gutters 34, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases. - (4) As the
discharge gutters 34 move, thedischarge members 33, which are connected to thedischarge gutters 34 through theconnection members 32, each perform a swinging motion in thehopper 30. Thus, the particulate material in thehopper 30 is dispensed to thedischarge gutters 34. As thedischarge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to thedischarge gutters 34 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material is supplied to thefeeders 38. - (5) The
feeders 38 further diffuse the particulate material received from thedischarge gutters 34 and cause the particulate material to gradually fall into thesupply shutters 39 by means of vibration. - (6) The
supply shutters 39 are connected to the weighing scales 40. The weighing scales 40 continue weighing the particulate material until the weights of the particulate material reach predetermined reference values. After the weights of the particulate material have reached the reference values, at release, timings determined for thesupply shutters 39, the outlets of thesupply shutters 39 are opened and the weighed particulate material is supplied to thecollective shutter 44. - (7) At a predetermined feed timing after the total. weight of the particulate material supplied to the
collective shutter 44 from thesupply shutters 39 has reached a predetermined weight to be fed into a packaging baa, thecollective shutter 44 collectively feeds the particulate material, which has been accurately weighed, to a machine in the next process step. - (8) The
controller 41 of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3 controls the overall operations of theapparatus 3, including the dispensing operations of thedischarge gutters 34, the transport operations of thefeeders 38, the weighing operations of the weighingscales 40, the feeding operations of thesupply shutters 39, and the collective feeding operation of thecollective shutter 44. Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from thecontroller 41 through the operation panel 47. - (9) The multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 3 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 feeds the particulate material in the amount that is the sum of the particulate material discharged from theplural discharge gutters 34, so that the time required for the amount of the particulate material to reach a predetermined amount needed in the next process step is considerably reduced. - That is, the multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 3 can supply the particulate material in the amount needed in the next process step within a time that is a fraction of that of the single-row particulate material. supplyingapparatus 1. Therefore, the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3 can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high. speed. - Here, a loosening function of the
discharge gutter 34 will be described in details. -
FIG. 5 is a schematic sectional view of thedischarge gutter material supplying apparatus FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view of thedischarge gutter material supplying apparatus FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view of thedischarge gutter material supplying apparatus - As illustrated in
FIG. 5 , aparticulate material 50 has been dispensed in thedischarge gutter - Next, as illustrated in
FIG. 6 , thedischarge gutter motor discharge gutter discharge gutter particulate material 50 in thedischarge gutter - Next, as illustrated in
FIG. 7 , thedischarge gutter motor discharge gutter discharge gutter particulate material 50 in thedischarge gutter - As the forward and backward rotations are repeated, the
discharge gutter discharge gutter particulate material 50. As a result, the particles of theparticulate material 50, which tend to cluster together or become entangled, are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened. - Examples of the
particulate material 50 include seaweed flakes, tea leaves, ingredients of processed foods (dried meat, dried vegetable), toppings for boiled rice, and seeds of plants, particulate snack foods, drugs, and screws. In accordance with the characteristics of such particulate materials, thecontroller material supplying apparatuses discharge gutter discharge gutter - The swinging motion may be controlled by changing the rotation angle and the rotational speed during the swinging motion, instead of setting the rotation angle and the rotational speed at constant values. In the case where the rotation angle and the rotational speed are changed during the swinging motion, a stirring force applied to the particulate material varies, so that the particles of the particulate material can be loosened in a more complex way.
-
FIG. 8 is a schematic front view illustrating thedischarge member bar 60, of thedischarge gutter material supplying apparatus -
FIG. 9 is a schematic front view illustrating thedischarge member bar 60, of thedischarge gutter material supplying apparatus -
FIG. 8 illustrates thedischarge gutter discharge member hopper discharge gutter discharge member hopper hopper discharge gutter FIG. 8 , thedischarge member bar 60 that stirs the particulate material in corporation with the swinging motion of thehopper - As illustrated in
FIG. 9 , when thedischarge member hopper bar 50, which is attached to thehopper bar 60 actively stirs the particulate material in thehopper hopper discharge gutter -
FIG. 10 is a schematic side view of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus material regulation bar 70 disposed in thedischarge gutter FIG. 10 , in thedischarge gutter particulate material 50, dispensed from thehopper FIG. 10 . Theparticulate material 50 is transported due to the inclination of thedischarge gutter 14 or 34 (as illustrated inFIG. 10 ) and the swinging motion of thedischarge gutter - In a case where the particles of the
particulate material 50 have a property of easily clustering together or becoming entangled, the particles of theparticulate material 50 might not be sufficiently loosened only by the swinging motion of thedischarge gutter FIG. 10 , thematerial regulation bar 70, which is supported by the base of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus discharge gutter material regulation bar 70 levels off theparticulate material 50 in thedischarge gutter particulate material 50. - As the
material regulation bar 70 levels off theparticulate material 50 moving along thedischarge gutter particulate material 50 becomes aparticulate material 51, which has a uniform height. Accordingly, the particles of the particulate material having a property of more easily clustering together or becoming entangled can be loosened more efficiently, and the variation in the amount of the particulate material supplied to the discharge gutter and beyond can be reduced. A base portion of thematerial regulation bar 70 is attached to avertical adjuster 71 so that the height of thematerial regulation bar 70 can be adjusted. With thevertical adjuster 71, the degree to which the particles of the particulate material are loosened and the height of theparticulate material 51, which has been leveled off, can be adjusted. - The embodiments are examples for carrying out the present invention. Although there are correspondences between the members of the embodiments and the elements in the claims, the invention is not limited to the embodiments and can be modified in various ways within the spirit and scope of the invention.
- Here, modifications of the discharge member of the particulate material supplying apparatus according to the embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 11 is an enlarged view illustrating thedischarge member discharge gutter material supplying apparatus FIG. 12 illustrates examples (1) to (4) of the cross-sectional shape of thedischarge member FIG. 13 illustrates examples (1) to (9) of the shape of thedischarge member FIG. 11 illustrates thehopper discharge member 33, which is disposed in a over region inside thehopper hopper discharge gutter discharge member hopper - The
discharge gutter discharge gutter discharge member connection member FIG. 11 , a sectional view of thedischarge member discharge gutter discharge member discharge gutter -
FIG. 12 illustrates examples (1) to (4) of the cross-sectional shape of thedischarge member FIG. 13 illustrates examples (1) to (9) of the cuter shape of thedischarge member - As illustrated in
FIGS. 12 and 13 , the shape of thedischarge member FIG. 12 ; and (2), (3), (5), (6), (8), and (9) inFIG. 13 . - In a case where the particles of the particulate material in the hopper have a property of easily becoming entangled, a discharge member having a simple shape with which entanglement with the particles can be avoided is selected. Examples of such discharge members are (1)
FIGS. 12 ; and (1), (4), and (7) inFIG. 13 . - Next, particulate material supplying apparatuses according to other embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 14 is a front view of a single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4 according to another embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 15 is a left side view of the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4.FIG. 16 is a front view of a multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 according to another embodiment of the present. invention.FIG. 17 is a left side view of the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5. - As illustrated in
FIGS. 14 and 15 , the single-row particulate material supplying apparatus. 4 does not include thefeeder 18, which is included in the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1 illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 . Other components of theapparatus 4 are the same as those of theapparatus 1 illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 . The single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4 includes ahopper 10, aninclination adjustment base 11, adischarge member 13, and adischarge gutter 14. Thehopper 10 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles. Theinclination adjustment base 11 supports thehopper 10 in such a way that the inclination of thehopper 10 is adjustable. The discharge member 13 (not illustrated inFIG. 14 , seeFIG. 15 ), which is disposed in a lower region inside thehopper 10, first dispenses the particulate material in thehopper 10. Thedischarge gutter 14 moves together with thedischarge member 13 and transports the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in thehopper 10. - The
discharge gutter 14 includes an inclined gutter portion having a substantially U-shaped Cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Thedischarge gutter 14 is connected to thedischarge member 13 through aconnection member 12. A gutter-side transmission gear 15 is fitted onto thedischarge gutter 14. A motor-side transmission gear 16 is attached to a drivingmotor 17 that rotates thedischarge gutter 14 to a predetermined angle. The transmission gears 15 and 16 mesh with each other. - A
supply shutter 19 is disposed directly below an outlet of the inclined gutter portion of thedischarge gutter 14. Thesupply shutter 19 is connected to the weighingscale 20 so that the weighingscale 20 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into thesupply shutter 19. The members described above are mounted on abase 23. Acontroller 21 and anoperation panel 22 are disposed under thebase 23. Thecontroller 21 performs various control operations of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4. Theoperation panel 22 is used to perform various input/output operations on thecontroller 21. - An operation of the single-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 4, which is illustrated inFIGS. 14 and 15 , will be described. Except for the motion of thefeeder 13, the members of the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4 move in the same way those of theapparatus 1 illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 . - (1) A particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles (not shown) is stored in the
hopper 10. The particulate material in thehopper 10 is compressed in a lower region inside thehopper 10 due to gravity. - (2) The motion of the
discharge gutter 14 will be described. The gutter-side transmission gear 15 (described above) is fitted into a base portion of thedischarge gutter 14. The motor-side transmission gear 15 meshes with the gutter-side transmission gear 15, so that the rotational. force of the drivingmotor 17 is transmitted to thedischarge gutter 14. When the drivingmotor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 leftward (counterclockwise) inFIG. 1 , the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates thedischarge gutter 14 rightward (clockwise) (hereinafter referred to as “forward”). When the drivingmotor 17 rotates the motor-side transmission gear 16 rightward, the gutter-side transmission gear 15 rotates thedischarge gutter 14 leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”). Under the control of thecontroller 21, the drivingmotor 17 rotates leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotates rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations. Likewise, thedischarge gutter 14, which is connected to the drivingmotor 17 through gears, rotates forward to a predetermined angle, then rotates backward to a predetermined angle, and repeats the forward and backward rotations. Thus, thedischarge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion. As a result, when thedischarge gutter 14 swings by switching its rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened. - (3) Because the inclined gutter portion of the
discharge gutter 14 has an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of thedischarge gutter 14 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the opening. In addition to the rotation angle of thedischarge gutter 14, the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutter 14 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angle of thedischarge gutter 14, which is adjusted using theinclination adjustment base 11, are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angle of thedischarge gutter 14 and higher the rotational speed of thedischarge gutter 14, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angle of thedischarge gutter 14, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases. - (4) As the
discharge gutter 14 moves, thedischarge member 13, which is connected to thedischarge gutter 14 through theconnection member 12, performs a swinging motion (forward and backward rotations) in thehopper 10. Thus, the particulate material in thehopper 10 is dispensed to thedischarge gutter 14. As thedischarge gutter 14 performs a swinging motion in forward and backward directions as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to thedischarge gutter 14 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material gradually falls into thesupply shutter 19. - (5) The
supply shutter 19 is connected to the weighingscale 20. When the weight of the particulate material becomes a predetermined value, the outlet of thesupply shutter 19 is opened (not shown), and an accurately weighed. amount of particulate material is supplied to a machine in the next process step. - (6) The
controller 21 of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 1 controls the overall operations of theapparatus 1, including the dispensing operation of thedischarge gutter 14, the weighing operation of the weighingscale 20, and the feeding operation of thesupply shutter 19. Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from thecontroller 21 through theoperation panel 22. - The single-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 4 loosens the particles of the particulate material to a smaller degree, because thefeeder 18 illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 is omitted. Therefore, the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4 may be used for a particulate material whose particles are less sticky and can be easily separated from each other by only the swinging motion of thedischarge gutter 14. Because the feeder la illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2 is omitted, the single-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 4 can be reduced in size and cost. - Next, as illustrated in
FIGS. 16 and 17 , the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 does not include thefeeders 38, which are included in the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 3 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 . Other components of theapparatus 5 are the same as those of theapparatus 3 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 . The multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 includes ahopper 30, aninclination adjustment base 31,discharge members 33, and dischargegutters 34. Thehopper 30 stores a particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles. Theinclination adjustment base 31 supports thehopper 30 in such a way that the inclination of thehopper 30 is adjustable. Thedischarge members 33, which are disposed in lower regions inside thehopper 30, first dispense the particulate material in thehopper 30. Thedischarge gutters 34 move together with thedischarge members 33 and transport the particulate material while dispensing the particulate material in thehopper 30. - The
discharge gutters 34 include inclined gutter portions each having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having an opening in an upper surface thereof. Base portions of thedischarge gutters 34 are connected to thedischarge members 33 throughconnection members 32. Gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto thedischarge gutters 34. Motor-side transmission gears 36 are attached to drivingmotors 37 that rotate thedischarge gutters 34. The transmission gears 35 and 36 mesh with each other. -
Supply shutters 39 are disposed directly below outlets of the inclined putter portions of thedischarge gutters 34. Thesupply shutters 39 are connected to weighingscales 40 so that the weighingscales 40 can weigh the particulate material which has fallen into thesupply shutters 39. - A
collective shutter 44 is disposed directly below the outlets of thesupply shutters 39. Thecollective shutter 44 receives she particulate material from each of thesupply shutters 39 and collectively feeds the particulate material to the next process step at a predetermined timing. - The members described above are mounted on a
base 43. Acontroller 41 and anoperation panel 42 are disposed under thebase 43. Thecontroller 41 performs various control operations of the particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5. Theoperation panel 42 is used to perform various input/output operations on thecontroller 41. - An operation of the multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 5, which is illustrated inFIGS. 16 and 17 , will be described. Except for the motion of thefeeders 38, the members of the multi-row particulate material. supplyingapparatus 5 according to the embodiment of the present invention move in the same way those of theapparatus 3 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 . - (1) A particulate material composed of irregularly shaped particles is stored in the
hopper 30. The particulate material in thehopper 30 is compressed in a lower region inside thehopper 30 due to gravity. - (2) The motion of the
discharge gutters 34 will be described. The gutter-side transmission gears 35 are fitted onto thedischarge gutters 34. The motor-side transmission gears 36 mesh with the gutter-side transmission gears 35, so that the rotational forces of the drivingmotors 37 are transmitted to thedischarge gutters 34. When the drivingmotors 37 rotate leftward inFIG. 16 , thedischarge gutters 34 rotate rightward (hereinafter referred to as “forward”). When the drivingmotors 37 rotate rightward, thedischarge gutters 34 rotate leftward (hereinafter referred to as “backward”). Under the control of thecontroller 41, the drivingmotors 37 rotate leftward to a predetermined angle, then rotate rightward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations. Likewise, thedischarge gutters 34, which are connected to the drivingmotors 37 through gears, rotate forward to a predetermined angle, then rotate backward to a predetermined angle, and repeat the forward and backward rotations. Thus, thedischarge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion. As a result, when thedischarge gutters 34 swing by switching the rotation direction, a horizontal stirring force at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the transport direction is applied to the material, and therefore the particles of a particulate material that tend to cluster together or become entangled are separated from each other and sufficiently loosened. - (3) Because the inclined gutter portions of the
discharge gutters 34 each have an opening in the upper surface and has a substantially U-shaped cross section, the rightward (forward) and leftward (backward) rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34 are set in a range such that the particulate material does not fall out from the openings. In addition to the rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34, the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutters 34 in the forward and backward directions and the inclination angles of thedischarge gutters 34, which are adjusted using theinclination adjustment base 31, are factors that determine the loosening effect to the swinging motion. That is, the larger the rotation angles of thedischarge gutters 34 and higher the rotational speeds of thedischarge gutters 34, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened. The smaller the inclination angles of thedischarge gutters 34, the more the particles of the particulate material are loosened, because the number of swings increases although the transportation amount of the particulate material decreases. - (4) As the
discharge gutters 34 move, thedischarge members 33, which are connected to thedischarge gutters 34 through theconnection members 32, each perform a swinging motion in thehopper 30. Thus, the particulate material in thehopper 30 is dispensed to thedischarge gutters 34. As thedischarge gutters 34 each perform a swinging motion as described above in (2) and (3), the particles of the particulate material dispensed to thedischarge gutters 34 are sufficiently loosened. After the particles have been separated from each other, the particulate material gradually falls into thesupply shutters 39 due to a vibration effect. - (5) The
supply shutters 39 are connected to the weighing scales 40. The weighing scales 40 continue weighing the particulate material until the weights of the particulate material reach predetermined reference values. After the weights of the particulate material have reached the reference values, at release timings determined for thesupply shutters 39, the outlets of thesupply shutters 39 are opened and the weighed particulate material is supplied. to thecollective shutter 44. - (6) At a predetermined feed timing after the total. weight of the particulate material supplied to the
collective shutter 44 from thesupply shutters 39 has reached a predetermined weight to be fed into a packaging bag, thecollective shutter 44 collectively feeds the particulate material that has been accurately weighed to a machine in the next process step. - (7) The
controller 41 of the particulate material. supplyingapparatus 5 controls the overall operations of theapparatus 5, including the dispensing operations of thedischarge gutters 34, the weighing operations of the weighingscales 40, the feeding operations of thesupply shutters 39, and the collective feeding operation of thecollective shutter 44. Various settings, instructions, and display items are input to and output from thecontroller 41 through theoperation panel 42. - (9) The multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 5 illustrated inFIGS. 16 and 17 feeds the particulate material in the amount that is the sum of the particulate material discharged from theplural discharge gutters 34, so that the time required for the amount of the particulate material to reach a predetermined amount needed in the next process step is considerably reduced. - That is, the multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 5 can supply the particulate material in the amount needed in the next process step within a time that is a fraction of that of the single-row particulate material. supplyingapparatus 4. Therefore, the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 can be connected to a latest-type automatic packaging machine that operates at a high speed. - The multi-row particulate
material supplying apparatus 5 loosens the particles of the particulate material to a smaller degree, because thefeeders 38 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 are omitted. Therefore, the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 may be used for a particulate material whose particles are less sticky and can be easily separate from each other by only the swinging motion of thedischarge gutters 34. Because thefeeders 38 illustrated inFIGS. 3 and 4 are omitted, the multi-row particulatematerial supplying apparatus 5 can be reduced in size and cost. - A portion of the
feeder FIGS. 1 to 4 that receives the particulate material fallen from thedischarge gutter discharge gutter - In addition, the trough has a function of arranging the particles of the loosened particulate material on the bottom portion of the trough so that the particles of the particulate material that have been separated from each other can regularly fall onto a device in the next step (the
supply shutter FIGS. 1 to 4 ) from the outlet of the trough. If there were gaps between the particles of the particulate material arranged on the bottom portion of the trough and the particles fall from the outlet of the trough, the following problems would occur. That is, when weighing the particulate material using a device in the next step (thesupply shutter FIGS. 1 to 4 ), an idle time occurs due to the presence of the gaps and the time required for weighing varies. As a result, an error in the measured weight may occur or the weighing speed of the particulate material supplying apparatus may decrease. - In the particulate
material supplying apparatus discharge gutter feeder supply shutter - However, such an increase in the length of the gutter portion of the
discharge gutter feeder - In order to prevent this, in the particulate material supplying apparatus according to the present invention, the length of the trough of the
feeder -
FIG. 18 is a perspective view of thefeeder -
FIGS. 19A to 19C illustrate an operation of thefeeder feeder FIG. 18 , thefeeder trough 80, atrough outlet 81, afirst bottom portion 90, a steppedportion 91, and asecond bottom portion 92. Thetrough 80 receives the particulate material fallen from a discharge putter. After the particles of the particulate material have been loosened. and arranged, the particulate material is fed to a device in the next step (thesupply shutter FIGS. 1 to 4 ) through thetrough outlet 81. Thefirst bottom portion 90 first receives the particulate material from the discharge gutter. The steppedportion 91 is formed in a transport. path of the particulate material along the trough. After the particles of the particulate material have been loosened and arranged, that particles are located on thesecond bottom portion 92. - The
feeder base 82, coil springs 33, anelectromagnet 86, and plate springs 84 and 85. Thebase 82 is a base of a vibrator that vibrates the body of the trough in such a way that the particulate material. received by the trough is moved in the transport direction. The coil springs 83 absorb vibration of the vibrator so that the body of the particulate material supplying apparatus might not be affected by the vibration. Theelectromagnet 86 repeats an operation of attracting and releasing the body of the trough so as to move the trough in such a way that the particulate material is moved in the transport direction. The plate springs 84 and 85 connect thetrough 30 and thebase 82 of the vibrator to each other and, by being warped as theelectromagnet 86 repeats the operation of attracting and releasing the body of the trough, contributes to generation of vibration for transporting the particulate material. - As described above, the
feeder trough 80 and the vibrator. Thetrough 80 receives the particulate material dispensed from a discharge gutter and transports the particulate material. The vibrator provides a means of transporting the particulate material by vibrating thetrough 80. The vibrator includes thebase 82, the coil springs 83 for absorbing vibration, the plate springs 84 and 85 for contributing to the vibration for transportation, and theelectromagnet 86. Thetrough 30 includes at least one steppedportion 91 that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough in order to substantially eliminate gaps between the particles of the particulate material, which were generated when the particles were loosened. - Next, the operation of the
feeder - (1)
FIG. 19A illustratesparticles trough 80 from the left end of thetrough 80 and are being transported along the upper surface of thefirst bottom portion 90, seen the left side. As illustrated inFIG. 19A , the vibrator vibrates thetrough 80 with a predetermined amplitude. Due to the vibration and the downward inclination of thefeeder particles outlet 81 at a transportation speed that depends on the amplitude of the vibration. Then, theparticles outlet 51 at the right end of thetrough 80 to a device in the next step (thesupply shutter FIGS. 1 to 4 ). While theparticles first bottom portion 90 as illustrated inFIG. 19A , there is a gap H between theparticles - (2)
FIG. 19B is a cross-sectional view of thetrough 80 taken along line X-X ofFIG. 19A , illustrating the positional relationship among thetrough 80, thefirst bottom portion 90, the steppedportion 91, thesecond bottom portion 92, and theparticle 53. Referring toFIG. 19B , the particle 52 (not shown) and theparticle 53 are moving along thefirst bottom portion 90 and about to pass the steppedportion 91. - (3)
FIG. 190 illustrates theparticles trough 80 at a time when only theparticle 53 has passed the steppedportion 91, seen from the left side. As illustrated inFIG. 19C , theparticle 52 is still located on thefirst bottom portion 90, and only theparticle 53 has passed the steppedportion 91 and moved to thesecond bottom portion 92. When theparticle 53 passed the steppedportion 91, theparticle 53 was accelerated in accordance with the inclination angle of the steppedportion 91. As a result, theparticle 53 is located at the tail end of the row of particles that are being transported along thesecond bottom portion 92. In this state, there still remains a gap H′ between theparticles - (4)
FIG. 19D illustrates theparticles trough 80 at a time when both theparticles portion 91, seen from the left side. As illustrated inFIG. 19D , theparticle 52 has passed the steppedportion 91 and is moving along thesecond bottom portion 92. When theparticle 52 passed the steppedportion 91, theparticle 52 was accelerated in accordance with the inclination angle of the steppedportion 91. As a result, theparticle 52 is in contact with theparticle 53 transported along thesecond bottom portion 92. - In this state, the gap between the
particles second bottom portion 92 are regularly arranged without gaps therebetween. - As described above, in the particulate material supplying apparatus according to the present invention, the length of the trough of the
feeder
Claims (9)
1. A particulate material supplying apparatus comprising:
a hopper that stores a particulate material;
a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper;
a feeder that transports the dispensed particulate material to a weighing scale;
the weighing scale that receives and weighs the transported particulate material;
a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and
a controller that controls a dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a transporting operation of the feeder, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter,
wherein the discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, and
wherein the controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeder by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion faces upward.
2. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a discharge member that is disposed in the hopper and connected to the discharge gutter and that first dispenses the particulate material,
wherein the discharge member is provided with a stirring bar that stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the discharge gutter performs the swinging motion.
3. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a material regulation bar that extends into the inclined gutter portion of the discharge gutter through the opening, the material regulation bar being supported by a base of the particulate material supplying apparatus in such a way that a vertical position thereof is adjustable,
wherein the material regulation bar levels off the particulate material in the discharge gutter and stirs the particulate material.
4. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the feeder includes a trough that receives the dispensed particulate material from the discharge gutter and transports the particulate material and a vibrator that vibrates the trough to provide means for transporting the particulate material, and
wherein the trough includes at least one stepped portion that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough.
5. A particulate material supplying apparatus comprising:
a hopper that stores a particulate material;
a plurality of discharge gutters that extend diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispense the particulate material in the hopper;
a plurality of feeders that transport the dispensed particulate material to a plurality of weighing scales;
the plurality of weighing scales that receive and weigh the transported particulate material;
a plurality of supply shutters that receive the weighed particulate material and feed the particulate material to a collective shutter;
a collective shutter that receives the particulate material fed from the supply shutters and collectively feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and
a controller that controls dispensing operations of the discharge gutters, transporting operations of the feeders, weighing operations of the weighing scales, feeding operations of the supply shutters, and a collective feeding operation of the collective shutter,
wherein the discharge gutters each include an inclined gutter portion having an opening in en upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section,
wherein the controller controls the discharge gutters so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the feeders by causing each of the discharge gutters to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the openings in the inclined gutter portions face upward,
wherein the controller controls the weighing scales so that the weighing scales receive the particulate material transported by the feeders and perform the weighing operations until a weight of the transported particulate material reaches a reference value determined for each of the weighing scales,
wherein the controller controls the supply shutters so that the supply shutters feed the particulate material to the collective shutter at release timings determined for the supply shutters, and
wherein the controller controls the collective shutter so that the collective shutter collectively feeds the particulate material to the machine in the next process step at a predetermined feed timing after a total weight of the particulate material fed from the supply shutters has reached a predetermined weight of material to be packed into a package bag.
6. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising:
a plurality of discharge members that are disposed in the hopper and each connected to a corresponding one of the discharge gutters and that first dispense the particulate material,
wherein each of the discharge members is provided with a stirring bar that stirs the particulate material in the hopper as the corresponding one of the discharge gutters performs the swinging motion.
7. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising:
a plurality of material regulation bars that each extend into the inclined gutter portion of a corresponding one of the discharge gutters through the opening, the material regulation bars being supported by a base of the particulate material supplying apparatus in such a way that vertical positions thereof are adjustable,
wherein the material regulation bars level off the particulate material in the discharge gutters and stir the particulate material.
8. The particulate material supplying apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein each of the feeders includes a trough that receives the dispensed particulate material from a corresponding one of the discharge gutters and transports the particulate material and a vibrator that vibrates the trough to provide means for transporting the particulate material, and
wherein the trough includes at least one stepped portion that accelerates the particulate material that is being transported along the trough.
9. A particulate material supplying apparatus comprising:
a hopper that stores a particulate material;
a discharge gutter that extends diagonally downward from a lower region inside the hopper and dispenses the particulate material in the hopper;
a weighing scale that receives and weighs the dispensed particulate material;
a supply shutter that receives the weighed particulate material and feeds the particulate material to a machine in the next process step at a predetermined timing; and
a controller that controls a dispensing operation of the discharge gutter, a weighing operation of the weighing scale, and a feeding operation of the supply shutter,
wherein the discharge gutter includes an inclined gutter portion having an opening in an upper surface thereof and having a substantially U-shaped cross section, and
wherein the controller controls the discharge gutter so that the particulate material in the hopper is dispensed to the weighing scale by causing the discharge gutter to perform a swinging motion in which a forward rotation and a backward rotation each to a predetermined angle are repeated while the opening in the inclined gutter portion fades upward.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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US14/857,441 US10059536B2 (en) | 2012-08-16 | 2015-09-17 | Particulate material supplying apparatus with a downwardly slanting discharge gutter which rotates side to side |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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JP2012-180387 | 2012-08-16 | ||
JP2012180387 | 2012-08-16 | ||
JP2012214293A JP6166880B2 (en) | 2012-08-16 | 2012-09-27 | Granular raw material feeder for automatic packaging machines |
JP2012-214293 | 2012-09-27 |
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US14/857,441 Continuation US10059536B2 (en) | 2012-08-16 | 2015-09-17 | Particulate material supplying apparatus with a downwardly slanting discharge gutter which rotates side to side |
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US20140048172A1 true US20140048172A1 (en) | 2014-02-20 |
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US14/857,441 Active 2034-09-12 US10059536B2 (en) | 2012-08-16 | 2015-09-17 | Particulate material supplying apparatus with a downwardly slanting discharge gutter which rotates side to side |
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US14/857,441 Active 2034-09-12 US10059536B2 (en) | 2012-08-16 | 2015-09-17 | Particulate material supplying apparatus with a downwardly slanting discharge gutter which rotates side to side |
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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JP2014055066A (en) | 2014-03-27 |
US10059536B2 (en) | 2018-08-28 |
CN103587976A (en) | 2014-02-19 |
JP6166880B2 (en) | 2017-07-19 |
US20160075525A1 (en) | 2016-03-17 |
CN103587976B (en) | 2017-04-19 |
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