An automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of food packaging machinery, and in particular to an automatic grabbing device used in a food packaging assembly line. After the food is moved to the sealing plate of the clamping seat through the conveying of the assembly line, the present invention controls the piston rod of the clamping cylinder to extend and drive the clamping plate to rotate downward and toward the sealing plate of the clamping seat, so that the food in the clamping seat can be clamped and fixed; then the control system controls the clamping arm to move so that the clamping mechanism moves upward to the conveying plane of the third conveyor, and then controls the piston rod of the clamping cylinder to retract, so that the clamped food can be freed from the restraint of the clamping mechanism and move with the third conveyor. In this way, multiple clamped foods form a group arranged in a straight line and move on the third conveyor. When the third conveyor conveys the group of foods to the packaging equipment, one-time packaging can be performed, which can avoid the steps of sorting and arranging multiple foods again, thereby effectively improving the efficiency of food packaging.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of food packaging machinery, and particularly to an automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line. Background Art

[0002] Food packaging machinery refers to machinery that can complete all or part of the food packaging process. The packaging process includes main processes such as filling, wrapping, and sealing. Using mechanical packaging products can improve production efficiency, reduce labor intensity, and meet the needs of large-scale production. Currently, in general, food to be packaged (such as cakes) is manually placed on a production line (i.e., a belt conveyor), and the food is transported by the production line to packaging equipment for corresponding processes for packaging. However, most of the food manually placed on the production line is uneven, which will result in multiple pieces of food being equally uneven when transported to the packaging equipment, which is not conducive to the simultaneous packaging of multiple pieces of food. In this case, generally, a special person is required to sort the food into a group and arrange it neatly, and this method has low efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The present invention provides an automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line to overcome the problem that existing food packaging equipment cannot arrange food neatly before packaging, resulting in low packaging efficiency.

[0004] The present invention adopts the following technical solution: An automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line includes a frame, a clamping arm, and a clamping mechanism. One end of the clamping arm is connected to the frame, and the other end of the clamping arm is connected to the clamping mechanism. The clamping arm drives the clamping mechanism to move. The feature is that: it further includes a sorting mechanism. The sorting mechanism includes a sliding seat and a sorting rod. The sliding seat is fixed on the frame. The sorting rod is rotatably connected above the slider, and one end of the sorting rod extends to the conveying plane of the production line. The clamping mechanism includes a clamping seat, a clamping plate, and a clamping cylinder. One end of the clamping seat is a baffle, and the other end is an open end. The clamping plate is hinged to the upper end of the open end of the clamping seat. The piston rod of the clamping cylinder is hinged to the clamping plate, and the other end of the clamping cylinder relative to the extending end of the piston rod is hinged above the clamping seat.

[0005] As a further improvement, the clamping arm includes a joint seat, a translation motor, and two translation rods. The two translation rods are arranged one on the left and one on the right, and one end of each of the two translation rods is rotatably connected to the frame, and the other end of each of the two translation rods is rotatably connected to the joint seat. The clamping mechanism is connected to the other side of the joint seat relative to the side where the translation rods are connected. The translation motor is fixed on the frame, and the translation motor drives one of the translation rods to rotate.

[0006] As a further improvement, the clamping arm also includes a lifting motor and two lifting rods, the two lifting rods are arranged one above and one below, and one end of the two lifting rods is rotatably connected to the clamping seat, and the other end of the two lifting rods is rotatably connected to the other side of the joint seat relatively connected to the translation rod; the lifting motor is fixed to the joint seat, and the lifting motor drives one of the lifting rods to rotate.

[0007] As a further improvement, the sorting mechanism also includes a slider, which is located on the slide and moves along the conveying direction of the assembly line, and the sorting rod is rotatably connected to the slider; a rocker arm is fixed to the other end of the sorting rod that extends relatively to the assembly line, and both ends of the slide along the moving direction of the slider are provided with vertically upward stop pins, and both ends of the slide along its own moving direction are provided with limit pins, and the limit pin and the stop pin are both located on the side away from the assembly line, and the rocker arm is located between the two limit pins, and the rocker arm extends out of the range between the two stop pins.

[0008] From the above description of the structure of the present invention, it can be seen that compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages: the present invention blocks the food in the conveying process by arranging a rotating sorting rod on the assembly line to collect the food, and then rotates the sorting rod in the opposite direction to make the food move to the positions corresponding to the length direction of the baffle of the clamping seat in sequence with the swing of the sorting rod and the conveying of the assembly line; then, the piston rod of the clamping cylinder is extended to drive the clamping plate to rotate downward and toward the baffle of the clamping seat, so that the food in the clamping seat can be clamped and fixed; then, the control system controls the clamping arm to move so that the clamping mechanism moves upward to the conveying plane of the third conveyor, and then controls the piston rod of the clamping cylinder to retract, so that the clamped food can be freed from the restraint of the clamping mechanism and move with the third conveyor. In this way, the clamped multiple foods form a group arranged in a straight line and move on the third conveyor. When the third conveyor transports the group of foods to the packaging equipment, one-time packaging can be carried out, which can avoid the steps of sorting and arranging multiple foods again, thereby effectively improving the efficiency of food packaging. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the present invention installed on an assembly line.

[0010] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the clamping mechanism.

[0011] Figure 3 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a rack and various structures connected to the rack.

[0012] Figure 4 It is a cross-sectional diagram of the connection between the joint seat and the lifting rod.

[0013] Figure 5It is a three-dimensional structure schematic diagram of the sorting mechanism.

[0014] Figure 6 It is a top view of the sorting rod of the sorting mechanism receiving food.

[0015] Figure 7 It is a top view of the sorting rod of the sorting mechanism releasing food.

[0016] Figure 8 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the clamping mechanism clamping food onto the third conveyor. Detailed implementation manners

[0017] The following describes the detailed implementation manners of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0018] As shown in the attached Figure 1 and 8 An automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line includes a frame 3, a clamping arm 5, a clamping mechanism 4, and a sorting mechanism 6. The frame 3 is fixed to one side of the production line 1. The sorting mechanism 6 is located on one side of the production line and can be fixed to the side beam of the production line 1 or fixed to the frame 3. Both ends of the clamping arm 5 are respectively connected to the frame 3 and the clamping mechanism 4, and the sorting mechanism 6 and the clamping mechanism 4 are arranged in sequence along the conveying direction of the production line 1. In addition, the present invention is also equipped with a set of control systems (not shown in the figure), and this control system is a PLC controller, which is used to control the orderly operation of the clamping arm 5, the clamping mechanism 4, and the sorting mechanism 6.

[0019] As shown in the attached Figure 1 and 3 As shown, the clamping arm 5 includes a joint seat 55, two translation rods 51, a translation motor 52, two lifting rods 53, and a lifting motor 54. The two translation rods 51 are arranged one on the left and one on the right, and one end of each of the two translation rods is rotatably connected to the frame 3, and the other end of each of the two translation rods 51 is rotatably connected to the joint seat 55. The translation motor 52 is fixed to the frame 3, and the translation motor 3 drives one of the translation rods 51 to rotate. As shown in the attached Figure 3 As shown, since the two translation rods 51 are arranged parallel to each other on the left and right, when the translation motor 52 drives the translation rod 51 to rotate, it can drive the other translation rod 51 to rotate, thereby driving the joint seat 55 to move left and right in the direction of the horizontal swing amplitude of the translation rod 51. In addition, the two lifting rods 53 are arranged parallel to each other, one above the other, and one end of each of the two lifting rods 53 is rotatably connected to the clamping mechanism 4, and the other end of each of the two lifting rods 53 is rotatably connected to the other side of the joint seat 55 opposite to the side connected to the translation rod 51. The lifting motor 54 is fixed to the joint seat 55, and the lifting motor 54 drives one of the lifting rods 53 to rotate. As shown in the attached Figure 1As shown, due to the parallel arrangement of the two lifting rods 53, one above the other, when the lifting motor 54 drives the lifting rod 53 to rotate, it can drive the other lifting rod 53 to rotate, thereby driving the clamping mechanism 4 to move up and down in the direction of the amplitude of the vertical swing of the lifting rod 53. Finally, the clamping arm 5 can drive the clamping mechanism 4 to move relative to the production line 1 in two axial directions, namely horizontal and vertical, through the translation motor 52 and the lifting motor 54.

[0020] As shown in the Figure 4 attachment, taking the connection of the joint seat 55 to the lifting rod 53 as an example, the connection method of the translation rod 51 rotatably connected to the joint seat 55 and the frame 3 and the connection method of the lifting rod 53 rotatably connected to the joint seat 55 and the clamping seat 41 can both be: two end faces on the joint seat 55 are fixed with bearings 56, the end of the lifting rod 53 is sleeved with a rotating shaft 57, both ends of the rotating shaft 57 extend out of the lifting rod 53, and both ends of the rotating shaft are respectively embedded into the bearings 56 on both end faces of the joint seat 55, so as to realize the rotational connection between the lifting rod 53 and the joint seat 55. Taking the connection of the lifting motor 54 on the joint seat 55 to the lifting rod 53 as an example, the connection structure of the translation motor 52 driving the translation rod 51 to rotate and the connection structure of the lifting motor 54 driving the lifting rod 53 to rotate can both be: two end faces on the joint seat 55 are fixed with bearings 56, the end of the lifting rod 53 is sleeved with a rotating shaft 57, both ends of the rotating shaft 57 extend out of the lifting rod 53, and both ends of the rotating shaft 57 are respectively embedded into the bearings 56 on both end faces of the joint seat 55, and one end of the rotating shaft 57 is fixedly connected to the output shaft of the lifting motor through a coupling 58, so as to realize the lifting motor 54 driving the lifting rod 53 to rotate. Further, the fixed connection methods described in this embodiment can all be fixed by bolt locking or directly by welding.

[0021] As shown in the Figures 1 to 3 attachment, the clamping mechanism 4 includes a clamping seat 41, a clamping plate 42 and a clamping cylinder 43. One end of the clamping seat 41 is a baffle, and the other end is an opening. The clamping plate 42 is hinged to the upper end of the opening of the clamping seat 41. The hinging method can be welding several iron sheets with through holes on the upper edge of the opening of the clamping seat 41, then passing a round bar through the through holes of each iron sheet, and finally welding the round bar to the clamping plate 42, so as to realize the rotation of the clamping plate 42 relative to the clamping seat 41. The clamping cylinder 43 is a cylinder. The piston rod 431 of the clamping cylinder 43 is hinged to the clamping plate 42, and the other end of the clamping cylinder 43 relative to the extending end of the piston rod 431 is hinged above the clamping seat 41. Specifically, as shown in the Figure 2As shown, two connecting columns 44 are vertically fixed on the clamping seat 41, and the upper end of the clamping cylinder 43 is hinged between the two connecting columns 44 to rotate the solid clamping cylinder. When the equipment is running, the food 7 is transported by the conveyor line 1 to the clamping seat 41 until it is blocked by the baffle 411 of the clamping seat 41. At this time, the control system is used to control the piston rod 431 of the clamping cylinder 43 to extend, which can drive the clamping plate 42 to turn downward, so as to clamp the food 7 by the turned-down clamping plate 42 and the baffle 411 of the clamping seat 41, and multiple clamped foods 7 can be arranged in a straight line with the side of the baffle 411 as the reference. After the clamping mechanism 4 and the food 7 are transferred to the designated position by the clamping arm 5, for example, after being attached to Figure 1 and 3 behind the third conveyor 2 above the conveyor line 1 as shown, the foods 7 arranged in a straight line can be moved to the packaging equipment (not shown in the figure) under the transportation of the third conveyor 2. This method is convenient for the packaging equipment to perform one-time row packaging for multiple foods, eliminating the steps of re-organizing and arranging multiple foods, and can effectively improve the efficiency of food packaging.

[0022] As attached Figures 5 to 7 As shown, the sorting mechanism 6 includes a sliding seat 61, a sliding block 62 and a sorting rod 63. The sliding seat 61 is fixed on the frame 3 and is located on the side of the conveyor line 1. The sliding block 62 is located on the sliding seat 61 and moves along the conveying direction of the conveyor line 1. Specifically, a lead screw mechanism is provided on the sliding seat 61. The lead screw mechanism includes a lead screw 69 rotatably connected to the sliding seat and a lead screw motor 68 controlled by the control system. The lead screw 69 is in screw connection with the sliding block 62. The lead screw motor 68 is fixed on the sliding seat 61, and the output shaft of the lead screw motor 68 is fixedly connected to the lead screw 69. This structure is the same as the ball screw structure of the prior art. By driving the lead screw 69 to rotate by the lead screw motor 68, the sliding block 62 is realized to move on the sliding seat 61. A rotating shaft (not shown in the view) is also fixed on the sliding block 62, and a bushing 64 is sleeved on the rotating shaft. The sorting rod 63 is fixedly connected to one side of the bushing 64, and one end of the sorting rod 63 extends to the conveying plane of the conveyor line 1, so as to realize the rotation of the sorting rod 63 relative to the sliding block 62 and rotate on the conveying plane of the conveyor line 1.

[0023] Continue to attach Figures 5 to 7 As shown, a swing rod 65 is fixedly connected to the other end of the sorting rod 63 extending to the other end of the conveyor line 1, that is, the swing rod 65 is fixed on the other side of the bushing 64 relative to the sorting rod 63. Vertical stop pins 66 are provided at both ends of the sliding seat 61 along the moving direction of the sliding block 62, and limit pins 67 are provided at both ends of the sliding block 62 along its own moving direction. The limit pins 67 and the stop pins 66 are both located on the side of the sliding seat 61 away from the conveyor line 1. The swing rod 65 is located between the two limit pins 67, and the swing rod 65 extends beyond the range between the two stop pins 66.

[0024] Further, the pipeline 1 includes two first conveyors 11 and a second conveyor 12 connected end to end. The first conveyor 11, the second conveyor 12, and the third conveyor 2 mentioned above are all belt conveyors in the prior art. A light sensor 13 is also provided at one end of the second conveyor 12 close to the first conveyor 11. The light sensor 13 is used to sense the number of foods passing by, and convert the sensed number into an electrical signal and transmit it to the control system. After reaching the preset number, the control system controls the first conveyor 11 to pause according to the written program. The specific pause time is the time for the food to be transferred from the second conveyor 12 and the clamping mechanism 4 to the third conveyor 2. During this process, the second conveyor 12 is always in operation. This method can make the number of foods conveyed to the clamping mechanism 4 through the second conveyor 12 the same each time, which is convenient for grouping and packaging of foods. At the same time, the lead screw motor 68 of the lead screw mechanism, the translation motor 52 and the lifting motor 54 of the clamping arm 5, and the clamping cylinder 43 of the clamping mechanism 4 operate according to the program written in the control system. Preferably, the speed at which the lead screw mechanism drives the slider 62 to move is approximately the same as the moving speed of the second conveyor 12. A light sensor for counting is also provided at a position on the second conveyor 12 close to the initial position side of the clamping seat 41. The light sensor faces the opening of the clamping seat 41. After the light sensor at this position senses a preset number of foods, it transmits a signal to the control system, and the control system receives this signal and controls the clamping mechanism 4 and the clamping arm 5 to operate in sequence.

[0025] The operation process of the present invention is as follows:

[0026] As shown in the Figure 6 attachment, when the lead screw mechanism drives the slider 62 to move away from the clamping mechanism 4, during this process, when the swing rod 65 moves to the position of the stop pin 66, the slider 62 continues to move and the swing rod 65 can cause the sorting rod 63 to swing towards the clamping mechanism 4 under the action of the stop pin 66 until it stops after the limit pin 67 blocks the swing rod 65. At this time, the sorting rod 63 can be in a state inclined relative to the conveying direction on the conveying plane of the pipeline 1, and at this time, the foods 7 during the conveying process can be blocked by the sorting rod 63 and lean on the sorting rod 63 in sequence based on the side of the sorting rod 63 and be neatly arranged;

[0027] After that, as shown in the Figure 7As shown, the lead screw mechanism drives the slider to move toward one end of the clamping mechanism 4, so that the swing rod 65 is blocked by the stop pin 66, so that the sorting rod 63 slowly swings toward the clamping mechanism 4 along with the movement of the slider 62. During this process, the food 7 leaning against the side of the sorting rod 63 moves to various positions corresponding to the length direction of the baffle 411 of the clamping seat 41 in sequence along with the conveying of the assembly line 1. This method can prevent the food from deviating from the position of the clamping seat 41 during the conveying process, thereby preventing the clamping seat 41 from being unable to clamp the food 7 that has deviated from the position;

[0028] Finally, as attached Figure 8 As shown, when all the foods 7 are moved into the clamping seat 41 through the opening of the clamping seat 41, the control system controls the piston rod 431 of the clamping cylinder 43 to extend, driving the clamping plate 42 to rotate downward and toward the baffle 411 of the clamping seat 41, thereby clamping and fixing the foods 7 in the clamping seat 41; then the control system controls the clamping arm 5 to move, so that the clamping mechanism 4 moves upward to the conveying plane of the third conveyor 2, and then controls the piston rod 431 of the clamping cylinder 43 to retract, so that the clamped foods can be freed from the constraints of the clamping mechanism 4 and move with the third conveyor 2. In this way, the clamped multiple foods 7 form a group arranged in a straight line and move on the third conveyor 2. When the third conveyor 2 conveys the group of foods 7 to the packaging equipment, they can be packaged at one time, which can avoid the steps of sorting and arranging multiple foods again, thereby effectively improving the efficiency of food packaging.

[0029] The above is only a specific implementation of the present invention, but the design concept of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any non-substantial changes to the present invention using this concept shall be deemed as an infringement of the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line, comprising a frame, a clamping arm and a clamping mechanism. One end of the clamping arm is connected to the frame, and the other end of the clamping arm is connected to the clamping mechanism. The clamping arm drives the clamping mechanism to move. Characterized in that: It further includes a sorting mechanism, which includes a sliding seat, a sorting rod and a slider. The sliding seat is fixed on the frame. The slider is located on the sliding seat and moves along the conveying direction of the production line. The sorting rod is rotatably connected to the slider, and one end of the sorting rod extends to the conveying plane of the production line. A swing rod is fixed at the other end of the sorting rod relative to the extension to the other end of the production line. Vertical stop pins are provided at both ends of the sliding seat along the moving direction of the slider. Limit pins are provided at both ends of the slider along its own moving direction. The limit pins and the stop pins are both located on the side away from the production line. The swing rod is located between the two limit pins, and the swing rod extends beyond the range between the two stop pins. The clamping mechanism includes a clamping seat, a clamping plate and a clamping cylinder. One end of the clamping seat is a baffle, and the other end is open. The clamping plate is hinged to the upper end of the open part of the clamping seat. The piston rod of the clamping cylinder is hinged to the clamping plate, and the other end of the clamping cylinder relative to the extending end of the piston rod is hinged above the clamping seat. The production line includes two first conveyors and a second conveyor that are connected end to end. The working method of the device is as follows: During the process of the slider moving towards the end away from the clamping mechanism, when the swing rod moves to the position of the stop pin, the slider continues to move and the swing rod is blocked by the stop pin, causing the sorting rod to swing towards the clamping mechanism end until it stops after the limit pin blocks the swing rod. At this time, the sorting rod is in a state inclined relative to the conveying direction on the conveying plane of the production line, so that the food during the conveying process is blocked by the sorting rod and leans against the sorting rod in sequence with the side of the sorting rod as the reference and is neatly arranged. During the process of the slider moving towards the end close to the clamping mechanism, the swing rod is blocked by the stop pin and the sorting rod slowly swings towards the clamping mechanism direction as the slider moves. At this time, the food leaning against the side of the sorting rod moves to the respective positions corresponding to the length direction of the baffle of the clamping seat in sequence with the conveying of the production line. When the food has all moved into the clamping seat through the open part of the clamping seat, the piston rod of the clamping cylinder extends, driving the clamping plate to rotate downward and towards the baffle of the clamping seat to clamp and fix the food in the clamping seat. Then the clamping arm moves to make the clamping mechanism move upward to the conveying plane of the third conveyor. The piston rod of the clamping cylinder then retracts. Thus, the clamped food can be released from the restraint of the clamping mechanism and move with the third conveyor to complete the grasping and transfer of the food.

2. An automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line according to claim 1, Characterized in that: The clamping arm includes a joint seat, a translation motor and two translation rods. The two translation rods are arranged, one on the left and the other on the right, and one end of each of the two translation rods is rotatably connected to the frame, and the other end of each of the two translation rods is rotatably connected to the joint seat; the clamping mechanism is connected to the other side of the joint seat opposite to the side connected to the translation rods; the translation motor is fixed to the frame, and the translation motor drives one of the translation rods to rotate.

3. The automatic grasping device applied to a food packaging production line according to claim 2, characterized in that: the clamping arm further includes a lifting motor and two lifting rods. The two lifting rods are arranged, one above the other, and one end of each of the two lifting rods is rotatably connected to the clamping seat, and the other end of each of the two lifting rods is rotatably connected to the other side of the joint seat opposite to the side connected to the translation rods; the lifting motor is fixed to the joint seat, and the lifting motor drives one of the lifting rods to rotate.

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