A multi-stage sorting and conveying device for waste plastic bottles

Abstract

The present invention discloses a multi-stage sorting and conveying device for waste plastic bottles, which includes a plurality of planar sorting and conveying lines that are connected end to end in the front and back and are used for conveying waste plastic bottles; the plurality of planar sorting and conveying lines are sorted in the front and back, and their heights gradually decrease and the conveying speeds gradually increase; protective fences are arranged on both sides of the planar sorting and conveying line, and at least one partition fence is arranged in the middle. The protective fence and the partition fence divide the conveying surface of the conveying mechanism into a plurality of sorted and conveyed channels arranged side by side. The beneficial effect of the present invention lies in the orderly sorting of the conveying of waste plastic bottles.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an arrangement and conveying device, in particular to a multi-stage arrangement and conveying device for waste plastic bottles. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous strengthening of garbage classification and environmental protection awareness, governments of various countries have vigorously introduced policies and regulations on garbage classification and resource recycling, prompting major international and domestic brands with social influence to join the ranks of advocating the use of or partially using recycled materials to replace virgin materials in the production of product packaging. Due to the quality control of the safety, hygiene, etc. of their own products by brand manufacturers, their selection and use of recycled materials also strictly refer to the quality standards of virgin raw materials. In the original traditional plastic bottle recycling industry, due to historical, market, on-site management, characteristics of raw materials themselves and technical reasons, most were designed with the idea of cost reduction. Employees and enterprises were mostly individuals, self-employed individuals and small and micro enterprises. Most used weighbridges to simply physically weigh the incoming materials, and relied on experience to simply classify the plastic bottles by material, color classification and accounting, and used simple mechanical conveying and compression equipment for classified compression and packing operations. Therefore, the following problems exist:

[0003] Lack of unified recycling standards and many trading disputes;

[0004] Due to the residues on the recycled plastic bottles themselves and a large amount of sundries carried during the recycling process, as well as the diversity and complexity of packaging materials, there are difficulties in pricing and many disputes during the recycling process due to the lack of unified standards and reasonable inspection means;

[0005] Low degree of automation, large operation site, high labor, transportation and warehousing costs, chaotic site, and great pressure on safety and environmental protection;

[0006] There are many varieties of plastic bottles for recycling, complex materials, large volume, a lot of plastics, and light weight (about 40,000 beverage bottles per ton). Currently, most rely on semi-mechanical conveyor belts, balers and other equipment for manual packing operations. The operation yard is large, resulting in an increase in the cost of transportation and recycling. Also for this reason, the operation site is chaotic, and the peculiar smell and equipment noise caused by the garbage and residues carried by each bring major hidden dangers to the safety of operation workers and on-site environmental protection.

[0007] Difficult to accurately classify, no guarantee of quality, high sorting cost and low recycling added value;

[0008] Due to the lack of equipment for automatic classification and sorting of original bottles (unflattened), most of them are manually sorted by skilled workers based on experience. Due to the complexity of recycling plastic bottles and the instability of manual sorting, serious quality risks have been caused, hindering the development of high-quality utilization by downstream production enterprises. The industrial beverage bottle recycling spectrum automatic sorting machine currently on the market can only adapt to the color and material sorting of plastic bottles after flattening and removing labels, and cannot identify and sort the recycling of urban plastic original bottles and recycled plastic bottles of the same material, different brands and different aging degrees. Summary of the invention

[0009] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles, so as to sort out the discarded plastic bottles in an orderly manner.

[0010] The present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions.

[0011] A multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles comprises a plurality of planar sorting and conveying lines connected end to end and used for conveying discarded plastic bottles; the plurality of planar sorting and conveying lines are arranged in a front-to-back order, with their heights gradually decreasing and their conveying speeds gradually increasing; guardrails are arranged on both sides of the planar sorting and conveying lines, and at least one dividing fence is arranged in the middle, and the guardrails and the dividing fences divide the conveying surface of the conveying mechanism into a plurality of side-by-side sorting and conveying channels.

[0012] As a further improvement of the present invention, it also includes a second climbing conveyor line; the second climbing conveyor line and the first plane finishing conveyor line are connected end to end, and the height of the rear end of the second climbing conveyor line is higher than that of the first plane finishing conveyor line.

[0013] As a further improvement of the present invention, the second climbing conveyor line is a roller conveyor.

[0014] As a further improvement of the present invention, the width of the dividing bar from the first to the second to last plane finishing conveyor line gradually decreases from back to front; the width of the dividing bar of the last plane finishing conveyor line remains unchanged from back to front.

[0015] As a further improvement of the present invention, the width of the dividing column from the first to the second to last plane finishing conveyor line is not less than the width of two side-by-side discarded plastic bottles; the width of the dividing column from the first to the second to last plane finishing conveyor line is greater than the width of the dividing column of the last plane conveyor.

[0016] As a further improvement of the present invention, both left and right side portions of the partition fence and the inner side portion of the guardrail have sloped surfaces, and the bottom edges of the sloped surfaces extend to the sorting and conveying channel.

[0017] As a further improvement of the present invention, the partition bars of the first to the penultimate planar sorting and conveying lines extend from the front end of the planar sorting and conveying lines to the middle and rear parts; the partition bar of the last planar sorting and conveying line extends from the front end of the planar sorting and conveying line to the rear end.

[0018] As a further improvement of the present invention, for the last planar sorting and conveying line, ramp plates are provided on both the left and right sides at the rear end of the sorting and conveying channel, and the bottom edges of the ramp plates extend onto the sorting and conveying channel; the width between the bottom edges of the two ramp plates is less than the width of the conveying channel and not less than the width of a single waste plastic bottle.

[0019] As a further improvement of the present invention, the front side edge of the ramp plate is an inclined edge, such that the front-to-rear length of the ramp plate gradually decreases from top to bottom.

[0020] As a further improvement of the present invention, the planar sorting and conveying line is a belt conveyor.

[0021] Advantages of the present invention:

[0022] The waste plastic bottles are adjusted in direction and sorted at intervals to form a queue in the front-to-back direction with a certain interval between the front and the back, thereby improving the accuracy of subsequent identification and classification. Description of the drawings

[0023] The following will describe in detail the preferred embodiments of the present invention with the help of drawings to facilitate understanding of the purpose and advantages of the present invention, where:

[0024] Figure 1 is the front view of the fine sorting and recycling assembly for waste plastic bottles;

[0025] Figure 2 is the structural schematic diagram of the first climbing conveyor line;

[0026] Figure 3 is the structural schematic diagram of the abnormal specification collection line;

[0027] Figure 4 is the structural schematic diagram of the second climbing conveyor line;

[0028] Figure 5 is the structural schematic diagram of the planar sorting and conveying line;

[0029] Figure 6 is the top view of the planar sorting and conveying line;

[0030] Figure 7 is the structural schematic diagram of the identification and classification device;

[0031] Figure 8 is the structural schematic diagram of the sorting device;

[0032] Figure 9 It is a schematic structural diagram of a sorting and collection line. Specific embodiments

[0033] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0034] In this specification, orientation terms such as up, down, left, right, front, back, front side, back side, top, bottom, etc., which are mentioned or may be mentioned, are defined with respect to the structures shown in the respective drawings. The terms "inner" and "outer" respectively refer to the directions towards or away from the geometric center of a specific component. They are relative concepts and may therefore change accordingly depending on their different positions and usage states. Therefore, these or other orientation terms should not be construed as restrictive terms.

[0035] Refer to Figures 1-9 , a refined sorting and recycling assembly for waste plastic bottles, including, arranged in sequence from front to back: an abnormal specification screening device 1, a multi-stage sorting and conveying device 2, an identification and classification device 3, and a sorting device 4.

[0036] The abnormal specification screening device 1 is used to input waste plastic bottles and screen out those of abnormal specifications. The abnormal specifications mainly refer to large-sized daily chemical products, with width and thickness dimensions exceeding 10 cm except for height, such as laundry detergent bottles, large shampoo bottles, washing powder barrels, etc.

[0037] The multi-stage sorting and conveying device 2 adjusts the direction of the waste plastic bottles after screening and arranges the sorting intervals. The waste plastic bottles passing through the multi-stage sorting and conveying device 2 are adjusted to the front-back direction and arranged in a queue with a certain interval between the front and the back.

[0038] The identification and classification device 3 detects and identifies the waste plastic bottles passing in an orderly manner, detects whether there are sundries in the waste plastic bottles (such as whether there are metal objects such as screws and bolts in the bottles), and identifies the specific models of the waste plastic bottles and finally classifies them.

[0039] The sorting device 4 sorts and recycles the waste plastic bottles after identification and classification according to their final classifications respectively.

[0040] The abnormal specification screening device 1 includes a first climbing conveyor line 11, a screening conveyor line 12, an abnormal specification collection line 13, and a screening mechanism disposed on the screening conveyor line 12, wherein the first climbing conveyor line 11 and the screening conveyor line 12 are connected front and back. The first climbing conveyor line 11 is inclined upward from front to back, the screening conveyor line 12 is set as a horizontal conveyor line, and the height of the rear end of the first climbing conveyor line 11 is higher than that of the screening conveyor line 12. The waste plastic bottles are conveyed by the first climbing conveyor line 11 and fall from its rear end into the screening conveyor line 12. The screening mechanism is used to capture the abnormal specification types in the waste plastic bottles and send them to the abnormal specification conveyor line.

[0041] The inclined setting of the first climbing conveyor line 11 can shake off the stacked waste plastic bottles, so as to prevent the waste plastic bottles pressed below from being unrecognized by the screening mechanism after entering the screening conveyor line 12, thereby leaking the abnormal specification types into the multi-stage sorting conveyor device 2. While the first climbing conveyor line 11 completes the delivery of waste plastic bottles, the input unit quantity can be effectively controlled by controlling its running speed to adapt to the unit recognition and sorting capabilities of the production line.

[0042] The first climbing conveyor line 11 can use a roller conveyor, a chain conveyor, or a belt conveyor. Considering avoiding the phenomenon of the qualified waste plastic bottles sliding down during transportation, it is preferably a roller conveyor. Moreover, by setting an appropriate inclination angle, some abnormal specification types with a diameter greater than 10 cm will slide off the first climbing conveyor line 11, playing a pre-screening role and reducing the working pressure of the subsequent screening mechanism. In addition, a placement platform can be provided at the front end of the first climbing conveyor line 11 to specifically stack waste plastic bottles waiting to be conveyed by the first climbing conveyor line 11.

[0043] The screening conveyor line 12 includes two screening conveyor channels 121 arranged in the front-rear direction. The screening conveyor channels 121 can use a belt conveyor or a chain conveyor. There is a screening gap 122 between the two screening conveyor channels 121. The screening gap 122 extends all the way below the screening conveyor channels 121 for the abnormal specification types to fall. Along the inner sides of the two screening conveyor channels 121, there are multiple inclined sliding plates 123. The abnormal specification types falling from the screening gap 122 can slide down along the inclined sliding plates 123. The abnormal specification collection line 13 is installed below the screening conveyor channels 121 and is directly opposite the screening gap 122 for receiving the abnormal specification types falling from the screening gap 122. The abnormal specification collection line 13 can use a belt conveyor or a chain conveyor.

[0044] A diverter plate 124 is arranged in the middle at the front ends of two screening and conveying channels 121. The left and right sides of the diverter plate 124 are respectively close to the inner sides of the corresponding screening and conveying channels 121. The diverter plate 124 slopes downward from the middle to the left and right sides, thus forming two slopes that slide into the two screening and conveying channels 121 respectively. For the waste plastic bottles that fall from the first climbing conveyor line 11 onto the screening conveyor line 12, if they fall from the left or right side, they can directly fall onto the two screening and conveying channels 121. If they fall from the middle, they will fall onto the diverter plate 124 and then slide along the diverter plate 124 onto one of the screening and conveying channels 121, so as to avoid directly falling into the screening gap 122. In addition, the front-to-back length of the diverter plate 124 is greater than the length of the waste plastic bottle, to prevent it from sliding forward from the diverter plate 124 into the screening gap 122.

[0045] The screening conveyor line 12 further includes two hoppers 125. The upper openings of the two hoppers 125 are connected to the rear ends of the two screening and conveying channels 121. The waste plastic bottles enter the upper openings of the hoppers 125 through the screening and conveying channels 121 and fall from the lower openings into the subsequent multi-stage sorting device.

[0046] The screening mechanism includes two capture cameras 14 and a screening manipulator. The two capture cameras 14 are respectively arranged at the rear ends of the two screening conveyor lines 12. Specifically, the capture cameras 14 can be installed on the hoppers 125. The capture cameras 14 identify the abnormal specification types among the waste plastic bottles on the screening and conveying channels 121, and then the abnormal specification types are thrown into the screening gap 122 from the screening and conveying channels 121 through the actions of the screening manipulator. The screening manipulator includes a planar rotation motor 151, a robotic arm 152, a lifting rod 153, and a vacuum suction cup 154. The planar rotation motor 151 is installed between the rear ends of the two screening and conveying channels 121. The robotic arm 152 is horizontally arranged, and its root is installed on the planar rotation motor 151. The planar rotation motor 151 can drive the robotic arm 152 to rotate on the plane. The lifting rod 153 is vertically installed at the end of the robotic arm 152. There is a motor in the robotic arm 152 that can drive the lifting rod 153 to move up and down. The vacuum suction cup 154 is installed at the bottom end of the lifting rod 153. The vacuum suction cup 154 is opened or closed by electromagnetic drive and is used to suck or release the abnormal specification types.

[0047] The multi-stage sorting and conveying device 2 includes a second climbing conveyor line 21 and a plurality of flat sorting and conveying lines 22 connected end to end in sequence. The front end of the second climbing conveyor line 21 is connected to the two discharge hoppers 125 of the abnormal specification screening device 1, and the rear end is connected to the front end of the first flat sorting and conveying line 22. The second climbing conveyor line 21 has the same function as the first climbing conveyor line 11, and a roller conveyor is also preferably used. The plurality of flat sorting and conveying lines 22 are arranged in sequence from front to back, with their heights gradually decreasing and conveying speeds gradually increasing. The height of the rear end of the second climbing conveyor line 21 is higher than that of the first flat sorting and conveying line 22. The waste plastic bottles conveyed by the second climbing conveyor line 21 are all horizontal. When they fall onto the first flat sorting and conveying line 22, due to the height difference, the waste plastic bottles will bounce. In the state where the flat sorting and conveying line 22 is started and running, the waste plastic bottles will rotate by a certain angle. After falling multiple times, the waste plastic bottles will be adjusted from horizontal to front-to-back direction through rotation, and through the differential speed adjustment of the plurality of flat sorting and conveying lines 22, the waste plastic bottles will be arranged in an orderly queue with a certain interval from front to back.

[0048] The flat sorting and conveying line 22 is preferably a belt conveyor. Guardrails 221 are provided on both the left and right sides thereof, and at least one partition 222 is provided in the middle of the flat sorting and conveying line 22. The guardrails 221 and the partition 222 divide the conveying surface of the flat sorting and conveying line 22 into a plurality of sorting and conveying channels 22-1 arranged side by side. In this embodiment, one partition 222 is provided, and the specific number is determined according to the specifications of the waste plastic bottles and the width of the flat sorting and conveying line 22.

[0049] When the waste plastic bottles fall from the second climbing conveyor line 21 onto the first flat sorting and conveying line 22, the horizontal waste plastic bottles will bounce, and their bottle caps or bottle bottoms will collide with the partition 222 or the guardrail 221. In cooperation with the started and running flat sorting and conveying line 22, the waste plastic bottles will rotate. The lighter waste plastic bottles will be basically adjusted from horizontal to front-to-back direction, and the heavier waste plastic bottles or the waste plastic bottles still containing liquid will be adjusted from horizontal to oblique direction. Such oblique waste plastic bottles will eventually be adjusted to the front-to-back direction after being adjusted by the flat sorting and conveying line 22 multiple times.

[0050] The waste plastic bottles on the last flat sorting conveyor line 22 are all in the front-back direction and arranged in a queue at a certain interval. Therefore, the width of the partition bar 222 of the last flat sorting conveyor line remains unchanged from the back to the front, so that the width of the flat sorting conveyor channel 22-1 is consistent. For the partition bars 222 of the remaining flat sorting conveyor lines 22, the width gradually decreases from the back to the front. When the waste plastic bottles fall from the rear end of the previous flat sorting conveyor line 22 to the front end of the next flat sorting conveyor line 22, they will collide with the partition bar 222 or the guardrail 221, rotate a certain angle and then continue to be conveyed forward. At this time, the bottle cap or the bottom of the bottle will gradually change from contact with the partition bar 222 to separation, so as not to generate resistance to the conveyance of the waste plastic bottles and slow down their forward movement speed.

[0051] When the waste plastic bottles fall on the flat sorting conveyor line 22, if they happen to fall on the partition bar 222, the waste plastic bottles will jump and finally fall onto the sorting conveyor channel 22-1. However, since they do not fall onto the sorting conveyor channel 22-1 immediately, there will be a lag phenomenon, resulting in the situation where the waste plastic bottle and the waste plastic bottles that fall later move side by side. Therefore, except for the last flat sorting conveyor line 22, the width of the partition bar 222 of the first to the second-to-last flat sorting conveyor lines 22 is not less than the width of two side-by-side waste plastic bottles, so as to avoid the two side-by-side waste plastic bottles being stuck when the above situation occurs. Since the waste plastic bottles that fall on the last flat sorting conveyor line 22 have been sorted, the width of the partition bar 222 of the first to the second-to-last flat sorting conveyor lines 22 is greater than the width of the partition bar 222 of the last flat sorting conveyor, making the sorting conveyor channel 22-1 of the last flat sorting conveyor line narrower.

[0052] In order to enable the waste plastic bottles to fall onto the sorting conveyor channel 22-1 as soon as possible after colliding with the partition bar 222 and the guardrail 221, both the left and right sides of the partition bar 222 and the inner side of the guardrail 221 have inclined planes 22-A. The bottom edge of the inclined plane 22-A extends to the sorting conveyor channel 22-1. After the waste plastic bottles collide with the partition bar 222 and the guardrail 221, they will slide down quickly along the inclined plane 22-A, thus reducing the lag time of conveyance.

[0053] In addition, the partition bar 222 of the first to the second-to-last flat sorting conveyor lines 22 extends from the front end of the flat sorting conveyor line 22 to the middle and rear parts. The extension of the length of the partition bar 222 to the middle and rear parts is sufficient to adjust the direction of the waste plastic bottles and can also reduce the length to reduce the self-weight. The partition bar 222 of the last flat sorting conveyor line 22 extends from the front end of the flat sorting conveyor line 22 to the rear end, and together with the narrower sorting conveyor channel 22-1 of the last flat sorting conveyor line 22, it plays a role in keeping the position of the waste plastic bottles.

[0054] The last planar sorting and conveying line 22 is provided with ramp plates 223 on both the left and right sides at the rear end of its sorting and conveying channel 22-1. The bottom edges of the ramp plates 223 extend onto the sorting and conveying channel 22-1. The width between the bottom edges of the two ramp plates 223 is less than the width of the conveying channel and not less than the width of a single waste plastic bottle.

[0055] For the waste plastic bottles dropped from the penultimate planar sorting and conveying line 22, if there are two bottles connected end to end or not in the center position, when they fall onto the last planar sorting and conveying line 22, the waste plastic bottles will collide with the ramp plates 223, causing the first waste plastic bottle to first fall onto the sorting and conveying channel 22-1. Due to the increased conveying speed of this sorting and conveying channel 22-1, it will first carry the first one and convey it backward. At this time, the second sorting and conveying channel 22-1 is still on the penultimate planar sorting and conveying line 22 or still in the process of falling, thus separating the two waste plastic bottles connected end to end.

[0056] Even if the waste plastic bottle is not in the center position before falling, when it falls onto one of the ramp plates 223, it will slide down along the ramp plate 223. Since the width between the two ramp plates 223 is less than the width of the conveying channel, the waste plastic bottle will ultimately be adjusted to the center position of the sorting and conveying channel 22-1. Therefore, after passing through the multi-stage sorting and conveying device 2, the waste plastic bottles will not only be adjusted into an orderly queue in the front-to-back direction with a certain interval but also remain in the center position of the conveying channel, enabling the subsequent identification and classification device 3 to accurately identify and classify them.

[0057] In addition, the front side edge of the ramp plate 223 is an inclined edge, so that the front-to-back length of the ramp plate 223 gradually decreases from top to bottom. Therefore, when the waste plastic bottle falls onto the ramp plate 223, only the middle and rear parts will contact the ramp plate 223, and its front end is suspended. When sliding down along the ramp plate 223, the front end of the waste plastic bottle will first contact the sorting and conveying channel 22-1 and thus be driven forward, so as to quickly separate from between the two ramp plates 223, which can reduce the conveying lag and avoid being rear-ended by the waste plastic bottles behind.

[0058] In this embodiment, two columns are set, with three planar sorting and conveying lines in each column, which are respectively denoted as the first-level planar sorting and conveying line, the second-level planar sorting and conveying line, and the third-level planar sorting and conveying line. The height difference between each level is about 10 cm, and the speed difference is about 0.2 m / s. The number of planar sorting and conveying lines is determined according to actual application requirements and is not limited to three in this embodiment.

[0059] In this embodiment:

[0060] First-level plane sorting conveyor line: the plastic bottles transported by the recycled plastic bottle track sorting device are divided into four sorting conveying channels. Due to the height difference, the discarded plastic bottles will jump, and one end of the discarded plastic bottles will fall onto the sorting conveying channel first. Driven by the sorting conveying channel and blocked by the guardrail and the partition fence, the discarded plastic bottles will rotate a certain angle. Most of the discarded plastic bottles will be adjusted to rotate 90° in the front and back direction.

[0061] Secondary plane finishing conveyor line: Some of the discarded plastic bottles conveyed by the primary conveyor belt are parallel to the left and right or diagonal. Due to the height difference between the primary plane finishing conveyor line and the secondary plane finishing conveyor line, the discarded plastic bottles will fall again, and one of the two parallel discarded plastic bottles will hit the inclined baffle in the middle of the secondary discarded plastic bottles. This discarded plastic bottle will fall later than the other one, and the speed of the secondary discarded plastic bottles is greater than that of the primary discarded plastic bottles. Through the differential speed, the two plastic bottles are sorted front and back and continue to adjust their directions. The directions of some oblique discarded plastic bottles are also adjusted. The discarded plastic bottles passing through the secondary plane finishing conveyor line are basically adjusted to the front and back direction;

[0062] Three-level plane sorting conveyor line: The discarded plastic bottles passing through the two-level plane sorting conveyor line will automatically return to the center position through the touch of the ramp plate of the three-level plane sorting conveyor line. The speed of the three-level plane sorting conveyor line is faster than that of the two-level plane sorting conveyor line, which will further increase the distance between the discarded plastic bottles and complete the final adjustment.

[0063] The identification and classification device 3 includes an identification and classification conveyor line 31 for conveying discarded plastic bottles, an infrared detection camera 32, an identification camera 33, a high-brightness infrared light source 34, and a high-brightness light source 35. The identification camera 33 can be a recognition camera or a plane camera, and the high-brightness infrared light source 34 can be a line scanning infrared camera or an infrared plane camera. The front end of the identification and classification conveyor line 31 is connected to the last plane sorting conveyor line 22, and the rear end is connected to the sorting device 4. Similar to the plane sorting conveyor line 22, the identification and classification conveyor line 31 is provided with guardrails 311 on both sides and at least one partition fence 312 in the middle, which divides the identification and classification conveyor line 31 into multiple side-by-side identification and classification conveying channels 31-1. In this embodiment, two identification and classification conveyor lines 31 are set, and one partition fence 312 of the identification and classification conveyor line 31 is set, forming four identification and classification conveying channels 31-1 connected to the sorting conveying channel 22-1 of the last plane sorting conveyor line 22.

[0064] The partition bars 312 and the guardrails 311 of the identification and classification conveyor line 31 are used to prevent discarded plastic bottles from falling, so they have a certain height. However, after the discarded plastic bottles are identified and classified by the identification and classification device 3, sorting is required, and the relatively high partition bars 312 and guardrails 311 will hinder sorting. Therefore, the guardrails 311 and the partition bars 312 extend from the front end to the middle of the identification and classification conveyor line 31, and blocking bars 313 are arranged on both sides of the identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1 from the middle to the rear end to connect the guardrails 311 and the partition bars 312. The height of the blocking bars 313 is lower than that of the guardrails 311 and the partition bars 312.

[0065] In this embodiment, the identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1 is preferably a chain conveyor. The high-brightness infrared light source 34 is arranged at the front end of each identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1. The high-brightness infrared light source 34 is located below the conveying surface of the identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1 and emits infrared light upward to penetrate and irradiate the discarded plastic bottles. The infrared detection camera 32 is arranged above the front end of the identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1 and is used to photograph the discarded plastic bottles downward. The high-brightness light source 35 is arranged above the middle or the middle and rear parts of the identification and classification conveyor channel 31-1 and emits light downward to illuminate the discarded plastic bottles. The identification camera 33 is arranged above the middle or the middle and rear parts of the identification and classification conveyor line 31 and above the high-brightness light source 35 and is used to photograph the discarded plastic bottles downward. For the convenience of installation, a frame is erected at the identification and classification conveyor line 31, and the infrared detection camera 32, the identification camera 33, and the high-brightness light source 35 are all installed on the frame. The scanning infrared camera is used to detect whether there are sundries in the discarded plastic bottles, and the identification camera 33 is used to identify the final classification of the discarded plastic bottles.

[0066] The specific classification and identification steps are as follows:

[0067] S1: The high-brightness infrared light source 34 penetrates and irradiates the discarded plastic bottles, and the identification camera 33 photographs the discarded plastic bottles to detect whether there are sundries in the discarded plastic bottles. If there are sundries, its final classification is determined; if there are no sundries, go to S2.

[0068] S2: The high-brightness light source 35 irradiates the discarded plastic bottles, and the identification camera 33 photographs the discarded plastic bottles. The taken pictures are compared with the models in the model library for appearance features to determine the final classification of the discarded plastic bottles.

[0069] Among them, the steps for establishing the model library in step S2 include:

[0070] S21: Establish a list of different discarded plastic bottles, classify the discarded plastic bottles, and determine the final classification;

[0071] S22: Collect multiple images of each discarded plastic bottle at different angles and with different degrees of damage;

[0072] S23: Calibrate the different images of each type of waste plastic bottle;

[0073] S24: Perform self - learning on the calibrated images of each type of waste plastic bottle to generate a model.

[0074] In step S21, waste plastic bottles are classified by at least three different attributes, including food - grade or non - food - grade, the type of liquid originally contained in the waste plastic bottle, the material of the waste plastic bottle, and the color of the waste plastic bottle. For example, according to the above three attributes, the following final classifications can be formed: food - grade PET tea beverage juice bottle white (hundreds of raw materials from different manufacturers such as Master Kong tea beverages, Uni - President tea beverages, Minute Maid juice, Aquarius drinks, etc.), food - grade PET carbonated beverage white (hundreds of raw materials from different manufacturers such as Coca - Cola soda, Genki Forest soda sparkling water, Nongfu Spring soda natural water, Pepsi - Cola, etc.), food - grade PET mineral water purified water white (hundreds of raw materials from different manufacturers such as Coca - Cola drinking water, Uni - President mineral water, Master Kong drinking water, Nongfu Spring natural water, etc.), food - grade PET pure blue (such as Danone Pulse, etc.), food - grade PET pure green (such as Sprite, etc.), food - grade PET white - blue (a few carbonated beverage products), food - grade PET variegated (plastic bottles from small manufacturers), food - grade HDPE large white with aluminum mouth (white translucent milk bottles with aluminum seals), food - grade HDPE large white without aluminum mouth (white translucent milk bottles without aluminum seals), food - grade HDPE second white (white opaque milk bottles), non - food - grade HDPE large white (white translucent plastic bottles for daily chemicals), non - food - grade HDPE second white (white opaque plastic bottles for daily chemicals), HDPE variegated (HDPE plastic bottles other than white), PP beverage bottles (plastic bottles from a few manufacturers such as C'estbon purified water, etc.).

[0075] The working principle is as follows:

[0076] Image acquisition: The list of waste plastic bottles needs to contain as many different waste plastic bottles as possible (including carbonated beverages, mineral water, purified water, tea, fruit juice beverages, dairy products, edible oils, etc.). At least 50 samples are collected for each product, and images of the samples of each type of waste plastic bottle are collected (this part only works with the recognition camera 33). Approximately 200 - 400 images of different angles and different degrees of damage are collected for each plastic bottle.

[0077] Raw material (sample) calibration: Classify the collected images by brand and model, number and make information notes for the raw materials of plastic bottles of the same model. Use special calibration software such as the VisionPro® 7.0 system of Cognex ® Corporation, or OpenCV of Shenzhen Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, etc., to outline the plastic bottle body in each picture, and save the outlined plastic bottle body part to a specified folder;

[0078] Deep learning and modeling: Learning and modeling software, such as Baidu's PaddlePaddle or Google's TensorFlow, are installed on a dedicated computer for deep learning. The software imports calibrated sample images for self-learning and model generation. Principle of deep learning: The calibrated images are segmented, sliced, and color-recognized. Through training, a model for a plastic bottle of different models is obtained. Basic process of deep learning: Model building > data preprocessing > training model > result visualization > testing.

[0079] When the image taken by the recognition camera 33 is compared with the model, the compared information includes the brand, model, capacity, appearance, size, trademark, color, presence or absence of bottle cap, barcode, raw material and other information of the discarded plastic bottle.

[0080] In addition, there is a sorting station 42 in the subsequent sorting device 4 that is specifically used to sort out debris in discarded plastic bottles. Therefore, debris detected in step S1 will be directly sorted by the sorting station 42, and only those without debris will be determined in step S2 and then enter other different sorting stations 42 for sorting.

[0081] The sorting device 4 includes a sorting conveyor line 41 for conveying waste plastic bottles, a sorting station 42 arranged along the sorting conveyor line 41, the sorting station 42 includes a sorting collection line 421 arranged crosswise with the sorting conveyor line 41, and a pushing mechanism (not shown in the figure) for conveying the waste plastic bottles on the sorting conveyor line 41 to the sorting collection line 421, and each sorting station 42 corresponds to the final classification of each waste plastic bottle.

[0082] Specifically, the sorting and collecting line 421 is arranged below the sorting conveying line 41, with its front end located on one side of the sorting conveying line 41 for receiving dropped discarded plastic bottles, and the other end extending toward the other side of the sorting conveying line 41. Baffles 4211 are arranged on both sides of the sorting and collecting line 421 to prevent discarded plastic bottles from falling.

[0083] Taking into account that the pushing mechanism is likely to knock waste plastic bottles away when sorting them, bottle falling baffles 422 are provided on both sides of the sorting conveyor line 41. The bottle falling baffles 422 block the waste plastic bottles that fall off from the side of the sorting conveyor line 41 due to the action of the pushing mechanism, so that they fall onto the sorting conveyor line 41.

[0084] The pushing device can be set as a jet structure or a mechanical pushing structure, which belongs to the prior art and will not be described in detail here.

[0085] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, rather than to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or perform equivalent replacements for some of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles, It is characterized in that It comprises a plurality of plane sorting conveyor lines which are connected end to end and are used for conveying discarded plastic bottles; the plurality of plane sorting conveyor lines are arranged in a front-to-back order, and their heights gradually decrease and their conveying speeds gradually increase; guardrails are arranged on both sides of the plane sorting conveyor lines, and at least one dividing fence is arranged in the middle, and the guardrails and the dividing fences divide the conveying surface of the conveying mechanism into a plurality of side-by-side sorting conveying channels; the width of the dividing fences of the first to the second to last plane sorting conveyor lines gradually decreases from back to front; the width of the dividing fence of the last plane sorting conveyor line remains unchanged from back to front; it also comprises a second climbing conveyor line; the second climbing conveyor line and the first plane sorting conveyor line are connected end to end, and the height of the rear end of the second climbing conveyor line is higher than that of the first plane sorting conveyor line.

2. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The second climbing conveyor line is a roller conveyor.

3. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The width of the dividing fence from the first to the second-to-last plane finishing conveyor line shall not be less than the width of two side-by-side discarded plastic bottles; the width of the dividing fence from the first to the second-to-last plane finishing conveyor line shall be greater than the width of the dividing fence of the last plane conveyor.

4. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The left and right side parts of the partition fence and the inner side part of the guardrail both have slope surfaces, and the bottom edges of the slope surfaces extend to the sorting and conveying channel.

5. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The dividing fence from the first to the second to last surface finishing conveyor line extends from the front end to the middle and rear part of the surface finishing conveyor line; the dividing fence from the last surface finishing conveyor line extends from the front end to the rear end of the surface finishing conveyor line.

6. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The last plane sorting conveyor line has ramp plates on both sides of the rear end of the sorting conveying channel, and the bottom edge of the ramp plates extends to the sorting conveying channel; the width between the bottom edges of the two ramp plates is smaller than the width of the conveying channel and is not less than the width of a single discarded plastic bottle.

7. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 6, It is characterized in that The front side of the ramp plate is a beveled side, so that the front and rear lengths of the ramp plate gradually decrease from top to bottom.

8. The multi-stage sorting and conveying device for discarded plastic bottles according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The plane finishing conveyor line is a belt conveyor.

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