Bulk bidding bin for reliable ball tag bidding

Abstract

The present application provides a large-capacity bidding material bin for reliable bidding of spherical labels, which can realize large storage, reliable label output and safe label supplement. The large-capacity bidding material bin comprises a label hopper, which is hollow inside and contains a large number of spherical labels, a flat cuboid containing cover located at the upper part, and an eccentric funnel located at the lower part. The bottom of the eccentric funnel is provided with a label outlet for the spherical labels to fall out, and the diameter of the label outlet is slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical labels. The swinging part effectively disturbs the spherical labels accumulated in the label hopper to avoid self-locking due to dense accumulation, so that the spherical labels enter the label outlet one by one. The swinging part comprises a swinging rod located above the label outlet, with the central axis of the label outlet as the center, and swinging back and forth in the width direction, and a driving unit. The lower part of the swinging rod is in the shape of a flat blade, the lowermost end of the lower part deviates from the central axis of the swinging rod body, and the two side surfaces in the width direction serve as disturbance surfaces. The two disturbance surfaces are asymmetric and are both arc surfaces. The large-capacity bidding material bin further comprises a label input drawer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of Internet of Things (IoT) technology, specifically relating to a large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags. Background Technology

[0002] The Internet of Things (IoT) connects objects to the internet via information sensing devices such as RFID, enabling intelligent identification and management. This achieves integrated management, control, and operation of "everything" in a way that is "efficient, energy-saving, safe, and environmentally friendly." The most commonly used technology in IoT is RFID, which uses wireless radio frequency for non-contact, two-way data communication. It reads and writes data to recording media (electronic tags or RFID cards) to achieve target identification and data exchange.

[0003] Currently, many types of RFID tags are used in various fields, serving the functions of marking items and recording and collecting circulation information. Spherical RFID tags, due to their shape and good mechanical strength, are widely used in the industrial field. However, due to the special structure of spherical RFID tags, storing a large number of tags is wasteful of space, and it is difficult to reliably grasp these tags using hooks, suction cups, etc. For example, currently, spherical tags are generally stored in independent cylindrical silos. The inner diameter of the cylindrical silo is slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical tag, allowing the spherical tags to be arranged in a row from top to bottom. This type of silo stores a relatively small number of tags, and its height is generally quite high, making installation and replacement difficult. Furthermore, the silo is usually replenished by a conveyor belt during operation, which is not only difficult to operate but also poses a significant safety hazard. Therefore, a bidding silo that can achieve large-scale storage, reliable tag dispensing, and safe tag replenishment for spherical IoT tags has become an urgent need. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention was developed to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags, which can realize large-scale storage, reliable bidding, and safe replenishment of bids.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention employs the following solution:

[0006] This invention provides a large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding of spherical tags, characterized by comprising: a tag hopper, hollow inside, for accommodating a large number of spherical tags, including: a flat rectangular receiving cover at the top and an eccentric funnel at the bottom; the width of the receiving cover is more than 20 times the diameter of the spherical tag, and the length is more than 30 times the diameter of the spherical tag; the bottom of the eccentric funnel is provided with a bidding outlet for the spherical tags to fall downwards, the diameter of which is slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical tag; in the length direction, the side of the receiving cover closer to the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the bidding side, and the side of the receiving cover further away from the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the operating side, so that the bidding outlet is closer to the bidding side and farther from the operating side; a swinging part, which effectively disturbs the spherical tags accumulated in the tag hopper to prevent dense stacking and self-locking, allowing the spherical tags to enter the bidding outlet one by one, including: a swinging part located above the bidding outlet and oriented along the central axis of the bidding outlet. The device comprises a swing arm that swings back and forth in the width direction with the line as the center, and a drive unit that drives the swing arm to swing. The lower part of the swing arm is flat and leaf-shaped, with the bottommost point of the lower part deviating from the central axis of the swing arm body. The two sides in the width direction serve as disturbance surfaces, which are asymmetrical and both are curved surfaces. The closest distance from the bottommost point of the lower part to the inner wall of the label hopper or the label outlet is less than the diameter of a spherical label. The thickness of the bottommost point of the lower part is slightly less than the diameter of the label outlet but greater than the diameter of the spherical label. The device also includes a label inlet drawer, located on the operating side of the receiving cover, which can be pulled out from the operating side to fill with spherical labels and then pushed back to its original position to replenish the filled spherical labels into the label hopper. The label inlet drawer includes: an operating outer wall located outside the operating side for pulling the label inlet drawer, a drawer body extending from the operating outer wall into the label hopper with a downwardly inclined bottom plate for filling with spherical labels upward and pouring downward, and a pouring opening on the drawer body.

[0007] The beneficial effects of the above scheme are:

[0008] Because of its structure, the label hopper can hold a large number (thousands) of spherical labels. The eccentric funnel shape keeps the label outlet away from the label inlet (label drawer), reducing the accumulation of spherical labels near the inlet and allowing more labels to enter the hopper more easily during relabeling. Furthermore, the label outlet is usually close to the conveyor belt and works with the mechanical bidding structure to dispense the labels, while the label drawer is usually manually operated. This separation of the mechanical movement area and the manual operation area enhances system stability and the safety of manual label replenishment. In addition, the eccentric funnel structure results in a steeper slope near the label outlet on the side furthest from the inlet, facilitating the natural falling of labels from areas with a large accumulation of spherical labels. It also prevents the slopes on both sides of the label outlet from being the same, reducing the risk of self-locking of spherical labels during dense stacking. By using a hopper, the feeding process for spherical labels can be simplified. Labels can simply be placed into the large hopper. Compared to the cylindrical hoppers commonly used in some existing technologies, where each hopper stores a row of labels in an orderly manner, the hopper greatly simplifies the filling process, speeds up the filling rate, and allows for large-scale label filling. The label hopper, which can hold a large number of labels, can perform long bidding processes without frequently running empty. It also reduces the frequency of manual operation and intervention during the bidding process, improving operational safety and stability.

[0009] The swing unit works in conjunction with the label hopper, and the swing arm directly above the label outlet is shaped like a flat leaf. The lower part of the swing arm has an asymmetrical flat leaf arc surface. The shortest distance from the bottom of the bottom part to the inner wall of the label hopper or the label outlet is less than the diameter of a spherical label. The thickness of the bottom part is slightly less than the diameter of the label outlet but greater than the diameter of the spherical label. The swing arm can swing back and forth in the width direction. In this way, the spherical labels above the label outlet can be effectively disturbed, avoiding the self-locking of the labels due to dense accumulation. At the same time, when sweeping across the label outlet, the spherical labels at the lowest point of the entire hopper—above the label outlet—are temporarily cleared, allowing the spherical labels to fall smoothly into the label outlet under the action of gravity. Furthermore, the special structural design of the swing unit can reduce the wear on the spherical labels during swing, thereby reducing the breakage of the spherical labels caused by the swing arm. On the other hand, it also reduces the resistance during swing. Even under the condition of a large number of labels densely piled up, the labels can be pushed to the side rather than being moved over a large area by the whole. The thickness of the tip of the swing arm is slightly smaller than the diameter of the outlet but larger than the diameter of the spherical label. This prevents the tip, which is too large and close to the hopper wall, from crushing the spherical label that falls into the edge of the outlet. At the same time, it also ensures that the spherical label directly above the outlet is effectively removed.

[0010] like Figure 4As shown, the asymmetrical shape of the lower two sides of the swing arm avoids the probability of bad spots or dead spots during left-right swinging. Specifically, in a densely packed spherical label hopper, the swing arm might fail to rotate because the bidirectional support forces F1 and F2 formed by the spherical label's position with the swing arm and hopper wall, and the frictional forces F3 and F4 formed by the spherical label's position with the swing arm and hopper wall respectively, reach mechanical equilibrium. The different structures on both sides reduce the probability of bad spots or dead spots forming on the effective wall surface when the swing arm swings to a symmetrical position. This also means that even if the rotating cylinder maintains the same swing torque output, the difference in the shape of the swing arm's front end will result in significant differences in the force exerted on the spherical label, eliminating the possibility of bad spots or dead spots during the return swing disturbance.

[0011] The labeling process involves pulling out the label tray from the operating side, filling it with spherical labels, and then pushing the spherical labels into the feed tray before adding them to the hopper. This effectively lowers the labeling operation height and keeps it as far away as possible from dangerous mechanical movement areas such as the bidding side and the conveyor belt for bidding. It also prevents easily rolling spherical labels from rolling around and spilling, thus reducing label waste.

[0012] Preferably, the large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags involved in this invention may also have the following feature: if the distance from the centerline of the bidding outlet to the bidding side is L1, and the distance from the centerline of the bidding outlet to the operating side is L2, then L1:L2 = 1:1.5~3. This structure is more conducive to keeping the bidding outlet away from the bidding tray, better ensuring the safety of operation, and at the same time, it is more conducive to reliable bidding and ensuring operational stability.

[0013] Preferably, the large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to the present invention may also have the following feature: the inclination angle θ1 of the eccentric funnel from the bidding outlet to the bidding side is 25° to 40°, and the inclination angle θ2 of the eccentric funnel from the bidding outlet to the operating side is 15° to 20° smaller than θ1. This ensures that the slope near the bidding outlet on the side away from the feed drawer is sufficiently large, and the difference in the inclination angle between the two sides of the bidding outlet is more appropriate, thus better facilitating the self-locking mechanism that avoids dense accumulation of spherical tags.

[0014] Preferably, in the large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags involved in this invention, it may also have the following characteristics: the lowest point of the swing arm is offset from the central axis of the swing arm body by 0.5 to 1.5 times the ball diameter; the angles between the tangents of the two disturbance surfaces and the lowest point are 40° to 50° for one angle θ4 and 10° to 15° larger for the other angle θ3 than θ4. This asymmetrical design allows the swing arm to more effectively disturb the stacked spherical tags, avoiding self-locking and ineffective swinging, and eliminating bad spots and dead spots.

[0015] Preferably, the large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding of spherical tags involved in this invention may also have the following characteristics: the maximum swing angle of the swing arm is ±30°, the amplitude is 60°, and the swing frequency is 2 to 5 times faster than the bidding frequency (for example, if a spherical tag needs to be thrown every 10 seconds, the swing arm swings once every 2 to 5 seconds). This is more conducive to forming effective disturbance, avoiding self-locking ball jamming caused by dense accumulation, and allowing the spherical tag to fall more smoothly into the bidding outlet under the action of gravity. At the same time, it avoids excessive disturbance causing wear of the spherical tag and avoids excessive disturbance causing the tag to be excessively lifted, resulting in a large amount of lifting space remaining in the tag hopper, which cannot effectively accommodate more tags.

[0016] Preferably, in the large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to the present invention, it may also have the following characteristics: the length ratio of the upper and lower parts of the swing arm is 2:1, the length of the region in the lower part with a thickness less than the diameter of the bidding outlet accounts for 1 / 3 of the total length of the lower part, and the length of the region with a thickness greater than the diameter of the bidding outlet accounts for more than 1 / 2 of the total length of the lower part. The region with a thickness greater than the diameter of the bidding outlet can, under the condition of ensuring the rigidity and strength of the swing arm structure, and in conjunction with the leaf-shaped swing arm shape, effectively disperse the swing force on the tip of the swing arm, form a relatively small torque, reduce the wear of the drive unit that drives the swing arm to rotate, and improve the operational stability.

[0017] Preferably, in the large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding of spherical tags involved in this invention, the following feature is also included: during the swinging process, the shortest distance from the lower part of the swing arm to the side wall of the tag hopper should be less than 3 / 4 of the ball diameter, and the shortest distance from the swing arm to the outlet should also be less than 3 / 4 of the ball diameter. This setting can effectively prevent the occurrence of dead spots and imperfections on the wall surface, and can also effectively push the spherical tags into the outlet when the material is relatively small. When the outlet channel is full of balls, the tags can be continuously accumulated to the outlet through continuous left and right swinging, avoiding self-locking.

[0018] Preferably, the large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to the present invention may also have the following features: the drawer body includes an upper baffle, a bottom plate, and two side plates in the width direction; the side of the drawer body adjacent to the bidding side forms a tilting opening; the inner and outer surfaces of the bottom plate are both inclined downwards, with an inclination angle 6° to 12° greater than θ2; the lower end of the tilting opening is provided with a hook that matches the drawer outlet on the operating side of the receiving cover; when filling is required, the drawer body is pulled outwards from the drawer outlet through the operating outer wall and downwards... Rotate clockwise so that the pouring spout is positioned below and outside the drawer outlet, facing upwards, with the claws hooked onto the side wall of the label hopper. After filling, rotate the drawer body upwards (counter-clockwise) by operating the outer wall and push it into the label hopper from the drawer outlet. The spherical labels slide into the label hopper along the inclined bottom plate of the drawer body under gravity, thus completing the label replenishment operation. During the pulling and pushing process, the distance between the claws and the lower wall of the label hopper is always less than the diameter of the ball, and the distance between the upper baffle and the upper wall of the label hopper is also always less than the diameter of the ball. This design ensures that the label filling operation is fast and efficient, while preventing the spherical labels from getting stuck between the feed drawer and the hopper, affecting the normal pulling and pushing of the feed drawer. Furthermore, during the pushing process of the feed drawer, the spherical labels can be further pushed into the hopper.

[0019] Preferably, the large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding with spherical tags according to the present invention may further include: an empty hopper detection unit, installed on the side wall of the bidding side of the receiving cover, to detect whether there are spherical tags from the installation point to the bidding outlet. This structure allows for timely replenishment of tags when the hopper is empty.

[0020] Furthermore, the large-capacity bidding hopper for reliable bidding with spherical tags according to the present invention may further include: a bidding channel located below the bidding outlet, connected to the bidding outlet, and extending downward, with an inner diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical tag; a channel detection unit located on the outer periphery of the upper part of the bidding channel to detect whether there is a spherical tag at the upper position of the bidding channel; and a judgment unit that is communicatively connected to both the empty hopper detection unit and the channel detection unit. If the channel detection unit detects no spherical tag at the upper part and the empty hopper detection unit detects no spherical tag at the bidding outlet, it is judged that the tag hopper is empty and needs to be re-labeled; if the channel detection unit detects a spherical tag, but the empty hopper detection unit detects a spherical tag at the bidding outlet, it is judged that the bidding is abnormal, and there are remaining spherical tags in the tag hopper, but they cannot enter the bidding channel, thus issuing a bidding error alarm. This design is intended to enable effective, reliable, and accurate inspection of three states—empty material, incorrect material, and normal bidding—in extreme situations (such as when an operator mistakenly puts a damaged label into the hopper, causing the ball to jam or the label outlet to be blocked, or when an operator mistakenly puts other non-labeled items into the hopper, causing the ball to jam or the label outlet to be blocked). This achieves automated control and alarm effects. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a structural schematic diagram of a large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding using spherical tags, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding with spherical tags, according to an embodiment of the present invention, after the spherical tags are contained.

[0023] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 A side view from direction A;

[0024] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the swing trajectory of the pendulum rod according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the pendulum rod according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram illustrating how a swing arm can become unable to rotate due to defects or dead spots during its swinging process, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the use of a label-filling drawer for label filling according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the bidding machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the bidding disk involved in an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0030] The following detailed description of the large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags, as described in the present invention, is provided with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] <Example>

[0032] like Figure 1 and 2 As shown, the large-capacity bidding hopper 10 for reliable bidding of spherical tags includes a tag hopper 11, a swinging part 12, a bid inlet drawer 13, a bid outlet channel 14, an empty hopper detection part 15, a channel detection part 16, and a judgment part (not shown in the figure).

[0033] The label hopper 11 is hollow inside and can hold 8,000 spherical labels B in this embodiment. The label hopper 11 includes a receiving cover 111 and an eccentric funnel 112.

[0034] The receiving cover 111 is located above the label hopper 11, and is a flat rectangular parallelepiped. Its width is 35 times the diameter of the spherical label B, its length is 50 times the diameter of the spherical label, and its height is 7.5 times the diameter of the spherical label. In the longitudinal direction, the side of the receiving cover 111 closest to the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the bidding side, located within the mechanical movement area. The side of the receiving cover 111 furthest from the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the operating side, located away from the mechanical movement area (the area where the operating mechanical structure and the conveyor belt are located). The receiving cover 111 has an upper cover plate and four side plates around its perimeter, with a drawer outlet opened on the side plate on the bidding side.

[0035] An eccentric funnel 112 is located at the bottom and communicates with the receiving cover 111. It extends downwards from the lower edge of the receiving cover 111 and has a dispensing port 112a at its bottom for the spherical label B to fall downwards. The diameter of the dispensing port 112a is slightly larger than (larger than one sphere diameter, but not exceeding 1.5 sphere diameters) the diameter of the spherical label B. In this embodiment, the diameter of the dispensing port 112a is 1.2 times the sphere diameter. The dispensing port 112a is closer to the bidding side and farther from the operating side. Let L1 be the distance from the central axis of the dispensing port 112a to the bidding side, and L2 be the distance from the central axis of the dispensing port 112a to the operating side, then L1:L2 = 1:2. The eccentric funnel 112 has an inclination angle θ1 (angle with the length direction) of sloping surface X1 from the outlet 112a to the bidding side, and an inclination angle θ2 (angle with the length direction) of sloping surface X2 from the outlet 112a to the operating side, which is 20°. The depth (maximum vertical height) of the eccentric funnel 112 is 6 times the diameter of the sphere.

[0036] like Figures 1-3 As shown, the swing unit 12 is used to effectively disturb the spherical labels B piled up in the label hopper 11, preventing them from being densely packed and forming a self-locking mechanism, and allowing the spherical labels B to smoothly enter the label outlet 112a one by one. The swing unit 12 includes a rotating shaft 121, a swing rod 122, and a drive unit.

[0037] The rotating shaft 121 is rotatably mounted on the label hopper 11 via a mounting component, with the rotating end extending into the receiving cover 111.

[0038] The swing arm 122 is located directly above the nozzle 112a and swings back and forth in the width direction with the central axis of the nozzle 112a as the center. The upper end of the swing arm 122 is detachably and fixedly connected to the rotating end of the rotating shaft 121. Figures 3-5As shown, the lower part (front end) of the swing arm 122 is an asymmetrical flat leaf shape, with all contours rounded. The bottommost point of the lower part deviates from the central axis of the main body of the swing arm 122. The two sides in the width direction serve as disturbance surfaces, which are asymmetrical and both are curved surfaces. The closest distance from the bottommost point of the lower part to the inner wall of the label hopper 11 or the label outlet 112a is less than the diameter of a spherical label B. The thickness of the bottommost point of the lower part is slightly less than the diameter of the label outlet 112a but greater than the diameter of the spherical label B. In this embodiment, the maximum swing angle of the swing arm 122 is ±30°, the amplitude is 60°, it swings back and forth once every 2-3 seconds, and bids once every 10 seconds. Figure 5 As shown, the bottommost point of the swing arm 122 deviates from the central axis of the main body of the swing arm 122 by 0.5 to 1.5 times the ball diameter; the angles between the tangents of the two disturbance surfaces and the bottommost point of the swing arm 122 are 45° for one angle θ4 and 60° for the other angle θ3. The ratio of the upper to lower length of the swing arm 122 is 2:1. The thickness of the lower part gradually decreases from top to bottom. The length of the region in the lower part whose thickness is less than the diameter of the label outlet 112a accounts for 1 / 3 of the total length of the lower part, and the length of the region whose thickness is greater than the diameter of the label outlet 112a accounts for more than 1 / 2 of the total length of the lower part. During the swinging process, the shortest distance from any point on the lower part of the swing arm 122 to the side wall of the label hopper 11 should be less than 3 / 4 of the ball diameter but greater than 1 / 5 of the ball diameter, and the shortest distance from the label outlet 112a should also be less than 3 / 4 of the ball diameter but greater than 1 / 2 of the ball diameter.

[0039] The drive unit is connected to the rotating shaft 121 and is used to drive the swing arm 122 to swing back and forth by driving the rotating shaft 121.

[0040] The aforementioned design of the swing arm 122 reduces wear on the spherical label B during swinging, thus reducing the risk of breakage due to the swing arm 122. It also reduces resistance during swinging, allowing the labels to be pushed laterally rather than being moved over a large area while still being densely packed together. Furthermore, as... Figure 6As shown, the asymmetric disturbance surface of the swing arm 122 can avoid the probability of bad spots and dead spots during left and right swings. That is, in the densely packed spherical label B hopper, during left and right swings, the bidirectional support forces F1 and F2 formed by the spherical label B at its exact position with the swing arm 122 and the hopper wall, and the frictional forces F3 and F4 formed by the spherical label B, the swing arm 122 and the hopper wall respectively, may reach mechanical equilibrium, causing the swing arm 122 to be unable to rotate. The different structures on both sides, after encountering bad spots and dead spots, also reduce the probability of bad spots and dead spots forming on the effective wall surface when the swing arm 122 swings to a symmetrical position. This also means that even if the rotating cylinder maintains the same swing torque output, the force on the spherical label B will be significantly different due to the difference in the shape of the front end of the swing arm 122. The possibility of bad spots and dead spots is eliminated under the swing disturbance.

[0041] like Figure 7 As shown, the label feeder 13 is located on the operating side of the receiving cover 111. It can be pulled out from the drawer outlet on the operating side to fill with spherical labels B and then pushed back into its original position to replenish the filled spherical labels B into the label hopper 11. In this embodiment, the internal space of the label feeder 13 has a width 17 times the diameter of the spherical label B, a length 14 times the diameter of the spherical label B, and a height 6.5 times the diameter of the spherical label B. The label feeder 13 includes an operating outer wall 131, a drawer body 132, a pouring spout 133, and a hanging claw 134.

[0042] The operating outer wall 131 is located outside the operating side and is used to pull the label drawer 13 in. In this embodiment, the operating outer wall 131 is an operating plate with a concave push-pull handle, and when the label drawer 13 is in its original position, the operating plate can block the drawer outlet.

[0043] The drawer body 132 extends from the operating outer wall 131 into the drawer outlet and into the label hopper 11, for loading spherical labels B upwards and tilting them downwards. The drawer body 132 includes an upper baffle, a bottom plate, and two side plates in the width direction. The inner and outer surfaces of the bottom plate are both inclined downwards, with an inclination angle 6° to 12° greater than θ2.

[0044] The side of the drawer body 132 adjacent to the bidding side is not equipped with a baffle, thus forming a tipping opening 133.

[0045] The lower end of the pouring opening 133 is provided with a hook 134 that matches the drawer outlet on the operating side of the receiving cover 111. The hook 134 extends vertically downward from the lower end of the pouring opening 133 and then extends horizontally towards the side panel on the operating side to form an L-shape.

[0046] When it is necessary to fill the spherical label B, the drawer body 132 is pulled out from the drawer outlet by operating the outer wall 131 and rotated downward (clockwise) so that the drawer body 132 is located below the outside of the drawer outlet with the pouring opening 133 facing upward and the hanging claw 134 hanging on the lower edge of the drawer outlet. After filling, the drawer body 132 is rotated upward (counterclockwise) by operating the outer wall 131 and pushed into the label hopper 11 from the drawer outlet. Under the action of gravity, the spherical label B slides into the label hopper 11 along the inclined surface of the bottom plate, thus completing the label replenishment operation. During the pulling and pushing process, the distance between the hanging claw 134 and the lower wall of the label hopper 11 is always less than the diameter of the ball, and the distance between the upper baffle and the upper wall of the label hopper 11 is also always less than the diameter of the ball. This not only effectively avoids the ball getting stuck, but also allows the spherical label B to be fed inward.

[0047] like Figure 8 As shown, the bidding channel 14 is located below the bidding outlet 112a, connected to the bidding outlet 112a, and extends downwards, with an inner diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the ball. Under normal bidding conditions, the bidding channel 14 is always filled with spherical labels B, which are arranged one by one from top to bottom.

[0048] like Figure 1 As shown, the empty compartment detection unit 15 is installed on the side wall of the receiving cover 111 on the bidding side, and detects whether there is a spherical label B from the installation point to the bidding outlet 112a. In this embodiment, the empty compartment detection unit 15 is a distance sensor, facing the bidding channel 14, and can detect the straight-line distance G between it and the bidding outlet 112a. Since this line direction is not on the same plane as the swing of the swing rod 122, it is not affected by the swing of the swing rod 122. Figure 1 When the label hopper 11 is empty (without containing spherical labels B), let the distance (shown by the dashed line) between spherical label B and the midpoint of the label outlet 112a be L3. Then, in the empty case, G ≥ L3. Figure 2 If there is a spherical label B in the label hopper 11 shown, then G < L3.

[0049] A channel detection unit 16 is disposed on the outer periphery of the upper part of the dispensing channel 14 to detect whether there is a spherical tag B at the upper position of the dispensing channel 14. In this embodiment, the channel detection unit 16 is a photoelectric sensor. A light inlet hole and an outlet hole are provided on the upper side wall of the dispensing channel 14. The photoelectric sensor emits a light beam from the light inlet hole toward the outlet hole. If the outlet hole receives the light beam, it indicates that there is no spherical tag B at that position, and the dispensing channel 14 is not full of spherical tags B. In this embodiment, the distance from the channel detection unit 16 to the dispensing port 112a is 2.5 times the diameter of the sphere.

[0050] The judgment unit is communicatively connected to both the empty hopper detection unit 15 and the channel detection unit 16. If the channel detection unit 16 detects no spherical label B at the top, and the empty hopper detection unit 15 detects no spherical label B at the label outlet 112a, it is judged that the label hopper 11 is empty, the labels are used up, and relabeling is needed. If the channel detection unit 16 detects spherical label B, but the empty hopper detection unit 15 detects spherical label B at the label outlet 112a, it is judged as a label dispensing anomaly. There are remaining spherical labels B in the label hopper 11, but they cannot enter the label dispensing channel 14, triggering a label dispensing error alarm. Possible causes of label dispensing anomalies include: the operator mistakenly loading a damaged label into the hopper, causing ball jamming or blockage of the label outlet; or mistakenly loading other non-label items into the hopper, causing ball jamming or blockage of the label outlet. When there is a spherical label B in the label hopper 11 and the spherical label B is being dispensed normally, the distance detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is less than the longest straight-line distance detected under empty conditions because the ball in the hopper is blocking it, i.e., G < L3, and the label dispensing channel 14 always has a ball in it.

[0051] When there are spherical tags B in the tag hopper 11 and the spherical tags B are being dispensed normally, the distance detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is less than the longest straight-line distance detected under empty conditions due to the obstruction of the spherical tags in the hopper, i.e., G < L3, and the tag dispensing channel 14 always contains spherical tags. When the channel detection unit 16 detects no spherical tags and the distance G detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is greater than or equal to L3, it is determined that the tag hopper 11 is empty because there are no spherical tags in the hopper, the tags are used up, and relabeling is required; if the channel detection unit 16 detects no spherical tags and the distance G detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is less than L3, it is possible that the spherical tags are blocked or stuck, and there are actually remaining spherical tags B in the hopper, but they cannot enter the tag dispensing channel 14. Through the simple detection of the empty hopper detection unit 15 (distance sensor) and the channel detection unit 16 (photoelectric sensor), effective, reliable, and accurate inspection of the three states of empty hopper, error, and normal tag dispensing can be achieved, realizing the effect of automated control and alarm.

[0052] like Figure 8 As shown, the large-capacity bidding hopper 10 is used in a fully enclosed bidding machine 20. The bidding machine 20 includes a large-capacity bidding hopper 10, a transparent shell 21, a bidding plate 22, a rotary motor 23, a lower baffle plate 24, a bidding reader 25, a bidding bend 26, and a controller 27.

[0053] The large-capacity bidding silo 10 mentioned above can have a transparent structure for its housing 111, bidding drawer 13, bidding channel 14, and channel detection unit 16.

[0054] The transparent shell 21 and the large-capacity bidding hopper 10 together form a fully enclosed transparent structure. Inside the transparent shell 21 are installed a bidding plate 22, a rotary motor 23, a lower baffle 24, a bidding reader 25, a bidding bend 26, and a controller 27.

[0055] like Figure 8 and 9 As shown, the bidding tray 22 is housed within the transparent casing 21, located below the exit of the bidding channel 14, and the distance between it and the exit of the bidding channel 14 is less than half the diameter of the spherical label B. The bidding tray 22 has a through hole 22a at each of its radially upward ends, the diameter of each through hole 22a being slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical label B, capable of accommodating one spherical label B. When one through hole 22a is directly below the exit of the bidding channel 14 (in the receiving position), the other through hole 22a is directly above the bidding bend 26 (in the bidding position).

[0056] A rotary motor 22 is installed inside a transparent housing 21 to drive the bidding disk 21 to rotate, thereby continuously moving the spherical label B from the receiving position to the bidding position.

[0057] The lower baffle 24 is located below the bidding disk 22 and is used to block the area traversed by the lower through hole 22a of the bidding disk 22 during its rotation. A left-right movable baffle 24a is provided on the lower baffle 24 directly above the bidding curve 26. When the baffle 24a moves to the left (towards the bidding side), it allows the through hole 22a in the bidding position to connect with the entrance of the bidding curve 26, causing the spherical label B inside the through hole 22a to fall into the bidding curve 26; when the baffle 24a moves to the right (towards the operating side), it allows the through hole 22a in the bidding position to connect with the entrance of the bidding curve 26, allowing the spherical label B inside the through hole 22a to fall into the bidding curve 26. Figure 8 (As shown) can block the bottom of the through hole 22a at the bidding position, so that the spherical label B inside the through hole 22a stays in the through hole 22a.

[0058] The tag reader 25 is used to read the information of the spherical tag B that is stuck in the through hole 22a of the bidding position and send it to the controller 27 for storage.

[0059] The bidding bend 26 starts below the lower baffle 24 of the bidding position and extends downwards and in the direction of the bidding side plane to the bidding opening 21b on the side wall of the transparent shell 21. The entrance of the bidding bend 26 is opposite to the through hole 22a at the bidding position, and the exit is located above the bidding area of ​​the conveyor belt. The horizontal distance between the exit and the entrance is 5 to 10 ball diameters.

[0060] The controller 27 is installed on the operating side of the transparent housing 21 and is communicatively connected to the rotary motor 22, the baffle 24a, the label reader 25, and the swing part 12, the empty hopper detection part 15, the channel detection part 16, and the judgment part in the large-capacity bidding hopper 10, and controls their operation.

[0061] The above describes the specific structure of the large-capacity bidding silo 10 provided in this embodiment and its application in the bidding machine 20. Based on this, the working process of the large-capacity bidding silo 10 is as follows:

[0062] First, before the bidding begins (when most of the mechanical structures and conveyor belts are not yet running), the bid tray 13 is pulled out from the drawer outlet on the operating side and rotated downwards. Then, spherical labels B are batch-filled into the drawer body 132 through the pouring port 133 (in this embodiment, thousands can be filled at once). After filling, the bid tray 13 is rotated upwards and pushed into the label hopper 11 from the drawer outlet, so that all the spherical labels B filled in the drawer body 132 are poured out from the pouring port 133 into the label hopper 11. The above operation is repeated multiple times until the label hopper 11 contains enough spherical labels B required for a long bidding period (e.g., 5,000 to 8,000).

[0063] During the above process, the swing unit 12 is activated to effectively disturb the spherical labels B piled up in the label hopper 11. The spherical labels B that have entered the label hopper 11 continuously fall into the bid outlet 112a and are stacked in the bid outlet channel 14, ready to bid.

[0064] After the label hopper 11 has held a large number of spherical labels B required for a long bidding period, the mechanical structure and conveyor belt (which carries the coal material to be bid on) are activated to begin the bidding process.

[0065] During the bidding process, the swing unit 12 continuously disturbs the spherical labels B piled up in the label hopper 11 to prevent dense stacking and self-locking, and to ensure that the spherical labels B can smoothly enter the bidding outlet 112a one by one. At the same time, the empty hopper detection unit 15, the channel detection unit 16, and the judgment unit judge the bidding situation.

[0066] When the distance G detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is less than L3, and the dispensing channel 14 always contains balls, the judgment unit determines that the dispensing is normal. When the distance G detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is greater than or equal to L3, and the channel detection unit 16 detects no balls, the judgment unit determines that the label hopper 11 is empty, the labels are used up, and re-labeling is required, and issues a re-labeling alarm to prompt the operator to perform re-labeling. In extreme cases, when the distance G detected by the empty hopper detection unit 15 is less than L3, and the channel detection unit 16 detects no balls, the judgment unit determines that the balls are blocked or stuck and cannot enter the dispensing channel 14, and issues a dispensing abnormality alarm to prompt the operator to check and troubleshoot the abnormality.

[0067] If it is determined that additional labels are needed, the operator, in a safe area far from the mechanical structure's movement area, pulls the label tray 13 outward from the tray outlet on the operating side and rotates it downward. Then, through the pouring port 133, spherical labels B are batch-filled into the tray body 132. After filling, the label tray 13 is rotated upward and pushed into the label hopper 11 from the tray outlet, so that all the spherical labels B filled in the tray body 132 are poured out from the pouring port 133 into the label hopper 11. The above operation is repeated multiple times until the label hopper 11 contains enough spherical labels B required for long-term bidding.

[0068] The above is merely an illustrative example of the technical solution of this invention. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding with spherical tags involved in this invention is not limited to the structure described above, but is defined by the scope of the claims. Any modifications, additions, or equivalent substitutions made by those skilled in the art based on this invention are within the scope of protection claimed in the claims of this invention.

Claims

1. A large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding using spherical tags, characterized in that, include: The label hopper is hollow inside and accommodates a large number of spherical labels. It includes a flat rectangular receiving cover at the top and an eccentric funnel at the bottom. The width of the receiving cover is more than 20 times the diameter of the spherical label, and the length is more than 30 times the diameter of the label. The bottom of the eccentric funnel has a label outlet that allows the spherical labels to fall downwards. The diameter of the label outlet is slightly larger than the diameter of the spherical label. In the length direction, the side of the receiving cover closer to the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the bidding side, and the side of the receiving cover farther from the conveyor belt to be bid on is designated as the operating side. In this case, the label outlet is closer to the bidding side and farther from the operating side. The swinging part effectively disturbs the spherical labels piled up in the label hopper, preventing them from densely packed and self-locking, and allowing the spherical labels to enter the label outlet one by one. It includes: a swing arm located above the label outlet, swinging back and forth in the width direction around the central axis of the label outlet, and a drive unit that drives the swing arm to swing; the lower part of the swing arm is flat and leaf-shaped, with the bottommost point offset from the central axis of the swing arm body; its two sides in the width direction serve as disturbance surfaces, which are asymmetrical and both are curved; the closest distance from the bottommost point of the lower part to the inner wall of the label hopper or the label outlet is less than the diameter of one spherical label; the thickness of the bottommost point of the lower part is slightly less than the diameter of the label outlet but greater than the diameter of the spherical label; and A label feeder, located on the operating side of the receiving cover, can be pulled out from the operating side to fill the spherical labels and then pushed back to its original position to replenish the filled spherical labels into the label hopper; the label feeder includes: an operating outer wall located outside the operating side for pulling the label feeder out, a drawer body extending from the operating outer wall into the label hopper with a downwardly inclined bottom plate for filling the spherical labels upward and pouring them downward, and a pouring opening on the drawer body.

2. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: Among them, let The distance from the centerline of the bidding outlet to the bidding side is L1, and the distance from the centerline of the bidding outlet to the operating side is L2. Then L1:L2 = 1:1.5~3.

3. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, The eccentric funnel has an inclination angle θ1 of 25° to 40° from the outlet to the bidding side, and an inclination angle θ2 of 15° to 20° smaller than θ1 from the outlet to the operating side.

4. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, The bottommost part of the swing arm is offset from the central axis of the swing arm body by 0.5 to 1.5 ball diameters; The angles between the tangents of the two disturbance surfaces and the bottommost part of the pendulum rod are as follows: one angle θ4 is 40° to 50°, and the other angle θ3 is 10° to 15° larger than θ4.

5. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, The maximum swing angle of the swing arm is ±30°, the amplitude is 60°, and the swing frequency is 2 to 5 times faster than the bidding frequency.

6. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, The length ratio of the upper and lower parts of the swing arm is 2:

1. The thickness of the lower part gradually decreases from top to bottom. The length of the area in the lower part whose thickness is less than the diameter of the outlet is 1 / 3 of the total length of the lower part, and the length of the area whose thickness is greater than the diameter of the outlet is more than 1 / 2 of the total length of the lower part.

7. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, During the swinging process, the shortest distance from the lower part of the swing arm to the side wall of the label hopper should be less than 3 / 4 of the diameter of the ball, and the shortest distance from the label outlet should also be less than 3 / 4 of the diameter of the ball.

8. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding with spherical tags as described in claim 1. Its features are: The drawer body includes an upper baffle, a bottom plate, and two side plates in the width direction. The side of the drawer body adjacent to the bidding side forms the tilting opening. The inner and outer surfaces of the bottom plate are both inclined downwards, with an inclination angle 6° to 12° greater than θ2. The lower end of the pouring port is provided with a hook that matches the drawer outlet on the operating side of the receiving cover. When filling is required, the drawer body is pulled out from the drawer outlet through the operating outer wall and rotated downward so that the pouring port is located below the drawer outlet with the opening facing upward, and the hook hangs on the lower edge of the drawer outlet. After filling, the drawer body is rotated upward through the operating outer wall and pushed into the label hopper from the drawer outlet. The spherical label slides into the label hopper along the inclined surface of the bottom plate under the action of gravity, thereby completing the label replenishment operation. During the pulling and pushing process, the distance between the hook and the lower wall of the label hopper is always less than the diameter of the ball, and the distance between the upper baffle and the upper wall of the label hopper is also always less than the diameter of the ball.

9. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: An empty compartment detection unit is installed on the side wall of the bid-side of the receiving cover to detect whether the spherical label exists from the installation point to the bid outlet.

10. The large-capacity bidding silo for reliable bidding of spherical tags according to claim 9, characterized in that, Also includes: The dispensing channel is located below the dispensing port, connected to the dispensing port, and extends downwards, with an inner diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the ball; A channel detection unit is located on the outer periphery of the upper part of the bidding channel to detect whether the spherical label is present at the upper position of the bidding channel; The judgment unit is communicatively connected to both the empty hopper detection unit and the channel detection unit. If the channel detection unit detects that there is no spherical label at the top and the empty hopper detection unit detects that there is no spherical label at the label outlet, it is judged that the label hopper is empty and needs to be relabeled. If the channel detection unit detects that there is a spherical label, but the empty hopper detection unit detects that there is a spherical label at the label outlet, it is judged that there is a label dispensing error, and there are remaining spherical labels in the label hopper, but they cannot enter the label dispensing channel, and a label dispensing error alarm is issued.

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